1876 – The Chicago Cubs play in their first game as a member of the National League, defeating Louisville 4-0.
1950 – Chuck Cooper, selected by the Boston Celtics, becomes the first African-American player drafted into the NBA.
1964 – The Toronto Maple Leafs win their third straight Stanley Cup, defeating the Red Wings in game seven.
1974 – The NFL moves the goal posts to behind the end zone and adopts the sudden death playoff format.
1981 – Seattle Mariners manager Maury Wills is suspended two games by Major League Baseball after ordering the grounds crew at the Kingdome to enlarge the batters box by one foot.
1989 – Mario Lemieux ties an NHL record by scoring four goals in the first period of a playoff game.
1993 – The New England Patriots draft Washington State quarterback Drew Bledsoe with the first overall pick.
1995 – The Dodgers defeat the Marlins in the first MLB game played after the 257 day players’ strike.
1997 – Ken Griffey Jr. hits career home run #250.
2006 – Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams is suspended for the entire 2006 NFL season after violating the league’s substance abuse policy for the fourth time.
2009 – Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford is selected #1 overall by the Detroit Lions in the NFL Draft.
2013 – The Kansas City Chiefs select Central Michigan offensive tackle Eric Fisher with the first overall pick in the NFL Draft.
2019 – A year after taking a quarterback in the first round, the Cardinals do it again, selecting Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray with the #1 pick. Murray was also a first round pick in the MLB Draft by the Oakland A’s.
Related Topicsthis day in sports history