[Posted Wednesday A.M.]
Baseball Quiz: Less than a week to pitchers and catchers! 1) Name the four active players with at least 2,600 hits. 2) Name the six active players with at least a lifetime .310 batting average. [3,000 plate appearances.] Answers below.
Cam Newton and the Game, Part Trois
Bill Pennington / New York Times
“An anticipated showdown between an old-style quarterback and his new-age counterpart – not to mention two top-seeded teams – degenerated into a morass of poor throws, dropped passes and horrible pass protection, with a combined six turnovers and 18 penalties….
“An exciting matchup of opposites fizzled as Manning threw a series of wobbly passes and Newton was altogether disappointing, spending most of the game running for safety….
“Sunday’s result brought a crushing conclusion to what had been a magical Panthers season and dealt a sharp blow to the ascendancy of Newton, who was elected the most valuable player of the regular season and had appeared to be a new model of quarterback. Carolina had won 15 of 16 regular-season games and then stormed through the postseason with two convincing victories leading up to the Super Bowl.
“But Newton, who scrambled to find any daylight, was responsible for two costly fumbles, with each leading to pivotal Broncos scores.”
In my extensive look at the quarterback, 2/1, I wrote the following:
“(The) bottom line for me with Cam Newton is I just think he’s an amazing phony. A great football player, but a disingenuous jerk….
“Just watch next time things don’t go well for Cam and how he reacts.”
Bart Hubbuch / New York Post
“Cam Newton and the Panthers gave plenty of ammunition to their critics Sunday night in the aftermath of Super Bowl 50.
“The cocky quarterback and team that ‘dabbed’ its way here and even posed for group pictures with time still on the clock didn’t want to stick around very long to discuss their embarrassingly sloppy, 24-10 loss to the Broncos at Levi’s Stadium.
“Newton, in particular, set himself up for a long offseason of criticism after showing up for his postgame press conference with a black hoodie pulled over his head, slumping in his seat and scowling through barely three minutes of questions before bolting the interview room.
“It was a far cry from the brash Newton who basked in his Superman nickname while Carolina was winning 17 of its 18 games before running into the buzz saw known as the Broncos’ defense Sunday night.
“ ‘They just played better than us,’ Newton snapped to the assembled reporters. ‘I don’t know what you want me to say. They made more plays than us, and that’s what it came down to.’
“ ‘We had our opportunities. There wasn’t nothing special that they did. We dropped balls. We turned the ball over, gave up sacks, threw errant passes. That’s it. They scored more points than we did.’
“Newton followed by giving curt, two- and three-word answers to five more questions, then got up and stalked off.”
So Newton didn’t stick around long enough to answer a question about why he shied away from diving into the pile after his second fumble, late in the fourth quarter and Carolina trailing by just six, 16-10.
Mark Cannizzaro / New York Post
“(As) regrettable as his performance was on the field, Newton was worse off of it, taking the shine off the happy-go-lucky persona he displays when things are going well with the dabbing and sparkling toothpaste commercial smiles.
“There’s an unsavory word for that in sports: Front-runner.
“It is a shame Newton didn’t take a cue from his head coach, the classy Ron Rivera, who went out of his way to credit what the Broncos did to his team rather than lament the things his team did not do.
“If Newton is going to be embraced instead of vilified by those who are unnecessarily offended by his showboating persona and his dabbing, he’s going to need to take a little more ownership when things don’t go well for him.”
Hey, he’s the league MVP and a spectacular athlete. But….
Hall of Famer and ESPN analyst Steve Young:
“(For Cam) to have that kind of emotion (following the game) makes a lot of sense. It’s just that you’re the MVP. You’re the guy that’s going to be the face of the franchise, you’re the face of the NFL going forward, you were the dabber,” said Young. “This is the moment to actually show that resilience on the other side. And so, stand in there, answer the questions. It’s three minutes. …Even if you just spit the words out, take a deep breath, answer the questions.”
Hall of Fame cornerback and NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders had a similar reaction:
“I understand the emotions of losing, but you can’t do that. A Manning, a Brady – all these guys that have been a prototypical type of quarterback in our game, they’re not going to do that ever. Would Drew Brees ever?”
Sanders added: “You’re opening yourself for more criticism, because everybody is going to say you’re dabbing and smiling and smiling and styling. So this is how you go out when you lose?”
Michael Powell / New York Times
“There was no humiliation to be found in Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton’s performance on the field at the Super Bowl. The Denver Broncos’ defenders charged like banshees and werewolves, coming over and under and hurtling around the Panthers’ blockers….
