1900 – In New York, the N.L. meets, voting to shrink to eight teams. They pay the Baltimore owners $30,000 for their franchise, with Charles Ebbets and Ned Hanlon reserving the right to sell the players. Cleveland, Louisville, and Washington receive $10,000 each, with Louisville owner Barney Dreyfuss sending most of his players to his Pittsburgh team. The circuit will remain the same until the Boston Braves move to Milwaukee in 1953.
1913 – The Federal League is organized as a six-team outlaw circuit and elects John T. Powers president. It will play 120 games at a level equivalent to the lower minor leagues, but will enhance its status considerably in 1914 to challenge the major leagues.
1930 – Babe Ruth signs a two-year contract for $160,000 with New York. At $80,000 per year, he is the highest paid player of all time as of 1930.
1966 – The Hall of Fame Special Veterans Committee waives election rules and inducts Casey Stengel, recently retired manager of the Mets.
1985 – Dave Stieb, the ace of the Toronto staff for the past five seasons, signs an 11-year contract that could be worth up to $25 million with deferred payments and incentives. He would pitch only another six full seasons.
1999 – New York Yankees great Joe Dimaggio dies after a battle with cancer.
2019 – In a significant development, Major League Baseball strikes a deal with the independent Atlantic League to experiment with various rule adjustments this season. These changes entail enlarging bases, shifting the pitcher’s mound two feet backward, regulating defensive shifts, and enforcing a minimum number of batters faced by relief pitchers. Moreover, an automated system will be responsible for calling all balls and strikes, with only a handful of exceptions warranting intervention from the home plate umpire.
