- 2 months ago
2600 rushing yards, 163 assists and 215 points, 59 HR/177 R/168 RBI/.378 average, and 50 PPG? All on this list, other 16 are surprising
IG: aj_mckenzie416
Twitter: AJMckenzie94847
IG: aj_mckenzie416
Twitter: AJMckenzie94847
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:05Welcome in to another edition of Who's Number One, I'm Trey Winko.
00:09Maybe it was once in a blue moon.
00:11Maybe it was the high watermark in a glittering career full of them.
00:15Maybe it was a momentary alignment of the planets when the moon was in the 7th house and Jupiter was
00:20aligned with Mars.
00:20Whatever the cause, the result was one for the books, both the record book and the history books.
00:26We're talking the greatest single season performances of all time.
00:30Many of which are presumed to be beyond duplication or cloning.
00:34Here, ESPN Classics Top 20.
00:392020.
00:41Along the back stretch, it's still Citation, hounding ahead of the rest of the thoroughbred.
00:45When somebody says he might have been the greatest horse that ever lived, they have a legitimate army.
00:50He might have been the greatest horse that ever lived.
00:5219 for 20, it speaks for itself.
00:552020.
00:58In 1948, a game-little three-year-old speedball named Citation went to the post 20 times.
01:04He finished first 19 times, second the other.
01:07Only five days after that defeat, he avenged it.
01:10He was so fearsome that the Kentucky Derby barred place in show betting.
01:14He would be the last Triple Crown winner for 25 years.
01:19Mark Carroll rode him just like he's driving a Cadillac.
01:22What kind of name is Citation?
01:26He pushed on the gas, led up, and when he pushed on the final push, he'd run by Coletown like
01:30he broke his leg.
01:31In Citation's saddle is Eddie Arcaro, riding for his fourth Kentucky Derby victory.
01:37He was not the kind of a horse who was going to win off by, you know, four dozen lengths.
01:42But when he turned for home and he had a bead on the wire, you were in trouble.
01:45In the home stretch, Eddie Arcaro left Citation loose.
01:48Gets the run for the Black Eyed Cruisers.
01:54Citation was the first great horse to be on television.
01:59Citation was the Muhammad Ali at the top of his boxing game.
02:04Citation, horse of the year.
02:07Citation's triple crown was as easy as there's ever been.
02:11Probably the easiest triple crown there's ever been.
02:17Nineteen.
02:18Nineteen.
02:22Nineteen.
02:23Game set.
02:34Nineteen.
02:36In 1983, Martina Navratilova was practically perfect.
02:41She went 86-1, but that lone loss in 17 tournaments came with a high price.
02:46It cost her the French Open and the Grand Slam.
02:49She turned out to be just as overpowering as a partner,
02:51winning three Grand Slam doubles titles with Pam Schreiber.
03:01We just became this very intimidating tandem
03:03that people, when they walked out on the court,
03:06they weren't wondering whether or not they would win.
03:08They were wondering whether or not they would win games.
03:11Ha.
03:17In order to be the best center player you can be,
03:20everything else is to suffer.
03:21And I want to be the best of all time.
03:24She beat a full field all the time.
03:26And it's probably one of the great, underrated,
03:30underappreciated seasons individually in sports history.
03:40You could take someone to their very first hockey game,
03:43someone who had never seen a game before.
03:46And after about five minutes, they would go,
03:48who's that number four?
03:50Did you just see what he did?
03:51A backhander.
03:52Oh, he's off the phone.
03:56In the 1969-70 season,
03:59Bobby Orr refined the concept of the offensive defenseman,
04:03disdaining the conventional stay-at-home style.
04:05He went on the attack and became the first blue liner
04:08to lead the league in scoring with 120 points.
04:11He led Boston to the Stanley Cup
04:13and remains the only player to take the Hart,
04:15Ross, Norris, and Smythe awards in the same year.
04:21And there's Orr.
04:22That 1969-70 season,
04:24Bobby Orr really changed the view
04:26many, many people had of defensemen.
04:28Carried the puck, made things happen,
04:3030-some-odd goals,
04:32and of course the Brulems then win the cup.
04:37Bobby Orr changed hockey.
04:41Defensemen never rushed the puck past center.
04:43Defensemen never went into the opposition end.
04:46They always stayed in their point
04:47and they played defense.
