Top 10 Athletes from California
Dishonorable Mention to Mark McGwire of La Verne, Barry Bonds of San Carlos, Tom Brady of San Mateo and Reggie Bush of San Diego. And you know why. And to O.J. Simpson of San Francisco, for a very different reason. If we consider only the stats and the performance, and not how those were reached, or for character after playing, McGwire still might not make it. The other 3 would.
And if you're wondering where Tiger Woods of Cypress is, you're either new to this blog, or you're reading the wrong one. Tiger Woods is a golfer. Golfers are not athletes. When was the last time you heard that Tiger, or any other golfer, didn't make the cut at a major, so he's off playing baseball?
This one is going to be tough, because there's been so many. Some absolute all-time legends won't make the cut. California has produced 25 players in the Baseball Hall of Fame. It has produced more Heisman Trophy winners than any other State, 12. It has produced 22 players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It has produced 13 players in the Basketball Hall of Fame. No members of the Hockey Hall of Fame yet. And countless Olympians.
And most of those people didn't even come close to the Top 10.
But, just to clear up: The athlete is question has to have been trained to play the sport that made him famous in the State of California. If he was born there, but grew up and learned his sport in another State, he doesn't qualify for this list.
Nor does having played for a California team matter. Troy Aikman played for a California college -- in his case, UCLA. Joe Montana played for a California pro team -- in his case, the San Francisco 49ers. And Lew Alcindor/Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did both -- in his case, UCLA and the Los Angeles Lakers. But that's not where they're from: Troy qualifies for Oklahoma, Joe for Pennsylvania, Lew/Kareem for New York.
And, of course, it involves only players, not managers or head coaches, or executives.
So...
Honorable Mention to these Baseball Hall-of-Famers, in chronological order of their major league arrivals: Frank Chance of Fresno, Harry Hooper of Bell Station, Harry Heilmann of San Francisco, George "High Pockets" Kelly of San Francisco, Chick Hafey of Berkeley, Tony Lazzeri of San Francisco, Joe Cronin of San Francisco, Lefty Gomez of Rodeo, Ernie Lombardi of Bobby Doerr of Los Angeles, Bob Lemon of Long Beach, Duke Snider of Compton, Frank Robinson of Oakland, Don Drysdale of Van Nuys, Tom Seaver of Fresno, George Brett of El Segundo, Robin Yount of Los Angeles, Gary Carter of Fullerton, Dennis Eckersley of Fremont, Eddie Murray of Los Angeles, Tony Gwynn of Long Beach, and Randy Johnson of Livermore.
Honorable Mention to the Heisman Trophy Winners. In addition to the disgraced O.J. (1968): Glenn Davis of La Verne (1946), John Huarte of Santa Ana (1964), Mike Garrett of Los Angeles (1965), Gary Beban of Redwood City (1967), Jim Plunkett of San Jose (1970), Charles White of San Fernando (1979), Marcus Allen of San Diego (1981), Gino Torretta of Pinole, Rashan Salaam of San Diego (1994), Carson Palmer of Rancho Santa Margarita (2002) and Matt Leinart of Santa Ana (2004).
Honorable Mention to their Pro Football Hall-of-Famers, not counting the disgraced Simpson: The aforementioned Allen, Tom Fears of Los Angeles, Norm Van Brocklin of Walnut Creek, Frank Gifford of Bakersfield, Les Richter of Fresno, Gino Marchetti of Antioch, Ollie Matson of San Francisco, Hugh McElhenny of Los Angeles, Jimmy Johnson of Kingsburg, Ron Mix of Los Angeles, Lynn Swann of San Mateo, Mike Haynes of Los Angeles, Dan Fouts of San Francisco, Warren Moon of Los Angeles, James Lofton of Los Angeles, Ronnie Lott of Rialto, Bruce Matthews of Arcadia, Anthony Munoz of Ontario, Gary Zimmerman of Walnut, Junior Seau of Oceanside, and Terrell Davis of San Diego.
Also to Tony Gonzalez of Huntington Beach. A while back, I saw a list somebody made of the top 10 football players from the Los Angeles area. It included Gonzalez, who almost certainly will make the Pro Football Hall of Fame when he's eligible in the election that will be held in February 2019; Glenn Davis, who's in the College Football Hall of Fame, and might have made the Pro Hall if he hadn't had to serve out his Army commitment; and 8 guys already in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, including John Elway, who went to high school in Los Angeles but grew up in Washington State, which is why I'm not including him here. Mel Hein went the other way, being born in California but growing up in Washington, so he will probably join Elway when I make that list.
