Post War Baseball League (PWBL) - 1956
Actual 1956 Events
| January 6 | A federal court bars former Little League Commissioner Carl Stotz from forming a rival group. He initiated the suit because he felt the league had grown too big, and that increasing team rosters to 15 players was preventing less able players from getting any real playing time. |
| January 19 | The City of Hoboken dedicates a plaque honoring the achievements of Alexander Cartwright in organizing early baseball at Elysian Field in the New Jersey city. |
| January 27 | The New York Giants football team switches its home games to Yankee Stadium, leading to speculation that the baseball team will soon vacate the Polo Grounds as well. |
| February 4 | The A.L. says it will test the automatic intentional walk during spring training. |
| February 5 | New York City Mayor Robert Wagner and Brooklyn Borough President Frank Cashmore sponsor a bill to create a Brooklyn Sports Center Authority, which will propose building a $30 million downtown sports center. |
| February 8 | The legendary Connie Mack dies at age 93. After managing Pittsburgh's N.L. club from 1894 to 1896, the former catcher became a prominent figure in Ban Johnson's Western League. Mack was a founder of the American League and its Philadelphia franchise in l901. In 50 years with the Athletics, he won nine pennants and five World Championships - but also finished last 17 times. |
| February 15 | The Pirates and the Kansas City A's cancel an exhibition game in Birmingham, Alabama, because of a local ordinance barring black players from playing against white players. |
| March 3 | In an effort to keep the Giants in New York, Manhattan Borough President Hulan Jack makes plans for a new 110,000-seat stadium over the New York Central railroad tracks, on a 470,000-foot site stretching from 60th to 72nd streets on Manhattan's West Side. The estimated cost of $75M for the stadium eventually dooms the project and will be a major factor in Horace Stoneham's decision to move to San Francisco. |
| March 14 | Satchel Paige signs with the Birmingham Black Barons (Negro League) at age 50 to both play and manage. |
| April 19 | The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-4, in 10 innings at Roosevelt Stadium in the first major-league game ever held in New Jersey. |
| April 24 | A.L. umpire Frank Umont is the first to wear glasses in a regular season game when he officiates a contest between Detroit and Kansas City. The former NFL tackle (New York Giants) still presents an intimidating appearance to most players and fans. |
| April 28 | Redlegs rookie left fielder Frank Robinson hits the first of his 586 lifetime home runs. The home run is off Cubs hurler Paul Minner in Crosley Field. Cincinnati's Wally Post hits four home runs in a doubleheader sweep for the Redlegs. |
| May 30 | |
| June 20 | At Detroit's Briggs Stadium, Mickey Mantle poles two Billy Hoeft pitches into the right center field bleachers, something no other player had done since the bleachers were built in the late 1930s. New York wins 7-4. |
| July 6 | Ford Frick inaugurates the Cy Young Award, to honor one outstanding pitcher each year. The Baseball Writers Association will do the voting. Only one pitcher will be honored each year until 1967, when a pitcher in each league will be selected. |
| July 10 | In the All-Star Game, Ken Boyer of the Cardinals makes three sparkling plays at third base and gets three hits as the N.L. defeats the A.L. 7-3. Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams, and Stan Musial all homer. Mays' pinch-hit two-run home run off Whitey Ford is his seventh straight hit against the Yankee lefty. |
| July 14 | Mel Parnell of the Boston Red Sox pitched a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox for a 4-0 victory at Fenway Park. |
| July 21 | Brooks Lawrence of the Cincinnati Reds had his 13-game winning streak broken as Roberto Clemente's three-run homer led the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 4-3 victory. |
| July 23 | Joe Cronin and Hank Greenberg are officially inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame at Cooperstown, New York. |
| July 25 | Brooklyn right fielder Carl Furillo is the first Dodger player to homer in Jersey City, as the Dodgers lose to the Reds, 2-1. |
