If you decided to read on you probably are very curious about where I am headed with this posting based on the title. To me the sports "untouchables" are the athletes that no matter what they do, get a pass from the fans and media. In some ways their private lives aren’t discussed, it’s off limits respected by fans and the media and that’s just the way it is. They aren’t hounded by the media if they do something wrong and their reasoning is accepted and everyone moves on. Let me give you a few examples:
- Derek Jeter – in my opinion the king of NY. If he is at a night club in the wee hours of the morning I would be surprised if it is reported. If he is seen out at a fancy restaurant with a date, it isn’t reported and if it is it isn’t a headline.
- David "Big Papi" Ortiz. Big smile, big burly guy who always seems to make time for the fans and media. Was pretty much in a season-long slump. It took him a very long time to hit his first homer of the year. The amazing thing is I recall listening to Steve Phillips on ESPN saying this is what David needs to do: he needs to stay back, go the other way etc. I never heard one person or read one article say he was done, his career was over, he was washed up.
- Dirk Nowitzki. Great basketball player – one of the best in the league. Recently during the playoff series vs. the Denver Nuggets his girlfriend (maybe fiancée) at the time was arrested at his house. When the media asked him questions, he said "no comment, I am not emotionally ready to discuss this yet." The media said fine and accepted that.
All three examples I gave I believe are athletes that are considered untouchable. Unlike Terrell Owens, AROD, Plaxico Burress and many others.
The questions I have for you:
- Are some athletes untouchable?
- Why is that?
- What do you think of my choices?
- Who else makes the list?
I look forward to reading your comments.
Matt Gershner says:
Going back – for all the right reasons, Wayne Gretzky was untouchable. Then again, like Jeter, he didn’t put himself in any situation where there could be controversy.
I read a great article about Albert Pujols – and I have a tremendous respect for him. He works hard and knows that the littlest thing could derail all that he’s worked for. If he sees a single woman getting into an elevator in a hotel, he’ll wait for the next one. Smart guy.
Bob Graham says:
I don’t know that any athlete is “untouchable”. If he/she is caught in a scandal, they can become touchable pretty quick. Think of how highly tought of OJ Simpson was at one time. Or Roger Clemens. In a sense, it’s the fans who make a sports star untouchable; if a player is well-liked by and good to the fans, they will not tolerate bad news about them.
So who’s untouchable now?
Albert Pujols (if Jeter is the Mayor of NY, then Pujols is definitely the mayor of St Louis)
Nomar Garciapara (still beloved in Boston, and rightly so; I’d like to see him back with the Sox for old times sake, and I know I’m not alone).
Jason Veritek.
Mia Hamm and the entire Women’s World Cup/Olympics Squad of the 90’s.
Ray Bourque (so beloved in Boston that when he transferred to the Avalanche so that he could finish his career with a cup win, the fans totally supported him).
Michael Jordan (despite divorce, rumors of gambling, etc. every little kid in the world want to be like Mike–big kids, too!)
Ed Sugar says:
Bullet -
Will Pujols ever surpass Stan “the Man” as most popular athlete in St. Louis?
Bob Graham says:
I think it’s possible. It was kind of surprising to me that in St Louis, Stan is mentioned respectfully, but not reverentially (the way that, say, Mickey Mantle is still mentioned in NY). There are many young baseball fans who have only heard of him in passing. I think the key is whether or not Pujols is able to play his entire career with the Cardinals. If he can, he will surpass Stan. If not, Stan will stand as Mr Cardinal.
mark sutin says:
I think you need to look, not only what the individual does on the court (professionalism, work ethic) but what they do off the court (how they give back to the community). There are probably many, bit i think Tiger sticks out most for me. Federer is a close second
Two really good guys
Rick Hurwitz says:
Obviously you would start with Tom Brady in New England and Peyton Manning in Indy. Basketball now has Kobe in LA. I truly believe that to become a legend you need to win a title and Dirk Nowitski falls short. Ortiz and Jeter I do agree with. Puljois is on the rise but again he needs the title.
Ed Sugar says:
Puljois got a ring in 2006.
Bob Graham says:
But he didn’t get a ring in 2004, because the Cardinals were SWEPT IN THE WORLD SERIES BY THE RED SOX (just in case anyone had forgotten…)
Michael Molinar says:
I would add Tim Duncan to this list. He had a wonderful mentor in David Robinson (another who was untouchable during his career) in teaching him how to be a great team member and leader without any of the hassles or drama, and ultimately that, above all, is what earns him the respect among the media and fans.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Michael,
That is a great choice. I should have included him on my original list.
