Growing up in Boston was filled with many things: New England clam chowder, lobster, traffic, funny accents and heated sports discussions. In fact many, many, many heated sports discussions.
Yes if you haven’t noticed, Boston sports fans are very opinionated, passionate and in my opinion knowledgeable.
Over time, I have been involved with many discussions about records that will never be reached—that will never be broken. Here is a list of 6 that I believe will never be broken.
- 511 wins by Cy Young
- 88 consecutive wins by UCLA Bruins
- 2,857 career points for Wayne Gretzky
- 8 Consecutive NBA Championships by the Boston Celtics
- 11 Consecutive victories on the PGA Tour by Byron Nelson in 1945. No disrespect to Tiger Woods.
- 22,895 career receiving yards by Jerry Rice
Please vote for one of these or add in a different one that may have been left off the list.
- Which one makes the top of your list?
- Is there another one you would choose over these?
- What are your comments?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Ed Sugar says:
I vote for UCLA’s 88 undefeated streak. Here is one that might be tied, but never broken; the greatest baseball record that no one talks about Johnny Vander Meer’s back-to-back no-hitters. I just don’t see anyone pitching 3 back-to-back no-hitters.
Robert Harrell says:
First, I wouldn’t discount Tiger on anything.
I think #s 1,2 and 4 are safe. Don’t know enough about hockey to comment on 3.
One record I think WILL be broken is Joe D’s 56 game hitting streak.
Although this really isn’t a record, there is one thing I think will NEVER be done again….father/son (the Griffeys) hitting back to back (oops…I mean consecutive) homeruns. Think about the odds of that happening once, let alone again.
Stephenie Gordon says:
913 Wins by Tennessee’s womens basketball coach, Pat Summitt. She has the most wins of any NCAA coach.
Y.R. says:
I think #4 is the safest of all of these, with #1 being the next safest. I think actually more impressive than Cy Youngs number of wins record is his number of complete games (749). I don’t see anyone ever touching that record the way pitching staffs are put together these days.
Jason R. Miller says:
Hands down – the come from behind sweep of the Yankees by the Red Sox in the 04 ALCS – not only a huge milestone, a HUGE embarassment to the Yankees!
Joe Baldi says:
Merrill, of those listed I have to vote overwhelmingly for Cy Young’s record staying intact. Given that the most # of wins in the Majors last year was 19 and assuming that someone/anyone could sustain 19 win seasons for 25 years that still would not do it. It ain’t happening.
A record that I believe will be broken is Joe D’s 56 game hitting streak.Could be Ichiro
Someone will hit more than 406 in the very near future. again could be Ichiro. Would have to be someone who could run and be a contact hitter. Not going to be a power hitter like the Thumper. They don’t make contact enough.
I hate to admit this being a Yankee hater, but I don’t know if the Yankees 27 World Championships will ever be eclipsed.
I do think that Gretzsky’s record is up for grabs. The NHL is doing all it can with its rules to enhance scoring. This kid Crosby could be the ticket.
Rice’s records could also be in jeopardy . The Colt receivers with Peyton throwing gives one of them a shot.
How about UCLA’s streak of NCAA championships ? Not too sure that will be broken.
Pete Maravich averaging 44 a game. I don’t think so.
I know I gave you more than you asked for but you touched my sweet spot.
Mets/ Bosox in 2007. The Mets win, the Mets win.
Joe
Mike MacLeod says:
No one will come near Cy Young’s win total.
No one will come close to John Wooden’s 88 consecutive wins.
No NBA team is going to win 4 straight with the current structure of the league, let alone approach 8.
Jerry Rice is going to hold onto his record for a long time, but someone will break it in my lifetime.
Tiger will win 12 straight PGA victories. Maybe not this time, but he will. The 12 may be spread over two years, but he will do it.
As painful as it is for me to say, as I grew up 10 minutes from The Great One’s family home, Sid The Kid is going to be breaking a lot of Wayne’s records. The new rules and a more watered-down league will allow for a lot of points.
How about Edwin Moses winning 122 straight races in the 400m hurdles?
Bob Graham says:
The Boston Red Sox will not go another 86 years without winning a World Series Championship!
Tony Amador says:
#1 – Cy Young – is completely out of reach.
The others…not as far fetched…the pace of hockey games and scoring is up and another great player – possibly Sidney Crosby.
If Michael Jordan hadn’t left for baseball…who’s to say they don’t win 8 instead of 3 and 3…is it that hard to imagine another great player and team coming along?
Tiger is at 7 consecutive right now…and who’s to say this is his last streak?
A couple to add to the list…
A. Nolan Ryan’s 7 no hitters
B. Bobby Knight’s record for (men’s) NCAA wins…when he’s finished it’s unlikley anyone – even Coach K – will ever catch him. Guys don’t get handed Division I teams in their early 20’s anymore
C. Rickey Henderson’s 1,406 Steals
D. Rickey Henderson’s 81 Lead off HRs
E. Pete Rose’s 4,256 hits
Adam Lorber says:
are you kidding me? 56 game hitting streak by Joe D will never be broken …ty cobb has a career batting ave of .366 …..Cy Young 511 unreachable and untouchable as well ….only in baseball do you get the true “classic” records…
In every decade players find ways to cheat – corked bats, uppers, roids, etc…Bonds would have been the HOF anyway and let me remind you he has never tested positive for anything…he shouldnt get an astrick – and if he does, then Rocket, Moose, and all of the pitchers should follow…it is just part of the decade and hopefully a test for HGH isnt too far away.