04:48He was really a guy who could take the puck
04:51from his own end
04:52and go through the whole team
04:54and score on the opposition.
04:56He scores for Patrick Barmy Orr!
04:59He didn't think of Barmy Orr as a defenseman.
05:01He just thought of him as
05:02the most dangerous guy on the ice
05:04with him without the puck.
05:1017-17-17.
05:13Bill Russell's success at San Francisco,
05:15back-to-back NCAA championships,
05:17then the Olympic championship,
05:19shows you that he is the greatest winner
05:21the game of basketball has ever seen.
05:23And that's saying something.
05:2417.
05:27In the 1955-56 season,
05:29Bill Russell once again was a 2020 man
05:32in leading San Francisco
05:34to its second straight NCAA championship.
05:55Russell won two national championships,
05:58and Russell won the Olympics in 1956.
06:01He was just a great player.
06:04He could get into your mind.
06:06You try to say to yourself,
06:07don't worry about Russell.
06:09You know, it's kind of impossible.
06:11Russell won.
06:13He was the epitome of a winner.
06:16Never lost in 56.
06:18Irvin Johnson was an unbelievable winner.
06:20Michael Jordan was a winner.
06:22There are other guys who have won
06:24where they've been,
06:24but nobody did it quite the way
06:26Bill Russell did.
06:3216, 16, 16.
06:36To this day,
06:37you hear contemporary players
06:40talking about Rod Laver
06:42as still being the model
06:44for what it was to win.
06:4716, 16.
06:49In 1969, Rod Laver,
06:51a gritty, red-headed,
06:53left-handed Australian
06:54who seemed to will his opponents
06:56in the defeat,
06:56became the first player
06:57to win the Grand Slam of Tennis twice.
07:00The first time was as an amateur in 1962.
07:03Then as a pro seven years later,
07:06Rocket Rod not only swept the Big Four,
07:08but took 17 of 32 tournaments in all.
07:12It wasn't just the amateurs.
07:14It wasn't just the rich guys.
07:17Now the floodgates have opened,
07:19and now you're seeing the best tennis
07:21you can find on Earth.
07:23And he's beating the best tennis players on Earth.
07:26When people ask me who was the greatest,
07:28I say Rod Laver,
07:29because I don't think you can beat
07:30two Grand Slams,
07:32seven years apart,
07:331962 and 1969,
07:35and all he did.
07:37As my career developed,
07:38I came along just purely
07:40because I loved the sport as a youngster.
07:42Therefore, the desire kept going with me.
07:54The 67 season for Richard Petty
07:56was just an outstanding performance all year long.
08:01It must have been very frustrating that year
08:03for everybody else to go to the racetrack.
08:05When he showed up,
08:06everybody else was like,
08:07well, we'll do the best we can.
08:10But the king's here.
08:14It wasn't for nothing
08:15that Richard Petty was known as the king.
08:17And in 1967,
08:19he ruled impressively,
08:21leaving the field
08:22a disappearing dot
08:23in his rearview mirror.
08:24He took the starter's flag in 49 races
08:26and the checkered flag in 27.
08:29With graciousness and accessibility,
08:31he captured the stock car racing public.
08:35The fact that a tire didn't fall off,
08:39a bolt didn't break,
08:41is just incomprehensible.
08:47They were racing consecutive nights.
08:50They'd be racing on different racetracks,
08:53dirt, asphalt.
08:54It was much more difficult, I think,
08:57than people realized
08:58for him to put that string together.
09:01He was on top of his game in 1967.
09:04He won 27 races that year.
09:07That's pretty strong.
09:09Now that the next L Cup season
09:11consists of 36 races,
09:13can you imagine anyone winning 18 of them?
09:16Don't think so.
09:2314.
09:2414.
09:27Secretariat did it again today.
09:29He won the Preakness at Pimlico,
09:30and he's now two-thirds of the way
09:32toward the Triple Crown.
09:33It's all like some movie.
09:34Man, they're off.
09:36Except it was real.
09:39In 1973,
09:40his copper coat glistening in the sun,
09:42Secretariat ran like a red blur.
09:44Ran his way to the Triple Crown,
09:46ran his way into America's hearts.
09:48In a dazzling display of dominance,
09:50he was the first horse
09:52to break two minutes
09:52in the Kentucky Derby,
09:53and at the Belmont,
09:55he crushed the field by 31 lengths.
