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Best of Yardbarker: Introducing Rickey Henderson Field
The Oakland Athletics renamed their field after Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson. Ben Margot//Associated Press

Best of Yardbarker: Introducing Rickey Henderson Field

The first week of the MLB season is just about in the books, and it kicked off in a big way thanks to the Oakland Athletics.

If the news that the Raiders will officially leave town, again, to call Las Vegas home was a downer, the A's came to the rescue. They helped keep the heart in Oakland by honoring hometown legend Rickey Henderson at the team's home opener, naming the field in his honor: "Rickey Henderson stole bases anywhere and everywhere he played, but his first stint in Oakland was just absolutely absurd. Today, we get excited about guys like Billy Hamilton, Jonathan Villar, and Dee Gordon approaching 60 stolen bases. For Rickey in the 1980s, a stolen base tally in the 60s was considered a down year."

That leads right in to the "we'll never see another player like Rickey Henderson again" quiz:

Can you name every MLB player to have stolen 70 or more bases in a single season?
SCORE:
0/60
TIME:
8:00
130-OAK-1982
Rickey Henderson
118-STL-1974
Lou Brock
110-STL-1985
Vince Coleman
109-STL-1987
Vince Coleman
108-OAK-1983
Rickey Henderson
107-STL-1986
Vince Coleman
104-LAD-1962
Maury Wills
100-OAK-1980
Rickey Henderson
97-MON-1980
Ron LeFlore
96-PIT-1980
Omar Moreno
96-DET-1915
Ty Cobb
94-LAD-1965
Maury Wills
93-NYY-1988
Rickey Henderson
90-MON-1983
Tim Raines
88-WSS-1912
Clyde Milan
87-NYY-1986
Rickey Henderson
83-KCR-1979
Willie Wilson
83-DET-1911
Ty Cobb
81-STL-1988
Vince Coleman
81-CIN-1911
Bob Bescher
81-PHA-1910
Eddie Collins
80-CIN-1986
Eric Davis
80-NYY-1985
Rickey Henderson
79-KCR-1980
Willie Wilson
79-CIN-1980
Dave Collins
78-NYM-2007
Jose Reyes
78-MON-1992
Marquis Grissom
78-MON-1982
Tim Raines
78-DET-1979
Ron LeFlore
77-STL-1990
Vince Coleman
77-NYY/OAK- 1989
Rickey Henderson
77-CHW-1983
Rudy Law
77-PIT-1979
Omar Moreno
77-LAD-1975
Davey Lopes
76-MON-1991
Marquis Grissom
76-DET-1909
Ty Cobb
75-CLE-1996
Kenny Lofton
75-MON-1984
Tim Raines
75-OAK-1976
Bill North
75-IND-1914
Benny Kauff
75-WSH-1913
Clyde Milan
74-DET-1997
Brian Hunter
74-STL-1966
Lou Brock
74-NYY-1914
Fritz Maisel
73-SEP-1969
Tommy Harper
72-ARI-1999
Tony Womack
72-ATL-1991
Otis Nixon
72-PHI-1984
Juan Samuel
71-MON-1981
Tim Raines
71-PIT-1978
Omar Moreno
70-BOS-2009
Jacoby Ellsbury
70-MIL-2004
Scott Podsednik
70-CLE-1993
Kenny Lofton
70-MON-1986
Tim Raines
70-MON-1985
Tim Raines
70-SDP-1984
Alan Wiggins
70-PIT-1977
Frank Taveras
70-CAL-1975
Mickey Rivers
70-STL-1973
Lou Brock
70-CIN-1910
Bob Bescher

Those amazing base-running stats are just some of the reasons the A's renamed their field after Henderson. It's a fitting tribute for the greatest leadoff hitter in MLB history and one of the defining players in Oakland.

As one great was being celebrated, another very accomplished athlete was getting unceremoniously pushed to the back burner. I'm talking, of course, about former New York Giants Super Bowl-winning quarterback Phil Simms, who has been seemingly demoted following CBS hiring Tony Romo, a quarterback who has not won a Super Bowl (or even been to one). So, what's to become of Phil Simms now? "Phil Simms works a one-man booth for Thursday Night Football. Sure, this isn’t much of a departure for Simms, but it’s time to really lean into the awfulness of TNF. That’s the best way to kill it off. And, who knows, maybe some will tune in just for the horrid spectacle."

Speaking of Tony Romo, what if he decided to try his hand at baseball? How would that work out? Would he suffer from the Jordan/Tebow effect: Athletes or celebrities who'd be humbled by the big leagues? "I think that should be Romo's next career choice. He could miss 15 games in baseball like he does in football, and it wouldn't be a big deal."

