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In the third installment of ‘Trust The Grind Athletes in The Culture’, I’ve decided to handpick my favorite music lyrics involving the players. For many, heeding to tunes is a diurnal act, so it is quite natural to map out the best bars in which an athlete from the book was referenced in some capacity.
Continue reading “Top 5 Song Lyrics Involving Trust The Grind Athletes”
In the same vein as the prior post, I wanted to put together another culture-focused list involving the featured athletes from Trust the Grind. First up to bat was movie cameos, and slugging just before the three-hole hitter is video game covers. Given the sturdy hold that gaming has on the heritage, it’s only right to list out my five favorite electronic game wrappings that spotlighted an athlete from the book.
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In the process of cultivating my debut book, Trust the Grind, I was blessed to interview some of the most accomplished competitors in the history of American sports. When you say names like Chipper Jones, Jason Kidd, Mike Modano, Georges St-Pierre, Terrell Owens, Devin Hester, Gary Player, Jimmie Johnson, and Manny Pacquiao, to provide these competitors with the utmost respect, you should verbalize the words “Hall of Famer” ahead of trumpeting their iconic appellations. That’s because each of the spelled-out stars has reached the mountaintop in their individual discipline, which has immortalized them until the end of time. To this day, I feel forever grateful to these standouts for giving me the time to inquire about their path in an effort to inspire the next generation of athletes who were too young to have seen them perform.
Continue reading “Jeremy’s Five Favorite Movie Cameos From Trust The Grind Athletes”
While there was a fair share of hitters with mystic-like pop at the plate during the ’94 strike-shortened season, a notable name on the mound was operating at a beyond historic rate. Atlanta’s Greg Maddux, the Cy Young Award winner in the last two seasons, and eventually for 1994 and ’95, making it four in a row, posted a 1.56 earned run average with a WHIP of 0.896 in 202 innings of work. In the Live Ball Era (1920-), only one other pitcher finished a year, while logging at least 200 innings, with an ERA under 1.60 and a WHIP below .9. That hurler was, of course, Bob Gibson, who exceeded these marks in 1968 while carrying out arguably the greatest pitching season of the century. When speaking after his final start (a complete game, 3-hit shutout win over the Colorado Rockies) of the ’94 year, Maddux, in summary of his incredible stretch, said, “This is the best 4 ½ months I’ve ever had.” Rockies Manager Don Baylor, whose team just got blanked by the legendary right-hander, said of Maddux: “He’s a treat to watch. I don’t know if we had one good swing.”
Continue reading “Major League Baseball History: Bob Gibson’s Locker”
“Cheating started when they threw the first pitch in the first game.” – Rogers Hornsby, My War with Baseball (1962)
While the above quote from the game’s greatest second baseman shouldn’t be assimilated at face value, there is some truth to the icon’s hyperbolic assertion. Since bat first connected with ball, the players involved with the action have, and always will, do whatever it takes to win. Pitchers have doctored balls, and batters have corked bats. Some have injected steroids to gain advantage, and others have consumed amphetamine stimulants with the same target in mind. Even those on the outskirts of the diamond have been known to push the barriers. Groundskeepers have tampered with the foul lines in an effort to help their home team generate more successful bunts. On any given night, one or both ball clubs are liable to steal a sign or two from their opponent.
Continue reading “Major League Baseball History: Bernie the Sign Deliverer”
Continue reading “Jeremy’s Journal: Magical Art Class Assignment”
Whether it was kickball, tetherball, hopscotch, or even four square, Fred Lynn, also known on the playground as “Skinny Lynny,” had a knack for dominating any and all athletic ventures that he opted to put energy toward. By the age of 10, his exceptional ability granted him the opportunity to ferociously compete against seasoned 12-year-olds on the baseball diamond. After winning batting titles in both Little League and Pony League, the adults in the area started to take notice of Fred’s aptitude. During his middle school ball games, the local high school baseball coach often observed Fred from the stands, admiring the talent of the young prospect and ultimately envisioning the pivotal role the youngster would play on his team in the coming years.
Continue reading “Athlete Interview: Fred Lynn (Boston Red Sox Legend)”
While the numbers on the business side were somber, Major League Baseball was still able to skate by in 1995 due to a few lucky breaks. The first person that baseball needed to give thanks to was Cal Ripken Jr., who, because of his consecutive-game streak, practically kept the game alive on his own. As mentioned at an earlier point in the story, it was in September of ’95 when Ripken broke Lou Gehrig’s 2,130-consecutive-games record. This pursuit alone, having begun back in 1982, was of national interest at the time and was, by year’s end, arguably the biggest story in all of sports. Sure, Michael Jordan returning to the NBA in March after his brief time in baseball was special, but he and the Bulls came up short in the playoffs in a series loss to Penny Hardaway and Shaquille O’Neal’s Orlando Magic team, so that occurrence, while a fascinating one, didn’t come with the storybook ending like Cal’s did. In addition, Mike Tyson’s return to the ring in late ’95 following a three-year prison stint captivated sports enthusiasts, especially with how ‘Iron Mike’ eviscerated both Peter McNeeley and Buster Mathis Jr., but even his comeback didn’t compare to what Ripken had done. The whole situation was almost too good to be true. The type of script that even the most renowned screenwriters would have a hard time coming up with. Let’s start with whose mark it was that Ripken was breaking. Had it been Joe Schmoe’s record from back in the day, it’s quite possible that the amount of attention and praise that Ripken received as he inched closer and closer to eclipsing it would have been a fraction of the size that he ended up welcoming. Thanks to the baseball gods, it was Laruppin’ Lou who played in 2,130 straight ballgames. An unbroken chain of events that started on June 2, 1925, when Gehrig pinch-hit for Paul Wanninger in the 8th inning of a contest with the great Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators on the mound. During the illustrious run, thanks in large part to Gehrig’s sweet play, the Yankees had an overall winning percentage of .625. From an individual standpoint, after finishing the 1925 season with a batting average of .295, Gehrig would go on to hit .300 or better for 12 straight seasons. He collected at least 200 hits, 40 home runs, and 150 RBI in five of those years. No other player in the history of the sport has done that for more than two seasons. Immortals of the game like Babe Ruth, Rogers Hornsby, and Joe DiMaggio all did it once during their distinguished careers. Again, Gehrig did it 5 times.
After the 232-day strike bled into the Spring, the parties involved needed to come together and discuss another pressing matter, which was the schedule for the impending 1995 season. Thanks to the baseball gods, this conversation didn’t take too long, as the players and owners came to an agreement on a syncopated 144-game schedule. While it would allow the real players time to practice with their clubs, which, on paper, would enhance the quality of the regular season contests, it was another move that irked baseball fans, particularly those who obsess over the record books and consume the product each year in a perpetual state of anticipation, hoping that one of the game’s stars would shatter a historic single-season mark. A truncated set of games meant the chances to witness history over the course of the next six months went right down the drain.
Continue reading “Major League Baseball History: Angry Fans of ’95”