Happy ’80s Birthday to Bill Spiers, who made his debut in 1989 and spent 13 years in the big leagues with the Brewers, Astros, and Mets.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Dennis Blair, who pitched for the Expos from 1974 through 1976 and resurfaced with the Padres in 1980.
6/5/86
The California Angels signed Vern Ruhle as a free agent.
He goes 1-3 in 16 games and he’s finished.
6/5/87
The Toronto Blue Jays signed Charlie Moore as a free agent.
After spending 14 seasons in Milwaukee, Moore plays 51 games with the Jays and retires.
6/5/88
The Detroit Tigers signed Dwayne Murphy as a free agent.
He plays 49 games in Detroit, signs with the Phillies in 1989 and retires after the season.
6/5/81
Brad Havens allows just one run over six innings in his debut but gets the loss when Minnesota is shut out by Jack Morris.
6/5/83
Greg Gagne goes 1 for 4 with a double off Doug Bird in his big league debut.
He appears in just 12 games in 1983 and ’84, but becomes a regular in 1985.
6/5/86
Manny Hernandez gives up just one run in 5.2 innings against the Dodgers in his debut but gets the loss when Rick Honeycutt shuts out the Astros.
6/5/86
Casey Candaele makes his big league debut as a pinch-hitter for the Expos in a 7-3 loss to the Phillies. Candaele and his mom, Helen Callaghan, a former outfielder in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, become the only mother and son to have both played professional baseball.
6/5/87
Jay Aldrich goes 2.2 innings in relief in his big league debut for the Brewers and allows a solo homer to Dave Winfield.
He pitches for three seasons and wins six games.
6/5/87
Mike Dunne goes six innings in his debut but gets the loss in a 5-1 games against the Mets.
He wins 13 games and finishes 2nd in the N.L. Rookie of the Year balloting to Benito Santiago.
6/5/80
Frank White’s homer, his 2nd of the year, leads the way as the Royals shut out the Rangers 8-0 behind Dennis Leonard.
Six of the Royals starters collect two or more hits as they run their record to 30-20, good for a 3.5 game lead in the AL West.
6/5/81
Nolan Ryan walks two in a 3-0 win over the Mets and passes Early Wynn as major leagues’ all-time walks leader with 1,777. He also strikes out 10 and pitches a 5-hitter.
6/5/82
Cal Ripken begins a run in which he plays 8,243 consecutive innings. He plays every inning for 904 straight games.
6/5/82
The Brewers hit three straight homers for the second time in a week.
Robin Yount, Cecil Cooper, and Ben Oglivie go back-to-back-to-back in an 11-3 win over the A’s. Ted Simmons and Gorman Thomas also homer in the game.
6/5/84
Dave Winfield goes 5 for 5 against the Red Sox as part of a 16-game hitting streak. Winny would hit .465 over the 16 game span and raise his batting average by 75 points.
6/5/86
Steve Garvey is ejected from a game for the first time in his career after a disputed triple play call in a game against the Braves.
Garvey didn’t even know he’d been ejected until he went out to take infield the following inning.
6/5/85
Ferris Buhler takes in the Cubs/Braves game.
6/5/87
Pete O’Brien homers twice and drives in 7 in a 15-9 win over the Twins.
6/5/89
The Orioles score 16 runs on 9 hits to beat the Yankees 16-3 in the Bronx.
Steve Finely’s grand slam is the big blow.
6/5/89
The Orioles select LSU pitcher Ben McDonald with the first pick in the draft.
6/5/89
The Mets select Alan Zinter from the University of Arizona with the 24th pick in the first round of the draft.
He makes his big league debut in 2002. Don’t ever give up.
6/5/89
Bo hoses Harold
6/5/89
The Blue Jays open their new home.
6/5/86
The Dodgers release Cesar Cedeno, ending his major league career.
From his rookie year with the Astros in 1970 through 1976, Cedeno’s average season was .294 with 17 homers, 75 RBI, and 45 SBs. He broke his ankle in the 1980 NLCS and was never the same.
6/5/87
The Giants purchase Ivan de Jesus from the St. Louis Cardinals.
He plays nine games for the Giants in 1987 and seven for Detroit in 1988 and his major league career is over.
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