American Pharoah's historic Triple Crown win drew the third-best preliminary TV rating for the Belmont Stakes since it started being measured in 1988. With the competition over so quickly, horse racing doesn't benefit from a dramatic contest in the way other sports do. The race portion of NBC's broadcast Saturday ran from 6:15 to 7:15 p.m., so only the final third of it came after American Pharoah became the first Triple Crown winner since 1978. The 12.3 overnight rating was down slightly from the 12.9 for California Chrome's Triple Crown attempt last year. Baltimore registered an 18.2 overnight rating and 37 share, trailing only Louisville (24.2/44) among national markets.
Book: James Robinson will discuss his thesis, "Communist Sports: The Communist Party USA, Left-Wing Sports Programs 1939-47, Organization, Recruitment, Decline, and Lessons," at the meeting of "Talkin' Baseball" on Saturday at 9 a.m. at Brighton Gardens, 7110 Minstrel Way, Columbia. Lester RodneyFor information on the event, call 410-740-1145.
Pro football: John Unitas Jr., president of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation and the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas, will sign copies of his book, "Johnny U and Me: The Man Behind the Golden Arm," on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Barnes & Noble in the Long Gate Shopping Center at 4300 Montgomery Road in Ellicott City.