A Top 10 list

This is a story from the Peoria Journal-Star about the Top 10 sports stories in Peoria for 2008. Here is the intro to the article. Number two is not a surprise:

The end of Bradley’s Robertson Memorial Field House was voted the biggest local sports story of 2008 by Journal Star sports editors and reporters, but it had company in the headlines with these other notable occurrences that covered highs (Matt Elliott’s swimming success), lows (the end of Jamar Smith’s Illini career) and the frightening (the Chiefs’ Midwest League brawl). Here are the rest of the local top 10 sports stories of the year:

2. The Chiefs brawl

Back in July, the Peoria Chiefs made national news five days before they wanted.

With a game at Wrigley Field days away, the Chiefs found themselves on national highlights for a July 24 brawl at Dayton that ranks among the ugliest in Midwest League history.

After Peoria pitcher Julio Castillo beaned Dayton shortstop Zach Cozart and Dragons’ second baseman Angel Cabrera slid hard into second base, both teams were on edge in the bottom of the first inning.

That seems a good place to stop the excerpt.

This seems like a good place to mention that the incident in Dayton has a place on my own Top 10 list for Midwest League stories of 2008. That post will be up before the end of the year. That gives me a couple of days to figure out the other nine, I guess.