January 9 – former Cincinnati Reds shortstop
Barry Larkin is the only player
elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame, getting 86.4 percent of the vote by the
Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). He would later be honored July 22 in Cooperstown, along with the late
Ron Santo, who
is elected by the Golden Era Committee. The day before the induction ceremony, the Hall presented Toronto Sun baseball writer
Bob Elliott, with the BBWAA's J.G. Taylor Spink Award and
Tim McCarver with its own Ford C. Frick Award.[1]
January 12 – Major League owners vote to approve a contract extension for two years for commissioner
Bud Selig through the 2014 season.[2]
January 13 – In a cost-efficient effort to bolster the rotation, prized
New York Yankees catching prospect
Jesús Montero and pitcher
Héctor Noesí are traded to the
Seattle Mariners in exchange for power-pitching right hander
Michael Pineda and minor leaguer
José Campos. The Yankees build upon the trade agreement in a matter of hours with the addition of free agent
Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year deal worth around 10 million dollars.[3]
January 17 – At
White House, President
Barack Obama dubs the
St. Louis Cardinals the "greatest comeback team in the history of baseball" thanks to their thrilling late-season charge into the playoffs and death-defying, seven-game triumph in last November's
World Series. Leading off at the event is First Lady
Michelle Obama, celebrating her 48th birthday. Two key figures of the championship season are absent: Manager
Tony La Russa retired after the series, while star
Albert Pujols signed a $240 million contract with the
Los Angeles Angels in the offseason.[4]
February 23 –
2011 National League MVPRyan Braun wins his appeal against a 50-game suspension. The suspension was overturned by baseball arbitrator Shyam Das. The Braun case marks the first time a big leaguer has successfully challenged a drug-related penalty in a grievance. According to ESPN sources, Major League Baseball is weighing the possibility of suing in federal court to reverse the decision.[6]
March
March 2 – Major League Baseball expands its playoff format to 10 teams for the 2012 season, adding a second wild card in each league. The decision establishes a new one-game, wild-card round in each league between the teams with the best records.[7]
March 30 – At the age of 49,
Jamie Moyer becomes the oldest
starting pitcher ever on an Opening Day roster. Moyer joined the
Colorado Rockies on this date, which was the 20th anniversary of his being released by the
Chicago Cubs. At that time, he had been released three times in three years. He would turn 50 in November 2012.[9]
Rajai Davis hits a two-run double in the 12th inning, as the
Toronto Blue Jays rally for the second straight game against
Cleveland Indians' bullpen, to win in extra innings again, by the same score of 7–4.[11]
April 8 – The
Boston Red Sox lose to the
Detroit Tigers, 13–12,[13] while the
New York Yankees are defeated by the
Tampa Bay Rays, 3–0.[14] These results mark the second time in Major League history that both the Red Sox and Yankees started with a 0–3 record. The other was in the
1966 season, in which Boston started 0–5 and finished next-to-last with a 72–90 record, and New York started 0–3 and finished last with a 70–89 record.
April 17 – At
Coors Field,
Colorado Rockies pitcher
Jamie Moyer, at 49 years 5 months, becomes the oldest pitcher to record a Major League victory as the Rockies defeat the
San Diego Padres 5–3. The previous record was held by
Jack Quinn, who recorded his last Major League victory in
1932, two months after his 49th birthday.
April 18
Bartolo Colón of the
Oakland A's pitches eight shutout innings in a 6–0 win over the
Los Angeles Angels. The game includes a stretch, from the fifth to the eight inning, in which Colon pitches 38 consecutive strikes, the longest such streak since major league baseball began recording the statistic in 1988.
Cliff Lee of the
Philadelphia Phillies scatters seven hits over 10 innings against the
San Francisco Giants to become the first starting pitcher to throw ten shutout innings since
Mark Mulder of the
St. Louis Cardinals in 2005. Giants starter
Matt Cain, meanwhile, allows only two hits until being lifted for a pinch-hitter after 9 innings. The two become the first pair of starting pitchers to combine for at least 19 shutout innings since 1999. The Giants win the game 1–0 in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the 11th inning.
April 19 –
José Altuve,
Brian Bogusevic, and
Matt Downs of the
Houston Astros each hit a triple in the top of the first inning in an 11–4 victory over the
Washington Nationals. This was the first time in Astros history that they hit 3 triples in an inning and also tied the club record for most in a game. 1995 was the last time a team had 3 triples in the first inning.[18]
April 20 –
Fenway Park celebrates its 100th birthday, with about 200 former
Boston Red Sox players, managers and coaches coming out for the pre-game introduction. Among those players are first baseman Bill Buckner (who famously let a ground ball get past him in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series), pitcher Pedro Martinez, and first baseman (and current MLB Network analyst) Kevin Millar (who famously drew the walk that started Boston's epic comeback in the 2004 ALCS). The
New York Yankees, however, spoil the party and defeat the Red Sox 6–2 on five home runs, all off starter
Clay Buchholz. One of the home runs is
Alex Rodriguez' 631st and puts him past former teammate
Ken Griffey Jr. for fifth place on the all-time list. In the first game at Fenway exactly 100 years earlier, the Red Sox had defeated the Yankees' forerunner, the New York Highlanders, 7–6 in 11 innings.[19]
At
Fenway Park, the
New York Yankees tie a franchise record by overcoming a nine-run deficit to defeat the
Boston Red Sox, 15–9. Trailing 9–0 after five innings, the Yankees begin their comeback in the sixth inning on the first of
Mark Teixeira's two home runs, which come from both sides of the plate, the 13th time he has done so. The Yankees score seven runs in the seventh on a
Nick Swishergrand slam, followed by Teixeira's second home run; then another seven runs in the eighth inning, with the tying and go-ahead runs scored by
Eduardo Núñez and
Derek Jeter on a Swisher double. Teixeira and Swisher each drive in six runs for the Yankees, who last overcame a nine-run deficit to win on June 26,
1987, also against the Red Sox.[21]
The
New York Mets field an entire starting lineup of home-grown talent for the first time since September 19,
1971. With former Mets farmhand
José Reyes batting lead-off for the Miami Marlins, all ten players on the field at the game's start began their careers with the Mets.[25]
Cincinnati Reds starter
Homer Bailey celebrates his 26th birthday and
Chicago Cubs starter
Ryan Dempster celebrates his 35th birthday, marking the first time in Major League history that opposing starting pitchers both celebrated birthdays. The Reds go on to win 4–3 in 10 innings in Cincinnati.[28]
May 7 – At
Fenway Park, the
Baltimore Orioles outlast the
Boston Red Sox, 9–6, in 17 innings.
Adam Jones hits a three-run home run in the top of the 17th off designated hitter
Darnell McDonald, whom the Red Sox turn to once their bullpen was empty. Orioles DH
Chris Davis, who had never pitched an inning in professional baseball, hurls two innings of shutout ball and is credited with the victory.[29] The last time two teams brought in
position players to pitch in the same game was on October 4,
1925, when the
Detroit Tigers'
Ty Cobb and the
St. Louis Browns'
George Sisler closed out the second game of a doubleheader on the last day of the season.[30] Davis also struck out five times at the plate to record the first platinum sombrero of the season, and becomes the eighth player, but first non-pitcher, since 1918 to get a win for a game in which he strikes out five times.[31]
Class-A
Greenville Drive (Boston) makes history as three pitchers combine to toss the club's first ever no-hitter. Miguel Pena (six innings), Hunter Cervenka (two) and Tyler Lockwood (one) join forces to defeat the
Rome Braves (Atlanta), 1–0. A solo home run by Keury De La Cruz off David Filak in the sixth inning counts for the only run of the game.[34]
May 13 –
Joey Votto hits three home runs, including a walk-off grand slam with two outs in the 9th inning, in the Cincinnati Reds' 9–6 victory over the Washington Nationals. Votto, who racks up six RBI and 14 total bases in the game, is the first player ever to have hit three home runs which include a walk-off grand slam, in a game.[35]
May 14 – Major League Baseball drops its 100-game suspension of
Colorado Rockies catcher
Eliezer Alfonzo for a positive drug test because of the same procedural issues that came up in the
Ryan Braun case. Alfonzo became the first player suspended twice for performance-enhancing drugs under the MLB testing program when the commissioner's office announced a 100-game penalty in September 2011. Alfonzo appealed, culminating in today's decision. The reversal comes about because the storage and shipment of his urine sample was similar to those leading to Braun's 50-game drug penalty getting overturned by an arbitrator in February.[36]
Former
Boston Red Sox manager
Butch Hobson, now heading the
Lancaster Barnstormers in the Atlantic League, becomes the 20th manager in baseball history to reach 1,500 career victories with the club's win.[39]
May 21 – In Double-A action, three
New Hampshire Fisher Cats (TOR) pitchers combine to throw the third no-hitter in franchise history, stifling the
Portland Sea Dogs (BOS) in a 6–0 victory at New Hampshire. Combining on the gem for the Fisher Cats were
Brett Cecil (5+2⁄3 innings),
Danny Farquhar (2+1⁄3), and Ronald Uviedo (1). It is the first no-hitter for New Hampshire since
Kyle Drabek hurled a complete-game, nine-inning ho-hitter against the
New Britain Rock Cats (MIN) on July 4,
2010.[42]
May 28 –
Chris Sale strikes out a career-high 15,
Adam Dunn hits a two-run home run, and the
Chicago White Sox extend their winning streak to six games with a 2–1 victory over the
Tampa Bay Rays at
Tropicana Field. Sale nearly makes White Sox history in a dominating victory, allowing one run on three hits and two walks in 7+1⁄3 innings, while finishing one strikeout shy of the
team record.
Jack Harshman struck out 16
Boston Red Sox batters on July 25,
1954.[44]
May 29 –
Hideki Matsui becomes the first player in baseball history to play 10 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball and 10 seasons in the Major Leagues when he debuts for the
Tampa Bay Rays against the
Chicago White Sox. Matsui breaks a scoreless tie with a two-run home run in his second at-bat in an eventual loss for the Rays. He also homered in his major league debuts with the
Anaheim Angels and the
New York Yankees.[45]
May 30 –
Carlos González hits three home runs in his last three at-bats, en route to a
Colorado Rockies 13–5 victory over the
Houston Astros. González breaks a 5-all tie with a solo shot leading off the bottom of the fifth inning, adds a two-run drive in the sixth, and then has another solo shot in the eighth.
Michael Cuddyer contributes a grand slam in the first frame and
Dexter Fowler adds a three-run homer in the sixth.[46]
June
June 1:
Major League Baseball announces the introduction of a new qualifying round for the
2013 World Baseball Classic which will expand the competitive field from 16 to 28 countries. The new round will feature 16 teams divided into four pools of four teams each. The teams invited to participate will include the four World Baseball Classic teams from 2009 that did not win a game.[47][48]
After 50 seasons and 8,020 games, the
New York Mets record their first
no-hitter as
Johan Santana performs the deed in the Mets' 8–0 victory over the
St. Louis Cardinals at
Citi Field. Santana is assisted in the sixth inning by a foul ball call on a
Carlos Beltrán line drive over third base that appears to land on the chalk line (Beltrán eventually grounds out to third baseman
David Wright) and by
Mike Baxter's seventh-inning catch to rob
Yadier Molina of a possible extra-base hit. The no-hitter leaves the
San Diego Padres, who began play in
1969, as the only remaining team without a no-hitter, and is the first against a defending World Series champion since
Nolan Ryan no-hit the
Oakland Athletics on June 11,
1990.[49]
June 3 –
Magglio Ordóñez officially announces his retirement at
Comerica Park. A six-time All-Star, the 38-year-old Ordóñez finishes his career with a .309 batting average over 15 seasons with the
Detroit Tigers and the
Chicago White Sox. His 294 career home runs are the second-most by a
Venezuela-born player, trailing only
Andrés Galarraga's 399. His highlights include the pennant-winning home run in Game 4 of the
2006 AL Championship Series. Then, in 2007 he became the first Tiger to win the batting crown in 46 years. Ordóñez posted a .363 average to claim the American League title, including 28 home runs, 139 runs batted in and a league-best 54 doubles, while his .363 average was the highest by a Detroit player since
1937, when
Charlie Gehringer finished with a .371 mark.[50]
At
Tropicana Field,
R. A. Dickey of the
New York Mets breaks
Jerry Koosman's 39-year franchise record for consecutive scoreless innings, pitching a one-hitter in defeating the
Tampa Bay Rays 9–1. He strikes out a career-high 12 batters and allows a ninth-inning unearned run, which ends his consecutive scoreless inning streak at 32+2⁄3. Koosman had held the previous franchise record, pitching 31+2⁄3 consecutive scoreless innings in
1973.[53]
June 14 –
Jim Thome of the
Philadelphia Phillies becomes just the fourth player in major league history to hit 100 home runs for three different clubs with his solo shot in a 6–1 victory against the
Toronto Blue Jays. He joins
Darrell Evans,
Reggie Jackson and
Alex Rodriguez in that exclusive club. Thome's homer also was his 99th in a Phillies uniform, while his 607 career homers rank him eighth on the all-time list.[54]
June 16 – The South Division rallies for a 6–3 victory over the North in the 51st annual
Florida State League All-Star Game held at
Charlotte Sports Park.
