This Day in Sports History: May 3
Sports in May include playoffs for the NBA and NHL seasons, MLB is in full swing, the Preakness Stakes, the PGA Championship, the FA Cup Final, the French Open for…
Sports in May include playoffs for the NBA and NHL seasons, MLB is in full swing, the Preakness Stakes, the PGA Championship, the FA Cup Final, the French Open for tennis, and some Grand Prix events. Over the years, May 3 has witnessed many notable moments and stories involving sporting legends. Here are some of them.
Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records
Great moments in sports history from May 3 included:
- 1927: First matchup of pitching brothers in MLB history, with Jesse Barnes defeating Virgil Barnes.
- 1936: Legendary New York Yankees center fielder Joe DiMaggio made his MLB debut against the St. Louis Browns and tallied three base hits.
- 1951: Gil McDougald ties a major league record with six RBIs in one inning.
- 1975: Christa Vahlensieck runs a female world record marathon. (2:40:15.8)
- 1979: Cleveland Indians right fielder Bobby Bonds hit the 300th home run of his career, an achievement that made him the second player ever to hit 300 homers and steal 300 bases.
- 1980: Just a year after Bonds inscribed himself in the record books, San Francisco Giants first baseman Willie McCovey hit his 521st career home run — the last of the Hall of Famer's career.
- 1980: Texas Rangers' Ferguson Jenkins secures his 100th win in the American League to go with 100+ wins in the National League.
- 1981: The Boston Celtics defeated the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, marking their third straight second-half comeback to seal a trip to the NBA Finals.
- 1992: New York Met Eddie Murray is 24th to hit 400 HRs.
- 2003: Boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya put his WBC Super Welterweight title on the line against Yori Boy Campas, sealing his victory with a seventh-round knockout.
- 2007: History was made during the NBA Playoffs when the Golden State Warriors defeated the Dallas Mavericks in Game 6 of the first round of the postseason. The win sealed Golden State's passage to the second round and marked the only time in NBA history an eighth seed defeated a first-seeded team in a seven-game series.
- 2011: Chicago Bulls superstar point guard Derrick Rose became the youngest player in NBA history to win the MVP award.
- 2014: Legendary boxer Floyd Mayweather defeated Marcos Maidana unanimously, retaining his belts and undefeated record.
- 2014: Victor Espinoza rode California Chrome to victory in the 140th Kentucky Derby with a time of 2:03.66.
- 2015: Chelsea won their fourth Premier League title, led by the excellent Eden Hazard.
- 2018: NFL quarterback Matt Ryan became the league's first $30M per season player, agreeing to a $150M extension with the Atlanta Falcons.
- 2021: Mark Selby wins his fourth World Snooker Championship, defeating Shaun Murphy 18-15.
- 2023: A new record for Premier League goals was set by Erling Haaland, who put the exclamation point on his achievement with an excellent goal against West Ham in a 3-0 Manchester City victory.
- 2023: In another display of individual prowess, then-Los Angeles Angels pitcher Shohei Ohtani became the second player in MLB history to strike out 500 opposing batters and hit 100 home runs. The first was Babe Ruth.
Three athletes who stood out on May 3 were Ferguson Jenkins, Derrick Rose, and Floyd Mayweather.
Jenkins is a dominant 1960s/70s starter. He won 284 games, earned a 1971 Cy Young Award, and was the first pitcher to record over 3,000 strikeouts with fewer than 1,000 walks. Rose is known for incredible speed, explosive dunks, and resilience. He was also a 3-time All-Star. Mayweather is known as "Money." He is one of the highest-paid athletes in history, famous for pay-per-view hits.
