On April 23, 1958, Gil Hodges and Pee Wee Reese reached historic milestones in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 7-6 loss to the Chicago Cubs at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Hodges belted the 300th home run of his career to give the Dodgers a 5-4 lead. He finished 2-for-5 in the contest.
Hodges spent 16 of 18 seasons playing for Brooklyn or Los Angeles before finishing his career with two years as a member of the New York Mets.
Hodges batted .273/.359/.487 with 295 doubles, 370 home runs and 1,274 RBI in 2,071 games. He was named to seven consecutive All-Star Games from 1949-1955 and won two World Series titles as a player with the Dodgers.
Hodges was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2022 through the Golden Days Committee. The Dodgers retired his No. 14 and added him to the Dodger Stadium Ring of Honor that year as well.
Pee Wee Reese plays in 2,000th career game
Reese played in his 2,000th career game during the same day. He went 1-for-3 with a home run and walk in the Dodgers’ loss to the Cubs.
Reese played in 2,166 games with the Dodgers across 16 seasons after originally being acquired from the Boston Red Sox in 1939.
Reese made his MLB debut in 1940 and became Brooklyn’s starting shortstop the following year. He enlisted in the Navy after the 1942 season but would later return to the Dodgers.
From 1947-1956, Reese appeared in no fewer than 140 games and was one of the pillars of the franchise. He was part of seven pennants and one World Series title in his career.
Reese batted .269/.366/.377 with 330 doubles, 80 triples, 126 home runs, 885 RBI and 232 stolen bases in 9,470 plate appearances. He was a 10-time National League All-Star and received MVP votes in 13 different seasons.
Reese appeared in just 59 games with the Dodgers during the 1958 season, their first after moving to Los Angeles. He was voted into the Hall of Fame on March 4, 1984.
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