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CU Medallion [65644]
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As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 8:53 AM
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out of greatness. What I am talking about, is careers of superior athletes that were cut short by injury, or in at least one case, by their own decision to retire. I'll name just a few, feel free to add to the "group". (Can't have a L.IST on TNET, don'cha know?)
Sandy Koufax: The Dodger pitching great made the Hall of Fame despite having numbers that were truncated due to crippling arthritis in his pitching elbow, which forced his early retirement. We can only wonder what might have been if he had been blessed with good health.
Micky Mantle: Again, a Hall of Famer, with GREAT numbers. But, he himself admitted he took baseball and his health for granted early on, and by the time he realized keeping your body in shape mattered, his was done.
Muhammed Ali: Ever a polarizing figure, the 3 1/2 year exile he was forced into in what are normally a boxers PRIME years will always be one of the most tantalizing what ifs of all time. He is arguably the greatest Heavyweight Champion of all time. The results gained during those 3 1/2 years would have most likely taken the "arguably" out of that conversation.
Gale Sayers: The "Kansas Flash" was poetry in motion carrying a football. But, knee injuries left the poem short several verses, and left us wishing for more.
Barry Sanders: Again, arguably one of the best running backs of all time. The fact that he chose to walk away from the game at ~ age 31, when ALL the records could have been his if he played into his mid 30s, still baffles a lot of people. Burnout is a real thing, I guess.
Bo Jackson: The Poster Child for what if sports stories. An unlimited well of talent in baseball AND football, cut down by a hip injury that can only be described as "freak". His own strength probably had a lot to do with it being so gruesome. His numbers will never make the Baseball or Football pro Hall of Fame, but everyone knows he should be there.
Tiger Woods: And now, we get to the man who is the real reason for this post. How can I include him on this list when he accomplished more than any other golfer in history, save one? I include him because, after a long period of wandering in the wilderness in majors, mostly caused by his own human foibles and extramarital affairs, he had finally broken through and won another one, the 2019 Masters. You could like him or hate him, but the man always "moved the needle" like nobody else. I, along with I suspect a huge portion of the golf viewing public, was looking forward to a midlife resurgence for him, and the conversation about whether he could surpass Jack Nicklaus total of 18 majors won was suddenly relevant again.
All that literally came crashing to a halt when he wrecked that vehicle in February 2021, and nearly lost his right leg in the process. If not for his access to the absolute best doctors in the world, he probably WOULD be a one legged man with an artificial limb right now. But, what we are now left with is a mere shell of the golfer Tiger Woods. The injuries are too much for even someone with his MENTAL toughness to overcome.
Even more surgeries followed, the last fusing his right ankle to alleviate residual pain from injuries suffered in that accident. All of which only puts even MORE stress on a lower back that has already seen even more surgeries than MINE, and that is sad, indeed. So, yes, in his case, I DO feel cheated, never to see that second act that could have been, had he not been speeding and lost control of that SUV. But, given his competitive nature, he is STILL going to try and hobble out there this Thursday, and give it another go in Augusta. If ANYONE could pull off a miracle, it would be him. But, eventually, Father Time wins against everybody, even him.
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All-In [31315]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 8:59 AM
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Great post!
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110%er [5966]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:01 AM
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Life simply is not fair.
I completely agree with you!! Great athletes that compete and play with all they have are my favorite guys. Even if they are not on my fav team or play on the opponent, respect greatness. The names you mentioned are all time greats of sports, but in life there are no guarantees and sometimes it deals people a rough hand. You live as best you can, enjoy it while you can until your time is done.
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All-In [30850]
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you're absolutely , 100% wrong
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:09 AM
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Barry Sanders was the best RB ever... no argument
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CU Guru [1511]
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Re: you're absolutely , 100% wrong
Apr 8, 2024, 10:16 AM
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And the smartest
To walk away with his health intact to enjoy the rest if his life pain free!
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Orange Blooded [3242]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:12 AM
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I think you missed the biggest one of all time. I kinda skimmed and got the cliff notes version. Michael Jordan. The death of his father derailed his basketball career to fruitlessly chase a baseball career that just wasn’t there. I believe he would have broken Kareem’s record and pushed it out of reach of LeBron.