“His humiliation came after the game, however, and it was self-imposed.
“Newton, 26, an ebullient, intelligent, gifted quarterback, decided to act in his moment of truth like a 13-year-old. He slouched into the interview room late, well after many of his teammates – rookies and veterans alike – who gamely answered painful questions.
“He took a seat…hood pulled low over his face. He made eye contact with no one. What did he make of the game? Was he surprised? How could he explain? The reporters’ questions, not a surprise in the batch, were framed gently, as if put forward by dimwitted therapists. For more than a minute, Newton stared at the floor, scratched his chin and sulked.
“Anything he would do differently? ‘No.’
“What did his coach tell the team? ‘He told us a lot of things.’
“Did the Denver defense take away Carolina’s running lanes? ‘No.’
“He offered a few more monosyllables and walked away.
“It was as if Newton were intent on taking his magical season, his jumping jacks and dabs and evident leadership, and poking a hole in its side. He let his charisma and leadership drain away, to be replaced by a soup of the sour and the petulant. And in doing so, he confirmed the judgement of more than a few Broncos defenders, who spoke afterward of trying to push him off his game psychologically….
“Afterward, the Broncos said this was the Newton, the young star too easily rattled and perhaps not yet equal to his moment, they had hoped to unleash….
“And that on-the-field Cam was prologue to the postgame denouement.
“This need not be Newton’s epitaph….
“Newton’s talents are many and varied. His challenge is to prove himself equal to leading his fine team to the Super Bowl.”
Bill Reiter / CBSSports.com
“So hear this: One moment doesn’t define what Cam Newton did, even though that moment was ugly. What will define him, and that moment, is what comes next.
“Leadership, greatness and the success we all crave come from how we react to our most daunting, difficult and, often, humiliating moments. Cam was wrong. Cam was a jerk. But that doesn’t make Cam a bad guy. Not yet.”
Well, all of the above was written prior to Cam Newton’s little news conference on Tuesday, as he and the Panthers were cleaning out their lockers.
Newton didn’t apologize for walking out of the interview Sunday night, saying he didn’t feel like talking to the media after the loss.
“Show me a good loser and I’ll show you a loser,” said the league MVP.
Newton added: “If I offended anybody that’s cool, but I know who I am and I’m not about to conform nor bend for anybody’s expectations because yours or anybody’s expectations would never exceed mine.”
Then he said: “Who are you to say that your way is right? I have all of these people who are condemning and saying this that and the third but what makes your way right.”
Newton said he believes things were “blown out of proportion” by the media.
He said his emotions after the game were raw.
“At the end of the day when you invest so much time and sacrifice so much and things don’t go as planned, I think emotions take over,” Newton said. “I think that is what happens.” [Associated Press / Chicago Tribune]
Whatever you say, Cam. Enjoy the offseason.
As for Peyton Manning….
Steve Politi / NJ.com
“The cameras raced to find him when Super Bowl 50 ended, because no matter how this game unfolded on this clear night in Northern California, they knew the story.
“Peyton Manning was the story. Forget that he completed just 13 of 23 passes for 141 yards. Forget his two ugly turnovers, and the five times he was sacked, and the general sense that stumbling Beyonce would have a better chance coming off the halftime show stage and leading this offense down the field – in heels.
“Manning knew this was the best-case scenario for what is almost certainly the final game of a brilliant NFL career. He knew that for him to win his second Lombardi Trophy at the end of his worst statistical season, that this Denver defense was going to have to carry him there.
“And so it did: In what has to be the greatest retirement gift of all time, Von Miller and the Broncos defense made Manning a winner in this 24-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers….
“The question around this Broncos team wasn’t if Manning could lead them to a championship. It was if Denver could find a way to beat the Panthers in spite of its Hall of Fame quarterback.”
Sam Farmer / Los Angeles Times
“Amid the fluttering confetti and euphoria of Denver’s Super Bowl victory Sunday night, Olivia Manning didn’t disguise her feelings….
“ ‘I would like for him to retire,’ she said. ‘I would. Physically, I just don’t think it’s worth going on. He won a Super Bowl – it’s the best way to go out.’…
“The game was far from a tour de force for Manning, who set an NFL record with his 200th career victory. He threw for only 141 yards, with no touchdowns, and Denver had just 11 first downs compared to 21 by the Panthers.
