Tour of the crazy! That is what the French called the 93rd edition of their most cherished sporting event and what is regarded as the most grueling professional sports competition. By now, the Tour de France needs no introduction because of what has been happening for the last seven years, during which a certain Texan has laid exclusive claim to its most priced trophy, the Maillot Jeune.
This year, another American, Floyd Landis won top honors or as it remains to be seen, top dishonor! But more about that later, let's first talk about what has made this year's Tour de France probably the craziest ever. For starters, there were all the non-starters. On the eve of the Prologue, the top two favorites were disqualified, casualties of the Spanish police investigation better known as "Operacion Puerto." Both Jan Ulrich and Ivan Basso were not permitted to start the race because of their connections with a Dr. Fuentes who apparently ran a blood doping lab serving some of best known names in the peloton. That is a shame because Jan Ulrich was the sentimental favorite to win this race after first winning it back in 1997 and promising a lasting winning legacy. Alas, those plans were derailed in 1998 by Marco Pantani and for the next seven years by Lance Armstrong. Here was Jan's chance to possibly finish his career with a win that would have proved he was always second best. It was a double shame because Ivan Basso was my favorite to win this year. Last year, he had shown that only Lance was a better rider. This year he had already won the Maglia Rosa and was poised to win both "Il Giro d'Italia" (Tour of Italy) and the Tour de France in the same year, a feat that Lance never accomplished and has not been repeated since Marco Pantani did it in 1998.
Another great rider, Alexander Vinokourov was not implicated in the Operacion Puerto affair but five of his Astana teammates were, leaving him unqualified to start without a team. I like Vino because he has always been a gutsy rider. He made last year's Tour a lot of fun to watch by attacking in the most crucial stages and unexpected places, even getting a win on the last stage usually reserved for the sprinters. Quite a number of Spanish riders were implicated in Operacion Puerto. Among them was Francisco Mancebo who still had a bright career ahead of him but decided to retire after learning of his implication in the affair. There was also Joseba Beloki who I was hoping would return to prominence after that disastrous accident in the 2003 Tour de France where he had been second to Lance; He has never shown that form again. Another Spanish rider, which I have been following for years, is also implicated in Operacion Puerto and doubly so since he was Jan's teammate; "El Niño" Oscar Sevilla is one of many promising Spanish riders who cannot seem to rise anywhere close to the mystique of the great Miguel Indurain.
So what about the prospects for American riders? I have to admit that I had no interest in watching George Hincapie, Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis line up for the start of this Tour. All these guys had the aspiration to win but let's face it the most interesting part of their careers seems to be that at some point they were Lance's domestique. A couple of other American riders, like David Zabriskie and Bobby Julich have lots more charisma than the three American favorites to replace Lance. Though they cannot be considered for the General Classification, they are always fun to watch because of their exploits. Zabriskie is a talented young time-trialist, who set the fastest time ever for a Tour time-trial in stage 1 of the 2005 Tour de France. Julich has been around forever and can always be counted to come out of nowhere and win a stage of one of the Tours. Unfortunately, this year Julich crashed out in stage 7. Zabriskie's time trial results were not what was expected and he was eclipsed as was the rest of the peloton by Serhiy Honchar, a relatively old rider with an ugly mashing style and beatifully fast times. He won both time-trails stages this year, becoming the first ever Ukrainian rider to win a stage and wear the yellow jersey at the Tour. To add the the weirdness of this year's Tour, Yaroslav Popovych, the youngster in the Discovery Team, considered to be Lance's true heir is also an Ukrainian and became the second Ukrainian to ever win a stage after his great performance in stage 12.
