This day in baseball - April 13, 1954

[WillyM]

On April 13, 1954, the Baltimore Orioles, in their return to the American League after a 52-year hiatus, played their first game, losing to the Detroit Tigers, 3-0.  Three solo homers did Don Larsen in, as Steve Gromek pitched a seven-hit shutout for Detroit.

Elsewhere in major league baseball that day, Jim Greengrass of the Cincinnati Redlegs smacked four doubles in five at-bats, tying a major league record for most doubles in a season opener.  The only other man to do it was Pop Dillon, playing in the Detroit Tigers' first-ever American League game in 1901.  (Dillon, incidentally, has a very slight connection to Baltimore baseball - he played in two games for the 1902 Orioles.)

Greengrass was the star of the Redlegs' wild 9-8 victory, but almost everybody else joined the hit parade that day.  In fact, other than the pitchers, every member of the starting lineup for each team had at least one base hit, with  only one exception.

The exception was a rookie outfielder for the visiting team, who went 0-for-5.

The rookie who suffered through that miserable major league debut?  None other than Henry Aaron.

Things got a little better for him after that.