May 29, 1968: Manchester United Win the European Cup

Left to right: Bobby Charlton, George Best,

Matt Busby and Denis Law

May 29, 1968: Wembley Stadium in West London hosts the European Cup Final. Manchester United play Benfica of Lisbon, Portugal.

Matt Busby managed Manchester United to the Football League Division One title in 1956 and 1957. After the Munich Air Disaster of 1958, he had to rebuild his team almost from scratch. But they managed to finish 2nd in 1959. It was an outlier: The next 4 seasons, they finished 7th, 7th, 15th and 19th, barely avoiding relegation to Division Two in 1963, although they did manage to win the FA Cup.

By that point, the players known as "The Trinity" were in place: English forward Bobby Charlton, Scottish forward Denis Law, and Northern Irish winger George Best. In 1964, they finished 2nd. In 1965, they won the League again. In 1966, they finished 4th. In all 3 seasons, they reached the Semifinals of the FA Cup. In 1966, as his ill-fated "Busby Babes" did in 1957 and 1958, they reached the Semifinal of the European Cup. And in 1967, they won another League title, qualifying them for the European Cup again in the 1967-68 season.

All this success, both before and after the Air Disaster, made them a popular team beyond the Manchester area: Television coverage made them nationally popular, especially with Charlton having helped England win the 1966 World Cup; and Best's long hair, skill and personality making him the most popular player in the country. Man United were probably the most popular team in England.

This success did not necessarily transfer to their national teams: Although Charlton and midfielder Norbert "Nobby" Stiles were members of England's 1966 World Cup winners, Law's Scotland and Best's Northern Ireland did not qualify for that tournament. Scotland, with Law, did famously beat England, with Charlton and Stiles, 3-2 at Wembley Stadium in London on April 15, 1967, but the Scots' claim of being "Unofficial World Champions" was not taken seriously.

In 1967, Celtic F.C. of Glasgow became the 1st British team to win the European Cup. It was embarrassing for England's big clubs that a team from Scotland had beaten them to it. So English fans got behind United in their 1967-68 bid.

Their 1st Round match was against Hibernians -- not the one in Edinburgh, Scotland, but the Champions of the Mediterranean island nation of Malta. A 4-0 win at their home grand of Old Trafford was followed by a 0-0 draw in Malta. In the 2nd Round, they beat the Champions of Yugoslavia, FK Sarajevo, drawing 0-0 in Bosnia and winning 2-1 at Old Trafford.

In the Quarterfinal, they played Polish Champions Górnik Zabrze, winning 2-0 at home and losing 1-0 away, advancing on aggregate. In the Semifinal, they played 6-time Champions Real Madrid, winning 1-0 at home, and drawing 3-3 at Estadio Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, advancing 4-3 on aggregate.

They would face the Champions of Portugal, Sport Lisboa e Benfica. led by Eusébio, one of the greatest players in the world. They had won the European Cup in 1961 and 1962, lost the 1963 Final to AC Milan, and lost the 1965 Final to Internazionale Milano.

In the Semifinal of the 1966 World Cup, England, with Charlton and Stiles, beat Portugal, with Eusébio. Now, their clubs were facing each other in the biggest team championship in European sports.

But Manchester United had fitness concerns. Stiles was recovering from a knee injury. Law was not: He underwent surgery on his knee on the Saturday before the Final, and would still be in hospital (as they would say in Britain) on Wednesday night. Brian Kidd, on his 19th birthday, would be replacing one of the greatest centre forwards the sport has ever known.

A crowd of 92,225 plowed into Wembley, and 250 million people watched on television all over Europe. Oddly, given their standard home color of red, United knew that Benfica also usually wore red. So United wore all blue for this contest. Knowing that United usually wore red, Benfica chose not to: They wore white with red trim. There were probably a lot of people, in the stadium and watching on TV, who were confused.

The game kicked off at 7:45 PM London time (2:45 on the U.S. East Coast). Otto Glória, the Brazilian who had managed Portugal in the '66 World Cup and was now managing many of the same players for Benfica, decided that, with Law out, the best way to keep United at bay was to get rough with Best, and he was knocked down 6 times in the 1st half, with only 1 yellow card being given.

