Okay, so, let’s try this again.
Jonathan and I started Oddball for a few reasons, among them that we like sports, each other, and the ephemera around sports (and each other), but we didn’t have a plan, and so after the Raptors (deep breath) won the (deep breath) NBA Championship, we didn’t know where to go — so we went nowhere. There were other mitigating factors in our absence, including my life exploding dramatically and stupidly, but that’s a story for a quarter past never. All you really need to know is that we’re rebooting Oddball with an actual game plan this time and we’re super happy to be in your inbox.
Our new game plan, generally: lean, mean, and super clean. Oh, and trivia. More trivia. So much trivia that we’re developing a standalone trivia game thing that we need testers for (hint hint).
Anyway, give this issue a whirl and, if you like it, please click on the heart at the bottom and share it with a friend.
If you were running for mayor, we’d vote for you. — DJ
#danquizzenberry
Who was the last New York Yankee position player to wear #6?
#quiznilan
Who are the only four players to score 50 goals and be “awarded” 200 penalty minutes in the same NHL regular season?
Hint: one is in the Hall of Fame, one will be in the Hall of Fame, and the other two are Hall of Very Good types.
#doctrivers
Who is the only player to win a championship in both the NBA and the Chinese Basketball Association?
#trivia’daviouswhite
What former Heisman Trophy winner hit a field goal for Houston in 2005?
#scoutingreport
Put on your Chris Sabo glasses and sink your eye teeth (hey, that kind of works!) into any/all of the following pieces.
He can throw nine different pitches on the mound and then, while hanging out in the clubhouse after the game, the Chicago Cubs righty can guess your blood type.
— from Cubs pitcher Yu Darvish can guess your blood type [ESPN]
Now Deadspin’s former writers and editors — 18 of the roughly 20 who quit last year — have reunited to start a digital media company, Defector Media, that they will own and operate themselves.
— from After Quitting Deadspin in Protest, They’re Starting a New Site [NYT]
Last winter I was watching an NFL game featuring one of the league’s most memorably named players: Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. But it wasn’t his first name that caught my attention—it was his last.
— THE RISE OF HYPHENATED LAST NAMES IN PRO SPORTS [Pudding]
#danquizzenberry [answer]
The last New York Yankee to wear #6 was Toronto Blue Jays great Tony Fernández, in 1995. The Yankees retired the number in 2014, honouring Joe Torre.
Over his illustrious career, Tony Fernández won four Gold Gloves, made five All-Star teams, and was the unsung hero of the 1993 World Series. As Blue Jays fans know, Fernández passed away on February 15, 2020, from complications after suffering a stroke. Both of Oddball’s creators miss him dearly.
#quiznilan [answer]
Kevin Stevens (54 G, 254 PIM) accomplished the feat for the 1991-1992 Pittsburgh Penguins. Sadly, Stevens struggled with addiction during and after his playing career was over and was charged with conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute Oxycodone in 2016. He eventually got clean and did his probation and his story was told in the documentary Shattered, which you can watch on YouTube.
Gary Roberts (53 G, 207 PIM) did it for the 1991-1992 Calgary Flames. He was also part of a Minto Cup-winning box lacrosse team and is a member of the Whitby Sports Hall of Fame.
Brendan Shanahan (52 G, 211 PIM) did it for the 1993-1994 St. Louis Blues, who would later trade him to the Hartford Whalers (for Chris Pronger), who would later trade him to the Detroit Red Wings (for Keith Primeau and some junk), where he would go on to win three Stanley Cups. Brendan Shanahan was enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013.
In 1996-1997, Keith Tkachuk (52 G, 228 PIM) did it for the Phoenix Coyotes during the team’s inaugural season in the desert after moving from Winnipeg. Though he is now retired, the Tkachuk bloodline lives on in the NHL in the form of his sons Brady (Ottawa Senators) and Matthew (Calgary Flames). Eventually, Keith Tkachuk will end up in the Hockey Hall of Fame or Oddball’s creators will eat their hat. (Yes, we share one hat. Big whoop, wanna fight about it?)
#doctrivers [answer]
Mengke Bateer was an NBA champion as a member of the 2002-2003 San Antonio Spurs and won the CBA championship in his final season with the Beijing Ducks in 2013-2014. He was also a four-time winner of the CBA’s MVP award.
#trivia’daviouswhite [answer]
Charlie Ward's last field goals as a pro came as a member of the Houston Rockets during the 2004-2005 NBA season. Though he was a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, Ward never played a down of NFL football but went on to have a respectable NBA career for the New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs, and the aforementioned Rockets. For a time, Ward was referred to as “the best quarterback in New York” due to the New York Jets’ and Giants’ struggles at the time. (The Jets struggle to this day because, well, they’re the Jets.)
#postscript
Aaaaaand we’re done.
Many thanks to you, reader, for getting this far (provided that you did, and if you didn’t, well, you’re not reading this). As always, if you liked this, our “comeback” issue, please click on the heart at the bottom and share this email with a friend who likes sports and sports-interested things.
Many thanks also to Dan Quisenberry, Chris Nilan, Doc Rivers, and Tre'Davious White for being named their names.
DJ/JY