In June, sports fans can enjoy MLB, the NBA Finals, the Stanley Cup Final, Wimbledon, the U.S. Open Golf Championship, the Canadian Grand Prix, and various track and field events. Several notable sports moments and legendary achievements have occurred on June 4 over the years, and these are some of them.
Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records
Great occasions in sports history on June 4 include:
- 1870: Jockey Edward D. Brown, known as Dick, won the Belmont Stakes aboard Kingfisher with a time of 2:59:5.
- 1889: John Clarkson threw the first known immaculate inning in MLB history, striking out three batters on nine pitches.
- 1927: In the first-ever Ryder Cup, the U.S. beat Great Britain.
- 1928: Helen Wills defeated Eileen Bennett to win the first of her four French Open tennis titles.
- 1950: Cyclist Wim van Est won the Bordeaux-Paris race.
- 1951: Gus Bell hit for the cycle, leading the Pirates to victory over the Phillies.
- 1953: The Pirates traded Ralph Kiner and Joe Garagiola to the Chicago Cubs.
- 1955: Tony Trabert beats Sven Davidson and wins back-to-back French Open titles.
- 1961: Mary Lena Faulk won the LPGA Women’s Western Open.
- 1964: Sandy Koufax pitched his third career no-hitter, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Phillies 3-0.
- 1967: Curt Flood’s errorless streak of 227 games ended.
- 1968: Don Drysdale pitched his sixth shutout in a row.
- 1972: Andres Gimeno beat Patrick Proisy to win the French Open tennis final, his only major singles title.
- 1974: The Seattle Seahawks franchise was established in the NFL.
- 1977: Mima Jaušovec defeated Florența Mihai in the women’s singles final of the French Open. It was her only Grand Slam singles win.
- 1978: Golfer JoAnne Carner won the Canadian Women’s Open.
- 1983: Chris Evert beat Jaušo to win the final of the French Open. It was her 15th Grand Slam title and fifth French Open singles crown.
- 1984: For the first time in 32 years, Arnold Palmer failed to qualify for the U.S. Open Golf Championship.
- 1987: Hurdler Edwin Moses’ 122-race winning streak ended.
- 1988: Steffi Graf beat Natalia Zvereva and won the women’s final at the French Open.
- 1988: Yankees outfielder Rickey Henderson stole two bases, setting a new team record of 249.
- 1990: Ramon Martinez struck out 18 Atlanta Braves hitters.
- 2008: The Red Wings beat the Penguins 4-2 to secure the Stanley Cup.
- 2011: Li Na became the first Chinese tennis player to win a Grand Slam singles title.
- 2016: Garbiñe Muguruza defeated Serena Williams to win the women’s final at the French Open and her first Grand Slam title.
Looking back on these June 4 events, the ones that stand out are the birth of the Seahawks, Evert’s tennis dominance, and Henderson’s stolen base record.
The Seahawks are known for their passionate fanbase, “The 12s,” and their Super Bowl XLVIII victory in 2014. Evert is widely considered one of the greatest women’s tennis players of all time, known for her grace, skill, and remarkable record of success. Henderson is famously known as baseball’s all-time leader in stolen bases, with 1,406, and as one of the greatest leadoff hitters in MLB history.
