On This Date: Former College Hoopers Make News on July 29 MLB Games

July 29th, 2020 - 7:41

Extra! Extra! Unless you're a cardboard cut-out, you can read news all about memorable major league baseball achievements and moments involving former college basketball players. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Nonetheless, numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games, transactions and dates in MLB history.

Former NYU hoopers Hank Greenberg and Sam Mele made MLB news on this date. Ditto a pair of ex-small college hoopers from Washington - Billy North (Central Washington) and Ray Washburn (Whitworth). Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a July 29 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

JULY 29

  • Philadelphia Phillies RHP Ray Benge (multi-year hoops letterman for Sam Houston State first half of 1920s) hurled a five-hit shutout against the Chicago Cubs in 1931. It was his first of four complete-game victories in a three-week span.

  • Chicago White Sox rookie 1B Zeke Bonura (best basketball forward for Loyola LA in late 1920s and early 1930s) belted two homers in a 16-15 setback against the Detroit Tigers in 1934.

  • Minnesota Twins 2B John Castino (medical redshirt for Rollins FL in 1973-74 under coach Ed Jucker) contributed four hits, including decisive homer in bottom of eighth inning, in 4-3 win against the Seattle Mariners in 1983.

  • Philadelphia Athletics RHP Jack Coombs (captain and starting basketball center for Colby ME) posted his 10th victory of the month in 1910.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers RHP Roger Craig (forward with North Carolina State's 1949-50 freshman hoops team) secured his second shutout in a nine-day span in 1959. Three years later with the New York Mets, Craig lost his sixth straight decision during the month in 1962.

  • Chicago White Sox CF Larry Doby (reserve guard for Virginia Union's 1943 CIAA hoops titlist) homered twice in the opener en route to knocking in eight runs in a 1956 doubleheader sweep of the Boston Red Sox.

  • OF Hoot Evers (hoops starter for Illinois in 1939-40) awarded on waivers from the New York Giants to the Detroit Tigers in 1954.

  • Philadelphia Phillies 3B Gene Freese (West Liberty WV hoops captain of 1952 NAIA Tournament team) homered in his third consecutive contest in 1959.

  • Detroit Tigers 1B Hank Greenberg (enrolled at NYU on hoops scholarship in 1929 but attended college only one semester) banged out four hits against the New York Yankees in 1937. the next year, Greenberg blasted two homers for the third time in a four-game span in 1938.

  • San Diego Padres RF Tony Gwynn (All-WAC second-team selection with San Diego State in 1979-80 and 1980-81) stroked three doubles against the New York Mets in a 1998 game.

  • New York Yankees LHP Steve Hamilton (All-OVC selection was Morehead State's leading scorer and rebounder in 1956-57 and 1957-58) notched a hold against the California Angels as he went unscored upon two months in a row covering 12 relief appearances in 1970.

  • Cleveland Indians 1B Mike Hargrove (Northwestern Oklahoma State hoops letterman) homered twice against the Seattle Mariners in a 1980 contest.

  • Brooklyn Robins rookie 1B Buddy Hassett (hooper for Manhattan team winning school-record 17 consecutive games in 1930 and 1931) collected four runs, two triples and five RBI against the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a 1936 doubleheader.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers RF Frank Howard (two-time All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection when leading Ohio State in scoring and rebounding in 1956-57 and 1957-58) homered in all five games of series against the San Francisco Giants closing out the month in 1962.

  • Detroit Tigers SS Harvey Kuenn (played hoops briefly for Wisconsin in 1951-52 after competing on JV squad previous season) contributed four hits against the Philadelphia Athletics in the nightcap of a 1954 twinbill.

  • Chicago Cubs 3B Vance Law (averaged 6.8 ppg for Brigham Young from 1974-75 through 1976-77) smacked two homers against the Philadelphia Phillies in a 1988 game.

  • Cincinnati Reds RF Danny Litwhiler (member of JV hoops squad with Bloomsburg PA in mid-1930s) went 4-for-4 for the second time in an eight-game span in 1948.

  • Chicago White Sox P Joel Horlen, flirting with a no-hitter entering the ninth inning, wound up losing the game, 2-1, when OF Don Lock (Wichita State field-goal percentage leader in 1956-57 and 1957-58 under coach Ralph Miller) socked a homer for the Washington Senators in 1963. LF Chuck Hinton (played multiple sports for Shaw NC) broke up the no-hit bid with a one-out single in the ninth. The next year, Lock knocked in all of the Senators' runs with two homers in a 4-1 win against the Cleveland Indians.

  • St. Louis Cardinals rookie CF Bake McBride (averaged 12.7 ppg and 8.1 rpg in 21 games with Westminster MO in 1968-69 and 1969-70) posted his third three-hit game in a row in series against the Chicago Cubs in 1974.

  • OF Sam Mele (NYU's leading scorer in 1943 NCAA playoffs) awarded on waivers from the Baltimore Orioles to the Boston Red Sox in 1954.

  • Cleveland Indians 1B Ed Morgan (Tulane hoops letterman from 1923-24 through 1925-26) went 5-for-5 and chipped in with five RBI in a 14-7 win against the Detroit Tigers in 1929.

  • Oakland Athletics CF Billy North (played hoops briefly for Central Washington in 1967-68) collected four RBI in an 11-9 victory against the Chicago White Sox in 1974.

  • RHP Paul Reuschel (Western Illinois' leading rebounder in 1966-67 with 15.2 per game) posted the save when the Cleveland Indians extended their winning streak to seven games with a 9-6 decision over the Chicago White Sox in 1979.

  • In 1963, Minnesota Twins rookie LHP Garry Roggenburk (Dayton's leading scorer three straight seasons from 1959-60 through 1961-62 grabbed school-record 32 rebounds in third varsity game) didn't allow an earned run in his first eight relief appearances of the month until the Red Sox tallied one earned run 4 2/3 innings against him.

  • Philadelphia Phillies SS Roy Smalley Jr. (one of top scorers for Drury MO in 1942-43 and 1943-44) snapped a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning with his second of two triples against the Milwaukee Braves in a 1956 game.

  • St. Louis Cardinals RHP Ray Washburn (Whitworth WA leading scorer as All-Evergreen Conference pick in 1958-59 and 1959-60) won his seventh straight decision in 1968 with fifth victory of the month while compiling a 0.90 ERA over those last five starts.

  • Boston Red Sox C Sammy White (All-PCC Northern Division first-five selection for Washington in 1947-48 and 1948-49) went 4-for-4 in a 1959 contest against the Cleveland Indians.

  • Philadelphia Phillies CF Cy Williams (Notre Dame hoops forward in 1909-10) homered twice against the St. Louis Cardinals in a 1923 outing.

  • In 2005, LF Randy Winn (Santa Clara backcourtmate of eventual two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Steve Nash in 1993-94) manufactured four hits in his final game with the Seattle Mariners.