This Day in Sports History: April 25
Sports in April include playoffs for the NBA and NHL seasons, the first month of baseball, The Masters, the NCAA Basketball title game, the NFL Draft, and some Grand Prix…
Sports in April include playoffs for the NBA and NHL seasons, the first month of baseball, The Masters, the NCAA Basketball title game, the NFL Draft, and some Grand Prix events. Over the years, April 25 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 April 25 included:
- 1876: In the Chicago Cubs' first National League game, they beat Louisville 4-0.
- 1920: Magda Julin of Sweden beat teammate Svea Norén for the gold medal in women's singles figure skating at the Antwerp Olympics.
- 1933: Philadelphia Phillies' Dick Bartell is the first MLB player to get four consecutive doubles in nine innings.
- 1947: Boxer Lou Thesz beat Whipper Watson and won the National Wrestling Association world heavyweight title.
- 1950: The Boston Celtics selected shooting guard Chuck Cooper from Duquesne University, making him the first African American player selected in the NBA Draft. While Cooper's selection marked the first African American draft pick in NBA history, the first African American to actually play in an NBA game was Earl Lloyd, who debuted for the Washington Capitols a couple of months after Cooper was drafted.
- 1952: The Minneapolis Lakers defeated the New York Knicks in Game 7, earning the franchise's third NBA Championship banner.
- 1964: The Toronto Maple Leafs 3-peated as Stanley Cup champions.
- 1965: The Lakers once again appeared in the NBA Championship, this time losing to the rival Boston Celtics in five games. Boston secured its seventh straight title win, establishing itself as a blue-blood franchise in the NBA.
- 1985: Wayne Gretzky scored seven points in a Cup game for the second time.
- 1993: Michael Jordan ended the 1993 season by winning his seventh straight scoring title while leading the NBA in steals per game.
- 1993: With the first pick in the NFL Draft, the New England Patriots selected quarterback Drew Bledsoe. While he performed consistently for the Pats, Bledsoe would be forever known as the player who preceded Tom Brady.
- 1997: Ken Griffey Jr. hammered his 250th career home run in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays.
- 2009: In another major NFL Draft selection, the Detroit Lions selected quarterback Matthew Stafford with the first overall pick. Stafford earned his status as a Lions legend before being traded to the Los Angeles Rams in 2021.
- 2015: UFC 186 was headlined by all-time great flyweight champion Demetrius Johnson, who faced Kyoji Horiguchi. Johnson secured his sixth straight title with an armbar as time expired in the fifth and final round — a finish that earned him Performance of the Night honors.
Three athletes who stood out on April 25 were Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan, and Ken Griffey Jr.
Gretzky won four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, nine Hart Trophies as MVP, and his jersey number 99 was retired league-wide. Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships (1991–1993, 1996–1998), won five MVP awards, and revolutionized sports marketing through his partnership with Nike. Griffey Jr. is a 13-time All-Star, dominated the 1990s as an elite outfielder (10 Gold Gloves) for the Mariners and Reds, and became a 2016 Hall of Famer with 99.3% of the vote.
