1947: Jackie Robinson is named Rookie of Year by Sporting News.
1953: Ernie Banks becomes Chicago Cubs 1st black player.
1954: In a quick re-match at Yankee Stadium, NYC, Rocky Marciano KOs Ezzard Charles in the 8th round to retain his world heavyweight boxing title.
1986: Birth of Indian offspinner R Ashwin, who became the fastest bowler to get to 300 Test wickets, in 54 matches, two fewer than Dennis Lillee. Ashwin made his name in the IPL, replaced Harbhajan Singh in the India one-day side in 2011, and impressed when he took nine wickets, the second-best figures by an Indian Test debutant after Narendra Hirwani. At the end of that first (three-Test) series, he had 22 wickets, a century, and the tag of India’s lead spinner.
1988: Needing 210 runs in his last match to achieve the double of 1000 runs and 100 wickets in the same English season, Nottinghamshire’s West Indian all-rounder Franklyn Stephenson scored 111 and 117 against Yorkshire at Trent Bridge. He finished with a flourish by also taking 11 wickets in the match, though his side lost, and completed a rare quadruple-century by conceding a hundred in each innings as a bowler. Stephenson and Richard Hadlee (1984) are the only players to do the double since the number of County Championship matches was reduced in 1969.
2000: Dan Marino’s #13 jersey is retired by the Miami Dolphins.
2011: Ron Artest, the player at the center of the infamous “Malice at the Palace”, legally changes his name to Metta World Peace.