He is a quality guy in a secondary market and in alot of ways untouchable.
Thanks for your comments.
Merrill
Anthony Tammaro says:
Without a doubt, Tiger Woods is one of, if not the most untouchable athletes out there. As great as Tiger is, how many times do you see him slam his club on the ground or curse after a bad shot? How many other golfers do you see behave in such a manor…not many! Tiger gets away with this behavior basically because the PGA, announcers and others are “afraid” to speak up for fear of upsetting Tiger. Double standard? Definitely
Merrill Dubrow says:
Anthony,
That is a GREAT point. He did that exact thing at the British Open and no one said a thing. Although I thought one of the pro golfers did send a “tweet” about that saying he needed to grow up.
Thanks for pointing that out.
Merrill
Will Morris says:
I thought Troy Aikman was pretty much an untouchable. The recent flap over Tony Romo playing golf and dating celebrities is kind of humorous. Troy Aikman played a lot of golf and I know was a member of Chase Oaks and Stonebriar Country Clubs. He lived on the golf course at Chase Oaks probably played 9 days before training camp. He also dated a celebrity or two during his days. I was at a game when Lori Morgan sang the National Anthem and gave him a kiss afterward. We must have won that game because she wasn’t banned from Texas Stadium.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Will,
Totally agree – Tony does get a pass just not in Dallas but all over. I wonder if it is because we won 3 rings?
Merrill
Ed Sugar says:
Here are a few that come to mind:
Todd Helton, Colorado Rockies
Roy Oswaldt, Houston Astros
Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians
Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers
Ladainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers
Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns
Brian Urlacher, Chicago Bears
Jake Delhomme, Carolina Panthers
Growing up in LA, we had six guys who were untouchable; Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Merlin Olsen, Deacon Jones, Elgin Baylor and Jerry West. How untouchable where they you ask? Well, up until 1972, Drysdale owned and operated a bar in Van Nuys called Drysdale’s Dugout. Let’s just say that the Dodgers, the city and MLB turned a blind eye to what went on there. I doubt in today’s environment that a top flight athlete could ever own a bar, let alone step in one.
Merrill Dubrow says:
Ed,
Great stories. I never knew about Don Drysdales bar. Some good names on your list. Tomlinson, Nash, Urlacher. I think Sizemore has a way to go he hasn’t been playing long enough in my book.
Thanks for your comments.
Merrill
Ed Sugar says:
Merrill -
Cleveland is in love with Grady. He is a very close #2 in that town behind the King.
Merrill Dubrow says:
INTERESTING ARTICLE THAT I THOUGHT I WOULD SHARE –
Woods needs to clean up his act Tiger, please, where are your manners?By Rick Reilly
Tiger Woods has outgrown those Urkel glasses he had as a kid. Outgrown the crazy hair. Outgrown a body that was mostly neck.
When will he outgrow his temper?
The man is 33 years old, married, the father of two. He is paid nearly $100 million a year to be the representative for some monstrously huge companies, from Nike to Accenture. He is the world’s most famous and beloved athlete.
And yet he spent most of his two days at Turnberry last week doing the Turn and Bury. He’d hit a bad shot, turn and bury his club into the ground in a fit. It was two days of Tiger Tantrums — slamming his club, throwing his club and cursing his club. In front of a worldwide audience.
A whole lot of that worldwide audience is kids. They do what Tiger does. They swing like Tiger, read putts like Tiger and do the celebration biceps pump like Tiger. Do you think for two seconds they don’t think it’s cool to throw their clubs like Tiger, too?
He’s grown in every other way. He’s committed, responsible, smart, funny and the most talented golfer in history. I just thought we’d be over the conniptions by now.
If there were no six-second delay, Tiger Woods would be the reason to invent it. Every network has been burned by having the on-course microphone open when he blocks one right into the cabbage and starts with the F-bombs. Once, at Doral, he unleashed a string of swear words at a photographer that would’ve made Artie Lange blush, and then snarled, “‘The next time a photographer shoots a [expletive] picture, I’m going to break his [expletive] neck!”
