This is an accepted version of this page
84-596: Charles Louis Leibrandt Jr. ( / ˈ l iː b r æ n t / ; born October 4, 1956) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1993 for the Cincinnati Reds , Kansas City Royals , Atlanta Braves , and Texas Rangers . Leibrandt was a member of the 1985 World Series champion Royals team. Leibrandt was born in Chicago, Illinois . He grew up in Golf, Illinois and his parents, Anne and Chuck, ran
168-518: A 2006–07 investigation produced the Mitchell Report , which found that many players had used steroids and other performance-enhancing substances , including at least one player from each team. Each team plays 162 games per season, with Opening Day traditionally held during the first week of April. Six teams in each league then advance to a four-round postseason tournament in October, culminating in
252-651: A batter could foul off any number of pitches with no strikes counted against him; this gave an enormous advantage to the batter. After the 1919 World Series between the Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds, baseball was rocked by allegations of a game-fixing scheme known as the Black Sox Scandal . Eight players— "Shoeless" Joe Jackson , Eddie Cicotte , Claude "Lefty" Williams , George "Buck" Weaver , Arnold "Chick" Gandil , Fred McMullin , Charles "Swede" Risberg , and Oscar "Happy" Felsch —intentionally lost
336-406: A chance for recreation and for taking their minds off their work even more than before." With the approval of President Roosevelt, spring training began in 1942 with few repercussions. The war interrupted the careers of stars including Stan Musial , Bob Feller , Ted Williams , and Joe DiMaggio , but baseball clubs continued to field their teams. Branch Rickey, president and general manager of
420-559: A complete game, allowing only one run and three hits, while Wilcox gave up two hits and struck out eight Royals with Willie Hernández pitching the ninth inning for the save. Marty Castillo 's 2nd inning groundout to drove in Chet Lemon for game's lone run as the Tigers completed the three-game sweep and advanced to the World Series. This was their first pennant in 16 years and the ninth in
504-500: A grand jury in Pittsburgh related to cocaine trafficking. The 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike from August 12, 1994, to April 25, 1995, caused the cancellation of over 900 games and the forfeit of the entire 1994 postseason. Routinely in the late 1990s and early 2000s, baseball players hit 40 or 50 home runs in a season, a feat that was considered rare even in the 1980s. It later became apparent that at least some of this power surge
588-503: A home run. Leibrandt was called upon to enter the game in a highly unfamiliar role – as a reliever late in the extra-inning game, and very late at night. Cox endured some criticism for the move because the Braves still had several relievers at their disposal including left-hander Kent Mercker and right-handers Jim Clancy and Mark Wohlers . Leibrandt played in the World Series with
672-584: A little better in subsequent campaigns—but in their eighth season (1969) the Mets became the first of the 1960s expansion teams to play in the postseason, culminating in a World Series title over the heavily favored Baltimore Orioles. In 1966, the major leagues moved to the "Deep South" when the Braves moved to Atlanta. In 1968, the Kansas City Athletics moved west to become the Oakland Athletics . In 1969,
756-646: A man for many reasons. Color is not one of them." That year, Robinson won the inaugural Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award (separate NL and AL Rookie of the Year honors were not awarded until 1949). Less than three months later, Larry Doby became the first African-American to break the color barrier in the American League with the Cleveland Indians. The next year, a number of other black players entered
840-413: A new National Agreement which tied independent contracts to the reserve-clause contracts. The agreement also set up a formal classification system for minor leagues, the forerunner of today's system that was refined by Branch Rickey . Several other early defunct baseball leagues are considered major leagues, and their statistics and records are included with those of the two modern major leagues. In 1969,
924-431: A one-armed outfielder, got the chance to advance to the major leagues. However, MLB rosters did not include any black players through the end of the war. Black players, many of whom served in the war, were still restricted to playing Negro league baseball . Wartime blackout restrictions , designed to keep outdoor lighting at low levels, caused another problem for baseball. These rules limited traveling and night games to
SECTION 10