St. Lucie Mets third baseman
Wilmer Flores, who goes 3-for-4 with a run scored, drives in three runs over the final three innings to earn Most Valuable Player honors.[55]
Ichiro Suzuki of the
Seattle Mariners records his 2,500th career hit off pitcher
Daniel Hudson. Only Hall of Famers
Al Simmons,
Ty Cobb and
George Sisler reached the 2500-hit milestone in fewer games than Suzuki's 1817 Major League contests, as he had already racked up 1278 hits in nine seasons with the
Orix BlueWave of the Japanese Pacific League before joining the Mariners in
2001. Suzuki goes 4-for-5, helping Seattle to a 12–9, 10-inning victory against the
Arizona Diamondbacks.[57]
June 28 –
Óscar Taveras of the
Springfield Cardinals collects three hits, including a two-run home run, to lead the
North Division to a 3–1 victory over the
South Division in the
Texas League All-Star Game held at
ONEOK Field. Taveras, who is a unanimous choice as the game's Most Valuable Player, is, at the time, the No. 3 prospect in the
St. Louis Cardinals organization. His .323 batting average tops the league, while his 15 home runs ranks him third in the circuit.[62]
June 30 – The
Texas Rangers (50–29) become the first major league team to reach 50 victories with a 7–2 win, its 17th in 21 games.
Josh Hamilton homers and drives in four runs to help make 21-year-old
Martín Pérez a winner in his first career start.[64]
July
July 2:
Jarrod Parker allows one run on six hits in 6+2⁄3 innings of work as the
Oakland Athletics pass the
Boston Red Sox 6–1 at
O.co Coliseum. Parker matches an old record by allowing one run or fewer for the 10th time in 14 career
starts, becoming the second pitcher in major league history since
Ferdie Schupp to accomplish the feat. Schupp, primarily a
reliever, allowed no more than one run in 10 of his first 14 starts for the
New York Giants, but he needed five seasons to accomplish it, from 1913 to 1917. Entering the day, Parker had been the second starter since
Dwight Gooden to allow no more than one run in nine of his first 13 starts. It is also the seventh time in Parker's past eight starts he has held the opposition to one run or fewer.[65]
Billy Hamilton of the High-A
Bakersfield Blaze steals his 100th base of the season in just his 78th game of the season. Last year, the
Cincinnati Reds minor leaguer became the first player to steal 100 bases in a minor-league season since
2001, ending with 103 in 135 games. According to Baseball America, by this point in the season, only 14 of the 119 full-season minor-league teams (not including Bakersfield) have 100 steals. The record for the most stolen bases at any level of professional baseball is 145, which was set by
Vince Coleman in
1983 while playing for the Class-A
Macon Redbirds.[66]
July 8 –
Detroit Tigers prospect
Nick Castellanos has three hits, including a three-run home run during a nine-run sixth inning, while
Kansas City Royals minor league outfielder
Wil Myers adds three runs batted in to lead the U.S. team to a 17–5 rout of the World team in the
All-Star Futures Game at
Kauffman Stadium.
Billy Hamilton and
Manny Machado each drive in two runs for the U.S. team, contributing to a record 22 combined runs during the annual prospect showcase. Castellanos earns MVP honors.[68]
July 10 – The National League shuts out the American League, 8–0, in the
83rd All-Star Game played in Kansas City's
Kaufmann Stadium. NL starting pitcher
Matt Cain of the
San Francisco Giants throws two shutout innings for the win, while teammates
Pablo Sandoval and
Melky Cabrera and
Milwaukee Brewers'
Ryan Braun contribute most of the offensive firepower. Sandoval hits a bases-loaded triple and scores one run during a five-run first inning off the
Detroit Tigers'
Justin Verlander, while Braun doubles, triples and makes a fine catch in the outfield. Cabrera belts a two-run home run and scores two times to take home the
MVP award. The
Atlanta Braves' 40-year-old
Chipper Jones singles in his final All-Star at-bat as the NL, under retired manager
Tony La Russa, once again claims home-field advantage in the World Series.[69]
July 11:
Wil Myers drives in one run and scores another to lead the Pacific Coast League to a 3–0 victory over the International League in the
Triple-A All-Star Game. Myers is selected
Top Star for the PCL team, which snaps a three-game losing streak. It is the second impressive All-Star showing in four days for the 21-year-old
Kansas City Royals outfield prospect. Previously, Myers collected three RBIs in the
All-Star Futures Game played during the MLB All-Star festivities.[70]
Eric Campbell of the
Binghamton Mets lashes a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning, to lead the
Eastern Division to a 5–4 win over the
Western Division in the
Eastern League All-Star Game held at
FirstEnergy Stadium. Campbell, who earns MVP Game honors, hits .341 over the final 10 games of the first half of the season and is batting .378 in July for the Binghamton team.[71]
July 17 –
O'Koyea Dickson of the
Great Lakes Loons puts on a special performance at the
Midwest League All-Star Game, leading the East Division to an 18–2 thumping of the West Division at Kane County's
Fifth Third Field. Dickson goes 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and two runs scored, and is named Most Valuable Player.[72]
In the top third inning of a game at
Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia,
Matt Cain of the
San Francisco Giants hits a home run off
Cole Hamels of the
Philadelphia Phillies. In the bottom of that same inning, Hamels hits a home run off of Cain. Cain and Hamels become the first pair of starting pitchers to hit home runs off one another in the same game since 2002, and the first pair to do so in the same inning since 1990. San Francisco wins, 6–5, in 10 innings.[74]
Matt Harvey of the
New York Mets limits the
Arizona Diamondbacks to three hits in his major league debut, while striking out 11 over 5+1⁄3 innings of shutout ball to lead the Mets to a 3–1 victory at
Chase Field. Harvey, the Mets' top pick in the 2010 draft, sets a franchise record for strikeouts in a debut. He also doubles and singles to become the first major league pitcher since 1900 to strike out more than 10 and collect a pair of hits in his first game.[83]
July 29:
Pedro Ciriaco turns out to be the hero once again, this time punching an RBI single in the top of the 10th inning, and the
Boston Red Sox defeat the
New York Yankees, 3–2, to take the weekend series. Called up July 6 from Triple-A
Pawtucket, Ciriaco has go-ahead hits in all three Red Sox victories over the Yankees in nine meetings this season. He is now 11-for-22 with six RBIs in five games against New York, including a ninth-inning, RBI-triple the previous day in an 8–6 comeback victory.[84]
The
Houston Astros end their team-record losing streak at 12 games, beating the
Pittsburgh Pirates, 9–5, behind a three-run double from
Marwin González and a home run from
Jordan Schafer, who also drives in three runs. The skid matches the
Kansas City Royals (April 11–24) and the
Chicago Cubs (May 15–27) for the longest in the major leagues this year. It breaks the previous Astros record of 11, originally set from August 17–28, 1995, and matched from
2009's season end into the start of
2010.[85]
July 30 – At
Rangers Ballpark in Arlington,
Kendrys Morales of the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim becomes the third player to hit a home run from both sides of the plate in the same inning. His first home run, batting left-handed against
Texas Rangers pitcher
Roy Oswalt, comes with
Albert Pujols on base, the first two runs of a nine-run sixth inning. He concludes the scoring by homering again, this time with the bases loaded against left-hander
Robbie Ross. The Angels defeat the Rangers, 15–8. Morales joins
Carlos Baerga (
1993) and
Mark Bellhorn (
2002) as players who have homered from both sides of the plate in the same inning.[86]
August 10 –
Manny Machado hits two home runs and drives in four runs in his second career MLB game to carry the
Baltimore Orioles past the visiting
Kansas City Royals, 7–1, at
Camden Yards. At 20 years, 35 days old, Machado becomes the youngest player in major league history to have a multiple home run game in either his first or second career game. The previous youngest player to do this was
Manny Ramírez (21 years, 96 days old), who belted two homers in his second career game, at
Yankee Stadium on September 3, 1993, leading the
Cleveland Indians to a 7–3 win. Machado also becomes the youngest player in Orioles franchise history, which includes the
St. Louis Browns from 1902 to 1953, to hit two or more homers in a game. The previous youngest was
Boog Powell (20 years, 258 days old), who did it on May 2,
1962, at
Metropolitan Stadium.[90]
August 15:
At
Safeco Field,
Félix Hernández of the
Seattle Mariners strikes out 12 batters en route to
the 23rd perfect game in Major League history, the third of this season, and the first in franchise history as the Mariners defeat the
Tampa Bay Rays 1–0. With
Philip Humber having pitched
his perfect game against the Mariners at Safeco on April 21 of this season, the Mariners become the first team to be on both ends of a perfect game in one season. Safeco also joins
Dodger Stadium,
Yankee Stadium and
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum as stadiums with two perfect games pitched in them. The perfect game is the third in four seasons to be pitched against the Rays; they were also on the losing end of
Mark Buehrle's perfect game in
2009 and
Dallas Braden's perfect game in
2010. The Rays are also
no-hit for the fourth time since 2009, having been on the losing end of
Edwin Jackson's 2010 no-hitter; no other team has even been no-hit twice during this period. Along with their combined no-hitter on June 8 (also at Safeco), the Mariners become the first team with two no-hitters on the same season since the
1973 California Angels,
Nolan Ryan having pitched both.[91]
Melky Cabrera of the
San Francisco Giants is suspended for 50 games after testing positive for
Testosterone. With 45 games remaining in the Giants' regular season, the suspension ends Cabrera's season and will carry over into the postseason should the Giants qualify. Cabrera finishes the year leading the National League with a .346 batting average, but his 501
plate appearances are one short of what he will need to qualify for the batting title.[92]
Billy Hamilton of the
Pensacola Blue Wahoos collects four
stolen bases in the first game of a double-header, to eclipse
Vince Coleman's 30-year-old record for the most steals in a single season in minor league baseball history. Hamilton, a highly touted prospect of the
Cincinnati Reds organization, now has 147 stolen bases in the season. He stole 104 in the first half of the season with Class-A
Bakersfield Blaze before being promoted to Double-A Pensacola. The previous record was set by Coleman in
1983, with 145, while playing for Single-A
Macon Redbirds. The modern major league record was set by
Rickey Henderson with 130 in
1982. Hamilton will eventually end the season with 155 steals.[93]
Michael Weiner, who succeeded
Donald Fehr as head of the baseball players' union three years before and negotiated a labor deal the prior fall in a seamless transition, undergoes treatment for a brain tumor. The 50-year-old Weiner succeeded Fehr in December
2009 to become just the fourth head of the union since
1966.[94]
August 22 –
Bartolo Colón of the
Oakland Athletics is suspended for 50 games after testing positive for
testosterone, joining
San Francisco Giants outfielder
Melky Cabrera on the suspended list for the rest of the regular season. Major League Baseball makes the announcement regarding the former
Cy Young Award winner just a week after All-Star Game MVP Cabrera received his 50-game suspension.[95]
August 25:
The
Boston Red Sox and the
Los Angeles Dodgers complete a nine-player blockbuster deal, which is considered the largest player transaction in major league baseball history after the
non-waiver trade deadline. Boston sends first baseman
Adrián González, pitcher
Josh Beckett, outfielder
Carl Crawford, infielder
Nick Punto, and about $11 million in cash to Los Angeles in the nine-player trade, while the Dodgers absorb approximately a quarter-billion dollars while acquiring the four players. In return, the Red Sox will receive first baseman
James Loney, pitcher
Allen Webster, infielder
Iván DeJesús Jr. and two players to be named, while shedding more than $250 million in salaries through 2018. Pitcher
Rubby De La Rosa and outfielder
Jerry Sands are the players to be named later because they did not clear waivers. They will officially change organizations once the regular season concludes.[96]
Former Major League pitcher
Roger Clemens starts a game for the
Sugar Land Skeeters of the independent
Atlantic League. The 50-year-old Clemens pitches 3 1/3 innings, striking out two and allowing only one base hit.