Honorable Mention to their Basketball Hall-of-Famers: Jim Pollard of Oakland, Don Barksdale of Berkeley, Alex Hannum of Los Angeles, Bill Sharman of Porterville, George Yardley of Los Angeles, K.C. Jones of San Francisco, Gail Goodrich of Los Angeles, Bill Walton of La Mesa, Jamaal Wilkes of Ventura, Dennis Johnson of Compton, Reggie Miller of Riverside, Gary Payton of Oakland.
Honorable Mention to Tennis legends: Helen Wills Moody, Jack Kramer and Venus Williams. So now, you can guess who one of the Top 10 is.
Honorable Mention to Olympic Gold Medalists: Bob Mathias of Tulare. Greg Louganis of Santa Ana and Florence Griffith Joyner of Los Angeles. Think about how deep California's talent pool is: The 1st man to win the Olympic decathlon twice, the greatest competitive diver ever, and possibly the fastest female sprinter ever -- and they don't make the Top 10.
Also runner Mal Whitfield of Los Angeles; shot-putter Parry O'Brien of Santa Monica; swimmers Donna de Varona of San Diego, Debbie Meyer of Sacramento, and Janet Evans of Placentia; and divers Sammy Lee of Fresno and Pat McCormack of Long Beach.
And Honorable Mention to winners of the James E. Sullivan Award, given by the Amateur Athletic Union to the most outstanding American amateur athlete of the year: In addition to Mathias, Louganis, Flo-Jo, Whitfield, O'Brien, Meyer, Evans, Lee and McCormack, there's pole vaulter Cornelius Warmerdam of Hanford and swimmer Ann Curtis of San Francisco, whose best years saw the Olympics wiped out by World War II; swimmer Tim Shaw of Long Beach, runner Mary Decker of Garden Grove, long jumper Mike Powell of West Covina and figure skater Michelle Kwan of Palos Verdes. And golfer Lawson Little of San Francisco, but, as I said, golfers are not athletes.
Now, the Top 10:
10. Don Budge of Oakland. In 1937, he won Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, earning him the Sullivan Award. In 1938, he won both of those again, and also the Australian and French Opens. He was the 1st tennis player, of either gender, to win all 4 in 1 year, making him the 1st to win what would later be called the Grand Slam.
He is in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and lived long enough to be introduced at the opening of Arthur Ashe Stadium at the 1998 U.S. Open.
I was a bit surprised by the number of tennis players available for this list. I ended up selecting 4 of the 10 from tennis. Including...
9. Billie Jean King of Long Beach. She won 12 women's singles titles at majors: Wimbledon 6 times, in 1966, '67, '68, '72, '73 and '75; the U.S. Open 4 times, in 1967, '71, '72 and '74; the Australian Open in 1968; and the French Open in 1972. That, alone, would make her a finalist for this list. Throw in 16 women's doubles titles from 1961 to 1979 -- 18 years apart -- and 11 mixed doubles titles from 1967 to 1976, and that's a total of 39 majors. An average of 2 a year.
But beyond the victories, along with Babe Ruth, Joe Louis, Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali, she is 1 of the 5 most important athletes of the 20th Century -- and, with Ali's death last year, she's the only one of those still alive -- because of how she raised the profile, and the prize money, of women's sports. To put it into a baseball perspective: She had Hank Aaron's talent, Curt Flood's drive to make the sport more fair, and Andy Messersmith's success at that endeavor, and took as much heat for it as all 3.
The fact that she beat Bobby Riggs in that 1973 "Battle of the Sexes" shouldn't really count -- except, it kind of still does. The fact that she did all of this while staying in the closet until she no longer could, and then accepted her role as a gay rights icon as well as a feminist icon and a sports icon, makes her even more remarkable.
In 1975, Seventeen magazine polled its readers, and they named Billie Jean their most admired woman. (Then again, these were the days when The Weekly Reader polled grade school kids, and the biggest "hero" of both genders was O.J., ahead of Moon lander Neil Armstrong.)
She is a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and the National Tennis Center at New York's Flushing Meadow-Corona Park is named for her. (The main stadium is named for Arthur Ashe, but the entire complex is named for Billie Jean.)
8. Mark Spitz of Sacramento. The swimmer with the fabulous mustache won 2 Gold Medals, a Silver Medal and a Bronze Medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. Then, at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany -- heavy with symbolism, not just because the Jewish Spitz was competing in what was essentially the Nazis' hometown, but also with the Palestinian terrorists' kidnapping of several Israeli athletes -- he put together what was then the greatest performance ever at a single Olympics: 7-for-7 in Gold Medals, 4 individual, 3 relay.
At 67, "Mark the Shark" has now been far surpassed by Michael Phelps in what's been won, and with his hair gone white and his 'stache long gone, he's unrecognizable. But he remains in good health, and enjoys painting and sailing.
