This Day in Braves History: Phil Niekro passes away the Ace decided his fate.
Braves Franchise History
1914 – The Boston Braves acquire outfielder Sherry Magee from the Philadelphia PHillies in exchange for Possum Whitted and Oscar Dugey.
2020 – Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro passes away at the age of 81.
MLB History
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1906 – NL umpire Hank O’Day suggests that the batter’s box be outlined with white rubber strips rather than chalk to make it impossible for hitters to erase the lines. The rule will never be implemented.
1919 – Red Sox owner Harry Frazier makes a secret agreement to sell Babe Ruth to the Yankees for $100,000.
1950 – Commissioner Happy Chandler announces that the Gillette Razor Company has purchased television rights to the All-Star Game for six years at $6 million dollars. A large portion of the money will go to the players’ pension fund.
1993 – Free agent pitcher Dave Righetti signs a contract with the Oakland Athletics.
2008 – 44-year old Randy Johnson signs a one-year, $8 million deal with the San Francisco Giants.
2012 – Former pitcher Ugueth Urbina is released from prison after serving seven years of a 14-year sentence for attempted murder.
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1940 – South Side Park, the first home of the Chicago White Sox, burns down.
1989 – Billy Martin dies in a car accident in Johnson City, New York at the age of 61. Martin was a former All-Star infielder and the former manager of the Minnesota Twins, Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers, New York Yankees and Oakland Athletics. Martin had five stints as manager of the Yankees and was rumored to be a candidate to replace Lou Piniella at the time of his death. He managed for 18 years and compiled a career record of 1253-1013 while winning five American League pennants and the 1977 World Championship.
2001 – Hideki Matsui signs a one-year, $4.7 million deal to play for the Yomiuri Giants making him the highest paid player in Nippon Pro Baseball History.
2019 – The White Sox sign Edwin Encarnacion to a one-year, $12 million deal that includes a club option for an additional season.
