This Day In Sox History...July 20

[Lip Man 1]

July 20, 1957 - The Sox Dick Donovan one-hit the Red Sox at Comiskey Park and won 4-0. Ted Williams got Boston’s only hit on a single to right in the fourth inning. It was Donovan’s second one-hitter in two months. On May 25 he one-hit the Indians in Cleveland winning by the same score of 4-0.

 

July 20, 1973 - Wilbur Wood started both regularly scheduled games in New York. Unfortunately, he got beat around twice, losing both decisions 12-2 and 7-0. Earlier in the season he started the suspended game and a regularly scheduled game in Chicago beating Cleveland twice in the same evening 6-3 and 4-0.  

 

July 20, 2008 – Future Hall of Famer Jim Thome collected his 2,000^th Major League hit as he doubled in the seventh inning at U.S. Cellular Field. The hit came off the Royals Ramon Ramirez. Thome would finish his career with 2,328 of them, 469 as a member of the White Sox.

 

Edited July 21, 2023 by Lip Man 1

[South Side Hit Men]

Wilbur Wood was the first White Sox player I was cognizant of, and was my first favorite White Sox player. I thought he was Superman because I was told he pitched both ends of a doubleheader. My child baseball knowledge did not factor in the fact the limited stress of his knuckleball allowed him to pitch more than other pitchers in the game.

 

Wilbur Wood had an eight game winning streak against New York prior to Game 1. He allowed the first six baserunners to reach before being pulled.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA197307201.shtml

Wilbur wasn't the planned starter of Game 2 at the beginning of the day, but between games manager Chuck Tanner decided he would be the best option to start the second game.

Quote

“I discussed it with Johnny Sain [the pitching coach],” the manager related between games, “and the more we thought about it, the more we liked the idea.  He’s my best pitcher and you like to have him out there whenever possible.”

Wilbur sent the first nine Yankees down in order before the White Sox committed two errors in the bottom of the fourth (infield throwing error and a second by the centerfielder on a fly ball).

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYA/NYA197307202.shtml

All in all, 103 pitchers in MLB history started both ends of a doubleheader, with 99 occurring during the segregation era / deadball era, and four coming in the modern era:

• 5/20/50 Monte Kennedy (New York Giants) vs. Cincinnati
• 9/6/50 Don Newcombe (Brooklyn Dodgers) vs. Philadelphia
• 5/26/71 Al Santorini (San Diego) vs. Houston
• 7/20/23 Wilbur Wood @ New York Yankees

Fans can learn more about Wilbur Wood's performance and the history of pitchers covering both games of a double header via the link below.

https://prestonjg.wordpress.com/2009/09/12/a-thorough-account-of-pitchers-who-have-started-both-games-of-a-doubleheader-in-the-major-leagues/

 

 

[The Kids Can Play]

On 7/20/2023 at 11:17 AM, Lip Man 1 said:

July 20, 1957 - The Sox Dick Donovan one-hit the Red Sox at Comiskey Park and won 4-0. Ted Williams got Boston’s only hit on a single to right in the fourth inning. It was Donovan’s second one-hitter in two months. On May 25 he one-hit the Indians in Cleveland winning by the same score of 4-0.

 

July 20, 1973 - Wilbur Wood started both regularly scheduled games in New York. Unfortunately, he got beat around twice, losing both decisions 12-2 and 7-0. Earlier in the season he started the suspended game and a regularly scheduled game in Chicago beating Cleveland twice in the same evening 6-3 and 4-0.  

 

July 20, 2008 – Future Hall of Famer Jim Thome collected his 2,000^th Major League hit as he doubled in the seventh inning at U.S. Cellular Field. The hit came off the Royals Ramon Ramirez. Thome would finish his career with 2,328 of them, 469 as a member of the White Sox.

 

I remember that doubleheader. What an amazing record.