Despite a Eusébio shot that beat goalkeeper Alex Stepney and hit the crossbar, the 1st half ended scoreless. Charlton struck first, in the 53rd minute. Jaime Graça scored in the 79th, to tie the game. Stepney had to make 2 saves on Eusébio in stoppage time, and the game remained 1-1 at the whistle. It went to extra time.

In the 92nd minute, Stepney took a long goal kick, which was headed on by Kidd, and collected by Best. The flamboyant Ulsterman, whose hair had gotten him nicknamed "El Beatle" by the Spanish-language press, dribbled past the Benfica defenders, and then around goalkeeper José Henrique, concluding by rolling the ball into an empty net. It was 2-1 United.

In the 94th, David Sadler launched a header at Henrique, who saved it. But the rebound came to Kidd, and the birthday boy headed it in, making the score 3–1. Benfica were finished, and, in the 99th, Kidd passed to Charlton, who scored a capper. United won, 4-1.

Kidd with the European Cup, a.k.a. "Ol' Big Ears"

They became the 1st English team to win the European Cup. Through the 2022 season, the trophy, and the tournament known since 1992 as the UEFA Champions League, has been won by the following teams: Liverpool, 6 times, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1984, 2005 and 2019; Manchester United, 3, 1968, 1999 and 2008; Nottingham Forest, 2, 1979 and 1980; Chelsea, 2, 2012 and 2021; and Aston Villa, 1, 1982.

Four other English teams have reached the Final without winning. Leeds United lost to Bayern Munich in 1975, and Arsenal to Barcelona in 2006, both with accusations of dodgy officiating. Tottenham Hotspur lost to Liverpool in 2019. And Manchester City lost Chelsea in 2021. (UPDATE: Man City won in 2023, beating Inter Milan.)

*

May 29, 1968 was a Wednesday. These baseball games were played that day:

* A doubleheader was split at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. The Chicago Cubs won the opener, 9-2. The Philadelphia Phillies won the nightcap, 8-3. Over the 2 games, Ernie Banks went 2-for-6 with a walk.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-5 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Pete Rose went 3-for-5 with 2 RBIs. Johnny Bench went 1-for-3 with 2 walks and an RBI.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Joe Horlen outpitched Dave McNally. Brooks Robinson went 0-for-4. Frank Robinson did not play.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Cleveland Indians, 1-0 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Dave Boswell pitched a 3-hit shutout. Harmon Killebrew went 1-for-3 with a walk, while Rod Carew went 1-for-4.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 2-1 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Willie Mays hit a home run.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the California Angels, 3-0 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Denny McLain pitched a 4-1 hit shutout, and was already 8-1 on the season. Al Kaline was injured, and did not play.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Boston Red Sox, 7-4 at the Oakland Coliseum. Sal Bando hit a home run. Rookie Reggie Jackson entered the game as a defensive replacement, and did not come to bat. Carl Yastrzemski went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* Both New York teams got rained out, even though they were not both at home. The New York Yankees and the Washington Senators were rained out at Yankee Stadium. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader the next day. The Yankees won the opener, 13-4. Stan Bahnsen was the winning pitcher. Mickey Mantle had perhaps his last big day at the plate, going 5-for-5 with 2 home runs (the 523rd and 524th of his career) and 5 RBIs.

The Senators won the nightcap, 6-2. Camilo Pascual, who pitched for the "old" Senators and, after their move, the Minnesota Twins, won this game for the "new" Senators, outpitching Fred Talbot, Jim Bouton, Fritz Peterson and, as Bouton called him, the Dooley Womack. Roy White hit a home run for the Yankees.

* The New York Mets and the Pittsburgh Pirates were rained out at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader the next day. The Mets swept a doubleheader from , 6-3 and 5-4  In the 1st game, Jerry Koosman outpitched Jim Bunning. In the 2nd game, Dick Selma outpitched Bob Veale. Over the 2 games, Roberto Clemente went 2-for-8 with an RBI.

* And the Houston Astros beat the Atlanta Braves were rained out at Atlanta Stadium (later Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium). The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 6. The Braves swept, 5-0 and 2-1. Phil Niekro pitched a 4-hit shutout in the 1st game. Hank Aaron went 0-for-4 in the 1st game, but 3-for-3 with a walk in the 2nd game.

