December 10, 1995: The Eagles Stop Emmitt Smith On 4th & 1 -- Twice

December 10, 1995: A cold night at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys. This is a rivalry that defies geography, due to the oddity of a Dallas team being in the NFC Eastern Division, along with Philadelphia, the New York Giants, and the team then known as the Washington Redskins. (From 1970 to 2001, the Division would also, strangely, including the team that began the period as the St. Louis Cardinals, and ended it as the Arizona Cardinals.)

The Cowboys had won Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII, and lost the 1994 NFC Championship Game. The Eagles had been in contention throughout, and both were in Playoff contention again: The Cowboys were 10-3; the Eagles, 8-5.

Late in the 2nd quarter, the Cowboys led, 17-3, and blew it. With about 9 minutes left in the 4th quarter, the score was tied, 17-17. The Cowboys had a 4th & 1 on their own 26-yard line. The Eagle defense, including William Fuller, Danny Stubbs, Mike Mamula, William Thomas, and the man then ripped as the dirtiest player in the game, Bill Romanowski, knew they had one job: Stop the man the Cowboys were obviously going to give the ball, Emmitt Smith, then the best running back in the game, from gaining one yard.

If Smith got that yard, the Cowboys would have a new set of downs, and plenty of time to get within range of a game-winning field goal. If he didn't, the ball would be turned over on downs, and the Eagles would have the ball inside Cowboys territory.

Sure enough, Cowboy quarterback Troy Aikman gave the ball to Smith, and the Eagles stopped him. The Vet erupted in cheers.

Except... Ed Hochuli, not one of the NFL's most-respected referees, ruled that time-out had been called before the snap. It was the kind of thing that had led many NFL fans over the last 25 years to believe that the officials fixed games for the Cowboys. Regardless of whether that was true, the Cowboys got another chance. So the Eagles had to do it again.

Eagles radio announcer Merrill Reese had the call: "They give it to Smith, and they stop him again! They stop him again! And this time, they can't take it away from the Eagles!"

It became known as "The Groundhog Day Game," after the "time loop" movie starring Bill Murray, 2 years earlier.

The Eagles tried to run down the clock as best they could. Three running plays by Rickey Watters gained a total of 4 yards. With 3 minutes left, Gary Anderson kicked a 42-yard field goal, putting the Eagles up, 20-17.

Out of timeouts, with only the 2-minute warning to help them, the Cowboys got no closer than the Eagles' 47-yard line, and the 20-17 lead held. The Eagles had won, and 66,198 fans went wild.

The Eagles finished 10-6, made the Playoffs, and won in the 1st round, beating the Detroit Lions, 58-37. Alas, the Cowboys finished 12-4, won the NFC Eastern Division, and got their revenge in the Playoffs, beating the Eagles, 30-11 at Texas Stadium, before winning Super Bowl XXX.

*

December 10, 1995 was a Sunday. These other NFL games were played that day:

Detroit, Green Bay, Houston, Tampa Bay

* The New York Giants beat the Washington Redskins, 20-13 at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

* The New York Jets lost to their arch-rivals, the New England Patriots, 31-28 at Gillette Stadium in the Boston suburb of Foxborough, Massachusetts.

* The San Francisco 49ers beat the Carolina Panthers, 31-10 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina. The Panthers played this, their expansion season, at Clemson University's stadium, then moved into what's now Bank of America Stadium in downtown Charlotte the next season.

* The Atlanta Falcons beat their arch-rivals, the New Orleans Saints, 19-14 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

* The Indianapolis Colts beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 41-35 at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium (now EverBank Stadium).

* The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Green Bay Packers, 13-10 in overtime at Tampa Stadium.

* The Cincinnati Bengals beat the Chicago Bears, 16-10 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.

* The Buffalo Bills beat the St. Louis Rams, 45-27 at the Trans World Dome (now The Dome at America's Center) in St. Louis.

* The Detroit Lions beat the Houston Astros, 24-17 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The Seattle Seahawks beat the Denver Broncos, 31-27 at Mile High Stadium in Denver.

* The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Oakland Raiders, 29-10 at the Oakland Coliseum.

* The day before, Saturday, December 9, the Minnesota Vikings beat the Cleveland Browns, 27-11 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* Also on the Saturday, the San Diego Chargers beat the Arizona Cardinals, 28-25 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego.

* And on Monday, December 11, on ABC Monday Night Football, the Miami Dolphins beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 13-6 at Joe Robbie Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida.

There were 7 games in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs, 118-112 in double overtime at Madison Square Garden. David Robinson led all scorers on the day with 45 points in defeat. John Starks led the Knicks with 25 points.

* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Boston Celtics, 108-103 at the FleetCenter (now the TD Garden) in Boston.

* The Indiana Pacers beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 111-104 at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis. Rik Smits scored 44 points.

* The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Detroit Pistons, 87-82 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

* The Sacramento Kings beat the Miami Heat, 110-90 at the ARCO Arena in Sacramento.

* The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Houston Rockets, 103-101 in double overtime at the Rose Garden (now the Moda Center) in Portland.

* And the 2 expansion teams of that season, both based in Canada, played each other: The Toronto Raptors beat the Vancouver Grizzlies, 93-81 at General Motors Place in Vancouver. The Grizzlies moved to Memphis in 2001, and GM Place became the Rogers Arena in 2010.

And there were 4 games in the NHL:

* The New York Islanders beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 6-2 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* The Chicago Blackhawks beat the Hartford Whalers, 4-1 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Washington Capitals beat the Winnipeg Jets, 6-1 at the Winnipeg Arena.

* And the Edmonton Oilers beat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, 3-1 at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim (now the Honda Center).

November 12, 1990: The Body Bag Game

Byron Evans knocks Stan Humphries out of the game.

Jerome Brown looks on.

November 12, 1990: ABC Monday Night Football broadcasts a game from Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Washington Redskins, 28-14. Judging by the score, it does not look to a current eye like a particularly notable game.

But it was. It was "The Body Bag Game."