Another athlete who isn't feeling the love right now is Dallas Mavericks guard Devin Harris. After getting called for a foul for getting elbowed in the face, he dialed the NBA Referee Hotline Bling, where he sounded nasal: "We saw how easily you got decked by one little elbow to the face. How hard a shot could it have been when they didn’t even call a foul? Clearly, you’re not a hard-nosed player."

You might actually be surprised that Devin Harris is even still in the NBA. At 34, he's closer to his career twilight than his prime. However, Harris has nothing on the likes of R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon, both on the Atlanta Braves. The 43-year-old Colon and 42-year-old Dickey inspired the 'Braves are putting the 'old' in old ball game'' quiz:

Can you name the youngest and oldest player on every team's 2017 Opening Day Roster?

Players had to have been on the active 25-man roster to make this list. Quiz excludes players that were on the DL or on the 40-man roster, but in the minor leagues.

SCORE:
0/60
TIME:
10:00
ARI-24-UT
Brandon Drury
ARI-40-RP
Fernando Rodney
ATL-23-SS
Dansby Swanson
ATL-43-SP
Bartolo Colon
BAL-24-SP
Dylan Bundy
BAL-34-SS
J.J. Hardy
BOS-22-LF
Andrew Benintendi
BOS-33-CF
Chris Young
CHC-22-CF
Albert Almora
CHC-42-RP
Koji Uehara
CHW-23-SS
Tim Anderson
CHW-35-SP
James Shields
CIN-22-2B
Jose Peraza
CIN-34-RP
Scott Feldman
CLE-23-SS
Francisco Lindor
CLE-34-UT
Edwin Encarnacion
COL-22-RP
German Marquez
COL-33-IF
Mark Reynolds
DET-23-SP
Daniel Norris
DET-38-DH
Victor Martinez
HOU-22-SS
Carlos Correa
HOU-39-OF
Carlos Beltran
KC-21-IF
Raul Mondesi Jr.
KC-37-RP
Chris Young
LAA-25-RP
Cam Bedrosian
LAA-37-DH
Albert Pujols
LAD-22-SS
Corey Seager
LAD-38-2B
Chase Utley
MIA-25-LF
Christian Yelich
MIA-43-RF
Ichiro Suzuki
MIL-22-SS
Orlando Arcia
MIL-34-RP
Carlos Torres
MIN-23-OF
Byron Buxton
MIN-36-RP
Matt Belisle
NYM-23-SP
Robert Gsellman
NYM-36-OF
Curtis Granderson
NYY-23-SP
Luis Severino
NYY-37-OF
Matt Holliday
OAK-24-RP
Frankie Montas
OAK-36-RP
Santiago Casilla
PHI-24-RP
Edubray Ramos
PHI-39-RP
Joaquin Benoit
PIT-23-SP
Tyler Glasnow
PIT-35-C
Chris Stewart
SD-20-C
Luis Torrens
SD-34-SP
Jered Weaver
SF-26-2B
Joe Panik
SF-35-IF
Aaron Hill
SEA-23-RP
Edwin Diaz
SEA-38-C
Carlos Ruiz
STL-24-RP
Sam Tuivailala
STL-35-SP
Adam Wainwright
TB-23-IF
Daniel Robertson
TB-34-OF
Rickie Weeks
TEX-21-OF
Nomar Mazara
TEX-35-1B
Mike Napoli
TOR-24-SP
Aaron Sanchez
TOR-40-RP
Jason Grilli
WAS-23-OF/2B
Trea Turner
WAS-37-OF
Jayson Werth

Moving from old to young, we detailed the MLB prospects we're most excited to see in 2017: "Andrew Benintendi. He's got all the tools to become the next great Red Sox player that is hated by non-Red Sox fans."

Benintendi is not just someone we're excited to watch. He's also among the top MLB rookies in 2017:

Last season's top rookie in the NL, Corey Seager, is actually on the cover of “R.B.I. Baseball 17.” Unfortunately, our “R.B.I. Baseball 17” review is not too kind: "At almost every turn, 'R.B.I. Baseball 17' disappoints — falling short of its predecessors since the series' revival in 2014, and in many respects falling short when compared with the original NES game."

On a more positive note, our "MLB The Show 17" review — which has an MLB legend in the vein of Rickey Henderson, fellow Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr., on the cover — is much more favorable: "It's so impressive that 'MLB The Show 17' does such a good job not just satisfying existing fans of the genre, but also in inviting newcomers into the game."

We began with a stadium getting renamed this week, and we leave you this weekend by saying goodbye to another sports venue. 2016 didn’t just mark an end to the Detroit Red Wings’ playoff streak — it also was the final season the team will play in Joe Louis Arena. Thus, we send you off with an Ode to the Joe: Hockey's 20 most memorable moments at Joe Louis Arena:

More must-reads:

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