Where's the Magic?

BUREY - I have a certain belief about sports. Call it a blend of a distinct naivety, youthful innocence, and unbridled optimism, but I believe that there are, at times, greater forces at work in sport. Maybe I got this from learning to be a Yankees fan in the late 90's. The legends, the 1998 record, the "mystique" of the post 9/11 walk-off wins in the 2001 World Series. Everything seemingly came together at the right times when they should have and I was happy. It wasn't just the Yankees, though. And it wasn't just baseball. I believed that there were sports gods. There were certain things that just had to happen in sport.

US basketball is the dream team. We invented the game, we should win it every year. Yeah, we call the NBA finals the World Championship, and we should right? Cause were the best. There's no way we could ever not win gold at the Olympics. But that's what happened in 2004.

The Red Sox just didn't win the World Series. There was the curse. They don't win. How else could you explain this? Or this? Or this? But then they won, and they won again. And now it's nearly a decade after the Subway Series and I'm starting to wonder if the curse is reversed...

I learned how Tiger was supposed to win every major, and if it wasn't every one it'd be ever other. He was expected to make that putt. He was never, ever supposed to miss the cut.

Are the sports gods that I once thought existed gone? They clearly have left the Yankees. More money, more mercenaries, and less mystique has been the trend of the new millennium. They've left baseball too. Cheating, steroids. McGwire, Sosa, Bonds, A-Rod, Manny, Palmeiro, Clemens, Guillermo Mota...all once thought to be magical players now just outcasts with tarnished reputations. The skepticism surely started with baseball, and now it's spreading to the rest of what I once thought was pure.

I started thinking more about it after reading Loop's thoughts on Watson. It led me to pondering Rocco's heartbreaking loss to Tiger at Torrey Pines. It was almost too unfair. Every person with half a heart was pulling with all their will for an underdog, storybook win, and we just couldn't get it. Instead, Tiger triumphed (couldn't hate that much) and a doofy looking baldy comes out on top. It just wasn't how it was supposed to work.

Two more recent sports stories prompt me to ask: where's the magic?

One is the Tour de France. Lance just wins the Tour de France. Every year. Hasn't it been like 38 in a row or something like that? And then he stopped to give other people a chance? Right? It was the kind of thing that casual fans like me used to bank on so we could seem like we're authorities on cycling. Oh yeah, Lance'll win it again this year. For sure. He's got great...stamina. What a guy. You know he had cancer right? Incredible.

And now, Lance is seemingly throwing in the white flag. Essentially, he's conceding that Astana teammate Alberto Contador has the best chance at winning the race, and he will put all of his efforts to helping his team secure the title. This came as a surprise to me for two reasons. One, Lance isn't winning the Tour. Two, cycling is a team sport. And although Lance has been known to try and act like he's down and out to lull his opponents (or teammates, whatever) to sleep before making a surprise push in the final stages, it's kind of a shock to see such a heroic and proud figure make an admission of defeat. That's actually kind of a downside to Lance (sorry Loop). While he is such an inspiration of hope and determination, he really doesn't have the "can do" attitude in interviews that exude optimism and a never-say-die mantra. It really does feel like he's reluctantly citing his age and other factors for not being able to win, almost grudgingly admitting he'll race for the team's sake. Either way, just not the magical Armstrong stuff we're used to. I'm telling you, the magic is gone.

Secondly, and I'm not going to delve into how much this actually bothers me, but Brett's planned return to the League is really tarnishing what should be looked at as one of the greatest and purest football careers of all time. Alright Brett, I'm glad Brad likes the way you throw, but please don't come back. When he wanted to play for the Jets, I was willing to accept the "hey, he's not doing it for the money, he just loves the game" reasoning to make myself feel better about the fact that he's ruined his lifelong Packer image. Also, I loved yelling Brett the Jet and Jet Favre whenever Pinno was playing me in Madden. But now, he's really crossing the line. Coming back to the NFC North to play two games against the team that gave him his aura and his greatness? I just can't stomach it. It's exactly what I'm talking about, as if the sports gods don't care about legacies, mystique, or magic anymore. Brett Favre? a Viking? In the name of all that is good and pure, please make it stop.

Sports gods, you've ruined baseball, taken my Yankees, given life to the Sox, made basketball a second tier sport in the US, made Tiger mortal, broken the heart of every golf fan twice, made Lance look like a heartless whiner, and now your forcing thousands of Green Bay residents to burn their number 4 jerseys. Please, here my plea. Let us feel the magic of sport again.

Is there anyone up there? Anyone?