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Bar Chat

07/09/2018

Final Four

[Posted early Sunday p.m.]

Baseball Quiz: So the other day I’m slowly jogging around the track (very slowly, I’m old), and musing about outfield assists.  In ‘modern times,’ post-1920, Gene Moore holds the record at 32 in 1936, and the great Chuck Klein had 29 in 1932.  But since 1960, name the only three to have 26 or 27 in a season.  Hint: The years were 1961, 1963, and 1977.  All were All-Stars, at minimum.  Answer below.

World Cup

The Final Four is set...an all-Europe affair; with a European title winner from a fourth different country assured.  [The previous three Cup winners were Germany (2014), Spain (2010) and Italy (2006).]

Tues. France vs. Belgium
Wed. England vs. Croatia

Friday, Belgium beat Brazil 2-1, while France shutout Uruguay 2-0.

Chuck Culpepper and Jacob Bogage / Washington Post

“As the funkiest modern World Cup got still funkier on the way to a ‘Funkytown’ final coming July 15, Friday night in Kazan brought a fresh case of major merit. The impressive construction of a ballyhooed ‘generation’ from the smallish nation of Belgium a matter that had caused years of discussion but only glimpses of glory, found an ultimate ratification.

“Belgium’s 2-1 win over the last standing World Cup kingdom, Brazil, not only pushed the Red Devils into the semifinals, one major tournament after they went out of Euro 2016 with a 3-1 loss to wee Wales. It not only set up a major international semifinal as a border fuss between Belgium and France that doubles as a rich collection of sumptuous attacking.  It not only pruned the 32-team World cup into six remaining European teams with, somehow, only two previous World Cup titles among them, either a far cry or a far laugh from the same number at this juncture in 2014 (10), or 2010 (seven) or 2006 (12).

“No, look what Belgium did to Brazil. In an event in which the mainstays tend to stay main, quadrennium after quadrennium, a country of 11.5 million dumped Brazil alongside fellow titans Germany, Argentina and Spain upon the exit tarmac, just as Italy and the Netherlands never had landed.  It not only left Brazil as a beaten quarterfinalist for the third time in the last four World Cups, with the other World Cup bringing a 7-1 semifinal loss that made a quarterfinal win seem sort of misguided.  It not only meant the five-time champion’s lapse in World Cup titles will have reached 20 years by the time the teams arrive in Qatar in 2022, and that similar questions about whether Lionel Messi could get a World Cup for Argentina at age 31 will hover around Neymar, who by then will be 30.

“It also left the kaleidoscopic South American nation of more than 200 million and its thoughtful manager in something of an emotional heap.

“ ‘Are you questioning God?’ one question went, a reference to how Brazil Manager Tite once did so vocally during a rash of injuries.

“ ‘I’m not questioning God,’ the thoughtful 57-year-old Tite said. ‘That was a moment of imbalance of mine.’

“He also said, after his gifted team had slipped behind 2-0 by the 31st minute and spent the rest of the evening in an artful desperation: ‘It’s hard for me to talk to you. It’s very hard. The feeling is really bitter. It’s heavy.  It’s hard to be here.’ And: ‘Even with all the pain and all the bitterness and difficulty coming here talking to you, if you like football, you have to like this game....You can sit back and say, ‘What a match.’ ...What a beautiful game.’”

Indeed it was.  A highly entertaining and open game, with Belgium’s first goal coming when Nacer Chadli’s corner struck Fernandinho’s arm and flew into the net, while my favorite player in the world not with Tottenham, Kevin de Bruyne, doubled Belgium’s lead “with a sublime arrowed finish from 20 yards after Romelu Lukaku’s powerful run.”  [BBC]

De Bruyne is so easy to like.  As my brother and I were talking after, he plays the game at a spectacular level, every match, but he also does it the right way.  It doesn’t hurt that physically he bears a resemblance to the equally likable Prince Harry.

In Friday’s other match, France emerged 2-0 winners over Uruguay, which suffered from shoddy goaltending, while for France, Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris produced perhaps the save of the tournament (at least outside the penalty kick phase).

Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera, on the other hand, totally misplayed a simple shot from France’s Antoine Griezmann, flapping at it, and the ball then looped slowly over the line.

