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Most Significant Sports History on August 20th
Learn something new about the most significant sports history on August 20th, including a big MLB exchange, an epic two-man milestone, and more!
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Much of sports history is important to note as it laid the ground-works for what sports fans watch each and every day. Today in sports history is no different as significant events occurred stretching back beyond a century. To begin, an MLB icon many know as “Shoeless Joe” was involved in a groundbreaking MLB transaction. In addition, a legendary MLB duo marked its place in history by surpassing another couple of household names in professional baseball immortality.
1915 - The Indians trade Shoeless Joe Jackson to the White Sox. Jackson would help the White Sox win the championship in 1917.
— CLE Sports Misery (@CleSportsMisery) August 20, 2012
YEAR: 1915
SIGNIFICANCE: White Sox acquired OF “Shoeless” Joe Jackson
The Cleveland Naps were struggling in 1915 and dealing with financial problems. So they had no other choice than to trade their star outfielder “Sholess” Joe Jackson to the Chicago White Sox for prospects and money. In the deal, the White Sox received Jackson and sent three prospects (Ed Klepfer, Braggo Roth, Larry Chappell) and $31,500 in cash (around $800,000 in 2020) in return.
Jackson was already one of the best hitters in the game, having hit .375/.441/.983 in his six years with Cleveland and finishing in the Top-10 for MVP in the four years prior to the trade. In 1919, “Shoeless Joe” would become one of the eight players accused of fixing the World Series in the “Black Sox” scandal. Jackson was banned from the sport shortly after the 1920 season and finished with a .356 career batting average, the third highest in MLB history.
When Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's all-time home run record on April 8, 1974, the manager of the #Braves was none other than Aaron's long-time teammate, Eddie Mathews. That duo combined for a record 863 homers by a pair of teammates. They topped Ruth and Lou Gehrig's 859. pic.twitter.com/BdYtufXy3y
— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) May 5, 2020
YEAR: 1965
SIGNIFICANCE: Eddie Matthews and Hank Aaron became the top HR-hitting duo in MLB history
55 years ago, Braves 3B Eddie Matthews hit his 28th HR of the season in a victory over the Pirates. That Home Run meant that he and Hank Aaron had surpassed Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig as the top HR-hitting duo in MLB history. Matthews and Aaron’s combined 859 HRs would finally overtake the members of the 1927 Murderers’ Row. In 1959, Matthews (46 HR) and Aaron (39 HR) combined for 85 HR, which was their best combined season.
On August 20, 1945 at Ebbets Field, Tommy Brown became the youngest player to hit a home run in the majors when he clubbed one off Preacher Roe in the seventh inning. Read about his @NashvilleVols and @SulphurDell connection here: https://t.co/7mRAfanVYd
— Skip Nipper (@mrsulphurdell) August 20, 2018
YEAR: 1945
SIGNIFICANCE: Dodgers SS Tommy Brown became the youngest player to hit a Home Run at 17 years old
17 years, 8 months, and 14 days old. That’s how young Tommy Brown was when he hit his first career Home Run and became the youngest to ever hit a ball over the fence in a professional Major League game. 75 years ago, “Buckshot” Brown passed Pat Callaghan as the youngest to ever do it, a record that still stands today. Brown actually made his debut for Brooklyn at the age of 16, but it took him 65 games to get his first round tripper. MLB currently has an 18-year-old minimum for US-born players and a 17-year-old minimum for international players.
August 20th 1920 the APFA, American Professional Football Association, was formed at a meeting in Canton, Ohio…. https://t.co/53nTCFrzDD
— Pawtucket Library (@PawtucketPL) August 20, 2016
YEAR: 1920
SIGNIFICANCE: The 1st meeting to form the American Pro Football Association was held
The National Football League today is one of the largest sports leagues in the world. However, it had to start from somewhere and began as the APFA. Exactly one century ago today, the first meeting to form the APFA was held in Canton, Ohio which would turn into what is known as the NFL today only two years later. On that day, multi-sports legend Jim Thorpe was officially elected President of the APFA. Relative, but perhaps closer to memory; the NFL celebrated the 100th anniversary of the league in 2019. Without the foundation of the APFA on this day, it is unknown what professional football would look like today, if it even still existed.
Today in 1960s Baseball: Phillies beat Braves 7-4 to snap 23-game losing streak (1961) https://t.co/obLL1Jamvr #Phillies
— 1960s Baseball (@Baseball1960s) August 21, 2019
YEAR: 1961
SIGNIFICANCE: The Phillies defeated the Braves 7-4, ending a 23-game losing streak, the longest since 1901
On this day in 1961, the Philadelphia Phillies finally snapped a 23-game losing streak after defeating the Braves in Game 2 of a Doubleheader. The Phils’ 23-game losing streak is tied for the third longest in baseball history, and is the longest since the start of the Dead Ball Era (1901). From July 29 to August 20, the Phillies hit .249 as a team and got shutout four times. Three of those shutouts came in back-to-back-to-back games. Since those ’61 Phillies, the longest streak belongs to the 1988 Baltimore Orioles, losers of 22 in a row.
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