#17328489712931008-492: A rebellion by players against the hated "reserve clause", which restricted the free movement of players between clubs. Teams came and went; 1882 was the first season where the league's membership was the same as the preceding season's, and only four franchises survived to see 1900. Competitor leagues formed regularly and also disbanded regularly. The most successful was the American Association (1882–1891), sometimes called
1092-527: A record of 7–2 with an ERA of 1.65. Leibrandt was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the ninth round of the 1978 free agent draft. He made his debut in Major League Baseball on September 17, 1979, in a Cincinnati Reds uniform. A few weeks later, he made his first post-season appearance in the 1979 National League Championship Series , recording an out of the only batter he faced, John Milner . In 1980, Leibrandt made his first major league start in
1176-502: A restaurant in the bordering village of Morton Grove . He attended Chicago Cubs games at Wrigley Field as a youth and dreamt of pitching for the Cubs. He attended Loyola Academy . He attended Miami University , in Oxford, Ohio , from 1975–1978, where he earned four letters as a pitcher on the baseball team . During his senior year, Leibrandt was selected first-team All-MAC; he compiled
1260-715: A series of post-season hard luck, pitching well in losing efforts. In 1984, Leibrandt and the Royals faced elimination in the best-of-five American League Championship Series against the Detroit Tigers . Leibrandt threw a complete game three-hitter only to lose, 1–0, on a fielder's choice in the second inning. In the following year's ALCS , the Toronto Blue Jays beat Leibrandt badly in Game 1 but he turned in an effective pitching performance in Game 4. However, he lost when, leading 1–0 in
1344-682: A single organization led by the commissioner of baseball . MLB is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan . Baseball's first all-professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings , was founded in 1869. The first few decades of professional baseball saw rivalries between leagues, and players often jumped from one team or league to another. These practices were essentially ended by the National Agreement of 1903, in which AL and NL agreed to respect each other's player contracts, including
1428-528: A single-game MLB attendance record in their first home appearance with 78,672 fans. In 1961, the first Washington Senators franchise moved to Minneapolis–St. Paul to become the Minnesota Twins . Two new teams were added to the American League at the same time: the Los Angeles Angels (who soon moved from downtown L.A. to nearby Anaheim ) and a new Washington Senators franchise. The NL added
1512-534: A successful Baltimore chop, the batter hits the ball forcefully into the ground, causing it to bounce so high that the batter reaches first base before the ball can be fielded and thrown to the first baseman. The adoption of the foul strike rule—in the NL in 1901, in the AL two years later—quickly sent baseball from a high-scoring game to one where scoring runs became a struggle. Before this rule, foul balls were not counted as strikes:
1596-470: A sweep by the Tigers, although Games 2 and 3 were both close. Game 2 was decided in extra innings, and the Tigers clinched the pennant with a 1–0 victory in Game 3. Detroit never trailed in the series, and led in 26 of the 29 innings played (with the other three tied). The result wasn't that surprising given that the Royals won 20 fewer games during the season and had won the AL West by a mere three games over both
1680-846: The Boston Braves became the Milwaukee Braves , the St. Louis Browns became the Baltimore Orioles , and the Philadelphia Athletics became the Kansas City Athletics . The 1958 Major League Baseball season began to turn Major League Baseball into a nationwide league. Walter O'Malley , owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers and "perhaps the most influential owner of baseball's early expansion era," moved his team to Los Angeles, marking
1764-697: The California Angels and Minnesota Twins . The striking umpires originally scheduled to work the ALCS were Marty Springstead (crew chief), Don Denkinger , Steve Palermo , Ken Kaiser , Greg Kosc and John Shulock (who was not a member of the Major League Umpires Association since he was hired by the AL during the 1979 MLUA strike). Detroit won the series, 3–0. Tuesday, October 2, 1984, at Royals Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri Game 1
SECTION 20
