Braves Franchise History
1953 – The Milwaukee Braves became the first franchise to move since 1903 when the Baltimore Orioles became the New York Highlanders. The Braves had been in Boston for 77 years. In a related move, the minor league Milwaukee Brewers move to Toledo, Ohio where they will become the Toledo Mud Hens.
1994 – The Atlanta Braves release outfielder Ron Gant, who suffered a broken leg in a motorcycle accident over the winter. Gant will sign with the Cincinnati Reds in June.
MLB History
1942 – Jackie Robinson and Nate Moreland request a tryout for the Chicago White Sox during spring training in California. Manager Jimmie Dykes all the two players to work out but later dismisses them. Robinson will make his major league debut five years later with the Dodgers.
1970 – Cleveland and Seattle play an exhibition game with the experimental X-5 ball, which is reportedly five percent livelier than the regulation baseball. Seattle wins 19-14 and a week later, commissioner Bowie Kuhn orders the X-5 to be discontinued.
1981 – Catcher Carlton Fisk signs a five-year, $2.9 million deal with the Chicago White Sox.
1985 – Commissioner Peter Ueberroth reinstates Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle who had been banned from association with organized baseball by former commissioner Bowie Kuhn due to their employment by Atlantic City casinos.
1990 – Major League Baseball and the MLBPA reach a new collective bargaining agreement that will end the 32-day lockout of spring camps.
2009 – The Chicago Cubs announce that they will retire No. 31 in honor of Greg Maddux and Ferguson Jenkins in May.
Information for this article was found via Baseball Reference, NationalPastime.com and Today in Baseball History.