09:57Big Red won 9 of 12 races that year,
10:00and then was retired.
10:02This was something that
10:05most Americans had finally concluded
10:06will never happen again.
10:08No one will ever win
10:09the Triple Crown again.
10:11For the turn of Secretariat,
10:13it looks like he's opening.
10:14The lead is increasing.
10:15He just felt like running.
10:17That was the day he felt terrific.
10:20Ron Turcotte,
10:21he let him run.
10:23Come on.
10:24You've done the Derby.
10:25You've done the Preakness.
10:26Come on.
10:28Let's see how he goes all out.
10:29How good can this guy go?
10:31Secretariat by 12!
10:33Secretariat by 14!
10:3513-1 on the turn!
10:37Finally, after I turned for home,
10:39my curiosity got the best of me.
10:42I had to turn around.
10:44When I look at it,
10:45I scare myself.
10:47Secretariat,
10:47he's going to lead
10:48the Triple Crown winner!
10:5031 lengths?
10:51I mean,
10:52if you think of what that,
10:53I mean, that's unbelievable.
10:54It's like they were racing
10:56on two different race tracks.
10:59Hey,
11:00talk about your memory.
11:0413-13.
11:07Manning,
11:08buying time.
11:09Throwing!
11:09Find it in the open,
11:10man!
11:11It's there!
11:112004?
11:12Harrison for the touchdown!
11:14Peyton started strong.
11:15Because that's 2003,
11:17that game against the Bucs.
11:20So you can't play that
11:22for a 2004 season.
11:24Throwing a couple,
11:25three touchdown passes
11:26every game.
11:27I mean,
11:28this guy was on track
11:29for a great year.
11:3013-13.
11:33In 2004,
11:34Peyton Manning was more
11:35than just a passing fancy.
11:3749 of his spirals
11:38ended up in the end zone,
11:40breaking by one
11:41of a Dan Marino record
11:42many thought to be
11:43untouchable.
11:44The Colts quarterback
11:45completed two-thirds
11:46of his throws
11:47for more than
11:484,500 yards.
11:49He was intercepted
11:51only 10 times.
11:54Many people thought
11:56that Peyton Manning
11:57had it in him,
11:57but it really took
11:59the 2004 season
12:00to prove
12:01what a great quarterback
12:03he was.
12:03The potential was there,
12:04and all of a sudden
12:05the potential was realized.
12:07Manning,
12:08this is off the charts.
12:11Confidence is a big key.
12:13Throwing the ball
12:14with confidence
12:14and making decisions
12:15with confidence,
12:16and that's how
12:17I've been able to play.
12:19What a job
12:20by Peyton Manning.
12:21This is amazing.
12:24To watch Peyton Manning
12:25operate that offense,
12:26you knew you were
12:27watching history,
12:28and you just sat back
12:29and enjoyed
12:30every moment of it.
12:32Peyton really
12:32wants to be the best.
12:34He wants to
12:34throw more touchdowns.
12:36He measures everything
12:37against perfection,
12:38and that's what drives
12:40him to be perfect.
12:52And he was able
12:54to turn and run.
12:55It was marvelous.
12:56And now it's
12:57for the 2000, boys.
13:00O.J. running left.
13:01O.J. five more.
13:03Twelve.
13:05In 1973,
13:0722 years before
13:08he would be acquitted
13:09of double murder,
13:11O.J. Simpson
13:11became the first player
13:12in NFL history
13:14to run over 2,000 yards,
13:15doing so
13:16when the season
13:17was just 14 games.
13:19Conveyed by a Buffalo Bills
13:21offensive line
13:21known as
13:22The Electric Company,
13:23the juice piled up
13:242,003 yards,
13:26including exactly 200
13:28in the final game.
13:31That offensive line
13:33called them
13:33The Electric Company
13:34because they turned
13:35on the juice.
13:36There he is!
13:37They did it!
13:39I just wonder
13:40if the three of us
13:41at this moment
13:42fully realized
13:43what it has been
13:44our great privilege
13:46to watch O.J. Simpson
13:48run for 2,000 yards
13:50in one season.
13:54O.J. was a tremendous
13:57athlete.
13:58This man was
13:59a great sprinter.
14:01This man was
14:02one of the greatest
14:02running backs
14:03that ever was there.
14:04Simpson was going
14:05to get the ball
14:0525, 30 times a game.
