The Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bulls,
Montreal Canadiens, and Toronto Blue Jays. These four teams were once
dominant franchises in their respective sport. However, over the past
couple of decades, these franchises have struggled to recapture their
past championship glory. In his book, Pro Sports in 1993: A Signature Season in Football, Basketball, Hockey and Baseball,
David Ostrowsky takes the reader back to a memorable year in which this
quartet of teams stood tall as champions of the four major sports.
Ostrowsky
splits his book into seven chapters, each of which examines a major
event that shaped the 1993 sports world. Ostrowsky devotes a chapter to
each of the championship teams from the four major sports. In
addition, Ostrowsky also includes three additional chapters which cover
Joe Montana’s first season with the Kansas City Chiefs following the
veteran quarterback’s controversial trade from the San Francisco 49ers,
the opening of the Baltimore Orioles home ballpark Camden Yards which
played host to the 1993 MLB All-Star Game, and the Buffalo Bills
incredible comeback win against the Houston Oilers in AFC Wild Card
Playoff Game. Each of the seven chapters are thoroughly researched and
well written. Ostrowsky secured first-hand interviews with a wealth of
players, coaches, and team personnel. Ostrowsky does an excellent job
of mixing his writing with quotes he gathered from these first-hand
interviews.
As
a baseball fan, I was drawn to the chapters about Camden Yards hosting
the MLB All-Star Game and the Toronto Blue Jays repeating as World
Series champions. Ostrowsky gives details on the background of the
building of Camden Yards, takes the reader through the April 1992
opening of the ballpark, the pregame festivities of the 1993 All-Star
Week, and the All-Star Game itself. I learned a lot about Camden Yards
in this chapter. For example, I was not aware that a young Orioles
intern named Theo Epstein was instrumental in putting together a
five-day celebration during the All-Star Week to honor former Negro
League players. Also, I was surprised to find out that there was a fair
amount of push back for the retro-style ballpark design which Camden
Yards made famous. Ostrowsky brings the All-Star Game to life with
quotes from both American and National League players including Jay
Bell, Devon White, John Burkett, and Andy Benes. Ostrowsky also gives
insights into the clash between Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston who helmed
the AL team and Orioles hurler Mike Mussina who was denied the chance
to pitch in front of the hometown fans when Gaston opted to have Blue
Jays reliever Duane Ward toss the final inning of the Midsummer Classic.
 |
| Pro Sports in 1993 includes several quotes about players from the World Series-winning Toronto Blue Jays as well as the teams they faced in the playoffs |
The
chapter about the Blue Jays features an assortment of quotes centering
on Toronto’s top players including future Hall of Famers Roberto Alomar
and Paul Molitor as well memorable sluggers Joe Carter and John Olerud. This chapter also highlights the differences between Toronto’s 1992
World Series-winning team and the 1993 club along with the challenges
they faced trying to repeat as World Champions. The acquisition of
Molitor—the eventual 1993 World Series MVP—and the emergence of Olerud—
the 1993 AL batting champ—are identified as key factors in Toronto
repeating as World Champions. Ostrowsky doesn’t just focus on the Blue
Jays, he also takes a look at the Chicago White Sox and Philadelphia
Phillies, the two teams Toronto defeated in the playoffs on their way to
securing a second-straight World Championship. The speed and power of
the White Sox is spotlighted with quotes about future Hall of Famers Tim
Raines and Frank Thomas while characters like John Kruk, Darren
Daulton, and Lenny Dykstra are remembered from the collection of misfits
who made up the unlikely NL Pennant-winning Phillies. Ostrowsky
interviews some notable players for this chapter including 7-time Gold
Glove winner Devon White and 1993 AL Cy Young Award winner Jack
McDowell. However, the player with the most intriguing quotes is
veteran Blue Jays infielder Alfredo Griffin. As a light-hitting middle
infielder who was primarily on Toronto’s postseason roster for his
glovework, Griffin describes entering Game 6 as a late-inning defensive
replacement and finding himself with the unique perspective of being the
on-deck hitter when Joe Carter took Mitch Williams deep for his
Series-ending walk-off home run.
