Each and every year we can pinpoint on our calendars the start of Spring Training or the NFL's Opening Day game. The die-hard NHL fans -- all three of them (just kidding) --  flock to their favorite hockey rinks to watch their beloved home team. Before the basketball season even begins, basketball fans are already arguing with each other about whether the Miami Heat could pull of a third straight title.

But let's be honest. The most predictable moments in sport are the most forgettable ones. Rather, it is only we break the cycle that we notice the most memorable moments in sport -- the moments that signaled a significant difference from the previous year or era. From the courage of Olympic athletes to stand up against Russia's notoriously homophobic laws to Boston's improbable worst-to-first season that ended with a Red Sox World Series title, there were plenty of sports moments that will go down in the history books this year.

Below please enjoy the list of the top most memorable sports moments in 2013. 

1. Professional Athletes Come Out

Journalists and fans alike spent so long speculating about when we would see some openly gay, active professional athletes that these articles were starting to get as stale as it gets. Then, suddenly, the coming out stories started flowing like a river. But none of this came out of the blue. Straight allies and organizations joined together and paved as smooth of a road to equality as we've ever seen.

Straight ally and former Ravens star Brendan Ayanbadejo was able to use his Super Bowl-winning platform to advance equality across the board by speaking out to people across the United States. Also, MLS player Robbie Rogers came out but retired after he was standing there, all alone as the only out, higher profile professional athlete in the United States. But then the soccer start got the support he needed when NBA player Jason Collins came out in April. Soon enough, Rogers signed a contract and stepped on the field as the first openly gay male athlete to play in one of the top American professional sports.

But, of course, we were also reminded of the fierce sexism, male hegemonic structure, and heterosexism that still permeates our society when one of the best basketball stars in the world, Brittney Griner, came out and received almost very little attention in comparison to her male counterparts. Griner is now in the WNBA.

2. The NHL Lockout Ends

The top-down corporate structure in sport is disheartening to see. Players and other team employees have such little say in what happens while the greedy owners roll in the gold while doing their best to muzzle the players. Thankfully, players' unions push against this but it's such a powerful force to overcome. At any rate, hockey fans were glad to see the NHL lockout end when the NHL and the NHL Players' Association reached an agreement in the wee hours of January 6, 2013.

3. Diana Nyad Swims From Cuba to U.S.

Nobody in recorded history has been able to do what Diana Nyad has done in the water. Like an energizer bunny, the 64 year old Nyad paddled her way, one arm in front of another, all the way from Havana Cuba to Key West, Florida. The unimaginable feat was one for the ages. Jellyfish stings and other roadblocks foiled the fearless swimmer's previous attempts, but it is apparently never too late to dive into an ocean full of sharks and jellyfish.

4. Boston Red Sox Win the World Series

Just a year ago people were wondering what in the world the Boston Red Sox would do to dig out of the last place hole from 2012. The team booted their controversial, one-year wonder of a skipper in Bobby Valentine and brought in John Farrell from Toronto. Boston then proceeded to run roughshod through the American League en route to the best record in baseball. The World Series-winning clincher at Fenway Park was certainly one to remember for Boston fans.

5. Researchers, Former NFL Players Help Spark Discussion On Dangers of Football

Let's cut to the chase and realize that football, in its current form, is simply too dangerous. The research behind the effects of football on the brain and body dates back decades, but only recently has the issue become a legitimate concern. The NFL has tried its best to brush it all off, but it won't be going away any time soon. After suicides, murder-suicides, and life-long injuries that require more help than the NFL is offering, there is finally some hope. To help shed some light on just how dangerous this sport is, PBS Frontline aired a segment called League of Denial: The NFL's Concussion Crisis which was nearly shot down by the NFL, and ESPN backed out of it due to the pressure from the league. Thanks to the help of writers such as Malcolm Gladwell, who penned a wonderful piece back in 2009 to help stir the pot in this debate, progress is moving faster than ever, even if it isn't fast enough. The NFL's $765 million settlement to help former players was not nearly enough and was quite frankly an attempt by the league to cover it all up and wash it away, but at least it is a step in the right direction.