#17328489712931848-588: The Great Depression , baseball's popularity had begun a downward turn in the early 1930s. By 1932, only two MLB teams turned a profit. Attendance had fallen, due at least in part to a 10% federal amusement tax added to baseball ticket prices. Baseball owners cut their rosters from 25 men to 23, and even the best players took pay cuts. Team executives were innovative in their attempts to survive, creating night games, broadcasting games live by radio, and rolling out promotions such as free admission for women. Throughout
1932-653: The Houston Astros and the New York Mets in 1962. The Astros (known as the "Colt .45s" during their first three seasons) became the first southern major league franchise since the Louisville Colonels folded in 1899 and the first franchise to be located along the Gulf Coast . The Mets established a reputation for futility by going 40–120 during their first season of play in the nation's media capital—and by playing only
2016-643: The Miami Marlins . His middle son, Brodie, was a starter at Columbus State University , in Columbus, Georgia . Leibrandt's oldest son, Ryan, is a physician in New York City. Major League Baseball Major League Baseball ( MLB ) is a professional baseball league and the highest level of organized baseball in the United States and Canada . One of the "Big Four" major professional sports leagues in
2100-665: The Milwaukee Brewers . The only hit for the Brewers was a bunt hit by backup Brewers catcher Bill Schroeder . Schroeder would go on to become the TV color commentator for the Brewers. On the last place Braves in 1990, Leibrandt went 9–11 with a 3.16 ERA, finishing behind only John Smoltz and Tom Glavine on the Braves staff in wins. The following year, 1991, Leibrandt was a member of one of two trios in MLB history of southpaws ever to win 15 games on
2184-456: The Minnesota Twins . Leibrandt got the start by virtue of his long post-season rest and the fact he was the only Braves starter who had ever pitched in the Metrodome . Leibrandt lost as he pitched decently but was outpitched by Jack Morris . Leibrandt is best known for surrendering a walk-off home run to future Baseball Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett in Game 6 of that series. The first pitch of
2268-591: The National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP). The NABBP existed as an amateur league for 12 years. By 1867, more than 400 clubs were members. Most of the strongest clubs remained those based in the Northeastern United States. For professional baseball 's founding year, MLB uses the year 1869—when the first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings , was established. A schism developed between professional and amateur ballplayers after
2352-474: The National Basketball Association (NBA). Baseball games are broadcast on television, radio, and the internet throughout North America and in several other countries. MLB has the highest total season attendance of any sports league in the world; in 2023, it drew more than 70.75 million spectators. MLB also oversees Minor League Baseball , which comprises lower-tier teams affiliated with
2436-444: The St. Louis Cardinals , Leibrandt again pitched masterfully for eight innings and entered the ninth inning of Game 2 leading a two-hitter, 2–0. It all fell apart again for Leibrandt, though, as Willie McGee doubled to right. With two outs and McGee on second, three Cardinal hits, the last by future Braves teammate Terry Pendleton , scored four runs and saddled Leibrandt with another loss. Five nights later in Game 6, Leibrandt left in
2520-539: The Texas Rangers . In 1977, baseball expanded again , adding a second Canadian team, the Toronto Blue Jays , as well as the Seattle Mariners . Subsequently, no new teams were added until the 1990s and no teams moved until 2005. By the late 1960s, the balance between pitching and hitting had swung in favor of the pitchers. In 1968—later nicknamed "the year of the pitcher" —Boston Red Sox player Carl Yastrzemski won
2604-607: The World Series , a best-of-seven championship series between the two league champions first played in 1903. The New York Yankees have the most championships with 27. The reigning champions are the Los Angeles Dodgers , who defeated the New York Yankees in the 2024 World Series . MLB is the third-wealthiest professional sports league by revenue in the world after the National Football League (NFL) and
Charlie Leibrandt - Misplaced Pages Continue
2688-780: The first and second Negro National Leagues (1920–1931 and 1933–1948), the Eastern Colored League (1923–1928), the American Negro League (1929), the East–West League (1932), the Negro Southern League (1932), and the Negro American League (1937–1948). In 2021, baseball reference website Baseball-Reference.com began to include statistics from those seven leagues into their major-league statistics. In May 2024, Major League Baseball announced that it