14:07You knew it
14:07if you were the defense
14:08and you still
14:09couldn't stop it.
14:10Football doesn't
14:11have numbers.
14:12I mean,
14:12what's the greatest
14:13number in football?
14:14There's probably
14:14only one.
14:152,000 yards rushing.
14:17There's very few
14:19as electric
14:19and as explosive
14:20as O.J. Simpson.
14:2511-11.
14:28You hear a story
14:30once a week
14:31about what Pete
14:32did here.
14:33He averaged
14:3444 points.
14:3650 points
14:37or something like that.
14:38This specific season
14:39because he averaged
14:4044 his entire career.
14:43They're all true.
14:4411-11.
14:47In the 1969-70 season,
14:50Pistol Pete Maravich
14:51of LSU was smoking.
14:53The 6'5'' senior guard
14:54with the floppy hairdo
14:56and droopy socks
14:57made every night
14:58seem like a game of horse
14:59and he'd spot you
15:00the H, the O,
15:01the R, and the S.
15:03He averaged
15:03an astonishing
15:0444.5 points per game.
15:06Oh, by the way,
15:07this was all before
15:08the three-point shot.
15:11All you have to do
15:12is score 15 three-pointers
15:15every game you play
15:17your entire college career
15:18and you'll break
15:19Pistol's record.
15:20No one's ever going to do it.
15:23You could not really
15:24prepare for him
15:25because you didn't know
15:26what he was going to do.
15:27He didn't know
15:28what he was going to do.
15:29And you were scared
15:30to take your eye off
15:32of him
15:33because
15:34something might happen.
15:36He set NCAA record
15:37scoring.
15:38Shot from everywhere.
15:39The corners,
15:41outside,
15:42inside,
15:42he shot from everywhere.
15:43For two years running,
15:44nobody in the country
15:45could match him.
15:46He was so far ahead
15:47of his time.
15:48I mean,
15:48you hear that all the time,
15:49but he was so far ahead
15:51of his time.
15:51He was doing stuff
15:53back then
15:54that a lot of guys
15:55don't even think
15:56about doing right now.
16:0010,
16:0110,
16:0210.
16:04Here it comes.
16:05It's a strike.
16:07Bobby is a handover
16:08and a final split.
16:10Gibson's 68 season
16:12is arguably the best
16:14season by any pitcher
16:15in baseball history.
16:16That was the apex
16:17of his career.
16:18That was the peak.
16:19I mean,
16:19that's when he was
16:20the most dominating.
16:2110.
16:23In 1968,
16:25Bob Gibson
16:25was the miser
16:26on the mound
16:27with a belligerent reluctance.
16:29His ERA
16:30was an absurd
16:311.12.
16:32It included
16:3313...
16:33Raise or lower the mound
16:35to stop him from dominating
16:36and stop other pitchers
16:37from dominating.
16:3913 shutouts
16:40and one stretch
16:41of 92 innings
16:43in which he permitted
16:44only two runs.
16:45In leading the Cardinals
16:46to the pennant,
16:47he completed
16:4828 of 34 starts
16:50while compiling
16:50a 22-9 round.
16:53He made 34 starts,
16:5628 complete games,
16:5713 shutouts,
16:59and allowed
16:5938 earned runs.
17:02I pitched 300 innings.
17:05I think that somebody
17:06will have an earned run average
17:08lower than 1.12,
17:09but I doubt
17:10that they'll pitch 300 innings.
17:13Wow.
17:14You know,
17:15the first time I saw him,
17:16I struck out three times,
17:17and I didn't have
17:18a great deal of success
17:19against him
17:19the rest of my career.
17:20You hear that line
17:22about Koufax used to
17:23take the mound
17:24and he was unhittable.
17:25Nolan Ryan was unhittable.
17:27Gibson was unhittable
17:28for a season.
17:40Here's the big O,
17:41Oscar Robertson
17:42diving for a layup.
17:43You knew where
17:44he was going to go.
17:45You knew exactly
17:46what he was going to do.
17:47But you couldn't stop.
17:49That's greatness.
17:50Nah, nah.
17:52In the 1960s...
17:54Yeah, I better see
17:56a lot of other NBA players
17:57on this list.
17:58If he's that high.
18:0061-62 NBA season,
18:01Oscar Robertson
18:02of Cincinnati
18:03posted a triple-double.
18:04Not for one game,
18:06for the entire season.