August 27 –
Adrián Beltré of the
Texas Rangers is named the American League Player of the Week. Beltré makes history, after hitting .433 with three doubles, one triple, five home runs, nine RBI and seven runs scored in seven games. He belted three home runs in his first three at-bats on August 22 against the
Baltimore Orioles, including a pair of two-run blasts as part of a nine-run fourth inning. He also homered against the
Minnesota Twins the next day, marking the first time he had homered in back-to-back games this season. A day later, he became the sixth Rangers player to
hit for the cycle, going 4-for-4 with three RBI. It was his second career cycle (September 1,
2008, with the
Seattle Mariners – also in
Rangers Ballpark – was the other), so Beltré became the first player in the modern era to cycle in the same ballpark as a home and visiting player, according to the
Elias Sports Bureau. Beltré, who joins
Joe DiMaggio (
1948) as the only other player in Major League Baseball history to hit for the cycle and hit three homers in the same week, earns his first AL Player of the Week honor after being recognized three times while in the National League with the
Los Angeles Dodgers.[97]
August 28 – First baseman
Mauro Gómez is named
International League Most Valuable Player, in a season during which he made four separate trips between Triple-A
Pawtucket and the
Boston Red Sox. Gómez hit a .310 average in 100 games with Pawtucket, with 59 of his 120 hits going for extra bases. He also tied for second in the International League with 24 home runs, while ranking first in slugging percentage (.589) and fourth both in RBIs (74) and total bases (228). Besides this,
Tyler Cloyd of
Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies) was voted Most Valuable Pitcher,
Scranton/Wilkes Barre YankeesDave Miley was named Manager of the Year, and first baseman
Ernesto Mejía became the third consecutive
Gwinnett Braves player to claim the Rookie of the Year distinction, following 1B
Freddie Freeman (2010) and P
Julio Teherán (2011).[98]
August 29 –
Little League Baseball announces that
Australia will receive an automatic berth in the
Little League World Series starting in 2013. Australia, now the fourth-largest country in Little League participation (and the largest outside North America), becomes the fourth country with its own berth (alongside
Canada,
Japan, and
Mexico).[99]
August 30 –
Jonathan Lucroy hits a
grand slam and
drove in seven runs for the
Milwaukee Brewers in their loss to the
Chicago Cubs, 12–11, at
Wrigley Field. In a slugfest featuring a combined 31 hits, including 15
extra-bases, Lucroy becomes the first catcher to have two games in a single season with 7 or more RBI since Major League Baseball began officially tracking the RBI statistic in
1920 (he first did it on May 20 against the
Minnesota Twins). In addition, Lucroy becomes the first Brewer to collect a pair of seven-RBI games in team history.[100]
September
September 5 – For the second consecutive game, the
Washington Nationals tie a franchise record with six home runs in a 9–1 rout of the
Chicago Cubs. The Nationals become just the third team in major league history to hit at least six home runs in consecutive games, joining the
1996 Los Angeles Dodgers and the
2003 Anaheim Angels. Two of those six homers were hit by 19-year-old rookie
Bryce Harper. With it being his second multihomer game of the season, Harper becomes the third player ever with more than one multihomer game in a season as a teenager, joining
Mel Ott (
1928) and
Ken Griffey Jr. (
1989). Harper also is the third teenager with at least 17 homers in a season, trailing only
Tony Conigliaro (24,
1964) and Mel Ott (18, 1928).[101]
September 14 – At
Yankee Stadium,
Derek Jeter of the
New York Yankees moves into the top 10 on the all-time hits list, beating out an infield single in the fifth inning of the Yankees' 6–4 loss to the
Tampa Bay Rays. The hit gives him 3,284 for his career, passing
Willie Mays for 10th place. In the eighth inning of the same game,
Alex Rodriguez hits his 647th career home run, which gives him 1,889 career runs scored, passing
Lou Gehrig for ninth place on the all-time list.[102]
September 18:
The Brazilian baseball federation[103] announces that Hall of Fame shortstop
Barry Larkin will manage the Brazil team during a qualifying round for the
2013 World Baseball Classic. The Brazilian team would go on to win the qualifying round played in
Panama City from November 15–19.[104]
Melky Cabrera is disqualified from the National League batting champion honor at his own request when
Major League Baseball and the
Players Association agree to a one-season-only change in the rule governing the individual
batting,
slugging and
on-base percentage champions.[108] Cabrera, the All-Star Game MVP, was suspended on
August 15 for violating the
Joint Drug Program and was missing the final 45 games of the regular season. Entering the day with a league-leading .346 batting average, he had 501 plate appearances, one short of the required minimum, but would have won the title under section 10.22(a) of the Official Baseball Rules if an extra hitless at-bat were added to his average and he still finished ahead.[109] Cabrera took the initiative in sending a letter to MLB and the PA. "To be plain, I personally have no wish to win an award that would widely be seen as tainted, and I believe that it would be far better for the remaining contenders to compete for that distinction", Cabrera wrote.[108]
The
Tampa Bay Rays maul the
Toronto Blue Jays, 12–1, as their pitching staff sets a new league record for combined strikeouts in a single season when
James Shields strikes out
J. P. Arencibia leading off the second inning. With 1,267 strikeouts, the combined efforts of the starting pitchers and the bullpen surpasses the previous record of 1,266, held by the
2011 New York Yankees. The Rays have 11 games remaining to extend the mark. The major league record is 1,404, which was set by the
2003 Chicago Cubs.[110]
September 25 – The
Los Angeles Angels tie a major league record by striking out 20 opposing batters in a 9-inning game in a victory over the
Seattle Mariners. The Angels are the first to do so using multiple pitchers.
The
Houston Astros name
Bo Porter as their new manager for the upcoming season. Porter, who is, at the time, the
Washington Nationals third base coach, replaces
Brad Mills, who was dismissed the prior month. Porter would remain with the postseason-bound Nationals for the remainder of their season.[112] In other managerial movements,
Manny Acta is dismissed as manager of the
Cleveland Indians after the team collapsed from contention. Bench coach
Sandy Alomar Jr., a former Indians catcher and fanatic-favorite, would replace Acta for the last six games of the season.[113]
September 28 –
Homer Bailey of the
Cincinnati Redsno-hits the
Pittsburgh Pirates 1–0 at
PNC Park. He strikes out 10 batters in pitching the seventh no-hitter of this season, which ties
1990 and
1991 for most no-hitters in one modern-day season. The no-hitter is the first by a Red since
Tom Browning's perfect game in
1988, and the first against the Pirates since
St. Louis'
Bob Gibson in
1971. The Pirates' loss is also their 81st of the season and assures them of their 20th consecutive non-winning season, extending their own major North American professional sports record.[116]
On the last day of the regular season,
Oakland Athletics defeat the
Texas Rangers 12–5 at
O.co Coliseum to win the
AL West championship. The A's complete a 3-game sweep of the Rangers, who had entered the series 2 games ahead in first place. The A's win the division despite being 13 games out of first place at one point in the season, and despite being 5 games out with 9 games to play. With the conclusion of the game and the regular season, the A's claim sole possession of first place for the first time all season. The Rangers were in first place from April 9 to October 2; earn one of two AL Wild Card berths.
The
San Francisco Giants defeat the
Cincinnati Reds 6–4 at
Great American Ball Park to win the
NLDS 3 games to 2. The Giants become the first NL team in the wild card era to win a five-game series after losing the first two games, and the first team overall to do so by winning three consecutive games on the road.
The
Detroit Tigers defeat the
Oakland Athletics 6–0 at
O.co Coliseum to win the
ALDS 3 games to 2.
Justin Verlander of the Tigers pitches a complete-game shutout to prevent the A's from completing a comeback from an 0–2 series deficit that included a come-from-behind 3-run ninth-inning rally in Game 4.
The
St. Louis Cardinals defeat the
Washington Nationals 9–7 at
Nationals Park to win the
NLDS 3 games to 2. The Cardinals come back from a six-run deficit, including a two-run deficit with two outs and two strikes in the top of the ninth, to rally past the Nationals and win Game 5 and the series.
October 22 – The
San Francisco Giants defeat the
St. Louis Cardinals 9–0 at
AT&T Park in Game 7 of the
NLCS to win the National League pennant. The result also eliminates the Cardinals from defending their
2011 World Series title, the twelfth consecutive year a team has failed to defend its World Championship. The Giants outscore the Cardinals 20–1 over the final three games in coming back from a 3–1 series deficit, becoming the first team since the
1985 Kansas City Royals to win six consecutive games when facing elimination in the same postseason.
Marco Scutaro ties an LCS record with 14 base hits in the series, and is named
NLCS MVP.
The
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announces 10 candidates to be considered by the Pre-Integration Era Committee, a subcommittee of the
Veterans Committee, for possible induction in the Hall of Fame class of
2013. Results are to be announced during the 2012 winter meetings.[121]
November 28 – The Hall of Fame announces the players' ballot from which
Baseball Writers' Association of America members will vote on candidates for the induction class of
2013. It consists of 13 returning and 24 new candidates, with results to be announced on January 9, 2013.[123]
December 5 – The Hall of Fame announces
Tom Cheek, who was the lead radio play-by-play announcer for the
Toronto Blue Jays from the team's establishment in
1977 until his retirement in
2004, as the 2013 recipient of its
Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in baseball broadcasting. Cheek, who died in 2005, would formally receive the honor at the Hall of Fame Awards Presentation.[127]
January 2 –
Howie Koplitz, 73, pitcher for the Tigers and Senators in parts of five seasons spanning 1961–1966, who also was named
Southern Association MVP and
TSN Minor League Player of the Year in 1961.
January 8 –
Glenn Cox, 80, pitcher for the Kansas City Athletics from 1955 to 1958.
January 17 –
Marty Springstead, 74, former American League umpire from 1966 to 1985, who at the age of 36 in 1973 became the youngest umpire crew chief in World Series history, and also worked in three Series, three All-Star Games and five AL championship series.[130]
January 21 –
Cliff Chambers, 90, pitcher for the Cubs, Pirates and Cardinals from 1948 to 1953.
January 21 –
Troy Herriage, 81, pitcher for the 1956 Kansas City Athletics.
January 22 –
Andy Musser, 74, play-by-play broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies during 26 seasons from 1976 through 2001.
January 26 –
Bud Byerly, 91, pitcher who played for the Cardinals, Reds, Senators, Red Sox and Giants for parts of 11 seasons spanning 1943–1960.
January 31 –
Rick Behenna, 51, pitcher for the Atlanta Braves and Cleveland Indians in parts of three seasons from 1983 through 1985.
February
February 1 –
Herb Adams, 83, backup outfielder who played from 1948 to 1950 with the Chicago White Sox.
February 7 –
Danny Clyburn, 37, outfielder who played parts of three seasons with the Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the late 1990s.
February 11 –
Gene Crumling, 89, catcher for the 1945 St. Louis Cardinals, one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the majors during World War II.
February 16 –
Gary Carter, 57, Hall of Fame catcher, principally with the Montreal Expos and New York Mets, whose two-out, tenth-inning single for the Mets in Game 6 of the
1986 World Series started one of the most improbable rallies in postseason history.
February 17 –
Howie Nunn, 76, relief pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds in parts of three seasons from 1959 to 1962.
February 19 –
Dick Smith, 72, outfielder and first baseman who played from 1963 through 1965 for the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.
February 24 –
Agnes Allen, 81, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League pitcher.
February 24 –
Terry Mathews, 47, relief pitcher for the Florida Marlins, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals in part of eight seasons spanning 1991–1999.
February 24 –
Jay Ward, 73, infielder for the Minnesota Twins and Cincinnati Reds who got into 27 games over three seasons between 1963 and 1970; later a successful minor-league manager.
February 25 –
Dave Cheadle, 60, relief pitcher for the 1973 Atlanta Braves.
March
March 3 –
Lloyd Hittle, 88, pitcher for the Washington Senators from 1949 to 1950.
March 3 –
Jim Obradovich, 62, first baseman who played briefly for the Houston Astros in 1978.
March 4 –
Don Mincher, 73, two-time All-Star first baseman and member of the
1972 Oakland Athletics World Series champions, who also has the distinction of being the only major leaguer to play with the Washington Senators franchise that became the Minnesota Twins, and then play with a second incarnation of the Senators which became the Texas Rangers.
March 6 –
Helen Walulik, 82, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League pitcher and outfield/infield utility.
March 9 –
Harry Wendelstedt, 73, National League umpire who worked five World Series and four All-Star games during his 33-year career from 1966 through 1998; father of umpire
Hunter Wendelstedt.
March 11 –
Hub Andrews, 89, relief pitcher for the New York Giants from 1947 to 1948.
March 15 –
Dave Philley, 91, outfielder and pinch-hitting specialist for eight different teams between 1941 and 1962, who still holds the major league records for most consecutive pinch-hits in a season (nine, 1958) and for most at-bats in an 18-inning double-header (13, 1951); also holds American League record for the most pinch-hits in a season (24, 1961).[131]
March 18 –
Furman Bisher, 93, Atlanta sportswriter who authored several books, including co-writing an autobiography of
Hank Aaron.
March 20 –
Mel Parnell, 89, two-time All-Star pitcher and the winningest left-hander in Boston Red Sox history with 123 wins from 1947 to 1956, who also posted a 25–7 record in 1949 and hurled a no-hitter in 1956.
March 24 –
Dennis Bennett, 72, pitcher for the Phillies, Red Sox, Mets and Angels between 1962 and 1968.
March 29 –
Ray Narleski, 83, two-time All-Star reliever with the Cleveland Indians, and part of a brilliant bullpen that featured
Don Mossi and
Hal Newhouser, during the historic
1954 season.
March 30 –
Janet Anderson, 90, Canadian pitcher for the
Kenosha Comets of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
March 31 –
Jerry Lynch, 82, Pirates and Reds outfielder, whose 116 career pinch-hits is the 10th-most in Major League Baseball history.
April
April 2 –
Allie Clark, 88, outfielder who played from 1947 through 1953 for the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Athletics and Chicago White Sox.
April 8 –
Al Veigel, 95, pitcher for the 1939 Boston Bees.
April 10 –
Andy Replogle, 58, pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers from 1978 to 1979.
April 15 –
Ron Plaza, 75, minor league infielder, instructor and manager who coached in the majors for the 1969 Seattle Pilots, 1979–1983 Cincinnati Reds and 1986 Oakland Athletics.
April 17 –
Stan Johnson, 75, backup outfielder who played for the Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Athletics between 1960 and 1961.
April 18 –
John O'Neil, 92, backup shortstop for the 1946 Philadelphia Phillies, who spent more than 45 years spanning 1939–1986 as player, player/manager, manager, general manager and scout.
April 24 –
Fred Bradley, 91, pitcher for the Chicago White Sox from 1948 to 1949.
April 26 –
Bill Skowron, 81, eight-time AL All-Star first baseman who was part of five World Series champion teams (New York Yankees, 1956, 1958, 1961–1962) and Los Angeles Dodgers (1963); also played for Washington Senators, Chicago White Sox and California Angels.
April 29 –
Daisy Junor, 92, Canadian outfielder who played from 1946 through 1949 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
May
May 5 –
Don Leshnock, 65, relief pitcher for the 1972 Detroit Tigers.
May 8 –
Jerry McMorris, 71, principal owner of the Colorado Rockies from 1992 through 2005.
May 9 –
Carl Beane, 59, public address announcer for the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park since the 2003 season.
May 11 –
Frank Wills, 53, pitcher for the Royals, Mariners, Indians and Blue Jays from 1983 through 1991, who won the AL East pennant-winning game for Toronto in the
1989 season.
May 16 –
Kevin Hickey, 56, pitcher for the White Sox and Orioles in part of six seasons spanning 1981–1991.
May 16 –
Thad Tillotson, 71, relief pitcher for the New York Yankees from 1967 to 1968, who also pitched for the
Nankai Hawks in Japan during the 1971 season.
June 4 –
Pedro Borbón, 65, Dominican reliever for the Cincinnati Reds during 10 seasons, and a key member on the bullpen of the
Big Red Machine that won back-to-back World Series titles in
1975 and
1976.
June 5 –
Hal Keller, 84, backup catcher for the Washington Senators between 1949 and 1952, and later a front office executive for the Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners in a 25-year career from 1961 through 1985; brother of
Charlie Keller.
June 9 –
Hawk Taylor, 73, backup catcher for the Milwaukee Braves, New York Mets, California Angels and Kansas City Royals in parts of 11 seasons spanning 1959–1970.
June 11 –
Dave Boswell, 67, pitcher who posted a 68–56 record and a 3.52 ERA for the Twins, Tigers and Orioles from 1964 through 1971, while leading the American League with a .706 winning percentage in 1966.
June 14 –
Al Brancato, 93, shortstop for the Philadelphia Athletics in part of four seasons spanning 1939–1945.
June 24 –
Darrel Akerfelds, 50, pitcher for the Athletics, Indians, Rangers and Phillies from 1986 through 1991, and later a bullpen coach for the San Diego Padres from 2001 to 2011.
June 28 –
Doris Sams, 85, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League outfielder/pitcher; a five-time
All-Star and two-time
Player of the Year Award winner, who won a batting crown and one home run title, while throwing a perfect game and one no-hitter in a career that spanned from 1946 through 1953.
July
July 1 –
Mike Hershberger, 72, right fielder for Chicago White Sox, Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, and Milwaukee Brewers (1961–1971), who led all American League outfielders in assists both in 1965 and 1967.
July 2 –
Ed Stroud, 72, outfielder for the Chicago White Sox and the Washington Senators from 1966 to 1971.
July 7 –
Doris Neal, 83, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League infielder/outfielder from 1948 to 1949.
July 8 –
Chick King, 81, backup outfielder for the Tigers, Cubs and Cardinals in five seasons between 1954 and 1959.
July 11 –
Art Ceccarelli, 82, pitcher for the Kansas City A's, Cubs and Orioles in part of five seasons spanning 1955–60.
July 21 –
Marie Kruckel, 88, outfielder and pitcher in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
July 22 –
Ed Stevens, 87, first baseman who played from 1945 through 1950 for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates, and also gained induction into the
International League Hall of Fame in 2009.
July 24 –
Nancy Mudge Cato, 82, All-Star infielder who played for five different teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
August
August 1 –
Don Erickson, 80, relief pitcher for the 1958 Philadelphia Phillies.
August 13 –
Dan Daniels, 90, Washington, D.C., sportscaster who was the radio/TV voice of the expansion Senators from the team's founding in 1961 through 1968.
August 13 –
Johnny Pesky, 92, a 61-year member of the Boston Red Sox spanning 1940–2012, while serving them as a player, manager, coach, broadcaster, and well-esteemed team ambassador; also played for Detroit Tigers and Washington Senators, and coached for Pittsburgh Pirates.
August 22 –
Bob Myrick, 59, relief pitcher who played from 1976 through 1978 for the New York Mets.
August 29 –
Les Moss, 87, catcher who played from 1946 through 1958 for the St. Louis Browns, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox; manager of Detroit Tigers for first 53 games of 1979 season until replaced by Sparky Anderson; coach for White Sox, Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros for 13 years between 1967 and 1989; also managed in the minor leagues for 11 seasons.
August 31 –
Nat Peeples, 86, infielder who, after playing for Memphis, Indianapolis and the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League in the late 1940s, joined "Organized" minor league baseball in 1951; there he became the first and only Black player to appear in the segregated, Double-A Southern Association in 1954 for two games and four at bats for the Atlanta Crackers, before being assigned to previously integrated leagues; he retired from baseball in 1960 at age 34, and the SA folded in 1961, still a bastion of segregation.
September
September 8 –
Bob Hale, 78, first baseman who played from 1955 through 1961 with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees.
September 10 –
Tom Saffell, 91, backup outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Athletics in parts of four seasons spanning 1949–1955, who later served as President of the
Gulf Coast League from 1979 to 2009.
September 11 –
Bruce Von Hoff, 68, relief pitcher for the Houston Astros in the 1965 and 1967 seasons.
September 13 –
Bob DiPietro, 85, backup outfielder for the 1951 Boston Red Sox.
September 13 –
Jack Pierce, 64, first baseman for the Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers in parts of three seasons spanning 1973–75, who also played in Japan with the 1977 Nankai Hawks.
September 17 –
Pauline Dennert, 86, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player.
September 18 –
Jack Kralick, 77, All-Star pitcher and one of the original Minnesota Twins, who posted a 67–65 record and a 3.56 ERA in eight seasons which included stints with the Washington Senators and the Cleveland Indians, while hurling a no-hitter against the Kansas City Athletics in 1962.
September 21 –
Tom Umphlett, 82, outfielder for the Boston Red Sox and Washington Senators from 1953 through 1955, and later a minor league manager from 1967 to 1970.
September 23 –
Roberto Muñoz Rodríguez, 70, Venezuelan pitcher who played for the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs between the 1967 and 1970 seasons.
September 25 –
Audrey Deemer, 81, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player.
October
October 6 –
Irene DeLaby, 90, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player.
October 11 –
Champ Summers, 66, outfielder who played 10 seasons in the majors for six different teams, mainly for the Detroit Tigers from 1979 to 1981, and also a hitting coach for the New York Yankees.
October 12 –
Jim Kremmel, 63, relief pitcher who played from 1973 to 1974 for the Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs.
October 16 –
Eddie Yost, 86, All-Star third baseman who led the American League in walks six times during an 18-year career, 14 of them with the Washington Senators spanning 1944–1958; spent 23 years as a coach for four MLB teams (1962–1984).
October 20 –
Dave May, 68, All-Star outfielder who spent 12 seasons in the majors with the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1967 to 1978, and also the player that was sent by Milwaukee to Atlanta in exchange for
Hank Aaron.
October 25 –
Les Mueller, 93, starting pitcher for the Detroit Tigers 1945 World Series championship team, who hurled 192⁄3 innings in a regular game against the Philadelphia Athletics, which remains the longest outing since 1929 when another Tigers pitcher,
George Uhle, logged 20 innings against the Chicago White Sox.[133]
November
November 1 –
Pascual Pérez, 55, Dominican All-Star pitcher who compiled a lifetime record of 67–68 and a 3.44 ERA with the Braves, Pirates, Expos and Yankees over an 11-season span from 1980 to 1991.[134]
November 2 –
Joe Ginsberg, 86, catcher for the original
1962 New York Mets, who also had stops with the Indians, Kansas City A's, Orioles, White Sox and Red Sox during a 13-year career.
November 9 –
Harold Gould, 88, Minor league pitcher who had a seven-season career between 1942 and 1949, most prominently for the Negro league Philadelphia Stars in 1946 and 1948.
November 9 –
Lee MacPhail, 95, American League president from 1974 to 1983, and longtime team executive (New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles); oldest living Hall of Fame member, and part of the only father-son duo in the Hall (with his father,
Larry MacPhail, who introduced night games to the majors in 1935); father of longtime executive
Andy MacPhail.
November 14 –
Gail Harris, 81, first baseman for the New York Giants and Detroit Tigers from 1955 to 1960, who holds the distinction of being the last player to hit a home run for the Giants before they moved to San Francisco.
November 17 –
Freddy Schmidt, 96, pitcher who played 15 seasons of professional ball, four of them for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs spanning 1944–47, also a member of the World Champion Cardinals in 1946 and the Phillies' oldest alumnus.
November 22 –
Ken Rowe, 78, who pitched professionally for 15 seasons, appearing in the majors from 1963 through 1965 with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Baltimore Orioles, and later working during 21 years in the Cleveland Indians organization at virtually every level of the Indians' minor-league system.
November 23 –
Chuck Diering, 89, outfielder in part of nine seasons from 1947 to 1956 for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Giants and Baltimore Orioles, who was named Orioles Most Valuable Player in their first year in Baltimore after the St. Louis Browns moved there.
November 24 –
Jimmy Stewart, 73, utility man who played every position except pitcher in parts of ten seasons spanning 1963–73, which included stints with the Cubs, Reds, Astros and White Sox.
November 27 –
Marvin Miller, 95, executive director of the
MLB Players Association from 1966 to 1982, who turned the union into one of the most powerful in the country, after negotiating the first collective bargaining agreement in sports history in
1968.
November 30 –
Rogelio Álvarez, 74, Cuban-born American first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds in parts of the 1960 and 1962 seasons.
December
December 17 –
Frank Pastore, 55,
middle reliever who posted a 48–58 record with a 4.29 ERA and six saves in 220 games for the Reds and Twins from 1979 to 1986.
December 19 –
George O'Donnell, 83, pitcher for the 1954 Pittsburgh Pirates.
December 21 –
Boyd Bartley, 92, shortstop for the 1943 Brooklyn Dodgers, then a longtime scout for the franchise,. retiring in 1990.
December 22 –
Ryan Freel, 36, outfielder/infielder who played with five different teams in a span of eight seasons, most prominently for the Cincinnati Reds from 2003 through 2008.
December 24 –
Brad Corbett, 75, who owned the Texas Rangers from 1974 to 1980.
