Email Author John Gonzalez

2001 Stories by John Gonzalez

• Crossover Dreams

  published August 30, 2001

  The lights from the back of the room shine brightly as they bounce off his handsome face and expensive jewelry. Decked out in a pimp... More >>

• Center of Attention

  published August 16, 2001

  Gather 'round, children. Pull close now, and pay attention. Allow me to tell you a story from my youth, from a time when I was less cynical... More >>

• Falling Stars

  published August 9, 2001

  Midwestern State University's practice field is lined with the usual media types who chuckle and babble about nothing in particular. It's hot.... More >>

• Re-boot

  published August 9, 2001

  Today is an off-day. More or less. The morning practice was scrapped in favor of extra sleep and position meetings. The afternoon session?... More >>

• Jitterbug

  published August 2, 2001

  He opens his arms wide, accepts the ball, then skitters through the line of scrimmage past two would-be bodyguards into open field. Pausing... More >>

• Ball Boys

  published July 26, 2001

  Barry Bonds, the San Francisco Giants' outfielder/malcontent/ball basher, is here today. He leads the free world in home runs this season with... More >>

• Olden Throat

  published July 12, 2001

  It took awhile to register--and not because of my holiday hangover. There, on the Dallas Mavericks site, the team announced the members of its... More >>

• Trivial Pursuit

  published July 5, 2001

  Before we go any further, there's something you should know: There are circus chimps milling about with more real-world skills than... More >>

• I Got Skillz

  published June 28, 2001

  The game is finished. His team won. Cameras swarm. Mark Cuban eats it up, grinning a grin somewhere between sinister and goofy, like he's... More >>

• Fantasy League

  published June 21, 2001

  Mike Carter Field sits off Front Street, just past the convention center and the rose garden. Across the way is the football field where Earl... More >>

• Club Med

  published June 14, 2001

  When he was younger, Keith Foster regarded it as "not very cool," which, at least in my estimation, was a kind analysis. There's something... More >>

• Frank's Place

  published June 7, 2001

  He shuffles over, looking equal parts frustrated and defeated, but Frank Catalanotto is oblivious to his pain. At first. Cat sits hunched in a... More >>

• Fools Rush In

  published May 24, 2001

  It's just another day. Another long day. Already, that's the way it feels. Nearly everyone trudges through the motions--a battalion of... More >>

• Was He High?

  published May 3, 2001

  It could have been so different, so much easier or, at the least, smoother. Wouldn't have been all these rats with pens and tape recorders and... More >>

• Welcome Back

  published April 26, 2001

  Gabe Kapler calls from Tulsa. His voice is friendly but a little garbled. It's not the phone line, though. Sounds like he's munching on... More >>

• Showtime

  published April 19, 2001

  The game is still fresh. Plastic beer cups and wax popcorn bags litter the floor while 18,000-or-so fans strut their way to the nearest... More >>

• Bad Breakup

  published April 12, 2001

  He looks as confident as ever striding into the room, and for a moment you think he might peel back his suit jacket and patterned, blue... More >>

• Crunch Time

  published April 12, 2001

  Come clean. You were freaked. It was scrawled across your face, plain as a girl from Tarrant County. Easier to read than simple cousin Merl... More >>

• Round and Round

  published April 5, 2001

  The auditorium fills for the mandatory meeting just after 10 a.m., brimming with crew chiefs and drivers and hangers-on. There's Jeff Gordon... More >>

• Lamb's Chops

  published March 29, 2001

  PORT CHARLOTTE, Florida--It felt different. Almost radically so. Same game, sure, but that's where the similarities ended for him and surely... More >>

• A Sure Bet

  published March 22, 2001

  It's not yet noon on a sleepy Saturday. The skies are ash-colored and dreary, and the wind has some chill in it. The kind of day that's good... More >>

• The A-Team

  published March 15, 2001

  PORT CHARLOTTE, Florida--It's early morning in Charlotte County. A brilliant Florida sun peaks from atop the stadium's right-field grandstand,... More >>

• Bull Rush

  published March 1, 2001

  This? This wasn't the norm. This was easy. No big deal, even though he had trained like a sadist for this bout, sparring and running and... More >>

• Wang Time

  published February 22, 2001

  Preview of an upcoming Mavericks game in mid-April as multiple teams, including Dallas, scrap for playoff position: Reunion Arena is... More >>

• A League of His Own

  published February 15, 2001

  Looking back, it really wasn't that good. A little sophomoric, a bit hokey. But that wasn't the point, and what do I know about it anyway? My... More >>