March 29, 1973: Orange Baseballs In Spring Training

March 29, 1973: The Cleveland Indians beat the Oakland Athletics, 11-5 in a Spring Training game in Mesa, Arizona. Orange baseballs were used, an idea of A's owner Charlie Finley. He thought they would be easier to see in night games.

They were not used in regular-season games, yet another Finley idea that quickly went down the drain.

The idea wasn't completely original. In 1938, thinking of how Detroit Tigers catcher and manager Mickey Cochrane saw his career end with a beaning the year before, Brooklyn Dodgers general manager Larry MacPhail announced that on August 2, in the 1st game of a doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals at Ebbets Field, the teams would use yellow baseballs. The Dodgers swept the doubleheader: They won the opener, 6-2, using yellow balls; and the nightcap, 9-3, with the usual white balls.

After the season, the National League voted to permit use of the yellow baseball as long, as opposing managers agree to the use of the ball before such games. But it was only used a few times in 1939, and never again, not even in night games.

Finley tried a lot of things to raise attendance, especially when the A's were still in Kansas City: The "Pennant Porch," to raise home run totals, which only seemed to work for the opposition; sheep grazing on the field, to save on groundskeeping costs; and, in Oakland, world-class sprinter Herb Washington as a "designated runner," to steal bases, without ever coming to bat or playing a field position.

Most of them didn't work. Nothing worked, not even winning 5 straight Division titles from 1971 to 1975, and 3 straight World Series from 1972 to 1974.

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March 29, 1973 was a Thursday. Dutch soccer star Marc Overmars was born.

Baseball, as I said, was in Spring Training. Football was out of season. There were no games in either the NBA or the ABA.

There were 2 games in the NHL. The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings, 6-4 at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit. And the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Atlanta Flames, 4-2 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

And there were 4 games in the World Hockey Association:

* The New York Raiders lost to the Houston Aeros, 5-3 at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston.

* The Philadelphia Blazers beat the Alberta Oilers, 2-1 at the Philadelphia Arena.

* The Ottawa Nationals beat the New England Whalers, 5-2 at the Ottawa Civic Centre (now the TD Place Arena).

* And the Quebec Nordiques beat the Minnesota Fighting Saints, 5-3 at the St. Paul Civic Center.