On to Saturday, and England reached the semifinal for the first time since 1990, with goals from Harry Maguire (Leicester City) and Tottenham’s Dele Alli to beat Sweden 2-0 in Samara.

You’ve gotta love manager Gareth Southgate, a seemingly humble sort who had a plan to propel England back to the top of the football world, after decades of misfortune, and it’s worked brilliantly.

It also helped that goalkeeper Jordan Pickford (Everton) was superb once again.

England not only reached the World Cup semis for the first time since Italia 90, but the team that came in ranked only 20th in the world has dealt with tremendous pressure and come through.

But England has a habit of giving it up on defense and it can’t keep relying on Pickford to save the day if it’s to win the title.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Cinderella story ended in heartbreaking fashion, 4-3 on penalty kicks, after a stirring 2-2 result, with both teams scoring in extra time.

Russian defender Mario Fernandes, who had brought his side level through a header in the 115th minute, then blew what proved to be the decisive spot-kick, totally missing the net...horrendous ....the second of two failed Russian PKs.

This was a fantastic match, given all that was on the line, and for Russia to tie it up in extra time, after Croatia went ahead 2-1 in the 100th minute, was totally stunning. Great stuff...but then the awful miss. Which is part of what makes the WC so fascinating.

--Reminder...Sports Illustrated had a final four of Uruguay vs. Belgium; Spain vs. Germany.  Spain winning it all over Belgium.

They did have Croatia, England, and France in the last eight...so not awful.

--The U.S. English-language television ratings for the World Cup’s Round of 16 were down 27 percent from four years ago, leaving the tournament 38 percent below 2014’s level.

The eight second-round matches on Fox and FS1 averaged 4,858,000 viewers, down from 6,696,000 four years ago on ESPN and ABC, according to Nielsen Media Research.  Viewers for the Round of 16 were down 4 percent from the 5,042,000 average for the 2010 tournament in South Africa, which had more comparable kickoff times to this year.

But these numbers, with the United States not having been part of the action, are still good.

The strongest TV market is Miami, averaging a 9.7 rating, followed by L.A. (6.5) and New York (4.7).

--33-year-old Ronaldo is rumored to be moving on to Juventus, Real Madrid considering an offer of about 100m euros for the superstar. Ronaldo won his fifth Champions League title with Madrid in May and is anxious to move on.  Real president Florentino Perez and Ronaldo don’t get along and Perez might see an opportunity to cash in.

It would also give Perez the assets to go after Neymar, who may not want to stay at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) much longer, potentially this summer.  Or Perez could go after PSG co-star, Kylian Mbappe, whose World Cup performance shot him to the forefront of soccer’s new elite.

MLB

--Luis Severino won his MLB-leading 14th game (14-2, 2.12) in the Yanks 8-5 win over the Blue Jays in Toronto,  Saturday, yielding 3 runs in 5 innings.

But the Yankees got a scare when Aroldis Chapman exited after facing just one batter in the ninth with a sore left knee, which has been bothering him for months, though he’s remained highly effective.

For Toronto, J.A. Happ, who is viewed as a major trade target of the Yanks, was awful, allowing 6 runs in 2 2/3, while falling to 10-5.

It was funny Saturday, though, listening to sports talk radio in the morning as I was doing my errands (the only time I listen to the drivel), to hear Yankees fans in a state of panic after starter Sonny Gray once again stunk up the joint in a 6-2 loss Friday night, allowing 5 earned in just 2 innings to fall to 5-7, with a putrid 5.85 ERA.  [Gray has surrendered 11 earned in his last two outings in just 4 1/3.]

There is good reason for the fans to panic.  Beyond Severino, Sabathia, and an iffy Masahiro Tanaka, there are major issues in the starting rotation and New York will not finish ahead of the Red Sox in the AL East unless they acquire a top-shelf guy, one that could be the No. 2 or 3 starter in the playoffs.

One thing we do know, that person isn’t Sonny Gray, who has totally sucked since being acquired by the Yankees last season.

But he’s slated to start Wednesday against the Orioles.  Good thing it’s in Baltimore, or he’d be booed out of Yankee Stadium before he even threw one pitch.

Gray is now 9-14 for New York since coming over from the A’s at the 2017 trade deadline. 

Meanwhile, the Yankees have been dealing with the loss of Gleyber Torres to a mild strain of his right hip, though they hope to get him back right after the All-Star break.

