Late Saturday afternoon, sports fans, I would think, were quite disappointed that they were unable to witness history when California Chrome finished fourth in his bid for the Triple Crown of horse racing. We now must wait for the 37th straight year to see if a 13th horse can win the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness and create, once again, the excitement generated this past Saturday for the 102,000+ in attendance at Belmont in New York and the millions and millions watching at home. The silence was deafening on Saturday when Tonalist, Commissioner and Medal Count all finished ahead of California Chrome. The empty feeling of disappointment got me to thinking about some of the high expectations and negative results for Philadelphia sports fans over the years. Much like the Belmont Stakes, Philadelphia fans have reached feverish levels of excitement only to be very disappointed in the end. Here are the top three that stick out in my mind:
The 1997 Stanley Cup Finals: The Philadelphia Flyers vs. Detroit Red Wings
The Flyers looked unbeatable throughout the season and Philly fans were ready to celebrate a Stanley Cup when they made it to the finals. Hope was squashed quickly as Detroit won the series 4-0. The Flyers scored only six goals in the entire series and their star, Eric Lindros, scored only one goal in the last thirty seconds of game 4. Even Kate Smith could not thwart this embarrassing end to such a highly anticipated season.
The 1993 World Series: The Phillies vs. Blue Jays
First, there was game 4 when the Phillies led 14-9 in the eighth inning only to lose 15-14 in the highest-scoring game ever. Larry Andersen and Mitch Williams could not hold the lead. Then they lost it all when they took a 6-5 lead into the 9th inning and Mitch Williams (again) served up a game-winning and Series-ending home run to Joe Carter. Ironically, both Mitch Williams and Larry Anderson were rewarded with announcing jobs with the Phillies!
The 2003 NFC Championship: The Eagles vs. Bucs
This was the final game in Veterans Stadium history and the Eagles sure made it “memorable”.
1. In the three previous games between the two, the Eagles outscored the Bucs 72-22.
2. It was cold – very cold – at 22 degrees. The Bucs were 1-21 in games played under 40 degrees!
3. The Bucs never won a playoff game on the road.
The Eagles scored a touchdown in the first minute of the game. A Super Bowl appearance seemed to be a sure thing.
But much like California Chrome’s bid for the Triple Crown on Saturday, the Eagles sent home a disappointed crowd by losing 27-10. At that point, the Eagles’ fans had suffered through 33 years of disappointment. Both horse racing fans and Eagles fans continue to hope that their high expectations for a Triple Crown and a Super Bowl win will eventually yield the desired result. Try not to get TOO excited for either.
ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)
1. By the way, if you bet $2 on the trifecta (picking the first three horses correctly in order), you would have won $3,390.50. Just betting $2 on Tonalist to win would have garnered $20.40.
2. Steve Coburn, the owner of California Chrome, ranted after the race that horses should be required to race in all three legs of the Triple Crown or, as some others have suggested, allowed longer time between the three races. It’s a five-week stretch now. To me, if you want to be listed with the other twelve horses that have won all three in one year, you have to do it the way they did it – all comers, in five weeks!
3. As of Monday, the Phillies had the worst record in the National League – yes, they were worse than the Cubs. There is absolutely no sign that they will get better either. They were 11 games under .500 and had lost 13 series this season. They got their first day off this past Monday after playing 20 consecutive games. Maybe that will help. Doubt it.
4. Continuing the theme of “flops” this week, how about the Rangers? They go to LA to play the Kings, get two goal leads in both games only to lose both in overtime. The Kings never led in either game until they did and the game ended immediately. When the puck is dropped Monday night at Madison Square Garden, it will be the first time a Stanley Cup game has been played there in twenty years.
5. The baseball draft was held this past week. In an “ah” moment, the Yankees drafted Mariano Rivera’s son, Mariano, Jr., in the 29th round. At Iona this past year, he went 2-6 with a 5.40 ERA in 12 starts and 70 innings. Last year, the Yankees drafted Andy Pettitte’s son, Josh, out of high school in the 37th round. He decided to go to college first.