“But Manning has carried teams throughout his 18-year career. It’s only right that somebody carry him this time, and Denver’s smothering defense did just that.”
–The Super Bowl ended up being the third-most-watched U.S. television show ever, with about 111.9 million tuning in, according to Nielsen.
Last year’s New England-Seattle game drew a record 114.4 million.
It was the eighth straight Super Bowl to top 100 million.
–Meanwhile, the Johnny Manziel story just gets uglier and uglier and I wouldn’t be surprised if the NFL bans him for life, once the various investigations are complete, including the league’s own. We know he sure as hell isn’t going to be invited to any training camps, especially as there is a chance he’ll be in jail by then, if not six feet under.
[Among other things, during the altercation between Manziel and ex-girlfriend Colleen Crowley, Crowley’s attorney said Monday that Manziel hit her so hard it ruptured her eardrum.]
And Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy, along with a former NFL player, Curtis Brinkley, and two others, were involved in an altercation that sent two Philadelphia off-duty officers – one with a possible skull fracture – to Philadelphia area hospitals over the weekend.
The incident occurred Sunday morning around 2:45 a.m. at a lounge in Philly’s Old City neighborhood.
Some details have yet to be revealed, and as I go to post the case has been referred to the district attorney for potential charges. For their part, the Bills said in a statement: “We are aware of the reports regarding LeSean McCoy and are in the process of gathering more information.”
–Back to the Super Bowl…Couch Slouch, aka Norman Chad of the Washington Post, took his usual copious notes, including on the pregame festivities. A few samples….
2:04: Norman Esiason and Bill Cowher are walking and talking like it’s an overwrought Aaron Sorkin drama.
3:35: I think the NFL Play 60 super kid should stay indoors more, maybe take up poker.
4:20: It just feels like Jim Nantz is always running for office.
4:24: If the next 50 Super Bowls are hyped as much as the first 50 Super Bowls, I’m outta here.
5:20: If you crack open a Yuengling every time Bart Scott or Tony Gonzalez says, ‘I’ll tell you what,’ well, I’ll tell you what, you’ll crack open a lot of Yuenglings.
5:27: James Brown: “Race is still the third rail of contemporary society.” I still don’t know what the first two rails are.
7:06: On game’s first replay challenge, acclaimed and beleaguered CBS officiating expert Mike Carey emphatically says call will be overturned. It stands.
7:19: If PBS ever gets the rights to the Super Bowl, will it be commercial-free?
8:53: Ted Ginn Jr. runs faster to the sideline than any man alive.
10:01: Newton decides not to go after loose ball – maybe his health plan doesn’t cover fumbles.
–As for the aforementioned Mike Carey, he is now in a witness protection program. Developing….
–To sum it all up, as we transition to baseball, March Madness and The Masters, a tradition unlike any other…on CBS…Johnny Mac and I were musing Monday, boy, we miss games like Alabama and Clemson. As J. Mac noted, all you have to do is look at the number of personal fouls this year, and in the Super Bowl, vs. the college game.
Speaking of personal fouls, Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib goes in the December file for his vicious play on Panthers receiver Corey Brown, where Talib violently grabbed Brown’s facemask as he flung him to the ground. I agree with Mark R. Talib’s play was even worse than Vontaze Burfict’s on Steelers receiver Antonio Brown.
So upon reflection on Tuesday, what did Talib say about his play?
“One I just did on purpose, and I had to show him. It’s probably going to be a fine, but, hey, we’re world champs.”
You’re getting more than a fine, I hope, Aqib. [And into the December file he goes as well.]
College Basketball
–The new AP Poll (Feb. 8…records as of Sunday)
And for the first time ever (after being ranked No. 2 seven times)….
1. Villanova! 20-3 (32 first-place votes)
2. Maryland 21-3 (13)
3. Oklahoma 19-3 (7)
4. Iowa 19-4 (11…super story)
5. Xavier (21-2)
6. Kansas 19-4 (1)
7. Virginia 19-4 (1)
8. Michigan State 20-4
9. North Carolina 19-4
10. West Virginia 19-4
11. Oregon 20-4…Quack Quack!…Quack…cheerleaders warmin’ up!
12. Miami (FL) 18-4
13. Louisville 19-4*
16. SMU 20-2*
19. Dayton 19-3
25. Wichita State 17-6…I missed the Shockers’ bad loss on Saturday night to Illinois State
29. San Diego State 18-6…(if you carry out the votes)
*Ineligible for postseason play.
