June 7, 1930: Gallant Fox Wins the Triple Crown

June 7, 1930: Gallant Fox becomes the 2nd horse to win American thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown.

Foaled at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, Gallant Fox was trained by "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons, and ridden by Earl Sande. He won 2 races as a 2-year-old, and won the Wood Memorial as a warmup to the Triple Crown races.

In 1930, the Preakness Stakes was run first, and Gallant Fox won it by 3/4ers of a length over Crack Brigade. Two weeks later, the Kentucky Derby was held in a driving rain, and Gallant Fox won it by 2 lengths over Gallant Knight, his half-brother. (Both were sons of Sir Galahad III, whose wins did not include any Triple Crown races, but he became the leading sire of champion racehorses in his time.) It was Sande's 3rd Derby win, having won aboard Zev in 1923 and Flying Ebony in 1925.

Three weeks later, at Belmont Park, Gallant Fox was actually not the favorite at the Belmont, despite having won the Wood Memorial at nearby Jamaica Race Course. (It was moved to Aqueduct, also in Queens, in 1960.) The favorite was Whichone, the Champion Two-Year-Old Colt of the year before. Injured and unable to compete at Pimlico and Churchill Downs, he had won the Withers Stakes at Belmont, and so was considered to have the "home-field advantage." Gallant Fox won the race by 3 lengths.

In July, Gallant Fox raced against Gallant Knight again, in the Arlington Classic at Arlington Park outside Chicago, and won by a neck. He was beaten by Jim Dandy by 8 lengths in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga in August, but won his last 3 races of the year, the last being the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont.

He was retired thereafter, and in 1935, his son, Omaha, won the Triple Crown. They remain the only father and son to do so. Gallant Fox died in 1954, Fitzsimmons in 1966, and Sande in 1968.

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June 7, 1930 was a Saturday. These baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns, 12-5 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Yankees scored 7 runs in the 1st inning, and never looked back. Ed Wells went the distance for the win. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig both hit home runs.

* The New York Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 9-7 at the Polo Grounds. Mel Ott had 2 home runs and 6 RBIs. Bill Terry went 1-for-5.

* The Brooklyn Robins beat the Chicago Cubs, 12-9 at Ebbets Field. (The Dodgers were known as the Robins when Wilbert Robinson managed them from 1914 to 1931.)

* The Boston Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-4 at Braves Field in Detroit. Paul Waner went 1-for-3 with a walk, and Lloyd Waner did not play.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Boston Red Sox, 6-0 at Navin Field (later Briggs Stadium and Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. George Uhle pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 6-5 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Jimmie Foxx went 1-for-3 with 2 walks and 2 RBIs. Mickey Cochrane went 0-for-2 with 3 walks.

* The Philadelphia Phillies and the Cincinnati Reds were rained out at Baker Bowl in Philadelphia. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 12. The Reds swept, 9-5 and 6-1.

* And the Cleveland Indians and the Washington Senators were rained out at League Park in Cleveland. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 16. The Senators won the 1st game, 10-4. The Indians won the 2nd game, 13-6.