Before getting to the pathetic excuse that is the main event, keep in mind that this is the Summer sports lull.
In baseball, Derek Jeter finally has 3,000 hits. As boring as baseball normally is, every once in awhile comes a feel-good story worth watching.
There was the (since tarnished) 1998 home run chase between Mark McGwire and Samy Sosa.
In 2001 the Diamondbacks defeated the Yankees after 9/11 in the bottom half of the 9th inning in the 7th and deciding game. Winning manager Bob Brenly was a hero to unheralded mustachioed fellows.
In 2002 the Angels defeated the Giants after a game 6 miracle comeback and a stirring game 7. The image of Dusty Baker’s kid crying as his father held him in his arms will live on.
Derek Jeter has played the game the right way. To go 5 for 5 on his big day, including a home run for number 3,000 at home, was a perfect script. The Yankees won the game 5-4. Baseball can go back to being boring, but on this day it was worth watching (I watched the highlights. I am still not sitting through a live inning, much less a whole game).
Now on to football, which does matter.
The Edmonton Eskimos beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 28-10. Although I should like the Tiger-Cats based on name alone, I remember 30 years ago when the Eskimos won 5 straight Grey Cups from 1978-1982 with Warren Moon. This concludes anything worth discussing about the CFL.
In NFL news, the NFL Lockout is not over. Optimism has been a bit premature. The next mediation session is July 19th. This is troublesome since July 15th is supposedly the deadline to be able to have the Bears and Rams play in the Hall of Fame Game on August 7th. As one politician recently said about a budget battle, nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to. So as of now in NFL world, there is no deal.
This week in football brought the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The good comes in the form of Kerry Collins. He has announced his retirement after 16 years. He will not make the Hall of Fame, but he was an underrated player who should absolutely be in the Hall of Very Good. He took the Giants to a Super Bowl, the Panthers to an NFC Title Game, and the Titans to an NFL best 13-3 record only a couple of years ago. His stint with the Raiders was marred by a patchwork offensive line. Whenever he was given time, he got the job done. He was a good ambassador for the league. He led the Panthers to a sweep of the 49ers in his second year, and led the Titans near the end. Overall, he was a winner.
The bad came with Hines Ward being arrested for DWI. This is not just bad. It is sad. In the wake of the troubles Ben Roethlisberger has had, in addition to former teammate Santonio Holmes, one would think everybody on the Steelers would wake up. Ward was a true role model. He was also a source of pride for Koreans worldwide, given that he is half Korean. He is insisting that he is innocent, and I am prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt based on what appears to be his good character until this. Yet driving at 4am itself is a recipe for trouble. I hope he is innocent.
The ugliness is Deshean Jackson using a gay slur. There is no place for this. The explosion of Facebook and Twitter means that nobody has privacy ever again. Those with such thoughts should ductape their own mouths.
In Olympics news and Korean news, the South Koreans have won the right to host the 2018 Winter Games. This is nice, since there is really nothing to dislike about South Korea. They deserve their chance to shine. The Olympics are also boring, but the people of South Korea overlooked that. Congratulations to them.
NASCAR finally came to Kentucky. I like NASCAR and Kentucky. It is a good match and a great addition to the NASCAR schedule.
In news more boring than even baseball and the Olympics, soccer and golf are still played.
In annual running of the bulls news in Pamplona, Spain, it happened today. People ran and bulls followed.
Lastly, the Vancouver riots should finally put to rest the stereotype of the polite, perfect Canadians and their ugly Southern neighbors in America.
For those who do not follow hockey, the Boston Bruins went on the road in game 7 of the NHL finals and shellacked the Vancouver Canucks. Rioting and looting and burning stuff is stupid behavior no matter who is doing it. Yet in sports, it is normally the winning fans who act like imbeciles. This may be the first time where the winning fans acted with class and grace while the losing fans turned into criminals and thugs.
The people of Boston are not known for being classy fans. Yet despite having dreadful accents, they celebrated peaceably and honorably after Boston won the Stanley Cup. The Canuckleheads destroyed some city blocks and set cars on fire. Yes, those ugly Canadians committed crimes.
It is not fair to blame all of Canada for some hooligans, but can we finally stop blaming most American sports fans for our bad apples? Everybody bashes Americans, yet soccer hooligans in Wembley Stadium have done more to embarrass England than American fans have here.
Not all Canadians are perfect and not all Americans are lazy slobs.
So to all of those violent Canadians out there, try being more polite. Be humble and proud like Americans. The Boston Bruins fans can show you how.
This concludes a sports weekend without real sports. Please NFL, return already.
eric