April 28, 1965: The Birth of the Manchester United-Leeds Rivalry

April 28, 1965: Despite losing 2–1 to Aston Villa, at Villa Park in Birmingham, on the final day of the League season, Manchester United are crowned Football League First Division champions for the 6th time in their history -- and the first time since 1957, and thus the first time since the Munich Air Disaster -- on goal average, ahead of a Leeds United side who have yet to win the top division title.

On April 26, Leeds had completed their League season with a 3-3 draw with Birmingham City, at St. Andrews Stadium in Birmingham in the West Midlands. In contrast, Man United beat North London team Arsenal, 3-1 at Old Trafford, in Salford, west of Central Manchester. With a much greater goal average, it would have taken a truly massive Villa win, at Villa Park, also in Birmingham, to throw the title to Leeds. But with a 2-1 loss, Man U finished with 61 points and a goal average of 2.282; while Leeds finished with 61 points and a goal average of 1.596.

United had lost to Leeds, 1-0 at Old Trafford on December 5, 1964; but had beaten Leeds, 1-0 at Elland Road on April 17.

Sir Matt Busby's phoenixlike triumph is led by the men who will become known as the Holy Trinity: Fellow Munich survivor Bobby Charlton, Denis Law, and a 19-year-old superstar in the making, George Best. None yet have the hairstyles for which they will be known: Charlton doesn't yet need the combover, while Law and Bestie still have comparatively short hair.

Three days later on May 1, Don Revie's Leeds completed that most frustrating of "achievements": The runner-up "Double," losing the FA Cup Final, to Liverpool, 2-1 in extra time, at the original Wembley Stadium in West London.

Over the course of 10 seasons, starting with this one, they will win 2 League titles, an FA Cup, a League Cup, and 2 Inter-Cities Fairs Cups (now known as the Europa League) -- but also finish 2nd in the League 5 times, lose 3 FA Cup Finals, a European Cup Final, a Fairs Cup Final and a European Cup Winners' Cup Final, and develop a reputation as the dirtiest team in the modern history of English football.

This season is also the beginning of the Man U-Leeds rivalry, which is one of the nastiest in Britain, with its roots in the Wars of the Roses of 1455 to 1485, with Greater Manchester having historically been part of the Duchy of Lancaster, and Leeds being in Yorkshire, run by the House of York. To this day, Leeds United wear the White Rose of the House of York on their crest. (United wear red shirts, which matches the Red Rose of the House of Lancaster, but this is not an intentional connection.)

*

April 28, 1965 was a Friday. This was also the day that President Lyndon B. Johnson sent U.S. troops as peacemakers to the Dominican Republic. I have a separate entry for that event.

Football was out of season. The NBA Finals ended 3 days earlier, with the Boston Celtics beating the Los Angeles Lakers in 5 games. The Stanley Cup Finals were between Games 5 and 6, and the Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Black Hawks in Game 7.

These baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Athletics, 5-1 at Yankee Stadium. Mickey Mantle went 1-for-2 with 2 walks and 2 RBIs.

* The New York Mets lost to the Houston Astros, 12-9 at the Astrodome in Houston. Mets broadcaster Lindsey Nelson broadcast the game from the gondola suspended from the ceiling of the Astrodome, accompanied by a cameraman, 208 feet above 2nd base. "At first, I couldn't see anything except a lot of tiny figures. Everybody looked the same height... You couldn't tell a line drive from a pop fly." The dome had debuted on April 9, and they remained there through the 1999 season. The stadium hosted many other events over those years. And yet, no broadcaster, not even Nelson himself, ever copied the stunt.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Washington Senators, 6-3 at District of Columbia Stadium in Washington. (It was renamed Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in 1969.) Brooks Robinson went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins, 9-3 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Harmon Killebrew went 0-for-4, but Jimmie Hall hit 2 home runs for the Twins, who knocked Jack Kralick out of the box in the 2nd inning. It was far from enough: The Indians knocked Jim Kaat out of the box in the 3rd, and Sonny Siebert pitched 7 2/3rds innings of strong relief.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Frank Robinson went 0-for-4, but drew 2 walks. Pete Rose went 1-for-6. Ernie Banks went 1-for-5.

