On March 31 in Baseball History...

    1909 - The National Commission rules that players who jump contracts will be suspended for five years. Players joining outlaw organizations will be suspended for three years as punishment for going outside organized baseball.

    1948 - At Ebbets Field No. 2, the Dodgers play their first exhibition game at Dodgertown in Vero Beach, which will remain the team's home for 61 years. Amidst much fanfare, including Governor Millard Caldwell throwing the ceremonial first pitch, Jackie Robinson homers in the first inning as Brooklyn beats its top farm club, the Montreal Royals, 5-4.

    1958 - Indians Gene Woodling, Dick Williams and Bud Daley are traded to the Orioles for Larry Doby and Don Ferrarese.

    1961 - The Pacific Coast League's proposal to use a designated hitter for the pitcher is rejected by the Professional Baseball Rules Committee by a vote of 8-1. The first use of the DH will occur in the American League in 1973.

    1968 - The American League's new franchise in Seattle chooses Pilots as its nickname.

    1969 - Veteran utility infielder Chico Salmon is traded from the expansion Seattle Pilots to the Baltimore Orioles for pitcher Gene Brabender and infielder Gordy Lund. Salmon will play for three consecutive pennant winners in Baltimore from 1969 to 1971, while the Pilots last only one season in Seattle before moving to Milwaukee.

    1982 - Rangers trade outfielder/first baseman Al Oliver to the Expos for outfielder/third baseman Larry Parrish and minor league first baseman Dave Hostetler.

    1984 - On a televised episode of ABC’s Sports Beat, Howard Cossell informs interviewee Roger Maris of the Yankees' plan to retire the slugger's number 9 at the Old Timers' Game ceremonies in July. The former Bronx Bombers' reaction is at first is disbelief, followed by a genuine pleasure for being recognized for his achievements during his seven years with the team.

    1993 - Bill White, the first black to serve as a league president, resigns from his National League post. The former Cardinal first baseman will remain at the job until March of 1994.

    1994 - The Mets trade hard-luck right hander Anthony Young to the Cubs for shortstop Jose Vizcaino. A-Yo holds the major league record for the most consecutive losses by a pitcher.

    1994 - The White Sox assign NBA superstar Michael Jordan to the Birmingham Barons of the Class AA Southern League.

    1995 - A crowd of 47,536 fans flocks to the first baseball game ever played at Coors Field. Due to the strike, the exhibition game is played with replacement players with the Rockies beating the Yankees, 4-1.

    1995 - The longest strike in sports history ends — in a courtroom. A U.S. District court order forbids owners from implementing new financial working conditions in the wake of the negotiations impasse. The court decides that conditions will revert to the old rules from the previous season. Because of the timing of the court order, 18 games will have to be trimmed from the major league schedule.

    1996 - For the first time in history, the major league season opens with a game played in the month of in March. At the Kingdome, the Mariners beat the White Sox in 12 innings, 3-2.

    1998 - In the longest scoreless opener in National League history, pinch-hitter Alberto Castillo's single with two outs and the bases loaded gives the Mets a 1-0, 14-inning victory over the Phillies. The longest Opening Day game in major league history occurred in 1926 when the Senators blanked the Philadelphia A's in 15 innings, 1-0.

    1998 - In front of a sellout crowd of 47,484 at Bank One Ballpark, the Arizona Diamondbacks lose to the Rockies, 9-2. The seven run difference matches the '62 Mets and the '77 Mariners for the most-lopsided loss by an expansion team in their first game.

    1998 - The Tigers spoil the Devil Rays' major league debut beating the American League's newest team, 6-2 at Tropicana Field in Tampa.

    1998 - With a rare on-the-field appearance, Hank Aaron helps to mark Milwaukee's historic return to the Senior Circuit as the Brewers play their inaugural game as a National League team losing to the Braves at Turner Field, 2-1. Milwaukee is the first team since the inception of the American League in 1901 to switch leagues.

