THIS WEEKEND IN SPORTS HISTORY
Saturday 1845 More than 50,000 attend a horse race at Union course in Queen’s County, New York, seeing Peytona of Tennessee beat Fashion, champion of the North. 1905 James J. Jeffries retires as boxing champion. 1911 37th Kentucky Derby: George Archibald aboard Meridian wins in 2:05. 1953 New York Giants’ Willie Mays and Darryl Spencer each hit two home runs and a triple. 1954 Robin Roberts gives up a home run then retires the next 27 men in a row. 1955 Mickey Mantle hits three consecutive home runs of at least 463 feet. 1958 Stan Musial is 8th Major League Baseball batter to get 3,000 hits. 1967 New York Yankees’ Mickey Mantle hits career home run No. 500 off Baltimore Orioles’ Stu Miller. 1967 Octagonal boxing ring is tested to avoid corner injuries. 1973 Tennis hustler Bobby Riggs, 55, beats Margaret Smith Court 6-2, 6-1 in a Mother’s Day match at San Diego Country Estate in California, USA. Riggs wins a $5,000 bet that he could win. 1975 NHL Stanley Cup: Philadelphia Flyers beat New York Islanders in seven games. 1976 Ninth and final ABA championship: New York Nets beat Denver Nuggets, 4 games to 2. 1979 Sandra Post wins LPGA Lady Michelob Golf Tournament. 1980 Cincinnati Reds’ Ray Knight hits two home runs in 5th inning versus New York Mets. 1982 Chicago Cubs win their 8,000th baseball game (beat Houston Astros). 1993 Kansas City Royals’ player George Brett hits his 300th homerun. 1997 Eddie Murray is sixth baseball player to play in 3,000 games. 2006 Liverpool F.C. defeats West Ham United F.C. on penalties in the 2006 FA Cup Final following a 3-3 draw after extra time. Sunday 1874 Harvard beats University of McGill in football, 3-0. 1905 Second official international soccer match, Netherlands beats Belgium 4-0. 1906 Flag pole at the Chicago White Sox ballpark breaks during pennant-raising. 1918 Sunday baseball is made legal in Washington, D.C. 1920 New York Giants inform New York Yankees that the lease allowing them to play in the Polo Grounds will not be renewed at end of 1920 season. 1920 Washington Senators’ Walter Johnson wins his 300th game versus Detroit Tigers. 1938 64th Preakness: Maurice Peters aboard Dauber wins in 1:59.8. 1972 In Willie Mays’ first game as a New York Mets player, his homer beats the San Francisco Giants, 5-4. 1977 Stanley Cup: Montreal Canadiens sweep Boston Bruins. 1981 35th NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat Houston Rockets, 4 games to 2. 1983 Rosa Mota runs female world record 20km (1:06:55.5). 1986 Reggie Jackson hits his 537th home run passing Mickey Mantle into 6th place on the Major League Baseball all-time home run list. 1988 Wimbledon wins the English FA Cup after beating Liverpool 1-0 at Wembley. 1995 Eddie Murray of Cleveland Indians hits his 463rd career home run (ties for 18th). 2002 At the Latino-American Stadium, former US President Jimmy Carter throws the ceremonial first pitch of the Cuban League All-Star game. In warming up, Carter is coached by one-time big league pitching prospect, Fidel Castro. 2008 In Manchester, England, the final game of the UEFA Cup of soccer is held. Russia’s Zenit St. Petersburg defeats Scotland’s Glasgow Rangers 2-0.