On This Date: Ex-College Hoopsters Make Their Mark on April 5 MLB Games

April 5th, 2016 - 7:03

Extra! Extra! As a new season commences, read all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players! Numerous ex-college hoopsters had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 5 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 5

  • INF Frank Baker (Southern Mississippi basketball letterman in 1965-66 and 1966-67) traded by the New York Yankees to the Baltimore Orioles in 1973.

  • Detroit Tigers 1B Tony Clark (San Diego State's leading scorer in WAC games in 1991-92) smacked two homers among his four hits in a 15-12 win against the Chicago White Sox in 1997. Four years later, Clark contributed four hits against the Minnesota Twins in 2001.

  • LHP Fred Kipp (two-time all-conference selection for Emporia State KS in early 1950s) traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the New York Yankees in 1960.

  • RHP Roger Mason (multiple-year letterman for Saginaw Valley State MI in late 1970s) traded by the Detroit Tigers to the San Francisco Giants in 1985.

  • OF Ted Savage (led Lincoln MO in scoring average in 1955-56) purchased from the Cincinnati Reds by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1970.

  • OF Ken Singleton (Hofstra freshman squad in mid-1960s) traded with Tim Foli and Mike Jorgensen by the New York Mets to the Montreal Expos for Rusty Staub in 1972.

  • Atlanta Braves reliever Cecil Upshaw (led Centenary in scoring as a junior while averaging 13.7 ppg and 6 rpg from 1961-62 through 1963-64) registered the victory in a season-opening 7-4 success at Cincinnati in 1971. Upshaw missed the previous campaign after almost losing the ring finger on his right hand when it go entangled in a net while dunking a basketball.

  • RHP Chris Young (All-Ivy League first-team selection as Princeton's leading scorer and rebounder in 1999-00) became the first hurler in New York Mets history to collect two hits in an inning (pair of singles in third against the Philadelphia Phillies in 2011). Young contributed a third single in the fifth in his first start with the Mets.