It’s wasn’t just a figurative barroom debate. It was literally, yes, a barroom debate Monday evening. It started with my question: Which Centennial native will prove to have a greater sports career — Missy Franklin or pitcher Kevin Gausman, the No. 4 pick in the 2012 MLB draft?
Yes, right away, we acknowledged that this debate was apples and oranges. But after more Woodchuck apple cider beers (not me, never heard of such a drink) and oranges in our Blue Moons, the debate caught fire like Chris Mullin on NBA Jam.
Of course, the 17-year-old Franklin won her first gold medal Monday in the 100-meter backstroke. She also nabbed a bronze in a relay and has five more races, including her best event, the 200 backstroke.
So using the Gausman debate, what would this dude have to do?
Right away, someone said being the best at swimming is like being the best at, say, pitching. So if Gausman wins the Cy Young Award, is he Franklinesque? The answer is no, because you’ve heard of Missy Franklin but you haven’t heard of LaMarr Hoyt.
One person said that right now — this moment, July 31, 2012 — she is Dwight Gooden ’86, a phenom who has lived up to the hype (so far). But she has a lot more races/seasons to go. (I’m no expert, but I’d assume she’d be good to go for at least two more Olympiads.)
So let’s be honest. Franklin will probably leave London with at least a couple more golds. So in, like, two weeks she’ll (arguably) be bigger than Dr. K.
I then brought up another Denver-y sports legend — Arvada’s Roy Halladay. He won a Cy Young in EACH league. Five other times, he’s finished in the top five in Cy voting. He tossed a no-hitter in the postseason, too.
But really, of course, this brings us back to the orchard — it’s apples and oranges. Swimmers prepare for four years for the Olympic Games, while baseball players have every year to add to their legacy. But that’s why the Olympic gold holds so much sports-debate weight; it’s a one-shot deal, so if you win it, you’ve been catapulted in the sports pantheon. Meaning, of course, if Missy wins a bunch of ’em, she will be up there with the greats of baseball — the Halladays and beyond — and she has probably two more Olympics to get more golds.
Here’s a pun-intended curveball. Please note: Someone who knows nothing about swimming brought up this. If you’re an Olympic-caliber swimmer, you should be good enough to medal in multiple swimming events. (Meanwhile, for a pitcher, there’s annually just one award, not awards for different types of pitching accomplishments, be it best strikeout pitcher, best opponent’s batting average pitcher, etc.) So the numbers might be skewed when you see a swimmer with an obscene amount of medals. But the basic argument is: She’ll leave London as the best in her sport. And since the Olympics represent someone’s preparation for four years, does that make her the equivalent to a baseball player who dominated for the past four years (a Josh Hamilton or such)?
OK, so she’s Josh Hamilton; that ain’t bad. And if she goes all Missy Franklin in 2016 and 2020, she’ll be Stan Musial, Roger Clemens, Ted Williams, some luminary with longevity.
I think the longevity aspect is crucial to putting her in sports pantheon. When Missy comes home, she’ll have similar fame as another Colorado kid, swimmer Amy Van Dyken. In 1996, she became the first American woman to win four golds. She was America’s sweetheart. Those Games were her stage. She conquered, no question. But because of Missy’s age, Missy has the chance to do so at possibly three Olympics. Then again, here I am, just assuming that her unwavering greatness will last for 12 years. In a way, that’s like saying Kevin Gausman will surely be a star pitcher because, in 2012, he dominated college at LSU and became a top-five pick. A lot could happen. Shoot, Michael Phelps had the greatest Games ever in 2008 and now he’s just a dude at the 2012 Games.
But, I’ll say this: All signs point to Missy Franklin being the greatest athlete in the history — history! — of Centennial, Colorado.
Benjamin Hochman: 303-954-1294, bhochman@denverpost.com or twitter.com/nuggetsnews
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