What with 10 Major League teams still set to open up on Tuesday, we had time to mull over the greatest opening day performances in baseball history. Here are our five favorites:
-- 1. Bob Feller: The Indians fireballer fired a no-hitter in 1940, the only opening day no-hitter in MLB history.
-- 2. Hank Aaron: Hammerin' Hank's first swing in the 1974 season was a home run in Cincinnati to tie Babe Ruth's all-time mark of 714.
-- 3. a three-way tie for hitting three dingers Detroit's Dmitri Young (2005), Toronto's George Bell (1988) and the Cubs' Tuffy Rhodes (1994) hold the record for homers in one game on opening day.
-- 4. Harry Truman: Yes, William Howard Taft became the first U.S. president to throw out the ceremonial first pitch on opening day in 1910. But we prefer Truman, who showed true partisanship by using his right and left hand to throw out two pitches in 1950.
-- 5. Ted Williams and Walter Johnson: If you just counted opening days, these two Hall of Famers had better numbers than some put up in their entire big-league careers. Williams hit safely in all 14 opening day games he played and hit .449 with three homers and 14 RBIs. Johnson tossed nine shutouts in 14 opening day appearances.
SHOW OF THE DAY
Unless you're an expert on ESPN's SportsCenter or actually work for the "World Wide Leader," you probably didn't notice the show's new look on Monday. But if you did notice, you saw a tightly edited opening and plenty of slick graphics. The revamped show wasn't necessary, but it's an example of why ESPN, despite its detractors, remains so relevant. It's kind of like McDonald's spending bundles of cash on advertising even though it sells like a billion Happy Meals an hour. By changing the look, SportsCenter keeps its product fresh and maintains a buzz around the sports fanatic's must-watch show.
RECORD OF THE DAY
-- 23-8-6. Anyone believe goalie Nikolai Khabibulin's best days were behind him after he left the Tampa Bay Lightning? Not so fast. In 39 appearances this season with the Chicago Blackhawks, Khabibulin sports that 23-8-6 mark with a 2.39 goals-against average and .918 save percentage. The year he led the Lightning to the Stanley Cup, he went 28-19-7 with a 2.33 GAA and .910 save percentage during the regular season. Khabibulin was named the NHL's "Second Star'' for last week after going 3-0 with a 0.66 GAA and stopping 61 of 63 shots to help the Blackhawks clinch their first postseason appearance since 2002-03.
ATHLETE OF THE DAY
New favorite athlete of the day: Oklahoma women's basketball player Courtney Paris, who showed grace and class by speaking with ESPN immediately after her Sooners were upset by Louisville on Sunday in the NCAA women's Final Four. And major kudos to ESPN reporter Holly Rowe, who asked the question that could not have been easy to ask but one that everyone was waiting to hear. Paris previously said she would repay her scholarship (about $64,000) if Oklahoma did not win the national title, and Rowe asked her if she would keep the promise. Paris said she would as soon as she could. Good for Rowe for asking the tough question and great for Paris, daughter of former NFL lineman Bubba Paris, for answering it with honesty and dignity.
HE WROTE IT
Sports Illustrated NFL writer Peter King wrote on SI.com on Monday: "I'm dying to know who's going to try to sign Mike Vick when the Falcons release him. Two teams come to mind: Oakland and Tampa Bay. The Bucs are long shots, but I don't think new GM Mark Dominik is afraid of him.''
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service www.scrippsnews.com)
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