THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY - APRIL 1ST

1876 - First official NL baseball game (Boston-6, Phila-5).

1912 - The Greek athlete Konstantinos Tsiklitiras breaks the world record 

in standing Long Jump jumping 3.47 meters.

1914 - Rube Waddell, baseballer, dies at 37 of TB.

1931 - Jackie Mitchell became first female in professional baseball.
1938 - Baseball Hall of Fame opens in Cooperstown, NY.
1938 - Joe Louis KOs Harry Thomas in 5 rounds for heavyweight boxing title.

1939 - Phil Niekro, knuckleball pitcher (NY Yankees, Atlanta Braves) is born.

1963 - NY Mets purchase Duke Snider from the Dodgers for $40,000.
1969 - Seattle Pilots trade Minor League outfielder Lou Piniella to Royals.

1970 - Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club, headed by Bud Selig, purchases the Seattle Pilots for $10,800,000.  Although negotiations were conducted over a period of months, it was not until March 13th when a federal bankruptcy referee declared the Pilots bankrupt.
1972 - Major league Baseball Players stages first collective strike.

1980 - Baseball Players' Association votes to cancel 92 remaining exhibition games.

1980 - Wayne Gretzky breaks Bobby Orr's record with 103rd assist.
1983 - NY Islanders Mike Bossy becomes first to score 60 goals in 3 consecutive seasons.

1989 - A Bartlett Giamatti replaces Peter Ueberroth as 7th commissioner of baseball.

1990 - CBS fires sportscaster Brent Mussburger.
1990 - Jack Nicklaus wins first start on Senior PGA tour.

1991 - Dwight Gooden signs $5.15 million 3 year contract with the NY Mets.

1992 - NHL players begin first strike in 75-year history.

1997 - 69 year old Gordie Howe begins playing AHL game with Syracuse Crunch.