10.31.05
Posted in Cinema, Rock Und Roll
at 9:51 pm
…but with a younger cast. From the NY Times’ Robert Levine.
(the Hanson Brothers, before it all went wrong. Actually, long before it all went right, too. Pic courtesy Kim Fowley.net)
Plenty of bands have written songs complaining about their frustration with record labels. But Hanson, the band of three brothers that helped usher in a teenage pop craze with the 1997 hit “MMMBop,” has made an entire documentary film about its dismal experience on the label Island Def Jam.
Originally signed to Mercury Records, Hanson found itself with Island Def Jam as a result of major label mergers. In the fall of 2000, Hanson began recording what was to be its third major-label album of new material and hired a director, Ashley Greyson, to film the process. “About eight months in, we realized there was going to be more difficulty than we thought,” said Taylor Hanson, 22.
The movie, “Strong Enough to Break,” follows the band’s disagreements with label executives – over the choice of producer and the need for an upbeat single, among other things – and ultimately its decision to leave the label and found its own, 3CG Records. The album, “Underneath,” finally came out on Hanson’s own label in April 2004 and sold 130,000 copies, a healthy figure for an independent release.
Between concerts on its current tour, the group is screening the film at colleges. The brothers, who have made it into their 20’s without attracting much attention from tabloids, say they would like to educate students about the music business; they take questions after the screenings. Of course, Hanson is also hoping to arouse interest in its new live album and its current tour. “We’re not unaware that we’re reconnecting with people and a few of them might come to the concert,” said Zac Hanson, who is 20.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 8:07 pm
From the AP:
Closer Braden Looper’s $5.5 million option was declined Monday by the New York Mets, who will pay the reliever a $250,000 buyout.
New York also exercised right-hander Steve Trachsel’s $2.5 million option and declined a $4 million option on first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz, who gets a $450,000 buyout.
And now the attempts to overpay BJ Ryan or Trevor Hoffman can begin in earnest.
The White Sox have exercised a $1.2 million option on reliever/Journey lover Cliff Politte, along with declining the club option for ‘06 on noted paleontologist Carl Evertt.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 6:55 pm
From the Boston Herald’s Michael Silverman :
Theo Epstein stunned the Red Sox and the baseball world this afternoon by walking away from his job as general manager.
Just hours before his deal was set to expire at midnight, Epstein told his bosses and associates at the Red Sox’ Yawkey Way offices that he had decided not to accept a three-year deal worth $1.5 million a year, an extension for the contract he signed on Nov. 25, 2002.
Epstein had done some agonizing soul-searching the past few days, torn between staying at the job he had always coveted since his childhood days in Brookline and leaving because of intra-organizational politics and power struggles that he ultimately decided he could not live with any longer.
Epstein had come close to agreeing to a deal Saturday evening but had not officially conveyed acceptance of it. On Sunday, he began having serious misgivings about staying on. A leading contributing factor, according to sources close to the situation, was a column in Sunday’s Boston Globe in which too much inside information about the relationship between Epstein and his mentor, team president and CEO Larry Lucchino, was revealed — in a manner slanted too much in Lucchino’s favor. Epstein, according to these sources, had several reasons to believe Lucchino was a primary source behind the column and came to the realization that if this information were leaked hours before Epstein was going to agree to a new long-term deal, it signaled excessive bad faith between him and Lucchino.
Interestingly, Toronto’s J.P. Riccardi is not included on Silverman’s short list of candidates for Boston’s new opening.
Permalink
Posted in Professional Wrestling
at 6:07 pm
Turkeynecks around the world are in mourning. Or at least they were, last week.
Thanks to Dave Martin for the link. Needless to say, I’ve been reading the wrong newspapers.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 5:39 pm
The Associated Press is reporting that Boston Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein has resigned:
Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein resigned Monday, surprising Boston and the baseball world just one year after he helped build the franchise’s first World Series championship team since 1918.
The team said in a statement that Epstein will continue working for several days to assist in the transition and prepare for the offseason.
The Boston Herald, which first reported the news on its web site, said the Yale graduate has told associates that he may leave baseball, or at least take a year off.
