On May 29 in Baseball History...

    1905 - Dodger hurler Elmer Stricklett introduces the spitball helping Brooklyn to beat the Giants, 4-3.

    1922 - The Supreme Court rules that organized baseball is a sport and not a business which exempts major league clubs from antitrust laws and interstate commerce rules.

    1928 - At Ebbets Field, Bill Terry hits for the cycle to pace the Giants to a 12-5 victory over the Robins (Dodgers). The New York first baseman is the first player in major league history to include a grand slam as part of the cycle.

    1946 - In a reverse integration role, Edward Klep becomes the first white to play in the Negro leagues. In a game played in Grand Rapids, the Erie, Pennsylvania native tosses seven innings for the Cleveland Buckeyes against the American Giants in his debut with the Negro American League team.

    1951 - Baseball pitcher Billy Joe Davidson signs a record bonus that is reported to be $120,000 with the Cleveland Indians. The Marion, North Carolina native will never play a game in the majors.

    1956 - In a 10-1 loss to the Dodgers at Forbes Field, Dale Long is held hitless by Don Newcombe ending his consecutive-game home run streak. The Pirates' first baseman had established a new major league mark by homering in the last eight Pittsburgh contests.

    1959 - Gus Bell goes 5-for-5, including three consecutive home runs, helping the Reds beat the Cubs, 10-4.

    1962 - Buck (John) O'Neil, previously a scout with the Cubs, becomes the first black coach in major-league baseball after accepting a job with the organization.

    1965 - Richie Allen's 529-foot blast clears the left-center field roof, over the Coke Sign, at Connie Mack Stadium. The Phillies' third baseman's two-run prodigious poke off Chicago’s right-hander Larry Jackson proves to be the difference in Philadelphia's 4-2 victory. 

    1976 - The only home run of Joe Niekro's 22-year career comes at the expense of brother Phil as the Astros tie the Braves in the seventh, then win 4-3.

    1978 - In a 14-inning one-run loss to Pittsburgh, Phillies' outfielder Garry Maddox ties a franchise record when he swipes four bases. The Philadelphia fleet flychaser equals the mark set in 1906 by Sherry Magee, who accomplished the feat twice that season.

    1979 - At Dodger Stadium, Dusty Baker, Rick Sutcliffe, Steve Garvey, Gary Thomasson, Derrel Thomas, Joe Ferguson and Davey Lopes set a team record by hitting seven home runs as the Dodgers crush the Reds, 17-6.

    1981 - The Mets trade relief pitcher Jeff Reardon and outfielder Dan Norman, who was obtained from the Reds in the 1977 Tom Seaver trade, to the Expos for Ellis Valentine.

    1982 - LaMarr Hoyt's 14-game winning streak ends as the Indians beat the White Sox, 5-2.

    1982 - Paul Splittorff pitches eight solid innings in the Royals' 14-1 rout of Texas at Arlington Stadium. The southpaw's victory makes him the all-time franchise leader with 145 wins, one more than Dennis Leonard.

    1989 - Phillies third baseman Mike Schmidt, 39, retires. He is seventh on the all-time home run list with 548, but was hitting just .203 this season before making his tearful farewell speech.

    1990 - Rickey Henderson steals his 893rd career base in Oakland's 2-1 loss to the Blue Jays, surpassing Ty Cobb as the A.L.'s all-time leader. Lou Brock's mark of 938 is next.

    1992 - Tim Raines of the White Sox swipes his 700th career base.

    1993 - Jose Canseco, who three days earlier had a ball bounce off his head for a home run, pitches an inning in a blowout in Boston. The result? Besides the Rangers' 15-1 loss, Canseco winds up having to undergo season-ending elbow surgery from his ill-advised outing.

    1996 - Orioles' Cal Ripken moves past Eddie Murray for first-place on the team's home run all-time list by hitting his 334th career home run in a 9-8 loss to the Mariners.

    2000 - At Yankee Stadium, Randy Velarde completes the tenth unassisted triple play in major league history. With runners on first and second Shane Spencer hits a line drive to the A's second baseman who catches the ball, tags out Jorge Posada coming from first base and steps on second tripling up Tino Martinez who took off for third to complete the rare event.


    2001 - The Diamondbacks beat the Giants at PacBell Park, 1-0. The 18-inning contest, which takes five hours and fifty-three minutes to play, establishes a franchise mark for Colorado in both innings played and time.

