Dodger second baseman Jackie Robinson (.342, 16, 124) becomes the first black player to win the MVP Award. Stan Musial, Ralph Kiner, and teammate Pee Wee Reese are the runners-ups in the BBWAA balloting.
In the second of two deals between the clubs on consecutive days, St. Louis obtains Sam Dente, Clem Dreisewerd, Bill Sommers, and $65,000 from the Red Sox in exchange for Ellis Kinder and Billy Hitchcock. When the dust settles on the two-day, 13-player transaction, Boston ends up with two top-of-the-rotation hurlers, Kinder and Jack Kramer, and an All-Star offensive shortstop to hit behind Ted Williams, Vern Stephens, and the cash-deprived Browns, in addition to its four new players, receive a total of $375,000.
1934 – Al Schacht leaves Washington to join Boston as a coach, breaking up the clown act he had performed with Nick Altrock.
1924 – Oakland Oaks owner Cal Ewing announces that he has sold the team to Washington Senators star Walter Johnson, represented by George Weiss, who deposited a check for $5,000 towards the purchase. Last month, Ewing announced that the sale price was an enthusiastic $450,000 (the St. Louis Cardinals’s recent sale was for $275,000). Nothing will come of all the talk, and Johnson will return to the Washington team.
The Cubs hire future Hall of Famer Roger Bresnahan to manage the team. The former Cardinal skipper will stay for just a year as Chicago finishes the season in fourth place with a 73-80 record.
1899 – Ban Johnson, president of the new American League, contemplates exchanging players of equal ability with the National League with a view to giving the public new attractions.
1887 – The National League adopts a new contract that spells out reserve provisions for the first time. The NL refuses to accept the players’ demand that the salary be written out on all contracts, however.
The Pittsburgh Alleghenys leave the American Association to join the National League. After a few name changes, including the Innocents, the team will become known as the Pirates in 1891.
1882 – The case of the Allegheny Club versus Charlie Bennett is won by Bennett. Prior to the 1882 season, Allegheny signed Bennett to a $100 agreement which stated that he would sign an 1883 contract with the club after the season. Instead, Bennett re-signed with the Detroit Wolverines. This case will later have bearing on the fight over the reserve rule during the 1889-1890 Players League war.
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