So what else made this year's Tour a crazy, weird one? There was Hincapie's cheeky exploit on stage 1 that got him the yellow jersey for the first time. He was paying attention and picked a few extra seconds in one of the intermediate sprints. It was enough to put him in yellow at the end of the day. Unfortunately, it seems like Hincapie lost all focus after that and was not able to shine for the rest of the Tour. Alejandro Valverde a talented Spanish rider who has been on fire throughout the year and was considered one the favorites for GC, crashed out in stage 3. Another Spaniard, Iban Mayo, who was expected to excel in the mountains, disintegrated in the first Pyrenean stage and abandoned the Tour. Landis grabbed the yellow jersey on that same stage and seemed poised to be in yellow all the way to Paris. In stage 13, Oscar Pereiro who was almost half an hour behind in GC was part of a break away that made enough time on the peloton and Landis giving Pereiro the yellow jersey and setting up a few interesting last days for the Tour. There was even a Frenchman, Cyril Dessel in stage 10, wearing the yellow jersey!
Landis got back the yellow jersey on stage 15 after edging Pereiro by 10 seconds on l'Alpe d'Huez. Things were starting to look good for Landis; Tour de France lore (and statistics) has it that whoever has the yellow jersey by this fabled mountain stage goes on to win the Tour in the Champs Elysées. This was also the point when I started to like Landis. I had been part of the crowd questioning Landis as Tour de France champ. The French did not like his uninspired performance to the extent of making fun of him in the press in a mousy caricature. I changed my mind for two reasons: First, he battled it out against Pereiro on the l'Alpe d'Huez, made up a deficit of 1:29 minutes and conservatively but surely claimed his prize. Second, a friend gave me an ESPN Magazine that had an extensive article about Floyd Landis. From that article, I learned things that changed my mind about Landis. I learned that he had been a gifted Mountain Biker in his youth and won the 1993 Junior National Championship. I learned about his strict Mennonite religious upbringing and his youthful rebellion against that upbringing. I learned about his early cycling years and I specially liked learning about his character and work ethics that were a product of that upbringing he rebelled against and put him on an inspired path to become a Tour de France champion.
On stage 16 things went really crazy! Landis cracked, lost more than eight minutes to Pereiro and fell to 11th place in the GC. It was painful to see Landis loosing time while everyone in the peloton seemed to be passing him effortlessly on the climb to La Toussuire. But there was something I liked about his stoic demeanor. He did not make excuses at the end of the stage. He obviously bonked but you did not see him giving excuses to the press. Instead he got himself a beer, thought things over and prepared for the next day. The option of abandoning the race was never considered as would probably have happened with other prima-donnas of the sport. It had to be difficult when he had been virtually eliminated from the GC and he still was expected to show up the next day for another tough Alpine stage.
Stage 17 of this year's Tour was tough. Take a good look at the map I include for this article: The snow capped mountains are the Alps and the zig-zag yellow line on the left side is the border between the countries of Italy, Switzerland and France. The blue sea on the horizon, at the top, is the Mediterranean sea and down its coast on the upper right is Spain. "Genève" in the lower-right side is the great Swiss city of Geneva. Paris is barely off the middle-right side off the map. The green line is the course for stage 17 between Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne and Morzine, a distance of 125 miles (200 km) of Alpine terrain. Look at the monumental proportions of stage 17 as it relates to the size of France and its neighboring countries. Lance called stage 16 of the 2000 Tour on a similar course from Courchevel to Morzine "..the hardest day of my life on the bike..." This was the stage that Landis chose to show us what kind of a Tour de France champion he wanted to be. And show us he did! He lead the stage from virtually the start to the end, riding on his own on an epic break away with no help from teammates or other riders. The peloton let him go because they thought his effort was suicidal and because he was now in 11th place more than 8 minutes back from the yellow jersey. He made up most of those 8 minutes and at one point he was the race leader on the road. He ended the stage in third place in GC, well positioned to regain the jersey back from Pereiro after the final time-trail in stage 19. He did win back the yellow jersey and wore into the Champs Elysées on the next day and final stage 20.
Landis' heroic win in stage 17 made him an instant celebrity. The French press who had depicted him as a timid mouse now called him the lion that roared. They compared his ride to the great historical Tour de France exploits of all times. He was placed in the same pantheon of great heroes of times past as Charly Gaul, Bernard Hinault and the greatest of all times and personal hero: Eddy Merckx Interestingly enough, Eddy's son, Axel Merckx is Landis' Phonak teammate and he helped pace Landis during his bad spell on stage 16. Reportedly, cagey Eddy understood the greatness of Landis and placed a $100, 75 to 1 bet on Landis to win stage 17. The American press was no less flamboyant in their report of Landis win in stage 17 calling it the "...greatest single-stage performance ever...topping LeMond and Lance..."
