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On This Date

On This Date: Bob Feller Wins No. 20 at Age 20 — a Record Built to Last 46 Years (Sept. 8, 1939)

On This Date: Bob Feller Wins No. 20 at Age 20 — a Record Built to Last 46 Years (Sept. 8, 1939)

On this date in 1939, a 20-year-old farm kid from Van Meter, Iowa, went the distance against the St. Louis Browns at Sportsman's Park, scattering 5 hits in a 12-1 stroll. Nothing about the game itself was historic — Bob Feller struck out only 5 that

Johnny Mize following through on a swing in a St. Louis Cardinals uniform

On This Date: Johnny Mize Homers in His 15th Ballpark — Right Before the Map Exploded (Sept. 7, 1952)

On this date in 1952, at Griffith Stadium in Washington, a 39-year-old pinch-hitter stepped in for the Yankees with the bases loaded and nobody out in the 6th, down 1-0. Johnny Mize turned on a Walt Masterson slider and put it deep into the right-field

Jack Dempsey sparring in a gym ring in 1920, spectators lining the ropes

On This Date: Dempsey, Miske, and the First Title Fight on the Radio (Sept. 6, 1920)

On this date in 1920 — Labor Day — Jack Dempsey defended his heavyweight title for the first time, knocking out Billy Miske in the third round at a wooden arena in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Two things make this fight worth remembering a century later. One is a technological first with an

On This Date: J.R. Richard Strikes Out 15 in His Debut — the Start of Baseball's Great What-If (Sept. 5, 1971)

On This Date: J.R. Richard Strikes Out 15 in His Debut — the Start of Baseball's Great What-If (Sept. 5, 1971)

On this date in 1971, in the second game of a doubleheader at Candlestick Park, the Houston Astros handed the ball to a 21-year-old making his major-league debut. He was 6-foot-8. He threw 100 miles an hour. And over 9 innings and roughly 155 pitches,

On This Date: Mark Spitz Wins His 7th Gold — 12 Hours Before Munich Changed Forever (Sept. 4, 1972)

On This Date: Mark Spitz Wins His 7th Gold — 12 Hours Before Munich Changed Forever (Sept. 4, 1972)

On this date in 1972, Mark Spitz swam the butterfly leg of the 4x100 medley relay in Munich, the United States won by nearly 4 seconds, and a 22-year-old from California owned a record no one had touched: 7 gold medals in a single Olympics. Every one of

On This Date: Ty Cobb's Last Hit — and the Number Nobody Can Agree On (Sept. 3, 1928)

On This Date: Ty Cobb's Last Hit — and the Number Nobody Can Agree On (Sept. 3, 1928)

On this date in 1928 — Labor Day, first game of a doubleheader at Griffith Stadium in Washington — a 41-year-old pinch-hitter stepped in against Bump Hadley in the 9th inning of a game his team was losing badly. He doubled to left. The crowd could not have known

On This Date: Wilma Rudolph Wins Her First Gold — 11 Seconds That Started It All (Sept. 2, 1960)

On This Date: Wilma Rudolph Wins Her First Gold — 11 Seconds That Started It All (Sept. 2, 1960)

On this date in 1960, the fastest woman in the world crossed the finish line at Rome's Stadio Olimpico in 11.0 seconds flat — a quarter of a second clear of the field, which in a 100-meter dash is a canyon. Wilma Rudolph's first Olympic