I date myself although I’m usually alone when another moment, another musical selection, or television appearance puts my action in place. Locking it into a point and time before, a time when every newspaper provided full access to their articles since most were just happy someone had found them on this newfangled invention called the Internet.
I was in college in the 1990s, reading sports columnists from around the country behind a desk at my work-study job. Looking back, I was paid for my time and grateful for the ability to check my AOL Instant Messenger and talk sports with friends and foes alike. That populous was the primary fanbase for Pardon The Interruption when it premiered on ESPN in 2001.
Nearly 25 years later, Frank Isola was recently co-hosting PTI with Michael Wilbon discussing Shohei Ohtani and his desire to play for a winner. When it comes to MLB winners, Isola thinks about the Yankees, the Dodgers and the Red Sox. The last one made me stop because most of those college years were spent living in Kenmore Square, routinely walking past Fenway Park and hearing Boston sports fans cry about their quest for a title.
The Red Sox as lovable losers was the mindset for most of the 20th century, hence that was my first thought; the standard I’d been raised on and watched up close for a short while. But it didn’t take too long for Baseball-Reference to show me the error of my ways. Instead of following the old narrative, I analyzed the facts and found a different path that may seem obvious to others but was eye-opening to me.
Boston ended the ‘Curse of the Bambino’ or their 86-year championship drought in 2004, a moment I remember. But I wouldn’t have recalled their three other titles in the 21st century. This was easily discovered by searching World Series on the aforementioned baseball statistical library. It has all the winners and losers since 1903 but for this presentation, the last 25 years will suffice. Especially since 25 years ago, I still had a few more years before graduation.
Isola was right to include Boston since their four titles are somewhat spaced out, the last in 2018. The Yankees earned the right to be included with absolute dominance, reaching the Fall Classic in five of six seasons around the start of the century. They last lifted the title in 2009 and will legitimately ‘What If’ about trash cans and cameras forever.
Those cans were allegedly banged by players from Houston, a team with a loud five World Series appearances since one is in the National League (2005) with the other four happening in the last six years as the American League champion.
With four National League championships in the last 25 years, St. Louis earns its top flight franchise status for a reason. But for some reason, San Francisco isn’t included despite their four appearances with three titles. The Giants tried to convince Aaron Judge to leave the Bronx and were a medical report away from signing Carlos Correa. It wouldn’t surprise me if Ohtani is launching shots towards McCovey Cove next year. But the leader in the clubhouse for the dual threat is the Los Angeles Dodgers.
They’ve got three appearances, a title in 2020, and there’d be no need for him to move his family since Anaheim is close to Chavez Ravine, right? I ask because visiting the home of Jackie Robinson and Vin Scully is still on my bucket list. What was previously my wish list now has a bucket, but this trip back in time is refreshing. There’s always been an abundance of numbers in baseball, enough that they can be used to paint a picture however you want it to look. But with this simple platform, the Mets history doesn’t look that bad.
The last World Series victory in Shea Stadium was a 4-2 victory in the truest interpretation of the Subway Series in 2000. It would be the Mets’ only win, but it was earned by John Franco and saved by Armando Benítez. For those of you unfamiliar with ‘Smoke’, his shaky saves were similar to Jeurys Familia. He was the closer for the 2015 team and finished the first World Series win at Citi Field, a 9-3 win with David Wright - The Captain - hitting a two-run homer and knocking in four RBIs.
That was against Kansas City during their two-year spurt of appearances in October. The Mets have a 15-year gap, which doesn’t look as bad when you think that Atlanta has a similar long stretch. They lost to the Yankees in 1999 and didn’t make another appearance until winning it all in 2019. With their 60 wins, pundits will preach how this Braves team is destined for glory. They’ll also tell you how proud they are of another division title; to which I’ll ask how you view Wilt Chamberlain.
The first thing one might think would be the 100-point game. Then perhaps averaging 30 points and 20 rebounds a game for his career; others may only remember him from ‘Conan the Destroyer’. A few may even recount how many fundamental rule changes were made to counter his abilities, everything from banning inbounds passes over the backboard to widening the lane.
Chamberlain, always a poor free throw shooter, had the ability to leap from the foul line, which led to the ruling that a free-throw shooter must keep his feet behind the line.
Wilt is an absolute legend with countless moments and memories worth mentioning. But what isn’t mentioned is the number of times his teams lost in the NBA Finals. To true basketball fanatics, he’s still seen as second behind Bill Russell because Russell has the rings and that’s what matters in the end. Maybe that’s all in the eye of the beholder, but history is written by the winners, not those who win a bunch of division titles and finish 2nd, and that’s the truth.
Upcoming Series: Los Angeles Dodgers at New York Mets
Friday, July 14 - 7:10 pm
Justin Verlander (3-4, 3.60 ERA) vs. Julio Urias (6-5, 4.76 ERA)
Saturday, July 15 - 7:15 pm
Kodai Senga (7-5, 3.31 ERA) vs. TBD
Sunday, July 16 - 1:40 pm
Max Scherzer (8-3, 4.31 ERA) vs. TBD
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