nyunews.com | FRIDAY, february 17, 2012 | Washington Square news
SPORTs
edited by daniel hinton
sports@nyunews.com CARTER continued from PG. 1
Mets fans, young and old, remember Carter his favorite memory of Carter’s career playing at Shea Stadium. “It was Opening Day [1985] and I remember sitting in the snow,” Sherman said. “[Carter] hit the game-winning home run in the 10th inning. I’ll always remember that.” During the legendary 1986 season, Carter had 105 RBIs, received his fifth and final Silver Slugger award and placed third in National League MVP voting. Carter elevated his game in the ‘86 postseason and secured his legendary status among baseball fans. During the World Series he drove in nine runs, hit a single during the Mets’ amazing comeback in the 10th inning of Game 6 and tied the score in the 6th inning of Game 7. Carter’s contributions led the Mets to their second and most recent World Series championship in team history. CAS freshman and Bronx native, John Valiplackal,
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has been a Mets fan since second grade and watched countless highlights from the 1986 World Series. “He’s one of the big names that I know from 1986,” Valiplackal said. “I know those guys are before my time, but that was such a big year for the Mets, and it defined New York sports.” After short stints with the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, Carter returned to Montreal and retired in 1992. He became the first player inducted into the Hall of Fame to dawn an Expos baseball cap. Carter continued his baseball career as a manager for several teams, including the single-A St. Lucie Mets, the Long Island Ducks and the Palm Beach Atlantic University Sailfish. Off the field, Carter was the founder and president of the Gary Carter Foundation, which helps impoverished students in Palm Beach County, Florida. In
1989, Carter received the Roberto Clemente Award, given annually to MLB players involved in charities and community organizations. Last May, Carter was diagnosed with grade IV glioblastoma. The cancer did not subside despite chemotherapy treatments. Although the news concerning his illness never improved, Carter attended Opening Day on Feb. 8 for the Sailfish. Kimmy Bloemers, his daughter, announced his death on Thursday and was instantly met with reactions from former players, coaches and fans. “It’s always sad when somebody his age dies, under any circumstance,” Sherman said. “You look at these guys growing up watching sports, and you never think that they’ll get sick at such a young age.”
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Daniel Hinton is sports editor. Email him at dhinton@nyunews.com.
Reyes, Darvish, Santana lead baseball story lines 1. Santana Will Not Overcome Injuries Since 2008, Santana, the Mets’ number one starter, has dealt with a string of injuries. Four seasons ago, Santana tore cartilage in his left knee, which required seasonending surgery. In 2009, his season was cut short to allow arthroscopic surgery on his pitching elbow to remove bone chips. In 2010, he was
sidelined once again to undergo rotator cuff surgery. The latter was the most serious incident and forced Santana, who is 133 - 69 overall with a 3.10 earned run average and two Cy Young Awards, to miss the first half of the 2011 season. The 32-year-old is now cleared to return this season, but the
prospect of Santana returning to consistency — let alone stardom — is not promising. Add his monster contract to the Mets’ long list of financial woes. Santana is guaranteed more than $55 million dollars over the next three years, with a 2014 club-option at $25 million.
2. Reyes’ Arrival in Miami Will Hurt Team Chemistry Apart from sluggers Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder, Reyes was considered the best hitter available on the free-agent market. Though plagued with injuries in the last few seasons, Reyes has still tallied an impressive .341 on-base percentage with 370 stolen bases, 735 runs and 1300 hits through nine seasons in Flushing, Queens. Determined to make a splash this via Wikipedia
Yu Darvish’s success in Japan will carry over in the U.S. By Cole Riley With pitchers and catchers reporting for spring training on Feb. 19, three players are dominating headlines. Questions, doubts and high expectations surround Johan Santan, New York Mets starting pitcher, former teammate and current Miami Marlins shortstop, Jose Reyes, and new Texas Rangers staff ace Yu Darvish. While answers can only come from the baseball diamond, WSN offers predictions for the biggest storylines heading toward Opening Day.
offseason, Miami nabbed the 28year-old speedster for six years and $106 million dollars. However, the Marlins already had Hanley Ramirez, an All-Star shortstop on their roster who is now set to transition to third base. Franchise owner Jeffrey Loria’s gamble will result in disaster. Ramirez, despite his MVP-worthy statistics, has been toxic in the clubhouse. His immaturity
and inability to accept his position as the face of the franchise has led to team conflict and trade rumors over the past few years. Miami’s management is now asking Ramirez to move to a position he has never played to accommodate a seemingly better fellow Dominican shortstop. With the potential clash of egos, the new situation in Miami will quickly become a mess.
Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays to sign Yu to a contract worth $60 million over six years. Yu faces the daunting task of replacing C.J. Wilson at the top of the rotation. Last season, Wilson went 16 - 7 with a 2.94 earned runs average and 206 strikeouts while leading the Rangers to the World Series for the second year in a row. Yu certainly has the tools to match those stats and possibly surpass them as
well. Standing at 6’5” he can top 100 miles per hour with his fastball and has a set of pitches including a cutter, splitter, curve ball and an 80 m.p.h. slurve ball. Yu is powerful and consistent enough on the mound to live up to his potential in the MLB. Unlike his Japanese counterpart Daisuke Matsuzaka, who has disappointed as a starter in Boston, Yu has a very bright future as the Rangers ace.
3. Yu Will Succeed in MLB Only 25 years old, starting pitcher Yu Darvish has already recorded a careers-worth of accomplishments. The Japanese hurler has gone 93-38 with a 1.99 earned runs average and 1259 strikeouts as a member of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He was also a member of the Japanese national team that won the gold medal in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. The Texas Rangers outbid the New York Yankees, Chicago
Cole Riley is a deputy sports editor. Email him at criley@nyunews.com.