For much of the season, 2010 was frequently labeled the Year of the Pitcher (though this title is also taken by the 1968 season). 2010 saw many prominent pitching occurrences, including:
Six no-hitters were thrown. They were thrown by Ubaldo Jiménez (April 17), Dallas Braden (May 9), Roy Halladay (May 29), Edwin Jackson (June 25), Matt Garza (July 26), and Halladay again, this time in Game 1 of the NLDS. It was only the third time in major league history that at least six no-hitters were thrown in a single season. Braden's no-hitter and Halladay's first were both perfect games.
Armando Galarraga's near-perfect game (June 2), in which Galarraga set down the first twenty-six Cleveland Indians batters in order before umpire Jim Joyce incorrectly ruled Jason Donald safe at first on a ground ball. If not for Joyce's mistaken call, Galarraga's would have been the third perfect game in a season (an MLB record, but it was later done in 2012 by Philip Humber, Matt Cain, and Félix Hernández), and the third in less than a month.
MLB pitchers combined for 329 shutouts (the most since 1972, when there were 357) and a record 34,306 strikeouts (an average of 1,144 per team).[1][2]
A record-tying 15 pitchers recorded 200 or more strikeouts.
Neftalí Feliz of the Texas Rangers earned 40 saves, breaking the record for most saves in a season for a rookie (previously held by Kazuhiro Sasaki).
Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals struck out 41 batters in his first four major league starts, a major league record.
Bench Coach for the Rockies during the 2009 season. After Hurdle was fired, Tracy took over as interim manager and won Manager of the Year in the National League, and will continue to serve as the manager for the 2010 season.
Director of player development for the Diamondbacks. Melvin was fired during the 2009 season and Hinch served as the interim manager for the remainder of the season.
Bench Coach for the Nationals during the 2009 season. Riggleman took over as interim manager for the 2009 season after Acta was fired during the All-Star Break.
Piniella stepped down early from an earlier announcement of his retirement at the end of the season to tend to his mother's failing health.[3] Quade served as the third-base coach of the Cubs and was named interim manager for the remainder of the season.
As a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Ramirez recorded his 2500th career hit with a single in the 5th inning against the Florida Marlins on April 10. Ramirez became the 91st player to reach this mark.[4]
Ramírez hit his 550th career home run in the 2nd inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 31. He became the 14th player to reach this mark.[5]
Recorded his 1000th career RBI with a double in the 5th inning against the Kansas City Royals on April 14. Damon became the 264th player to reach this mark.
Scored his 1500th career run in the 1st inning against the Los Angeles Angels on April 30. He became the 68th player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 2500th career hit with a single in the 3rd inning against the Baltimore Orioles on July 6. He became the 92nd player to reach this mark.
Collected his 100th career triple against the Texas Rangers on September 15. He became 160th the player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 200th career home run in the 7th inning against the Detroit Tigers on April 14. Guillen became the 296th player to reach this mark. On August 13, Guillen was traded to the San Francisco Giants.
Recorded his 1000th career run scored in the 3rd inning on a Carlos Guillén ground out against the Los Angeles Angels on April 22. Ordonez became the 303rd player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 2000th career hit with a single in the 4th inning against the Minnesota Twins on April 29. He became the 260th player to reach this mark.
Becomes the youngest in Mets history to record his 1000th hit. He reached that mark with a single in the 5th inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second game of a doubleheader on April 27.
Recorded his 200th career stolen base in the 6th inning against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 30. Cabrera became the 337th player to reach this mark.
Was hit by a pitch for the 250th career time on May 12 against the Cleveland Indians. Fausto Carmona was the pitcher that hit him in the 4th inning as Kendall became the 5th player to reach this mark.
Scored his 1000th career run on a Mike Avilés single in the 3rd inning against the Cleveland Indians on May 19. He became the 304th player to reach this mark.
As a member of the Houston Astros, Berkman walked for the 1000th career time on May 27 against the Milwaukee Brewers in the 5th inning by David Bush. Berkman became the 110th player to reach this mark.