| August 7 | The largest crowd in minor league history, 57,000, saw 51-year-old Satchel Paige of Miami beat Columbus in an International League game played in the Orange Bowl. |
| August 18 | The Cincinnati Reds hit eight home runs and the Milwaukee Braves added two to set a National League record for two clubs in a nine-inning night game. Bob Thurman's three homers and double led the Reds in the 13-4 rout. |
| August 25 | To make room for Enos Slaughter, the Yankees give Phil Rizzuto his unconditional release. Through the instigation of Ballantine Beer, Rizzuto will be in the announcing booth next year, replacing Jim Woods. |
| September 11 | Frank Robinson of the Cincinnati Reds tied a rookie record for home runs in a season with his 38th homer of the year. The blow came off Steve Ridzik of the New York Giants and the Reds went on to an 11-5 victory. |
| September 18 | Mickey Mantle hits his 50th home run, making him the eighth player to do so, in the eleventh inning off Chicago's Billy Pierce. New York wins 3-2 to clinch another pennant. Mickey Mantle will win the Triple Crown with a .353 batting average, 52 home runs and 130 RBI. |
| September 30 | White Sox hurler Jim Derrington becomes the youngest pitcher in modern history to start a game. He loses to Kansas City 7-6 at the age of 16 years and 10 months. |
| October 3 | Sal Maglie and the Dodgers defeat the Yankees 6-3 in the opening game of the World Series. |
| October 8 | Don Larsen of the New York Yankees pitched the only perfect game in World Series history for a 2-0 triumph over the Brooklyn Dodgers. Sal Maglie, the opposing pitcher, gave up five hits. |
| October 9 | The Dodgers bounce back after Don Larsen's perfect game to tie the series in Game Six. Clem Labine comes out of the bullpen to pitch a 1-0 victory over the Yankees in 10 innings. |
| October 10 | Johnny Kucks sets down Brooklyn, 9-0, as the Yankees win the World Series in seven games. Yogi Berra hits a pair of two-run home runs and Bill Skowron hits a grand slam. It's the seventh and final time Brooklyn and the Yankees meet in the Series. In the future, it will take a jet, not a subway, to get these two teams together. |
| October 24 | The AP names Cincinnati manager Birdie Tebbets as its NL Manager of the Year. |
| October 30 | The Dodgers sell Ebbets Field to a real estate group. They agree to stay until 1959, with an option to stay until 1961. |
| November 21 | Don Newcombe, who won the l949 Rookie of the Year Award, takes home both the National League Most Valuable Player and the first-ever Cy Young Award. |
| December 1 | Cincinnati slugger Frank Robinson is unanimously voted the NL Rookie of the Year. White Sox shortstop Luis Aparicio is voted AL Rookie of the Year with 22 points, beating out Baltimore's Tito Francona and Rocky Colavito of the Indians. |
| December 13 | The Dodgers trade Jackie Robinson to the Giants for pitcher Dick Littlefield and $35,000. Robinson retires rather than accept the trade. |
| December 18 | Former Yankees shortstop Phil Rizzuto signs as a Yankee radio-TV announcer. |
Regular Season Statistics | Transactions | 1956 MLB History
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Statistics
Transactions
All PWBL Trades | All Free Agent Transactions
Recent Birthdays:
 | Lou Berberet Born: 1929 Nov 20 Died: 2004 Apr 06 Age: 74 Debut: 1954 Sep 17 Last G: 1960 Sep 25 |
 | Lew Burdette Born: 1926 Nov 22 Died: 2007 Feb 06 Age: 80 Debut: 1950 Sep 26 Last G: 1967 Jul 16 |
 | Roy Campanella Born: 1921 Nov 19 Died: 1993 Jun 26 Age: 71 Debut: 1948 Apr 20 Last G: 1957 Sep 29 |
 | Bob Friend Born: 1930 Nov 24 Died: 2019 Feb 03 Age: 88 Debut: 1951 Apr 28 Last G: 1966 Sep 24 |
 | Warren Hacker Born: 1924 Nov 21 Died: 2002 May 22 Age: 77 Debut: 1948 Sep 24 Last G: 1961 Sep 29 |
 | Gene Mauch Born: 1925 Nov 18 Died: 2005 Aug 08 Age: 79 Debut: 1944 Apr 18 Last G: 1957 Sep 28 |
 | Stan Musial Born: 1920 Nov 21 Died: 2013 Jan 19 Age: 92 Debut: 1941 Sep 17 Last G: 1963 Sep 29 |
 | Rocky Nelson Born: 1924 Nov 18 Died: 2006 Oct 31 Age: 81 Debut: 1949 Apr 27 Last G: 1961 Sep 29 |
 | Roy Sievers Born: 1926 Nov 18 Died: 2017 Apr 03 Age: 90 Debut: 1949 Apr 21 Last G: 1965 May 09 |