September 30, 1939, 80 years ago: For the 1st time, a football game is broadcast on television. W2XBS, the RCA-owned station that will become WNBC-Channel 4, sets their cameras up at Triborough Stadium on Randall's Island in New York, and shows Fordham University, of The Bronx, beat Waynesburg University of Southwestern Pennsylvania, 34-7.

Triborough Stadium was renamed J.J. Downing Stadium in 1955, and hosted Negro League games, the New York Cosmos in 1974 and '75, and the New York Stars of the 1974 World Football League. The 22,000-seat horseshoe was demolished in 2002, and the 5,000-seat Icahn Stadium, used mostly for track and field, opened on the site 2 years later.

Having previously used the Polo Grounds and the original Yankee Stadium, Fordham suspended their football program after the 1954. They revived it in 1970, and moved up to Division I-AA (now the Football Championship Subdivision, or FCS) in 1989. Since the revival, they have played their home games at their former baseball field, Jack Coffey Field, which was retrofitted into a 7,000-seat football stadium on their main campus in The Bronx.

Football and television is an epic love story, but it was far from love at first sight. It would really take another 19 years, and the 1958 NFL Championship Game -- Baltimore Colts 23, New York Giants 17, in overtime at Yankee Stadium -- for it to become more than a flirtation. If there is an event that can be called "the wedding," it's probably Super Bowl III, 10 years after that, on January 12, 1969.

But the couple is inseparable, partly because of the shared TV revenue which allows Green Bay, Wisconsin, with a metropolitan area of 300,000 people, to compete on the same level as New York City, with a metro area of nearly 24 million people. It's also why the Big Ten Conference wanted to add Rutgers and the University of Maryland: Between the markets of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, they added about 40 million.

The NFL's TV revenue is so big (How big is it?), it's been said that the NFL can shut the doors of all 16 stadiums hosting games in a given weekend, with a total official attendance of zero, and still make a profit.

*

September 30, 1399: Having deposed King Richard II, his 1st cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, Earl of Derby and Northampton, Duke of Hereford and Duke of Lancaster, is proclaimed Henry IV, King of England and France, and Lord of Ireland.

Whether Richard II should have been deposed -- and killed a year later -- is a separate debate. But the rise of Henry IV set in motion what would become England's Wars of the Roses, between 2 branches of the House of Plantagenet: Henry's House of Lancaster, whose symbol was a red rose; and the House of York, whose symbol was a white rose.

These 2 families, each representing one of the North of England's historic counties, would fight on and off between 1455 and 1485, until King Richard III was killed in battle, ending the Yorkists' reign, and Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond and a direct descendant of King Edward III (grandfather of Richard II and Henry IV), was proclaimed King Henry VII, and reunited the houses by marrying Princess Elizabeth of York, daughter of Richard's brother, King Edward IV.

What does this have to do with sports? Well, Lancaster and York still harbor deep resentments toward each other, over 600 years since the start of the conflict and over 500 years since the Wars of the Roses. In sports, this is most evidence in soccer rivalries. Manchester United, now in the separate "metropolitan county" of Greater Manchester but formerly in Lancaster (as was Liverpool, now in the metropolitan county of Merseyside), developed a rather nasty rivalry with the biggest team in Yorkshire, Leeds United.

Even the roses live on in soccer: Leeds United have a white rose in their crest, while Blackburn Rovers, one of the larger teams within the remaining County of Lancashire, have a red rose in theirs.

And many places in America have been named Lancaster and York, including in Eastern Pennsylvania, separated by 30 miles (less than Manchester and Leeds) and the Susquehanna River. Speaking of which...

September 30, 1833: Matthew Stanley Quay is born in Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, outside York. He won the Congressional Medal of Honor for his service at the Battle of Fredericksburg in 1863. The rest of his life was considerably less heroic.

He became a part of Pennsylvania's corrupt Republican Party machine, and served as Secretary of the Commonwealth from 1873 to 1882, Treasurer from 1886 to 1887, U.S. Senator from 1887 to 1899, and as Chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1888 to 1891, while serving in the Senate. (Then, as now, this was legal.)

This last post turned out to be key. In 1888, he became campaign manager to Republican Presidential nominee Benjamin Harrison. In the popular vote, the incumbent Democrat, President Grover Cleveland, came out slightly ahead. But the Electoral Vote went to Harrison, 233-168.

Harrison won his home State of Indiana by 2,348 votes, New Hampshire by 2,272, California by 7,087, and Quay's home State of Pennsylvania by 79,458 votes. Those close votes gained him 57 EVs, which could have swayed the election to Cleveland, 225-176. Pennsylvania alone would have made it 203-198, meaning 1 more State could have given Cleveland the win.

Harrison, a deeply religious man, said, "Providence has given us the victory." He wasn't talking about the capital of Rhode Island, another fairly closely-won State. Quay said, "He ought to know that Providence didn't have a damned thing to do with it!" In other words, as they had in 1876, and might have done in 1880, and would do again in 1968, 2000, 2004 and 2016, the Republicans stole it.

Having been accused of a separate scandal in 1899, Quay was not allowed to return to his Senate seat, and a special election was held. He won, and died in office in 1904, at age 70.

September 30, 1861: William M. Wrigley Jr. is born in Philadelphia. (I can find no reference to what the M stands for.) His father sold soap, but he didn't want to sell soap. In 1891, at 29, with $32 (about $800 in today's money), he moved to Chicago, and sold... soap. He managed to get his hands on some baking powder, and found it sold better than soap. In 1893, he began giving his customers 2 packages of chewing gum for each can of powder, and found that this was more popular still. Thus was born the Wrigley chewing gum empire.

By 1916, he was fabulously wealthy, and bought part-ownership of the Chicago Cubs. As the other part-owners' businesses failed, he bought them out, and by 1925, he was sole owner. That same year, for the Cubs' top farm team, the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League, he built a stadium that was a near-duplicate for Cubs Park. He named it Wrigley Field. He soon renamed Cubs Park "Wrigley Field" -- so L.A. had a Wrigley Field before Chicago had one, even though the Chicago park was older.

He developed Santa Catalina Island, off the coast of L.A., as a resort and a nature preserve. For a while, the Cubs had their Spring Training there. In 1924, he built the Wrigley Building, on North Michigan Avenue, overlooking the Chicago River. In 1931, he built the Wrigley Mansion and the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix, leading him to move the Cubs' Spring Training to Phoenix. The Cubs have trained in the Phoenix area ever since, and William Wrigley is thus the founding father of Spring Training in Arizona, a.k.a. the Cactus League.

But he didn't enjoy his Mansion long, dying in 1932 at age 70. Under his ownership, the Cubs won Pennants in 1918 and 1929, but no World Series. His son, Philip K. Wrigley, owned the gum company and the Cubs until his death in 1977. His son, William Wrigley III, sold the Cubs to the Tribune Company in 1981. His son, William Wrigley Jr. II, a.k.a. Bill Wrigley, about to turn 56, is executive chairman of the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, but is retired as CEO. The family no longer owns any piece of the Cubs.

September 30, 1878: The baseball season ends, and the National League has its 1st Triple Crown winner. Paul Hines, a center fielder for the Providence Grays, led the NL in batting average with .358, home runs with 4, and RBIs with 50.

He would be the next season's batting champion as well, and help the Grays win the 1879 Pennant. He retired with a .302 average, and died in 1935, at the age of 80.

September 30, 1899, 120 years ago: Admiral George Dewey, the naval hero of the previous year's Spanish-American War for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay in the Philippines, becomes the recipient of one of New York City's earliest ticker-tape parades.

*

September 30, 1904: John Thomas Allen is born in Lenoir, North Carolina. A pitcher, Johnny Allen helped the Yankees win the World Series as a rookie in 1932. He was an All-Star with the Cleveland Indians in 1938, won another Pennant with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1941, and closed his career with the New York Giants in 1944. He pitched for the Giants in the "Tricornered Game" against the Yankees and the Dodgers to raise war bonds.

How good was he? Ask a couple of Hall-of-Famers: Al Simmons said Johnny Allen was the toughest pitcher he ever faced; and Hank Greenberg called him 1 of the top 5 he faced. He finished with a career record of 142-75. He died in 1959.

September 30, 1908: Lewis Edward Hayman is born in Manhattan, and grows up in Paterson, Passaic County, New Jersey. Lew played football and basketball at Syracuse University, and kept going north, becoming head coach of the Toronto Argonauts, leading them to 4 Grey Cup wins: 1932, 1937, 1938 and 1942. He hired one of the CFL's earliest black players, Herb Trawick; and one of its earliest black assistant coaches, Green Bay Packer Hall-of-Famer Willie Wood.

In 1946, he became the general manager of one of the charter teams in the NBA, the Toronto Huskies, hosting the league's 1st game at Maple Leaf Gardens, losing to the Knicks. In 1949, he coached a 5th Grey Cup winner, the Montreal Alouettes. He later served as President of the CFL, and died in 1984, having lived long enough to see his election to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

September 30, 1917: Benjamin Hatskin (no middle name) is born in Winnipeg. One of the 1st Canadian students to win an athletic scholarship to an American university, he played football at the University of Oklahoma, and later for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, winning the Grey Cup in 1939 and 1941.

He also played junior hockey, and raised racehorses. He tried to get in on the NHL's expansions of 1967, 1970 and 1972, but was denied each time. So he followed the lead of Lamar Hunt, who founded the AFL when the NFL wouldn't let him buy in: He became one of the founders of the World Hockey Association, and signed the league's 1st star, Bobby Hull, naming his team the Winnipeg Jets after Hull's nickname, the Golden Jet.

The Jets reached the WHA Finals in their 1st season, and won the title in 1976, 1978 and 1979. The trophy for best goaltender, equivalent to the NHL's Vezina Trophy, was named the Ben Hatskin Trophy in his honor. But when the merger with the NHL came in 1979, he couldn't afford the entry fee, and sold the Jets, and lived until 1990. They hung on as long as they could with their small market, and moved to Arizona in 1996. In 2011, the Atlanta Thrashers became the new Winnipeg Jets.

He was elected to the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame, and when the World Hockey Association Hall of Fame was established in 2010, he was an inaugural inductee. But he is not in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. He should be.

Also on this day, Bernard Rich (no middle name) is born in Brooklyn. Buddy Rich has been called the greatest drummer who ever lived, having backed the "Big Bands" of Tommy Dorsey, Harry James and Count Basie in the 1940s and '50s.

In 1981, he guest-starred on The Muppet Show, and Kermit the Frog called him "the world's greatest drummer." He had a drum battle with Animal, the drummer for the house band, Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem. Rich won. Animal knew it, but he didn't like it. Rich survived this, but died of cancer in 1987.

September 30, 1922: The University of Alabama defeats Marion Military Insitute of Marion, Alabama, in football, 110-0. It is the highest point total, and the highest margin of victory, in the long and glorious history of Crimson Tide football.

Also on this day, the Yankees clinch their 2nd American League Pennant, and their 2nd straight. They beat the Boston Red Sox 3-1 at Fenway Park, to eliminate the St. Louis Browns, who probably had their best team ever, a more talented one than the 1944 team that won the only Browns Pennant.

Who's overreacting? Is Rutgers University overreacting to a bad start to the 2019 football season?

They opened the season by beating the University of Massachusetts, an FCS (formerly Division I-AA) team, 48-21 in front of 12,000 empty seats at SHI Stadium. I guess they didn't realize that giving Rutgers Stadium that name could have led people to call it "Shit Stadium," the way some people call Citi Field, the Mets' new ballpark, "Shitty Field."

Then RU went to Iowa, for the 1st Big 10 Conference game of the season, and lost 30-0. Then they came home to face Boston College, a former Big East foe now in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and lost 30-16, in front of 20,000 empty seats.

There were no empty seats at Michigan Stadium this Saturday. The official attendance was 110,662 -- not quite the 111,213 for the 2017 game in Ann Arbor that Michigan won 35-14, but the 2nd-largest crowd RU has played in front of in its 150-year history. And Michigan, not up to its usual standards these last few years, played up to them, and beat Rutgers 52-0.

Within 24 hours, Chris Ash, 4 games into his 4th season at RU, with a record of 8-32, 3-26 in Big 10 play, was fired. Athletic director Pat Hobbs also fired offensive coordinator John McNulty. Defensive coordinator Andy Buh was kept, but, given that the average score of a Rutgers game this season is Other Guys 33, Scarlet Knights 16 -- against FBS (formerly Division I-A) teams, it's Other Guys 37, Scarlet Knights 15 -- maybe the defense is just as much of a problem as the offense.

Other than for legal reasons, it's hard to imagine a major college football team being willing to fire its head coach in September.

On the other hand, it's better to get rid of the guy not getting the job done too soon than too late. So... Ash to Ashes.

For the rest of the season, the head coach will be Nunzio Campanile. He was elevated from the position of tight ends coach, and, for the moment, he will also be his own offensive coordinator. His pedigree is mostly high school, but damn good high school football, including 2 of the most storied programs in the State -- both Catholic schools in Bergen County, and a rough rivalry. From 2000 to 2009, he was the defensive coordinator at Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey. From 2010 to 2017, he was head coach at Bergen Catholic in Oradell. Last season, he was RU's running backs coach.

Among the names supposedly being considered to be the next "permanent" head coach, a decision unlikely to be made before this season ends: Campanile himself, Princeton University's Bob Surace, the University of Buffalo's Lance Leipold, the University of Pittsburgh's Pat Narduzzi, Mississippi State University's Joe Moorhead, and... Greg Schiano.

*

Greg Schiano was Rutgers football's great Scarlet hope. A former assistant to Joe Paterno at Penn State and Butch Davis at the University of Miami, he became RU's head coach in 2001, and declared, "It's time." (It was long past time.) He said he would turn not just New Jersey, but the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, into "The State of Rutgers." (NYC doesn't have an FBS team, and Philly's only FBS teams are Temple and Villanova.)

At first, there wasn't much improvement: He went 2-9 and 1-11 in his 1st 2 seasons. Then came minor progress, going 5-7 and 4-7. In 2005, it was turned around: 7-5, and the 1st "real" bowl bid in school history, a minor bowl that RU lost. But in 2006, RU went 11-2, including a stunning nationally-televised win over then-Number 3 Louisville, and won a bowl game for the 1st time.
Records of 8-5, 8-5 and 9-4 followed, with minor bowls won each season. RU fell to 4-8 in 2010, but jumped back to 9-4 in 2011, winning the Pinstripe Bowl over Iowa State at Yankee Stadium.

That turned out to be the last game Schiano coached at Rutgers -- so far. He had turned down the chance to become head coach at Miami, and lots of people thought he was waiting for Paterno to retire, so he could become the next head coach at Penn State.

Finally, he was made an offer he couldn't refuse: A pro job, and he jumped at it. The right decision? By the end of the 2012 season, Penn State's image as a university was shattered, the football program badly stained, and Paterno fired and dying of cancer. Did Schiano luck out of taking a poisoned chalice?

No, he just took another one: The NFL job he took was as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a job that had already frustrated John McKay, Ray Perkins, Sam Wyche and Tony Dungy; and has since frustrated Lovie Smith and Dirk Koetter. Schiano went 7-9 in 2012, and 4-12 in 2013, finishing last in the NFC South Division both times, and was fired.

It seemed to serve him right. He had taken Rutgers to the cusp of being a great program, and then he left. He went from being Rutgers' Daddy to being Rutgers' Deadbeat Dad. He left us in the lurch, and a lot of us haven't forgiven him for it.

Is that fair? RU went 9-4 and reached a bowl game under new head coach Kyle Flood in 2012. But they fell to 6-7 in 2013. They got back to 8-5 and won a bowl game in 2014, but fell to 4-8 in 2015, a season that saw Flood suspended for 4 games, and RU placed on probation for the 1st time in its history (lasting 2 years), for violations I won't get into here. Flood was fired, and replaced by Ash: 2-10, 4-8, 1-11, and now 1-3.

Schiano landed on his feet after his Tampa Bay debacle. Urban Meyer made him defensive coordinator and assistant head coach at Ohio State. When Meyer had to leave after last season, it looked like Schiano might get his next head job, at an even better program than Penn State (which, at least historically, is also a better one than Miami).

But Schiano didn't take the head job in Columbus. Instead, the New England Patriots offered him the job as their defensive coordinator. That was on February 6. On March 28, before there could even be a mini-camp, he resigned, saying:

I have informed Mr. Kraft and Coach Belichick that I am stepping down from my position at the Patriots. This is not the result of any one event, but rather a realization that I need to spend more time on my faith and family. I don't want to look back years from now and wish I had done things differently. Therefore, I am taking time away from the game to recalibrate my priorities.

If Schiano takes the RU job back before this season is up, that would make him look like a hypocrite. But it could be that he's taking the time to evaluate the team from afar. The fact that he has coached in the Big 10 recently might help.

Still, it wouldn't feel right cheering him on. After all, he left us for (it seemed) greener pastures once before. Would Deadbeat Dad walk out on Rutgers again? We don't know that he will. We do know that he has.

Ash has gone to ashes. Is Schiano going to return to Rutgers' dust? And should Rutgers fans be happy about this?

Whoever is chosen, I'm going to need to see some results before I decide.

And, of course, Schiano might not be the next coach. For all we now, Campanile -- or "Coach Nunz," as he likes to be called -- or someone else could turn out to be the man for the job.

*

Days until Arsenal play again: 2, this Thursday, 3:00 PM New York time, home to Belgian team Standard Liege, in UEFA Europa League play. This afternoon, they played poorly away to Manchester United, falling behind 1-0 at the end of the 1st half, drawing even at 1-1, and surviving the inevitable phony penalty that Man U always seem to get at Old Trafford, but goalkeeper Bernd Leno saved it.

Days until the New Jersey Devils play again: 4, on Friday night, at the Prudential Center, against the Winnipeg Jets.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: 4, Friday night at 7:00 PM, home to Somerset County school Montgomery, in a Greater Middlesex Conference/Skylands Conference "crossover" game. Da Bears are now 1-2, having lost to Old Bridge and South Brunswick, and beaten Monroe in between.

Days until Rutgers University plays football again: 5, Saturday at noon, home to the University of Maryland.

Days until the New York Red Bulls play again: 6, on Sunday at 4:00 PM, away to the Montreal Impact. It will be the regular season finale.

Days until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: 19, on Wednesday night, October 9, against the Philadelphia Flyers, a.k.a. The Philth, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The season's 1st game against the New York Rangers, a.k.a. The Scum, will be on Thursday, October 17, at the Prudential Center. The 1st game against the New York Islanders will be on Thursday, January 2, 2020, at the Barclays Center.

Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 11, on Friday, October 11, at 7:00, against Cuba, part of the CONCACAF Nations League, at Audi Field in Washington. They will play Canada at BMO Field in Toronto the following Tuesday night.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": Unclear. They have made the Playoffs, but the seedings are not yet established. Each of their 4 regional rivals have qualified for the Playoffs: New York City FC, the Philadelphia Union, D.C. United and the New England Revolution. Most likely, the Red Bulls and DCU will get the 5th and 4th seeds in the Eastern Conference, although not necessarily in that order. The 1st Round will be played on October 19 or 20, which would be in 19 or 20 days.

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: 61, on Saturday, November 30, at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. Just 2 months.

Days until my 50th Birthday, at which point I can join AARP and get discounts for travel and game tickets: 79, on December 18, 2019. A little over 11 weeks.

Days until the premiere of the final Star Wars film, Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker: 81, on December 20, 2019.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Derek Jeter: 113, on January 21, 2020. Under 4 months.

Days until the 1st Presidential voting of 2020, the Iowa Caucuses: 126, on Monday, February 3. A little over 4 months. The New Hampshire Primary will be 8 days later.

Days until the next North London Derby: 208, on Saturday, April 25, Arsenal's 1st visit to the new Tottenham Stadium, adjacent to the site of the previous White Hart Lane. Under 7 months. It is currently scheduled to be on the 16th Anniversary of the 2nd time that Arsenal won the League at White Hart Lane -- but also the last time Arsenal won the League anywhere. Of course, for TV reasons, the game could be moved to another date, probably the next day.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series (after this current one) begins: 221, on May 8, 2020, at Yankee Stadium II. Yes, the 2020 MLB schedule has already been released. 

Days until Euro 2020 begins, a tournament being held all over Europe instead of in a single host nation: 256, on Friday, June 12, 2020. Under 9 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 298, on July 24, 2020. Under 10 months.

Days until the next East Brunswick-Old Bridge football game: Presumably, given the 2019 schedule, 347, on Friday night, September 11, 2020, away at the purple shit pit on Route 9.

Days until the next Presidential election, when we can dump the Trump-Pence regime and elect a real Administration: 400, on November 3, 2020. A little over a year, or a little over 13 months.

Days until a fully-Democratic-controlled Congress can convene, and the Republicans can do nothing about it: 461, on January 3, 2021. Under a year and a half, or a little over 15 months.

Days until Liberation Day: 478, at noon on January 20, 2021. Under a year and a half, or under 16 months. Note that this is liberation from the Republican Party, not just from Donald Trump. Having Mike Pence as President wouldn't be better, just differently bad, mixing theocracy with plutocracy, rather than mixing kleptocracy with plutocracy.

Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Beijing, China: 858, on February 4, 2022. Under 2 1/2 years, or a little over 28 months.

Days until the next World Cup is scheduled to kick off: 1,148, on November 21, 2022, in Qatar. A little over 3 years, or under 38 months. The charges of corruption against Qatar may yet mean that they will lose the tournament, in which case it will be moved to a nation where it would not be too hot to play it in June and July.

Days until the next Women's World Cup is scheduled to kick off: As yet unknown, but probably on the 2nd Friday in June 2023, which would be June 9. That would be 1,348 days, a little under 4 years, or a little over 44 months. A host nation is expected to be chosen on March 20, 2020. Since 2 of the last 3 host nations have been in Europe, North America (Canada) hosted in 2015, and Asia (China) hosted in 2007, my guess is that it will be in either Asia (Japan, possibly Korea, but not China) or Oceania (Australia, possibly a joint bid with New Zealand).

October 1, 1919, 100 years ago: Game 1 of the World Series, at Redland Field (renamed Crosley Field in 1933) in Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Reds, Champions of the National League, are hosting the Chicago White Sox, Champions of the American League.

"Everybody" said that the White Sox were the superior team. Actually, while the ChiSox were more experienced – they had won the Series 2 years earlier – they had won 88 games that season, but the Reds had won more, 95. And the Reds had Hall-of-Famer Edd Roush, and several players who would have been multiple All-Stars had there been an All-Star Game at the time.

Still, everybody seemed to think the Sox were better. And yet, just before the Series began, the betting shifted to make the Reds the favorites. What had happened?

The starter for the Chicago White Sox is knuckleballer Eddie Cicotte. The 1st batter for the Cincinnati Reds is 2nd baseman Morrie Rath. Cicotte, not known as a dirty pitcher, but who had taken $10,000 (about $141,000 in today's money) from gamblers the night before, hits Rath with a pitch. This is the signal to the gamblers that the fix to which they'd agreed is still on. (Ironically, Rath was a former White Sock.)

In the bottom of the 4th, the game is tied 1-1. So far, nothing has happened to suggest to the unaware spectator that anything is amiss. But then Cicotte melts down, and allows 5 runs. The Reds win, 9-1, and the "upset" is on, as is what became known as the Black Sox Scandal.

October 2, 1919: Game 2 in Cincinnati. The Reds beat the White Sox 4-2, to go up 2 games to none. Sox pitcher Claude "Lefty" Williams holds the Reds scoreless for 3 innings, but in the 4th, he walks 3 batters, gives up a single to Edd Roush, and then a triple to Larry Kopf.

Sox manager William "Kid" Gleason tells team owner Charlie Comiskey that he's suspicious of his players. But Comiskey has been feuding with his old friend Ban Johnson, President of the American League, with the 2 men having founded the League. So Comiskey goes to National League President John Heydler. Heydler tells Johnson about Gleason's suspicions. But Johnson does nothing about it, thinking people will see it as a vengeful act against Comiskey.

Gleason is not the only one who is suspicious: Hugh Fullerton of the Chicago Herald-Examiner, and his protégé, Ring Lardner of the Chicago Tribune, make note of some questionable plays. So does former Giants pitcher Christy Mathewson, covering the Series for a national newspaper syndicate.

October 3, 1919: Game 3, at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Rookie lefthander Dickie Kerr pitches a 3-hit shutout, left fielder Joe Jackson gets 2 hits, and 1st baseman Arnold "Chick" Gandil gets 2 RBIs. The White Sox win Game 3 of the World Series, 3-0, and close the Reds' lead to 2 games to 1. Jackson and Gandil were in on the fix, but Kerr was not.

Adolfo "Dolf" Luque, the Reds' Cuban pitcher, pitches in relief, and thus becomes the 1st Latin American player to appear in a World Series game. He pitched a scoreless 8th inning.

Joseph Walker Jackson had become known as "Shoeless Joe" because of an incident in a minor league game. The shoes he'd been given were too tight, so he took them off in the outfield. He was a farmboy from the Appalachian western region of South Carolina, and had never learned how to read. He knew he had to learn how to sign his name, to give kids autographs, but he got around his illiteracy by having his wife order for him in restaurants.

He could "read" pitchers, though. Babe Ruth supposedly modeled his lefthanded swing after Jackson's. At the close of the 1920 season, just 33 years old, he had a .356 lifetime batting average (still the 3rd-highest ever), a whopping 170 OPS+, and 1,772 hits, including 307 doubles, 168 triples and 54 home runs. He had stolen 202 bases. How good a fielder was he? Ty Cobb called him the greatest left fielder he'd ever seen, and his glove "the place where triples go to die."

There was no Baseball Hall of Fame yet, but Shoeless Joe seemed to be on his way. None of the other players implicated in the scandal were likely to make it, though.

October 4, 1919: Game 4 in Chicago. Eddie Cicotte, in on the fix, didn't want to look as bad as he had in Game 1, to throw off suspicion. He and Jimmy Ring traded goose eggs for 4 innings. But in the 5th, Cicotte made a bad throw. Shoeless Joe Jackson made a run-allowing error on the next play. The Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago White Sox 3-1, and take a 2-1 lead in the Series.

After the game, Joseph J. "Sport" Sullivan, the Boston bookmaker who helped put the fix together, gave $20,000 to Gandil, who split it equally among the 2 men who'd led the fix from the players' side, shortstop Charles "Swede" Risberg, center fielder Oscar "Happy" Felsch; and the next day's starter, Williams.

Allegedly, Cicotte had a good reason for getting in on the fix. Comiskey had promised him a $10,000 bonus if he won 30 games in the 1919 season. He got to 29, and then the ever-cheap Comiskey ordered Gleason to not pitch Cicotte again.

This wasn't true. Cicotte did win 29 games, but Gleason did start him again, and he was unable to win the 30th. Yet the story persists, because it's emblematic of Comiskey's cheapness. It got into the 1988 movie version of Eliot Asinof's 1963 book about the scandal, Eight Men Out.

There is a story about Comiskey's cheapness that is absolutely true. In 1917, the White Sox won the World Series, beating the New York Giants, but throughout the year, their uniforms seemed to get dirtier and dirtier, because Comiskey wouldn't pay to have them washed on the road. Hence, the term "Black Sox" referred not to the scandal that would later be attached to them, but to their dirty uniforms.

My grandmother, who grew up in Queens in the 1930s, knew that (with help from her and my grandfather) my knowledge of baseball history was encyclopedic, asked me where the name came from. She was a Brooklyn Dodger fan, so she knew the National League cold, and knew that her team's name came from Brooklynites being called "trolley dodgers."

But she did not know the lore of the American League. She literally thought the team was officially called the Black Sox, and then changed to "White Sox" to clean their image up after the scandal.

I had to tell her it was totally the opposite: Chicago teams had been called the "White Stockings" going back to the dawn of professional baseball in the 1870s, as a contrast to the Cincinnati and Boston teams known as the Red Stockings, and that the AL team took the White Stockings name after the NL team became the Cubs in 1900, and that the Black Sox name was a nickname, and then came the scandal.

October 6, 1919: Game 5 in Chicago, following a Sunday rainout. Reds pitcher Horace "Hod" Eller pitches a 3-hit shutout. In the 2nd and 3rd innings, he strikes out 6 players in a row: Gandil, Risberg, Ray Schalk, opposing pitcher Williams, Harry "Nemo" Leibold and Eddie Collins.



October 1, 331 BC: The Battle of Gaugamela is fought, near what is now Dohuk, in northern Iraq, part of what some call Kurdistan. Ancient sources put the size of the Persian Empire army of Darius III at anywhere from 250,000 to a million, but modern estimates suggest it was more like 100,000. Which means the army of the Hellenic League, led by King Alexander III of Macedonia, was still outnumbered 2-1.

With particularly deft use of light infantry, Alexander won anyway, utterly wrecked the Persian army, and tried to chase Darius all the way back to Babylon, once the largest city in the world (believed to be the first to have over 200,000 people, about 50 miles south of present-day Baghdad).

But by the time Alexander got there, Darius had been killed by a cousin, who escaped. When Alexander found this out, he was outraged, and gave an enemy he admired a proper royal burial. As usual, he allowed anyone willing to be loyal to him to maintain their ranks, privileges, fortunes and ways of life. He was what we would now call "an enlightened despot."

The Persian Empire thus ended, and Alexander became known as Alexander the Great. A historian once called him "a two-thousand-year man," and we are still dealing with the consequences of his actions, 2,350 years later. He spread Greek culture to the south, to Egypt; and far to the east, to present-day Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, although not quite to the current borders of India.

In Baghdad and in the Egyptian city of Alexandria -- which he founded and named for himself -- the stories and wisdom of ancient Greece that preceded him, and ancient Rome that followed him, were preserved through the Middle Ages or "The Dark Ages" of 410 (the Sack of Rome) to 1401 (a date sometimes given by historians as the dawn of the Renaissance).

By spreading Greek culture, Alexander also spread the athletic ideal that was exemplified by the ancient Olympic Games. Today, while we don't have an entire world ruled by one enlightened despot, we do have a world linked by ideas, including the idea of sport.

October 1, 1207: Prince Henry of Winchester is born in Winchester Castle in Hampshire, in southern England. He is the youngest son of King John of England, who also ruled the western half of France at this time. When John dies in 1216, his son had just turned 9, but was now King Henry III.

He reigned for 56 years, a record for English monarchs until Queen Victoria, 600 years later. He was popular early in his reign, but then, he was just a kid, and not ruling without regents. He would eventually become hated, and was even imprisoned as a result of losing the Battle of Lewes, in Sussex, during the Second Barons War in 1264, before his son, the future King Edward I, won a battle and broke him out the next year. He was quite repressive, particularly toward Jews, and died in 1272.

If you've seen Braveheart, you might think his son Edward was a really nasty guy. Actually, he was more enlightened than his father (if not as enlightened as Alexander the Great). And that wasn't the only thing that movie got wrong.

October 1, 1643: In retaliation for the Pavonia Massacre, which killed 120 members of the Raritan tribe in present-day Jersey City on the preceding February 25, a band made up of several nearby tribes attacked the Dutch settlement, which ends up having to be evacuated.

The conflict becomes known as Kieft's War, for Willem Kieft, governor of the Dutch colony of New Netherland. Kieft is recalled to the Netherlands, but dies in a shipwreck before he can defend himself before his superiors. Peter Stuyvesant is sent to straighten out the colony, which included much of the eventual States of New York and New Jersey. He succeeds, but the English take the colony in 1664.

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October 1, 1730: Richard Stockton is born in Princeton, Mercer County, New Jersey, at Morven, the home of his father, John Stockton. John was one of the founders of Princeton University, and Richard became a trustee in it, as well as perhaps the foremost lawyer in the Colony of New Jersey. He married poet Annis Boudinot, and their children included future Congressman Richard Stockton, and Julia Stockton, who married the father of American medicine, Dr. Benjamin Rush.

However, Richard Stockton Sr. may also have been the first cynic about New Jersey politics, writing, "The public is generally unthankful, and I will never become a Servant of it, till I am convinced that by neglecting my own affairs I am doing more acceptable Service to God and Man."

He had little choice: Because of his influence, he was appointed to the Provincial Council and then the Provincial Supreme Court, all before his 44th birthday. He was elected to the Continental Congress, as was his son-in-law Rush, and both signed the Declaration of Independence. He lost the subsequent election to be the 1st Governor of the State of New Jersey to William Livingston by a single vote. As a consolation prize, he was unanimously elected Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court.

But on November 30, 1776, he was captured by the British Army. He was offered a pardon if he would "remain in peaceful obedience to the King." He turned it down. He was imprisoned for 5 months and intentionally starved. His health never recovered. Morven was stripped of its belongings, and all the books of its renowned library removed and burned. He resigned from the Continental Congress, returned to the practice of law, developed cancer due to smoking, and died on February 28, 1781, at Morven.

Morven still stands, and from 1956 to 1981 was the official Governor's Mansion of the State of New Jersey. It is now a museum. It is on U.S. Route 206, which is named Stockton Street. Further south on Stockton Street is a much larger house, Drumthwacket, which became the Governor's Mansion. Stockton University in Galloway, Atlantic County, New Jersey is named for him.

October 1, 1741: Thomas Fitzsimons is born in Balkilty, County Wexford, Ireland. He fought alongside George Washington at the Battles of Trenton and Princeton in 1776-77, served in the Continental Congress, and signed the Constitution of the United States in 1787. He served Pennsylvania in the House of Representatives from 1789 to 1795, and died in 1811.

October 1, 1746: John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg is born outside Philadelphia in Trappe, Pennsylvania. Under the name Peter Muhlenberg, he was ordained as a priest of the Anglican Church, and was personally asked by Washington to command a regiment. He served with Washington at the Battles of Brandywine, Germantown, Valley Forge, Monmouth and Yorktown, and retired with the rank of Major General.

He was later elected by Pennsylvania to the House of Representatives, and served as the House's 1st Speaker. He later served in the Senate, and died in 1807, on his 61st birthday.

October 1, 1754: Pavel Petrovich Romanov is born in St. Petersburg, Russia. His father, Peter, was heir to the throne, and became Czar in 1762. But Peter was assassinated, and his wife, Paul's mother, became Empress Catherine II -- Catherine the Great. Despite rumors that Catherine had cheated on him (certainly, Peter was not the father of her next 2 children), Paul resembled his father completely.

Paul never got along with his mother, and it is believed that she tried to bypass him in the line of succession, and pass the crown to his son, Alexander. When she died in 1796, he took all the steps necessary to assert his legitimacy, including burning his mother's will (in case she had bypassed him), giving his father a new state funeral, and dedicating a new statue of his great-grandfather Peter the Great (from whom he, but not his mother, was descended).

Another step away from his German-born mother was his rejection of the nation she admired most, France. French had been spoken at court for 42 years, but it would be all Russian from then on. He sided with Britain against France, both before and after the rise of Napoleon.

He pissed a lot of people in the Russian government off, and he was assassinated in one of his own castles on March 23, 1801, after less than 5 years on the throne. His 23-year-old son, as Catherine had wished, became Czar Alexander I.

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October 1, 1832: Caroline Lavinia Scott is born in Oxford, Ohio. Her father was a minister and a college professor. In 1853, she married one of his students, Benjamin Harrison, and when he was elected President in 1888, she became the First Lady. They had 2 children.

She renovated the White House, including hiring an exterminator, and installing new plumbing and the building's first electricity. She also raised the 1st White House Christmas tree. She led a campaign to raise money for Johns Hopkins University Medical School, on the condition that it admit women. She was the 1st President General of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

But she was stricken with tuberculosis, and died on October 25, 1892, near the end of her husband's campaign for re-election. Only 1 First Lady has died in office since: Ellen Wilson in 1914. The Harrisons' daughter, Mary McKee, upheld the duties of First Lady for the last 4 months of the Harrison Administration.

And in a very creepy epilogue, in 1896, Ben married Mary Scott Dimmick, Caroline's niece and secretary. Apparently, while he is not known to have cheated on Caroline, he had been in love with Mary for quite some time.

October 1, 1841: Two friars from St. Augustine's Church in Philadelphia buy the 200-acre Belle Air estate in Radnor, Pennsylvania, 11 miles northwest of Philadelphia. A year later, on the farm, they open "the Augustinian College of Vilanova."

In 1844, the Philadelphia Nativist Riots burned St. Augustine's, and with the church's financial backing required for its own rebuilding, the college was closed. It reopened, and graduated its 1st class in 1847. It closed again as a result of the Panic of 1857, and was unable to reopen until after the Civil War, in September 1865.

Villanova University, as it is now known, became one of basketball's "Philadelphia Big Five," along with the University of Pennsylvania, La Salle University, Temple University and St. Joseph's University. although it is not in Philadelphia proper.

This was emphasized during a game a few years ago, when, about to beat St. Joe's and go undefeated against the other Big 5 schools, 'Nova fans started to chant, "We own Philly!" and the St. Joe's fans answered, "You ain't Philly!" They were on shaky ground, as the SJU campus straddles the City Line.

Villanova won college basketball's National Championship in 1985, 2016 and 2018. Those are the only titles won by a Philadelphia school since La Salle did it in 1954. Villanova's basketball legends include Paul Arizin, Wally (later Wali) Jones, Bill Melchionni, Chris Ford, Rory Sparrow, Ed Pinckney, Kerry Kittles and Tim Thomas.

They also have a legendary track & field program, led in the 1950s and '60s by head coach James "Jumbo" Elliott, who coached 5 Olympic Gold Medalists: Ron Delany (1956 1500 meters), Charles Jenkins (1956 400 meters), Don Bragg (1960 pole vault), Paul Drayton (1964 4x100 meter relay) and Larry James (1968 4x400 meter relay). The program has also produced Marty Liquori, Eamonn Coghlan,

While Villanova suspended its football program from 1981 to 1984, and now competes in the NCAA's FCS (formerly Division I-AA), it has produced Jets Super Bowl winner Al Aktinson, Miami Dolphins Super Bowl winner Kevin Reilly, Philadelphia Eagles GM Jim Murray and running back Brian Westbrook and Raiders Hall-of-Famer Howie Long.

Other notable Villanova graduates include actors Victor Buono, Maria Bello and Bradley Cooper; singer Jim Croce; the late New York archbishop, John Cardinal O'Connor; former Philadelphia Mayor and Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and his wife, federal Judge Marjorie Rendell; disgraced former Connecticut Governor John Rowland; former Senator Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire; and former Second Lady Jill Biden.

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October 1, 1865: The Trenton Business College is founded, at Temperance Hall in downtown Trenton. The 1st President is Andrew J. Rider. In 1897, shortly before Rider retired as President, the school was renamed for him: The Rider Business College.

It became Rider College in 1921, and moved to the nearby suburb of Lawrence in 1959, becoming Rider University in 1994. Its teams, the Broncs (not "Broncos"), compete in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), making them a "mid-major" in basketball, and their most famous alumnus is ESPN analyst and former Notre Dame coach Richard "Digger" Phelps. They ran out of money to fund their football team in 1951, and yet they claim they are "undefeated since 1951."

October 1, 1924: Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis bans New York Giants outfielder Jimmy O'Connell from playing in the World Series, after O'Connell confesses that he tried to bribe Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Heinie Sand to "go easy" in the season-ending series between the teams.

Also on this day, Donny Edward Hathaway is born in Chicago, and grows up in St. Louis. One of the top soul singers of the 1970s, he became known for his duets with Roberta Flack, and for singing the theme song to the CBS sitcom Maude. But he suffered from schizophrenia and depression, and jumped out he window of his hotel suite at the Essex House on New York's Central Park South on January 13, 1979. He was only 33.

As far as I know, Donny Hathaway had nothing to do with sports. Although she wasn't born for another few months, singer Alecia "Pink" Moore has called him her favorite singer of all time. So did Amy Winehouse, who mentioned him in her song "Rehab." Justin Timberlake has called him "the best singer of all time." And, during Donny's lifetime, no less than Stevie Wonder said, "When Donny sings any song, he owns it."

For my 4,000th post on this blog, I decided to combine 2 of my interests: Sports and history. Specifically, alternate history.

You see, October 2 is a big, big day in Yankee history. Not just because of Bucky Dent.

October 2, 1949, 70 years ago today. Yankee Stadium, New York. Regular-season finale. Winner takes the Pennant.

The New York Yankees lead the Boston Red Sox 5-1 going into the 9th inning. But the Sox rally, and a fly ball goes out to the great Joe DiMaggio in center field. A bad heel in the 1st half of the season and pnuemonia now, the Yankee Clipper had played his usual sensational in between. But Joe D dropped the ball. That made the score 5-3, and the tying runs were on base. DiMaggio walked in from center field, disgusted with himself, taking himself out of the game.

Pitcher Vic Raschi had one more out to get, Sox catcher Birdie Tebbetts. Get him out, and the Yanks win the 1st Pennant of the Casey Stengel era, and begin the transition of the 1940s DiMaggio-Henrich-Rizzuto Yankees to the 1950s Mantle-Berra-Ford Yankees (though Rizzuto is still a vital contributor for the 1st half of the Fifties). Lose the game, and...

This single game may be the most important in Yankee history, other than their 1st Pennant win in 1921. If the Yankees fail to win, and thus lose the Pennant to the Red Sox, it's not hard to imagine baseball history taking some very different turns...

November 1949: An injured and frustrated DiMaggio, already not happy with Stengel, tells owners Del Webb and Dan Topping, "Either he goes, or I go." Committed to Stengel, at least in the short term, and with plenty of talent already on hand and coming up through the farm system -- including Mickey Mantle, who just finished his first pro season -- the owners call the Yankee Clipper's bluff. He retires at age 35, having spent only 11 seasons in the majors (having lost 3 due to World War II).

He still makes the Hall of Fame, and is still one of the most revered players ever, but with only enough games to amount to 10 full seasons under his belt, no one thinks of him as "Baseball's Greatest Living Player."

The Red Sox, confident after their 1949 Pennant, beat the Brooklyn Dodgers in the World Series, and come back in 1950 and win another Pennant, beating the Philadelphia Phillies in the Series. No one questions Ted Williams' ability to play in the clutch, or that he is a greater player than DiMaggio. And the Red Sox' World Series drought ends at "only" 31 years.

Of course, after 1950, it takes them another 54 years to win another, but nobody talks about a "Curse of the Bambino." Boston Globe sports columnist Dan Shaughnessy has to come up with another explanation as to why the Red Sox haven't won a World Series since the early days of the Korean War, rather than the last days of World War I.

The Cleveland Indians succeed the Red Sox as the dominant team in the American League, winning Pennants in 1951, '52 and '54. They beat the New York Giants in the '51 World Series and the Dodgers in '52, but lose to the Giants in '54.

The Dodgers finally win their 1st World Series in 1953, giving Brooklyn its greatest day. This gives Walter O'Malley the impetus he needs to get his new stadium built in downtown Brooklyn. He has more time to work City officials, and Dodger Stadium opens in 1958. So the Dodgers still win the World Series in 1959, '63 and '65, plus the Pennant in '66.

The City also builds a new stadium for the Giants, opening in 1960 in Flushing Meadow Park. It's called Stoneham Stadium, after the Giants' owner. Bill Shea, a noted New York attorney, has nothing to do with it, aside from being a Giants season-ticket holder, and lives the rest of his life with almost nobody outside the City ever hearing his name. And the Giants still win the Pennant in 1962.

However, when expansion comes in 1962, there's no need to put a new team in New York. So the team we know as the Mets goes somewhere else. Since the American League got the Los Angeles Angels in 1961, the National League gets San Francisco in 1962, a team named the Seals after, as were the Angels, the preceding Pacific Coast League team.

When Divisional play begins in 1969, the Dodgers, Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs and expansion Montreal Expos are put in the Eastern Division, while the West has the Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Seals and expansion San Diego Padres. When the three-Division setup begins in 1994, the East has the Dodgers, Giants, Philadelphia, Montreal and the expansion Florida Marlins; the Central has Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and St. Louis; while the West has Houston, the San Francisco Seals, San Diego and the expansion Colorado Rockies.

The Playoffs take some different turns. The Cubs and Seals (our reality's Mets) are in different Divisions, so they both win Divisions. But the Cubs still lose, and the Seals, so horrible from 1962 to '68, continue their '69 miracle, with all those hippies in the stands at a retrofitted-for-baseball Kezar Stadium (since Horace Stoneham isn't there to approve the mistake known as Candlestick Park).

The Pirates beat the Cards instead of the Giants in '71. There's a New York team beating the Reds in '73, but it's the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Dodgers do it again in '74. The Phillies win more games than the Dodgers in '77, but not in '78; each team beats the Reds in the NLCS. Instead of 1 game for the NL West, the Dodgers and Astros play a best 3-of-5 for the Pennant, and the Astros reach the World Series 25 years sooner.

The Dodgers still beat the Expos in '81, but a round sooner. The Astros beat the Reds, and the Dodgers beat the Astros, but a round later. In '82, the Phillies finally get revenge on the Cards for the 1964 collapse. The Dodgers beat the Braves for the '83 Pennant -- Sorry, Braves manager Joe Torre, but your home Borough wins this one. The Cub fans still get their hearts broken in '84, and Jack Clark still beats the Dodgers with a homer for the Cards in '85. With the Seals (Mets) in the West, they beat the Phils rather than the Astros in a nail-biter of an NLCS.

The Giants finally end a 25-year 1st-place drought in '87, but lose to the Cards. The Dodgers still beat the '62 expansion franchise in '88. With the Giants and Cubs in the same Division, the Cubs miss the Playoffs in '89; the Giants beat the Padres for the Pennant. The Giants then lose not the Division, but the Pennant to the Braves in '93.

In 1995, Braves over Dodgers, Reds over Rockies, Braves over Reds. In '96, Braves over Dodgers, Cardinals over Padres, Braves over Cards. In '97, Braves over Giants, Marlins over Astros, Marlins over Braves. In '98, Padres get Wild Card, not Cubs, despite Sammy Sosa's 66 home runs and Kerry Wood's rookie pitching heroics, Braves over Astros, Padres over Giants, Padres over Braves. In '99, Braves over Seals, Giants over Diamondbacks, Braves over Giants.

In 2000, Giants over Braves, Seals over Cards, Giants over Seals. In '01, Cards over Astros, D-backs over Giants, D-backs over Cards. In '02, Giants over Cards, Braves over D-backs, Giants over Braves. In '03, Braves win Central, so Cub fans get their hearts broken again, but at least Steve Bartman is off the hook; Marlins over Braves, Giants over Astros, Marlins over Giants. In '04, Astros over Dodgers, Cards over Braves, Cards over Astros. In '05, with the Expos moving to become the Washington Nationals, Cards over Braves, Astros over Phillies, Astros over Cards. In '06, Seals over Dodgers, Cards over Phillies, Cards over Seals. In '07, Rockies over Phils, D-backs over Cubs, Rockies over D-backs. In '08, Phils over Brewers, D-backs over Cubs, Phils over D-backs. In '09, it'll be Dodgers vs. Cards, Rockies vs. Phils.

And what about the Yankees? Frustrated that Stengel hasn't won them a Pennant, Webb and Topping fire him after the 1952 season. Bill Dickey, who had briefly managed the Yanks in 1946, is asked to rise from the coaching ranks and take over again. After all, he's a winner, and Yogi Berra and Phil Rizzuto trust him.

He gets the Yankees back in gear, as they win the Pennant in 1953, their 1st in 6 years. But they lose the World Series to the Dodgers, finish 2nd to the Indians in '54, and lose the Series to the Dodgers again in '55 and '56, as Mickey Mantle never quite warms up to Dickey the way he did to Stengel in real life.

After the Copacabana Incident in '57, general manager George Weiss cleans house. Billy Martin is traded away, and Dickey is fired. Charlie Dressen, who had managed the Dodgers to the '52 Pennant and the '53 World Championship, had just been fired by the Washington Senators, and Weiss picks him up. Following the season, in which the Yanks lost another World Series, this time to the Milwaukee Braves, Mantle went over the head of Weiss, who never liked him, to owners Dan Topping and Del Webb, saying he and Dressen couldn't get along. "Either he goes, or I go," the Mick said.

At the start of the 1958 season, Mickey Mantle was playing center field for the Kansas City Athletics, having been traded for several prospects, including a young outfielder named Roger Maris. The Yanks still win the '58 Pennant, but again lose to the Braves. They had now won 4 straight Pennants, 5 in 6 years, but had lost the World Series every time. The Yanks finish 3rd in '59, and win the Pennant in '60, but lose the Series to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Dressen is fired, and replaced by Ralph Houk.

Without Mantle to bat behind him, Maris doesn't get as many good pitches to hit, and finishes the 1961 season with 45 home runs. Babe Ruth's 60 in 1927 remains the single-season record until 1998, although, with the steroid explosion of that time, many still consider the Babe's 60 to be the real record. The Yanks finish 2nd to the Detroit Tigers, who beat the Cincinnati Reds for the World Championship. The Yanks win Pennants in '62 and '63, but lose a Subway Series each time, to the Giants in '62 and the Dodgers in '63.

Houk is fired, and replaced by Berra. The Yanks finish 3rd behind the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles in '64. (The White Sox lose the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals.) This time, there is no second chance: Yogi is gone, and never again appears in Yankee Pinstripes.

Since winning the whole thing in 1947, the Yanks had played 17 seasons, and won 8 Pennants, including 4 straight from '55 to '58, but lost all eight World Series. Then the team collapses, and never wins another Pennant while playing in New York City.

In 1972, along with the NFL's New York Giants, the Yanks accept a deal to play at the proposed Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Yankee Stadium is demolished after the 1973 season, and the Yankees share Stoneham Stadium in Queens with the Giants for 2 dreary years.

Meadowlands Stadium opens in 1976, and while the Yankees are good enough to win the American League East that season, they lose the League Championship Series to the Kansas City Royals. The Royals win the Pennant again in 1977, but lose in '78 to the Boston Red Sox, who battled injuries and the onrushing, but not quite successful, Yanks. The death of Thurman Munson crushes them in '79, and after a rough 1980 regular season in which they beat the Orioles, they get swept by the Royals.

Dave Winfield signs with the Dodgers instead of the Yankees prior to the '81 season, and after the Yanks get embarrassed by the Milwaukee Brewers in the strike-forced Division Series, Reggie Jackson, to use his own words, "got on the first thing smokin' and headin' west," signing with the California Angels. He could've made the Meadowlands his for all time, but he didn't want to deal with that meddling George Steinbrenner anymore. And, not having won so much as a Pennant in his 1st 9 years as owner, Steinbrenner begins making some crazy deals that further doom the franchise.

The World Series is won by the San Francisco Seals over the Orioles in '69, the O's over the Reds in '70, the Pirates over the O's in '71, the A's over the Reds in '72, the A's over the Dodgers in '73 and '74, the Reds over the Red Sox in '75, and the Reds over the Royals in '76. In 1977, in their 95th season of operation, the Philadelphia Phillies finally win a World Series, beating the Royals. The Dodgers beat the Red Sox in Game 7 of the 1978 World Series when light-hitting shortstop Bill Russell -- who had the same name as a Boston sports legend, no less -- hits a home run over the Green Monster at Fenway Park, off Mike Torrez. It was the 1st World Championship for a New York team since the '65 Bums.

The Pirates beat the Orioles in 1979. In 1980, the Yankees again lose the Pennant to the Royals, who lose the World Series to the Astros, who have never won a World Series in our reality. There is bedlam in Brooklyn again in 1981, as the Dodgers beat Billy Martin's Oakland A's in the World Series. The Phillies beat the Brewers in 1982, the Orioles dethrone the Phils in '83, the Tigers over the Padres in '84, and the Royals finally break through in '85 against the Cards.

Some things don't change. Bill Buckner is one of them, although when Mookie Wilson hits that grounder between his legs, it's not in Flushing Meadow against the New York Mets, but, rather, it's at Kezar against the San Francisco Seals.

The Minnesota Twins, with hometown hero Dave Winfield leading the way after his contract runs out in Brooklyn, beat the Cards in the '87 Series. In '88, Kirk Gibson's homer off Dennis Eckersley lands in the right-field pavilion of Dodger Stadium -- any further and it would've landed on the Long Island Rail Road tracks heading out to Nassau and Suffolk.

When word reaches Stoneham Stadium in Flushing that an earthquake has rocked the home region of the A's, the Giants' 1989 World Series opponents, Game 3 is postponed, and, though there is talk about having the entire rest of the Series in New York, the Series is resumed as scheduled. As it turns out, a move is not necessary, as the A's complete a sweep. They are then swept by the Reds in 1990. Twins over Braves in '91, Jays over Braves in '92 and '93, with a shaky Charlie Liebrandt giving up Joe Carter's capper.

George Steinbrenner is sick of sharing Meadowlands Stadium with the football Giants and the Jets. At least, after 1993, he'll never again have to share it with Rutgers University's pathetic football program. Sickened by the labor strife of the 1994 strike, he sells the Yankees to Donald Trump, who promises a fabulous new stadium in New York City. (UPDATE: He promises it will be the best. And it will be the biggest in baseball. It will be huge.)

With an obliging Mayor in Rudy Giuliani and an obliging Governor in George Pataki, it happens. In 1998, the 75,000-seat Trump Stadium opens at what was once John Mullaly Park in the South Bronx, across from the housing project that went up where the original Yankee Stadium stood from 1923 to 1973. It is hailed by the New York media as an architectural marvel, half cathedral of baseball, half modern steel fortress. Outside the New York Tri-State Area, however, it is ripped as the ultimate in Trump's tacky taste.

Trump Stadium has field dimensions similar to Yankee Stadium, but that was too late to save the Yankees in 1996. In Game 1 of the ALCS, the Yanks trail the Orioles 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth. Rookie shortstop Derek Jeter hits a fly ball to right-center field, where it falls harmlessly into the glove of Tony Tarasco. About 20 feet away, behind the 375-foot mark on the fence at Meadowlands Sta- ... excuse me, First Union Field, I forgot that the naming rights were sold... 12-year-old Jeffrey Maier sulks. For a moment, he thought that not only would this be a home run, but that he'd have a chance to catch it.

The Orioles beat the Yankees in 4 straight, and are then bombed into submission in a 5-game World Series by the defending Champion Braves. The Yanks don't win the Pennant in 1997, either, eliminated in the Division Series by the Cleveland Indians, who lose to the Florida Marlins.

It had now been 50 years, half a century, since the Yanks won a World Series. In comparison to The Curse of Pinky Higgins by Dan Shaughnessy (the Boston Red Sox ruined by their failure to pursue black players) and The Curse of Rocky Colavito by Terry Pluto (the Cleveland Indians ruined by one big trade), Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post writes The Curse of Casey Stengel.

Stengel, who has been dead since 1975 and had managed nothing but minor-league teams after his firing by the Yankees in 1952, has been nearly forgotten outside the Tri-State Area, remembered, if at all, for being the old ballplayer who got booed by some fans, tipped his cap to them, and having a sparrow he'd hidden under there fly out, literally giving the fans the bird.

With the opening of Trump Stadium in 1998, the Yanks have a truly formidable team. They set a new American League record with 114 wins, and look unbeatable. But the Curse of Casey strikes Chuck Knoblauch in Game 2 of the ALCS against the Indians, and the Yanks never recover. The Tribe wins in 5 games, and take their 1st World Championship in 46 years with a six-game win over the San Diego Padres.

The 1999 season is no better, as the Yanks fall apart in the ALCS against the Red Sox, making 10 errors in the 5 games, while the Boston fans beat up visiting New Yorkers in the stands at Fenway. The Red Sox end their curse, sweeping the Braves to win their 1st World Series in 49 years. Now, the only "cursed teams" left in baseball appear to be the Yankees and the two Chicago teams, the Cubs and the White Sox.

Somehow, the Yanks make a run for the ages in 2000, although a September nosedive makes it look like Casey is doing his dirty work again. But they hang on, and beat the A's and Seattle Mariners to win their 1st Pennant in 37 years, since the tragic last days of the Kennedy Presidency. This sets up a Subway Series with the Giants, who have their own drought: They haven't won a World Series since beating the Yankees 38 years earlier. (But nobody has said the Giants are under the Curse of Bobby Richardson, who, in this reality, just missed Willie McCovey's series-winning line drive in 1962.)

The symbol of the Series is an epic at-bat in the bottom of the 9th inning of Game 1 at Trump Stadium. Yankee right fielder Paul O'Neill fouls off pitch after pitch against Giant closer Robb Nen, but Nen finally gets him to fly out to left field, where Barry Bonds makes an easy catch.

Game 2 erupts in controversy, as Roger Clemens takes the broken barrel of Bonds' bat, and seemingly throws it at him. Bonds charges the mound, and the biggest fight in World Series history erupts. With both the Yanks and the Jints behind the Dodgers in the City's imagination, fights break out in the stands as well.

It takes the umpires 5 minutes to settle things, and public-address announcer Bob Sheppard tries to shame the crowd into behaving. Of course, since Sheppard has been there since 1951 and has never been there for a Yankee World Championship team, it's not like he's "the voice of God" or anything like that.

As the game continues, there are still fights. The Giants win, and Mike Lupica writes in the New York Daily News that the Bonds-Clemens matchup is "the biggest reason yet why baseball must crack down on steroids."

The Giants take Game 3 at Stoneham Stadium, and while the Yankees salvage Game 4, Game 5 is a Giant victory. The Curse of Casey has struck again.

After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the hearts of baseball fans everywhere are with the Yankees as they make an improbable comeback against the A's and shock the 116-win Mariners to take the Pennant. The Arizona Diamondbacks slam the Yanks in Games 1 and 2 of the World Series. The Yanks take Game 3 and, incredibly, last-out homers save the Yanks in Games 4 and 5. But the D-backs win Game 6 in an ugly blowout.

In Game 7, Alfonso Soriano homers off Curt Schilling to give the Yanks a 2-1 lead in the top of the 8th. In the bottom of the 9th, the Yanks need 3 more outs to win their 1st World Championship in 54 years. The D-backs are only in their 4th year of operation. But Mariano Rivera can't hold the lead, both his control and his fielding betraying him. Luis Gonzalez singles home Craig Counsell, and the Yanks have their most shocking postseason defeat yet. The Curse of Casey seems stronger than ever.

The 2002 Playoffs are a wash, as the Yanks lose to the Anaheim Angels, who go on to beat the Giants in an epic World Series. But 2003 seems hopeful for the Yanks, as they advance to the ALCS. Despite another brawl in Game 3 at Fenway, the Yanks need to win only Game 6 or Game 7 at Trump Stadium to win the Pennant against the hated Red Sox.

They lose Game 6, and Game 7 looks lost as well. But 4 straight doubles by Jeter, Bernie Williams, Hideki Matsui and Jorge Posada, bracketing Sox manager Grady Little's mind-bending decision to leave a tiring Pedro Martinez in, ties the game. Rivera silences his critics with a stunning three-inning performance, and Aaron Boone becomes perhaps the greatest postseason hero in Yankee history by homering on the first pitch of the 11th inning against Tim Wakefield. There is pandemonium in The Bronx.

But joy turns to anger in Game 4 of the World Series, as Jeff Weaver gives up an 11th-inning homer to Alex Gonzalez, and the Marlins clinch on Josh Beckett's shutout in Game 6.

The choke to the Red Sox in October 2004 is still too painful to discuss here. And the flop against the Angels in the 2005 Playoffs still has some fans calling for the heads of Alex Rodriguez and Randy Johnson. As the 2006 Playoffs began, there were those who hoped for a Subway Series between the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers, but both teams are beaten in the Division Series. Again, Yankee fans call for A-Rod's head, or at least his trade.

Finally, Yankee owner Donald Trump can't take it anymore, and tells manager Joe Torre, "Yuh fie-uhd!" Lee Mazzilli failed to get the job done in 2007, the 60th anniversary of the last Yankee World Championship, and the Yanks finished 3rd behind Tampa Bay and Boston in 2008.

Between the Crash of 2008, his real estate dealings, his failing Atlantic City casinos, and his massive but failed investments in the Yankees, Trump goes bankrupt (as opposed to the Mets in the history we know). His 3rd wife Melania tells him he can only save himself from his creditors by selling the Yankees. He slaps her. She goes to the police, and Trump is arrested.

The New York District Attorney's office indicts him on 1 count of assault, and 47 counts of fraud. The DA's office subpoenas all kinds of records, including what turns out to be the "Grab 'em by the pussy tape." Trump's lawyer, who is later found out to be paid by the Russian Federation, convinces him to take a plea deal. He pleads guilty to 1 count of fraud, serves 3 years in prison, and turns his company over to his daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner.

All his licenses are revoked, and he never works again -- not that he ever really "worked." His businesses do better with his name but without his participation. He spends the rest of his life out of the public eye, grumbling about Presidents Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

The Yankees win the Pennant in 2009, but get swept in the World Series by the defending Champion Phillies. In 2012, injuries to Rivera in May and Jeter in Game 1 of the 2012 ALCS are seen as another example of Casey rearing his head. Jeter reaches 3,000 hits and Rivera reaches 500 saves, and both end up in the Hall of Fame, but there's an aura of "what might have been" around both. The Yankees' losses in the 2015 AL Wild Card Game, Game 7 of the 2017 ALCS, and the 2018 ALDS still rankle. And the injuries that denied them a Playoff berth in 2019 are seen as just more evidence that the Curse of Casey has rolled on.

It's been 72 years since the New York Yankees won the World Series. The Curse of Casey Stengel lives. Every season, the question is not, "Will this be the year?" but "How will they blow it this time?"

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Of course, it didn't happen that way. Vic Raschi got Birdie Tebbets to pop up to Tommy Henrich, at 1st base, and the Yankees won the 1949 American League Pennant.

Not only did this mark the 1st real Yankees-Red Sox Pennant race -- 1904 doesn't count, as neither team had adopted its current name and the Babe Ruth sale hadn't happened yet, and 1948 was a 3-team race won by neither, rather by the Indians -- but it was the beginning of the most unbelievable run of success in baseball history. It was the start of 9 World Championships and 14 Pennants in 16 years -- 7 World Championships and 10 Pennants in 12 years under Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel. As the man himself said, "And you can look it up."

Well, if you do look it up, you'll see that this didn't really begin the Yanks-Sox rivalry. At least, not in the minds of Yankee Fans. Sure, there were the comparisons of Joe DiMaggio to Ted Williams, and maybe of Phil Rizzuto to Johnny Pesky. But the Sox were pretty much terrible from Ted's 1952 reactivation by the Marines to serve in the Korean War until their 1967 Impossible Dream season. And by that point, the Yankees had collapsed.

Not until the 1970s did it really catch on, with both the Yanks and the Sox falling a little short in '72, a Thurman Munson-Carlton Fisk fight in '73, both teams gunning for the Division but falling short to the Orioles in '74, the Sox holding off the Yanks to win the Pennant in '75, the Fisk-Lou Piniella collision starting a wild brawl on route to a Yankee Pennant in '76, the 3-way race with the Sox and O's in '77 culminated with Reggie Jackson's blast ending a previously scoreless September game, and, of course, 1978, which deserves mention in a separate post.

After that, there wasn't really a Yanks-Sox race again until '86, and the Sox won that. There was a 5-way race in '88, with the Yanks finishing only 3 1/2 games behind the Sox, but in 5th place behind them, Toronto, Milwaukee and Detroit. The next one was in '95, with Mattingly heading out and O'Neill, Pettitte and Rivera having arrived, and the Sox won; then came '99, the 1st Yanks-Sox race with Jeter, Cone, Tino and a few other Dynasty-makers having arrived to face off against Pedro and Nomar.

And from there, it's been more hate-filled than even in the Seventies, certainly more so than in the Thirties and Forties, where there were several races where the Yanks and Sox finished 1st and 2nd, but except for '49 they weren't really close races.

If you haven't read Summer of '49 by the late David Halberstam, who was then 15 and lived in New York but had relatives near Boston and thus understood both perspectives, I urge you to get it.

October 2, 1960: The "original" or "old" Washington Senators play their last game, losing 2-1 to the Baltimore Orioles at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Only 4,768 came out for the wake.

They lost their last 7 games, and 11 of their last 12, turning a respectable 72-70 record into 73-81, good for 5th in the American League, but 24 games behind the Pennant-winning Yankees.

In 1955, their longtime owner, Clark Griffith, once a Hall of Fame pitcher for the team now known as the Chicago Cubs, winner of the 1st AL Pennant as manager of the Chicago White Sox, and the 1st manager of the team that would become the Yankees, died, leaving the team to his nephew, Calvin Griffith. In 1956, Calvin publicly promised that he would never move the Senators.

In 1960, Calvin announced he was moving the Senators to Minneapolis, to become the Minnesota Twins. He had a good reason: Griffith Stadium only seated 27,000 people, and was hastily built in 1911 after a fire destroyed the previous ballpark on the site. And he didn't know if it would be a good idea to share what would become Robert F. Kennedy Stadium with the NFL's Washington Redskins.

He had another good reason: Just up the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, the Orioles had taken a big chunk of the Senators' fanbase, not just in the Baltimore area, but in D.C.'s Maryland suburbs. He simply couldn't compete -- as Bob Short found out, and he moved the expansion team given to the District as "the new Senators" in 1961 to the Dallas area after the 1971 season, to become the Texas Rangers.

Calvin Griffith also had a bad reason to break his promise and move the team: The neighborhood around Griffith Stadium, LeDroit Park, north of downtown, had already been majority-black since the Civil War nearly a century earlier. Howard University had built its campus nearby, and would end up building its hospital on the site of the ballpark. Griffith wanted to move his team to a place that didn't have many black people. At the time, Minneapolis was about as white as you could get and still be in a large American city.

There are currently 28 living former Original Washington Senators:

* Gilbert "Gil" Coan, 87, from Monroe, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. A left fielder, he debuted with the Senators in 1946, stayed with them through 1953, became an original Baltimore Oriole in 1954, and is also a surviving New York Giant. He retired in 1956, and opened an insurance agency in Brevard, North Carolina, which his son and grandson now run.

* Eddie Robinson, 98, from Paris, Texas, outside Dallas. A 1st baseman, he debuted with the Cleveland Indians in 1942, missed the next 3 seasons serving in the U.S. Navy in World War II, returned in 1946, and helped the Indians win the 1948 World Series. He is the last living person to have played on a Cleveland team that won a World Series.

He played for the Senators in 1949 and 1950, then was traded to the Chicago White Sox, then the Philadelphia Athletics, 1 of 10 surviving players of theirs. He made the All-Star Game in 1949, '51, '52 and '53, mainly because every team had to have at least 1 All-Star. He was a Yankee from 1954 to mid-1956, winning an American League Pennant in 1955, before going back to the A's, by then in Kansas City. He split the 1957 season with the Detroit Tigers, the Indians again, and the Baltimore Orioles, and that was it for him. He batted .268 lifetime, with 172 home runs.

He is currently the oldest living ex-Yankee, and the 2nd-oldest former MLB player, trailing Val Heim of the 1942 White Sox by 41 days. After playing, he worked as both a coach and in the front office for pitcher-turned executive Paul Richards with the Orioles, the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves. In between jobs with Richards, he ran the A's farm system. He was the Braves' general manager from 1972 to 1976, and the Texas Rangers' GM from 1977 to 1982.

His last job in baseball was scouting for the Boston Red Sox, the only one of the original 8 AL franchises he didn't play for. The Indians honored him at Game 6 of the 2016 World Series.

* Floyd Robert "Bob" Ross, 90, from the Los Angeles suburb of Fullerton, California. A pitcher, he debuted with 6 games with the Senators in 1950, was up with them for 11 games in 1951, and then missed the next 2 seasons due to serving in the Korean War. He didn't appear in the major leagues again, except in 1956 for 3 games with the Philadelphia Phillies.

He pitched in professional baseball from 1945 to 1959, going 80-85 in the minor leagues, but only 0-2 in the majors, and threw his last professional pitch right before turning 31. Aside from his name, he appears to have no connection to the famous TV painter Bob Ross.

* Irv Noren, 94, born in Jamestown, in Western New York State. Like Jackie Robinson, 6 years younger, he grew up in the Los Angeles suburb of Pasadena, California, attended Pasadena City College, and serving in the U.S. Army in World War II. Unlike Jackie, he did not also star at a 4-year college (in Jackie's case, UCLA), and he didn't have to face racial prejudice.

An outfielder, he debuted with the Senators in 1950, and was traded to the Yankees in 1952. He is the last surviving player from the 1952 World Series winners, and 1 of 3 from the 1953 World Series winners, along with Whitey Ford and Art Schallock. (Bobby Brown was serving in the Korean War in both seasons, Ford in '52.)

He was named an All-Star in 1954, and was a Series winner again in 1956, 1 of 3 survivors from that team, along with Ford and Don Larsen. He also played for the St. Louis Cardinals, the Chicago Cubs, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, last playing in the major leagues in 1960. He was a coach under Dick Williams on the 1972 and 1973 World Champion Oakland Athletics. His last uniformed job was as a coach with the 1975 Chicago Cubs.

* Jerry Snyder, 90, from Jenks, Oklahoma, outside Tulsa. A middle infielder, he was a backup for the Senators from 1952 to 1958.

He became a longtime minor league manager and major league coach, and was on Tom Kelly's staff when the Minnesota Twins won the World Series in 1987 and 1991. He won an independent league's Pennant as manager of the revived Fort Worth Cats in 2005.

* Ed Fitz Gerald, 95, from Santa Ynez, California, outside Santa Barbara. A catcher, he reached the majors with the 1948 Pittsburgh Pirates, played for the Senators from 1953 to 1959, and closed with the Cleveland Indians in 1959. He then coached for the Indians, Kansas City Athletics, and Twins.

* Bob Oldis, 91, from Iowa City, Iowa. A catcher, he debuted with the Senators in 1953, and remained with them through 1955. After 4 seasons in the minor leagues, he resurfaced with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960, and they won the World Series. He is 1 of 12 surviving players from that team. He finished his career in 1962 with the Philadelphia Phillies.

He later coached under Gene Mauch on the ill-fated 1964 Phillies and the 1969 Montreal Expos, where he was the 1st 1st-base coach in team history. He remained with the Expos until 2002, when the ownership switch of Jeffrey Loria transferred their scouting department to the Florida (now Miami) Marlins. Oldis is officially still one of the Marlins' coaches.

* Camilo Pascual, 85, from Havana, Cuba. The 1st of several players from Cuba brought to the Senators by scout Joe Cambria, he was probably the best, remaining with the franchise until 1966, and then playing 3 years with the "New Senators," lasting in the majors until 1971 with the Cleveland Indians. With one of the best curveballs of the era, he made 7 All-Star Games, led the AL in strikeouts 3 straight years from 1961 to 1963, and forged a career record of 174-170 with 2,167 strikeouts, despite mostly pitching for struggling teams.

He helped the Twins win the 1965 Pennant, and is a member of their team Hall of Fame, the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame, the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame, and the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame. Like many exiled Cubans, he settled in Miami. He was pitching coach under Gene Mauch when he managed the Twins from 1978 to 1980. He has scouted for the Oakland Athletics, the New York Mets and, currently, for Venezuela, the Los Angeles Dodgers. His biggest signing is fellow Miami Cuban Jose Canseco.

* Bobby Kline, 90, from St. Petersburg, Florida. A shortstop, he played 77 major league games, all with the 1955 Senators.

* Johnny Groth, 93, from Chicago. A center fielder, he debuted with the 1946 Detroit Tigers, and ended with the Tigers in 1960. In between, he played for 3 teams that no longer exist in their present form: The St. Louis Browns in their last season of 1953 (he is 1 of 9 living former Browns), the Senators in 1955, and the Kansas City Athletics in 1956 and '57.

* Julio Bécquer, 86, from Havana, Cuba. A 1st baseman, he was part of the Senators' Cuban Connection, reaching the majors in 1955, and remaining with them until 1960. He was left unprotected in the expansion draft, being drafted by the Los Angeles Angels. But the Angels traded him to the Twins in midseason, making him an original Angel and an original Twin. He remained with the Twins through the 1963 season, and still lives in Minneapolis, a vast difference in climate from his homeland.

* José Valdivielso, 85, from Matanzas Cuba. A shortstop, he was another member of the Cuban Connection that arrived in D.C. in 1955. He remained with the franchise until 1961, the 1st Minnesota season.

* Pedro Ramos, 84, from Pinar del Río, Cuba. A pitcher, he was another from the Cuban Connection, arriving in 1955, making the All-Star Team in 1959, and remaining through the 1961 move. After 2 1/2 seasons with the Cleveland Indians, the Yankees traded for him, and converted him to a reliever. This turned out to be a key in their winning the 1964 Pennant.

After going to the Phillies, Pirates and Reds, Ramos finished his career where it began, with the "New Senators," in 1970, He finished 117-160 with 54 saves. He later scouted for the team then known as the California Angels.

* Dick Hyde, 91, from Hindsboro, Illinois. A pitcher, he was with the Senators from 1955 to 1960, and the Orioles in 1961, when a sore arm doomed his career. In 1958, he went 10-3, and led the AL in saves with 19 and games finished with 44. But for his career, he was just 17-14 with 25 saves.

* Dorrel Norman Elvert "Whitey" Herzog, 87, from the St. Louis suburb of New Athens, Illinois. Like Edward Charles Ford and Don Richard Ashburn, who also had the nickname, his hair was very blond. "Herzog" is German for "Duke," so he could also have been nicknamed "Duke."

He had quite a baseball career, and is in the Hall of Fame -- but not for anything he did as an outfielder for the Senators from 1956 to 1958. Or for the Kansas City Athletics, the Baltimore Orioles or the Detroit Tigers. He played 634 games, an average of 79 per season, and batted .257. An unremarkable player.

He became a scout and a coach for the A's, then the 3rd base coach and director of player development for the Mets. He did have a hand, if not a uniformed one, in helping them win the 1969 World Series and the 1973 National League Pennant. When Gil Hodges died just before the start of the 1972 season, the manager's job was given to Yogi Berra. It worked, but Whitey viewed it as a snub, and chose to take the 1st managing job that came along.

That was with the Texas Rangers in 1973. No luck. Nor with the 1974 California Angels. In 1975, he was hired by the Kansas City Royals, and managed them to 3 AL Western Division titles, but no Pennants. The St. Louis Cardinals hired him, and he became almost certainly the last man MLB will ever see to be a success as field manager and general manager at the same time, winning 3 National League Pennants and the 1982 World Series. His last baseball job was as GM of the 1993-94 Angels.

* Garland Shifflett, 84, from Elkton, Virginia. A pitcher, he appeared in 6 games for the franchise as the 1957 Senators, and 10 for them as the 1964 Twins. The bulk of his career was spent with the Charlotte Hornets, a minor-league baseball team that preceded the World Football League and NBA teams with those names.

* Vito Valentinetti, 90, from Manhattan. A pitcher, he pitched for both Chicago teams, the White Sox in 1954 and the Cubs in 1956 and '57, before becoming a Senator in 1958 and '59. He finished with a major league record of 13-14.

* Ken Aspromonte, 87, from Brooklyn. A 2nd baseman, he came to the Senators from the Boston Red Sox in 1958, but was traded to the Cleveland Indians in the middle of the last season, 1960. Like Bécquer, he was an original Angel in 1961. He last played in the majors in 1963, then played in Japan until 1966. He managed the Indians from 1972 to 1974. His brother Bob Aspromonte retired in 1971, making him the last active player who had played for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

* Bobby Malkmus, 88, from Newark. A graduate of South Side High School (renamed Malcolm X Shabazz High School in 1972 -- yes, for that Malcolm X, although the school is usually called "Shabazz"), he was a reserve infielder who debuted in 1957, playing 13 games for the Milwuakee Braves, who won the World Series that year, but he was not on the Series roster. Still, he is 1 of 11 surviving players for that team. He then played 47 games for the Senators in 1958 and '59.

His only season as a semi-regular was in 1961, for the Philadelphia Phillies, the year they lost 23 straight games, still the most in the major leagues since 1899. The aforementioned Bob Oldis was also on that team. He closed with the Phillies in 1962. He became a minor-league manager, and is still a scout for the Cleveland Indians.

* Albert "Albie" Pearson, 85, from the Los Angeles satellite city of El Monte, California. An outfielder, he debuted for the Senators in 1958, and played 9 seasons in the major league despite being only 5-foot-6. He was AL Rookie of the Year for the Senators in 1958, but was traded up the road to the Orioles in 1959, and they left him unprotected in the expansion draft. This allowed him to be an original Los Angeles Angel, from 1961 to 1966. In 1963, he was an All-Star, and he finished his career with a .270 batting average.

He later became a minister, and has opened churches, orphanages and camps for abused and sick children in America, South America (Ecuador) and Africa (Zambia).

* Ron Samford, 89, from Dallas. A shortstop, he closed his career with the 1959 Senators, and hit a home run in his last at-bat.

* Dan Dobbek, 84, from Ontonagon, Michigan, on the Upper Peninsula. An outfielder, he was with the Senators/Twins franchise from 1959 to 1961, including the move. Ironically, given the Senators' Cuban connection, his biggest success in baseball was in Cuba -- after the Castro Revolution, winning the 1960 Caribbean Series with Elefantes de Cienfuegos.

* J.W. "Jay" Porter, 86, from Shawnee, Oklahoma. As with Johnny Cash, who was born simply "J.R.," and later Kansas City Royals shortstop U L Washington (no periods), his initials don't stand for anything. But the J got emphasized so much that "Jay" became his nickname.

A catcher, he debuted with the St. Louis Browns in 1952, so he is not only 1 of 28 living former Old Senators, he is also 1 of 9 living former Browns. He got traded to the Detroit Tigers, and spent the 1953 and '54 seasons in the minors before being called up. His last season was 1959, splitting it between the Senators and the St. Louis Cardinals, finishing with a .228 batting average.

* Jim Kaat, 80, from Zeeland, Michigan. A pitcher, he debuted with the team in 1959, helped them win the 1965 Pennant and the 1969 and '70 AL Western Division titles. He was still with them in 1973, making him the last Senator still with the Twins.

"Kitty" then pitched for the Chicago White Sox, helped the Philadelphia Phillies win 3 straight NL Eastern Division titles, pitched in late 1979 and early 1980 with the Yankees, and then 3 1/2 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, finally getting a World Series ring in 1982, just before turning 44. He retired after the 1983 season, making him the last former Old Senator still playing.

He finished with a career record of 283-237, 32,461 strikeouts, 3 All-Star berths, and 16 Gold Gloves, a record for pitchers since broken by Greg Maddux. The Twins have elected him to their team Hall of Fame. He also became an esteemed broadcaster. But he has not been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in either category. He should be elected in at least one.

* Billy Gardner, 92, from Waterford, Connecticut, outside New London. A 2nd baseman, he played for the Senators/Twins as they moved in 1960-61. He is also 1 of 10 surviving 1961 World Champion Yankees. He managed the Twins from 1981 to 1985, and the Kansas City Royals in 1987.

Terwilliger, Samford and Gardner are 3 of the 17 surviving former New York baseball Giants. Samford, Gardner, Willie Mays and Johnny Antonelli are the last 4 survivors of the Giants' 1954 World Champions.

* Rudy Hernández, 87, from Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. He was the 1st Dominican native to pitch in the major leagues, preceding Juan Marichal by 16 days. Oddly, he played for the last edition of the Old Senators in 1960 (21 games), and the first edition of the New Senators in 1961 (7 games), and for no other teams in any other seasons. As far as I know, he's the only player only to play for each edition of the Senators and no other MLB team.

* Don Lee, 85, from Globe, Arizona. A pitcher, he was in the major leagues from 1957 (Tigers) to 1966 (Cubs), including with the Senators/Twins from 1960 to 1962. He finished 40-44 for his career.

The 2 most famous Playoff games in baseball history happened on this date, 50 years apart. But you'll never find the hero of either one in The Baseball Encyclopedia, or on Baseball-Reference.com.

October 2, 1939, 80 years ago: This was the day after the MLB regular season ended, so, if the film The Natural, starring Robert Redford as Roy Hobbs, had been a true story, this would have been the day of the National League Playoff game between the New York Knights and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Spoiler alert -- for a movie that is now 35 years old, as old as Roy was in this game.

In the top of the fourth, Paul Waner hit a home run to put the Pirates up 2-0. It was then that Roy realized that pitcher Al Fowler was the "key man" that Judge Banner, the Knights' half-owner, was using to fix the game, and cheat manager Pop Fisher, the team's other half-owner, out of his share and get full control.

Roy came in from right field to tell Fowler not to do anything else to purposely lose the game. Fowler, noting that Roy was already 0-for-1, said, "I'll start pitchin' when you start hittin'." But, suitably chastened, he settled down, and the scored remained 2-0 Pittsburgh into the bottom of the 9th.

By this point, Roy was 0-for-3. Shortly before that inning, With the Knights attempting a last-ditch rally that put men on 1st and 2nd with 2 outs, Roy stepped to the plate for the last time in the game -- and, for all he knew, for the last time in his career. He represented the winning run, but if the Pirates were to get him out, they would win the Pennant.

To relieve, the Pirates brought in John Rhodes, a 26-year-old fireballing lefthander from Nebraska, who had won 18 games for them. Rhodes stared in at Roy, knowing full well who he was. Roy recognized Rhodes as well: He was the boy that Roy had tossed the ball to from the train at the county fair in Nebraska in 1923.

The count was run to 2-and-2, when Roy hit a foul ball that split his bat Wonderboy. He received a new bat from the Knight batboy, Bobby Savoy. By this point, Roy's bullet wound from 1923, recently re-triggered, was bleeding through his jersey.

Rhodes threw a fastball right down the pipe, and Roy slammed it high into right field, where it crashed into the light standard on the roof of Knights Field, shorting out the electricity and winning the Pennant. The Knights were National League Champions, and Pop Fisher had his 1st Pennant as a manager.

In real life, the Cincinnati Reds won the 1939 NL Pennant. The New York Giants, whose place the Knights had taken in the film's world, finished 5th, 18 1/2 games back. And the Pirates finished 6th, 28 1/2 games back.

October 2, 1989, 30 years ago: If the movie Major League had been a true story, this is the day after the regular season ended, and thus was the day that the American League Eastern Division Playoff between the Yankees and the Cleveland Indians would have been played at Cleveland Municipal Stadium -- 50 years to the day after the Playoff game in The Natural.

Spoiler alert -- for a movie that is now 30 years old.

This time, the New York team wasn't so lucky. The Yankees led 2-0 in the bottom of the 7th, when Pedro Cerrano, the big Cuban slugger played by Dennis Haysbert, crushed a game-tying home run. Rookie Ricky "Wild Thing" Vaughn (Charlie Sheen) relieved an exhausted veteran Eddie Harris (Chelcie Ross) in the 9th, keeping the score level.
With 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th, Willie Mays Hayes (Wesley Snipes) singled and stole 2nd. Catcher Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger) stepped to the plate, and pointed toward the left-field seats, calling his shot as Babe Ruth had done in the World Series, 57 years (plus 1 day) earlier. Instead, with Hayes taking off for 3rd (this was prearranged), Taylor bunts. Somehow, bad knees and all, he manages to beat the throw to 1st base, and Hayes takes off for the plate. He is correctly ruled safe, and the Indians are AL East Champions.

I suppose it was the will of Jobu.

In real life, the Indians never won the AL East. After winning the Pennant in the single-division AL in 1954, they didn't finish 1st again until 1995, by which point they were in the AL Central.

This would be a better day for the Yankees in real life, as Aaron Michael Hicks is born in the Los Angeles suburb of San Pedro, California. The outfielder debuted with the Minnesota Twins in 2013, and came to the Yankees in 2016. He has now helped them reach the postseason 3 straight seasons, but has yet to win a Pennant with them.
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October 2, 1187: Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria, retakes Jerusalem during the 3rd Crusade, defeating a Crusader force led by King Richard I of England, a.k.a. Richard the Lionheart. These 2 great commanders, in spite of their mutual admiration, would continue to fight each other until 1193, when Saladin died of a fever.

October 2, 1452: Richard Plantagenet is born at Fotheringhay Castle in Fotheringhay, Northamptonshire, England. This is also where Mary, Queen of Scots would be imprisoned and executed in 1587. It was demolished a few decades after that. The subject of this entry wouldn't fare much better than Mary and the castle.

Richard, Duke of Gloucester, of the House of York, was a great horseman (thus tangentially connecting this entry to sports), a great soldier, and, as his supporters would tell us over 500 years later, a great administrator.

Unfortunately, he was also quite evil. He may have been behind the 1471 assassination of the deposed King Henry VI. He may have been behind the charges that led to the 1478 execution of his older brother, George, Duke of Clarence.

And then, when his eldest brother, King Edward IV of England, died in 1483, Richard was named Lord Protector of Edward's sons, 13-year-old King Edward V and 9-year-old Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York. Instead of watching over them and the country until young Edward turned 18 and could rule in his own right, he had them imprisoned, declared illegitimate, and murdered. Thus did Gloucester become King Richard III.

This, of course, was told in William Shakespeare's play Richard III, containing the legendary opening soliloquy that begins, "Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by this sun of York!" and then veers from a telling of the House of York's victory in the War of the Roses into a woe-is-me tirade for the man then 4th in line for the throne that his family didn't even deserve.

Richard was not a hunchback, as Shakespeare suggested, but when his remains were discovered in Leicester in 2012, it was found that he had scoliosis, which could have provided a similar effect. Yet a body double of similar age was found, and given a contemporary-style suit of armor, for a documentary, Resurrecting Richard III, proving that his form of scoliosis would have been no impediment to riding a horse, jousting, or even horseborne combat.

But on horseback in battle did Richard ride, because, after just 2 years, the people of England had had enough of him, and support surged to Henry Tudor, a Welsh-born descendant of Edward III, and Richard fell at the Battle of Bosworth Field in Leicestershire on August 22, 1485. He was 32 years old.

According to Shakespeare, his last words, having been knocked off his horse, were, "A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!" According to history, his last words, as he was hacked to death by the swords of Tudor's men, were one word, repeated over and over again until he could speak no more: "Treason! Treason! Treason!"

Tudor became King Henry VII, and he married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV and niece of Richard III, thus uniting the Houses of Lancaster (through himself) and York (through her), absorbing the House of Plantagenet into the House of Tudor, and ending the Wars of the Roses after 30 years.

Despite this monumental achievement, Henry VII is best known today, over 500 years after his death, as the father of King Henry VIII.

Oh well, it could be worse: Today, over 200 years after he fell from power for the last time, Napoleon Bonaparte is remembered for his hat, being short (but not as short as we think he was, and not particularly short for his time), and as the namesake of a pastry.

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October 2, 1535: French explorer Jacques Cartier -- "Jimmy Carter" in English, if you will -- discovers what will become the Island of Montreal in New France (Quebec). Thus does he make possible 52 Stanley Cup wins (24 by the Montreal Canadiens), 9 Grey Cup wins (7 by the Montreal Alouettes), the integrated baseball debut of Jackie Robinson in 1946 (with the Brooklyn Dodgers' top farm team, the Montreal Royals), the 1976 Olympic Games, and the tragedy of the Montreal Expos.

October 2, 1782: Charles Lee dies of a fever in Philadelphia at the age of 50. He was one of the first generals in the history of the U.S. Army -- and one of the worst.

He fought alongside George Washington in New York, even though he thought he should have been commander-in-chief of the Continental Army. He proved himself wrong as he made all kinds of mistakes, forcing the Army's retreat through New York, and across the Hudson River to New York. The bridge that stands there now is named for Washington, but the town on the Jersey side is named Fort Lee for him.

In 1776, he led the repulse of a British attempt to capture Charleston, South Carolina. But he was soon captured by the British, and held as a prisoner for over a year. At the Battle of Monmouth in Manalapan, New Jersey in 1778, he made a key mistake that turned a decisive American victory into a minor one, and Washington, as he so rarely did, tore into a junior officer in front of the men. Lee was court-martialed, and his career was over.

He was not related to the Lee family of Virginia, which produced 2 Signers of the Declaration of Independence and, later, Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

October 2, 1800: Nat Turner is born outside Courtland, Virginia. Born into slavery, he had visions that led to him running Baptist services for his fellow slaves, becoming known as The Prophet. In 1831, he led a slave rebellion. Between August 21 and his capture on October 30, he and his men had killed 60 white people. He was convicted, and was hanged on November 11, and 18 of his men were also hanged.

It was the greatest slave revolt in American history, unless you count the Civil War itself. Turner became a cultural touchstone, and has been cited in many books and songs. In 2002, a park in Newark was dedicated and named for him.

October 2, 1803: Samuel Adams dies in Boston, probably as a result of Parkinson's disease. He was 81. One of the leading figures of the American Revolution, he was the man who started the Boston Tea Party (thus giving the name Boston Tie Party to the 1978 Playoff) -- not just because it was good patriotism, but also because it was good business: He was the leading brewer in Massachusetts, and his best friend was John Hancock, the leading distiller and transporter of hard liquor in the Colony. He was an early Governor once Massachusetts became a State. And, of course, he was a cousin of President John Adams.

Today, when he is remembered, it is for starting the Boston Tea Party, and as the namesake of a Boston-produced beer, loved by Red Sox fans. It's good beer -- but because of its connection with the team, I won't touch the stuff. Like Samuel Adams, I am a principled man.

October 2, 1821: Alexander Peter Stewart is born in Rogersville, Tennessee. A West Point graduate, he served in the U.S. Army, then taught math and philosophy in colleges in Tennessee, before enlisting in the Confederate Army as the Civil War began.

He rose to the rank of Lieutenant General, was wounded in the Confederate victory at the Battle of Chickamauga in northern Georgia, was wounded again in the Battle of Ezra Church outside Atlanta, and became the last Confederate commander to surrender a major division, the Army of Tennessee, to Union General Joseph Johnston at Durham Station, North Carolina on April 26, 1865. He went back to teaching, and died in 1908.

October 2, 1847: Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg is born in Posen, Prussia -- now Poznań, Poland. The greatest German military leader of World War I, he admitted in an interview with American journalist George Seldes that the reason the Germans lost the war was because the American troops were fresh, unlike the exhausted British and French troops, and turned the tide.

This was ignored as the Nazis rose to power. Hindenburg was President of Germany from 1925 onward, but by early 1933, he had decided that the only way to keep civil peace was to appoint their leader, Adolf Hitler, as Chancellor. Once Hindenburg died on August 2, 1934, there was no one left in Germany who had the moral authority to keep Hitler in check.

The zeppelin Hindenburg was named for him, and, today, most people know his name only because that zeppelin crashed at Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937.

October 2, 1851: Ferdinand Jean Marie Foch is born in Tarbes, Occitanie, France. Having led the French Army through the First Battle of the Marne and the Flanders and Artois campaigns, he was named Allied Commander-in-Chief on March 26, 1918 -- meaning that even America's General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing reported to him. (The American government would never have put up with that after "The Great War," as Britain's Bernard Montgomery found out.)

He accepted Germany's surrender on November 11, 1918. But as the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, he thought it was not too harsh, as many others thought, but too lenient. And yet, like those who said it was too harsh, he had an ominous prediction that day: "This is not a peace. It is an armistice for 20 years." He was off by 64 days. By that point, he had already been dead for over 10 years.

It is interesting that the leading military figures in Germany and France in World War I shared a birthday, albeit 4 years apart.

October 2, 1869, 150 years ago: Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is born in Porbandar, Gujarat, India. Despite his nickname "The Mahatma" (meaning "Great Soul") also being given to the great baseball executive Branch Rickey (and I have no idea what he, a devout Methodist, thought of that), as far as I know, he had nothing to do with sports.

But in 1983, an article titled "Gandhi at the Bat" was printed in The New Yorker, taking place in 1933, 50 years earlier, a completely fictional story that featured him meeting Babe Ruth and "playing for the Yankees."

He and his friend Jawaharlal Nehru are the founding fathers of the modern Indian nation, which, despite its oppression by the British, came to love the British sports of cricket and field hockey, and now finally seems to be absorbing soccer as well.