Permalink
Posted in Boxing, Chess
at 3:16 pm
Chessboxing : not since Gymkata have two disparate sporting endeavors made for such a hot combination. From the Guardian’s Georgina Turner.
The brainchild of Dutch artist Iepe Rubingh, chessboxers alternate between board and ring, engaging both brains and brawn through 11 rounds (four minutes’ chess, two minutes’ boxing), to see who comes out on top. Contests are won by checkmate, knock-out, retirement, exceeding the time limit at the board or a refereeing decision. If the chess game ends in stalemate, the highest scorer in the boxing rounds wins. Ties are won, for no apparent reason, by the player with the black pieces.
On first inspection, there are probably no two sports that are more ill-matched: one minute you’re having your skull battered, the next you’re sat down trying to work out why you appear to have 48 pawns, let alone what to do with them. Wrong again, apparently.
“The combination is just fascinating,” says German fighter Andreas Dilschneider. “There are parallels. Both are about giving and taking, reacting to the move your opponent just made, whether they’ve thrown a punch or moved a piece.
“You always have to think about the end goal, what you want to do.” The World Chess Boxing Organisation (WCBO) highlights this philosophy in its motto: ‘Fighting is done in the ring and wars are waged on the board’.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball, Blogged Down
at 1:05 pm
…with a zeal that would make a rational person (well, Harris Bloom at least) wonder “what’s the big deal?”, presenting DePodesta For President.
Permalink
Posted in The Mailbag, Will Leitch Sucks
at 12:36 pm
Easily excited reader Gawkastalka writes,
Thought you might go completely overboard (as usual) when you compare the following Will Leitch quote from this morning ;
“If there’s one team that has more luck than Air Force at recruiting the type of athletes DeBerry was talking about … it’s totally Brigham Young.”
To your own comment from Saturday afternoon, “In other happy news, Air Force are currently trailing those masters of urban recruiting, BYU, 31-7 in the third quarter.”
It isn’t that Will is plagerizing you, of course. It just seems like your brand of topical humor improves 48 hours later when someone else says the same thing.
Hmmm, interesting theory GS, but if that’s the best he can come up with two days after the fact, somebody should demand a refund.
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 11:53 am
Along with predicting that Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire will miss the entire 2005-2006 season, the Detroit News’ Chris McCosky looks ahead to Ben Wallace’s impending free agency.
Keep your eyes on the Bulls next July, when they take the $20 million in cap space they will have and start wooing free agent Ben Wallace (above).
The Bulls were a playoff team with Eddy Curry in the middle. With Wallace, they could be a title contender.
The Bulls and the Atlanta Hawks, the franchise closest to Wallace’s home in Alabama, will be the two teams that come after Wallace the hardest.
But rest easy for now. The Pistons aren’t going to let their foundation, the face of their organization, simply walk out of the door.
The Pistons have been prudently preparing for Wallace’s eventual free agency the past few years. They should be in a position to reward him with the most lucrative contract offer in Pistons history.
The Pistons have signed defensive wiz Tayshun Prince to a 5 year, $47 million extension.
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron
at 11:44 am
That Green Bay’s Brett Favre almost pulled a comeback out of his hat amidst a 5 INT day with a botched fake-spike ala Marino finale either says something about his being a gutsy gamer, one of the all-time greats, guh-guh-guh-guh-guh….or perhaps the reality is that sans Ahmad Green, the ‘05 Pack really suck and Favre ought retire. From the Cincinatti Enquirer’s Paul Daughtery.
The Bengals beat Green Bay on Sunday because Favre’s skills and Favre’s supporting cast are no longer a perfect match for his forever-brash mentality.
Credit Cincinnati’s ball-aware linebackers and secondary. Rookie Odell Thurman swiped two passes. Deltha O’Neal took two more. Props to the entire defense, which, as offensive tackle Willie Anderson noted, “played their tails off today.”
Favre helped. His appearance at Paul Brown Stadium was equal parts swan song and swan dive. The quarterback who never knows when to say when tried to make some impossible throws. All it cost him was five interceptions, including four in four possessions. In a 21-14 game, that was the difference.