Berkman, also as a member of the Astros, scored his 1000th career run on a home run on July 8 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He became the 306th player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 500th career double in the 1st inning against the Kansas City Royals on June 2. Abreu became the 51st player to reach this mark.
Recorded his ninth 20–20 season (20 home runs-20 stolen bases) by hitting his 20th home run on September 19. This is the third-most in history. Bobby Bonds and Barry Bonds hold the record by having ten 20–20 seasons.[6]
Scored his 1000th career run in the 5th inning against the Los Angeles Angels on June 5. Ichiro became the 305th player to reach this mark.
Extended his own record of consecutive 200-hit seasons to ten with a single in the 5th inning against the Toronto Blue Jays on September 23. He has tied Pete Rose for most 200-hit seasons in Major League history.
As a member of the Chicago Cubs, Lee recorded his 300th career home run against the Milwaukee Brewers on June 9. Lee became the 126th player to reach this mark.
Also as a member of the Cubs, Lee scored his 1000th career run against the Colorado Rockies on July 31. He became the 307th player to reach this mark.
Hit his 129th home run as a member of the Rays setting the franchise record against the Toronto Blue Jays on June 10. Pena broke the record that was previously held by Aubrey Huff.
Collected his 1748th hit as a Ranger with a single in the 8th inning against the Florida Marlins. He broke the record that was previously held by Iván Rodríguez.
Collected his 400th career stolen base against the New York Yankees on July 31. Crawford became the 68th player to reach this mark.
Collected his 100th career triple against the Texas Rangers on August 17. He became 159th the player to reach this mark.
By hitting his 100th career home run on August 29, Crawford becomes the eighth Major League player since 1900 to reach 100 home runs, 100 triples and 400 stolen bases for his career. He joins Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Lou Brock, Frankie Frisch, Kenny Lofton, Paul Molitor and Tim Raines as the only players to reach this milestone.
Hit his 144th career home run as a Marlin to set the team record on August 1. Uggla broke the record that was previously held by Mike Lowell. Uggla hit the home run off of the PadresKevin Correia.
Became the first second baseman in Major League history to record four 30-homer seasons by hitting a two-run homer in the 8th inning on September 13 against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Hit his 600th career home run against the Toronto Blue Jays on August 4. Rodriguez became the 7th player to reach this mark. Rodriguez is the youngest player to hit 600, at 35 years and eight days—a year and 188 days younger than Babe Ruth was when he swatted 600. Rodriguez is fourth-quickest to the mark in terms of at-bats. He hit 600 in his 8,689th at-bat, behind Ruth (6,921), Barry Bonds (8,211) and Sammy Sosa (8,637).[8] It was also the same day of the year that he hit his 500th career home run.
Collected his 300th stolen base on August 8 against the Boston Red Sox. He became the 158th player to reach this mark.
Collected his 100th RBI of the season on September 6 against the Baltimore Orioles on a sacrifice fly in the 6th inning. Rodriguez has reached 100 RBI for a Major League record 14th season.
With his 30th home run on September 29 against the Toronto Blue Jays, Rodriguez extended his record of 30 home runs and 100 RBIs seasons to 14.
Collected his 1000th career free pass by walking in 3rd inning on August 5 against the Detroit Tigers. Vizquel became the 111th player to reach this mark.
Pujols became the first player in major league history to begin a career with 10 straight 30-plus homer seasons by hitting a home run on August 15.
Hit his 400th career home run against the Washington Nationals on August 26. He became the 47th player to reach this mark. He became the third youngest player to reach this mark. Alex Rodriguez is the youngest player to get to 400 homers, having done so at 29 years, 316 days. Ken Griffey, Jr. reached the benchmark at 30 years, 141 days. Pujols reached it at 30 years, 222 days.
