Illya's Bio
Illya Harrell is a retired grocery store bag boy.
He wishes that he had never quit little league baseball because he is confident that he would have been the next Billy Joe Robidoux. When not obsessing over what might have been, Illya enjoys watching baseball, thinking about baseball, reading baseball articles and books, writing baseball articles, playing fantasy league baseball, and replaying the 1986 baseball season on an obscure baseball board game.
Other hobbies include college football and drinking bubbly water.
Illya's Recent Articles
Illya Writes About
- MLB (61),
- Baseball (54),
- Louisville (51),
- Cincinnati (51),
- Cincinnati Reds (51),
- Columbus OH (51),
- Opinion (45),
- NL Central (23)
- TAB BAMFORD responded to a comment on Milton Bradley Moving? Chicago Cubs Heating Up the Hot Stove
- TAB BAMFORD responded to a comment on Milton Bradley Moving? Chicago Cubs Heating Up the Hot Stove
- BabyTate responded to a comment on College Football: Baby's Losers For November 14
- BabyTate responded to a comment on College Football: Baby's Losers For November 14
- Illya Harrell has picked The Best Money Can Buy: New York Yankees' 27th Title No Real Accomplishment as a favorite article
- Illya Harrell commented on Congress' Resolution: Congratulating the Yankees on Their Title
The Short List What Illya thinks about sport's most pressing questions
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Favorite Athletes
Riggo, Renee Montgomery, Junior, Eric Davis, Rickey Henderson, Sean Casey, Pennington & Leftwich & Moss, Skip Henderson, Barry Larkin, Art Monk, Patrick Patterson
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Favorite Sports Teams
Reds, Redskins, and the Thundering Herd of Marshall University
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Favorite Coaches
Rick Sweet, Joe Gibbs, Bobby Pruitt, Rick Huckabay
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All Time Sports Moment
That Russian dude beating the U.S. men's team by shooting a length-of-the-courter in the '72 or '68 Olympics.
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Most Memorable Game Attended
RFK Stadium with the bleachers literally bouncing up and down while watching Art Monk catch the pass that briefly gave him the all-time reception record. Some guy named Rice eventually ended up with more caught balls than Monk.
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Most Unbreakable Sports Record
Throwing three no-hitters in a row seems impossible at the major league level. So I am going with Johnny Vander Meer's back-to-back no-no's. Someone may tie it someday. But to break that record would be super human.
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Ruth or Mays?
I'd rather hang with Willie. Ruth wouldn't be very fun at this point.
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Unitas or Montana?
Joe. Same reason as above.
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Jordan or Russell?
Bill Russell -- NO DOUBT! Jordan would annoy the daylights out of me.
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Gretzky or Orr?
The Gret One
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Pele or Maradona?
Madonna. I can look past the fact that she dated A-Rod.
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Federer or Sampras?
Federer
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Tiger or Nicklaus?
Tiger
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Petty or Earnhardt?
Lori Petty was awesome in 'Tank Girl'.
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Schumacher or Senna?
Schumacher, I've never heard of the other jockey.
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Pac 10, Big 12, Big 10, SEC, ACC, or Big East?
SEC (Baseball & Football), Big East (Basketball)






Heartbeat of the Bronx158 articles
D.A.201 articles
Goon4 articles
Hotnuke65 articles
Jack118 articles
michele119 articles
J.C.105 articles
Mislav0 articles
Henry 36 articles
Ben3 articles





Bulletin Board (239) Post a note »
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1 day ago
Illya, only two people did better than 5-4 last week, we need your expertise!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/286888-college-football-babys-losers-for-the-second-week-of-november
Baby Tate
2 days ago
here is a story of another NFL Legend who has yet to get his deserved respect :
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/286573-crazy-canton-cuts-ed-meador
3 days ago
Illya,
I thought you might like this piece. It’s not just your standard “breaking news” piece about a trade, although it does note the trade of Jeremy Hermida from the Florida Marlins to the Boston Red Sox. Let me know what you think in the comments section.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/285981-unrealized-potential-florida-marlins-trade-jeremy-hermida-to-boston
Thanks,
Daniel Barber aka Hotnuke
3 days ago
For all of those out there who say baseball should have a salary cap, prepare to have some knowledge dropped on you.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/285772-bustin-the-cap-why-a-salary-cap-would-do-nothing-for-baseball
5 days ago
Illya,
I thought you might like this piece on the Yankees World Series victory. Let me know what you think of it in the comments section, and if you enjoy the article, for God’s sake give it a vote…lol
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/284635-best-money-can-buy-new-york-yankees-27th-title-no-real-accomplishment
Thanks,
Daniel Barber aka Hotnuke
20 days ago
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/276131-a-second-helping-of-saints-gumbo
dinner time
21 days ago
For the dozen or so of you wondering what it would take to drag JC off the IR and post something new, here is the answer:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/275645-jcs-dodger-line-drives-oct-20-dodgers-extend-gm-collettis-deal
22 days ago
If your ever bored, I really enjoy debating opposing views in just about every subject under the sun.
I am usually very Intellectually sincere most of the time, so I would probably agree with your opinions if their fundamentally true.
You seem like an interesting fellow, I find enlightenment in the most unusual places.
Lets start with this...Do you believe this country is imperialistic?
And if so, is the president of the United States an Emperor?
Are rich people evil?
Can a poor person be evil in the same sense?
23 days ago
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/274119-saints-fans-saysorry-eli-not-this-time
what up Illya???
25 days ago
Here's how we all voted. Thanks so much for the help. Enjoy.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/273191-the-2009-bleacher-report-featured-columnist-baseball-awards
27 days ago
In wake of the ALCS, please check out my interview with the former Yankee and Angel, the truly inspirational, Jim Abbott!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/272194-inspirational-words-from-former-yank-and-angel
about 1 month ago
Hi Illya, check this out, thanks!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/268865-niners-hit-jackpot-with-crabtree-after-all-a-needed-attraction
about 1 month ago
At long last the second part of the 49ers All "No" team is here:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/268746-the-san-francisco-49ers-all-no-team-pt-2-the-linemen
about 1 month ago
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/266240-do-you-part-save-the-tatas
latest and quite funny for a serious topic!
about 1 month ago
Illya - how are you, my man?
Thanks again for the encouragement and support. You really helped me stay upbeat at a difficult time for me. Any time you need a little pick-me-up, you know where to find me!
To celebrate my return to writing, I composed a little prayer that Dodger fans can offer up for our struggling team:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/265606-prayer-for-a-los-angeles-dodgers-fan
If you get a moment, drop by and let me know what you think!
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