NHL Quiz: The other day, Washington’s Alex Ovechkin scored his 50th goal, giving him five seasons with 50 or more, tying him with Pavel Bure, Phil Esposito, Bobby Hull, Brett Hull and Steve Yzerman. Name the five with six or more such seasons. Answer below.
The Masters
There is no doubt that without Tiger, and without the likes of Phil Mickelson making the cut, there was a severe lack of star power this weekend. But then there was Jordan Spieth.
“Golf has awaited Spieth’s arrival as it has few other players. He was not only given (an) exemption in his home town of Dallas to play the (Byron) Nelson (when he was 16), but the slim 6-foot-1 Spieth and Woods are the only players to win multiple U.S. Junior titles. He was a star at Texas and for the 2011 Walker Cup team. Washington saw him lead the AT&T National at Congressional after two rounds and finish sixth. Just a month later he became the first teenager since Ralph Guldahl in 1931 to win on the PGA Tour.
“Nobody here is shocked that Spieth is on the leader board. After all, the three people who have given him tips on how to play Augusta National this week indicate his status – present and future. Who has helped him? ‘Carl Jackson, first and foremost, longtime caddie for Ben Crenshaw,’ said Spieth, who is polished beyond his years (and probably beyond ours, too). ‘I told Michael (Greller, his caddie) I was going to buy a T-shirt for him that says, ‘Carl says,’ because he keeps saying that to me all the time out there.
“ ‘Mr. Crenshaw was very helpful. I had a little talk with Mr. Nicklaus and he helped me out – Wednesday evening at a dinner here…I don’t really want to get into specifics about what they said. But, yeah, certain things.’
“Knowing Jack, it might have been something confidence building, like Bobby Jones’ words to him when he was young about how great he could be and, by the way, don’t wait to get started, just win.”
However, it wasn’t to be a special moment for 20-year-old Spieth. After the 7th hole on Sunday, he did hold a two-stroke lead.
Spieth -8
Bubba Watson -6
But then Spieth went bogey, bogey, while Bubba was going birdie, birdie.
So after nine it was….
Watson -8
Spieth -6
Spieth cut it to one after 11 but then it was over…and undramatic. From No. 13 on, the leaderboard didn’t change.
Watson -8
Spieth -5
Jonas Blixt -5
What the sport needed was for Spieth to win. Hopefully he breaks through in the remaining three majors. As he put it after, “I’m hungry.”
Golf is in a major transition period, unless you tell me Tiger comes back from surgery and returns to peak form. The 1980s were not a good period for the sport and it’s beginning to look like that again. That’s why one of these new guys, hopefully Jordan, needs to grab the sport by the balls. Otherwise ratings will crater. That’s just a fact.
–The win was Bubba’s sixth on the PGA Tour.
–Once again 54-year-old Fred Couples couldn’t continue the magic. In the hunt after 36, only to collapse, though this time he got to within 2 shots of the lead early in the final round, but then went 5-over from there.
–Kudos to 50-year-old Miguel Angel Jimenez, who finished fourth by himself.
–And to 56-year-old Bernhard Langer, who finished T-8. Amazing.
—60-year-old Craig Stadler called it a day. Boy, the relationship with son Kevin, who finished T-8 in his first Masters, is complicated. I feel bad for Craig. I’ve read a lot of stuff on the two but my opinions aren’t appropriate at this time.
—64-year-old Tom Watson is at a point where next year could be his final walk after going 78-81.
—Ben Crenshaw should have called it a day this year after an 83-85.
–On a different topic, according to a study by Sky Sports, 75% of clubs in Great Britain have seen a decline in female members. Female membership in clubs throughout G.B. and Ireland is down 20% since 2005. The oldest women’s golf club in the world, Lundin Ladies GC in Fife, which dates to 1891, has seen its membership tumble by half.
All this as the Royal & Ancient Golf Club said it will allow a vote on female members, which some say is coming way too late.
Ball Bits
–With Tampa Bay left-hander Matt Moore slated for Tommy John surgery, he will become the 13th major league pitcher to undergo it since spring training; six fewer than all of last season and three under the annual average from 2000 to 2011. Of course Atlanta has suffered the most early on with starters Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy, along with reliever Cory Gearrin needing TJ surgery.
