Portal:Baseball/News archive

May 28 to May 29, 2005

• Yankees beat Red Sox 6-3 in New York
• Brian Sabean compares news coverage of Barry Bonds to the National Enquirer
• Chicago Cubs trade LaTroy Hawkins to the San Francisco Giants, for Jerome Williams and David Aardsma
• Chicago Cubs starting pitcher, Mark Prior likely out until August with a fractured elbow, after getting hit with a batted ball

May 29 to June 1, 2005

• On May 30, the Chicago White Sox extended manager Ozzie Guillén's contract, making the move while the team had the best record in the majors (33-17). Chicago picked up the 2006 option on Guillén's contract, added two more years and included an option for the 2009 season.

June 1 to June 2, 2005

• Cleveland Indians OF Juan González, sidelined because of strained hamstring, lasted less than an inning after he was activated for the first time since last May. Cleveland said González will be sent back to the disabled list.
• Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox wouldn't mind instant replay — but only on tough-to-call home runs.

June 2 to June 4, 2005

• June 2 - The New York Yankees were swept by the worst team in baseball, falling 5-2 to the Kansas City Royals for their first five-game losing streak in more than two years. It's been a ball so far for Buddy Bell, the new Royals skipper who is unbeaten after sweeping three games from the visiting Yankees. Kansas City pitchers allowed just six runs in the series. It's the third time in their storied history the Yankees had been swept in three games by the team with the worst record in the majors. The other times were in 2000 by the Detroit Tigers and 1937 by the Philadelphia Athletics and in both those seasons, New York won the American League pennant.

June 4 to June 5, 2005

• Preston Wilson went 4-for-5 with two home runs and three RBI to lead Colorado over Cincinnati 12-4.
• Chris Carpenter pitched eight scoreless innings in a St. Louis' 2-0 win over Houston.
• Kip Wells struck out seven over 7 2-3 shutout innings in Pittsburgh's 3-1 win over Atlanta.
• Aubrey Huff had three hits, including a homer, and four RBI in Tampa Bay's 6-1 win over Seattle.
• Johnny Damon hit a tie-breaking three-run double and had four RBI in Boston's 7-4 win over the Angels.
• Lew Ford hit a go-ahead three-run homer and scored twice to lead Minnesota to a 6-3 victory over the New York Yankees. The Yankees lost their sixth straight game. It's their first six-game skid since dropping seven straight in September and October 2000, before they went on to win the World Series.

June 5 to June 6, 2005

• Chan Ho Park earned his 100th major league win, Michael Young got four hits and the Texas Rangers beat the Kansas City Royals 14-9 to hand the Royals their first loss under new manager Buddy Bell. Park also became the first South Korean pitcher to win 100 games in the majors.
• Garret Anderson's go-ahead, three-run homer capped a four-run seventh inning, and the Los Angeles Angels past the host Boston Red Sox 13-6. Anderson's homer gave him a club-record 990 RBI, breaking the old mark of 989 set by Tim Salmon.
• D.J. Houlton earned his first major league victory in his first start, J.D. Drew and Jeff Kent hit consecutive home runs for the second time in three games, and the Dodgers beat the Brewers, 2-1.
• Rafael Palmeiro and Melvin Mora each hit grand slams, and the Orioles rallied for a 14-7 victory over Detroit. For Palmeiro, it was the 559th homer of his career.
• Hall of Famer Eddie Murray was fired as hitting coach of the Cleveland Indians, whose sputtering offense has been a major disappointment.
• Contract sending Babe Ruth from Red Sox to Yankees is for sale. This is all that remains of "The Curse"; five neatly typed pages, two bold signatures, and the scars from 86 years of torment.

June 6 to June 7, 2005

• Roger Clemens picked up his 332nd career win as the Astros scored five first inning runs to defeat the Cardinals, 6-4.
• Carlos Silva scattered seven hits over seven innings while Jacque Jones and Michael Ryan had three hits and two RBI apiece as the Minnesota Twins beat Kevin Brown and the slumping Yankees, 9-3.
• Cleveland Indians stop the Chicago White Sox 6-4 in 12 innings.
• Pitcher Bret Tomko hit a three-run double and shut down the Mets, and San Francisco snapped an eight-game losing streak with a 6-3 victory.
• Scott Hatteberg, Eric Chavez and Marco Scutaro homered, helping Oakland in a 12-4 win over Toronto.
• Todd Greene homered and had three RBI, and the Rockies beat Cincinnati 8-6 for their fourth straight victory and first sweep this season.
• Boston Red Sox bullpen disaster proved to be a short-term problem. A day after allowing 11 runs in the final three innings, their relievers pitched 2 2-3 shutout innings to protect a 6-3 victory over the Angels.
• Kenny Rogers pitched seven sharp innings to win his career-best eighth consecutive start in the Texas Rangers' 8-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals.
• Again, the Washington Nationals got another come-from-behind victory, this time punctuated by a three-run, eighth-inning home run from Ryan Church in a 6-3 win that completed a sweep of the Florida Marlins.
• Mike Lieberthal hit a disputed three-run homer and Randy Wolf pitched seven solid innings to lead the Phillies over Arizona 7-6, their sixth straight win.
• Rob Mackowiak and Matt Lawton homered and Pittsburgh beat the skidding Atlanta Braves 5-2 behind seven strong innings by Oliver Pérez.
• Daniel Cabrera pitched seven strong innings, Melvin Mora drove in a pair of runs and the Orioles took advantage of several defensive miscues by Detroit for a 6-2 victory.
• Carlos Zambrano combined with two relievers on a five-hitter shutout leading the Cubs to a 4-0 win over San Diego.
• Jeff Kent had four hits and four RBI, and Jayson Werth had a two-run triple among his four hits, leading the Dodgers to a 10-6 victory over Milwaukee.
• Roberto Clemente's family is pursuing legal action against the auction house that is selling off pieces of the plane in which the Baseball Hall of Famer died.

