On This Day-April 24th, 1917-First No-Hitter in Yankees' History

Place: Fenway Park; Boston, MA

Event: Mogridge Out-duels Leonard for First No-Hitter in Yankees' History

LHP George Mogridge took the mound against fellow lefty Dutch Leonard on a Tuesday afternoon at Fenway Park and pitched what surely had to be the game of his life, shutting down the Yankees in a 2-1 no-hitter. It was the first-ever no-hitter by a Yankees' pitcher, as well as the first pitched at Fenway.

Mogridge allowed only four balls to be hit beyond the infield, the only Boston run coming in the seventh inning on a combination of a walk to Boston second baseman Jack Barry, a bad throw to SS Roger Peckinpaugh from 2B Fritz Maisel in an effort to start the double play, an intentional walk to OF Tillie Walker, and finally a sacrifice fly from the bat of PH Jimmy Walsh.

Indeed, the Yankees themselves went into the sixth inning with only one hit, and scored their first run of the day on a two-out double off the bat of Angel Aragon, who would play only 15 games in 1917. Aragon had two RBI in 45 AB, that year.

Peckinpaugh reached on a miscue in the top of the ninth by Boston third baseman Mike McNally, who entered to play the hot corner after Walsh's pinch-hit appearance. Boston catcher Hick Cady threw the ball past shortstop Everett Scott when Peckinpaugh stole second (advancing to third on the throw), and McNally made a low throw to first off a grounder from Les Nunamaker that Del Gainer had to dig out of the dirt, allowing Peckinpaugh to score.

Boston and New York made seven errors between them, three by the Yankees (two by Maisel).

Mogridge walked three and struck out three in winning his second game of the year.

From The New York Times; April 25^th, 1917: 

On This Day-April 22nd, 1876-First National League Game Played

Place: Jefferson Street Grounds; Philadelphia, PA

Event: First Game in National League History

Approximately 3,000 fans show up for what turned out to be the very first National League game, after the weather led to rain-outs elsewhere. The Boston Red Stockings (later to become the Atlanta Braves) beat the Philadelphia Athletic Base Ball Club (the future Philadelphia Athletics) by a score of 6-5.

Jefferson Street Grounds had been home to differing versions of ball since 1864, but was only established for use by professional teams in 1871, when the Philadelphia Athletics of the National Association played there. The Athletics won the NA pennant that same year, and would join the newly-formed NL in '76. Poor performance in the inaugural year, as well as their refusal to make Western road trips (in this case, “West” meant Louisville, Cincinnati, and St Louis), led to their expulsion from the NL at the end of their first year.

Former Cincinnati Red Stockings SS George Wright was the first batter. He and Boston entrepreneur Henry Ditson formed Wright and Ditson Sporting Goods in 1871. Interestingly, the first run was scored not on a hit, but on an errant throw by Philadelphia third baseman Ezra Sutton, though the two teams combined for twenty-six errors. This wasn't all that uncommon in the early days of the game, as field conditions were often less than ideal.

The winning pitcher, righty Joe Josephs, was playing under an alias that day; his real name was Joe Borden, and he had tossed a no-hitter in the National Association for Philadelphia against Chicago on July 28^th, 1875. “Joe Josephs” was one of several aliases that Borden was known to use. He was sometimes referred to in contemporary newspapers as “Josephus the Phenomenal”, though his career, while solid, would be over soon after.

The honor of the first hit in NL history went to CF Jim O'Rourke, the only player on either roster to appear as an active player in the 20^th century. “Orator Jim”, as he was sometimes called, was much more than a baseball player. He graduated from Yale Law School in 1887, and was a practicing lawyer between seasons. At a time when the average ballplayer was seen as unrefined, ignorant, and boorish, O'Rourke stood out as articulate and erudite. Though he certainly didn't need to rely on baseball to earn a living, it seems he had a hard time removing himself from the game, permanently. Even after retiring as a major-league player in 1893, he would remain in the minors for years to come.

From The Times (Philadelphia, PA); April 24^th, 1876: