A Cardinal Day

On April 27, 1896, Rogers Hornsby was born in Winters, Texas. Arguably the greatest hitting second-baseman in baseball history, Hornsby won six straight batting titles for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1920 to 1925. He twice won the NL triple crown, and in 1924 he batted .424, the highest single-season mark for the twentieth century. Hornsby's .358 lifetime batting average is second only to Ty Cobb.

Other Cardinals with birthdays on this date include Hall of Famer Enos Slaughter and current St. Louis ace Chris Carpenter. April 27 has been a good day for the Redbirds.

Classic Ballparks

On this date three venerable stadiums hosted their first major league baseball games:

Tiger Stadium: 1912
Fenway Park: 1912
Wrigley Field: 1916*

Tiger Stadium (originally called Navin Field)

Fenway Park

Wrigley Field (originally called Weeghman Park)

*In 1914 and 1915, the Chicago Whales of the Federal League (recognized as a major league) played at the stadium now called Wrigley Field. April 20, 1916 is the first day the Chicago Cubs played at Wrigley. 

Jackie Robinson Day

On April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson made his debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers, thereby integrating major league baseball. At ballparks across the nation, players are wearing the number 42 today in honor of Robinson's pioneering achievement.

Dottie Schroeder

Dorothy "Dottie" Schroeder was born on this date in 1928. At the age of fifteen, she became the youngest player in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. She remained in the league for all twelve years of its existence, playing shortstop for the South Bend Blue Sox, Kenosha Comets, Fort Wayne Daisies, and Kalamazoo Lassies. Schroeder was one of the league's best fielders and ranks as the AAGPBL's all-time leader in games played (1,249), RBI, and walks. She also tallied the second highest total of hits, while becoming one of the AAGPBL's most popular players.

Learn more about Dottie and the AAGPBL at http://www.aagpbl.org/

One Tough Dominican

On this date 35 years ago, pitcher Joaquin Andujar made his major league debut with Houston. The Astros traded him to St. Louis a few years later. In the second half of the 1982 season, Andujar emerged as the Cardinals ace, finishing the season at 15-10 with a 2.47 ERA. He played a vital role in St. Louis's title run that October by winning Game 3 of the NLCS and two games (including Game 7) in the World Series. In 1984 and 1985, Andujar posted back-to-back 20-win seasons. He was to the Cardinals then, what Chris Carpenter is to the Cardinals now. Hopefully in 2011 Carpenter will match Andujar's achievement by notching his second 20-win season as a Cardinal.

You never know.