University of Michigan - Michiganensian Yearbook (Ann Arbor, MI)

Page 147 text:

SPORTS going going tovj. | c gone Forthe Cubs and the Cardinals, 1998 was an historical year in baseball, not because of record seasons or World Series wins, but because of their two shining stars, Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. As America began following the Na- tional League, all eyes turned towards Sosa and McGwire who quickly leapt into a record break- ing homerun race that lasted until the very end of the season when McGwire finally took the title with a season total of 70 homeruns over Sosa ' s 66. Fans watched as McGwire, with a season average of .299 and a total of 147 RBIs, slammed ball after ball out of the park in almost every game the Cardinals played. Yet, it was Sosa who led the Cubs to win the wild-card race against the Giants with his overall team performance. Despite McGwire ' s impressive record, it was Sosa, with a batting average of .308 and a major-league lead- ing 158 RBIs and 132 runs with 414 total bases, who took the title of the National League ' s Most Valuable Player. Known by his fans as ' Big Mac ' , McGwire walked away with homerun number 70 ' at home at Busch Stadium in St. Louis in the seventh inning against the Montreal Expos on September 27. The friendly interaction between ,Sosa and McGwire in the attempt to break Roger Maris ' long standing homerun record helped to bring back the spirit of America ' s national pas- time. photo courtesy of The Associated Press Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Car- dinals finishes the season with a career high of 70 home runs. McGwire set a new record for home runs in a single season, breaking Roger Maris ' s record of 61. by Virginia Hiltz game time For thefirsttime ever, college football fans were guar- anteed a championship game for the national title. The game pitted 1 Tennessee against 2 Florida State. Using big plays from their outstanding wide re- ceiver Peerless Price, Tennes- see was able to put 23 points on the board, which was enough to beat Florida State 23-16. How- ever, the Bowl Championship Series did not go as smoothly as planned. Florida State was given the chance to play for the na- tional title over Kansas State, UCLA, and Ohio State, even though all four teams had only one loss. Ohio State ' s schedule was considered weak because it played in the Big Ten, which was considered a weak confer- ence by most football insiders. However, the Big Ten went 5-0 in bowl games, showing that it was not as weak as some thought. Many believed the only way to truly crown a na- tional champion was to play a tournament like the one held in college basketball. The Detroi t Red Wings won their second straight Stanley Cup in June. The Red Wings, using their strong de- fensive style, were able to sweep the Washington Capitals four games to none. This was also the second year in a row the Red Wings swept their Stanley Cup opponents. The Red Wings de- feated Phoenix, St. Louis, and Dallas to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. The Red Wings were led by captain Steve Yzerman, who was named the Conn Smyth Trophy winner as the most outstanding player in the playoffs. The finals victory also gave Scotty Bowman his eighth Stanley Cup as a coach, tying him with Toe Blake for the most Stanley Cups won by a coach. by Todd Bonney Stanley sweep wrestle mania fmell what The Rock is cooking? That was the question numerous people tried to figure out on Monday nights as millions tuned into the world of professional wrestling. The World Wrestling Federation ' s (WWF) War Zone and World Championship Wrestling ' s (WCW) Monday Nitro were the most watched shows on cable during the year. These increased ratings led to the in- vestment of millions of dollars into advertising during these wrestling shows. By year ' s end, former two-time WWF champion Stone Cold Steve Austin had become one of the most recog- nizable faces in sports by selling the most T-shirts of any athlete during the calendar year, includ- ing Mark McGwire and Michael Jordan. Many celebrities were jumping on the pro-wrestling band-wagon by making appearances at events. The biggest name to appear was former boxing champion Iron Mike Tyson, who was a special guest referee and the WWF ' s WrestleMania XIV. by Todd Bonney by Kevin Gembel Retrospect ' 141

Page 146 text:

