Sports Comebacks We Need

In one of those year-end articles, I saw something where somebody actually emailed TBS to complain about the pitch speed graphic not working during their coverage of the baseball playoffs.  That just made me chuckle.  When FOX got the football contract and had the score/time graphic on the screen all the time, it was revolutionary.  Now it's not just the norm, it's so taken for granted that people express their outrage when the graphic doesn't include every possible piece of information about the game.

It's hard to remember a time when the score graphic wasn't permanently on the screen.  That's one of the many innovations we've seen in sports over the last 20 years that has improved the viewing experience.  In fact, I can't think of one innovation (except for FOX's glowing puck during hockey games) that hasn't been for the better.

That doesn't mean I don't miss some things from days gone by, though.  Throwback days are popular for teams in all sports.  Here are 10 things that I'd love to see make a return to the sports world, even if it's just for a day.

Powder blue baseball uniforms: They were all the rage in the 70s and 80s.  The Royals had them.  So did the Phillies.  And the Brewers.  And the Blue Jays.  And a whole bunch of other teams.  But the powder blues started to die out in the late 80s and were pretty much completely extinct by the early 90s.  Now, we only see them occasionally as a throwback (ironically, the Tampa Bay Rays, who didn't even exist until 1998, have a powder blue throwback, too).

Roundball Rock: Duh-duh-duh-duh-duh duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh.  "Roundball Rock" was the NBA in the 1990s.  NBC brings it back as the theme for Olympic basketball every four years, which makes you think of Marv Albert teasing "Michael Jordan and the Bulls against Patrick Ewing and the Knicks, next on NBC."

Are You Ready For Some Football?: While I'm on the topic of nostalgic sports theme songs, how about Hank Williams, Jr., asking "Are You Ready for Some Football?" (with the lyrics changed to reflect each week's matchup).  That was as much a part of Monday Night Football as Frank Gifford, Al Michaels and Dan Dierdorf.  The song went to ESPN with the Monday night game, until ESPN fired Williams.  But now, with Carrie Underwood singing the intro on Sunday nights and Pentatonix on Thursday nights, we've got nothing on Monday nights.

Starting Lineups at the Super Bowl: Until the Patriots came along and ruined everything, they introduced either the starting offense or defense for both teams at the Super Bowl.  Then New England decided they wanted to be introduced as a team at Super Bowl XXXI, and that's what the NFL's done for both teams ever since.  But I loved seeing the players run out one-by-one as they were introduced, especially since the Super Bowl would be the only time you'd ever see that in football.

The Bud Bowl: Yes, it was an advertising gimmick.  Yes, it was cheesy.  But the Bud Bowl was also great.  It was great for a couple years, then Budweiser stopped caring and moved on to its different Super Bowl ads every year.  But since we're coming up on the 30th anniversary of the Bud Bowl (which first aired during Super Bowl XXIII), wouldn't it be great to see it revived, if only to celebrate that anniversary in two years?

Hockey fights: Remember when fighting was a part of hockey?  It still is a little bit, but not even close to the extent it used to.  I'm talking old-school hockey fights where the players hated each other and just dropped the gloves for no reason other than that.  The fights that extended into the hallway.  Teams used to have a guy who was their designated fighter...the guy who would lead the team in penalty minutes and fewest teeth, but kept the other teams honest while protecting the Mario Lemieuxes and Wayne Gretzkeys of the world.

Hockey division names: The NHL's old division names were so awesome.  Now that they're back at four divisions, and they're basically the same as the ones that had those names, why not go back to Adams, Patrick, Norris and Smythe?  Seriously, is "Patrick Division" any worse than "Metropolitan Division?"  I didn't think so.

The Quebec Nordiques: With Vegas beginning play next season as the NHL's 31st team, you know the 32nd can't be far behind.  Which is why I think the return of the Quebec Nordiques isn't too far off.  Winnipeg got its team back.  Quebec deserves to, as well.

The Seattle SuperSonics: I still can't believe the NBA let them move to Oklahoma City.  Seattle didn't deserve to lose their team, and Sonics fans don't deserve going this long without one (or miss seeing the prime of Russell Westbrook's and, until this year, Kevin Durant's careers).  The NBA hasn't talked about expansion.  But if they do, the return of the Sonics would be a logical choice as one of the two new franchises.

The Montreal Expos: Baseball returning to Montreal is a bit more complicated.  Expansion isn't really an option, and there aren't any teams looking to relocate.  But Montreal is the prime candidate for either should the situation arise.  The factors that killed the Expos aren't as much of an issue anymore (although the stadium thing is still a problem), and with the Nationals now firmly entrenched in Washington, they no longer have that as an excuse.  I think MLB realizes that, despite all of those factors, moving the Expos was a mistake.  Problem is, I'm not sure how they rectify it.