TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
1915 Colonel Jacob Ruppert and Colonel Tillinghast Huston buy the New York Yankees for $460,000. 1946 Bert Bell becomes the second NFL commissioner, moves Chicago headquarters to Philadelphia. 1953 J. Edgar Hoover declines a six-figure offer to become president of the International Boxing Club. 1960 Lamar Clark sets a pro boxing record of 44 consecutive knockouts. 1970 Super Bowl IV: Kansas City Chiefs beat Minnesota Vikings, 23-7, in New Orleans. MVP: Len Dawson, quarterback. 1971 Detroit Tigers ace reliever John Hiller, 27, suffers a heart attack, and misses the 1971 season. 1973 The American League adopts the designated hitter rule. 1976 The U.S. female figure skating championship is won by Dorothy Hamill. 1977 The Chicago Cubs trade outfielder Rick Monday to the L.A. Dodgers for Bill Buckner. 1977 France releases Abu Daoud, a Palestinian suspected of involvement in the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. 1983 Billy Martin becomes manager of the New York Yankees for the third time, replacing Clyde King. 1988 The U.S.S.R. announces it will participate in the Seoul Summer Olympics. 1989 Denver Nuggets rookie Jerome Lane misses seven free throws in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks. One missed by two feet. 1990 Bobby Knight becomes basketball’s Big 10 winningest coach (229). 1990 Pat LaFontaine sets the New York Islanders record of scoring goals in 11 straight games. 1991 Ben Johnson runs his first race after being stripped of his 1988 Olympic gold medal for steroid use, and finishes second. 1992 The U.S. female figure skating championship is won by Kristi Yamaguchi. 1995 The Birmingham Barracudas are granted a Canadian Football League franchise. 1995 The NHL Players’ Association and team owners agree to end an NHL strike. 1998 The U.S. female figure skating championship is won by Michelle Kwan. 2000 Carlton Fisk and Tony Perez are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. 2006 The Tampa Bay Devil Rays make their first agreement with a Japanese player as relief pitcher Shinji Mori signs a $1.4-million, two-year contract.