7. Rafer Johnson of Kingsburg. He nearly beat New Jersey's Milt Campbell for the decathlon at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. He kept on competing at UCLA, and in 1958 was named Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, the 1st black person so honored. (SI wouldn't select another for 10 years.) In 1960, he went to Rome, and won the Gold Medal, barely beating out his UCLA, but not national, teammate, Yang Chuan-kwang (known in the U.S. media as C.K. Yang) of Taiwan. He won the Sullivan Award that year.
He became an actor and a sports anchor on a Los Angeles local news broadcast, and was one of Robert Kennedy's bodyguards during the 1968 California Primary, along with Rams star and actor Rosey Grier. They were unable to protect him: According to a reporter, while he and Grier were among those holding down accused shooter Sirhan Sirhan, someone yelled for Rafer to get the gun.
At the 1960 Olympics, even before he had won his Gold Medal, he was asked to carry the American flag during the Opening Ceremony, the 1st black athlete so chosen. In 1984, as the Olympics came to his home State, he was asked to light the cauldron with the Olympic flame at the Los Angeles Coliseum. Today, he is an advisor to the UCLA athletic department.
His brother is the aforementioned Jimmy Johnson, Hall of Fame cornerback for the 1960s San Francisco 49ers. Two of his children followed him into UCLA sports: Son Joshua competed in track, and was a medalist at the U.S. Championships; while daughter Jennifer competed in beach volleyball at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
6. Pete Sampras of Palos Verdes. He's never won the French Open, the closest call coming in the 1996 Semifinal. But he's won the Australian Open twice, in 1994 and 1997; the U.S. Open 5 times, in 1990, '93, '95, '96 and 2002; and Wimbledon 7 times, in 1993, '94, '95, '97, '98, '99 and 2000; for a total of 14 majors. He's already in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and he's probably the best male American tennis player ever.
The best female American tennis player ever? Let's not get ahead of ourselves. First, a guy who played a little tennis.
5. Jackie Robinson of Pasadena. Yes, Jackie played tennis at UCLA. And ran track there. And played basketball, before John Wooden made the words "UCLA Basketball" legend. And played football there, making himself perhaps the best running back in the league now known as the Pac-12 in 1939 and '40. Yes, football was Jackie Robinson's best sport.
Of course, it was in baseball that he made his biggest impact. Or, rather, it was through baseball that he made his biggest impact. He changed the whole world. And he wasn't just a pioneer: He could play. He "brought the Negro Leagues' game to the major leagues," reminding everyone that baserunning could be a weapon. He changed how the game was played, not just by whom.
He batted .311 lifetime. He was National League Rookie of the Year in 1947 (the 1st time the award was given), NL Most Valuable Player in 1949, a 6-time All-Star, and a Pennant winner in 1947, '49, '52, '53, '55 and '56, winning the 1955 World Series.
He was the 1st black person elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, the 1st Dodger to have his uniform number retired (in his hometown of Los Angeles, although he only played for them in Brooklyn), and the only player ever to have his uniform number retired for all of baseball. And yet, every year, on or (if a team is off that day) near April 15, the anniversary of his debut, Jackie Robinson Day is celebrated throughout Major League Baseball, and every player wears Number 42.
In 1999, The Sporting News named him to their list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and fans voted him onto the Major League Baseball All-Century Team as one of its 2nd basemen. The former was based solely on performance; the latter took his social importance into account. He is buried at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn, which is bisected by what was the Interborough Parkway. In 1997, as part of the celebrations of the 50th Anniversary of his debut (which included the universal number retirement), it was renamed the Jackie Robinson Parkway.
4. Ted Williams of San Diego."All I ever wanted was to be able to walk down the street, and hear people say, 'There goes the greatest hitter who ever lived.'" He wasn't -- he admitted that Babe Ruth was -- but people did call him "the greatest hitter who ever lived," so his wish came through.
He was a 19-time All-Star. His .344 lifetime batting average is the highest of any player whose career began in the last 100 years. In 1941, he batted .406, still the last man to bat .400 for a full season. He was 23. In 1957, he almost did it again, reaching .388. He was 39. His .482 on-base percentage is the highest ever. He hit 521 home runs despite missing what amounted to 5 seasons fighting in World War II and the Korean War.
He won 6 American League batting titles. He won the Triple Crown in 1942 and '47. He won the AL MVP in 1946 and '49. He only won 1 Pennant, with the Boston Red Sox in 1946, and lost the World Series, but it doesn't seem to have harmed his legend.
The Red Sox retired his Number 9. He was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame, The Sporting News' 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and the MLB All-Century Team. The tunnel extending the Massachusetts Turnpike to Logan International Airport in Boston is named the Ted Williams Tunnel.