18:08These were the big O's
18:09unprecedented numbers.
18:1130.8 points,
18:1312.5 rebounds,
18:14and 11.4 assists.
18:16At 6'5",
18:17he played the point,
18:18scored like a forward,
18:19and rebounded like a center.
18:23When you think about Magic,
18:25well, look,
18:25he had a triple-double tonight.
18:26Hold on now.
18:27That's nice.
18:28Oscar did it for a season.
18:30The funny part about Oscar
18:32is back then,
18:33nobody really appreciated
18:34what a triple-double was.
18:38He averaged a triple-double
18:40for a whole season.
18:50He didn't try to beat you
18:51with quickness,
18:52he just overwhelmed you,
18:53just methodically back you
18:55where he wanted to take you
18:56and just jump right over you.
18:58The way I played,
18:59because it's sick of the cell,
19:00he's not doing anything.
19:01He looked at the score,
19:03looked at the assist,
19:04looked at the rebound.
19:05People used to say,
19:06well, he did all he does,
19:07he's back his man in at score.
19:09Is that right?
19:10That's a shame.
19:11That's all you have to do
19:11is back in and score.
19:12Why didn't everybody else do that?
19:14A triple-double
19:15should be named
19:16a triple Oscar.
19:26Marino,
19:27deep drop,
19:27throwing deep upfield,
19:28down the near side,
19:29man open,
19:30touchdown!
19:31By the 84 season,
19:34Dan Marino wasn't
19:35a second-year player.
19:37He was like
19:38a 10th-year player.
19:42In 1984,
19:44Dan Marino went
19:45where no quarterback
19:46had gone before.
19:47His 5,084 passing yards
19:49remains the NFL record,
19:51and his 48 touchdown passes
19:53shattered the old mark
19:54by a dozen
19:55as the Dolphins
19:56won 14-2
19:57and advanced
19:58to the Super Bowl.
20:001984 was a magic year.
20:02Dan could do no wrong.
20:03He would have
20:04a tremendous game,
20:05and everybody would say,
20:06wow, he could never
20:07top this,
20:08and the next Sunday
20:09he topped it.
20:09Here's Marino
20:10running towards right,
20:11throws in the end zone,
20:13cut for a touchdown!
20:15We scored a lot of points
20:16that year,
20:17and Dan broke
20:17all of the records,
20:1848 touchdown passes.
20:20The touchdown passes
20:21are something special
20:22for me,
20:23and touchdown passes,
20:24you know,
20:24relates to points
20:25for your team,
20:26helps your team win,
20:27so that's something
20:28I'm very proud of.
20:28Marino goes deep!
20:31Touchdown!
20:32Some of the DBs,
20:33you say,
20:34well, we could've done that.
20:35I say, could've.
20:36If you could've shut us down,
20:37then you all would've.
20:39Every pass was,
20:40you know,
20:41ended up in the end zone
20:42with somebody celebrating.
20:43There was just art
20:44and grace
20:45that we had never seen
20:46before at that level.
20:527777.
20:54There it is!
20:55As grand as it gets!
20:5797?
20:59For...
21:01the Big Tiger?
21:02The Big Eldrick?
21:04I don't know.
21:06What a way to cap it off!
21:08What Tiger Woods did in 2000
21:10was breathtaking.
21:14He's a force of nature.
21:167-7.
21:19In 2000,
21:20a player named Eldrick
21:21owned golf,
21:22lock, stock, and wedge.
21:24Tiger Woods joined Ben Hogan
21:26as the only ones
21:27to win three pro majors
21:28in the same year.
21:30Woods also became
21:31the fifth player
21:31and youngest at 24
21:33to complete a career grand slam.
21:36His 15-stroke margin of victory
21:38in the U.S. Open
21:39was the largest ever
21:41in any major.
21:45What he did at the U.S. Open
21:46was incredible.
21:48I've never witnessed
21:49anything like that.
21:50I mean,
21:50U.S. Opens, man,
21:51you're kidding,
21:51you win by one.
21:52Maybe you win by two.
21:5315?
21:56To blow away
21:56the best players
21:57in the world
21:57at Pebble Beach
21:58by 15 shots,
21:59to blow away
21:59the Masters field,
22:01it's crazy.
22:02To win four consecutive majors
22:04is such a
22:06Herculean accomplishment.
22:08I will never say
22:09he can't do anything again,
22:11not after Pebble Beach.
