Category Archives: Sports

At 35 years of age, Lionel Messi was recently referred to as an ‘aging genius’, which in the world of football may be an accurate description. I was sucked into watching the final game of the World Cup, which pitted Argentina against France, and Messi led the charge for Argentina. Apparently the whole world watches this thing, so Suzie and some friends brought me up to speed on the basics of the game (like why the clock ticks up instead of down, why the end time is wishy-washy at best, and why there is no half-time show – all the important stuff a novice might question). I got hooked and was totally invested in the story of Messi – this World Cup win would cap a year and career of wins for him, and would likely be his last big game. They managed to pull it off, so no one would have to cry for Argentina, and Messi earns his first Dazzler of the Day to further celebrate. 

You know you’ve made it when your ass goes viral. In Sean Murphy’s case, it was the butt-slap heard around the world, and it neatly earns him this Dazzler of the Day. Murphy plays for the Oakland Athletics, and in a recent game he got hit with a pitch – more specifically, his ass got hit by a pitch – and suddenly that butt was everywhere for any number of reasons. Who doesn’t like a good piece of cake? Let’s play ball.

The third Red Sox player in a row to be crowned Dazzler of the Day, this is J.D. Martinez, in honor of our upcoming return to Fenway Park. Martinez is a designated hitter (I’ve never even been a designated driver) and three-time winner of the Silver Slugger Award. He’s currently in the midst of a five-year $110 million contract with the Red Sox. 

Joining Xander Bogaerts in a Red Sox run of sparkle, Rafael Devers hits his way to his first Dazzler of the Day crowning. Signed by the Red Sox as a 16-year-old (no idea how that works) Devers was considered to be the best left-handed hitter in the world. No comment on what wondrous things I was getting up to at the age of 16, but it wasn’t a $1.5 million deal. Congrats to Devers on that, and this latest honor. 

Gearing up for our BroSox Adventure this weekend, this post marks the debut of Xander Bogaerts as Dazzler of the Day, as my pal Skip recommends him as our first pick of the season for such an honor. Bogaerts goes by a few nicknames – ‘X-man’ or ‘Bogie’ (‘Bogey’) – and has been honored with the Silver Slugger Award several times.  

What’s even better than a perfect game? A game in which the pitcher is so strikingly perfect that every batter up ends up striking out. Hope Trautwein accomplished such an amazing feat, and for that she earns her first turn as Dazzler of the Day. I can’t imagine throwing a single pitch that makes it over the center of home plate – or reaches home plate for that matter – so this sort of excellence is especially impressive.