The milestones from last weekend jump off the sports page: 300, 500 and 755.
Revered baseball numbers converge so rarely that the chance to see three players reach those marks in the span of two days is nothing short of extraordinary. I had meant to write a football preview for the upcoming season, and I’ll get to that. Regardless of what the calendar tells you, it’s football season, boys and girls. But in this case, stitched leather trumps pigskin, or at least pushes it to the back burner.
Alex Rodriguez got the record procession started with a three-run homer against the Royals on Aug. 4, the 500th of his career. By now, I’m sure you’ve heard – he’s the youngest player in Major League history – at 32 years old – to hit 500 home runs, and is considered the closest challenger to Barry Bonds, who jacked No. 755 of his career on Saturday night and passed all-time leader Hank Aaron this week. Then there’s Tom Glavine, who captured win No. 300 of his career on Sunday night – a feat that is even more impressive than Rodriguez’s and Bonds’ blasts. While the number of players in the 500 home run club continues to grow (22 now, with Jim Thome and Manny Ramirez, among others, set to join shortly), many experts are saying that Glavine may be the last pitcher to win 300 games for a long time.
He’s the 23rd major leaguer to reach the milestone, and except for Randy Johnson – who has 284 wins but will miss the rest of the season and whose career is possibly over – no one else is really close. In the steroid-inflated world of modern baseball, more sluggers will continue to creep toward the 500 mark, while a number of factors, including decreased pitch counts, more powerful lineups and a higher frequency of injuries, will limit pitchers’ chances to win 300. Of the three milestones reached, his feat – a testament to his longevity, mechanics and approach to pitching – is the one, in my book, most deserving of praise. But regardless, the excitement generated last weekend was historic, and no matter what your opinion on Bonds is (and I’ve made mine perfectly clear – Go away, Barry), interest in baseball has rarely been higher.
But even so, I’m switching gears. Away from the Yankees, who have been playing their best ball of the season so far, and away from the suddenly interesting wild card races in both leagues. The Saints and Steelers matched up last Sunday night in the annual Hall of Fame game, and even though it was little more than a glorified scrimmage, the fact is that teams have already been in preseason camps for a few weeks now. Opening day is Thursday, Sept. 6 – a blockbuster matchup pitting defending Super Bowl champion Indianapolis against prohibitive NFC favorite New Orleans. And while this won’t be a definitive look at the season ahead (I haven’t finished all my research yet – I take this job seriously), here’s a look at some of the questions facing the NFL this season.
Michael Vick – need I say more?
The specter of Vick and his pending punishment will be hanging over the league for most of the year, with the threat of boycotts, picket lines and possible prison time for one of the most marketable stars in the NFL. Even if Vick is cleared of all wrongdoing (which seems doubtful based on government witnesses and testimony), Vick’s case has raised some ugly issues in Atlanta and beyond, including questions about race, rushing to judgment and the prevalence of dogfighting culture in the NFL and in all of professional sports.
But assuming that the legal process isn’t dragged out unfairly, Vick’s case should be heard before long, meaning that the league will hopefully be able to put this scandal in its rear-view mirror once the season opens. People will be eager to get to the real games and forget about Vick for a while, and with him suspended for the first four games of the season anyway, hopefully we can go at least a few weeks without hearing from him.
Concussions a hot topic
On the heels of a recent Sports Illustrated article and after an offseason in which retired veterans made an impassioned push for increased awareness about the effects of concussions and head injuries, concussions are one of the hot-button issues currently facing NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the league. Big hits are big business in the NFL, but some argue that glamorizing the biggest collisions (gratuitously done by ESPN in its “Jacked Up” segment on Monday Night Countdown each week) is taking focus away from the fact that among professional athletes, NFL players have the shortest career spans and greatest likelihood for post-career long-term injuries.
The league has commissioned studies and hired doctors to investigate what can be done to decrease the danger, but they face a problem of perception. It’s the NFL, after all – violent collisions are expected. But the league has a responsibility to do anything it can to lessen the chances of injury on the field, and if that means more stringent medical examinations, bigger pads or other methods, the NFL must be prepared to consider them. More negative press, especially in light of the Vick case, would drop the NFL a notch or two in the public eye.
Who’s on top?
Coming into a new season, the defending champion always has a bulls-eye on their back, but in the case of the Indianapolis Colts, some are seriously questioning whether free agency and off-season personnel moves will make it too difficult for Peyton Manning and his troops to repeat. The Colts lost some depth on defense in the form of Nick Harper, Cato June and Jason David, and saw backup running back Dominic Rhodes sign with Oakland. They also lost offensive tackle Tarik Glenn to retirement this week, and the job of protecting Manning will now probably fall to lineman Tony Ugoh, meaning that the Colts will be plugging a rookie into one of the most sophisticated schemes in the NFL. And to make matters worse, they lost another defensive player – lineman Anthony McFarland – to a knee injury this week.
Meanwhile, the main contenders in the AFC – the Patriots, Ravens and Chargers – have all improved, none more so than the Pats, who added combustible Randy Moss and multi-talented Adalius Thomas along with an all-new receiving corps and some offensive line depth. Those four teams will be the class of the AFC, while the Bears, Saints and Eagles (if Donovan McNabb can stay healthy for a whole season) will duel it out in the NFC.
But make no mistake – entering this season, as in the last several, the top teams in the AFC are a clear tier above their NFC counterparts. Will that difference hold up through the entire season and into the Super Bowl? And how will my beloved Giants do this year?
Check back in two weeks for my answers.