His fellow ballplayer and World War II pilot, Yale University 1st baseman, President George H.W. Bush called him "John Wayne in a baseball uniform." Except Ted actually did serve his country, and he was a far better athlete. I understand he was good at fishing, too.
3. Serena Williams of Compton. Who is the greatest female tennis player of all time? If you said anyone other than Serena or Martina Navratilova, dream on. Serena has won Wimbledon 7 times: 2002, '03, '09, '10, '12, '15 and '16. She has won the Australian Open 7 times: 2003, '05, '07, '09, '10, '15 and '17. She has won the U.S. Open 6 times: 1999, 2002, '08, '12, '13 and '14. And she has won the French Open 3 times: 2002, '13 and '15. That's 23 majors. Martina? 18.
She and Venus also won the women's doubles titles at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, and Serena won the women's singles title at the 2012 Olympics in London.
Oh yeah: That Australian Open she won earlier this year? She was pregnant at the time. Okay, it was just 1 month, but she was still pregnant. And soccer players act like babies if they so much as get knocked over? Get outta here!
2. Joe DiMaggio of San Francisco. Because of his World War II service and a heel injury that forced him to retire right after his 37th birthday, the Yankee Clipper played only 13 seasons. He was named to the All-Star Game all 13 times.
There was no Gold Glove Award to confer on the best center fielder of his generation, but he won 3 AL MVPs (1939, '41 and '47), 3 batting titles, 10 Pennants and 9 World Series: 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1947, 1949, 1950 and 1951. The 56-game hitting streak he had from May 15 to July 16, 1941 is what stands out, but what got remembered by those for whom he was the player in their youth was the way he glided around the bases, and around center field. Nobody ever looked more like a ballplayer than Joltin' Joe.
Oh yeah, he was a pop culture icon, too, with that hit song in 1941, his brief marriage to iconic actress Marilyn Monroe that boosted both of them to the stratosphere of American imagination, his commercials for The Bowery Savings Bank and Mr. Coffee, and his name-drops in Ernest Hemingway's novel The Old Man and the Sea; in songs by Paul Simon, Billy Joel and Madonna; and on the TV show Seinfeld, some of these long after he hung up his spikes.
The Yankees retired his Number 5, and he was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame, the 1969 Baseball Centennial Team (including, perhaps incorrectly, as "The Greatest Living Player"), The Sporting News' 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and the MLB All-Century Team. The latter 2 took place shortly after his death in 1999, at which point the Yankees replaced his Plaque in Yankee Stadium's Monument Park with a Monument, and New York City renamed the West Side Highway the Joe DiMaggio Highway.
Broadcaster Bob Costas put it best: "DiMaggio played his last game in 1951. I was born in 1952. And my dad, and every guy in my dad's generation said the same thing: 'Willie Mays? Great. Mickey Mantle? Hit the ball out of sight. You never saw DiMaggio, kid. You never saw the real thing."
1. Bill Russell of Oakland. He is North American sport's greatest winner. He won National Championships at the University of San Francisco in 1955 and '56 (part of a winning streak that would reach 60 games, a record later broken by Walton's UCLA in 1971-74 at 88). He led the U.S. basketball team to the Olympic Gold Medal in Melbourne in 1956.
He played 13 seasons for the Boston Celtics, got them at least to the Eastern Division Finals all 13 seasons, to the NBA Finals in 12, and won the NBA Championship in 11: 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968 and 1969.
(The 2 losses? In 1958, the St. Louis Hawks beat the Celtics because Russell was playing through an ankle injury. And in 1967, the Philadelphia 76ers put together what's sometimes regarded as the greatest team in NBA history, finally getting Wilt Chamberlain his 1st title.)
In 1966, Celtics general manager Red Auerbach stepped aside as head coach, naming Russell to succeed him, making him -- unless you count the early NFL as "major league," whose definition it probably didn't meet, but if you do, then Fritz Pollard was -- the 1st black head coach in North American major league sports. Thus, he was player-coach for the 1968 and '69 titles. Later, with Seattle and Sacramento, he discovered that it was a lot harder for Bill Russell to coach when he didn't have Bill Russell to play.
The Celtics retired his Number 6. He was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame and the NBA's 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players. The NBA named the Finals Most Valuable Player Award after him. And, while with the Miami Heat, LeBron James switched from the Number 23 he had worn to honor Michael Jordan to Russell's 6, to symbolize the titles he wanted to win.
A statue of him stands outside TD Garden. There's another sign of his greatness: Pro sports have been played at that site (it was built behind the old Boston Garden) for almost 90 years, and yet only 2 athletes are honored with statues there: Bill Russell and Bobby Orr.