How could this Tour be any crazier? I knew how crazy it could get the minute I read the cryptic news about one case of an "adverse analytical finding" at the 2006 Tour de France. Landis had not been named yet but I understood that he would be one of the most tested cyclist in the peloton because of the testing protocols for stage winner and leaders of the GC. Weeks have gone by since the end of the Tour and I have kept up with the developments of the Floyd Landis case. I have considered almost every argument from both points of view:
- Why would Landis be so stupid and take testosterone when he knew he was going to be tested at the end of the stage? He accidentally injected himself with what he thought would be another non-detectable performance enhancing drug!
- Why didn't all the other tests come back positive? He only used drugs in stage 17 in a desperate attempts regain the yellow jersey which accounts for his extraordinary performance! There have been many instances of riders recuperating from a bonk to come back and win subsequent stages. The fact that Landis won stage 17 after his awful performance on stage 16 does not prove drug use. Landis is a highly trained athlete who was in top form for this year's Tour. He performed poorly on stage 16 because he forgot to intake enough fluids and food, not because he is a poor rider incapable of the extraordinary performance on stage 17.
- Why did he make up all those excuses about the cause for the elevated reading and the testosterone being natural? All athletes have a life-long profile of testing and when they have a natural occurring anomaly, it is well known and documented. Landis samples were also proved to contain testosterone from synthetic sources. On the other hand, if Landis is telling the truth he must be baffled as to the source of the positive tests and any explanation with a scientific background must be considered.
- Is there a conspiracy from the French lab conducting the tests? After all, they leaked the results in an improper manner! And aren't these the same folks who unethically resurrected some old samples from the 1999 Tour, supposedly belonging to Lance Armstrong and then leaked to the French Press that the samples showed traces of EPO? Isn't the French press who reported all of this related to the lab conducting the tests and also related to the organizers of the Tour de France? I'm tired of conspiracy theories but chauvinism is a French word!
Floyd Landis is on the verge of becoming the first ever winner of the Tour de France to be stripped of his title. As he gets ready for what will be a long legal battle, time and public opinion are not on his side. Only something crazier than this Tour will completely prove or disprove his innocence (His confession or revelations of a conspiracy) In either case, I believe this challenge will ultimately determine what type of champion Landis really is. As for my personal sentiments, the guy says he did not take any banned drugs and that he won the Tour because he was the best rider. I am still willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. However, as a German sports doctor told the press, testosterone can be used for a quick recovery; All a rider has to do is to apply a patch to his scrotum for a few hours. If that is what Landis did then the patch must have been huge because without question, he has some big cojones!
adidas soccer
What about the statistics for this World Cup? I think that is better left to the pro's but I have to record my favorite goals and favorite matches. So here they are: Favorite Goals: You have to separate these into individual vs. team efforts;
- For personal brilliance I have to start with Ronaldo's goal in Brazil's win over Ghana (3:0). Ronaldo bolted from the Ghana's defense, then beat the goalie and made a shot after beating a final desperate defender. The goal was even more amazing when you consider that it was Ronaldo's 15th in a World Cup breaking the all-time record.
- Then there is Beckman's goal in England's win over Ecuador (1:0). Beckman knows how to bend it!.
- Zidane was flawless in taking a couple of penalty shots that were crucial for France's wins. But Zidane's goal in France's win over Spain (3:0) was spectacular and showed that old Zidane could still mix it up with the youngsters.
- All the sports pundits agree, the best 2006 World Cup goal was Maxi Rodriguez goal in Argentina's win over Mexico (2:1). In a goal that defined the game, Maxi stopped the ball with his chest and while the ball was still in mid-air kicked a long-range bullet that totally surprised Mexican goalie Sanchez.
- For team efforts, I begin with the goal that Cambiasso scored after a tricky "taquito" from teammate Crespo in Argentina's trouncing over Serbia & Montenegro (6:0).
