An abbreviation for–no, not the American Curling League–the anterior cruciate ligament. This gristly structure crosses the front of the knee joint and keeps bones from sliding out of place. But when torn, its owner slides to the sideline and frequently to the operating room. Recovery often takes the better part of a year to complete, as Green Bay Packers wide receiver Javon Walker and Carolina Panthers defensive tackle Kris Jenkins found out in 2005. Bears QB Rex Grossman already knows.
United States national team and Fire midfielder Chris Armas might employ this maneuver. And it’s not him taking a fruit break on the sidelines. A banana kick is a type of kick that gives the ball a curved trajectory; used to get the ball around an obstacle such as a goalkeeper or a defender.
In a golf tournament, the point at which roughly half the field is trimmed, usually after the second round. Where the line is drawn is relative to the leader, but the standard formula is the low 70 scores plus ties. For example, if the cut had been set after the first round of the 2005 PGA Championship at Baltusrol, Tiger Woods wouldn’t have made it. The leaders were at 4-under par, and the top 70 plus ties finished at 2 over. Woods came in at 5-over 75, tied for 113th in the field of 156. In 2005 Woods saw the end of his streak of 142 cuts made when he failed at the Byron Nelson Championship in May. Since then he won the British Open and finished second at the U.S. Open.
You know it’s a determination of the number of games a first-place team (say, your White Sox) must win or a second-place team (the Twins) must lose for the leader to clinch a title. Here’s how you figure the number: Total number of games in a season (162) minus the number of wins by first-place team (65 for Sox) minus number of losses by second-place team (46 for Twins) plus 1 equals the number (52). If you can remember this simple formula, it’s magic.
On-base percentage Plus Slugging percentage. It’s a “Moneyball” stat contending that a player’s talent for getting on base and his ability to hit for power correlate strongly with runs produced. For example, Ryne Sandberg’s career OPS is .796 (.344 on-base percentage plus .452 slugging percentage). For lesser players, their OPS might be more aptly named oops.
A catcher shall be charged with a passed ball when he fails to hold or to control a legally pitched ball which should have been held or controlled with ordinary effort, thereby permitting a runner or runners to advance. A wild pitch, on the other hand, is one so high, so low, or so wide of the plate that it cannot be handled with ordinary effort by the catcher.
When a starting pitcher throws at least six innings and gives up no more than three earned runs. When Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle was ejected from an August 2005 start after 5 2/3 innings for hitting Baltimore’s B.J. Surhoff, it broke his streak of 49 consecutive starts going at least six innings. However, the A’s roughed him up twice for seven runs, so not all were quality starts.
A method of determining a player’s effectiveness as a passer. (Despite the name of the term, the NFL’s system rates passers, not quarterbacks). Just multiply passing yards per attempt by 8.4; add the number obtained by dividing completions by attempts, multiplied by 100; add the number obtained by dividing touchdowns by passes, multiplied by 330; and subtract the number obtained by dividing interceptions by passes, multiplied by 200. Then stir and refrigerate. Stop reading here if you are a Bears fan. For the sake of comparison, Peyton Manning set the NFL record last year with a rating of 121.1. Former Bears starter Chad Hutchinson has a career mark of 69.1.
