January 11 in Tigers and mlb history:
1915: Jacob Ruppert and Tillinghast L'Hommedieu Huston buy the New York Yankees from Frank Farrell and Bill Devery for $460,000. Ruppert, who owns a brewery, is thinking of renaming the team the "Knickerbockers" to promote his product, but is dissuaded by newspaper men.
1932: Bill Terry sends his $13,500 contract back to the New York Giants, telling writers he is "thoroughly disgusted." Terry, who just missed the National League batting title, led the league in runs (121) and triples (20), and collected a second-best 254 hits, was offered a $9,000 cut from his 1931 contract of $22,500. The Giants counter by saying that the combined salaries of Chick Hafey and Jim Bottomley, the two Cardinals who joined Terry in the batting race, is only $24,000. Hafey, the champion bat, finished with 0.34888 ahead Terry (0.34860) and Bottomley (.34816).
1935: The Detroit Tigers purchased Bob Seeds from the Cleveland Indians.
1955: Before an exhibition game in San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Francisco Giants outfielder Willie Mays and teammate pitcher Ruben G?mez get into a brawl.
It starts when G?mez slips into the batting cage ahead of Mays, and batting practice pitcher Milt Ralat then refuses to throw. The sulking G?mez sits down on the plate, and Mays then steps to the side and directs the pitcher to throw to him there. Ralat then throws an insulting slow pitch which Mays barehands and fires back. Mays and Ralat exchange words and when Mays walks towards the mound, G?mez, brandishing a bat, attempts to interfere. Mays drops him with a right. The two later apologize to each other.
1958: US Representatives Kenneth Keating and Patrick Hillings drop their plan to bring baseball under the nation's antitrust laws.
1965: Wally Pipp, the predecessor of Lou Gehrig at first base for the New York Yankees, dies in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Pipp, who, as legend has it, had asked out of the Yankees lineup with a headache in 1925 (in fact he had been beaned in a previous game), was 71 years old. After giving way to Gehrig, Pipp never again played a game at first base for New York.
1971: 27-year-old Detroit Tigers reliever John Hiller suffers chest pains that doctors will later diagnose as a heart attack. Hiller will miss the entire 1971 season but will make an incredible comeback in 1973, saving a then major league record 38 games.
1973: Major League owners approve one of the game's most controversial rules: the designated hitter. The owners decide to allow American League teams to implement the rule on an experimental three-year basis, but the rule will become a permanent addition to the AL while the National League never adopts it.
1977: The Detroit Tigers drafted Mike Chris in the 1st round (10th pick) of the 1977 amateur draft (January Secondary).
1977: The Detroit Tigers drafted Bill Laskey in the 8th round of the 1977 amateur draft (January), but was not signed.
1980: The Detroit Tigers drafted Mike Laga in the 1st round (17th pick) of the 1980 amateur draft (January).
1980: The Detroit Tigers drafted Randy Hunt in the 5th round of the 1980 amateur draft (January), but was not signed.
1983: The Detroit Tigers drafted Randy Byers in the 1st round (8th pick) of the 1983 amateur draft (January Secondary), but was not signed.
1983: The Detroit Tigers drafted Joe Bitker in the 3rd round of the 1983 amateur draft (January), but was not signed.
1991: The Detroit Tigers traded Jeff Robinson to the Baltimore Orioles for Mickey Tettleton.
1993: The Rev. Jesse Jackson tells baseball owners that unless a plan to hire more minorities for front-office jobs is in place by April 5th, he will call for selective boycotts.
2000: Bob Lemon dies at the age of 79. Lemon was a seven-time 20-game winner with the Cleveland Indians.
He teamed with Bob Feller, Early Wynn and Mike Garcia to form one of the game's greatest starting rotations. In 1954, Lemon went 23-7 and helped the Indians to a 111-win season.
In 1970, Lemon became a major league manager for the first time when he assumed leadership of the Kansas City Royals. He later managed the Chicago White Sox before enjoying his greatest success with the New York Yankees.
On July 25, 1978, Lemon replaced Billy Martin and helped the Yankees orchestrate a miraculous comeback. Under Lemon's calming hand, the Yankees won their second straight World Championship that year.
He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1976.
2000: Carlton Fisk, in his second year of eligibility, and Tony Perez, on his ninth try, are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
2001: The Detroit Tigers signed Tom Evans as a free agent.
2003: The Florida Marlins traded Rob Henkel (minors), Gary Knotts and Nate Robertson to the Detroit Tigers for Jerrod Fuell (minors) and Mark Redman.
2005: The Arizona Diamondbacks trade five-time Cy Young Award winner Randy Johnson to the New York Yankees in a three-team deal that includes the Los Angeles Dodgers. Shawn Green, Javier Vazquez and Dioner Navarro also move in the transaction. Arizona receives Vazquez, Navarro and Brad Halsey from the Yankees, and later sends Navarro and three minor league prospects to Los Angeles for Green.
2010: After years of rumors and speculation which have stalled his candidacy for the Hall of Fame, retired slugger Mark McGwire comes clean in an interview, confirming that he was a user of steroids and human growth hormone starting in 1990, including during his record-setting 1998 season. He had refused to broach the subject when called before a Congressional committee hearing in March, 2005, but decides to speak to the media a few months after accepting a position as hitting coach with the St. Louis Cardinals.
2011: Trevor Hoffman, who staked his claim as the all-time saves leader in the majors thanks to an outstanding change-up, announces his retirement after 18 seasons. He recorded his 600th save with the Brewers last season, and retires with 601, but had a tough year overall and found little interest in his services for next season. He will not hold the saves record for long, however, as Mariano Rivera has 559 and will pass him before the end of the coming season.
2011: The Tigers sign P Brad Penny to a one-year contract.
2014: Arbitrator Fredric Horowitz issues his ruling on Alex Rodriguez's appeal of his 211-game suspension for PED use, originally issued on August 5th, reducing it to 162 games, or the entire 2014 season and postseason, costing him $25 million in salary. Rodriguez says he will appeal the decision in federal court. For its part, the Players Association says it disagrees with the decision, but will respect it as it was reached through due process.
2016: Hall of Famer Monte Irvin dies at his home in Houston, TX at the age of 96. He was a star in the Negro Leagues before joining the New York Giants shortly after integration in 1949. He later became the first black executive to work for Major League Baseball.
2016: The Detroit Tigers signed John Mayberry as a free agent.
2018: The Detroit Tigers selected Johnny Barbato off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Tigers players and coaches birthdays:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Schoolboy_Rowe
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/rowesc01.shtml
Lynwood Schoolboy Rowe 1933-1942, coach 1954-1955.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Alvin_Crowder
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/crowdal01.shtml
General Al Crowder 1934-1936.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/berryne01.shtml
Neil Berry 1948-1952.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Don_Mossi
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/mossido01.shtml
Don Mossi 1959-1963.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/morriwa02.shtml
Wayne Morris 2003.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Lloyd_McClendon
Lloyd McClendon coach 2006-2013, 2017.
Tigers players who passed away:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Wally_Pipp
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/pippwa01.shtml
Wally Pipp 1913.
from Baseball Reference