The Redskins, coached by Joe Gibbs, still had a few of the players who had helped them win Super Bowl XVII 8 seasons earlier, and many of the players who had helped them win Super Bowl XXII just 3 seasons earlier. But they were also in something of a transition. Most notably, Doug Williams, the quarterback who was named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XXII, had been cut in a cost-saving measure.

The 3 quarterbacks on the Redskins' roster at this point were Jeff Rutledge, who had led the University of Alabama to a National Championship in 1978, but whose pro career had turned out to be a bust; Stan Humphries, who would one day take the San Diego Chargers to their 1st Super Bowl, but had thrown all of 10 passes in regular-season NFL games going into this season; and Mark Rypien, who was in his 3rd season as the team's starter, and would go on to lead the Redskins to victory in Super Bowl XXVI and win that game's MVP.

The Eagles were coached by James David "Buddy" Ryan. Once the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears, designer of the "46 Defense" that was key to their win in Super Bowl XX, and before that the coach of the New York Jets' defensive line that was a big reason why they won Super Bowl III, he was beloved by his defensive players. But the offensive players on his teams never fully trusted him. The Eagles' quarterback was Randall Cunningham, an incredibly versatile player whose nickname was "The Ultimate Weapon." Ryan didn't have a clue as to how to use him.

But Ryan built a devastating defense in South Philly. Ends Reggie White and Clyde Simmons. Tackles Jerome Brown and Mike Golic. Linebackers Seth Joyner and Byron Evans. Cornerbacks Eric Allen, Izel Jenkins and William Frizzell. Safeties Terry Hoage, Wes Hopkins and Andre Waters. They were good, and they were mean.

How mean were they? In the days leading up to the game, Ryan told reporters the Eagles would beat the Redskins so badly, "they'll have to be carted off in body bags." Big talk, given that, just 3 weeks earlier, in Washington, the Redskins beat the Eagles, 13-7. The Eagles came into this game 4-4, the Redskins 5-3.

It should be noted that Rypien was already injured, and did not play in the game. So Rutledge started for the Redskins. The Eagles knocked him out of the game. Humphries came in. Later on, the Eagles knocked him out, too.

The Redskins were down to just 1 healthy player who had ever played the position of quarterback at any level: Brian Mitchell, a rookie running back who had played quarterback at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now named simply the University of Louisiana). Pressed into emergency duty, he attempted 6 passes, and completed 3 of them, for 40 yards, and also ran a 1-yard play for a touchdown.

By that point, the Eagles were already up 28-7, with Mitchell's score making the scoreboard at least look respectable. The Eagles got offensive touchdowns on a pass from Cunningham to Heath Sherman and an option pass from Keith Byars to Sherman; and "defensive touchdowns" on a fumble return by Simmons and an interception return by Frizzell.

All told, 9 Redskin players had to leave the game due to injury, and none returned. Did the Eagles play dirty? Well, they were called for 11 penalties, totaling 88 yards. However, I didn't watch the game, so I can't remember what specific penalty calls were made; and I can't find a record with a breakdown of those penalties. But I've also never seen a record of the Redskins, their coaches, or their fans claiming that the Eagles were dirty that night. It's not like they were their South Philadelphia neighbors, the NHL's Flyers.

Both teams ended up winning 5 of their last 7 games to make the Playoffs, and the Redskins returned to The Vet and beat the Eagles, 20-6. The Redskins used the experience to motivate themselves to win the Super Bowl the following season, completing a 9-year run where they went to 4 Super Bowls, winning 3.

Ryan never got the Eagles very far. That loss to the Redskins was his 3rd Playoff game as an NFL head coach, and he lost them all. He was fired after the season, and later coached the Arizona Cardinals for 2 years, without getting them into the Playoffs, and never got another head coaching job. Like so many before him, and a few after him, he proved that a great defensive coordinator does not necessarily make a good head coach.

It would take the Eagles another 14 seasons to reach the Super Bowl, and another 27 seasons to win one.

For the 1991 season, with what became known as "The Body Bag Game" in mind, the NFL instituted the Third Quarterback Rule: If an NFL team went into a game with only 2 healthy quarterbacks, it could dress a 3rd quarterback who was not on the 45-man game-day roster. The catch was that, if he entered the game before the 4th quarter, no other quarterback could return to the game.

There's one more oddity to this game: After 10 seasons with the Redskins, including a Super Bowl XXVI ring and a 1995 Pro Bowl berth, Brian Mitchell played 3 seasons (2000-02) with the Eagles, and became much admired by the hard-to-please Eagle fans. He played 1 last season in 2003, with the New York Giants, and retired with more yards on kick and punt returns, 19,013, than any player in NFL history. His 23,330 career total yards are 2nd all-time, behind only Jerry Rice. He is eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but is not in it.

For all the talent on their roster, Reggie White is the only Eagle from the Body Bag Game who is in the Hall of Fame. So are Redskins Art Monk (receiver), Russ Grimm (guard) and Darrell Green (cornerback), as well as head coach Joe Gibbs. Jerome Brown was killed in a car crash shortly before preparations for the 1992 season began, having played only 5 seasons. Had he lived, he probably would have made the Hall.

Eagle fans love this game, even though it came to nothing. They like to think of themselves, and their city, as a lot tougher than the pretty boys in the nation's capital of Washington, or fashionable New York, or glitzy Sun Belt cities like Miami, Dallas and Los Angeles.

But ask them now: Which game means more to you, the Body Bag Game, or Super Bowl LII? Even the most posturing of self-proclaimed tough guys will take the Super Bowl win.

UPDATE: Despite the failure of the teams of the Buddy Ryan and Rich Kotite years, the following players from those seasons have been elected to the Eagles' team Hall of Fame through the 2025 season: Mike Quick, Jerome Brown, Reggie White, Randall Cunningham, Eric Allen, Seth Joyner and Clyde Simmons. Also, team executive Jim Gallagher, ticket manager Leo Carlin, and broadcaster Merrill Reese. But not Ryan.

Quick, White, Cunningham, Allen, Joyner, Reese, and Veterans Stadium public address announcer Dan Baker have also been elected to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame. Again, Ryan has not. Neither has Brown or Simmons.

