May 15, 1957: The Massachusetts Turnpike Opens

May 15, 1957: The Massachusetts Turnpike opens, running from West Stockbridge at the State Line with New York to Massachusetts Route 128 in Weston. In 1959, it was incorporated into the Interstate Highway System, as Interstate 90.

In 1965, the "Mass Pike" was extended to the Central Artery, Interstate 93, in Boston. From 1968 to 1971, it was widened from its original 4 lanes to 8 -- 2 in each direction, to 4. In 2003, it was extended to Logan International Airport, via the Ted Williams Tunnel. (That tunnel had opened in 1995, but only for commercial traffic to and from the airport. Not until 2003 was it open to the general public.)

Originally, the Pike had its exits numbered sequentially, 1 to 26. In 2020, they were renumbered according to their mileposts. Thus, Exit 1 became Exit 3; Exit 4, for Interstate 91, U.S. Route 5, and Springfield, became Exit 45; Exit 9, for Interstate 84, and access to Hartford and New York City, became Exit 78; Exit 11A, for Interstate 495, a beltway around Boston, designed to get people from Southern New England to Northern New England (or vice versa) without having to go through Boston itself, became Exit 106.

Exit 14 (eastbound) and Exit 15 (westbound), for Interstate 95, another beltway around Boston, and access to Rhode Island, and to Route 128, thus to Foxborough, home of the NFL's New England Patriots and MLS' New England Revolution, became Exit 123; Exit 18 (eastbound) and Exit 20 (westbound), for Cambridge, is now Exit 131; Fenway Park, home of baseball's Boston Red Sox, previously between Exits 20 and 21, is now between Exits 131 and 132; Exit 24, for I-93, is now Exit 134; and Exit 26, for the Airport, is now Exit 137.

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May 15, 1957 was a Wednesday. These baseball games were played:

* Just off the Mass Pike, at Fenway Park, the Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers, 11-8. Ted Williams went 1-for-4 with a walk. Mickey Vernon went 2-for-4 with 4 RBIs. Jackie Jensen went 3-for-4 with a walk and 3 RBIs. For the Tigers, Al Kaline went 1-for-5, and Ray Boone (father of Bob, grandfather of Bret and Aaron) went 3-for-5 with an RBI.

* The New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Athletics, 3-0 at Yankee Stadium. Tom Sturdivant pitched a 5-hit shutout. Mickey Mantle went 2-for-3 with a walk.

* The New York Giants lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-5 at the 1st Busch Stadium, formerly the last Sportsman's Park, in St. Louis. Hal Smith singled Del Ennis home with the winning run in the bottom of the 14th inning. Stan Musial went 2-for-5. Willie Mays went 1-for-7.

* The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Milwaukee Braves, 3-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Don Zimmer won it with a home run in the top of the 10th inning. Gil Hodges also homered. Don Drysdale allowed only 2 hits over 7 innings, and Clem Labine pitched 3 hitless innings to get the win. Hank Aaron went 0-for-4.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Baltimore Orioles, 11-8 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Each team scored 3 runs in the 14th inning, and the Indians scored 3 runs in the top of the 16th to win it, with the go-ahead run coming when Rocky Colavito singled home Gene Woodling (a former Yankee -- and a former Oriole). Despite the length of the game, only 1 home run was hit, by Cleveland's Vic Wertz.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Washington Senators, 5-0 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Jim Wilson pitched a 4-hit shutout.

* The Cincinnati Redlegs (as the Reds were known from 1953 to 1958, because McCarthyism was stupid) beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-2 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Frank Robinson went 1-for-5 with an RBI.

* And the Chicago Cubs and the Pittsburgh Pirates were rained out at Wrigley Field in Chicago. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on June 26. The Pirates won the 1st game, 15-5. The 2nd game was tied, 5-5 after 11 innings, when the umpires called it due to darkness. Over the 2 games, Ernie Banks went 2-for-8 with a walk and 3 RBIs. Roberto Clemente was injured, and did not play in either game.