2772-499: The "beer and whiskey league" for its tolerance of the sale of alcoholic beverages to spectators. For several years, the NL and American Association champions met in a postseason championship series—the first attempt at a World Series . The two leagues merged in 1892 as a single 12-team NL, but the NL dropped four teams after the 1899 season. This led to the formation of the American League in 1901 under AL president Ban Johnson , and
2856-588: The 1870s. In 1876, the National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs (later known as the National League or NL) was established after the NA proved ineffective. The league placed its emphasis on clubs rather than on players. Clubs could now enforce player contracts, preventing players from jumping to higher-paying clubs. Clubs were required to play the full schedule of games instead of forfeiting scheduled games when
2940-557: The 1960s and 1970s, as baseball expanded, NFL football had been surging in popularity, making it economical for many of these cities to build multi-purpose stadiums instead of single-purpose baseball fields. Because of climate and economic issues, many of these facilities had playing surfaces made from artificial turf , as well as the oval designs characteristic of stadiums designed to house both baseball and football. This often resulted in baseball fields with relatively more foul territory than older stadiums. These characteristics changed
3024-458: The 1990s. During the 1980s, baseball experienced a number of significant changes the game had not seen in years. Home runs were on the decline throughout the decade, with players hitting 40 home runs just 13 times and no one hitting more than 50 home runs in a season for the first time since the Dead-ball era (1900–1919). The 1981 Major League Baseball strike from June 12 until July 31 forced
3108-691: The 4th game of the season as the Reds beat the Atlanta Braves , 5–0, and Leibrandt threw a five-hit shutout for his first career win. But Leibrandt, while 10–9 in 1980, showed little promise in Cincinnati and was traded to the Kansas City Royals for Bob Tufts on June 7, 1983. The following year, Leibrandt went 11–7 with a 3.63 ERA as the Royals won the Western Division championship. In 1985, Leibrandt had
3192-486: The American League batting title with an average of just .301, the lowest in the history of Major League Baseball. Detroit Tigers pitcher Denny McLain won 31 games, making him the only pitcher to win 30 games in a season since Dizzy Dean in 1934. St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Bob Gibson achieved an equally remarkable feat by allowing an ERA of just 1.12. Following these pitching performances, in December 1968
3276-750: The American and National Leagues both added two expansion franchises . The American League added the Seattle Pilots (who became the Milwaukee Brewers after one disastrous season in Seattle) and the Kansas City Royals . The NL added the first Canadian franchise, the Montreal Expos , as well as the San Diego Padres . In 1972, the second Washington Senators moved to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex to become
3360-505: The Braves the following year. The Braves lost that series also, this time to the Toronto Blue Jays in six games. In the final game, in circumstances similar to Game 6 of the prior year's Series, Leibrandt was called in as a reliever in an extra-inning game. Just as in 1991, Cox was criticized for using Leibrandt as a reliever with closer Jeff Reardon and relievers Marvin Freeman and David Nied still available. Toronto rallied for two runs in
3444-468: The Brooklyn Dodgers, began making efforts to introduce a black baseball player to the previously all-white professional baseball leagues in the mid-1940s. He selected Jackie Robinson from a list of promising Negro league players. After obtaining a commitment from Robinson to "turn the other cheek" to any racial antagonism directed at him, Rickey agreed to sign him to a contract for $ 600 a month. In what
Charlie Leibrandt - Misplaced Pages Continue
3528-809: The Dodgers when they came to town, abandoning the Negro league teams that they had followed exclusively. Robinson's promotion met a generally positive, although mixed, reception among newspaper writers and white major league players. Manager Leo Durocher informed his team, "I don't care if he is yellow or black or has stripes like a fucking zebra. I'm his manager and I say he plays." After a strike threat by some players, NL President Ford C. Frick and Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler let it be known that any striking players would be suspended. Robinson received significant encouragement from several major-league players, including Dodgers teammate Pee Wee Reese who said, "You can hate
