Braves Franchise History
1966: The New York Mets sign University of Southern California star Tom Seaver to his first contract, including a $50,000 bonus. Seaver had been selected by the Atlanta Braves in the January draft, but Commissioner Spike Eckert voided the deal when he signed a contract after USC’s season had already begun. The Mets beat out the Cleveland Indians and Philadelphia Phillies in a lottery for Seaver’s services.
2000: Andres Galarraga hits a home run in his first game back after missing the entire 1999 season following cancer surgery as the Braves defeat the Rockies, 2-0.
MLB History
1989: Ken Griffey, Jr. of the Seattle Mariners makes his major league debut. The rookie outfielder hits a double in his first at-bat against Dave Stewart of the Oakland Athletics.
1991: Nolan Ryan and his son, Reid, pitch against each other as the Texas Rangers take on the University of Texas at Austin. Reid, a 19-year-old freshman, gives up four runs in two innings, and is down 4 – 1 to his father when he leaves the game. Nolan gives up five hits, three runs, and strikes out seven in five innings, as the Rangers win, 12 – 5.
1991: The Chicago White Sox sign injured free agent outfielder Bo Jackson to a one-year contract worth $700,000. The Kansas City Royals had released Jackson on March 15th, citing his inability to play baseball due to a football-related hip injury.
1993: The Colorado Rockies sign free agent veteran Dale Murphy. The two-time National League MVP will hit just .143 in 26 games for the Rockies.
Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images
2015: Major League Baseball suspends P Ervin Santana, who signed the largest free agent contract in Twins history this off-season, for 80 games for testing positive to the anabolic steroid stanozolol. Like many others in the same situation, Santana claims he never knowingly took a banned substance.
2020: U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff dismisses a lawsuit by fantasy sports contestants who claim they were damaged by the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal at the end of the 2017 season. “A sport that celebrates ‘stealing,’ even if only of a base, may not provide the perfect encouragement to scrupulous play,” writes the judge, as he rules more seriously that: “The connection between the alleged harm plaintiffs suffered and defendants’ conduct is simply too attenuated to support any of plaintiffs’ claims for relief.”
Information for this article was found via Baseball Reference, NationalPastime.com and Today in Baseball History.