RIP Bobby Thomson

The man who hit baseball's "shot heard 'round the world" has died.  Bobby Thomson was 86. For my money, there will never be a more dramatic home run hit, nor will there ever be a greater moment in sports.

Think about it.  Baseball was king of the world at that point.  The NFL was a distant second to college football.  The NBA was in its infancy, and the NHL was a niche.  Horse racing was still super-popular and boxing was huge but baseball was IT.  No other sports mattered (ah...what a wonderful world).

New York was the center of the baseball world in 1951.  The mighty Yankees awaited the winner of the three-game playoff between the Dodgers (of Brooklyn) and the Giants (of upper Manhattan).  The Giants were able to rally from a 13 game deficit in August to force the playoff with the Dodgers, the Boys of Summer, who had been cruising.

Of course, much evidence has come to light to indicate that the Giants had an elaborate cheating system, in which the team was stealing signs.  So a little gamesmanship was enforced?  Let's not let that get in the way of a great story.

But the Giants did force the playoff, and were on the verge of being eliminated in three games.  The Giants started that faithful ninth inning down 4-1.  Yet Don Newcombe was done - just finished, allowing singles to Alvin Dark and Don Mueller, and an RBI double to Whitey Lockman.  Dodgers manager Chuck Dressen brought on Ralph Branca to pitch to Thomson, and the two have been linked ever since.

Incidentally, it shouldn't surprise that I'm not a big fan of Russ Hodges' call that can be described "Gus Johnson-esque."  Still you can't top the enthusiasm of the moment.  There were four broadcasters on that day - October 3, 1951 - and I own three of them.  Hodges, of course, is the most famous.  Red Barber used his typical professional style, which would drive the modern-day fan nuts.  He was not excited by the moment.  Gordon McClendon, a DJ who started up the Liberty Network, did his call, and it was quite like Hodges, though not nearly as famous.  The fourth was the late Ernie Harwell, who did the call on NBC, and said that "only Mrs. Harwell knows what I said."  That's because the tape doesn't exist.

Oh, and if you don’t know what happened, well fate (and Karma) are often cruel and just.  The Giants may have won the pennant in 1951, but they got hammered by the Yankees in the World Series – the last hurrah for an old veteran named Joe DiMaggio, and the first Classic for a kid from Oklahoma named Mickey Mantle.

Some links for you - '>'>Joe Posnanski ranks the more famous home runs ever, and I like what he did.  He put Bill Mazeroski at number one, and put Thomson at HIGHER than number one!  I will put Thomson's Miracle at Coogan's Bluff at number one as well, with Mazeroski second.  We can go from there.  Joe Carter, Pudge Fisk, Kirk Gibson, Derek Jeter (or Tino Martinez or Scott Brosius), Kirby Puckett, and even the Great Bambino (and many others) fall well short of the magnitude and drama of the Thomson home run.

Kyle Rowland at Bleacher Report ranks the ten most dramatic play-by-play calls ever, with "The Shot" ranked at number four.  I'll spare you the buildup, as he puts Sean McDonough's call of the Sid Bream slide in the 92 NLCS at number one.  Yeah.  That’s about all I have to say about that.

Vin Scully was at the Polo Grounds in 1951, and Tom Hoffarth has his reaction and the reaction of others to Thomsons’ passing.

Lastly, the New York Daily News has the basic facts about Thomson, a very modest, seemingly nice man (I never personally met him) who handled his fame with great charm and class.

I'm out of here for a couple of days - off camping.  Looking forward to time with Sean, time with family, and anxiously waiting for Carrie to join us.

Source: http://steelyankee.blogspot.com/2010/08/rip-bobby-thomson.html

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Was Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Named For The Wrong Person?

I'm going to take a little bit of blogetic license with this one. Today's (official) topic is language, but I'm going to talk about sports and neurology...and tie those into names, those being a part or perhaps a product of language.

