Not so famous 2 sport athletes

Everyone remembers Deion Sanders and Bo Jackson but do y'all remember these not-as-famous 2 sport athletes.

1. Dave DeBusschere- You should actually remember this dude because he was a two time NBA champion(both with the Knicks) and one of the greatest power forwards of all time(one of the NBA's 50 greatest players and a Hall Of Famer).  But, if you do remember him, you probably don't know that he was a pitcher for the Chicago White Sox.  His baseball statistics weren't quite as good as his basketball ones, 3 wins - 4 losses - 1 complete game (it was a shutout though) - and 1 hit in 22 at bats, in his short (April 1962-September 1963) MLB career.

2. Danny Ainge- Here's a guy you should also remember(or should know because he runs the Boston Celtics right now), but this guy(also a 2 time champion as a player and 1 as a GM, all with the Celtics) had a very forgetable baseball career like Mr. DeBusschere.  Ainge was a utility player for the Toronto Blue Jays, hitting a mediocre .220 with 2 home runs and only 146 hits in 211 games.  He is however the youngest Blue Jay ever to hit a homer at 20 years and 77 days.

3. Brian Jordan- Now this guy is probably remembered more for his baseball career then his secondary profession, patrolling the secondary for the Atlanta Falcons.  As a baseball player he was a respectable .282, 184 homer runs, and 821 RBIs.  I loved this guy because I worked with a Mets fan and this guy KILLED the Mets while he was an Atlanta Brave, and it burned this guy up that it seemed like BJ was up at bat whenever the game was on the line.  BJ was however,  was not just an outfielder.  He was drafted by the Bills in the 7th round of the 1989 draft.  After being cut he was signed by the Atlanta Falcons as a safety(he didn't play for the Braves and the Falcons at the same time like Neon did though).  In only two years he did rack up 5 picks and 4 sacks while working his way through the St. Louis Cardinals system as an outfielder.  Once the Cardinals offered him a bunch of money to play baseball, it ended his football career.

4.  Willie Gault- Now this guy is an American hero.  Not only was he a part of probably the greatest NFL song ever(the Super Bowl Shuffle) he was also an Olympic Athlete.  Willie would have been a two-time Olympian if the US did not boycott the 1980 Winter Games(he was a member of the 4x100 meter relay team), but he did make the 1984 Winter Games(as a bobsledder)  In the NFL is where he made his money while being a pretty good wide receiver and kick/punt returner. 

5. DJ Dozier- Now this guy was not a very good player at either sport, but he did make to majors in both.  As a running back for the Vikings and the Lions he played only 4 seasons compiling 691 yards for 9 TDs.  But DJ's baseball career was even shorter and less prolific.  As an outfielder for the New York Mets he batted a lowly .191 BA with 4 stolen bases, 19 strikeouts and 1 error in the outfield.  The reason why this guy made the list - I was there when he commited that error, that led to runs, and the drunk guy next to me heckled DJ to no end(he kept yelling "Ya can't catch a football OR a baseball!!!)  That's the only reason why I remember him at all. 

Honorable Mention - Julius Peppers - College basketball as a very good Power Forward at UNC and then as a defensive end in the NFL, Kenny Lofton - College basketball as a point guard with Lute Olsen in Arizona and many years in the MLB, Donovan McNabb - Final Four with the Orangemen and a Pro Bowl quarterback, Drew Henson - Topped out in football and baseball at Michigan, but the Yankees AND the Cowboys both wanted him at the same time, Jim Brown - Ask Grandpa and he'll tell ya he was the greatest running back of all time, but, ask anyone who saw him play other sports at Syracuse(basketball, lacrosse and track) and they will tell he was one of the greatest athletes of all time, Jim Thorpe - the greatest athlete of all time.  Olympic Gold Medal winner in the pentathlon and decathlon along with being a professional baseball, football and basketball player.

Pater-Son

The Great Falls of Paterson

Awhile back I read an article entitled "New Jersey's Bucket List" and it was exactly what you would expect it to be - a list of shit to do in New Jersey before you die.  Most of it was either stuff I had no interest in or stuff I've already done.  The one that really got me was number 10 "Visit the Great Falls in Paterson".  I didn't know much about Paterson except 1. It was hood.  I mean the movie Lean On Me was about Paterson's Eastside High School.  2. The Colt revolver was invented there.  That's right, the gun that won the West was invented in a cold, hard industrial city right in our backyard.  3. They had falls.  Great ones apparently.  Well leave it to the boardem of unemployment and the suggestion of a magazine and next thing you know I'm on Rt. 80 following signs for downtown Paterson one day to check it out.  When I got off the exit I realized some stuff.  Number 1 - I was correct about number 1, it WAS hood(at least hood looking, a Colt probably would've calmed my nerves) and Number 2 - there are falls and they're great.  I parked in the lot at 65 McBride Ave and checked out the statues, plaques and monuments (you can actually ring the bell, you'll see) they have describing the Falls and the factories that helped shape New Jersey's third largest city.  Then walk across the street to the foot bridge that crosses right over the falls.  From here you can see the 77 foot drop into the Passaic River and get a good look at the mills that have powered Paterson since 1793. Continue across the bridge and down the path and you'll find a set of stairs that will give you a different view of the falls.  After that you can go to Libby's (98 McBride Ave), one of the state's many legendary Hot Dog joints.  That's it, there doesn't seem like a lot of things to do in Paterson and if there are I didn't want to find em.  But the Falls are great and I agree with the author of the article that it should be on everyone's New Jersey bucket list.  Two suggestions I have are go during the day and don't go alone.  

The Jersey Jumper

Sam Patch came to Paterson to work in one of the many factories that surrounded the Falls in his early twenties.  One day he decided he would jump from rocky cliffs into the turbulent waters below, all 77 ft of it.  On Sept. 30, 1827 a large crowd gathered to see the new Chasm Bridge open and Sam took the leap and lived to tell about it(he actually made the jump several times).  He later was quoted by the papers as saying "There's no mistake in Sam Patch".  The Jersey Jumper was born.  Almost a year later he jumped from a mast of a ship that was 90 ft high into the Hudson for a huge crowd gathered on the Hoboken waterfront.  Sam gained fame and fortune jumping from bridges and cliffs, and in 1829 made his most famous leap - over Niagara Falls.  This guy jumped Niagara Falls.  That's pretty badass.  His next stunt didn't end so well though. He tried his luck by jumping the 125 ft high cliffs of the Genesee River (Rochester, NY) and died when, according to an autopsy, he suffered a ruptured blood vessel caused by the cold water.  That's how the Jersey Jumper's life ended but his legacy will live on forever.

Now The Water's Boiling

Chop's Chicken Chile Recipe
There’s really nothing special about this chili recipe but when I made it a few weeks ago it tasted truly amazing.  It’s a slow cook recipe so I hope you got some time on your hands, but it’s super easy and totally worth it.  Feeds 4 (or 2 stoners).   

Ingredients

About 1 pound of chicken breast

1 can of diced tomatoes (I use Rotel or something with green chilies in it)

1 can of black beans

1 packet of chili seasoning (Lawry’s, McCormick’s or something like that)

¼ - ¾ cup of diced red and green peppers

¼ - ¾ cup of corn (I use frozen, but canned work also)

Optional- Shredded cheese and/or sour cream

1.  Combine everything (except peppers and corn) in a pot, preferably a crock pot, and set it to low and let it sit for about six hours.   Check on it every hour or so, stirring it when you check.

2.  After the chicken breaks apart by stirring it, add the peppers and corn.  Cook about another hour.

3.  Serve with shredded cheese or sour cream, or both.

4.  Crack a beer and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

If your chili is to dry add a little chicken stock.  If it’s a little runny, add some flour to thicken it up.

You know you're from Jersey if...

I’ve seen about a thousand of these lists but they still make me laugh.  These are some things I haven’t seen on one of these lists yet.

You know you’re from Jersey if…

-You refer to Bob Seger as the “poor man’s” Bruce Springsteen

-You’ve been to the places in Kevin Smith movies

-You can name the one bad pizza place in your county

-You pronounce Newark as one syllable, not NEW-ARK like how those idiots from Delaware say it

-You criticize where everyone else is from

-You don’t really know what grinders, heroes, po boys or hoagies (beside Hoagie Hut) are, but you could pick a Tastee’s sub out of a lineup

-You know no one farted, that’s just the way Elizabeth smells

-You’ve been getting wasted in Seaside since the night of your senior prom, not just the last 2 summers like some people

-You actually like the Nets

-You curse a lot but don’t give a shit about it

-You don’t mind traffic circles and think they’re actually kind of a good idea

-You don’t eat at chain Italian restaurants

-You consider “Boardwalk” food a food group

-You know that if it smells like Bayonne…well, if you’re from Jersey you know the rest

Issue #6 Love/Hate

LOVE:

1.The Oakland Atletics, 2.New Jersey, 3.the movie Pulp Fiction, 4.90’s hip hop, 5.big asses, 6.the songs “Nothing Compares 2 U” and “Break My Stride”, 7.Latin food, 8.not texting, 9.porn ,10.The Beach Boys, 11.being lazy on Sundays, 12.Timberland boots, 13.HJ’s, 14.80’s pop music, 15.Robert Redford movies, 16.Redman, 17.rodizio and sangria, 18.passing out wasted drunk, 19.whiz wit-out cheesesteaks, 20.St. Ann’s Festa, 21.making out like teenagers, 22.”this one’s on the house” drinks, 23.ska for people who hate ska, 24.cursing, 25.cooking, 26.the phrase “off the chain”, 27.the book A Clockwork Orange, 28.a cup of tea w/ a shot of Jameson, 29.thermals, 30. The Simpsons, 31. Italian food in the Northeast

HATE:

1.mayo, 2.people who don’t clean the snow off their car, 3.the song “Drop It Like It’s Hot”, 4.The Red Hot Chili Peppers, 5.last call, 6.beershits, 7.Phil Collins, 8.shaving, 9.having to go to work, 10.tricked out cars, 11.Nicolas Cage, 12.eating healthy, 13.the comic strip The Family Circus, 14.the Rutgers footbal program, 15.paying for parking, 16.raking leaves, 17.banana candy, 18.that “what up with that” skit on SNL, 19.Lil Wayne, 20.wearing my seatbelt, 21.people who wear beanies in the summertime, 22.J.D. Salinger books, 23.Rt 78, 24.mushrooms, 25.cleaning up after cooking, 26.constant complainers, 27.swagger jackers, 28.exercising, 29.TNS on crew neck shirts, 30.people with coffee breath, 31. Italian food anywhere but the Northeast

2011 MLB Predictions

It's opening day for the 2011 baseball season today and here are my predictions:

AL East: Boston Red Sox
AL Central: Detroit Tigers
AL West: Oakland Athletics
AL Wild card: New York Yankees
AL MVP: Adrian Gonzales
AL Cy Young: Justin Verlander

NL East: Philadelphia Phillies
NL Central: Milwaukee Brewers
NL West: Colorado Rockies
NL Wild Card: Atlanta Braves
NL MVP: Albert Pujols
NL Cy Young: Zack Greinke

World Series: Oakland over Philadelphia

The end?

Looks like Sports Illustrated is a fan of La Palabra's work.