September sees opportunities to break seasonal records, and the expanded rosters often lead to unusual moments….let’s enjoy a few, found from the book “This Day in Baseball” by David Nemec and Scott Flatow…
September 1, 1872….Brooklyn Atlantics outfielder Albert Thake becomes the first major leaguer to die during a season when he drowns after falling out of a fishing boat in New York harbor.
September 1, 1951….Granite Falls completes its Western Carolina League season with 33 straight losses, including 59 of its last 60 games. The team’s final record is 14-96.
September 2, 1972….Cubs starter (and former Red) Milt Pappas walks future Red Larry Stahl of the Padres on a 3-2 pitch to end his bid for a perfect game, one strike away from complete the gem (call made by rookie umpire Bruce Froemming). Pappas retires the next batter to complete his no-hitter.
September 4, 1877….Louisville falls into second place after losing a seemingly insurmountable first place lead in the National League. On this day, rumors reach the Louisville ownership that the Louisville Grays players have been intentionally losing games. Baseball’s first big scandal is unleashed and Louisville does not field a team in 1878, despite finished 2nd in 1877.
September 4, 1916–Christy Mathewson wins his only game as a Red, defeating fellow future Hall-of-Famer Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown of the Cubs, 10-8.
September 4, 1945–Yankees batting practice pitcher Paul Schreiber sets the longest time between major league pitching appearances, shutting out the Tigers for 3 1/3 innings in a 10-0 loss. It was Schreiber’s first big league game since 1923.
September 5, 1871–The first grand slam in major league history is a blast from Boston Red Stocking (and future Red) first baseman Charlie Gould in a 6-3 win over the Chicago White Stockings.
September 5, 1914–Babe Ruth hits his only minor league home run.
September 5, 1923–Muskogee loses its 38th consecutive game, a professional baseball record.
September 5, 1960–The oldest rookie in National League history, Pittsburgh’s Diomedes Olivo makes his pitching debut at age 41 and hurls two scoreless innings.
September 6, 1877–The Reds make history by having left handed pitcher Bobby Mitchell start the game, the first left handed starting pticher in major league history. The Reds defeat the Louisville Grays, 1-0, in a season where the Reds finished 15-42 and the Grays are intentionally throwing games.
September 6, 1943–Carl Scheib becomes the youngest player in American League history when he pitches for the A’s in an 11-4 loss to the Yankees. Scheib is 16 years, 248 days old when he enters the game.
September 8, 1965–A’s shortstop Bert Campaneris becomes the first player to play all nine positions in the same game.
September 10, 1946–Rocky Mount pitcher Bill Kennedy finishes the season with 456 strikeouts and a 28-3 record and a 1.03 ERA.
September 12, 1982–The Twins’ Terry Felton loses for the last time of the season, giving him an 0-16 record.
September 14, 1990–Future and former Reds Ken Griffey, Sr., and Ken Griffey, Jr., become the only father-son team to homer in the same game.
September 15, 1977–The Yankees acquire slugger Dave Kingman, the Yankees being the fourth major league team for Kingman that season. He played in all four major league divisions that year having played for the Mets, Padres, and Angels being being acquired by the Yankees.
September 16, 1905–Lefthanded Wee Willie Keeler plays second base for the New York Highlanders in a double header, becoming the last southpaw to play a middle infield position during both games of a double header.
September 16, 1924–Brooklyn manager Wilbert Robinson watches Cardinal first baseman Jim Bottomley break Robinson’s personal 32 season record of 11 rbi in a game when Bottomley drives home 12 in a 17-3 win over the Dodgers.
September 19, 1986–The White Sox’ Joe Cowley no-hits the Angels. It’s Cowley’s last major league win.
September 21, 1970–Young Vida Blue is called up by the A’s and becomes the youngest American League pitcher to throw a no-hitter at age 21.
September 22, 1954–Young Karl Spooner is called up by the Dodgers and strikes out 15 in his first game.
September 23, 1845–Alexander Cartwright forms the New York Knickerbocker baseball club and plays the first set of rules that resemble baseball as we know it.
September 23, 1933–The Reds Paul Derringer loses his 27th game, the most since 1910.
September 23, 1945–The Washington Senators finish the season with no out of the park home runs in their home park. Their only home run that season was an inside-the-park home run by first baseman Joe Kuhel.
September 23, 1969–The Dodgers’ John Miller homers in his last major league at bat. He becomes the only major leaguer to homer in both his last and first major league plate appearances.
September 23, 2002–Former Red Pete Rose is allowed back onto a major league baseball field when former members of the Big Red Machine play a softball game, the last public event at Cinergy Field.
September 24, 1997–Rockies 1994 first round pick Doug Million dies of an asthma attack.
September 25, 1965–59-year-old pitcher Satchel Paige tosses three shut out innings for the A’s versus the Red Sox, giving up only one hit.
September 25, 1992–A Major League record 54 players participate in a 4-3 Texas win over Seattle.
September 26, 1979–Phil Niekro beats brother Joe Niekro giving both Niekros 20 wins in a season. The only other brothers to win 20 in the same season are Gaylord Perry and Jim Perry.
September 27, 1953–Cleveland’s Al Rosen loses the Triple Crown when grounds out at first base in his last at bat, leaving him .0011 points behind Mickey Vernon for the batting title.
September 27, 1963–The Houston Colt .45’s field an all all-rookie lineup whose average age is under 20. The lineup includes future stars Joe Morgan, Jim Wynn, Rusty Staub, and Jerry Grote. The Astros lose, 10-3.
September 29, 1963–The Houston Colt .45’s John Paciorek (older brother of Tom Paciorek) goes 3-3, with three RBI and four runs scored in his only major league game.
September 30, 1879–Cincinnati pitcher Will White loses 9-6 to Cleveland, finishing a season with 75 complete games and 680 innings pitched; neither record has ever been broken.
September 30, 1894–Cincinnati pitcher Frank Dwyer blows a 16-1 lead in the last game of the season, costing him his 20th win of the season. The game ends in a tie.
September 30, 1910–St. Louis Browns third baseman Ray Jansen gets four hits in his only major league game, but also commits three errors. It’s the most hits ever by a one game major leaguer.