April 23
1903 — The New York Highlanders, later renamed Yankees, win their first game as a major league team, 7-2 over the Washington Senators.
1939 — Boston Red Sox Ted Williams hits his 1st HR.
1946 — Ed Head of the Brooklyn Dodgers pitches a no-hitter against the Boston Braves 5-0 at Ebbets Field.
1950 — The Detroit Red Wings edge the New York Rangers 4-3 in Game 7 to win the Stanley Cup.
1950 — The Minneapolis Lakers become the first team to win back-to-back NBA championships by defeating the Syracuse Nationals 110-95 in Game 6 of the finals. George Mikan leads the Lakers with 40 points in a game marred by three fights, four Minneapolis players fouling out, and Nats coach Al Cervi being ejected for complaining too vociferously about a call.
1954 — The NBA adopts the 24-second shot clock.
1954 — Hank Aaron hits 1st of his 755 homers.
1969 — Jerry West scores 53 points to lead the Los Angeles Lakers over Boston 120-118 in the opening game of the NBA finals.
1989 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scores 10 points in his last game as a Laker in a 121-117 win over Seattle SuperSonics at the LA Forum.
1989 — NFL Draft: #1 pick UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman by Dallas Cowboys.
1993 — The Dallas Mavericks avoid matching the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers as the worst team in NBA history, beating Minnesota 103-100 for their 10th triumph of the season.
1993 — Orlando’s Nick Anderson scores 50 points in the Magic’s 119-116 win over the New Jersey Nets at The Meadowlands. Anderson’s feat is overshadowed by Shaquille O’Neal, who rips down the backboard in the first quarter, delaying the game 45 minutes. 1999 — Fernando Tatis hits two grand slams in one inning to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 12-5 win over Los Angeles. Tatis becomes the first player in major league history to hit two grand slams in one inning and set the record with eight RBIs in an inning.
2002 — Brent Johnson of the St. Louis Blues ties an NHL record with three straight shutouts in the playoffs. That had not happened in 57 years. Johnson reaches the milestone with a 1-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.
2005 — NFL Draft: University of Utah quarterback Alex Smith first pick by San Francisco 49ers.
2008 — The Chicago Cubs win their 10,000th game, joining the Giants as the only franchise to reach that mark with a 7-6 victory in 10 innings at Colorado.
2011 — The Portland Trail Blazers rally from 23 points down in the second half, including an 18-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to defeat Dallas 84-82 and tie the first-round series at 2-2. Portland’s Brandon Roy scores 18 in the fourth quarter, including a 4-point play and the go ahead jumper with 39 seconds left. Roy outscores Dallas 18-15 in the quarter.
2017 — Kenyan runner Mary Keitany breaks Paula Radcliffe’s women-only marathon world record with a third victory in London. Keitany completes the 26.2-mile course in 2 hours, 17 minutes and 1 second to shave 41 seconds off Radcliffe’s 12-year-old mark.
2020 — NFL Draft: LSU quarterback Joe Burrow first pick by Cincinnati Bengals.
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