This day in sports: Fernando Tatis becomes first player to hit two grand slams in an inning
To say it wasn’t pitcher Chan Ho Park’s night on this date in 1999 might have been the understatement of the season. In front of a boisterous crowd of 46,687 on a cool Friday at Dodger Stadium, the St. Louis Cardinals rocked the Dodgers starter for 11 runs on eight hits in less than three innings of a 12-5 loss, highlighted by Fernando Tatis’ two grand slams.
A line drive into the Dodgers bullpen and a shot into the left-field pavilion put Tatis in baseball’s record book as the first player to hit two grand slams in one inning. His eight RBIs also set a record for the most in one inning.
In baseball games postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Dodgers were scheduled to play a day game in Washington against the Nationals on Thursday, and the Angels were set to start a four-game series against the Chicago White Sox at Angel Stadium.
A look at some of the biggest moments in sports history that occurred on April 12.
Here is a look at memorable games and outstanding sports performances on this date:
1950 — The Minneapolis Lakers are the first team to win an NBA title, defeating the Syracuse Nationals 110-95 in Game 6. George Mikan scores 40 points, four Lakers foul out and Nationals coach Al Cervi is ejected for complaining about a call. It is the Lakers’ third consecutive professional championship. In 1948, they are the toast of the National Basketball League, and in 1949 they win the Basketball Assn. of America title. Later that year, the BAA becomes the National Basketball Assn.
1954 — The NBA Board of Governors ushers in the modern era of professional basketball by adopting the 24-second shot clock. Teams will no longer be allowed to freeze the ball and run out the clock in a tight game.
1969 — Jerry West scores 53 points to lead the Lakers over the Boston Celtics 120-118 in the opener of the NBA Finals. Elgin Baylor adds 24 points, and John Havlicek scores 37 for the Celtics. Bill Russell tops Wilt Chamberlain in a rebounding derby 27-23.
1993 — The Dallas Mavericks avoid matching the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers as the worst team in NBA history by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 103-100 for their 10th win of the season. They finish with a record of 11-71 and a .134 percentage.
1996 — An NHL single-game record of 28,183 fans watch the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 in the Thunderdome at St. Petersburg, Fla. Tampa Bay had set the previous single-game mark of 27,227 in its first regular-season game in the Devil Rays’ baseball stadium.
1999— New York says goodbye to Joe DiMaggio in a simple memorial service at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The overflow crowd at the Manhattan church includes former Yankees teammates Yogi Berra, Phil Rizzuto and Bobby Brown, along with former Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca and Yankees owner George Steinbrenner. The Hall of Famer dies on March 8 at age 84 of lung cancer and is buried in California, but his family and friends want a service in the city where he was catapulted into national spotlight.
2002 — Goaltender Brent Johnson of the St. Louis Blues ties an NHL record with his third shutout in the playoffs. That had not happened in 57 years, and Johnson reaches the mark with a 1-0 stoppage of the Chicago Blackhawks.
A look at what happened on April 6 in sports history.
2005 — Alex Smith of Utah is the first pick in the NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He’s the fifth consecutive quarterback to be taken first overall and seventh in the last eight years. However, the next quarterback isn’t taken until Green Bay selects California’s Aaron Rodgers at No. 24.
2007 — Alex Rodriguez is the first player in major league history to hit 14 home runs in the first 18 games of a season, batting over .400 in that span. He also ties the record for home runs in April, connecting in the second and ninth innings of the New York Yankees’ 10-8 loss to Tampa Bay.
2019— Southampton striker Shane Long scores the fastest goal in English Premier League history when he puts the ball in the nets after 7.69 seconds in a 1-1 draw at Watford. The previous record was 10 seconds by Tottenham’s Ledley King against Bradford City in 2000.
SOURCES: The Times, Associated Press
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
