Horse racing is a sport that isn't usually talked about much by the majority of the population, though there is a cult group that loyally shows up at the local racetrack on a daily basis (usually unemployed and wearing the same clothes as the day before).
However, the Triple Crown of horse racing sparks national interest during the late part of spring every year. The big three races -- the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes -- provide some horse racing excitement for a few short weeks, and each year there is the possibility of a horse winning all three races and capturing the most coveted of racing prizes - the Triple Crown.
Winning all three races is not as easy as you might think. Though there have been 11 Triple Crown winners in the history of the sport, the last pony to do it was Affirmed in 1978, when the Bee Gee's "Stayin' Alive" topped the singles charts. The big tease of horse racing is that 19 horses have won the first two legs of the crown and then failed to cross the line first in the Belmont.
Not to mention this has happened five of the last seven years. Last year the horse's saddle that the American public jumped on was Funny Cide, who easily won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. But the Triple Crown favorite going into the Derby, Empire Maker, spoiled Funny Cide's chances in the Belmont, playing the Omarosa to his Kwame if you will.
Every year the mismatched comparison of horse racing and baseball is made because the national pastime also has a Triple Crown -- finishing first in the league in home runs, batting average and runs batted in all in the same season.
The jewel of baseball has been accomplished only 16 times since the game's birth, the last one by Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. Though Yaz's stats that year (44 HRs, .326 average, 121 RBI) would have fallen a bit short of last year's leaders in those categories, they were good enough for him to win the most elusive prize in baseball aside from a World Series ring.
The good thing about the Triple Crown in baseball is that it is strictly a statistical award, and there is nothing that stuck up sportswriters or voters can do to take it away from the player.
The numbers speak for themselves, unlike the Most Valuable Player award for which the definition of the word "valuable" and how the player is viewed by the general public come into play (I am still bitter about Albert Belle losing out to Mo Vaughn for MVP in '95).
In fact, one of the most puzzling baseball facts is that Ted Williams won the Triple Crown twice in his career, 1942 and '47, but both years he lost out on the MVP award. To think, a player could lead the big three categories and still not be most valuable in the league.
So of course the hackneyed question now must be asked: which will happen again first, the Triple Crown of horse racing or the Triple Crown of baseball?
Though many are more informed about the difficulty of obtaining the crown in baseball, winning the Belmont after sweeping the first two races might be one of the most difficult tasks in sports.
Most of the horses are pretty evenly matched, which means at that point it comes down to the jockey and how he implements the racing strategy. You can be sure that every other horse will be gunning for that favorite, trying to box him in to preserve the vacancy of horse racing's throne for another year.
Also, as seen last year with Funny Cide, the pressure once that final race comes is enormous. You can bet that leading up to the race you will hear Jimmy Roberts talking about the horse so much you will want to puke.
With the expansion of teams in baseball, it has become more and more difficult for a player to lead all three categories of their crown.
The best chance for there to be a Triple Crown winner in the next few years in baseball is probably Albert Pujols. Pujols came somewhat close last year, leading the National League in batting average, tying for fourth in home runs, and coming in fourth in runs batted in.
The hard thing about winning the baseball Triple Crown is that it is not completely individual, because RBIs depend on having other good players in the lineup before you to get on base to drive in.
Barry Bonds, for example, only had 90 RBIs last year because of the sub-par players batting before him.
Even though he is off to such a great start this season, it will be difficult for him to lead the N.L. in RBIs because of the weak lineup in front of him. Well, that and that pitchers would rather look at John Kruk in the nude than throw him anything inside the strike zone.
Based on how close we have been to a horse racing Triple Crown in the last decade, I'd have to say there is a lot better chance of an animal completing the trifecta than a human doing so in baseball. Pujols definitely has the power to do it, especially because he is early in his career, but like I said, it depends on all those Cardinals hitters setting the table for him.
Did I just discuss the Bee Gees, Albert Belle, and horse racing all in the same column? Have a good summer.
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