This Day in Sports History - 9/20/1998

After playing in 2,632 consecutive games, Baltimore's Cal Ripken takes himself out of the lineup for tonight's game against the Yankees. It's the Orioles' last home game and the first time that Ripken has missed a game since May 29, 1982. He explains that he wants to end the streak at home with the fans, adding that there were times he thought the focus was too much on the streak and not on the team: "It just reached a point where I firmly believed it was time to change the subject and restore the focus back where it should be."

This Day in Sports History - 9/14/1968

The Tigers' Denny McLain becomes major league baseball's first 30-game winner since Dizzy Dean in 1934 as he defeats the Oakland Athletics, 5-4, in Detroit. The Tigers score two runs in the ninth to preserve the thrilling victory. McLain will finish this season with a 31-6 record and a 1.96 ERA, and he'll follow with a 24-9 campaign in 1969. But he'll never be the same pitcher after he's suspended for the first half of the 1970 season by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn because of his involvement with gamblers. From his rookie season in 1963 through 1969, McLain's record is 114-57; from 1970 through the end of his career, it's 17-34.

This Day in Sports History - 9/13/1964

Pete Gogolak of the Buffalo Bills becomes pro football's first soccer-style kicker. He has plenty of opportunities early as the Bills roll up 31 points in the first period of their 34-17 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs at War Memorial Stadium. A native of Hungary, Gogolak was the first to kick soccer-style at the collegiate level on a regular basis while at Cornell. Don Cockroft of the 1980 Browns will be the last NFL placekicker to approach the ball straight ahead.

Coming Soon: Peyton Hillis' 2011-2012 Season

Last season we kept you apprised of how Peyton Hillis was doing in each quarter of the season. This year we plan on doing the same thing. Hillis will be a key for the Browns to contend in games especially when we get to late November-early December. Last year Hillis rushed for 1177 yards, for him to surpass that this season he needs to average 73.5 yards per game. We'll see if he can do it, so stay tuned as our first Hillis check will be the Monday after Week 4.

9/11 Rememberance

Today is the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11th attacks which took so many lives. Here is a song written by Joe Scarborough, of Morning Joe fame, called "Reason to Believe". Morning Joe airs M-F on MSNBC from 6 AM until 9 AM and this song was their way of remembering 9/11 this year. If you like the song it can be purchased on iTunes with the proceeds going to a worthy cause.