January 9 – former Cincinnati Reds shortstop
Barry Larkin is the only player
elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame, getting 86.4 percent of the vote by the
Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). He would later be honored July 22 in Cooperstown, along with the late
Ron Santo, who
is elected by the Golden Era Committee. The day before the induction ceremony, the Hall presented Toronto Sun baseball writer
Bob Elliott, with the BBWAA's J.G. Taylor Spink Award and
Tim McCarver with its own Ford C. Frick Award.[1]
January 12 – Major League owners vote to approve a contract extension for two years for commissioner
Bud Selig through the 2014 season.[2]
January 13 – In a cost-efficient effort to bolster the rotation, prized
New York Yankees catching prospect
Jesús Montero and pitcher
Héctor Noesí are traded to the
Seattle Mariners in exchange for power-pitching right hander
Michael Pineda and minor leaguer
José Campos. The Yankees build upon the trade agreement in a matter of hours with the addition of free agent
Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year deal worth around 10 million dollars.[3]
January 17 – At
White House, President
Barack Obama dubs the
St. Louis Cardinals the "greatest comeback team in the history of baseball" thanks to their thrilling late-season charge into the playoffs and death-defying, seven-game triumph in last November's
World Series. Leading off at the event is First Lady
Michelle Obama, celebrating her 48th birthday. Two key figures of the championship season are absent: Manager
Tony La Russa retired after the series, while star
Albert Pujols signed a $240 million contract with the
Los Angeles Angels in the offseason.[4]
February 23 –
2011 National League MVPRyan Braun wins his appeal against a 50-game suspension. The suspension was overturned by baseball arbitrator Shyam Das. The Braun case marks the first time a big leaguer has successfully challenged a drug-related penalty in a grievance. According to ESPN sources, Major League Baseball is weighing the possibility of suing in federal court to reverse the decision.[6]
March
March 2 – Major League Baseball expands its playoff format to 10 teams for the 2012 season, adding a second wild card in each league. The decision establishes a new one-game, wild-card round in each league between the teams with the best records.[7]
March 30 – At the age of 49,
Jamie Moyer becomes the oldest
starting pitcher ever on an Opening Day roster. Moyer joined the
Colorado Rockies on this date, which was the 20th anniversary of his being released by the
Chicago Cubs. At that time, he had been released three times in three years. He would turn 50 in November 2012.[9]
Rajai Davis hits a two-run double in the 12th inning, as the
Toronto Blue Jays rally for the second straight game against
Cleveland Indians' bullpen, to win in extra innings again, by the same score of 7–4.[11]
April 8 – The
Boston Red Sox lose to the
Detroit Tigers, 13–12,[13] while the
New York Yankees are defeated by the
Tampa Bay Rays, 3–0.[14] These results mark the second time in Major League history that both the Red Sox and Yankees started with a 0–3 record. The other was in the
1966 season, in which Boston started 0–5 and finished next-to-last with a 72–90 record, and New York started 0–3 and finished last with a 70–89 record.
April 17 – At
Coors Field,
Colorado Rockies pitcher
Jamie Moyer, at 49 years 5 months, becomes the oldest pitcher to record a Major League victory as the Rockies defeat the
San Diego Padres 5–3. The previous record was held by
Jack Quinn, who recorded his last Major League victory in
1932, two months after his 49th birthday.
April 18
Bartolo Colón of the
Oakland A's pitches eight shutout innings in a 6–0 win over the
Los Angeles Angels. The game includes a stretch, from the fifth to the eight inning, in which Colon pitches 38 consecutive strikes, the longest such streak since major league baseball began recording the statistic in 1988.
Cliff Lee of the
Philadelphia Phillies scatters seven hits over 10 innings against the
San Francisco Giants to become the first starting pitcher to throw ten shutout innings since
Mark Mulder of the
St. Louis Cardinals in 2005. Giants starter
Matt Cain, meanwhile, allows only two hits until being lifted for a pinch-hitter after 9 innings. The two become the first pair of starting pitchers to combine for at least 19 shutout innings since 1999. The Giants win the game 1–0 in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the 11th inning.
April 19 –
José Altuve,
Brian Bogusevic, and
Matt Downs of the
Houston Astros each hit a triple in the top of the first inning in an 11–4 victory over the
Washington Nationals. This was the first time in Astros history that they hit 3 triples in an inning and also tied the club record for most in a game. 1995 was the last time a team had 3 triples in the first inning.[18]
April 20 –
Fenway Park celebrates its 100th birthday, with about 200 former
Boston Red Sox players, managers and coaches coming out for the pre-game introduction. Among those players are first baseman Bill Buckner (who famously let a ground ball get past him in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series), pitcher Pedro Martinez, and first baseman (and current MLB Network analyst) Kevin Millar (who famously drew the walk that started Boston's epic comeback in the 2004 ALCS). The
New York Yankees, however, spoil the party and defeat the Red Sox 6–2 on five home runs, all off starter
Clay Buchholz. One of the home runs is
Alex Rodriguez' 631st and puts him past former teammate
Ken Griffey Jr. for fifth place on the all-time list. In the first game at Fenway exactly 100 years earlier, the Red Sox had defeated the Yankees' forerunner, the New York Highlanders, 7–6 in 11 innings.[19]
At
Fenway Park, the
New York Yankees tie a franchise record by overcoming a nine-run deficit to defeat the
Boston Red Sox, 15–9. Trailing 9–0 after five innings, the Yankees begin their comeback in the sixth inning on the first of
Mark Teixeira's two home runs, which come from both sides of the plate, the 13th time he has done so. The Yankees score seven runs in the seventh on a
Nick Swishergrand slam, followed by Teixeira's second home run; then another seven runs in the eighth inning, with the tying and go-ahead runs scored by
Eduardo Núñez and
Derek Jeter on a Swisher double. Teixeira and Swisher each drive in six runs for the Yankees, who last overcame a nine-run deficit to win on June 26,
1987, also against the Red Sox.[21]
The
New York Mets field an entire starting lineup of home-grown talent for the first time since September 19,
1971. With former Mets farmhand
José Reyes batting lead-off for the Miami Marlins, all ten players on the field at the game's start began their careers with the Mets.[25]
Cincinnati Reds starter
Homer Bailey celebrates his 26th birthday and
Chicago Cubs starter
Ryan Dempster celebrates his 35th birthday, marking the first time in Major League history that opposing starting pitchers both celebrated birthdays. The Reds go on to win 4–3 in 10 innings in Cincinnati.[28]
May 7 – At
Fenway Park, the
Baltimore Orioles outlast the
Boston Red Sox, 9–6, in 17 innings.
Adam Jones hits a three-run home run in the top of the 17th off designated hitter
Darnell McDonald, whom the Red Sox turn to once their bullpen was empty. Orioles DH
Chris Davis, who had never pitched an inning in professional baseball, hurls two innings of shutout ball and is credited with the victory.[29] The last time two teams brought in
position players to pitch in the same game was on October 4,
1925, when the
Detroit Tigers'
Ty Cobb and the
St. Louis Browns'
George Sisler closed out the second game of a doubleheader on the last day of the season.[30] Davis also struck out five times at the plate to record the first platinum sombrero of the season, and becomes the eighth player, but first non-pitcher, since 1918 to get a win for a game in which he strikes out five times.[31]
Class-A
Greenville Drive (Boston) makes history as three pitchers combine to toss the club's first ever no-hitter. Miguel Pena (six innings), Hunter Cervenka (two) and Tyler Lockwood (one) join forces to defeat the
Rome Braves (Atlanta), 1–0. A solo home run by Keury De La Cruz off David Filak in the sixth inning counts for the only run of the game.[34]
May 13 –
Joey Votto hits three home runs, including a walk-off grand slam with two outs in the 9th inning, in the Cincinnati Reds' 9–6 victory over the Washington Nationals. Votto, who racks up six RBI and 14 total bases in the game, is the first player ever to have hit three home runs which include a walk-off grand slam, in a game.[35]
May 14 – Major League Baseball drops its 100-game suspension of
Colorado Rockies catcher
Eliezer Alfonzo for a positive drug test because of the same procedural issues that came up in the
Ryan Braun case. Alfonzo became the first player suspended twice for performance-enhancing drugs under the MLB testing program when the commissioner's office announced a 100-game penalty in September 2011. Alfonzo appealed, culminating in today's decision. The reversal comes about because the storage and shipment of his urine sample was similar to those leading to Braun's 50-game drug penalty getting overturned by an arbitrator in February.[36]
Former
Boston Red Sox manager
Butch Hobson, now heading the
Lancaster Barnstormers in the Atlantic League, becomes the 20th manager in baseball history to reach 1,500 career victories with the club's win.[39]
May 21 – In Double-A action, three
New Hampshire Fisher Cats (TOR) pitchers combine to throw the third no-hitter in franchise history, stifling the
Portland Sea Dogs (BOS) in a 6–0 victory at New Hampshire. Combining on the gem for the Fisher Cats were
Brett Cecil (5+2⁄3 innings),
Danny Farquhar (2+1⁄3), and Ronald Uviedo (1). It is the first no-hitter for New Hampshire since
Kyle Drabek hurled a complete-game, nine-inning ho-hitter against the
New Britain Rock Cats (MIN) on July 4,
2010.[42]
May 28 –
Chris Sale strikes out a career-high 15,
Adam Dunn hits a two-run home run, and the
Chicago White Sox extend their winning streak to six games with a 2–1 victory over the
Tampa Bay Rays at
Tropicana Field. Sale nearly makes White Sox history in a dominating victory, allowing one run on three hits and two walks in 7+1⁄3 innings, while finishing one strikeout shy of the
team record.
Jack Harshman struck out 16
Boston Red Sox batters on July 25,
1954.[44]
May 29 –
Hideki Matsui becomes the first player in baseball history to play 10 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball and 10 seasons in the Major Leagues when he debuts for the
Tampa Bay Rays against the
Chicago White Sox. Matsui breaks a scoreless tie with a two-run home run in his second at-bat in an eventual loss for the Rays. He also homered in his major league debuts with the
Anaheim Angels and the
New York Yankees.[45]
May 30 –
Carlos González hits three home runs in his last three at-bats, en route to a
Colorado Rockies 13–5 victory over the
Houston Astros. González breaks a 5-all tie with a solo shot leading off the bottom of the fifth inning, adds a two-run drive in the sixth, and then has another solo shot in the eighth.
Michael Cuddyer contributes a grand slam in the first frame and
Dexter Fowler adds a three-run homer in the sixth.[46]
June
June 1:
Major League Baseball announces the introduction of a new qualifying round for the
2013 World Baseball Classic which will expand the competitive field from 16 to 28 countries. The new round will feature 16 teams divided into four pools of four teams each. The teams invited to participate will include the four World Baseball Classic teams from 2009 that did not win a game.[47][48]
After 50 seasons and 8,020 games, the
New York Mets record their first
no-hitter as
Johan Santana performs the deed in the Mets' 8–0 victory over the
St. Louis Cardinals at
Citi Field. Santana is assisted in the sixth inning by a foul ball call on a
Carlos Beltrán line drive over third base that appears to land on the chalk line (Beltrán eventually grounds out to third baseman
David Wright) and by
Mike Baxter's seventh-inning catch to rob
Yadier Molina of a possible extra-base hit. The no-hitter leaves the
San Diego Padres, who began play in
1969, as the only remaining team without a no-hitter, and is the first against a defending World Series champion since
Nolan Ryan no-hit the
Oakland Athletics on June 11,
1990.[49]
June 3 –
Magglio Ordóñez officially announces his retirement at
Comerica Park. A six-time All-Star, the 38-year-old Ordóñez finishes his career with a .309 batting average over 15 seasons with the
Detroit Tigers and the
Chicago White Sox. His 294 career home runs are the second-most by a
Venezuela-born player, trailing only
Andrés Galarraga's 399. His highlights include the pennant-winning home run in Game 4 of the
2006 AL Championship Series. Then, in 2007 he became the first Tiger to win the batting crown in 46 years. Ordóñez posted a .363 average to claim the American League title, including 28 home runs, 139 runs batted in and a league-best 54 doubles, while his .363 average was the highest by a Detroit player since
1937, when
Charlie Gehringer finished with a .371 mark.[50]
At
Tropicana Field,
R. A. Dickey of the
New York Mets breaks
Jerry Koosman's 39-year franchise record for consecutive scoreless innings, pitching a one-hitter in defeating the
Tampa Bay Rays 9–1. He strikes out a career-high 12 batters and allows a ninth-inning unearned run, which ends his consecutive scoreless inning streak at 32+2⁄3. Koosman had held the previous franchise record, pitching 31+2⁄3 consecutive scoreless innings in
1973.[53]
June 14 –
Jim Thome of the
Philadelphia Phillies becomes just the fourth player in major league history to hit 100 home runs for three different clubs with his solo shot in a 6–1 victory against the
Toronto Blue Jays. He joins
Darrell Evans,
Reggie Jackson and
Alex Rodriguez in that exclusive club. Thome's homer also was his 99th in a Phillies uniform, while his 607 career homers rank him eighth on the all-time list.[54]
June 16 – The South Division rallies for a 6–3 victory over the North in the 51st annual
Florida State League All-Star Game held at
Charlotte Sports Park.