22:13The brand of golf
22:14Tiger Woods played
22:14in 2000.
22:20The scary thing is
22:22is that it could happen again,
22:23but only on a greater scale.
22:29Six, six, six.
22:32When a guy created
22:33Barry Sanders,
22:34even he didn't know
22:35what he made.
22:36Nobody ran
22:38like Barry Sanders ran.
22:40Six.
22:42Another stop,
22:43start run
22:43by Barry Sanders.
22:45He is putting on a show.
22:48Six.
22:50In 1988,
22:51trying to run down
22:52Barry Sanders
22:52was like trying
22:53to catch your shadow.
22:54In 11 regular season games
22:56at Oklahoma State,
22:57he set NCAA records
22:59by rushing
22:59for more than
23:002,600 yards
23:01and scoring
23:0239 touchdowns.
23:04Four times,
23:05he ran for over
23:06300 yards in a game.
23:07Hey,
23:08one guess who won
23:09the Heisman that year.
23:12Come 88
23:13and he just goes off.
23:14I can remember thinking,
23:16this guy
23:17is incredible.
23:19Barry up to the races,
23:2030, 20, 15, 10,
23:21they'll never get him.
23:22Touchdown!
23:23He's done it again.
23:24Parabular or what?
23:25That was as good
23:26an individual season
23:28as any college football player
23:30ever had.
23:30The 1988 winner
23:32of the Heisman Award
23:33is Barry Sanders
23:35of Oklahoma State University.
23:39You think about
23:41the 200-yard game
23:41for running back
23:42is outstanding.
23:43He had four
23:44300-yard games.
23:45He was a ballerina
23:47on the football field.
23:48This guy had moves
23:50on top of moves.
23:51Hey!
23:52He's not!
23:53To gain over 2,600 yards
23:55in a college football season
23:56with not a great team,
23:57to be the entire focal point
23:59of that team,
24:00I don't think people realize
24:02how strong
24:02Barry Sanders was.
24:06Five, five, five.
24:09When I was young,
24:11one of my dreams
24:12was to be a Jones,
24:15to win the both Opens
24:17and both Amateurs.
24:23In 1930,
24:25Bobby Jones did what
24:26no golfer managed
24:27before or since.
24:28He won both the American
24:29and British Amateurs
24:30and Opens,
24:31a feat grandly
24:32and forevermore
24:33known as the Grand Slam.
24:35Then, perhaps sensing
24:36that winning those four
24:37in the same year
24:38a second time
24:38was beyond even his reach,
24:40he retired at 28
24:41and set about creating
24:43this little golf tournament
24:44we now call
24:44the Masters.
24:51To come out as an amateur,
24:52working at another
24:53living,
24:54playing against the best
24:55that professional golf
24:56could offer,
24:56and to whip each one of them
24:58on every single occasion.
25:00That's pretty special.
25:01It's really a great treat
25:02to play before
25:03a gallery
25:04that understands golf
25:06and appreciates
25:08the difficulties
25:08under which
25:09the players label.
25:10Thank you very much.
25:14That's something
25:15to put on your CV,
25:16you know,
25:16I won the American Amateur,
25:18I won the British Amateur.
25:20To win tournaments
25:22of that magnitude
25:24within the space
25:25of one year
25:26is so rare
25:27because golfers
25:29cannot ever stay
25:30on their game
25:30for long periods of time.
25:32The magic of 1930
25:33and Bobby Jones,
25:34I think,
25:34is told
25:35in the inability
25:36of any golfer since
25:38to be able
25:39to put together
25:40a Grand Slam.
25:49It's a long ball,
25:51a very long ball.
25:53It's in,
25:53it's in
25:55for a home run.
25:56It's 21st
25:58home run
25:58of the season.
25:59In 1941,
26:01in what was
26:02a terrific season
26:03for baseball,
26:05Ted Williams
26:05had one of the greatest
26:07seasons of the century.
26:08That 406 mark
26:09will stand forever.
26:11I don't think
26:11anybody's going to do
26:12that anytime soon.
26:144-4.
26:16In 1941,
26:18Ted Williams
26:18and his keen eye,
26:19extraordinary patience
26:20and sweet stroke
26:21conspired to do
26:23what no major league
26:24hitter has done since,
26:25get to 400.
