When the Cubs last won In 1908… A British company struck oil at Masjed Soleyman in southwestern Persia (now Iran), marking the beginning of petroleum production in the Middle East. Controversy erupted at the Olympic Games, held in the new 68,000-seat stadium in the Shepherds ...read more
Just how the “Big Fix” of 1919 played out remains a subject of considerable debate among baseball historians. Accounts differ, but the scheme may have first materialized a few weeks before the World Series, when White Sox first baseman C. Arnold “Chick” Gandil and a gambler named ...read more
1. Both the Cardinals and Red Sox once had different nicknames. A founding member of the American Association in 1882, the Cardinals were originally known as the St. Louis Brown Stockings. They shortened it a year later to the Browns and kept that nickname after the collapse of ...read more
With the third-highest career batting average in Major League Baseball history (.356), Joseph Jefferson “Shoeless Joe” Jackson would certainly be a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame—if it weren’t for the Black Sox Scandal. He and seven teammates on the Chicago White Sox were accused ...read more
1. An unofficial championship between leagues predated the World Series. Although the first official World Series didn’t take place until 1903, another championship came before it. Between 1884 and 1890, the National League and the American Association (a rival organization that ...read more
On October 5, 1953, the New York Yankees defeat the Brooklyn Dodgers to win their fifth World Series in a row. It was a record-breaking championship: Joe McCarthy’s legendary 1936-1939 Yanks had won four in a row, but no team had ever won five. The Bombers had squeaked by the ...read more
On October 24, 1992, the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Atlanta Braves in the sixth game of the World Series to win the championship. It was the first time a Canadian team had ever won the trophy, and it was a truly international victory—the Blue Jays’ 25-man roster included several ...read more
On October 9, 1934, the St. Louis Cardinals defeat the Detroit Tigers in the seventh game of the World Series. No one seems to know exactly who was the first to call that year’s Cards the “Gashouse Gang,” but everyone agrees that the nickname had to do with the team’s close ...read more
On October 4, 1955, the Brooklyn Dodgers win the World Series at last, beating the New York Yankees 2-0. They’d lost the championship seven times already, and they’d lost five times just to the Yanks–in 1941, 1947, 1949, 1952 and 1953. But in 1955, thanks to nine brilliant ...read more
On October 2, 1968, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson strikes out 17 Detroit Tigers in the first game of the World Series, breaking Sandy Koufax’s record for the most strikeouts in a Series game. Though the Cards ended up losing the Series in seven games, Gibson pitched ...read more
On October 16, 1912, New York Giants outfielder Fred Snodgrass drops an easy pop-up in the 10th inning of the tiebreaking eighth game of the World Series against the Red Sox.His error led to a two-run Boston rally and cost the Giants the championship. Snodgrass, who had been a ...read more
On October 8, 1956, New York Yankees right-hander Don Larsen pitches the first no-hitter in the history of the World Series. Even better, it was a perfect game–that is, there were no runs, no hits and no errors, and no batter reached first base. Larsen’s performance anchored his ...read more
In the wee hours of the morning on October 26, 1986, Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner lets an easy ground ball dribble between his legs and roll down the right-field line. It was just a routine fielding error, but it was a disaster for the Boston Red Sox: It was the 10th inning ...read more
On October 10, 1957, the Milwaukee Braves defeat the New York Yankees to win their first World Series since 1914. (They played in Boston then; the team moved to Wisconsin in 1953.) No one expected the Braves to beat the Bombers: After all, the New York team had already won the ...read more
On October 6, 1926, Yankee slugger Babe Ruth hits a record three homers against the St. Louis Cardinals in the fourth game of the World Series. The Yanks won the game 10-5, but despite Ruth’s unprecedented performance, they lost the championship in the seventh game. In 1928, in ...read more
On this day in 2005, at a White House ceremony, President George W. Bush congratulates the 2005 World Champion Boston Red Sox baseball team for winning their first World Series since 1918. Massachusetts Senators Edward Kennedy and John Kerry, and former Red Sox players were among ...read more
Michael Sergio, who parachuted into Game Six of the 1986 World Series at New York’s Shea Stadium, is fined $500 and sentenced to 100 hours of community service. On October 25, Sergio, a 37-year-old actor and Mets fan, landed on the infield with a “Let’s Go Mets” banner in the ...read more
After Judge Hugo Friend denies a motion to quash the indictments against the major league baseball players accused of throwing the 1919 World Series, a trial begins with jury selection. The Chicago White Sox players, including stars Shoeless Joe Jackson, Buck Weaver, and Eddie ...read more