Barbara Jo Rubin became the first female jockey to win a horse race on February 22, 1969. She rode Cohesian to victory at Charlestown Racetrack in West Virginia.
Baseball great Yogi Berra who was a catcher for the New York Yankees from 1946–1963, was enlisted in the Navy during World War II and participated in the D-Day landing on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944.
In 1967 Billie Jean King was selected as “Outstanding Female Athlete of the World.” In 1972 she was named Sports Illustrated's “Sportsperson of the Year,” the first woman to be so honored. In 1973, she was nicknamed “Female Athlete of the Year.” Additionally, King was the first female athlete to win more than $100,000 prize money in a single season.
In 1990, American tennis pro John McEnroe, often called "The Brat" because of his infantile, volatile on-court behavior, became the first player in 27 years to be disqualified from a Grand Slam tournament for misconduct. His repeated bad manners led to his being booted from the Australian Open.
In 1994, the National League and American League Baseball M.V.P.s were Jeff Bagwell and Frank Thomas, respectively. Jeff and Frank were both born on the exact same day: May 27, 1968.
In 1996, measuring 6 feet 6 inches, "Sir" Charles Barkley was the shortest basketball player ever to lead the NBA in rebounding.
In 648 B.C., horses were first introduced into sports with the entrance of riders in the Olympic Games. By the sixth century B.C., horse-racing had become a popular sport.
In an effort to sell more licensed apparel, minor-league baseball teams were changing their names so often that the sport's governing body now limits franchises to team name changes every three years.
In ancient Greece, a boxing match began with two boxers standing face to face, their noses touching. Greek boxers wore leather thongs embedded with metal studs strapped on their wrists. At one time, metal spikes were added, too.
In baseball, a "can of corn" refers to a fly ball that is easy to catch. This phrase reportedly came from an old practice of grocery store clerks, who used to knock unreachable cans off high shelves with a stick and catch them in their work aprons.
In bowling alley slang, a "turkey" is three strikes in a row. The term dates back to the late 1800s when, around the holidays, bowling alley owners presented live turkeys to the first member of the team to score three consecutive strikes.
In Cape Town, South Africa, is the largest rugby museum in the world, which houses a valuable collection of rugby nostalgia and equipment dating back to 1891.
Baseball is the only major sport that appears backwards in a mirror.
Baseball legend Babe Ruth led the American League in home runs 12 times.
Baseball legend Ty Cobb amassed a huge fortune from Coca-Cola and General Motors stocks. His net worth at the time of his death was reported to be $11 million. When Cobb entered Emory Hospital in Atlanta near death, he brought with him more than $1 million in negotiable bonds and placed them on the nightstand next to a loaded pistol.
Baseball player Lenny Dykstra was among many major league players who are very particular about their bats. Dykstra sent back the special bats he got as the National League Championship Series began in 1993. The Louisville Slugger bats were stamped "1993 LCS" under his signature to commemorate the playoffs. Lenny said that, instead, he wanted his bats for the series to be exactly the same as the ones he used all season -- with "Philadelphia Phillies" stamped under his name. The bats were replaced.
Baseball player Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres became only the 22nd player to reach the milestone 3,000 career hit mark on August 6th, 1999. Notable is that August 6th is his mother's birthday. Gwynn reached the milestone 6 years to the day after reaching the 2,000 career hit plateau.
Baseball's American League was organized on January 29, 1900, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eight teams comprised the new league: Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis.
Baseball's first Rookie of the Year was Brooklyn Dodger Jackie Robinson, who was given the award in 1947. Forty years later, it was officially renamed the Jackie Robinson Award.
Baseball's last legal spitball was thrown by Hall of Famer Burleigh Grimes for the New York Yankees in 1934. Although the pitch had been outlawed 14 years earlier, those already throwing it were permitted to continue.
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