3612-667: The Great Depression, no MLB teams moved or folded. The onset of World War II created a shortage of professional baseball players, as more than 500 men left MLB teams to serve in the military. Many of them played on service baseball teams that entertained military personnel in the US or in the Pacific. MLB teams of this time largely consisted of young men, older players, and those with a military classification of 4F , indicating mental, physical, or moral unsuitability for service. Men like Pete Gray ,
3696-485: The MLB Playing Rules Committee voted to reduce the strike zone from knees to shoulders to top of knees to armpits and lower the pitcher's mound from 15 to 10 inches, beginning in the 1969 season. In 1973, the American League, which had been suffering from much lower attendance than the National League, sought to increase scoring even further by initiating the designated hitter (DH) rule. Throughout
3780-537: The Royals scoreless in the ninth, tenth and eleventh innings for the win. Johnny Grubb hit a double off Dan Quisenberry in the 11th inning to drive in Darrell Evans and Ruppert Jones for the game winning runs. Friday, October 5, 1984, at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, Michigan The first postseason game at Tiger Stadium in 12 years was a pitcher's duel between Milt Wilcox and Charlie Leibrandt . Leibrandt pitched
3864-607: The Special Baseball Records Committee of Major League Baseball officially recognized six major leagues: the National League, American League, American Association, Union Association (1884), Players' League (1890), and Federal League (1914–1915). The status of the National Association as a major league has been a point of dispute among baseball researchers; while its statistics are not recognized by Major League Baseball, its statistics are included with those of other major leagues by some baseball reference websites, such as Retrosheet . Some researchers, including Nate Silver , dispute
3948-444: The United States and Canada , MLB comprises 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. Formed in 1876 and 1901, respectively, the NL and AL cemented their cooperation with the National Agreement in 1903, making MLB the oldest major professional sports league in the world. They remained legally separate entities until 2000, when they merged into
4032-486: The World Series in exchange for a ring worth $ 100,000 ($ 1,712,780.35 in 2022 dollars). Despite being acquitted, all were permanently banned from Major League Baseball. Baseball's popularity increased in the 1920s and 1930s. The 1920 season was notable for the death of Ray Chapman of the Cleveland Indians . Chapman, who was struck in the head by a pitch and died a few hours later, became the only MLB player to die of an on-field injury. Both leagues quickly began to require
4116-421: The best year of his career, going 17–9 with a 2.69 ERA as the Royals won the World Series . Over the next three years, Leibrandt won 14, 16, and 13 games, but after a disastrous 1989 when he went 5–11 on a second place (but 92-wins) team, the Royals traded Leibrandt and Rick Luecken to the Atlanta Braves for Gerald Perry and Jim Lemasters. On May 16, 1987, Leibrandt pitched a complete game one-hitter against
4200-474: The cancellation of 713 total games and resulted in a split-season format. In 1985, Pete Rose broke Ty Cobb 's all-time hits record with his 4,192nd hit, and in 1989 Rose received a lifetime ban from baseball as a result of betting on baseball games while manager of the Cincinnati Reds . Rose was the first person to receive a lifetime ban from baseball since 1943. 1985 also saw the Pittsburgh drug trials which involved players who were called to testify before
4284-403: The center field fence, and the Huntington Avenue Grounds of the Boston Red Sox , which was 635 feet (194 m) to the center field fence, thus home runs were rare, and "small ball" tactics such as singles , bunts , stolen bases , and the hit-and-run play dominated the strategies of the time. Hitting methods like the Baltimore chop were used to increase the number of infield singles. On
SECTION 50
#17328489712934368-443: The club was no longer in the running for the league championship, which happened frequently under the NA. A concerted effort was made to curb gambling on games, which was leaving the validity of results in doubt. The first game in the NL—on Saturday, April 22, 1876 (at Jefferson Street Grounds in Philadelphia )—is often pointed to as the beginning of MLB. The early years of the NL were tumultuous, with threats from rival leagues and