Hit his 250th career home run against the Florida Marlins on September 8. Howard became the 200th player to reach this mark. Howard's home run came in his 855th career game and is the fastest player in terms of games played to reach 250 career home runs in Major League history. The previous record was held by Ralph Kiner, who did it in 871 games.[9]
Tied the Blue Jays team record for home runs in a season by hitting his 47th home run in the 1st inning against the Baltimore Orioles on September 15. He tied the team record that was set in 1987 by George Bell.
Set the team record by hitting his 48th home run in the 6th inning against the Boston Red Sox on September 17.
Became the 26th player in Major League history to hit 50 home runs in a single season on September 23 against the Seattle Mariners. His home run against MarinersFélix Hernández marked the 42nd time (22nd in the American League) that a player has reach the 50 home run plateau.[10]
With a walk in the first inning on October 2 against the Minnesota Twins, he became the seventh player in major league history to record at least 50 home runs, 100 walks and 30 doubles in the same season. Bautista joins Luis Gonzalez, Sammy Sosa, Hack Wilson, Jimmie Foxx, Barry Bonds and Babe Ruth in accomplishing this feat.
Collected his 1000th RBI as a designated hitter on September 29 against the Chicago White Sox. Ortiz became the second player to top 1000 RBI as a DH joining Edgar Martínez who finished his career with 1003 RBI as a DH.
Became the fourth rookie since 1901 with 100 runs, 180 hits, 30 doubles, 10 triples and 25 stolen bases in a season with a single on September 29 against the Cleveland Indians. He joins Joe Jackson (1911), Juan Samuel (1984) and Hanley Ramírez (2006) as the only rookies to accomplish this feat in Major League history.
On September 29, Bruce joined Bobby Thomson (Giants, 1951), Hank Aaron (Braves, 1957), Alfonso Soriano (Yankees, 1999) and Steve Finley (Dodgers, 2004) as the only players in major league history to hit a home run that clinched their team's postseason berth.
Threw the 19thperfect game in Major League history, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4–0 on May 9, Mother's Day in the USA. Symbolically and coincidentally (as he had lost his mom to breast cancer while in high school), players wore pink wristbands and ribbons on this day to raise breast cancer awareness. It was also the second perfect game in Oakland A's history; the first coming on May 8, 1968 when Jim "Catfish" Hunter beat the Minnesota Twins, 4–0.
Exactly 20 days later, on May 29, Halladay threw the 20th perfect game in Major League history, defeating the Florida Marlins 1–0. This achievement marked the first time in the modern (post-1900) era that two perfect games were pitched in the same season. In 1880, both Lee Richmond and John Montgomery Ward both hurled a perfect game five days apart. It was also the first perfect game for the Phillies since Jim Bunning's Father's Day perfect game on June 21, 1964, beating the New York Mets, 6–0.
Galarraga threw what would have been a third perfect game on June 2 against the Cleveland Indians, however first base umpire Jim Joyce made an errant call on Galarraga's coverage of first base on a flip throw by first baseman Miguel Cabrera, which would have been the final out. "I just cost [Galarraga] a perfect game", Joyce replied. "I thought he beat the throw. I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay. It was the biggest call of my career. I don't blame them a bit or anything that was said. I would've said it myself if I had been Galarraga. I would've been the first person in my face, and he never said a word to me." The 17,738 fans—as well as players and manager Jim Leyland—argued following the game.[11]
Threw the first no-hitter in the Rockies 18-year history by blanking the Atlanta Braves 4–0 on April 17. It was also his first career no-hitter and the first no-hitter of the season.
Threw a no-hitter as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Tampa Bay Rays in a 1–0 win on June 25. It was the second no-hitter in Diamondbacks history and his first in his career. The only other pitcher to have a no-hit game was Randy Johnson against Atlanta, and that was a perfect game in 2004.
Recorded his 150th career victory with a 2–1 complete game victory over the Houston Astros on April 11. Halladay became the 240th player to reach this mark, and also recorded his 50th career complete game.
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout as a member of the Houston Astros against the Cincinnati Reds on April 29. Bronson Arroyo was the victim as he struck out in the 4th inning. Oswalt became the 171st player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 150th career victory with 6.2 innings of work in a 10–1 victory against the Houston Astros on May 1. Hudson became the 241st player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout against the Florida Marlins on August 28. Logan Morrison was the victim as he struck out in the 1st inning. He became the 175th to reach this mark.
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout against the Baltimore Orioles on May 4. Luke Scott was the victim as he struck out in the 4th inning. Burnett became the 172nd player to reach this mark.
Became the oldest pitcher to pitch a complete game shutout in Major League history when at the age of 47 years, 170 days, he beat the Atlanta Braves, 7–0 on May 7 at Citizens Bank Park. Phil Niekro at age 46 years, 188 days was the oldest pitcher to do that beforehand, while Satchel Paige at age 46 years, 75 days, was the oldest non-knuckleball throwing pitcher to accomplish the feat for the St. Louis Browns in 1952.[12] Moyer also became the first pitcher to pitch complete game shutouts in four decades (1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s).
On June 22, allowed his record-tying 505th home run in the 2nd inning to Russell Branyan of the Cleveland Indians. Moyer ties the record that was held by Robin Roberts. In his next start five days later, Moyer allowed his Major League record breaking 506th career home run in the 3rd inning to Vernon Wells of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Recorded his 100th career victory in a 6–5 victory over the Colorado Rockies on May 7. Weaver pitched one-third of an inning to get the victory. Weaver became the 572nd player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 2000th career strikeout against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 12. Vernon Wells was the victim as he struck out in the 4th inning. Wakefield became the 64th pitcher to reach this mark.
Recorded his 250th career save by closing out a 5–3 victory against the New York Yankees on May 22. Rodriguez became the 29th player to reach this mark.
Pitched in his 1000th career game on May 23 against the Minnesota Twins. Hoffman worked the 8th inning in the 4–3 victory. Hoffman became the 14th pitcher to reach this mark.
Recorded his 600th career save by closing out a 4–2 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals on September 7. He became the 1st player to reach this mark.
On June 8, becomes the first player in Major League history with at least 11 strikeouts and no walks in a major league debut in a 5–2 victory against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Strasburg, who worked seven innings, fell one strikeout short for most strikeouts in a major league debut since 1920 held by J. R. Richard and Karl Spooner.
On June 18, Strasburg set another record by recording a total of 32 strikeouts in his first three professional starts by striking out 10 Chicago White Sox and broke the record held by Richard.
In his next start (June 23), Strasburg set another record by recording a total of 41 strikeouts in his first four professional starts. He struck out nine Kansas City Royals and broke the record of 40 that Herb Score set in his first four starts in 1955 as a member of the Cleveland Indians.
Recorded his 150th career victory in a 6–4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on June 18. Lowe became the 242nd player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout against the Washington Nationals on September 13. Roger Bernadina was the victim as he struck out in the 4th inning. He became the 177th player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 400th career save by closing out a win against the Detroit Tigers on June 25. Wagner, who struck out the side, became the 5th player to reach this mark.
While a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Dotel recorded his 100th career save by closing out a win against the Philadelphia Phillies on July 1, becoming the 124th player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout against the St. Louis Cardinals on July 25. Jon Jay was the victim as he struck out in the 6th inning. Dempster became the 173rd player to reach this mark.
Recorded his 100th career victory in a 1–0 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on September 11. He became the 577th player to reach this mark.
Set the Rays team record by recording his 15th victory of the season by defeating the Detroit Tigers on August 9. Price broke the previous record of 14 wins that was shared with James Shields (2008), Edwin Jackson (2008) and Rolando Arrojo (1998).
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout against the Detroit Tigers on August 18, this after being traded to the Yankees by the Cleveland Indians on July 31. Ramon Santiago was the victim as he struck out in the 7th inning. Wood became the 174th player to reach this mark.
Became the fourth-youngest pitcher in Major League history to reach 1000 career strikeouts on August 25. Hernandez's victim was David Ortiz. Only Bob Feller, Bert Blyleven and Dwight Gooden were younger than Hernandez when they reached this mark.[13]
Recorded his 1500th career strikeout on September 5 against the Philadelphia Phillies. Jayson Werth was the victim as he struck out in the 3rd inning. Wolf became the 176th player to reach this mark.
Set the Rockies team record by recording his 18th victory of the season by defeating the Cincinnati Reds on September 6. Jimenez broke the previous record of 17 wins that was shared with Jeff Francis (2007), Pedro Astacio (1999) and Kevin Ritz (1996).
Set a record with his 15th straight start with five or more innings pitched and two or fewer runs allowed by defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 7. Latos broke the record of 14 straight starts held by Greg Maddux (1993–94) and Mike Scott (1986).
The Chicago Cubs played their 20,000th game in their history on June 26, but lost to their crosstown rivals the Chicago White Sox, 3–2 at U.S. Cellular Field. Their record was 10,197–9,643 (with 160 games tied games).
The Atlanta Braves played their 20,000th game in their history on August 6, having started in 1876 in Boston, transferring operations to Milwaukee in 1953 and coming to Atlanta in 1966, losing in 11 innings, 3–2 to the San Francisco Giants at Turner Field. Their record was 9,916–9,930 (with 154 tied games).
The Pittsburgh Pirates extended a dubious record; 2010 was their 18th consecutive losing season, a record for North American major professional sports teams. The Pirates matched the 1963 New York Mets for the worst road record in a 162-game season at 17–64.
The Arizona Diamondbacks set the single-season record for team strikeouts by striking out for the 1,400th time against the Colorado Rockies on September 21. Adam LaRoche was the strikeout victim that broke the record of the 2001 Milwaukee Brewers. The Diamondbacks finished the season striking out 1529 times.
Bobby Cox, manager of the Atlanta Braves, became the fourth manager in Major League history to win 2500 games as the Braves defeated the Washington Nationals on September 25. He joins Connie Mack, John McGraw and Tony La Russa as the only managers to reach this milestone. Cox has managed the Braves for 25 years (1978–1981, 1990–2010) and the Toronto Blue Jays (1982–1985) for four years leading them to a Major League record of 16 playoff appearances, as well as the Braves' only World Series title in Atlanta (the franchise's first two titles came in Boston and Milwaukee respectively). On September 29, Cox won his 90th game in a season for the 15th time in his career as a manager. This is tied for the second-most in Major League history with Joe McCarthy and is one behind the record held by John McGraw.
The San Francisco Giants established a single-season franchise record for strikeouts with 1306 after the Arizona Diamondbacks struck out 14 times on September 30. The Giants finished the season with 1331 strikeouts.
Target Field is also the first stadium to have been built specifically for the Twins since their arrival in the Twin Cities in 1961, and the first stadium to have been built specifically for the franchise since Griffith Stadium was built for the original Washington Nationals in 1911. Also, the 2010 season was the first since 1936 in which the Twins/Senators franchise did not share its stadium with an NFL team.
Ownership change
The Texas Rangers were sold at an auction in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on August 5 to a group led by Chuck Greenberg and Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan from former owner Tom Hicks. The ownership change was approved by MLB owners on August 12.
The 2010 season marked the first full season in the USA for baseball games to be telecast in the digital format. The national telecast breakdown is as follows, along with the maximum number of appearances per team:
FOX: Saturday afternoon Game of the Week on a regional basis; nine appearances per team. In addition, the network will broadcast the All-Star Game (which was also broadcast in 3-D), NLCS, and World Series. The network starts their telecasts on Saturdays at 4 PM US ET/1 PM US PT, except for three dates (April 10, May 1 and 8) due to NASCAR coverage, when those games started at 3 PM ET/12 noon PT. Two prime time dates were on the schedule on both May 22 and June 26, both starting at 7 PM ET/4 PM PT. Fox Sports en Español holds Spanish broadcast rights to the World Series.
