Just Win Baby....

 

Two sport champion, Gene Conley, dead at 86.

When you think of two sport super stars in Atlanta..... yeah, the mind tends to wander over to dual personality known as Neon and Prime Time.

And rightfully so. Who can forget the media coverage of Deion leaving one sports venue after a game, sprinting to a waiting helicopter to be carried off to another stadium and the start of another game.
Deion managed a Super Bowl win with Dallas and the 49ers, but lost in his only World Series appearance with the Braves. He would've been the third athlete to capture championships in two of the four major sports.


Meet the second athlete to have accomplished that feat. Gene Conley.

Gene played baseball as a pitcher from 1952 until 1963.

 He pitched in three All Star games, 1954, 1959 and was the winning pitcher in 1955. He won the World Series with Milwaukee in 1957.

Gene played for the Phillies and Red Sox late in his baseball career, but we don't care about that. These fabulous Braves cards are from my own personal collection. Jealous?

Gene also played pro basketball as a center for the Boston Celtics.

(I don't have any of his basketball cards.... don't know if he even has any...)

He played the bouncy ball in 1952/53 and then from 1957 to 1964. He won NBA Championships in 1958, 59, 60.
Yeah. He played both sports at the same time. Awesome.


As immortalized on the back of his '56 Topps card... Gene stood 6'8"

Gene is the only athlete to play on three professional sports teams from the same city.
Boston Braves
Boston Red Sox
Boston Celtics

Gene was also the last living player to have played for both the Boston Braves and the Boston Red Sox.



Gene Conley 10.11.1930 - 04.07.2017

Believe

1st Place baby!

Jason Heyward is leading the world in OPS and Slugging %.... Martin Prado is on his way to a batting title, the pitching is awesome, Hinske and Glaus are playing like they want a long term contract, Chipper is healthy, kinda, McCann is back to wearing glasses (a good thing)...

It's all coming together...

*this does NOT count as a post jinx

2008 World Series

In case some of you are unaware, and judging by the TV ratings, most of you are... the 2008 World Series is in full swing.
Philadelphia currently leads Tampa in game 4, 6-2 in the 7th inning. Eric Hinske of the Rays just hit a pinch hit homer in his first World Series at bat. That's a good story right there.
Game three's hero was an unlikely one. Light hitting Philly catcher, Carlos Ruiz. A bases loaded infield single in the bottom of the 9th. At 1 am. In the morning. That's "0 dark hundred" in military time.
The TV ratings are falling faster than the value of the Canadian dollar.

This particular Moments and Milestone was when Carlos became the first Phillies catcher to steal home in over 25 years.... anybody tell me who was the last one before Carlos???