*

November 12, 1990 was a Monday. This was the only football game played on the day. The baseball season was over. Only 1 game was played in the NBA, and Washington won that one: The Washington Bullets beat the New Jersey Nets, 97-92 at the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands. Former Knicks star Bernard King scored 38 for the Bullets, the team now known as the Washington Wizards. He had also played for the Nets, now known as the Brooklyn Nets.

And 1 game was played in the NHL: The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Winnipeg Jets, 5-2 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The comparative lack of games in the NBA and the NHL can probably be explained by not wanting to get clobbered by Monday Night Football in the TV ratings. 

October 21, 1980: The Philadelphia Phillies Phinally Win a World Series

October 21, 1980: After 98 seasons of play, the Philadelphia Phillies are 1 game away from finally winning their 1st World Championship. They are the last of the "Original 16" teams not to have won a World Series. 

It's Game 6 against the Kansas City Royals at Veterans Stadium. Steve Carlton starts. In 1972, when the Phillies won only 59 games all season, Carlton won 27 of them. He would tell his teammates, "It's Win Day." He was never that good again, but he was still as good as any pitcher in baseball. Now, he was ready to pitch the clincher. It was Win Day. Or so they hoped.

The game was scoreless in the bottom of the 3rd when catcher Bob Boone -- son of Ray, and father of Aaron and Bret -- walked to lead off. Lonnie Smith reached on an error. Pete Rose, despite being 39 years old, not only bunted the runners over, but beat it out. The bases were loaded with nobody out. And Mike Schmidt, so often ripped in the Philadelphia media for not coming through when it matters, singled home Boone and Smith.

The Phillies got another run in the bottom of the 5th when Smith doubled, Rose hit a sacrifice fly to center to move him to 3rd, Schmidt was walked sort-of-intentionally, and Bake McBride hit a grounder to short to bring Smith home. In the bottom of the 6th, Larry Bowa doubled to left, and was singled home by Boone. Smith flew to center. Phillies 4, Royals 0.

In the 8th, Carlton tired, and the Royals scored a run. John Wathan drew one of those dangerous leadoff walks, and Cardenal singled to left. Green had seen enough: He pulled the great Carlton, who got a big hand, and replaced him with Tug McGraw. Tug finished the inning without further damage.

To start the 9th, McGraw struck Amos Otis out looking. 2 more. But he walked Willie Aikens. With Aikens a bit pudgy and not fleet of foot, Frey sent Onix Concepcion in as a pinch-runner. Wathan singled to right. Cardenal singled to center, but it was too short, and Maddox too good a center fielder, for Concepcion to risk being thrown out at the plate. 

Then came a play that had Phillies fans -- remembering the collapse of the last 2 weeks of the 1964 regular season, the shocking 9th inning of Game 3 of the 1977 NL Championship Series, and he NLCS losses of 1976 and 1978 -- thinking, "Oh no, here we go again." Frank White popped up, and the ball drifted toward the Phillie dugout along the 1st base line. Boone chased it. He was normally a good fielder. But it popped out of his glove...

But Rose was right there to catch it. What could have been a disaster was prevented by "Charlie Hustle," the heart and soul of the Cincinnati "Big Red Machine" that had won 4 Pennants and 2 World Series in the previous decade, and had been brought to the Phils to teach them a winning attitude.

One out to go. There are 65,838 Phanatics roaring inside The Vet. The batter was Willie Wilson. Now, McGraw was nervous. And he was a bit spoked by the mounted policemen that Mayor Bill Green sent to line the field in foul territory, to keep fans off the field, artificial though it was. No one wanted a repeat of the Phils' last game at Connie ack Stadium, 10 years earlier, when the fans rioted and tore the old ballpark apart.

McGraw got to a count of 1 & 2. He was gassed. But he had all Fall and Winter to rest. He put everything he had into one last screwball. It was 11:29 PM on October 21, 1980. Wilson swung and missed for strike 3.

According to the Nielsen ratings system, this game was watched by 55 million people, making it the most-watched baseball game of all time.

Dallas Green's wild (or, at least, wild-haired) bunch had done it. Boone, Mike Schmidt, Greg Luzinski, Larry Bowa, Garry Maddox, all the rest, after 3 failed trips to the postseason before this, they had their ring at long last. Rose and McGraw, opponents in the '73 NLC,S and each with at least 1 previous ring, add to their collection. So do Carlton, who'd won with the '67 Cardinals; and Manny Trillo, the 2nd baseman who'd won with the '74 A's, and made a huge difference for the '80 Phils, particularly as the MVP of the NLCS.

The next day’s Philadelphia Daily News filled up their entire front page beneath the masthead with the words "We Win!" A parade went down Broad Street from City Hall to the Sports Complex, and a massive rally at John F. Kennedy Stadium, whose 105,000 seats was a lot more than the Vet's 65,000. Tug held the Daily News up for all to see. It remains the greatest moment in the history of Philadelphia sports.

The Phillies won another World Series in 2008. Again, it ended on a strikeout, Brad Lidge fanning Eric Hinske of the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5 at Citizens Bank Park. There was another parade. Jamie Moyer had attended the 1980 parade as a 17-year-old high school senior in nearby Souderton, Pennsylvania. As a 45-year-old Phillies pitcher, he was in the 2008 parade.

In 1978, the Phillies founded the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame. They have elected a Phillies figure every year since, and elected a Philadelphia Athletics figure every year until 2003. From the 1980 team, they have elected Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt, Larry Bowa, Greg Luzinski, Tug McGraw, Garry Maddox, Bob Boone, John Vukovich, Manny Trillo, Bake McBride, Ron Reed, manager Dallas Green, executives Paul Owens and David Montgomery, owner Ruly Carpenter, and broadcasters Richie Ashburn and Harry Kalas. Pete Rose was set to be elected to it, but shortly after the announcement that there would be such a ceremony, allegations were made that forced a cancellation of the honor.

