Time Out with Tany • March 1st Dispatch

THIS COLUMN WAS WRITTEN IN FRONT OF A LIVE STUDIO AUDIENCE

QUICK QUIZ

What college did former Detroit Piston Happy Hairston attend?

Seton Hall University

Rutgers University

New York University

University of Delaware

Disco Tech

QUOTABLE QUOTES

                 "When I was a little boy, I wanted to be a baseball player and also join the circus. With the Yankees, I’ve accomplished both.”  – Former New York Yankee third baseman Graig Nettles.

“If you work hard in training, the fight is easy.” – Boxer Manny Pacquiano.

“Excellence is not a singular act, but a habit you are what you repeatedly do.”  - Former Basketball star Shaquille O’Neal.

IDLE THOUGHTS

Bob Probert is a true NHL legend, but not because of his goalscoring abilities or point contribution. Probert was an enforcer, always punishing his opponents and sticking up for his teammates. Every team he played against despised him, but his teammates and fans loved him. And Probert wasn’t just a great teammate on the ice. His protecting often continued outside of the rink as well. In his biography, he recalls when teammate Mark LaForest got into some trouble in a bar. “The night we won the Calder Cup, there was a huge celebration, and we ended up at this bar called the Trading Post. LaForest had to piss, but when he got to the washroom, there was somebody in there. He started banging on the door. After a while, this big guy came out and gave him a look. About an hour later, when LaForest was leaving the tavern, this big guy he interrupted in the bathroom was standing by the door. So LaForest came up to me and said, ‘Probie, see that guy over there? The one who looks like a fridge, with muscles everywhere? He’s going to kill me’ Probert didn’t hesitate to fight the guy and calmly went outside, but not without taking out his teeth. “I didn’t want to get suspended, so I let him give me five or six good ones in the face. Then I grabbed him, strung him out and said, “Everybody see he hit me first? I ended up submissing him into the ground.” After the brawl, Probert had to visit the hospital, but not before going inside the bar first. “I found my jacket and went back inside for another beer. Later, I stopped by the hospital for a couple of stitches. Taking care of my teammates was my job, on and off the ice.”

The average length of an MLB regular season game: 1972 – 2 hours, 27 minutes; 1982 – 2 hours, 40 minutes; 1992 – 2 hours, 54 minutes; 2002 – 2 hours, 56 minutes; 2012 – 3 hours; 2022 – 3 hours, 6 minutes

It’ll be interesting to see what the average is for 2023 when the pitch clock is implemented.

University of Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh made headlines last week when he helped a police officer clear a fallen tree from the road during a recent ice storm. According to the Ann Arbor police department, officer Howard Cooper was trying to remove a large tree from the road. The department was spread thin, so he had no other choice than to tackle the task by himself. While Cooper was still trying to figure out how to get the job done, a man wearing jeans, a plaid sweater and a beanie parked his vehicle and approached him to volunteer. Cooper said at first, he was trying to wave off the van and told the driver to turn around because there was a tree blocking the road. The driver, who turned out to be Harbaugh, insisted he could help. The Ann Arbor police department shared footage of the two men working together to clear a lane. There had to be others besides me who watched the footage to see if there were any recruits in the van.

Hot dog fans need to mark August 11 on your calendars. Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Champion Joey Chesnut will be making at appearance at Dow Diamond when the Great Lakes Loons take on the West Michigan Whitecaps. Chesnut has the Nathan’s record by eating an incredible 76 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. His 2022 win marked his 15th title. I don’t want to brag but I’d be good for a total of 5 dogs.

The National Basketball Association has had some outstanding backcourt tandems throughout the years. It would be mighty difficult to pick the best one from this list:

Walt Frazier and Earl Monroe

Jerry West and Gail Goodrich

Dave Bing and Jimmy Walker

Jerry Sloan and Norm Van Lier

Magic Johnson and Byron Scott

Maurice Cheeks and Andrew Toney

Isaiah Thomas and Joe Dumars

Stephan Curry and Klay Thompson

Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili

Mark Jackson and Reggie Miller

Bob Cousy and Sam Jones

Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen

Michael Jordan and B.J. Armstrong

Michael Jordan and Ron Harper

Michael Jordan and Steve Kerr

Michael Jordan and John Paxson

If you get a chance check out the two-part Netflix documentary on Bill Russell. There is some great footage of Russell, widely known for his loud cackle, and his tremendous battles with Wilt Chamberlain. It was great to hear the perspective of both Bob Cousy and Jerry West.

Speaking of Netflix, Dale Brown urged me to check out ‘Full Swing.’ I really enjoyed the dynamic between wacky golfer Joel Dahmen and his caddie Geno Bonnalie, who revealed that most caddies earn between 7-10 percent of the golfer’s winnings per tournament.

Heritage High School basketball player Tyler Ode recently eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in his career – and he’s only a junior. If that name sounds familiar it’s because his father, Josh Ode, was a tremendous player at Freeland High School. In fact, the elder Ode ranks No. 6 in Michigan High School Athletic Association history for career rebounds with 1,132.

WJRT-TV 12 newscaster Terry Camp is also in the Michigan High School Athletic Association record book. Playing for Ubly High School, Camp is tied for second in free throws made in a one game with 25. On December 12, 1980, he hit 25 of 27 from the charity stripe in a game against Reese High School. Camp anchors ABC12 News First at Four and ABC12 News at 5:30.

Only six players in Major League Baseball history have hit 60 or more home runs in a single season. Without steroids, that leaves three New York Yankees on the list – Babe Ruth, Roger Maris, and Aaron Judge.

Jim Bob Cooter is the new offensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts. Nothing noteworthy here, I just enjoy typing the name Jim Bob Cooter.

I was watching a game at Wrigley Field one time when I saw Von Hayes of the Philadelphia Phillies go from first to third on a routine grounder to the shortstop. At the time I thought he was the next Bullet Bob Hayes, but he would go on to be a career .267 hitter. An indie rock band named themselves after Hayes. Hayes was the inspiration for one of ESPN announcer Chris Berman’s most famous "Bermanisms" — Von "Purple" Hayes — a nod to the Jimi Hendrix song “Purple Haze.” He is mentioned both in an episode of the hit TV series "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" and “The Goldbergs."

Jeff Pack, who was known as the “Vandy Whistler,” passed away recently at the age of 69. He was best known for his obnoxious whistling during Vanderbilt baseball games and irritating opposing teams and fans.

Whatever happened to Adam Morrison?

QUICK QUIZ ANSWER

Harold “Happy” Hairston graduated from New York University where he played from 1962 to 1964. One of his teammates at NYU was Barry Kramer; the two smashed almost every record for the NYU Violets. Hairston averaged 21 points per game, set an all-time rebounding record at NYU, and scored 1,350 total points in his college career. He was inducted into the NYU Hall of Fame in 1981. During his 11 seasons in the NBA, Hairston averaged 14.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.