6. Advocates Rally to Stand Up Against the Racist Washington Football Team Name

Here's another issue that took forever but finally gained plenty of steam in 2013. Dave Zirin at The Nation has been one of the most outspoken voices in the fight against the team's corporate toadies that have perpetuated the ridiculous and blatant racism that is the "Redskins." Zirin wrote a great piece for ESPN's Grantland in which he sent an open letter to Washington's owner, Dan Snyder, pleading for change. The title was as simple and straightforward as one could get: "Rename the Washington Redskins." Snyder, who is no stranger to controversy, boasted in an interview with CBS, "We'll never change the name. It's simple. NEVER -- you can use caps."

Members of the Oneida Indian Nation even went to the White House and met with President Barack Obama to discuss the issue, sending it even more to the forefront of American news and politics. The Oneida Nation thanked Obama for his comments in October when the Commander in Chief expressed support and sympathized with those who have been behind the campaign to change the name.

7. Pittsburgh Pirates Clinch First Playoff Berth since 1992

Who thought this day would ever come? The Pirates have been such a laughingstock that people only went to Pirates games to enjoy the beautiful stadium or to watch other teams pile on the runs. But not in 2013. This team, led by center fielder Andrew McCutchen and his .317 batting average, fought all the way to the end when the St. Louis Cardinals finally knocked them out in the National League Divison Series. Pittsburgh won the wild card matchup against the Cincinnati Reds to advance to the divisional round.

8. College Football Players Protest NCAA

Big-time college athletes have been exploited and used by their schools, the NCAA, and others but this year some of the players just had enough. Several Divison I College football coaches rake in the dough with their multi-million dollar salaries each year while the players -- who are not paid despite the fact that they are forced to don corporate logos to generate money -- are one injury away from losing the only scholarship that afforded them a college degree. To take this a step further, schools also make money by selling their players' jerseys while the player never sees a dime of it.

Perhaps the most disturbing part of it all is that many minority players are only used to score touchdowns -- and, thus, advertise the school to help bring in money -- for a few years and then the schools send them off without giving them any employment opportunities after graduation.

In an article for ESPN, Tom Farrey wrote about how Georgia Tech, Georgia, and Northwestern players protested this issue by writing "APU" -- for All Players United -- on their wrist tapes. A group called the National College Players Associaion was featured on ESPN's Outside the Lines and president Ramogi Huma discussed the campaign.

"Players will continue to wear the APU throughout the season and spread the word," Huma said. "They're taking the reform effort to television, which has never been done. They've been using their bodies to make money for the people who run NCAA sports. Now, for the first time, they're using their bodies to push for basic protections at the very least."

9. Mariano Rivera Completes Magnificent Career, Walks Off Field with Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte

The best closer in baseball history stepped on the field on Sept. 22 but he wasn't there to close the game. Rather, he was there to close his unforgettable career. Escorted off the mound by his longtime teammates, Derek Jeter and Andy Pettitte, Rivera received a standing ovation from the crowd and then stepped out of the dugout for a well-deserved curtain call. "Mo" retired with the MLB record for career saves and five World Series rings.

To make his retirement even more emotional, the fans at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 22 were the last ones to see a player wear Jackie Robinson's number 42. Rivera was grandfathered in after Robinson's number was retired across the league.

10. A-Rod Stands Up Against MLB Executives' Exploitation of Latin American Players

This is not about Alex Rodriguez being a good guy because that's an entirely different topic. The only reason his name is involved in this top moment is because he stood up against the ridiculous antics of MLB executives who have been trying to use A-Rod and others as a scapegoat in the Biogenesis saga. Most of the players suspended by the league hail from the Dominican Republic, where performance-enhancing drugs are said to be easy to buy right at the store -- no prescription or anything needed. These players are exploited by the league -- off American soil -- in a low-risk and low pay, high-reward system that breeds players at much younger ages than in America. These players start at such young ages that these athletes wouldn't even be to get signed if they were in the United States.

The league also spent years turning a blind eye to performance enhancing drugs because the executives knew how much extra home runs would help sell tickets and put fans in the stands, thus making things more exciting to watch. Now, of course, the league is panicking.

So when A-Rod stormed out of a recent hearing when MLB Commissioner Bud Selig decided not to testify, it helped raise the issue to an even larger spotlight. This whole thing makes plenty of sense. The league is finally getting caught red-handed and to counteract this they're throwing all of the blame on the players.

For what it's worth, Rodriguez is continuing his fight against his 211-game suspension and a decision on his appeal is likely to come in January.