Throughout baseball history, on the field and off, special feats and momentous moments of varying degrees have made their appearance on this date. 

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On April 7, 1979, Ken Forsch of the Astros recorded the earliest no-hitter in MLB history when he blanked the Braves at the Astrodome.

Five years later, on April 7, 1984, Jack Morris of the Tigers matched him when he no-hit the White Sox on the NBC “Game of the Week.”

Pitching was again the theme on April 7, 1987, when Rick Mahler of the Braves tossed a complete-game opening day shutout against the Phillies — the third time he’d blanked a team on opening day, tying the National League record.

On April 7, 1994, we got the only look at NBA legend Michael Jordan playing baseball in a major league uniform in a major league stadium as the White Sox and Cubs played an exhibition game at Wrigley Field. Jordan went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.

On April 7, 1969, Bill Singer of the Dodgers recorded the first save in MLB history, which, while not nearly as cool as no-hitters and shutouts, is still a noteworthy moment.

On April 7, 1977, Frank Sinatra fullfilled a promise to sing the national anthem at Dodger Stadium if friend Tommy Lasorda ever became manager. Lasorda, previously the Dodgers’ third-base coach, was named manager in September 1976. (Sadly, the video appears to have been excised from the interwebs.)

Baseball has had a special relationship with April 7 off the field, too. Three classic baseball movies — “The Bad News Bears” (1976), “Major League” (1989) and “The Sandlot” (1993) — all hit theaters on this date.

There have been plenty of lesser moments happen on April 7, too: the first-ever games of the Brewers (1970) and the Blue Jays (1977), Dwight Gooden’s big-league debut (1984), and Dwight Evans hitting the first pitch of the entire 1986 season for a homer (1986), to name a few. 

It’s probably a stretch to say April 7 is a red-letter date in baseball history like, say, April 8, but it’s certainly been an interesting one.