- A perfect example of a goal that involves team effort with personal talent was Torres' goal in Spain's win over the Ukraine (4:0) The goal was scored by Torres after teammate Puyol received a pass from another teammate and with a header passed it to Torres who scored a great shot.
- Klose was the top goal scorer at the 2006 World Cup. One of his best goals was scored in Germany's win over Ecuador (1:0) He was perfectly positioned and got a perfect pass from his teammates to finish it in an unstoppable cross shot.
Favorite Matches:
- Obviously, the final championship match between Italy vs. France (1:1)(5:3) there was enough drama in this game to keep the 2006 World Cup after-glow going for a few weeks.
- The semifinal between Portugal vs. France (0:1) was boring! The only goal was a penalty shot by Zidane, but this was one of the best matched teams in the World Cup. Both teams knew their adversaries and played with great respect for each other. How wonderful to see two great stars, Zidane and Figo sharing what was to be either one's last game. They had been teammates at Real Madrid for a number of years and they both had been named FIFA World Player of the Year, Zidane in 1998, 2000 & 2003 and Figo in 2001 with a second close to Zidane in 2000.
- The round of 16 match between Argentina vs. Mexico (2:1). Argentina was the favorite and Mexico had just squeaked in past the first round. The Mexican fans were not happy and the fact that their Coach was suspect Argentinean La Volpe made for a match full of intrigues. Argentina won but not easily, Mexico gave a valiant fight.
- The round of 16 match between England vs. Ecuador (1:0) How exciting to watch underdog Ecuador on its first ever World Cup battle it out against one of the all-time greats. Ecuador played fearlessly and almost advanced to the quarter-finals had it not been for an amazing goal by Beckman.
- The quarter final match between Germany vs. Argentina (1:1) (4:2). I think this would have been the dream championship match of the 2006 World Cup. How perfect if the host country Germany would have been in the final and how perfect if the final would have been between an European and a South American team. Argentina's was clearly better than Brazil in this World Cup. The game was closely disputed and ended in a 1:1 tie. Germany won the nervous shootout because of the coolness of its great goalie, Lehmann. In soccer, it doesn't get any more classic that that!
Just as in the Super bowl, add campaigns during the World Cup were great! Since I have been watching mostly the Spanish language TV coverage, I have seen mostly the very funny adds targeted to the US Latino market (Think Bud & Chevy!) But there were also a number of interesting add campaigns put on by soccer equipment manufacturers. Soccer equipment manufacturers? Soccer is a simple game played with what should be a simple ball. So what other equipment is there? If you are a poor kid from Africa, Asia or Latin America, there is none! Not so fast, there are shoes to be made and dreams to be sold! And the main selling is being done by the big three in soccer shoes and apparel: Nike, Puma & Adidas.
The World Cup is over! What to do now? I wonder if there is some other "quirky" sports event, taking place in Europe, with some great American athletes that almost no one in the US knows or cares about?
FIFA
For starters, did you know that the USA team was ranked fifth coming into this year’s World Cup? Did you know that the USA got to the World Cup by classifying first in CONCACAF and winning games in the final round against other World Cup qualifiers such as Costa Rica, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago? Did you know that one of the reasons that soccer has advanced in the US is because there actually is a professional soccer league? MLS no longer stands just for the Real State Multiple Listing Service it also stands for Major League Soccer!
Maybe, you think that soccer does not have a US tradition like other American sports. But did you know that at the first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930 the USA Team was there? And they finished third in the tournament right behind powerhouses Argentina and Uruguay. And did you know that the USA has pulled some amazing upsets over the years in World Cup matches? Like the upset against England in 1950 that was misreported as a 10-1 English win by the British media and a win against dark-horse favorite Colombia in 1994 to advance to the second round (An infamous game I was lucky to witness at the Rose Bowl accompanied by some rabid Colombian friends who had to share the Stadium with a crowd of mostly Mexican-Americans rooting for the USA team)
Of course, your last recourse is to claim that soccer is a boring game with low scores, slow play and stupid rules. Well, I got you there too! If you think that it is only because you suffer from the same sports malady that affects all people who have never played a sport they criticize. You never played the sport as a youngster so you don’t understand how difficult it is to score a goal and how talented you must be to be a striker. Or the level of endurance and intelligence that is necessary to be a mid-fielder. Or the level of mental and physical toughness it takes to be a defender or a goalie. As for the rules, they may be stupid but they are fairly clear; the difficulty stems from their interpretation and enforcement by the referees. Soccer is one of the few sports where the conduct and expertise of the referees does determine the final outcome of the game. For the knowing soccer fan, referee performance is just to be as closely watched as that of the teams.
