SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
It's time for sports.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
SIMON: Face-off - the U.S. and Europe, the Ryder Cup. The Seattle Mariners bewitched the American League. And isn't 106 just a little too young to retire? Still on the job for us, sports reporter Michele Steele. Michele, welcome back. Good morning.
MICHELE STEELE: Howdy. Good morning.
SIMON: Golf's Ryder Cup has barely started, but the European team is trash-talking - trash-talking us. Why can't we all get along?
STEELE: Yeah, yeah. Well, I should say this, Scott. The Ryder Cup, which takes place every year between the best players from the U.S. - excuse me - every other year between the best players from the U.S. and the best players from Europe, it's historically provoked a lot of...
SIMON: Yeah.
STEELE: ...Sniping - let's call it spirited competition between the teams and the players, even the fans. But this year, a lot of the talk has been centered on money. The Ryder Cup - it's a little bit like the Olympics in the sense that the players are not paid, until this year. The Americans are getting half a million dollars each for the first time, now, $300,000 of which goes to charity, but the other part of that, they can just pocket. The Europeans, on the other hand, turned down the chance to get paid. Luke Donald, who's captain of the European team, said, you know, it's not about the money. It's about sport and honor.
SIMON: Oh.
STEELE: So yeah.
SIMON: Bless him. Yeah.
STEELE: Yeah. What we're seeing, Scott, is a time-honored European strategy, which is not just to defeat the Americans, but also out-lecture them.
SIMON: (Laughter).
STEELE: And I have to say this - it's working. They dominated on day one.
SIMON: Yeah.
STEELE: They won the morning and the afternoon sessions. Team USA needs a big bounce-back day today.
SIMON: I want to note - what a game last night for the Boston Red Sox. Walk-off triple to score the winning run - 4-3 over the Tigers - and get a ticket to the playoffs. They've had quite a year, haven't they?
STEELE: Oh, yeah. I just checked the seismology records. Apparently, there was a small-scale geological event in Boston last night. Crowd going...
SIMON: Yeah.
STEELE: ...Absolutely wild. And they had clawed back - right? - from a 3-0 deficit to get to that walk-off moment. And you're totally right. It's been an up-and-down season for the Red Sox. You really didn't get the sense that they were going to make a run at any point this season...
SIMON: Yeah.
STEELE: ...Or if they were going to collapse. But, boy, are they saving their good stuff for the end.
SIMON: Seattle Mariners have clinched the American League West title. You might say that's because their great catcher, Cal Raleigh, and his 60 home runs. But I wonder if maybe the dark arts aren't responsible. What's...
STEELE: Oh...
SIMON: ...Going on there?
STEELE: A catcher joining the 60-homer club - let's give him credit.
SIMON: Yeah.
STEELE: But apparently, three weeks ago, when the Mariners had lost six out of seven games - looked like they were slipping out of contention - there was one die-hard fan who posted to his social media he was literally going to hire a witch - I didn't even know this was a thing - on Etsy to fix whatever was ailing the Mariners. And, boy, did it work because the Mariners went on a 10-game win streak. They've won 17 of the last 19 games.
You know, you can say that baseball - you know, paying 20 bucks for baseball might be too expensive. Well, not in this case. He paid 20 bucks to a witch named Luna (ph). She cast the spell. Even the team posted through their social media, quote, "shoutout to the Etsy witch." So sports fans, if you want your own incantation sent over your favorite team, this witch, sadly, is no longer accepting orders, Scott. Baseball magic just too hot for the gig economy.
SIMON: I'm contacting an Etsy witch for the Cubs.
STEELE: Oh.
SIMON: But listen, Sister Jean, Loyola's Chicago chaplain for the men's basketball team, she's announced her retirement at the age of 106. What an inspiration. I love her, and you know her.
STEELE: Oh, yeah, absolutely an inspiration. A lot of us just hoping to survive to 106, much less retire. But Sister Jean, patron saint of the bracket busters, officially retiring from her duties with Loyola Chicago. Now, I talked to her quite a bit during that blessed Final Four run in 2018. She lived in the student dorms - probably kept her young. I talked to her again during the pandemic when there was no March Madness. She was still getting her NBA fix - basketball fix - by watching the NBA. She told me then these guys are so fast. They play with such passion. You know, she loves hoops. She loves Loyola, helping young people. I'm told she's doing very well. But on a personal note, boy, do I wish her a peaceful retirement.
SIMON: Sure do. Michele Steele, thanks so much.
STEELE: You bet. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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