This Date In Baseball

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Compiled By PAUL MONTELLA

By The Associated Press

April 1

1931 -- Pitcher Virne Mitchell, 17, signed with the Chattanooga club of Tennessee, becoming the first woman to play for an otherwise all-male baseball team.

1972 -- The first collective player's strike in major league history began at 12:01 a.m. The strike lasted 12 days and canceled 86 games.

1996 -- Umpire John McSherry, 51, who planned to see doctors the next day about an irregular heart beat, collapsed seven pitches into Cincinnati's opener and died at a hospital about an hour later.

1970 -- An investment group headed by Allen "Bud" Selig bought the Seattle pilots for $10.8 million.

1989 -- A. Bartlett Giamatti took over as baseball commissioner.

2001 -- The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers 8-1 as the major league baseball season opened in San Juan Puerto Rico.

Today's birthdays: Daniel Murphy 27; John Axford 29.

April 2

1931 -- Virne Beatrice "Jackie" Mitchell, the first woman in professional baseball, pitched against the New York Yankees in an exhibition game in Chattanooga. Babe Ruth waved wildly at the first two pitches and took a third strike. Lou Gehrig timed his swing to miss three straight pitches. Tony Lazzeri, after trying to bunt, walked and Mitchell left the game.

1952 -- Hall of Fame outfielder Monte Irvin of the New York Giants broke his ankle in an exhibition game. Irvin played just 46 games that season.

1984 -- The New York Mets lost to the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 for their first opening day defeat in 10 years.

1996 -- St. Francis of Illinois pummeled Robert Morris 71-1 in a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference game that was surrendered after four innings by Robert Morris coach Gerald McNamara.

1997 -- For the first time, the salary of one player -- Albert Belle -- exceeded the payroll of an entire team -- the Pittsburgh Pirates. Belle, the game's highest-paid player for 1997 at $10 million, made $928,333 more than the whole Pirates payroll, which totaled $9,071,667.

2001 -- Roger Clemens became the AL strikeout king, getting five to pass Walter Johnson as the Yankees beat Kansas City 7-3 in their season opener. Clemens fanned Joe Randa for his 3,509th career strikeout.

2003 -- Alex Rodriguez became the youngest player to hit 300 home runs, connecting for a three-run drive in the Texas Rangers' 11-5 loss to the Anaheim Angels. Rodriguez at 27 years, 249 days old, surpassed Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx (27 years, 328 days).

2003 -- The Detroit Tigers became the first team to have four pitchers make their major league debuts in the same game -- Jeremy Bonderman, Wilfredo Ledezma, Chris Spurling and Matt Roney. The Tigers lost 8-1 to the Minnesota Twins.

2007 -- Tampa Bay's Elijah Dukes homered in his first big league at-bat in a 9-5 loss to the New York Yankees.

2011 -- Ian Kinsler of Texas became the first major leaguer ever with leadoff homers in each of his team's first two games. Kinsler hit the first of four homers by the Rangers in a 12-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox.

Today's birthdays: Mike McCoy 31; Don Sutton 67.

April 3

1923 -- Expelled "Black Sox" players Happy Felsch and Swede Risberg sued their former club for back salary and $400,000 in damages. They were among eight members of the Chicago White Sox team charged with fixing the 1919 World Series.

1966 -- The New York Mets won the right to sign Southern California pitcher Tom Seaver when commissioner William Eckert pulled their name out of a hat. Eckert had voided Seaver's contract with Atlanta, when the Braves signed him during his college season. Cleveland and Philadelphia were the other two teams that had a chance, matching the Braves' original $40,000 offer.

1985 -- The Players' Association agreed with the owners to expand the 1985 League Championship Series from best-of-5 to best-of-7.

1994 -- The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds 6-4 in Major League Baseball's first Sunday night opener, which sent baseball into a new era with three divisions and a new playoff format.

1998 -- Milwaukee's Jose Valentin hit three homers and drove in five runs to lead the Brewers to a 7-1 victory over the Florida Marlins.

2000 -- Andres Galarraga made a triumphant return to Turner Field. Out all of last season because of a cancerous tumor in his back, Galarraga celebrated his comeback by hitting a tiebreaking home run in the seventh inning that lifted the Atlanta Braves over Colorado 2-0.

2000 -- Savannah State's baseball team set an NCAA record for consecutive victories. The Tigers beat Claflin 8-0 and 21-1, extending its streak to 42 and eclipsing the record of 40 claimed by Marietta College of Ohio, a Division II school, last year.

2001 -- Houston's Craig Biggio had five hits to tie a major league record for a season opener as the Astros beat the Milwaukee Brewers 11-3.

2006 -- Seattle's Kenji Johjima became the first Japanese catcher to start a major league game and also homered for his first hit in the Mariners' 5-3 loss to Los Angeles.