Maybe you did not play the sport in your youth but I have seen you at your children’s games. I have seen you kick the ball back and forth with your daughter. I have seen you screaming at the top of your lungs when your son almost scored a goal. I have seen you console your goalie after a tough loss and I have even seen you questioning the occasional off-sides and penalties.
So why have you shown lack of interest in the World Cup? Because the English language coverage sucks! The drowning, serious monotone may work for the NFL but what we need are characters like the great announcers of Baseball and Basketball. It’s interesting to watch Alexi Lalas, Eric Wynalda and Julie Foudy on EPSN doing the side-kick analysis. These guys and gal were in a couple of World Cups as part of their USA teams so they know what they are talking about. But what we need is a guy that screams Goooooool! for 30 seconds or his current counterpart who prefers a long cannonade of Gol, Gol, Gol, Gol, Gol!
That is why I watch the Spanish language coverage and that is why I am thoroughly enjoying this World Cup. I get to watch the pre-game silliness of TV hosts dressing up and cheering for Mexico one day and for Ecuador, Brazil, Costa Rica or Spain the next. I get to watch some goofball pull silly tricks at the German venues and get the fans into a state of frenzy. I get to listen to a game narrated by guys with passion for the sport and I get to listen to comments that I do not hear or read anywhere else.
While watching the Brazil vs. Japan game, I already knew that Zico , a great Brazilian player, had closed his playing career in Japan and has been the coach (“Director Tecnico”) for Japan since the last World Cup. What I didn’t know was that Santos , the left winger was also a Brazilian born, Japanese citizen. I also learned that Scolari , better known as Felipão in his native Brazil is now the coach for Portugal. And Saudi Arabia’s coach Paqueta is also from Brazil. The coaches for Tunisia and Ivory Coast, Lemerre and Michel are both French. Iran’s Coach Ivankovic is from Croatia and will probably be sacked after Iran’s lackluster performance. Coach Suarez from Colombia is loved by his Ecuadorian team and the nation as a whole, since he has been instrumental in getting Ecuador into the World Cup for the first time. La Volpe the Argentinean who coaches Mexico has had a tenuous relationship with his team and things will not get better after Mexico’s elimination by Argentina. It probably does not help that New Age La Volpe has tried to use hypnotism and Feng Shui to improve his reluctant Mexican team, that he left beloved Cuauhtemoc Blanco off the team and instead included Argentinean born Franco and Brazilian born Zinha.
You probably already knew that some of the best soccer players in the world now playing for their national teams ( Ronaldo, Robinho, Roberto Carlos & Julio Cesar from Brazil; Zidane from France; Beckman from England; Casillas & Raul from Spain) happen to be teammates for what is considered the best club team in the world, Real Madrid (I hope no one from Barcelona reads this post!) But do you know who el conejo, el ratón, el payasito, el gringo, el pato, el apache, el borrego and la pulga (The rabbit, the mouse, the little clown, the gringo, the duck, the apache, the ram and the flea) are? These are all nicknames that I heard during what has to be one of the best matches of the World Cup, Argentina vs. Mexico. The Univision announcers know the players so intimately that they give them nicknames! I can’t think of a single USA player that has a nickname!
So who is my favorite to take the Jules Rimet cup? As I watch what I think should be final World Cup game, Germany vs. Argentina I have to go back to the team I have been rooting for since watching soccer on a black and white TV as a child in my native Venezuela. Being from the only South American country not totally crazy about soccer (Beisbol rules!), I have to root for Pelé’s team.
