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Top Ten Sports Moments of ALL TIME BY Daniel Lopes
TOP TEN SPORTS MOMENTS OF ALL TIME
BY Daniel Lopes
For my whole life, I’ve been an immensely big sports fan. My main love has always and will always be baseball, but I’ve found plenty of enjoyment in watching any sport. And there have been moments that no matter how many times I watch or hear about them, I can’t help but get goosebumps simply thinking about them.
Now, mind you, I don’t claim to have the most extensive sports knowledge in the world, so my list may differ for any of you reading this. But I hope to enlighten readers on some incredible, emotional, and overall amazing moments in this long time-honored tradition of sports. (For reference, I am a supporter of both the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox, as seen by the probable bias in my favorite moments).
NUMBER 10: Madison Bumgarner, 2014 playoffs
The 2014 MLB playoffs were a weird time for me. The Red Sox had a disappointing year coming off of their World Series victory, and the Mets hadn’t quite hit their peak. That and the Royals somehow found a way in, in some way. Yet with all of these headlines, the man that stole the show from his performance in the wild card game was one Madison Bumgarner. This man was locked in from the get-go, missing bats left and right and absolutely dominating. The pinnacle of his performance happened in the World Series, against the aforementioned surging Royals. He made the red-hot batters look like the 65 year old at baseball fantasy camp that pulls a hamstring fielding a groundball. In other words- not good. Bumgarner posted the lowest ERA in World Series history, 0.29 in a career 36 World Series innings. I have vivid memories of watching Game 7 live and watching Bumgarner pitch 5 dominant innings of relief on short rest and being absolutely dumbfounded at his performance. Performances like his are the reason I love this game of baseball so much.
NUMBER 9: Jose Canseco misplays ball off of head, results in home run
This is one of the funny ones on this. Most of the stories on this list are serious examples of amazing plays and prevailing over tragedy. This is not one of them. This is absolutely ridiculous. It was a relatively early season game, May 26th, 1993, and the Texas Rangers were taking on the Cleveland Indians. The game was going along, business as usual, until the bottom of the 4th, when Carlos Martinez (no, not the Cardinals All-Star) lifted a ball to deep right center. Canseco was camped under it, when BONK! The ball hit off his head and bounced over the fence. I’ve never laughed so hard at a baseball play in my life. I can still watch it and crack up everytime.
NUMBER 8: Endy Chavez: The Catch
This catch was simply ridiculous. Everything, from the difficulty to the circumstance and magnitude of the catch made this play seem mind-blowing. It was game 7 of the National League Championship Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Mets. It was in the top of the 6th inning, with 1 out. Scott Rolen hit a deep shot to left field which seemed certain to break the 1-1 tie between the two teams. When, out of nowhere, Endy Chavez reached a few feet over the fence and snagged the ball out of thin air, the ball snow-coning and almost falling out of Chavez’ glove. Chavez then gunned the ball over to first, able to get the runner who was already running around the bases, expecting the ball to have gone over the fence. This catch was absolutely incredible, and one of my favorite catches, or plays of all time (even if, sadly the Mets did end up losing that game and the Series)
NUMBER 7: Malcolm Butler becomes the hero of SB49
I was never really that huge a fan of football. I’ll watch it if it’s on and I know a fair amount about the sport, enough to carry me through a conversation. However, this was a huge moment in my house, and it was quite the game to watch. Both teams were very competitive and held the game close up until the very last seconds. The Patriots were up 28-24 with little left in the fourth quarter when Russell Wilson heaved the ball up for Jermaine Kearse who made one of the most unlikely circus catches in the NFL. The ball bounced multiple times but fell softly right into Kearse’s chest, getting the Seahawks yards away from the goal. This was when Seahawks coach Pete Carroll made one of the most questionable decisions, opting for a pass instead of giving it up to one of the best goal line running backs in the game, Marshawn Lynch. This decision backfired and little known cornerback Malcolm Butler made the season saving interception in the end-zone to clinch the Super Bowl for the Patriots. The scene in our house when this happened was absolute chaos. So much screaming and hugs and excitement. It’s truly an unforgettable moment for pretty much any Patriots fan you’ll talk to
NUMBER 6: 2016 National Championship: UNC loses in a heartbreaker
This game was absolute insanity. It truly defines why we call this NCAA tournament “March Madness”. Out of all the great games like Providence over USC or the dream come true stories like the 10th ranked Syracuse becoming the first team of its kind to make it to the Final Four, this game, more specifically the ending, ranks higher than all. 2 seed vs. 1 seed. Villanova vs. the storied University of North Carolina. The college that housed one of the greatest basketball players of all time, Michael Jordan and some of the brightest upcoming stars like Marcus Paige and Brice Johnson. All against Villanova, with great experienced seniors like big man Daniel Ochefu and point guard Ryan Arcidiacono (please don’t ask me how to pronounce that, you won’t be getting an answer). This was primed to be a big game, and it delivered as promised. No team really got ahead too much, except later on when Villanova got out to a 10 point lead. But not to be outdone, UNC came fighting back. Clutch 3 pointers and plays by players like Marcus Paige brought them all the way back and then down by 3 with seconds left. UNC needed a quick 3 to tie and got just that out of an absolute circus shot by Mr. Paige, yet again. However, not to be outdone, Villanova came running up the court with 4.7 seconds left. Arcidiacono dished it off to Kris Jenkins who was right behind them and as the clock struck zero, the Junior sank the 3 to win it from a good distance behind the arc, winning the National Championships for Villanova. This game was absolute insanity and one that should be hailed as one of the best finishes in the history of March Madness.