    2002 - Yankee fireballer Roger Clemens becomes the third major leaguer to strike out 10 or more batters in at least 100 games. Nolan Ryan (215) and Randy Johnson (175) are the other two hurlers to have accomplished the feat.

    2003 - The Red Sox trade All-Star third baseman Shea Hillenbrand (.303, 3, 38) to the Diamondbacks for 24-year old reliever turned starter Byung-Hyun Kim (1-5, 3.56).

    2010 - The Giants call up Buster Posey to start at first base, and the 23-year old rookie responds going three-for-four with three RBIs in a 12-1 rout of the Diamondbacks at AT&T Park. The Leesburg, GA native, who will be selected as the National League's Rookie of the Year at the end of the season, will not become the team's starting catcher until Bengie Molina is traded to Texas at the end of June.

    2010 - Kendry Morales breaks his left ankle jumping on home plate while celebrating his walk-off grand slam that just beat Seattle, 9-7. The freak injury will cause the 26-year old talented Angel first baseman to probably miss the rest of the season.

    2010 - Roy Halladay throws the 20th perfect game in major league history, outdueling Josh Johnson in the Phillies' 1-0 victory over the Marlins at Miami’s Sun Life Stadium. The former American League Cy Young Award winner, obtained from Toronto in the off-season, joins Jim Bunning as the only other hurler in franchise history to accomplish the feat.

    2014 - In the Blue Jays’ 8-6 loss to Kansas City at the Rogers Centre, Edwin Encarnacion hits a pair of two-run homers, both off Royals right-hander James Shields, to set a franchise record for home runs in a month with 16. The Toronto first baseman now also shares the American League mark for most home runs in the month of May with Yankees legend Mickey Mantle.

    2016 - United States softball star Jennie Finch becomes the first woman to manage a pro baseball team when she leads the Bridgeport Bluefish to a 3-1 win over the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs in an Atlantic League contest played at The Ballpark at Harbor Yard. The Olympic gold medal winning pitcher, an All-American at Arizona, is married to Casey Daigle, who pitched briefly for the Diamondbacks and Astros.



    Baseball Birthdays on May 29...

    1869 - Honan, Marty
    1875 - Fultz, Dave
    1885 - Lively, Jack
    1899 - Reinhart, Art
    1899 - Elliott, Hal
    1901 - Stroner, Jim
    1907 - Gallivan, Phil
    1910 - McQuinn, George
    1915 - Dinges, Vance
    1918 - Burich, Bill
    1919 - Brancato, Al
    1921 - Fain, Ferris
    1928 - Schmidt, Willard
    1929 - Vargas, Roberto
    1931 - Baumgartner, John
    1938 - Willis, Dale
    1941 - Kennedy, John
    1945 - Mashore, Clyde
    1945 - Odom, Blue Moon
    1946 - Miller, Dyar
    1952 - Holdsworth, Fred
    1953 - Dupree, Mike
    1958 - Stenhouse, Mike
    1958 - Allen, Jamie
    1962 - Davis, Eric
    1965 - Hayes, Charlie
    1967 - Risley, Bill
    1969 - Borland, Toby
    1973 - Miller, Trever
    1975 - Spencer, Sean
    1976 - Hairston, Jr., Jerry
    1979 - Rheinecker, John
    1980 - Baek, Cha-Seung
    1982 - Macri, Matt
    1984 - Ambriz, Hector
    1990 - Biagini, Joe
    1990 - Pill, Tyler
    1990 - Rosenthal, Trevor
    1991 - Matz, Steven
    1991 - Wittgren, Nick
    1992 - Snelten, D.J.



    Baseball Deaths on May 29...

    1932 - Lobert, Frank
    1939 - McCarthy, Bill
    1943 - Wright, Pat
    1949 - Scanlan, Doc
    1952 - Lavan, Doc
    1955 - Brown, Ray
    1959 - Ussat, Dutch
    1963 - Herbert, Fred
    1964 - Cates, Eli
    1965 - McNally, Mike
    1966 - Vaughn, Hippo
    1972 - Berg, Moe
    1978 - Reynolds, Carl
    1982 - Palica, Erv
    1985 - Zitzmann, Billy
    1987 - Sheehan, Jack
    1993 - Kampouris, Alex
    2002 - Page, Sam
    2010 - Robertson, Jeriome
    2016 - Schroeder, Bob