St. Lucie Mets third baseman
Wilmer Flores, who goes 3-for-4 with a run scored, drives in three runs over the final three innings to earn Most Valuable Player honors.[55]
Ichiro Suzuki of the
Seattle Mariners records his 2,500th career hit off pitcher
Daniel Hudson. Only Hall of Famers
Al Simmons,
Ty Cobb and
George Sisler reached the 2500-hit milestone in fewer games than Suzuki's 1817 Major League contests, as he had already racked up 1278 hits in nine seasons with the
Orix BlueWave of the Japanese Pacific League before joining the Mariners in
2001. Suzuki goes 4-for-5, helping Seattle to a 12–9, 10-inning victory against the
Arizona Diamondbacks.[57]
June 28 –
Óscar Taveras of the
Springfield Cardinals collects three hits, including a two-run home run, to lead the
North Division to a 3–1 victory over the
South Division in the
Texas League All-Star Game held at
ONEOK Field. Taveras, who is a unanimous choice as the game's Most Valuable Player, is, at the time, the No. 3 prospect in the
St. Louis Cardinals organization. His .323 batting average tops the league, while his 15 home runs ranks him third in the circuit.[62]
June 30 – The
Texas Rangers (50–29) become the first major league team to reach 50 victories with a 7–2 win, its 17th in 21 games.
Josh Hamilton homers and drives in four runs to help make 21-year-old
Martín Pérez a winner in his first career start.[64]
July
July 2:
Jarrod Parker allows one run on six hits in 6+2⁄3 innings of work as the
Oakland Athletics pass the
Boston Red Sox 6–1 at
O.co Coliseum. Parker matches an old record by allowing one run or fewer for the 10th time in 14 career
starts, becoming the second pitcher in major league history since
Ferdie Schupp to accomplish the feat. Schupp, primarily a
reliever, allowed no more than one run in 10 of his first 14 starts for the
New York Giants, but he needed five seasons to accomplish it, from 1913 to 1917. Entering the day, Parker had been the second starter since
Dwight Gooden to allow no more than one run in nine of his first 13 starts. It is also the seventh time in Parker's past eight starts he has held the opposition to one run or fewer.[65]
Billy Hamilton of the High-A
Bakersfield Blaze steals his 100th base of the season in just his 78th game of the season. Last year, the
Cincinnati Reds minor leaguer became the first player to steal 100 bases in a minor-league season since
2001, ending with 103 in 135 games. According to Baseball America, by this point in the season, only 14 of the 119 full-season minor-league teams (not including Bakersfield) have 100 steals. The record for the most stolen bases at any level of professional baseball is 145, which was set by
Vince Coleman in
1983 while playing for the Class-A
Macon Redbirds.[66]
July 8 –
Detroit Tigers prospect
Nick Castellanos has three hits, including a three-run home run during a nine-run sixth inning, while
Kansas City Royals minor league outfielder
Wil Myers adds three runs batted in to lead the U.S. team to a 17–5 rout of the World team in the
All-Star Futures Game at
Kauffman Stadium.
Billy Hamilton and
Manny Machado each drive in two runs for the U.S. team, contributing to a record 22 combined runs during the annual prospect showcase. Castellanos earns MVP honors.[68]
July 10 – The National League shuts out the American League, 8–0, in the
83rd All-Star Game played in Kansas City's
Kaufmann Stadium. NL starting pitcher
Matt Cain of the
San Francisco Giants throws two shutout innings for the win, while teammates
Pablo Sandoval and
Melky Cabrera and
Milwaukee Brewers'
Ryan Braun contribute most of the offensive firepower. Sandoval hits a bases-loaded triple and scores one run during a five-run first inning off the
Detroit Tigers'
Justin Verlander, while Braun doubles, triples and makes a fine catch in the outfield. Cabrera belts a two-run home run and scores two times to take home the
MVP award. The
Atlanta Braves' 40-year-old
Chipper Jones singles in his final All-Star at-bat as the NL, under retired manager
Tony La Russa, once again claims home-field advantage in the World Series.[69]
July 11:
Wil Myers drives in one run and scores another to lead the Pacific Coast League to a 3–0 victory over the International League in the
Triple-A All-Star Game. Myers is selected
Top Star for the PCL team, which snaps a three-game losing streak. It is the second impressive All-Star showing in four days for the 21-year-old
Kansas City Royals outfield prospect. Previously, Myers collected three RBIs in the
All-Star Futures Game played during the MLB All-Star festivities.[70]
Eric Campbell of the
Binghamton Mets lashes a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning, to lead the
Eastern Division to a 5–4 win over the
Western Division in the
Eastern League All-Star Game held at
FirstEnergy Stadium. Campbell, who earns MVP Game honors, hits .341 over the final 10 games of the first half of the season and is batting .378 in July for the Binghamton team.[71]
July 17 –
O'Koyea Dickson of the
Great Lakes Loons puts on a special performance at the
Midwest League All-Star Game, leading the East Division to an 18–2 thumping of the West Division at Kane County's
Fifth Third Field. Dickson goes 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and two runs scored, and is named Most Valuable Player.[72]
In the top third inning of a game at
Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia,
Matt Cain of the
San Francisco Giants hits a home run off
Cole Hamels of the
Philadelphia Phillies. In the bottom of that same inning, Hamels hits a home run off of Cain. Cain and Hamels become the first pair of starting pitchers to hit home runs off one another in the same game since 2002, and the first pair to do so in the same inning since 1990. San Francisco wins, 6–5, in 10 innings.[74]
Matt Harvey of the
New York Mets limits the
Arizona Diamondbacks to three hits in his major league debut, while striking out 11 over 5+1⁄3 innings of shutout ball to lead the Mets to a 3–1 victory at
Chase Field. Harvey, the Mets' top pick in the 2010 draft, sets a franchise record for strikeouts in a debut. He also doubles and singles to become the first major league pitcher since 1900 to strike out more than 10 and collect a pair of hits in his first game.[83]
July 29:
Pedro Ciriaco turns out to be the hero once again, this time punching an RBI single in the top of the 10th inning, and the
Boston Red Sox defeat the
New York Yankees, 3–2, to take the weekend series. Called up July 6 from Triple-A
Pawtucket, Ciriaco has go-ahead hits in all three Red Sox victories over the Yankees in nine meetings this season. He is now 11-for-22 with six RBIs in five games against New York, including a ninth-inning, RBI-triple the previous day in an 8–6 comeback victory.[84]
The
Houston Astros end their team-record losing streak at 12 games, beating the
Pittsburgh Pirates, 9–5, behind a three-run double from
Marwin González and a home run from
Jordan Schafer, who also drives in three runs. The skid matches the
Kansas City Royals (April 11–24) and the
Chicago Cubs (May 15–27) for the longest in the major leagues this year. It breaks the previous Astros record of 11, originally set from August 17–28, 1995, and matched from
2009's season end into the start of
2010.[85]
July 30 – At
Rangers Ballpark in Arlington,
Kendrys Morales of the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim becomes the third player to hit a home run from both sides of the plate in the same inning. His first home run, batting left-handed against
Texas Rangers pitcher
Roy Oswalt, comes with
Albert Pujols on base, the first two runs of a nine-run sixth inning. He concludes the scoring by homering again, this time with the bases loaded against left-hander
Robbie Ross. The Angels defeat the Rangers, 15–8. Morales joins
Carlos Baerga (
1993) and
Mark Bellhorn (
2002) as players who have homered from both sides of the plate in the same inning.[86]
August 10 –
Manny Machado hits two home runs and drives in four runs in his second career MLB game to carry the
Baltimore Orioles past the visiting
Kansas City Royals, 7–1, at
Camden Yards. At 20 years, 35 days old, Machado becomes the youngest player in major league history to have a multiple home run game in either his first or second career game. The previous youngest player to do this was
Manny Ramírez (21 years, 96 days old), who belted two homers in his second career game, at
Yankee Stadium on September 3, 1993, leading the
Cleveland Indians to a 7–3 win. Machado also becomes the youngest player in Orioles franchise history, which includes the
St. Louis Browns from 1902 to 1953, to hit two or more homers in a game. The previous youngest was
Boog Powell (20 years, 258 days old), who did it on May 2,
1962, at
Metropolitan Stadium.[90]
August 15:
At
Safeco Field,
Félix Hernández of the
Seattle Mariners strikes out 12 batters en route to
the 23rd perfect game in Major League history, the third of this season, and the first in franchise history as the Mariners defeat the
Tampa Bay Rays 1–0. With
Philip Humber having pitched
his perfect game against the Mariners at Safeco on April 21 of this season, the Mariners become the first team to be on both ends of a perfect game in one season. Safeco also joins
Dodger Stadium,
Yankee Stadium and
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum as stadiums with two perfect games pitched in them. The perfect game is the third in four seasons to be pitched against the Rays; they were also on the losing end of
Mark Buehrle's perfect game in
2009 and
Dallas Braden's perfect game in
2010. The Rays are also
no-hit for the fourth time since 2009, having been on the losing end of
Edwin Jackson's 2010 no-hitter; no other team has even been no-hit twice during this period. Along with their combined no-hitter on June 8 (also at Safeco), the Mariners become the first team with two no-hitters on the same season since the
1973 California Angels,
Nolan Ryan having pitched both.[91]
Melky Cabrera of the
San Francisco Giants is suspended for 50 games after testing positive for
Testosterone. With 45 games remaining in the Giants' regular season, the suspension ends Cabrera's season and will carry over into the postseason should the Giants qualify. Cabrera finishes the year leading the National League with a .346 batting average, but his 501
plate appearances are one short of what he will need to qualify for the batting title.[92]
Billy Hamilton of the
Pensacola Blue Wahoos collects four
stolen bases in the first game of a double-header, to eclipse
Vince Coleman's 30-year-old record for the most steals in a single season in minor league baseball history. Hamilton, a highly touted prospect of the
Cincinnati Reds organization, now has 147 stolen bases in the season. He stole 104 in the first half of the season with Class-A
Bakersfield Blaze before being promoted to Double-A Pensacola. The previous record was set by Coleman in
1983, with 145, while playing for Single-A
Macon Redbirds. The modern major league record was set by
Rickey Henderson with 130 in
1982. Hamilton will eventually end the season with 155 steals.[93]
Michael Weiner, who succeeded
Donald Fehr as head of the baseball players' union three years before and negotiated a labor deal the prior fall in a seamless transition, undergoes treatment for a brain tumor. The 50-year-old Weiner succeeded Fehr in December
2009 to become just the fourth head of the union since
1966.[94]
August 22 –
Bartolo Colón of the
Oakland Athletics is suspended for 50 games after testing positive for
testosterone, joining
San Francisco Giants outfielder
Melky Cabrera on the suspended list for the rest of the regular season. Major League Baseball makes the announcement regarding the former
Cy Young Award winner just a week after All-Star Game MVP Cabrera received his 50-game suspension.[95]
August 25:
The
Boston Red Sox and the
Los Angeles Dodgers complete a nine-player blockbuster deal, which is considered the largest player transaction in major league baseball history after the
non-waiver trade deadline. Boston sends first baseman
Adrián González, pitcher
Josh Beckett, outfielder
Carl Crawford, infielder
Nick Punto, and about $11 million in cash to Los Angeles in the nine-player trade, while the Dodgers absorb approximately a quarter-billion dollars while acquiring the four players. In return, the Red Sox will receive first baseman
James Loney, pitcher
Allen Webster, infielder
Iván DeJesús Jr. and two players to be named, while shedding more than $250 million in salaries through 2018. Pitcher
Rubby De La Rosa and outfielder
Jerry Sands are the players to be named later because they did not clear waivers. They will officially change organizations once the regular season concludes.[96]
Former Major League pitcher
Roger Clemens starts a game for the
Sugar Land Skeeters of the independent
Atlantic League. The 50-year-old Clemens pitches 3 1/3 innings, striking out two and allowing only one base hit.
