Denver Post sports columnist Woody Paige posts Woody’s Mailbag every Thursday on DenverPost.com.
To drop a sports-related question into Woody’s Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s . And to browse the archive of videos in Woody’s World, .
What do you think of the hype around , the Boulder cycling team at the Tour de France?
— Martin, Boulder
Martin – I’m all over it. I love the argyle socks, that the team is eating stuff from Chipotle, a fast-food restaurant I really like (and ate at in New York all the time because it was across the street from my studio), and it’s good to see a clean team that’s having fun and doing well.
I’ve covered the Tour de France a few times, and I love it. Wish I was there now, but . He loves the racing and the event. It’s so grueling to go over those mountains in France. I’ve done it — in a car. I can’t imagine doing it on a bike.
I’m pulling for the team. The team members have become very popular in France, and this is what the sport needs.
Hey, Woody. What’s your favorite All-Star Game moment? I’ll take Ted Williams twice. 1. His game-winning homer in 1941. 2. His reception at Fenway Park in 1999. Thank you.
— Dan, Denver
Dan – I’m not quite old enough to remember 1941. I remember his reception in 1999. That was something. I think people wanted to say good-bye one more time.
Actually, my favorite moment for the all-star festivities was Monday night. I met in spring training. The Rockies played a game in Surprise, Ariz. (outside Phoenix), and I stayed in the area to watch Hamilton and hope to get to talk to him to write a column. Before I could introduce myself, he said: “You’re the guy on ESPN.”
Even though he had said at the beginning of camp that he wouldn’t talk again about his past problems, he spent about 45 minutes with me before the game talking about the past and his hopes for the future. . He had a good day at the bat, was hitting about .600 in the spring, and I’ve been pulling for him ever since.
When in the first round of the Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium, I had the kind of warm feeling I did when John Elway won his first Super Bowl. It was a different feeling, but I thought I was going to cry.
My favorite moment was the All-Star Game in Denver. It was another grand moment in our town’s sports history. Honestly, the 10 or 12 I’ve been to run together.
After the Futures Game, how long before the Rockies bring up ?
— Barry Master, Fairview, N.C.
Barry – I believe that Casey Weathers, center fielder Dexter Fowler, one of two second basemen (Corey Wimberly or Eric Young Jr.) and three of the other pitchers on the Tulsa Drillers should be brought up. I’m sure that Weathers will get a shot after August.
Hey, Woody. I’m a big fan. You’re the only reason to watch “Around the Horn.” I change the channel once you’re off. What do you think of Chris Lofton’s chances of making it in the NBA? He’s always proved the critics wrong. Do you think he can do it again?
— Kevin, Lexington, Ky.
Kevin – Thanks. I love Lexington. Chris Lofton, for those who don’t know, played at Tennessee, and played his senior season without revealing he had cancer. He is playing for the Denver Nuggets in the summer league that started in Vegas last weekend. I think he has a legitimate chance because he can shoot from outside (3-pointers), has a great attitude, likes to play defense and is, of course, mature.
I met him a couple of years ago when I was in Knoxville to speak. I like him, as if that matters. He’s a step or two slow. I would say he has a chance to stick as an 11th or 12th man somewhere, then it’s up to him to improve his game even if he can’t improve his quickness.
With Bobby Jenks going on the DL, and their general manager’s history of dealing, don’t the White Sox jump to the front of ? I’d love to get John Danks and Matt Thornton, both lefties, in return. What are the chance?
— Tony Stupavsky, Quincy, Ill.
Good point, Tony. Hadn’t thought about it. Dan O’Dowd says it will take a pitcher or a real prospect, as if the Rockies need more of those (since they refuse to ever trade any of them). I still think that after the Rays’ seven-game losing streak, they’ll come hard now after Fuentes, who has been pitching more consistently lately. I’d like to get Matt Thornton. The White Sox have to do something about a closer, and there are only two available.
Woody – Taking your advice, I was watching “NFL Live” on ESPN last night and, of course, was a topic. To my surprise, they compared the situation to that of the Broncos when John Elway retired, saying there was an indication he still wanted to play, but the Bronco organization basically said they wanted to move. Mark Schlereth was on and basically acted like that was the case, without actually saying it. Woody, please, say it ain’t so!
— Rick Mansheim, Gillette, Wyo.
Rick – I like Mark, but he and ESPN’s NFL Live are wrong. John did want to continue playing, but his body wouldn’t let him.
In May after his last season, I was covering the Avalanche in the playoffs in San Jose, and John was playing golf in a celebrity deal at Cyress Point and Pebble Beach. I caught him as he was coming off the 18th green, and he was limping. I asked what he was going to do, and he said: “My heart says one thing, my body another.” He didn’t want another surgery and another rehabilitation on a knee that had been injured in high school and had deteriorated over the years, although he wore a brace covering it. I think he would have come back, except the knee wouldn’t let him.
The Broncos, Mike Shanahan, Pat Bowlen would have loved for him to come back. And once he retired, he gave no thought to going back. Unlike Brett Favre, John’s always had other things in his life. Brett is one-dimensional. Football is his whole life. I’m not surprised by his decision. He threw for 4,000 yards and twice as many touchdowns as interceptions last year. I was there for his last game, the NFC championship, and I thought he wouldn’t retire. That’s why I didn’t write it that way. And when he announced his retirement, I didn’t believe it.
His family and friends would like him to play again. I think he has a real dilemma, but if he wants to play, the Packers should let him come back and start after what he has done for them — would you have rather had Elway or Brian Griese? — or allow his agent to make a deal with a team in the AFC. I don’t think it’s fair to the Packers fans that he plays in Minnesota (whose coach says he is not interested) or Chicago or Detroit. How about Miami, now that Bill Parcells is in charge and will have that team on the way back up?
Friends and I have been arguing for some time about it, and with the CC Sabathia and Rich Harden deals being done, it is more pertinent than ever. Have the Rockies ever been serious about bringing Ray Halladay home? And, what would it take? In terms of taking the rotation to the next level and driving ticket sales, it seems like it would be one of the smartest things they could do. Thank you.
— Bob, Lakewood
Bob – No. Halladay, I know, would like to play in Colorado before he’s through, but the Rockies would never spend the money for him. Holliday for Halladay? Inside information. Goose Gossage wanted a full-time coaching job with the Rockies, but they wouldn’t give him a chance. Their mistake.
Woody Paige first joined The Denver Post in 1981 as a sports columnist. To drop a question into Woody’s Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
