May 15, 1928: George Harper Hits His First Redbird Blast

     On May 15, 1928, George Harper led the Cardinals to a 3-1 victory with a two run blast in the sixth inning of a rain-shortened contest at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. It was Harper's first home run with the Birds on the Bat across his chest.

     Just 5 days earlier Harper was a member of the New York Giants, until Sam Breadon made a trade that shocked many by sending catcher Bob O'Farrell to New York for the well traveled  36-year-old outfielder. O'Farrell, in a player/manager role, had managed the club to a second place finish in '27, and was considered popular among players and fans alike. However, he was limited to just 61 games behind the dish, and the Cardinals needed an outfielder with some pop.

     Harper might have been just 5' 8" and a 170 pounds, but he could swing the stick, and he fit the bill, as a player who had ranked amongst the Top 10 home run hitters in 1924, '25, and '27. The day after the deal was made for Harper the newspapers were questioning who would take over as the full time catcher. Before the question could seriously be asked, Breadon had answer: Jimmie Wilson who he sent Spud Davis and Homer Peel to Philadelphia in exchange for. Wilson was much more durable, and the Cards got the outfielder they were needing as well.

     While the shakeup might have seemed drastic it proved to be fruitful. Harper hit .305 with 17 bombs that season, which was good for sixth in the National League, and Wilson spent the next six years with the Cardinals, which included the Championship season of 1931. The '28 team that featured the likes of George Harper, Jimmie Wilson, Chick Hafey, Frankie Frisch, and Jim Bottomley won 95 games and the National League Flag by holding off those same Giants that Harper had played for on Opening Day.

     George Harper's time with the Cardinals was short lived. Following the '28 season Breadon kept shifting pieces, and he was shifted to the Boston Braves organization in a deal for cash. However, his time in a Cardinals uniform was memorable one, as he became the first Cardinals during the modern era to blast three home runs in one game. He accomplished the feat in the first game of a doubleheader against the Giants on September 20th of that season, leading the Cardinals to an 8-5 victory. Considering that the club finished just two games ahead of the Giants that 3 home run day was more than just a feat, it helped keep the team in a race that would see them finish in first by a nose.

     Unfortunately, there was no World Series celebration in St. Louis following the heated pennant battle. The Birds ran into the powerhouse New York Yankees who swept them right out of the Fall Classic. With that said, the '28 season was a special season in the Gateway City, as the Cardinals wore the National League Crown with pride.

Check out the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN192805150.shtml

If you would like to read more about the life and times of George Harper check this out:
http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/aa4987d5
   

May 13, 1958: Stan The Man Picks Up Hit Number 3,000 at Wrigley

     On May 13, 1958, Stan "The Man" Musial recorded the 3,000th hit of his career at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The manager of the Birds, Fred Hutchinson had sat Musial on the bench in hopes of the Cardinals legend be able to reach the milestone in front of the Redbird faithful in St. Louis the next day. However, Hutchinson had no choice but to call on the number 6 during the sixth inning with the team trailing 3-1 with one out, a man on second, and the Cardinals hurler Sam Jones on deck who promptly gave way to the 37-year-old legend of the game. Musial stepped to the plate, and worked the count to 2-2, before Moe Drabowsky delivered a curveball that turned into a milestone hit as Musial slapped an RBI double into left-center. His 3,000th hit sparked the Cardinals offense to a four run frame, and the club went onto win 5-3.

     While Musial was not able to record the hit in St. Louis, he got a heroes welcome when he arrived at Union Station in St. Louis,with a large crowd cheering "We want Stan!! We want Stan!!!" as the train rolled in. When Musial stepped off the train and was mobbed by fans, and newsmen. He proclaimed "I know now how Charles A. Lindbergh felt." The Man went onto say "You're wonderful, you St. Louis fans. I'd like to have made the hit here, but we felt the game was more important."

      Musial was the eighth player in the history of the game to record 3,000 hits, which included the likes of Honus Wagner and Ty Cobb. He added 630 more hits to his totals before his legendary career came to an end, and while he missed out on hit number 3,000 at home, he made 3,001 one to remember for the home crowd as he parked his 387th home run over the wall at Busch. He went 3-4 for that day, and once again his bat proved key in victory as the Cardinals knocked off the Giants 3-2.

     Musial truly embodied everything that is great about the game that we call America's National Pastime.  I have said this before, and I will say it time and time again. There is no other athlete that I admire more than Stan Musial. What I admire most is not the player, but the man that he was. When you can say that about a player that was as a great as Stan, you know that he was much more than a ballplayer. (The picture to the right was on the cover of the Sporting News  on May 14, 1958.)

