It's Opening Day -- Where Hall of Famers Have Left Their Marks Over Time
From offices of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Future Hall of Famers have left their mark on Opening Day throughout the years.
Some of the highlights include:
April 11, 1907: The Giants’ Roger Bresnahan played the game against Philadelphia wearing leg guards usually used in cricket, believed to be the first shin guards in major league history. The leg guards came in handy, protecting Bresnahan from a fifth-inning foul tip. Other catchers would follow Bresnahan’s lead and wear similar shin guards.
April 14, 1910: William Howard Taft became the first U.S. President to throw out a ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day. Attending the game in Washington, D.C., President Taft tossed the first ball to future Hall of Famer Walter Johnson and that ball now resides in Cooperstown.
April 11, 1917: Boston’s Babe Ruth pitched a three-hitter in shutting down the Yankees on Opening Day. Ruth’s performance marked the start of good things to come: He would win 24 games in 1917, while leading the American League with 35 complete games.
April 16, 1940: Cleveland’s Bob Feller hurled the first and only Opening Day no-hitter in major league history. Feller out-dueled Edgar Smith of the Chicago White Sox in winning a 1-0 decision at Comiskey Park. In the ninth inning, White Sox star Luke Appling drew a two-out walk after a 10-pitch at-bat. But Feller retired the next batter, Chicago’s Taffy Wright, to end the game. The contest marks the only known game in big league history where one team’s players all ended the game with the same batting average that they started: The White Sox all began and ended the day with batting averages of .000.
April 15, 1947: Jackie Robinson made a historic debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming the first African American to play Major League Baseball in the 20th century. Robinson went 0-for-3 in his debut but scored a run and flawlessly handled 11 chances at first base against the Boston Braves.
April 11, 1959: The Dodgers’ Don Drysdale hit his first Opening Day home run, accounting for the Dodgers’ only run in a 6-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs. Drysdale would later homer on Opening Day in 1965 against the Mets, becoming the only pitcher to homer in multiple Opening Day games.
April 6, 1971: Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants blasted a home run on Opening Day, marking the start of a historic streak. The 39-year-old Mays would hit home runs in each of the Giants’ first four games, setting a major league record.
April 4, 1974: Atlanta Braves slugger Hank Aaron blasted a historic three-run home run against Reds pitcher Jack Billingham. The home run, coming at Riverfront Stadium, was the 714th of Aaron’s career, tying him with the legendary Babe Ruth for the most home runs in major league history. Four days later, Aaron would break Ruth’s long-standing record by hitting a home run against Al Downing of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
April 8, 1975: Frank Robinson of the Cleveland Indians became the first African-American manager in the history of the major leagues, making his managerial debut at Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium. Robinson not only guided the Indians to a 5-3 victory over the New York Yankees, but also hit the 575th home run of his illustrious career.
April 5, 1983: Tom Seaver made his first appearance for the New York Mets since 1977 and matched an Opening Day record in the process. For Seaver, it was his 14th Opening Day assignment, tying the then-major league record set by Walter Johnson. Seaver, who would go on to extend his record to 16 Opening Day starts, defeated the Philadelphia Phillies, 2-0, at Shea Stadium. April 6, 1993:
Jack Morris of the Blue Jays made his 14th straight Opening Day start to set an American League record. From 1980-93, Morris’ 14 assignments on Opening Day are five more than any other pitcher in that span and include five complete games.
March 31, 1996: Randy Johnson struck out 14 White Sox batters in seven innings as the Mariners defeated Chicago 3-2 in 12 innings in the first Opening Day game to be held in the month of March.
April 3, 2000: Vladimir Guerrero hit two home runs and drove in all four runs in Montreal’s 10-4 loss to the Dodgers.
April 2, 2001: Padres outfielder Tony Gwynn collected his 3,110th hit, tying him with Dave Winfield on the all-time list. With his appearance in the game against the Giants, Gwynn became the fourth player in National League history to spend 20+ years while playing his entire career with one team. The others are: Mel Ott (1926-1947 Giants), Stan Musial (1941-1944, 1946-1963 Cardinals), and Willie Stargell (1962-1982 Pirates), with Craig Biggio (1988-2007 Astros) later joining that list.