Losing their 13th consecutive game at Shea Stadium, the Mets complete the worst month at home in National League history. With the 1-0 loss to Randy Wolf and the Phillies, the Amazins’ join the Seattle Pilots (August-1969) and the Tigers (September-1996) as teams that have not won a home game in a calendar month with at least ten games.

The Astros acquire free agent-to-be Mark Loretta from the Brewers for cash and a player to be named. In two days, the player turns out to be Keith Ginter, hitting .264 at New Orleans.

The Mets are shut out by the Phillies, 1 – 0, to mark their 13th consecutive home defeat. In doing so, they become the first National League team to lose all their home games over the course of a month.

2002 – After marathon negotiation sessions to avoid a players’ strike just hours away, Bud Selig announces the players union and owners have reached a settlement on a new four-year Collective Bargaining Agreement without the need for a work stoppage. The new agreement, called “historic” by the Commissioner, gives the owners the economic restraints they wanted as the players are assured no teams will be contracted until the 2007 season, with a revenue-sharing plan to be gradually implemented during the span of the contract.

The International Olympic Committee votes to drop baseball from the Olympics and replace it with golf. The reason is that the competition does not draw the best players, since Major League Baseball does not release its players to play.

Mark Bellhorn becomes the first National Leaguer and joins Carlos Baerga as the only other switch-hitter to homer from both sides of the plate in the same inning. The Cub infielder connects off southpaw Andrew Lorraine to start Chicago’s 10-run fourth-frame and then goes deep again with a three-run homer with two outs off Jose Cabrera in the team’s eventual 13-10 victory over the Brewers at Milwaukee’s Miller Park.

To show their displeasure about tomorrow’s impending strike, fans at the Devil Ray-Angel game begin throwing foul balls back onto the field at Edison Field, and over 100 people are ejected for throwing trash. New words are added to the traditional seventh-inning rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” as many of the fans in attendance begin to chant, “Don’t strike! Don’t strike! Don’t strike!”.

Odalis Perez of the Los Angeles Dodgers hits a solo homer, off Arizona’s Rick Helling, for the only run of the game. He is the first pitcher (and the 12th ever) since Bob Welch in 1983 to hit a solo homer for the only run. The game also marked the beginning of Eric Gagne’s record streak of 84 consecutive saves.