ESPN/ESPN2:Sunday Night Baseball on a weekly basis; five appearances per team. In addition, there are games on Monday and Wednesday nights (with the Monday games moving to either Wednesday nights to form a doubleheader or Friday nights when the 2010 NFL season begins), Opening Day games on April 5, and the Home Run Derby on July 12, which was also broadcast on ESPN 3D. ESPN Deportes holds Spanish rights to the Sunday night package.
TBS: Sunday afternoon games starting on April 11; 13 appearances per team. In addition, the network will carry the announcement of the All-Star Teams in the National and American Leagues on July 4 as well as the Division Series and the ALCS as per the alternating contract with FOX. Blackout rules will again apply here as Headline News will be broadcast in the teams' markets during the regular season.
MLB Network: The network will again air a weekly Thursday Night Game of the Week and Saturday Night Game of the Week, and for the first time, selected afternoon games. Thursday Night games are produced in-house, while Saturday Night games and midweek day games (except for the Civil Rights Game, May 22 and June 26) will usually come off the home team's video production. Blackouts will again apply here, as viewers in the competing team's markets will telecast an alternate game off the home team feed of selected teams. In addition, holiday games on Memorial Day (May 31) and day games on July 5 and in addition, commencing on September 5 (Labor Day), expanded coverage of the pennant races will be taking place with additional games broadcast.
In Canada, Toronto Blue Jays games will be televised on Rogers Sportsnet and Rogers Sportsnet One. RSN also holds the Canadian rights to air the Fox and ESPN/ESPN2 games if they do not conflict with Blue Jays games, as well as the All-Star Game and the entire postseason. Starting May 16, TSN2 holds rights to the ESPN Sunday Night Baseball telecasts.
In Australia free to air channel One HD shows up to 5 regular season games live per week (no postseason coverage), and European channel ESPN America broadcasts games as well.
Radio
ESPN Radio will again serve as MLB's national radio network, broadcasting Sunday Night Baseball as well as selected Saturday and holiday games during the regular season, the Home Run Derby and All-Star Game, and all postseason series. ESPN Deportes Radio holds the Spanish language rights to the Fall Classic.
Uniforms, patches, and logo changes
Uniforms
New uniforms and uniform changes
The Florida Marlins, as part of the team's rebranding to the Miami Marlins as part of their preparation for the 2012 opening of their new ballpark, has dropped "Florida" from their road uniforms that had been with the team since its inception, using the team name instead.
The Minnesota Twins became the first team to unveil changes for the season. On November 16, 2009, the team unveiled a new logo with a revamped wordmark, and introduced throwback alternates based on their 1961 home uniforms, which were worn on Opening Day and on Saturdays. The Twins also unveiled their first road uniform change since 1987, dropping the pinstripes, and changing to a script "Minnesota" with lettering and numbering in navy with white and red trim. The new wordmark also appears on a revamped logo, with a baseball design and the words "Minnesota Twins Baseball Club" incorporated onto a navy circle.
The Milwaukee Brewers debuted a road alternate jersey with "Milwaukee" on the front, marking the first time the city name will appear on a road jersey since 1999.[14]
The New York Mets introduced an alternate pinstripe home uniform for the 2010 season. The new uniforms are cream-colored instead of white, and are based on the original Mets uniform, when the team debuted in 1962. The Mets continue to wear their non-pinstriped white uniforms and their black alternate jerseys at Citi Field as well.
The San Francisco Giants unveiled an orange alternate jersey for 2010 worn on "Orange Friday" games at home. The jersey will have the Giants name in black with a white outline along with a two-stripe black trim around the neck and sleeves. The team also changed their socks, adding three orange stripes to the black stockings already worn (while not wearing their "pajama pants.")
The Tampa Bay Rays added a long-rumored light blue alternate jersey for the 2010 season, to be worn on Sundays at home. In June, the team added two mid-calf white/light blue/white stripes to their navy blue socks.
