On Breaking Records

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Years ago, I recall my father commenting on Joe DiMaggio's remarkable record of 56 consecutive baseball games with a hit:  "Dan, that's one record that will never be broken."

So true!

But what other so-called eternal records will never be broken?

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1.  Cal Ripken Jr. played in 2,632 consecutive games stretched out over 16 seasons.  Last year, only three individuals played in all 162 games, and each of them missed games the year prior.  I think it's safe to say that Ripken's "Iron Man" status is not - and never will be - in jeopardy.  Especially with a change in culture where significant value is placed on providing players periodic days off throughout the season, extremely rare will be the player who plays each game throughout one year, let alone 1 1/2 decades.

2.  Cy Young's incredible records of 749 complete games, 7,356 innings pitched, and 511 wins as a baseball pitcher will never be touched.  With managers providing pitchers more rest between games, the numbers just don't add up.  Among active players, CC Sabathia leads with 38 complete games while Bartolo Colon ranks first with 3,172 innings pitched and 233 wins.  There is no chance anyone in our lifetime will catch Cy Young.

3.  Wilt Chamberlain too holds many records that will never be broken.  His one season records include averaging over 50 points per game (Michael Jordan once averaged 37), over 27 rebounds per game (Dennis Rodman's 18.7 rebound average tops the list over the past 30 years), and an amazing 48.52 minutes per game (full regulation game is 48 minutes, so this statistic includes overtime minutes).  Truly incredible, and easy to characterize as unbreakable.

Many also argue that Wilt's 100 points in one game will never be broken.  But Kobe Bryant once netted 81 points, so I wouldn't say never on that one.

4.  As an NFL quarterback, Brett Favre started in an amazing 321 consecutive games.  With the regular beatings taken by quarterbacks, such a feat is difficult to comprehend.  Favre is no doubt an "All Time Tuff Guy."  Although Eli Manning is much closer than I thought, his 211 consecutive games is still nearly seven complete seasons short of Favre's mark.  I still maintain that Favre's mark is unbreakable.  But who knows, I've definitely been wrong before.

Can unbreakable records be broken?

Right now, we might actually be witnessing the breaking of one of those so-call eternal records.

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The Big O's unbreakable triple-double record is in jeopardy.

5.  In the 1961-62 NBA season, Oscar Robertson recorded an amazing 41 triple-doubles (double figures in three categories: generally points, rebounds, and assists) while averaging a triple-double throughout the season.  No player in history has come close to meeting that mark; in fact, most players don't even record one triple-double throughout their career.  Before this year, I would have labeled this remarkable accomplishment as an unbreakable record.

But not so fast.

Can he break an unbreakable record?

This year, we might be witnessing a truly once in a lifetime record breaking accomplishment.  The Oklahoma City Thunder's point guard Russell Westbrook has a chance to surpass Robertson's record number of triple-doubles.  In the first 46 games this year, Westbrook has 23 triple-doubles and is averaging a triple-double (30.7 points, which leads the league; 10.7 rebounds; and 10.4 assists).  With 36 games remaining, he'll need another 21 triple-doubles to break the record.  Let's stay tuned through April, because this one will likely come down to the final week of play.

Westbrook's feat is even more remarkable when considering that he only plays 34.7 minutes per game, compared with The Big O's 44.3 minutes per game during his record breaking year.

** What other records do you see as never being broken?

** Do you think any unbreakable records have a chance of being broken?

For more information on Russell Westbrook's attempt to make history, click here to read a more in depth article from ESPN.