*Now if the Red Sox-Yankees game Sunday night would just freakin’ end, I could publish this thing! Finally… Ellsbury 3-run homer in 14th.
Baseball Quiz: So Ichiro is going to finish the year with about 185 hits, short of 200 for the first time in his career after 10 straight seasons at that mark. Name the other five in baseball history with 8 or more 200-hit seasons. [Hint: One began playing in the 1890s.] Answer below.
GO DEACS!!!
What a phenomenal finish to the FedEx Cup playoffs as Wake Forest’s Bill Haas took both the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup bonus of $10 million. As I’ve noted on more than one occasion, it’s been a tough stretch for Demon Deacon sports fans but suddenly Haas and fellow Wake alum, Webb Simpson, dominated the final events of the PGA Tour season; Simpson having won his first two tournaments recently and finishing No. 2 in the final FedEx Cup standings.
After years of tweaking the playoff format, the finish on Sunday could not have been more dramatic and Haas capped it off with a brilliant shot in the playoffs literally out of the water to save par, after which he prevailed on the next hole for the win over Hunter Mahan.
It was back in 2004 that I walked all six rounds of Q-School with Haas, including with his mother (father Jay was at an event in South Africa). Bill didn’t get his tour card that year, falling two shots shy, but did the following one. He’s a good guy, a class act, as is Webb Simpson. Today, Wake alum are justifiably proud of our boys. Now if the football team could just finish .500 and the basketball squad somehow avoid going winless, we’d be even happier.
College Football Review
All top three teams faced solid tests and passed them as No. 1 ranked Oklahoma beat Missouri, 38-28; No. 2 LSU traveled to West Virginia and whipped the No. 16 Mountaineers, 47-21; and No. 3 Alabama beat No. 14 Arkansas, as ‘Bama held Arkansas to 17 yards rushing on 19 carries.
In another big showdown, No. 7 Oklahoma State rallied to beat No. 8 Texas A&M (Yesss!), 30-29, as Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden threw for a school-record 438 yards on 47 of 60 passing.
In Oregon’s 56-31 road win over Arizona, running back LaMichael James had a school record 288 yards rushing on 23 carries and two touchdowns.
In two big ACC showdowns, No. 21 Clemson backed up its previous week’s win over Auburn by defeating No. 11 Florida State, 35-30, while No. 25 Georgia Tech outlasted North Carolina, 35-28.
But one of the more important contests took place in College Park, Md., as Temple demolished the Terps, 38-7, with running back Bernard Pierce rushing for 149 yards and a school record five touchdowns. Owls quarterback Chester Stewart was 9 for 9 passing for 140 yards.
Here’s the thing, though. The Maryland players were incredible assholes before the game, befitting a student body that has that kind of reputation (my niece who went there excluded), as they viciously taunted Temple. Well the Owls got their revenge.
“The torrent of boos heard inside a partially filled Byrd Stadium provided an appropriate soundtrack for a performance that Maryland fans will curse for years, an all-around unsightly effort that officially ended the honeymoon portion of the Randy Edsall era.
“After earning national attention for the design of their jerseys, the Terrapins on Saturday raised the collective eyebrows of the college football world for a different reason: a 38-7 loss to a Temple team that dominated them in every way statistics and the human eye can measure.”
For Temple, which could have easily defeated Penn State the week before but succumbed 14-10, it was their first win over an ACC team (an ACC team in the league at the time the game was played) ever, and the first win over a BCS conference member on the road since a win at Rutgers in 2002. But this is a different Temple squad, now 3-1, and one of the better stories early in the year.
The ACC suffered two other bad losses as Southern Miss defeated Virginia, 30-24, and Miami fell to Kansas State, 28-24. But Duke backed up its being a double-digit favorite for the first time in ages, against Tulane, as it won handily, 48-27.
No. 12 South Carolina dusted surprising Vanderbilt, 21-3; Vandy coming in 3-0.
Georgia defeated Ole Miss, 27-13, in a game that could be important down the road for Boise State, which defeated the Bulldogs the opening week of the season. Boise needs Georgia to play well the rest of the year to help the Broncos’ strength of schedule case.
