Class of 1958 Sports

Basketball

Eastern Conference
Boston Celtics

Western Conference
St. Louis Hawks

Playoff Champions
St. Louis Hawks defeat
Boston Celtics, 4-2

Baseball

World Series
New York Yankees defeat Milwaukee Braves,
4-3

MVP
Bob Turley, NY, Pitcher

Football

Baltimore Colts	23
NY Giants	17

Stanley Cup Winner
Montreal Canadians

Athlete of the Century
At the start of the 1958 World Cup finals, 17-year-old Pelé had been playing professional soccer for just 20 months. Though he was already regarded as a promising player in his native Brazil, to sports fans elsewhere he was unknown. By the end of the competition, however, he'd scored an attention getting six goals- helping his country gain its first World Cup. Before long, he was the best-known athlete on the planet.

For nearly two decades, Pelé dominated the most international of team sports. From 1958 to 1974, he played up to 180 games a year, scoring over 1,000 times and breaking virtually every record on the books. He was named Athlete of the Century in 1980.

Yankees Win '58 World Series
The Yankees win the WS handily on Moose Skowron's 3-run HR off Lew Burdette in the 8th that puts the game on ice 6-2. Eddie Mathews strikes out for the 11th time, a record that will stand until l980 when broken by Willie Wilson of Kansas City. The Braves' 53 strikeouts are also a new WS record.

Baseball Fever
The national pastime truly became that in 1958, when two New York teams, the Dodgers and the Giants, relocated to California - L.A. and San Francisco, respectively.

Baseball, once primarily an East Coast game, had been moving westward in recent years; now it spread all the way across the continent.

Over the next few years, both major leagues added more teams. And through television, more fans than ever before were able to indulge their love for the great American sport.

Ted Williams Williams Signs Deal

February 6, 1958 Ted Williams signs with the Red Sox for $135,000, making him the highest paid player in ML history.

Williams Pays Fine
Ted Williams pays fine for a bat-throwing incident. After fanning in the 6th, Williams flings his bat into the stands hitting Boston GM's housekeeper, Gladys Heffernan, in the face.