October 2, 1876: Enrollment begins at the Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas in College Station. In 1963, the name officially became what everybody called it anyway: "Texas A&M University."

Like several other Texas-based schools, the Aggies define themselves by their football team, noted for its "12th Man" fan base and 1957 Heisman Trophy winner, later the school's athletic director, John David Crow. They are also known for their rivalry with the University of Texas, but since A&M left the Big 12 Conference for the Southeastern Conference, that rivalry is dormant in football.

Texas A&M is a football school, having produced Yale Lary of the 1950s Detroit Lions, Lee Roy Caffey of the 1960s Green Bay Packers, Bobby Joe Conrad of the 1960s St. Louis Cardinals, longtime linebacker and later college and pro coach Jack Pardee, 1970s Oakland Raiders Super Bowl-winning cornerback Lester Hayes, barefoot-kicking Philadelphia Eagle Tony Franklin, shoed Washington Redskins kicker Mark Moseley, Super Bowl-winning coach Gary Kubiak (2015 Denver), his top defensive player Von Miller, Super Bowl-winning brothers Michael Bennett (2016 Seattle) and Martellus Bennett (2017 New England), Heisman Trophy winners John David Crow (1957) and Johnny Manziel (2014), and college National Championship-winner coaches Bob Neyland (4 at Tennessee from 1938 to 1951) and Gene Stallings (1992 Alabama).

A&M athletes also include baseball players Rip Collins of the 1930s St. Louis Cardinals'"Gashouse Gang," 1960s Los Angeles Dodger left fielder Wally Moon, 1970 Baltimore Orioles 2nd baseman and 1986 Mets manager Davey Johnson, and 1990s Yankee 2nd baseman Chuck Knoblauch; and these Olympic Gold Medalists: High jumper Walt Davis (1952), shot putters Randy Matson (1968) and Randy Barnes (1996), and swimmer Breeja Larson (2012).

A&M graduates in other fields include actor Rip Torn, CNN commentator Roland Martin, country singer Lyle Lovett, scientist Norman Borlaug, former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (who has since served as A&M's President), wacko Congressman Louie Gohmert of Texas, and former Governor of Texas Rick Perry, now the U.S. Secretary of Energy.

October 2, 1882: George Wright, with his brother Harry one of the founders of professional baseball with the 1869-70 Cincinnati Red Stockings, and baseball's 1st great shortstop, plays his last game. His Providence Grays lose 2-1 to his former team, the Boston Red Stockings (forerunners of the Atlanta Braves) at the Messer Street Grounds.

After this, only 1 more major league game will feature one of the Boys of '69: Catcher Doug Allison will play for the Baltimore Orioles of the American Association on July 13, 1883, a 9-4 loss to the New York Metropolitans (yes, they were called the Mets for short) at the original Oriole Park in Baltimore.

October 2, 1887: Ephraim Longworth (no middle name) is born Bolton, in what is now Greater Manchester, England. Playing right back or left back, he was a member of the Liverpool FC teams that won the Football League title in 1921 and 1922. He die din 1968.


Also on this day, Henry Van Arsdale Porter is born in Manito, Illinois. Usually listed as H.V. Porter, he was a longtime official with the Illinois High School Athletic Association (IHSAA), having particular influence in the development of basketball. It was his idea to have the fan-shaped wooden backboard, later replaced with the rectangular glass model. It was his idea to replace the laced leather ball with the molded rubber version.

And in 1939, he published an essay on high school basketball tournaments, which he described as "March Madness," probably the 1st use of that term. He was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in the Contributor category in 1960, and lived until 1975.

October 2, 1893: Albert Eugene Cobo is born in Detroit. An executive at Burroughs, his company loaned his services to the City of Detroit during the Great Depression. He never returned to Burroughs, getting elected the city's Treasurer in 1935, and serving in that office until he was elected Mayor in 1949. Unfortunately, he ran on a platform of opposing the "Negro invasion of white neighborhoods."

He led the drive to build a sports arena and convention center in downtown Detroit, but died on September 12, 1957, just before it could open. It was named Cobo Hall, and later the Cobo Center, in his memory. Given that Joe Louis Arena, which adjoined it, has closed and will be demolished, there is now a movement to rename the Cobo Center for Louis.

October 2, 1896: The Victorian Football League is founded in Melbourne, in the Australian colony of Victoria. Australia gained independence (more or less) in 1901, making Victoria a State. It would take until 1990 for the League to expand enough to rename itself the Australian Football League (AFL).

Australian rules football -- a.k.a. Aussie rules, or footy -- is, like American football, a derivative of rugby, although the players are dressed more like basketball players, including shorts, with no pads. The ball isn't as pointed as an American football, and the field is oval, since most teams started out playing on cricket grounds. Sort of like basketball, the ball must periodically be bounced. Like American football prior to 1906, forward passing is illegal.

The average attendance for a game is usually over 60,000. The season lasts 22 games, from March to September, and ends with an AFL Grand Final, always at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the League's hometown, usually on the last Saturday in September or the 1st Saturday in October.

This past Saturday, Richmond Football Club, a.k.a. the Richmond Tigers, of Melbourne, took to the MCG, their home field, in their black and yellow striped uniforms, and defeated the Greater Western Sydney Giants, who, like their baseball namesakes in San Francisco and Tokyo, wear black and orange. The game was a rout, 114-25. It was Richmond's 12th title, or "premier," and their 2nd in the last 3 years, after not having won one since 1980.

The battle for most premiers is very tight: Essendon, of northwest Melbourne, has won 16, but none since 2000; Carlton, of north Melbourne, has also won 16, but none since 1995; and Collingwood, formerly playing in the north Melbourne suburb of that name but now playing home games at the MCG, has won 15, most recently in 2010. Sydney Swans have won 5, more than any Sydney-based team, the last in 2010, although they had a drought from 1933 to 2005.

The MCG, which has never truly been surpassed by the Sydney Opera House as the most famous building in the country, first opened in 1853, was the main stadium for the 1956 Olympics. Most of the current stadium opened after a redevelopment in 2006.

With a current seating capacity of 100,024, it is actually home to 4 AFL teams: Richmond FC, Melbourne FC, Collingwood FC and Hawthorn FC. It's also home to Australia's national cricket team, the cricket team of the State of Victoria, and the Melbourne Stars teams in the men's and women's Big Bash League, which plays a form of cricket called Twenty20.

October 2, 1897: William Alexander Abbott is born in Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey. With fellow New Jersey native Lou Costello of Paterson, Passaic County, Bud Abbott formed one of the great comedy teams of the 1st half of the 20th Century, best known for their "Who's On First?" routine.

Legend has it that Abbott was watching that very routine on TV in 1959 when he got a phone call telling him that Lou had died. Bud lived on until 1974.

Also on this day, Giuseppe Profaci is born in Villabate, Sicily, Italy. In the 1920s, Joe Profaci worked his way up through Brooklyn's street gangs, and in 1928 he founded one of New York organized crime's "Five Families." Upon his death in 1962, Joseph Colombo took charge, and it became the Colombo Family.

It has been suggested that Mario Puzo based Vito Corleone of The Godfather on Profaci. However, Don Vito was very much against drug trafficking, while Profaci had no problem controlling it.

October 2, 1898: Unlike the 1891 Milwaukee Brewers, the Brooklyn Superbas (forerunners of the Dodgers) did escape New York City's blue laws so that they could play on a Sunday. They play the Washington Nationals (not to be confused with the current team of that name) across the Hudson River in Weehawken, New Jersey. Candy LaChance hits a home run, and Brooklyn wins, 4-3.

October 2, 1899, 120 years ago: Rube Waddell of the Louisville Colonels sets a major league record with 14 strikeouts, beating the Chicago Orphans 6-1. (This team was not yet the Cubs: They got the Orphans named because they "missed their Pop," the now-retired Adrian C. "Cap" or "Pop" Anson), 6-1. Oh yeah: Waddell's 14 Ks came in only 8 innings, because the game was called due to darkness.

Clark Griffith took the loss. He would become the 1st manager of the Chicago White Sox in 1901, and, with himself as staff ace, win the 1st AL Pennant. He would then become the 1st manager of the New York Highlanders (forerunners of the Yankees) in 1903, and nearly manage and pitch them to a Pennant in 1904.

Waddell, already the best lefthanded pitcher in the game, starred for the Philadelphia Athletics, before Connie Mack finally got tired of his drinking and his wandering mind. He died of tuberculosis in 1914, only 37 years old.

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October 2, 1903: The 1st World Series is tied at 1 game apiece, as the Boston Americans beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-0. Bill Dinneen pitches a shutout for the proto-Red Sox, and Patsy Dougherty hits the 1st and 2nd World Series home runs, off Pirate pitcher Sam Leever.

Also on this day, Myles Stanley Lane is born in the Boston suburb of Melrose, Massachusetts. A halfback, he played football at Dartmouth College, later served as an assistant coach there and at Harvard University, and in 1932 was the head coach at Boston University, with a 2-3-2 record. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame as a player.

He also played hockey. He reached the NHL in 1928, with the defending Stanley Cup winners, the New York Rangers. In mid-season, they traded him to the Boston Bruins, and they played each other in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Bruins won, and Myles Lane turned out to be the last survivor of the Bruins' 1st Stanley Cup team.

He went to law school at Boston College, served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, and became Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, which includes New York City. He was part of the prosecution team for accused Communist spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg in 1951. This led to his appointment as U.S. Attorney for the SDNY.

He was later appointed Chairman of the State Investigation Commission, and elected to the New York Supreme Court. He lived until 1987.

October 2, 1908:  In a wild 3-team American League race, every bit as tight as the 3-team race going on in the National League at the same time, the AL has perhaps its greatest pitching duel ever, between 2 future Hall-of-Famers, at League Park in Cleveland.

Big Ed Walsh of the White Sox strikes on 15 batters, breaking Waddell's record, and setting what will be an AL record for 30 years. But it's not enough, as Addie Joss, a.k.a. the Human Hairpin for his slender build and his tight pitching motion, pitches a perfect game for the Cleveland Indians, and the Indians win, 1-0.

And yet, neither team wins the Pennant. The Detroit Tigers do, the Indians finishing half a game behind, the White Sox 1 1/2 behind: Detroit 90-63, Cleveland 90-64, Chicago 88-64. Why wasn't the Tigers' missing 154th game made up? I don't know: Neither The Unforgettable Season by G.H. Fleming nor Crazy '08 by Cait Murphy explains why.

It's the 2nd of 3 straight Pennants for the Tigers. The ChiSox had won in 1901 and 1906. The Indians will not get this close to a Pennant again until they win it all in 1920. I'll get to that in a moment.

October 2, 1909, 110 years ago: The New York Highlanders -- unofficially called what they will be officially named from 1913 onward, the Yankees -- split a season-ending doubleheader with the Boston Red Sox, at the Huntington Avenue Grounds in Boston.

In the 1st game, the Highlanders win 6-5. Taking the loss for Boston is Massachusetts native, but former Yankee ace, Jack Chesbro. It is the last game of the future Hall-of-Famer. The Red Sox win the 2nd game, 6-1.

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October 2, 1910: Aldo Olivieri is born in Verona, Italy. A goalkeeper for several Italian teams, he was the starting goalie for Italy's 1938 World Cup winners. He also played for the "Rest of Europe" team in the 1938 game England hosted at Arsenal's Highbury to celebrate their 75th Anniversary. He lived until 2001.

October 2, 1914: The Yankees make 5 errors, and lose to the Boston Red Sox, 11-5 at Fenway Park. The Boston pitcher, a 19-year-old rookie, also gets his 1st major league hit, a double off Yankee pitcher Leonard Leslie "King" Cole.

Cole will not be long for this world: He soon develops tuberculosis, and dies in 1916, only 29 years old. But the Sox rookie will be heard from again. His name is George Herman Ruth Jr. That's right, the Babe. There would be 2,872 other hits in his career, 714 of them home runs, 659 of those for the Yankees.

October 2, 1916: The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Boston Braves, 2-0 at Baker Bowl in Philadelphia, as Grover Cleveland Alexander notches his 33rd win of the season, and his 16th shutout, a record. He got those 16 whitewashes, and 12 the season before, as a righthanded pitcher playing home games in Baker Bowl, whose right-field fence was only 280 feet from home plate.

October 2, 1917: Alexander wins his 30th of this season, defeating the New York Giants 8-2, also at Baker Bowl. He also hits 2 doubles. But this will be his last game in a Philadelphia uniform: Fearing that he might get drafted into World War I, and killed or incapacitated in combat, the Phils sell him to the Chicago Cubs.

He was indeed drafted. Although he was not wounded in combat, the shelling damaged his hearing, and shell-shock -- which became "battle fatigue" in World War II, and today we would call it "post-traumatic stress disorder" -- caused him to develop epilepsy. It also intensified his drinking problem. In spite of his mound success, both before and after "The War to End All Wars," Alexander was a tragic figure.

October 2, 1919, 100 years ago: Game 2 of the World Series. The Cincinnati Reds beat the White Sox 4-2, to go up 2 games to none. Sox pitcher Lefty Williams holds the Reds scoreless for 3 innings, but in the 4th, he walks 3 batters, gives up a single to Edd Roush, and then a triple to Larry Kopf.

Sox manager Kid Gleason tells owner Charlie Comiskey that he's suspicious of his players. But Comiskey has been feuding with his old friend Ban Johnson, President of the American League, with the 2 men having founded the League. So Comiskey goes to National League President John Heydler. Heydler tells Johnson about Gleason's suspicions. But Johnson does nothing about it, thinking people will see it as a vengeful act against Comiskey.

Gleason is not the only one who is suspicious: Hugh Fullerton of the Chicago Herald-Examiner, and his protégé, Ring Lardner of the Chicago Tribune, make note of some questionable plays. So does former Giants pitcher Christy Mathewson, covering the Series for a national newspaper syndicate.

Also on this day, President Woodrow Wilson suffers a stroke at the White House. He had been traveling around America by train, trying to lobby people to contact their State's U.S. Senators, and have them approve the Treaty of Versailles, allowing America into the League of Nations, thus making America part of the effort to preserve peace following the recently-won World War. But he had run himself ragged, and his wife Edith saw he wasn't well, and ordered their return to Washington. It wasn't soon enough, and he has the stroke on this day.

Wilson was paralyzed on his left side, and nearly blinded. His inner circle concealed the extent of his impairment, and Edith and his private secretary, Joseph Tumulty, controlled who could see him and with what he would be presented in terms of official business. For this reason, Edith Wilson has been called "the 1st female President of the United States." It would be much fairer to say that she was the 1st female White House Chief of Staff. In real life, neither of those positions has ever been held by a woman.

Wilson's stroke left him both physically and politically paralyzed. But he refused to resign and let Vice President Thomas Marshall take the job, due to an intense personal dislike for him that both he and Edith had developed. With no law in place to cover a living but incapacitated President at the time -- the 25th Amendment was ratified in 1967 -- for all intents and purposes, for nearly a year and a half, at a time when the nation really could have used some leadership, it had no functioning President.

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October 2, 1920: The only tripleheader ever played in the 20th Century, forced by rainouts, is played at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. The Cincinnati Reds win the 1st 2 games, 13-4 and 7-3, with the Pittsburgh Pirates avoiding the sweep in the finale, 6-0. Peter Harrison is the home plate umpire for all three games.

Also on this day, Francis Joseph Shea is born in Naugatuck, New Haven County, Connecticut. Known as the Naugatuck Nugget for his hometown, and Spec for his freckles (a.k.a. speckles -- not for wearing glasses, or spectacles, which he didn't wear at the time), he was a nearly 27-year-old rookie when he started Games 1, 5 and 7 of the 1947 World Series for the Yankees. He was an All-Star and a World Champion that season.

But a neck injury curtailed his career, and he never appeared on another World Series roster. With the Yankees and the Washington Senators, he had a 56-46 record, last pitching in 1955. In 1983, preparing for the film The Natural, Robert Redford contacted him, to teach him how to pitch the way a pre-World War II pitcher would. Spec Shea died in 2002.

Also on this day, Lewis Field opens in Stillwater, Oklahoma, named for Dr. Laymon Lewis, a popular professor at the school then known as Oklahoma A&M University. They play Southwestern College to a 7-7 tie.

It remains the home of the school's football team, although the school's name was changed to Oklahoma State University in 1958, and 60,000-seat facility became Boone Pickens Stadium in 2002, after the billionaire oilman made a huge donation to the school.

Also on this day, Ștefan Kovács is born in Timișoara, Romania. A midfielder, he was one of many ordinary athletes who became an extraordinary coach. He led Steaua București to the Romanian league title in 1968, and to the Romanian Cup in 1969 and 1970.

He succeeded the legendary Rinus Michels at Ajax Amsterdam, and in 1972 led them to the 1st-ever Dutch European Treble: The Eredivisie (league), the KNVB-Beker (their version of the FA Cup), and their 2nd straight European Cup. He also led them to the Eredivisie title in 1973, and made it 3 straight European Cups (although "only" 2 under his leadership).

He managed Athens club Panathinaikos to the Greek Cup in 1982, and also managed the national teams of France and Romania. His last managing job was at AS Monaco in the 1986-87 season. He was fired, and replaced with Arsène Wenger. He died in 1995, a few days before Ajax won their 4th European Cup, their 1st under the UEFA Champions League banner.

October 2, 1921: After playing their 1st season as the Decatur Staleys downstate, the Chicago Staleys play their 1st game as a Chicago team, albeit still at Staley Field in Decatur. They beat the Waukegan Legion (not an NFL team), 35-0. The Staleys will rename themselves the Bears the next season.

October 2, 1925: Wren Alvin Blair is born in Lindsay, Ontario. He wasn't much of a hockey player, but as a scout for the Boston Bruins, he convinced them to sign Bobby Orr. That alone would be enough reason to remember him.

When the NHL expanded for the 1967-68 season, he became the 1st head coach and the 1st general manager of the Minnesota North Stars. He later served as GM of the Pittsburgh Penguins, and died in 2013.

October 2, 1926: Game 1 of the World Series, the 1st ever played by the St. Louis Cardinals. Bill Sherdel allowed only 6 hits for them, but Herb Pennock allowed only 3, and the Yankees won, 2-1.

Also on this day, Memorial Stadium opens at the University of Missouri in Columbia. It rains, and Missouri and Tulane University play to a muddy 0-0 tie. Now seating 71,000, it was renamed Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium for longtime Missouri coach Don Faurot in 1972.

Also on this day, Dyche Stadium opens in Evanston, Illinois, just to the north of Chicago. It was named for William Dyche, a former Mayor of Evanston who oversaw its construction. Northwestern University's football team moves in, and beats South Dakota 34-0.

In 1943 and '44, it hosted the Chicago College All-Star Game, which was otherwise held annually at Chicago's Soldier Field from 1934 to 1976, between a college all-star team and the defending NFL Champions. Because Wrigley Field had fewer than 50,000 seats and (at the time) no lights, the Chicago Bears played their 1st home game of the 1970 season at Dyche Stadium as an experiment, and beat the Philadelphia Eagles 20-16. But Evanston residents voted to forbid it, and the Bears moved to Soldier Field for 1971.

In 1997, Dyche Stadium was renamed Ryan Field, in honor of the chairman of the school's board of trustees, Aon Corporation founder Patrick G. Ryan. At 47,130 seats, it is the smallest stadium in the Big Ten Conference, and the only one without permanent lights. Northwestern's arena, just to the north, is named Welsh-Ryan Arena, also for the Ryan family and for the family of Ryan's wife.

October 2, 1927: A benefit game is played at Shibe Park between Philadelphia's MLB teams, to build a gymnasium at Gettysburg College, alma mater of Athletics pitcher Eddie Plank, a 300-game winner who died the year before. The Phillies score in the 2nd inning, and lead 1-0 after 6, when the umpires call the game due to rain.

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October 2, 1932: The Yankees win their 12th consecutive World Series game and sweep the Fall Classic for the 3rd time, for their 4th World Championship overall. At Wrigley Field, the Bronx Bombers (the nickname has now replaced "Murderers' Row") bang out 19 hits as they club the Chicago Cubs, 13-6.

The last survivor of the 1932 Yankees was pitcher Charlie Devens, who lived until 2003 -- insisting to the end that, in Game 3, Babe Ruth did so call his shot.

Also on this day, The Brooklyn Dodgers defeat the Boston Braves 14-0 at Braves Field -- in football. It was the 1st game for Boston's new NFL franchise.

The next season, they had to move to Fenway Park, and, not wanting their new tenants associated with the other baseball team in town, the Red Sox insisted that the team change its name. It was cheaper to keep the Indian head logos on the uniforms, so they became the Boston Redskins.

In 1937, they moved to Washington, and, despite protests, the Washington Redskins they have remained -- or, as some people call them, as if doing so meant that the name was actually changed, "The Washington Football Team."

Speaking of D.C., also on this day, Maurice Morning Wills is born in Washington, District of Columbia. Maury was a switch-hitting shortstop, mostly for the Los Angeles Dodgers, a 7-time All-Star who, along with his White Sox contemporaries Nellie Fox and Luis Aparicio, brought the stolen base back as a major baseball weapon.

In 1962, he stole 104 bases, earning himself the National League Most Valuable Player award, and breaking the established major league record of 96 set by Ty Cobb in 1915. That record would stand for 12 years. Maury helped the Dodgers win the World Series in 1959, 1963 and 1965. He also won 2 Gold Gloves, and finished his career with a .281 batting average and 586 stolen bases.

After broadcasting, and managing in Mexico, he wrote a book titled How to Steal a Pennant, claiming he could take a last-place club and turn it into champions (world, league or division, he didn't specify) in 4 years. Supposedly, the San Francisco Giants offered him their managing job, but he turned it down. (Ill feelings toward them as a result of their rivalry with the Dodgers, perhaps?)

On August 3, 1980, by which point his son Elliott "Bump" Wills was a 2nd baseman for the Texas Rangers, the Seattle Mariners hired Maury. On May 6, 1981, they fired him, after a series of inexplicable gaffes led to a record of 26-56, a percentage of .317, a pace for 111 losses. He later said he should have taken a minor-league job in organized baseball first, something many players who'd like to manage in the majors have been reluctant to do.

As it turned out, there was an explanation for his behavior: He was an alcoholic and a cocaine addict. He eventually got treatment thanks to the woman who became his 2nd wife. He soon returned to the Dodger organization, played their 3rd base coach in the "present" sequence of the film The Sandlot, and has been a member of the Dodgers Legends Bureau (what some sports teams call a "club ambassador") and a broadcaster for a minor-league team he once managed in Fargo, North Dakota.

Like Roger Maris, who grew up in Fargo, he has a museum there in his honor, even though he's far more associated with D.C. and L.A.

October 2, 1933: Giuliano Sarti is born in Castello d'Argile, outside Bologna, Italy. A goalkeeper, he helped Florence side Fiorentina with Serie A (the Italian league) in 1956, and the Coppa Italia (their FA Cup) and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1961.

He moved on to Milan club Internazionale, and was the goalie of the "Grande Inter" side that won Serie A in 1965 and 1966, and the European Cup in 1964 and 1965. He played for Italy in the 1966 World Cup. He died in 2017, at age 83.

October 2, 1934: Earl Lawrence Wilson is born in Ponchatoula, Louisiana. On July 28, 1959, he became the 2nd black player for the Red Sox, after Elijah "Pumpsie" Green. On June 26, 1962, pitching against the Los Angeles Angels, he became the 1st black pitcher to throw a no-hitter in the American League. (Sam Jones of the Cubs had done it in the National League, in 1955.) In this game, he also hit a home run off Bo Belinsky, who had pitched a no-hitter earlier in the season.

Wilson is 1 of only 5 pitchers to toss a no-hitter and hit a home run in the same game. The others are Frank Mountain in 1884, Wes Farrell in 1931, Jim Tobin in 1944 and Rick Wise in 1971 (and he hit 2 homers).

Wilson would be traded to the Detroit Tigers, and was part of a rotation that included Denny McLain and Mickey Lolich, and won the 1968 World Series. He went 121-109 over his career, founded an automotive parts company, taught phys ed and coached basketball at a Florida high school, and died in 2005, at age 70.

October 2, 1935: Enrique Omar Sívori is born in San Nicolás de los Arroyos, Argentina. Though only 5-foot-4, the striker was one of the best soccer players of his generation. He helped Buenos Aires club River Plate win Argentina's Primera División in 1955, 1956 and 1957. In 1957, he also helped Argentina win the tournament now named the Copa América.

He was then brought to Italy by Turin club Juventus, and he let them to the Serie A title in 1958, 1960 and 1961, and the Coppa Italia in 1959 and 1960. He won the Ballon d'Or as world player of the year in 1961. In 1962, despite having previously played in international tournaments for Argentina, he was permitted to play for Italy in the World Cup.

He later managed in his homeland, for the national side, and for club sides Rosario Central, Estudiantes de La Plata and Racing Club de Avellaneda. He later served as Juventus' South American scout, and died of cancer in 2005.

Also on this day, Robert Henry Lawrence Jr. is born in Chicago. He graduated from high school at age 16, from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois at 20, and from U.S. Air Force flight training at 21. He got a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from Ohio State, so he was a flight instructor and a doctor. In 1967, NASA selected him for their astronaut training program, making him the 1st black person so chosen.

But he wouldn't get to be the 1st black person in space. on December 8, 1967, he was killed in a training accident at Edwards Air Force Base in Southern California, when the pilot he was training (from the back seat of an F-104 fighter jet) made a critical error. Major Lawrence was only 32 years old.

October 2, 1936: Game 2 of the World Series. The Yankees score more runs than any team has ever scored in a Series game, and win by the largest margin in Series history, both records still standing through 2015: 18-4 over the Giants. Tony Lazzeri (only the 2nd grand slam in Series play) and Bill Dickey hit home runs, to make an easy winner out of Lefty Gomez.

October 3, 1951: Bobby Thomson hits a home run that wins the National League Pennant for the New York Giants, 5-4 over the Brooklyn Dodgers, at the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan.


Black Hawk fought with the British against the Americans in the War of 1812, and fought against U.S. troops again in 1832, in Illinois and Wisconsin, in what became known as the Black Hawk War. He was captured, and imprisoned for a short time. In his last years, he worked to reconcile his people with his former enemies.

What does he have to do with sports? He was the namesake of the hockey team, whose name was usually written as "Chicago Black Hawks," until 1986, when someone found the team's original charter, and found that it was written as "Chicago Blackhawks," and so it has officially been registered with the NHL ever since.

From the beginning of the franchise in 1926, the Hawks have used an Indian head, a left-facing profile with 4 feathers, as their logo. However, most depictions of Black Hawk show him with a Mohawk or similar hairstyle, even though the Mohawk tribe lived hundreds of miles to the east, in New York State.

October 3, 1872: Fred Clifford Clarke is born in Winterset, Iowa -- later to be the birthplace of actor John Wayne, and a filming location for Cold Turkey and The Bridges of Madison County.

Clarke grew up in nearby Des Moines, debuted as a left fielder with the Louisville Colonels in 1894, became their manager in 1897, called up John "Honus" Wagner to give him his big break, and then, after the 1899 season, when the National League contracted the Colonels out of existence, they gave owner Barney Dreyfuss the chance to buy the Pittsburgh Pirates. Since Wagner was now his biggest star, and Pittsburgh was Wagner's hometown, Dreyfuss took the deal, and took Clarke and Wagner with him.

Clarke, maintaining his .312 lifetime batting average, managed the Pirates to the Pennant in 1901, 1902 and 1903, nearly won a wild 3-way race with the Giants and the Chicago Cubs in 1908, and then won the Pennant again in 1909. They lost the 1st World Series to the team now known as the Boston Red Sox, featuring Cy Young, in 1903, but beat Ty Cobb and the Detroit Tigers in 1909.

Hardly playing after 1911, Clarke retired as both a player and a manager after 1915, and bought a ranch outside Winfield, Kansas. He named it the Little Pirate Ranch. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.

Fred Clarke was so tough! (How tough was he?) In 1947, he and his wife were fishing in northern Minnesota, and their boat was overturned. They both survived and went back out the next day. A few weeks later, he went quail hunting, and was nearly shot by another hunter. A few weeks after that, he was caught in a gas furnace explosion in his basement, and survived. He was 74 years old. He died in 1960, at the age of 87, after what I can only presume was a wild lovemaking session with his equally elderly-but-tough wife.

October 3, 1879: Johan Verner Ölund is born in Bjurholm, Sweden. We knew him as Warner Oland. He was Scandinavian, but best known for playing Chinese characters: Honolulu Police Lieutenant, later Inspector, Charlie Chan in 16 films; Henry Chang in Shanghai Express; and the early supervillain Dr. Fu Manchu in 4 films,

He died on August 6, 1938, of complications of both drinking and smoking, having left a 17th Chan film, Charlie Chan at the Ringside, unfinished. His scenes were reshot with Peter Lorre as Japanese secret agent I.A. Moto, as Mr. Moto's Gamble. 


This was the 2nd time that Mr. Moto had replaced Charlie Chan: When Earl Derr Biggers, Chan's creator, died in 1933, The Saturday Evening Post, which initially published the stories, wanted a new Asian crimefighter, and John P. Marquand created Moto, whose films and stories were suspended after World War II, though he made 1 more appearance, as an agent of a now-pro-American Japan.

October 3, 1891: Ruth Cleveland is born in New York, the daughter of former President Grover Cleveland. She caught diphtheria in 1904, and died just a few weeks after her 12th birthday, sending the nation into mourning.

In 1921, as Babe Ruth was in the initial phase of his home run craze, the Curtiss Candy Company renamed its Kandy Kake bar the Baby Ruth. Ruth sued for use of his name without his permission. In one of the great pieces of bullshit artistry in American history, Curtiss claimed that the bar was named for Ruth Cleveland, who was, in her time, known as Baby Ruth. A court upheld this claim, even though Baby Ruth had already been forgotten and Babe Ruth was one of the most famous men in America.

October 3, 1894: Elmer Edwin Robinson is born in San Francisco. "Rob-Rob" was elected Mayor in 1947 and 1951. His tenure included the arrival of the San Francisco 49ers of the All-America Football Conference into the NFL in 1950. He did not run for a 3rd term in 1955, and it would be his successor, George Christopher, who got Major League Baseball to the city. Robinson died in 1982.

October 3, 1895: Harry Wright dies at age 60 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, where it was hoped that the seaside climate would help his lung disease. He and his brother George Wright starred on the 1st openly professional baseball team, the 1869-70 Cincinnati Red Stockings. Harry was the manager and the center fielder, and George was the shortstop.

That's right: Just as 2 Wright Brothers in Ohio invented the airplane, so too did 2 Wright Brothers in Ohio invent professional baseball.

