My favorite sports lists

The Braves are playing the accursed Mets again and Tom Glavine (my former favorite Brave) is pitching for the other team. I am glad Mr. Glavine is doing well this season, but it is fun he seems to have trouble with the Braves. The Braves need to win tonight to bring it closer in the National League East. Schmoltz is pitching for the Braves. It is a great matchup and both these pitchers are pitching better than their ages, respectively. Its fun to watch them.

When the Braves made their move into the upper tier of Major League Baseball in 1991, I gained an appreciation for pitching. The Braves had Glavine, Schmoltz, Avery and Merker. Glavine started with a series of wins which pushed him into the Cy Young at the end of the season. Avery was the projected phenom and he was amazing that year as well. Of course, Schmoltz was also great that year and Avery and Schmoltz were MVPs in the National League Championship and pitched very well in the First Atlanta World Series. That year was magic and the World Series lived up to it as well.

I remember when Sylvia Hollums had three tickets to a late July or early August doubleheader with the Pirates. Cindy and Bill Day and I went to the game and got there too late to watch the whole first game. But the games were amazing and we swept the Pirates which was the beginning of a surge which overcame the damn Dodgers who for years had led the National League West, the division in which they had unfortunately placed the Braves back in the old days. I still can't understand why the Braves were in the West. I mean, they started out in Boston! Of course, I suppose when they began divisional play they were in Milwaukee. I assume that but I don't really know if that is true; I just assume it. But for years it was really unfortunate that the only team near them in Longitude were the Cincinnati Reds, another team I really don't like. As a matter of fact, I can't say I really like any of the teams in the old National League West. I guess the Giants are the closest team for which I have any appreciation. But they now have Barry Bonds and I didn't like him when he was part of that incredible outfield in Pittsburgh with Andy Van Slyke and Bobby Bonilla.

I like Pittsburgh and the Marlins (marginally) in the East but the rest of them are not liked. I hate the Phillies and never liked the Expos, although I am glad there is a team in DC to replace the old Senators. I like their uniforms and I like the throwback to the old National League. But I do hate the accursed Mets. Any time the Braves can beat the Mets is a premium.

I always liked a lot of the teams in the American League: the Yankees first, then the Detroit Tigers and the Baltimore Orioles, then the A's. I like the Chicago White Sox, but really don't like any of the others, even though at one time I liked the Twins. But after the loss of the Cardinals to them and then the Braves in 1991, I have removed my affection for the Twins. Now after the Yankees beat the Braves several times in the World Series, I don't like them anymore. Although I might change my mind if Steinbrenner sold them to a more likeable or invisible owner.

Anyway, for what its worth, here is my list of favorite baseball teams:

Atlanta Braves
Detroit Tigers
St. Louis Cardinals
Baltimore Orioles
Chicago White Sox
Oakland A's

The rest of them are too removed from the top.

In the NFL, my list is as follows:

Atlanta Falcons
Cleveland Browns
Chicago Bears
New York Jets
New York Giants
New England Patriots
Oakland Raiders

As you can see, most of my favorite teams from the NFL are old rust belt teams or working class teams, like Cleveland, Chicago and Oakland. The affinity for the Falcons is obvious, but my love for the Jets comes from the old Broadway Joe days and the entry of the Patriots comes from when I was in college and we couldn't get any NFC games other than the damned Washington Redskins. None of my roommates was from the DC area. They were so boring and we really didn't like them, so we usually watched the early AFC game, which for some reason was almost always the Boston (then New England) Patriots. This was a time when they were rising in talent and challenging the Dolphins and the Jets for supremacy in the AFC east. We loved them by default.

The Dallas Cowboys were the family team in the Baynham family beginning when they drafted a running back from Georgia Tech named Craig Baynham, a distant cousin. At a time when the Falcons were losing more than they won, it was good to have a team that did the opposite. Of course, I lost my love for the Cowboys when they beat the Falcons in 1982 in the opening round of the NFC championship series. The Falcons had the best record in the NFL that year, had a tough offense and defense and should have won that game. But the Cowboys stole one from them in the end and then got beat by the Eagles, a team that the Falcons had beaten consistently over the years. Of course, the Eagles were later beaten by the Raiders in the Super Bowl, a game which the Falcons would have won if they had made it to the big game. Oh well, some day.

On to the NBA. I used to love professional basketball, when the referees actually called things and the bullies under the boards had to be careful or they would foul out and every one could make a jump shot. Not anymore. The game is so different. All the shooters depend on the easiest shot: the dunk, and the big guys just throw their weight around. Nevertheless, here's the list:

Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Indiana Pacers
San Antonio Spurs

I really don't like anybody else. I wish the Hawks and the Celtics would rise up again. They used to be so good and consistent. I used to like the Bulls until the Jordan years. They became so obnoxiously, consistently good over those years that Michael Jordan's failure in Minor League Baseball with the Birmingham Barons was welcomed. The Hawks are a given, and it really hurts me that no one remembers when they were really good, year after year. Lou Hudson, Jo Caldwell, Walt Bellamy, Pete Maravich, John Drew, Tree Rollins, Dominique Wilkins and Kevin Willis. The only Hawk anyone seems to remember at all is Dominique, who I thought was incredible when I was a 2nd and 3rd year law student at Georgia. The Celtics were my first love, even though I never saw the old Cousy led Celtics. I remember the Celtics of Russell, Jones, Nelson, Havlichek and Cowens and Byrd and McHale. Really great teams.

I liked the Knicks when they had Bradley and Debuscherre and Walt Frazier and Earl "the Pearl" Monroe and Dick Barnett, with the funky leg kick on his jumper, and Willis Reid. Of course, they lost me when Spike Lee became a fixture on the floor. Even then I liked Patrick Ewing.

Of course, my favorite team from the ABA never made it to the NBA and I have never understood why. Why didn't the NBA allow the Kentucky Colonels to come into the NBA when the rest of the league folded? Dan Issel and Jim McDaniel and Louis Dampier. How fun with the red, white and blue basketballs. My favorite all-time basketball shoes were my red, white and blue ABA Adidas basketball shoes.

I guess I should mention the NHL. My list:

Atlanta Thrashers
Montreal Canadiens
Calgary Flames

The Flames are a given. If they were still Atlanta's team I would have them at the top. The Canadiens are the original favorite. I use to watch their games on UHF channels broadcast in Atlanta. Hockey on television is hard to handle. Hockey really needs to be seen in person. Hockey on radio really requires imagination. It is almost so difficult to listen to that it has an unusual charm. I really thought the Thrashers had a chance this year. For the most part, they really handled the other teams in their division and they made some amazing trades at the end. That organization probably cost the Thrashers some early success. It is hard to beat the quickness in which the Flames rose in the ranks. Their coaches and players were amazing. Plett and Vail and Bennett. And of course, when they drafted Jim Craig to play in goal immediately after he seemingly won the Olympic Gold medal in 1980 all by himself.

Well that's the list for anyone who cares. Maybe I'll list my favorite movies next time. Listing my favorite songs would be impossible.