The year Villanova won their national title, 1985, was the first year the tournament expanded to 64 teams. Ironically, the only other team to win a title without ever being ranked No. 1 in the program’s history is Maryland.
–Monday, Duke had a big win over Louisville in Durham, 72-65, but the Blue Devils’ Grayson Allen cemented himself as the next Duke villain when while on the floor, he stuck his leg out to trip Louisville’s Ray Spalding who was heading up the court the other way.
Allen received a flagrant foul but wasn’t ejected. Throughout the game, Duke fans let Louisville have it for their just-announced self-imposed postseason ban.
Jeremy Gottlieb / Washington Post
“Over the years, as great as it has been, the Duke University men’s basketball program has earned itself something of a reputation for being, well, a little obnoxious….
“No word yet on whether Allen will face any further discipline for the trip but there may be some semblance of precedent: Oregon State’s Jarmel Reid earned himself a four-game suspension for tripping last month, although Reid’s case was slightly different in that it was a referee he took down.”
–Tuesday….
Villanova held serve, whipping DePaul 86-59.
6 Kansas defeated 10 West Virginia 75-65.
9 North Carolina survived two scares in its game with Boston College. Coach Roy Williams collapsed on the sideline after another bout with vertigo, though he is OK. As B.C. alum Steve D. noted, it was the thought of the Tar Heels potentially losing to the Eagles that no doubt brought on Williams’ latest episode, with UNC finally winning 68-65.
5 Xavier lost on the road to Creighton (16-9, 7-5 Big East) 70-56. Bad loss in terms of seeding for the Musketeers.
And 18 Purdue outlasted 8 Michigan State in overtime, 82-81.
NBA
—When the Knicks dropped to 15-19, I said it was time to fire Derek Fisher. Then the Knicks played better, winning 7 of 10 to get back to .500 at 22-22, but after losing 9 of 10, Knicks president Phil Jackson had seen enough and fired Fisher on Monday, replacing him at least on an interim basis with Kurt Rambis.
Fisher was just incompetent, and he was no doubt hurt by the Matt Barnes situation, when Barnes confronted Fisher over his romantic involvement with Barnes’ estranged wife, Gloria Govan.
But then there is the topic of Jackson’s triangle offense.
Harvey Araton / New York Times
“The happiest man in America is – or should be, at least – Steve Kerr. We don’t really know how close he actually came to accepting an offer from Phil Jackson in May 2014 to coach the Knicks – only that Kerr had understandable reservations about becoming the frontman, or fall guy, for the newly minted Team Triangle before an offer he couldn’t refuse from the Golden State Warriors made it a moot point.
“You probably know the rest of Kerr’s fork-in-the road story, which fortuitously led to an NBA title.
“Just recently – one week before Derek Fisher coached his final game for the Knicks on Sunday – Kerr visited Madison Square Garden with his irrepressible band of Warriors. Before the game came the predictable gotcha question of why Kerr, who played for Jackson in Chicago and is in his first head-coaching position, was not using the triangle offense. His eyes rolled, and he said, well, the Warriors, like other teams, had incorporated some principles of the system. Like most teams, he added, they also had a system more tailored to their talent.
“And Kerr, in turn, had wisely been given the creative freedom to cultivate his own persona as a coach.
“The lack of the same surely contributed to the rapid downfall of Fisher, who was fired by the Knicks on Monday before he could reach the halfway point of a contract that, including incentives and a final-year team option, could have been worth $25 million over five seasons. By comparison, in 2013, Brad Stevens was given a six-year, $22 million deal by Boston.
“Stevens, the leader of an overachieving Celtics team, now regarded as one of the bright young NBA minds, had an estimable coaching record at Butler. Fisher’s Oklahoma City Thunder uniform was still perspiration-soaked when Jackson hired and overpaid him because he had to.”
Whether Rambis, another member of Jackson’s coaching tree, sticks around or not, Jackson made it clear whoever is coaching the Knicks would have to “match the style of the way we do things.” Unless Jackson changes (not likely), this franchise will continue to be a mess.
[Rambis was 32-132 in his only full-time coaching stint at Minnesota, 2009-11.]
So Tuesday, in Rambis’ debut, the Knicks lost to the Wizards at the Garden 111-108.
–Also Tuesday, the Warriors, 47-4, moved to 24-0 at home in defeating the Rockets 123-110 behind Steph Curry’s 35 points and 9 assists.
