1910 – The Chalmers Auto Company of Detroit offers to award a new car to the batting champion of each league. The National Commission accepts.

1914 – Babe Ruth makes his first start of his professional career, defeating the Philadelphia Athletics, 6-2

1935 – The Yankees purchase pitcher Pat Malone from the Cubs. Malone had led the N.L. in wins in 1929 and 1930.

1959 – Future N.L. President Bill White comes to St. Louis along with third baseman Ray Jablonski from the Giants for pitchers Sam Jones and Don Choate. White will win six consecutive Gold Gloves with the Cardinals plus one more later in Philadelphia.

1985 – An Illinois judge rules that state and city laws effectively banning night baseball at Chicago’s Wrigley Field are constitutional. After being forced to give up a home game during the 1984 NLCS, and threatened with playing future postseason games at another stadium in order to accommodate network television’s prime-time schedules, the Cubs had sued to overturn the laws.

1989 – The Pittsburgh Pirates acquiring shortstop Jay Bell from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for fellow shortstop Felix Fermin

1997 – Big-money players change places in a big-name trade between the Braves and Indians, who had faced each other in the 1995 World Series. All-Star center fielder Kenny Lofton and reliever Alan Embree are sent to Atlanta in return from 1995 Series hero David Justice and fleet-footed center fielder Marquis Grissom.

2008 – The Boston Red Sox take on the Oakland A’s at the Tokyo Dome to open the baseball season in Japan.