Either that, or it was the fan who ran across the field with 28 seconds left, swiped the ball from an astonished Favre’s hand, and sprinted some 60 yards to the opposite 15-yard line. Cops stopped him there and buried him in a pile. If you get in the red zone, you have to score. Everybody knows that.
In the closing moments, helped by a ridiculous pass interference call, Favre moved the Packers from his 5-yard line to the Cincinnati 28, with no timeouts remaining. As bad as Favre had been to that point, he appeared poised to be Superman once more.
The Bengals have been good at beating the teams they’re supposed to beat. As coach Marvin Lewis put it, “We’ve taken care of business when we had to.”
They did it again Sunday, beating the overmatched and undermanned Favres, who live and (mostly) die on Favre’s audacity.
He’s still fun to watch, though. Then again, so was the fan on the field.
“The 12th man,” Robinson called him, jokingly. “It takes that kind of effort to win.”
Added Chad Johnson: “I might streak next week.”
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 8:28 am
That’s the question posed by the NY Times’ Ben Shipgel, as he catches up with Mets prospect Lastings Milledge, currently toiling with the AFL’s Grand Canyon Rafters.
At 20, often the youngest player on the field during these Arizona Fall League games, Milledge (above) boasts exceptional speed, tremendous outfield range and a frighteningly quick bat. During a showcase event in high school, his throws from the outfield were clocked at 96 miles an hour. He tore through Class A St. Lucie in the first half of last season before being promoted to Class AA Binghamton, where he batted .337 in 193 at-bats. And while Milledge acknowledges that he still needs some polish, Kevin Morgan, the Mets’ director for minor league operations, raves about his precociousness between the foul lines.
Milledge, it would seem, is one of those can’t-miss prospects. Except, of course, he still can. Even though the Mets project him as a fundamental component to their future – billboards with his face alongside those of José Reyes and David Wright should be ready for 2007 – Milledge is caught squarely in the crosshairs of an organizational predicament. With the World Series over and off-season maneuvering picking up steam, the quandary facing General Manager Omar Minaya as he tries to move the Mets up a notch is whether Milledge could help them more if he were playing somewhere else.
That is, should the Mets hold on to Milledge, a player with a seemingly endless upside, or, bowing to the transitory nature of the sport, package him in a deal in coming weeks that could supply immediate help, perhaps the big bat they need to turn an 83-victory team into a contender?
“If the Mets are looking to trade him, I know 29 teams who would be more than happy to take him off their hands,” said a veteran National League scout, who asked that his name not be used because he was commenting on another team’s player.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 8:04 am
With Luis Sojo displaced after the hiring of Larry Bowa, the Yankees might be adding former Royals manager Tony Pena to Joe Torre’s staff, writes the NY Daily News’ Sam Borden.
There are several advantages to bringing in Pena, who won the 2003 AL Manager of the Year award in Kansas City but stepped down in May after a difficult start. First, the Bombers are looking for a Latino presence on the staff since former third base coach Luis Sojo is not expected to be with the major league club in 2006. Sojo, who will be replaced by former Phillies manager Larry Bowa, has expressed interest in becoming the manager of the Class-A Tampa Yankees because that is where he lives, and he likely will be accommodated.
Sojo was very popular with the Spanish-speaking players on the Yankees and had a particularly good relationship with Robinson Cano. Joe Torre often used Sojo to help gauge the rookie’s emotional status, so there is the hope that Pena might develop a similar chemistry.
The second benefit to adding Pena is that the Bombers currently are without a specialized catchers coach. Bench coach Joe Girardi worked with Jorge Posada, John Flaherty and the other catchers during spring training and continued that responsibility during the season, but he has left to become the manager of the Marlins.
Another benefit, unmentioned by Borden, is that with Sojo having already refused a demotion to coach at 1st, Pena is a natural for the position. If reports out of K.C. are to be believed, who would know more about how to get to first base?
Permalink
Posted in Sports Journalism
at 7:38 am
….and what took him so long? From Phil Mushnick in Monday’s NY Post.
We’re supposed to applaud Sheryl Swoopes’ courage in revealing that she’s gay when her self-outing coincided with her paid endorsement of a cruise line that caters to lesbians? Until dough was dangled, her seven-year relationship with a woman was no one else’s business? How’s that for the courage of one’s convictions?
