June 7, 1941: Whirlaway Wins the Triple Crown

June 7, 1941: The Belmont Stakes is run at Belmont Stakes in Elmont, Long Island, New York. The Triple Crown is on the line.

Whirlaway was one of many champion thoroughbred racehorses bred at Calumet Farm, outside Lexington, Kentucky. His sire was Blenheim, who won the 1930 Epsom Derby in England. Trained by Ben A. Jones, and ridden by Eddie Arcaro, he won 4 stakes races as a 2-year-old, and was named the American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt.

On May 3, 1941, he entered the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, and won it in 2 minutes, 1 and 2/5ths seconds, a record at the time. He won the race by 8 lengths, tying a record which still stands. Two weeks later, on May 17, he won the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.

He was considered such a favorite in the Belmont that only 3 other horses entered: Robert Morris, Yankee Chance, and Itabo. At post time, the odds on "Mr. Longtail" (his tail was exceptionally long for a thoroughbred) were 1-4. That's not a typographical error: One to four. He won in 2 minutes and 31 seconds, by 2 1/2 lengths over Robert Morris.

He had become the 5th horse to win the Triple Crown. Then, he did something not done before or since: He went up to Saratoga Race Course in Upstate New York, and won the Travers Stakes. No other horse has won all 4 races, although the feat was called "The Superfecta" rather than "The Grand Slam" like in tennis or golf.

Arcaro was suspended for the 1942 racing season, for racing infractions. George Woolf, who had previously stepped in for the injured Red Pollard to ride Seabiscuit to some big wins, became Whirlaway's rider.

Alsab was also a Kentucky-bred horse. He was the 2-year-old champion in 1941, and in 1942, ridden by Basil James, he won the Preakness, finishing 2nd Shut Out in both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont.

It might have made sense, in an era when match races, races between 2 major thoroughbred horses, were occasionally done, to match up Whirlaway and Shut Out, winners of 5 of the last 6 Triple Crown races. Instead, one was set up for September 19, 1942, at Narragansett Park in Pawtucket, Rhode Island -- 6 miles northeast of downtown Providence, and 41 miles southwest of Boston -- between Whirlaway and Alsab, who, despite being only 2, finished 2nd to Whirlaway for Turf and Sport Digest magazine's Horse of the Year award the year before. Alsab won in a photo finish.

Nevertheless, the horses opposed each other in one more race before the year was out, and Whirlaway won. It may have made a difference, as Whirlaway, having won 12 races on the year to Alsab's 9, was named Horse of the Year again. Whirlaway lived until 1953, Alsab until 1963.

In 1948, Eddie Arcaro rode Citation, making him the only jockey ever to ride 2 Triple Crown winners. He lived until 1997.

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June 7, 1941 was a Saturday. These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns, 11-7 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Yankees led 6-4 going to the bottom of the 8th inning, but the Browns scored 3 runs off Spud Chandler, in relief of Lefty Gomez, to take a 7-6 lead. Then the Yankees scored 5 in the top of the 9th. Charley Stanceu was the winning pitcher. The losing pitcher was former Yankee Johnny Allen.

Charlie Keller went 3-for-4 with a home run, a walk and 4 RBIs. Joe DiMaggio went 3-for-5 with an RBI. This was the 22nd game of his hitting streak, and people were beginning to notice. It would reach a record 56.

* The New York Giants lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 11-3 at the Polo Grounds. Mel Ott went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Brooklyn Dodgers lost to the Cincinnati Reds, 8-3 at Ebbets Field. Pete Reiser hit a home run.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Boston Braves, 5-1 at Braves Field in Boston.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2-0 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. Cy Blanton allowed 8 hits, but kept the shutout.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 6-2 at League Park in Cleveland.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Washington Senators, 10-6 at Briggs Stadium (later Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. The Tigers' Hank Greenberg had recently become the 1st big star in baseball to enlist in the U.S. armed forces.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Boston Red Sox, 5-4 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Ted Williams went 1-for-4 with a walk. He was batting .431. Then he went into a slump, finishing at .406.