Pro Sports in the 1960s

             Some people would say that the way professional sports were played in the 50s and 60s seemed exactly the same. In some cases, that statement is true. The same changes occurred, such as the expansion and development of the professional leagues, the increasing popularity of television broadcasts and, of course, the rule changes to make the games much more exciting and entertaining to watch.
             In Major League Baseball, one of the most popular records was about to be broken which was the most homeruns in a season. In 1961, sluggers Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle of the New York Yankees were headed to break Babe Ruth's record of sixty homeruns, which was set in 1927. Commissioner Ford Frick didn't think it was right for Maris or Mantle to appear in the record books because Ruth set that record in a 154 game schedule. Maris and Mantle had an advantage because the MLB increased to 162 games in a regular season. So Frick came up with a plan that seemed rather fair. He ruled that Maris or Mantle would have to surpass 60 homers within 154 games in order to have their names be put in the record books. That season Maris was able to surpass Ruth by hitting sixty-one homeruns but because of Frick's ruling, he was not placed in the record books.
             One way the MLB in the 60s were similar to the 50s was how some of the players and teams were alike. In 1962, the rematch of the Dodgers' and Giants' World Series from 1951 took place and just like the time before, the Giants lost. In 1961, Bill Fischer went 84.5 innings without giving up a single walk while in 1964, Jim Bunning of the Philadelphia Phillies became the only pitcher to throw a no hitter who wasn't a CY Young winner. The CY Young Award is granted to the M.V.P pitcher from the American League and the National League. Anyway, Fischer is often compared to Don Larson of the Yankees who became the first pitcher to throw a no hitter in a World Series game...

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Pro Sports in the 1960s . (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 05:09, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/62182.html