February 4 in Tigers and mlb history:
1882: National League players are now responsible for carrying their own bats and uniforms on road trips. They are also required to purchase and keep clean two complete uniforms, including the white linen ties to be worn on the field at all times.
1893: The first recorded version of Casey at the Bat, as recited by Russell Hunting, hits the music charts. DeWolf Hopper's more famous version will not be released until October 1906.
1915: The New York Yankees purchase Wally Pipp and Hugh High from the Detroit Tigers for a reported $5,000 each. Baseball historian Lyle Spatz (Yankees Coming, Yankees Going) writes that this was the first of some promised funneling of ball players to the recently-sold Yankees franchise.
1922: Joe Harris, formerly with the Cleveland Indians, is reinstated by Judge Landis because of his good World War I record. Harris had been on the ineligible list for having played with and against ineligible players in independent games. "His service in France, where he was gassed after bitter fighting, caused him to do things he might not have done," says Judge Landis in reinstating him. Last December, Harris was traded by Cleveland along with "Tioga" George Burns and Elmer Smith to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Stuffy McInnis.
1934: The National Recovery Administration says athletes advertising athletic goods must actually use them or advertisers will lose the NRA Blue Eagle and be fined.
1942: The Tigers release longtime star second baseman Charlie Gehringer. Gehringer played his entire 19 year career with the Tigers. The "Mechanical Man' has led the league in runs twice, hits twice, doubles twice, stolen bases and batting average. With seven 200 hit seasons, one of 6 players with 60 or more doubles in a season, an MVP Award in 1937, Gehringer considered an all-time top 5 second baseman, is voted into the Baseball Hall Of Fame in 1949.
1956: The Major Leagues vote to establish the Cy Young Memorial Award for the outstanding pitcher of the year. At first, there will be one award for both major leagues.
1956: The American League says it will test the automatic intentional walk during spring training.
1957: Manager Joe McCarthy and outfielder Sam Crawford are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America. McCarthy, the winningest manager in major league history, won nine pennants and four consecutive World Championships with the New York Yankees. Crawford, one of the greatest hitters of the deadball era, finished his career with 309 triples, first on the all-time list out of 2,961 hits.
1958: The Hall of Fame fails to enshrine any new members for the first time since 1950.
1960: The BBWAA voters fail to elect a new Hall of Fame member. Edd Roush gets 146 votes, but 202 are necessary for election. Sam Rice (143) and Eppa Rixey (142) are next in line. All three will eventually be elected.
1962: Roberto Clemente accepts Pittsburgh's annual "Dapper Dan Award", acknowledging both Pirate fans and fellow Pirates in the process. Les Biederman writes in The Sporting News: "Clemente, the Pirates' National League batting champion, gave credit to the encouragement of the Pittsburgh fans for his feats in 1961 that earned him the Dapper Dan Award at the 26th annual banquet before more than 2,000 persons (all male) at the Hilton Hotel. The Puerto Rican, who climaxed his greatest season in the majors with a .351 batting average, accepted the plaque from Dapper Dan President Al Abrams, sports editor of the sponsoring Post Gazette, and responded to a standing ovation with a moving and sincere speech. 'Without the fans' encouragement here, I never could win this award,' Clemente told the hushed crowd. 'This award belongs to the fans and my teammates as much as it does to me.'"
1969: Attorney and Bowel Brain of the highest Bowie Kuhn is named commissioner, succeeding William 'Spike' Eckert. Kuhn receives a one-year contract paying him $100,000. Major league owners turned to Kuhn after failing to agree on either of two other candidates, Mike Burke of the New York Yankees and Chub Feeney of the San Francisco Giants. The early favorite, John McHale, took his name out of the running early, as he had accepted the job of President of the expansion Montreal Expos a short time before Eckert was ousted.
1971: Commissioner and Huge Shithead Bowie Kuhn announces former Negro League players will have a separate wing in the Hall of Fame. Due to the controversy the announcement causes, it is decided inclusion in regular Hall of Fame is more fitting and more of an honor for the former black players.
1976: Federal Judge John W. Oliver upholds a recent decision by arbitrator Peter Seitz, who had granted free agency to pitchers Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally. Both players had challenged baseball's reserve clause.
1987: The Detroit Tigers signed Bill Laskey as a free agent.
1987: The Detroit Tigers signed Mike Stenhouse as a free agent.
1991: The 12 members of the board of directors of the Hall of Fame vote unanimously to ban Pete Rose from the ballot. Rose will become eligible again only if the commissioner reinstates him by December, 2005 - which will not happen.
1994: The Detroit Tigers signed Kirk Gibson as a free agent.
2004: Avoiding an arbitration hearing, the St. Louis Cardinals and Albert Pujols agree to a $100 million, seven-year deal. The 24-year slugging 1B/OF, who hit .359 with 43 home runs and 124 RBI in 2003, was the runner up to Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants in National League MVP voting.
2020: The Red Sox and Dodgers engineer an old-fashioned blockbuster trade as Boston sends former MVP Mookie Betts and high-priced pitcher David Price to Los Angeles for OF Alex Verdugo and P Kenta Maeda. Boston then flips Maeda to the Twins for another prospect, P Brusdar Graterol, while L.A. clears some space in its outfield by dealing Joc Pederson to the Angels for IF Luis Rengifo. The deal is clearly designed to get Boston under the luxury tax threshold, at the cost of being competitive in the short term, but it will hit a snag when the Red Sox are dissatisfied with Graterol's health condition. It will be completed on February 9th with Graterol joining the Dodgers, and a few prospects changing teams to even things out. However, the Pederson for Rengifo deal will fall through as a result of the delay in the main deal.
Tigers players birthdays:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Germany_Schaefer
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/schaege01.shtml
Germany Schaefer 1905-1909.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/ainsmed01.shtml
Eddie Ainsmith 1919-1921.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Joe_Sparma
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sparmjo01.shtml
Joe Sparma 1964-1969.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/papist01.shtml
Stan Papi 1980-1981.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Rusty_Kuntz
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kuntzru01.shtml
Rusty Kuntz 1984-1985.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bandoch01.shtml
Chris Bando 1988.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Doug_Fister
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/fistedo01.shtml
Doug Fister 2011-2013.
Tigers players who passed away:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Ed_Siever
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sieveed01.shtml
Ed Siever 1901-1902, 1906-1908.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Woodie_Fryman
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/frymawo01.shtml
Woodie Fryman 1972-1974.
Baseball Reference