October 3, 1897: Adrian Constantine Anson of the Chicago Colts (forerunners of the Cubs) hits 2 home runs against Willie Sudhoff of the St. Louis Browns (forerunners of the Cardinals) at Robison Field in St. Louis. The Colts win, 7-1.

Hitting a home run is a lot harder in this period than it would become, and hitting 2 in 1 game is rare. But "Cap" Anson, the Colts' 1st baseman and manager, is 45 years old. For over 100 years, he will rank as the oldest man ever to hit a home run in the major leagues, until surpassed by Julio Franco in 2006.

It is the last game that Cap will ever play, after 22 major league seasons (27 if you count the National Association of 1871-75). He retires -- counting his NA stats -- with a .334 lifetime batting average, an OPS+ of 142, 3,435 hits (then a record), 97 home runs (not a record but great for the era), and 2,075 RBIs (then a record).

However, today, he is best remembered as the man whose refusal to play against black players led baseball to draw the color line in the 1880s. And, judging by his memoir, he wasn't too fond of Catholics, Jews and Native Americans, either. A great player, but a skunk.

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October 3, 1900: The Dodgers, then known as the Superbas, beat the Boston Beaneaters, later the Braves, 6-4 at the South End Grounds to win the NL Pennant -- and, with the setup then in place, the unofficial World Championship of baseball. They would not win another for 55 years, but, then, it would be official.

The last surviving player from that Dodger team was pitcher Harry Howell, soon to be an original 1903 New York Highlander (Yankee), who lived on until 1956, aged 79.

October 3, 1904: Christy Mathewson sets a NL record by striking out 16 batters, and the Giants beat the Cardinals 3-1.

October 3, 1909, 110 years ago: The Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-1 at South Side Park in Chicago. The Tigers have already clinched their 3rd straight Pennant, and extend what was then the American League record with their 98th win of the season.

But the game is hardly meaningless, as Ty Cobb finishes the season with .377, 9 home runs (all inside-the-park) and 107 runs batted in, giving him the American League Triple Crown.

October 3, 1914: The New Athletic Field opens on the campus of Mississippi A&M College in Starkville. The hosts defeat Marion Military Institute of Alabama, 54-0.

The school would be renamed Mississippi State College in 1932 and Mississippi State University in 1958. The stadium would be renamed Scott Field in 1920, for the school's football and track star Don Magruder Scott, and Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field in 2001, in honor of Aflac founder and MSU booster Floyd Davis Wade. The stadium still stands, and is 2nd only to Georgia Tech's Grant Field at Bobby Dodd Stadium as the oldest in the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS, formerly known as Division I-A).

October 3, 1915: For the last time, a team officially calling New Jersey home plays a Major League Baseball game. Two, in fact: The Newark Peppers play a doubleheader against the Baltimore Terrapins at Harrison Park, losing the opener 9-5, and winning the nightcap 6-0, behind the shutout pitching of Ed Reulbach, for his 20th win of the season. The ballpark seated 21,000, but no attendance figure is listed in the box score.

With the Yankees, the Mets and the Phillies all having opened new ballparks within the last 12 seasons, and the Oakland Athletics' options (should they decide they can't get a new ballpark in Oakland) not including a return to the Philadelphia area such as South Jersey (the Phils would put the kibosh on that anyway), it doesn't look like New Jersey will be getting a major league team anytime soon.

The baseball establishment of the time -- the American League and the National League -- did not recognize the Feds as "major league" then. However, every authority since the first "baseball encyclopedia" came out in 1951 has done so, and now MLB, the Elias Sports Bureau, Baseball-Reference.com, everybody includes FL stats with AL and NL stats.

October 3, 1915 was the final day of Federal League action (not that anyone knew so at the time), and, in addition to the Newark-Baltimore doubleheader, the St. Louis Terriers beat the Kansas City Packers 6-2, and the Chicago Whales beat the Pittsburgh Rebels 3-2.

The Whales win the Pennant when the Terriers' 2 remaining rainouts are not made up. St. Louis may have been robbed. This is not the most notorious moment of the Chicago-St. Louis baseball rivalry -- in large part because it has been all but forgotten.
There is no one alive today who remembers the Federal League. But the League does have one lasting legacy. In 1914, Chicago Whales owner Charles Weeghman, a pioneer in what we would now call fast food restaurants, built a ballpark on the North Side, naming it Weeghman Park for himself. When the FL folded, the owners of the National League's Chicago Cubs offered to sell him their team. "Lucky Charlie" accepted, and moved the Cubs from West Side Park into Weeghman Park. Within a few years, his luck ran out, and he sold the team, and the ballpark became Cubs Park. Chewing gum boss William Wrigley Jr. bought the team next, and in 1926 double-decked the stadium and renamed it Wrigley Field. And Wrigley Field it remains, still hosting Major League Baseball after 102 seasons.
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October 3, 1916: The Brooklyn Robins (forerunner of the Dodgers) beat the New York Giants 9-6 at Ebbets Field, and clinch the Pennant.

October 3, 1917: John Douglas Jamieson Reid is born in West Kilbridge, Scotland. A forward, "Duggie" Reid starred for the only 2 Portsmouth teams to win the Football League title, in 1949 and 1950. He later served as Portsmouth's groundsman, and ran a hostel for the club's young footballers in Southsea. He lived until 2002. His son David also played for England at amateur level.

October 3, 1919, 100 years ago: Rookie lefthander Dickie Kerr pitches a 3-hit shutout, Shoeless Joe Jackson gets 2 hits, and Chick Gandil gets 2 RBIs. The Chicago White Sox win Game 3 of the World Series, 3-0 over the Cincinnati Reds, and close the Reds' lead to 2 games to 1. Jackson and Gandil were in on the fix, but Kerr was not.

Adolfo "Dolf" Luque, the Reds' Cuban pitcher, pitches in relief, and thus becomes the first Latin American player to appear in a World Series game. He pitched a scoreless 8th inning.

October 3, 1920: The Chicago Bears, the founding franchise of the National Football League, play their 1st game. They were the Decatur Staleys that 1st season, a "company team," as end, head coach, general manager and co-owner George Halas worked for the A.E. Staley Manufacturing Company, which made starch products for the food, paper and other industries, best known for Staley Syrup.

The Decatur Staleys defeated another company team, the Moline Universal Tractors, 20-0 at Staley Field in Decatur. They finished the season with 10 wins, 1 loss (7-6 to the Chicago Cardinals, beginning a nasty rivalry that would last until the Cardinals moved 40 years later), and 2 ties. They finished 2nd in the league to the Akron Pros.

October 3, 1923: Babe Ruth, playing for the New York Giants? Impossible. John McGraw allowing it? Implausible. And yet, it happened.

On this date, a benefit game was held at the Polo Grounds, for 2 destitute men who had been at the founding of the Giants, as the New York Gothams, in 1883: Original owner John B. Day, a tobacco magnate who had lost his fortune in the Players' League war of 1890; and original manager Jim Mutrie, who gave the team its permanent name in 1886, when he referred to his players as, "my big boys, my giants."

Ruth and McGraw swallowed their differences, despite being about to have their teams play each other in the World Series for the 3rd straight season. Ruth's Yankee teammates Aaron Ward and Elmer Smith also suited up for the Giants. The opponents were the champions of the International League, the Baltimore Orioles -- as it happens, Ruth's 1st professional team (So shouldn't he have played for them?) and the namesake of the team for whom McGraw played and made his reputation as a rough but smart baseball man. Ruth was 1 of 4 Giants who hit home runs, in his case a 5th-inning blast that soared over the right-field roof, as the Giants won, 9-3.

It's not clear how much money was raised. Day, already ill with cancer, died a little over a year later, in early 1925. Mutrie lasted until 1938.

October 3, 1925: Texas Tech University, in Lubbock, plays its 1st football game, against McMurry University at the Panhandle South Plains Fair. Tech's Elston Archibald attempts a game-winning 20-yard field goal. It appears to be good. But the referee rules that the clock had run out before the snap, and the scoreless tie is final. It was later reported that the ref made the call as revenge for not being named Tech's 1st head coach, a job given instead to Ewing Freeland.

At the time, Tech's teams were called the Matadors. It would later be changed to the Red Raiders, with a mascot called the Masked Raider, riding a horse and dressed like a red version of Zorro.

Also on this day, Christopher Francis Haughey (pronounced "HOY") is born in Astoria, Queens, New York City. A pitcher, Chris debuted on his 18th birthday, a September call-up necessitated by World War II, in 1943. He pitched 7 innings of relief for the Brooklyn Dodgers against the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field, and, well, pitched like a teenager: 5 hits, 10 walks, 6 runs (but only 3 earned). The Reds won, 6-1.

"Bud" Haughey never appeared in the major leagues again, and I have no record of what he did after this, although he is still alive, 1 of 23 surviving former Brooklyn Dodgers. A 3rd baseman also making his debut for the Dodgers that day, however, did, although we remember him as a 1st baseman: Gil Hodges.

October 3, 1927: William Womble Harrington is born in Sanford, North Carolina. A pitcher, he went 5-5 for the Athletics from 1953 (in Philadelphia) to 1956 (in Kansas City). He continued pitching in the minors until 1961. I have no record of what happened to him after that, only that he is still alive at age 89. He is 1 of 10 living former Philadelphia Athletics.

October 3, 1929: Andrew Alexander Hebenton is born in Winnipeg. A right wing, he probably should have had a long NHL career, but was a victim of the 6-team setup, and didn't make his debut until 1955, already 28 years old.

Andy Hebenton then played for the New York Rangers through 1963, and played 1 more season with the Boston Bruins. But he played at the top level of minor-league hockey from 1949 to 1955, and again from 1964 to 1975, finally hanging up his skates at age 45. He won championships in the Pacific Coast Hockey League with the 1951 Victoria Cougars, and in the Western Hockey League with the 1965 Portland Buckaroos and the 1966 Victoria Maple Leafs.

"Spuds" won the Lady Byng Trophy in 1957, and played in the 1960 NHL All-Star Game. In the book 100 Ranger Greats, published in 2009, he was ranked Number 53. He is in the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame. He is still alive.

His son Clay Hebenton played from 1973 to 1980, making them, a year before the Howes, the 1st father-son tandem to be active in professional hockey at the same time. Clay Hebenton was the starting goalie for the Phoenix Roadrunners in the 1977 WHA Playoffs.

*

This coming Wednesday night, the New Jersey Devils play away to the Philadelphia Flyers. There are a few teams that Devils fans don't like. The New York Islanders. The Boston Bruins. The Pittsburgh Penguins. The Washington Capitals. The Toronto Maple Leafs. The Ottawa Senators. The Los Angeles Kings.

But the only team, outside of the New York Rangers, a.k.a. The Scum, that we out-and-out hate is the Flyers, a.k.a. The Philth or Philthy.

This is due to factors that precede the Devils' very existence: In the 1970s, the Flyers were the Broad Street Bullies, their players taking cheap shots at their opponents, dropping the gloves to fight at the drop of a hat, and on occasion even going into the stands to fight opposing fans.

Their fans were no better, openly encouraging such behavior. All the time that the Flyers played at The Spectrum, from 1967 to 1996, they were among the nastiest creatures in the game. While things have been toned down a bit at the Wells Fargo Center, any visiting fan -- especially a Devils, Rangers, Islanders, Capitals, Bruins and above all a cross-Pennsylvania Penguins fan -- should be on his guard.

But that doesn't mean you can't go down and enjoy the experience. I have, a couple of times, and even came away with a win (once).

Before You Go. Philadelphia is just down the road, so it's in the Eastern Time Zone, and you don't have to worry about fiddling with various timepieces. And the weather will be almost identical to what you'd have on the same day in New Jersey or New York.

Still, check the combined website for the Philadelphia newspapers, the Inquirer and the Daily News, before you head out. For the moment, it looks like, for next Saturday, temperatures in Philly will be in the high 60s in daylight, and the high 40s at night. If you wear a Devils jersey to games, that should be enough. If you don't, a light jacket should suffice, and, of course, if it gets hot inside, you can remove it: Unlike at the Spectrum, you should have enough room for it under your seat. They're also predicting a 10 percent chance of rain, so you probably won't need an umbrella, which you couldn't bring into the arena anyway.

Tickets. The Flyers averaged 20,731 fans per home game last season -- just short of a sellout. So, yes, order your tickets ahead of time.

Lower level sections, the 100 Level, run $155 between the goals, and $126 behind them. Upper level sections, the 200 Level, run $89 between and $79 behind.

Getting There. It's 99 miles from Times Square in Manhattan to City Hall in Center City Philadelphia, and 90 miles from the Prudential Center in downtown Newark to the Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia.

This is close enough that a typical Devils fan could leave his house, drive to the Prudential Center, pick up some friends, head down to the WFC, watch a game, head back, drop his friends off, and drive home, all within 7 hours. But it's also close enough that you could spend an entire day in Philadelphia, and, hopefully, you've already done this. Having done so many times myself, I can tell you that it's well worth it.

If you are driving, you'll need to get on the New Jersey Turnpike. If you're not "doing the city," but just going to the game, take the Turnpike's Exit 3 to NJ Route 168, which forms part of the Black Horse Pike, to Interstate 295. (The Black Horse Pike later becomes NJ Route 42, US Route 322 and US Route 40, going into Atlantic City. Not to be confused with the White Horse Pike, US Route 30, which also terminates in A.C.)

Take I-295 to Exit 26, which will get you onto Interstate 76 and the Walt Whitman Bridge into Philly. Signs for the ballpark will soon follow, and the arena is at 11th Street and Pattison Avenue (though the mailing address is "3601 South Broad Street").

From anywhere in New York City, allow 2½ hours for the actual drive, though from North Jersey you might need only 2, and from Central Jersey an hour and a half might suffice. But you'll need at least another half-hour to negotiate the last mile or so, including the parking lot itself.

If you don't want to drive, there are other options, but the best one is the train. Philadelphia is too close to fly, just as flying from New York (from JFK, LaGuardia or Newark) to Boston, Baltimore and Washington, once you factor in fooling around with everything you gotta do at each airport, doesn't really save you much time compared to driving, the bus or the train.

And I strongly recommend not taking the bus. If you do, once you see Philadelphia's Greyhound terminal, at 10th & Filbert Streets in Center City, the nation's 2nd-busiest behind New York's Port Authority Bus Terminal, you'll say to yourself, "I never thought I'd say this to myself, but thank God for Port Authority!"
The Philly terminal is a disgrace. I don't know how many people are in Atlantic City on an average Summer day, when both the beaches and the casinos are full (I'm guessing about half a million, or 1/3rd the size of Philly), but it has a permanent population of 40,000 people, compared to the 1.6 million of Philadelphia, and it has a bus station of roughly equal size and far greater cleanliness than Philly's. Besides, Greyhound service out of Newark's Penn Station is very limited, and do you really want to go out of New Jersey into Manhattan just to get across New Jersey into Philadelphia?

If you can afford Amtrak, and that will be $122 round-trip between Newark and Philly, it takes about an hour and a half to get from Penn Station in downtown Newark to the 30th Street Station at 30th & Market Streets, just across the Schuylkill River from Center City.

Unlike the dull post-1963 Penn Station, this building is an Art Deco masterpiece from 1933, and is the former corporate headquarters of the Pennsylvania Railroad. (Ironically, it never had the official name "Pennsylvania Station" or "Penn Station.") You might recognize its interior from the Eddie Murphy film Trading Places. (If you can't afford Amtrak, or if you can but you'd rather save money, I'll get to what to do in a minute.)
This is a 7:00 PM puck-drop, which should give you enough time to get from the sports complex back to 30th Street in time to catch the 10:28 PM Palmetto back to Metropark or Newark. If not, the last train of the night from 30th Street to Newark Penn is a Northeast Regional at 11:04 PM, and gets back at 12:10 AM.
From 30th Street Station, you can take a cab that will go down I-76, the Schuylkill Expressway, to I-95, the Delaware Expressway, to South Broad Street to the Sports Complex. I would advise against this, though: When I did this for a Yankees-Phillies Interleague game at the Vet in 1999, it was $15. It's probably $25 now.

Philadelphia was the last American city to use tokens for their subway system, but, this year, phased them out in favor of a farecard. An all-day KeyCard will allow up to 8 rides, for $9.00. One ride on a SEPTA subway train is $2.50, cheaper than New York's.

From 30th Street, take the Market-Frankford Line to 15th Street (that's just one stop), where you'll transfer to the Broad Street Line at City Hall Station. Being a Met fan, you'll notice that the MFL's standard color is blue, while the BSL's is orange. Blue and orange. Don't think that means they want to make Met, Knick or Islander fans feel at home, though.

From City Hall, if you're lucky, you'll get an express train that will make just 2 stops, Walnut-Locust and AT&T (formerly "Pattison" -- yes, they sold naming rights to one of their most important subway stations). But you'll want to save your luck for the game itself, so don't be too disappointed if you get a local, which will make 7 stops: Walnut-Locust, Lombard-South, Ellsworth-Federal, Tasker-Morris, Oregon, Snyder and AT&T. The local should take about 10 minutes, the express perhaps 7 minutes.

If you don't want to take Amtrak, your other rail option is local. At Newark Penn, you can buy a combined New Jersey Transit/SEPTA ticket to get to Center City Philadelphia. Take NJT's Northeast Corridor Line out of Penn Station to the Trenton Transit Center. This station recently completed a renovation that has already turned it from an absolute hole (it was so bad, it made Philly's bus station look like Grand Central) into a modern multimodal transport facility.

At Trenton, transfer to the SEPTA commuter rail train that will terminate at Chestnut Hill East, and get off at Suburban Station, at 17th Street & John F. Kennedy Blvd. (which is what Filbert Street is called west of Broad Street). Getting off there, a pedestrian concourse will lead you to the City Hall station on the Broad Street Line, and then just take that to Pattison.
Because there will be a lot more stops than there are on Amtrak (especially the SEPTA part), it will take 2 hours and 10 minutes, but you'll spend $43 round-trip, about what you'd spend on a same-day purchase on Greyhound, and less than half of what you'd be likely to spend on Amtrak. However, again, time will be an issue: The last SEPTA Trenton Line train of the night that will connect to an NJT train leaves Suburban Station at 11:57 PM (and the NJT train it will connect to won't get to Penn Station until 2:46 AM), so this might not be an option for you this time, either.

The subway's cars are fairly recent, and don't rattle much, although they can be unpleasant on the way back from the game, especially if it's a football game and they're rammed with about 100 Eagles fans who've spent the game sweating and boozing and are still loaded for bear for anyone from outside the Delaware Valley. It's highly unlikely anyone will give you anything more than a little bit of verbal on the subway ride into the Sports Complex, while they might give a little more gusto to the verbal on the ride back. But despite Philly sports fans' reputation, this will not be the equivalent of the London Underground on a Saturday afternoon in the 1980s: They might tell you that your team sucks (even if your team is ahead of theirs in the standings), but that's about the worst you'll get.
Once In the City. Philadelphia is a Greek word meaning "brotherly love," a name given to it by its founder, William Penn, in 1683. So the city is nicknamed "The City of Brotherly Love." The actions and words of its sports fans suggest that this is ridiculous.

Giants coach Bill Parcells was once caught on an NFL Films production, during a game with the Eagles at the Vet, saying to Lawrence Taylor, "You know, Lawrence, they call this 'the City of Brotherly Love,' but it's really a banana republic." And Emmitt Smith, who played for that other team Eagles fans love to hate, the Dallas Cowboys, also questioned the name: "They don't got no love for no brothers."

On a map, it might look like Penn Square, surrounding City Hall, is the centerpoint, but this is just geographic, and only half-refers to addresses. Market Street is the difference between the north-south numbering on the numbered Streets. But the Delaware River is the start for the east-west streets, with Front Street taking the place of 1st Street. Broad Street, which intersects with Market at City Hall/Penn Square, takes the place of 14th Street.

In the Colonial and Revolutionary periods, Philadelphia was the largest city in America, before being overtaken by New York. As recently as 1970, it had about 2 million people. But "white flight" after the 1964 North Philadelphia riot led to the population dropping to just over 1.5 million in 2000. It has inched back upward since then. The metro area as a whole -- southeastern Pennsylvania, South Jersey and most of Delaware -- is about 7.2 million, making it the 7th-largest in the country, behind New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston and Dallas.

The sales tax is 6 percent in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (Massachusetts, Virginia and Kentucky are also "commonwealths" in their official State names), 8 percent within the City of Philadelphia.

ZIP Codes in Philadelphia start with the digits 191. In the suburbs, it's 189, 190, 193 and 194. The Area Code for the city is 215, and the suburbs 610, with 267 overlaying both, and 445 being added in 2018. Philadelphia's "beltway" consists of Interstate 276 (the easternmost part of the Pennsylvania Turnpike) in the north, Interstate 476 (the Mid-County Expressway) in the west, and Interstate 95 (the Delaware Expressway) in the south and east.

Philadelphia is about 42 percent black, 36 percent white, 13 percent Hispanic, and 7 percent Asian. North, Northwest and West Philadelphia are now almost entirely black, although University City (home to the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University) and some of Southwest Philly remains white. South Philadelphia (Italian) and Northeast Philadelphia (Irish) remain mostly white.

The Philadelphia electric company is named just that: Philadelphia Electric Company, or PECO. And while it's not quite as close as it is to New York, much of the Jersey Shore is easily reachable from Philadelphia, thanks to Interstate 195, New Jersey Route 70, U.S. Routes 30 and 40, the Atlantic City Expressway, and New Jersey Transit's buses and its Atlantic City Rail Line. Point Pleasant Beach is 76 miles away, Seaside Heights 64 miles, Long Beach Island 62, Atlantic City 61, Ocean City 65, Wildwood 90, and Cape May 92.

Going In. The Philadelphia sports complex is at Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, about 3 1/2 miles south of Center City. It once included Sesquicentennial/Municipal/John F. Kennedy Stadium (1926-1992), The Spectrum (1967-2009), and Veterans Stadium (1971-2004). The arena now known as the Wells Fargo Center was built on the site of JFK Stadium. Citizens Bank Park, the new home of the Phillies, was built to the east of The Vet. And Lincoln Financial Field was built south of the new ballpark, and east of the Spectrum.

There is plenty of parking in the complex, including a lot on the site of  The Vet. But you'll be a lot better off if you take the subway. Not really because of the price of parking: At $16, it's one of the cheapest in sports. But traffic is going to be awful. The first time I went to a sporting event in Philadelphia, it was a 4th of July celebration at the Vet, and 58,000 people showed up to see the Phils face the Houston Astros, with Nolan Ryan pitching. The game and the fireworks combined did not last as long as it took to get out of the parking lot and onto the Walt Whitman Bridge: 2 hours and 40 minutes. Trust me: Take the freakin' subway.

Coming out of the AT&T subway station, you'll walk down Pattison Avenue, with a parking lot on the former site of Veterans Stadium to your left, and the site of the Spectrum to your right.

Further to your right is the successor to the Spectrum. This building opened in 1996, and had 5 names in its 1st 14 years, as one bank was bought out by another: Spectrum II, the CoreStates Center, the First Union Center (Flyer fans liked calling it "The F.U. Center"), the Wachovia Center, and the Wells Fargo Center. The official address is 3601 S. Broad Street. It is 1 of 11 arenas currently housing both an NBA team and an NHL team.

It was built on the site of John F. Kennedy Stadium, formerly Municipal Stadium, a 105,000-seat structure that hosted all kinds of events, from the Army-Navy Game to heavyweight title fights (Gene Tunney taking the title away from Jack Dempsey in 1926 and Rocky Marciano doing the same to Jersey Joe Walcott in 1952), from the occasional Eagles game that was too big for Shibe Park in the 1940s and '50s to the U.S. half of Live Aid in 1985.

It hosted the Phils' victory celebration in 1980, with its huge capacity coming in handy. By that point, it was crumbling, and it surprised no one when it was demolished to make way for the new arena.
It was as the First Union Center that it hosted the 2000 Republican Convention, nominating George W. Bush for President. Under the current name, it hosted the 2016 Democratic Convention, nominating Hillary Clinton. (The Democrats met at Convention Hall, now Boardwalk Hall, in Atlantic City in 1964. 2301 Boardwalk at Mississippi Avenue. Atlantic City Rail Line from 30th Street Station.)

Villanova University also uses the arena for basketball games that have a ticket demand greater than their on-campus Pavilion can satisfy. And, like The Spectrum before it, it's hosted NCAA Tournament games, although it's now considered too small to host the Final Four, as The Spectrum did in 1976 and 1981 (with Indiana University winning both times). The NCAA held its hockey Final Four, the Frozen Four, there in 2014.

The arena has also been home to Arena Football's Philadelphia Soul since 2004. They've been in 3 ArenaBowls, winning in 2008. The arena has not, however, hosted an ArenaBowl.

Inside the arena, concourses are wide and well-lit, a big departure from the Spectrum. Escalators are safe and nearly always work, as opposed to the Vet, which did not have escalators, only seemingly-endless ramps. Getting to your seat should be easy. The rink is aligned north-to-south, and Flyers attack twice toward the south end of the arena.

Food. From the famed Old Original Bookbinder's (125 Walnut Street at 2nd, now closed) and Le Bec Fin (1523 Walnut at 16th) to the Reading Terminal Market (Philly's "South Street Seaport" at 51 N. 12th St at Filbert) to the South Philly cheesesteak giants Pat's, Geno's and Tony Luke's, Philly is a great food city and don't you ever forget it. The variety of food available at the Wells Fargo Center is unbelievable. Little of it is healthy (no surprise there), but all of it is good.

On the lower Main Concourse Level, the South Jersey restaurant chain P.J. Whelihan's has stands behind both goals. Tim Hortons, the Canadian doughnut chain founded by the Toronto Maple Leafs legend, has stands at all 4 corners. Chickie's & Pete's, whose main outlet is nearby at 1526 Packer Avenue (near the also-famed Celebre's Pizza), has stands on the west side and in the northeast corner, to sell their fish and their "crab fries" -- French fries with Old Bay seasoning mix, not fries with crabmeat. The northeast corner also has that wonderful junk food staple of Pennsylvania Dutch country (and the Jersey Shore), funnel cake. The legendary South Street pizzeria Lorenzo & Sons has stands on both the east and west sides. Each of these brands can also be found on the upper, Mezzanine Concourse Level.

Team History Displays. The banners honoring Flyer achievements are at the arena's north end; those for the 76ers, at the south end.

The Flyers hang banners for their 1973-74 and 1974-75 Stanley Cup wins (both banners displaying the seasons that way -- for the sub-Cup banners, I'll keep it simple); their 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1985 and 1987 Prince of Wales Conference titles; their 1997 and 2010 Eastern Conference titles; and for their regular-season Division titles of 1968, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2011.

(You're reading that right: In both 1995 and 2000, when the Devils won the Cup, and beat the Flyers in the Conference Finals both times, the Flyers won the Atlantic Division in the regular season.)

The Flyers have 6 numbers officially retired. In 2012, they retired the Number 2 of 1982-92 defenseman Mark Howe (Gordie's son, and a Hockey Hall-of-Famer in his own right). Last season, they retired the Number 88 of Eric Lindros. He was controversially stripped of the Captaincy, and then had his Flyer career ended by Scott Stevens' shoulder in Game 7 of the 2000 Conference Finals. However, he and the organization have buried the hatchet, and he's now in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The other 4 retired number honorees were members of their team that won the back-to-back Cups. The 1st was 1970-74 defenseman Barry Ashbee, Number 4. The 2nd, and the 1st Flyer player to get into the Hall of Fame, was Bernie Parent, goaltender 1967-79 (missing 1971-73 while playing in the World Hockey Association). Unfortunately, both had their careers prematurely ended by eye injuries, in Ashbee's case against the Rangers during the 1974 Playoffs. He stayed on as an assistant coach, but died of leukemia in 1977.

The other 2 are Captain Bobby Clarke, center, 1969-84 and their first genuine superstar; and Bill Barber, left wing, 1972-84. In addition, the late founding owner Ed Snider is honored with a banner, with a Flyer logo in place of a uniform number.
Another number should be mentioned. Pelle Lindbergh, the goaltending hero of the 1985 Playoffs, was killed early the next season when he drove drunk coming home from a party in South Jersey and crashed into a school. His Number 31 has not been retired, but neither has it been given out since.

It should be noted that Clarke is usually called "Bobby" when you refer to him as a player, and "Bob" when you refer to him as a coach and an executive. Flyer fans still adore Bobby Clarke, but they didn't much like Bob Clarke, seeing him no longer as their guy, but as a stooge for ownership.

The Flyers also have 3 banners honoring 25 figures from team history in the Flyers Hall of Fame: Snider; Cup-winning head coach Fred Shero (father of current Devils GM Ray Shero) and GM Keith Allen; longtime broadcaster Gene Hart; 1974 and '75 Cup-winning players Clarke, Parent, Barber, Ashbee, Rick MacLeish, Gary Dornhoefer, Reggie Leach, Joe Scott, Ed Van Impe, brothers Joe and Jimmy Watson, Dave Poulin and Dave "the Hammer" Schultz; 1980s players Howe, Tim Kerr, Brian Propp and Ron Hextall; and 1990s players Lindros, John LeClair, Rod Brind'Amour and Eric Desjardins.

Lindbergh has not yet been inducted, probably because they would have to explain to kids and victims of drunk driving why a drunk driver is in there. Which is probably also, along with his fraud conviction and imprisonment, why the Phillies haven't elected Lenny Dykstra -- who included Devils legend Ken Daneyko among those he defrauded -- to the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame.

Parent, Clarke, Barber, Howe, Lindros, Snider, Allen, Shero, 1990s player Mark Recchi, original GM and former coach Bud Poile, former coach Pat Quinn, and broadcaster Gene Hart were elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Clarke, Parent and Lindros were named to The Hockey News' 100 Greatest Players in 1998. Clarke, Parent and Lindros were named to the NHL's 100th Anniversary 100 Greatest Players last year. Snider, Allen, Shero, Clarke, Howe, Poile, and former right wing and head coach Paul Holmgren have received the Lester Patrick Trophy for contributions to hockey in America.

There are also banners honoring music legends. Each has their number of sellout concerts in the city on his banner (all venues combined): Bruce Springsteen, 56; Billy Joel, 48; and Pearl Jam, 10. Although Bruce has a higher total, Billy holds the sellout record at the WFC: 18. (The Grateful Dead had the most sellouts at the Spectrum, but there is nothing reflecting this at the WFC.)

On the lower concourse, the Flyers also have displays honoring the history of the team, including a tribute to the 1974 and 1975 Cup winners. I have never been to a 76ers game there, so I don't know if they have a similar display when they play, but if they do, it wasn't shown during my Devils-Flyers visits.

There were 4 statues outside The Spectrum. One was of Sylvester Stallone in character as Rocky Balboa. That one has been moved, appropriately enough, to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, not far from the steps he ran up in every movie. One was for Julius "Dr. J" Erving of the 76ers. The other 2 were for the Flyers. One was titled "Score!" depicting Gary Dornhoefer's overtime goal against the Minnesota North Stars in the 1973 Playoffs. It bears a striking resemblance to Bobby Orr's "Flying Goal" that wont the 1970 Stanley Cup for the Boston Bruins.

Another was for Kate Smith, whose recording of "God Bless America," played in place of "The Star-Spangled Banner," was a good luck charm for the Flyers, to the point where she was invited to sing it live before Game 6 of the 1974 Stanley Cup Finals, which they won for their 1st title. That made them 37-3-1 when her song was played, either live or on record. It's now 100-29-5.

The Dr. J, Score! and Kate Smith statues were moved to Xfinity Live! on the site of The Spectrum. Smith's statue was removed due to a 2019 controversy over her recordings of racist songs in the 1930s.

Statues of Fred Shero and Ed Snider have since been added. Outside the Wells Fargo Center, a statue has been added for Clark and Parent, showing them lifting the 1974 Stanley Cup; and another for Wilt Chamberlain, who played for the Warriors and the 76ers.

Clarke played on the Team Canada that beat the Soviet Union in the 1972 "Summit Series." He and all the other players from that team were named to Canada's Walk of Fame. But no member of the Gold Medal-winning 1980 U.S. Olympic team ever played for the Flyers. Pat Quinn, who coached the Flyers into the 1980 Stanley Cup Finals, is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Hall of Fame, although mainly for things he did elsewhere.

In spite of the Flyers' early dominance, the Devils lead the all-time series against them, 121-99-15. The Flyers do, however, lead their all-time series with the cross-State Pittsburgh Penguins, 174-122-30.

Stuff. The Flyers have a team store, run by Forty Seven Brand ('47), in the northwest corner of the lower concourse, which is also open on non-game days.

You might expect to see DVDs in the store, including NHL History of the Philadelphia Flyers, taking the team from its 1967 beginning to its 40th Anniversary in 2007; and the Philadelphia Flyers 10 Greatest Games set. Based on a fans' vote, they are shown from 10th through 1st.

I'll list them chronologically: Clarke's overtime winner taking Game 2 of the 1974 Stanley Cup Finals, The Cup clinchers of 1974 and 1975, the 1976 win over the Soviet Red Army, the 1979 win in Boston that gave them an NHL record of 29 straight games unbeaten (they extended it to 35), Kerr scoring 4 goals in 1 period against the Rangers at the Garden in the 1985 Playoffs, J.J. Daigneault winning Game 6 of the 1987 Finals in overtime against the Edmonton Oilers, Keith Primeau scoring to win the 5-overtime epic with Pittsburgh in the 2000 Playoffs, Jeremy Roenick scoring in overtime to win a 2004 Playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Game 6 of that year's Conference Finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning (though the Bolts won Game 7).

What you might not expect to find in a Flyers team store is books. I'm not suggesting that Flyer fans are illiterate...

In 2000, Philly-based sportswriter Jay Greenberg published Full Spectrum: The Complete History of the Philadelphia Flyers Hockey Club. But if you really want to get a feel for Philly sports, get these 3, all co-written by WIP host Glen Macnow with one of his colleagues: The Great Philadelphia Fan Book with Anthony Gargano, The Great Philadelphia Sports Debate with Angelo Cataldi (who is Philly's answer to Mike & the Mad Dog, all in one guy), and The Great Book of Philadelphia Sports Lists, with Ed Gudonis, a.k.a. Big Daddy Graham, also a Philly and Jersey Shore-based standup comic and a great guy who writes a regular column for Philadelphia magazine.

During the Game. A November 19, 2014 article on The Hockey News' website ranked the NHL teams' fan bases, and listed the Flyers' fans 6th, 2nd among U.S.-based teams behind Chicago: "Attendance holds steady even when Flyers have the odd down season."

Unlike most venues in North American sports, a Flyers home game -- and an Eagles home game, but not so much the Phillies and 76ers -- carries with it the specter of fan violence. For the most part, Flyer fans might give you some verbal abuse, but very few will take to the level of violence, even when drunk.

The best thing to keep in mind if you're a visiting fan, especially if you're wearing team gear, is to not instigate anything. And definitely don't chant, "Rangers suck! Flyers swallow!"

The Flyers have a choice of pregame patriotic songs: Either they'll go with Kate Smith's recording of "God Bless America," or the National Anthem will be sung by Lauren Hart, recording artist and daughter of the late Hall of Fame broadcaster Gene Hart. Their goal song is "Booyah" by Showtek, replacing "My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark" by Fall Out Boy, which was not popular among Flyer fans.

The Flyers briefly had a creature named Slapshot in 1976, but the fans did not take to it, and he was withdrawn before the next season began. They remained without a mascot until 2018, when they introduced "Gritty." Good name for a Philadelphia mascot. But he looks ridiculous, like an orange Muppet in an orange Flyer jersey and a black hockey helmet. I don't know why they like this thing. Is it just the name? Are Flyer fans getting soft?
The "Let's go" chant is different from those used by all 3 New York Tri-State Area teams: Instead of hitting the 1st and 3rd syllables, as in, "LET'S go, DEV-ils!" they hit the 1st and 4th: "LET'S go, Fly-ERS!" It's a little weird the first time you hear it. It's also a little weird every time you hear it thereafter.

After the Game. Philadelphia is a big city, with all the difficulties of big cities as well as many of the perks of them. Especially at night, the risk of Flyer fans getting rough increases, as they've had time to drink, but not by much. Again, don't antagonize them, especially if the Devils win, and you'll probably be okay.

(The following paragraph only applies for night games, not matinees.)

What you should do at the end of the game depends on what time it is and how you got there. If you took the train(s) down, you shouldn't have too much trouble getting back onto the subway, and to Suburban Station, in time to catch the 10:45 PM SEPTA train back to Trenton, which will allow you to get the 12:10 AM NJ Transit train back to New York, arriving at Penn Station at 1:35 AM. If, for whatever reason (overtime and maybe also shootout, you stopped somewhere along the way, something else), you end up missing this train, there will be another an hour later, but the NJT train it connects to at Trenton at will be the last train of the night.

If you drove down, and you want to stop off for a late dinner and/or drinks (except, of course, for the designated driver), the nearby Holiday Inn at 9th Street & Packer Avenue has a bar that is co-owned by former Eagles quarterback, now ESPN pundit, Ron Jaworski. As I mentioned earlier, the original outlet of Chickie's & Pete's is at 15th & Packer. Right next to it is a celebrated joint, named, appropriately enough, Celebre Pizzeria.

(The legend is true: Richie Ashburn and his broadcast partners, Harry Kalas, Chris Wheeler and Andy Musser mentioned their great-tasting pizzas on the air so often that, since Phils broadcasts were then sponsored by a pizzeria chain, they couldn't mention Celebre's anymore. So, just as Ashburn's New York counterpart, Phil Rizzuto, liked to mention birthdays and food, especially Italian food, on the air, "Whitey" rattled off a few birthday wishes, and said, "And I'd like to wish a Happy Birthday to the Celebre's twins, Plain and Pepperoni! Say, Wheels, how old are Plain and Pepperoni?" And Wheeler said, "Oh, about 20 minutes, I hope!" Sure enough, 20 minutes later, the delivery of the 2 pizzas was made. And nobody fired Richie Ashburn -- although he died from a diabetes-induced heart attack in 1997, and his eyesight was already getting bad enough that he was getting pressured to retire, and was considering it. He died at the Grand Hyatt adjacent to Grand Central, during a Phils roadtrip to play the Mets -- and he wasn't alone as initially reported: He had his mistress with him.)

The legendary Pat's and Geno's Steaks, arch-rivals as intense as any local sports opponents, are across 9th Street from each other at Passyunk Avenue in the Italian Market area. My preference is Pat's, but Geno's is also very good. Be advised, though, that the lines at both are of Shake Shack length, because people know they're that good. Also, Pat's was "the original Soup Nazi": You have to have your cash ready, and you have to quickly order your topping, your style of cheese, and either "wit" or "widdout" -- with or without onions. I haven't been there in a while, but I've been there often enough that I have a "usual": "Mushroom, whiz, wit."

Both Pat's and Geno's are open 24 hours, but, because of the length of the line, unless you drove down to the game, I would recommend not going there after the game, only before (if you can make time for it). Broad Street Line to Ellsworth-Federal, then 5 blocks east on Federal, and 1 block south on 9th.

There is one place I know of in Philadelphia that caters to New York fans: The Tavern on Broad, at 200 S. Broad Street at Walnut, seems to be the headquarters of the local Giants fan club. The Fox & Hound, at 1501 Spruce Street in Center City, is also said to be accommodating to Giants fans. Jet fans are said to be welcome at Revolution House, at 200 Market Stret in Old City.

A particular favorite restaurant of mine is the New Deck Tavern, at 3408 Sansom Street in University City, on the Penn campus. You can also pick up a sandwich, a snack or a drink at any of several Wawa stores in and around the city. If you came in via Suburban Station, there's one at 1707 Arch, a 5-minute walk away; if the game lasts 3 hours or less, you have a shot at getting in, getting your order, getting out, and getting back to the station in time to catch your train.

If your visit to Philly is during the European soccer season (which is in progress), you can probably watch your favorite club at Fadó Irish Pub, at 1500 Locust Street in Center City. Be advised that this is home to supporters' groups for Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Celtic FC; so if you're not particularly fond of any of those teams, you might want to stay away.

Sidelights. On November 30, 2018, Thrillist published a list of "America's 25 Most Fun Cities," and Philadelphia came in 17th. 

The Philadelphia sports complex once included 3 buildings that have all been replaced and demolished: From north to south, the Vet, the Spectrum and JFK Stadium. The arena now known as the Wells Fargo Center was built on the site of JFK Stadium. Citizens Bank Park, the new home of the Phillies, was built to the east of The Vet. And Lincoln Financial Field was built south of the new ballpark, and east of the Spectrum.

* Sesquicentennial/Municipal/JFK Stadium. Built in 1926 for a 150th Anniversary (Sesquicentennial of American independence) world's fair in Philadelphia, this 105,000-seat horseshoe (open at the north end) was designed for football, but one of its earliest events was a fight for the Heavyweight Championship of the World. For the 1st time, that title changed hands on a decision, rather than on a knockout. But Gene Tunney so decisively outfought champion Jack Dempsey that no one disputed it. (When they had their rematch a year later, at Soldier Field in Chicago, that was another story.)

Jersey Joe Walcott, from Merchantville across the Delaware River, won the last of his 4 fights with Ezzard Charles there in 1952, but lost the title there a few months later, knocked out by Rocky Marciano.

The stadium was renamed Municipal Stadium in 1931 (sometimes it was called simply Philadelphia Stadium), and, due to being (roughly) halfway between the service academies, became the site of the Army-Navy Game from 1936 to 1941, and again from 1945 to 1979, before it was moved to The Vet.

The Eagles played home games there from 1936 to 1939, and select games thereafter, including the 1950 season opener that was, as soccer fans would call it, a "Charity Shield" game: The 2-time defending NFL Champion Eagles vs. the Cleveland Browns, 4-time titlists in the All-America Football Conference. The Browns were 47-4-3 over the AAFC's 4-season history; the Eagles, 22-3-1 over the last 2 years, thanks to a 5-2 alignment that was the 1st defensive unit to have a memorable nickname: Before San Diego and Los Angeles had a Fearsome Foursome, Philly had a Suicide Seven.

Some people then called it "The Game of the Century," and some now think of as an unofficial "first Super Bowl" -- ironic, since neither team has won an NFL Championship in the Super Bowl era, and the Browns haven't even been to a Super Bowl yet. They played on a Saturday night -- making it, sort of, not just "the 1st Super Bowl" but "the 1st Monday Night Football game" -- in front of 71,237 fans. That's still the largest crowd ever to watch a football game in Philadelphia, the largest ever to watch a pro football game in Pennsylvania (Penn State's Beaver Stadium for exceeds that in capacity), and nearly double the capacity of Shibe Park, which really limited the Eagles' attendance.

The Browns beat the Eagles 35-10, stunning football fans all over the nation. The Eagles never recovered, while the Browns won the NFL title that year, and appeared in 7 title games in 8 years, winning 3.

In 1964, Municipal Stadium was renamed John F. Kennedy Stadium. On August 16, 1966, the Beatles played there. On July 13, 1985, it hosted the American end of Live Aid. But that show exposed to the world that it already falling apart. The Rolling Stones, who had packed the place on their 1981 Tattoo You tour, chose the considerably smaller Vet for Steel Wheels in 1989. JFK Stadium was demolished in 1992, and the new arena opened on the site in 1996.

* The Spectrum. This modern (for its time) arena opened in 1967, and 2 teams at the opposite ends of the competitive, uh, spectrum moved in: The 76ers, the NBA's defending Champions; and the Flyers, an NHL expansion team. Although the Flyers won inspirational (and confrontational) Stanley Cups in 1974 and '75, they also lost in the Finals in 1976, '80, '85 and '87. And while the Sixers won the 1983 NBA title in a dominating season-long performance, they also lost in the Finals in 1977, '80 and '82, and were lost after a couple of puzzling Draft Day trades in 1986.
The Spectrum hosted the NCAA Final Four in 1976 and 1981, both times won by Bobby Knight's Indiana. Since 1976 was the Bicentennial year, it also hosted the NBA and NHL All-Star Games. The Vet also hosted baseball's All-Star Game that year. And the Spectrum was the site of both fights between Philly native Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed, the former in the first Rocky, on New Year's Day 1976, and the latter in Rocky II, on Thanksgiving of that year. (All the movies' fights were actually filmed at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, due to its proximity to Hollywood.)

The Spectrum was also a big arena for college basketball: Villanova used it for home games that were too big for its on-campus Pavilion, the Atlantic 10 Conference used it for its tournament, and it hosted NCAA Tournament games at the sub-Final Four level, including the 1992 thriller that put Duke into the Final Four at Kentucky's expense, thanks to the last-second shot of Christian Laettner. The first rock concert there was by Cream, on their 1968 farewell tour. The last, and the last public event there, was by Pearl Jam in 2009.

Elvis Presley sang at The Spectrum on November 8, 1971; June 23, 1974 (2 shows), June 28, 1976; and May 28 1977.

The Spectrum became, in the words of its promoters, "America's Showplace" and the most-used sports arena in the world. This was a blessing and a curse: They could make a lot of money off of it, but it was limited. So Spectacor, the company that owned the Spectrum and the Sixers, built Spectrum II, now the Wells Fargo Center.
From 1996 to 2009, the arenas stood side-by-side. The main Spectrum tenants said goodbye as follows: The Flyers with an exhibition game on September 27, 2008, with all their former Captains on hand, as the Fly Guys beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2; Villanova with the building's last college basketball game on January 28, 2009, a win over the University of Pittsburgh; and on March 13, 2009, the Sixers beat the Chicago Bulls 104-101 in a special regular-season game.

The Spectrum was demolished the next year, and replaced in part with a live concert venue called "Xfinity Live!" (Yes, the exclamation point is included in the official name.) This structure now hosts the statues that were outside the Spectrum. A hotel is planned for the rest of the Spectrum site.

* Veterans Stadium. When it opened on April 10, 1971, it was considered state of the art and wonderful. And, as the Phillies had a great team from 1976 to 1983, reaching 6 postseasons in 8 years, winning 2 Pennants and the 1980 World Series, it became beloved by Phils fans. The Eagles, too, had a resurgence in the late 1970s, and hosted and won the 1980 NFC Championship Game. The Vet was seen as everything that Connie Mack Stadium was not: New instead of old, in good shape instead of falling apart, in a safe place instead of a ghetto (unless you were a New York Giants or Dallas Cowboys fan), and representative of victory instead of defeat.

The Eagles had a down period in the mid-1980s, but rebounded toward the end of the decade. But the Phils had collapsed, and the Vet's faults began to be seen: It was ugly, the sight lines were bad for baseball, and the turf was bad for everything, from eyes to knees. By the time the Phils won the Pennant in 1993, Camden Yards had opened just down the road in Baltimore, and suddenly everyone wanted a "retro park," and no one wanted a "cookie-cutter stadium."

It took a few more years, and a lot of complaints from opposing NFL players that the stadium was deteriorating and the turf was dangerous, for a new stadium to be approved. The Eagles closed the Vet out with a shocking and devastating loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2002 NFC Championship Game, and the Phils did so with a loss to the Atlanta Braves on September 28, 2003. The Eagles had already moved into their new stadium by that point, and the Phils moved into theirs the next April, a few days after the Vet's demolition. The baseball and football sculptures that were outside have been placed on Pattison Avenue, in front of the parking lot where the Vet once stood.

The Vet hosted the Army-Navy Game every year from 1980 to 2001, except for 1983, 1989, 1993, 1997 and 2000. (The 1983 game was played at the Rose Bowl, the 2000 game at the new Ravens' stadium in Baltimore, and the rest, as well as the 2002 game, at the Meadowlands.) Various pro soccer teams, including the North American Soccer League's Philadelphia Atoms, also played there.

* Citizens Bank Park. It opened in 2004, and the Phils were in the Playoff race until September that year. In 2005 and '06, they were in it until the last weekend. In 2007, they won the Division. In 2008, they won the World Series. In 2009, they won another Pennant. In 2010 and '11, they won the Division -- 5 straight Playoff berths, and 8 seasons in the ballpark with all good-to-great seasons. Only in 2012, when injuries flurried in and the team suddenly seemed to get old all at once, did the bad times return.

Baker Bowl was a dump. Shibe Park/Connie Mack Stadium was already neglected due to Mack's strapped finances by the time the Phils arrived, and by the time they left the neighborhood was a ghastly ghetto. The Vet was a football stadium. CBP is a ballpark, and a great one. (Okay, on January 2, 2012, it was a hockey rink. To make matters worse, the Flyers lost to the one team I would want them to beat, the Rangers.)

"The Bank" has statues of Phils greats like Richie Ashburn and Mike Schmidt, great food like Greg Luzinski's Bull's Barbecue, and lots and lots of souvenirs, some of which don't involve the Phillie Phanatic. And, with the Phils now being terrible, tickets are easier to get.

* Lincoln Financial Field. The new home of the Eagles has seen them make the Playoffs more often than not, and reach the Super Bowl in the 2004 season. And fan behavior, while still rowdy, is not as criminal as it was at The Vet: No more municipal court under the stands is necessary.

"The Linc" has hosted the Army-Navy Game every year since it opened, except for 2007, 2011 and last year. It's hosted 4 games of the U.S. National Soccer Team, most recently a 1-0 win over Paraguay in the 2016 Copa America; games of the 2003 Women's World Cup, an MLS All-Star Game, and several games by touring European teams such as Manchester United, Glasgow Celtic and A.C. Milan. It will host an NHL Stadium Series game between the Pennsylvania teams, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins, in 2019. It has been selected by the U.S. Soccer Federation as a finalist to be one of the host venues for the 2026 World Cup.

If you drove down, or you came by train early on Saturday and have the whole day to yourself before a 7:05 gametime, in addition to the other stadiums and arenas at the Sports Complex, there are lots of interesting locations for you to check out. Remember that, although the city's centerpoint is technically Broad & Market Streets, where City Hall is, the numbering of north-south streets starts at the Delaware River, so that Broad takes the place of 14th Street.

* Deliverance Evangelistic Church. This was the site of Shibe Park, renamed Connie Mack Stadium in 1952. This is where the A's played from 1909 to 1954, the Phils from 1938 to 1970, and the Eagles in 1940, and from 1942 to 1957. The A's played World Series there in 1910, '11, '12, '13, '14, '29, '30 and '31, and the Phils (against the Yanks) in '50.

The Eagles played and won the 1948 NFL Championship Game there, beating the Chicago Cardinals 7-0 in a snowstorm, and also won the NFL title in '49 (though the title game was played in Los Angeles against the Rams). The Frankford Yellow Jackets sometimes used it in the 1920s, winning the 1926 NFL Championship. On October 14, 1948, shortly after Israel declared its independence, its national soccer team faced the U.S. at Shibe Park, shortly after doing so at Yankee Stadium. These were Israel's 1st 2 matches, and the U.S. won them both.

Be advised, though, that this is North Philly, and the church is easily the nicest building for several blocks around. Across the street is Dobbins Tech, a high school known for its great basketball program. (Remember the story of Hank Gathers and Bo Kimble? They went to Dobbins. So did Dawn Staley.) 21st Street & Lehigh Avenue. By subway, use the North Philadelphia station on the Broad Street Line, and walk 7 blocks west on Lehigh.

* Site of Baker Bowl. This was where the Phils played from 1887 to 1938, and the Eagles from 1933 to 1943 (though sometimes moving to Municipal Stadium, the one renamed for JFK). It was also the Eagles' 1st home, in the 1933, '34 and '35 seasons; and their predecessor franchise, the Frankford Yellow Jackets, played their last season there, 1931.

It was the last 19th Century ballpark still in use, and the last wooden one, too. On August 6, 1894, the original version, named the Huntingdon Avenue Grounds, burned down, fortunately while the Phils were on the road. After a quick build of makeshift stands, and 6 games at the University of Pennsylvania's field at 39th & Spruce Streets, the Phils moved back in on August 18. After the season, it was rebuilt for 1895, with 2 cantilevered steel decks, seating 18,800 -- big for the time, but woefully inadequate following the ballpark building boom of the Taft and Wilson years. It was named for team owner William F. Baker.

On August 8, 1903, a balcony collapsed at Baker Bowl, killing 12 people -- the closest North American sports has ever come to the kind of stadium disasters that have fallen soccer stadiums in Britain and continental Europe. The Phillies then played 16 home games at Columbia Park while Baker Bowl was being repaired.

On May 14, 1927, rotting timbers, weakened further by rainfall, caused a section of Baker Bowl's right field upper deck to collapse. Incredibly, no one was killed, but the resulting stampede injured 50 people, and 1 man died of a heart attack. Again, the Phils groundshared with the A's on a temporary basis, before moving in permanently during the 1938 season.

Because of the shape of the land, the right-field foul pole was just 280 feet from home plate, and so a high fence was erected. The fence was tall enough for a giant soap ad, reading, "The Phillies use LIFEBUOY." The joke was, "And they still stink!"

It was not kept up well, and the Reading Railroad tunnel gave center field a bit of a rise. Baker Bowl became known as The Dump By the Hump. The team was just as bad: In the site's 52 seasons of use, only once did the Phils win a Pennant, and only 1 World Series was played there. That was in 1915, and the Phils lost to the Boston Red Sox. But Game 2 was attended by President Woodrow Wilson, making Baker Bowl the 1st ballpark to host both a World Series and a President of the United States at the same time.

It was used for "midget auto" racing until it was finally demolished in 1950 -- ironically, the year the "Whiz Kids" Phils won the Pennant 7 blocks away at Shibe Park. Retail now occupies the site. Southwest corner of Broad Street and Lehigh Avenue. Same subway stop as Shibe/Connie Mack.

* Site of Columbia Park. The A's original home was in a section of North Philly called Brewerytown, on Columbia Avenue at 29th Street. It was a 13,600-seat wooden structure with a right field fence that, like Baker Bowl's, was only 280 feet from home plate. Here, the A's won the Pennant in 1902 and 1905.

When the A's built Shibe Park in 1908-09, the sod was transplanted from Columbia Park. After lying vacant for a few years, it was torn down, and the familiar Philly-style row houses were built on the site. Columbia Avenue, and its stop on the Broad Street Line, were renamed for Philadelphia civil rights leader and City Councilman Cecil B. Moore Avenue following his death in 1979. 2900 Cecil B. Moore Avenue.

* Recreation Park. Perhaps the 1st home of baseball in Philadelphia, the site was used at least as far back as 1860. It was the 1st home of the Phillies, from 1883 to 1886. By 1890, the 6,500-seat wooden grandstand was gone. Row houses and 2 churches now occupy the site. 2400 Ridge Avenue.
* Jefferson Street Grounds. The 1st home of openly professional baseball in Philadelphia, the original Philadelphia Athletics played there in the National Association from 1871 to 1875, and in the National League in 1876, before being kicked out of the League. From 1883 (a Pennant year for them) until 1890 (when they folded), it was the home of the American Association's version of the Philadelphia Athletics. (Neither of these Athletics have any connection but name to the American League team now based in Oakland.)

The 1st game in NL history was played at this 5,000-seat wooden facility, on April 22, 1876, and the Athletics lost 6-5 to the Boston Red Stockings (forerunners of the Atlanta Braves.) It was demolished sometime after 1890, and a school named Camelot Academy, including, appropriately enough, athletic fields, is now on the site. 1435 N. 26th Street, also in Brewerytown. The sites of Columbia Park, Recreation Park, and the Jefferson Street Grounds all can be reached by Bus 3, 7 or 48 from Cecil B. Moore stop on the Broad Street Line.

If you're going to any of these old ballpark sites, do it in daylight.
* The Palestra. Built in 1927, this is the arena aptly nicknamed the Cathedral of Basketball. It even has stained-glass windows. (I swear, I am not making that up.) The home gymnasium of the University of Pennsylvania (or just "Penn"), it also hosts some games of Philly's informal "Big 5" basketball programs when they play each other: Penn, Temple, La Salle, St. Joseph's and Villanova.

Penn, a member of the Ivy League, has one of the nicest college campuses anywhere, but do not be fooled by its Ivyness: In Philadelphia, even the Ivy Leaguers are tough. 235 South 33rd Street. Take the "Subway-Surface Line" trolley, either the Number 11, 13, 34 or 36, to the 33rd Street stop.

As I said, Philadelphia has hosted 2 NCAA Final Fours, both at the Spectrum. 'Nova has made it 4 times: 1939, 1971, 1985 and 2009. La Salle made it in back-to-back years, 1954 and 1955. Temple made it in 1956 and 1958, although never under legendary coach John Chaney. St. Joe's made it in 1961, and just missed in 2004. Penn made it in 1979, under future Detroit Pistons coach Chuck Daly. Temple won the NIT in 1938, but the only Philly-based National Champions under the NCAA banner (which began in 1939) are La Salle in 1954, and 'Nova in 1985, 2016 and 2018.

* Franklin Field, right next to the Palestra. The oldest continuously-used college football site, the Penn Quakers have played here since 1895 (which is also when the Penn Relay Carnival, the nation's premier track-and-field event, began), and in the current stadium since 1922. That year, it supposedly hosted the first football game ever broadcast on radio (a claim the University of Pittsburgh disputes), and in 1939 it supposedly hosted the first football game ever televised (a claim New York's Columbia University disputes). The amazing building in the west end zone is the University administration building.

The original Franklin Field was the 1st midpoint/neutral site game for Army vs. Navy: 1899 to 1904, 1906 to 1912, and 1914. The current structure hosted it in 1922, and 1932 to 1935, before it was moved to Municipal/JFK Stadium.

The Eagles played here from 1958 to 1970, including their last NFL Championship, December 26, 1960, beating the Green Bay Packers in a thriller, 17-13. Half a century. Penn's football team has been considerably more successful, having won 14 Ivy League titles since the league was formally founded in 1955.

Like the Palestra, the stadium at Franklin Field is in surprisingly good shape (must be all those Penn/Wharton Business School grads donating for its upkeep), although the playing field has been artificial turf since 1969. Same trolley stop as the Palestra.

* Site of the Philadelphia Civic Center. This complex included the Convention Hall, where Franklin D. Roosevelt was nominated for President by the Democrats in 1936, Wendell Willkie by the Republicans in 1940 and both Harry Truman and Thomas E. Dewey were nominated in 1948 – that year's Republican Convention being the first televised convention. It was built on the site of the Exposition Auditorium, where the Republicans renominated William McKinley in 1900.

(The Democrats met in Atlantic City at the Convention Hall, now named Boardwalk Hall, in 1964, nominating Lyndon Johnson. 2301 Boardwalk at Mississippi Avenue. New Jersey Transit Atlantic City Line from 30th Street Station. The Beatles played there a few days before.)

The Beatles played here on September 2, 1964. Pope John Paul II said Mass here. The Philadelphia Warriors played here from 1952 to 1962, when they moved to San Francisco (and now the "Golden State Warriors" play in Oakland), and the 76ers from 1963 until the Spectrum opened in 1967. Joe Louis defended the Heavyweight Championship of the World here, knocking Gus Dorazio out in the 2nd round on February 17, 1941.

Titles were won here by the 1956 Warriors and the 1967 76ers. The Philadelphia Blazers played the 1st World Hockey Association season here, 1972-73, but were terrible, and with the Flyers on the way up, nobody wanted to see the WHA team. They moved to Vancouver the next season.

So many Philly area greats played here, in high school, college and the pros, but you need know one name -- pardon the pun -- above all others: Wilt Chamberlain. I saw a concert here in 1989, and the acoustics were phenomenal, with a horseshoe of seats and a stage at one end, much like Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City and the building once known as the Baltimore Civic Center.

Built in 1931, it was demolished in 2005 to make way for the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine. an addition to the University of Pennsylvania Hospital. 34th Street & Civic Center Boulevard. Same stop as the Palestra and Franklin Field, which are a block away.

* Site of Philadelphia Arena. Built in 1920, this was the first home of the NBA's Warriors from 1946 to 1952, and site of some 76ers home games as well. It seated only 6,500 at its peak, so the Civic Center and later the Spectrum were preferable.

The Arena made its name hosting college hockey: Penn playing there was understandable, but, at the time, Princeton and even faraway Yale did not have their own rinks, and used the Arena as home ice.
The worst team in NHL history played there: The 1930-31 Philadelphia Quakers. After 5 seasons as the Pittsburgh Pirates, they clowned their way to a record of 4 wins, 40 losses and 4 ties, making them about as bad as the worst team in NBA history, the 1972-73 76ers (9-73). They were strapped during this 2nd indoor sports season of the Great Depression, and went out of business thereafter. and the beginning of the Flyers, that Philly would have another NHL team.
The Philadelphia Ramblers won the American Hockey League title while playing there, in 1933 and 1936. But although several minor-league teams would play at the Arena -- the Arrows, the Comets, the Ramblers, the Falcons and the Rockets -- it would not be until 1967, with the opening of the Spectrum.

Baseball pitcher-turned-evangelist Billy Sunday delivered sermons at the Arena in the 1920s,, and Charles Lindbergh used it for an America First speech in 1940. Early in his career, Elvis sang at the Arena on back-to-back days, doing 2 shows each on April 5 and 6, 1957.

Philly's ABC affiliate, Channel 6, formerly WFIL and now WPVI, built its studio next-door. It still stands. The Arena does not: It caught fire on August 24, 1983, and had to be demolished. A housing project is on the site today. 4530 Market Street. Market Street Line to 46th Street.