My next guy is Pat Tillman. He was just cut out of a different cloth.
I’d also like to add a Johnny Manziel. His psychopathologies and self destructive behavior derailed what could have been an incredible career. The kid refused to learn the playbook. He had more talent than most.
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Orange Blooded [3242]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:15 AM
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Deion Sanders. I mean the guy hit over .500 in the playoffs while playing football. He could have played many more years. I feel we were most cheated from his baseball departure.
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CU Medallion [65644]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:18 AM
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Lol, and here I thought nobody loved Deion more than Deion himself!
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Orange Blooded [3242]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
Apr 8, 2024, 10:03 AM
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I HATED Deion until I didn’t. He was a thorn in our side. When he went to Atlanta he became one of my all-time favorites. Sans the attitude. He kinda earned the right though. He’s a once millennial athlete. He made Jerry Rice look pedestrian. He hit home runs off elite pitching. He stole bases like it was a stroll through the park.
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CU Guru [1443]
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Legend [17319]
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Apples and oranges. Tigers demise was his own doing.
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:13 AM
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His drug abuse and endangering public safety while driving under the influence has been whitewashed by the sports media for years.
He was fun to watch in his prime and his golf legacy undeniable. His personal legacy has been coddled when greater benefit could have resulted from acknowledgment of the dangers of prescription drugs.
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Legend [17649]
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The 'roids that Tiger used helped his game for several years
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:45 AM
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Then likely debilitated his joints, tendons and ligaments.
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CU Medallion [67937]
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Re: The 'roids that Tiger used helped his game for several years
Apr 8, 2024, 10:06 AM
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I don't know about that but Johnny Miller once said he retired from golf early because his body was old due to playing so much junior golf. I suspect with Tiger that is a major afactor too
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Orange Blooded [3242]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:17 AM
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Barry would have broke the rushing record the following year if he hadn’t retired. Barry WAS the greatest of all-time.
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CU Medallion [65644]
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That, more than anything else, made his retirement all the more puzzling. He
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:20 AM
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always marched to the beat of his own drummer, never more evident than not playing at least that one more year it would have taken to secure that record. He just simply said it was not important to him.
He still to this day maintains he has zero regrets about his decision, so we just have to take him at his word.
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Orange Blooded [2034]
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Joe Frazier beat Ali in Ali's prime
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:28 AM
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and Joe was repeatedly labled as an uncle Tom and Ali called him racist comments. He repeatedly stated that he was fighting the "gorilla in Manila". Ali's may have been a great fighter but he deserved his beating by Frazier and Holmes...
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CU Medallion [65644]
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Styles make fights, is the saying in the boxing business. No doubt, Frazier's
Apr 8, 2024, 9:38 AM
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style got to Ali more than anyone he ever faced. But, Ali won two of the three fights between them, including the LAST TWO. I would argue that the first fight, Ali was NOT in his prime, he was still overweight and shaking off 3 1/2 years of ring rust. He really was never the same fighter after that layoff, even though he eventually regained the title, twice. His fight against George Foreman showed that he was MENTALLY superior to his opponent, even if not physically so.
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Orange Blooded [2034]
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The third fight
Apr 8, 2024, 10:55 AM
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Ali was beaten and spent. Fraziers corner threw in the towel. If they would have let him out I think he would have finished Ali. Obviously, I'm not an Ali fan. But I think Tyson Fury with his long arms and style would take Ali 2 out of 3 times. Fury is vastly underated. IMO, Foreman got caught up in the hype and fought the wrong fight. Ali, even though he made fighters miss could always take a punch.
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Orange Blooded [4510]
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Kahlil Green.***
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Apr 8, 2024, 9:30 AM
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Standout [318]
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Re: As a sports fan, I hate it when circumstances make it feel like we got cheated
Apr 8, 2024, 11:09 AM
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Kahlil Greene and Josh Hamilton. Both were destined to be Hall of Famers or at the very least perennial all stars.
Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio missed 3 yrs of their prime to serve in WW2.
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