La Cage Aux Follicle
Michael Cage played for the Sonics in the late 80s and early 90s. He was a talented frontcourt rebounder and defender, but what Seattlest loved him for was his fierce commitment to passè hairstyles.
The flat-top was en vogue when he joined the Sonics, but Cage sported a long, greasy jheri curl that Rick James would have been proud of. Flash forward five years, to 1993. Michael Jordan has popularized the shaved head. Yet, perhaps as an homage to the lost career of Kid 'N Play, Cage picks this time to lose his oily locks and try the flat-top (as seen in the accompanying picture from his basketball card that year). Some people said Cage was behind the times; we preferred to think of him as a retro pioneer.
Since Cage left the Sonics, the local sports scene has been devoid of compelling coifs. So, when the Mariners signed Pokey Reese this offseason, there was something besides the visions of steady defense and speed on the basepaths that pleased us. It was Reese's cornrows.
But Pokey is letting us down. Penciled in as the starting shortstop he's hitting .143 in Cactus League play and left the team for several days to "attend to a personal matter." He may lose his job to young Jose Lopez, who is scorching the ball, but has nothing interesting going on upstairs. For the sake of tonsorial pleasure--pick it up, Pokey.
A hearty Seattlest thank you and congratulations to the 2004-2005 Husky men's basketball team, whose season ended yesterday. The loss to Louisville was disappointing, but this team will be remembered fondly: they won 29 games, garnered a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and had Hec Ed hopping for the first time in years.