Carlton, Schmidt, Bowa, Luzinski, McGraw, Maddox, Boone, Green, Owens, Montgomery, Ashburn, Kalas, executive Bill Giles and public address announcer Dan Baker have also been elected to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame. Rose would probably be in it as well, if not for those allegations.

Schmidt hit 548 home runs in his career, all with the Phillies. This included 313 in the 1980s, making him the decade's leader.

*

October 21, 1980 was a Tuesday. This was also the day of the "October Surprise" that prevented the ending of the Iran Hostage Crisis before the Presidential election on November 4. I have a separate entry for that event. Also, businesswoman/socialite Kim Kardashian was born on this day.

It was midweek for football. There were 8 NBA games played that day:

* The New York Knicks beat the Chicago Bulls, 105-97 at Madison Square Garden. Ray Williams scored 27 for the Knickerbockers.

* The Indiana Pacers beat the Atlanta Hawks, 121-116 at The Omni in Atlanta.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 115-95 at the Milwaukee Exposition, Convention Center and Arena, or "The MECCA." Since 2014, it has been named the UW-Panther Arena.

* The Golden State Warriors beat the Kansas City Kings, 116-11 at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City. (It's now named the the Hy-Vee Arena.)

* The Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets, 119-117 at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver. Moses Malone had 41 points and 26 rebounds for the Rockets.

* The San Antonio Spurs beat the San Diego Clippers, 123-120 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio. The Clippers moved to Los Angeles in 1984.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Dallas Mavericks, 111-99 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.

* And the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 107-103 at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland.

There were 4 NHL games: 

* The New York Islanders lost to the Vancouver Canucks, 6-3 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* The Washington Capitals beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 2-0 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 8-5 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

* And the St. Louis Blues beat the Montreal Canadiens, 4-3 at the St. Louis Arena.

October 20, 1993: Toronto 15, Philadelphia 14

Blue Jays closer Duane Ward

October 20, 1993: Game 4 of the World Series is played at a rainy Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The defending World Champion Toronto Blue Jays lead the Philadelphia Phillies, 2 games to 1. Charlie Williams becomes the 1st black man to serve as a home plate umpire in a World Series game.

Todd Stottlemyre started for the Jays, Tommy Greene for the Phils. Neither would complete the 3rd inning. The Jays jumped on Greene for 3 runs in the 3rd, but the Phils, thanks in part to 4 walks, socked Stottlemyre for 4. Lenny Dykstra added a 2-run homer in the 2nd, and it was 6-3 Philadelphia.

But 4 singles and 2 walks gave the Blue Jays a 7-6 lead in the top of the 3rd. The Phillies tied it in the bottom of the 4th, then broke out for 5 runs in the 5th, including home runs by Dykstra and Darren Daulton. The Jays' linescore was 30400. That ZIP Code isn't in use, but, if it was, it would be in Swainsboro, Georgia. The Phils' linescore was 42015. That ZIP Code also isn't in use, but would be in Paducah, Kentucky.

The 6th saw 2 runs for the Jays, 1 for the Phils. In the bottom of the 7th, Tony Castillo gave up a single to Mariano Duncan, walked John Kruk and Dave Hollins to load the bases, and hit Daulton with a pitch to force Duncan home. It was Phillies 14, Blue Jays 9. Already, the record had been set for most combined runs in a World Series game, breaking the record of Game 2 of the 1936 Series, the Yankees beating the Giants 18-4.

After Larry Andersen got Roberto Alomar to ground to 3rd to lead off the top of the 8th, the Phillies were 5 outs away from winning the game and tying up the Series. Then came an inning every bit as calamitous for the Philadelphia franchise of the National League as the top of the 9th inning of Game 7 of the 1977 NL Championship Series. And, unlike that time, they couldn't blame a bad umpire.

Joe Carter singled. John Olerud drew a walk. Paul Molitor hit a grounder to 3rd, and Hollins totally mishandled it, letting it into the left-field corner, scoring Carter. Manager Jim Fregosi brought his closer, Mitch Williams, in to pitch. Tony Fernández singled Olerud home. Pat Borders drew a walk. Ed Sprague struck out. One more out, And the Phils would have kept their lead.

But Rickey Henderson singled home Molitor and Fernández. And Devon White hit a triple into the right-center field alley, scoring Borders and Henderson. Blue Jays 15, Philadelphia 14. That would be the final score, as the Phillies went down 1-2-3 in both the 8th and the 9th innings.

Curt Schilling would pitch a shutout in Game 5, keeping the Phillies going. But in Game 6 in Toronto, the Phils took a 6-5 lead into the bottom of the 9th, but Williams had nothing, and Carter hit a home run to give the Jays the title.

If you're a Phillies fan, you should accept that Game 4 was when the Series was lost, not when Williams came in to relieve in Game 6. But then, if you're a Phillies fan, the 2007-11 quasi-dynasty may have helped you get over it.

This game has been cited as part of "The Curse of Billy Penn": From 1983, when the Philadelphia 76ers won the NBA Championship, until 2008, when the Phillies won their next World Series, no Philadelphia professional sports team won a World Championship. The suggestion was that the construction of One Liberty Place in 1987, making it taller than the statue of William Penn atop City Hall, caused Penn's spirit to put a curse on the city's teams.

*

October 20, 1993 was a Wednesday. Football was in midweek. The NBA season started 16 days later. There were 5 games played in the NHL:

* The New Jersey Devils beat the expansion Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, 4-0 at the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands.

* The Montreal Canadiens beat the Dallas Stars, 5-2 at the Montreal Forum.

* The Quebec Nordiques beat the Hartford Whalers, 5-2 at the Hartford Civic Center (now the PeoplesBank Arena).

* The Los Angeles Kings beat the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-3 at Expo Hall in Tampa.

* And in the Battle of Alberta, the Calgary Flames beat their arch-rivals, the Edmonton Oilers, 5-3 at the Northlands Coliseum.

October 10, 1999: Philadelphia Fans Cheer a Career-Ending Injury

October 10, 1999: Philadelphia fans, and Philadelphia Eagles fans in particular, get ripped for having booed a man in a Santa Claus suit in a 1968 game. But that was not their worst moment. This was.