Michigan’s Denard Robinson had 200 yards rushing in the Wolverines’ 28-7 thrashing of San Diego State as Michigan coach Brady Hoke faced his old squad.
Syracuse lucked out in beating Toledo, 33-30, in overtime.
Bad loss for Pitt as they go down to Notre Dame, 15-12, with both teams now 2-2.
Joe Paterno returned to the sidelines for Penn State as they manhandled Eastern Michigan, 34-6.
In Rutgers’ 38-26 victory over Ohio, junior wide receiver Mohamed Sanu set a Big East record with 16 catches for 176 yards and two touchdowns. The conference mark was 13. Sanu now has 36 receptions in Rutgers’ first three games. And as the Star-Ledger’s Steve Politi pointed out, it’s not like Rutgers runs a Texas Tech offense and is throwing it 60 times a game. Sanu had 16 of the team’s 22 completions!
Huge win for Lehigh over Liberty, 27-24.
And on the college realignment front, here’s hoping we’re done for the season so we can focus on the games instead. Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe was forced to resign, a prerequisite for Oklahoma committing to stay in the league, for now. Beebe, like the Big East’s commissioner, had become an easy whipping boy as the other conferences picked his schools off (Nebraska, Colorado, and now Texas A&M).
But stability still isn’t assured as Missouri refuses to issue a staunch statement of long-term support; Mizzou, like other schools, exploring opportunities such as the SEC. And who really knows what Texas et al will do in the end?
Latest AP Poll…and a change at the top.
1. LSU
2. Oklahoma
3. Alabama
4. Boise State
5. Oklahoma State
6. Stanford
7. Wisconsin
8. Nebraska
9. Oregon…Duckwear getting restless in sports drawer…wants to come out
10. South Carolina
11. Virginia Tech
13. Clemson…goes to Blacksburg next Sat. to face the Hokies
16. South Florida Cheerleaders
NFL…Week Three
I have to admit I was glued to the golf on Sunday afternoon, but was watching the scores on the Net and game action during commercials.
Before I turned the golf on, though, I did see the first half of the Giants-Eagles contest, won by New York, 29-16, as Eli Manning had four touchdown tosses in an inspired effort.
What was disconcerting, though, was watching Michael Vick, he having suffered a concussion the week before. He shouldn’t have been on the field, by my way of thinking, and it was painful seeing him knocked around, only to suffer a broken hand, non-throwing one.
But how about Buffalo and Detroit?! The Bills were down 21-0 to New England, who had beaten them 16 straight times, but Buffalo rallied back to win 34-31 as Tom Brady was picked off four times, the same number of interceptions he gave up all of last year!
And Detroit was down 20-0 at Minnesota, but the Lions came back to win 26-23 in overtime! So both are now 3-0 and the early season darlings of pro football fans everywhere.
As for my Jets, they suffered from my lack of attention due to the golf in losing out in Oakland, 34-24, to drop to 2-1 as Raiders running back Darren McFadden had 171 yards on 19 carries. In the first three games of the year, McFadden has 393 yards and a 6.4 average per carry.
Elsewhere, Panthers quarterback Cam Newton came down to earth after opening up his rookie season with back-to-back 400-yard passing performances. The only problem was they were both in defeat. This week the Panthers defeated the hapless Jaguars, 16-10, as Newton was a pedestrian 18-34, 158 yards.
And look who’s 2-1…Cleveland! The Browns edged the 0-3 Dolphins, 17-16.
Former Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Orlando Brown was found dead in his downtown Baltimore apartment. Brown was just 40 and the cause is unknown.
Brown started 119 games in a nine-year career, retiring after the 2005 season.
But it was on Dec. 19, 1999, while playing for Cleveland, that Brown was hit in the eye by a penalty flag thrown by referee Jeff Triplette. His eyesight was damaged, Brown sued the NFL, and supposedly settled for anywhere from $15-$25 million. He didn’t play for three seasons.
Ball Bits
–Unbelievable how the wild-card races tightened up. St. Louis, for example, was 10 ½ back in the WC race on Aug. 25 but after Sunday is just one game back of Atlanta. The Cards go to Houston for the final three, while the Braves host the Phillies.