SPORTS coupe du monde photo courtesy of The Associated Press Vy 12, soccer devotees partied all night. The stadium in Paris was the epicen- ter and waves of national eu- phoria spread all around the country. Anywhere between 800,000 and 1.5 million giddy supporters celebrated France ' s 3-0 defeat over the reigning four-time Champions Brazil in the World Cup. It was the culmination France wins the 1998 World Cup Soccer Tournament, beating Brazil in the final game. Brazil had won the tournament for the past four years. of a tournament that nearly the whole world was watching. Even in London, supporters danced in the fountains of Trafalgar Square until dawn. One Parisian daily, France-Soir, called the victory a tricolor orgasm - one that blended seamlessly into Tuesday ' s Bastille Day festivities. Waving flags, painted faces, honking car horns; more than a million people crowded around Champs Elysses late Sunday night. Few thought France could do it. But the team with the best player in the world (and 10 others not far behind him) was beaten by a less star- studded team, one with enough determination to pull an impos- sible dream. These two images were remembered by the world. President Jacques Chirac, draped in a French scarf, kissed victorious players as the Star Wars the me competed with fans singing the Marseillaise. Only a few thousand Brazilians gath- ered around the giant television screen, accepting their defeat on Copacabana Beach. The Bra- zilian coach, Mario Zagallo ad- mitted, France had the entire nation before them. That was something we couldn ' t over- come. The beauty of the World Cup was that sometimes David could still defeat Goliath. by Jessica Hermenitt locked out isions ran high as the NBA play- ers and owners failed to reach any agreement on the salary-inspired lockout, called the NBA La- bor Dispute, that halted action of the NBA for the 1998-99 season. The lockout, which took effect at midnight on June 30, banned all regular season games until an agreement could be reached. NBA Deputy Commissioner Russ Granik explained that the collective bargaining agree- ment between the NBA and its players had been continuously unsuccessful. The controversy sur- rounded the percentage of league revenue that the players would receive and a maximum salary cap that was to be established at the desire of the league. Negotiations finally ended with an agree- ment between the two parties, announced at 6 A.M. on January 6. The season was barely salvaged after the three month loss with a short playing schedule of 50 games to begin in the first week of February. Jeff Hornacek of the Utah Jazz was quoted as saying, I wouldn ' t blame the fans if they didn ' t come back. Neither side is coming out of this thing looking good. by Virginia Hiltz clean sweep The New York Yankees defeat the San Diego Padres in all four games of the World Series, bringing home their second title in three years The 1998 New York Yankees went down in history as one of the greatest teams ever when they beat the San Diego Padres four games to none in the 24th World Series Champi- onship. It was the Yankees ' first sweep since 1950 and their sec- ond title in three years. Accord- ing to TIME magazine, the Game 4 victory gave the Yankees 125 wins, a total that ranked up there with all the other big numbers put up in Major League Baseball in 1998. Their 114 regular-sea- son wins were the most ever for a Major League Baseball team. This is the most determined team I ' ve been around, Yan- kees manager Joe Torre said. I don ' t know if we have the best team of all time, but I do know that we have the best record. Third baseman Scott Brosius was an unlikely hero in the series. Brosius went 8-for- 17 with six RBIs and, fittingly, handled the last ball of the year, a grounder by pinch-hitter Mark Sweeney. Brosius said, There ' s nothing better than coming up and seeing the play- ers ' eyes and that sense of achievement and accomplish- ment and excitement. The in- fielder was named the 1998 World Series ' Most Valuable Player. , , . ,., i by Jamie Weitzel 140 Sports

Page 148 text:

ARTS. piano man photo courtesy of The Associated Press Singer Billy Joel is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Joel sold the second most records ever in his career, trailing country artist Garth Brooks. Billy Joel, the most famed piano man, started 1998 with a Face-to-Face international concert tour, believed by many to be his last. Joel made history after he sold the second most records ever, behind only Garth Brooks. His talent and work was celebrated earlier this year with his introduction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 15 at New York ' s Waldorf Astoria Hotel. The Long Island native had a series of hit records, including seven consecutive top ten albums in the 1970 ' s and 80 ' s. Eligibility for induction into the Hall came for an artist 25 years after the release of his or her first record. Criteria considered also included the influence and sig- nificance of the artist ' s contribution to the devel- opment and continuance of rock and roll. After rising to fame with international pop hits includ- ing Piano Man, Just the Way You Are, and We Didn ' t Start the Fire, Joel decided he would try a different musical venue, classical music composition. ,as the year ol .iced, at to taralia, bui ices with he instantly rose fas with ;h by Gretchen Deo Saving Private Ryan, directed by Steven Spielberg, became battle zone one of the most highly acclaimed movies of the year i theaters even released it to the public, Steven Spielberg ' s World War II battle drama Saving Private Ryan was already a virtual given as one of the five candidates for the Oscar ' s best-picture race. Leading actor Tom Hanks teamed up with an award win- ning cast, including Matt Damon, to recreate this script about a troop of soldiers who were ordered to go behind en- emy lines to save Private Ryan, the last surviving member of a family of four brothers all killed in the war. The movie, which was released on July 24, captivated audiences from the very start with a controversial and impres- sively graphic recreation of the battle of Normandy. Movie- goers were inundated with gun- fire and death as they watched Hanks, as Captain John Miller, survive the gruesome attack which lasted through the first half hour of the movie ' s three- hour screen-time. Controversy sur- rounded Spielberg ' s war epic as both sides of the war were por- trayed in a negative light and emotions ran high over the re- kindling of memories of the real events of D-Day in 1944. Terri- fyingly realistic scenes of war deeply affected many of the audience members as one of the Paramount executives was ru- mored to quip, This is the feel bad movie of the year. However, many were glad that Spielberg chose to at- tempt this recreation of World War II, sharing with the public the true horrors that surrounded the battles and the soldiers in- volved. The superior acting a bil- ity of an impressive cast and a wonderful script, coupled with the traditionally exceptional directing of Spielberg, led to one of the most memorable and talked-about movies of the year. by Virginia Hiltz 142 Arts