Henry Blickenstaff is the Daily’s executive sports editor. He is a senior studying history, and you can reach him at henry.blickenstaff@tufts.edu.
Since this is my last edition of Extra Innings, I want to reflect on one of my favorite baseball memories, which turns 10 years old this year.
We’re just two weeks into the baseball season, and there have already been several big contract extensions handed out. These are my thoughts on the most notable extensions signed since the start of the year.
The Red Sox had one of the most productive offseasons in the league, as they traded for ace Garrett Crochet to boost their rotation and added veteran third baseman Alex Bregman to the lineup. Boston is also expecting three blue-chip prospects — Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer — to make their big-league debuts in 2025.
This column started as an attempt to compare New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge with St. Louis Cardinals legend Albert Pujols. But after a particularly long session of Baseball Reference scrolling, I decided I didn’t want to write about Judge at all. That’s because I discovered something that I’ve never heard discussed by any baseball journalists: There will never be another hitter like Albert Pujols.
Though 1980 was an eventful year across all sports, one single moment stands head and shoulders above the rest — the Miracle on Ice. In the final round of the men’s ice hockey tournament at the Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid, the United States upset the heavily favored Soviet Union in a 4–3 thriller, with Winthrop, Mass. native and former Boston University Terrier Mike Eruzione scoring the go-ahead goal. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, announcer Al Michaels famously exclaimed, “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!”
Although the NHL has expanded across the country, hockey remains a regional sport in the United States, with its popularity concentrated in several pockets. Massachusetts is one of those pockets, having produced more NHL players than any state except Minnesota, and the Beanpot tournament is perhaps the greatest showcase of the state’s love for hockey.
This MLB offseason has been unpredictable, to say the least. Not only were there many big-name free agents available, but the trade market has also been surprisingly active, making for an exciting few months. These three moves have been the most surprising.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are quickly becoming the biggest bullies in professional sports. Since Guggenheim Baseball Management took control of the club in 2012, they have missed the playoffs only once, won at least 100 games five times and appeared in four World Series, winning two.
Undoubtedly, the largest question on voters’ minds as they head to the booths this November is who would win in a golf match between Republican candidate former President Donald Trump or President Joe Biden. Conversation around the topic rose to such a fervor that it was argued during the June 27 debate between the two candidates at the time. Trump claimed that he “just won two club championships — not even senior, two regular club championships,” and boasted that he could easily beat Biden in a match. Biden retorted that he would be “happy to play golf” with the former president on the condition that Trump was willing to carry his own bag. Alas, presidential elections are not chosen via golf; most voters are likely unconcerned with who the superior player is, and Biden is no longer the Democratic nominee following the disastrous debate. However, we will nonetheless analyze who would win in a hypothetical match between the two in order to hopefully lighten the mood of a very serious election.
During this summer’s Olympics, I watched Katie Ledecky absolutely demolish her competition in the women’s 1500 freestyle final, breaking her own Olympic record and winning the gold medal by over 10 seconds. Ledecky has been so dominant in the event throughout her career that the race was over before it began and everyone knew it. And yet, I was absolutely captivated. Knowing what the outcome would be didn’t take away from the joy of watching one of the most dominant athletes of all time excel at her craft.