26:27The Red Sox slugger
26:28who claimed to be able
26:29to see the stitches
26:30on pitches
26:31batted 406
26:33with 37 homers
26:34and 120 RBI.
26:36A judiciously
26:37selective hitter,
26:38he walked
26:40147 times.
26:43A guy batting
26:44500 times
26:44to get 200 hits.
26:46I just can't,
26:47I can't believe
26:48that could happen
26:48in the big leagues.
26:50But all eyes
26:51are on this man,
26:52Ted Williams
26:53cutting for a 400 season.
26:55Here's a guy
26:56who was at 399 point,
26:58whatever it was,
26:58and you could have
26:59rounded it up
27:00and gotten to 400,
27:01but that wouldn't
27:02have been the way
27:03Ted Williams
27:03would have wanted
27:04to do it.
27:05And Williams said,
27:06listen,
27:07I'm not going to hit
27:08400 sitting in the dugout.
27:10So,
27:10now I'm in the play.
27:11Frankie Hayes,
27:12a catcher,
27:13said,
27:15Mr. Mack said,
27:17we're going to pitch
27:17to you today.
27:19And Ted has himself
27:20a double.
27:21Ted finishes
27:22the double
27:22at her 6 for 8,
27:24batting 406.
27:26For him to go
27:276 for 8
27:28on the final
27:28day of the season,
27:30Wayne-type image
27:31he has.
27:33When they say
27:34the toughest thing
27:34in sport to do
27:35is to take a round
27:36bat and hit a round
27:37ball squarely,
27:38Ted Williams
27:39did that better
27:40than anyone
27:40who ever played
27:41the game.
27:453-3-3-3.
27:48There's Gretzky.
27:50Takes the shot,
27:51he scores!
27:52Gretzky has the hit for him.
27:5452 goals,
27:55163 assists.
27:57That tells you
27:57he was involved
27:58in virtually
27:59every single goal
28:00the Oilers
28:00scored that year.
28:01He scored!
28:02Everything flowed
28:04through number 99.
28:053.
28:07In the 85-86 season,
28:10Wayne Gretzky
28:11made the nickname
28:12The Great One
28:13seem like an understatement.
28:14His 215 points
28:16are a record,
28:17as are his
28:18163 assists,
28:20which is Edmonton Oilers
28:21line mates described
28:22as, quote,
28:23passes from God,
28:25end quote.
28:25Though unimposing
28:26physically,
28:27he revolutionized
28:28the way the game
28:29was played
28:29by setting up
28:31behind the opponent's
28:32net in no man's land.
28:35Think of the total.
28:3780 games,
28:38163 assists.
28:39That means,
28:40before the game begins,
28:41the opponent
28:42has to realize
28:43that the guy
28:44that you're playing against
28:45is going to be
28:45responsible for two goals.
28:47So right off the bat,
28:49you're two down.
28:57There's a lot of guys
28:58that I've played with
28:58that have been
28:59good players,
29:00and they would get
29:01in a game where
29:02they'd score
29:03two or three points,
29:04and they'd almost
29:05shut it down.
29:06And Wayne,
29:07it's just the opposite.
29:08If he got two or three,
29:09he wanted four,
29:10he wanted five,
29:11he wanted six.
29:12Being a winner
29:14is ultimately
29:15being a team player,
29:17being unselfish,
29:19pushing their teammates
29:20to get at higher heights.
29:22Wayne on a mission
29:23at that time
29:23in his prime
29:24could pretty much
29:25do whatever he wanted.
29:26Let's be moving in.
29:28He's got,
29:28he scores!
29:31That game after game
29:33after game,
29:34you know,
29:34you hear the old line,
29:35well,
29:35we weren't up today,
29:37or, you know,
29:37I didn't have it,
29:39but this guy
29:40had it all the time.
29:42Yep.
29:47Two, two, two, two.
29:50Big Wilt getting it.
29:52Makes the bucket.
29:53He had a season
29:54for the ages,
29:55and statistically,
29:57there will be
29:57no better basketball player
29:59than Wilt Chamberlain.
30:02In the 1961-62 season,
30:05Wilt Chamberlain posted numbers
30:07that looked more
30:07uncatchable each year.
30:09The Philadelphia Warriors
30:10Center averaged 50 points.
30:12He gave us a foreshadowing
30:14of what was to come
30:15with games of 78
30:16and 73 points,
30:17then crowned that all
30:19with that 100-point night
30:20against the Knicks.
