In the first major league game to be played totally on artificial turf, Houston beats Philadelphia at the Astrodome, 8-2. Prior to this contest, the outfield consisted of painted dirt with only the infield covered with the new material created by Monsanto Company, dubbed Astroturf.

In his final at-bat in the major leagues, Cardinals starter Tracy Stallard grounds out to short in the Redbirds’ 10-9 victory over Atlanta. During his seven-year tenure, the right-hander, best known for giving up Roger Maris’s 61st home run, sets a major league record by failing to get a base-on-balls in his 247 appearances at the plate.

Chicago edges the A’s, 3 – 2, in 13 innings when pitcher Gary Peters socks a pinch homer.

Ford Frick, an old friend of Babe Ruth’s, announces that should Ruth’s single-season home run record be beaten after 154 games are played, the record will carry a “distinctive mark”. When asked about the ruling, Roger Maris replies, “A season is a season.” Sportswriter Dick Young suggests an asterisk, which is later claimed to be Frick’s idea. No such designation is ever used in the record books, though, but the incident leads to a myth that an “official record book” lists Maris’s record with an asterisk. The myth is still popularly believed over 50 years later.

The Yanks and Senators split, with Washington winning the nitecap, 12 – 2. Dick Donovan is the winner. Mickey Mantle belts a 500-foot homer in the 4th over the RF wall.