But as a story by Jorge L. Ortiz of USA TODAY Sports notes:
“A study published in December in The American Journal of Sports Medicine showed an 83% rate of return to the majors among 179 pitchers who had the operation and a 97.2% rate of return to pitching in the pros. Only five pitchers in the sample failed to make it back.”
Stan Conte, part of the Dodgers’ medical staff, “said from 2000 to 2011 the average number of these surgeries among major leaguers fell just short of 16, then the figure skyrocketed to a record 36 in 2012 before dropping to 19 in 2013.”
But it’s the number early this year that is concerning, or at least strange. Conte says from 2003 to 2013, most of the surgeries came in June, not April and May.
“Velocities are way up. More guys are throwing cutters, more guys throwing sliders. Something has to give. Unfortunately, it seems like the elbow, which sucks.”
Pierzynski also cites a trend among kids, who he says “are kind of born and bred to be pitchers from 5 years old, 6 years old, and throw so much. It stinks.”
In a piece in Sports Illustrated that looks at the number of TJ surgeries since 2004, the Braves lead with 12 among their major leaguers, the A’s 11, and the Cards and Mets with 10. The Angels, Brewers and Rays only had 2.
–The Yankees beat the Red Sox at the Stadium on Thursday night, 4-1, but the focus was on Yankee hurler Michael Pineda, who won his first game since 2011. Pineda clearly had a substance on his hand to help his grip, pine tar, as it turned out, but the Red Sox never objected to it during the game, most likely because two of their pitchers, Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester, had been accused of using a substance to improve their grip on the baseball last season.
Both Yankee and Boston telecasts showed the dirty palm but then when Pineda came out for the fifth, his hand seemed clean. The crew chief of the umpires said nothing was brought to their attention.
For his part, Pineda said it was just dirt. Red Sox pitcher Chris Capuano said after, “All of us (use substances on the mound, though the rules ban it), especially when it’s cold early in the season.”
Major League Baseball opted not to do anything, though it said it gave the Yankees a brief talking to on Friday.
–The Angels suffered a big blow with Josh Hamilton landing on the disabled list for up to two months after he tore a ligament in his left thumb. Hamilton, he of the monster contract (five years, $125 million), was off to a terrific start, but he hurt himself with a headfirst slide into first base, trying to beat out a grounder. Exactly what everyone advises you not to do.
–The Washington Nationals lost third baseman Ryan Zimmerman for four to six weeks due to a fractured right thumb.
—The Brewers, 10-2, are off to their best start since 1982. A big early surprise.
–Baltimore slugger Chris Davis, who went yard 53 times last season, finally hit his first home run in the Orioles’ 12th game on Sunday.
–I am already bored to tears with my Mets…5-7. There is zero excitement. Yes, we have some young arms, especially down on the farm (or on the sidelines, see Matt Harvey), but the offense is hideous. The big story the rest of the season is going to be the continuing freefall in attendance.
–Some lines in a box score bear noting. Like Cleveland starter Danny Salazar, who the other day struck out 10 in just 3 2/3 innings, though allowed 5 runs on 6 hits.
–Who is the leading active home run hitter in the minor leagues? Mike Hessman. Including two this year for Detroit’s AAA affiliate, Hessman has 391 in his career, plus another 14 in 223 big league at-bats for Atlanta, Detroit and the Mets.
The 391 is ninth on the all-time minor league list. Six have hit 400. Hector Espino is tops at 484.
Gotta admire Hessman’s passion. Hopefully he gets another cup of coffee with the Tigers this season, if not another team.
–We note the passing of “Sweet” Lou Hudson, 69, a six-time All-Star and one of the great scorers of his era. From 1968-75, Hudson never averaged under 21.9 points per game for the Atlanta Hawks.
Hudson was a 6-foot-5 swingman who played guard or small forward and earned the moniker Sweet Lou because of his silky jump shot..
He played his college ball at Minnesota and was taken fourth overall in the 1966 draft by the Hawks (then in St. Louis). Hudson was born in Greensboro, N.C., where he was one of the top prospects in the state, but the big colleges there didn’t allow black players on their teams, thus the reason he ended up in Minnesota.
–The Giants’ Eli Manning had arthroscopic surgery on his left ankle which he injured in the final game of the season but it had not been responding to rehab. Manning said he would not start running until late May but would be good to go for the season opener, though some say this wasn’t as simple a procedure as he and the Giants are making it out to be.