2008 -- Kansas City the Tigers 4-1 at Detroit to complete a season-opening three-game sweep. It was the first time the Royals started the year with a sweep on the road since 1977.

2011 -- Ian Kinsler and Nelson Cruz became the first set of teammates to homer in each of the first three games in a season, and Matt Harrison pitched the Texas Rangers to a 5-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox.

Today's birthdays: Jay Bruce 25; Ryan Doumit 31; Koji Uehara 37.

April 4

1974 -- The Cincinnati Reds defeated the Atlanta Braves 7-6 in 11 innings before a crowd of 52,000 at Riverfront Stadium. In his first at-bat, Hank Aaron hit a three-run homer off Jack Billingham. It was his 714th, tying Babe Ruth's career record. The Braves had considered keeping Aaron on the bench for the season-opening series in Cincinnati so that he could attempt to tie the record four days later in Atlanta. But commissioner Bowie Kuhn would not allow it and ordered the Braves to put Aaron into the lineup for at least two of the three games.

1988 -- George Bell became the first player to hit three home runs on opening day, leading the Toronto Blue Jays past the Kansas City Royals 5-3. Bell, bitter throughout spring training with his move to designated hitter, homered three times in that role off Bret Saberhagen.

1994 -- Chicago's Karl Rhodes hit three solo home runs off Dwight Gooden in a 12-8 loss to the New York Mets on opening day at Wrigley Field. Rhodes became the second player to homer three times in an opener.

1998 -- Mark McGwire tied Willie Mays' National League record by hitting a home run in each of his first four games of the season. McGwire launched a towering three-run shot in the sixth inning of an 8-6 victory over the San Diego Padres.

1999 -- America's pastime opened in Mexico for the first time. The Colorado Rockies beat the Chicago Cubs 8-2 in baseball's first season opener away from the United States and Canada.

2001 -- Hideo Nomo became the fourth pitcher in major league history to throw a no-hitter in both leagues in Boston's 3-0 victory over Baltimore. Nomo, who threw the first no-hitter in Colorado's Coors Field on Sept. 17, 1996, for Los Angeles, walked three and struck out 11 in the first no-hitter in the 10-year history of Camden Yards. Nomo joined Cy Young, Jim Bunning and Nolan Ryan as the only pitchers with no-hitters in both leagues.

2003 -- Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs became the 18th player to hit 500 career homers, connecting for a solo shot in a 10-9 loss to Cincinnati. He became the fifth player to reach 500 homers before his 35th birthday. Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Jimmie Foxx were the others.

2005 -- Dmitri Young became the third player to hit three homers on opening day, and Jeremy Bonderman won as the youngest opening day starter in the major leagues since 1986 to lead Detroit over the Kansas City Royals 11-2.

2011 -- Nelson Cruz of Texas became the third player in major league history to homer in the first four games of a season and the Rangers beat Seattle 6-4. Cruz joined Willie Mays (1971) and Mark McGwire (1998) as the only players to go deep in each of their first four games of a season.

Today's birthdays: Cameron Maybin 25; Scott Rolen 37.

April 5

1913 -- Brooklyn's Ebbets Field hosted its first game, an exhibition. Before a crowd of 25,000, the Dodgers beat the Giants, 3-2. Casey Stengel hit a an inside-the-park homer for Brooklyn.

1971 -- In their last opening day, the Senators, behind pitcher Dick Bosman, beat the Oakland A's 8-0 before 45,000 fans at RFK Stadium.

1979 -- Baltimore manager Earl Weaver got his 1,000th career victory when the Orioles beat the Chicago White Sox.

1983 -- The San Diego Padres beat the San Francisco Giants 16-13 in the highest-scoring opening day game in 50 years. Winning pitcher Tim Lollar also drove in three runs.

1993 -- The expansion Florida Marlins won their first game, 6-3 over the Los Angeles Dodgers, at Joe Robbie Stadium. The new Colorado Rockies lost to the Mets 3-0 in New York.

1998 -- Andy Benes pitched seven strong innings and Matt Williams had three hits and an RBI in to lead Arizona to its first-ever victory, a 3-2 win over San Francisco. The Diamondbacks (1-5) had the second longest, season-opening losing streak for an expansion team in its first season.

2003 -- Kansas City became the first major league team to start 5-0 after a 100-loss season.

2004 -- Carlos Beltran of Kansas City and Shannon Stewart of Minnesota combined to set a record. For the first time in modern history, two players hit game-winning home runs on the same day. The Royals beat the Chicago White Sox, 9-7, while the Twins overcame the Cleveland Indians, 7-4, in 11 innings. The Royals also were the first team since 1901 to recover from a ninth-inning deficit of four runs on opening day.

2005 -- The Washington Nationals, formerly known as the Montreal Expos, lose their inaugural season opener Philadelphia 8-4.

2006 -- Ivan Rodriguez went 5-for-5 with a single, homer, three doubles and five RBIs, leading Detroit to a 14-3 rout over Kansas City.

