The Great Director James Burrows And Baseball, Specifically, The A.L. East Leading, New York Yankees
Days back, I met the great director James Burrows after he was interviewed for an episode of “Inside The Actor’s Studio,” which will air Sunday October 13th on Ovation (A fine, innovative television channel, which will be the new “home” for “Inside The Actor’s Studio).
Burrows’s body of work is incredible (television shows such as “Cheers,” “Will and Grace” and “Taxi,” to name just three) and he also “cheered” me up (pun intended, I guess) by chatting with me after the taping, in an engaging manner.
Mr. Burrows’ beautiful wife, Debbie also was friendly and helpful.
The Inside The Actor’s Studio interview was great and I will not spoil it, save to say Burrows shared many great anecdotes, including touching remembrances of his brilliant father, humorist/writer and much more, Abe Burrows.
Additionally, James Burrows loves sports, roots for the Yankees and talked of seeing Hank Bauer play.
Without knowing the in progress Tuesday score of Yankees/Tampa Bay Rays, I told Mr. Burrows the Rays were good, but not good enough and Boston (Red Sox) though really good, does not have the intangibles, this regular season.
Hence, I said/predicted the Yankees, recently only 3 to 2 favorites to win their first “one eighth” division title since 2012, would do so this season.
They began Tuesday, again the day I talked with the great director, good man and Yankees’ fan, James Burrows, with a 3 game win skein.
That night the Yankees made it two straight vs T.B. then won vs 2018 American League Cy Young Award winner, Blake Snell, the next afternoon.
Add 3 wins vs the A.L. West leading Houston Astros, who have now lost 7 straight games, and the Yankees enter play today, Old Timer’s Day at Yankee Stadium, with 8 straight wins and a nice five and a half game lead, in the A.L. East.
I hope and think Mr. Burrows is enjoying it and I hope he remembers my prediction.
Left to right, the great James Burrows and Andy B.
Yesterday, I cited the fact that the simultaneous St. Louis (Blues) and Toronto (Raptors) titles achieved last week, mark the fourth time those two cities won titles, in the same calendar year.
The previous three were won by the St. Louis Cardinals and Toronto Maple Leafs, within the same year (1942, 1964 and 1967), but certainly spread out more than the titles won on consecutive nights in 2019. (This is the third straight year the NHL and NBA crowns were dispensed on consecutive nights).
In 1942 both the Leafs and Cards won 4 straight games within a series, however, neither was in a four game sweep.
St. Louis took the defending world champion Yankees in 5 games, winning the last four. The great writer, Philip Roth, whom we lost last year (his books and work remain and are highly recommended), referenced the Cards’ Whitey Kurowski’s home run that broke a tie, Top 9, in the clinching game at Yankee Stadium, in his “warning” book “The Plot Against America.”
That World Series ended on October 5, 1942.
In the only final series in major North American sports league history in which a team won the last 4 games, after trailing 3 games to none, the Maple Leafs 7’d the Detroit Red Wings to win the 1942 Stanley Cup title.
Toronto trailed (1-0) entering the third period of #7 in Toronto on April 18, 1942, but got two third period goals from Sweeney Schriner and the go ahead to stay/Stanley Cup winning goal from Pete Langelle to win the game and title.
The Leafs’ Syl Apps Sr. with the Stanley Cup in 1942.
In winning their first franchise title, and its city’s fourteenth, the St. Louis Blues and Toronto Raptors, respectively denied the Boston Bruins and Golden State Warriors, in their bids for a seventh crown.
Of course, both the Blues and Raptors were underdogs in both the final round and the semi-final round.
There are other links between the teams and cities that won the 20th hockey and basketball league titles of this century, at least beginning with the year 2000.
It is the fourth time the cities of St. Louis and Toronto have won major North American sports league crowns in the same year.
One of those years was 1942 (1964, 1967 and 2019 are the others).
The previous three “same year Toronto/St. Louis titles,” involved the NHL Toronto Maple Leafs and the baseball St. Louis Cardinals.
Tomorrow a look at the 1942 titles for the Leafs and Cards.
Yesterday, in what was perhaps a meaningful game in the long, wild card presence baseball season, the (34-38), Cincinnati Reds rallied for two, two out runs in the bottom of the ninth inning, to (3-2), the almost certain A.L. West winning, (48-27) Houston Astros and complete and a 3 game sweep.
The game evoked some Reds/Astros history, as these were the first clashes between the teams, who from (1962-2012) were in the same entity (National League (1962-1968), National League West (1969-1993) and N.L. Central (1994-2012), since the American League Astros, won their first title in 2017.
One memory is following the game (no television, radio, internet etc.) of July 4th, nearly 40 years ago, when the Astros held on for a (3-2) win at “Cincy,” and moved 10 and a half games ahead of the Reds in the one quarter/you had to finish first, N.L. West.
Cincinnati eventually won the division.
That day, I sojourned to a kosher delicatessen “over the bridge.” (Maybe “somewhere over a rainbow,” Mr. (Harold) Arlen and Mr. (E.Y.) Yarburg can get a pastrami sandwich into the song).
NBA official, Manny Sokol was there. I asked him, those forty years ago, who was the best player he had seen. Without looking up, on a napkin, he wrote Havlicek and Oscar (John Havlicek and Oscar Robertson).
The Astros likely will at least, win the A.L. West
“Over the bridge” yields “Over the rainbow,” Click below as Judy Garland’s Dorothy sings and Toto, the dog is so well behaved, now 80 years ago.
The city of Toronto, of course, now has a current title with the NBA Raptors, who achieved it, in their 24th season.
Additionally, Toronto has 7 straight victories in final round play. Although the NHL Maple Leafs have not won the Stanley Cup since 1967, they have not lost a final series since 1960, winning 3 straight crowns (’62-’64), the baseball Blue Jays won in both of their World Series appearances (’92 and ’93), while the Raptors just won in their first NBA final series).
Somewhat incredibly, not only were the last 4 Toronto major North American sports league crowns (’67 Leafs, ’92 and ’93 Jays and ’19 Raptors) clinched with a game 6 victory, that year’s Toronto semi-final victory, was also achieved in 6 games.
In fact, after the first 5 Toronto titles which had both a semi-final and final round (the ’32 Leafs won the title with total goals determining and giving them a final round berth, a best of 3 series, Toronto won in the maximum 3 games) were accomplished in a different number of games in the semi and the final, the last 8 were achieved in the same number.
Bill Barilko, who tragically died in a plane crash not long after, won the 1951 Stanley Cup for the Maple Leafs, with an overtime goal in game 5. The Leafs had won their semi that year in 5 games as well. One game of the final was called a tie, but 5 counted, 4 went to the Leafs, hence Toronto in 5.
In winning 3 straight crowns (’62-’64), Toronto won its semi and final in the same number of games, 6 in ’62, 5 in ’63 and 7 in ’64.
Bill Barilko, pictured above.
Today another episode of the great television show “What’s My Line” that aired on November 13, 1960, the first such episode after the presidential election of the past Tuesday into Wednesday morning, on November 8th.
When panelist Bennett Cerf cited that host John Charles Daly had been on the air for over eleven hours the past Tuesday, at first, I did not connect the election with that long night for Mr. Daly. Soon after, I did so.
The mystery guest that subsequent Sunday night was John Wayne.
Other panelists were Arlene Francis, Joey Bishop and Dorothy Kilgallen.
Click below to view and enjoy the show.
“Moose” Moryn of the Chicago Cubs made as good a catch, as I can recall, to save a no hit game thrown by Don Cardwell. Enjoy the videos shown below.
Now watch Moryn’s great catch to end the game, preserving Cardwell’s no hit game. The great Jack Brickhouse makes the call on WGN Television in Chicago.
Last night I watched a great episode of The Tonight Show, starring Johnny Carson on Antenna TV. The show originally aired on August 16th, 1973.
Carson was to interview 5 guests, however time ran out before Julie Budd’s appearance. She did, however, help another guest, actress, Jo Ann Pflug with her hair, as apparently there was no stylist for Ms. Pflug’s wet hair.
There were three men as guests plus of course Ed McMahon, who got to hold hands with Ms. Pflug.
Golfer Tom Weiskopf, another maybe, or even not better than Elbert “Tiger” Woods, but I believe, as good as any of Woods’ competition, when he was a dominant player, Rich Little and Victor Bono were the other guests.
It was quite a show!
Johnny Carson is pictured.
The just completed NHL final manifesting in a St. Louis Blues’ title means, among other things, that the city of St. Louis joins New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago, Boston and Los Angeles, in that order of doing so, as cities with titles won, in all four major North American sports leagues.
St. Louis and Boston have now won titles against each other in 7 of the 8 possibilities, as only St. Louis not doing so vs Boston in football was not/never? accomplished. St. Louis is without a football and for that matter, a basketball team, in one of the major leagues.
The basketball Boston Celtics and St. Louis Hawks each won their first titles vs each other, doing so in consecutive years, the Celtics winning in 1957 and the Hawks handing the dynasty Celtics (11 titles in 13 seasons), their lone final round loss in 1958. Boston went (11-1) in final round play those years. In the other non title season, a great Wilt Chamberlain led team, “semi’d” them in 1967.
New England (Patriots) won their first crown vs a St. Louis team, the Rams, in the 2001 season Super Bowl. Now in a calendar year after the Pats’ 6th crown was achieved vs the L.A. Rams, the Blues win their first title and do so against the Boston Bruins.
Boston’s Red Sox ended an 86 year title drought, beating the St. Louis Cardinals in the ’04 World Series while the Bruins ended a 29 year such drought, also in a sweep, vs the St. Louis Blues in 1970.
Meanwhile the Cardinals achieved 7 game World Series triumphs vs the Red Sox, 21 years apart in 1946 and 1967.
Boston teams dropped to (7-4) vs St. Louis teams in final round series, (the Blues and Bruins are (1-1), the Red Sox and Cards are (2-2), the Celts went (3-1) vs the Hawks when the latter was in St. Louis, and the Pats won the lone vs St. Louis final clash, as cited, vs the Rams when they were in St. Louis.
Five of the ten final series between the cities went to a decisive 7th game (Pats/Rams was a one game entity), Boston hosting 4 and winning 3.
However, it was St. Louis in the most recent, the Blues completing an incredible run with their #7 win at Boston (Bruins), yielding their first title and a well deserved parade in St. Louis today
Mr. Brecheen won 3 games, including the decisive 7th game, in the first St. Louis/Boston final, that the 1946 World Series when the St. Louis Cardinals won against the Boston Red Sox.
A night after the St. Louis Blues won their first title in their 51 st season, the Toronto Raptors won their first NBA crown in their 24 season, in a far more competitive (114-110) game, at Golden State (Warriors). It is the third consecutive year that on successive nights, the NHL and then the NBA playoffs season ended.
Kawhi Leonard, who one hopes does not make it more “you root for or in my case against “laundry,” by leaving Toronto, was named the final round most valuable player for the second time in his career (2014 the other).
It was quite a team effort for Toronto. Kyle Lowry was one of two Toronto players with 26 points, including the first eight in the game. Pascal Sakim, who also had 26 points, hit the game’s big shot, as this tilt was even closer than the narrow margin score, a running shot in the lane, that gave Toronto (the city may have a paucity of recent titles, but they have won when they get there as this is the 7th straight final round victory dating back to 1960) a 3 point lead with 26 seconds to play. Fred VanVleet, very good all throughout the ‘offs, hit big 4th quarter shots and had 22 points in the clincher. Leonard also scored 22 in #6.
The Warriors, who were seeking a third straight and fourth title in 5 seasons played almost the entire series without Kevin Durant and in #3 and for the last 14 or so minutes Klay Thompson, two more that hopefully will stay, are now (6-5) in NBA final rounds, this the third straight time in a final round loss, that the series ended on the Warriors’ home floor.
The road team went (5-1) in the NBA final, (5-2) in the NHL final. Toronto won all 3, the last 3 at the Warriors’ home, Oracle Arena.
There will be many more notes in the days to follow, bottom line two great, underdog stories/titles for the St. Louis Blues and Toronto Raptors, giving each city 14 crowns and at least one in all 7 combined major North American sports leagues in which any were possible. (Toronto has never had an NFL team and hail the CFL Toronto Argonauts, for that matter the Raptors, Blues and yes the Bruins and certainly the Warriors).
Fred VanVleet, pictured above.
Andy B Sports 