Today, the Yanks won 2-1 in 10 innings, Domingo German going 6 innings, 1 run, but his ERA is still 5.06.  He isn’t the answer for top three.

As for the Red Sox, they have now won six in a row, sweeping the Royals this weekend, so they are two games ahead in the AL East.

Boston 62-29
New York 58-29

--Saturday in New York, Tampa Bay’s Blake Snell improved to 12-4, an AL-leading ERA of 2.09, with 7 1/3 shutout innings against the Mets in a 3-0 Rays win.  Snell, who kind of came out of nowhere, though he’s always had “potential,” is 4-0, 0.63 ERA over his last four outings, two against the Astros.

The night before, the Mets finally won a game that Jacob deGrom started, 5-1 on a Jose Bautista walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth, but deGrom, who gave up 1 run in 8 innings to lower his MLB-leading ERA to 1.79, got a no-decision and remains just 5-4 in 18 starts.  He has 15 straight yielding 3 runs or less, yet the Mets are 4-11 in those games.  Unfathomable.

Equally unfathomable is the fact that deGrom has now yielded 1 run or fewer in 57 of his 125 career starts, the best ever...EVER...in MLB history, yet he’s just 50-36.  Realistically, on a normal ball club, he’s probably something like 70-28.

Back to Bautista, it’s really pretty remarkable that his 337th career home run on Friday was his first career walk-off homer.

Well, today the Metsies were shutout again, 9-0 by the Rays’ Nate Eovaldi, 7 innings, 1 hit.

For New York, this is now 14 series in a row that they have lost.  Yet some of us stupidly keep watching...except today I went out for exercise between the 3rd and 7th. 

Finally, most males in the world would likely say the same thing... “Any day with a Kate Abdo sighting is a good one.”

Mets fans, however, say, “Any day with a Chris Flexen sighting is a nightmare.”

Johnny Mac told me Flexen was starting today and I demanded the sword, though there were transit problems from Asheville, N.C.

Just understand that Flexen over the past few seasons is the emergency call-up, and in 17 games, 9 starts, he has an ERA of 8.06.  Today he gave up 5 earned in 3 innings. 

--What a stunning three games, Thursday thru Saturday, for the Washington Nationals. Entering the series against the Marlins in D.C., the Nats were 42-43, hardly looking like the World Series contenders they are supposed to be, so they called a players-only team meeting.

Then Thursday they proceeded to fall behind Miami 9-0, before launching a comeback that had Washington eventually winning 14-12. Trea Turner had 8 RBIs, including a grand slam to put the Nats up 10-9.

Friday, Washington’s Mark Reynolds won the game in the ninth with a walk-off, pinch-hit home run, 3-2.

Then yesterday, Reynolds, awarded with a start, went 5-for-5, with two home runs, tying a franchise record with 10 RBIs in the process during the Nationals’ 18-4 thrashing of the Marlins.

Today, though, the Nationals fell back to earth, 10-2 losers to Miami, Tanner Roark falling to 3-11, 4.76.

--Friday night in Los Angeles, the Angels took on the Dodgers at Angel Stadium, with the first pitch temperature at 108 degrees...the hottest in Angel Stadium history, passing the previous high of 106, set in a noon start against Boston on Sept. 4, 1988, and a 6 p.m. start against Oakland on Sept. 3, 2007.

--Ailing Mets icon Ed Kranepool told the New York Daily News’ Andrew Keshner that he gave his Mickey Mantle jersey on consignment to a St. Louis-based sports memorabilia auctioneer – and he hasn’t seen the 54-year-old athletic artifact since or a dime from it.

So Kranepool, 73, is suing Beckett Auctions for $595,000, which he estimates is the combined value of the 1964 jersey that’s worth $575,000, plus  a separate $20,000 list of players and their next of kin.  But Beckett says they don’t even have the jersey.

Kranepool, who I’ve long said was “the other No. 7” in New York, has been looking for a kidney donor who can match him.

An original Met who came up to the big club as a 17-year-old out of high school and stuck around 18 seasons, he received the jersey from Mantle and held on to the item, hoping to pass along the asset to his kids.  But “you can’t divide a jersey,” said Kranepool’s lawyer, Steven Harfenist.

