I just finished a book -- Big Fan -- and one of the chapters is about the delight of attending pro wrestling's biggest event, even though the writer wasn't a wrestling fan at all. Apparently, *his* coauthor forced him to attend in revenge for something involving pickleball. (None of this made sense. Why would anyone force their friend to do something he hated? And wouldn't it make more sense to make him go somewhere very cold?) Anyway, the author turned out to enjoy the wrestling thing because of the spectacle. Twist!
I can't believe Joe hasn't mentioned this book. It seems like something he'd enjoy.
My favorite from WWoS was always the lumberjack competitions. Log rolling? Loved watching someone get spun into the pond! Chainsaw climbing? Double edge axe chopping? Maybe someone will lose a toe!
About Walker ... I was convinced that the Cards had ruined him with the young & early promotion and rapid demotion and negative comments. But maybe it was just the kick he needed. Or maybe he grew on his own. Or perhaps the Ghost of Jim McKay blessed his marvelous athletic talents.
As Joe probably knows, ESPN does something like the Wide World of Sports on July 4, in part because of the Hot Dog Eating contest on Coney Island. They pretend to be ESPN 8, The Ocho, for a day (hat tip recognition to "DodgeBall" for coming up with the concept of The Ocho) and show all sorts of different competitions. I was sitting in a bar watching this year when they showed a bubblegum blowing contest among other things: they even had a measuring tool to measure the size of the bubbles blown, needless to say I was enthralled.
"Kurt Bevacqua’s play on the field didn’t earn him a bronze plaque in Cooperstown, but his expanding talents find him featured in a new Museum exhibit.
Sometimes, that’s just the way the bubble bursts.
A little more than four decades ago, Bevacqua, a quality utility man with the Milwaukee Brewers at the time, made a name for himself off the field by winning a nationally televised bubble gum blowing contest. As a result, a major trading card company produced a special card the next year commemorating this achievement. Today, that card as well as the competition’s official rules can be seen in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s exhibit Whole New Ballgame."
And if you missed Sport and Spectacle last night, might I suggest a trip to the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, in Kansas City, to enjoy Sport and Spectator. It is an exhibit of the intersection of visual arts and sports culture.
It's a great exhibit and very timely. And in the city that has become the home of American Soccer, Kansas City!
So, so happy for Jordan Walker. A strong argument could be made that, from 2024-2025, he was the absolute WORST player in baseball. I don’t think any player had a lower WAR over that span. As a Cardinal fan, I groaned when he came up with runners on and two outs because there was absolutely no way he would come through. And he didn’t.
But he is young. He turned 24 earlier this season. Through his age 24 season, Aaron Judge (another big slugger) had 95 plate appearances. Walker has almost 1,500. Some guys just need time to figure it out and it’s been so fun watching him do that. Hopefully it continues!
This column brings back two memories for me. The first is the intro to Wide World of Sports. One of the Agony of Defeat clips was the ski jumper who veers off the ramp and crashes before jumping. I always wondered if it was his first time trying to jump! The other is the old B&W Home Run Derby show (I’ve seen re-runs) where you could watch Mantle vs Aaron or Colavito vs Killebrew for a $2000 prize ($1000 for finishing second). As you noted, the camera angles were limited but sensible and the player interviews were fun. I’d rather watch those re-runs than the modern version any day!
I wonder when in our hominid evolution we started to compete over nothing and for nothing. I can see one proto-person picking up a rock and throwing it, then another trying to throw it farther or more accurately. The first athletes. When a third cheered the winner, the first fan. Of course now status would become involved, making the competition about something.
I just finished a book -- Big Fan -- and one of the chapters is about the delight of attending pro wrestling's biggest event, even though the writer wasn't a wrestling fan at all. Apparently, *his* coauthor forced him to attend in revenge for something involving pickleball. (None of this made sense. Why would anyone force their friend to do something he hated? And wouldn't it make more sense to make him go somewhere very cold?) Anyway, the author turned out to enjoy the wrestling thing because of the spectacle. Twist!
