Sports 'Coincidences' Yes or No?
The news about Tom Brady's most recent Deflategate appeal was released on the slowest sports day of the year—coincidence?
Sports is full of instances like this—tiny oddities that are just questionable enough to make you wonder. Was there some intentional force at work behind the scenes? Did the initiator of a given event take action for a specific purpose, or did the action simply have unintended yet coincidental results?
The following are 12 such instances, accompanied by an opinion (key word: opinion) on whether these were actual coincidences or part of a larger plot. And since these are merely opinions based on no actual evidence, look for most answers in "probably" or "probably not" form.
Enjoy.
Prince Fielder Finishes Career with Same HR Total as Dad
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In early August, Texas Rangers slugger Prince Fielder announced the end of his MLB career due to injury.
Per T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com, Fielder said, "The doctors told me that with two spinal fusions, I can't play Major League Baseball anymore."
According to Sullivan, Fielder is not technically retired, but he will be on the disabled list—and collect the $96 million he is owed—for the remaining four years of his contract.
He leaves the game with the same number of home runs (319) as his father, former big leaguer Cecil Fielder.
OK—this was an easy one to warm up with because of course it's a coincidence. But a pretty crazy one, right?
Coincidence? Yes
Honorable mention here to Michael Phelps' 23 Olympic gold medals and Michael Jordan's No. 23. Definitely a coincidence—definitely GOAT-tastic.
Pat McAfee 'Randomly' Drug Tested After 67-Yard Punt
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On April 20, Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee tweeted a couple of things about 4/20, according to the Indianapolis Star. For instance, "I can't celebrate this particular day..But I know a large % of my followers are..So happy laughter day 2 those of u snacking at a hefty rate."
The next day, McAfee tweeted proof of a random drug test from the NFL. Seems fishy, but it could have been a coincidence.
But then, McAfee booted a 67-yard punt during a preseason game in August, and the NFL hit him with a "random" drug test once again.
Jeanna Thomas of SB Nation wrote, "Colts punter Pat McAfee seems to get hit with a lot of random drug tests from the NFL, leading us to believe the tests aren't really random at all."
Coincidence? Probably not
Canadiens Part with Employee Who Fought for Subban to Stay
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The Montreal Canadiens made the trade of the NHL offseason (one of them, anyway), when they shipped All-Star defenseman P.K. Subban to the Nashville Predators for veteran Shea Weber.
The trade was shocking because of Subban's talent and young age (27 compared to the 31-year-old Weber). In fact, one employee reportedly advised heavily against trading Subban.
Eric Engels of Sportsnet wrote:
"A source told Sportsnet that Matt Pfeffer, who was hired as an analytics consultant at the beginning of the 2015-16 season, made an impassioned and elaborate presentation to management to dissuade them from following through on this trade.
Ignoring Pfeffer's advice only served to reinforce the notion that Bergevin was following different criteria in his evaluation of both players, said the source, who also suggested Pfeffer's vehemence on the matter might have ultimately cost him the job (he was told on Wednesday that his contract won't be renewed).
"
Coincidence? Probably not
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
NFL Cut St. Louis Mention from Orlando Pace HOF Speech
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Retired offensive tackle Orlando Pace was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in early August.
Pace—who spent most of his career with the St. Louis Rams—thanked those fans in his 17-minute acceptance speech. However, that thank you didn't make the cut for an eight-minute version of the speech that was posted on the NFL's official YouTube channel.
This might just seem like a coincidence related to editing, but Andrew Joseph of For the Win pointed out Pace's was the only inductee speech shortened for YouTube.
One fan, @comeroundfullO, tweeted: "Why did the NFL cut part of Mr. Pace's speech out? The part referencing St. Louis more specifically?"
Then again, Joseph also reported the NFL attributed the cut to a "technical error" and would aim to rectify the issue (which it did).
Coincidence? Probably
Canadian Footballer Commits Foul, Simultaneously Clears Card Slate
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Kadeisha Buchanan, a member of the Canadian women's Olympic soccer team, received her second yellow card in as many contests during her team's decisive 3-1 win over Zimbabwe.
On its face, it was a confusing foul—an encroachment call that occurred when the game was steadily in hand and also resulted in Buchanan sitting for Canada's final group game.
That all sounds bad, except as Chris Young of Eh Game pointed out, "Now she sits down against the Germans—and returns in the quarterfinal with a clean disciplinary slate, able to play as her usual robust self."
On the one hand, the end result could have been a fortunate coincidence, or it could have been savvy strategy.
Coincidence? Probably not
Foles Released Right Before Jets Sign Fitzpatrick
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It took awhile for the New York Jets to get a deal done with free-agent quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. In fact, Fitzpatrick missed some offseason activities in a standoff that lasted six months.
Finally, the Jets and Fitzpatrick agreed to terms on a new $12 million deal—very shortly after the Los Angeles Rams released QB Nick Foles.
