MARCH 8, 1946
The first spring training game ever to be played in Arizona takes place at Tucson’s Hi Corbett Field. The Indians, behind the pitching of Bob Lemon, beat the Giants, 3-1, in the inaugural Cactus League contest. (Nationalpastime.com)
In the first trade under the peace treaty between the American and National Leagues, the Tigers swap second baseman Kid Gleason to the Giants for Heinie Smith, the team’s part-time manager. New York immediately sends its newest infielder to the Phillies, where he will hit .250 during the final six years of his career.(Nationalpastime.com)
High winds tear off the grandstand roof of Manhattan’s Southeast Diamond, but the one-year-old ballpark will be ready for the Gothams’ National League home opener on May 1st. The team, renamed the Giants next season, will win their first dozen games at the repaired facility at 5th Avenue and 110th Street, commonly called Polo Grounds because the sport of kings took place at the site in the 1870s. (Nationalpastime.com)
Giants’ manager John McGraw reluctantly grants Slim Sallee’s wish and sells him to the Reds, but the team will reacquire the southpaw late next season, selecting off him waivers from Cincinnati. During his five seasons with New York, ‘Scatter’ compiles a 42-23 (.646) record and an ERA of 2.26. (Nationalpastime.com)
Manhattan Borough President Hulan Jack announces plans for a new 110,000-seat stadium with the intention of keeping the the Giants in the Big Apple. The proposed $75 million ballpark, planned to span the New York Central railroad tracks, will prove too costly to build, and will become a significant reason why owner’s Horace Stoneham’s decided to relocate the team to the West Coast. (Nationalpastime.com)
