Wednesday’s question: What was your favorite sports moment of 2009?

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Reporters from around the Tribune family tackle the question of the day, then you get a chance to chime in and tell them why they are wrong.

Dom Amore, Hartford Courant

Let’s face it, it wasn’t a great year for feel-good stories in sports. A few beloved icons fell from grace, and those who gained redemption were not the easiest to root for.
My favorite sports moment in 2009 did not involve anything as dramatic as a championship: It was Aaron Boone’s comeback from open-heart surgery to play for the Astros on Sept. 2, and a handful of otherwise meaningless thereafter. A few years ago, when sportswriter Hal McCoy, long-time baseball writer covering the Reds, was nearly blinded by an illness, Boone urged him not to quit and even offered to help him find his way around the clubhouse if he needed it. McCoy kept writing.
This year, Boone practiced what he preached and refused to let his heart disease force his retirement. He made it back to the majors and, if he does choose to retire now, it’s on his terms. A good thing happened to a good guy.

Joseph Schwerdt, South Florida Sun Sentinel

The best sports moment of the year lasted a weekend and it didn’t have a happy ending. Tom Watson lost in a playoff to Stewart Cink in the 2009 Open Championship at Turnberry. But in an age when high technology and long hitters have reshaped golf’s landscape, 59-year-old Watson brought us back to the sport’s birthplace and brought the modern game to its knees. His opening-round lead would have been pretty good story in itself, but Watson kept charging, even as some of the games big names -- Els, Westwood, Harrington, Woods -- either couldn’t keep up or failed to make the cut. ‘It would have been a hell of story, wouldn’t it?’ Watson said afterward. It was a hell of a story. The best of the year.

Ron Fritz, Baltimore Sun

The Preakness is one of the great sports moments every year because I get to see it live, but in 2009 the race lived up to the hype. Would filly Rachel Alexandra be able to out-run the boys? Would Mine That Bird come from behind again and win the second leg of the Triple Crown? Did Calvin Borel make the right choice in riding Rachel?

There was little the field could do with Rachel. She had them at her mercy. Borel took Rachel from the outside post position into the lead at the first quarter pole and never looked back. A late close by Mine That Bird was good enough for second, but this day belonged to Rachel.

It was the first time in 85 years a filly had won the Preakness and it was a thrilling ride. Thanks Rachel.

Dave Fairbank, Newport News (Va.) Daily Press

Easy call. Aug. 16, Berlin, track and field World Championships. Usain Bolt obliterated his own 100-meter dash record. The Jamaican phenom ran 9.58 seconds, lopping more than one-tenth of a second from the mark he set at Beijing in 2008. Go back and watch the race. It doesn’t matter what language the announcers are speaking. The man’s breathtaking ability and the magnitude of the accomplishment cross all language barriers. Consider that runnerup Tyson Gay’s 9.71 would have been a world record just 13 months earlier, and he wasn’t even close. Four days later, Bolt shattered his own 200-meter record, as well, clocking 19.19 seconds. You could have parked a Hummer between him and runnerup Alonso Edward when he hit the finish line. Astonishing.