But San Antonio is keeping pace, now 44-8, as they defeated the Heat in Miami, 119-101.
–The Clippers suspended Blake Griffin four games for his role in an altercation with a team assistant equipment manager last month. The team said his wages will be withheld for an additional game for the injury he sustained in the fight and that he will donate the salary from the five games to charities focused on disadvantaged youth in Los Angeles.
The Clippers have gone 18-4 without Griffin, who had previously torn his left quadriceps tendon. They were 17-13 with him in the lineup, despite his averaging 23.2 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists.
MLB
–Ted Berg of USA TODAY Sports ranks all 30 starting rotations and he has the Cubs and Mets, 1-2.
1. Chicago Cubs: “We did not begin this list expecting to name the Cubs rotation as the best in baseball. The New York Mets, Washington Nationals and Cleveland Indians can all probably match the excellent top three of Jake Arrieta, Jon Lester and John Lackey, but the Cubs’ depth sets them apart. Only the St. Louis Cardinals have Nos. 4 and 5 starters that stack up to Jason Hammel and Kyle Hendricks, but St. Louis can’t match Chicago in the front end of the rotation.”
2. New York Mets: “The Mets have young fireballers for days and days, as last seen powering the club to the 2015 World Series. The lack of longer resumes keeps the Mets from the top spot on this list. Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz have a combined total of zero major league seasons with more than 200 regular-season innings pitched. Folk hero Bartolo Colon should fill the fifth slot in the team’s rotation until Zack Wheeler returns from Tommy John surgery.”
Cleveland is ranked fourth behind Washington and I plead total ignorance of Cleveland’s Big Three, beyond Corey Kluber, the 2014 AL Cy Young Award winner. He regressed last season, but really not that much.
Kluber: 9-16, but 3.49 ERA, 222 IP – 245 SO
Danny Salazar: 14-10, 3.45, 185 – 195
Carlos Carrasco: 14-12, 3.63, 183 – 216
All three are in their 20s.
As Ronald Reagan would have said, ‘Not bad, not bad at all.’
–Arizona signed free agent reliever Tyler Clippard to a two-year, $12.25 million contract. I’m glad the Mets didn’t try to re-sign him.
Stuff
–Director of Shark Attacks and Zika Prevention for Bar Chat, Bob S., notified me of the International Shark Attack File’s numbers for 2015, as put out by the Univ. of Florida, and ISAF Director George Burgess claims it was just 98 attacks, which nonetheless represented a spike over 2014, with twice as many fatal attacks…6, including a snorkeler in Hawaii.
2015’s 98 attacks were 10 greater than the previous high recorded in 2000, Burgess said.
Florida saw 30 of the 59 attacks recorded in the United States. Hawaii had seven.
Australia and South Africa were next at 18 and 8, respectively.
Of course these figures are always grossly underreported. Mr. Burgess has long been paid off by the International Travel Cartel (ITC) which for obvious reasons needs to ‘manage’ the numbers. For his complicity, Mr. Burgess is awarded room upgrades and free dessert, which is totally outrageous.
—Speaking of Zika, the head of Kenya’s Olympic committee, legendary runner Kipchoge Keino, has threatened to pull Kenya’s team out of the Rio Olympics unless Brazilian authorities can keep Zika from reaching “epidemic levels.”
–From BBC News:
“A male leopard which entered a school in the Indian city of Bangalore injured six people trying to capture it.
“A scientist and a forestry employee were among those mauled during the near 10-hour long effort to corner the dangerous animal on Sunday.
“The leopard, which strolled [Ed: or pranced, a la Beyonce] into the Vibgyor International school, was eventually tranquilized and released.”
Released? Without at least a trial?! And after mauling six people?!
—On the issue of beer, when I’m out I always ask for a bottle…no domestics from the tap for moi. No sir.
So I’m reading a piece in Golf Digest by Ron Kaspriske on beer from the tap and the dangers therein and he notes the following:
“Watch how it’s poured. Bartenders routinely stick the inside of a glass right on the tap and then pour. This might reduce the amount of foam poured, but every time this is done, the outside of the faucet becomes coated in beer, which eventually breeds bacteria. You’re better off ordering a bottle if you see the bartender doing this.”
Ah ha! Your editor has been right all along.
Also, the ideal temperature for beer is 38 degrees, which as long-time friend Phil W. and I were musing this weekend is yet another reason why you never, ever get a big beer at a sporting event. The beer easily warms to 43-45 degrees before you get to the final 5-6 ounces.
