A day seeped in MLB Awards history, numerous players received honors of great significance on this day. A rookie and a reliever were awarded their historic Cy Young Awards and for the first time in its history. 11/6 is also the date of the first free agent move in MLB history, and also marks the day that the Cleveland Browns’ unexpected move was announced and the Supreme Court allowed the Los Angeles Raiders to stay.

Ricky Eisenbart also contributed to this article.

FernandoMania

Dodgers to win Cy Young (2/2): Fernando Valenzuela 1981, Orel Hershiser 1988, Eric Gagne 2003, Clayton Kershaw 2011, 2013, 2014
— James Smyth (@JamesSmyth621) November 12, 2014

YEAR: 1981

SIGNIFICANCE: Fernando Valenzuela became the very 1st rookie to win the NL Cy Young Award

On this day in 1981, Los Angeles Dodgers SP Fernando Valenzuela became the first rookie in MLB history to win the Cy Young award. “FernandoMania” ran wild in LA, as his 13-7, 2.48 ERA campaign also earned him the Rookie of the Year award. ‘El Toro’ also won the Gold Glove and the Silver Slugger, in addition to helping the Dodgers win the World Series. Valenzuela made his MLB debut in 1980, where he pitched 17 innings as a reliever without allowing a single run. That earned him a spot in the rotation in ’81, instantly becoming a 6x All-Star and a cultural icon among the Mexican community in LA.

Reliever Recognition

#TodayInHistory: 1974 - Mike Marshall of the Los Angeles #Dodgers becomes the first reliever to capture the Cy Young Award.
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) November 6, 2014

YEAR: 1974 & 1984

SIGNIFICANCE: Mike Marshall became the 1st ever RP to win the CYA & RP Willie Hernandez won the AL MVP and CYA

For the first time in MLB history, a relief pitcher was crowned Cy Young winner on this day in 1974. Los Angeles Dodgers RP Mike Marshall became the first ever bullpen arm to win an award that is traditionally exclusive to starting pitchers. Marshall was no conventional reliever, he appeared in a major league-leading 106 games and threw an astounding 208.1 innings. He led the Senior Circuit in Saves with 21 and had a 2.42 ERA, becoming a huge piece of the 102-win Dodgers in ’74.

10 years later, Detroit Tigers RP Willie Hernandez was named 1984 AL MVP, making him just the second relief pitcher in MLB history to win the MVP and Cy Young Award in the same season (Rollie Fingers in 1981). Hernandez, like Marshall in 1974, led the majors in games appeared (80). The southpaw from Aguada, Puerto Rico had a 1.92 ERA in 140.1 innings pitched. Hernandez is one of nine relievers to win the Cy Young award (most recently Eric Gagne in 2003), and just one of three relief pitchers to win the MVP award (Fingers in ’81 & Dennis Eckersley in ’92).

Willie Hernández is the only latino pitcher to win the MVP Award (1984). pic.twitter.com/srdTAa0fTx
— Jorge Colón Delgado (@JColonDelgado) August 17, 2019

NFL Relocations

https://twitter.com/Bdwal359/status/1324695779357970435

YEAR: 1984 & 1995

SIGNIFICANCE: US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Raiders’ move to LA AND Cleveland announced move to Baltimore

In March of 1980, Al Davis’ attempt to move the Raiders to Los Angeles, where he believed a large-scale stadium could be built, was blocked by the other NFL owners. Davis went ahead with his relocation plans and was yet again blocked by an injunction when he and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum both filed separate antitrust suits against the NFL. After a mistrial, the second case in 1982 ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, so Davis immediately executed the move for the upcoming 1982 season. The Los Angeles Raiders would win the franchise’s third Super Bowl in 1983, but Davis was still fighting legal battles off the field. On this date in 1984, however, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the initial decisions, solidifying the Raiders stay in Los Angeles once and for all — that is, until 1994.

Shortly after the Raiders would move back to Oakland, another one of the most iconic franchises in NFL history also announced a monumental relocation. At a press conference in Camden Yards on 11/6/95, Art Modell, the longtime owner of the Cleveland Browns, announced that his franchise would be relocating to Baltimore for the 1996 season. Beginning in 1946 as a member of the AAFC, the Browns had won eight AAFC and NFL Championships by 1964, but never managed to make it to a Super Bowl. Ultimately becoming the Ravens, the franchise would leave the city of Cleveland without a team until the “new” Browns would begin play in 1999. Since the move, the Ravens have won two Super Bowls in their short tenure while the Browns have complied just two winning seasons and a single playoff appearance over that same time span.

Sports History for Nov. 5, 1984-Supreme Court ruled the NFL exceeded antitrust limits by preventing the Oakland Raiders move to Los Angeles.
— David Ricker (@dsricker) November 5, 2014

1st Official MLB FA

https://twitter.com/kurtblumenau/status/1059795904742481920?s=20

YEAR: 1976

SIGNIFICANCE: RP Bill Campbell became the 1st FA in MLB history to change teams; from Minnesota to Boston

After Dave McNally and Catfish Hunter were granted free agency in 1975 as test cases, 1976 marked the first official free agency period following an agreement between Major League Baseball and Marvin Miller, the Players Association’s Executive Director. And 44 years ago today, reliever Bill Campbell became the first player to ever change teams via free agency. Campbell had just finished perhaps the best season of his career, earning him votes for MVP and Cy Young. The right-hander was a solid long-reliever (120 ERA+ 1973-’76) who went from the Minnesota Twins to the Boston Red Sox on a 4yr/$1M. The first ever MLB Free Agent class featured 32 players, including future Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, and Willie McCovey.

Cy Young Tie

Today in 1969, Tiger Denny McLain (24-9, 2.80) and Oriole Mike Cuellar (23-11, 2.38) tie for the AL Cy Young Award.
— Matt Nadel (@BaseballwMatt) November 6, 2012

YEAR: 1969

SIGNIFICANCE: For the 1st time in history, the Cy Young award finished in a tie: Denny McLain (DET) and SP Mike Cuellar (BAL)

13 years after its creation, the Cy Young award had the first ever tie with Detroit Tigers SP Denny McLain and Baltimore Orioles SP Mike Cuellar. McLain was the defending AL Cy Young and MVP winner (both unanimous), and despite not putting up the historic numbers he had in 1968, the Tigers Ace still had a 2.80 ERA with a league-leading 325 IP. Cuellar on the other hand, had 23 wins and a 2.38 ERA. The native of Las Villas, Cuba led the Orioles to the World Series, and although they lost to the Miracle Mets, Cuellar still made two starts in the WS and allowed just two runs in 13 IP. Both Cuellar and McLain are credited in the history books with winning the 1969 AL Cy Young award. Since ’69, the 2012 AL Cy Young race is the closest since, with David Price (winner) and Justin Verlander finishing with a four-point margin between each other.