As usual, when the Dallas Cowboys come to Philadelphia, the Eagles wore white jerseys, meaning the Cowboys had to wear blue ones, which they don't like to do. The Cowboys came into the game at Veterans Stadium 3-0; the Eagles, 0-4.

With 5:28 left in the 1st quarter, and the Cowboys leading, 3-0, Troy Aikman threw a pass to Michael Irvin, which gained 8 yards. Bobby Taylor tackled Irvin, and, as he did so, Tim Hauck hit Irvin, driving him head-first into The Vet's infamously hard artificial turf.

Irvin lay motionless on the field. Clearly, this was not some run-of-the-mill, "You're okay, it's just a bruise" football injury. But Eagle fans, so used to the Cowboys beating the Eagles, often with dirty play, cheered wildly. It was a horrible display.

Irvin was stretchered off the field, and taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Center City. He was diagnosed with cervical spinal stenosis. It wasn't immediately life-threatening, but he was told that he was at higher risk for injury if he suffered another head or neck injury. He chose to retire the following Spring, making him the last active player who had played on the Cowboys for Tom Landry.

The Eagles won the game, 13-10, as Doug Pederson threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Charles Johnson with 1:07 left in regulation. It was Andy Reid's 1st season as an NFL head coach, and Donovan McNabb's 1st season as an NFL quarterback. The Eagles finished 5-11. They got better.

So did Irvin. Although just 33 when he played his last game, he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and has become an admired studio analyst for CBS' The NFL Today.

*

October 10, 1999 was a Sunday. These other NFL games were played that day:

* The New York Giants lost to the Arizona Cardinals, 16-3 at Sun Devil Stadium (now Mountain America Stadium) in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe, Arizona.

* The Tennessee Titans beat the Baltimore Ravens, 14-11 at the Adelphia Coliseum (now Nissan Stadium) in Nashville.

* The Atlanta Falcons beat their arch-rivals, the New Orleans Saints, 20-17 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

* The Buffalo Bills beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 24-21 at Ralph Wilson Stadium (formerly Rich Stadium) in the Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park, New York.

* The Cincinnati Bengals beat their arch-rivals, the Cleveland Browns, 18-17 at Cleveland Browns Stadium (now named Huntington Bank Field).

* The San Diego Chargers beat the Detroit Lions, 20-10 at the Silverdome in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, Michigan.

* The Miami Dolphins beat the Indianapolis Colts, 34-31 at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.

* The Green Bay Packers beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 26-23 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

* The Chicago Bears beat the Minnesota Vikings, 24-22 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The St. Louis Rams beat the San Francisco 49ers, 42-20 at the Trans World Dome (now The Dome at America's Center) in St. Louis.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the New England Patriots, 16-14 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Denver Broncos beat the Oakland Raiders, 16-13 at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the Network Associates Coliseum).

* The next night, on ABC Monday Night Football, the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the New York Jets, 16-6 at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

* And the Carolina Panthers, the Seattle Seahawks and the Washington Redskins had a bye.

Game 4 was played in the American League Division Series. The Boston Red Sox set an all-time postseason play record by scoring 23 runs in defeating the Cleveland Indians, 23-7 at Fenway Park in Boston. The win ties the series at 2 games apiece.

Boston got 24 hits in the contest‚ including 5 by Mike Stanley, and 4 each by John Valentin and Jason Varitek. Valentin hit a pair of home runs and drove home 7 runs‚ while José Offerman and Trot Nixon brought home 5 apiece. The Sox had outscored 19 of the 30 teams playing in the NFL that day.

The NBA season didn't start for another 22 days. There were 3 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers beat the Phoenix Coyotes, 4-2 at Madison Square Garden.

* The New York Islanders beat the Colorado Avalanche, 4-2 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* And the Nashville Predators and the Chicago Blackhawks played to a tie, 3-3 at the United Center in Chicago.

October 7, 1977: The Philadelphia Phillies' "Black Friday"

October 7, 1977: Game 3 is played in each League Championship Series. Dennis Leonard, a Brooklyn native, goes the distance, and the Kansas City Royals beat the New York Yankees, 6-2 at Royals Stadium (renamed Kauffman Stadium in 1993). The Royals take a 2-1 lead in the series, and need just 1 more win for their 1st Pennant.

They will be disappointed. But perhaps not as badly as the Philadelphia Phillies. First 1950, then 1969, now 1977: October 7 is not a good day for baseball in the City of Brotherly Love.

It starts out as a great one: The 63,719 fans at Veterans Stadium are so loud, they force Dodger pitcher Burt Hooton to load the bases in the 2nd inning, and then walk 2 runs home. The Phils, who won 101 games (a team record not broken until 2011), look like they're going to win this game, and will need just one more win for their 1st Pennant in 27 years, since the 1950 Whiz Kids.

But in the top of the 9th, trailing 5-3 and down to their last out, the Dodgers benefit from a sickening turn of events. Pinch hitter Vic Davalillo, a 41-year-old Venezuelan outfielder who has already retired from baseball once, shows enough guts to lay down a drag bunt, at his age, with 2 strikes, and he beats it out.

Another again Latin pinch hitter, 39-year-old Dominican Manny Mota, hits a long drive to left field. Ordinarily, Phils manager Danny Ozark would have sent Jerry Martin out to left for defensive purposes, in place of the powerful but defensively suspect Greg Luzinski.

This time, he didn't, and the Bull can only trap the ball against the fence. (In fairness, I’ve seen the play several times, and I don't think Martin would have caught it, either, especially since he was a bit shorter than the Bull.) Luzinski throws back to the infield, but Phils 2nd baseman Ted Sizemore mishandles it, Mota goes to 3rd, and Davalillo scores. It's 5-4 Phils, with 2 out.

Then comes one of the most brutal umpiring screwups ever. Remember, the Dodgers are still down to their last out. Davey Lopes' grounder hits a seam in the artificial turf, and caroms off Mike Schmidt's knee to shortstop Larry Bowa‚ and Bowa's throw is incorrectly ruled late. Instead of the game being over in Philly's favor, Mota scores the tying run. The Dodgers go on to win, 6-5, and win the Pennant the next day.

