In 1949 American League Batting Race Ted Williams was poised to become the first man to win three Triple Crowns. He had won the Triple Crown for leading the league in batting, homers, and RBI in 1942 and 1947. The latter year was his first season back in baseball after World War II….
On this weeks podcast – August 5, 1979, Willie Mays is inducted into the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Mays slugged 660 homers, batted .302, and collected 3,283 hits in his 22-year career. Known for his all-around play, Mays won 12 Gold Glove Awards for his defense in center field. Former…
October 16, 1949 Brooklyn does not renew Branch Rickey’s contract as president of the Dodgers. The ‘Mahatma’ will join the Pirates as the team’s executive vice president and general manager, with his son, Branch Jr., assuming the post of Pittsburgh’s vice president and farm system director.
Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians strike a major trade.
1949 – The 1940s is the only decade in Major League Baseball history in which no new stadiums are built. After the Cleveland Indians opened Cleveland Stadium in 1932, no new ballpark will be opened until Milwaukee County Stadium is unveiled by the Braves in 1953. The decade also will end with eight black players on major league rosters: three each on the Brooklyn Dodgers and Indians rosters, and two with the New York Giants. Although it will be another decade before all major league teams will be integrated, most teams will be playing blacks in the next two years. Finally, all but the St. Louis Browns, Chicago Cubs, and Cincinnati Reds set attendance records in the 1940s. There were 81 scheduled night games in 1940 and 384 in 1949. The change to playing under the lights is underscored by the release of the 1950 schedule: the St. Louis Cardinals have permission to open the season with the Pittsburgh Pirates in a night game.
1949,The Red Sox and Yankees fought all summer for the AL pennant, with New York beating Boston twice on the final weekend to return to the World Series. Brooklyn took advantage of a poor final week by the Cardinals to surge ahead and win the National League by a single game. The Dodgers, however, were…
1949 – Hall of Fame pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander is found lying unconscious in an alley in Hollywood, CA. The great Old Pete, who was elected to the HoF in 1938, is suffering from epilepsy and is missing one of his ears. He will die from liver disease less than a year later.
1949 – Cecil Cooper is born in Brenham, TX. After a 17-year career in the American League, Cooper is named as the first African-American manager of the Astros in 2007. He would compile a 171-170 record until he is dismissed late in the 2009 season.
1949 – The Yankees and Detroit swap first basemen, the Tigers getting Dick Kryhoski while New York takes Dick Wakefield, signed by the Tigers in 1941 to a $52,000 bonus.
The Cubs send pitcher Bill Voiselle and $35,000 to the Braves for infielder Gene Mauch. The Cubs had hoped to come away with Warren Spahn or Johnny Antonelli.