30:21And, oh yes,
30:22he did average 26 rebounds.
30:29We knew from Wilt's intensity
30:32that something very,
30:34very big was happening.
30:35No matter where the ball went,
30:36Wilt got it.
30:37They either fouled him
30:39or he scored.
30:40Chamberlain at 75
30:41with 10 minutes to go.
30:43Then our announcer
30:44announced some crazy number
30:45and Wilt's eyes lit up.
30:48Back to Rutledge.
30:49In the chamber.
30:50He made it.
30:51He made it.
30:5250 points.
30:53You're averaging 50.
30:55Think about it.
30:56Every time you lace him up
30:57and go out on the court,
30:58the guy that's defending you
30:59that night
31:00has got to figure out,
31:01how do I keep him
31:02from scoring 50?
31:03In other words,
31:05if he had a 25-point night,
31:07he had to have a 75-point night
31:09to even it off.
31:12Can you imagine someone
31:13having a whole season
31:14averaging 50 points a game
31:17and when you score 40
31:19or 45 points,
31:20this is a bad game.
31:22If he scored 30,
31:27they would say
31:28take him to the hospital.
31:31You've had a bad game?
31:34It's incredible.
31:39It was a virtue also,
31:41one that towered
31:42over all the others.
31:43And here it is.
31:44Ruth, 1921.
31:50When the topic comes up,
31:53who is the greatest
31:54baseball player ever,
31:56the conversation ends
31:57with two words,
31:59eight letters,
32:00Babe Ruth.
32:01All you have to do
32:01is look at 1921.
32:04In 1921,
32:06George Herman Ruth
32:07cranked out a season
32:09that was gargantuan
32:10even by his imposing standards.
32:12In a matchless combination
32:14of power and productivity,
32:16Babe hit 378,
32:18belted 59 homers,
32:20scored 177 runs,
32:22and drove in 171.
32:24He also led the league
32:26in slugging percentage,
32:27walks,
32:28on-base percentage,
32:29and extra base hits.
32:3259 home runs.
32:34Next closest guy
32:35was at 24.
32:37Babe Ruth's 1921 season
32:39is without a doubt
32:40the greatest single
32:41baseball season ever,
32:42probably the greatest
32:42sports season ever.
32:48378,
32:5450...
32:56He was so far ahead
32:58of everybody else
32:58in baseball that year,
32:59and his total bases
33:01were far ahead,
33:01his home runs
33:02were far ahead,
33:03everything.
33:03He was like
33:04the old Empire State Building
33:06rising up above
33:06six-story buildings.
33:09You know,
33:09you talk about guys
33:10in the 90s
33:12and the 80s
33:13on steroids,
33:14Babe Ruth's on hot dogs,
33:16and he's obliterating records
33:18that have stood
33:19since the beginning
33:19of the game.
33:21There were players
33:22back in those days
33:24that would hit
33:24five,
33:26six homers.
33:27They'd never seen
33:28anything like the Babe.
33:30Babe Ruth came along
33:31and people
33:32weren't wondering,
33:33who is this?
33:34They were wondering,
33:35what is this?
33:36The difference about that.
33:38Then he walked
33:39in a ballpark,
33:40people stood up,
33:41oh,
33:41there's the Babe,
33:42there's the Babe.
33:43Hello, Babe,
33:43how do you feel?
33:44Fine, sonny,
33:45how's yourself?
33:46All right.
33:47Well,
33:48hope you hit
33:48a lot of home runs.
33:49Well,
33:49I won't predict anything,
33:50but I'll sure do my best.
33:52I hope all you boys
33:52will be out there
33:53and I'll watch that.
33:54We look at Babe Ruth
33:55as a career
33:56more than we do
33:57as a single season.
33:58But when you focus
33:59on that single season
34:00and when you see
34:01what he did individually,
34:03you realize his greatness.
34:05He paced the entire
34:06major leagues
34:07in 1921
34:08and went on
34:09to better numbers
34:09in some of those categories,
34:10but never put it
34:11together like that.
34:12This was a guy
34:13who transcended the game,
34:15transcended the sport.
34:16He is the gold standard
34:18by which all others
34:19are compared.
34:19He's the Bambino, baby.
34:21There's no year
34:21better than that.
34:28So ESPN Classic
34:30has rewound the memory bank
34:31and selected...
Comments