Heck, if there’s money in it, I’ll admit it, too. I’m a lesbian. Bon voyage!
Though Phil is correct in implying there’s something screwy about such an announcement having a corporate sponsor (in this case, Olivia Cruises), surely Mr. Integrity can acknowledge that Swoopes is waving goodbye to any number of other endorsement opportunities?
And besides, Fred Smoot already turned the gig down.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 2:51 am
Hall Of Famer Al Lopez passed away this weekend at the age of 97. Lopez wore the tools of ignorance in some 1918 games, a record that stood for more than 40 years.
As a manager, Lopez led the ‘54 Indians and ‘59 White Sox to American League pennants. The former club won 111 games in the regular season before losing to Willie Mays’ New York Giants in the World Series.
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron
at 1:35 am
You don’t have to be Vincent Gallo or Leah Archibald to know that Buffalo’s 21-16 loss to the Patriots on Sunday barely registers on the Bills’ list of All-Time Chokes. Just the same, Bills fans can take the following away from the experience :
a) you had a banged-up, beatable New England squad on the ropes, and couldn’t get the job done.
b) On 4th and 7 with 2:03 left and trailing by 5, maybe Kelly Holcomb has to thrown the ball further down the field?
c) YOU JUST GOT BEAT BY A STROKE VICTIM
Permalink
10.30.05
Posted in Hockey
at 9:36 pm
The above headline does not refer to the Eagles’ Donovan, who came out on the short end of a 49-21 decision to the Broncos Sunday afternoon. Instead, I pay homage to the Austin Ice Bats’ veteran F John McNabb (above), whose 2 goals —- one on a nifty breakaway, another on a 3rd period powerplay — helped the local CHL side get off the schneid with a come from behind 5-4 win over Lubbock, their first of the season.
Trailing 4-1 entering the 3rd, 4 unanswered goals in an 18 minute span improved the Ice Bats’ record to 1-4, this after being outscored 12-4 in the weekend’s previous losses to Bossier-Shreveport and Rio Grande.
If I’m ever again tempted to refer to the likes of Shea Stadium or Brentford’s Griffin Park as “charmless”, I need only compare either venue to the sparsely populated Travis County Exhibition Center (which in all fairness, has to be a far more happening joint for non-matinees and/or motocross. I’m not actually sure about the motocross, but Lt. Dangle isn’t returning my calls). However, Ice Bats management are doing their very best to improve the ambience and if the heavy rotation of Local H and Sponge wasn’t enough to keep hockey neophytes entertained, they could also enjoy the smooth between-periods stylings of the Concordia University Jazz Ensemble. John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Cecil Taylor, Art Ensemble Of Chicago, Thelonious Monk, Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Pharoah Sanders, etc. move the fuck over. I’ve heard the CUJE’s version of the “Peter Gunn” theme and everything I thought I knew about life and love, never mind music, was wrong, wrong, wrong.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 6:41 pm
Not having spent a moment in Frank McCourt’s company, I can only speculate as to whether or not Tommy Lasorda has been whispering in the Dodger owner’s ear. Though some of you seem pretty certain that’s exactly what has been going on in the wake of Paul DePodesta’s sudden firing.
Though I wouldn’t ordinarily recommend checking out Lasorda’s blog at MLB.com (Tommy needs a new ghostwriter even more than Bill Romanowski), some of the reader comments that have gone up in the past two days are priceless, in their own special way.
You wouldn’t have anything to do with DePodesta’s dumping, would you? I remember how big you were on loyalty, when did that change? You had a couple of bad years (remember 1992? I sure do), thank goodness your owner wasn’t so fickle.
Posted by: bokonon42@hotmail.com | October 29, 2005 02:51 PM
Screw you Tommy. And screw Bobby Valentine while you’re at it. They should have kicked your old antiquated carcass out to the curb when they had the chance. Now you’re going to run this organization you claim to love into the ground. I can’t wait for the next Shaw-for-Konerko stroke of genius. You and McCourt can go to **** as far as I’m concerned.