In Philadelphia, the game is known as Black Friday. The umpire whose call killed the Phils? Bruce Froemming. He had already cost Milt Pappas a perfect game with a bogus ball four call in 1972 (though Pappas kept the no-hitter), and will go on to umpire for a record 37 years (since broken), with his swan song being the 2007 AL Division Series between the Yankees and the Cleveland Indians, when he, as crew chief, refused to stop the game until the Lake Erie Midges left.

*

October 7, 1977 was a Friday. Those were the only baseball games played that day. Football was in midweek. And the 1977-78 NBA, NHL and World Hockey Association seasons hadn't started yet. So those LCS games were the only games on this historic day.

September 28, 2003: The Closing of Veterans Stadium In Philadelphia

September 28, 2003: The last event is held at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. The game is no good: The Phillies lose to the Atlanta Braves, 5-2. Greg Maddux outpitched former Brave Kevin Millwood, who had pitched a no-hitter for the Phillies earlier in the year.

Then comes the closing ceremony, hosted by Phils broadcaster Harry Kalas. Every former Phillie who had accepted the invitation wore the uniform he wore at the time. Only Larry Christenson, who started the one and only game they ever played in the all-burgundy uniform, in 1979, wore that.

They closed with 3 big moments re-created: Steve Carlton’s 3,000th career strikeout, a Mike Schmidt home run, and Tug McGraw, battling cancer, pitching to Bob Boone (Aaron’s father) for the final out of the 1980 World Series. It served as a ceremonial "last ball," instead of a "first ball." Tug died before Citizens Bank Park opened the following April.

Veterans Stadium hosted 33 seasons of Phillies baseball, 32 seasons of Eagles football, 15 seasons of Temple University football, 3 seasons of Philadelphia Atoms soccer, 2 Major League Baseball All-Star Games, 9 World Series games, 2 NFC Championship Games, 22 Army-Navy games, a baseball World Championship with the 1980 Phillies, a USFL Championship with the 1984 Philadelphia Stars, and a North American Soccer League Championship with the 1973 Atoms.

The day also saw the San Diego Padres play their last game at Qualcomm Stadium – formerly San Diego Stadium (1967-1980) and Jack Murphy Stadium (1981-1997). They are no more successful in their finale than were the Phillies, losing 10-8 to the Colorado Rockies.

As is usually the case, team legends were brought back, wearing their contemporary uniforms. "Mr. Padre," Tony Gwynn, threw out the ceremonial last ball, to then-manager Bruce Bochy, a former catcher. The Padres moved into Petco Park the following April.

The NFL's Chargers continued to use the stadium until the 2016 season, and San Diego State played football there until 2019. The stadium was demolished, and SDSU's new home, Snapdragon Stadium, has opened on the site.

*

September 28, 2003 was a Sunday. These other Major League Baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1 at Yankee Stadium. David Wells was the winning pitcher. Alfonso Soriano hit a home run. Derek Jeter went 0-for-3.

* The New York Mets lost to the Florida Marlins, 4-0 at Pro Player Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida. Rookie sensation Dontrelle Willis pitched 3-hit shutout ball for 5 innings, and 3 relievers completed the 4-hit shutout.

* The Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Boston Red sox, 3-1 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Cleveland Indians, 6-2 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Cincinnati Reds, 2-1 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. Ken Griffey Jr. was injured, and did not play.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins, 9-4 at Comerica Park in Detroit. The Tigers thus finished the season with a record of 43-119, the most losses in American League history, but avoided matching the 1962 Mets for the most losses since 1899.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals, 5-1 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Houston Astros beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 8-5 at Minute Maid Park (now Daikin Park) in Houston.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 9-5 at Chase Field in Phoenix.

* The Anaheim Angels beat the Texas Rangers, 4-1 at Edison International Field of Anaheim (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim).

* The San Francisco Giants beat their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, 12-3 at Pacific Bell Park (now Oracle Park) in San Francisco. Barry Bonds went 2-for-3.

* And the Seattle Mariners beat the Oakland Athletics, 9-3 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle.

It was Sunday, so there were NFL games:

* The New York Jets lost to the Dallas Cowboys, 17-6 at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Baltimore Ravens, 17-10 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.

* The Washington Redskins beat the New England Patriots, 20-17 at FedEx Field (now Northwest Stadium) in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Carolina Panthers beat their arch-rivals, the Atlanta Falcons, 23-3 at Ericsson Stadium (now Bank of America Stadium) in Charlotte.

* The Indianapolis Colts beat the New Orleans Saints, 55-21 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

* The Houston Texans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 24-20 at Reliant Stadium (now NRG Stadium) in Houston.

* The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Buffalo Bills, 23-13 at Ralph Wilson Stadium (formerly Rich Stadium) in the Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park, New York.

* The Tennessee Titans beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 30-13 at Heinz Field (now Acrisure Stadium) in Pittsburgh.

* The Cincinnati Bengals beat their arch-rivals, the Cleveland Browns, 21-14 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

* The Minnesota Vikings beat the San Francisco 49ers, 35-7 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The St. Louis Rams beat the former St. Louis team, the Arizona Cardinals, 37-13 at the Edward Jones Dome (now the Dome at America's Center) in St. Louis.

* The Denver Broncos beat the Detroit Lions, 20-16 at Invesco Field at Mile High (now Empower Field at Mile High) in Denver.

* The Oakland Raiders beat the San Diego Chargers, 34-31 at the Oakland Coliseum (then named the Network Associates Coliseum).

* And the next night, on ABC Monday Night Football, the Green Bay Packers beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Bears, 38-23 at the newly-opened new version of Soldier Field in Chicago.

* And the New York Giants, the Miami Dolphins, the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers each had a bye week.

September 22, 1980: The Iran-Iraq War Begins

September 22, 1980: The Iran-Iraq War begins, when Iraq invades from the east.