By the way, do you know what the US Spanish language TV calls the USA Team? "El Equipo de Todos" (Everyone's Team!) And that is why I'm truly disappointed that the USA did not advance past the first round!
PS: My friend Adam took me to task because I posted about the World Cup and I did not mention Ronaldinho, best FIFA player for the last two years. I did not want to do that because I would have to list all the Barcelona players in the World Cup. Here it goes: Ronaldinho from Brazil; Brazilian born Deco from Portugal; Marquez from Mexico; Messi from Argentina; Puyol, Xavi & Iniesta from Spain. After what transpired in this match, I think the most interesting instance of club teammates playing for their national teams has to be Manchester United's Wayne Rooney from England and Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal.
AIM Enterprises Inc.
It is November, the NFL, NHL and NBA started weeks ago and I don't care! I am still thinking about baseball. Why? The Playoffs and World Series were exciting but somewhat unsatisfying. The White Sox made it look easy. We should have been watching baseball until the weekend before Halloween. How can I get the 2005 Baseball season out of my head? I can revisit my post and see if my prediction was right and maybe have my friend understand what I was talking about.
Derek Jeter did win the American League shortstop Gold Glove. I knew that but I thought the award should have gone to Orlando Cabrera who had the better fielding numbers. Obviously fielding stats are not enough to win a Gold Glove and in my opinion that is all that should count, especially for the shortstop position. Orlando Cabrera was the better pick, he has the defensive numbers and although he does not have the offensive numbers of Derek Jeter, he can rise to the occasion as he demonstrated during the ALCS between the Angels and the Yankees. He caught my attention because he is one of only two Colombian players in the Majors and because he would have become the only shortstop to win Gold Gloves in the both the American and the National League.
That was not to be and will never be! That distinction now belongs to one of my favorites shortstops and baseball players: Omar Vizquel. If you ever saw him play for the Indians and you witnessed the athleticism of his signature bare-handed double-plays, he has to be one of your favorite shortstops too. He learned to do that in his childhood, playing beisbol in the mean, beat-up back-lots of Caracas that have served as the "Field of Dreams" of several generations of Venezuelan kids. He has become an accomplished professional baseball player but he is also a humanitarian who is involved in many charitable causes in the US as well as hands-on relief efforts in his native Venezuela. He is a painter and has even tried his hand at singing with the main purpose of benefiting charities.
He is humble in his accomplishments and when asked about his chances of being inducted into Cooperstown, he questions the possibility because of his offensive numbers, which are fairly decent for a shortstop. At the age of 38 he has not only become the only shortstop to ever win Gold Gloves in both leagues but also the oldest shortstop to ever win a Gold Glove; This is his tenth which ranks him in second place in the list for most Gold Gloves by a shortstop, just below "The Wizard of Oz" Ozzie Smith. He moves ahead of Luis Aparicio, his childhood idol and is one of several excellent Venezuelan shortstops who were all inspired by the great Alfonso "Chico" Carrasquel. Talk about coming full circle!
I hope my friend understands what I am talking about. I wanted to close that loop!
FOX Sports
FOX Sports
Maybe there were defining moments when the "momentum" obviously changed. Or maybe, there were defining facts! The fact that the White Sox's starting pitchers Mark Buerhle, Jon Garland, Freddy Garcia and Jose Contreras pitched complete games during the last four games against the Angels. The fact that Paul Konerko hit home runs when they were most needed, not just that grand slam against the Astros but also several against the Angels; a feat that made him the ALCS MVP. The fact that a reserve infielder, George Blum, came off the bench to hit a home run that won an epic Game 3 against the Astros. The fact that a young pitcher claimed on waivers, "the big guy" Bobby Jenks, moved up from the Minors to the MLB Playoffs to amaze us with his 100mph fastball and to wrap things up neatly with the final win against the Astros. The fact that Ozzie Guillen is a great manager because his priority is to have a team, not of the best baseball players but of the best team players. And the undeniable fact that Pierzynski and Dye had the desire and the presence of mind to turn dubious incidents into controversial calls that became defining moments.
