Chicago Cubs Quiz (1901-present): 1) When did the Cubbies
win their last Series title? 2) What four hurlers won the Cy
Young award? 3) Name the three whose uniform is retired. 4)
Who was the last to win a batting title? 5) Who was N.L. RBI
champ in 1943 and 44? 6) Post-1900, who is the only Cub to
throw two no-hitters? Answers below.
Last Day in Beirut
Sorry to be anti-climactic after my last note on finding myself in
Hizbollah territory, but my last day in Beirut was spent walking
miles on the promenade along the Mediterranean Sea, a
thoroughly enjoyable half-day as I hiked to a bar I had read about
in a guidebook, the Bay Rock Café that had one of the best views
of any watering hole I’ve been to in the world. And a bunch of
Almazas later, I hiked back. No one bothered me, no one gave
me dirty looks, no one cared who I was…as it should be, eh?
That evening it was back to my main man Ahmad, the Saudi
waiter at Café Mondeo. Cool kid, learned a ton from him over
my stay in this fascinating city.
Tuesday morning I flew from Beirut to Paris for my connecting
flight home and it was here, ironically, I was given a real hard
time. When the airline officials learned I had been in Beirut that
morning it set off all kinds of alarm bells. Bottom line, I went
through layer after layer after layer after layer after layer of
security and my bags were tagged a zillion times with black and
orange alert stickers. ‘Check this editor out’…they screamed. I
thought I was going to miss the connection. But here’s the funny
part. When I finally got to my gate I waited in line, got up to the
woman taking my boarding pass, and she said “Where are you
going?” “Newark” I said, clearly irritated at this point. “Well
you’re in the line for Tehran!” Doh! Hey, how was I to know
the two gates were next to each other?!
Origins of the Derby
Back in 1999, prior to the publishing of her book “Seabiscuit,”
author Laura Hillenbrand did an article for Smithsonian
magazine on the history of the Kentucky Derby.
In 1872, a former bank teller by the name of Meriwether Lewis
Clark, Jr., a grandson of the explorer William Clark, set off on a
tour of Europe to scrutinize the thriving horse-racing tracks of
the continent. Clark learned the most in Britain where the
Epsom Derby was already a popular event.
Upon his return, Clark presented a grandiose plan to the gentry
of Louisville, Kentucky. As Hillenbrand notes:
“Among white men Daniel Boone walked here first. From the
far side of the Cumberland Gap, he saw Kentucky spilling out
beneath him and believed he had found a ‘second paradise.’
Next came the Virginians, castoffs of primogeniture and masters
of horsemanship, the twin legacies of their royalist ancestors.
They gazed over the rippling landscape and saw an Eden for their
‘blooded’ horses.”
And then came the Pennsylvania Amish and Mennonites, who
carried with them Poa pratensis, hearty bluegrass, which had
been originally imported from the Eurasian steppes by William
Penn.
Back to Clark, his plan for an opulent track was then approved
by 320 Louisvillians, who ponied up $100 each. On 80 acres
leased from his uncles (from which the name Churchill Downs is
derived), Clark traveled around Louisville and sold his concept
of a Derby Day. The first was held May 17, 1875, drawing
12,000 spectators. Hillenbrand:
“Jockeys raced around an infield brimming with picnicking fans,
and the winners dismounted to snatch ornate silk bags, stuffed
with purse money, hanging by the finish line. Ladies, dressed to
the nines, were seated in a special section discreetly out of view
of betting pools. In Clark’s clubhouse spectators sipped mint
juleps and enjoyed the races from rockers on a veranda while
Strauss waltzes played.”
Aristides won the first Derby. Ansel Williamson, a former slave,
had been training Chesapeake for the distance and was using
Aristides, Chesapeake’s stablemate, as the rabbit. But when
Chesapeake got off to a poor start, Aristides hung in there to the
finish.