Ernie Broglio, whom the Cubs infamously traded Lou Brock to the St. Louis Cardinals for the season before, lost the game in the bottom of the 14th inning: Having gotten the 1st 2 outs, he walked Tommy Harper, allowed a single to Vada Pinson, and intentionally walked Robinson to set up the play at any base. But that loaded the bases, and, with Tony Pérez at bat, home plate umpire Doug Harvey called Broglio for a back, forcing Harper home. I wonder if Harper said, "'Preciate it. Thanks." (Ball Four reference.)

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Braves, 5-0 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Bob Gibson pitched a 3-hit shutout. Hank Aaron did not get any of those hits. The aforementioned Lou Brock went 2-for-4 with a walk, 2 stolen bases and 2 RBIs.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the California Angels, 5-4 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Al Kaline went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 2-0 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Bob Veale pitched a 3-hit shutout, outpitching Claude Osteen. Roberto Clemente went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 9-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Willie Mays hit a home run.

* And the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox were not scheduled.

April 27, 1974: The Denis Law Game

April 27, 1974: Denis Law scores the last goal of his club football career. He wished he hadn't.

Born on February 24, 1940 in Aberdeen, Scotland, he began his career with Yorkshire team Huddersfield Town in 1956, where the manager was a fellow Scot, future Liverpool manager Bill Shankly. Another Scot, Manchester United manager Matt Busby, offered Huddersfield £10,000 for the teen star in 1957, but they turned him down.

In 1960, Busby tried to buy Law again, but Manchester City offered £55,000, then a record transfer fee for a British player. He played the 1960-61 season at Man City, and played the 1961-62 season at Torino of Turin, Italy, who offered City £110,000, a new record for a British player, and double the previous record they had paid for him.

Unfortunately, Law was one in a long line of fine British players who tried to play in Italy, following the success of Wales' John Charles at the other Turin team, Juventus. Most flopped, including England's Jimmy Greaves at AC Milan in 1961, and Law's fellow Scotsman Joe Baker, also with Torino in 1961-62. Baker was badly hurt in a car crash in which Law sustained minor injuries, and their tenure in Torino was stormy.

It got so bad that Italy's Serie A closed itself off to foreign players, only opening back up again in 1980, and Ireland's Liam Brady found success at Juventus. But Wales' Ian Rush flopped there, and England's Paul Gascoigne was a disaster at Rome team Lazio. In the Premier League era, Italian players would find more success in England, including Gianfranco Zola at Chelsea and Paolo Di Canio at West Ham United.

Busby finally got his man, breaking the British transfer record by paying Torino £115,000. Law became a part of the Manchester United "Trinity" with Bobby Charlton and George Best. He helped them with the FA Cup in 1963, the Football League in 1965 and 1967, and the European Cup in 1968 (though he was injured and did not play in the Final). In 1964, he was named winner of the Ballon d'Or (Golden Ball) as world player of the year.

Denis Law was Scottish. How Scottish was he? (I should say, "is": As of April 27, 2022, he is still alive.) He was so Scottish, on the day of the 1966 World Cup Final, in which his Man United teammates Charlton and Nobby Stiles were defeating West Germany for England, he was playing golf, instead of watching the Final on television. He chose to play the "sport" that Scotsmen invented over watching England win the World Cup.

And he did also excel for his country, leading Scotland to win the British Home Championship in 1962, 1963 and 1967, and sharing it in 1960 (in a 3-way tie with England and Wales), 1964 (in a 3-way tie with England and Ireland) and 1972 (officially, tied with England, though England won head-to-head). He scored the opening goal in Scotland's 3-2 win over World Cup holders England at Wembley Stadium in London in 1967, earning the Scots, as did their 1928 forebears, the nickname the Wembley Wizards.

And while it wasn't a game for his country, Law was chosen for the Rest of the World team that faced England in the FA Centenary Match at Wembley in 1963. He scored the only goal for Rest of the World, as England won 2–1, on goals by Greaves and Terry Paine, Greaves netting the winner in the 90th minute.