And then there is the Boston Red Sox. Entering Sunday’ night’s contest against the Yankees, the second game of a day-night doubleheader, Boston’s lead in the wild-card race over Tampa Bay was down to a ½ game, Boston having gone 5-18 in September. But then they prevailed in the nightcap to get the lead back to a full game, three to go.
–How unusual was it that the Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers and Texas Rangers all clinched on Friday night? It was the first time since 1985 that three had clinched on the same day. This year was also the first time since 1986 that all six divisions were locked up with five days to go in the regular season.
And as Shu down Arizona way (“Feenix”) keeps telling me, what an incredible job done by Kirk Gibson in his first full year as manager of the D-Backs. They were 65-97 last year! Thru Sunday’s play they are 93-66.
I also didn’t realize Milwaukee’s title was their first divisional crown since 1982! Where did those 29 years go? To paraphrase Admiral Stockdale, “How many domestics have I drunk in that time and why am I still here?”
–It was back on Aug. 1 in this space that I wrote “I’m going out on a limb and say Matt Kemp wins the Triple Crown.” Looks like I’ll come close but it will be difficult for Kemp to close the deal and become the first National Leaguer to win it since Joe Medwick in 1937.
Kemp is tied with Albert Pujols in homers with 37, Kemp leads in RBI with 120 (five over Ryan Howard), but he now trails Ryan Braun (.333) and Jose Reyes (.331) in the batting race with Kemp at .324 after closing the gap to four points during the weekend.
–Close the books on Justin Verlander’s season as his 11-start winning streak came to an end on Saturday; Verlander giving up five earned runs in 7 innings in a no-decision. So he finishes 24-5, 2.40 ERA, with 250 strikeouts in 251 innings. Opposing hitters batted just .192 against him; one of the better seasons on the mound in our lifetime. In fact had he won on Saturday, he would have become the first pitcher in more than a century to earn 25 victories in no more than 34 appearances since Wild Bill Donovan accomplished the feat in 1907.
–In the National League, Los Angeles’ Clayton Kershaw wrapped up a helluva season in his own right going 21-5 to match Ian Kennedy’s 21 wins (21-4) for the league lead, while Kershaw was first in ERA (2.28) and strikeouts (248), ergo, pitching’s triple crown. Were Kemp to somehow prevail in his quest, the two Dodgers would be the first teammates to win their respective triple crowns in the same year since 1934 when New York’s Lou Gehrig and Lefty Gomez accomplished the feat.
–But here’s a shocker for you. Who finished the year with 12 consecutive quality starts (six innings or more, three earned runs or fewer), a longer streak than anyone in the majors? The Mets’ R.A. Dickey, who toyed with a no-hitter on Saturday before losing his bid in the seventh. Talk about a hard-luck pitcher. He finished the year at 8-13, but with a 3.28 ERA. There were some who questioned the Mets’ signing him to a two-year contract after his surprise 2010 campaign, but the knuckleballer did everything expected of him and then some.
[By the way, as all Mets fan know the franchise has never had a no-hitter and the streak now stands at 7,965 games at week’s end.]
–Washington Nationals phenom Stephen Strasburg had his first poor outing in his comeback in going just four innings while allowing two earned runs on five hits, though in 18 innings since his return, Strasburg still hasn’t walked a batter while fanning 14 to go with a 2.00 ERA.
–Former Atlanta Braves pitching coach Leo Mazzone, in an interview with SiriusXM, said that future Hall of Famer John Smoltz used to doctor baseballs with pine tar.
“One time Smoltzy had it on his shoes and I said, ‘John, you can’t keep bending over and touching your shoes all the time. Let’s put it someplace else! (He laughed).”
“The string of numbers looks as if it could have come from any major league baseball season in the past decade. Batting average: .266. On-base percentage: .336. Runs per game: 4.51.
“But the figures are from exactly a century ago, and they are slightly better than those that major leaguers are putting up this year.
“As baseball finishes up a fifth consecutive season with declining offense, its numbers have shrunk to levels just below those of 1911, the middle of the dead-ball era. Through Thursday, major league teams were averaging 4.28 runs a game while batting .255 with a .321 on-base percentage. Walks per game, even hit batters per game, are virtually identical a century apart….