[Kids, don’t try this at home. I’m a professional. Plus you’re not supposed to be drinking until you’re 21 anyway.]
–Finally, some comments on the Super Bowl halftime show.
Jon Caramanica / New York Times
“Everything that could be said about the choice of Coldplay to headline the halftime show at Super Bowl 50 was said by the band members themselves Sunday evening – not with their mouths, but with their outfits.
“All around the stage at the center of the Levi’s Stadium field, there were bold colors: In the crowd, fans held up blue, orange, red and yellow cards that formed a sunburst. Violinists and cellists from Youth Orchestra L.A. were dressed in matching baby-blue-and-red Windbreakers, clutching instruments painted green and blue and purple and white. Dancers held up floral umbrellas. Even the stage was a kaleidoscope of pastel nature fantasies.
“The members of Coldplay? They wore gray, slate blue, musky brown, dusty black. Visually, it made them the void at the center of a riot of exuberance. Such was the case musically as well: Coldplay was the center of the show but functioned more as a stagehand than an actual performer, making sure things were properly aligned so that the night’s true event could go off without a hitch.
“That, of course, was Beyonce, who returned to the halftime show three years after headlining it to provide a much-needed assist to Coldplay, Chris Martin’s band. On Saturday, she released a new song and video, ‘Formation,’ which took up much of her part of Sunday’s performance.
“That’s notable for a few reasons: Only Beyonce could use the Super Bowl, perhaps the largest stage in the country, to showcase new material. She also announced a new world tour right on the heels of the performance. In so doing, she was arguing, in essence, that the halftime show was there to serve her, not the other way around.”
Greg Kot / Chicago Tribune
“The Super Bowl 50 halftime show Sunday was billed as a ‘musical celebration of past, present and future,’ and it was pretty clear that at least somebody would get bypassed, if not run over.
“Coldplay ostensibly headlined the nationally televised gig, but the mild-mannered band was reduced to a guacamole appetizer by the time Beyonce got through with her cameo appearance.
“It was Beyonce’s weekend to own after she debuted the song ‘Formation’ on Saturday – one of her rawest performances and also one of her most timely. As the Black Lives Matter movement continues to expand, the singer delivered her own take, in tandem with a video that underlined her roots in the Deep South and her African-American heritage.
“It concluded with a declaration that expanded the song from a personal manifesto into a call to action: ‘OK, OK, ladies now let’s get in formation, cause I slay.’”
Well, frankly, I wasn’t waiting around on Saturday for Beyonce to debut “Formation,” nor do my news wires alert me of something of this magnitude, plus I was engrossed in the San Diego State-New Mexico hoops contest.
Ergo, when I saw Beyonce prance out onto the field – she defines prancing, by the way – my initial reaction was, ‘Why the heck is she dressed like Raquel Welch in Bandolero?’
No, I didn’t catch the Black Lives Matter references, nor the Black Panther bit, though her entourage did look like a bunch of Angela Davises, she having been a Black Panther member, so I should have put two and two together, I guess.
I just like watching Beyonce prance, and caper, and I can’t say I’ve ever listened to a single lyric of hers. In fact I can’t name one tune of Beyonce’s. Actually, I couldn’t tell you the name of any of Mariah Carey’s songs, either, even though I guess she’s had more No. 1s than Elvis…or something like that.
But I like Mariah’s outfits. And that’s a memo….
Top 3 songs for the week 2/5/77: #1 “Torn Between Two Lovers” (Mary MacGregor) #2 “Car Wash” (Rose Royce…talk about a song not aging well…) #3 “Dazz” (Brick)…and…#4 “New Kid In Town” (Eagles) #5 “Hot Line” (The Sylvers…ughh…) #6 “Blinded By The Light” (Manfred Mann’s Earth Band) #7 “Love Theme From ‘A Star Is Born’ (Evergreen)” (Barbra Streisand) #8 “I Wish” (Stevie Wonder) #9 “Enjoy Yourself” (The Jacksons ….their worst….) #10 “Walk This Way” (Aerosmith…ditto…just a really crappy week…)
Baseball Quiz Answers: 1) Active hits: A-Rod 3,070; Ichiro 2,935; Adrian Beltre 2,767; Albert Pujols 2,666. 2) Active .310 BA: Miguel Cabrera .321; Ichiro .313; Joe Mauer .312; Albert Pujols .312; Joey Votto .310; Buster Posey .310.
Next Bar Chat, Monday.