I can't believe Joe hasn't mentioned this book. It seems like something he'd enjoy.
My favorite from WWoS was always the lumberjack competitions. Log rolling? Loved watching someone get spun into the pond! Chainsaw climbing? Double edge axe chopping? Maybe someone will lose a toe!
About Walker ... I was convinced that the Cards had ruined him with the young & early promotion and rapid demotion and negative comments. But maybe it was just the kick he needed. Or maybe he grew on his own. Or perhaps the Ghost of Jim McKay blessed his marvelous athletic talents.
Spot on. Thank you
It's a core childhood memory watching that guy get absolutely destroyed on the ski jump as the agony of defeat
As Joe probably knows, ESPN does something like the Wide World of Sports on July 4, in part because of the Hot Dog Eating contest on Coney Island. They pretend to be ESPN 8, The Ocho, for a day (hat tip recognition to "DodgeBall" for coming up with the concept of The Ocho) and show all sorts of different competitions. I was sitting in a bar watching this year when they showed a bubblegum blowing contest among other things: they even had a measuring tool to measure the size of the bubbles blown, needless to say I was enthralled.
Ah for the days of Dirty Kurt Bevaqua and his amazing 1976 Topps baseball card.
https://baseballhall.org/discover/museum/whole-new-ballgame/striking-a-blow
"Kurt Bevacqua’s play on the field didn’t earn him a bronze plaque in Cooperstown, but his expanding talents find him featured in a new Museum exhibit.
Sometimes, that’s just the way the bubble bursts.
A little more than four decades ago, Bevacqua, a quality utility man with the Milwaukee Brewers at the time, made a name for himself off the field by winning a nationally televised bubble gum blowing contest. As a result, a major trading card company produced a special card the next year commemorating this achievement. Today, that card as well as the competition’s official rules can be seen in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s exhibit Whole New Ballgame."
And if you missed Sport and Spectacle last night, might I suggest a trip to the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, in Kansas City, to enjoy Sport and Spectator. It is an exhibit of the intersection of visual arts and sports culture.
It's a great exhibit and very timely. And in the city that has become the home of American Soccer, Kansas City!
So, so happy for Jordan Walker. A strong argument could be made that, from 2024-2025, he was the absolute WORST player in baseball. I don’t think any player had a lower WAR over that span. As a Cardinal fan, I groaned when he came up with runners on and two outs because there was absolutely no way he would come through. And he didn’t.
But he is young. He turned 24 earlier this season. Through his age 24 season, Aaron Judge (another big slugger) had 95 plate appearances. Walker has almost 1,500. Some guys just need time to figure it out and it’s been so fun watching him do that. Hopefully it continues!
The win mattered to Walker financially. He earned $1m (vs. $500K for finishing second), more than his 2026 salary, $799,400.
I suspect his financial situation will improve markedly in the coming months. Cardinals will lock him up shortly.
And even if the Cardinals don't, I think Walker will do just fine via arbitration.
There was a Home Run Derby last night?
This column brings back two memories for me. The first is the intro to Wide World of Sports. One of the Agony of Defeat clips was the ski jumper who veers off the ramp and crashes before jumping. I always wondered if it was his first time trying to jump! The other is the old B&W Home Run Derby show (I’ve seen re-runs) where you could watch Mantle vs Aaron or Colavito vs Killebrew for a $2000 prize ($1000 for finishing second). As you noted, the camera angles were limited but sensible and the player interviews were fun. I’d rather watch those re-runs than the modern version any day!
The jumper: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinko_Bogataj
You left out the part where they booed the kid for not catching a non-homer fly ball. Don't ever change Philly fans.
I wonder when in our hominid evolution we started to compete over nothing and for nothing. I can see one proto-person picking up a rock and throwing it, then another trying to throw it farther or more accurately. The first athletes. When a third cheered the winner, the first fan. Of course now status would become involved, making the competition about something.
When I was a kid, I thought motorcycle racing on ice was a real sport because of Wide World of Sports. And it should be!