Of Rory, Albert, Derek and Asdrubal...Yes, Asdrubal

Rory McIlroy just had one of the most dominant performances in a U.S. Open in a long time. The young lad from Northern Ireland has been a popular pick to be one of golf’s next big stars among insiders since he busted onto the scene a few years ago.

As McIlroy was well on his way to his first championship in one of golf’s four majors this past weekend, the absurd questions began creeping onto broadcasts, highlight shows and various social media outlets.

What were the absurd questions?

“Is Rory the next Tiger Woods?” “Will Rory McIlroy end up breaking Jack Nicklaus’s record for winning the most majors?” “Is Rory the new star of golf?”

Relax.

At the time some of these questions arose, he was still in the middle of his third round of the U.S. Open. He hadn’t even won one major although he was as close as golf can get to a blow-out win, holding a very comfortable lead midway through the third round.

He was just a few months removed from losing a 4-stroke lead that he carried into the final round of the Masters.

McIlroy indeed went on to bury the field on Sunday and won his first major by eight strokes. He is by all accounts a very humble player. He carried himself well on the course and believe it or not, said that he was trying to incorporate a little more cockiness into his game – how different is that?

But please don’t set him up to fail. To the untrained eye (meaning mine), McIlroy has one of the purest swings on the PGA Tour. He has a tremendously bright future ahead of him. He could win a lot of tournaments in the future.

But please let him dictate his success. By predicting how many majors he could win or by asking the questions about breaking Nicklaus’s record, we’re just setting him up for expectations that might not be capable of being met.

If McIlroy ends up with a career that left something to be desired, let it be because he didn’t win golf tournaments, not because he didn’t live up to unrealistic expectations that were placed on him too early in the first place.

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I grew up a huge fan of the St. Louis Cardinals. Ozzie Smith was my favorite player and I even liked the baby blue uniforms. The Cardinals have been my favorite team as long as I can remember. (I’ve blocked out those years that I watched Cubs during summer days on WGN…hey, all we got was that and WWOR out of Secaucus, NJ,  so I watched the Cubs and the Mets.)

I became a fan of the Yankees about 11 years ago when I saw my first game in old Yankee Stadium. I became attached to the history of the franchise and the stadium and really became a fan of the pinstripes.

In the last decade, my two favorite players have been Albert Pujols and Derek Jeter. That’s really branching out, isn’t it? Oh well, I like the way they play and they’ve been the “face” of their respective franchises for the last several years.

For the first time, those two “faces” aren’t getting much face time and it came at the same time. For the first time, Jeter and Pujols are on the disabled list at the same time. Jeter due to a calf strain sustained while running to first base and Pujols just this past Sunday while trying to field a throw at first base that was up the line. Pujols collided with Kansas City’s Wilson Betemit and sustained a fracture of his arm.

So my two favorite players are not playing. So here’s to cheering for their replacements, Eduardo Nunez and LanceBerkman….doesn’t have the same appeal, does it?

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From the I can’t believe I just saw that file, how about Asdrubal Sanchez No. 1, Asdrubal Sanchez, No. 2 and from just a couple of days ago, Asdrubal Sanchez No. 3.

Asdrubal Sanchez might make the All-Rewind team. As in, “rewind the DVR, I can’t believe I just saw that."

Feel free to watch the third highlight again....and again....and again. The announcer sums it up at the end of the clip when he asks, "How many highlight plays has he made this year?"

ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" makes a case in this clip that Cabrera could be the best shortstop in Major League Baseball.