The Knickerbockers Put It in Writing

The Knickerbockers Put It in Writing (1845)

On this day in New York, the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club adopted twenty written rules. The first side to 21 "aces" won, as long as both teams had batted an equal number of times. One rule banned a schoolyard favorite: retiring a runner by throwing the ball at him. Historians still argue over who actually wrote the rules. Nobody argues that the game got a lot less painful.

Fred Merkle Never Touches Second (1908)

Giants and Cubs, tied 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth at the Polo Grounds, pennant race dead even. With two outs and runners on the corners, Al Bridwell singled, the run crossed, and the crowd poured onto the field. Nineteen-year-old Fred Merkle, the runner from first, headed for the clubhouse without touching second. Johnny Evers got hold of a ball, stepped on the bag, and umpire Hank O'Day ruled Merkle out, with darkness forcing a tie. The Cubs won the replay, the pennant, and the World Series. They would not win another until 2016.

Larry French Goes Out on Top (1942)

In his final big league start, Brooklyn's Larry French one-hit the Phillies, 6-0, to finish a 15-4 season. That gave him 197 career wins. He joined the Navy that winter and hoped to keep pitching for the Dodgers. It never happened. French made the Navy his career, serving 27 years and retiring as a captain in 1969. The record book says 197. The Navy's says captain.

Jim Deshaies Starts With Eight (1986)

Astros rookie Jim Deshaies had not started in nearly two weeks. He came out firing at the Astrodome, striking out the first eight Dodgers he faced, a modern record nobody matched for 28 years. Next up was the pitcher's spot, and Tommy Lasorda had seen enough. He sent up pinch hitter Larry See, who popped out to second. Deshaies finished with a two-hit, 4-0 shutout and 10 strikeouts, eight of them before anyone put a ball in play.