The New York Yankees changed the MLB logo used on jerseys, apparel and equipment from the standard blue white and red to blue white and gray. The last time the Yankees used gray white and blue MLB logos was in 1996 for a short time.
Retired numbers
The San Francisco Giants retired the #20 worn by Monte Irvin, one of the first African-American pioneers in Major League Baseball, on June 26 prior to their game against the Boston Red Sox at AT&T Park. Irvin, with Hank Thompson, were the first black players to play for the franchise while the team was based in New York in 1949.[15]
The St. Louis Cardinals retired the #24 made famous by manager Whitey Herzog on Saturday, July 31 before their game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.[16]
The Atlanta Braves retired Tom Glavine's #47 on August 6 prior to their 20,000th game in franchise history against the San Francisco Giants. Glavine formally retired in February 2010 and became a special assistant and part-time broadcaster.[17]
The Chicago White Sox retired Frank Thomas' #35 on August 29 before their game against the New York Yankees. "The Big Hurt" officially retired as a White Sox member on February 12.[19] The Pale Hose also unretired the #11 made famous by Luis Aparicio and allowed Omar Vizquel to wear it this season.[20] This is due to the fact that manager Ozzie Guillén already wears number 13, which Vizquel has worn through his career in tribute to Dave Concepción.
Throwbacks
To celebrate their 40th Anniversary season in Milwaukee, the Brewers wore replicas of their previous uniforms during three home games, first donning their 1972 uniforms on May 14 versus the Philadelphia Phillies, who wore replicas of their powder blue outfits that night; their 1982 uniforms against the Seattle Mariners on June 25, who donned their pullovers from that season, and their 1998 uniforms against the Washington Nationals on July 23. They also wore Milwaukee Bears uniforms on May 30 against the New York Mets as part of Negro League Tribute night. The Mets wore replicas of the New York Cubans' road outfits.[21]
The Houston Astros, in honor of their 45th year as the Astros, wore their 1965 jerseys on April 10 against the Phillies, who also wore replicas of their 1965 uniforms on that date. In addition, members of the ground crew donned replicas of the "spacesuits" worn by groundskeepers at the Astrodome and several female members were attired in replicas of the Astros' usherettes uniform. The team wore their "Rainbow Shoulders" uniform worn from 1985 through 1995 against the Cincinnati Reds July 24 as well.
For the Civil Rights Game May 15, the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals wore replicas of their uniforms from 1954, the year in which both teams fielded their first black players.
The San Diego Padres held "Throwback Thursdays", featuring the uniforms worn in both 1978, when the team recorded their first winning record, and from 1984, when the team won their first pennant in the National League. Several teams – notably the Atlanta Braves and the Pittsburgh Pirates – joined in by wearing replicas from that season.
The Orioles wore an all-orange uniform on August 13 at the Tampa Bay Rays, who donned uniforms of the Tampa Tarpons from that 1970 season as well. Orioles skipper Buck Showalter criticized the uniforms, and said they will never wear them again for a turn back the clock game.
The Nationals and Cleveland Indians wore throwback uniforms on June 12 to commemorate each city's first World Series wins in 1920 and 1924, respectively (the Washington team were then the American League Washington Senators franchise). The Indians also wore black armbands to commemorate Ray Chapman's passing, also taking place 90 years ago. Also on June 12, the Pirates and Detroit Tigers played the annual Negro Leagues tribute game at Comerica Park. The hosts wore the 1920s Detroit Stars uniforms, while the Pirates donned the 1931 road colors of the Pittsburgh Crawfords. The Buccos wore the Crawfords' home uniforms on their Negro League Tribute Night August 21 against the Mets, who wore a second New York Cubans road outfit. The Kansas City Royals' Negro League Tribute game was held on July 31 as the Royals donned the 1949 Kansas City Monarchs uniforms, while the Orioles wore 1940s Baltimore Elite Giants outfits.[22]
Patches
Anniversaries
The Houston Astros wore a patch commemorating their 45th season since changing their name from the Houston Colt .45s. The patch featured the "tequila sunrise" stripes from the team's Rainbow Guts uniforms as its background.