August 27 –
Adrián Beltré of the
Texas Rangers is named the American League Player of the Week. Beltré makes history, after hitting .433 with three doubles, one triple, five home runs, nine RBI and seven runs scored in seven games. He belted three home runs in his first three at-bats on August 22 against the
Baltimore Orioles, including a pair of two-run blasts as part of a nine-run fourth inning. He also homered against the
Minnesota Twins the next day, marking the first time he had homered in back-to-back games this season. A day later, he became the sixth Rangers player to
hit for the cycle, going 4-for-4 with three RBI. It was his second career cycle (September 1,
2008, with the
Seattle Mariners – also in
Rangers Ballpark – was the other), so Beltré became the first player in the modern era to cycle in the same ballpark as a home and visiting player, according to the
Elias Sports Bureau. Beltré, who joins
Joe DiMaggio (
1948) as the only other player in Major League Baseball history to hit for the cycle and hit three homers in the same week, earns his first AL Player of the Week honor after being recognized three times while in the National League with the
Los Angeles Dodgers.[97]
August 28 – First baseman
Mauro Gómez is named
International League Most Valuable Player, in a season during which he made four separate trips between Triple-A
Pawtucket and the
Boston Red Sox. Gómez hit a .310 average in 100 games with Pawtucket, with 59 of his 120 hits going for extra bases. He also tied for second in the International League with 24 home runs, while ranking first in slugging percentage (.589) and fourth both in RBIs (74) and total bases (228). Besides this,
Tyler Cloyd of
Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies) was voted Most Valuable Pitcher,
Scranton/Wilkes Barre YankeesDave Miley was named Manager of the Year, and first baseman
Ernesto Mejía became the third consecutive
Gwinnett Braves player to claim the Rookie of the Year distinction, following 1B
Freddie Freeman (2010) and P
Julio Teherán (2011).[98]
August 29 –
Little League Baseball announces that
Australia will receive an automatic berth in the
Little League World Series starting in 2013. Australia, now the fourth-largest country in Little League participation (and the largest outside North America), becomes the fourth country with its own berth (alongside
Canada,
Japan, and
Mexico).[99]
August 30 –
Jonathan Lucroy hits a
grand slam and
drove in seven runs for the
Milwaukee Brewers in their loss to the
Chicago Cubs, 12–11, at
Wrigley Field. In a slugfest featuring a combined 31 hits, including 15
extra-bases, Lucroy becomes the first catcher to have two games in a single season with 7 or more RBI since Major League Baseball began officially tracking the RBI statistic in
1920 (he first did it on May 20 against the
Minnesota Twins). In addition, Lucroy becomes the first Brewer to collect a pair of seven-RBI games in team history.[100]
September
September 5 – For the second consecutive game, the
Washington Nationals tie a franchise record with six home runs in a 9–1 rout of the
Chicago Cubs. The Nationals become just the third team in major league history to hit at least six home runs in consecutive games, joining the
1996 Los Angeles Dodgers and the
2003 Anaheim Angels. Two of those six homers were hit by 19-year-old rookie
Bryce Harper. With it being his second multihomer game of the season, Harper becomes the third player ever with more than one multihomer game in a season as a teenager, joining
Mel Ott (
1928) and
Ken Griffey Jr. (
1989). Harper also is the third teenager with at least 17 homers in a season, trailing only
Tony Conigliaro (24,
1964) and Mel Ott (18, 1928).[101]
September 14 – At
Yankee Stadium,
Derek Jeter of the
New York Yankees moves into the top 10 on the all-time hits list, beating out an infield single in the fifth inning of the Yankees' 6–4 loss to the
Tampa Bay Rays. The hit gives him 3,284 for his career, passing
Willie Mays for 10th place. In the eighth inning of the same game,
Alex Rodriguez hits his 647th career home run, which gives him 1,889 career runs scored, passing
Lou Gehrig for ninth place on the all-time list.[102]
September 18:
The Brazilian baseball federation[103] announces that Hall of Fame shortstop
Barry Larkin will manage the Brazil team during a qualifying round for the
2013 World Baseball Classic. The Brazilian team would go on to win the qualifying round played in
Panama City from November 15–19.[104]
Melky Cabrera is disqualified from the National League batting champion honor at his own request when
Major League Baseball and the
Players Association agree to a one-season-only change in the rule governing the individual
batting,
slugging and
on-base percentage champions.[108] Cabrera, the All-Star Game MVP, was suspended on
August 15 for violating the
Joint Drug Program and was missing the final 45 games of the regular season. Entering the day with a league-leading .346 batting average, he had 501 plate appearances, one short of the required minimum, but would have won the title under section 10.22(a) of the Official Baseball Rules if an extra hitless at-bat were added to his average and he still finished ahead.[109] Cabrera took the initiative in sending a letter to MLB and the PA. "To be plain, I personally have no wish to win an award that would widely be seen as tainted, and I believe that it would be far better for the remaining contenders to compete for that distinction", Cabrera wrote.[108]
The
Tampa Bay Rays maul the
Toronto Blue Jays, 12–1, as their pitching staff sets a new league record for combined strikeouts in a single season when
James Shields strikes out
J. P. Arencibia leading off the second inning. With 1,267 strikeouts, the combined efforts of the starting pitchers and the bullpen surpasses the previous record of 1,266, held by the
2011 New York Yankees. The Rays have 11 games remaining to extend the mark. The major league record is 1,404, which was set by the
2003 Chicago Cubs.[110]
September 25 – The
Los Angeles Angels tie a major league record by striking out 20 opposing batters in a 9-inning game in a victory over the
Seattle Mariners. The Angels are the first to do so using multiple pitchers.
The
Houston Astros name
Bo Porter as their new manager for the upcoming season. Porter, who is, at the time, the
Washington Nationals third base coach, replaces
Brad Mills, who was dismissed the prior month. Porter would remain with the postseason-bound Nationals for the remainder of their season.[112] In other managerial movements,
Manny Acta is dismissed as manager of the
Cleveland Indians after the team collapsed from contention. Bench coach
Sandy Alomar Jr., a former Indians catcher and fanatic-favorite, would replace Acta for the last six games of the season.[113]
September 28 –
Homer Bailey of the
Cincinnati Redsno-hits the
Pittsburgh Pirates 1–0 at
PNC Park. He strikes out 10 batters in pitching the seventh no-hitter of this season, which ties
1990 and
1991 for most no-hitters in one modern-day season. The no-hitter is the first by a Red since
Tom Browning's perfect game in
1988, and the first against the Pirates since
St. Louis'
Bob Gibson in
1971. The Pirates' loss is also their 81st of the season and assures them of their 20th consecutive non-winning season, extending their own major North American professional sports record.[116]
On the last day of the regular season,
Oakland Athletics defeat the
Texas Rangers 12–5 at
O.co Coliseum to win the
AL West championship. The A's complete a 3-game sweep of the Rangers, who had entered the series 2 games ahead in first place. The A's win the division despite being 13 games out of first place at one point in the season, and despite being 5 games out with 9 games to play. With the conclusion of the game and the regular season, the A's claim sole possession of first place for the first time all season. The Rangers were in first place from April 9 to October 2; earn one of two AL Wild Card berths.
The
San Francisco Giants defeat the
Cincinnati Reds 6–4 at
Great American Ball Park to win the
NLDS 3 games to 2. The Giants become the first NL team in the wild card era to win a five-game series after losing the first two games, and the first team overall to do so by winning three consecutive games on the road.
The
Detroit Tigers defeat the
Oakland Athletics 6–0 at
O.co Coliseum to win the
ALDS 3 games to 2.
Justin Verlander of the Tigers pitches a complete-game shutout to prevent the A's from completing a comeback from an 0–2 series deficit that included a come-from-behind 3-run ninth-inning rally in Game 4.
The
St. Louis Cardinals defeat the
Washington Nationals 9–7 at
Nationals Park to win the
NLDS 3 games to 2. The Cardinals come back from a six-run deficit, including a two-run deficit with two outs and two strikes in the top of the ninth, to rally past the Nationals and win Game 5 and the series.
October 22 – The
San Francisco Giants defeat the
St. Louis Cardinals 9–0 at
AT&T Park in Game 7 of the
NLCS to win the National League pennant. The result also eliminates the Cardinals from defending their
2011 World Series title, the twelfth consecutive year a team has failed to defend its World Championship. The Giants outscore the Cardinals 20–1 over the final three games in coming back from a 3–1 series deficit, becoming the first team since the
1985 Kansas City Royals to win six consecutive games when facing elimination in the same postseason.
Marco Scutaro ties an LCS record with 14 base hits in the series, and is named
NLCS MVP.
The
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announces 10 candidates to be considered by the Pre-Integration Era Committee, a subcommittee of the
Veterans Committee, for possible induction in the Hall of Fame class of
2013. Results are to be announced during the 2012 winter meetings.[121]
November 28 – The Hall of Fame announces the players' ballot from which
Baseball Writers' Association of America members will vote on candidates for the induction class of
2013. It consists of 13 returning and 24 new candidates, with results to be announced on January 9, 2013.[123]
December 5 – The Hall of Fame announces
Tom Cheek, who was the lead radio play-by-play announcer for the
Toronto Blue Jays from the team's establishment in
1977 until his retirement in
2004, as the 2013 recipient of its
Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in baseball broadcasting. Cheek, who died in 2005, would formally receive the honor at the Hall of Fame Awards Presentation.[127]
January 2 –
Howie Koplitz, 73, pitcher for the Tigers and Senators in parts of five seasons spanning 1961–1966, who also was named
Southern Association MVP and
TSN Minor League Player of the Year in 1961.
January 8 –
Glenn Cox, 80, pitcher for the Kansas City Athletics from 1955 to 1958.
January 17 –
Marty Springstead, 74, former American League umpire from 1966 to 1985, who at the age of 36 in 1973 became the youngest umpire crew chief in World Series history, and also worked in three Series, three All-Star Games and five AL championship series.[130]
January 21 –
Cliff Chambers, 90, pitcher for the Cubs, Pirates and Cardinals from 1948 to 1953.
January 21 –
Troy Herriage, 81, pitcher for the 1956 Kansas City Athletics.
January 22 –
Andy Musser, 74, play-by-play broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies during 26 seasons from 1976 through 2001.
January 26 –
Bud Byerly, 91, pitcher who played for the Cardinals, Reds, Senators, Red Sox and Giants for parts of 11 seasons spanning 1943–1960.
January 31 –
Rick Behenna, 51, pitcher for the Atlanta Braves and Cleveland Indians in parts of three seasons from 1983 through 1985.
February
February 1 –
Herb Adams, 83, backup outfielder who played from 1948 to 1950 with the Chicago White Sox.
February 7 –
Danny Clyburn, 37, outfielder who played parts of three seasons with the Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the late 1990s.
February 11 –
Gene Crumling, 89, catcher for the 1945 St. Louis Cardinals, one of many ballplayers who only appeared in the majors during World War II.
February 16 –
Gary Carter, 57, Hall of Fame catcher, principally with the Montreal Expos and New York Mets, whose two-out, tenth-inning single for the Mets in Game 6 of the
1986 World Series started one of the most improbable rallies in postseason history.
February 17 –
Howie Nunn, 76, relief pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds in parts of three seasons from 1959 to 1962.
February 19 –
Dick Smith, 72, outfielder and first baseman who played from 1963 through 1965 for the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.
February 24 –
Agnes Allen, 81, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League pitcher.
February 24 –
Terry Mathews, 47, relief pitcher for the Florida Marlins, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals in part of eight seasons spanning 1991–1999.
February 24 –
Jay Ward, 73, infielder for the Minnesota Twins and Cincinnati Reds who got into 27 games over three seasons between 1963 and 1970; later a successful minor-league manager.
February 25 –
Dave Cheadle, 60, relief pitcher for the 1973 Atlanta Braves.
March
March 3 –
Lloyd Hittle, 88, pitcher for the Washington Senators from 1949 to 1950.
March 3 –
Jim Obradovich, 62, first baseman who played briefly for the Houston Astros in 1978.
March 4 –
Don Mincher, 73, two-time All-Star first baseman and member of the
1972 Oakland Athletics World Series champions, who also has the distinction of being the only major leaguer to play with the Washington Senators franchise that became the Minnesota Twins, and then play with a second incarnation of the Senators which became the Texas Rangers.
March 6 –
Helen Walulik, 82, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League pitcher and outfield/infield utility.
March 9 –
Harry Wendelstedt, 73, National League umpire who worked five World Series and four All-Star games during his 33-year career from 1966 through 1998; father of umpire
Hunter Wendelstedt.
March 11 –
Hub Andrews, 89, relief pitcher for the New York Giants from 1947 to 1948.
