Dale Earnhardt and two intelligent baseball players
02/18/2001
Codding Home / Sports Channel / Bullz-Eye Home
Sports fans tend to look at athletes through star-struck eyes. We know we shouldn't but sometimes we just can't help it. After all, these are the guys who actually live out our precious childhood dreams of sports stardom, and for that reason alone we often place athletes on mighty pedestals where seemingly nothing can hurt them. They're the ones who can take a 95-mph fastball to the helmet, shake off the cobwebs and trot down to first base. They jump to their feet only seconds after being buried by a 280-pound psychotic linebacker. They skate off the ice an instant after being splattered against the boards by a 220-pound defenseman, and then they come back to score the winning goal two periods later, or hit the decisive homer in the ninth or the game-winning basket in overtime. They seem immortal to us because every day in our living rooms they do immortal things. But then something tragic happens, something that instantly wakes us up from our Sports Utopian dreams and reminds us just how mortal athletes are, and just how mortal we are too. Bobby Phills' death last year had that exact effect on me, as did the deaths of Eric Turner and Derrick Thomas. And it happened again this past Sunday.
Now I'm not a NASCAR fan at all. Personally, watching dozens of cars drive around in circles for a few hours does nothing for me. Race fans call it leisure. I'd lean more toward punishment. But I was still struck silent when I heard that Dale Earnhardt had died during Sunday's Daytona 500. Dale Earnhardt? He's one of the few drivers I'd actually recognize in a bar or on the street, and I may not know much about the sport, but you can bet I know Earnhardt is one of the best ever to strap on a seat belt. So it seemed impossible that, of all the guys on the track that Sunday, he was the one who didn't make it off safely at the end of the day. But that's exactly what happened -- after racing through the first 499.5 miles of this 500-mile race without incident, Earnhardt lost control during his final lap and slid into a concrete wall with a half a mile to go.
Earlier in the day, I happened to turn on the race while they were cleaning up after a wild 21-car crash. This thing was brutal -- Tony Stewart's car flipped through the air a couple times, causing several other cars to also spin out of control. Drivers like Jeff Gordon and Dale Jarrett were knocked out of the race, but Tony Stewart managed to walk away with a mild concussion. Fox showed that replay at least five or six times, and I just kept asking myself how nobody involved in this violent 21-car accident was seriously injured. Later I saw a replay of the crash that took Earnhardt's life. Compared to the earlier accident, this looked like a glorified fender bender. His car hit the wall head on, causing the hood to fly off while also crashing into Ken Schrader's car. That's it. A two-car accident, no flips, no flames. Just a lot of smoke and some airborne metal. But that's all it took. Tony Stewart's car did a pirouette across three lanes of high-speed traffic and caused 20 other drivers to spin out of control, but he walked out of a hospital hours later with a mild concussion and a headache. Earnhardt slid into a wall and lost his life, and in the process reminded us that no matter how many home runs they've hit, how many touchdowns they've scored or how many races they've won, our favorite athletes are just as mortal as their loyal fans.
Same old Manny
Pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training last week, and as always some position players also decided to check in a little early. Boston outfielder Manny Ramirez showed up a few days ahead of schedule, perhaps hoping to impress his new Beantown bosses with his promptness. Bad idea, Manny. I saw a short clip on TV the other night of Ramirez arriving in Fort Myers, Fla. three days early, complete with a brand new set of stylish cornrows. Everything looks fine at first -- Manny's got a big smile on his face, he says a few indecipherable words of "English" to the local reporters and nods his head politely to a couple of fans who showed up to welcome him. But then I noticed the duffle bag he's got slung over his shoulder has a huge grinning Chief Wahoo displayed on the side. Maybe Manny already forgot he changed teams this offseason or perhaps he accidentally grabbed the wrong bag on his way out the door that morning, but I watched Ramirez clumsily patrol right field and the base paths in Cleveland for years and it wouldn't surprise me if he just didn't think showing up to Spring Training with another team's logo plastered on his gear would be a big deal. Or, even more likely, he probably just didn't care. But, Manny, now that you're making $20 million a year, I'd think you could afford to drop 30 bucks on a new bag. Maybe instead of coming down for Spring Training early, he should have used those last few days to do a little shopping. I just can't wait to see the first time he tries to wear a Cleveland turtleneck underneath his Boston jersey this year.
Now there's loyalty for you
Someone please tell me why John Rocker decided it would be a good idea to ask the Braves for a raise this offseason. With his contract up, Atlanta offered Rocker a one-year, $1.9 million deal for 2001. Somehow, this walking KKK ad had the nerve to ask for $2.98 million. The Braves wouldn't budge so the issue was decided by an arbitrator, who in the end fortunately ruled with Atlanta, setting Rocker's 2001 salary at $1.9 million. I know how talented this guy is on the mound and all that, but after everything Rocker put himself, his family and his teammates through last season, I'd just be happy to still be in the league if I were him. And after the support the Braves as an organization showed Rocker during that whole fiasco last year, I'd gratefully accept any offer thrown my way. But thankfully I'm not John Rocker and thankfully I'm not a Braves fan... although I wouldn't mind being a Mets fan when Atlanta visits New York this year.
QuickQuote:
"This is one of those good dreams and bad dreams stories. I'm assuming you have to truly live a lifetime to get this, but I'm not that old yet. Hopefully, I've got a few more years left."
--
Jack Nicklaus at last week's ESPY Awards Show, where
he accepted the first ESPY Lifetime Achievement Award