On July 2, 1961 Pitcher Glen Hobbie and Tony Taylor each hit a pair of homers for the Cubs, but it is not enough as the Cardinals win, 10 – 9. Pinch hitter Richie Ashburn’s bases-loaded single in the 8th brings home the deciding run . Source: Baseball Reference July 2
On June 21, 1960 Richie Ashburn plays his first game in Philadelphia since being traded to the Cubs in the offseason. ‘Whitey,’ a fan favorite during his dozen years with the Phillies, strikes out looking to start his 1-for-6 day in an extra-inning loss to his former team at Shibe Park.
The Phillies send fan-favorite Richie Ashburn, the National League’s top hitter in 1958, to the Cubs in exchange for infielders Alvin Dark and Jim Woods along with right-hander John Buzhardt. ‘Whitey,’ a future Hall of Famer, will play center field and hit .291 batting leadoff for Chicago this season.
Richie Ashburn becomes the all-time franchise leader, collecting his 2,212th hit wearing a Phillies uniform. The historic hit is a ball which caroms off first base for a single in Philadelphia’s 9-3 loss to the Braves at Connie Mack Stadium.
The Phillies’ Robin Roberts beats the Giants, 1 – 0, on a 3-hitter. Roberts also gains revenge on Willie McCovey by ending McCovey’s consecutive-game hitting streak at 22 games. Phils CF Richie Ashburn holds the rookie record of 23 games.
At L.A. Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles Dodger southpaw Sandy Koufax fans 16 Philadelphia Phillies, to set a new record for a night game, and wins, 6 – 2.
Despite giving up a hit in the bottom of the sixth in the Giants’ 3-0 victory over Philadelphia, Mike McCormick is credited with a no-hitter when the game is rained out, and the inning is never completed, statistically erasing the hit. Due to a rule change in 1991 that mandates a game must last for at least nine innings for the hitless effort to be called an official no-hitter, the right-hander’s five-inning rain-shortened outing no longer appears in the record book as a no-no.
1958 – In the Phillies’ 6 – 4, 10-inning win at Pittsburgh, Richie Ashburn clinches the batting title, going 3 for 4 to finish at .3495. Willie Mays, leading off in San Francisco’s win over St. Louis, is 3 for 5 to finish at .3466. Dave Philley sets a major-league record for consecutive pinch hits when he doubles in the 7th for his 8th straight pinch hit. Peanuts Lowrey had seven straight pinch hits in 1952.
The Cards turn down the Phillies’ offer of Richie Ashburn and Harvey Haddix for Ken Boyer, trusting that Boyer will turn into a good third baseman. Then, in one of their best trades ever, the Cardinals acquire outfielders Curt Flood and Joe Taylor from the Redlegs for pitchers Marty Kutyna and Ted Wieand. The 19-year-old Flood, who appeared in eight games for Cincinnati over the past two seasons, will anchor the St. Louis outfield for the next 12 years.
1957 – Richie Ashburn, known for his ability to foul pitches off, hits spectator Alice Roth twice in the same at bat. The first one breaks her nose, and the second one hits her while she is being removed from her seat on a stretcher. Ironically, she is the wife of Earl Roth, the sports editor of the Philadelphia Bulletin. The Phils win, 3 – 1, over New York.
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