Severed Connection

ESPN/MLSnet writer and noteworthy sibling Jeff Bradley used to consistently deliver very Fire- and MetroStar-centric views on Major League Soccer, but with his brother Bob now several jobs removed from coaching either club, and with Jeff covering more and more baseball stories, he's clearly outside of that comfort zone. In his most recent First XI column, on new homes for veteran players, there's this:

5. Zach Thornton, from Colorado to New York. This is a sentimental choice, since Thornton was a member of the original MetroStars (he recorded the first win in team history, in fact) and has found his way back to New York a dozen years later. Sure, he played only 32 minutes for the Rapids and hasn't been an MLS starter since the midpoint of the 2006 season, but I have a feeling that Juan Carlos Osorio saw something in Thornton during his time in Chicago that made him want to bring the veteran 'keeper into the fold in New York. Can he beat out Jon Conway for the starting position? I don't see why it won't be an all-out preseason battle. That, in itself, will be fun to watch.

Except, of course, that Zach was let go at the beginning of the 2007 season, and Osorio didn't get here until the summer. I pointed out to a friend -- who will remain nameless, because I don't think Zach is a guy you want mad at you -- that Osorio and Thornton never co-existed in the Fire organization, and he replied "Zach is big enough to be seen with the naked eye from Chicago, even if he's in Denver."

Sorry, Jeff. Got that one all sorts of wrong.