2009 -- Atlanta's Jordan Schafer becomes the 10th Brave in franchise history and the 99th overall player overall to hit a home run in his first major league at bat. Schafer connects off Philadelphia's Brett Myers in the second inning.

2010 -- Garrett Jones homered in his first two at-bats, pinch-hitter Ryan Church doubled home three runs in Pittsburgh's 11-5 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

2010 -- Atlanta's Jason Heyward hit a three-run homer in his first major league at bat in the Braves' 16-5 rout of the Chicago Cubs. The rookie's first-inning homer into the Braves' bullpen behind the right-field wall gave Atlanta a 6-3 lead.

Today's birthdays: Ian Stewart 27; Jorge De La Rosa 31.

April 6

1972 -- For the first time in history, the major leagues failed to open on schedule because of a player strike, which started on April 1. The traditional season opener between Houston and Cincinnati was canceled and a total of 86 games were lost before the strike was settled.

1973 -- Ron Blomberg of the New York Yankees became the first major league designated hitter. With the bases loaded in the first inning, he was walked by pitcher Luis Tiant, but the Red Sox won 15-5.

1973 -- At the Oakland Coliseum, Tony Oliva became the first designated hitter to homer. The Twins DH hit a two-run shot in the first inning off of Catfish Hunter to Minnesota to an 8-3 win.

1974 -- Due to renovations at Yankee Stadium, the New York Yankees' home opener took place at Shea Stadium. It was their first home game outside Yankee Stadium since 1922.

1977 -- The Seattle Mariners played their first regular-season game and lost 7-0 to the California Angels at the Kingdome.

1982 -- A freak storm that brought subfreezing temperatures and dumped heavy snow from the Northeast to the Midwest forced the postponement of American League openers in New York, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland and Milwaukee, and National League openers in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

2005 -- Brad Wilkerson hit for the cycle to lead Washington over Philadelphia 7-3.

2009 -- Tony Clark and Felipe Lopez each homered from both sides of the plate to lead Arizona to a 9-8 victory over Colorado.

2009 -- Emilio Bonifacio hit the majors' first inside-the-park homer on opening day since 1968, swiped three bases and had four hits in Florida's 12-6 victory over Washington.

2009 -- Alfonso Soriano hit his 50th career leadoff home run as Chicago beat Houston 4-2.

April 7

1925 -- Babe Ruth collapsed in a railroad station in Asheville, N.C. He would be hospitalized in New York and operated on 10 days later for an ulcer.

1964 -- Shea Stadium in New York opened for its first regular-season game. The Mets lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-3.

1969 -- The Yankees spoiled the managerial debut of Ted Williams by defeating the Senators 8-4 in the opener at Washington's RFK Stadium. President Nixon and a crowd of 45,000 attended.

1969 -- Dodgers relief pitcher Bill Singer was credited with the first official save. Los Angeles beat Cincinnati, 3-2. The game started with Cincinnati's Pete Rose hitting Don Drysdale's first pitch for a home run. Drysdale threw his next pitch to Bobby Tolan and Tolan hit it for a home run. After the first two pitches, Drysdale settled down and threw a shutout.

1970 -- Three weeks after moving from Seattle to Milwaukee, the former Pilots played their first game as the Brewers and lost 12-0 to the visiting California Angels.

1973 -- Cleveland set an attendance record for day games and opening-day games by attracting 74,420 fans. The Indians beat the Detroit Tigers, 2-1.

1977 -- The expansion Toronto Blue Jays began their major league odyssey with a 9-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox at Toronto's Exhibition Stadium. Al Woods, pinch hitting for Steve Bowling in the fifth inning, became the 11th pinch hitter with a home run in his first at-bat.

1979 -- Ken Forsch of the Houston Astros pitched a no-hitter against Atlanta to duplicate the no-hitter tossed by his brother Bob of the Cardinals against the Phillies on April 16, 1978. They are the first brothers to pitch no-hitters.

1984 -- Detroit's Jack Morris pitched a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox despite giving up six walks. It was the first Tigers no-hitter since Jim Bunning's in 1958.

1987 -- Atlanta's Rick Mahler pitched his third opening day shutout tying an NL record.

1988 -- Cincinnati Reds third baseman Chris Sabo tied an NL record with 11 assists in one game.

2000 -- Fifty-seven home runs were hit in the 15 games played, setting a major league record. The previous mark of 55 was set in 17 games last Aug. 13. Thirty-six homers in the American League set a record for a league in one day, topping the previous mark of 30.

2007 -- Alex Rodriguez hit a grand slam off Chris Ray with two outs in the ninth inning, giving the New York Yankees a 10-7 victory over Baltimore. Rodriguez ended a game with a grand slam for the third time in his career, tying the major league mark shared by Vern Stephens (1946, 1949, 1950) and Cy Williams (1924 and twice in 1926).

Today's birthday: Adrian Beltre 33.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index

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