FEW modern American Olympians have been shy to put their moments and medals where their money is.
Who can forget that warm and wonderful moment in 1992 when the NBA Dream Team stood on the gold medal stand, several of its members, including Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley, wrapped in American flags – to hide the Reebok logos on their warmup suits.
As Nike athletes, they understood – or were reminded – that this would be a photo op for the ages and that their show of allegiance was in highest order.
Thus, for all those American flags were worth to them at that moment, shower curtains would have served the same purpose.
Monday, a similar stench returned. The Oakley- brand sunglasses worn by U.S. beach volleyball team Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers had become fogged from the humidity. So, after a break, they returned to play wearing the Oakley-logo frames, no lenses. You bet they looked ridiculous.
NBC analyst Karch Kiraly, ex-Olympic volleyballer, noted that, this “could be a sponsor issue.” Could be? Good thing they weren’t sponsored by the Department of Corrections or they would have played in handcuffs.
While one wonders whether an Oakley rep was consulted or whether the two Olympians unilaterally decided that an international stage would be the perfect setting to look like money-minded goofballs on Oakley’s behalf, an old but firm suspicion came creeping back:
I’ll always be convinced that Rickey Henderson, the consummate non-team player, delayed breaking Lou Brock’s stolen base record on behalf of a deal he had with Oakley.
On April 28, 1991, a Sunday afternoon, Henderson, one short of tying Brock, was playing at home for the A’s against the Angels. He tried to steal both times he reached. He was thrown out the first time but later tied the record.
The A’s next played Tuesday night, April 30, home against the Yanks. Henderson reached for the only time when he led off the sixth with a single against current Yankees pitching coach Dave Eiland. It was a given that Henderson would try to steal second, the record-breaker. But even as the next batter, Dave Henderson, struck out, Henderson, rarin’ to go the two times he reached one game earlier, didn’t make a move toward second. Jose Canseco then singled him to third.
The next day, May 1, was a day game against the Yanks. And Henderson’s zeal to steal had returned. He walked to lead off the bottom of the first then tried to break the record. With Tim Leary pitching and Matt Nokes catching, he was out at second, Alvaro Espinoza making the tag.
In the fourth, Henderson reached on an error, was singled to second, then stole third, breaking the record. The game was stopped. A national photo op ensued.
And because it was a day game, Henderson wore sunglasses – Oakley logo-framed sunglasses. And he posed for the cameras wearing them.
He tied and broke the stolen base record in day games, while wearing his Oakleys. Yet, in the game in between, a night game, no sunglasses needed or worn, he showed no interest in breaking the record.
In an Oakley business profile, published in 2007, well after Henderson’s retirement, three famous athletes – Lance Armstrong, Annika Sorenstam and Henderson – are identified for wearing Oakley sunglasses. Hmmm.
Today? Who knows? Maybe he would have broken the record at night, just wearing the frames.
SNY, during Mets-Nats on Wednesday, delivered the ultimate insult. It missed the first pitch of the second inning to that Giuseppe Franco/ProCede ad – the same bogus joke of a commercial that has been attached to every Mets and Yankees telecast on the teams’ owned networks for the last three years.
That neither the Yanks or Mets, operating in the nation’s largest TV market, can land a more credible sponsor – intergalactic real estate brokers, three card monte franchises, do- it-yourself money-printing machines – remains unfathomable.
Did you see all those empty seats behind the backstop during the Mets at Nationals series? They’re big price tag seats, designed to exploit the rush to see a new stadium. And at a fraction of what the Yanks and Mets want for similar seats next season, they didn’t sell.
At a fund-raiser last week, to try to offset cuts to the Wantagh, L.I., school district’s athletic budget, Mike Francesa donated $5,000.
Gymnast Alicia Sacramone, after two poor performances, tearfully accepted blame for the U.S. team’s disappointing bronze medal. Regardless, WFAN’s Craig Carton, professional creep and social vandal, trashed her, called her names, kicked her when she was way down. That’s entertainment!