On this day in baseball history in 1939, NBC televised the first Major League baseball game using an experimental station W2XBS. Viewers were privy to a doubleheader between the Reds and Dodgers at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. Here's the latest news and headlines from around the National League…
- The exercise of calling up players for the month of September has changed for Pirates general manager Neal Huntington, writes Karen Price of the Tribune-Review. Instead of giving raw prospects a taste of the big leagues, Huntington will be looking to add minor leaguers who can help his team win games with an eye on the playoffs and provide manager Clint Hurdle an extra weapon off the bench. “The makeup of our club at midnight on Aug. 31 is the makeup of our club on Oct. 5, provided we take care of business and we get there,” Huntington said. “So that’s a little different, to try to put together an Oct. 5 roster on Aug. 31.”
- Mets general manager Sandy Alderson told season-ticket holders on Sunday that the Mets would love to retain R.A. Dickey on a long-term deal, writes Spencer Fordin of MLB.com. Word got back to the knuckleballer, who expressed a similar desire to call Citi Field home for years to come. "I love it here and I've always voiced that," said Dickey. "A part of me enjoys being loyal to an organization that's given me a shot. I connect well with the fan base, [the media] has always been good and I'm comfortable here. That says a lot for me and where I am in my career."
- Legendary play-by-play broadcaster Vin Scully announced on Sunday that he will return to the Dodgers for the 2013 season marking his 64th year with the franchise. The Hall of Famer will turn 85 in November but remains enthused as ever about the Dodgers given the team's new ownership group, says Stephen Borelli of USA Today. "The new ownership of the Dodgers has revitalized the city, the team, the fans and myself," Scully. "I am so convinced of their great purpose and leadership that I eagerly look forward to joining them in pursuit of the next Dodgers championship."
