by Mitch Albom | Jan 9, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
As the deadline for Kirk Gibson and the Tigers came down to its final minutes, it became clear we were witnessing the end of one story — and the beginning of another.
One that could shake major league baseball down to its very stitches.
Why didn’t Gibson get a contract offer? Why didn’t clubs like the Yankees or the Braves — who always unloaded the money truck for free agents in the past — even sniff at him? Or Donnie Moore or Carlton Fisk?
The owners claim they got religion, in the fiscal sense. Say they’ve wised up to the evil temptations of free agency.
by Mitch Albom | Jan 8, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
In Chicago they’re screaming for the Bears. In L.A. they roar for the Lakers. North Carolina gets dizzy on college hoops, and half of Canada goes wild when Wayne Gretzky takes the ice.While in Detroit, we watch the calendar.And wait for a word from Kirk...
by Mitch Albom | Jan 6, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
CHICAGO — Dee-lightful, Dee-licious, Dee-lovely, Dee-fense. The thud of a quarterback being slammed to the ground. The crunching of pads on a fumble pileup. Such are the sounds they dance to at Soldier Field these days, and they were dancing Sunday, and they are...
by Mitch Albom | Jan 5, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
CHICAGO — The campfire is doused. The saddles are tightened. An evil wind howls, until even the vultures shriek and fly away. From the dirt of the unforgiving earth, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse arise, ready for their hellish ride: Death, Famine,...
by Mitch Albom | Jan 3, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
TEMPE, Ariz. — “Do you want to have an argument?” the man asked.An odd question. But Mendel the bartender did not hesitate. You learn never to say two things if you want to make it in the bartending business. One is “We’re out of...
by Mitch Albom | Jan 2, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
TEMPE, Ariz. — Well, it didn’t take long. The first Impossible To Answer Sports Question of 1986 came in the late afternoon of January 1, when the final gun went off here at the Fiesta Bowl.
Did Michigan win it? Or did Nebraska lose it?
I figure you can make a case for either side. And you will. Depending on what colors you prefer in your sweaters, blue or red.
This was one of those games that people argue about in the car ride home, each one countering the other with a seemingly valid point, until they all go hoarse and have to turn on the radio.
by Mitch Albom | Jan 2, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
TEMPE, Ariz. — I don’t know what they put in the locker-room water out here, but I’m not leaving until I get some.
Cactus juice? Iguana blood? Something magical. Must be. For there were the Michigan Wolverines, down 14-3 at halftime of the Fiesta Bowl, and looking meek. Nebraska was whomping them. The thousands of Michigan fans who had flown thousands of miles and endured thousands of hangovers to get up for this New Year’s Day kickoff were watching a genuine maize and blue Desert Disaster.
by Mitch Albom | Jan 1, 1986 | Detroit Free Press
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — GOOD MORNING. HAPPY NEW YEAR. YOU CAN GET OFF THE POOL TABLE NOW. AND TAKE THAT LITTLE POINTY HAT OFF OF YOUR HEAD. WHERE ARE YOUR CLOTHES? WHAT IS YOUR FAMILY NAME? THESE ARE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS THAT YOU SHOULD ANSWER CORRECTLY BEFORE...
by Mitch Albom | Dec 29, 1985 | Detroit Free Press
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — You can take all your game plans, all your playbooks, all your film and your chalk and your clipboards — and toss them in a garbage can. Pour on some lighter fluid, throw in a match, and let a couple of bums down in the Bowery have a warm night for a change.
Might as well, if you’re the New York Jets and you’re going to get knocked out of the playoffs by a what’s-his-name who picks up a ball that everyone thinks is dead and runs it in for a touchdown. Hey, why bother with all the paperwork, right?
by Mitch Albom | Dec 29, 1985 | Detroit Free Press
There I was in the tub, the bubble bath just starting to kick in.And then a rock smashed my window into 4,000 little pieces. A note. “Predict or Die. (Signed) The Boys Downtown.”I should have known this would happen. Ever since the World Series. You get...
