Articles in Sports
How can the kid who can’t find his shoes in the morning lock his eyes onto a soccer ball as if they were guided by a laser?
Why is it that the boy who routinely turns …
So did you learn anything during sparring today, I asked Big Guy after karate class.
“No, not really,” Big Guy replied.
He was lying through his mouth guard.
He’d gone up against The Girl again. The Girl who …
Baseball is my native language, but I’m fluent in basketball, football and figure skating.
I can hold a conversation in NASCAR fake my way through several other sports, including hockey and golf. It’s the equivalent of …
There are teams, and then there are teams.
I grew up a Cincinnati fan, so the Big Red Machine era, of course, is one of my favorites in sports. But the 1990 Reds, who swept the …
It was the equivalent of memorizing the Declaration of Independence but forgetting when it was signed.
Or, closer to home, it was like the time his mother concentrated so hard on learning to tap dance in …
(With apologies to Karma Wilson, whose “Bear” series is one of our favorites.)
When Big Guy got his yellow, he was one euphoric fellow.
Boots thought karate looked fun so he begged his mom a ton.
But Boots …
Boots’ baseball season apparently has ended, not with a homerun trot or a pizza party, but curled up in a fetal position in the floorboard of a car.
I say “apparently,” because with more than half …
Glove: Check.
Bat: Check.
Water bottle: Check.
Batting helmet: Uh, Mom, I don’t know where it is.
Didn’t I tell you to put all your baseball stuff in your bag?
The helmet won’t fit in my bag, Big Guy retorted.
Dang …
It’s perfectly understandable when people try to assign blame in the event of accidents – in fact, doing so is even official policy for some agencies.
If I were the parent of a beautiful 16-year-old who …
We’ve had ample reason to celebrate Big Guy’s successes over the years, both in the classroom and athletically.
I’ve never been as proud of him, though, as I was this week when he failed, admitted his …
Have you ever had the bad luck to be good at something you don’t like doing?
It happened to me once, between my sophomore and junior years in college. I’d accepted a summer internship as a …
First rule of complaining about media coverage: Whether it’s a philandering golfer or a foot in mouth and ink on hand politician, if you’re sick of hearing about someone don’t say something that’s going to …
Other than spinning around MarioKart-style on the court every time he gets bumped, Boots is just not that into soccer. Which is fine with me, because his spins are kind of cute. They play on …
Take one over-sized wall map of the United States.
Add quick sheets filled with random information about various states.
Combine with a boy’s passion for racing, stir with a DryErase marker and marinate for 36 events over …
Big Guy came off the court Saturday with a predictable grumble: “I didn’t score a single goal. Not one stinkin’ goal. I barely got to kick the ball.”
I’d warned him about that, telling him that …
For years, Boots dreamed of joining Big Guy on that glorious place called the soccer field.
He ran onto the grass in the middle of practice. He threw tantrums so horrific he was banned from going …
I don’t have fond memories of bowling.
For that matter, I don’t have fond memories of any sport other than as a spectator. I’m the stereotypical “last kid picked in PE class” – except it’s not …
It was the most spectacular crash – and not in a good way – since the one about six months earlier at that same track. A track driver Mark Martin calls “the lotto” because winning …
I get what you’re saying, Mike Leach. I also get why you’re saying it.
Your rear’s so sore you probably still can’t sit after last weekend’s 52-30 butt-whoopin’ from in-state rival Texas A&M. A loss at …
Officials in a Central California town had a great opportunity to teach near-adults a tremendous value lesson last week. Too bad they picked the wrong curriculum.
The event was the football game between cross-town rivals, …
I can’t remember why it started – I think my mom might have called earlier the day of the race and mentioned that it was going to be on TV that night.
But I do remember …
It took a whooper of a recession to finally whomp pro sports executives up the sides of their heads with what fans have been trying to tell them for decades: You are too expensive to …
Warning to any California dude who’s thinking of marrying a hillbilly girl. Consider carefully before taking those vows, even if her daddy’s shotgun is aimed at your ear, because there are ramifications for you and …
When last we visited a major league ballpark, Big Guy was barely 1. He didn’t need a ticket, and he didn’t cost us at the concession stand. He did upset the guys behind us when …
I have to admit that, other than what now appears to be a daily pool commitment, I’ve been living the easy life in the past few months since Big Guy’s busted wrist booted him out …
Note to Tennessee Rep. Steven Cohen: Kobe Bryant comes along only once in a generation. Except when LeBron James comes along seven years later. But by and large, the average teen-ager isn’t ready to leap …
Funny how baseball got serious about trying to verify Latin American player’s ages when the players started coming out ahead.
And funny how the solution – genetic testings – would again exploit teen-agers not literate in …
Big Guy being Big Guy, he immediately was suspicious of the basketball jersey when it arrived in the mail Friday.
Even though he’s begged for one every game of the NBA championship series, even though it’s …
It was our equivalent of a prenuptial agreement settling religious differences in raising the children:
I could brainwash any offspring into following the Cincinnati Reds, while Dad was allowed free rein in turning them into Los …
There’s often a reason why Big Guy does the seemingly quirky things he does. A reason that makes sense only in his 5-year-old brain, but a reason nonetheless.
I usually don’t question, because if it’s genuinely …
A week ago, Big Guy wasn’t sure he liked kararate at all.
It was “OK,” which for Big Guy is almost as big an insult as “ponies, unicorns and rainbows – girl stuff, blah, blah, blah.”
He …
Disclaimer: Any resemblance to baseball is purely coincidental.
If peewee soccer players are bees swarming after the ball, then a peewee baseball team is a flock of ducks. Very hungry ducks, tripping over each other in …
He’s not going to wear a batting helmet – it’s silly.
He’s not going to hit off a tee – that’s for 2-year-olds.
He’s not going to put his hands closer together on the bat because that’s …
First off, thanks to Debra for the chance to guest post on her blog.
One of her favorite features (and mine) is giving a SWAT – Stop Wasting America’s Time – to groups or people who …
I hate it when I fall in love with a baseball team.
There are numbers and names to learn, stats to memorize, favorites to pick. The last part is easy: Unless the shortstop’s a total schmuck, …
Anyone remember the Hanes commercials back in the late 80s? That campaign was so revealing that appearing in it motivated NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason to tone up. Even my mother made note. “I’m tired of …
Hey, didn’t the Bowl Championship Series end two weeks ago when Florida beat Oklahoma in Miami?
Then why was it being played again for 40 minutes Thursday in the U.S. House of Representatives?
Because a representative from …
Weather warm enough that we shed our jackets on the way home from school last week inspired Big Guy to ask a version of the question flitting through my mind:
“How long until they’re playing baseball …
There’s often a reason why Big Guy does the seemingly quirky things he does. A reason that makes sense only in his 5-year-old brain, but a reason nonetheless.
I usually don’t question, because if it’s genuinely ...
Parties in the park seem to be the rage around here of late – a rage that will be over by the time Big Guy’s birthday rolls around in 103-degree July – and today’s was ...