Iraq's primary rationale for the attack against Iran cited the need to prevent the country's new Supreme Leader, the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who had spearheaded the Iranian Revolution in 1979, from exporting his ideology to Iraq.

There were also fears among the Iraqi leadership of President Saddam Hussein that Iran, a theocratic state with a population predominantly composed of Shia Muslims, would exploit sectarian tensions in Iraq by rallying Iraq's Shia majority against the Ba'ath Party government, which was officially secular, but was dominated by Sunni Muslims.

An estimated 85 to 90 percent of the world's Muslims are Sunni. The remaining 10 to 15 percent are Shia. The term "Shiite" (pronounced "SHE-ight") was frequently used in America after the 1979 Revolution, but was generally dropped due to its resemblance to an English profanity. It is estimated that, in Iraq, about 61 percent of the population is Shia, and 34 percent are Sunni, like the Ba'athists. So the Ba'athists were, though a dictatorship, a minority government. Only 2 percent of Iraqis are Christian.

The war lasted 8 years, until a truce was brokered by the United Nations. So who won? Neither. Nobody gained anything, and there were losses. A lot of losses. Neither side was all that honest about its casualties. Iran's death toll could be anywhere from 200,000 to 600,000. Iraq's has been cited as anywhere from 100,000 to 500,000. And it's been said that there were 100,000 civilian casualties, both sides combined.

At the time, Saddam was considered America’s ally, since he opposed Iran and Khomeini. With hindsight, this may not have been the proper stance. Americans would see games where they didn't like either team, and joke, "It's like Iran vs. Iraq: It’s a shame they can't both lose." In this war, both did.

*

September 22, 1980 was a Monday. These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees beat the Cleveland Indians, 4-3 at Yankee Stadium. Tommy John outpitched Len Barker. Reggie Jackson went 1-for-4. Bob Watson went 1-for-3 with 3 RBIs.

* The New York Mets lost to the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles, 5-3 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Carl Yastrzemski did not play, but Tony Pérez and Dwight Evans hit home runs for Boston. Eddie Murray went 1-for-5.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Montreal Expos, 4-2 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. Willie Stargell did not play.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Detroit Tigers, 6-5 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit.

* The California Angels beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 7-3 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Rod Carew went 3-for-5 with an RBI. Robin Yount did not play, but Paul Molitor went 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Texas Rangers, 1-0 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Jerry Koosman allowed 9 hits, but no runs, over 8 innings. Doug Corbett finished the shutout.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-2 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Keith Moreland doubled Larry Bowa home with the winning run in the top of the 10th inning, giving Steve Carlton his 23rd win of the season. Mike Schmidt hit his 42nd home run of the season. Pete Rose went 0-for-5.

* The Houston Astros beat the San Diego Padres, 4-2 at San Diego Stadium (later renamed Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium). Joe Niekro outpitched Bob Shirley. Dave Winfield went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 7-2 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds, 7-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Johnny Bench went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Seattle Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals, 5-4 at the Kingdome in Seattle. Willie Horton singled Bruce Bochte home with the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning. George Brett and Willie Aikens hit home runs for the Royals. Brett ended the day batting .393, and finished at .390.

* And the Chicago White Sox and the Oakland Athletics were not scheduled.

And on ABC Monday Night Football, the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New York Giants, 35-3 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

September 12, 1994: The Great TV Realignment

KYW-TV logo, 1980s

September 12, 1994: The great TV realignment. Because CBS (for a few years, anyway) lost their NFL contract, a lot of stations switched networks. This didn’t happen in New York, but in Philadelphia, on the other side of my Central Jersey base, it did: KYW-Channel 3 went from NBC to CBS, and WCAU-Channel 10 went from CBS to NBC.

KYW-TV logo, 1995

The buying into NFL broadcast rights helped turn Fox from a distant 4th among networks, behind NBC, CBS and ABC, into a legitimate 4th network. It launched Fox Sports, which has since included Major League Baseball, college football, the NHL, and professional soccer.

And since individual stations valued NFL money more than CBS money, while some of them switched affiliates with NBC, some picked up the former "independent stations" that Fox had picked up in the 1980s, losing a lot of viewers.

*

September 12, 1994 was a Monday. With the baseball strike still on, and the NBA and NHL seasons' starts several weeks away, there was only 1 score on this historic day. On ABC Monday Night Football, the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Chicago Bears, 30-22 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

August 4, 1982: Joel Youngblood's Two-City, Two-Game Odyssey

August 4, 1982: The New York Mets beat the Chicago Cubs, 7-4 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Joel Youngblood drives in the winning run with a 3rd-inning single off future Hall-of-Famer Fergie Jenkins.

As soon as he comes off the field after the inning, Youngblood is told that he's been traded to the Montreal Expos. His performance in the game is still official: Legally, he could have remained with the Mets until the final out. Nevertheless, the Expos, who are scheduled to play the Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia that night, ask the Mets to ask him if he can get there as soon as possible, to play in that game.

He flies to Philadelphia, arrives at Veterans Stadium in midgame -- that's 769 miles by road -- suits up for his new team, and, in the 7th inning, gets a hit off another future Hall-of-Famer, Steve Carlton. But the Phillies beat the Expos, 5-4. Youngblood remains the only player ever to get hits for 2 different teams, and the only one to get hits in 2 different cities, in the same day.

In that game, Mike Schmidt and Pete Rose each went 1-for-4 for the Phillies, with Rose adding an RBI.

From 1976 to 1989, he batted .265. He won a World Series as a rookie with the Cincinnati Reds. He was an All-Star with the Mets in 1981. His only other postseason appearance was with the 1987 San Francisco Giants.

He later served as a coach with the Reds, the Milwaukee Brewers, the Baltimore Orioles and the Arizona Diamondbacks. He is now approaching his 71st birthday, and no longer involved with baseball.

*

August 4, 1982 was a Wednesday. In addition to Mets-Cubs and Expos-Phillies, these Major League Baseball games were played that day:

* A doubleheader was split at Yankee Stadium. The New York Yankees won the opener, 6-2. Graig Nettles and Oscar Gamble hit home runs in support of Ron Guidry. The Chicago White Sox won the nightcap, 7-0. Britt Burns pitched a 2-hit shutout, allowing only singles to Nettles and Rick Cerone. Tommy John went the distance in defeat.