“ ‘The game is being played differently, but what is remarkable is the relatively constant nature of runs scored,’ said John Thorn, an author and the official historian for Major League Baseball.
“Still, baseball is in one of its worst offensive slides since the American League joined the National League as a major league in 1901. This run of five consecutive seasons with declining offense, as measured by runs per game, is only the second such stretch in modern history; the only other similar slump was from 1939 to 1943.”
By the way, aside from the fact in 1911 you were in the midst of the dead-ball era, Phil Coffin notes that ballparks were huge – back then “the average dimensions in the major leagues were 362 feet down the left-field line, 467 to center and 337 in right. (Current stadiums average 332-405-329.) One ballpark, the Palace of the Fans in Cincinnati, was 390-510-450, which makes Citi Field look cozy.”
–Baseball’s owners and players appear to be ready to wrap up a new collective bargaining agreement well before the current one expires in December, so this is good. I also now like the idea of adding a second wild-card team, with a one-game playoff between the two. This would place far more of a premium on winning the division as well. One would think the ratings would be pretty strong for the sudden-death format.
–Steven Travers has written a book on Mets Hall of Famer Tom Seaver titled “The Last Icon: Tom Seaver and His Times,” and in an interview with the New York Post, Travers said this:
“I felt the 1969 Mets are the single most compelling sports story ever, and that Seaver’s public image at that time was as great as any athlete in history. Later he changed a bit and his image was not as shiny, but the ’69 Mets were a very innocent story. Free agency, Watergate, steroids – the country lost its innocence after 1969, but in ’69 the New York fans would run on the field in wide-eyed wonder, like the saved entering the Kingdom of Heaven.
“Many great New York athletes have followed Seaver, but they were often free-agent creations like Reggie Jackson, or tarnished by temptation like Lawrence Taylor…Derek Jeter is an icon and a hero, but I cannot help but note that Seaver made less than $80,000 in 1969, and if you look at the record was vastly underpaid all through the late 1970s, if you compare him with Jackson, Dave Concepcion, Pete Rose and others.
“Jeter, like so many, is paid so much more than his worth to society that folks have a hard time truly relating to him. The first years of Seaver’s career, the public identified with him and his wife Nancy in a personal way that few, if any, athletes have been known for in the years since.”
In fact, Travers writes that The Franchise was so well respected among his teammates that instead of the usual ballplayers messing around on the road, they remained faithful to their wives out of homage to Tom Terrific!
Golf Balls
–By his high standards it wasn’t a good year for Phil Mickelson, who often seems like he’s in a fog these days. If Tiger doesn’t come back strong next year, the sport still needs “Lefty” to capture the casual fan.
–Speaking of Tiger, late Sunday it was announced he had stolen Dustin Johnson’s caddie, Joe LaCava, who used to be on Freddie Couple’s bag. Interesting move.
–During the Tour Championship, we learned of an incredible stretch of putting by Luke Donald. The average PGA Tour pro 3-putts every 32 holes. This year, Donald has 3-putted on average every 83 holes.
However, he is currently on a run of 434 holes without a 3-putt! Ponder that, sports fans.
“I’m a traditionalist,” Mike Davis, the executive director of the USGA, told Golfweek. “I don’t like it. I can’t stand the look of it. But then you look at all the numbers, and you hear story after story of people saying, ‘If you take my belly putter away, I’m quitting the game.’”
Peter Dawson, chief executive of the R&A, said, “This issue of anchoring is what many have difficulty with. But it’s certainly not a proven way of putting better, and many people have tried many things over the years to get the ball in the hole, so we’re not in a lather about it at this point.”
–I was looking at the PGA Tour stats for 2011 and saw that Joe Durant led in driving accuracy, 75.88%, and I just thought of the years when Calvin Peete dominated this category, 80%+ every year, or so it seemed. I loved watching that guy.
–So I haven’t heard one person complain about the NBA season being in jeopardy, with owners canceling training camps and the first preseason games as the lockout continues. We have football and the baseball playoffs, after all. No one will miss it before December, if ever.
Dave D’Alessandro of the Star Ledger explains the coming timeline.