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim wore a patch for hosting the All-Star Game.
The Los Angeles Dodgers had a patch commemorating 55 years since winning their first World Series when the franchise was located in Brooklyn, New York. The patch features "1st World Championship" in red lettering above an oval, the center has the year (1955) and the Dodgers' logo with the Brooklyn Bridge shadowing both sides, and underneath has "55 since '55" in red/blue/red lettering.
The Milwaukee Brewers are wearing a patch commemorating their 40th season in Milwaukee.
The Minnesota Twins had two patches, one commemorating their 50th season in Minnesota on their road uniforms, and another honoring their new stadium on their home uniforms.
Memorials
Following the death of Colorado Rockies' president Keli McGregor on April 20, the team started wearing a patch with his initials ("KSM") on their uniforms.
On May 5, the day after the death of longtime Detroit Tigers radio broadcaster Ernie Harwell, the Tigers began wearing a patch on the right sleeve in his memory, inscribed with the broadcaster's initials.
The Philadelphia Phillies are wearing a patch with the number "36" on their right sleeve, honoring Hall of Fame pitcher Robin Roberts, who died on May 6.
After the passing of former National League umpire John Kibler, all MLB umpires have worn a black square patch with his initials ("JK") in white for a short time. The same item came about when Satch Davidson passed on in August with a small square patch with the initials "SD".
Following the passing of long-time public address announcer Bob Sheppard and owner George Steinbrenner, the New York Yankees wore a black armband in memory of both men at the All-Star Game. Starting with their series at home against Tampa Bay, the team would have two patches, one with the initials "GMS" on their left chest for Mr. Steinbrenner, and on the left sleeve, a patch honoring Mr. Sheppard.[23] When Ralph Houk died July 21, the team added a black armband on their left sleeve.
The Pittsburgh Pirates honored former general manager Joe L. Brown following his death with his initials in yellow on a black circle.
Caps
All teams have new batting practice/spring training caps for the season.
The Kansas City Royals unveiled a new powder blue alternate cap, which will be worn with their powder blue alternate jersey.
The San Francisco Giants introduced a new alternate cap, featuring the traditional SF monogram with an orange bill to be worn on Sundays
All teams again donned a special cap with the team cap logo in a stars-and-stripes motif (or in the case of the Toronto Blue Jays, a maple leaf motif) on Memorial Day, July 4 (July 1 – Canada Day – for the Blue Jays) and September 11 (June 23 in the case of the Blue Jays, as Canada remembers all those who died in acts of terrorism on that day), which will be white with either a red or blue bill.[24]
The Tampa Bay Rays introduced caps with a plaid brim for a batting practice hat in late September, then wore the hats for one game, the last home game of the regular season against the Baltimore Orioles
The Boston Red Sox dropped the alternate 'hanging socks' cap in favor of the more popular 'B' cap.
Retirements
Two members of the Atlanta Braves retired. Manager Bobby Cox announced his intentions of ending his career at the conclusion of the season, which followed their elimination by the San Francisco Giants in the NLDS in four games, while relief pitcher Billy Wagner announced on May 5 that the 2010 season would be his last as an active player. Wagner's career ended with an injury during Game 2 against the Giants.
Due to the 2010 G-20 Toronto Summit, the Toronto Blue Jays along with Major League Baseball decided to hold their three game interleague series with the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park rather than at Rogers Centre on June 25 through 27 as originally planned. This series was played under American League rules with a Designated Hitter and the Blue Jays as the home team for both scoring and statistical purposes. It was the first time the Designated Hitter rule was used in a National League ballpark (other than exhibition games and all-star games) since Game 2 of the 1984 World Series. As a result, during the 2011 season, the Phillies will visit Rogers Centre on Canada Day weekend (July 1 through 3).