Watch footage of the historic hit here, that also includes interviews with Musial: http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/40773316/v25568137

Historic Box Score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN195805130.shtml

Stats of a Legend: http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/musiast01.shtml

May 12, 1981: Herr Squeezes In The Winner

     On May 12, 1981, a suicide squeeze off the bat of Tommy Herr brought Gene Tenace into score what proved to be the game winning run in the tenth inning of a 3-2 victory over the Astros at the Astrodome. The Birds jumped out to a 1-0 lead on an RBI sacrifice fly off the bat of Sixto Lezcano in the top of the fourth. Only to see it evaporate in the bottom half of the frame when former Cardinal, Jose Cruz rocked a two run shot off of Bob Forsch. Houston's Bob Knepper held the Cardinals off the board until the eighth, when Ken Oberkfell scored from second on a two out single off the bat of Garry Templeton. Oberkfell singled and stole a base to leadoff the inning, before Templeton came through with the clutch hit that set the table for Herr's suicide squeeze in the tenth.

     Herr took over at second base in '81, as Oberkfell took over third base duties. In 1982, Ozzie Smith arrived on the scene, and the two turned more than 87 double plays per season over the six seasons that Herr had The Wizard by his side. Those seasons included a World Series Championship in '82, and World Series appearances in '85 and '87.

Check out the box score here:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/HOU/HOU198105120.shtml

May 11, 1970: Dick Allen Walks Off Against Philly

     On May 11, 1970, Dick Allen broke up a pitching duel between Cardinals hurler Steve Carlton, and Philadelphia's Jim Bunning by smashing a three-run walkoff shot at Busch in the bottom of the ninth to propel the Cardinals to a 3-0 victory over the Phillies. The pitching duel marked a battle of two future Hall of Famers, and they lived up to their reputations by posting zeroes straight across the board until that ninth inning that saw the Cardinals walk away victorious. Bunning struck out five men though eight, and Carlton struck out 10.

      The bomb by Allen was his tenth of the season, and it was an important one to him. He had been a member of the Phillies from 1963 to 1969, before being shipped to the Cardinals in what has become a famous trade that was supposed to include Curt Flood. After Flood refused to play in Philadelphia the Cardinals sent Willie Montanez in his place to complete the deal. While Flood was fighting his court battle Allen settled into the St. Louis lineup, and that day when he smashed the walkoff against his former club.

     One of the primary reasons Flood refused the trade to Philadelphia was he considered it to be a racist city. It was the exact reason why Allen was happy to get out of there, and he relished the moment that he walked off against his former club.

     That bottom of the ninth began with a leadoff double by Leron Lee. Bunning then issued a free pass to Lou Brock with Allen on deck. The 38-year-old hurler had tied Allen up twice and was sure he could do it again, and it looked like he had him right where he wanted him with Allen falling behind 0-2 quickly. The next pitch was up and away, but Allen put a cut on it anyway, and that cut proved to be the game decider as it sailed over the wall in right center. When he talked to a reporter from the Associated Press after the game Allen said "That one right there, my man, was worth 10 for me." He also spoke about Philadelphia saying "I thought it was good to get out of there, but this is too much."

     The 1970 season was Dick Allen's only season in St. Louis, and it was a fruitful one. He hit .279 with 34 home runs and 101 RBIs. In October of that year, Allen was traded again, this time he was head to the Dodgers, and the Cardinals were getting Ted Sizemore and Bob Stinson in return. Stinson had a cup of coffee with the club, while Sizemore spent five years in St. Louis, hitting .260 during that time. After a year in L.A., he was on the move once again, as the White Sox made a deal that landed him in their lineup. It was in Chicago where he enjoyed an MVP season in '72. After three years with the White Sox, Allen returned to Philadelphia for two seasons before wrapping up his career in Oakland.

     Allen enjoyed his time in St. Louis. He cried on Opening Night at Busch as the sold out crowd of more than 45,000 gave him a standing ovation when he was introduced. After the game he called it the greatest thing that had ever happened to him. The end of his days with the Cardinals began with a hamstring injury on August 14th, he tried to work through it, but it proved to much to handle. His final start came on September 8th, and he went 2 for 3 with his 34th home run of the year. The walkoff against Philly was his 10th big fly of the year, and it was a memorable one that sent his old club to the showers with their heads down, while his new club mobbed him in celebration.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN197005110.shtml

May 10, 1966: Cepeda Debuts With The Birds

     On May 10, 1966, Orlando Cepeda made his debut with the Cardinals, and made a quick impression by going  2 for 4 with a home run in what turned out to be 8-0 beatdown of the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley. His big fly was a sixth inning solo shot, and it was the first of 58 home runs that he would hit in the three years that he wore the Birds on the Bat.