“(The) lockout casualties soon will spiral, just because time marches on. Next week, they’ll announce that the games scheduled for Oct. 16-23 will be vaporized. When the calendar turns to October, they’ll cancel all games scheduled for November [the regular season begins Nov. 1]. When we hit December, they’ll cancel the All-Star Game, and so on. And somewhere near Christmas, some of us will say, ‘You know what might be good right around now? An NBA season.’
“In other words, those of us who have spent too many years promoting the virtues of a 60-game regular season and a longer postseason will greet those mileposts with silent salutes and whispered amens.”
—Patrick Makau of Kenya broke the world record to win the Berlin Marathon on Sunday in 2 hours, 3 minutes, 38 seconds, which I’d be ecstatic with this coming December when I do a half-marathon down in Kiawah. It would kind of be fun to see just how fast this is as you yourself are running and a Makau roars by you. [Seeing as my training thus far is pathetic, I’m headed towards 2:15…ughhh.]
–Former UConn basketball star and NBA player, Tate George, was charged with running a $2 million Ponzi scheme that targeted professional athletes. George raised the money through his company, The George Group, after telling investors his real-estate development portfolio was $500 million, according to an FBI complaint charging him with wire fraud.
U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said, “In reality, The George Group had virtually no income generating operations.”
George was using funds to pay for his living expenses, including child-support payments. He faces 20 years in prison.
It was in 1990, though, where America learned of Tate George as he hit a dramatic game-winning shot against Clemson in the third round of the 1990 NCAA basketball tournament. He was selected in the first round by the New Jersey Nets but he had an inconsequential four-year NBA career.
–The BBC “uncovered evidence of secret payments of millions of dollars from Azerbaijan to international boxing organization World Series Boxing (WSB).
“Whistleblowers say that WSB’s chief claimed the money was in return for a guarantee that Azerbaijani fighters would win two boxing gold medals at the London 2012 Olympics.”
Azerbaijan, the WSB, and the International Amateur Boxing Association all deny the claims. But the boxing organizer at the Olympics, AIBA, admits an Azeri national paid $9 million for one of their competitions.
Yet another reason why Man will struggle mightily to crack the top 100 on the All-Species List again.
–Forbes estimates that Michael Jordan earned $60 million over the past year through his endorsement deals with Nike, Gatorade, Hanes, and others.
“A bear, possibly a grizzly, attacked an Idaho elk hunter armed with a bow and arrows who may have startled the animal near Yellowstone National Park on Saturday, wildlife officials said.
“The 40-year-old man was airlifted to a hospital suffering from a broken arm and wounds to his hand that required surgery, but his injuries were not life-threatening….
“(The) man and a hunting partner were seeking elk…south of the Montana border, when they startled a bear.
“The bear charged at the hunter, who was nearer the animal than his partner. The partner used a bear spray canister, which shoots an aerosol mixture of hot pepper, as the animal retreated.”
Officials said they would not go after the animal because, as one put it, “It’s very clear from the incident that the bear was surprised and ran away. It did not intend to kill or consume the men.”
Bar Chat’s microphone picked up the grizzly’s plea. “Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!”
But…remember the hunter a few weeks ago who was attacked and killed by a wounded grizzly in a Montana forest? It turns out the man was killed by a gunshot fired by a companion trying to save him, authorities said on Friday. No charges are expected against 20-year-old Ty Bell. The autopsy found bite marks on the victim’s leg caused by the bear. The bear also died, so recall that, technically, Ty Bell technically could have been charged in that killing as well because grizzlies are protected in the lower 48 states.
In other words, just a real bad stretch for Mr. Bell. Imagine what’s going through his head right now.
–And this just into our news room…it’s a doozy…from Casey Grove of the Anchorage Daily News.
“Moose hunter survives attack by grizzly”
“A moose hunter attacked by a grizzly bear north of the Denali Highway survived the severe mauling Monday [word got out slowly] after hiking to his camp, traveling to a boat downriver to a wilderness lodge, then getting an airlift via Alaska Air National Guard helicopter to an Anchorage hospital.
“Donald ‘Skip’ Sanford, 65, was hunting about five miles upriver from the Maclaren River Lodge when the bear attacked, according to Alaska State Troopers….
“Sanford walked away from camp Monday about 2 or 3 p.m. to find a hand-held radio he lost earlier, Dyson said.
“Sanford was on a game trail when he saw the bear stand up (friend Monty Dyson said). Sanford backed up, but the bear seemed to circle around him, Dyson said.
“Sanford told rescuers he first saw the grizzly about 75 yards away from him, said Joe Snyder, one of the many people at the lodge who helped treat Sanford and get him out of the wilderness. The bear quickly closed the gap between them, Snyder said.
“ ‘He turned around and the bear was about 20 yards away, and it was coming at him pretty fast with its head down,’ Snyder said.
“Sanford – a ‘tougher-than-nails’ former-Marine and a Vietnam veteran, Snyder said – had just enough time to fire one shot from his .30-06 rifle before the bear grabbed him. The bear’s claws dug into Sanford’s back, near his kidneys, Snyder said. It bit his head, tearing an ear and leaving deep wounds with its canine teeth at the base of Sanford’s skull, Snyder said.
“Dyson said he heard the shot and turned his own radio on.
“ ‘He was just mumbling. ‘Monty, a bear got me. A bear got me,’’ Dyson said. Dyson couldn’t figure out Sanford’s location, so he started walking toward where he’d heard the gunshot.
“ ‘Skip said he remembered his head being in the bear’s mouth, just going at him,’ Dyson said. ‘All he could do then was pray to the Lord that the bear would let go.’”
The rescue effort was incredible. Somehow Sanford survived a more than hour walk to camp, then a boat ride down to the lodge, where all the guests helped work on him before Alaska Air National Guard could reach the remote place. I mean picture the helicopter was refueled in the air.
Dyson, meanwhile, went back out to get Sanford’s backpack, which he’d dropped during the mauling: It was about 30 yards from a moose carcass, Dyson said.
“That bear was protecting a moose kill he had there, and Skip just came up on it, and I think that’s probably why the bear attacked him,” Dyson said.
–Anyone watching “Curb Your Enthusiasm” would have to agree the character played by actor JB Smoove is one of the best in television history. So the New York Post’s Page Six had this bit from JB.
“People always ask me, is Larry the same guy [as he appears on the show]. I followed Larry one day to make sure he was the same Larry David as on the show. I followed Larry to the wardrobe trailer. Larry went in there wearing a certain outfit. Larry came out wearing the same damn outfit. But a different color. I saw Larry David’s car on the show. He drives a Prius on the show. I followed Larry to the parking garage. Larry drives a Prius also. Larry David is Larry damn David. Same sneakers. Same everything.”
–You know what’s really good? Glen Campbell’s last album, “Ghost on the Canvas”. I’ve been listening to it all weekend. It actually debuted on the Billboard Pop Chart at No. 24.
Top 3 songs for the week 9/26/64: #1 “Oh, Pretty Woman” (Roy Orbison) #2 “Bread And Butter” (The Newbeats…blows) #3 “The House Of The Rising Sun” (The Animals…underrated group)…and…#4 “G.T.O.” (Ronny & The Daytonas) #5 “Remember (Walkin’ in the Sand)” (The Shangri-Las…great tune…and the girls filled out their sweaters as well as anyone) #6 “Do Wah Diddy Diddy” (Manfred Mann) #7 “Where Did Our Love Go” (The Supremes) #8 “Dancing In The Street” (Martha & The Vandellas…talk about a tune that has aged well…they’ll be playin’ this one 100 years from now) #9 “It Hurts To Be In Love” (Gene Pitney…in my car stereo…I do a good job on it…alone, of course) #10 “Save It For Me” (The 4 Seasons…as the years go I love their stuff more and more…so, your editor’s favorite all-time groups. 1. Beach Boys 1a. Four Seasons 3. Beatles 4. Dave Clark Five…then we break into a different era for No. 5….EARTH, WIND & FIRE!)
Baseball Quiz Answer: Five players aside from Ichiro with 8 or more 200-hit seasons.
Ichiro…10…2001-2010
Pete Rose…10…1965-66, 68-70, 73, 75-77, 79
Ty Cobb…9…1907, 09, 11-12, 15-17, 22, 24
Lou Gehrig…8…1927-28, 30-32, 34, 36-37
Willie Keeler…8…1894-1901
Paul Waner…8…1927-30, 32, 34, 36-37
