September 18, 1931: The Japanese Invasion of Manchuria

September 18, 1931: The Kwantung Army, representing Japan, invades the province of Manchuria in northeastern China, and sets up the "puppet state" of Manchukuo.

As with Nazi Germany and the Reichstag Fire a year and a half later, the invasion is based on a lie: "The Mukden Incident," the bombing of a Japanese-owned railway in Manchuria. Of course, the Japanese did it to themselves, to give themselves the seemingly-justified excuse to invade.

The incident led to a 14-year conflict that has been considered the start of the Pacific phase of World War II. It was also a factor in the destabilization of China that made Mao Zedong's Communist revolution possible.

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September 18, 1931 was a Friday. These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns, 14-4 at Yankee Stadium. Babe Ruth and Tony Lazzeri hit home runs, and Lou Gehrig went 3-for-4, in support of Herb Pennock.

* The New York Giants lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-3 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Bill Terry went 2-for-4, and Mel Ott went 1-for-2 before being taken out for a pinch-runner. Sparky Adams went 4-for-5 for the Cardinals, and Pepper Martin singled home Chick Hafey in the bottom of the 9th.

* The Brooklyn Robins beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. This was the Brooklyn team's final month under manager Wilbert Robinson, hence the name "Robins." The next season, they would again be the Brooklyn Dodgers.

* The Boston Red Sox swept a doubleheader from the Cleveland Indians, 6-1 and 6-4 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-1 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Jimmie Foxx and Mickey Cochrane did not play, but Al Simmons went 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs in support of Lefty Grove.

* The Washington Senators beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-3 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Heinie Manush scored on a wild pitch by Earl Whitehill in the bottom of the 12th inning.

* A doubleheader was split at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. The Boston Braves won the opener, 6-2. The Pittsburgh Pirates won the nightcap, 4-1. Between them, the Waner brothers, Paul and Lloyd, went 7-for-16 with an RBI, while Pie Traynor went 5-for-8 with a homer and 3 RBIs.

* And the day's game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field in Cincinnati was postponed to the next day, not because of bad weather, but because the Reds wanted a bigger crowd on a Saturday. It didn't work: Not only did just 1,700 fans come out, but the Phils swept, 3-2 and 5-3.