He’s grown in every other way. He’s committed, responsible, smart, funny, and the most talented golfer in history. I just thought we’d be over the conniptions by now.
It’s disrespectful to the game, disrespectful to those he plays with and disrespectful to the great players who built the game before him. Ever remember Jack Nicklaus doing it? Arnold Palmer? When Tom Watson was getting guillotined in that playoff to Stewart Cink, did you see him so much as spit? Only one great player ever threw clubs as a pro — Bobby Jones — and he stopped in his 20s when he realized how spoiled he looked.
This isn’t new. Woods has been this way for years: swearing like a Hooters’ bouncer, trying to bury the bottom of his driver into the tee box, flipping his club end over end the second he realizes his shot is way offline.
I can still remember the 1997 Masters — arguably the most important golf tournament ever played. Woods, then 21, was playing the 15th hole on Sunday. He had just hit a fairway wood out of the rough and was watching it. A young boy came up from behind just to touch him — just to pat the back of this amazing new superhero. That’s when Tiger pulled the club way back over his head and slammed it down, nearly braining the kid he couldn’t see behind him. And this was with a huge lead.
Look, in every other case, I think Tiger Woods has been an A-plus role model. Never shows up in the back of a squad car with a black eye. Never gets busted in a sleazy motel with three “freelance models.” Never gets so much as a parking ticket. But this punk act on the golf course has got to stop. If it were my son, I’d tell him the same thing: “Either behave or get off the course.”
Come to think of it, if I were the president of Nike, I’d tell him the same thing.
Put it this way: Will Tiger let his own two kids carry on in public like that?
I know what you’re saying. We see more Tiger tantrums because TV shows every single shot he hits. And I’m telling you: You’re wrong. He is one of the few on Tour who do it. And I keep wondering when PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem is going to have the cojones to publicly upbraid him for it.
Golf is a gentlemen’s game. Stomping and swearing and carrying on like a Beverly Hills tennis brat might fly in the NBA or in baseball or in football, where less is expected, but golf demands manners. It’s your honor. Is my mark in your way? No, I had 6, not 5. Golfers call penalties on themselves. We are our own police. Tiger, police yourself.
Tiger does a boatload of work for kids. He raises millions for his Tiger Woods Learning Center, which has helped teach thousands. But teaching goes the wrong way, too. Tiger is teaching them that if he can be a hissy hothead on the course, they can, too.
I remember Tiger’s dad, Earl, telling a story. One day, when Tiger was just a kid, he was throwing his clubs around in a fuming fit when his dad said something like “Tiger, golf is supposed to be fun.” And Tiger said, “Daddy, I want to win. That’s how I have fun.”
Well, it’s not fun to watch.
Ed Sugar says:
Report: Manny, Ortiz tested positive
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4366335
So do we scratch Big Papi’s name off this list?
Merrill Dubrow says:
Ed,
I a sorry to say you are 100% correct. Very sad day for baseball and Redsox nation.
Merrill
Merrill Dubrow says:
ED MAYBE WE DON’T SCRATCH HIM OFF – DO PEOPLE BELIEVE WHAT HE SAID OR IS HE AN UNTOUCHABLE?
Here is what Reid Cherner wrote from USA Today on August 11
Many say they accept Ortiz’s explanation
Eye-opener
Against all odds, it appears that David Ortiz just might beat this positive test thing.
The Boston Red Sox slugger has been adamant that over-the-counter supplements led to his being on the 2003 list of baseball players who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs.
“I definitely was a little bit careless back in those days when I was buying supplements and vitamins over the counter — legal supplements, legal vitamins over the counter — but I never buy steroids or use steroids,” Ortiz said.
While prior claims from other athletes have brought howls of laughter, many find Ortiz’s explanation plausible and give the benefit of the doubt that they didn’t give Manny Ramirez, Sammy Sosa and Alex Rodriguez.
Patrick Arnold, a chemist sentenced to prison during the BALCO scandal, told the New York Daily News that “people back then did test positive because of supplements.”
Said Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland: “I could care less what anybody else thinks. If David Ortiz said he didn’t knowingly take anything, I believe him.”
However, when we asked Monday morning in Game On!, fans were more skeptical.
•45% of voters said they did not believe Ortiz and that everyone is guilty as charged.
•30% believed him and said he was one of the good guys.
•25% were not sure what to believe and were waiting for more information