The Swamp

I am in my 40s and a big basketball fan who is generally good at sports trivia things and had lots of free time in the 2000s, and yet I constantly forget that Tracy McGrady ever existed. Like if there is a trivia question and T-Mac is the answer, there is a 5% chance that I will get it right and a 95% chance that I will look like an ass trying to figure it out. This is not to suggest that he was anything other than a superstar player and a fair choice for the Hall of Fame. It’s just that I often forget that he ever played basketball.

Does anyone else have a guy like that? I feel like there is a phenomenon here, but I can’t put a finger on it.

in any sport?

Mike Gartner scored 700 NHL goals.

Yeah you are right.

I'm in my mid-50s so there are even more guys like that.

Steve Largent.

Joe Thornton will be that guy in like 20 years. He’s about to pass Gordie Fucking Howe for most assists in a career.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Dec 26, 2018 10:51 pm Joe Thornton will be that guy in like 20 years. He’s about to pass Gordie Fucking Howe for most assists in a career.

See, I don;t watch much hockey, and I find this one to be insane.

But while we're talking hockey - Brad Park.

Back when the NBA was fun to watch, my favorite player to watch was Bernard King.

Dunno why I put that here, but figured...hey, why not..

Loving this thread.

Steve Shutt. William Andrews. Dave Kingman...

Because of the three-hour time zone difference, I suppose most east coast fans miss most games featuring west coast stars in MLB, NHL, and NBA.

So, for east-coasters, I guess more west coast-based athletes will make the list.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Dec 26, 2018 10:51 pm Joe Thornton will be that guy in like 20 years. He’s about to pass Gordie Fucking Howe for most assists in a career.

I know Joe Thornton as the Bruins rookie season flop. That was the last year I followed hockey, so I was shocked to see he is still playing 20 years later with hall of fame stats.

I sorted the HR leaders from 1978 through last year and I'd like someone to click and tell me who they'd say to see if we have the same answer ...

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx? ... 0&sort=5,d

(You can't just read this thread and name someone, right? Goes against the whole thesis.)

mister d wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 5:06 pm I sorted the HR leaders from 1978 through last year and I'd like someone to click and tell me who they'd say to see if we have the same answer ...

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx? ... 0&sort=5,d

(You can't just read this thread and name someone, right? Goes against the whole thesis.)

Overall it’s Konerko, but relative to how much other people probably remember, mine would actually be Cabrera.

Konerko was mine too.

As a whole, the 2005 White Sox have to be one of the most anonymous championship teams in any sport. They’re a big market team that won 99 games, steamrolled through the playoffs, and broke a really long championship drought, and yet it’s a struggle to remember more than a handful of their guys.

Delgado or konerko In a photo finish.

sancarlos wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 2:04 pm Because of the three-hour time zone difference, I suppose most east coast fans miss most games featuring west coast stars in MLB, NHL, and NBA.

So, for east-coasters, I guess more west coast-based athletes will make the list.

100%

Marcel Dionne.

Joe K wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 5:57 pm As a whole, the 2005 White Sox have to be one of the most anonymous championship teams in any sport. They’re a big market team that won 99 games, steamrolled through the playoffs, and broke a really long championship drought, and yet it’s a struggle to remember more than a handful of their guys.

ESPN forgot about them:

https://deadspin.com/remember-when-the- ... 1788190631

So did Wheel of Fortune earlier this year (but not because of the World Series victory):

https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/white ... el-fortune

This shit is like a reverse Mandela Effect.

My initial thought on that list was Konerko but then it occurred to me that I have not thought about Juan Gonzalez in a very, very long time.

I just realized that the Swamp has probably done some of the best clinical research on this issue of any institution.

Joe K wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 5:57 pm As a whole, the 2005 White Sox have to be one of the most anonymous championship teams in any sport. They’re a big market team that won 99 games, steamrolled through the playoffs, and broke a really long championship drought, and yet it’s a struggle to remember more than a handful of their guys.

That's strange, because that is one of the few 21st Century World Series winners that stand out for me. Ozzie Guillen winning stands out, but I can't think of a single player on that team.

[Looks up roster] Obviously I know Frank Thomas, but I would have thought he retired well before 2005. I know several other names, but not as White Sox players, like Jermaine Dye, Timo Perez and Carl Everett. So basically it was all Ozzie Guillen. I think you guys must have talked about him a lot that year. Wasn't he a raging homophobe or racist or something?

The Sybian wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 10:29 pm

Joe K wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 5:57 pm As a whole, the 2005 White Sox have to be one of the most anonymous championship teams in any sport. They’re a big market team that won 99 games, steamrolled through the playoffs, and broke a really long championship drought, and yet it’s a struggle to remember more than a handful of their guys.

That's strange, because that is one of the few 21st Century World Series winners that stand out for me. Ozzie Guillen winning stands out, but I can't think of a single player on that team.

[Looks up roster] Obviously I know Frank Thomas, but I would have thought he retired well before 2005. I know several other names, but not as White Sox players, like Jermaine Dye, Timo Perez and Carl Everett. So basically it was all Ozzie Guillen. I think you guys must have talked about him a lot that year. Wasn't he a raging homophobe or racist or something?

Guillen was a pretty bad homophobe even by the comparatively more regressive standards of the mid-00s. Frank Thomas was hurt that year and was essentially a non-contributor. Konerko and Dye were really the only two above-average position players on the team but they got solid performances out of a bunch of guys on the pitching staff. They had some decent pitching talent but it’s really an example of catching lightning in the bottle and having every key pitcher hit his best-case scenario.

Tim Brown in football, Konerko in baseball

Allan Houston

Dominique Wilkins. Curtis Martin. Alexander Mogilny. Fred McGriff.

Karl Mecklenburg, Todd Christensen, Ricky Watters

Blake Griffin

Joe K wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 5:57 pm As a whole, the 2005 White Sox have to be one of the most anonymous championship teams in any sport. They’re a big market team that won 99 games, steamrolled through the playoffs, and broke a really long championship drought, and yet it’s a struggle to remember more than a handful of their guys.

I think that was one of the weirdest World Series ever. Even though it was a sweep, every game was really close and could have gone either way.

DaveInSeattle wrote: ↑Thu Jan 31, 2019 11:51 pm

Joe K wrote: ↑Thu Dec 27, 2018 5:57 pm As a whole, the 2005 White Sox have to be one of the most anonymous championship teams in any sport. They’re a big market team that won 99 games, steamrolled through the playoffs, and broke a really long championship drought, and yet it’s a struggle to remember more than a handful of their guys.

I think that was one of the weirdest World Series ever. Even though it was a sweep, every game was really close and could have gone either way.

Yup. :(