I want to break down my AL Central predictions, but first, I wanted to note - Sports Illustrated' web site had a bunch of features about Michael Jordan's attempt at baseball in 1994, and no matter how many times I think about it's still mind-blowing. I can't imagine another athelete doing the same thing before, or since. One at the absolute top of his sports retiring - well, that's been done - Jim Brown did it, Sandy Koufax (though for him it was barely by choice) did it, Barry Sanders more or less did, along with a small number of others I'm sure. But not only retiring, but then unretiring to take on a completely different sport they hadn't played since high school - that's unheard of, almost surreal looking back at it. Imagine Kobe Bryant retiring and deciding he wants to play soccer instead. Tom Glavine, less of a star, but who at least was a huge hockey prospect, retiring after his Cy Young to return to the ice. Tiger Woods retiring from golf and deciding his future is in tennis. And then beyond switching sports, is going from the center of the universe to a podunk town in Alabama (well Birmingham has 200,000 people, but I mean, compared to Chicago) and being completely mediocre at the sport you choose to play.

What makes this story even more amazing is one of the great sports unsubstantiated rumors surrounding it - the idea that this was not a voluntary decision by Michael, but rather was a forced suspecion by NBA commissioner David Stern due to Jordan's gambling problems. Of course this is both probably not true, and if it is it's unlikely we'll know for sure - there's yet to be a smoking gun, but all the pieces are there. Jordan lost lots of money at golf to a lot of shady characters.

There is simply no other example of someone leaving a sport they are on top of for another I can think of in sports - the closest recent example in pop culture which is not really close at all is, say, Joaquin Phoenix leaving acting to attempt a musical career. The only real comparable part though is Joaquin's medicore music career - obviously, while a successful actor, he was not on Michael's level - more like Terrell Brandon retiring to play baseball or something. Alas, all we can do is enjoy the moment, and as a Knicks fan who has always despised Michael Jordan to the core, and taken perverse pleasure at moments that do not deserve it (Jordan's gambling problems, his divorce) where Jordan simply didn't have what it took. Too bad he came right back and won 3 more championships.