 |
| The 1993 Stanley Cup Finals featured a match up between future Hall of Famers Patrick Roy and Wayne Gretzky with a young John LeClair emerging as an unlikely hero |
I was also
drawn to the chapter about the 1993 Stanley Cup-winning Montreal
Canadiens. I have always drawn a parallel between the dominance of the
24-time Stanley Cup champion Canadiens and the New York Yankees, winners
of 27 World Series Titles. It’s hard to believe that with Montreal’s
long history of success, 1993 represents their most recent championship
to date and perhaps even more shocking is that no Canadian-based
franchise has raised the Cup since. As a one-off championship team, the
1993 Canadiens are rarely written about and not romanticized in the
same way as the club’s dynasties from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Thus, it is nice to see Ostrowsky focus on the 1993 team’s postseason
triumph. This chapter largely centers on the two iconic players who
faced off in the Finals, Montreal’s Patrick Roy and Wayne Gretzky of the
Los Angeles Kings. Ostrowsky gives a background on each of these
superstar player’s struggles prior to the playoffs—Roy’s subpar regular
season before railing off an amazing 10 straight overtime playoff wins
and Gretzky’s return from a career-threatening injury to help lead the
Kings to their first and ultimately his last Cup Final. In addition to
the in-depth look at Roy and Gretzky, this chapter also focuses on the
controversial penalty involving Kings defenseman Marty McSorley which
played a key role in shifting the momentum of the Finals to Montreal as
well as the clutch play of young Canadiens left winger John LeClair. Ostrowsky also secured interviews for this chapter from some well-known
Canadiens and Kings players including Kirk Muller, Brian Bellows, Tony
Granato, and Jimmy Carson.
Reading about Joe
Montana’s move to the Chiefs seemed particularly relevant with Tom Brady
recently leaving the New England Patriots for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Also, with the Bills franchise experiencing a revival, it is a fitting
time to take a look back at the Buffalo team that dominated the AFC in
the early Nineties. I actually enjoyed the chapter about Buffalo’s
miraculous come-from-behind victory over the Oilers most since it
featured outstanding quotes from Bills players Don Beebe, Steve
Christie, and Hall of Famer Andre Reed.
 |
| Some of the book's best quotes are drawn from David Ostrowsky's first-hand interviews with Bill Cartwright, Don Beebe, and Hall of Famer Andre Reed |
I
wouldn’t have gone out of my way to read about Michael Jordan’s Chicago
Bulls winning their third straight championship or the Dallas Cowboys
capturing their second of what would be three Super Bowls in a four-year
span since the success of these dynasties has been well-documented. Nevertheless, I am happy I did as I found both of these chapters
interesting. A couple of the highlights from these chapters include the
many facets of Jordan’s complicated personality being explored by His
Airness’ former teammates Bill Cartwright and Scott Williams as well as
Super Bowl XXVIII hero James Washington’s account of his experiences in
helping the Cowboys overcome the Bills.
While I
enjoyed reading quotes from the Bills players about their stunning
comeback victory in the AFC Wild Card Game, I can’t say I strongly
favored one chapter above all of the others which speaks to the overall
strength of the book. The book also gave each franchise’s 1993 season
more of an identity for me—as opposed to just remembering these teams as
“the second of the back-to-back Blue Jays World Series winners” or
“part of the Bulls or Cowboys dynasties of the 1990s.” I recommend this
book to any sports fan because with Ostrowsky’s first-hand interviews
you are sure to learn something new about the memorable players and
teams that are profiled and gain a new appreciation for pro sports in
1993.
----by John Tuberty
Follow me on Twitter @BloggerTubbs
Cards:
Paul Molitor, John Olerud, Roberto Alomar 1994 Topps Stadium Club,
Patrick Roy 1990-91 Score, John LeClair 1992-93 Topps Stadium Club,
Wayne Gretzky 1990-91 Score, Bill Cartwright 1992-93 Topps, Don Beebe
1993 Bowman, Andre Reed 1993 Bowman
Other Articles by Tubbs Baseball Blog:
My Father’s Memories of Working with Carl Yastrzemski at Kahn’s-Hillshire Farm in the Early Eighties
Stat
links to players mentioned: Paul Molitor, Roberto Alomar, Joe Carter,
John Olerud, Duane Ward, Devon White, Alfredo Griffin, Frank Thomas, Tim Raines, Jack McDowell, Mitch Williams, John Kruk, Darren Daulton, Lenny Dykstra, Mike Mussina, Andy Benes, John Burkett, Jay Bell, Cito Gaston,
Wayne Gretzky, Patrick Roy, John LeClair, Marty McSorley, Brian Bellows, Kirk Muller, Tony Granato, Jimmy Carson, Joe Montana, Tom Brady, Don Beebe, Steve Christie, Andre Reed, Michael Jordan, Bill Cartwright, James Washington, Scott Williams
