This Date in Washington Senators History – Big Train pitches 1-hit shutout

June 9

1918 – A harmless single by Ossie Vitt is Detroit’s only hit, as Walter Johnson shutouts the Tigers, 2-0 at Navin Walter_JohnsonField.

1927 – Cleveland routs the Senators, 7-1 in Griffith. Johnson allows 6 hits and is chased after 5 innings.

1934 – Sore armed Boston P Lefty Grove surrenders a ML record 5 consecutive doubles to the Nats in the top of the 8th inning. The Red Sox get pounded, 8-1.

1962 – 2B Chuck Cottier comes back to haunt his former team. Cottier’s 2-run, game winning homer in the bottom of the 10th off Detroit’s Jerry Casale hands the Sens a 4-2 victory.

1967 – Carl Yastrzemski belts 2 home runs and 3 RBI to lead Boston to an 8-7 win. Yaz also earns a standing ovation from the Fenway faithful with 2 outstanding defensive plays, as the Sens cannot sustain an early 5-2 lead. Frank Howard connects for his 12th homer off Jim Lonborg in the 1st inning.

1971 – Dartmouth P Pete Broberg is the Nats first round selection in the amateur draft. As was usually the case with 1st round picks under the Bob Short regime, Broberg will be rushed to the majors. Unlike previous 1st rounders Jeff Burroughs and Tom Grieve, Broberg will skip minor league ball entirely and make his major league debut 11 days after he was drafted.

Senators BirthdaysWashingtonSenators1227

William James Cunningham B Jun. 9, 1886 D Feb. 21, 1946

Bill Cunningham was a little used second baseman who only appeared in 123 games over 3 seasons, from 1910-1912. His 21 game rookie season stint was undoubtedly his best when he hit .297. His BA dropped by over 100 points in 1911 and after 8 games in 1912 Cunningham was dropped by the Senators.

Bill Cunningham career record

Lamar Gary (Jake) Jacobs B Jun. 9, 1937 D Jul 26, 2010

Jake Jacobs was a late season callup in 1960 where he appeared in 6 games for the original Senators during their last gasp in Washington. He went west with the franchise to Minnesota in 1961, where he appeared in another 4 games in late September and then departed the major leagues.

“Jake” Jacobs career record

Emil Frederick (Irish) Meusel B Jun. 9, 1893 D Mar. 1, 1963

The brother of noted New York Yankee Bob Meusel, “Irish” Meusel got his start in the majors with a one game appearance with the 1914 Senators, playing left field and going 0-2 at bat.

Unlike some One Game Wonders that we’ve noted in this thread, Irish Meusel would return to the majors in 1918 and put in 10 solid years with the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Giants and Brooklyn Robins, finishing with a career BA of .310. His best year would be with the 1921 Phillies when he hit .353 in 84 games.

“Irish” Meusel career record

James Madison Pearce B Jun. 9, 1925 D Jul. 17, 2005

Jim Pearce appeared in 30 major league games over the course of 5 seasons. Starting with the Senators in September of 1949, he would appear in a Senators uniform again in 1950 and then would not return until 1953. He finished his career with the Cincinnati Reds in 1954 & 1955.

His most active season would be 1950 when he appeared in 20 of those 30 games, going 2-1 in 56.2 innings with a 6.04 ERA.

Jim Pearce career record