This Day In Sox History...April 8

[Lip Man 1]

April 8, 1963 – On this date, one of the biggest ‘what if’s’ in franchise history took place. As per the rules at the time, the White Sox had to choose between two pitchers signed to “bonus baby” contracts. The rules stated that only one player signed to a deal for over a certain amount of money could remain in the organization. The other would have to be waived. With that in mind rookies Bruce Howard and Denny McLain squared off in an intra-squad game to see who would be released and who got promoted to Double A Lynchburg. Howard won 2-1. McLain got his walking papers and was claimed by Detroit the following week. He’d go on to win 131 big league games including 31 in 1968. Howard meanwhile won 25 games with a save for the Sox between 1963-1967 before he was traded to the Orioles.  

 

April 8, 1991 - It was always a “House of Horrors” for the Sox but on this day, they got the last laugh. The Sox spoiled the last home opener in old Memorial Stadium by ripping the Orioles 9-1. Sammy Sosa clubbed two home runs to lead the rout. His homers came in the second and eighth innings. He’d knock in five RBI’s on the afternoon. 

Jack McDowell went the distance striking out 10 which set the team mark for most strikeouts by a pitcher on opening day… that was later tied by Dylan Cease in 2023 at Houston.  
 

[The Grinder]

Bruce Howard or Denny mclain . We could have had Mclain correct? See even back then we couldn't butter the right side of the bread. The tradition continues....

[Lip Man 1]

3 hours ago, The Grinder said:

Bruce Howard or Denny mclain . We could have had Mclain correct? See even back then we couldn't butter the right side of the bread. The tradition continues....

Only if he had won the "pitch off" game that I referenced. Although when I interviewed former Sox broadcaster Milo Hamilton he told me stories about Denny and if they are true he really wasn't a great person. Still he was a very good pitcher.

This is what Milo told me:

ML: One of the oddities about that season took place in spring training on April 8 when two youngsters, Bruce Howard and Denny McLain had a ‘pitch-off’ to determine who would stay in the organization and get promoted to Double-A. Do you remember anything about that game or about McLain in general when he was with the White Sox. (Author’s Note: Howard would win the game 2-1 and get promoted to Lynchburg, Virginia. Because of baseball rules at the time concerning bonus babies, McLain had to be released. He was claimed by the Tigers a week later.) 

MH: “Well the pitch-off was only part of the reason the Sox let him go. He was a cocky kid. His high school used to get tickets to Sox games and I can still remember him sitting by the dugout yelling “I can beat those guys.” He was hard to handle and his attitude was something that Al Lopez (Author’s Note: White Sox manager) and the organization just wasn’t going to put up with. In spring training he ran up a 700 hundred dollar phone bill talking to his girlfriend and he refused to pay it.”  

“Howard was a clean cut kid. Never gave anyone any trouble. Unfortunately he didn’t turn out to be much of a pitcher and in that respect you have to give McLain his due, he turned into a great pitcher. I mean he won 30 games one season.”