The Derby became a huge success in the early years until in 1886
“a petty squabble” nearly ended it. An influential New York
gambler and horse owner, James Ben Ali Haggin, brought some
ponies to Churchill Downs for the season and won the Derby
with his namesake, Ben Ali. But bookmakers had been locked
out and Haggin vowed to pack up his horses and leave unless
they returned. What happened next is confusing but in the end
Haggin carried through on his threat.
After returning to New York, Haggin then convinced the Eastern
racing establishment to boycott Churchill Downs. The Derby
suffered enormously, let alone Churchill Downs itself, and by
1894 the Louisville Commercial was referring to the prize event
as “a contest of dogs,” Kentucky not having developed its own
great horses as yet. That summer the track went bankrupt. Five
years later, Meriwether Clark was found dead in a hotel room,
the pistol still in his hand.
New owners came in but the boycott continued. In 1902 new
owners were needed yet again and Col. Matt J. Winn stepped
forward. But it wasn’t until five years later, following a failed
attempt by the Louisville mayor and city council to ban gambling
(specifically “bookmaking”), that Winn, after a great legal tussle
over city statutes, won the ability to employ “pari-mutuel”
wagering, which through the use of machines was being used in
France. Despite all kinds of mechanical problems, the 1908
Derby was the first to have pari-mutuel wagering and the total
bet was five times greater than the previous year.
But Winn was still in real need of a headliner, with the Eastern
establishment still not participating, and in 1913 a long shot by
the name of Donerail “dropped from out of the clouds to win the
Derby in what remain’s the race’s greatest shocker. Donerail
paid a stunning $184.90 for a $2.00 bet, landing the race in the
national news. Seizing the opportunity, Winn traveled back East
and turned on the charm, trying to end the quarter-century
boycott of his race. In 1915 came the breakthrough: Winn
convinced the influential New Yorker Harry Payne Whitney to
run his mighty filly Regret in the Derby. Regret simply
annihilated the boys, becoming the first filly to win the race.
Whitney was euphoric. ‘I do not care if she never wins another
race, or if she never starts in another race,’ he said. ‘She has won
the greatest race in America, and I am satisfied.’” [Hillenbrand]
The boycott was over and the Derby prospered. By the mid-
1920s, 80,000 were crammed into the track and by ‘31 half the
nation was tuning in on the radio for the race. And then in 1935,
when a colt named Omaha won the Derby plus the other two big
races of the spring, New York’s Belmont Stakes and Maryland’s
Preakness Stakes, writer Charlie Hatton coined the term Triple
Crown.
[And with that I re-file Laura Hillenbrand’s article into the Bar
Chat folder marked “May” because next year I’m going to pick
up the story in the mid-1930s…just a little trick the editor has
learned to employ over six years of writing these award-winning
pieces.]
Stuff
–Derby Drivel:
Diane Crump was the 1st female jockey to ride in the Derby,
finishing 15th out of 17 on Fathom in 1970.
And you know those 12.5-ounce mint julep glasses? On Derby
Day the track sells 80,000 at $8 apiece, each one being marked
up for that year’s event. According to Kerry Hannon in U.S.
News & World Report, however, the old ones, pre-1974 when
the Derby began licensing the glasses around the country, have
become real collectors’ items. So if you’re checking out garage
sales this summer, keep your eye out for the 1940 model in
particular which fetches up to $16,500. I have an old Preakness
one from way back, thanks to my brother partying at the event.
Time to check it out more thoroughly.
[By the way, there is one friend of mine who is disappointed I
came back from Lebanon, that being Trader George. You see, I
had redone my will to make sure he got my Ed Kranepool
tumbler from the mid-1960s. [The Krane played for the Mets.]
And Johnny Mac was going to get all my other Mets
memorabilia. Alas, they’ll have to wait until my next adventure
….or until I get run over while crossing the street here in town.]
