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The nation’s eight best sports cities

BY CHRISTOPHER YOUNG

This year’s fourth annual Best Sports Cities awards are a bit different, given that we can no longer significantly factor in the cities’ hockey franchises, since the NHL has been dormant for the past 12 months. We’ll have to do without — just as hockey fans have.

Let’s admit right off the bat that there can be no doubt about the #1 city on this list. Having the defending champs in baseball and football and a solid playoff team in hoops, Boston is a clear-cut top choice — for the third time in four years (no bias here, truly). Check the Sporting Eye archives (posted in late May/early June each of the past three springs) for the lowdown on past years.

We have a few parameters in place for this non-scientific rundown. To be considered, the metropolis must have at least three pro sports franchises (sorry, Indy), and only those teams will be considered. Being a reigning world champ is certainly one standard, but our choices are also based on how well teams are performing right now and where they seem to be headed.

2) Philadelphia. Last year’s runners-up are in the same spot this year. The Philly fandom is undoubtedly happy (if that’s possible) about their teams’ successes, but still frustrated by their lack of finishing touches. The Eagles reached the Super Bowl, the 76ers reached the post-season for the sixth time in seven years, and the surprising Phillies are in second place in the NL East, but one still has to go back to 1983 for the last champion other than Rocky Balboa.

3) Baltimore/DC. Not one, but two improbable baseball powers within a 30-mile radius. The Orioles have steadily returned to relevance over the past few years, and it’s paid off with their three-game lead in the competitive AL East. Over on the NL ledger, who should sit atop the ultra-tight NL East than the Nationals, who have stunned the nation’s capital with their 40-29 record. Doubts remain about whether either team can actually hold on to its division lead, but it’ll be fun to watch whatever happens. Not to be forgotten is the 45-37 record (and second-round playoff appearance) turned in by the NBA’s Wizards, while the Ravens and Redskins continue to be enigmatic yet potential contenders each NFL autumn.

4) Minneapolis. Really? This Midwestern metropolis, here? You betcha. The Vikings are a rising power in the NFL and already a Super Bowl contender in the minds of many pre-season prognosticators; the Twins have the inside track on the AL wild card, which would mark their fourth-straight playoff appearance; and the Timberwolves — well, the team missed the NBA post-season for the first time in nine seasons, but the Wolves’ 44-38 record was as good as or better than three playoff entrants from the Eastern Conference.

5) NY/NJ. Same old story each year: the better teams’ success is offset by the woes endured by the losers. The Yankees are, ahem, on the upswing (at 36-32), while the Mets (33-36) are again cellar-dwellers; the Jets reached the second round of the AFC playoffs (and nearly the conference title game), while the Giants are coming off two losing seasons; the Nets were a playoff team for the fourth-straight campaign, while the Knicks (33-49) continue to stink up the joint; same in the NHL: the Islanders and Devils are up-and-coming teams, while the dreadful Rangers cancel out their efforts.

6) Miami. Shaquille O’Neal’s presence has rejuvenated South Florida’s interest in hoops, and the Heat reached the conference finals for the first time ever last month. It’s probably just a matter of time before the franchise nails down its first world championship, but in the meantime, the locals can still savor the ’97 and ’03 baseball crowns earned by the Marlins — which helps remove the sour taste that the 4-12 Dolphins left last season.

7) Atlanta. Could the Falcons bring an NFL crown to the Deep South? Could be, since Atlanta got all the way to the NFC title game in January before falling to the Eagles. The Falcons have yet to win a Super Bowl in their 40-year history, but if they do, it’ll match the number of world championships won by the three other teams in town combined. Sure, the Braves have topped the NL East every year since 1990, but their ’95 World Series win remains the franchise’s lone visit to the mountaintop. At 36-33 this year, the Braves again appear flawed. Unfortunately, the city’s hoops entity, the Hawks, would kill to be merely "flawed" (no playoffs since ’99).

8) St. Louis. The Rams’ "dynasty" fizzled soon after the team’s ’99 title, although the horned ones made a decent splash in last season’s post-season. The Cardinals are again the NL’s best team following last year’s pennant, but they’re still 23 years removed from their last World Series victory. Hockey-wise, the Blues continue to wait for a chance to get back out on the ice and perhaps the secure the franchise’s first-ever Stanley Cup.

Honorable mention: Detroit, Seattle, Cleveland, Denver.

Coming Friday: the US’s worst sports cities.

"Sporting Eye" runs Mondays and Fridays at BostonPhoenix.com. Christopher Young can be reached at cyoung[a]phx.com.


Issue Date: June 20, 2005
"Sporting Eye" archives: 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002
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