Baseball quiz: Let’s play base-bowl

One of my favorite parts of each Super Bowl is when time expires because it means the baseball season has begun. Let’s hope that’s the outcome this year, as well.

As George Carlin said in his famous comparison of baseball and football:

“In football, you receive a penalty.

“In baseball, you make an error.”

There are no penalties in our weekly quiz, just an occasional error. Have fun.

1. The first Super Bowl was held Jan. 15, 1967, in the Los Angeles Coliseum (Packers over Chiefs 35-10). Who had a better record in the 1967 baseball season?

a. Cubs

b. White Sox

c. Same

2. The Bears have played in two Super Bowls and have a .500 record of 1-1. Which Chicago pitcher has had the most career decisions with a .500 record?

a. Francisco Barrios

b. Larry Jackson

c. Scott Sanderson

d. Joe Horlen

3. Super Bowl XX on Jan. 26, 1986, marked the Bears’ first appearance in the game, and the Mike Ditka-led team destroyed the Patriots 46-10. Which Chicago player(s) have hit exactly 46 homers in a season?

a. Ernie Banks

b. Frank Thomas

c. Derrek Lee

d. Paul Konerko

4. The Bears’ second appearance in the big game did not go as well as the first. The Colts beat the Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI on

Feb. 4, 2007. The halftime show was one of the greatest with Prince performing. That leads me to this question about a baseball father-son duo: Who hit more career homers?

a. Cecil Fielder

b. Prince Fielder

c. Same

5. In 2005, the White Sox swept the Astros to win the World Series. In the Super Bowl, on

Feb. 6, 2005, the Patriots defeated the Eagles 24-21, and the MVP was not Tom Brady but wide receiver Deion Branch. Who was the MVP of the 2005 World Series?

a. Harold Baines

b. Tim Raines

c. Jermaine Dye

d. Paul Konerko

6. In 2016, the Cubs defeated Cleveland to win the World Series in seven games, with a 10-inning victory in the finale. Earlier that year, in the 50th Super Bowl, the Broncos defeated the Panthers 24-10. Von Miller led the impenetrable Denver defense and was the MVP. Who was the Cubs’ MVP in the Series?

a. Kris Bryant

b. Anthony Rizzo

c. Ben Zobrist

d. Aroldis Chapman

7. Tom Brady won more Super Bowls (seven) than any team has won in its existence (Patriots and Steelers with six). Which major-league player has won the most World Series rings?

a. Joe DiMaggio

b. Bill Dickey

c. Yogi Berra

d. Phil Rizzuto

8. Since the first Super Bowl in 1967, who has the better winning percentage?

a. White Sox

b. Cubs

c. Same

9. The Browns, Lions, Texans and Jaguars have never appeared in the Super Bowl. The Mariners have never appeared in the World Series. Which team(s) have never won the World Series?

a. Rangers

b. Rays

c. Rockies

d. Padres

ANSWERS

1. 1967 was a meh year for Chicago baseball. Even though neither team made the postseason, both teams finished over .500. The Cubs were 87-74-1 (.540), while the Sox were 89-73 (.549).

2. The Cubs’ Larry Jackson was 52-52 in 1963-1966, but Joe Horlen was 113-113 with the Sox in 1961-1972.

3. Only Derrek Lee, who went deep 46 times for the Cubs in 2005.

4. From 2005 to 2016, Prince Fielder hit 319 homers. His dad, Cecil, hit 319 homers from 1985 to 1998.

5. Jermaine Dye hit .438 with a homer and three RBI to become the Series MVP.

6. Ben Zobrist went 10-for-28 (.357) with a pair of doubles, a triple, five runs scored and two RBI. He hit the go-ahead RBI double in the 10th inning of Game 7. Zobrist became the first player to be the World Series MVP in his first season with a team since Dye.

7. From 1946 to 1965, Yogi Berra won 10 rings with the Yankees, who have 27 championships. Only the Cardinals, with 11 championships, have won more titles than Yogi.

8. This is a pretty glum answer. Since 1967, the Sox have gone 4,278-4,385 (.494), while the Cubs have gone 4,251-4,414 (.491).

9. Add the Brewers to this list, and you have the five teams who have never won a World Series.

The great Washington Post columnist Thomas Boswell put together a list of reasons why baseball is better than football. It included, “In football, nobody says, ‘Let’s play two!’ ”

Enjoy the game tomorrow!