- May 1 108th Kentucky Derby: Ed Delahoussaye wins aboard Gato Del Sol, the first of consecutive Derby victories (1983 Sunny's Halo)
- May 4 NHL Prince of Wales Conference Final: New York Islanders beat Quebec Nordiques, 4 games to 0
- May 4 Twins rookie outfielder Jim Eisenreich, who suffers from Tourette's Syndrome, removes himself, due to taunts from Red Sox bleacher fans
- May 6 NHL Clarence Campbell Conference Final: Vancouver Canucks beat Chicago Black Hawks, 4 games to 1
Sports History
May 6 Seattle Mariners Gaylord Perry becomes 15th pitcher to win 300 games
- May 7 Californian federal jury rules NFL violates antitrust laws in preventing Oakland Raiders move to Los Angeles Coliseum
- May 12 FC Barcelona of Spain win 22nd European Cup Winner's Cup against Standard Liège of Belgium 2-1 in Barcelona
- May 13 Chicago Cubs win their 8,000th (beat Astros)
- May 15 107th Preakness: Jack Kaenel aboard Aloma's Ruler wins in 1:55.4
- May 16 Stanley Cup Final, Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver, BC: 3-peat for NY Islanders; sweep Vancouver Canucks in 4 games with a 3-1 Game 4 win
- May 18 Tigers outfielder Larry Herndon is 14th to hit 4 consecutive HRs
Baseball Record
May 25 Ferguson Jenkins becomes 7th pitcher to strike out 3,000 batters
- May 26 26th European Cup: Aston Villa beats Bayern Munich 1-0 at Rotterdam
- May 27 New owners headed by John McMullen buy NHL's Colorado Rockies and move the team to the New Jersey Meadowlands under the new name NJ Devils
- May 30 Indianapolis 500: Gordon Johncock beats Rick Mears by 0.16 seconds; closest finish in Indy 500 history to that point
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions