Read the arguments from Loyal Homer and Bleacher Fan about which teams they believe were the best World Series Champs of this decade.
It all ended on October 27, 2004. The best World Series Champion of the past decade – and one of the best in the history of baseball – completed the final out in an unprecedented season. To the chagrin of new TSD contributor and fan persona Babe Ruthless, the 2004 Boston Red Sox are the best World Series Champion of this decade.
The Red Sox finished the 2004 season two games shy of 100 wins, and three shy of the division crown, taken again by perpetual stumbling block, the New York Yankees. After sweeping the Los Angeles Angles in the American League Division Series the Red Sox faced its old foe and curse-perpetuator from the Bronx. We all know the story now, down 0-3 in the series and 4-3 in the bottom of the ninth of the first game in the series where the Saawwwwxx faced elimination, spark plug Dave Roberts pinch runs for Kevin Millar. Millar drew a rare walk from Mariano Rivera, and then Roberts stole second and scored the game tying run in the bottom of the ninth on a Bill Mueller RBI base hit. The rest is an improbable history making event where the Red Sox were the first team in history to overcome a three games to zero hole to win an American League Championship Series, before sweeping through the World Series. This Red Sox team accomplished what few thought was possible in the modern era of sports, winning a series after putting itself in a three game hole. But the amazing feats from this Red Sox team did not stop with a surprising comeback.
Another reason the Red Sox are the greatest World Series championship team of this decade is because each player on the roster exceeded their previously established talent limitations. For example, opening day second baseman Mark Bellhorn set career highs in batting average (.264) and RBI (82). Catcher Jason Varitek hit a career best .296 and even grabbed 10 stolen bases. The usual suspects in the middle of the order, Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz – put up their usual excellent stats. The difference makers for this team were the several players on the Red Sox roster that played above what their career stats indicate as possible. You know the scenario in your favorite team’s context. “I know player X, player Y, and player Z are going to be great this season. But if player A, player B, and player C give us ANYTHING it will be gravy.” The 2004 Red Sox were a team dominated by gravy.
Players that are able to go beyond their limitations are a requisite for any championship team. What makes the Red Sox better than the usual championship team is that they broke a 100 year “curse.” Therefore the players that exceeded their capabilities exceeded them by such a significant amount that the team was able to accomplish something no other team in the history of baseball was ever able to do.
During TSD’s last production meeting Bleacher Fan specifically asked that I not make any mention of the bloody sock. However, it is impossible to research and write anything about the 2004 Red Sox and avoid the bloody sock. Pitcher Curt Schilling pitched hurt during the ALCS and the World Series, and he pitched extremely well. We all know the story. In retrospect the bloody sock is important not because of Schilling’s individual performance but because historic teams – transcendent teams that defeat not only a formidable opponent but vanquish a curse – must have a symbol that embodies the experience and the journey. For the Red Sox the bloody sock was so much more meaningful than a red stain on a baseball sock. The sock symbolized hard work, dismissing frustration, above and beyond effort, and a general disregard for adversity – all characteristics of the team’s personality.
No team built momentum like the 2004 Red Sox, either. After the surprising comeback against the Yankees in the ALCS, the Red Sox were an unstoppable locomotive, sweeping the National League champion St. Louis Cardinals. The team redefined momentum with its beating down of the Cardinals – the team that won more games during the regular season than any other team in baseball in 2004, including the Yankees – 11-9, 6-2, 4-1, and 3-0.
Many great teams exist in baseball’s history. Only ONE broke a curse in a spectacular, unprecedented, and an unavoidably entertaining way.
What ultimately makes the 2004 Red Sox great is not solely what the team was able to accomplish in between the chalk lines. The team had more than just baseball skills. It had history, character, and an unstoppable spirit rivaled by no other team.
Read the arguments from Sports Geek and Loyal Homer about which was the best team of the last decade to win a World Series.
