Effa Manley Becomes the First Woman Elected to the Hall of Fame

On February 27, 2006, Effa Manley became the first woman elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Special Committee on Negro Leagues selected Manley along with 16 other figures from the Negro Leagues and pre-Negro Leagues era. Manley co-owned the Newark Eagles with her husband Abe, and under her management the Eagles won the 1946 Negro League World Series, defeating the Kansas City Monarchs. That 1946 roster included four future Hall of Famers: Larry Doby, Monte Irvin, Leon Day, and Biz Mackey.

Manley was more than an owner. She organized a boycott of stores near the Eagles' ballpark that refused to hire Black employees, and she fought to secure fair compensation for Negro League players whose contracts were acquired by major league clubs during integration. She argued that the major leagues owed the Negro Leagues for the talent they were absorbing. Manley died in 1981, 25 years before her election.

The same date in 1901 brought a rule change that reshaped the game's balance between hitter and pitcher. The National League Rules Committee decreed that all foul balls would count as strikes, except after two strikes. Before this change, a batter could foul off pitch after pitch without penalty. The new rule shortened at-bats and tilted power back toward pitchers. The American League adopted the same rule in 1903.

On February 27, 1973, Dick Allen signed a three-year, $750,000 contract with the Chicago White Sox, making him the highest-paid player in baseball. Allen had won the 1972 American League MVP Award, leading the league in home runs, RBI, on-base percentage, and slugging.