THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY: 10/1

1903 – The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Boston Pilgrims 7-3 in the first ever World Series game.

1919 – The Cincinnati Reds beat the White Sox 9-1 in the first game of the infamous World Series that would see several White Sox players throwing games.

1922 – After changing their name from the Chicago Staleys, the Chicago Bears play for the first time, beating Racine Legion 6-0.

1932 – In a World Series game against the Cubs, Babe Ruth famously calls his shot to center field before homering in the fifth inning.

1933 – Babe Ruth makes his final MLB pitching appearance, throwing a complete game against the Red Sox.

1950 – Connie Mack manages his last game with the Philadelphia Athletics, a position he held since 1901.

1959 – The White Sox beat the Dodgers 11-0 in the first game of the World Series. It’s the first World Series appearance for Chicago since the 1919 Black Sox scandal.

1961 – Roger Maris hits his 61st home run of the season, surpassing Babe Ruth’s record for the most homers in a season.

1975 – Muhammad Ali beats Joe Frazier in 14 rounds to retain the heavyweight title in a bought known as “The Thrilla in Manilla”.

1977 – Soccer legend Pele plays in his farewell game in front of a crowd of 75,000 plus fans at the Meadowlands in New Jersey. Pele plays the first half with the New York Cosmos and the second half with his former team, Santos of Brazil.

1997 – University of Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne records his 250th career win. 

1999 – The Edmonton Oilers retire Wayne Gretzky’s #99.

2000 – The US men’s basketball team beats France 85-75 to win the gold medal at the Sydney Olympics.

2004 – Ichirio Suzuki breaks George Sisler’s 84 year old record for hits in a season by collecting his 258th hit.