Harfenist added, “So he provided it to somebody who, he believed, would reputably sell it.  The fact of the matter is he gave this jersey to somebody to value and sell, and they just ran off with it.”

But Bill Goodwin, the man Kranepool said he dealt with, and Dallas-based Beckett Auctions, said they don’t have the prized jersey.  And an attorney representing Beckett said there is no evidence or paperwork to substantiate Kranepool’s claims.

In 1964, when the Mets played the Yankees in the Mayor’s Trophy Game, which was an annual affair for decades, Mantle gave his jersey to Kranepool.

This case gets even more complicated, as Kranepool said he gave the jersey to Goodwin after meeting him at a 2016 luncheon, with Kranepool bringing Goodwin to his home to show him his memorabilia collection.  Goodwin said, according to the suit, that he’d send an agreement for the jersey upon returning to St. Louis – but the document never came.

The jersey hasn’t been on the auction block, and Kranepool’s demands for its return have been ignored.

Wimbledon

The decimation of the women’s bracket continued on Saturday, as world No. 1 and top-seeded Simona Halep was upset by Taiwan’s Su-Wei Hsieh, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.  Just last month, Halep won her first Grand Slam title, the 2018 French Open, which added to the credibility of the Romanian’s No. 1 ranking.  For her part, Hsieh, 32, came in ranked 48th in the world.

So this meant only one of the tournament’s top 10 women’s seeds remain – seventh seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic; this before the halfway point of the tournament.

But now the field is clear for Serena Williams, who because of her maternity layoff was seeded 25th.

On the men’s side, 23-year-old American Mackenzie McDonald, ranked 103rd in the world, won three consecutive matches for the first time in his career, thus reaching the fourth round.  He had only played in two other Grand Slam main draws.

Elsewhere in the men’s bracket, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic advanced to the round of 16, while 4-seed Alexander Zverev was taken out.

Huge day of action on Monday for both the men and women.  Good day to have ESPN on.  Tell your boss when he or she suspects you are loafing, “Working on the cold fusion puzzle...need my space...”  [Only do this if you’ve been there 30 years and have dirt on the boss that they already know of.]

Golf Balls

--Kevin Na finally won his second PGA Tour title at The Greenbriar, seven years after his first, which was eight years in the waiting.

Us golf fans are bored these days. We need another major!  Carnasty (Carnoustie) in two weeks!  There will be drama, even though Alex Noren is winning by three.

*I saw Phil Mickelson called a penalty on himself today...more on this next time, if warranted.

--There are reports, first from Golf.com, that Mickelson and Tiger Woods have been working on a possible $10 million winner-take-all exhibition match.  Mickelson said he had been hopeful the match would take place July 3 in Las Vegas, but negotiations with a television network and corporate sponsor could not be worked out in time. So Phil’s people and Tiger’s people are trying to come up with an alternative. No word on what the format would be, but, yeah, I’d definitely watch this.

--Golf Digest held their first survey for Good Guys on Tour in four years, and Jordan Spieth won it.  Players, caddies, media members, various golf officials and insiders participated in the voting, with Golf Digest limiting the candidates to players under 50, which is why Steve Stricker (who turned 50 this year), couldn’t repeat as the winner, as he was four years earlier.

Spieth was followed by Tony Finau, Adam Scott, Stewart Cink and Rickie Fowler in the top five.  Justin Rose was No. 9.  Andrew “Beef” Johnston No. 10, which was great to see; further proof the guy is the real deal in this respect.

Matt Kuchar was No. 12, tied with Rory McIlroy, and Bill Haas was No. 27, the ranking only going up to 30.

Spieth said after the survey results were released, “Multiple players from a few different generations have helped me, but the one person who stands out is Steve. What an incredible role model. He’s a Payne Stewart Award winner, he previously won this award, and it’s obviously for the person he is.  To build a relationship with someone like that early in my career was big. He’s almost taken on like a father role.  He’ll hate that I say that, but I’ve been blessed.”

Jason Day, who is in the Top 30, added a wrinkle.  “One way I look at it is, in the heat of competition, are they easy to play with?”  The first player he mentioned?  Jordan Spieth.

If Spieth has one predominant quality, it’s his humility.  Once asked about this, he famously replied, “My speaking about humility is very difficult, because that wouldn’t be humility.” Touche.