In the last 25 Kentucky Derbies, only two favorites have won,
but both in the last five years…Smarty Jones in 2004 and
Fusaichi Pegasus in 2000. [USA Today]
–So I was able to follow the sports scene fairly well except for
the days I was in the air, like all day Tuesday from Beirut back
home, and a few days ago Barry Bonds announced on his web
site, the only vehicle through which he communicates these days,
that he had had his knee drained again to prevent infection and
that everything looked positive. But then Johnny Mac passes
along a report Wednesday that Bonds had actually undergone a
third surgery on his right knee and that the earliest he might be
back is July. [Bonds did state this on his site as well.]
It turns out that the infection was discovered after the knee was
drained on Friday.
Well, it would appear flesh-eating bacteria has set in and Babe
Ruth’s position as #2 on the all-time home run list is secure until
A-Rod approaches him down the road. Hammerin’ Hank
obviously need not worry, either. The bacteria will run through
Bonds’s leg quicker than Montezuma’s revenge….poof! Career
over.
–Former major league pitcher Tom House claims he used
steroids during his career and that they were widespread all the
way back in the 1960s and 1970s, according to the San Francisco
Chronicle. Now any fan knows the players were taking
amphetamines but House’s claim is disappointing. He also said
six or seven pitchers on each team took them as the drugs helped
improve recovery time, but did not improve velocity on the
fastball.
Speaking of pitchers, and why you should seriously doubt Roger
Clemens’s performance the past few years, Minnesota Twins
reliever Juan Rincon tested positive and will be suspended for 10
days. He’s the first major league hurler to be found out.
–Hey, did you notice that Chicago White Sox pitcher Jon
Garland is 5-0 already? The last three seasons Garland was 12-
12, 12-13, and 12-11 with a 4.50 ERA. A key to his success has
been allowing just six walks in 39 innings. As I write this the
ChiSox as a team are 19-7.
–There is no bigger bum in the sport of baseball these days
(aside from anyone caught using steroids) than Detroit’s Bobby
Higginson. Higginson parlayed a 30 HR, 102 RBI season in
2000 into a multi-year deal that is paying him $8,850,000 this
season. Since that 2000 campaign, though, he has averaged
about 14 homers and 60 RBI and this year Higginson is off to a
.087 start (2 for 23 thru Tuesday). Let’s go over his contract
again…$8,850,000.
–And then there’s catcher Mike Piazza of the New York Mets;
currently hitting .205, also thru Tuesday, in 83 at-bats while
making $16 million this season. This guy selfishly didn’t want
to move from behind the plate, at least once or twice a week
going back a few years, and as catchers are wont to do he is
breaking down faster than an Iranian apartment in an earthquake.
This guy is about to become a primo whipping boy at Shea this
summer, along with teammate pitcher Tom Glavine, 1-4 with a
7.00 ERA. Mr. Glavine is only making $10.8 million this year
so I guess he can be excused.
–Add the New Jersey Nets Jason Collins to the bum list. I don’t
know how many $millions this 7-footer is making but he
averages a whopping 6 points and 6 rebounds a game for over 30
minutes of play, including a superb 1 for 2 shooting effort in 34
minutes in the Nets’ final playoff game. So what if he went to
Stanford and he’s capable of speaking in complete sentences. I
want production, baby!
–We have us another candidate for “Idiot of the Year”.
Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. Winslow was a
top draft pick in 2004 but broke his leg in a Week 2 contest. So
while still rehabbing in preparation for this coming fall, he
purchased a motorcycle and was learning how to ride it in a
parking lot when he hit a curb and was thrown off, sustaining
internal injuries and damage to his shoulder and knee. The
standard NFL contract forbids players from taking part in any
activity “which may involve a significant risk of personal injury”
so Winslow should be forced to return a $4.4 million signing
bonus he received in March. And so we formally place the
“Idiot” label on him and now Winslow has to wait along with the
other candidates to see if he can take home the coveted Bar Chat
award at year end.