4452-573: The condition of the baseball itself. The baseball used American rather than the modern Australian wool yarn and was not wound as tightly, affecting the distance that it would travel. More significantly, balls were kept in play until they were mangled, soft and sometimes lopsided. During this era, a baseball cost three dollars, equal to $ 52.72 today (in inflation-adjusted USD ), and owners were reluctant to purchase new balls. Fans were expected to throw back fouls and (rare) home runs. Baseballs also became stained with tobacco juice, grass, and mud, and sometimes
4536-432: The contentious reserve clause . The period before 1920 was the dead-ball era , when home runs were rarely hit. Professional baseball was rocked by the Black Sox Scandal , a conspiracy to fix the 1919 World Series . Baseball survived the scandal, albeit with major changes in its governance as the relatively weak National Commission was replaced with a powerful commissioner of baseball with near-unlimited authority over
4620-413: The eighth inning trailing 1–0 despite only allowing four hits. However, the Royals rallied and won the game 2–1 on a one-out bases-loaded bloop single by pinch-hitter Dane Iorg . In Game 7 the following night, Kansas City blew the Cardinals out, 11–0, to win their first of two World Series titles. In 1991, Braves manager Bobby Cox designated Leibrandt the starter for Game 1 of the World Series against
4704-404: The first major league franchise on the West Coast. O'Malley also helped persuade the rival New York Giants to move west to become the San Francisco Giants. Giants owner Horace Stoneham had been contemplating a move to Minnesota amid slumping attendance at the aging Polo Grounds ballpark when O'Malley invited him to meet San Francisco Mayor George Christopher in New York. After Stoneham
4788-454: The founding of the Cincinnati club. The NABBP split into an amateur organization and a professional organization. The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , often known as the National Association (NA), was formed in 1871. Its amateur counterpart disappeared after only a few years. The modern Chicago Cubs and Atlanta Braves franchises trace their histories back to the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players in
4872-429: The hole " between the corner and middle infielders. Starting pitchers were no longer expected to throw complete games ; it was enough for a starter to pitch 6–7 innings and turn the game over to the team's closer , a position which grew in importance over these decades. As stolen bases increased, home run totals dropped. After Willie Mays hit 52 home runs in 1965, only one player ( George Foster ) reached that mark until
4956-486: The inning was a change-up, which Puckett took for strike one. The next one was a similar high and outside fastball, which Puckett took for ball one; pitch three was another fastball for ball two. The fourth pitch, and last pitch of the game, was a weak, high change-up that failed to break. Puckett made solid contact and sprinted for first, as was his usual practice. Only after he saw first base coach Wayne Terwilliger throw up his hands in victory did Puckett realize he had hit
5040-401: The juice of licorice, which some players would chew for the purpose of discoloring the ball. Also, pitchers could manipulate the ball through the use of the spitball (In 1921, use of this pitch was restricted to a few pitchers with a grandfather clause ). Additionally, many ballparks had large dimensions, such as the West Side Grounds of the Chicago Cubs, which was 560 feet (170 m) to
5124-404: The major league clubs, and the MLB Draft League , a hybrid amateur-professional showcase league. MLB and the World Baseball Softball Confederation jointly manage the international World Baseball Classic tournament. In the 1860s, aided by soldiers playing the game in camp during the Civil War , "New York"-style baseball expanded into a national game and spawned baseball's first governing body,
SECTION 60
#17328489712935208-485: The major leagues. Satchel Paige was signed by the Indians and the Dodgers added star catcher Roy Campanella and Don Newcombe , who was later the first winner of the Cy Young Award for his outstanding pitching. MLB banned the signing of women to contracts in 1952, but that ban was lifted in 1992. There have been no female MLB players since then. From 1903 to 1952, the major leagues consisted of two eight-team leagues whose 16 teams were located in ten cities, all in
5292-405: The major-league status of the Union Association by pointing out that franchises came and went and that the St. Louis club was deliberately "stacked"; the St. Louis club was owned by the league's president and it was the only club that was close to major-league caliber. In December 2020, Major League Baseball announced its recognition of seven leagues within Negro league baseball as major leagues:
5376-471: The nature of professional baseball, putting a higher premium on speed and defense over home-run hitting power since the fields were often too big for teams to expect to hit many home runs and foul balls hit in the air could more easily be caught for outs. Teams began to be built around pitching—particularly their bullpens—and speed on the basepaths. Artificial surfaces meant balls traveled quicker and bounced higher, so it became easier to hit ground balls " in
5460-433: The ninth off of Mike Jones capped the scoring at 8–1 as the Tigers took a 1–0 series lead. Wednesday, October 3, 1984, at Royals Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri The Tigers took Game 2 in extra innings by a 5–3 score. In the top of the first, Lou Whitaker reached on an error off of Bret Saberhagen , then back-to-back one-out RBI doubles by Kirk Gibson and Lance Parrish put the Tigers up 2–0. Gibson's home run in
5544-413: The ninth, he walked Dámaso García , who scored on Lloyd Moseby 's double. Responsible for Moseby, Leibrandt watched as the Blue Jays scored twice off reliever Dan Quisenberry and got tagged with the loss. He redeemed himself, however, coming out of the bullpen to replace the injured Bret Saberhagen in Game 7 and picking up the win that sent the Royals to the World Series . In the World Series against
5628-527: The northeastern and mid-western United States: New York City had three teams and Boston , Chicago, Philadelphia , and St. Louis each had two teams. St. Louis was the southernmost and westernmost city with a major league team. The longest possible road trip, from Boston to St. Louis, took about 24 hours by railroad. After a half-century of stability, starting in the 1950s, teams began to move out of cities with multiple teams into cities that had not had them before. From 1953 to 1955, three teams moved to new cities:
5712-466: The point that the 1942 season was nearly canceled. On January 14, 1942, MLB Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis wrote to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt , pleading for the continuation of baseball during the war. Roosevelt responded, "I honestly feel that it would be best for the country to keep baseball going. There will be fewer people unemployed and everybody will work longer hours and harder than ever before. And that means that they ought to have
5796-443: The reserve clause, led to the organization of the Major League Baseball Players Association to collectively bargain with the owners, which in turn led to the introduction of free agency in baseball. Modern stadiums with artificial turf surfaces began to change the game in the 1970s and 1980s. Home runs dominated the game during the 1990s. In the mid-2000s, media reports disclosed the use of anabolic steroids among MLB players;
5880-417: The resulting bidding war for players led to widespread contract-breaking and legal disputes. The war between the AL and NL caused shock waves throughout the baseball world. At a meeting at the Leland Hotel in Chicago in 1901, the other baseball leagues negotiated a plan to maintain their independence. A new National Association was formed to oversee these minor leagues. After 1902, the NL, AL, and NA signed
5964-444: The same staff, sharing that honor with Glavine and Steve Avery , also has been done by the 1997 Mariners since. Leibrandt was generally regarded as a fourth starter on the Braves in 1991 and 1992. On September 29, 1992, Leibrandt recorded the 1,000th strikeout of his career against the San Francisco Giants . In the same game, the Braves clinched the National League West title for the second straight year. On December 9, 1992, Leibrandt
6048-431: The seventh when Jorge Orta hit a leadoff triple and scored on Darryl Motley 's groundout, with Willie Hernández pitching the final two innings. The Tigers added to their lead in the last two innings off of the Royals' bullpen. Barbaro Garbey led off the eighth with a single off of Huismann and scored on Darrell Evans 's double, then Marty Castillo 's RBI single made it 7–1 Tigers. Lance Parrish 's leadoff home run in
6132-563: The sport. MLB rose in popularity in the decade following the Black Sox Scandal, and unlike major leagues in other sports it endured the Great Depression and World War II without any of its teams folding. Shortly after the war, Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier . Some teams moved to different cities in the 1950s and 1960s. The AL and NL added eight clubs in the 1960s: two in 1961, two in 1962, and four in 1969. Player discontent with established labor practices, especially
6216-408: The third made it 3–0 Tigers. Dan Petry pitched seven innings and gave up two runs (on Jorge Orta 's groundout in the fourth after a walk and single and Dane Iorg 's RBI single in the seventh with two on), but lost his chance at a win when Willie Hernández surrendered the tying run in the eighth inning on Hal McRae 's RBI double after a leadoff single. Detroit's "Senor Smoke", Aurelio López , held