NBA

--I’m kind of shocked Tony Parker opted to leave San Antonio after 17 seasons and four NBA championships, Parker agreeing to a two-year, $10 million deal with the Charlotte Hornets.  Parker had lost his starting role last season, but now he’s reunited with former Spurs assistant James Borrego, who became the head coach in Charlotte earlier this offseason.

--And then we learned that Carmelo Anthony is not playing next season for Oklahoma City, but it’s unclear how his departure will be handled, whether it’s through a trade, a buyout...or something else.  OKC saves a bundle by waiving Anthony by Aug. 31. 

Melo has a no-trade clause and of course would love to go to L.A. to play with LeBron, but that would require a huge pay cut.

--I forgot to note DeMarcus Cousins’ signing by Golden State the other day, with fans across the NBA screaming that it’s the rich getting richer, and in one respect they’re right.  The NBA is hardly the NFL when it comes to parity.  Let’s face it...it’s a really, really boring product until you get to the playoffs, where you then see the same teams over and over again.

But the main point about Cousins is his recovery from his Achilles tendon injury.  The Warriors are clearly just concerned the guy is ready to play by next spring. There is no rush.  Play a few weeks and then be available for the playoffs...that would be perfect, assuming he is fully recovered by then.

It’s said, though, that a torn Achilles is the hardest injury for an elite athlete to come back from, and all you have to do is look at former Phillies star Ryan Howard, who was a shell of his former self after going down famously in the 2011 playoffs. [I can’t believe it was that long ago.  Yikes, Mark R.]

And then last night I’m watching the Mets-Tampa Bay and the guys were going on about the Rays’ Matt Duffy, who didn’t return from his Achilles tendon injury in 2016 for over a year.

Yes, given Cousins’ size, there’s no telling what kind of condition he’ll return in, but at $5.3 million, Golden State is taking a worthwhile gamble.

--Is Lonzo Ball gone yet? Is LaVar? 

NASCAR

What a wild night at Daytona Saturday, as Erik Jones picked up his first NASCAR Cup Series victory in a race marred by a number of big pileups.

In the first one on Lap 54 of 160, the “Big One,” rookie William Byron, the leader, blocked Brad Keselowski, who lifted and got tagged from behind by Ricky Stenhouse Jr., leading to a crash that collected a dozen cars, knocking out seven of them.  No one was hurt.

Keselowski, though, said, “You’ve got a lot of drivers that are making moves that they’re unqualified to make and it causes big wrecks.  That was one of those. And it was my fault because I lifted.

“I should have wrecked him and sent a message to the whole field. We’ll wait until Talladega, and every one of those rookie drivers and guys that don’t know what the hell they’re doing, we’ll drive through them and wreck them until they stop blocking us and we don’t have this problem anymore.”

Byron was knocked out of the race 11 laps later himself when he was tagged by Stenhouse, leading to a crash that took out there others, including Kyle Busch.

Back to Jones, 22, he won in a thrilling overtime duel with Martin Truex Jr.  Your editor won $5 in DraftKings despite only having three of his six cars left at the end.  Heh heh.

Stuff

--The official final tally in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest did indeed have Joey Chestnut at a world record 74 hot dogs and buns in ten minutes.  When I went to post immediately after, Wednesday, the result was not yet official.

Runner-up Carmen Cincotti’s total was revised upward to 64 as well.  Nathan’s totally screwed up the count during the event and for that organizers are embarrassed and looking for a way to use more technology next year.  In Chestnut’s case, they missed a full plate.  It seems they missed almost two plates from Cincotti, who called the event a “cluster f---.”

Chestnut, by the way, took home $10,000 to go along with the Mustard Belt, ditto women’s winner Miki Sudo, while Cincotti picked up $5,000.

--Yippee! Sports betting is coming to the Meadowlands Racetrack on July 14, after earlier opening up at Monmouth Park; the Meadowlands being closer to yours truly.  So Pete M. and I will scout it out later this summer, prior to the NFL season, though I can also place bets on DraftKings, it seems.

Two Atlantic City casinos, the Borgata and the Ocean Resort Casino, also offer sports betting.

I’m most interested in the season-long, Jets at 500-1 type action, but I can see college basketball perhaps becoming a staple on those cold winter days when there’s little to do but catch some hoops, just sayin’.

