Super Bowl Prediction Post

It's that time of year where I make my annual post about the Super Bowl and connect it to some cards depicting the cities involved.

Let's start with the defending champs, the Kansas City Chiefs.  Similar to last year's post I can show off a card from the 2012 All-Star Game which was held in Kansas City.

Cutch participated in the Home Run Derby that year and Topps released a lot of cards from the annual event.  I already showed off my 2012 Topps Update Black parallel with a serial number prefix of 15 (Patrick Mahomes jersey number) last year.  

This year I am going to go with a much bigger card from the collection that I didn't own at the time of last year's Super Bowl.

Above is a 2013 Triple Threads laundry tag booklet card 1/1 featuring the jersey worn during batting practice and on field events for the 2012 All-Star Game, held in Kansas City.

Now for Tampa Bay.  The Buccaneers haven't been in the Super Bowl for nearly two decades.  Tom Brady left the New England Patriots last off season and there was many conversations about who was the most valuable asset to the New England Patriots dynasty.  Was it Tom Brady, the quarterback, or the mastermind coach, Bill Belichek?

Well, as the Patriots missed the playoffs and the Buccaneers are in the Super Bowl, it should be obvious that the guys who play the game often are the ones who win the games.  

This is true for nearly all sports.  In baseball, Joe Maddon In is often regarded as one of the most innovative and strategic managers in the game, yet he only won 1 World Series (thanks in large part to a late inning rainshower in Game 7).

Maddon got a lot of recognition for his time in Tampa Bay when he took a team with a bottom 5 payroll year after year to the Postseason year after year. 

Maddon is a Superstar coach and recognized a Superstar impression on the back of this 2013 Prizm Cutch card.

As you can see the Tampa Bay coach was impressed by another player.

I have a feeling another Tampa Bay will be admiring the player on the other side of the field today.

My prediction KC over TB 30-28

Injuries Suck!

So I am sure everyone heard the news by now.  Phillies star outfielder and leader, Andrew McCutchen will be out for the remainder of the 2019 season.

This sucks!  

Cutch had a legit shot at being an All-Star this year at the time of his injury he was leading the National League in walks, top 5 in runs scored, and a top 15 in On Base Percentage.  With only a third of the season in the books at the time of the injury, Cutch is hoping that he can recover and be ready for Opening Day 2020.

While the injury sucks and losing four months of the season will hurt his statistics, he remains optimistic and said he would like to remain a part of the team for as much of the season as possible.

Andrew McCutchen is one of the true professionals in the game.  Next year, uponbrecovery, he will look to add more hardware to his trophy case by going for Comeback Player Of The Year.

Injuries happen in sports.

ACL tears happen and many players have gone on to have long and great careers after such tears.  Let's take a look at some of them.

The rest of the world calls football what we call Soccer.  One of the biggest American female Soccer stars is Alex Morgan.

Morgan teamed up with Andrew McCutchen in 2017 to be Chevy's Ambassadors of youth sports.

Morgan, like McCutchen tore an ACL in high school and went on to have a very long and recognizable career, winning the Women's World Cup in 2011.

I purchased this Alex Morgan autograph last year as part of a contest I was thinking about running, but liked it so much I never put it up as a prize.



Tom Brady
Known as American Football to the rest of the world, we just call it football.  And while some many argue if he is actually the G.O.A.T. no one can deny that Tom Brady knows how to win and puts up great numbers year after year after year.  Since tearing his ACL and MCL in the first quarter of the first game of the 2008 season Tom Brady has emerged in discussions for being one of the greatest football players of all time.

Rob Gronkowki
Brady's teammate is no stranger to ACL tears as he has also gone on to produce a Hall of Fame career even after tearing an ACL in 2014.

Adrian Peterson
Eight months after tearing his ACL, "AP" went on to fall just 9 yards short of the single season rushing record.

Kyle Schwarber
Kyle tore his ACL on the third game of the 2016 season and would miss the entire regular season.  During October of that year, Schwarber returned in the Post Season and helped the Cubs win their first World Series in over 100 years.  Schwarber even had a stolen base in the contest.

Mariano Rivera
After toying with the idea of retiring following the 2012 season, Mariano tore his ACL shagging fly balls on the outfield early in the 2012 season.  He told the media that he wasn't going out like that and that he would return for the 2013 season.  During his final season, the 43 year old closer became an All-Star yet again.  He became the first unanimous Hall of Famer.


Can anyone think of other star athletes who went on to have great careers and moments after tearing an ACL?