Dr. Steven Weinfeld, an orthopedic surgeon in New York, told the Times’ Ken Belson that “Removing calcium deposits, scar tissue and bone chips from the high ankle area is uncommon,” suggesting Manning had issues with pain rather than with instability.
Manning is coming off his worst season, with just 18 touchdown passes and a franchise-record 27 interceptions.
The Giants are on the lookout for an experienced backup in case Manning’s not ready for the season.
–While mock drafts are largely dismissed, as a Jets fan with the 18th pick in the first round, I can’t help but note a ranking, irrespective of the team selecting, of the top 64 prospects by Rob Rang of CBSSports.com.
Rang has Jadeveon Clowney, Auburn OT Greg Robinson and Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack as the top three. But North Carolina TE Eric Ebron at No. 21. IF…Ebron was available and I were the Jets, I’d snap him up. [I know I’ve said this before…just trying to channel the draft gods.]
In Champions League play, it will be Bayern Munich vs. Real Madrid in one semifinal, Chelsea vs. Atletico Madrid in the other. The home-and-home series start on April 22 and 23.
Bayern Munich and Real Madrid have long been seen as the two favorites but the matchups are the result of a blind draw.
As for Chelsea, I saw their 3-1 loss to Paris Saint-Germain and just assumed PSG was advancing. But Chelsea won the return match 2-0 in London, tying the total-goals series at 3-3, so the Blues’ advanced on ‘away goals.’ Not an ideal way to settle it, in my mind, but then having overtime in one place, and not the other, does give the team hosting the second game a distinct advantage.
Ergo, I guess the powers that be totally thought this through.
As for the Premier League, Liverpool, gunning for its first title since 1990, won a critical match at Anfield on Sunday, 3-2 over Manchester City, so the standings with but four matches to go (six for Man City) are:
Liverpool 77 points (34 games)
Chelsea 75 (34)
Man City 70 (32)
I watched the entire contest and must say it was highly entertaining, but the defense on both sides was brutal at times.
Liverpool, by the way, has 13 wins, 2 draws, and no losses in Premier League play this calendar year.
1. Duke
2. Arizona
3. Wisconsin
4. Kansas
5. Kentucky
6. North Carolina
7. Florida
8. Villanova
9. Virginia
10. Louisville
13. Wichita State
15. San Diego State
16. UConn
The Duke pick assumes Jabari Parker leaves, but there is some doubt he will do so. Fans would love to see him return, and he’d be the better for it. He has to decide by Tuesday (actually, the date is later if he doesn’t select an agent).
–I watched the Frozen Four final between Union (N.Y.) and Minnesota, won by Union 7-4 in an entertaining contest. The Dutchmen thus won their first title, defeating a five-time champ in the Golden Gophers, after defeating another five-time champ, Boston College, in the semis.
For Union College, a small liberal arts school in Schenectady (upstate New York), what a thrill. It’s also the second consecutive championship for the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference, which consists of 12 private schools in the Northeast. Last year Yale defeated Quinnipiac, Yale’s first title.
Meanwhile, the Hobey Baker Award, given to the player of the year in college hockey, went to Boston College’s Johnny Gaudreau, the first kid from New Jersey to be so honored. He led the nation in goals, assists and points.
—Manny Pacquiao beat Timothy Bradley on points to win the WBO welterweight title in Las Vegas. Pacquiao had lost to Bradley in a controversial decision in 2012. Saturday he was the winner on all three judges’ scorecards as he moved to 56-5-2, while Bradley suffered his first loss (31-1-0)
–All kinds of problems at the University of Missouri involving its “student-athletes,” foremost among them star wide receiver Dorial Green-Backham, who was kicked off the team on Friday after he was a suspect in a burglary. While police said no charges would be filed, it seems reluctant witnesses feared retaliation if they stepped forward.
Green-Backham, who isn’t eligible for the NFL draft for another year, apologized for his actions, which police say involved him forcing open the door of a female Missouri student while he was trying to see his girlfriend. He then apparently pushed the girl down some stairs. Green-Backham’s girlfriend then sent 16 texts to the woman asking her to reconsider pressing charges.
Earlier, a Louisville transfer, Zach Price, was kicked off the basketball team after being arrested twice on four counts of suspicion of assault. And there is the case of a female member of the swim team who committed suicide, possibly after she had been assaulted by members of the football team.
