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Lost Boys
You might have heard about the Swedish reporter who went to Dublin, Ireland, to cover the 1998 Solheim Cup--which was being held in Dublin, Ohio. Well, last week a French TV crew went to Halle, Germany, to follow French Open champ Rafael Nadal at the Gerry Weber Open. Alas, there are two Halles in Germany, and they went to the wrong one; by the time they reached the tournament, Nadal had been bounced. Chances are, few noticed their absence, but the same can't be said of the following athletes, who showed that media members aren't the only ones who may have trouble finding their way to work.
May 2005 Mariners outfielder Jeremy Reed gets on the D train in Manhattan to go to Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, he hops on the downtown train, which takes him almost all the way to Coney Island. Reed still made it to the Stadium for the game.
June 2003 Devil Rays pitcher Dewon Brazelton makes the same mistake and winds up in Brooklyn. "He must have thought we were playing in Ebbets Field," said Tampa manager Lou Piniella. Brazelton (right), who reached the park just 90 minutes before game time, started that night, got shelled and was demoted to Class A.
April 2000 Carl Everett gets lost en route to Fenway for his first game with the Red Sox. He made it after calling the traveling secretary for directions. The ordeal had a happy ending when Everett hit two homers. It would have been even happier if his wife had been there to see it, but she, too, got lost.
October 2000 Latrell Sprewell shows up just before tipoff for a Knicks game after getting lost on the road and is benched. Spree (left) also missed a tipoff in January 1997 when he was with the Warriors and tried an alternate route to the San Jose Arena. "I saw this sign that said L.A., and I said I have to turn around. I knew I was lost," he said.
March 1996 Boston's Roger Clemens (top) misses a spring training start when he can't find the Expos' park in West Palm Beach, Fla. "I felt like I went around the world in 80 days," said Clemens. It was bad news for the Rocket, worse news for his replacement. Jeff Suppan had to leave after taking a liner to the face.
September 1993 Cardinals pitcher Allen Watson misses a start in Miami when he lets his aunt drive him to Joe Robbie Stadium and they get lost. Watson entered the game in relief and took the loss. To make matters worse: "We got lost going home," Watson said. "It wasn't a good day."
August 1982 Braves pitcher Pascual Perez, who got his driver's license earlier that morning, misses a crucial start when he can't figure out how to get off I-285, which circles Atlanta. He makes three laps before running out of gas.
COLOR PHOTO
RON KUNTZ/REUTERS (CLEMENS)
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CHRIS GARDNER/AP (BRAZELTON)
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STAN HONDA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES (SPREWELL)
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REINHARD EISELE/CORBIS (SIGNPOST)