Law went back to Manchester City to finish his career. Though they had won the League in 1968 and the FA Cup in 1969, City were not good in 1973-74, finishing 14th. But United had fallen apart in the post-Busby years. The next-to-last game of the League season for United was a derby at Old Trafford on April 27. United needed to beat City to stand any chance of avoiding relegation.

Law didn't even want to play, but it was to be his last League game, and at his old stomping grounds. In the 81st minute, with the score still 0-0, Law was posted in front of his ex-teammate, United goalie Alex Stepney, when Francis Lee sent a cross along the ground, and Law backheeled the ball into the net. Announcing for the BBC, Brian Moore said, "Lee... put across for Law! Denis has done it! But no elation there at all from Denis Law."

The United fans cheered their former hero on his last goal, even though it guaranteed their relegation. At the time, unless they brought a transistor radio to the game, no one knew that United were already relegated: Birmingham City beat the already-relegated Norwich City, meaning the Brummies would finish ahead of Man United, no matter what. Despite beating Everton, Southampton were the 3rd and last relegated team.

Also on that day, Leeds United defeat Queens Park Rangers 1-0, at QPR's home ground of Loftus Road in West London, to win their season finale. This, combined with Liverpool losing 1-0 to Arsenal at Anfield 3 days earlier, clinched the Football League title for Leeds.

The way the schedule worked out, due to postponements, Liverpool had 2 games left, but even if they had won them both, they couldn't overtake Leeds. As it turned out, Liverpool drew both games. Leeds United won the title by 5 points over Liverpool. And Arsenal and Coventry City played to a 3-3 draw at Highfield Road in Coventry.

Law made one final competitive-game appearance, in the Scotland team's opening game of the 1974 World Cup in Germany, a 2-0 win over Zaire. The Scots did not advance.

United got back up the next season, and haven't gone down since. Oddly, their Captain was former Arsenal star, and future Arsenal title-winning manager, George Graham.

UPDATE: Denis Law died on January 17, 2025.

*

April 27, 1974 was a Saturday. American-style football was out of season. The NBA, NHL and WHA Playoffs were all between games. There was 1 game in the ABA Playoffs: The Utah Stars beat the Indiana Pacers, 109-87 at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah.

And these games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Texas Rangers, 6-1 at Shea Stadium, where they were groundsharing with the Mets while the original Yankee Stadium was being renovated. David Clyde went the distance for the win, while Pat Dobson didn't get out of the 3rd inning. Roy White got 2 hits, while the rest of the Yankees combined only got 5.

* The New York Mets lost to the San Francisco Giants, 11-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Baltimore Orioles, 11-5 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Catfish Hunter outpitched Mike Cuellar. Reggie Jackson went 1-for-2 with a walk and 2 RBIs. Brooks Robinson went 2-for-4.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Chicago Cubs, 5-2 at Atlanta Stadium. (It was renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium the next season.) Hank Aaron, having hit his 718th and 719th career home runs over the 2 preceding games, did not play. Roric Harrison, the starting pitcher, hit a home run.

* The Houston Astros beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 10-7 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. The Astros jumped on Bob Moose for 5 runs before the Pirates even came to bat, backing starting pitcher Tom Griffin. Willie Stargell went 2-for-4 with a walk.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the California Angels, 6-0 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Jim Perry pitched a 4-hit shutout. For the Angels, Frank Robinson went 0-for-4. He would be traded to the Indians that season. At the end of it, he was appointed their manager, the 1st black manager in MLB.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Chicago White Sox, 8-3 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Ed Brinkman hit 2 home runs. Al Kaline, in his last season, went 2-for-5.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Minnesota Twins, 9-0 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Jim Slaton pitched a 4-hit shutout. Rookie Robin Yount went 2-for-4.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds, 4-3 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Ken Reitz doubled Bake McBride home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning. Lou Brock went 0-for-4 with a walk. Pete Rose went 1-for-4 with a walk. Johnny Bench went 3-for-4 with an RBI.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Boston Red Sox, 10-3 at Royals Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium) in Kansas City. Carl Yastrzemski went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-2 at San Diego Stadium (later Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium). Dave Winfield went 0-for-4. Mike Schmidt and Dave Cash hit home runs for the Phils.