6300-538: The top of the 11th on a hit by Dave Winfield . The Braves got one run back in the bottom of the 11th; however, it was not enough and Leibrandt ended up as the losing pitcher. Leibrandt and his wife, Corrine, have four children—a daughter and three sons. He and his family continued to make their home in the Atlanta area after his retirement, and he coached his sons’ high school baseball teams at Marist School. The youngest son, Brandon , has played in Major League Baseball for
6384-454: The use of new, white baseballs whenever a ball became scuffed or dirty, helping bring the "dead-ball" era to an end. The following year, the New York Yankees made their first World Series appearance. By the end of the 1930s, the team had appeared in 11 World Series, winning eight of them. Yankees slugger Babe Ruth had set the single-season home run record in 1927, hitting 60 home runs; breaking his own record of 29 home runs. Afflicted by
6468-399: Was "absorbing the available Negro Leagues numbers into the official historical record." The period between 1900 and 1919 is commonly referred to as the "dead-ball era". Games of this era tended to be low-scoring and were often dominated by pitchers, such as Walter Johnson , Cy Young , Christy Mathewson , Mordecai Brown , and Grover Cleveland Alexander . The term also accurately describes
6552-625: Was a blowout in Kansas City, as the Tigers struck first when Lou Whitaker singled to lead off the game off of Bud Black , then scored on Alan Trammell 's triple. One out later, Lance Parrish 's sacrifice fly made it 2–0 Tigers. Leadoff home runs by Larry Herndon in the fourth and Trammell in the fifth made it 4–0 Tigers. In the seventh, Royals' right fielder Pat Sheridan 's error on Whitaker's line drive allowed him to reach second, then score on Trammell's single off of Mark Huismann . Tigers' Jack Morris pitched seven innings, allowing only one run in
6636-824: Was a result of players using steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs . In 1993, the National League added the Florida Marlins in Miami and the Colorado Rockies in Denver . In 1998, the Brewers switched leagues by joining the National League, and two new teams were added: the National League's Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix and the American League's Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Tampa Bay . 1984 American League Championship Series The 1984 American League Championship Series
6720-560: Was a semifinal matchup in Major League Baseball 's 1984 postseason which matched the East Division champion Detroit Tigers against the West Division champion Kansas City Royals . The Tigers took the series in a three-game sweep to advance to the 1984 World Series against the San Diego Padres ; the Royals never held a lead in any inning of the series. The sixteenth edition of the ALCS , it
6804-603: Was later referred to as "The Noble Experiment", Robinson was the first black baseball player in the International League since the 1880s, joining the Dodgers' farm club, the Montreal Royals , for the 1946 season. The following year, the Dodgers called up Robinson to the major leagues. On April 15, 1947, Robinson made his major league debut at Ebbets Field before a crowd of 26,623 spectators, including more than 14,000 black patrons. Black baseball fans began flocking to see
6888-449: Was persuaded to move to California, Time magazine put O'Malley on its cover. MLB Commissioner Ford C. Frick had opposed the meeting, but the dual moves proved successful for both franchises—and for MLB. Had the Dodgers moved out west alone, the St. Louis Cardinals —1,600 mi (2,575 km) away —would have been the closest NL team. Instead, the joint move made West Coast road trips economical for visiting teams. The Dodgers set
6972-422: Was the last to be played as a best-of-five, as both the American League and National League would change their League Championship Series to a best-of-seven format. Due to a strike by major league umpires, the series was played using local and collegiate umpires, with former AL umpire and league supervisor Bill Deegan working home plate for all three games. The 1984 American League Championship Series ended in
7056-403: Was traded to the Texas Rangers along with Pat Gomez for everyday utility player Jose Oliva . In 1993, despite six straight road wins (which no subsequent Texas Rangers pitcher matched until 2009, when it was surpassed by Scott Feldman ), he ended with a season record of 9–10 record with a 4.55 ERA, and subsequently retired. For all of his successes as a pitcher, Leibrandt is best known for
#292707