This Week in History
On this day in History-Oct. 14
On this date in 2003, Chicago Cubs fan Steve Bartman became infamously known as the scapegoat for the Cubs losing Game six of the NLCS to the Florida Marlins by a score of 8-3. Bartman sat in aisle four, row eight, and seat 113 at the time of the incident.
The Cubs were leading the Marlins three games to two in the series and they only needed one more win to advance to their first World Series since 1945. Chicago held a 3-0 lead at the top of the eighth inning and they only needed five more outs to move on.
Marlins second baseman Luis Castillo hit a fly ball to left field. During the play, several Wrigley Field spectators attempted to catch the ball, but backed off at the last second when Moises Alou tried to make the catch. Bartman however did not hold back and he disrupted the play.
From that point, Florida went on a tear by scoring eight runs in the eighth inning to steal a possible series clinching win away from the Cubs. The Marlins defeated Chicago the following night by a score of 9-6 to advance to the World Series, where they beat the New York Yankees in six games.
The Cubs have suffered nothing but mediocrity ever since the Steve Bartman incident. Since 2003, Chicago made only two trips to the playoffs without advancing in either one of those appearances and they haven’t made the playoffs since 2009. It’s safe to say that the curse lives on.
On this day in History-Oct. 13
On this date in 1967, the first game in the history of the American Basketball Association took place between the Anaheim Amigos and the Oakland Oaks at the Oakland Arena. In front of a crowd of 4,828 fans, the Oaks ended up beating the Amigos by a score of 134-129 behind Andy Anderson’s 33 points.
Former NBA player and five time all-star George Mikan was the league’s first commissioner of the ABA. The league consisted of 11 teams and it was established to compete with the well known National Basketball Association to draw more fans and make more money.
There were many aspects of the ABA that were different from the NBA. The ABA used 30 second shot clocks as opposed to the traditional 24 second shot clocks that are used in the NBA; the colors of ABA game used basketballs were red, white, and blue instead of orange and black, and the league became well known for its introduction of the three point shot.
In the first season of the American Basketball Association, the Pittsburgh Pipers were the best team in the league as they won 54 games and dominated through the playoffs on their way to winning the first ABA championship by beating the New Orleans Buccaneers in seven games.
After eight seasons, the league eventually merged with the NBA and several franchises folded as a result of it. The Indiana Pacers are the only inaugural ABA franchise that still exists today.
On this day in History-Oct. 12
On this date in 1792, the first Columbus Day was celebrated in the United States in New York City as a way to commemorate Christopher Columbus. That day also marked the 300th anniversary of Columbus’ landfall in the New World.
On Oct. 12, 1492, Columbus led his voyage by using three prominent ships that became known as the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, to reach the New World where Columbus made landfall in the Caribbean and where the Bahamas are now located. Columbus also made two other landfalls that year in Cuba and Hispaniola.
Since the first celebration, Columbus Day has become a very common and traditional holiday that has been well known to people all across the United States. The holiday is usually celebrated on Oct. 12 and it has also been celebrated on different dates around that particular date.
Although people have celebrated Columbus Day since the colonial times, it wasn’t until 1906 that it became an official state holiday in Colorado and the United States government didn’t consider it an official holiday until 1937. Over time, the significance and popularity of Columbus Day has grown in the U.S.