* And the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Montreal Expos, 5-2 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

April 15, 1967: Scotland's 2nd Wembley Wizards

April 15, 1967: A soccer shocker at Wembley Stadium in London. England, holders of the World Cup, and using the exact same lineup as in the Final except for Jimmy Greaves at Number 8 instead of Roger Hunt, are beaten 3-2 by Scotland in a qualifier for Euro 1968.

The Scotland team did not include the injured Jimmy "Jinky" Johnstone, later voted the greatest-ever player for Glasgow's Celtic Football Club, about to help them become the 1st British team to win the European Cup. It did include a Celtic player named William Wallace -- although this one wasn't nicknamed "Braveheart." Ronnie Simpson, Tommy Gemmell and Bobby Lennox also came from the "Lisbon Lions" to play for this Scotland team.

Also playing were John Greig, captain of this team and of Rangers, Celtic's arch-rivals, voted by their fans their greatest player ever; Denis Law of Manchester United, about to win England's League, and who famously hated England so much that he played golf rather than watch the 1966 World Cup Final; and Billy Bremner of Leeds United. Law, Lennox and Jim McCalliog of Sheffield Wednesday scored Scotland's goals.

Denis Law

Like the 1928 Scotland team that became the 1st "foreign" team to beat England at their national stadium, these Scots became known as the Wembley Wizards, and Scottish fans said that they were now "Champions of the World." As that 1928 game has faded from memory, while the 1967 match was broadcast on television and captured on "colour" film, it remains in Great Britain's collective consciousness, and thus stands as Scotland's greatest sporting achievement.

*

April 15, 1967 was a Saturday. U.S. Olympic swimmer Dara Torres was born. This was also a day when the biggest protests yet against the Vietnam War were held: 125,000 people in New York, hearing speeches, by, among others, Dr. Martin Luther King; and another 50,000 in San Francisco.

These baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox, 1-0 at Yankee Stadium. Mel Stottlemyre pitched a 4-hit shutout, to outpitch Dennis Bennett. The only run came in the bottom of the 5th, when Horace Clarke singled Ray Barker home. Mickey Mantle did not play.

This result was an anomaly: The Red Sox went on to win their "Impossible Dream" Pennant, while the Yankees, old and broken down, finished 9th in the 10-team single-division American League.

* The New York Mets lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-2 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. Jim Bunning outpitched Bob Shaw. Tony González went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and 5 RBIs.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the San Francisco Giants, 4-3 at Atlanta Stadium (later renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium). Joe Torre went 2-for-4 with a home run and 3 RBIs. Hank Aaron went 0-for-4. Willie Mays appeared as a pinch-hitter, and singled home a run. Willie McCovey went 0-for-4.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 7-3 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Ernie Banks went 1-for-5. Roberto Clemente went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Willie Stargell went 0-for-4.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Houston Astros, 7-3 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Deron Johnson hit 2 home runs, while Pete Rose and Tommy Harper each added 1.

* The Washington Senators beat the Chicago White Sox, 3-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Ken McMullen doubled 2 runs home in the top of the 11th inning.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins, 4-3 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Al Kaline and Bill Freehan hit home runs for the Tigers, while Harmon Killebrew went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 13-4 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Al Jackson outpitched Don Sutton. Lou Brock went 4-for-6 with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs. Orlando Cepeda and Tim McCarver also each had 3 hits.

* The Kansas City Athletics beat the Baltimore Orioles, 11-3 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. Jim "Catfish" Hunter went the distance for the win, while Wally Bunker didn't get out of the 4th inning. Roger Repoz hit a home run, while Danny Cater went 4-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Brooks Robinson and Frank Robinson each went 2-for-4, with Brooks also having an RBI.

* And the Cleveland Indians beat the California Angels, 4-1 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Fred Whitfield hit a home run in the top of the 10th inning.

American-style football was out of season. The NBA Finals were between Games 1 and 2. The Philadelphia 76ers would beat the San Francisco Warriors in 6 games.

There was 1 game played in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 4-2 at the Chicago Stadium. The Leafs went on to beat the Montreal Canadiens to win the Cup.