Happy ’80s Birthday to Steve Henderson, who was hitting .326 for the Reds AAA team in Indianapolis in 1977 when he was traded to the Mets for Tom Seaver.
Steve placed second in the Rookie of the Year balloting that year and spent 12 seasons in the bigs.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Jamie Moyer, who attended the 1980 Phillies World Series parade as a kid and participated in the 2008 Phillies World Series parade. He also faced Mike Schmidt in his MLB debut and Joey Votto in his last game.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Luis Pujols, who left Game 4 of the 1980 NCLS after being hit by a foul tip only to have his replacement, Bruce Bochy, get trucked by Pete.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Flash Gordon, who won 17 games for the Royals as a rookie in 1989 and led the A.L. with 46 saves for the Red Sox in 1998. He also made a young girl feel safe in the woods.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Cliff Pastornicky, who appeared in ten games for the 1983 Royals and later became a scout. His son, Tyler, played for the Braves.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Mike Felder, who spent ten years in the bigs with four teams and later became a college coach.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Dante Bichette, who made his debut with the Angels in 1988 and hit 274 homers in the bigs over fourteen seasons.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Scott Hemond, who spent seven years in the bigs with Oakland, St. Louis, and the White Sox.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Gary Sheffield, who made his debut with the Brewers in 1988 and is one of four players to homer in their teens and their 40s. (Cobb, Staub, A-Rod)
Craig Stimac was born OTD in 1954. He spent two years with the Padres and then played in Italy before returning to the U.S. to become a sock trader. He passed away in 2009.
Former Phillies, Twins, Angels, and Expos skipper Gene Mauch was born OTD in 1925. Over 26 seasons, Mauch won 1,902 games and two division titles. He passed away in 2005.
11/18/80
The Yankees trade catcher Brad Gulden and cash to the Mariners for Larry Milbourne and a PTBNL. Seattle sent Gulden back to the Yankees the following May to complete the deal so Gulden was traded for himself.
11/18/82
The Indians trade Ed Whitson to the Padres for Juan Eichelberger and Broderick Perkins.
11/18/80
George Brett is named AL MVP despite only hitting .390 and leading his team to the World Series for the first time.
11/18/85
The Braves announce they will no longer engage in bidding wars for free agents. “Fiscal responsibility is one of our goals,” says Ted Turner.
It’s odd how all these teams decided all at the same time not to pursue free agents.
11/18/85
Willie McGee wins the N.L. M.V.P.. Willie leads the league in batting average (.353) and hits (216) and also stole 56 bases.
11/18/86
Even though he wasn’t a switch-hitter, Roger Clemens becomes the first starting pitcher to win the American League MVP Award since Vida Blue in 1971. Don Mattingly finishes second, while Jim Rice is third.
11/18/87
Andre Dawson becomes the first player from a last-place team to win an M.V.P. Award. The Hawk hits .287 and leads the league with 49 dingers and 137 RBI. Ozzie Smith finishes second, just ahead of Jack Clark.
11/18/82
The Royals release Lee May and his career is over. He spends 18 years in the bigs and hits 354 homers. Gentle Giant.
11/18/81
The Padres announce Dick Williams as their new manager. He will pilot San Diego to a National League pennant in 1984.
Umpire Dick Stello was killed OTD in 1987 when the two cars he was standing between were hit by another car. He was just 53 years old.
We lost Ken Brett OTD in 2003.
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