34. Kurt Miller
Kurt Miller was supposed to be a big deal. This is a man drafted fifth overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates. His career started off well as he performed well in the lower levels of minor league baseball. He was good enough to be traded for Steve Buechele, and that ain't nothing to sneeze at. He was able to make his major league debut at the age of 21 with the Marlins. Unfortunately, the major leagues seemed to be a code that he couldn't crack. The Marlins traded him to the Cubs for nothing before the 1998 season. And that's where things get interesting.
Kurt Miller's 1998 season for the Chicago Cubs was nothing short of incredible. Let's take a quick look at his ERA in each of his years in the majors.
8.10
DNP
6.80
9.82
0.00
18.00
Oh yeah, 1998 was a magical year. Miller went 14-3 for the Iowa Cubs that year to earn a September callup to Chicago. In three appearances, Miller went four innings, had six strikeouts, while giving up zero walks and zero runs. This was not smoke and mirrors as his FIP was 0.14.
And he didn't just do this against chumps. I mean, Miller was able to take out both Aaron and Bret Boone in the SAME inning. His relief work was a boon for the Cubs who were in desperate need of bullpen help.
But as good as Miller's stats were, his most important stat was 0-3, and that was the Cubs record in games where Miller pitched. Now a lot of nerds will tell you that reliever win percentage is not a thing, but Jim Riggleman and I know better. Sure, Miller was never put in a game where the Cubs were losing by any less than four runs, but a reliever's job is not only to get outs, it is to inspire his teammates, and that is where Miller fell short.
So it was no surprise that despite Miller's statistical superiority in many categories, Riggleman left him off the playoff roster.
Although he started the year in the big leagues for the Cubs, poor performance and a rib injury got him sent down and eventually he was allowed to play in Japan where he struggled for a couple years before retiring in 2000.
Kurt Miller did not have a long run in 1998, but he did the best job possible in that limited time. Sure, any hope for the future turned out to be misguided, but the 1998 Chicago Cubs were a team built on hope and Miller only added to Cubs' fans optimism.
38. Derrick White
Derrick White's career makes no sense. I keep looking through things, and there is no rhyme or reason to anything. He was drafted by the Expos after a very good final year at Oklahoma and sent to play short season ball for the rest of 1991. In 1992, he skipped both levels of A-ball to play the entire year in Double-A. He put up decent numbers. Then, in 1993, he played in High-A, Double-A, and Triple-A before getting a callup for 23 games for the Expos. In 1994, he struggled in Triple-A, got released by the Expos, signed by the Marlins and sent down to Double-A. In 1995, he signed with the Detroit Tigers, played the majority of the year at Triple-A but also got 39 games with the Tigers. Then, in 1996, he signs with the Oakland Athletics and spends the entire year between both levels of A-ball. I thought there were rules against guys being that old (26) and in low-A. In 1997, he spent the year at Double and Triple-A for the Angels before signing with the Cubs in the offseason.
White went to Triple-A Iowa and put up his best numbers ever, torching the league to the tune of 1.112 OPS in 66 games for the team. His torrid pace earned him a callup at the end of May. Things continued to be weird for White. He played in 11 games for the Chicago Cubs and got a total of ten at bats. In nine of those at bats, he failed to record a hit. Five of those times, he failed to even make contact. But one at bat was different. In one at bat, Derrick White unleashed his potential, and that is what is important to remember.
The date was June 6, 1998. The Chicago Cubs hosted the Chicago White Sox at Wrigley Field in just the second year of interleague play. A pitcher's duel was expected as Scott Eyre took on the Cubs' Kevin Tapani. It played out that way for the first two innings as both teams were held scoreless. The White Sox were the first to put a run on the board in the top of the third when Ray Durham hit a double and was driven in by Mike Caruso.
But the Cubs would not go down easily. They strung together a ton of singles and took advantage of a Frank Thomas error to score three runs in the third. They continued the momentum in the fourth when Jose Hernandez hit a solo home run. Things were looking great for the good guys. In the 5th, the White Sox inched closer when Mike Caruso drove another run home. In the sixth, the White Sox made their move as Robin Ventura tripled, Magglio Ordonez singled, and then Charlie O'Brien hit a home run to give the White Sox a 5-4 lead. It may have only been the sixth inning, but this game looked like it was over.
