THIS DATE IN BASEBALL

MAY 4

1869: Henry Chadwick published his first annual baseball handbook. The book eventually evolved into Spalding’s Official Baseball Guide.

1869: The Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first all-professional team, played its first regular season game and beat the Great Westerns of Cincinnati 45-9.

1871: The Fort Wayne Kekiongas beat the Cleveland Forest Citys, 2-0, in the first game played in the National Association. In the 127 games during the 1871 season, there were a total of four shutouts.

1910: The Browns and Cardinals played home games in St. Louis, and President Taft, not wanting to offend either club, saw parts of each game at Robinson Field and Sportsman’s Park.

1939: Boston rookie Ted Williams became the first player to hit a home run that cleared the right field seats at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. It was his first at-bat at Detroit. The Red Sox edged the Tigers 7-6.

1944: Blacks were allowed to buy grandstand seats for the first time in St. Louis history. St. Louis was the last of the major league clubs to integrate seating. Negroes had been restricted to the bleachers.

1963: Bob Shaw of the Milwaukee Braves set a major league record by committing five balks. In the third inning, Shaw walked Billy Williams and balked him home with three straight balks. Shaw lasted five innings before he was ejected for arguing.

1966: Willie Mays broke the National League record with the 512th home run of his career in a 6-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Candlestick Park. Mays hit a solo homer off starter Claude Osteen in the fifth inning.

1975: Bob Watson of the Houston Astros raced around the bases on Milt May’s home run and crossed the plate at Candlestick Park in time to score major league baseball’s 1 millionth run, seconds ahead of Dave Concepcion of Cincinnati.