* Site of the National Athletic Club. This was home base for Joseph Francis Hagan, who fought under the name Philadelphia Jack O'Brien, He won the Light Heavyweight Championship of the World in 1905, but abandoned it to fight for the Heavyweight Championship. He never got it, losing to Tommy Burns in Los Angeles in 1907, and gaining a generous draw (decided by racist judges) against Jack Johnson at the National A.C. on May 19, 1909.

I can find no record of when the National A.C. was demolished, only that it no longer stands. 1100 Catharine Street, Broad Street Line to Lombard-South.

* Talen Energy Stadium. Built in 2010 for the expansion Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer, and named PPL Park until last year when PPL was bought by Talen Energy, it seats 18,500 people, on the bank of the Delaware River in Chester, under the Commodore Barry Bridge (U.S. Route 222), linking it with Gloucester County, New Jersey.

The main supporters' section is called the River End, and is home to The Sons of Ben. The group named themselves after Benjamin Franklin, and they created an alternate logo for the team, showing a skull, with a Liberty Bell-style crack in it, wearing Franklin's hairstyle and bifocals, on a kite-shaped background. Of course, fans of the rival New York Red Bulls and D.C. United tend to call them The Daughters of Betsy -- after Ross. The U.S. national team played Colombia there on October 12, 2010, but lost. The U.S. women's team played there on February 27, 2019, a 2-2 draw with Japan in the SheBelieves Cup.

1 Stadium Drive, in Chester. SEPTA Wilmington/Newark Line train to the Chester Transportation Center, then shuttle buses leaving every 20 minutes will take you to the stadium. If you're only going for a visit, not a game when there would be plenty of police protection, do not visit at night: Chester can be a dangerous city.

* Site of Frankford Stadium. Philadelphia's 1st pro football team was the Frankford Yellow Jackets, who played at Frankford Stadium in Northeast Philly from 1924 to 1930, winning the 1926 NFL Championship, before a fire on the eve of the 1931 season forced them into Baker Bowl and then into folding.

The stadium was on a plot bounded by Frankford Avenue, Devereaux Avenue, Hawthorne Street and Benner Street. An AutoZone (at 6137 Frankford) and rowhouses are on the site now. Market-Frankford Line to Frankford Transportation Center, then transfer to SEPTA Bus 66 Frankford & Harbison Avenues.

In addition to the Yellow Jackets, another ill-fated team played in Eastern Pennsylvania in the NFL's early days. The Pottsville Maroons played at the 5,000-seat Minersville Park, at the intersection of Sunbury Road and Prison Road, 106 miles northwest of Philly, from 1920 to 1928. They claimed the 1925 NFL Championship, but may have been "robbed" of the title.

* Site of Broadwood Hotel. From 1924 to 1991, this hotel stood at the intersection of Broad and Wood Streets, just north of Center City. From 1924 to 1946, its ballroom was the home of the Philadelphia SPHAs -- a basketball team run by the South Philadelphia Hebrew Association, even though it wasn't in South Philly. This team would evolve into the Warriors. A parking deck for Hahnemann University Hospital is on the site now. Broad Street Line to Race-Vine.

* Site of Cherry Hill Arena. Before the Devils, the 1st hockey team with major league pretensions to call New Jersey home was actually in South Jersey. In the 1973-74 World Hockey Association season, the former New York Raiders set up shop at the Cherry Hill Arena in Camden County, and renamed themselves the Jersey Knights.

The building went up in 1959 as the Ice House, and was later renamed the Delaware Valley Gardens before assuming its most familiar name, but no one was confusing it with Madison Square Garden (old or new), the Boston Garden or Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. Sports Illustrated called it "perhaps the worst facility" used by any WHA team, noting that it lacked showers in the dressing room for visiting teams, who had to dress at a Holiday Inn 2 miles away, and that the ice surface was not even level, giving the home team a distinct advantage, as, 2 periods out of every 3, the visitors would have to skate uphill to the opponent's goal.

The Eastern Hockey League placed 2 teams there: The Jersey Larks in 1960-61, and the Jersey Devils (the 1st pro hockey team with the name) from 1964 until 1973, when the arrival of the Knights forced their move. The NBA's Philadelphia Warriors played the occasional "home game" there.

The Knights left for San Diego after the 1973-74 season. In 1978, the Arena was renamed The Centrum, and the Northeastern Hockey League placed the Jersey Aces there, but they only lasted a few games before folding.

The Arena was demolished in 1981. The site is now a parking lot for a shopping center that includes a Burger King and a Retro Fitness. 1447 Brace Road, at Haddonfield-Berlin Road. It's not easy to reach by public transit. From New York or Newark, you'd have to take NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line to Trenton, transfer to the RiverLine light rail, take that to the Walter Rand Transportation Center in Camden, and then switch to the PATCO train to Haddonfield, then almost a half-hour walk. Or, at Trenton, switch to the SEPTA train to Philadelphia, take it to Jefferson Station, and transfer to PATCO there.

* Temple University. Straddling the border between Center City and the mostly-black North Philadelphia ghetto, Temple has given thousands of poor urban kids a chance to make something of themselves, including comedian Bill Cosby, who ran track for the school, including in the Penn Relays at Franklin Field.

Temple now plays basketball at the Liacouras Center, at 1776 N. Broad Street, across from its former arena, McGonigle Hall, at 1800. Broad Street Line to Cecil B. Moore station.

The Owls have played football at the South Philly complex since 1978, first at The Vet and now at the Linc. From 1928 to 1977, they played at Temple Stadium, a 20,000-seat facility on the city's northern edge. On September 25, 1968, the U.S. soccer team played Israel to a draw there. It was demolished in 1996, and, like Shibe Park/Connie Mack Stadium, the site is now home to a church. 2800 Pickering Avenue at Vernon Road. Broad Street Line to Olney Transportation Center, then transfer to the Number 18 bus toward Cedarbook Mall.

* LaSalle University. All of Philly's Big 5 basketball universities are private; unlike Penn and Temple, La Salle, St. Joe's and 'Nova are Catholic. LaSalle is in the northernmost reaches of the city, its bookstore at 1900 W. Olney Avenue, and the Explorers' new Tom Gola Arena, named for their late 1950s superstar and 1960s coach, and 2100 W. Olney. Broad Street Line to Olney Transportation Center.

* St. Joseph's University. St. Joe's straddles the western edge of the city, on a hill bisected by City Line Avenue. They are known for their Hawk mascot flapping his wings throughout the game, never stopping, thus leading to the chant, "The Hawk will never die!" This, of course, leads their Big 5 opponents to chant, "The Hawk must die!" and, if victorious, "The Hawk is dead!"

Their fieldhouse, now named the Michael J. Hagan Arena, is at 2450 N. 54th Street, and features a plaque commemorating a 1967 speech delivered there by Martin Luther King. Number 44 bus from Center City.

* Villanova University. The Wildcats just won their 3rd National Championship, defeating Michigan in San Antonio, 2 years after defeating North Carolina in a thriller in Houston, which came 31 years after their even more amazing upset of Georgetown in Lexington, Kentucky.

Famously (well, famous within the Philadelphia area, anyway), they played a Big 5 game against St. Joe's at the Palestra a few years back, having beaten each of the other Big 5 schools, and, pulling away, their fans chanted, "We own Philly!" The St. Joe's fans, no fools, reminded them of their location, in the town of Villanova, 18 miles northwest of Center City: "You ain't Philly!"

Jake Nevin Field House, their home at the time of their 1985 National Championship, and The Pavilion, which that success allowed them to build, are next to each other, along with their bookstore, at 800 E. Lancaster Avenue. They also have a 12,500-seat stadium for their Division I-AA football team. SEPTA Lansdale/Doylestown Line to Villanova Station.

Of the Big 5, only Temple plays Division I-A football: Temple, 'Nova and LaSalle play I-AA, and while St. Joseph's Prep has one of the better programs in Philly-area high school football, their collegiate namesake doesn't play football at all.

Lincoln University, the 1st of America's historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), was founded in 1854, even before the American Civil War. Now an NCAA Division II school, it won black college National Championships in 1923 and 1924, and excels in track & field, anually sending competitors to the Penn Relays. 1570 Baltimore Pike (once part of U.S. Route 1, which has since been realigned), in Oxford, Chester County, 44 miles southwest of Center City.

* Spike's Trophies. When the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society closed its facility in the northern suburb of Hatboro, they moved their operations, and the plaques honoring A's greats that used to be on the concourse wall at the Vet, to this store near Northeast Philadelphia Airport. 2701 Grant Avenue at Ashton Road. Market-Frankford Line to Frankford Transportation Center, then transfer to Number 50 Bus.

* Laurel Hill Cemetery. This is the final resting place of Flyers founding owner Ed Snider; former Phillies manager Harry Wright, who founded the 1st professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, in 1869; and of longtime broadcaster Harry Kalas. 215 Belmont Avenue in Bala Cynwyd, not far from the St. Joe's campus. Use the Number 44 bus to get to both.

* Gladwyne Methodist Church. Kalas' longtime broadcast partner, the Hall of Fame center fielder Richie "Whitey" Ashburn, is laid to rest here. 316 Righters Mill Road in Gladwyne. The Number 44 bus can also be used for this.

* Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. This is the final resting place of Connie Mack. 3301 W. Cheltenham Avenue. Broad Street Line to Olney Transportation Center, then Number 22 bus.

Once upon a time, Central Pennsylvania was home to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, which coach Glenn "Pop" Warner and running back Jim Thorpe led to upsets of Harvard (18-15) in 1911 and Army (27-6) at West Point in 1912. Ironically, in 1918, the Army bought the school, land and buildings, and it's now the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center. 950 Soldiers Drive, in Carlisle, 122 miles west of Center City Philadelphia and 17 miles west of Harrisburg.
Philadelphia is home to Independence National Historic Park, including Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. The Visitor's Center is at 6th & Market Streets: At this complex, there will be people there to advise you on what to do. 5th Street on the Market Street Line.

Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence at what's now known as Declaration House, at 599 S. 7th Street, although the front of the building would be 700 Market Street (which would suggest 1 S. 7th Street).

The President's House -- that's as formal a name as it had -- was where George Washington (1790-97) and John Adams (1797-1800) lived while Philadelphia was the national capital before Washington, D.C.. It was demolished in 1832. When digging to build the new Liberty Bell Center, the house's foundation was found, and somebody must've asked, "Why didn't anybody think of this before?" So, an exhibit has been set up, at 530 Market Street at 6th. The new Liberty Bell Center is between it and Independence Hall (Chestnut Street between 5th and 6th). Be advised that since 9/11 -- and since the movie National Treasure -- they're understandably a bit finicky about security there.

The oldest surviving Presidential residence (chosen specifically for the President, not counting homes like Mount Vernon or Monticello) is the Germantown White House, which still stands at 5442 Germantown Avenue. George Washington and John Adams used it to escape the heat and, more importantly, the yellow fever epidemics of what's now Center City Philadelphia, making it less "the first Summer White House" and more "the first Camp David." SEPTA Chestnut Hill West Line to Germantown, then 3 blocks down Armat Street and a left on Germantown Avenue. Definitely not safe at night.

Speaking of George Washington, Valley Forge National Historical Park is just an hour's bus ride from Suburban Station. On JFK Blvd. at 17th Street, board the SEPTA 125 bus. Valley Forge Casino Resort and the King of Prussia Mall are a short drive (or a moderate walk) away. The fare is $4.75 each way ($9.50 total).

Only one President has ever come from Pennsylvania, and he might be the worst one of all: James Buchanan, whose Administration began with the Panic of 1857 and ended with the secession of several Southern States. (Whether Buchanan was gay has been debated since even before he became President, but the evidence is flimsy.) His home, Wheatland, still stands at 1120 Marietta Avenue in Lancaster, and he's buried about a mile away in Greenwood Cemetery. But Lancaster, the heart of "Pennsylvania Dutch Country," is 80 miles west of Philly. It's a cheap trip by Amtrak standards, but unless you've always wanted to visit the area, or you're a big history buff, I'd suggest forgetting about it if you're pressed for time.


Philadelphia's answer to the Museum of Natural History is the University of Pennsylvania Museum, at 33rd & South Streets, across from Franklin Field. (Same trolley stop.) Their answer to the Hayden Planetarium -- and a better one -- is the Franklin Institute, which is also the national memorial to Big Ben, the man who, more than any man made any city in the Western Hemisphere, made Philadelphia. 20th Street & Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Number 76 bus. 76, get it? The bus is nicknamed "The Ben FrankLine."

At the other end of the Parkway, at 25th and Spring Garden Streets, is Philly's answer to the Metropolitan, the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The Rocky Balboa statue is here, and it doesn't cost anything except sweat to run up the steps.

The chocolate city of Hershey, Pennsylvania is 95 miles west of Center City, and only 15 miles east of the State Capitol in Harrisburg. The smell of chocolate wafts over the city, and is the source of the nickname "The Sweetest Place On Earth." Amtrak goes from 30th Street station to Harrisburg and nearby Middletown (the home of the infamous Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, which is still in operation and hasn't had an incident since the one in 1979), but if you want to go to any prominent place in Hersey, you'll have to rely on local bus service.

There are 4 prominent places in Hershey. There's the Hershey's chocolate factory. There's Hersheypark amusement park. There's Hersheypark Stadium is a 15,641-seat high school football stadium, opened in 1939. On May 9, 1990, the U.S. soccer team beat Poland there. Most notably, Hersheypark Arena, formerly Hershey Sports Arena, which now seats 7,286 people. The Warriors and 76ers played a few home games here, including the March 2, 1962 contest between the Warriors and the Knicks, when Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points.

The minor-league Hershey Bears used it from its opening in 1936 until 2002, when the 10,500-seat Giant Center opened next-door. It still hosts college hockey and concerts. Appropriately, the address of the Arena is 100 W. Hershey Park Drive.

No college football rivalry has been played more than Lafayette College and Lehigh University, separated by 17 miles of U.S. Route 22 in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Lafayette is in Easton, 69 miles north of Center City; Lehigh is in Bethlehem, 56 miles north. On occasion, they've played each other twice and, during World War II, even 3 times a season. Now, they limit themselves to 1. In 2014, on the occasion of their 150th meeting, they played each other at the new Yankee Stadium, with Lafayette winning. Lehigh won last year, but Lafayette leads the series, 78-70-5.

Lehigh's Goodman Stadium hosted a U.S. soccer game on October 23, 1993, a draw vs. Ukraine -- although I doubt too many people in the Delaware Valley were paying attention, as that was the day of Game 6 of the World Series, which the Phillies lost to the Toronto Blue Jays on the Joe Carter home run.

Believe it or not, it's easier to reach both Easton and Bethlehem without a car from New York than it is from Philadelphia: Transbridge Lines runs buses from Port Authority west on Interstate 78 into the Lehigh Valley, and Susquehanna Trailways runs them from Philly's Greyhound Terminal at 1001 N. Filbert Street, across from Jefferson Station.

Also in the Lehigh Valley is Scranton, where a fight for the Heavyweight Championship of the World was held on May 27, 1983. Easton native Larry Holmes won a 12-round decision over Lucien Rodriguez. 900 Adams Avenue, 125 miles north of Center City, and 122 miles northwest of Times Square. Bus service is available from both cities.

*

So, to sum up, I would definitely recommend to any Devils fan to follow their team to nearby Philadelphia. But be warned: These are Flyer fans. Stay safe, and good luck. (To the team, too.)

October 4, 1964: One of the most tumultuous seasons in Major League Baseball history comes to a close. The Yankees finish 1 game ahead of the Chicago White Sox, and 2 ahead of the Baltimore Orioles, winning their 29th Pennant, all in the last 44 seasons. As it turns out, it is the last in their Dynasty.

It is also the last game as a Yankee broadcaster for Mel Allen, who was fired after 26 years. No reason was given. Rumors abounded: He was an alcoholic, he was a prescription drug addict, he was gay. Apparently, though, in this era when sponsors still had an iron grip on broadcasting, the real reason was that Ballantine beer, the Yankees' sponsor and beneficiary of Mel's calling home runs "Ballantine blasts," saw their sales dropping, and they blamed Mel, the greatest salesman they ever had.

Once the 3rd-largest brewing company in America, Newark-based Ballantine sold out to Falstaff in 1972. This may have been a mistake for Falstaff, and they sold out to Pabst in 1985. Pabst still owns the rights to Ballantine's name and trademarks, including their 3-ring logo and the slogan, with a ring representing each: "Purity, Body and Flavor."

*

The National League race remains undecided going into this last day, thanks to the Philadelphia Phillies' nosedive, and the surges of the Cincinnati Reds and the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Phillies bomb the Reds 10-0. In those pre-Internet, pre-satellite TV days, the 2 teams then join forces, and sit in the visitors' clubhouse at Crosley Field, listening to a radio (which was appropriate, since longtime Reds owner Powel Crosley made his fortune selling radios), hoping that the Cardinals lose to the Mets at Sportsman's Park (since renamed Busch Stadium, the 1st of 3 ballparks to have now had that name), which would keep both teams alive, and force a 3-way tie for the Pennant.

Since the possibility had already arisen in 1956, when the Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers and Milwaukee Braves had a close race -- the Dodgers ended up beating the Braves by 1 game and the Reds by 2 -- a plan for such an eventuality was already in place.

It wasn't a head-to-head tiebreaker. If it had been, the Cards would have had the edge over the Phils (13-5), the Reds would have had the edge over the Phils (10-8), and the Reds and Phils would have split (9-9). Overall, the Cards would've been 21-15, the Reds 19-17, and the Phils 14-22.

NL President Warren Giles -- who would have to remain neutral, despite having once been the Reds' general manager -- would have drawn lots. The team whose name was written down on the 1st slip of paper he pulled out of a hat or box would be designated "No. 1," followed by "No. 2" and "No. 3." The schedule would have been as follows: No. 1 would have hosted No. 2, then No. 2 would have hosted No. 3, and No. 3 would have hosted No. 1. In other words, all 3 teams would have played each of the other 2 teams, and all 3 teams would have had 1 home game.

If 1 team ended up 2-0, with another 1-1 and another 0-2, the 2-0 team should have been declared the Pennant winner. Instead, the 0-2 team would have been eliminated, and Giles would have drawn another lot to determine home field for a 1-game Playoff. But if all 3 finished 1-1, they would do it all over again.

That's what would have happened over the coming days if the Mets had beaten the Cardinals on October 4, 1964.

Here's what actually does happen: The Mets take a 3-2 lead into the 5th inning‚ but the Cards score 3 runs to regain the lead. The Mets score once more, but the Cardinals complete their scoring with 3 in the 8th, to win 11-5. Bob Gibson wins in relief.

For St. Louis‚ it is their 1st Pennant since 1946, 18 years. For Cincinnati, it is a crushing defeat, as, even though they had won the Pennant just 3 years earlier, they wanted to win for their manager, Fred Hutchinson, who was dying of cancer.

For Philadelphia, which hasn't won a Pennant in 14 years, it is even more devastating: The Phils had led by 6 1/2 games with 12 to play, but went on a 10-game losing streak to blow it. The Phillie Phlop would define the franchise for a generation, and even fans who lived long enough to see the titles of 1980 and 2008 remain scarred by it.

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For 55 years, Phillies manager Gene Mauch has been blamed for the defeat, mainly due to overusing his 2 best starting pitchers, Jim Bunning and Chris Short.

Mauch was born on November 18, 1925 in Salina, Kansas. He was a barely-serviceable middle infielder in the major leagues from 1944 to 1957, managed the Phillies from 1960 to 1968, the Montreal Expos from 1969 (their 1st manager) to 1975, the Minnesota Twins from 1976 to 1980, the California Angels in 1981 and 1982, and again from 1985 to 1987. He died on August 8, 2005, at age 79.

He kept the Expos in the NL Eastern Division race most of the way in 1973, and took the Angels to the AL Western Division title in 1982 and 1986. But in 1982, he blew a 2-games-to-none lead and lost the Pennant to the Milwaukee Brewers, still the only Pennant that team has ever won.

And in 1986, he blew a 3-games-to-1 lead, including a 3-run lead in the 9th inning of Game 5 at home, and lost the Pennant to the Boston Red Sox, a team better known for being a team that blew great chances than for benefiting from teams blowing them. He is the only man to manage at least 25 seasons in the major leagues and never win a Pennant.

But is he really the person, or phenomenon, most responsible for the '64 Phillie Phlop?

Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame Gene Mauch for the Philadelphia Phillies for Losing the 1964 National League Pennant

Before I do the top 5, let me exonerate someone:

Richie Allen. He would later insist upon being called Dick Allen, and he has been called that from the 1970s onward. He was the NL Rookie of the Year that season, despite being a terrible fielder at 3rd base. So was Harmon Killebrew, and, like Killebrew, in a pre-DH era, he was moved to 1st base.

On the season, Dick batted .318, had 201 hits, hit 29 home runs and 91 RBIs, had a whopping OPS+ of 162, and led the NL with 352 stolen bases, 13 triples, 125 runs scored... and 138 strikeouts. Some of his home runs were, and would continue to be, the longest seen at Connie Mack Stadium since Jimmie Foxx was hitting them for the Philadelphia Athletics, when the ballpark was still known as Shibe Park.
Over time, the Philly media suggested, and the Philly fans came to believe, that Richie/Dick had a bad attitude. And there's no question that he had his issues, both with Phillies management and life in general. He had to overcome a lot, and he eventually did.

But was he responsible for the 10-game losing streak, at all?

The streak began on September 21, and ended on September 30. Allen played every inning of every one of those games, a total of 93 innings. (One game in the streak went 12 innings.) He had 44 plate appearances, 41 official at-bats, 17 hits for a batting average of .414, plus 2 walks for an on-base percentage of .432; 4 doubles, a triple and a home run, for a slugging percentage of .634; and 5 RBIs. He got at least 1 hit in 9 of the 10 games. He did make 2 errors, 1 in the 1st game of the streak and 1 in the last.

But holding Dick Allen responsible for the Phlop, in any way, is just plain stupid: Nobody on the team played better during those 10 games than he did. If the Phillies had won the Pennant by 1 game, we'd have spent the last 55 years talking about how he carried the team on his back. He might have been regarded as a hero from Day One.

The incident the next season with Frank Thomas (not the later Chicago White Sox Hall-of-Famer) might not have happened. If it had, a lot more people would have taken Allen's side. The Phillies might have been able to put together another Pennant run or two. Allen probably wouldn't have been run out of town (or tried to run himself out of town), and maybe the Phillies' return to glory in the late 1970s could have happened sooner.

Feeling more appreciated, and playing his entire career in Philadelphia, including in the hitter-friendly Veterans Stadium instead of the pitcher-friendly Comiskey Park with the Chicago White Sox from 1972 to 1974, Dick would have hit more than 351 career home runs. Could he have gotten to 400? Probably. Would that, along with whatever he would have won, have been enough to get him into the Hall of Fame? Maybe.

But you certainly can't blame Richie/Dick Allen for the Phillies phailing to win that Pennant.

So, on to the Top 5 reasons why you can't blame Gene Mauch, either:

5. Chico Ruiz. A utility infielder from Cuba, he stole home plate for a walkoff win for the Reds against the Phillies on September 21, starting the streak. Frank Robinson, one of the top sluggers of all time, was at the plate.

If Ruiz had let Robinson hit, maybe he wouldn't have driven in the winning run, and the Phillies might have won in extra innings. Or maybe Robinson would have driven it it, but it wouldn't have been nearly as shocking as a steal of home, and it might not have gotten into the Phillies' heads, and the streak wouldn't have reached 10 games.

Ruiz made a gamble which looked big at the time, and loomed larger as the streak grew. He was killed in a car crash in San Diego in 1972, while still an active player. He was just 33 years old.

4. No Home Field Advantage. From August 28 to 30, a race riot raged in North Philadelphia, starting at 23rd Street and Columbia (now Cecil B. Moore) Avenue, about a mile south of Connie Mack Stadium (and 6 blocks from the site of Columbia Park, the Athletics' 1st home 1901-08). The Phillies were in Pittsburgh at the time, so it didn't postpone any games.

But it scared white fans, afraid of getting mugged coming down Lehigh Avenue out of the subway, or of their cars getting vandalized if they drove in. The Phils had 15 home games left, not counting 2 rainout makeups, and the average attendance was 21,265. They really didn't have a home field advantage. Plus, football season had begun, and, even when the Eagles are bad, they take more of the Delaware Valley's attention than even a good Phillies team does.

3. The Pitching Situation. Jim Bunning went 19-8 with a 2.63 ERA. Chris Short, 17-9, 2.20. The myth is that Mauch used righthander Bunning and lefthander Short on, pardon the choice of words, short rest. The truth?

Dennis Bennett actually made 1 more start that season than Short did (32-31), but went just 12-14, although his ERA of 3.68, while a little high for a 1960s starting pitcher, wasn't that bad. Art Mahaffey made 29 starts, only 2 fewer than Short, and went 12-9, but his ERA was 4.52. Ray Culp made 19 starts, going 8-7, 4.13.

Bunning started on September 13, 16, 20, 24, 27 and 30, and October 4. So there were 4 games that he started on just 2 days' rest, and 2 on 3 days' rest. Short started on September 14, 18, 22, 25 and 28, and October 2. So he started twice on 2 days' rest, and 3 times on 3. Mahaffey started on September 21 and 26. Bennett started on September 15, 19, 23 and 29. Rick Wise, only 18 and not yet the proven reliable starter he would become, started on September 17.

In other words, from September 13 to October 4, it was: Bunning, Short, Bennett, Bunning with 2 days' rest, Wise, Short with 3 days' rest, Bennett with 3, Bunning with 3, Mahaffey, Short with 3, Bennett with 3, Bunning with 3, Short with 2, Mahaffey with 4, Bunning with 2, Short with 2, Bennett with 5, Bunning with 2, a day off, Short with 3, a day off, and Bunning with 3.

What would have happened if, instead, Mauch had trusted Mahaffey and Wise more? Maybe not much. And I don't just mean because Wise was only 18. Of the 13 games the Phillies lost between September 18 and 30, 4 were blown by the bullpen. Two of those games were blown by Jack Baldschun, who led the team in saves with 21. Next-best was former Brooklyn Dodger hero Ed Roebuck with 12. Baldschun had an ERA of 3.12 and a WHIP of 1.276, both way too high for a closer then, never mind now.

Yes, the Phils had Bunning and Short, but that was about it. The Cards had Bob Gibson, Roger Craig and Ray Sadecki. And their closer was the much more reliable Barney Schultz.

Interestingly, both teams had a refugee from Philadelphia in 1950: The Phils had Athletics ace Bobby Shantz, wrapping up his career; and the Cards had Curt Simmons, who helped the Phils'"Whiz Kids" win the Pennant that year, but got drafted into the Korean War, possibly costing them the World Series against the Yankees. The Cards also had Barney Schultz, while the Phils' bullpen was not up to the task.

The general manager of the Phillies was John Quinn, the son of a former GM of the Dodgers and the St. Louis Browns. He would later become the father, father-in-law and grandfather of baseball executives. He had been GM of the Braves when they won Pennants in 1957 and '58. But, despite the deep pockets of Phils' owner Bob Carpenter, he did not spend nearly enough on salaries and scouting, and was rarely aggressive in the trade market.

He was finally fired in 1972, after Carpenter handed control of the team to his son Ruly, who hired Paul Owens, who turned the franchise around. He wouldn't have had to if Quinn had gotten Mauch the pitchers, both starters and relievers, that he needed. Maybe Mauch didn't play his hand well, but it was Quinn who didn't deal him the cards that would have won.

And it wasn't just the pitching. Which brings us to...

2. The Phillies Weren't That Good. They were overachieving. They shouldn't have been that close to the Pennant in the 1st place. As catcher-turned-broadcaster Joe Garagiola put it, "Baseball is a funny game."

In 1961, the last season of the 154-game NL schedule, the Phillies went 47-107. This included a 23-game losing streak, the longest in the history of Major League Baseball, with the exception of the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, a team that was purposely sabotaged by its owners, and dropped 24 at one point.

The Phillies got better in 1962, splitting the new 162-game season, 81-81. In 1963, they won 87 games. A good total, but only good for 4th place, 12 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers. Certainly, they were a team on the way up. But they were not among the NL favorites going into the 1964 season: The Dodgers, the Reds, the San Francisco Giants, and the Milwaukee Braves were.

The Reds and the Braves did get close. But the Dodgers were knocked out by an injury to Sandy Koufax, and the Giants had dissension between manager Alvin Dark and their Hispanic players. That opened the door for expected challengers like the Reds and the Braves, and for an unexpected challenger like the Phillies.

In the end, it was the closest race in NL history: 3 teams within 1 game, 4 within 3, 5 within 5. The Cards won over the Reds and Phils by 1 game each, the Jints by 3, the Braves by 5, the Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates by 13, the Chicago Cubs by 17, the Houston Colt .45's (they became the Astros the next year) by 27, and the Mets by 40.

In 1964, the Phillies won 92 games, and lost the Pennant, and are regarded as a failure. In 1980, the Phillies won 91 games, but it was enough to win the NL East, and they went on to win the Pennant and the franchise's 1st World Series, and they're regarded as the greatest Phillies team ever.

Or, to put it another way: The 1967 Red Sox also won 92 games, but it was enough to win the Pennant, and they're an iconic baseball team for good reasons. The '64 Phils remain iconic for bad reasons.

1. The Cardinals Were Better. They were only 6 games behind the Pennant-winning Dodgers in 1963, so it shouldn't have surprised anyone that they made a good run at the Pennant in 1964. Injuries meant that they didn't get close in 1965 or 1966. But, adding Orlando Cepeda and Roger Maris to their title-winning core of 1964, they won another Pennant in 1967, beating the Boston Red Sox in the World Series; and another in 1968, losing the Series to the Detroit Tigers.

In the 1960s, the Cardinals and Dodgers each won 3 Pennants; the Pirates, Reds Giants and Mets 1 each. The Phillies only came close the 1 time. They simply weren't as good as the Cardinals.

Or, to put it another way: At how many positions would a Cardinals fan have traded his guy that year for the Phillies' guy? 3rd base? Yes, the Phils had Richie Allen, but the Cards had Ken Boyer, their team Captain following the retirement of Stan Musial, and that season's NL Most Valuable Player. Right field? Yes, the Phils had Johnny Callison, but the Cards had a pretty good one in Mike Shannon. And most of the other Phils starters weren't good hitters. Tony Taylor over Julian Javier at 2nd base? Bobby Wine over Dick Groat at shortstop? Danny Cater over Lou Brock in left field? Please. And I've already discussed the pitchers.

VERDICT: Not Guilty. If the Phillies had won the 1964 National League Pennant, it wouldn't have been as big a "miracle" as the 1969 Mets, or as "impossible" a "dream" as the 1967 Red Sox. But it would have been an upset on the scale of, to borrow other contemporary teams, the 1959 White Sox, the 1960 Pirates or the 1965 Minnesota Twins.