Eyre had calmed down and appeared to be cruising. He dispatched of Henry Rodriguez easily. Then, something truly inexplicable happened as he found a way to walk Jose Hernandez. It looked like it wouldn't matter when he got the second out by making Scott Servais ground out. Instead of ending the inning against Kevin Tapani, Jim Riggleman made a bold move. He brought in Derrick White, a man who was 0-5 with three strikeouts on the season. Only a fool would make such a folly as a manager, but Jim Riggleman was no fool. Scott Eyre smirked to himself as he saw White stroll to the plate, but his overconfidence would be his downfall. Eyre left one over the plate, and Derrick White connected. It was high; it was deep; it was gone. Derrick White would give the Cubs a one-run lead in a game they would go on to win 7-6. He may have gone 0-9 in his other at bats, but his one hit was instrumental in getting the Cubs to the playoffs that year.
White seemed like a guy who would quickly wash out of baseball, but he found a way to hang around the game. He never made the major leagues again after 1998, but he bounced around from Triple-A, independent ball, Korea, Japan, and found his home in Mexico where he tore it up for Tijuana until finally retiring in 2009. It may have not been the career he dreamed of, but it definitely had its moments.
What a wonderful night of fighting for women's mixed martial arts. The most dominant woman in the history of MMA came back to take on an experienced veteran to not only test her skills but her will to win. The eyes of everyone around the world was watching this fight, and even though it was short-lived, it certainly didn't disappoint. Of course I am talking about Gabi Garcia taking on legitimate grandmother, Yumika Hotta. If you were only watching Ronda Rousey and Amanda Nunes, I feel sorry for you, because this fight owned. Just look at these two competitors. First, our beloved grandmother:
And here is 210 pounds of Gabi Garcia:
So I was super excited to watch this match, but my expectations were not nearly high enough, because everything about this was awesome. I mean, just look at this staredown.
But the beginning of this match may have been the greatest thing I have ever seen in mixed martial arts.
This moment belongs in the Smithsonian. I can't stop watching it, as it is absolutely mesmerizing.
Shockingly, this was not a strategy for success for Hotta. Yumika then ate a knee, but that was just to lure her into her master plan.
Unfortunately, that master plan did not quite work out as Hotta was finished in 41 seconds.
This fight was incredibly dangerous and irresponsible. It should have never happened. That being said, it was totally awesome, and I am SO glad it did. Also, was this beating really any worse than the one Ronda Rousey took from Amanda Nunes? No, and Hotta at least gets to snuggle with her grandkids at the end of the night.
Everybody remembers Rick Rude, but I'm not sure people remember how great Rick Rude was. I'm honestly not sure if there was a better heel during his era, as it was impossible to cheer for Rick Rude. He was better than everybody else, and there was nothing more that he loved to do than shove that fact right down their throats. Still, he is not remembered for being as great as he was, and now that Macho Man is in, Rick Rude is definitely the most deserving person to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
The guy had it all. Rick Rude was amazing on the mic. In his debut match, he set the tone for what his schtick would be:
Sweathogs is an insult that is not used nearly enough. It elaborates enough on a simple pig comment by not only saying you look like a hog which takes care of fat and ugly, but you both look and smell disgusting with the sweat added in. Underrated in this clip is Vince McMahon commenting on Rude as he disrobes, "Well, pretty good abs, traps not too bad," and then the camera flashes to a fat kid, and McMahon gets completely flustered. It's all perfect.
And then, after his match, he kisses a woman so passionately that she faints from the experience. If I had a nickel for every time that happened to me...I would have like 25 cents, although I think the girls may have just pretended to pass out to prevent any funny business. Either way, I'm a helluva kisser. Underrated part of after the match is that Rick Rude would then stand over the woman and gyrate his hips. I really should have tried that maneuver to show the ladies that I'm a bonafide stud.
But it wasn't just on the mic that Rude was a stud, as he could flat out wrestle. He succeeded in WWE, WCW, and in Japan while excelling in every style. This man could not only have great matches with other great wrestlers; he managed to not only get a good match but good matches out of the Ultimate Warrior.
That alone should be enough to make him a Hall of Famer. And the guy was a heel through and through. Rude used to just flex his ass in the middle of the ring or gyrate his hips and get boos rained down on him. He was a total heel in that every bit of his offense made you think this was a bad guy. It was full of headlocks and sleepers and punches to the gut. That slow offense makes it impossible to cheer for a guy. But even when he would add some flash and hold suplexes, there was always that little bit of him showing off that made people hate him.
Oh yeah, and the man loved to show ass. There is nobody in history that got depantsed more than Rude.
And although he never became World Champion in the WWE, he did manage to do it in the WCW.
He not only beat Flair for the title, but he also managed to make out with one of Flair's many different women. As far as I know, he may be the only guy who can claim the latter. He had an incredible career where he not only managed to look great, but he always made his opponents look great as well. After finally becoming a World Champion, he actually never lost the title. Unfortunately, he injured his back in a freak accident in a match against Sting in Japan and was forced to retire. But Rick Rude was pure money both in and out of the ring.
