May 17, 1987: Pags' Grand Slam Leads The Way

     On May 17 , 1987, Cardinals catcher Tom Pagnozzi hit the first grand slam of his career during the fifth inning of a 10-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds in St. Louis. The big blast was the headline grabber, however, every single man in the starting lineup, including pitcher Lee Tunnell  picked up a hit, as the Birds picked up a total of 15 hits on the day. Vince Coleman fell a home run shy of the cycle, while Willie McGee picked up three hits. While Ozzie Smith and Tommy Herr picked up two apiece. Tunnell struck out six, walked one, and surrendered two solo shots.

     Tunnell started nine games for the pennant winning club, then took on a role in the bullpen. The 24-year-old backstop was just getting his career started. Not known for his power, Pagnozzi would become a fixture around the ballpark through the 1998 season. He hit just 44 home runs in his career, and only one more of them would be of  the grand slam variety. Best known for his ability behind the dish, Pagnozzi took home three Gold Glove awards during his career.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN198705170.shtml

May 16, 1999: Lankford Walks It Off

     On May 16, 1999, Ray Lankford led the Cardinals to victory with a walk off home run that beat the Dodgers 5-4 in St. Louis. It was his second big blast of the day. The Redbirds found themselves in a 4-1 hole after two, before newcomer Edgar Renteria put one in the seats in the third, which was the first long ball he would hit with the Birds on the Bat across his chest. Lankford's first blast was a solo shot in the sixth that made the score 4-3 Dodgers, which set the stage for some ninth inning heroics. The table was set for those heroics with a one out walk to Mark McGwire, which brought Ray to the dish representing the winning run. With one swing of the bat he was exactly that, as he parked a Jeff Shaw pitch over the wall in right-center. Lankford hit 238 home runs in a career that spanned over 15 seasons. 228 of those came as a member of the Cardinals. The walk off blast in '99 was his third and final walk off blast of his career, with the first two coming in 1994. Lankford's 228 home runs rank fifth in franchise history. He also ranks in the top ten in many other categories, such as games played, runs scored, doubles and RBI's. Lankford will forever be a Cardinal and I know at least one fan that would love to see him honored in the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum in downtown St. Louis.

Check out the box score here: www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN199905160.shtml

You can also view the numbers of  the all time franchise leaders here:
http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/stats/

May 15, 1893: Farmer Vaughn Attacks Steve Brodie With a Bat

     On May 15, 1893, a 10-6 Browns win over the Cincinnati Reds in St. Louis featured a brawl that ended with a police escort. The melee occurred during the fifth inning with the Browns rallying from a 6-1 deficit, as St. Louis' center fielder Steve Brodie came into a score a run with a collision at home plate. Cincinnati's catcher Farmer Vaughn was enraged, so he picked up a bat and threw it at Brodie, then attempted to go get another bat as Brodie attempted to go after him. In the blink of an eye every man on both teams was on the field as tempers flared. According to the article that I located in the Baltimore American, the Browns first baseman Perry Werden followed Vaughn's lead by picking up a bat and throwing it at the embattled Reds catcher. In the end Vaughn attempted to get the hell out of Dodge, but was stopped, then held for police officers, who escorted him from the premises, then issued him a hefty $25 fine. After the melee the fans in the stands sat back and watch their Browns dismantle the Reds with a comeback win.

May 14, 1915: The Birds Stun The Braves In Beantown

     On May 14, 1915, the Cardinals found themselves trailing the Braves 4-0 at Fenway Park in Boston, before scoring five runs in the top of the ninth, which led to a 5-4 comeback win. The Cardinals were dominated for eight innings by hurler Tom Hughes who struck out  seven men and allowed just two hits, before a trio of errors and five singles led to his demise. The error that seem to cost the defending champs the most was made my Rabbit Maranville, who looked like he was going to end the game by turning a double play, but it ate him up, and the Redbird surge continued. Left fielder Ted Cather committed the other two errors in the disastrous inning that ended up handing the Cardinals an unlikely win.

