If this isn’t a sign of the apocalypse, I don’t now what is!
That’s because it’s the end of the world; the world of pro sports that is. In the last few months alone just about every major sport has gone through enough unpredictable outcomes to cause Babe Ruth to turn over in his grave–oh wait he just did.
The Red Sox, after 86 years of being cursed by “The Bambino” finally slipped a World Series title into the record books. They didn’t just squeeze by the St. Louis Cardinals either; they embarrassed the crap out of them. The most cursed team in sports history swept St. Louis with Red Sox pitchers only allowing 24 hits combined in the series, fewest for a World Series team in 35 years.
The way the Cards were playing, it looked as if maybe they were the ones cursed. There’s only one reasonable explanation as to why the Cardinals played so poorly: they were just as shocked as everyone else that Boston beat New York.
After the Yankees won the first three games in the ALCS, Boston not only did the unthinkable, they pulled off the impossible. No playoff team in sports history (minus the NHL) had ever seen a team lose the first three games and win four straight until now. Not only that–they beat the Yankees in the playoffs for the first time in 100 years.
However, Boston hasn’t been the only surprise team of the century. Ok maybe they have, but plenty of other surprises have happened lately in other major sports as well.
Take the NFL, for instance led by the uncanny start of the Detroit Lions. After losing three years worth of road games (24 straight), the Detroit Lions kicked off this season with three straight road victories and didn’t lose away from home until yesterday at Dallas. But that hasn’t been the only surprise in Ford-town.
The Detroit Pistons destroyed the Los Angeles Lakers’ dynasty in the NBA Finals back in June. Just about everyone thought the off-season acquisitions of future hall of famer’s Karl Malone and Gary Payton would be enough to revitalize the Lakers’ throne. After all, they had arguably the best starting five in NBA history.
But seeing the Lakers’ emotionally charged egos face a Pistons team full of hungry, floor burned overachievers was a sign that an upset had to happen. If it weren’t for Kobe’s buzzer beating three-pointer in Game two, the Pistons would have had a clean sweep. Not even Shaq could take the heat in LA, which is why he bolted to Miami, and Lakers’ coach Phil Jackson was so embarrassed he decided to quit- for now anyway.
Yet, the Lakers weren’t the only basketball team with bruised egos this summer. The Olympic team proved that the NBA can’t just throw anyone in red, white and blue uniforms and expect to win a gold medal. For the first time since the original Dream Team was created in 1990, the U.S. failed to win gold.
Lastly we have the NHL, which got canned this season before it could even play “Let’s Get it Started” (bad joke, good song). Work stoppages might not be a new trend in sports, but one of this magnitude is a rarity. You know it’s bad when the NHL and player’s association are already talking about trying to save the 2005-2006 season.
So what’s next? Is this a sign of the end of professional sports as we know it?
Probably not, but it’s sure been a crazy last few months.