Probability of getting tickets for a playoff game at 3:30pm when the game is about to start at 5:00pm: Nil!
Price for fifth and last game of Angels-Yankees playoff series: Exorbitant! (Got them through stubhub! Why do they charge shipping when you pick up the tickets on top of the handling fee? Because they can!)
Noise level of that game at Angel Stadium: Deafening!
Price for ballpark beer and hotdogs: Small fortune!
Joy of spending an evening with AZ watching SOID's Yankees demise while calling him every ten minutes during the game: Indescribable!
Before you jump the gun and jump on my case about jumping ship: (a) Take your Ritalin (b) Really re-read my previous "biesbol" post. (c) It's all there!
Rawlings
Baseball is such a great sport because it doesn't look like any other sport; it is unlike any other team sport; its basic rules are very different from any other ball game (except for cricket!) Baseball has simple rules that can be adapted by a bunch of kids for a street or back-lot pick-up game. But those simple rules create complex strategic situations that give any sportsman plenty to get passionate about. I think this is why the manager gets to wear a team uniform; He needs to be in the field of battle with his troops. And you don’t wear a blazer into warfare, even if it is conducted in a gentlemanly manner. You wear what your troops are wearing!
If you are crazy about baseball it is probably because you have discovered that there is so much more to the game: The history, the legends and of course “the stats!” If you know anything about baseball, you would have to agree that the defensive stats are all that should count in order to pick a Gold Glove. Especially for the shortstop! If that were the case, Orlando Cabrera would be the American League 2005 Gold Glove. He has already won one in 2001 in the National League. But the Gold Gloves get chosen by team managers and coaches who let other factors influence their decision. It’s clear that Derek Jeter will be 2005 AL Gold Glove. He won it last year. He also has the offensive numbers and the star power.
Why is this so interesting to me? Because since 1957, when the Gold Gloves began to be awarded, out of 93 shortstop Gold Gloves, 25 have been given to Luis Aparicio, Dave Concepcion, Ozzie Guillen, Omar Vizquel, and Cesar Isturiz. These are all Venezuelan shortstops. They have won 27% of all shortstop Gold Gloves. That is an impressive number when you consider that over the same period of time they have comprised less than 5% of all Major League shortstops. Why have they been such good shortstops? As kids they were all inspired by the first Latin American player ever picked for an All Star Game: Alfonso "Chico" Carrasquel who never won a shortstop Gold Glove because his best years were from 1950 to 1955 when he played for the Chicago White Sox. By the way, that’s the same White Sox that Ozzie Guillen has managed into the postseason as the first ever Major League manager from Venezuela!
If you are still with me and you know that Cartagena and Caracas are not in the same South American country, you might be wondering why I am so interested in Orlando Cabrera. Well, watch him play! He is not flashy. In fact, his teammates call him boring. But he approaches every fielding with textbook consistency. As he best puts it, his job is to rob the opposing team of hits. What makes him a rarity is that he hails from Colombia, a country where soccer truly rules. He is one of only two players from that country in Major League Baseball. That is a very impressive stat!
Michael Rasmussen's
website
Other friends leave such wonderfully weird messages on my cell phone that it makes me glad I miss their calls and instead get voice mails documenting their aberrant behaviors. One friend called me to let me know that he was worried about the possibility of hurricane Emily devastating Venezuela. With the same impending sense of doom, he let me know he is worried about “…just 38 seconds!” He wanted to let me know that he knew what I would be worried about.
Another friend left me a voice mail impersonating Lance Armstrong. “Lance” let me know that he is disappointed in me this year. He says I have been writing notes to my friends about him for the last six years, sharing my enthusiasm for the Tour de France and his racing prowess; yet this year “…nothing!” He’s deeply hurt. Well, here you go Lance:
Thirty-eight seconds! That is what separates Lance from his closest contender at this year’s Tour de France. The contender is some Danish guy with a name out of a Nordic tale of trolls and fairies. This tall and lanky biker is no troll: If you don’t Mountain Bike, the name doesn’t mean much and you would probably dismiss the contender as a pretender. If you Mountain Bike, the name will sound familiar because Michael Rasmussen was the 1999 Cross Country Mountain Bike World Champion.
