Happy ’80s Birthday to Mickey Klutts, who spent eight years in the big leagues and won a ring with the Yankees in 1977.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Bob Detherage, who played in 20 games for the 1980 Royals and hit .308. It was his only major league action.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Mike Gates, who played in 37 games for the Expos in 1981 and 1982. He was one of ten players to appear in at least ten games for the Expos in 1982.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Jim Siwy, who pitched in three games over two seasons for the White Sox in 1982 and 1984.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Randy Kramer, who made his debut with the Pirates in 1988 and pitched in the big leagues until 1982. He later became a scout and a minor league pitching coach.
Happy ’80s Birthday to Dave Gallagher, who was the 8th overall selection in the 1980 draft and spent nine years in the bigs with nine teams. His lone season as a regular was 1989 when he hit .266 for the White Sox.
9/20/80
Ken Phelps goes 0-for-1 as a pinch hitter in his big-league debut. He bounces around a bit before finding a home in Seattle where he hits 105 homers and is then dealt to the Yankees in the Jay Buhner deal.
9/20/81
Gary Gaetti homers off Charlie Hough in his first big league at-bat. He’d spend 20 years in the bigs, hit 359 more dingers, and win a World Series in 1987.
9/20/83
Dodgers rookie Sid Fernandez makes his big-league debut and allows one run in three innings while striking out 5 in a blowout loss to the Astros. The Dodgers would trade him to the Mets in the offseason along with Ross Jones for Bob Bailor and Carlos Diaz. Bailor and Diaz spent 5 more seasons in the big leagues combined while El Sid won 98 games for the Mets and helped them to a World Series title in 1986.
9/19/80
Johnny Bench’s Grand Slam caps a 7-run 2nd inning as the Reds beat the Dodgers 10-7.
9/20/80
Steve Kemp homers and drives in six as the Tigers hammer Cleveland 13-3.
9/20/80
Mike Schmidt reaches the 40 HR mark for the 2nd straight season as the Phillies beat the Cubs 7-3. He would finish the year with a career-high 48 and win the first of two-straight MVP Awards.
9/20/80
Steve Stone ties an Orioles team record with his 24th win as the Birds beat the Blue Jays 6-1. He finishes the year with a 25-7 record and a Cy Young Award.
9/20/80
Tony Armas homers twice and drives in five in a 9-0 Oakland win over the Royals. He finishes the 1980 season with 35 homers and 109 RBI.
9/20/80
The Yankees unveil a Thurman Munson monument at Yankee Stadium.
9/20/81
Bill Gullickson throws a three-hit shutout and strikes out 13 in a 4-0 win over the Cubs.
9/20/81
Lenn Sakata homers twice and drives in five in an 8-2 win over Milwaukee. He homers twice again 11 days later. They were the only multi-homer games of his career.
9/20/82
Pete Vuckovich throws an 11-inning CG to beat the Red Sox 4-3. Vuke throws 47 1/3 innings in September and October with a 3.80 E.R.A. He also tore his rotator cuff and pitched through it.
9/20/83
Jose Cruz homers and drives in 6 in a 15-2 win over the Dodgers.
9/20/84
Tim Lollar’s three-run dinger is the big blow as the Padres clinch the N.L. West for the first division title in team history.
9/20/84
Steve Sax appears on Who’s The Boss.
9/20/86
Mike Trujillo throws a one-hit shutout to beat the Royals 3-0.
9/20/86
Tony Gwynn steals 5 bases in a game against the Astros. He finishes the season with 37 and swipes 56 the following season.
9/20/88
Rick Sutcliffe throws an 11-inning CG and beats the Expos 5-4. He throws 152 pitches.
9/20/88
Wade Boggs becomes the first player in the 20th century to get 200 hits in 6 straight seasons. He does it again in 1989. From 1983 through 1989, Boggs hit .352 and averaged 103 walks per season.
9/20/89
Rickey Henderson goes 2-for-5 with four stolen bases in an 8-6 win over Cleveland. He leads the A.L. with 77 bags, the 9th time in the past ten seasons in which he does so. The only year he didn’t was 1987 when injuries limited him to 95 games.
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