Two-Sport Weekend Warriors?

Just when you thought I was done with baseball, I bring it back to HBIC. The jersey to the left isn't one that former MLB player and Canadian Justin Morneau wore for any specific game, but it works for this cross-sport post today. Often, we see professional athletes being extremely good at more than one sport, but they specialize eventually in order to focus their efforts on one specific sport. A lot of old-time hockey players were excellent baseball players since the seasons didn't overlap, but we've seen NHL players with football backgrounds, football players with baseball backgrounds, and baseball players with hockey backgrounds. Imagine being one of those baseball players, though, and giving up hockey despite your love of it. That's something Justin Morneau wasn't willing to do during his days as a Minnesota Twins infielders, and we have video proof of his skills on the ice!

I'll be at a baseball game tonight so I'm posting something from a few years ago that brings baseball and hockey together. It also brings together guys like Mark Parrish, Wes Walz, Joe Mauer, and the aforementioned Justin Morneau as it looks like Morneau's house is the place to be in the winter for pond hockey action! Take a peek below!
That's a pretty awesome shinny rink that Morneau has in his backyard. I really want to go for a skate on that rink and see how his ice-making skills are. Maybe the NHL can hire Morneau to work on making good outdoor ice? It looks like the guys playing had no problems!

Clearly, this video is a couple of years old as the Minnesota Wild will not be hosting the Winter Classic this season, but how cool is it to see the baseball players strapping on the skates and competing with the former NHL guys? That's the kind of fun of which I wish we'd see more when it comes to outdoor games. Have a celebrity game with guys of all walks of life strapping on the skates and scoring goals! Something like that would certainly bring interest back to the outdoor events if there was a fun celebrity event like Morneau held in his yard!

As for me, I'm off to see if the local pro ball team can extend the series for another game as they trail 2-0 in the best-of-five series. I'll be tracking pitches all night, so my evening will be anything but boring. Let's just hope there's a reason to celebrate at the end of the evening! Otherwise, the visitors will likely party late into the evening with the championship trophy they rightfully earned.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!