     Bob Gibson got in on the offensive action with an inside-the-park home run in the seventh. Curt Flood and Mike Shannon added solo shots of their own before it was in the books. Gibby went the distance in the contest, as he scattered six hits, and struck out seven.

     Two days earlier Cepeda was a member of the San Francisco Giants. He had been with the club since the '58 season when he won the Rookie of the Year award. The next year another Giants player arrived on the scene by the name of Willie McCovey. Both Cepeda and McCovey were first baseman, so the Giants organization had to stick one or the other in the outfield to keep both bats in the lineup. This led to Cepeda being an expendable player in the eyes of Giants General Manager Chub Feeney who knew he wanted to add a lefty to the Giants staff. A month before Cepeda was dealt to the Cards he came very close to becoming a member of the Cubs, but a deal that would have sent Dick Ellsworth to the City by the Bay fell apart. A month later Cepeda was hitting a home run for the team that called St. Louis home.

      The trade was not well received by some of Cardinal Nation, because some looked at Sadecki as an up and coming pitcher. Afterall, he was he was only 25 years old, and he had won 20 games in the Championship year of 1964.However, the '65 season was proving to be a tough one for Sadecki who had a record of 6-15 when he was dealt. Sadecki pitched for 10 more seasons after he left St. Louis, but never did come close to that 1964 form. On the Cardinals side of the deal the team got exactly what they were looking for. Bill White had been a solid presence at first base from 1960 to 1965, but he had been dealt to the Phillies, and there was a hole with Phil Gagliano penciled in at first. Gagliano hit .240 in '65, and adding a guy like Cepeda added some pop to the lineup that it was seriously lacking.

     The '66 campaign was one that saw the Cardinals finish sixth in the National League. However, the addition of Cepeda was a key in what would come in 1967. Cepeda not only won the National League MVP Award, he was also crowned a World Series Champion. He batted .303 in '66 for the Birds, then .325, with a league leading 111 RBIs during his MVP campaign. His average dropped to .248 in '68, and right before Opening Day in 1969, Cepeda was shipped to Atlanta in exchange for Joe Torre who had a pretty good stretch of his own in St. Louis that included a League MVP Award in 1971. The Cha-Cha era in St. Louis might have been a short one, but it sure the hell was a memorable one, and it started out with a bang On This Day In Cardinal Nation.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN196605100.shtml

You can read more about Cepeda's life and Hall of Fame career here:
http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/017440d1


   

May 9, 1977: Ted Simmons Walks Off In The Tenth

     On May 9, 1977, Ted Simmons capped off a nationally televised contest against the Reds with walk off home run against knuckleballer Dale Murray to give the Birds a 6-5 victory over the Cincinnati Reds at Busch. The odds were stacked against Simmons, as Murray had only given two home runs in 306 innings. However, Simmons guessed right on the trick pitch that he knocked out of the yard. The home run heroics were set up by a ninth inning that saw the heart of the Reds order come to the plate with the bases loaded and no outs before Al Hrabosky set the next three men down with three consecutive strikeouts. He worked around another jam in the tenth, before Simmons ended it with the big blast.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN197705090.shtml

May 8, 1948: Brecheen's Near Perfecto

     On May 8, 1948, a weak seventh inning single deprived Harry "The Cat" Brecheen of a perfect game during a 5-0 win over the Phillies at Sportsman's Park. The Cardinals lefty had retired 20 men before Philadelphia's leftfielder Johnny Blatnik hit a hopper down the third base line that Whitey Kurowski fielded perfectly and fired the ball to Nippy Jones at first, before Blatnik beat it out by a half a step. Brecheen moved right past the misfortune and retired the next seven men without allowing another baserunner. Jones provided the majority of the Cardinals offense that day with 4 RBIs in a 2 for 3 performance that included a home run.

     The 1948 season was one to remember for Brecheen. He posted a career high 20 wins, and led the league in several categories which included E.R.A. (2.24), shutouts (7), and strikeouts (149). Brecheen started 30 games for the Birds that season and completed 21 of them. Had the Cy Young award existed, it would be safe to say that the name of Harry Brecheen would have been in the mix. Brecheen spent 11 of his 12 years in the big leagues with the Cardinals. During that time he posted a 128-79 record along with a 2.91 E.R.A., and 857 strikeouts.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN194805080.shtml

The Cat's career numbers:http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/brechha01.shtml

The 857 K's rank eleventh on the all time Cardinals list. That list can be viewed here: http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/stats/sortable.jsp?c_id=stl#sortColumn=so&sectionType=sp&playerType=ALL&statType=pitching&season=2014&season_type=ALL&game_type='R'&elem=%5Bobject+Object%5D&tab_level=child&click_text=Sortable+Player+pitching&league_code='MLB'&page=1&ts=1399508376085