Pitcher LaTroy Hawkins, who pitched this season with the Mets, got a little bit of excitement on a recent flight to South America for a planned dove-hunting expedition. There was an unruly passenger onboard, and the 6-foot-5 reliever helped to subdue the freaky flier as the Chile-bound plane landed in Peru.
The bizarre airborne event is nothing new in the sports. Long trips with lots of downtime and riled-up jocks can produce some high jinks (hint: there’s usually booze involved). Here are some of the most notable:
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1. 64 Miller Lites?!
AP Former Red Sox and Yankees third baseman Wade Boggs is the subject of one of baseball’s greatest urban legends: that he once drank 64 beers on a cross-country flight. Boggs has never confirmed the number publicly, but hinted it was a lot.
“It wasn’t 64,” Boggs said. “You get bored on a cross-country flight going Boston to L.A., you gotta spend the time doing something. … Put it this way, it was a few Miller Lites.”
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2. Mets go on a tear aboard Amazin' Airlines
After winning a 16-inning, Game 6 of the NLCS in Houston to advance to the World Series, the 1986 Mets’ spectacular season continued … with destroying a plane in spectacular fashion. The Mets caused tens of thousands of dollars of damage and were banned from United Airlines after nearly the entire team got exceedingly drunk on a chaotic flight, which reportedly involved fights, nudity, cocaine use, a massive food fight, the destruction of seats and urination occurring outside of restrooms.
“It was the one time when everybody — and I mean everybody — was drinking,” said Wally Backman, the team’s second baseman. “It was all-out partying.”
The team received a bill from United for the damages. Then-general manager Frank Cashen reamed out manager Davey Johnson, who then berated his players.
“Well,” said Johnson, “do you know what I think? I think in the next four games you’ll probably put enough money in these guys’ pockets to cover this. So f— this bulls—!” Johnson ripped the bill in half and threw it into a garbage can as the players cheered.
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3. "We have clearance, Clarence"
More of a big-screen trip: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won his first NBA title with the Lakers in 1980, but had a much greater cultural impact with his cameo in “Airplane!” As a young boy talks to Abdul-Jabbar about basketball in the cockpit, the Hall of Fame center refuses to reveal his true identity, working as a co-pilot named Roger Murdock. That is, until little Joey reveals his dad doesn’t think much of Abdul-Jabbar’s defense and regular-season effort. “LISTEN, KID! I’ve been hearing that crap ever since I was at UCLA,” Abdul-Jabbar said sternly. “I’m out there busting my buns every night. Tell your old man to drag Walton and Lanier up and down the court for 48 minutes.”
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4. Don't bet against Michael Jordan
AP Michael Jordan’s unimaginable competitiveness isn’t restricted to the basketball court. A famous, though unconfirmed, story, involves the greatest player of all-time waiting with his teammates for luggage to come out onto the carousel off a charter flight. Jordan made a bet that his bags would come out first, and with such good odds, his teammates obliged. Jordan’s bag came out first, reportedly because he bribed a baggage handler to arrange it.
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5. Wizards pull a crazy trick
AP In December 2009, Washington Wizards teammates Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton were suspended for the rest of the season after the players pulled out guns on each other in the team’s locker room. The argument stemmed from gambling debts from a high-stakes round of the card game bourre on the team’s flight.
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6. Sticky wicket for soused cricketer
AP An intoxicated Sri Lankan cricket player – whose identity was not revealed — frightened a full flight when confusing a bathroom with an exit en route to London from St. Lucia. Six hours into an eight-hour flight, the player pulled on the pressurized emergency exit door for up to two minutes, as teammates yelled at him to stop.
A passenger said: “It was pretty frightening. Suddenly he came over and tried to open the cabin door several times. It went on for a few minutes. He was pulling quite heavily.” British Airways believed it was an honest mistake and no arrests were made.
British Airways believed it was an honest mistake and no arrests were made.