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Pipp-Speak
To be Wally Pipped or to be Pippa'd, which is worse? As the latter phrase eases into our vernacular post--royal wedding, here's a reminder of what the former means and how the other could be applied in sports.
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PIPPED | PIPPA'D | |
MEANING | To be displaced from a lineup for some physical ailment, only to have one's sub steal the spot for good. | To have one's spotlight stolen on some particularly significant or celebratory occasion. |
ORIGIN | Famously, in 1925 the Yankees rested former home run champ Wally Pipp, who had a headache. His replacement, a 21-year-old and unproven Lou Gehrig, kept the spot for 2,130 straight games. | At her April wedding to Prince William, bride Kate Middleton was upstaged by her younger sister, Pippa, who dropped jaws with a shape-hugging, low-cut white gown. |
EXAMPLE | In '92, Packers QB Don Majkowski injured his ankle, only to see a 22-year-old Brett Favre step in, close the win and start the Packers' next 275 games. (See also: Kevin Kolb vis-à-vis Michael Vick, 2010.) | Often upstaged by Babe Ruth, Gehrig finally earned the spotlight with a rare four-HR game in '32. But the Pipper got Pippa'd in the New York papers, which led with the retirement of Giants skipper John McGraw. |
PHOTO
JOHN STILLWELL/REUTERS (PIPPA)
PHOTO
MARK RUCKER/TRANSCENDENTAL GRAPHICS/GETTY IMAGES (PIPP)