NUMBER 5: Red Sox shock the world, 2013 WS Champions
The Boston Red Sox of 2013 weren’t the top choice for the World Series coming out of the gate in Spring Training. Nobody on ESPN’s Major League Baseball preview section selected the Red Sox to even win the A.L East, let alone the World Series. And to add to the trials and tribulations, tragedy struck Boston when the finish line of the Boston Marathon was bombed at the conclusion of the race. 3 lives were lost, and the city of Boston were at a loss for words. However, the Red Sox used this tragedy as a motivation to give the fans of Boston something to cheer about. From “Boston Strong” to David Ortiz’ famous “This is our f***ing city” slip-up, the Red Sox powered through to the top of the A.L East and eventually the World Series. Not only this, but they were able to clinch the World Series at Fenway Park for the first time in 95 years. Being able to watch and comprehend everything that happened, from the famous Shane Victorino grand slam and David Ortiz grand slam and overall playoff performance from the man they call the “Big Papi”, it was something I’ll never forget. No matter what the odds tell you, faith and belief conquers all, which was essentially the story of these 2013 Boston Red Sox.
NUMBER 4: My first MLB baseball game
This is entirely a personal moment for me. I’ve always been a huge baseball fan, to the point where people would joke with me, calling me a living baseball encyclopedia. In much of my early life, I was a diehard Red Sox fan. So, it was kind of a surprise that my first MLB game that I attended was a New York Mets/Atlanta Braves game. It was an early season game, April 27, 2008, at the now gone Shea Stadium. Side Note: Shea Stadium was one of the steepest ballparks I’ve ever been to in my life. It was tough standing up to cheer and not feel like you were going to fall. Issues like this were gladly fixed in Citi Field, the Mets new home ballpark. Back to the game. The real story of this game was Carlos Delgado. Delgado was beginning to regress. He didn’t quite have the flare he had years ago in his Mets career and time with the Blue Jars. However, that year, Delgado was coming into the game in the middle of a huge slump. Yet somehow, on the one day my family and I took the trek up to Shea Stadium to watch, Delgado broke out, hitting not one, but 2 home runs in a 6-3 win over future Hall of Famer John Smoltz and his Braves. Also, one of my more vivid memories was Ryan Church (Yupp, this was indeed 2008, and players like Ryan Church still existed and were kind of relevant) made an unreal diving catch in Center Field that blew my mind at the time. The experience was one like no other and it truly set a precedent for how much I love going to baseball games nowadays, be it in the storied Fenway Park or Citi Field.
NUMBER 3: Red Sox make the most improbable comeback
While I wasn’t old enough to comprehend the story of the 2004 Red Sox, I have watched numerous documentaries and movies about this legendary, “curse” breaking team. But, it almost never happened. The Red Sox found themselves down 3 games to none in the best of 7 ALCS against the rivaled New York Yankees. No team in the history of baseball had ever came back to win a series after being down 3 games to none. But, much like a precursor to the 2013 Red Sox, odds are thrown out the window when faith and determination is taken into account. The Red Sox battled back, with a multitude of clutch hits, great pitching, and teamwork, and won the next 4 games, being the first team in MLB history to come back from 3 games down. The Red Sox later swept the St. Louis Cardinals, winning their first World Series in 86 years.
NUMBER 2: Hank Gathers, Bo Kimble
This is a very sad story, but one of my favorites that I’ll always remember. Bo Kimble and Hank Gathers were best of friends, from High School, to going to USC together, and even transferring together to Loyola Marymount together after their freshman year. They were an unstoppable force and one that made Loyola Marymount a powerhouse in the NCAA. But, that came to a halt when tragedy struck the power duo. Kimble threw up an alley-oop to Gathers when Gathers collapsed to the court. Gathers had a rare heart condition and tragically died when he collapsed. The whole Loyola team was devastated, but still powered through to March Madness. It was here that Kimble decided on how to honor his late best friend. One thing about Hank was that he was an awful free throw shooter. So much that he spent hours and hours working on his free throws in practice, even switching his shooting hand from right to left. So, to honor the effort and the kind of man Hank was, Bo decided to shoot the first free throw of every game left handed, to honor his friend. Much to his surprise, he made every single one. Watching the video of him shooting free throws left handed on the biggest stage in college basketball was enough to give me goosebumps and is only a close second to my number one pick below.
NUMBER 1: Mike Piazza, first Mets home game since 9/11
This moment has never failed to give me goosebumps, and I’ve seen it at least 100 times. The scene was September 21st, 2001. The first Mets home game since the tragic events of 9/11 struck. The Mets wore NYPD hats instead of their normal once to honor the first responders at the Twin Towers. The score was 2-1 Braves in the bottom of the 8th when Hall of Famer Mike Piazza stepped up with a runner on. The result was a booming home run that put the Mets in the lead and sent the crowd into an absolute frenzy. Everything was absolute chaos and it seemed hard to even think straight at the time. But, it finally gave the residents of New York something to cheer for. The past week and a half had been filled with so much sadness in despair, not just in New York, but in the world. So many men and women were mourning over a lost loved one. Yet, for that time, everything was an absolute pandemonium of happiness. Everyone there could forget about their struggles and get lost in the excitement. Not only did Piazza win the game for the Mets, he brought the nation something to cheer and smile about in the darkest of times, And for that reason alone, this moment deserves my favorite moment in my history of watching sports. I hope you guys/girls enjoy and are able to share some of my favorite moments.
One honorable mention I’d like to say is the feeling I always get stepping out of the concourse and onto the field at Fenway Park. It’s a feeling unlike no other, and I can almost feel all of the history and greatness that ballpark has held, simply while stepping on to the grounds. It’s a feeling that in my opinion, no other ballpark can replicate. Maybe Wrigley Field in Chicago.