April 18, 1949

Day 1

Start of the Season

There’s really nothing quite like the start of a new replay. It’s a brand new beginning, a new start to an old season, and all the magic of April comes with it. With nothing but zeros in the standings, you start to believe that anything could happen, imagining the surprises and twists and turns that surely await you.

It’s not April right now, of course – it’s late December. The feeling, however, remains the same. It’s like a fresh blanket of snow falling on Christmas morning – a renewing feeling, a feeling that anything really is possible.

Tradition

Any fan of baseball history will tell you that opening day traditionally began in two places: in Washington, D.C. for the American League, and in Cincinnati, Ohio for the National.

Sometimes, though, historical reality flies in the face of our memories.

1949 is particularly interesting because the National League season began in Boston, not in Cincinnati. The Reds did host the Cardinals for their first game of the season – but that didn’t take place until April 19th, a full day after the Braves lifted the lid.

I don’t know why this was the case. I was able to take a quick look at the as-played schedule database over on Retrosheet, though, and noticed that the exclusive tradition really wasn’t much of a tradition, nor was it all that exclusive.

The Senators and Reds opened the season at home on April 19, 1948, for example – but had to share the festivities with the Red Sox, who had their traditional Patriot Day double-header to kick things off. And can you imagine opening day being a double header? It feels like something outer-worldly, like something completely foreign to our day and age.

The Senators were supposed to have the April 14, 1947 opening day all to themselves – but their game with the Yankees was rained out. They wound up in Boston the next day – so much for the presidential tradition!

Meanwhile, every Major League team was active on April 18, 1950 – once again removing any exclusivity from the Senators and Reds.

Game of the Day

Neither game was particularly memorable, though I thought I’d quickly mention Washington’s loss.

It might look like a close game on paper, but it really wasn’t. The 6-3 final score is flattering to a Senators offense that looked anemic all game long.

I’m responsible for all of those substitutions, too. In fact, I’m fully responsible for the lineups of both teams, as well as the starting pitchers. Washington felt so far behind when it was 5-1 in the 6th that I figured I might as well give some of the players on the bench a chance. Sid Hudson gave up more than a walk per inning, which is something we’re really going to have to get used to as this replay moves along.

Philadelphia also managed one defensive double play in this game – something that we’re going to have to keep an eye on as we proceed.

All in all, it wasn’t quite the close and exciting game that you always want to see on Opening Day. It was fun, though.

Braves 5, Phillies 1 – In Boston, Warren Spahn threw a 5-hit complete game as the National League champion Boston Braves dismantled the Phillies, 5-1.

Standings

It’s far too early to look, but I figured you might want to see the standings anyway: