TODAY IN BASEBALL courtesy of National Pastime
1973 – On Father’s Day, the A’s stage a Mustache Day promotion, giving fans with hair above their upper lip free admission into the ballpark. Charlie Finley offers his players a $300 bonus for growing facial hair for the event, and all do except Vida Blue, who is still bitter about his recent contract negotiations with the team owner.
2002 – In the first major league game to feature four players with 400 career homers, the Cubs beat the Rangers, 4-3, when Alex Gonzalez hits a walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth inning. Sammy Sosa (475), Fred McGriff (459) and Juan Gonzalez (401) watched Rafael Palmeiro add his 460th home run to the total.
2005 – Derek Jeter, who will average 15 home runs during 20-year career, hits his only major league grand slam in his 156th plate appearances with the bases loaded. The 30 year-old All-Star shortstop, who collects two round-trippers in the Bombers’ 8-1 victory over the Cubs at Yankee Stadium, clears the bases in the sixth inning with a blast off Joe Borowski that clears the fence in left-center field.
And finally…in 2014, with the only batter reaching base as a result of a throwing error by shortstop Hanley Ramirez in the seventh inning, Clayton Kershaw no-hits the Rockies at Dodger Stadium, striking out a career-high 15 batters. The left-hander’s teammate Josh Beckett also threw a no-hitter 24 days ago, making it the shortest span between no-hitters by a team since the Reds’ Johnny Vander Meer accomplished it in consecutive starts, four days apart, in 1938.
PLAYERS BORN TODAY
Lou Brock (1939), Andres Galarraga (1961), Sandy Alomar (1966) and Chris Coghlan (1985)
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