And he is definitely no fairy. You don’t come to the Tour de France and tell the press that you will win the “King of the Mountains” unless you are very confident in your abilities. Rasmussen consolidated his claim to the polka dot jersey on the first serious stage of this year’s Tour de France. He escaped on Stage 9 and came across the first mountain passes gaining maximum points for the King of the Mountains competition. He then went on an impressive solo suffer-fest to claim the stage. What made it impressive is that the peloton could not catch him even tough he was on his own for several flat-road miles to the finish. He was just as impressive on Stage 10, He did not win the stage but he did hang with a very select group of five who conquered the most difficult stage in the French Alps. Two of the climbs were “Hors Category,” so tough they are “beyond categorization.” Rasmussen hung with Lance to finish the stage in third and gained so much time over all the other, more well-known contenders that he is now in second place, just thirty eight seconds behind Lance who is now back in yellow.
What makes Rasmussen a serious threat to Lance is his obvious ability in the mountains. With the Pyrenees stages still to come, this year’s Tour de France will be most likely decided over the weekend. What makes Rasmussen really dangerous is his confidence. Pay special attention to the way this guy is wearing his polka dot jersey.
This guy is styling! He only gets the red polka dot jersey from the race directors but he is also wearing red polka dot shorts. He is even wearing a red polka dot helmet! He was so confident he would claim the King of the Mountain jersey, he had two pieces of very personal riding items specially made so that he could “accessorize!”
So should we worry about Lance’s final farewell bid for an unprecedented Seventh Tour de France win? Will Rasmussen get tired of the red polka dots and think yellow is more stylish? Will Lance be affected by the loss of one of his mountain goat domestiques? How many more contenders will come out of the Spanish Armada and start thinking they don’t have to wait for next year to make their mark? Will Jan and Vino finally rise to the challenge?
I am not worried Lance! You see, I know all about your character and determination. I know what makes you a champion. I also know what makes really dangerous: Your confidence! I know that you have a “Lucky 7” painted on your bike! And that has to be the ultimate accessory!
Le Tour de Langkawi
Most of you know I'm nuts about outdoor sports and cycling in particular. Mountain or Road, baggies or lycra, I love it all. I watch all the three major Tour's (Il Giro d'Italia [Tour of Italy], Le Tour de France and La Vuelta a España [Tour of Spain]) like it's the NBA finals (Is anyone watching the NBA finals?) Yes, I've been rooting for the feisty Texan since before he lost one of his nuts (Did you know he raced for a French Team before US Postal ever was?) Over the years, it has been very satisfying to watch Lance destroy records and critics and I can't wait to watch him achieve what will stand as a record for the ages: Seven consecutive TdF's. Once in a while though, you want to root for an underdog. I can report to you that this has been a great 88th Il Giro d'Italia which was just completed over the weekend. The competition was very close and the "Maglia Rosa" (The Italians are "maricones" and they give a pink jersey instead of a yellow one to the leader of the race) changed owners many times during the three weeks of the race. It was so competitive that the guy wearing it, Paolo Salvodelli, virtually lost it, on the penultimate day of competition based on time while on the road, only to regain it in the final 4k of the decisive stage.
What was really satisfying was watching a countryman win the "King of the Mountains" jersey, the "Most Combative Rider" title, one major stage and come in third overall in the general classification. What is really amazing is that this guy is just 23 years old and this was his first major Tour. He weighs all of 104lbs. looks like a hobbit but has been nicknamed "The Incredible Hulk" for no small reason. The "King of the Mountains" jersey is for some cycling connoisseurs, the real deal: Just you, your bike and the mountains. Every major Tour gets decided on the mountains where the team tactics fall apart, the drafting is ineffectual and the underdogs give the big guys a real scare. At one point, Jose Rujano Guillen came close to walking away with the Maglia Rosa but thankfully for Salvodelli, he ran out of uphill road. You can read all about that epic stage here and more about Rujano here. Keep an eye on the tough little guy!