I searched and searched and was not able to find an account of this ballgame that had the details of the five men who singled in the ninth. However, I enjoy a good comeback and I am sure you do as well, so while I am not sure how it came together I am glad it did as I sit here 100 years later. The beauty of a box score does tell me that first baseman Dots Miller figured into the rally. Miller led the team with two hits, and a pinch hitter by the name of Jack Roche knocked in two runs in the inning. Miller had a solid 12-year-career in the bigs, while Roche played in just 59 games between 1914 and 1917. However, Roche did hang around as a player in the minors until 1928.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BSN/BSN191505140.shtml

May 13, 1940: The Big Cat Hits Three Home Runs During an 8-8 Tie In Cincy

      On May 13, 1940, Johnny Mize hit three home runs in at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. It was the third time in his career he went yard three times in a ballgame. However, it was not enough to win the ballgame, as the two clubs played to an 8-8 tie  that was called after the 14th due to the setting sun. It was a rather odd game that started nearly 30 minutes late because there were no umpires on hand when the first pitch was supposed to be thrown.

     The reason behind the lack of umpires was the two teams had made arrangements to makeup a game that had been flooded out on April 23rd, but forgot to inform the league office of the arrangement. Therefore, the league office did not assign any umpires to officiate the contest. Luckily, an umpire by the name of Larry Goetz was enjoying a day off at his home in Cincinnati, which led to a phone call that had him rushing to the park to call the ballgame. Since Goetz could only handle the duties behind the dish each team had to lend a member to officiate the bags at first and third. The Reds sent coach Jimmie Wilson over to first base, while Cardinals hurler Lon Warneke handled the duties at third. They would all witness a historic contest, as Mize put three in the seats on the way to a tie.

     The game was a true seesaw battle. After six innings the two clubs were knotted at seven, as the pitchers were battered and abused. Mize started off his home run barrage in the second with a solo shot. He followed it up with a two run shot in the third. Then put the cherry on top with a solo shot in the thirteenth that gave the Redbirds a very temporary 8-7 lead, as pair of Bill's tied it right back up for Cincinnati in the bottom of the inning. Billy Werber started off the rally with a single, before pinch hitter Billy Hershberger doubled him in with a single. Werber had himself a day at the plate with five hits in six trips, which included four doubles and that made him the first man to accomplish that feat in both the American League and the National League. He had accomplished the feat as a member of the Yankees in 1935. Unfortunately, the umpire who had spent his day off calling balls and strikes, had to call it as the sun set in the Queen City, so neither Mize nor Werber could celebrate a victory. That would have to be saved for another day.

     Johnny Mize owns the record for three home run ballgames with six. Sammy Sosa equaled the feat with his sixth three home run contest in 2002, however, the record has not been surpassed. The last three home run contest for Mize came in 1950 when he was a member of the New York Yankees. Coincidentally, the club that Mize was playing for only won a single game of the six, which came in July of 1938 as he led the way to a 7-1 victory. His record of 1-4-1 when hitting three home run is rather astounding, but it does go to show that it takes a team to win a ballgame. I am sure that was something Johnny Mize knew all too well.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN194005130.shtml

May 12, 1966: The House That Gussie Built Opens Up With a Winner

     On May 12, 1966, 46,048 walked through the turnstiles at Busch Stadium in St. Louis to witness the first game to be played at the new ballpark. The crowd would not leave disappointed, as Lou Brock came up with a game winning RBI single in the bottom of the 12th, which led to a 4-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves.

     The game was full of firsts. The first starting pitchers were Ray Washburn who stood on the mound for the Cardinals. Washburn surrendered the first hit at the new ballpark to Atlanta's Gary Geiger. Washburn also recorded the first strikeout when he fanned Eddie Mathews in the second. The first triple and run scored came in a two-run third inning, when Mike Shannon picked up the first RBI at the new digs with a three-bagger that scored Jerry Buchek.