    1998 - Mark McGwire hits the first of his historic seventy home runs when he goes deep off Ramon Martinez in the fifth inning of the Cardinals' 6-0 victory over L.A. at Busch Stadium. The Redbirds' first baseman becomes the first player in franchise history to hit a grand slam on Opening Day.

    2003 - On Opening Day for most of the clubs, MLB.com, the web site of major league baseball, has more than 10 million hits setting a new record. The previous mark was set last season on the final day of online voting for All-Star game starters when 3.6 million visitors were attracted to the site.

    2003 - Substituting for his son, a former lefty first baseman at Yale named George Bush throws the Great American Ball Park's ceremonial first pitch when the Reds make their debut in their new ballpark. The former president and the sell-out crowd of 42,263 flag-waving fans enjoy the patriotic pre-game ceremonies and then watch the Pirates rout Cincinnati, 10-1.

    2003 - At Shea Stadium, the Mets Opening Day lineup includes the first regular starting double play combination in major league history featuring natives from Puerto Rico. Second baseman Roberto Alomar and shortstop Rey Sanchez combine to make two twin killings as the Cubs drub New York, 15-2.

    2004 - With a 12-1 defeat of the Devil Rays in Tokyo, Kevin Brown becomes the second pitcher in history to have defeated all of the thirty major league teams. The 39-year old right-hander joins Al Leiter who accomplished the feat last season pitching for the Mets.

    2005 - The Orioles and MLB agree on a deal which will allow Nationals games to be televised. A joint venture backed by MLB will allow fans in the Baltimore-Washington area to enjoy telecasts of both franchises and will ensure the Orioles fans in the nation’s capital will still have an opportunity to watch their ‘Birds’.

    2007 - In the MLB's inaugural Civil Rights game, the Cardinals beat the Indians at AutoZone Park in Memphis, 5-1. The exhibition game, planned to be an annual event, is designed to celebrate and honor baseball's historical role in the nation's civil rights movement.

    2008 - Despite a two HRs and 4 RBI performance by Jim Thome and a HR by Jermaine Dye, the White Sox drop the season opener to Cleveland 10-8 at Progessive Field. Mark Buehrle surrenders seven hits and 7 earned runs in 1 2/3 innings but the White Sox battle back to even the score in the 7th to let Buehrle off the hook.  Octavio Dotel who gave up three hits, two walks and three runs in the 8th picks up the loss for the White Sox.

    2008 - Cuban defector Alexi Ramirez makes his ML debut starting in centerfield for the White Sox.  Ramirez goes 0 for 4 with three strikeouts and a walk.

    2008 - On Opening Day, the Reds pay tribute to Joe Nuxhall by wearing the number 41 on their uniforms. The team’s beloved broadcaster, who spent over 60 years with the organization, including his major debut as a 15-year old hurler, died during the off-season at the age of 79.

    2008 - Outside of Wrigley Field, the Cubs unveil a statue of Ernie Banks done by Lou Cella. The typographical error on the base of the statue, "Lets play two", is quickly corrected when the sculptor comes down to the ballpark two days later and carves the needed apostrophe.


    2009 - The Tigers unexpectedly release Gary Shefield despite having $14 million left on the $28 million, two-year contract extension given to the DH/outfielder after being acquired from the Yankees in a trade for prospects. The 40-year old nine-time All-Star needs to hit one more dinger to become the 25th major league player to hit 500 career home runs.

    2009 - The Cincinnati Reds traded Jeff Keppinger to Houston Astros in exchange for a player to be named later; Cincinnati Reds received Drew Sutton (April 16, 2009).

    2009 - The Chicago White Sox released Tim Raines, Jr.

    2010 - Denard Span hits a hard foul line drive into the stands that strikes his mother in the first inning of an exhibition game in Tampa. The Twins' stunned leadoff batter runs into the crowded stands and stays with his mom while she is treated by paramedics until she returns to her seat, slightly shaken but intact.