According to Pat Bradley of NESN, Foles requested the release despite the fact that his contract would have paid him nearly $9 million in 2016.
Did Foles' sudden availability help push Fitzpatrick and the Jets to get a deal done?
ESPN's Ed Werder tweeted, "Fitz decision: Nick Foles on market, #Jets increased offer Wed. from $8M to $12M, imposed 7 p.m. ET deadline or team would be 'moving on.'"
And Mike Greenberg of ESPN tweeted: "Nick Foles released. What feels like minutes later, Ryan Fitzpatrick signs. Coincidence? We'll never know but I'd guess not. #Jets"
Coincidence? Probably not entirely
Liverpool Signs Wijnaldum on Kuyt's Birthday
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Liverpool signed Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum to a five-year contract in July. Wijnaldum scored 11 goals in 38 Premier League appearances for Newcastle in 2015-16.
Former Liverpool forward (and follow Dutchman) Dirk Kuyt called it a "wonderful transfer," per Sean Kearns of Metro.co.uk.
Some fans hypothesized on Twitter that Liverpool held off on announcing the deal until July 22 to coincide with a special occasion.
Ryan Rosenblatt of Fox Sports tweeted, "I want to believe that Liverpool waited until today to sign Georgino Wijnaldum because today is Dirk Kuyt's birthday."
It's a nice thought, but given the serious nature of contract dealings, it seems unlikely.
Coincidence? Probably
Indians Win 14 Straight Games After Cavs' NBA Title
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On June 15, the Cleveland Cavaliers won the NBA Finals, ending a 52-year title drought for the sports-embattled city.
Immediately after that happened, the Cleveland Indians embarked on what would become a 14-game winning streak, a franchise record.
Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com reported that not only had the Indians stepped up their game since the Cavs' title, but other Cleveland teams had as well. The city's AFL team won its first two games, and the local AHL team won the Calder Cup.
These are mostly coincidental, obviously, but then again, let's not immediately discount the positive impact on morale the Cavs' victory probably had on the entire city—a city that includes a baseball team.
Coincidence? Probably (mostly)
ASU's New Video Board to Be 1 Foot Taller, Wider Than Arizona's
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Sports rivals do a lot of things to get at each other. They troll each other with billboards, prank each other on social media—typical stuff. And now, perhaps, they one-up each other with electronics.
Arizona State University is getting a new video board as part of the $268 million renovations to its Sun Devil Stadium. The board will be 48 feet by 113 feet, according to Jeff Metcalfe of the Arizona Republic (via Andy Hutchins of SB Nation).
Meanwhile, Arizona Stadium, home of the Arizona Wildcats, has a video board measuring 47 feet by 112 feet, according to Patrick Finley of the Arizona Daily Star (via Hutchins).
Is it a coincidence that ASU opted to make its video board just one foot taller and one foot wider than its rival's?
Coincidence? Probably not
Cousins Featured on Tickets for Washington vs. Cleveland Game
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Here's a fun one.
According to J.J. Regan of CSN Mid-Atlantic, a different Washington football player is featured on each set of season tickets for 2016—pretty standard.
Washington plays the Cleveland Browns in Week 4, and quarterback Kirk Cousins is featured on that game's set of tickets.
Former Washington QB and current Browns starter Robert Griffin III famously lost his job to Cousins and sat out the entire 2015 season before being released.
Is this merely a fluke? Well, as learned in the ASU/Arizona video board example, teams (probably) aren't necessarily above trolling each other.
Coincidence? Probably not
A-Rod's Last Game, Day Before 1996 World Series Ceremony
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In early August, the New York Yankees announced they would release Alex Rodriguez before the end of the 2016 season and retain him as a special advisor through 2017.
According to general manager Brian Cashman, Rodriguez could, hypothetically, sign with another team, but given his recent performance (.200 batting average with nine home runs in 65 2016 games), it seems highly unlikely.
And so, A-Rod played his final game as a Yankee (and probably as a major leaguer) on Friday, August 12.
The very next day, the Yankees honored the 1996 World Series championship team with a pregame ceremony. Yankee greats such as Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada were all on hand.
Is it pure coincidence that A-Rod was effectively booted just one day earlier?
Coincidence? Probably not
Brady News Breaks on Slowest Sports Day of the Year
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On Wednesday, July 13, news broke that a federal appeals court denied Tom Brady's latest request to fight his four-game Deflategate suspension.
Two days later, the New England Patriots quarterback announced via Facebook he would accept his suspension, thus officially ending an 18-month saga that seemed, at times, never-ending.
The timing of the Brady news was curious, given it broke on the slowest sports day of the year. Literally, there were no professional baseball, football, hockey or basketball games.
Twitter noticed.
One @INCH_Gladdy tweeted: "What a strange coincidence that this latest Brady 'news' would drop on the slowest sports day of the year. Well, I never. Huh."
Then again, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals probably doesn't care too much about beefing up a slow sports day.
Coincidence? Probably
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
