On April 7, 1969, Bill Singer of the Los Angeles Dodgers earns the first official save in history. Making his only relief appearance of the season, Singer finishes off Don Drysdale’s 3-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Thanks to the efforts of sportswriter Jerome Holtzman, the save had become an official statistic during the off-season…
On April 7, 1969, Ted Williams makes his managerial debut for the Washington Senators. Williams loses his first game to the New York Yankees, 8-4, on Opening Day at RFK Stadium. Williams will manage the Senators for three seasons, before moving with the team to Texas in 1972.
April 3, 1969, first baseman Donn Clendenon ends his retirement and reports to the Montreal Expos. Clendenon will eventually be traded twice during the season, first Clendenon refuses to report to his new team after being traded, along with Jesus Alou to the Astros; the Expos resign their reluctant first baseman. Montreal will send Jack…
On April 1, 1969, the Seattle Pilots trade little-known minor league outfielder Lou Piniella to the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Steve Whitaker and pitcher John Gelnar. Piniella will hit .282 with 11 home runs and 68 RBIs-good enough to win American League Rookie of the Year honors…
1969 – The St. Louis Cardinals trade former National League MVP Orlando Cepeda to the Atlanta Braves for catcher/first baseman Joe Torre. The trade will benefit both teams; Cepeda will help the Braves make the playoffs this year and Torre will win the MVP Award in 1971.
On March 13, 1969 Willie McCovey ended his holdout Thursday when he signed a two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants, believed to call for $85,000 this season. The slugging first baseman indicated that the second year of the pact was flexible and terms could be revised upward if he has another outstanding…
1969 – In addition to this year’s lower mound and tightened strike zone, Major League Baseball tries an experimental ball with 10% more resiliency for a spring training game between the Mets and Tigers in Lakeland, Florida. It has an all-rubber center instead of a cork and rubber core, and the seams are higher than the regular ball. Mets pitcher Don Cardwell surrenders three home runs in the 4th inning to Dick McAuliffe, Norm Cash, and Gates Brown in the Tigers’ 7 – 4 victory. Tomorrow, in Phoenix, Arizona, the same ball is used in the Giants’ 13 – 1 win over the Angels, with Bobby Bonds hitting the only two homers off George Brunet. The players agree the ball is definitely livelier and sounds louder coming off the bat.
1969 – New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle announces his retirement. Mantle, who slumped to a .237 batting average in 1968, finishes his 18-season career with 536 home runs and a .298 average, numbers that would have certainly been higher if not for persistent knee injuries. The Yankees offer Mantle a coaching position on manager Ralph Houk’s staff.
On February 26, 1969, Boston Red Sox star and American League batting champion Carl Yastrzemski becomes the highest-paid player in league history. Yaz signs a one-year deal worth $115,000. In 1968, Yaz batted a league-leading .301 and also paced the AL with 119 walks. He will reward the Red Sox by hitting 40 homeruns and…
1969 – A pension plan for Major League Baseball is agreed on, with players to receive $5.45 million per year. They also get a percentage of television revenues, a reduction in the years necessary to qualify for a pension from five to four (retroactive to 1959), and a lowered minimum age for drawing a pension from 50 to 45.
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