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Happy ’80s Birthday to fan favorite Chet Lemon, one of the most underrated players of his era.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Don “Fullpack” Stanhouse. He earned his nickname because Earl Weaver said he used to smoke a full pack every time Stanhouse pitched.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Dave Revering, who was drafted by the Reds and swapped to Oakland for Vida Blue and $1.75 Million in 1977 until Bowie Kuhn nixed the deal because it wasn’t “in the best interests of baseball” and also because he hated Charlie Finley.
One of the voices of our youth was born OTD in 1926. Joe Garagiola spent nine years in the big leagues as a player and was a broadcaster from 1955 until 2012. He passed away in 2016.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Juan Bonilla, who was having a great year for the Padres in 1982 before breaking his wrist and missing four months. He played in the bigs for six years.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Greg Johnston, who played 63 games in the bigs for the Giants and Twins and made his major league debut as a pinch-runner for Willie McCovey.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Gene Krug, who played in 7 games for the 1981 Cubs and got a hit off Lary Sorenson in his first big league at bat. All six of his ABs came as a pinch-hitter.
Hat Tip to Wrigley Roster Jenga for the custom card.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Steve Mura, who spent seven years in the bigs and won 12 games for the World Champion 1982 Cardinals.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Brian Denman, who went 25-7 in the minor leagues in 1981 and part of 1982 before going 3-4 for the 1982 Red Sox in 9 games, his only time in the big leagues.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Steve Brown, who was the first player from UC Davis to reach the big leagues. He went 2-4 over 14 games for the Angels in 1983 and ’84.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Ken Smith, who was the #3 overall pick (Braves) in the 1976 MLB draft. Unfortunately, Ken appeared in just 83 games at the major league level.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Cameron Drew, who was the Astros first-round pick in the 1985 draft and appeared in 7 games for Houston in 1988.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Stan Fansler, who made his debut for the Pirates in 1986 when he was just 21. He’s the only person from his high school in Elkins, WV to reach the big leagues.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Jeff Pico, who spent three years pitching out of the bullpen for the Cubs, winning 13 games and saving 2 more.
2/12/88
The Cubs trade Mike Brumley and Keith Moreland to the Padres for Rich Gossage and Ray Hayward. Goose leads the team with 13 saves, which says a lot about the 1988 Cubs.
2/12/82
The Tigers sign Jerry Turner as a free agent. He hits .248 in his lone season in Detroit and returns to San Diego in 1983 to finish his big league career.
2/12/87
The Orioles sign Ray Knight as a free agent. Knight hits .256 with 14 homers in his only season in Baltimore.
2/12/88
The Cardinals sign Larry McWilliams as a free agent. He goes 6-9 with a save and two complete games in St. Louis and pitches for Philadelphia and Kansas City in 1989.
Big Days
2/12/81
Arbitrator Russell Goetz rules that Carlton Fisk is a free agent after the Red Sox failed to tender a contract offer before the December 20th, 1980 deadline. Fisk signs with the White Sox a month later.
Transactions
2/12/81
The Dodgers release Doug Rau. He signs with the Angels and appears in three games in 1981. Rau won 73 games between 1974 and 1978 but a torn rotator cuff scuttled his career.
Deaths
Former Red Sox GM Haywood Sullivan passed away OTD in 2003.
Alison Gordon, the first female member of BBWAA passed away OTD in 2015. She wrote a book about her experiences and also wrote a number of baseball-themed novels.
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