June 7 to June 10, 2005

• Colorado Rockies rookie sensation Clint Barmes is expected to miss at least three months after breaking his left collarbone in a fall while carrying groceries up the stairs in his apartment building. Barmes, a shortstop leading National League rookies in most offensive categories, went surgery Tuesday 7. He hit around .400 and led the major leagues in batting average for about the first six weeks of the season. After a mild slump, he was still leading NL rookies in hitting (.329), runs (40), hits (74), doubles (16), home runs (8) and RBI (34) heading into Monday's game.He was definite rookie-of-the-year material, but now those hopes are gone due to what he called "the craziest thing that's happened to me, by far."
• Justin Upton, a slugging high school shortstop from Virginia, was taken by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the No. 1 pick in the 2005 baseball draft Tuesday.Upton and his brother B.J., the second pick in 2002 by Tampa Bay, are the highest-drafted siblings. The younger Upton was generally considered the best all-around athlete in this year's draft. A 17-year-old, Upton was mainly a shortstop, but also played third base and the outfield. The Virginia player of the year batted .519 with 11 home runs and 32 RBI in just 54 plate appearances. "I think it's a combination of his athletic ability — throwing, fielding, hitting — in terms of what he does on the field and what would seem to be a real maturity," Joe Garagiola said. "That's really unusual in a player that age."

June 10 to June 14, 2005

• June 10 - Future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux made the Boston Red Sox's first appearance at Wrigley Field a sour one. Maddux allowed three runs in 6 2/3 innings and homered for the first time in six years as the Chicago Cubs captured their 11th win in their last 14 games with a 14-6 victory over the Red Sox. Facing the Cubs for the first time since the 1918 World Series, Boston did not play at Wrigley Field before because of the decision that year to host the postseason games in Chicago at Comiskey Park because of its greater seating capacity.

June 14 to November 6, 2005

• On June 14, 2005, the Boston Red Sox honored their Hall of Fame catcher Carlton Fisk and the 12th-inning home run that won Game 6 of the 1975 World Series by naming the left field foul pole where it landed the "Fisk Pole". In a pregame ceremony from the Monster Seats, Fisk was cheered by the Fenway Park crowd while the shot was replayed to the strains of Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus. The Red Sox scheduled the ceremony to coincide with an interleague series against the Cincinnati Reds, who made their first trip back to Fenway Park since the '75 Series. Thirty years later, the video of Fisk trying to wave the ball fair remains one of the game's enduring images. Game 6 is often called the best game in major leagues history. Fenway's right field foul pole, which is just 302 feet from the plate, has long been unofficially named Pesky's Pole, for light-hitting former Red Sox shortstop Johnny Pesky, who had a tendency to curve fly balls around it for homers. On the field, Fisk threw out the ceremonial first pitch to his former battery-mate Luis Tiant.

November 6 to December 24, 2005

• On November 4, 2005, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim granted Manager Mike Scioscia an extension through 2009 with a club option for 2010.
• On October 31, 2005, Boston Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein walked away from his job, reportedly after rejecting a three-year, $1.5 million contract.
• On October 26, 2005, the 2005 World Series came to a close with the Chicago White Sox' victory in Game Four. The 1-0 victory over the Houston Astros marked the first Chicago World Series victory since 1917. The 1-0 victory marked the first one-run win in a World Series game since the 1995 World Series, and the first time a division champion had won since 2001's victory by the Arizona Diamondbacks.

December 24, 2005 to April 18, 2006

• Albert Pujols tied a Major League Baseball record with a homerun in four consecutive at bats.
• Jimmy Rollins' hitting streak ends at 38
• Japan wins the World Baseball Classic
• On December 15, 2005, MLB.com released the winners of This Year in Baseball Awards.
  • Play of the Year: New York Mets third baseman David Wright made an over-the-head barehanded catch against the San Diego Padres on August 9.
  • Single-Game Performance of the Year: New York Yankees third baseman Álex Rodríguez hit 3 home runs and garnered 10 RBIs in a night game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on April 26.
  • Blooper of the Year: While on the mound, New York Mets starting pitcher Pedro Martínez was sprayed by the sprinklers of Shea Stadium.
  • Setup Man of the Year: Neal Cotts of the Chicago White Sox.
  • Defensive Player of the Year: Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners.
  • Rookie of the Year: Robinson Canó of the New York Yankees.
  • Manager of the Year: Ozzie Guillén of the Chicago White Sox.
  • Closer of the Year: Mariano Rivera of the New York Yankees. [1]
• On December 21, 2005, former Major League Baseball player and coach Elrod Hendricks passed away. [2]
• On December 23, 2005:
  • The New York Yankees held a press conference to announce the signing of free agent Johnny Damon, who previously spent 2002 to 2005 playing for the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees signed Damon to a four-year, $52 million contract.
  • The Boston Red Sox announced that they have reached an agreement with John Flaherty, who previously spent 2003 to 2005 playing for the New York Yankees. [3]
• On December 28, 2005, Major League Baseball released the 2006 spring training schedule, which featured Major League Baseball teams against national teams competing for the World Baseball Classic. [4]

April 18 to May 17, 2006

• Jimmy Rollins' hitting streak ends at 38
• Japan wins the World Baseball Classic

May 17 to May 27, 2006

• Barry Bonds ties Babe Ruth's career home run record of 714.
• The Detroit Tigers and the Cincinnati Reds top the list of surprise teams in the first month and a half of the MLB season.