This Day In Baseball April 11 Debuts, Milestones, No Hitters, Rule Changes, Events, Birthdays, Deaths, and more on This Day In Baseball. Events for April 11 Sort bySearch Days, Events, Players Title (A - Z)Date (Newest) April 11, 1881 April 11 – The Eastern Association is formed and includes the New York Metropolitans, The Washington Nationals and Brooklyn Atlantics, all teams that have regularly played competitively against National League teams. April 11, 1907 Bresnahan debuts leg guards April 11, 1907 1907 – On Opening Day, New York Giants catcher Roger Bresnahan wears shin guards for the first time in a major league game. The leg guards, usually used in cricket, come in handy, protecting Bresnahan from a 5th-inning foul tip. Other catchers will soon follow Bresnahan’s lead and wear similar shin guards. April 11, 1912 1912 – New York Giants pitcher Rube Marquard begins a 19-game winning streak with an 18 – 3 triumph over the Brooklyn Dodgers. April 11, 1917 Ruth fires 3 hitter on opening day April 11, 1917 1917 – Babe Ruth of the Boston Red Sox pitches a three-hitter in shutting down the New York Yankees on Opening Day. Ruth’s performance marks the start of good things to come. He will win 24 games this year, while leading the American League with 35 complete games. April 11, 1954 Yankees acquire Enos Slaughter for Future Rookie of the Year April 11, 1954 1954 – To make room for promising rookie outfielder Wally Moon, the St. Louis Cardinals trade longtime great Enos Slaughter to the New York Yankees in exchange for four minor leaguers, including future National League Rookie of the Year Bill Virdon. April 11, 1959 Don Drysdale homers in opener – First pitcher two hit more than one homerun on opening day April 11, 1959 1959 – On Opening Day, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Don Drysdale hits a home run, becoming the first pitcher to hit more than one career homer in opening games. Drysdale’s historic blast doesn’t prevent the Dodgers from losing their game, 6 – 1, to the Chicago Cubs. April 11, 1961 The Los Angeles Angels play the first game in franchise history, defeating a strong Baltimore Orioles team, 7 – 2. For the Angels, Ted Kluszewski hits two home runs and Eli Grba pitches a complete game. April 11, 1961 At Fenway Park, Boston Red Sox rookie Carl Yastrzemski gets a hit off Ray Herbert of the Kansas City Athletics. It’s the first of 3,318 hits that Yastrzemski will amass over a 23-year career. Birthdays Coming Soon Death Coming Soon [best_selling_products per_page="0" orderby="menu_order" columns="4" order="ASC"]