Steve Schlesinger says:
I think Cy Young is safe as are the Bruins. I think the others are vulnerable. I think the one record that will not be broken is Cal Ripken’s consecutive games streak. You might say that he broke Lou Gehring and no one thought that would be broken but what MLB player out there today will play that long and be that durable as we look into the future. Not with the money they are being paid and there love of the money more than the game!
Merrill Dubrow says:
In cased you missed it. Another superstar just passed away with lots of records.
Eddie Feigner, the hard throwing softball pitcher who played for more than 50 years passed away over the passed few days.
How good was he:
Had a fastball clocked at 104 miles per hour – as a softabll pitcher!
Tossed 930 no hitters
238 perfect games
struch out more than 141,000 batters
I saw Eddie pitch a few times. He was amazing he would pitch from the outfield, behind his back, from his knees, between his legs. He was clearly a superstar in his sport
He once struck out Mays, McCovey, Maury Wills, Kellebrew, Clemente and Borroks Robinson in a row during an exhibition game at Dodger Stadium in 1964.
Eddie was one of a kind and his records may also never be broken!
Jim Quilty says:
Satchel Paige…the oldest rookie to join the major leagues…at age 42. We won’t see that again.
Bill Ranney says:
Merrill, Great picks. What about Cal Ripken should have been mentioned however I don’t think any team in any sports will be able to win 8 consecutive NBA Championships in row thats my pick. Bill
Kurt says:
Wilt Chamberlain’s 50.4 ppg in ’61-’62 season will likely never be broken, nor will his 100 points in a single game record.
Connie Mack, 7,755 baseball games managed, is probably safe.
Oklahoma Sooners: 47 consecutive NCAA Division 1-A football victories (Oct. 10, 1953–Nov. 9, 1957). Hard to imagine that this can be duplicated.
Y.R. says:
Heard a hypothetical this morning on the radio that I thought fit well into this thread. Suppose you have a relief pitcher that blows 600 saves in his career but his team comes back to win each time, giving him 600 wins, surpassing Cy Young. Does he get into the Hall of Fame?
Bob Tekampe says:
I agree that Cy Young’s record will never be broken. The Bruins win streak looks pretty safe as well. Eight championships in a row would be pretty tough in today’s NBA, but maybe with the right superstar it could be done. Same thing for 11 consecutive PGA wins….not out of the question for Tiger (or the next Tiger) to do something like that. The Gretzky and Rice records probably win fall eventually.
Here are a couple more to consider: Johnny Vander Meer’s back to back no-hitters. Somebody may tie it someday, but I don’t think anyone will throw back to back to back no-hitters to break it. (back to back to back used with permission of M. Dubrow)
And as a die hard Packer fan, I have to mention Favre’s consecutive start streak-still going strong for another season.
Barry Packer says:
Merrill,
You know that there was no way, I would be able to read this without responding. And, you also know that there are probably several more I could find; but for now:
I can start with Walter Johnson’s 110 career shutouts; move on to Jack Chesbro’s 41 wins for the 1904 Yankees and follow up with Nolan Ryan’s 5,714 lifetime strikeout total.
I noticed many people talking about Cy Young’s 511 wins, which of course is phenomenal. But, how about his 316 losses or his 7,356 innings pitched.
And, speaking of times taking the ball, remember 1974 when Mike Marshall of the Dodgers appeared in 106 games.
Games is something that Gordie Howe knew a lot about, having played professional hockey (NHL/WHA) for 32 seasons.
Duration is not limited to the field as Don Shula’s 347 career wins will probably never be matched, as well as Connie Mack’s 53 years of managing in the long coat, tie and chapeau.
And, while all of these records will probably never be eclipsed, there are others that hold a special place for me; as last night I was at the TD Banknorth Garden to watch the Bruins shut out Edmonton and looking up to the rafters, came up with two more. Between 1968 and 1975 Bobby Orr won every Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman. I am sure that 8 straight will never be matched. And neither will the fact that the Garden, with 32 (10 Bruins and 22 Celtics and a microphone for Johny Most), has more retired numbers than any other arena.
Carl Iseman says:
Moving away ffrom stick and ball sports to motorsports….retiring Grand Prix Formula One Champion Michael Shumacher’s record of 68 pole positions and 91 wins in 249 starts, with seven world championships in 15 seasons is likely to never be matched….but was he worth the $60 million/year slary he was paid??
Harry Heller says:
There is another side record that Joe D holds that may never be broken. After his streak ended, mostly due to a miracle play be Ken Keltner at 3rd base he then went another 19 games on a new streak. Without that miracle play, he would have had a streak of 73 games!!!. He got a hit in 72 out of 73 games.
BTW Gretzky’s Record is safe. As much as the pace has increased so has the defensive schemes — especially in important games. When Gretzky was in his prime, Al Arbour and the Islanders shut him out in the 1984 Stanley Cup Series.