Bill Buckner

William Joseph Buckner was an American first baseman and left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams from 1969 through 1990, most notably the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox. Beginning his career as an outfielder with the Dodgers, Buckner helped the team to the 1974 pennant with a .314 batting average, but a serious ankle injury the next year led to his trade to the Cubs before the 1977 season. The Cubs moved him to first base, and he won the National League (NL) batting title with a .324 mark in 1980. He was named to the All-Star team the following year as he led the major leagues in doubles. After setting a major league record for first basemen with 159 assists in 1982, Buckner surpassed that total with 161 in 1983 while again leading the NL in doubles. Feuds with team management over a loss of playing time resulted in his being traded to the Red Sox in the middle of the 1984 season.

14 December 1949

Born on the same birth date (14 December 1949): Cliff Williams • David A. Cherry

Born on the same birth day (14 December): Gerard Reve • Karl Carstens • Ken Hill (baseball) • Kurt Schuschnigg • Lex Gold • Pat Burke • Peeter Kreitzberg • Stan Smith

Born in the same month (December 1949): Bill Nighy • David Bedford (athlete) • Doug Marlette • Heather Hallett, Baroness Hallett • James Rivière • Jan Brett • Jeff Bridges • John Altman (composer) • Linda Barnes (writer) • Nancy Meyers • Nawaz Sharif • Nikolaos Sifounakis • Ray Guy • Reinhold Weege • Robin Gibb • Simone Bittencourt de Oliveira • Tom Waits