After an unscheduled week off that saw this writer hit the injury list for a week, we return to another edition of “Friday 4”, where I discuss the four things I’ve been thinking about over the last week and the upcoming weekend in sports and the world.
ONE
Sunday at the U.S. Open, traditionally on Father’s Day, is one of the best days in sports, but for many, it is a bittersweet day because their dads are no longer with them. There are a handful of days when I miss my dad a lot, and this is one of them.
Nearly every Father’s Day at my parents’ house was the same: breakfast, the Sunday newspapers, and then watching the U.S. Open. My Mom would usually have Sunday dinner around 5pm in those days, and with the TV off, so we could all eat together without distractions. Except this Sunday. The U.S. Open would be on, and the volume up so we could hear the commentary.
The last year we watched together was in 1995, but of course, we didn’t know it at the time. The only thing I really remember about that year was it was the first U.S. Open I didn’t live at my parents’ house, that Corey Pavin won over Greg Norman (who was one of Dad’s favorite golfers), and my daughter was bored out of her mind watching golf. I wish I remembered more, but to be honest, no one had any idea he wouldn’t be around for the next one.
We watched lots of sports together, including other golf events like The Masters and British Open (he refused to call it “The Open” as it’s supposed to be called, although I never asked him why), and other stuff like The Indy and Daytona 500s, The Kentucky Derby (Dad, to my knowledge, never bet on horse racing but had an uncanny knack for picking the winners of The Derby), and a few others.
I even remember back to 1986 when I was watching what was supposed to be the Red Sox beating the Mets for the World Series title and waking Dad up so he could watch the bottom of the 9th inning (he always went to bed at 8pm because he just about always got up at 4:30am, work or not). I recall the expletive he yelled out when the ball went through Billy Buckner’s legs. That’s a funny memory now, and I have an ear-to-ear grin thinking about it, but not so much at the time.
But it’s the U.S. Open that was our event. My brother occasionally joined us throughout the day, but Dad and I watched just about every shot. So this Father’s Day, just like every year I can remember, I’ll be watching the U.S. Open.
And I hope, somewhere, somehow, so will he.
TWO
Longtime readers here will know how funny I find “fake outrage”, and wow, did we have a ton of it a couple of weeks ago when Red Sox prospect Roman Anthony hid in a laundry cart to avoid autograph-seeking fans in Worcester. It was supposed to be a goofy social media video parodying Taylor Swift and similar famous people hiding from fans and the media.
Listen, if you’re someone who had anything negative to say about this, get over yourself. No one is ever entitled to anyone’s autograph just because they want one. It’s also not like he doesn’t ever sign; it was literally just that moment. Plus, it’s not just Anthony doing this. It’s an entire group of players and team employees having some fun and literally no one’s expense, in a video posted by the team.
It wouldn’t take much to list some actual bad things famous 21-year-old guys have done in the past. Being pushed in a laundry cart, for any reason, which harmed no one, shouldn’t get more than a “really?” from anyone. And to be blunt, it shouldn’t even get that much reaction.
It was 100% a joke, just like the people who pretended to be outraged over it. Or worse, actually were…
THREE
My former “Nothing But Shenanigans” podcast co-host Paul Hokanson is once again taking part in the Run to Home Base. Home Base has served more than 45,000 Veterans and their family members and trained over 85,000 clinicians across the nation, and they remain at the forefront of discovering new treatments to ensure a brighter future for 21st century Warriors and their families.
You can read about the great work Home Base does on their website.
If you’d like to sponsor Paul, you can do so on his donation page.
FOUR
The fact I’m getting older smacked me in the hard in the head twice over the past few days, once literally and once figuratively. The figurative one may have been more painful as one of the original Beach Boys, Brian Wilson, passed away at age 82 on Wednesday. I know, as I somewhat quickly approach another crooked number age, that many of the heroes of my youth have begun to leave us, and despite all of them being much more aged than I, it still stings a little when someone of the stature of Wilson passes away.
Far too many people think the Beach Boys are nothing but bubblegum pop and surf songs. And, yes, they have a ton of songs that fit those descriptions, but Wilson and the Beach Boys also have one of the most influential rock albums ever released in Pet Sounds, and, in my opinion one of the top five songs ever written in God Only Knows.
How influential is Pet Sounds? When Paul McCartney first heard the record, he was wondering how The Beatles would be able to top it, and was inspired to use many of the things from that album in writing and recording Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, what many consider to be the greatest album of all time.
My pick for greatest rock song ever, In My Life, doesn’t come from either of those two albums, and instead is on the Beatles’ sixth album, Rubber Soul. And while numbers two through five on my list might occasionally change based on my mood, God Only Knows will always be one of them.
So, thank you, Brian Wilson, for years of great music.
—
Do you have something you loved (or hated) about the post? Head on over to the 210Sports Facebook page and leave a comment. You could comment on this post, but fair warning, the spam filter catches lots of stuff it shouldn’t, and it might be weeks before we see your comment. While you’re there, please give the page a like and a follow.
You can also follow along and comment on the following sites:
Twitter/X (210Darryl), Twitter/X (210Sports), Bluesky, and Mastodon.
-30-
210Sports 