March 21 in Tigers and mlb history:
1896: Bill McGowan is born in Wilmington, Delaware. McGowan will introduce a colorful umpiring style with authority and enthusiasm over 30 American League seasons, not missing an inning for 16 years during 2,541 consecutive games. He will be elected to the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee in 1992.
1903: Sporting Life, the U.S.'s oldest baseball publication, begins its 21st year. It will close during World War I.
1908: Ty Cobb signs with the Detroit Tigers for $4,000 plus an $800 bonus if he hits over .300. He will collect the bonus with a league-leading .324 average, becoming one of only three American League regulars to top .300 this year.
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1936: New York Yankees outfielder Joe DiMaggio runs his spring training record to 12 for 20, in an 11 - 2 Yankees victory over the newly-named Boston Bees. Before the next game is played, the prize rookie is left unattended with his foot in a diathermy machine. The resulting burn ends his spring training and delays his major league debut until May.
1952: The Detroit Tigers selected Ken Johnson off waivers from the Philadelphia Phillies.
1954: Brooklyn Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella injures his left hand in an exhibition game against the Yankees. Though he will hit two home runs on Opening Day, Campanella will have surgery in early May for the bone chips, returning on May 30th. The injury started earlier when he was hit on the hand in the 1953 World Series.
1957: Television Age reports that Major League Baseball will get $9.3 million for TV-Radio rights this year.
1959: Tigers acquire Larry Doby from Cleveland for Tito Francona. Doby will be the first African American to play for the Tigers, but will be sold to the White Sox after 16 appearances. Broke the AL color barrier with Cleveland in 1947.
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1962: The Philadelphia Phillies retire Robin Roberts' uniform number 36.
The Phillies sold Roberts to the Baltimore Orioles after the 1961 season. Roberts spent 14 seasons with the Phillies, winning 20 or more games from 1952 to 1955.
1968: One of the two American League expansion teams announces its nickname. The Kansas City franchise, now known as the "Royals", will begin play in 1969. Kansas City's last major league franchise, the Athletics, moved to Oakland after the 1967 season. The name evokes the Negro League Kansas City Monarchs and the annual "American Royal" Horse Show, held in Kansas City.
1974: Philadelphia purchases Ed Farmer from the Tigers.
1975: Joe Medwick dies in Saint Petersburg, Florida, at the age of 63. As one of the feared hitters on the famed Gashouse Gang, Medwick clubbed 205 home runs and batted .324 over a 17-year career. Medwick gained election to the Hall of Fame in 1968.
1977: Detroit Tigers pitching sensation Mark Fidrych tears cartilage in his left knee. The injury will require surgery, which will effectively end his promising career. Fidrych, who was elected the 1976 American League Rookie of the Year, gained national attention for his strange gyrations and mannerisms on the mound, which earned him the nickname "The Bird".
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1988: Edd Roush dies in Bradenton, Florida, at the age of 94. A two-time National League batting champion and a .323 hitter over an 18-year career, Roush entered the Hall of Fame in 1962.
1997: The pitching-poor Detroit Tigers release pitcher Jason Grimsley, who posted a 5-7 record with a 6.84 ERA with the California Angels last season, but was 0-3 this spring training.
1997: The Oakland Athletics returned Frank Catalanotto (earlier draft pick) to the Detroit Tigers.
2011: The perjury trial of Barry Bonds, officially named "USA vs. Bonds", begins in San Francisco, CA with jury selection. The past few weeks have been spent arguing over what evidence would be admissible as the prosecution seeks to demonstrate that Bonds lied to a grand jury in 2003 during the BALCO investigation when he stated that he had never knowingly used steroids. Bonds also faces a charge of obstruction of justice.
2013: The Detroit Tigers released Trevor Bell.
2014: The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim traded Andrew Romine to the Detroit Tigers for Jose Alvarez.
2019: Ichiro Suzuki voluntarily retired from the Seattle Mariners. Starting at age 27 Ichiro had 10 consecutive seasons of 200 or more Hits and set the ML record of 262 in 2004. He also won 10 consecutive Gold Gloves with his impeccable fielding and strong throwing arm. The 10 GG tied him with Ken Griffey Jr. and the legendary Al Kaline for Most in American League history. With over 3,000 Hits and a career .311 BA Ichiro is sure to be a First Ballot HOF'er.
2021: Shohei Ohtani does something unseen in ages in North American baseball, as he is both the lead-off hitter and the starting pitcher in the Angels' Cactus League game against the Padres. Given a last opportunity this year to prove he can succeed as a two-way player, he goes 2-for-2 with a walk at the plate, and strikes out five batters in four innings. He is hitting an unbelievable .636 at this point, with plenty of power, and is regularly throwing pitches at 100 mph or more as well. "The dude's a freak", comments his opponent, defending Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.
Tigers players birthdays:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sigaffr01.shtml
Frank Sigafoos 1929.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/samuejo01.shtml
Joe Samuels 1930.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Boyd_Perry
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/perrybo01.shtml
Boyd Perry 1941.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Owen_Friend
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/f/frienow01.shtml
Owen Friend 1953.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Fernando_Arroyo
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/arroyfe01.shtml
Fernando Arroyo 1975, 1977-1979.
Tigers players who passed away:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Harry_Eisenstat
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/e/eisenha01.shtml
Harry Eisenstat 1938-1939.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Pinky_Higgins
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/higgipi01.shtml
Mike 'Pinky' Higgins 1939-1944, 1946.
Baseball Reference