A new study has been done on ALS at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Bedford, MA and the Boston University School of Medicine (in Boston, of course.) The study indicates that NFL players and boxers who have suffered conditions such as concussions and other brain trauma exhibit symptoms similar to Lou Gehrig's Disease (known scientifically as ALS.) In order to determine whether one has (or has died from) ALS, specific markings must be found in the spinal cord. These markings were not found in the football players or boxer.

Gehrig's case in particular is less clear considering that he was cremated and his ashes laid to rest in a cemetery. The difficulty in his situation is that his spinal cord cannot be tested for the ALS markings. It is known, however, that he was subjected to a physically aggressive college football and major league baseball career that did result on several occasions in head trauma. So, in effect, Gehrig's true illness and cause of death may never be known.

New Fact: Lou Gehrig may not have actually died from Lou Gehrig's Disease (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis aka ALS.)

Source: http://learnsomethingnewblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/was-amyotrophic-lateral-sclerosis-als.html

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No Girls Allowed*

First off I must say that my Shame My Sisters Campaign has worked splendidly. They have both agreed in principal to visit. They have no idea how excited I am for that. I was smiling so big when I saw their comments. And let me reiterate, how much I love my sisters, and how awesome they are. I'm glad my Washington friends will finally get to meet them.

I'm a little late on this post. Dare I say, I have been crazy busy working and playing I haven't blogged in a few days. Last fall, I came across a photo essay by Bill Simmons about the National Sports Collectors Convention.  It's basically sports nerd heaven. The asterix in this title refers to the fact that although no girls were allowed on the trip, evidence shows that no girl would want any part of it. Just a bunch of guys wandering around looking at baseball cards, autographs and all manner of sports memorabilia.  When Bill said that next year's event would be in Baltimore, I knew I was in. I told JJ, Dan, and Joe and they too were excited. We looked forward to this for a year.

I decided to make Saturday a Man's day. That meant sports, fighting, and meat. My kind of day. Of course one of my most favorite activities is play flag football. I love it. I've loved it since sixth grade and would play everyday if I could. Even though it was really hot, we still had a very competitive game. Of course I love to win, but I really hate losing. That being said, I don't really remember what the result was, but I can safely say, I probably threw some touchdowns, and probably a few picks as well.

Not from Saturday, but you get the idea

I got back from football and Joe, Dan and I headed up. JJ and Jennifer met us there. We knew were going to have a great time the moment we walked in and saw one of Joe and Dan's personal hero's, Nats legend Dmitri Young. Dmitri took a moment from his burrito to stop and chat with Joe and Dan. I doubt that Dmitri realized that he was in the presence of two of his most loyal supporters. He was also nice enough to stop for a snap shot.

Just behind that I believe they had every baseball card you could possibly imagine. I had decided early on that if I could get a Vlad Guerrero game used bat that I would. I set myself a budget and I was on my way. I didn't even know how to tackle everything. There were so many vendors. I finally found a vendor who had a a game used bat, but it was way out of my price range. I did however take a picture with it. 

According to her mom my niece Savannah liked how I looked in this picture. She is so right.

I am a fan of west coast teams, so there wasn't as much for sale of the Angels, Niners, Cougars, Lakers persuasion, but I did find some treasures here and there. One of the booths that I thought was the coolest was the Championship Ring booth. I guess for some of the guys who don't care about their rings, or are low on cash, sell them, and you can buy them. There was a kid at the booth who was wearing an Angels  hat. I of course started to chat with him, and he showed me the 2002 Angels Championship ring. Heck, he even let me try it on.

I told him that I hadn't seen a ton of Angels stuff and that I was thinking of buying a Tim Salmon autograph, if I could find one. Low and behold this young huckster had one. We negotiated, and I walked away with an authenticated autograph of my third favorite Angel. We met up with JJ and he told me there was a vendor who had a Steve Young autographed picture from his BYU days. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to buy it. It's a great picture of him running the ball against UCLA. In the end I ended up with an Angels/USA lapel pin, a Tim Salmon starting line up action figure as well as a Vlad card and Steve Young card for Nikki Sixx, and another Steve Young card for me. I felt good about my purchases and even managed to come in under my budget.