–But wait….here’s another idiot; the Washington Wizards’
Kwame Brown. Whereas Jason Collins is simply a 7-foot stiff
(while being a genuinely nice guy), Brown is a 7-foot supreme
jerk who was just suspended by the Wizards in the midst of a
heated playoff series over “philosophical differences,” i.e., he
was insubordinate. Brown had rejected a $30 million, four-year
contract extension from the Wizards last fall, thinking he’d
receive more as a free agent this summer. Ha! Not now.
–Now after discussing all these bums, it’s refreshing to talk
about a real class act, senior golfer Jim Thorpe. Last weekend he
won his 10th career title on the Champions’ circuit and he is
donating his entire $247,000 in winnings to a building fund for
Community Crossing church in Heathrow, Florida. Good for
him. It was also interesting that Lee Trevino called him Saturday
night after watching Thorpe’s second round (most senior events
only being three) and gave Thorpe some putting advice which
Jim took to heart.
–Johnny Mac reminded me of an omission in discussing the
death of former pitcher Earl Wilson the other day. Wilson,
you’ll recall, slugged 35 home runs (including two as a pinch-
hitter) but he did this in just 740 at-bats, a 21.1 ratio. Joe
DiMaggio hit 361 in 6821 at-bats, by comparison, an 18.9 ratio.
[More baseball trivia from J. Mac next chat.]
–Good thing I got back from Beirut in time for the “American
Idol” expose and the affair “pint-sized” Paula Abdul had with
contestant Corey Clark.
–Yikes…you see this item? An Australian woman pleaded
guilty to killing her boyfriend because he called a phone-sex
hotline.
“The court heard Michael Campbell, 27, told Amanda Jane
Griffin he was speaking to a friend but she hit the redial button
and was connected to a sex hotline.” [Agence France-Presse]
Well, ya see, sports fans, Mr. Campbell picked the wrong broad
to mess around with because Ms. Griffin proceeded to stab him
to death.
–From the pages of June’s edition of Runners World I learned
that muscle strength can be maintained quite well for about four
weeks if you work out at least twice during that time. Muscle
endurance, though, fades faster than muscle strength.
According to Dr. William O. Roberts of the University of
Minnesota, those who get six hours or less sleep have 50 percent
less immunity protection than those who get eight hours per
night. [I’m doomed then….I only get about five and I’m fading
fast right now due to jet lag……..zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz]
zzzzzzzzzzzzzz….we’re back…..a question was asked of Stasia
Wieber, M.D., Mount Sinai Medical Center, “Is there a benefit to
napping?”
Dr. Wieber replies in part: “Naps should be no longer than 30
minutes, and you should take them before 3 p.m. so your ability
to sleep at night isn’t disrupted.”
Finally, again from Runners World, for you distance runners out
there Barilla has come up with a new product, Barilla Plus pasta
that adds more carbs, omega-3 fats and fiber. You’ll thank me
later. As for me, I’m taking a nap……….
Top 3 songs for the week of 5/9/70: #1 “American Woman”
(The Guess Who) #2 “ABC” (The Jackson 5) #3 “Let It Be”
(The Beatles)
Chicago Cubs Quiz Answers: 1) The Cubs last won the Series in
1908. Since then they’ve been on the losing end of seven others
– 1910, 1918, 1929, 1932, 1935, 1938, 1945. 2) Cy Young
winners: Fergie Jenkins (1971), Bruce Sutter (1979), Rick
Sutcliffe (1984), Greg Maddux (1992). 3) Retired uniforms:
Ernie Banks #14, Billy Williams #26, Ron Santo #10. 4) Bill
Buckner was the last to win the batting title, 1980 (.324). 5) Bill
Nicholson led the league in RBIs both 1943 and 44 (128,122). 6)
Post-1900, the only Cubbie to throw two no-hitters was Ken
Holtzman (1969, 1971).
Next Bar Chat, Tuesday.