    2012 - The Chicago White Sox signed Conor Jackson as a free agent.

    2013 - The Texas Rangers released first baseman Brandon Allen.

    2013 - The Astros beat the Rangers in their American League debut, an 8-3 victory in a nationally televised game played at Minute Maid Park. After 51 years of playing in the National League, Houston agreed to move from the NL Central to the AL West to give each league 15 teams with an equal number teams in each division, as a condition of the approval of the sale of the team to Jim Crane.

    2013 - Shintaro Fujinami, a first-round draft selection last Fall, sets a record for rookies drafted out of high school when he makes his first professional start pitching for the Hanshin Tigers just three games into the season. The 18-year-old Japanese right-hander, who allows two runs in six innings and will take the loss in the Tokyo Yakult Swallows' 2-0 victory at Jingu Stadium, makes his mound debut a game sooner than Daisuke Matsuzaka (1999) and Hideaki Wakui (2005).

    2014 - The Cleveland Indians signed George Kottaras as a free agent.

    2014 - On opening day, Chris Sale picks up his 1st win of the season when he pitches 7 1/3 innings, striking out eight as the Chicago White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 5-3 at U.S. Cellular Park.  Alejando De Aza hits two home runs while driving in three runs.  Adam Eaton and Jose Abreu, making their White Sox debuts, each go 2 for 4 and Matt Lindstrom picks up the save before a crowd of 37,422.

    2015 - The Boston Red Sox released Felipe Paulino.

    2015 - The Toronto Blue Jays released Dayan Viciedo.

    2017 - The Seattle Mariners signed Gordon Beckham as a free agent.

    2017 - The San Francisco Giants released Jimmy Rollins.



    Baseball Birthdays on March 31...

    1852 - Evers, Tom
    1853 - Pirie, Jim
    1862 - Benedict, Art
    1867 - Hallman, Bill
    1868 - Stivetts, Jack
    1880 - Ross, Ernie
    1882 - Pfeffer, Big Jeff
    1884 - Truesdale, Frank
    1885 - Bronkie, Herman
    1886 - Kommers, Fred
    1887 - Brandom, Chick
    1891 - Couch, Johnny
    1894 - Mallonee, Ben
    1894 - Sheehan, Tom
    1895 - Bigbee, Carson
    1897 - Brown, Jim
    1899 - Johnson, Ed
    1904 - Dailey, Sam
    1918 - Grissom, Marv
    1920 - Koslo, Dave
    1931 - Snyder, Gene
    1938 - Herrnstein, John
    1938 - Stubing, Moose
    1946 - Denehy, Bill
    1946 - Marquez, Gonzalo
    1953 - Hausman, Tom
    1961 - Jones, Tracy
    1964 - Montalvo, Rafael
    1964 - Cron, Chris
    1964 - Galvez, Balvino
    1975 - Christman, Tim
    1975 - Rupe, Ryan
    1977 - Brown, Jamie
    1979 - Kinney, Josh
    1979 - Manning, Charlie
    1980 - Wang, Chien-Ming
    1983 - Mathis, Jeff
    1987 - Bourjos, Peter
    1989 - Marte, Alfredo
    1989 - Pinto, Josmil




    Baseball Deaths on March 31...

    1921 - Fitzgerald, John
    1928 - Redding, Phil
    1935 - Libby, Steve
    1936 - Falch, Anton
    1941 - McKenna, Kit
    1942 - O'Brien, Ray
    1943 - McDonald, Tex
    1957 - Meyer, Billy
    1966 - Adkins, Grady
    1968 - Lowdermilk, Grover
    1971 - Post, Sam
    1973 - Howell, Roland
    1974 - Hearn, Bunny
    1977 - Mann, Johnny
    1979 - Schultz, Bob
    1992 - Silvestri, Ken
    1999 - Kahdot, Ike
    2015 - Ingram, Riccardo
    2016 - Alvarez, Orlando
    2016 - Butters, Tom
    2017 - Amaro Sr., Rubén