April 11, 1907: The baseball season opens, including with a game at the Polo Grounds in New York. Roger Bresnahan, catcher and Captain of the New York Giants, wears shin guards in a game for the 1st time. Other catchers had done so in the minor leagues and in college games, but Bresnahan was the 1st one to do it in a regular-season major league game. He was inspired by the guards worn by the equivalent position in cricket, the wicket-keeper.
Fans, used to seeing catchers play without protective equipment, threw snowballs on the field, and without police at the game, umpire Bill Klem ruled the field unplayable, and called off the game. Since the home team is responsible for making sure the field is playable, Klem punished the Giants by forfeiting the game to the visiting team, the Philadelphia Phillies.
The press also criticized the use of shin guards. However, other catchers began to adopt Bresnahan's idea. Pittsburgh Pirates manager Fred Clarke protested Bresnahan's gear to the National League office, but the protest was denied and the equipment was approved.
Giants manager John McGraw said, "Bresnahan had a memory almost as good as (Christy) Mathewson or (Joe) McGinnity. He never had to be told twice. Once we had discovered a weak spot in the opposition and had discussed a plan for attacking it, I could depend absolutely on Bresnahan to carry it out. He did not forget. His whole mind was concentrated on winning that particular gamek and it was rarely that he overlooked anything."
Born in 1879 in Toledo, Ohio, a son of Irish immigrants and thus nicknamed "The Duke of Tralee," Bresnahan played in the major leagues from 1897 to 1915, including as a key player for McGraw on the earlier American League version of the Baltimore Orioles in 1901 and 1902, and then with the Giants from 1902 to 1908. He later managed the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals.
He died in 1944. The following year, with the Baseball Hall of Fame still a new institution, and not electing players every year, Bresnahan was elected, more on the basis of his defensive play and team leadership than for his hitting, as he batted just .279 lifetime, and his career stats were typical for a catcher in his time.
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April 11, 1907 was a Thursday. Actor Paul Douglas was born. He starred in 2 baseball-themed movies: It Happens Every Spring in 1949, and the original version of Angels In the Outfield in 1951. He should not be confused with the Paul Douglas who was, at that time, serving Illinois as a Democrat in the U.S. Senate.
These games actually were played that day:
* The New York Highlanders beat the Washington Senators, 3-2 at American League Park in Washington. Frank LaPorte went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Al Orth outpitched former Highlander Tom Hughes. Four months later, on August 2, Walter Johnson would make his major league debut for the Senators, and become one of the best pitchers of all time. In 1913, the Highlanders officially changed their name to one of their nicknames, the New York Yankees.
* The Boston Americans beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 8-4 at Columbia Park in Philadelphia. The Americans scored 3 runs in the top of the 9th inning, but the A's scored 1 in the bottom of the 9th to send the game to extra innings. The Americans scored 4 in the top of the 14th to win it. Cy Young pitched all 14 innings to win. He had just turned 40. The next season, the Americans changed their name to the Boston Red Sox.
* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-3 at The Palace of the Fans in Cincinnati. The Pirates scored a run in the top of the 9th, but the Reds scored 2 in the bottom of the 9th to win it. Honus Wagner went 1-for-3 with 2 walks and a stolen base.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Cleveland Naps, 2-0 at Bennett Park in Detroit. George Mullin pitched a 3-hit shutout. Ty Cobb went 1-for-4 with a stolen base. Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie, the 2nd baseman and manager for Cleveland, went 0-for-4. They became the Cleveland Indians in 1915, and the Cleveland Guardians in 2022.
* The Chicago Cubs beat their arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-1 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. 1st baseman and manager Frank Chance went 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs.
* The St. Louis Browns beat the Chicago White Sox, 1-0 at the 1898-1908 version of Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Harry Howell pitched a 5-hit shutout, to outpitch Nick Altrock.
* And the Brooklyn Superbas and the Boston Doves opened their seasons the next day. The Superbas became the Dodgers in 1911, while the Doves became the Braves in 1912.
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