June 24, 1970 In the Yankees’ fifth, with a runner at second base, New York pitcher Stan Bahnsen tried to bunt the baserunner to third but missed the ball. Fosse threw the baseball back to Indian pitcher Mike Paul. As Fosse stood behind home plate, waiting for Paul to go to the pitcher’s mound, a cherry bomb…
July 13, 1969 Cubs outfielder Willie Smith gives a boost to a fan who fell from the bleachers, helping him climb back up to avoid a $25 fine on July 13, 1969. The Cubs installed a 42-inch chain-link fence around the top of the wall the next year. @ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@
Willie Davis, furious with the Wrigley Field Bleacher Bums because of their continual verbal abuse of him, tells his Dodgers teammates that he wants to hit a home run in the middle of the group, which he does in the sixth inning to tie the score. The LA center fielder exacts a bit more revenge on the heckling horde when his 12th-inning two-run round-tripper proves to be the difference in the 4-2 defeat of the Cubs.
1957 – Richie Ashburn, known for his ability to foul pitches off, hits spectator Alice Roth twice in the same at bat. The first one breaks her nose, and the second one hits her while she is being removed from her seat on a stretcher. Ironically, she is the wife of Earl Roth, the sports editor of the Philadelphia Bulletin. The Phils win, 3 – 1, over New York.
Cincinnati fans threaten to sue Commissioner Ford Frick unless Gus Bell, George Crowe and Wally Post are restored to the All-Star team. They finished first in the ballotting thanks to vote-stuffing by Cincinnati fans, ahead of more deserving players.
Leo “The Lip” Durocher, manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939-1946 (as well as a brief stint in 1948), was known as a man who did not easily accept defeat. Throughout his career, Durocher had countless run-ins with his team, opposing players, management, commissioners, umpires, and fans. On June 8, 1945, while hosting the Philadelphia…
At Ebbets Field, the Robins come from behind to edge the Giants, 3 – 2, behind Dazzy Vance. Harvey Hendrick dinks a 2-run homer in the 8th, off Larry Benton, to tie, and Jake Flowers singles with two out in the 9th to drive home the winner. The ecstatic fans respond by covering the field with straw hats.
On July 18, 1922, Eleven-year-old fan Bob “Tuffy Reds” Cotter catches a foul ball during the Philadelphia Phillies game at Baker Bowl. He keeps the ball instead of returning it, as was common at the time. Stadium ushers catch him and he is arrested and sent to jail. The next morning, a judge frees him,…
Twenty-three fans attending the game against the Yankees at soaked Shibe Park, the smallest crowd in American League history, witness A’s switch-hitter Wally Schang become the first player in major league history to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game. The feat, not well publicized because reporters thought the heavy rain would postpone the game and did not attend the contest, will not be accomplished again in the Junior Circuit until 1940.
On June 20, 1905 – A young woman sues the Giants for $500 for injury suffered when a foul ball hit her at a game at the Polo Grounds on September 3, 1904. Judge Chester B. McLaughlin dismisses the suit, ruling that patrons attend baseball games at their own risk. @ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@ Play by Play, Box Scores, News Paper Reports and other links Other Resources…
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