March 15 –
Dave Philley, 91, outfielder and pinch-hitting specialist for eight different teams between 1941 and 1962, who still holds the major league records for most consecutive pinch-hits in a season (nine, 1958) and for most at-bats in an 18-inning double-header (13, 1951); also holds American League record for the most pinch-hits in a season (24, 1961).[131]
March 18 –
Furman Bisher, 93, Atlanta sportswriter who authored several books, including co-writing an autobiography of
Hank Aaron.
March 20 –
Mel Parnell, 89, two-time All-Star pitcher and the winningest left-hander in Boston Red Sox history with 123 wins from 1947 to 1956, who also posted a 25–7 record in 1949 and hurled a no-hitter in 1956.
March 24 –
Dennis Bennett, 72, pitcher for the Phillies, Red Sox, Mets and Angels between 1962 and 1968.
March 29 –
Ray Narleski, 83, two-time All-Star reliever with the Cleveland Indians, and part of a brilliant bullpen that featured
Don Mossi and
Hal Newhouser, during the historic
1954 season.
March 30 –
Janet Anderson, 90, Canadian pitcher for the
Kenosha Comets of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
March 31 –
Jerry Lynch, 82, Pirates and Reds outfielder, whose 116 career pinch-hits is the 10th-most in Major League Baseball history.
April
April 2 –
Allie Clark, 88, outfielder who played from 1947 through 1953 for the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Athletics and Chicago White Sox.
April 8 –
Al Veigel, 95, pitcher for the 1939 Boston Bees.
April 10 –
Andy Replogle, 58, pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers from 1978 to 1979.
April 15 –
Ron Plaza, 75, minor league infielder, instructor and manager who coached in the majors for the 1969 Seattle Pilots, 1979–1983 Cincinnati Reds and 1986 Oakland Athletics.
April 17 –
Stan Johnson, 75, backup outfielder who played for the Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Athletics between 1960 and 1961.
April 18 –
John O'Neil, 92, backup shortstop for the 1946 Philadelphia Phillies, who spent more than 45 years spanning 1939–1986 as player, player/manager, manager, general manager and scout.
April 24 –
Fred Bradley, 91, pitcher for the Chicago White Sox from 1948 to 1949.
April 26 –
Bill Skowron, 81, eight-time AL All-Star first baseman who was part of five World Series champion teams (New York Yankees, 1956, 1958, 1961–1962) and Los Angeles Dodgers (1963); also played for Washington Senators, Chicago White Sox and California Angels.
April 29 –
Daisy Junor, 92, Canadian outfielder who played from 1946 through 1949 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
May
May 5 –
Don Leshnock, 65, relief pitcher for the 1972 Detroit Tigers.
May 8 –
Jerry McMorris, 71, principal owner of the Colorado Rockies from 1992 through 2005.
May 9 –
Carl Beane, 59, public address announcer for the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park since the 2003 season.
May 11 –
Frank Wills, 53, pitcher for the Royals, Mariners, Indians and Blue Jays from 1983 through 1991, who won the AL East pennant-winning game for Toronto in the
1989 season.
May 16 –
Kevin Hickey, 56, pitcher for the White Sox and Orioles in part of six seasons spanning 1981–1991.
May 16 –
Thad Tillotson, 71, relief pitcher for the New York Yankees from 1967 to 1968, who also pitched for the
Nankai Hawks in Japan during the 1971 season.
June 4 –
Pedro Borbón, 65, Dominican reliever for the Cincinnati Reds during 10 seasons, and a key member on the bullpen of the
Big Red Machine that won back-to-back World Series titles in
1975 and
1976.
June 5 –
Hal Keller, 84, backup catcher for the Washington Senators between 1949 and 1952, and later a front office executive for the Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners in a 25-year career from 1961 through 1985; brother of
Charlie Keller.
June 9 –
Hawk Taylor, 73, backup catcher for the Milwaukee Braves, New York Mets, California Angels and Kansas City Royals in parts of 11 seasons spanning 1959–1970.
June 11 –
Dave Boswell, 67, pitcher who posted a 68–56 record and a 3.52 ERA for the Twins, Tigers and Orioles from 1964 through 1971, while leading the American League with a .706 winning percentage in 1966.
June 14 –
Al Brancato, 93, shortstop for the Philadelphia Athletics in part of four seasons spanning 1939–1945.
June 24 –
Darrel Akerfelds, 50, pitcher for the Athletics, Indians, Rangers and Phillies from 1986 through 1991, and later a bullpen coach for the San Diego Padres from 2001 to 2011.
June 28 –
Doris Sams, 85, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League outfielder/pitcher; a five-time
All-Star and two-time
Player of the Year Award winner, who won a batting crown and one home run title, while throwing a perfect game and one no-hitter in a career that spanned from 1946 through 1953.
July
July 1 –
Mike Hershberger, 72, right fielder for Chicago White Sox, Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, and Milwaukee Brewers (1961–1971), who led all American League outfielders in assists both in 1965 and 1967.
July 2 –
Ed Stroud, 72, outfielder for the Chicago White Sox and the Washington Senators from 1966 to 1971.
July 7 –
Doris Neal, 83, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League infielder/outfielder from 1948 to 1949.
July 8 –
Chick King, 81, backup outfielder for the Tigers, Cubs and Cardinals in five seasons between 1954 and 1959.
July 11 –
Art Ceccarelli, 82, pitcher for the Kansas City A's, Cubs and Orioles in part of five seasons spanning 1955–60.
July 21 –
Marie Kruckel, 88, outfielder and pitcher in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
July 22 –
Ed Stevens, 87, first baseman who played from 1945 through 1950 for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates, and also gained induction into the
International League Hall of Fame in 2009.
July 24 –
Nancy Mudge Cato, 82, All-Star infielder who played for five different teams of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
August
August 1 –
Don Erickson, 80, relief pitcher for the 1958 Philadelphia Phillies.
August 13 –
Dan Daniels, 90, Washington, D.C., sportscaster who was the radio/TV voice of the expansion Senators from the team's founding in 1961 through 1968.
August 13 –
Johnny Pesky, 92, a 61-year member of the Boston Red Sox spanning 1940–2012, while serving them as a player, manager, coach, broadcaster, and well-esteemed team ambassador; also played for Detroit Tigers and Washington Senators, and coached for Pittsburgh Pirates.
August 22 –
Bob Myrick, 59, relief pitcher who played from 1976 through 1978 for the New York Mets.
August 29 –
Les Moss, 87, catcher who played from 1946 through 1958 for the St. Louis Browns, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox; manager of Detroit Tigers for first 53 games of 1979 season until replaced by Sparky Anderson; coach for White Sox, Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros for 13 years between 1967 and 1989; also managed in the minor leagues for 11 seasons.
August 31 –
Nat Peeples, 86, infielder who, after playing for Memphis, Indianapolis and the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League in the late 1940s, joined "Organized" minor league baseball in 1951; there he became the first and only Black player to appear in the segregated, Double-A Southern Association in 1954 for two games and four at bats for the Atlanta Crackers, before being assigned to previously integrated leagues; he retired from baseball in 1960 at age 34, and the SA folded in 1961, still a bastion of segregation.
September
September 8 –
Bob Hale, 78, first baseman who played from 1955 through 1961 with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees.
September 10 –
Tom Saffell, 91, backup outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Athletics in parts of four seasons spanning 1949–1955, who later served as President of the
Gulf Coast League from 1979 to 2009.
September 11 –
Bruce Von Hoff, 68, relief pitcher for the Houston Astros in the 1965 and 1967 seasons.
September 13 –
Bob DiPietro, 85, backup outfielder for the 1951 Boston Red Sox.
September 13 –
Jack Pierce, 64, first baseman for the Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers in parts of three seasons spanning 1973–75, who also played in Japan with the 1977 Nankai Hawks.
September 17 –
Pauline Dennert, 86, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player.
September 18 –
Jack Kralick, 77, All-Star pitcher and one of the original Minnesota Twins, who posted a 67–65 record and a 3.56 ERA in eight seasons which included stints with the Washington Senators and the Cleveland Indians, while hurling a no-hitter against the Kansas City Athletics in 1962.
September 21 –
Tom Umphlett, 82, outfielder for the Boston Red Sox and Washington Senators from 1953 through 1955, and later a minor league manager from 1967 to 1970.
September 23 –
Roberto Muñoz Rodríguez, 70, Venezuelan pitcher who played for the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs between the 1967 and 1970 seasons.
September 25 –
Audrey Deemer, 81, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player.
October
October 6 –
Irene DeLaby, 90, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player.
October 11 –
Champ Summers, 66, outfielder who played 10 seasons in the majors for six different teams, mainly for the Detroit Tigers from 1979 to 1981, and also a hitting coach for the New York Yankees.
October 12 –
Jim Kremmel, 63, relief pitcher who played from 1973 to 1974 for the Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs.
October 16 –
Eddie Yost, 86, All-Star third baseman who led the American League in walks six times during an 18-year career, 14 of them with the Washington Senators spanning 1944–1958; spent 23 years as a coach for four MLB teams (1962–1984).
October 20 –
Dave May, 68, All-Star outfielder who spent 12 seasons in the majors with the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, Texas Rangers and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1967 to 1978, and also the player that was sent by Milwaukee to Atlanta in exchange for
Hank Aaron.
October 25 –
Les Mueller, 93, starting pitcher for the Detroit Tigers 1945 World Series championship team, who hurled 192⁄3 innings in a regular game against the Philadelphia Athletics, which remains the longest outing since 1929 when another Tigers pitcher,
George Uhle, logged 20 innings against the Chicago White Sox.[133]
November
November 1 –
Pascual Pérez, 55, Dominican All-Star pitcher who compiled a lifetime record of 67–68 and a 3.44 ERA with the Braves, Pirates, Expos and Yankees over an 11-season span from 1980 to 1991.[134]
November 2 –
Joe Ginsberg, 86, catcher for the original
1962 New York Mets, who also had stops with the Indians, Kansas City A's, Orioles, White Sox and Red Sox during a 13-year career.
November 9 –
Harold Gould, 88, Minor league pitcher who had a seven-season career between 1942 and 1949, most prominently for the Negro league Philadelphia Stars in 1946 and 1948.
November 9 –
Lee MacPhail, 95, American League president from 1974 to 1983, and longtime team executive (New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles); oldest living Hall of Fame member, and part of the only father-son duo in the Hall (with his father,
Larry MacPhail, who introduced night games to the majors in 1935); father of longtime executive
Andy MacPhail.
November 14 –
Gail Harris, 81, first baseman for the New York Giants and Detroit Tigers from 1955 to 1960, who holds the distinction of being the last player to hit a home run for the Giants before they moved to San Francisco.
November 17 –
Freddy Schmidt, 96, pitcher who played 15 seasons of professional ball, four of them for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs spanning 1944–47, also a member of the World Champion Cardinals in 1946 and the Phillies' oldest alumnus.
November 22 –
Ken Rowe, 78, who pitched professionally for 15 seasons, appearing in the majors from 1963 through 1965 with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Baltimore Orioles, and later working during 21 years in the Cleveland Indians organization at virtually every level of the Indians' minor-league system.
November 23 –
Chuck Diering, 89, outfielder in part of nine seasons from 1947 to 1956 for the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Giants and Baltimore Orioles, who was named Orioles Most Valuable Player in their first year in Baltimore after the St. Louis Browns moved there.
November 24 –
Jimmy Stewart, 73, utility man who played every position except pitcher in parts of ten seasons spanning 1963–73, which included stints with the Cubs, Reds, Astros and White Sox.
November 27 –
Marvin Miller, 95, executive director of the
MLB Players Association from 1966 to 1982, who turned the union into one of the most powerful in the country, after negotiating the first collective bargaining agreement in sports history in
1968.
November 30 –
Rogelio Álvarez, 74, Cuban-born American first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds in parts of the 1960 and 1962 seasons.
December
December 17 –
Frank Pastore, 55,
middle reliever who posted a 48–58 record with a 4.29 ERA and six saves in 220 games for the Reds and Twins from 1979 to 1986.
December 19 –
George O'Donnell, 83, pitcher for the 1954 Pittsburgh Pirates.
December 21 –
Boyd Bartley, 92, shortstop for the 1943 Brooklyn Dodgers, then a longtime scout for the franchise,. retiring in 1990.
December 22 –
Ryan Freel, 36, outfielder/infielder who played with five different teams in a span of eight seasons, most prominently for the Cincinnati Reds from 2003 through 2008.
December 24 –
Brad Corbett, 75, who owned the Texas Rangers from 1974 to 1980.