Category: This day in baseball

This day in baseball: Gil Hodges hits four home runs

August 31, 2026

In a game against the Boston Braves on August 31, 1950, Brooklyn Dodgers first baseman Gil Hodges hit four home runs in front of a crowd of 14,226 fans. Hodges joined Lou Gehrig as only the second player since 1900 to hit four home runs in a game without the benefit of extra innings, and he hit them against four different pitchers, with the first coming off Warren Spahn. Hodges also had seventeen total bases in the game, tying him for third-most in Major League history.

Gil Hodges, c. 1949 (Baseball Digest / public domain)

This day in baseball: Train carrying baseball fans derails

July 28, 2026

About one hundred miles west of Philadelphia, a train carrying fans to the Phillies-Pirates game derailed on July 28, 1962. Three of the train’s cars rolled down a twenty-five-foot embankment into the Susquehanna River. According to some reports, 19 were killed in the wreck, whereas others report 22 killed, and more than one hundred fans were injured.

Fourteen adjoining rows of empty seats along first-base line in Connie Mack Stadium were especially conspicuous that day, as 12,450 spectators watch the home team beat the Pirates, 9-2.

If you are interested in reading more about this gruesome train wreck, you can find the New York Times‘ coverage of the event here.

Or you can view video footage from the wreck in the report below:

This day in baseball: Cleveland overwhelms Boston

June 5, 2026

On June 5, 1930, the Cleveland Indians defeated the Boston Red Sox in a rout, with a final score of 17-7. Cleveland scored nine runs in the first inning alone, and the team as a whole collected 25 hits. Every starter contributed at least two hits, except for shortstop Carl Lind, who managed a single in the contest at League Park in Cleveland. The box score for the game can be found here.

Carl Lind, 1923 (public domain)

This day in baseball: Walter Johnson and Lefty Williams go 18 innings

May 15, 2026

On May 15, 1918, the Washington Senators defeated the Chicago White Sox, 1–0, at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. in an undeniably impressive pitching duel. Despite recording eighteen innings, the contest only lasted 2 hours and 47 minutes as Walter Johnson and Lefty Williams both went the distance in this game. Washington won the game in the bottom of the 18th, when Eddie Ainsworth scored the winning run on a wild pitch.

Walter Johnson, 1910 (Charles Conlon/public domain)

This day in baseball: Monday saves the U.S. flag

April 25, 2026

On April 25, 1976, in a moment that remains iconic to this day, Cubs center fielder Rick Monday rescued the American flag from two protestors who tried to set it on fire in the outfield at Dodger Stadium.  In the bottom of the fourth inning, Monday dashed over and seized the flag from the pair while the crowd cheered. Monday ran through the outfield with the flag and, while walking towards the Dodgers dugout, he handed the flag over to Dodgers pitcher Doug Rau. When Monday came to bat in the top half of the fifth inning, he received a standing ovation and the scoreboard flashed the message, “Rick Monday… You Made A Great Play…”

Rick Monday, 1976 (National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum)

This day in baseball: Selig suspends Strawberry

February 28, 2026

Following a third infraction for cocaine use, on February 28, 2000, Commissioner Bud Selig suspended Yankees outfielder Darryl Strawberry for one year. In a statement, Selig said, “In the end, I could not ignore Darryl’s past infractions and concluded that each of us must be held accountable for his or her actions. I am hopeful that he will use this time away from the game productively and will care for himself and his family.” Selig did not make any provision for the slugger to return early for good behavior.

Bud Selig, 2010 (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license)