And Gene Mauch would have been a hero. He might have been able to steer the '82 or '86 Angels to the 1 more win they needed for a Pennant. And he might have gone to his grave on August 8, 2005, from lung cancer at the age of 79, as a member of Baseball's Hall of Fame.

Instead, he's either "the best manager never to win a Pennant," or something harsher than that. And he didn't deserve such harshness.

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October 4, 1582: The Gregorian Calendar, ordered by Pope Gregory XIII to account for the differences in the seasons, so that religious holidays like Easter could be properly set, goes into effect in the Catholic world. In other words, tomorrow will not be October 5, but October 15, 1582.

The difference between the outdoing Julian Calendar, set by Julius Caesar in Roman times, and the Gregorian Calendar, is that years divisible by 100 will not be leap years, with a February 29, unless they are also divisible by 400. Example: 1600 and 2000 would be leap years; but 1700, 1800, 1900 and 2100 would not.

The countries led by the Protestant and Eastern Orthodox churches would not adopt it immediately. Prussia would not adopt the Gregorian Calendar until 1610; the rest of Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium, would do so in 1700; the British Empire, including what would be the 1st 13 American States, 1752; Sweden and Finland, 1753; Japan, 1873; Egypt, until then using the Muslim calendar, 1875; Korea, 1876; China and Albania, 1912; Latvia and Lithuania, 1915; Bulgaria, 1916; the Soviet Union, 1918; Romania and Yugoslavia, 1919; Greece, 1923; and Turkey, the last holdout, 1926.

Modern international sport, including such events as the Olympic Games, the various World Cups, and so on would be very difficult to stage without a single unifying calendar.

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October 4, 1669, 350 years ago: Rembrandt van Rijn dies, poor and unremarked, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, at age 63. Like many other great artists, he wasn't "discovered" during his lifetime. He would go on to be remembered as the foremost of the "Dutch master" painters.

October 4, 1777: The Battle of Germantown is fought in what is now Northwest Philadelphia. Sir William Howe, the British General already known as the man who conquered New York, now conquers the American capital of Philadelphia, routing General George Washington.

All seems lost for the new country and its Continental Army, until later in the month, at Saratoga, New York. Meanwhile, Washington will take his men to nearby Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where a legend will be born.

This is the greatest defeat anyone calling Philadelphia home has ever suffered. And it has nothing to do with sports. Although the Phillies will have disasters of their own, including in October 1977, 200 years later.

October 4, 1810: Eliza McCardle is born in Leesburg, Tennessee, and grows up in nearby Greenville. In 1827, she married Andrew Johnson. Having had no formal education, he credited her with teaching him how to write and perform arithmetic. They had 3 sons and 2 daughters.

In 1864, he was elected Vice President of the United States. On April 15, 1865, Abraham Lincoln died from his assassination, and Andrew was now the 17th President, making Eliza the First Lady. She was 16 at the time of her marriage, making her the youngest-married First Lady ever, although she was 54 when she reached the position.

But she was unable to fulfill the duties of First Lady, as she was already suffering from tuberculosis. The couple's daughter, Martha Johnson Patterson, was the de facto First Lady until the Johnsons left office on March 4, 1869. Oddly, she outlived her husband, surviving until January 15, 1876, at age 65.

October 4, 1822: Rutherford Birchard Hayes is born in Delaware, Ohio, outside Columbus. In 1876, as Governor of Ohio, a former Congressman and a Union General in the American Civil War, he was elected President under dubious circumstances. But his actual time in office was blameless, and many people credit him with restoring the credibility of the Presidency after the scandals of Andrew Johnson and Ulysses S. Grant (who was personally honest, but made poor choices in friends appointees).

As far as I know, Hayes had nothing to do with baseball, although his time in office, including the 1877, 1878, 1879 and 1880 seasons, was a time of big growth for the game.

October 4, 1830: Belgium declares its independence from the Netherlands. The small, half-French, half-Dutch country has distinguished itself in sports, particularly in soccer and bicycle racing.

October 4, 1867: At Brooklyn's Satellite Grounds‚ two black teams play a match called "the championship of colored clubs" by the Daily Union newspaper. The Philadelphia Excelsiors outscore the Brooklyn Uniques‚ 37-24‚ in a game called after 7 innings on account of darkness.

October 4, 1872: Ernest Artel Blood is born in Manchester, New Hampshire. From 1915 to 1924, he coached Passaic High School in North Jersey to 200 wins against just 1 loss. From 1919 to 1925, the "Passaic Wonder Five" won 159 consecutive games, believed to be the longest streak in American history. It did not end until after Blood left.

He left for nearby St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, coaching them until 1950, with a record of 421-128, including 5 State Championships. He died in 1955, before the Basketball Hall of Fame was established. He was elected to it in 1960.

October 4, 1876: The Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas opens in College Station. In 1963, they made their nickname their official name: Texas A&M University. The "Aggies" have long had stories programs in baseball and football, producing Heisman Trophy winners John David Crow and Johnny Manziel, and producing such baseball greats as Rip Collins, Wally Moon and Chuck Konblauch.

October 4, 1880: At a special National League meeting in Rochester‚ the League prohibits its members from renting their grounds for use on Sundays and from selling alcoholic beverages on the premises. These rules are aimed at the Cincinnati club‚ which has sold beer and rented out the park to amateur teams for Sundays.

This led directly to the formation, with the Cincinnati Reds as founding member, of the American Association in 1882. They became known as the Beer and Whiskey League.

Also on this day, Alfred Damon Runyon is born in Manhattan, Kansas. But it would be Manhattan Island in New York City where he would make his name -- but first, he dropped his first name. Damon Runyon became an icon, associated with the more raffish side of New York, full of gamblers, con men, cops on the take, men on the make.

His stories would be adapted for the film Little Miss Marker and the musical Guys and Dolls. Even today, 72 years after his death, when you call someone or something "Runyonesque," people know exactly what you're talking about.

October 4, 1887: Ray Lyle Fisher is born in Middlebury, Vermont. He pitched for the Yankees from 1910 to 1917, and helped the Cincinnati Reds win the 1919 World Series. From 1921 to 1958, he was the head coach at the University of Michigan, and their baseball stadium is named for him.

In 1982, having discovered that he was now the oldest living ex-Yankee, the Yankees invited him to Old-Timers' Day. He had pitched for the Highlanders/Yankees at Hilltop Park and the Polo Grounds, but this was the 1st time he had ever been to Yankee Stadium. He died later that year, at age 95.

October 4, 1888: The New York Giants win their 1st National League Pennant, defeating the Chicago White Stockings (forerunners of the Cubs) 1-0 at the original Polo Grounds, at 111th Street & 5th Avenue.

There were 6 players on this team who would end up in the Baseball Hall of Fame: Slugging 1st baseman Roger Connor, shortstop John Montgomery "Monte" Ward, outfielder Jim "Orator" O'Rourke, catcher William "Buck" Ewing, and pitchers Tim Keefe and Michael "Smilin' Mickey" Welch.

Not in the Hall of Fame is manager Jim Mutrie. He managed the 1st team known as the New York Metropolitans -- and, yes, they were called the Mets for short -- to New York City's 1st professional Pennant, in the American Association in 1884. He was then hired away by the New York Gothams, but, in 1886, proud of his player, he publicly called them "my big boys, my giants." And Giants they have been, in New York (from 1886 to 1957) and San Francisco (since 1958), ever since.

Also on this day, Joseph Taylor dies at age 37. I can't find a cause, but, given the state of medicine in the late Victorian Age, it could have been any of several things curable (or at least treatable) today.

A fullback, he was one of the founders of Glasgow soccer team Queen's Park (aside from name, they have no connection to West London team Queens Park Rangers), and helped them with the Scottish Cup in 1874, 1875 and 1876. He and his Queen's Park team formed the Scotland team that played England in the 1st international football match, at the West of Scotland Cricket Club in Glasgow, which ended in a scoreless draw.

October 4, 1889, 130 years ago: John Brendan Kelly is born in Philadelphia. He made a fortune in the construction industry, then served in the U.S. Army during World War I. He entered the armed forces' boxing tournament, and was 12-0 before he had to drop out with an injury. The tournament was won by a Marine, Gene Tunney, who went on to become Heavyweight Champion of the World. Jack Kelly told Tunney, "Aren't you lucky I broke my ankle?"

He played pro football for the Holmesburg Athletic Club in Northeast Philadelphia, leading them to the 1919 and 1920 City Championships. But his best sport was rowing, having practiced on the Schuylkill River in his hometown. He won Olympic Gold Medals in 1920 in Antwerp, Belgium (2 of them) and in 1924 in Paris.

He married Margaret Majer, who became the 1st women's sports coach at the University of Pennsylvania. Their children included Jack Kelly Jr., who followed his father into rowing, won the Sullivan Award as America's top amateur athlete in 1947, won a Bronze Medal in Melbourne in 1956, and was elected President of the U.S. Olympic Committee in 1985, right before he died of a heart attack at age 57.

They also included Grace Kelly, who became one of America's top actresses, but left Hollywood in 1956 to marry Prince Rainier of Monaco; their son is now that country's monarch, Prince Albert II. He and his wife Charlene have also been Olympic athletes. But Grace, too, would die young, in a car crash in 1982, just 52. Jack Kelly Sr. was 70 when he died of cancer in 1960.

Jack Kelly Sr. was the basis for the character of George Kittredge, played by John Howard, in the 1940 film The Philadelphia Story. When it was made into a musical in 1956, as High Society, Grace Kelly played George's fiancee, Tracy Lord.

October 4, 1890: James "Deacon" White plays his last professional game, in a career that began in 1868. The 1st batter in the 1st game in the 1st professional league, the National Association, in 1871, he plays 3rd base (having spent the 1st half of his career as a catcher) for the Buffalo Bisons in the Players League, losing 5-0 to the team known as Brooklyn Ward's Wonders, at Olympic Park in Buffalo.

A 2-time National League RBI champion and its 1877 batting champion, he died in 1939, and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2013 -- the 123-year gap between his last game and his election being a record for any sport through 2018.

October 4, 1891: On the final day of the American Association season, Ted Breitenstein of the St. Louis Browns (the team soon to be known as the Cardinals) throws a no-hitter against the Louisville Colonels in an 8–0 win. It is Breitenstein's 1st major league start. He faced the minimum amount of batters, 27, allowing just one base on balls.
October 4, 1892: Amos Rusie of the New York Giants pitches 2 complete-game victories over the Washington Nationals (no connection to the current NL team with the name) at the Polo Grounds‚ winning 6-4 and 9-5.

The next season, the pitching distance will be extended from 50 feet to 60 feet, 6 inches, making achievements in pitching durability a lot harder. Many star pitchers of the time will never be the same, although Rusie will remain successful through the rest of the 1890s. However, it is the speedy pitching of Rusie, the Indiana native known as "the Hoosier Thunderbolt," that lead the NL to believe that a longer pitching distance would be safer for hitters.

October 4, 1895: The 1st U.S. Open golf tournament is held, at the Newport Country Club in Rhode Island. Horace Rawlins, a 21-year-old Englishman, won it.

Gary Woodland won this year's tournament, at the Pebble Beach Golf Links, outside Monterey, California. It was his 1st major. Willie Anderson, Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus hold the record for the most U.S. Open victories, with 4 each.

Hale Irwin was the oldest winner, at 45 in 1990. The youngest winner was John McDermott, in 1911: He would still be a teenager for a few more weeks. With the death in 2016 of Arnold Palmer, Gene Littler, in 1961, is the earliest surviving former winner. The 2018 tournament will be held from June 14 to 17, at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Shinnecock Hills, Suffolk County, on New York's Long Island.

Also on this day, Joseph Frank Keaton is born in Piqua, Kansas. He didn't grow up in any one place, as his parents were traveling vaudeville performers. A fall at the age of 18 months led a friend of the family to say, "That was a real buster!" The friend was Harry Houdini, and the boy was Buster Keaton for the rest of his life.

Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle gave him his start in silent films, and he built a career as perhaps the greatest silent comedian after Charlie Chaplin. Orson Welles called his 1926 Civil War film The General "perhaps the greatest film ever made."

He developed a drinking problem, but recovered from it, and made the transition to talking pictures. Among his last roles were as a time traveler on a 1962 episode of The Twilight Zone, and in the 1963 cast-of-thousands comedy epic It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

October 4, 1898: Harold Wadsworth (no middle name) is born in Liverpool. A centreback, he moved up through local soccer teams Bootle St. Matthews and Tranmere Rovers, before joining his older brother Walter Wadsworth at Liverpool FC.

Together, the brothers helped Liverpool win the 1922 and 1923 Football League titles. Harold lived until 1975, Walter only until 1951.

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October 4, 1900: Robert Shaen Dawe is born in Yonkers, Westchester Country, New York. We knew him as Robert Shayne. The actor was best known for playing Inspector Bill Henderson on The Adventures of Superman in the 1950s. He died in 1992.

October 4, 1902: The University of Kansas and Kansas State University play each other in football for the 1st time. The Kansas Jayhawks beat the Kansas State Wildcats 16-0, on the Jayhawks' campus in Lawrence. The Jayhawks lead the all-time series, 64-45-5.

October 4, 1904: Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna Göteborg is founded in Sweden. IFK Göteborg won the Swedish Championship in 1908, 1918 and 1918, then the national league, the Allsvenskan, 13 times from 1935 to 2007, for a total of 18 titles. They've won the Svenska Cupen (Swedish Cup) 7 times since 1979, most recently in 2015.

They are also the only Swedish team ever to win a major European trophy, having won the UEFA Cup (now the UEFA Europa League) in 1982 and 1987. Their closest call in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League is the Semifinals in 1986 and 1993.

Also on this day, Samuel Joachim (no middle name) is born in Newark, New Jersey. Better known as Jimmy Ritz, he and his brothers Al and Harry formed the legendary Ritz Brothers comedy team. Al lived until 1965, Jimmy until 1985, and Harry until 1986.

October 4, 1905: Just 1 point apart in the batting race on the final day of the season, Cincinnati Reds center fielder Cy Seymour and Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Honus Wagner played against each other in a doubleheader. Seymour entered the last day with a league-leading .365 average, and Wagner was in 2nd place, batting .364. A very good day at the plate for Honus combined with a poor one for Cy would have reversed their positions.

Seymour had 4 hits in 7 attempts to end up with the NL batting title (.377), while Wagner collected 2-for-7 to end up in 2nd place (.363). Don't weep for Honus, though: He won 8 batting titles.

A newspaper account of the day stated "…10,000 were more interested in the batting achievements of Wagner and Seymour than the games…cheer upon cheers greeted the mighty batsmen upon each appearance at the plate…"

October 4, 1906: The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-0, and notch their 116th win of the season. It remains a major league record, although it was tied in 2001 by the Seattle Mariners. But the Cubs' winning percentage of .763 remains a record for either of the current major leagues. Both the 1906 Cubs and the 2001 M's found out that it doesn't mean a whole lot if you don't win the World Series.

October 4, 1909, 110 years ago: Thomas McCall Smith is born in Fenwick, Scotland. On April 9, 1938, he was 1 of 5 players for Lancashire club Preston North End who played in Scotland's stunning 1-0 win over England at Wembley Stadium in London. Three weeks later, those players returned to Wembley, and led Preston to win the 1938 FA Cup.

Tom Smith had previously played for Kilmarnock in Scotland, and later served as their manager. He lived until 1998.

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October 4, 1910: Frank Peter Joseph Crosetti is born in San Francisco. "The Crow" played for the Yankees from 1932 to 1948, and coached for them from 1949 to 1968. No other uniformed man has been a part of as much baseball title-winning as he has: 23 Pennants and 17 World Championships. (That's 8 Pennants and 7 World Championships as a player, 15 Pennants and 10 World Championships as Yankee 3rd base coach.) He was also a 2-time All-Star

The shortstop was a good fielder, but not much of a hitter, batting .245 lifetime. He did hit a home run off Dizzy Dean, who was running out the string with the Cubs, in Game 2 of the 1938 World Series. He was also the last survivor of the Yankees' 1936 World Series win.

In 1969, wanting to be closer to home on the Pacific Coast -- he'd moved to Stockton, California -- he accepted the 3rd base coach's job with the expansion Seattle Pilots, who included former Yankee pitcher Jim Bouton. Frankie didn't think much of Jim, and the feeling was mutual. A segment in Bouton's book Ball Four suggests that Crosetti holds the record for "slaps on the ass" given by 3rd base coaches to home run hitters rounding the bases. It's estimated that he waved 16,000 runners home.

When the Pilots moved to Milwaukee to become the Brewers in 1970, Crosetti didn't go with them, coaching with the Minnesota Twins in 1970 and '71, before finally calling it quits. He and the Yankees had a bit of a strained relationship: He never returned to Old-Timers' Day, usually saying he didn't want to fly across the country; and he was the only member of the 1932 Yankees to publicly say that he thought Babe Ruth did not "call his shot" in that year's World Series. He was not the last survivor of the '32 Yanks, though: He died in 2002, and pitcher Charlie Devens outlived him by a year.

October 4, 1913: Washington Senators manager Clark Griffith uses 8 pitchers -- unheard-of in that era -- in an end-of-season farce game with the Boston Red Sox‚ including 5 in the 9th inning. At age 43‚ the former Chicago Cubs hurler pitches an inning himself. Coach John Ryan‚ also 43‚ catches. Griffith also plays right field, where he plays one off his head and misplays Hal Janvrin's liner into an inside-the-park homer.

On the other end of the scale‚ 17-year-old Merito Acosta, a white Cuban who was one of the 1st Hispanic players in the American major leagues, plays left field alongside Walter Johnson in center field. Johnson then comes in for the 8th inning to lob pitches to 2 hitters. Both batters‚ Clyde Engel and Steve Yerkes, lace hits to send Johnson back to center. Then‚ in relief‚ Nats catcher Eddie Ainsmith‚ in his only major league pitching appearance‚ gives up 2 triples to allow the baserunners to score.

The Sox score in the 9th on Hal Janvrin's 2nd inside-the-park homer of the game. Joe Gideon‚ in his only pitching appearance, retires the last 2 batters as Washington wins‚ 10-9‚ beating Fred Anderson who goes the distance.

The 2 runs "allowed" by the Big Train will have historical repercussions: His ERA for the season goes from 1.09 to 1.14‚ and Bob Gibson's 1.12 ERA in 1968 will put Johnson's ERA in 2nd place on the all-time list (in the post-1893 60-feet-6-inches era, anyway). The 8 pitchers sets a MLB record that won't be matched until the Dodgers do it on September 25‚ 1946.

October 4, 1914: Bruce Adams Sloan is born in McAlester, Oklahoma. A right fielder, he played for the New York Giants in the 1944, one of the players who wouldn't have made the major leagues if not for the manpower drain of World War II. But he has the distinction of having played in the "Tricornered Game" against the Yankees and the Dodgers, to raise war bonds. He lived until 1973.

October 4, 1917: Marvel Keith Harshman is born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. His parents named him "Marvel Keith"? That's harsh, man.

Okay, atrocious pun aside, Marv Harshman was a great athlete, winning 13 varsity letters at Pacific Lutheran University in Parkland, Washington, and being drafted by the NFL's Chicago Cardinals. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy instead.

After World War II, he went into coaching, running the baseball, football and basketball programs at Pacific Lutheran, then basketball at Washington State, and then from 1971 to 1985 at the University of Washington. He won 637 games as a college basketball coach, and won the 1984 and 1985 Pacific-10 Conference titles at UW. He died in 2013.

Also on this day, Clarence Bowden Wyatt is born in Kingston, Tennessee. "Clarence Bowden"? Why, it's (Wyatt's) not as bad as "Marvel Keith," but he dropped his first name, and went by "Bowden Wyatt." He was a 2-way end on the University of Tennessee's 1938 National Championship team. He later served as head coach at Wyoming and Arkansas, before returning to Tennessee, including winning a share of the National Championship in 1956. His career record was 99-56-5. He died in 1969, only 51 years old.

There are 4 men who have been elected to the College Football Hall of Fame twice, as both a player and a coach. Two of them were coached by General Bob Neyland at the University of Tennessee: Bobby Dodd and Bowden Wyatt. There other 2 are Amos Alonzo Stagg and Steve Spurrier.

October 4, 1918: At 7:36 PM, the T.A. Gillespie Company Shell Loading Plant, making munitions for the U.S. effort in World War I, explodes on Cheesequake Creek in the Morgan section of Sayreville, Middlesex County, New Jersey.

One explosion led to another, and they went on all night. The fires started by the explosions could be seen for miles, including across the Arthur Kill in Staten Island, New York. Over 300 buildings were destroyed, including the one containing the company's records. For this reason, it's not known for sure how many people died, but the number is believed to be over 100.

I've lived my whole life in Middlesex County, and this is the greatest tragedy ever to befall Central Jersey. Today, the Morgan Marina and a housing development called the Highland House Apartments are on the site. It's a gated community, so it might be difficult to visit. As you might guess, it was pounded again by Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012.

A cemetery, where some of the victims -- just pieces, so they don't even know how many, but they think it's between 14 and 18 -- are buried under a large monument, is on Ernston Road, on the municipal border between Sayreville and Old Bridge. I used to pass it on the way to a job at a building on Ernston, next to U.S. Route 9.

It was particularly poignant on April 15, 2009, the 20th Anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster in England, at an FA Cup Semifinal at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, Yorkshire, at which a similar number of people died, 96. Having to walk up Ernston from my bus stop in order to be on time for work at 10:30 AM, I passed the cemetery at 10:06 -- 3:06 PM British time, the time the match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest was stopped due to the referee realizing what was happening in the stands.

October 4, 1919, 100 years ago: Game 4 of the World Series. Eddie Cicotte, in on the fix, didn't want to look as bad as he had in Game 1, to throw off suspicion. He and Jimmy Ring traded goose eggs for 4 innings. But in the 5th, Cicotte made a bad throw. Shoeless Joe Jackson made a run-allowing error on the next play. The Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago White Sox 3-1, and take a 2-1 lead in the Series.
October 4, 1959, 60 years ago: Game 3 of the World Series is played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, in front of 92,394 fans, a record crowd for a baseball game anywhere. It is the 1st World Series game played in Los Angeles, in the State of California, indeed anywhere west of St. Louis. The Dodgers beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-1.

Also on this day, Tommy McDonald of the Philadelphia Eagles, having played without a facemask and gotten his jaw broken on a hit the week before, not only plays, with his jaw wired shot, but scores 4 touchdowns at Franklin Field: 3 receiving, 1 on a punt return. He personally outscores the New York Giants, as the Eagles beat them 49-21.

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October 4, 1960: Joseph Martin Boever is born in the St. Louis suburb of Kirkwood, Missouri. Nicknamed "Boever the Saver" (it rhymes), the relief pitcher appeared in the 1985 World Series as a rookie for his hometown Cardinals, and was then a journeyman, remaining in the major leagues until 1996.

October 4, 1961: Game 1 of the World Series. Whitey Ford continues his shutout streak, Elston Howard and Bill "Moose" Skowron hit home runs, and the Yankees beat the Cincinnati Reds, 2-0.

October 4, 1962: Game 1 of the World Series is played at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, the 1st World Series game played in Northern California. The Yankees beat the Giants, 6-2. Whitey Ford is the winning pitcher for a record 10th time in Series play, but it will be for the last time, and his record streak of 33 2/3 scoreless World Series innings is stopped.

Also on this day, Issiac Holt III (no middle name, and that's how his first name is spelled, not "Isaac") is born in Birmingham, Alabama. A cornerback, he was with the Dallas Cowboys when they won Super Bowl XXVII. But in the following off-season, he told head coach Jimmy Johnson he shouldn't have so many "voluntary" workouts, and Johnson cut him. He never played in the NFL again.

October 4, 1963: The Twilight Zone airs the episode "Steel," based on a 1956 short story by Richard Matheson. Airing 7 months after former Featherweight Champion Davey Moore died as a result of a fight with Sugar Ramos, and a year and a half after Emile Griffith reclaimed the Welterweight Championship and killed Benny "the Kid" Paret in the process, it takes place in 1974, and posits that robots replaced human boxers after the sport was banned for safety reasons in 1968.

Lee Marvin plays Steel Kelly, a former boxer who manages a robot named Battling Maxo, who breaks down right before a fight. Since he and his trainer can't afford to fix Maxo, Kelly takes his place in the ring, and gets pounded by the robotic opponent.

Also on this day, Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, visiting America, is given a ticker-tape parade in New York.

Also on this day, A.C. Green Jr. is born in Portland, Oregon. Like his father, his initials are just that, and don't stand for anything. A 1990 NBA All-Star, the forward won NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1987 and 1988, played for the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks, and came back to the Lakers to win another title in 2000.

His streak of 1,192 consecutive games played, from November 19, 1986 to April 18, 2001, is easily the longest in NBA history. It did not end due to injury or being cut: At age 37, he simply retired. He now runs a youth foundation.


October 4, 1991: The expansion San Jose Sharks play their 1st regular-season game, the 1st by a NHL team from the San Francisco Bay Area since April 4, 1976 (a 5-2 win by the Oakland-based California Golden Seals over the Los Angeles Kings). California native Craig Cox scores the franchise's 1st regulation goal, but they lose to the Vancouver Canucks, 4-3 at the Pacific Coliseum.

Also on this day, the Delta Center opens in downtown Salt Lake City. After the airline's naming rights expired, it would be renamed the EnergySolutions Arena in 2006, and the Vivint Smart Home Arena in 2015. It became, and remains, the home of the NBA's Utah Jazz. It has also been, but is no longer, the home of minor-league hockey teams the Salt Lake Golden Eagles and the Utah Grizzlies, the WNBA's Utah Starzz, and Arena Football's Utah Blaze.

Also on this day, Brett Murphy (no middle name) is born in Worcester, Massachusetts, making it fairly easy for him to play a Boston Red Sox fan, Ryan, in the U.S. version of Fever Pitch. He has since gone into journalism.

October 4, 1992: Willie Randolph plays his last major league game -- not for the Yankees, for whom he was a World Champion 2nd baseman, but for the Mets, the team he grew up rooting for in Brooklyn. He goes 0-for-3 as the Mets lose 2-0 to the Pittsburgh Pirates at Shea Stadium.

Also on this day, Bert Blyleven plays his last major league game. As with Toby Harrah, it's the Rangers against the Angels, only this one is at Anaheim Stadium. Blyleven had been a Ranger, but he finishes his career with the Angels, is knocked out of the box in the 5th inning, and takes the loss at Texas prevails, 9-5.

Despite pitching mostly for weak teams, Bert won 287 games in the major leagues, and his 3,701 strikeouts were then 3rd all-time behind Nolan Ryan and Steve Carlton. He also won World Series pitching for teams in both Leagues: The 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates and the 1987 Minnesota Twins. But it took until 2011 to elect him to the Hall of Fame.

October 4, 1995: Game 2 of the American League Division Series at Yankee Stadium. It begins at 8:06 PM with Phil Rizzuto throwing out a ceremonial first ball. It includes home runs by Ken Griffey Jr. and Vince Coleman for the Seattle Mariners, and, for the Yankees, Ruben Sierra, Don Mattingly (ABC announcer Gary Thorne: "Aw, hang onto the roof! Goodbye, home run!"), Paul O'Neill and, at 1:22 AM, in the bottom of the 15th inning, through the rain, Jim Leyritz. Yankees 7, Mariners 5.

It is the 1st postseason walkoff at Yankee Stadium since Chris Chambliss won the Pennant 19 years earlier. The Yankees lead the M's 2 games to 0, and need just 1 win in Seattle to take the series. But they won't get it.

Also on this day, The Drew Carey Show airs the episode "Nature Abhors a Vacuum." In it, Drew (playing a fictionalized version of himself) remarks on the Cleveland Indians' reaching their 1st postseason in 41 years, "Finally, it's everyone else's team that sucks!"

Also on this day, Jabrill Ahmad Peppers is born in East Orange, Essex County, New Jersey. A graduate of the prestigious Don Bosco Preparatory High School in Ramsey, Bergen County, the safety played college football at Michigan, and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, a rarity for defensive players, in 2016.

He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and played 2 seasons for them, before being sent to the Giants in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade. Although very talented, he appears not to be related to 9-time Pro Bowl defensive end Julius Peppers.

October 4, 1997: Lennox Lewis, recognized by some organizations as the Heavyweight Champion of the World, defends his share of the title at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, knocking Andrew Golota out in the 1st round. Golota had done well at the building formerly known as Convention Hall, but not on this night.

Also on this day, on Saturday Night Live, Tim Meadows debuts his character Leon Phelps, a sex therapist who hosts a talk show titled The Ladies Man.

October 4, 1999, 20 years ago: The Mets whitewash the Reds‚ 5-0 at Riverfront Stadium (by this point, renamed Cinergy Field)‚ to become the NL's Wild Card team. Al Leiter hurls a complete game 2-hitter for the win. Rey Ordonez plays his 100th consecutive errorless game, a record for shortstops.


October 4, 2016: The American League Wild Card Game is held. As the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays had identical 89-73 records, but the Jays had won the season series 10-9, the Jays hosted the game at the Rogers Centre. For the 1st time, the retractable roof at the building formerly known as the SkyDome is open for a postseason game, making it the Jays' 1st outdoor postseason home game since October 16, 1985.

The game goes to the bottom of the 11th inning, when Edwin Encarnación hits a walkoff 3-run home run off Ubaldo Jiménez. For reasons known only to him, Orioles manager William Nathaniel Showalter III did not bring his All-Star closer, Zach Britton, into the game. (Buck had previously let David Cone throw 147 pitches in Game 5 of the 1995 ALDS, refusing to bring in Mariano Rivera, and costing the Yankees the series.)

Encarnación joins Bill Mazeroski in the 1960 World Series, Chris Chambliss in the 1976 AL Championship Series, and Aaron Boone in the 2003 ALCS as players who have won a postseason-series deciding game with a home run.

October 4, 2017: The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Colorado Rockies in the NL Wild Card Game, 11-8 at Chase Field in Phoenix. The D-backs jumped out to a 6-0 lead after 2 innings, but the Rox made it interesting with 4 runs in the 3rd.

They made it 6-5 in the top of the 7th, but the D-backs made it 8-5. The Rox closed to 8-7 in the 8th, but the D-backs put it away, 11-7. Or so they thought, as the Rox launched one last rally in the top of the 9th, but it fell short. Daniel Descalso and Paul Goldschmidt hit home runs for Arizona, while Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story hit them for Colorado.

October 4, 2018: Hyun-jin Ryu pitches 7 scoreless innings, and is backed by home runs from Joc Pederson, Max Muncy and Kiké Hernández, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 6-0 at Dodger Stadium, to open the NLDS.