On our Tijuana-to-Mexico City road trip ahead of a 2006 World Cup qualifier, back in 2005, we noticed that the main north-south road on the western side of Mexico goes right through Navajoa — where Los Angeles Dodgers pitching star Fernando Valenzuela was born. Back in 2005, I assumed readers would not be interested in […]

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This ran as Day 1 in the March 2005 Futbol Diaries road-trip series — ahead of the U.S. national team playing Mexico in a 2006 World Cup qualifying match at Azteca Stadium. It can stand a bit more context. We had begun the day in Southern California, and we were driven down to San Diego […]

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The United States and Mexico are set to resume the greatest rivalry in North American soccer, four days hence, in a 2018 World Cup qualifying match to be played in Mexico’s Estadio Azteca. And the thought of it prompted memories of the 1,800-mile road trip two of us took from Tijuana, Mexico, to Mexico City […]

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The jumbo Sunday crosswords that appear under the imprimatur of the New York Times … had been kicking my butt. Seventeen straight that I failed to complete without a mistake. Making me wonder if the canary had stopped singing in the coal mine of my brain. I completed one on February 20 but, through May […]

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The first week of June brings to mind two history-changing military actions in World War II involving the United States. Arguably the country’s finest hours, when it comes to warfare. –D-Day, June 6, 1944, which was 73 years ago today. –The Battle of Midway, June 4, 1942, Most Americans with a passing knowledge of U.S. […]

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For quite some time now, I have not been good at staying up all night. When I was younger, sure. Not anymore. Either I fail at it, and wake up several hours after whatever I was waiting for is finished, or I make it through the game or the flight and then sleep badly and […]

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Most Los Angeles Dodgers fans remember when Yasiel Puig was going to be something special. It was five years ago this week that he was called up from Triple A and for a spell looked like the Mike Trout of the National League, except with a stronger throwing arm. He was on my fantasy team, […]

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Many Americans seem to think the NFL’s Super Bowl is the world’s most-watched sports event. To be sure, 114 million television viewers, thereabouts, is a big crowd. But the Uefa (European) Champions League final easily wins the “most viewers” statistic with what has been around 380 million watchers, in recent years. Tonight’s final pits soccer […]

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I saw the headline: Twins Turn Triple Play … and, sure, I went to the video. The Twins were playing in Anaheim Stadium and I wondered which of the Angels’ slugs had managed to hit into a 5-4-3 (round the horn) TP. But what really struck me, as the video began? Well, have a look/listen, […]

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For more than a decade, Michelle Kwan represented what we in the journalism call a “standing story”. A standing story is one that is news at any time. Work or play, good or bad, any developments warrant coverage and follow-up because we believe our audience has significant interest in the topic. Particularly so, in my […]

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