After the 1985 season, the Yankees traded Joe Cowley and Ron Hassey to the White Sox for Burns, because they needed starting pitching. But Burns was hurt, and never pitched again, hurting the Yankees a lot more than he did on this day.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-2 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Eddie Murray went 2-for-4. Cal Ripken went 1-for-4 with an RBI. Wade Boggs went 1-for-4. Carl Yastrzemski appeared as a pinch-hitter, and did not reach base.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Atlanta Braves, 3-2 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 8-0 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. Mike Caldwell pitched a 7-hit shutout. The Brewers got home runs from Paul Molitor, Cecil Cooper, Gorman Thomas and Ted Simmons. Robin Yount went 1-for-5. Along with Ben Oglivie, the Brew Crew were responding to their new manager, Harvey Kuenn, once a batting champion, and became known as "Harvey's Wallbangers."

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Texas Rangers, 8-4 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Cincinnati Reds, 8-2 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-2 at Busch Memorial Stadium. Willie Stargell, in his final season with the Pirates, did not enter the game.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals, 7-1 at Royals Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium) in Kansas City. The only Royal run came on a solo homer by George Brett.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Houston Astros, 5-2 at the Astrodome in Houston. John Montefusco, formerly of the Giants, goes the distance, beating Don Sutton, formerly of the Dodgers, and don't think that rivalry didn't enter the minds of both "The Count" and "Little D." (When Sutton started out, Don Drysdale, already known as "Big D," was still with the Dodgers.)

* The California Angels beat the Minnesota Twins, 8-6 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Rod Carew went 0-for-3. Reggie Jackson went 0-for-4, but got an RBI when it was ruled that the grounder on which and error was made, allowing him to reach base, would have gotten the run home, anyway.

* And a doubleheader was split at the Oakland Coliseum. The Seattle Mariners won the 1st game, 5-2. The Oakland Athletics won the 2nd game, 8-3. Over the 2 games, Rickey Henderson was only 1-for-7 with a walk, but stole his 101st base of the season.

July 13, 1976: Baseball's Bicentennial All-Star Game

Left to right: Darrell Johnson, Gerald Ford, Sparky Anderson

July 13, 1976: The Major League Baseball All-Star Game is played, as all sports' All-Star Games are in this Bicentennial year, in Philadelphia, at Veterans Stadium.

As usual, the opposing managers were the managers of the defending Pennant winners: Sparky Anderson of the Cincinnati Reds for the National League, and Darrell Johnson of the Boston Red Sox for the American League. President Gerald Ford, who once dropped a Yogi Berra-type line by saying, "I watch a lot of baseball on the radio," threw out the ceremonial first balls -- righthanded to AL catcher Thurman Munson of the New York Yankees, and lefthanded (his natural side) to NL catcher Johnny Bench of the Reds.

The 1976 American League All-Stars

Honorary Captains were a pair of newly-elected Hall-of-Famers: Robin Roberts of the host Phillies for the NL, and Bob Lemon of the Cleveland Indians for the AL.

The NL teams wore sleeve patches in honor of the League's 100th Anniversary. The AL did not do the same for their 75th Anniversary. There were 6 NL teams wearing special old-style "pillbox" caps with horizontal stripes in connection with the Centennial. The Reds, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals were all teams that went back to the 19th Century, though not to the founding season of 1876; while the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta (formerly Boston) Braves did, but didn't wear the special caps. The New York Mets only went back to 1962, and the Montreal Expos only back to 1969, but they also wore the Centennial caps. Only the Pirates kept them after the season, keeping them through the 1986 season. The entire NL All-Star Team wore special white pillbox caps for this Game.

The 1976 National League All-Stars

The most heralded rookie in many years, Mark Fidrych of the Detroit Tigers, started for the American League. The similarly-curly-haired phenom Randy Jones of the San Diego Padres started for the National League.

 
The NL plucked "The Bird" early, jumping out to a 4-0 lead after 3 innings, and won 7-1. César Cedeño of the Houston Astros hit the only home run.
 
It was not a good day for New York players: Tom Seaver of the Mets gave up the AL's only run, while Mets Dave Kingman and Jon Matlack, and Yankees Munson, Chris Chambliss, Willie Randolph, Mickey Rivers, Jim "Catfish" Hunter and Sparky Lyle were non-factors.

Jones was 16-3 at the All-Star Break, and Sports Illustrated put him on their cover with the headline "THREAT TO WIN 30." He must have been hit by "The Dreaded SI Cover Jinx," because he went 6-11 the rest of the way, to finish 22-14. He did win the NL's Cy Young Award, having finished 2nd in the voting the year before, when he was 20-12. Fidrych was 9-2 at the Break, and finished 19-9, winning the AL's Rookie of the Year, finishing 2nd to Jim Palmer of the Baltimore Orioles for the AL's Cy.

As it turned out, both peaked with their selections to that '76 All-Star Game. Jones hurt his arm in his last start of that season, never again had a winning season, and never again won more than 13 in a season. Fidrych got hurt in the next season's Spring Training. He threw his last major league pitch at age 28, Jones his at 32. Fidrych finished 29-19; Jones, 100-123.

Fidrych left baseball, and became a farmer and a mechanic in his native Massachusetts, and ended up making more money on the baseball memorabilia circuit than he did as a player. He died in a work-related accident in 2009, only 54.

Jones was luckier: The Padres made him a broadcaster, and retired his Number 35. Like Boog Powell in Baltimore, Greg Luzinski in Philadelphia, Luis Tiant in Boston, and Gorman Thomas in Milwaukee, he opened a barbecue stand at San Diego's ballpark. (UPDATE: He died in 2025, at 75.)

*

July 13, 1976 was a Tuesday, as the day of the MLB All-Star Game usually is. And, with baseball being the only sport in season in North America, there were no other scores on this historic day.

Hockey player Sheldon Souray was born.