Jackie, Maz deserved better

Cal Ripken Jr. was a tremendous baseball player. He was, and is, a great ambassador for the game. Any father who wanted to help his son become a major league ballplayer could do a lot worse than encourage him to emulate No. 8.
But, the occasion of Cal Ripken Jr. breaking Lou Gehrig's long-standing record for most consecutive games played is not the most memorable moment in baseball history.
That's how the voting came out, though, in an Internet poll sponsored by MasterCard and embraced by Major League Baseball before Game 4 of the World Series.
I'll grant you, it's pretty much what I expected (though I would have guessed the home run chase in 1999 with Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa would win) because most polls conducted on-line are going to reflect the outlook of a younger generation, the group most accustomed to and comfortable with computers.
So I didn't expect many, if any of the events that happened more than 25 years ago to be recognized among the top 10.
Say what?
But some of the picks floored me. The first was Ripken's consecutive games streak.
Certainly, his chase of The Iron Horse was a pick-me-up Major League Baseball desperately needed in the wake of the strike/lockout in 1994-95. He brought the older fans back to the game and introduced a whole new generation to its greatness.
But, if the definition of "memorable" is one that changes the game, then I don't know you can't argue for Jackie Robinson's debut in 1947.
Perhaps the advancement in the equality of the races in the last half-century (and certainly, there's much more work to be done in that area) have numbed us to the significance of Robinson's breaking of the color barrier.
Major League Baseball, post-World War II, wasn't simply institutionalized racism. It was more blatant than that. Robinson not only had to play every day, but he was forced to do so amid hostility from fans and opposing players in every city.
Robinson must have had the perfect temperament to succeed. That he was named rookie of the year was a testament to his drive and character.
Ripken's achievement impressed a generation. Robinson's sacrifice helped change how a nation looked at itself.
Perhaps, more accurately Major League Baseball should have proclaimed Ripken's consecutive games streak as the most memorable moment, and Robinson's debut as the most important.
It was certainly more deserving than merely No. 3.
No-hitters and homers
There were two other top 10 moments recognized Wednesday night that I simply couldn't fathom.
One was Nolan Ryan's seventh career no-hitter in 1991. Ryan, probably, had the fortune to have a hall of fame career in a television era. The highlights of his final no-hitter was aired on ESPN ad nauseam.
But, if one wants to compare pitching performances, how could you not include Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series. Not just a no-hitter, but 27 up, 27 down, in the sport's biggest stage?
Similarly, the fans voted Kirk Gibson's home run in the 1988 World Series as the No. 9 most memorable moment. This may have been the most curious choice of all.
First, Gibson's home run won Game 1 of the '88 Fall Classic. Joe Carter's blast off the Phillies' Mitch Williams to end Game 6 won the 1993 World Series. And Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World" capped an amazing comeback in the 1951 National League pennant race.
But the most slighted home run of all-time by the Gibson selection has to be Bill Mazeroski's Game 7, World Series-clinching shot against the Yankees in 1960.
Maz's shot remains the only time a World Series Game 7 has ended with a home run. How that could be less memorable than any other postseason blast defies logic.
XRob Todor is sports editor of The Vindicator. Write to him at todor@vindy.com.