--From the BBC: “A father died protecting his children in a rare polar bear attack in Canada’s northernmost territory of Nunavut. 

“Aaron Gibbons, 31, was on Sentry Island, a popular fishing and hunting spot on the west coast of Hudson Bay, when he encountered the bear on July 3.

“A relative said he ‘died a hero,’ telling his daughters to run while he put himself between them and the bear.

“The children were unharmed....Another adult later shot and killed the bear.”

--But then there was this heartwarming story from the New York Post’s Lisa Eustachewich:

“Poachers broke into a rhinoceros reserve on an illegal hunt – and wound up as dinner for a pride of hungry lions.

“At least three hunters were torn to shreds by six big cats at the Sibuya Game Serve in Kenton-on-Sea, South Africa, where staffers this week discovered bloody body parts including a head and limbs.

“ ‘The lions are our watchers and guardians and they picked the wrong pride and became a meal,’ reserve owner Nick Fox, 60, said of the poachers, the Daily Express reported.

“ ‘Whilst we are saddened at any loss of life, the poachers came here to kill our animals and this sends out a very clear message to any other poachers that you will not always be the winner,’ Fox warned.

“In a statement posted Thursday on the reserve’s Facebook page, Fox said the break-in by at least three poachers occurred late Sunday night or early Monday morning.

“ ‘We found enough body parts and three pairs of empty shoes, which suggest to us that the lions ate at least three of them but it is thick bush and there could be more, Fox said.

“The six lions had to be tranquilized for the human remains to be recovered.

“Also recovered were hunting rifles, gloves and axes, proof the poachers were after rhinos, Fox said.”

Unfortunately, some rhinos were probably killed, though police couldn’t determine how many as yet.

South Africa is home to 80 percent of the world’s rhinos, and 1,000 were slaughtered for their horns in the country last year.

But the deaths of the poachers is terrific news and ‘Lion’ will be duly rewarded on the next All-Species List...it’s coming....one of these days.....

--Uh oh... “An intact Portuguese man-of-war with the ability to cause a nasty sting – or even kill a person – washed up on the shore of a Cape May County (N.J.) beach Thursday....

“Portuguese men-of-war are not actually jellyfish, but colonies of specialized animals called zooids, (expert Paul) Bologna explained. They have stinging tentacles that can grow up to 25 feet to catch their prey as they float along the ocean’s surface.

“Bologna said the sting of a Portuguese man-of-war could kill a person in the open ocean and if it was able to wrap its tentacles around them and ‘massively sting’ them.”  [Chris Sheldon / The Star-Ledger]

That’s it, forget the ocean.  Plus you can ingest a lot of plastic, which will kill you.

--Eugene Pitt, the lead singer of the Jive Five, a top doo-wop group that reached the Top 10  in 1961 with “My True Story,” died at his home in Newberry, S.C.  He was 80.

The Jive Five were a staple of CBS-FM and Pitt’s name was synonymous with the group, “My True Story” reaching No. 1 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 3 on the pop chart.

But even as doo-wop began to wane by the early 1960s, the Jive Five remained relevant throughout the decade with soulful songs like “A Bench in the Park” and “What Time Is It?” And they reached the Top 40 in 1965 with the single “I’m A Happy Man.”

The Jive Five performed for decades, most recently in 2016.

Top 3 songs for the week of 7/4/70: #1 “The Love You Save” (The Jackson 5)  #2 “Mama Told Me (Not To Come)” (Three Dog Night)  #3 “Ball Of Confusion” (The Temptations)...and...#4 “The Long And Winding Road” (The Beatles)  #5 “Hitchin’ A Ride” (Vanity Fare)  #6 “Ride Captain Ride” (Blues Image)  #7 “Band Of Gold” (Freda Payne...always liked this one...) #8 “Lay Down” (Melanie with The Edwin Hawkins Singers) #9 “The Wonder Of You” (Elvis Presley)  #10 “Get Ready” (Rare Earth)

Baseball Quiz Answer: 26 or more outfield assists since 1960: Roberto Clemente, 27, 1961; Johnny Callison, 26, 1963; Dave Parker, 26, 1977.

Next Bar Chat, Thursday....actually, late Wed. following the second World Cup semifinal.

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