THIS DATE IN BASEBALL

Sept. 5

1908: Brooklyn's Nap Rucker pitched a 6-0 no-hitter against Boston. Rucker struck out 14 and walked none.

1918: Babe Ruth pitched a six-hitter as the Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago Cubs 1-0 in the opening game of the World Series. The Series was started early due to World War I.

1954: Roswell's Joe Bauman of the Longhorn League hit three home runs to give him 72 for the season. Bauman never made it to the majors.

1955: Brooklyn pitcher Don Newcombe connected for his seventh homer of the season for a National League record for home runs by a pitcher. The Dodgers, behind Newcombe's power and 20th win, beat the Phillies 11-4.

1971: J.R. Richard tied Karl Spooner's major league record by striking out 15 San Francisco Giants in his first major league game as the Houston Astros beat the Giants.

1982: Roy Smalley hit a pair of three-run homers, one from each side of the plate, as the Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 18-7.

1998: Mark McGwire became the third player in baseball history to reach 60 home runs, as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds 7-0. He joined Babe Ruth and Roger Maris with 60 homers in a single season.

2001: Roger Clemens became the second player in major league history to win 19 of his first 20 decisions, leading the New York Yankees over Toronto 4-3.

2002: Alex Rodriguez became the fifth player in major league history to record successive 50-homer seasons, hitting two in Texas' 11-2 rout of Baltimore. Rodriguez, who hit 52 homers last season, joined Babe Ruth, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Ken Griffey Jr.