It was a random Tuesday in May, 1969, the 13th day of the month. The Cubs had continued their early-season dominance over the N.L. East and entered this day with a 22-11 record and a three-game lead in the division.
They had met the expansion Padres for the first time the day before, and Fergie Jenkins threw a five-hit shutout for a 2-0 win, the Cubs’ second straight shutout. The losing Padres pitcher that day was Gary Ross, a former Cubs farmhand who, along with Joe Niekro, had been traded to San Diego about three weeks earlier for Dick Selma.