     The Braves got one back in the fourth, then Felipe Alou put them on top by becoming the first man to hit a home run at the stadium with a solo shot in the sixth. Alou would then become the first man in the history of the stadium to hit two home runs in the stadium when he launched his second of the day in the eighth, which gave the Braves a 3-2 advantage. Then came the first blown save by Billy O'Dell, as Jerry Buchek dropped in a looping single that scored the game tying run in the ninth. It simply set the table for Brock and the boys to walk away victorious. The first person to record a loss at the stadium was Hall of Famer, Phil Niekro, who pitched a scoreless 11th, before a hit batsman, an error, and an intentional walk put Brock in position to win it in the 12th. Last not but not least, Don Dennis was the winning pitcher that day. He retired one man in the top of the final inning. That one man was Felipe Alou, so it was a pretty big out in the historic contest.

     That was first of 3,227 games played at the stadium that had 96 arches adorning the roof. The doors would stay open until 2005. The memories made within its walls were memories that should and will be cherished for years to come. I often refer to it as where I grew up. I can remember being there as a kid and listening to the fans chant Daryl time and time again hoping to disrupt Daryl Strawberry's day. I can remember watching Jack Clark parking one in the seats and thinking "Wow, he's awesome." One of  my all-time favorite memories from Busch Stadium II came when Larry Walker made his debut with the club in 2004. I had seats on the third base line, and remember vividly standing with the crowd when Walker came into pinch hit in the seventh. He ended up striking out, however, the crowd let him know he was a part of Cardinal Nation in grand fashion by giving him a standing ovation. To top it off, Walker got another standing ovation in the ninth, before being intentionally walked to get to a young rookie catcher by the name of Yadier Molina. The rookie dropped in a bloop single to win it. It was such a great game and it is one of many memories I cherish from the old ballpark. I truly did love the place.

I would love to hear your favorite memory from Busch Stadium II. You can find me on twitter @CardinalHistory or look up On This Day In Cardinal Nation on Facebook.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN196605120.shtml

May 11, 1928: Jimmie Wilson Joins The Birds

     On May 11, 1928, the Cardinals acquired catcher Jimmie Wilson from the Philadelphia Phillies. The unusual circumstance of this trade is it happened during the second inning of a contest against the Phillies in St. Louis and once the deal was complete Wilson, who was catching for the Philllies, changed uniforms and dugouts. He did not play in the ballgame, however, he did sit back and enjoy a win, as Grover Cleveland Alexander led the way to a 3-2 victory with a nine strikeout performance.

     The deal was made necessary because one day earlier they had sent Bob O'Farrell to the Giants for an outfielder by the name of George Harper. The trade for Harper was a bit of a shock, as O'Farrell was was a key contributor to the 1926 championship winning team and was the MVP of the National League that year as well. He would be revered in St. Louis for throwing out Babe Ruth in that series to record the final out of the of Game 7. Following that run to glory, O'Farrell took over as a player/manager after the club traded Rogers Hornsby. His playing time was limited due to injury, however, he did lead the club to 92 wins, which was good for second place in the National League standings. Therefore, when the trigger was pulled on the deal to send him to New York many writers were stunned. It seemed that trading O'Farrell seemed to be addition by subtraction; filled one hole and created another, which led to the deal for Wilson.

     The deal for Wilson proved to be a good one. He went from a team without a chance to a team that had a chance to win it all. Unfortunately the 1928 club did not win it all, however, they did win the National League pennant, only to be beaten by the New York Yankees in the Fall Classic. The club would win a second National League title in 1930, but would be disappointed by Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics. The two clubs would meet again one year later in a World Series rematch that saw the Cardinals celebrate their second championship title as they knocked off the A's in six.

     Coincidentally, Wilson was traded to the Phillies after the 1933 season and the Cardinals got Spud Davis in return. The two players had come full circle, but this time it would be Davis helping the Cardinals win a title by playing in 107 games for the '34 club. Davis' second stay in St. Louis lasted three years. Wilson went onto manage the Phillies for several years before joining the Cincinnati Reds in 1939. He enjoyed one more pennant winning season in the Queen City the next year before focusing on the coaching side of the game. He spent three full seasons as the manager of the Cubs from 1941 to '43, then was fired early in '44. His days on the diamond may have been over, but the old backstop had two decades of baseball tales in his book of life. One of those tales included swapping uniforms in the second inning of a ballgame against the Cardinals. He had become a member of Cardinal Nation.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/STL/1928-schedule-scores.shtml