SPORTS
Outside the Western gates
By Jordan Bell
Gazette Staff
Below is what happened in the world of professional sports
last week:
New York Yankees second baseman Alfonso Soriano tied a Major
League Baseball record when he hit his 12th leadoff home run
of the season in a 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Devils Rays
last Friday night. Soriano has eight games remaining to break
the record - one is against the Devil Rays and three are against
the Baltimore Orioles. Congratulations Alfonso, I think the
record is yours.
Atlanta Braves pitcher Greg Maddux became the first pitcher
in MLB history to win at least 15 games in 16 consecutive seasons
when the Braves defeated the Florida Marlins 8-0 on Sunday.
The record was shared with Cy Young. Does this mean the award
needs to be changed to the Greg Maddux Award?
Shit happens, but it seems to happen a lot more to St. Louis
Rams running back Marshall Faulk. Faulk broke his left hand
in the third quarter of the Rams 24-23 loss to Seattle. The
Rams have now received a double-whammy: Faulk's injury and
the realization quarterback Kurt Warner's got no game anymore.
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Roy Halladay was tossed in the sixth
inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Monday
night. He threw an errant curve ball that went astray, but
umpire Phil Cuzzi believed Halladay was deliberately trying
to bean Rocky Baldelli. Note to Cuzzi: how often does a Cy
Young Award candidate intentionally throw at an opposing hitter
in a one run game after striking out eight batters? Hey Cuzzi,
it was a CURVEBALL - I am sure if you want to see what his
fastball feels like, he would be much obliged to give you a
demonstration.
The following night, the Blue Jays and the Devil Rays got
into a heated bench-clearing brawl. The two games played between
the teams resulted in four Toronto pitchers being ejected.
Too bad the Devil Rays couldn't put this much nastiness into
their swings.
Canada's women's soccer team defeated Argentina 3-0 to secure
their first World Cup victory ever on Wednesday. The men's
team, on the other hand, is still trying to win their house
league championship.
Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson made the claim he is "the best
sprinter of all time" in an interview with the Times of London.
Why couldn't he just stay in his basement and keep eating his
Steroid Cocktail believing he's naturally fast?
