30. New Commissioners ( Jan 14, 2014 and Feb 1, 2014)
The commissioner will make the league, will usually be one of the faces of the league and is in charge of all that goes on in the league. So it is big news whenever one resigns the job and a new one takes over. Well this year we had one new commissioner and another who said he is retiring. On Jan. 14 Bud Selig said he will retire in 2015 as commissioner of the MLB and on Feb. 1 Adam Silver took over the NBA from David Stern. Both could have big implications for their leagues, but Silver in the NBA looks status quo, in the MLB though anything could happen under a new commissioner. This has also led to some speculation of when Gary Bettman will step down from the NHL. However, to the chagrin of many it looks like he's sticking around for awhile.
29. Vin Scully Returning (July 31, 2014)
On the night of July 31 at a home game in Dodger Stadium the Dodgers announced via the videoboard on a video from multiple players of the Dodgers that Vin Scully will be returning for his 66th season broadcasting the Dodgers. What an incredible amount of time to be doing baseball.
28. Philadelphia 76ers (2014)
The 76ers had an autrocious start to the season going 0-17 and are now just sitting at 2-22. And have just 12 wins in 74 games in 2014. Normally a struggling team wouldn't be a story of the year, but the 76ers are historically bad.
27, Instant Replay in the MLB (Jan. 16, 2014)
For the first time in MLB history instant replay was expanded to include almost anything. However, the results were mixed. The umpires are bad enough at times that replay was needed, however, at times it appears that they still got it wrong. Instant replay is a good idea in baseball, but it still has flaws and needs to be fixed.
26. Aaron Hernandez (2014)
The ongoing Aaron Hernandez situation is not good. Facing multiple murder charges, among other things there was on going news of his situation all year. The latest news came on Oct. 30 that jury selection will be Jan. 9, 2015.
25. We The North (2014)
Trading Rudy Gay was probably one of the best decisions the Raptors ever made. Since then they have been one of the best teams in the league. They made the playoffs last year, and have started the 14/15 season at 19-6 and look poised for what could be a deep post season run come spring.
24. Jameis Winston (2014)
Winston has been an on again off again story throughout all of 2014. Everything from rape allegations to yelling obscenities to shoplifting. The star QB has had quite the year in one of the worst ways possible and has seen is draft stock at the up coming NFL draft falling because of it.
23. NHL to Vegas? (Dec 2014)
There had been rumours and whisperings of the NHL potentially going to Vegas since the summer. However, in early December it was announced they were going to try a season ticket drive to see how much interest the fans in the area would have. NHL expansion and relocation has been a hot topic for the last couple of years and I would guess that this would happen a long with a couple of other moves. Namely Quebec City and Seattle.
22. Giancarlo Stanton (Sept. 11, Nov. 19, Dec. 14, 2014)
On September 11, Stanton was hit in the face with a fastball and missed the rest of the season. Then on Nov. 19 Stanton signed a record 13 yr $325M deal. However, on Dec. 14, news broke that the Marlins expect Stanton to opt out of the contract after six years and beyond six years is where most of the money from this deal is. It's a very strange situation and I hope it doesn't work for the Marlins management for being so greasy. I would love to see Stanton not opt out and take the money.
21. College Football Playoffs (2014)
For the first time in NCAA football they did a playoff for the national title game. Four teams entered the playoffs and it seems to have gone well. It doesn't quite remove all the controversy of picking teams for the title game, but it was a lot better than before.
20. Tony Gwynn (June 16, 2014)
In the middle of June the baseball world lost one of its greats. Hall of Famer, "Mr. Padre" was inducted in 2011. The 15 time all star passed away from cancer at the age of 54.
19. Oscar Taveras (Oct. 26, 2014)
Everyone knows that the greats and old timers from their respective sports will eventually pass away, it's sad but it's part of life. However, the baseball world was shocked when Cardinals prospect Oscar Taveras died in a car crash in his home country of the Dominican Republic. Tavares was one of baseball's top prospects and had all the makings of a potential star.
18. A-Rod (2014)
The on-going situation with Yankees player Alex Rodriguez is not pretty. He was initially suspended for over 200 games for violating the leagues policy regarding Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs). It was eventually brought down to just the entirety of the 2014 season. However throughout all this we learned how low lawyers on both sides of an issue are willing to go. And the lawyers on both sides of this issues went extremely low.
17. Bryan Murray (July, November 13, 2014)
In July it was announced that Ottawa Senators GM Bryan Murray was diagnosed with colon cancer. Then in Mid-November we learned that it had spread to his lungs and liver. Thoughts continue to go out to the Senators organization and Murray and his family in this difficult time.
16. Jean Beliveau (December 2, 2014)
On December 2nd the NHL lost one of its all time greats. Former Canadien Jean Beliveau passed away. He wasn't the best player the NHL has had, but he was definitely in the top 10. He also knew how to carry himself. He was a true class act off the ice and it isn't everyday that a person is offered the governor-general position and turns it down. His death also brought forth many emotions from different people. Guy Lafleur was seen kneeling at the casket of Beliveau, and at the Canadiens first home game after his death his wife- Elise Couture- broke down in public for the first time after many minutes of cheering from the fans. What a ceremony that was. Hockey lost one of it's best all time.15. NFL Draft (May 8-10, 2014)
Other than Michael Sam being drafted (mentioned earlier) there were other massive stories on draft day. None may have been bigger than that of Johnny Manziel. A superstar in college with some negative history surrounding him. Some experts had him as high as first overall and some hand him completely out of the first round. He went at 22nd overall. In his first year Johnny "Football" hasn't done much to impress. Derek Carr on the other hand- drafted by the Raiders- has been one of the few bright spots in Oakland. The first round of the draft overall seems to have been a fairly successful one as quite a few teams found what appears to be legitimate talent.
14. Derek Jeter (2014)
Following in the footsteps of former teammate Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter said goodbye to baseball the only way a player of his stature can. A massive farewell tour, in which every city he visited for the last time gave him a gift. The all-star game which was essentially devoted in saying goodbye to him, his last home game where he got a massive farewell from the crowd, and then finally his last career game. His last game was played in Fenway park, home of the rival Red Sox. However, even the arch rivals had class and celebrations in store for him, showing that even though he was a Yankee. During his 19 years in the MLB Jeter captured the attention and many hearts of the baseball world. Where even fans of other teams respected him. "The Captain" will be missed in the game. #Re2pect.
13. Sochi Olympics (February, 2014)
The Olympics went off as the olympics normally do. Anytime there's an Olympic year it's going to be a big story from that year. I wouldn't say it was an exceptional Olympics one way or another, but it was good. Russia topped the medal count and Canada finished 3rd. Canada also won men's and women's hockey at the 2014 Olympics among speculation if NHL players will be back for the 2018 Olympics.
12. Michael Sam (Feb 10, 2014, May 10, 2014)
On February 10 Michael Sam came out as a gay college football player. Then at the NFL draft he became the first gay player to be drafted into the NFL. However, he has yet to play in the NFL as the Rams who he was drafted by cut him, and the Cowboys waived him after picking him up for the practice squad. While Sam was a huge story at the time it has fizzled out since he is not in the NFL.
11. NCAA Paying Athletes (April, 2014)
In late April students of Northwestern University took a vote on whether or not to unionize. This was just one of many efforts to get college athletes. On August 8th a judge also ruled that college athletes could earn money from the use of their names or likenesses on something. It looks like the paying of these athletes is coming, it's just a matter of when.
10.King James Goes Home (July 12, 2014)
It mid-July the announcement finally came as to where Lebron James was going. And as a lot of people expected he was going home. Back to Cleveland. And he brought superstar Kevin Love with him making Cleveland look formidable entering the 2014 season. They currently sit 5th in the conference at 15-10.
9. Kings Cup (June 13, 2014)
Usually all of the Chamionship winners are the top stories of the year. However, while the NHL playoffs are always great the Kings Stanley Cup win was a little bit anti climactic. The best part of their victory was completing the reverse sweep of the Sharks. However, the New York Rangers weren't much of a match in the finals as they Kings won it in five games.
8. Donald Sterling (2014)
Donald Sterling was an ongoing story since the spring of 2014 for all the wrong reasons. TMZ released tapes of him telling his girlfriend not to bring black people to his games. For obvious reasons people were extremely upset with him and Sterling was eventually forced to sell the team.
7. March Madness (March 16- April 7, 2014)
Always one of the brightest spots of the year in the sports world this years March Madness tournament was an exceptional one. It featured an unbeaten team, many upsets, and a 7 seed playing an 8 seed in the finals as UConn took down Kentucky to win it all. This tournament never fails to amaze, surprise, or shock. And it never fails to make those of us who fill out brackets to crawl into the fetal position and weep.
6. Domestic Abuse in the NFL (2014)
Another ongoing story and again TMZ played a large role in it. Early in the year Ray Rice was found to have abused his then fiance. Then TMZ released a video of the incident leading to a massive uproar. The NFL was then forced to expand the suspension and write a new policy for domestic abuse. This was also a gong show as the NFL appeared to be making it up as they went a long. Ray Rice wasn't the only one this year either. In 2014 Greg Hardy, Ray McDonald, Quincy Enunwa, and Johnathon Dwyer were all arrested as well for domestic abuse, as was Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson for child abuse. The NFL needs to figure something out and quick.
5. Oscar Pistorious (2014)
From hero to zero. The South African blade runner had been charged with murder in the death of his girl friend Reeva Steenkamp. He plead not guilty on the basis of self defense claiming that he thought she was an intruder. He was found guilty of culpible homicide (South African equivalent of manslaughter) and was sentenced to five years in prison.
4. Spurs Championship (June 15, 2014)
The San Antonio Spurs beat the Miami Heat in five games to claim the NBA Title, ending the Heat's run of back to back championships. The Spurs had a big three and some very deep bench help which the Heat were just unable to match This was also Lebron James last game in a Heat uniform.
3. Seahawks Superbowl (Feb 2, 2014)
The Seattle Seahawks won the Superbowl in a very dominant fashion and proved that once again defense wins Championships. They completely stopped one of the best quarterbacks in the game in Peyton Manning and were completely dominant. And to make it worse watching in Canada doesn't even allow you to see any commercials.
2. Giants World Series (Oct. 29, 2014)
There were so many storylines from the Giants World Series win. From the underdog Royals coming out of nowhere and taking the Giants to seven games to the Giants having what appears to be a dynasty and winning three Titles in five years. However no story was bigger than Madison Bumgarner. He set the record for most innings pitched in a playoff and now has three World Series rings for his incredible playoff performances. The Giants look set for quite awhile having him around.
1. World Cup (June 12- July 13, 2014)
It would be very difficult for anything to overshadow the World Cup in a year where there is one, and this year nothing did. From host Brazil's epic collapse against Germany to Germany's victory there was no shortage of storylines from this year's tournament. Other headlines include the protests over the World Cup being in Brazil and controversy over the small nation of Qatar hosting the World Cup in 2022. A tournament like this is definitely the biggest thing in 2014.
-Darren
What do you think of my top thirty? Did I get it right? Completely wrong? Did I miss a story? Let me know by either commenting below this post or find me on twitter @thewildman111
photo taken from habseyeontheprize.com. While the story wasn't story of the year, I believe there is a very strong case for that image to be photo of the year.
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