This Day In Sports - June 2nd

1941 -- Yankee great Lou Gehrig dies of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in New York at the age of 37.
1974 -- Chris Evert wins her fist major international tournament at the Italian Open with a win over Martina Navratilova in straight sets.
1990 -- Seattle's Randy Johnson pitches the first no-hitter in Mariners franchise history.
*from si.com*



Article of the Day:

WHAT I'VE LEARNED

Lil' Penny
-- Interviewed May 31, 2009

Yeah, I've seen the commercials. Kobe and LeBron. Not bad. Good for those kids. But I was the original.

Let me know when those two put out their own rap album.

Now that Orlando is back in the Finals, I figured I could work with Kobe. But Nike won't return my calls. Can ya help a brother out?

Nike's scared. They know I can take him, one-on-one, even now. It's not bragging if it's true.

What advice would I give puppet LeBron? Keep your head up. Stay grounded. Be smart with your money. And watch your back -- there might be a hand in there.

My ride was incredible. Money. Fame. Women. Swimming pools and movie stars and Japanese steam baths, you know? Tyra Banks still has my toothbrush.

"Kobe Doin' Work"? I gave Spike the idea. Starring me, of course.

Everything ended so quickly. One minute I'm introducing the 1996 playoffs on NBC, have Phil Knight on speed dial. Then came the microfracture. Next thing I know, I'm at the bottom of a cardboard box with some old "Just Do It" T-shirts and a couple of twisted-up Ken dolls.

The Kens just smiled. Their hair never moved. I'd rather not talk about it.

I blew it. Put my money into Pets.com, trusted that sock dog. A lot of us did. Statler and Waldorf tried to warm me, but I didn't listen.

It's hard out there for a puppet. They stopped making Chucky movies years ago. Do you see any ventriloquists on Comedy Central?

I got a sniff from Sesame Street. They wanted to go younger, cheaper. But the union there closed ranks. And that was that.

Elmo runs the shop. He will cut you, man. No joke.

Bobblehead work is the future. I just need enough money for head-enhancement surgery.

Until Dwight Howard gets his own creepy miniature effigy, he's just a basketball player.

The meaning of life? It's simple: never forget who pulls the strings.

-- Patrick Hruby

*from espn.com*