Welcome to this day in baseball Daily rewind my name is Tom Hannon and I am your host. Thank you so much for joining me today as we back step our way through July 29 – August 4. Our format has been changing a bit and just to give you a quick recap, we are…
Special Memory or Event? Want to have some fun? Advertise your business? Dedicate this page Bert Blyleven Position: PitcherBats: Right • Throws: Right6-3, 200lb (190cm, 90kg)Born: April 6, 1951 in Zeist, NetherlandsDraft: Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 3rd round of the 1969 MLB June Amateur Draft from Santiago HS (Garden Grove, CA).High School: Santiago HS (Garden Grove, CA)Debut: June 5, 1970 (13,013th in major league history)vs. WSA 7.0 IP, 5 H,…
On Mother’s Day, 29 year-old Felix Hernandez becomes the fourth youngest player to strike out 2,000 batters when he whiffs A’s outfielder Sam Fuld in the Mariners’ 4-3 victory at Safeco Field. Only Walter Johnson, Bert Blyleven, and Sam McDowell have accomplished the feat at a younger age than the Seattle right-hander known as King Felix.
The Hall of Fame announces a change in voting rules, as players will now be able to stay on the BBWAA ballot for a maximum of 10 and not 15 years, as long as they meet the minimum 5% threshold. The move is designed to prevent the ballot from becoming overly crowded because of players tainted by steroids staying on the ballot for years on end with no realistic chance of election, but drawing votes away from more legitimate candidates. However, a number of inductees with an untainted record have had to wait over 10 years for election in recent years, such as Jim Rice, Bert Blyleven or Andre Dawson, making it likely that the rule change will have the effect of also squeezing out some worthy candidates.
Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven are voted into the Hall of Fame when the results of the 2011 Hall of Fame Election are announced. Alomar, twice a World Champion with the Toronto Blue Jays and a perennial Gold Glove winner at second base, makes it in his second year on the ballot. For workhorse pitcher Blyleven, it’s been harder. He started out at 17.5% in his first year of eligibility, and finally crossed the 75% threshold in his 14th year after a dedicated campaign on his behalf conducted through the internet. Once again, voters express their disgust with avowed steroid users, as Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro, both members of the 500 home run club, finish well down on the ballot.
Andre Dawson, “The Hawk”, is elected to the Hall of Fame getting 77.9% of the votes cast by the BBWAA. P Bert Blyleven and 2B Roberto Alomar fall agonizingly short of election, missing the honor by 5 and 8 votes respectively. Dawson, the 1987 National League MVP, played 21 seasons in the majors, principally with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs, hitting .279 with 438 home runs, 1591 RBI and 314 stolen bases.
2000 – Richard Hidalgo hits two home runs to give him a career-high 44 while the Astros set a National League mark for homers by one team (ending with 249). But Houston gives up six home runs, including three off Jose Lima who sets another league home run record (47) as Cincinnati wins, 12-5, at Cinergy Field.
On the day the Twins are celebrating their 25th anniversary, in a game which also features Kirby Puckett hitting for the cycle, Bert Blyleven becomes the tenth major leaguer to record his 3,000th strikeout. The Minnesota right-hander, who tosses a two-hitter, reaches the historic milestone by whiffing Mike Davis in the fifth inning, his eighth of the game, en route to a career-high of 15, in the team’s 10-1 victory over Oakland at the Metrodome.
Special Memory or Event? Want to have some fun? Advertise your business? Dedicate this page May 6, 1981 – Cleveland’s Bert Blyleven holds Toronto hitless for 8 innings before Lloyd Moseby doubles to lead off the 9th‚ and Blyleven settles for a 4-1 two-hitter. @ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@
1978 – Bob Horner, the College Player of the Year, is selected first in the free-agent draft by the Atlanta Braves. He will go straight to the major leagues, the first number one overall pick to do so.