Portal:Baseball/Anniversaries/December 4

Events

 * 1927 – Pirates OF Paul Waner noses out Frank Frisch for National League MVP honors with 72 points to 66. Rogers Hornsby, Cubs P Charlie Root, and Giants SS Travis Jackson also score high.
 * 1964 – The owners decide to use a free agent draft beginning next month. The inverse order of the previous year's standings will be used to select players every four months.
 * 1976 – Aurelio Rodríguez becomes the first American League 3B since 1959 to beat out Brooks Robinson for the Gold Glove Award. Other Newcomers on TSN fielding team include 3B Mike Schmidt, OF Dwight Evans, and C Jim Sundberg, who would combine to win 24 awards.

Births

 * 1868 – Jesse Burkett, outfielder; Hall of Famer (d. 1953)
 * 1930 – Harvey Kuenn, infielder, manager; All-Star (d. 1988)
 * 1957 – Lee Smith, pitcher; All-Star
 * 1985 – Carlos Gómez, outfielder

Deaths

 * 1944 – Roger Bresnahan, catcher, manager; Hall of Famer (b. 1879)
 * 1968 – Emil Yde, pitcher (b. 1900)