Pitching wins championships. Following that logic, it stands to reason that the World Series championship team with the best pitching would make for the best World Series championship team. Of the past decade, no team to win a World Series had better pitching than the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks.
As proof of that statement I offer two names – Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling. These two pitchers – who were two of the most dominant on the mound over the past 20 years – joined forces during the 2000 season and became the most devastating 1-2 punch I have ever seen in a pitching rotation. During the 2001 regular season, Schilling and Johnson combined for a record of 43-12, with Johnson winning 21 games and Schilling winning 22.
Once the duo entered the postseason they continued their almost unbeatable performance. Throughout the postseason these two mound monsters pitched a record of 9-1. Not bad when you consider the fact that 11 wins is all that it takes to win the entire postseason!
Schilling and Johnson, who were both named to the National League All-Star roster, presented a tandem that simply could not be touched. During the 2001 postseason they pitched a total of 89.2 innings, giving up only 13 runs. They threw a combined 103 strikeouts (45 of which came in the World Series alone), and gave up only 14 walks. They dominated from their first pitch to their last.
While having Johnson and Schilling is enough to make any team a contender for the World Series, pitching is only half of the game. A championship team still needs to produce runs on offense, and the Diamondbacks had one of Major League Baseball’s biggest hitters of the year in outfielder Luis Gonzalez and his 57 home runs and 142 RBI. Those totals, along with 36 doubles and an overall batting average of .325, earned Gonzalez the only Silver Slugger award of his career that season, in addition to being named an All-Star along with teammates Schilling and Johnson. With Gonzalez, fellow outfielder Reggie Sanders contributed another 33 homers and 90 RBI.
Two other notable names on the Diamondbacks roster were former Chicago Cubs All-Star and Gold Glove first baseman Mark Grace and infielder Craig Counsell, who won the 2001 NLCS MVP award for his performance against the Atlanta Braves.
The 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks were the product of a perfect storm. Thanks to the combination of the league’s two best pitchers, a career season from one of its sluggers, and the leadership and consistency of several key veteran players, the Diamondbacks went on to win its first World Series in franchise history and become the best World Series Championship team of the decade!
Read the arguments by Sports Geek and Bleacher Fan about which teams they believe were the best World Series champions of this decade.
Since the final World Series of this decade was just completed, The Sports Debates must debate which specific World Series winning team was the best of the decade. (The 2006 St. Louis Cardinals do not belong in the discussion. That team was eliminated from consideration quite early in our conversation.) Almost everyone, at least almost everyone outside of New York, was thrilled to see the Boston Red Sox win in 2004. In 2001, the Arizona Diamondbacks defeated the heavily favored New York Yankees in the post 9/11 World Series. To me, that remains the best World Series I have ever personally watched, with the exception of the 1991 World Series (minus the outcome, of course). But as far as team of the decade, I really feel the 2003 Florida Marlins got hot at the right time and ended up being the best World Series championship team of this decade.
The Florida Marlins have been either hit or miss since its inception in 1993. The team won the World Series in 1997, too, but this 2003 team just had something about it. Not many experts expected much out of it. Sure the team won 91 games in the regular season (a full ten games behind division winner, Atlanta). The 91-win season occurred after starting the season 19-29 and changing managers (Jeff Torborg was replaced by Jack McKeon). And the team was not really expected to do much in the playoffs. But, they defeated San Francisco in the first round, a series that concluded with Ivan Rodriguez holding on to the ball at home plate after being run over by J.T. Snow.
Many people, fair or not, think of Steve Bartman when they think of the 2003 NLCS. But the Marlins deserve some serious credit for overcoming a 3-1 deficit in the series. The Marlins won Game six and seven against the Cubs in Chicago when the Cubbies featured young guns Mark Prior and Kerry Wood on the bump.
After the NLCS came the supposed mismatch against the heavily favored New York Yankees. The Marlins payroll was $54 million, compared to the $164 million payroll of the Yankees. However, behind dominant starting pitching, Florida won its second World Series in six seasons, winning four games to two. Josh Beckett pitched the clincher, going the distance on three days rest in one of the most clutch starting pitching performances in postseason history.
The postseason was the coming out party for then-20 year old Miguel Cabrera. Cabrera was called up midseason but he really caught the attention of the baseball world during the postseason. The highlights include hitting three home runs in the NLCS and hitting a home run off of Roger Clemens in the World Series (in what was supposed to be Clemens’ last season… hahahaha!).
What carried the Marlins was the young pitching trio of Beckett, Brad Penny, and rookie sensation Dontrelle Willis. Those three showed no fear in being thrust unexpectedly into the postseason spotlight.
The 2003 Marlins were a true underdog pretty much the entire season. The team overcame that stigma to win a title. For that, the 2003 Florida Marlins deserve to be called the team of the decade!
Read the arguments from Sports Geek and Loyal Homer about which games they believe are the best of THIS weekend.
This weekend the NFL is featuring several very important divisional matchups that may go a long way in determining which teams will or w will not make the playoffs this season.
As Loyal Homer points out, one such matchup takes place between the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles. This should be an outstanding game in the NFC East! I, however, am much more interested in the battle at the top of the AFC North between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens.
The Ravens are coming off an outstanding performance against Denver where they handed the Broncos the first loss of the season with an impressive final score of 30-7. Last Sunday marked the fifth time in seven games that the Ravens offense was able to put up at least 30 points, and this time it managed to do it against the Denver Broncos’ top-ranked defense.
Behind the strength of two very impressive second-year players – quarterback Joe Flacco and running back Ray Rice – the Ravens have been able to score almost at will all season long. The Ravens have played outstanding football in 2009 with the only losses coming against teams at the top of their respective divisions, the New England Patriots (5-2), Minnesota Vikings (7-1), and the Cincinnati Bengals (5-2). Even in defeat, however, the Ravens have been extremely competitive and may have achieved a 6-1 record if not for a couple of unlucky breaks.
The Ravens had an opportunity to defeat the Vikings as time ran out, but missed a field goal in the closing seconds of the game and lost by only two points. During the matchup against the Bengals one week earlier the Ravens actually held a four-point lead in the final minute of the game. If not for a 20-yard Carson Palmer touchdown pass to wide receiver Andre Caldwell with only 0:22 seconds remaining the Ravens would have won that game, as well.
This Sunday the Ravens have an opportunity for revenge against the Bengals, a team that is one of the NFL’s surprise success stories this season.
The Cincinnati Bengals, a team that had to scrape out wins against the Cleveland Browns – Kansas City Chiefs, and Washington Redskins during their final three matchups of 2008 just to reach a pathetic record of 4-11-1 on the season (did YOU know that teams in the NFL could tie?!) – have started off the 2009 season by winning five of the first seven games. What makes the 5-2 record so impressive is the caliber of opponent that defeated. With wins at Green Bay and in Baltimore, as well as being able to defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Cincinnati, the Bengals are proving to be just as good this season as any other Super Bowl contender in the league. And, like the Ravens, Cincinnati has also been very competitive even in defeat. If not for a miracle 87-yard TIPPED touchdown catch by Broncos wide receiver Brandon Stokley with only seconds left in the game, the Bengals would be 6-1.
The Bengals offense, which has shown the ability to put big numbers up on the scoreboard, seems to be rejuvenated behind the arm of Carson Palmer. With receivers Chad Ochocinco, Lavaraneus Coles, and Andre Caldwell, Palmer has found the end zone 13 times so far this season. Meanwhile, on the ground, running back Cedric Benson is one of only two players in the NFL currently averaging at least 100-yards per game (Chris Johnson of the Tennessee Titans is the other, and he needed a 220 yard game last week to bump his average up that high).
Playing in the same division as the reigning Super Bowl Champions normally would be considered a disadvantage. That is not the case in the AFC North this season. Granted, the Pittsburgh Steelers have played very well this season and have kept pace with Baltimore and Cincinnati, but the Ravens and Bengals have not let that get in the way. The matchup between these two teams could very well become the difference in whether or not one of these teams gets to play football in mid-January. I expect a very hard-fought, competitive rematch, and am very excited to see how this one turns out!
Read the arguments by Sports Geek and Bleacher Fan about which games they believe will be the best games of THIS weekend.
It is finally Friday, and with no postseason baseball most sports fans across the country are focusing solely on football this weekend. There are some decent games in college this week, including an important one down in Tuscaloosa. There are a handful of exciting matchups in the NFL, too, scattered across the dial. But the matchup that I believe is the best game of THIS weekend is the NFC East showdown in the city of Brotherly Love between the hated Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles.
About three weeks ago this matchup did not look like it was going to be much of anything. The Eagles just laid a big time egg in Oakland, and Dallas was on a bye week preparing for the then 4-1 Atlanta Falcons. But Philly got two division wins against the Redskins and the Giants, while the Cowboys scored an impressive win over Atlanta and followed it up with a relatively easy victory over the Seahawks. Now both teams enter with identical 5-2 records with first place in the NFC East on the line.
One of the biggest surprises of the season for me has been the emergence of Cowboys wide receiver Miles Austin. I always envisioned him as a third receiver at best, but he has risen up to be the Cowboys best receiver and if he keeps it up he is got a shot at making the Pro Bowl. He has 482 yards receiving with five touchdowns in his last three games. These stats represent what Roy Williams was supposed to do, but he continues to have difficulty getting on the same page with quarterback Tony Romo. Nonetheless, the Cowboys are playing well on offense right now, but it will be a challenge going up against an Eagles defense that has given up more than 17 points once all season (in a week two loss to the New Orleans Saints).
I really like the Eagles young group of receivers. Big play receiver (and sometimes rusher) DeSean Jackson has teamed with rookie Jeremy Maclin to form one of the more exciting receiving duos in the league. Both are capable of hauling in the long ball, and these guys have really loosened the team up so much that Jackson performed a chest-bump with a usually subdued Andy Reid. Jackson now has six touchdowns of fifty yards or more, which is three short of breaking the NFL single-season record. That is also big for fantasy players that have Mr. Jackson on their teams (Loyal Homer just happens to be one of those players!) Another guy for the Eagles offense worth paying attention to is Brent Celek. He is probably the least known productive tight end in the league. Did you know that Celek has 37 catches?
The fact that this matchup is the NBC Sunday night game of the week just adds to the intensity. These teams really do not like each other and I do not believe Eagles fans like Cowboys fans that much either. It is sure to be an exciting game, and it is one I will definitely be watching Sunday night in prime time.
Read the arguments from Loyal Homer and Bleacher Fan about which games they believe is the best game of THIS weekend.
When the 2009 NFL season began virtually anyone associated with the NFL, or familiar with the concept of American football, predicted that the Pittsburgh Steelers – last season’s Super Bowl championship team – was going to going to have a good season. No surprise. The team started the year slowly but is beginning to round into form with a record of 5-2 and coming off of a big win against the previously undefeated Minnesota Vikings.
The Denver Broncos received basically the opposite treatment from experts. The entire organization appeared to be entering the season unsure of itself due to several factors including breaking in a new, rookie head coach, trading the team’s star and leader in quarterback Jay Cutler, and dealing with the distraction of an extremely unhappy wide receiver in Brandon Marshall. Few expected a team that finished 8-8 in 2008 and 1-3 in the 2009 preseason to begin the regular season 6-1 with one of the better defenses in the entire NFL.
The preseason predicted two very different teams coming into this Monday’s match up when Denver plays host to the Super Bowl champs. Instead the season has played out differently than most expected and Denver is the team favored with the better schedule… and with more to prove.
The team’s share myriad common characteristics. Both teams feature good defenses and both teams have quarterbacks who are best used as game managers on teams that have solid running games. The Steelers have finally found a solid running game as formerly feature back Willie Parker’s star begins to fade and second-year running back Rashard Mendenhall emerges, having gained 418 yards on the ground this season. The Broncos have rookie Knowshon Moreno lined up in the backfield and leading the team in rushing with 420 yards. But, while Moreno has only found the end zone two times, Mendenhall has scored four rushing touchdowns in just three starts this season. The Steelers appear to have a running game on the upswing, and the Broncos are still searching for quarterback Kyle Orton’s balance.
With Denver favored in this matchup, and national television exposure with football fans across the country tuned in, both teams have the opportunity to establish a tone for the remainder of the season. The Steelers have the poise of a championship team with a leader unwilling to hit the panic button. Denver must continue to try and earn its way into the conversation about the elite NFL teams of the 2009 season. Denver has the opportunity to show itself as a team to be reckoned with for the remainder of the season with the potential to dominate opponents.
Denver has more to prove in this matchup than Pittsburgh, therefore all of the pressure in this game is on Denver. Without a doubt both teams are excellent, and are set for the matchup that is the best game of THIS weekend.
New York Yankees’ manager Joe Girardi has taken a lot of criticism this year for being a micro-manager in how he led the Yankees through the 2009 season. Look who is laughing now!
In a twist of ironic fate, it was Girardi’s critical analysis, combined with a lack of critical analysis by his World Series counterpart, Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, that ended up winning him his first World Series ring as a manager, and the 27th World Series championship for the Yankees.
At a crucial point in the series, after the Yankees had just taken a 2-1 lead in the series, Girardi decided it was time to play strategy, while Manuel decided to play convention. It was a move with very high risk, but also very high reward!
During Game One of the series, Cliff Lee, the ace in Philadelphia’s pitching rotation, had put on one of the most dominant performances in the history of the World Series. Lee threw a complete game against the very dangerous Yankee offense, giving up only one run on six hits. Lee had done his part for the Phillies, outshining his former teammate, Yankees’ ace C.C. Sabathia. The Yankees responded strongly, though, winning the next two games to take that 2-1 lead in the series.
It was at this point that Girardi saw an opportunity to position his team to win the series. Rather than go with the fourth pitcher in his rotation, he decided to pitch C.C. Sabathia again, on only three days rest. With that move, Girardi was attempting to position his team to take a 3-1 lead in the series, which would be extremely difficult to overcome. How did Charlie Manuel respond? He stuck with a conventional rotation.
Instead of putting his best pitcher, Lee, up against Sabathia in an attempt to give his team the best matchup possible, he decided to rest Lee for the extra game. The matchup he seemed comfortable with was to have the fourth pitcher in his rotation, Joe Blanton, take on the 19-game winning Sabathia. As expected, Sabathia went on to pitch 6.2 solid innings, with the Yankees going on to take that 3-1 lead in the series.
During the next matchup, Cliff Lee, who was by far the most dominant pitcher of the series, won his second game with another very impressive showing, but it was too little too late. Manuel had already handed the series to Girardi by not pitching Lee one game earlier.
Girardi had made a strategic decision that gave his team the edge it needed to steal victory away from the Phillies. Had Manuel pitched Lee in Game Four instead of Game Five, he may have been able to give his team a better chance to draw even in the Series at 2-2. Instead, he seemed unwilling to deviate from his rotation, not wanting to put too much strain on Lee.
What I don’t understand is the benefit that Manuel felt he was gaining by saving Lee for the extra game. This wasn’t the sixth week of the regular season, this was the World Series. You need to play to your strengths at all times. Entering into Game Four, the assumption had to be that Sabathia, despite pitching on only three days rest, would still outperform Blanton. Even IF Lee managed to win Game Five, the Phillies would still have to win Games Six AND Seven in order to take the title. In the case that the Phillies did manage to reach Game Seven, though, Manuel would THEN be faced with the prospect of pitching his ace, Lee, on shorter rest than Sabathia. It essentially created a lose-lose situation for Manuel and the Phillies. Either way, he was faced with the need to pitch Lee on short rest, so why not do it on the same night that your opponent is pitching HIS star on short rest? The only way the plan would have worked in Manuel’s favor would have been the very unlikely event that Blanton outpitched Sabathia in Game Four.
Baseball is a situational game. Although Girardi took a lot of heat during the season for sometimes overthinking a situation, he understood the philosophy of allowing the situation to dictate his play. Rather than stick with conventional wisdom, he saw an opportunity to leverage the situation into his favor, which is why he is celebrating a championship today instead of Manuel!
Read the arguments from Loyal Homer and Bleacher Fan about what they believe was the most pivotal managerial decision in the 2009 World Series
Game four of the 2009 World Series in Philadelphia was the scene of THE moment – THE decision – that changed the course of the series and ultimately set the New York Yankees on a course to victory.
Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel is a great baseball manager. Great. I am using the word great. Over the course of his managing career in Major League Baseball he has made thousands of “right” decisions. However, his decision to put a heavy shift – the “Ortiz shift” – on against switching-hitting Mark Teixeira was THE decision that swung the momentum in the World Series permanently over to the Yankees.
In the top of the ninth inning, the Yankees ahead in the Series two games to one and the game knotted at four, Brad Lidge struck out the first two hitters he faced. Next was Johnny Damon who put together an outstanding nine-pitch at bat. Next up was Mark Teixeira. Charlie Manuel decided to put the shift on and overplay Teixeira’s pull tendencies to get out of the inning.
Examine Teixeira’s hit chart from the 2009 season. The switch hitter faced mostly right handed pitching in the 2009 season, so it is clear that many of his hits were pulled to right field. However, is Teixeira so much a dead pull hitter – in the mold of Boston’s David Ortiz and Cleveland’s Travis Hafner – that a shift is necessary to properly defend him? No. Manuel’s decision on the shift was an exaggerated response to a hitter that was having a poor hitting World Series to begin with, and the Series was not tough because of the Phillies’ shift. Moreover, Lidge had two strikeouts in the bag already in the inning. There was no reason to put a fancy defensive shift into effect because Lidge was throwing the ball well enough to miss bats.
While Teixeira only got hit by a pitch, during his at bat Johnny Damon stole second base. Because Damon beat the ball to the bag, and because the massive shift was on in the Phillies infield, no Phillies player – including third baseman Pedro Feliz, who was playing just to the left of the second base bag – occupied third base, or ANY spot in the infield even remotely close! Alex Rodriguez doubled in the next at bat, easily scoring Damon. However, the momentum shifted when Damon moved up two bases on one play due to a poor defensive decision.
Philadelphia had the momentum in the Series leaving New York. The Phillies stole game one of the series with a masterful performance from ace Cliff Lee. Pedro was serviceable in game two, but the Phillies were not able to pull out the win. Game three was a tough loss, but game four was the pivotal game in the Series, and Manuel’s decision was the most important decision in the most important game at the most important moment. And on this rare occasion, Manuel got it wrong.
Read the arguments from Sports Geek and Bleacher Fan about what they believe was the most pivotal managerial decision of the 2009 World Series.
The New York Yankees, much like the Dallas Cowboys, are just one of those teams people love to hate. The list of reasons why is long. But, as much as it pains me to write it, congratulations to the New York Yankees for winning a 27th World Series. The Yankees deserved it because they were the best team. I do not think there is anyone who could dispute that fact. I think most baseball fans this day would come back to the winter when the Yankees signed C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Mark Teixeira to large contracts. Actually, very large contracts. To the tune of $423.5 million.
However, this King of the Hill debate is about the key to the Yankees being able to win the World Series. The key to the Yankees winning was Joe Giradi’s decision to go with a three-man rotation consisting of Sabathia, Burnett, and postseason stalwart Andy Pettite. I was highly critical of this move at first, and I am not sure it bodes well for the future of these Yankees’ pitchers. But, in terms of winning this particular World Series, it was THE KEY.
Looking back at the records and ERA of the starting rotation in the regular season, it is obvious that the three-man rotation was the way to go. Sabathia (19-8 with a 3.37 ERA in 230 innings pitched), Burnett (13-9 with a 4.04 ERA and 207 innings pitched) and Pettite (14-8 with a 4.16 ERA in 194 innings pitched) anchored the staff the entire season. It is obvious Giradi had full intentions on going with a three-man rotation because he rested those guys more than usual down the stretch, which he was able to do since the Yankees won the AL East division by eight games. Girardi decided that reliever Joba Chamberlin, the fourth starter in the regular season, was more effective in the bullpen for the postseason.
Sabathia, despite not getting a win in the World Series (thanks to a Cliff Lee dominant performance and a blown save by Chamberlin) still posted a 3.29 ERA in his two starts. Burnett, who bombed in game five, was rather dominant in game two, outdueling Phillies’ starter Pedro Martinez in a near-must win for the Yankees. And Petitte, who now has a record 18 postseason wins, was 2-0 and won the clinching Game six.
The three-man pitching rotation strategy differed from that of the Phillies, who went with a four-man rotation. Therefore, the Yankees were “forced” to face Joe Blanton in a critical game four instead of the dominant Lee. That strategy will be second- guessed by many, and it is already being second-guessed by Bleacher Fan.
But, no matter what strategy the Phillies employed it was going to be extremely tough to defeat the high-salaried three-man rotation of Sabathia, Burnett, and Pettite. Those three guys definitely earned their checks in this Series and they accomplished what they were supposed to do when they were signed (or re-signed in the case of Pettite) last offseason. Those pitchers helped the Yankees win a championship for the first time since 2000. Congratulations!
I think we can all agree that retiring a player’s jersey is the ultimate compliment a team can give to a retired player. I stated in the intro, and Sports Geek and Bleacher Fan both reiterated in their arguments that retiring a jersey is quite the honor and is not to be taken lightly.
As Bleacher Fan wrote, retiring a jersey is a team matter. It is not a league matter. Tim Hardaway having his jersey retired by the Miami Heat had not a thing to do with the NBA and everything to do with the Heat organization. While with the Heat Hardaway, along with Alonzo Mourning (who also has his jersey retired with the Heat) led the team to four consecutive division titles. As Sports Geek pointed, the Heat won zero NBA championships.
I am awarding this victory to Bleacher Fan because, quite simply, I feel like the argument is stronger. Bleacher Fan gives an analogy comparing the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees to a Honda Civic and a Rolls Royce. I feel this is a perfect comparison. For a team like Tampa Bay last season was a magical run and the team may want to honor some of those players from that team since it was the organization’s first taste of success. Meanwhile, the Yankees have obviously “been there and done that.”
On the same note, Terrell Davis was a dominant rusher in the NFL who helped the Broncos win two Super Bowls in the late 1990s. Yes, it is true he only played four full seasons in Denver, but those were hugely successful seasons. If the Denver organization sees fit to honor Davis, then that is its prerogative. The Broncos do not need any guidelines whatsoever.
Sports Geek brings up the tragic case of Nick Adenhart. Obviously, this was a terrible ordeal and to its credit, the Angels organization chose an appropriate way to honor him. But, it was the organization’s call. The honoring a jersey, once again in this case, had nothing to do with MLB or any set form of guidelines. The Angels made this decision, and that is commendable. With no publicized guidelines there is not any protocol to follow, so there was no need for any “exception to the rule.”
The bottom line is that it should be up to each individual franchise to decide how to handle the retirement of a jersey/number. If an organization wants to wait one year, that is fine. If it wants to retire a number the last day a player is active, then that is the organization’s call. Retiring a jersey too late or too early does not diminish the honor one bit. It is an honor, no matter when it is done.
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