May 4th

May 4th in 1990s Baseball

1990s Baseball Birthdays
Miguel Cairo 1998 Pacific Baseball Card

Happy 1990s Birthday to Miguel Cairo, who was the Opening Day second baseman for the Rays in thie first game and spent 17 years in the bigs.
He also briefly managed the White Sox in 2022.

Ben Grieve 1998 Bowman Baseball Card

Happy 1990s Birthday to 1998 A.L. Rookie of the Year Ben Grieve!

Eddie Perez 1996 Fleer Baseball Card

Happy 1990s Birthday to Eddie Perez, who spent 11 years in the bigs and became Greg Maddux’s de-facto personal catcher.

Happy 1990s Birthday to Ken Oberkfell, who spent 16 years in the bigs, won a ring with the 1982 Cardinals, and later coached and managed in the minor leagues and the big leagues.

Rick Leach 1990 Mothers Cookies Baseball Card

Happy 1990s Birthday to Rick Leach, who played quarterback at Michigan and spent ten years in the bigs with the Tigers, Blue Jays, Rangers, and Giants.
Leach was drafted by the Tigers in the first round of the 1979 draft and he was also drafted by the Broncos in the 5th round.

Brian Maxcy 1996 Fleer Baseball Card

Happy 1990s Birthday to Brian Maxcy, who went 4-5 over two seasons for the Tigers.

Happy 1990s Birthday to Joe Borowski, who was a 32nd-round draft pick by the White Sox in 1989. He made his debut with Baltimore in 1995 and pitched for 12 years, including a 33 save season for the Cubs in 2003 and an A.L. leading 45 saves for Cleveland in 2007.

Happy 1990s Birthday to Manny Aybar, who won 17 games over eight seasons in the bigs with seven teams and also coached in the minor leagues.

Robinson Cancel 1999 Fleer Baseball Card

Happy 1990s Birthday to Robinson Cancel, who appeared in 45 games for Milwaukee, Houston, and the Mets from 1999 through 2011.
His professional career spanned the years 1994 through 2013 with stints in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Mexico, and the Atlantic League among others.

1990s Baseball Trades
Lee Smith 1990 Topps Baseball Card

5/4/90
The Red Sox trade Lee Smith to the Cardinals for Tom Brunansky.
Bruno hits .257 with 15 dingers for the rest of the season while Smith saves 27 games for St. Louis.

1990s Baseball Player Signings
Greg Walker 1990 minor league baseball card

5/4/90
The Orioles sign Greg Walker, who had been released by the White Sox a few days earlier.
He plays in 14 games for Baltimore and his career is over.

1990s Baseball Debuts

5/4/91
Jeff Fassero allows one run in two innings of work against the Padres in his big-league debut.
He goes 2-5 with 8 saves in 55 1/3 innings as a rookie and pitches until 2006.

1990s Baseball Big Days
Chris_James_1991_9_RBI

5/4/91
Chris James goes 4-for-5 with two homers and 9 RBI in a 20-6 Cleveland win over Oakland.

Bobby Witt 1991 Classic I Baseball Card

5/4/91
Bobby Witt strikes out 13 in 7 2/3 innings but also walks six and allows five runs in a 6-5 Rangers win over Detroit.
The man was effectively wild.

5/4/92
Alex Fernandez fires a one-hit shutout against the Brewers with Dante Bichette’s 2nd-inning double as the only hit.

5/4/92
The Pirates trail the Reds 5-1 heading into the bottom of the 6th when they explode for 11 runs on 8 hits, four walks, and two wild pitches.
Jeff King and Jose Lind each double and single in the inning, Cecil Espy collects two singles, and Barry Bonds doubles and walks.
Pittsburgh sends 16 men to the plate and wins the game 12-5.

Sammy Sosa 1993 Upper Deck baseball card

5/4/93
Sammy Sosa goes 5-for-6 with two dingers and 5 RBI in a 14-13 Cubs win over the Rockies.

Lou Whitaker 1994 Collectors Choice Baseball Card

5/4/94
Lou Whitaker goes 2-for-5 with two homers and seven RBI in a 14-7 Tigers win over Texas.
Pittsburgh sends 16 men to the plate and wins the game 12-5.

Todd Hundley 1995 Ultra Baseball Card

5/4/95
Todd Hundley’s 10th-inning pinh-hit slam gives the Mets a 5-1 win over the Expos in Montreal.

Andres Galarraga 1996 Collectors Choice Baseball Card

5/4/96
Andres Galarraga goes 3-for-7 with two homers and seven RBI in a 17-5 Rockies win over the Marlins.
Florida starter Chris Hammond gives up three dingers in two-thirds of an inning.

Roger Pavlik 1996 Collectors Choice Baseball Card

5/4/96
Roger Pavlik spins a gem against the Tigers. He throws a complete-game one-hitter, strikes out seven and walks no one.
Mark Lewis’ fifth-inning solo homer is the only hit Pavlik allows.
It’s the second straight game that a Rangers pitcher has one-hit the Tigers.

Sterling Hitchcock 1995 Donruss Baseball Card

5/4/97
A rough day for Sterling Hitchcock, who serves up four homers in 4 1/3 innings in a 9-3 loss to the Expos.

Jeff King 1997 Pinnacle Baseball Card

5/4/97
Jeff King goes 0-for-4 with a walk. It is the 14th straight game in which he has drawn at least one walk and he has an OB% of .484 during the stretch.
The streak ends the following day.

1990s Baseball Transactions
Kirk Gibson 1992 Stadium Club baseball card

5/4/92
The Pirates release Kirk Gibson.
He sits out the rest of the season but returns to the bigs with the Tigers in 1993 and plays through 1995.

1990s Baseball Debuts

5/4/92

After Eric Bell hits Wally Joyner with a pitch, Neal Heaton retaliates by throwing at Albert Belle… twice.

The benches empty and both players are ejected. Heaton owns up to throwing at Belle in the postgame interviews while Belle was “unavailable for comment.” 

 

1990s Baseball Injuries
Scott Brosius 1996 Fleer Baseball Card

5/4/96
Scott Brosius is off to the best start of his career (.351/8/21) when he is by a Mark Gubicza pitch and breaks his wrist.

The injury keeps him out of the lineup until June. 

5/4/97
Julio Franco’s line drive up the middle hits Tigers pitcher Willie Blair in the face, breaking his jaw.
He returns to the mound in June and, remarkably, still wins 16 games in 1997.

Edgardo Alfonzo 1998 Collectors Choice Baseball Card

5/4/98
The Mets place Edgardo ALfonzo on the DL with a strained rotator cuff in his right shoulder.
Initial reports say he could miss 3-6 weeks, but he returns to the lineup on May 19th and bats .283 over the remainder of the season.

1990s Baseball Deaths
Ray Miller 1999 Baseball Card

Former Twins and Orioles manager Ray Miller passed away OTD in 2021

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