Sports roundup

Carlton's AFL season ended in heartbreak in the first week of the finals, for the second year in a row, with a 5 point loss in Sydney. Brave, gutsy, and not quite good enough. Keep at it, Blues. Looking forward to next year. Chris Judd will be another half step slower, but the likes of Garlett, Yarran, and Armfield will be a year wiser. Could be a fun season. But please, can we draft some key defenders?

The Brooklyn Cyclones ended their dominant regular season with a 6-5 win over Tri-City, sending out a series of lesser relief pitchers and somehow surviving the experience. Cory Vaughn's 14th home run set a new team record, and his 56 runs batted in shattered the old mark of 46. Darrell Ceciliani's 2 for 3 effort was good enough to take the league batting title with a team record .351 average. He also set records with his 95 hits and 12 triples. On a personal note, I caught a foul ball and walked on the field for the first time after the game. That was a magical evening.

At the other end of his baseball career, 63 year old Bill "Spaceman" Lee went 5 1/3 innings, giving up two runs, to pick up the win for Brockton over Worcester in the Can-Am league. That's a serious pro league. Impressive. Very, very impressive.

Darrelle Revis has finally signed a new contract with the Jets. This is fantastic news for me, because I can drag out my favorite line again: Welcome to Revis Island. Don't bother bringing a radio, cos there will be NO RECEPTION.

Congrats to Samantha Stosur on her epic three set win over Elena Dementieva. Not only was this the latest women's match in US Open history, finishing at 1:35AM, but our Sam saved four match points to stave off elimination. We're starting to expect great things at this point, which is always dangerous for Aussie tennis players. Fingers crossed for three more wins?

And then there's Jason Day, following up his excellent performance at the Barclays with a third round lead at the Deutsche Bank Championship. Go Jason! Golf is another one of those sports, like tennis and swimming, that Australia likes to think it can own. We have a bunch of good young players now, so maybe more majors are on the way soon. Who knows?

Oosthuizen!

Congratulations to the first time major winner - yet another in the past few years, when Yang, Ogilvy, McDowell, Glover, Cabrera, Cink, and others have made golf unpredictable once again. Louis Oosthuizen dominated from Friday onwards, and looked less and less beatable as time went on, finally winning by a Tigeresque seven shots. Tiger? Tiger who? This was supposed to be his year, too - the stars aligned perfectly for him in 2010, or so the experts said - with St. Andrews and Pebble Beach on the list of major venues. Jack Nicklaus' nearest rival remains majorless since his epic performance fighting off a serious knee injury at the 2008 U.S. Open. Mortality comes to us all eventually...

And a tip of the cap to Rory McIlroy, who recovered from his nightmarish second round collapse to card excellent scores over the weekend and finish in a tie for third. Kudos!

Possible British Open headlines

It is, of course, my unfulfilled life's ambition to write headlines for the New York Post. After last year's epic, but sadly unused idea WATS-ON SECOND, I am pulling for Lee Westwood. Why? WESTWOOD WON. No matter what happens to his fellow Englishman, a MIGHTY CASEY variation will be available. I'm lacking anything for Oosthuizen... JOOST AMAZIN?

June 17, 1994

This 30 for 30 film series on ESPN really has been special. I'm watching one today that is just brilliant. It tracks the events of June 17, 1994 - a day that saw Arnold Palmer's last ever round in a US Open at Oakmont, the New York Rangers' first victory parade in 54 years, the opening ceremony and first game of the World Cup in Chicago, game 5 of the NBA finals between the Knicks and Rockets at Madison Square Garden, Ken Griffey Jr hitting his 30th home run of the season off David Cone in Kansas City, keeping pace with Babe Ruth, and, trumping everything, OJ Simpson disappearing, leaving an apparent suicide note, and finally being spotted in a white Ford Bronco...

Best quote yet

In 1996, Charles Pierce paraphrased William Blake:

Tiger, Tiger, burning bright
Selling shoes for Phillip Knight

No more need be said.

Living in the past

Notre Dame vs Army at Yankee Stadium, first time since 1946.

Tom Watson could win the Open, first time since 1983.

Carlton beat Sydney, first time since 2001.

What year is it, anyway?

Viewing options

I could watch the bucketing rain out my window. Or I could watch the bucketing rain in glorious HD from Bethpage, as the players trudge disconsolately through the first round of the US Open.

Today's fun fact: Andy North, now working as a commentator, won two tournaments as a professional. Both of them were US Opens.

Incidentally, why does Chris Berman get dragged out for major events like this? It strikes me that the best presenters would be the ones who cover the sport year round. Back when ESPN/ABC did hockey, the same thing would happen. Regular commentators all season, Chris Berman suddenly appearing for game one of the Stanley Cup finals. Leave him for football and baseball, please. Or just football.

Oh dear, play was just called off. I guess I'll go back to watching the rain out my window.

Alas

The anticipated trip to New Haven to see the Lions take on the Bulldogs did not happen, so I am stuck here in Brooklyn with my mind wandering all over the sporting sphere. And today it's wandered into that corner (if a sphere has corners) where people with wonderfully appropriate sporting names are gathered. So here they are, my very favorite names in the sports world:

Chuck Long - star quarterback for Iowa, 1981-1985

Steve and Nick Swisher - father and son major league ballplayers

John Torp* - punter for Colorado, 2002-2005

Angie Green - professional golfer

Cecil and Prince Fielder - ok, Hitter would be a better surname here

Anna Smashnova - tennis player

And I have to ask: why is Mardy Fish in tennis and not swimming?


* In case you don't get it, this is why Torp is a great name for a punter.