That being said, had he just gone to the ring in his custom made tights, he still would probably be one of my 20 favorite wrestlers of all time. Here are the top five things that Rick Rude had airbrushed on the front of his tights: 5. His Face
It's an incredibly great way to peacock. I mean, if Mystery is armed with a top hat and a boa, you're going to blow him out of the water with custom made tights with your face on the front. A great pickup gambit would be asking a girl to kiss you on your airbrushed lips.
4. Championship Belt
Since you can't wear your title belt at all times, it is best to just airbrush it on there to let the ladies know that anytime you put on your pants, you're a champion. They'll learn later that when you take off your pants, you're even more of a champion.
3. Regis and Kathie Lee's Faces
Yep, just Rick Rude making a woman pass out from the passion of his kiss, and then showing off Kathie Lee's airbrushed face on his front side, while using his backside to make Regis animated when he flexed his ass. This is a very boss maneuver for whenever you are invited on to a talk show, and I think more people should follow Rick Rude's lead.
2. His Opponent's Face
I mean, how demeaning is that? Just your face is right on his dick. That has to be one of the most alpha maneuvers anyone can possibly pull off.
1. His Opponent's Wife's Face
This is the most alpha maneuver. His opponent had a woman? Yeah, Rick Rude's going to put that woman's face right over his dick. Imagine somebody doing that to you. If somebody put my wife's face on their pants, I'd have no choice but to fight them. Like, I couldn't just let them keep wearing those pants. But man, if I saw somebody doing that to somebody else's wife, I would applaud that dude for the gumption. Basically, I am just saying that this is one of the greatest heel maneuvers ever, and I really want a wrestler to bring it back.
After his wrestling days were over due to a back injury, he still had one of the most memorable moments of the Monday Night Wars when he showed up on both shows at the exact same time. Since Raw was pretaped every other week, Rude was there for the taping, but his contract ended and he showed up on a live episode of Monday Nitro.
Yeah, if this isn't 100% the reason that Rude isn't in the WWE Hall of Fame, then it is at least 99% of the reason. He not only screwed over WWE, but then he buried them on their competitor's show. A couple years after this, Rick Rude died at the age of 40 from heart failure. He was a wrestler in the 80s and 90s, so he undoubtedly lived a hard life, but one that still ended far too soon.
Basically, if I was going to be a pro wrestler, I would want to be Rick Rude. Great look, great mustache, and could live like a heel in every aspect of life. Rick Rude's one of the greatest wrestlers of all-time; he's criminally underrated, and WWE needs to put him in the Hall of Fame immediately. It's long overdue for an all-time great.
How was Adam Bomb not a bigger deal? He was a big dude who could believably crush people, and yet he never really got any sort of push into a title picture. Instead, he just kind of existed.
The dude was huge, jacked, and he had cool sunglasses. I mean, is that name stupid? Objectively, yes, it is an awful name and it is impossible to deny the stupidity. So, yes, it was stupid...stupid awesome. Think about it as if you were a child. His last name was Bomb. This guy should have had sold a shit-ton of merchandise.
Could he talk? Not really, but most big guys aren't that great of talkers and managers were still a normal thing to pair with a big guy who wasn't quite polished yet. He started off with Johnny Polo, but Polo dumped him on Harvey Wippleman to focus on the Quebecers. Harvey Wippleman dumped him so he could manage Kwang, who was best known as being a secret character in the video game WWF Raw for the 32X (I got a 32X like three years after it came out for ten bucks and that game for another 5. I would say I got my $15 out of the investment, but nothing more).
After that, he kind of became a good guy, but people stopped caring, and it didn't help that he would do a pose and the WWE would shoot up green smoke behind him, which made his Adam Bomb look like he just farted. Considering he would be released a few months later, it was kind of a fitting image.
That's where Adam Bomb effectively died. He became Wrath in WCW, but then went by his real name of Bryan Clark to tag with Brian Adams as KroniK. They won the tag titles a couple times, but it was during the Vince Russo era, so it doesn't really count as success at that point. He had a brief cup of coffee in the WWE, but injuries quickly ended that run, and after bouncing around in independents and Japan, he retired in 2003.
It's pretty clear that Adam Bomb wasn't destined to carry a company, but it seems like he could have done more. In an era when guys like Marty Jannetty, Ahmed Johnson, and Marc Mero became Intercontinental Champions, it sure seems like Adam Bomb could have been more. Adam Bomb should have been more.
