11/23/24
February 26, 2003
Urban Sports Legends — : This was at the bottom of an earlier link, but I think it warranted a separate post. Are there more sites with stories like this related to sports? I thought this was fascinating, and I'd be curious to see if anyone knows of other collections out there on the Web. What are the weirdest sports stories you've ever heard? My best is the supposed torrid affair between a Blues' hockey star and his babysitter, which apparently got him run out of town. The guy went on to play a LONG time in the league, but I don't think he ever quite got over those rumors.
wfrazerjr is too classy to name names, but not me. In case anyone is curious, he's talking about Doug Gilmour (a few details can be found here, if you scroll down to the bottom). There was also a joke that when Gilmour became the 20th leading all-time scorer he said, "I would have made it sooner if they had let me count that babysitter."
posted by Samsonov14 at 12:10 PM on February 26, 2003
Some of my favorites:
- In 1978, Texas Rangers pitcher Rogelio "Roger" Moret was found by teammates in a catatonic trance in the locker room, holding a shower shoe.
- Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach getting sucker punched by fellow QB Clint Longley in 1976.
- A couple having sex and a man masturbating within view of Toronto SkyDome fans watching the Blue Jays.
posted by rcade at 12:13 PM on February 26, 2003
Dave Stewart busted with a trans-something (vestite or gendered or sexual, not sure of the difference, not sure which one) prostitute is a rumor that I have always heard.
posted by vito90 at 12:20 PM on February 26, 2003
There have been any number of athletes dogged by sexual preference rumors, but my favorite story is that the entire Duke men's basketball team of the early nineties--led by Christian Laettner and Brian Davis--were gay, forcing Billy McCaffrey to transfer to Vanderbilt because he wouldn't, um, play ball.
posted by Mookieproof at 01:53 PM on February 26, 2003
Wade Boggs and Steve Jerri-Curl (I can't remember his name, some crappy reliever) supposedly ran around knocking on hotel room doors during 1986 Spring Training taking photos of their teammates in flagrente. The story says only Super Mormon Bruce Hurst was completely innocent.
posted by yerfatma at 03:46 PM on February 26, 2003
You guys are the freaking best. Samsonov, I would totally swear that Dan Quinn also got into trouble here, but do you remember anything about Brendan Shanahan hooking up with Craig Janney's wife, and THAT being the reason he was shipped out of town so abruptly? Also, the reason Harry Caray was run out of the Cardinals' broadcast booth was a relationship with August Busch's wife. Any thoughts?
posted by wfrazerjr at 03:49 PM on February 26, 2003
Isn't there a story about Jim "Catfish" Hunter decorating a fellow Yankee's birthday cake in an unorthadox manner? I can't find it online anywhere...
posted by Joey Michaels at 06:14 PM on February 26, 2003
The [player A] shagged [player B]'s wife/girlfriend, causing a fight and a player being traded, is a VERY common one in hockey. It's been linked to Al Iafrate/Gary Leeman in Toronto, plus other players in other cities. Usually it has no truth to it, but there will be people swearing up and down that they heard it on the radio or saw it in the paper. Ask them to provide the proof, and they never can. The [player C] is gay because he's dating [celebrity D] is also a common one. Wendel Clark of the Toronto Maple Leafs was tagged with this one (the celebrity being Toller Cranston or some other figure skater). Of course, the fact that Clark later married and had kids isn't proof enough for some people that he's not gay. He was the constant butt of "Wendy!" chants by "knowledgable" fans of Detroit. Mike Piazza is going through the same rumour mill in MLB, and didn't help his cause by using the "I am not gay." press conference to feed the "He doth protest too much" jokers.
posted by grum@work at 06:16 PM on February 26, 2003
One hears that a variation of the player A/player B scenario that grum@work mentions will be the motivation behind Ryan Giggs quitting Manchester Utd in the summer. Probably just a scurrilous rumour though. Here's some more untrue stuff about footballers.
posted by squealy at 02:32 AM on February 27, 2003
The [player C] is gay because he's dating [celebrity D] is also a common one.
My favorite rumor along those lines had Steve Young dating Seal.
posted by kirkaracha at 09:37 PM on February 27, 2003
Good good stuff. I remember a few. The fundamentals of the story may have some truth but I'm quite sure they were overblown by the time they reached our ears. One involved "up to 20" Cincinnati Bengals, including Ickey Woods videotaping a gangbang in a hotel room, the other involved Wade Boggs banging a "baseball annie" in a hotel room while other Red Sox cheered/watched/ and/or videotaped. The second one is tough to believe because the Red Sox famously despised each other. The first one resulted in a setllement. I'll do some digging.