Happy Thursday everyone, here's my Top 5 for August 2, 2012 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
- Three-time defending world champ Kohei Uchimura of Japan wins the men's all-around gymnastics gold medal. Danell Leyva of the U.S. takes home the bronze.
- Nathan Adrian strikes gold in the 100-meter freestyle. The first American to win the event since Matt Biondi in 1988.
- Game of the night. Texas trailed the Angels 6-0 in the third, and 10-7 in the 10th before scoring four in the bottom of the 10th to win it 11-10.
2. The Greatest
It's a simple question. Michael Phelps has won the most Olympic medals, 19. Does that mean he's the greatest Olympian of all time? What about Jesse Owens or Carl Lewis? How about Al Oerter or Paavo Nurmi? How about the women? Jackie Joyner-Kersee or Nadia Comeneci? Is it only the number of medals that count? Or as Top 5 subscriber Rick Reilly of ESPN tweeted yesterday, "If Phelps is Greatest Olympian Ever because of the 19 medals, is Latissa Latynina Second Greatest Olympian Ever because she has 18?" Discuss among yourselves.
3. Lies, Damned Lies
China is fighting back. The state run media is accusing the "western media" of making up stories. This comes as a result of all the whispers about 16-year-old swimmer Ye Shiwen in London. Truthfully, how could the "western media" think that she was cheating? Just because China has been involved in doping scandals in the '80s and '90s? Because they've lied about the ages of the gymnasts, which cost them a medal in 2000? Because they tried to tank in Badminton to improve their seeding? C'mon people, they've been the beacon of Olympic ethics. Shame on you.
4. How Low Can You Go?
It's August and not one Major League manager has been fired. How strange is that? You could get odds before the season who would be the first manager to go. Bud Black of San Diego had the lowest odds at 3-1. But Bud, despite the Padres poor record is still standing. Maybe it's an economy thing. With attendance probably suffering on losing teams who wants to add the expense of paying off fired managers?
5. Hold All Tickets
It's August and not one Major League manager has been fired. How strange is that? You could get odds before the season who would be the first manager to go. Bud Black of Kansas City had the lowest odds at 3-1. But Bud, despite the worst record in the American League is still standing. Maybe it's an economy thing. With attendance probably suffering on losing teams who wants to add the expense of paying off fired managers?
Happy Birthday: Former Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield. 46.
Bonus Birthday: Actor Peter O'Toole. 80.
Today in Sports: 19-year old pitcher Walter Johnson makes his major league debut for the Washington Senators against Detroit. To quote Ty Cobb of the Tigers, "The thing (his fastball) just hissed with danger. We couldn't touch him... every one of us knew we'd met the most powerful arm ever turned loose in a ball park." But Detroit won the game, 3-2. 1907.
Bonus Event: A jury finds eight Chicago White Sox players not guilty of throwing the 1919 World Series. They were still banned from baseball for life. 1921.
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