They even had the Honus Wagner baseball card. The last time it sold it pulled in 2.8 million. If only my Wally Joyner collection would be worth that.

After we looked at everything and were completely exhausted from walking all over the Baltimore Convention center, we headed to heart of Baltmore to Chaps Pit Beef for some lunch. We saw a lot more than we expected to in the parking lot of Chaps, and there are still a few questions and one in particular that need to be answered.

Our manly day was not over, as we headed back to Arlington, grabbed Scott, and Dan and headed to Bailey's to watch UFC 117. 

It was just the kind of manly day a guy needs once in a while.

Source: http://petechat.blogspot.com/2010/08/no-girls-allowed.html

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'To hit the ball and touch 'em all, a moment in the sun..'

Sorry to hear today of the death of Bobby Thomson, the Scot who hit what might be the most famous - or at least the most romanticized - home run in baseball history.

I've been a baseball fan since I first came to the US in 1982 and I love the game's history; the sense that every season and every player is connected to those who went before, and that history is especially rich here in New York.

The fact that Thomson and Ralph Branca subsequently made a career of telling their respective stories - together - on the after-dinner circuit shows the power of that moment, and its place in the collective national psyche, as something much bigger, even, than them as individuals.

(I also have a ball autographed by former Dodger and Cub Andy Pafko, over whose head Thomson's drive soared that day before leaving the field; as well as an autographed photo of the player waiting on deck to bat behind Thomson, a young man by the name of Willie Mays)

The event was so dramatic and resonant and so perfectly of its time - after all it is the call on radio, not TV, that is remembered - as to define these two mens' lives for the rest of their days. It was clearly the stuff of epic tales, and it deserved a master storyteller to truly bring a version of it to life for those of us who obviously weren't there.

Nearly a half-century later, Don DeLillo's expansive and brilliant "Underworld" perfectly captured a fictional, but very real, drama of that day in its jaw-dropping introduction.

It might be as close to the "great American novel" as it's possible to get, and it's still, by some measure, the best book I've ever read.

************************************

And talking of slowing things down, here's a very cool way to make Justin Bieber just a little more palatable...

When I first listened to this, I have to admit I was completely spellbound. It reminded me immediately of Sigur Ros, or Terry Riley, or Hans Zimmer's remarkable score for 'Inception' or of something Rhys Chatham might do. But, whale sounds or not, I couldn't turn it off.

Source: http://beatbelow.blogspot.com/2010/08/to-hit-ball-and-touch-em-all-moment-in.html

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My List Of The Ugliest Sports Uniforms Ever

A friend of mine sent me a link, he thought it was funny and he knew that anything about sports is something I love to blog about…this one took the words out of my mouth. I mean who would in her right mind wear such an atrocious knows that anything about sports is something I love to blog about. jersey. Here’s what I am talking about…see for yourself and let me know that I am wrong in my observation. Atrocious, dreadful, appalling, hideous…what other adjectives do you want me to say? I wonder what was on the mind of Guazzini when he approved this new shirt - one of the official game jerseys- of Paris pro rugby club, Stade Français.

On the other hand, team owner Guazzini has been in pursuit to find younger, affluent new enthusiasts and have also courted the large gay-community in Paris. Indeed he has even made major changes such as embracing pink as an official team color, have orchids as one of its symbols, and marketing a team calendar with all the players in the nude as models. I would have to say that he was actually effective in gaining more fans, not only gays but also women and heterosexual backers too. But this latest jersey, dubbed “the Crowd”, worth $102 is indubitably the worst marketing strategy he has made.

But Guazzini is not alone in making this maistake. There are so many out there that could be the ugliest sports uniforms ever in the history of mankind. Well, some may disagree with my choices, I can only say we all have our own opinions, and these uniforms, IMHO, are the most appalling uniforms ever worn by a professional sports team. It honestly makes me wonder how the players really felt when they were wearing it. So here it is, my list of the ugliest sports uniforms ever:

Houston Astros, 1975 – 1993

The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team located in Houston, Texas. In the 1975 season, they introduced the new-look uniforms for Astros with multi-shade stripes of orange, red and yellow in front and back with a large dark bluestar over the stripes. The same stripes run down the pant legs. Although the critics criticized it, the public though loved it and it and versions of it even started to appear at the high school and little leagye leve. I can understand how the colors look very bright, enough to be appreciated by kids, but I have to disagree because I really don’t like it, most especially not on a baseball team. And the team certainly did not win championships during the years they were wearing this team wear.

Pittsburgh Pirates, 1976 – 1986

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a major league baseball (MLB) team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Aside from the color, the cap with stripes make quite a look that’s not suited for a baseball team but more for the circus or a band or drum corps. It’s no wonder that the Pirates had a hard time winning any game while wearing this sports uniform; they were even regarded as the worst baseball team during the mid ‘80s.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1976-1995

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (often shortened to Bucs) are a professional American Football team based in Tampa, Florida. Tangerine on a team doesn’t do much for fan support or respect. Unfortunately, it didn’t do well on their journey to the championships because since they wore that sports uniform in 1976 they started losing big, losing their first 26 games and suffered 14 consecutive losing seasons. It was only in 1996 when the new owner Malcolm Glazer jettisoned the new uniforms to oblivion and hired a new coach when they started picking up again.

John Daly

John Daly is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour who had bouts with his weight as well as other misdemeanors. He had a lap-band surgery in 2009 which limits the amount of food intake and so he said he is down to less than 200lbs since the surgery. Also at that time when he was with the European Tour he started wearing the Loudmouth Golf Apparel which he now officially endorses. I think maybe he liked the so loud colors and designs. Whew!

Vancouver Canucks, 1978 – 1984

The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. What I consider a very bad taste of team wear consisted of a huge yellow, red-orange, and black striped V coming down from the shoulders. The V suggested “victory” according to designers though it never gave the team that. What it actually gave was several criticisms for being one of the most unpopular in NHL history. Just like other teams with hideous sports uniforms, the Canucks was a mediocre player having only one significant playoff which was in the post-season of 1982.

Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Chicago, Illinois. White Sox have always been noted for uniform innovations that have really been the best such as putting players’ last names on the back of the jerseys. But when they came out in 1976 for a doubleheader against Kansas City Royals wearing a new team uniform, it was something unmatched. The new uniforms featured collars and were designed to be worn out, not tucked in, and worse they were wearing shorts. Not only were they critiqued for that but it really is not practical to wear shorts at play because it is not conducive to sliding, which is a way of life for baseball. After a lot of teasing from the rest of the league, the Sox changed their team wear.

Denver Broncos

The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. When the Broncos first appeared for a game, their original uniforms were criticized by the public. Imagine wearing white and mustard yellow jerseys with vertically striped socks on brown pants with satin sheen and a brown helmet. Two years later the Broncos got rid of their ugly uniform and in celebration they held a public bonfire to burn the striped socks. In 2009, they wore this set of throwback uniforms again in honor of their 50th anniversary season as one of the eight original American Football League team.

The trend that I realized while writing about these ugly uniforms is that unwittingly how horrendous their uniforms look affected how the team played. Yes, how great one play is determined by how hard they trained for it. But, we all know that when we feel good and look good we also perform better. And maybe that is how these players felt when they were wearing these revolting uniforms.

What do you think? Share me your point of view by leaving a comment. Thanks and have fun reading one of my lighter blogs.

Source: http://dailyscoreboardpost.blogspot.com/2010/08/my-list-of-ugliest-sports-uniforms-ever.html

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