–Former World Poker Tour champ Phil Ivey was sued by the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa after he won $9.6 million in what they claim was a card-cheating scheme in baccarat.
The suit says Ivey and an associate gamed the house on four 2012 visits, with Borgata claiming Ivey practiced “edge sorting,” in which his friend told dealers how to turn the cards, which were manufactured with a recognizable flaw, allowing Ivey to sort them in his favor. [Tim O’Connor / New York Daily News]
“(The cards), manufactured by Gemaco Inc., and used in the baccarat games, were defective in that the pattern on the back of them was not uniform. The cards have rows of small white circles designed to look like the tops of cut diamonds, but the Borgata claims some of them were only a half diamond or a quarter of one.
“The lawsuit claims that Ivey and his companion instructed a dealer to flip cards in particular ways, depending on whether it was a desirable card in baccarat. The numbers 6, 7, 8 and 9 are considered good cards. Other ‘bad’ cards would be flipped in different directions, so that after several hands of cards, the ‘good’ ones were arranged in a certain manner – with the irregular side of the card facing in a specific direction – that Ivey could spot when they came out of the dealer chute.”
–Last time I noted Jamaican sprinter Sherone Simpson was banned from track and field for 18 months. The same Jamaican disciplinary panel has now banned former 100-meter world record holder Asafa Powell for an equal period. Just like with Simpson, Powell “was found to be negligent, and he was at fault,” said the Anti-Doping Commission chairman. Powell’s suspension was backdated so he becomes eligible again in December.
It was in 2005 that he lowered the world record to 9.77, then 9.74 in 2008, before being eclipsed by Usain Bolt.
–Great piece on Shalane Flanagan, Sunday, on “60 Minutes.” She’s a long-time Bar Chat fave, as you know. Here’s hoping she wins the Boston Marathon.
—Scotch whisky exports were flat last year, hit by slowing demand in China and other emerging markets. Sales to China were down nearly 30%, and down 13% to 15% to Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.
But did you know what country is the largest volume market for Scotch? France, according to the Scotch Whisky Association and BBC News. Volume there rose 16% in 2013.
Now the U.S. is by far the largest market for whisky by value. By this metric France is No. 2, followed by Singapore, Spain and Germany.
–Quick…where do all our limes come from?
Mexico is responsible for 97% of limes to the U.S., but a combination of bad weather and disease has seen the price skyrocket. As reported in TIME, “A 40-lb. box of limes that cost local restaurateurs about $20 late last year now goes for $120.” Holy Toledo! I imagine your local bartender is using them judiciously these days.
–A cup from the Ming dynasty fetched $36 million at auction in Hong Kong; the priciest piece of Chinese porcelain ever sold.
—Kiss didn’t perform at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction on Thursday, but at least the original four members – Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley, Peter Criss and Gene Simmons – buried the hatchet long enough to appear on stage together. It’s been Simmons and Stanley against ex-bandmates Frehley and Criss. Simmons took the high road in praising the two. Current members of the group, Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer, were not named to the Hall of Fame.
“(Fans) don’t want to be spoon fed by a handful of people’s choices. The people pay for tickets, the people buy albums, the people who nominate do not.
“Let’s not forget that these are the people who make it all possible. We just benefit from it.”
Dave Clark Five’s Top 20 Billboard U.S. Hits: [Seemed appropriate after the airing of last week’s excellent documentary on the group on PBS.]
#6 Glad All Over…3/64
#4 Bits And Pieces…4/64
#11 Do You Love Me…5/64
#4 Can’t You See That She’s Mine…6/64
#3 Because…8/64
#15 Everybody Knows…10/64
#14 Any Way You Want It…12/64
#14 Come Home…2/65
#7 I Like It Like That…7/65
#4 Catch Us If You Can…9/65
#1 Over And Over…11/65
#18 At The Scene…2/66
#12 Try too Hard…4/66
#7 You Got What It Takes…4/67
And they had a slew of #1s in the U.K. that weren’t heavily promoted here.
NHL Quiz Answer: Six seasons or more with 50 goals….
Marcel Dionne, Guy Lafleur and Mario Lemieux had six.
Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky accomplished it nine times.
*Regarding Bobby Hull, for the record he had five seasons of 50 in the NHL and another four with 50 or more in the WHA.