Posted by: sangabrielad@yahoo.com | October 29, 2005 02:53 PM
Mr. Lasorda,
I’ve always had affection for you. You’ve obviously suddenly gained great influence over the future direction of the Dodger franchise. The McCourts have demonstrated nothing but sheer ignorance and vanity in how they approach running the team, so your role is crucial.
Given that, here’s what fans need to hear you say:
“I made a mistake trading Paul Konerko.”
“I made a mistake dismissing the potential of Pedro Martinez.”
“I’ve learned from these stupid blunders, and will not advise that the Dodgers repeat them now. Specifically, I will make sure the McCourts continue to recognize, as they did when DePodesta was here, that trading our blue chip prospects for over the hill ‘name’ players might be a PR dream but is bad for the long term future of the franchise. If I see Frank or Jamie heading in that direction, I will come to them and say, Frank and Jamie, I tried that before, and I failed, and I’m still miserable about it. I personally cost the Dodgers at least two division championships in this decade because I so devalued Konerko.”
Tommy, I don’t know if you can do this. But if you did it, and did it publicly, the sting of this unjustified firing would be much eased.
Thanks.
Posted by: dzzrtratt@hotmail.com | October 30, 2005 02:44 PM
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron
at 3:03 pm
A Bengals fan just took a handoff from Brett Favre. Given that the Packers QB has been throwing balls to dudes in orange all afternoon, Mr. Gatecrasher can be excused for thinking he was entitled.
I can already see Mike Tice’s new job —- celebrity spokesperson for StubHub.com
I’m still trying to figure out which performance was more awkward, Jeff Garcia hosting SNL last night, or his futility against the Bears.
(it’s been a career day for Tiki Barber, 206 yards on 24 carries and one TD)
While watching the Giants humiliate the Redskins, I can’t help but wonder if this isn’t the former’s finest all-around performance since the 2001 NFC Championship win over the Vikings. Not that I haven’t already quit up on this one —- with Pat Ramsey in the game, presumably Washington has, too.
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 2:40 pm
(the hottest ticket since McGovern/Eagleton)
As Tavares once sang, “It only takes a minute….” to end up on the shit list of Portland’s Nate McMillan’. From the Oregonian’s Jason Quick.
If Nate McMillan has a proverbial doghouse, the Trail Blazers coach says it is vacant — even if it appears that his star player, Zach Randolph, is doing everything possible to take up residence.
On Oct. 10, Randolph was kicked out of a practice for loafing. Two days later, he was late to the team’s morning shootaround — a pregame practice in which the team goes over its plan for that night’s game — resulting in Randolph losing his starting role for the night. Then, last Wednesday, Randolph was late again to the team’s morning shootaround, resulting in another benching.
“Pfft. He be all right, I guess,” Randolph said Friday in Spokane when asked what he thought of his coach. “I got kicked out of a practice, nothing I can do about that now. And I have been late — everybody be late at times. I just can’t be late anymore.”
“What came after the part where he said, ‘only one minute’?” McMillan asked.
Before it was relayed to him, McMillan finished the sentence himself.
“Late. Whether it was one minute or whatever, and the end of that was late,” McMillan said.
“See, what it comes down to is execution. If we are one second late in where we are supposed to be in a game, it costs you a basket, it costs you a game. Everything we do, really, is based on time, and that’s the discipline I hope we get.”
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 1:08 pm
Though picking the Spurs to repeat next June, the NY Post’s Peter Vescey presumes that Indiana and Miami will be the likely finalists in the Eastern Conference.
The Pacers, despite flaunting six guys who can go goofy at any time, will provide stiffer resistance than the Spurs are accustomed to coping with in the Finals.
For the first time since the Indy 500 was raced with a horse and buggy, the Pacers are without the retired Reggie Miller. Not having him holding them back anymore is reason alone to pick them. By remaining loyal to Miller two years more than common sense dictated, the Pacers were financially forced to move free agent Brad Miller to the Kings in a non-productive sign-and-trade transaction and deal unhappy Al Harrington for Stephen Jackson.
Yeah, Miller could still fill it up at the end of his career, but so could James Jones (averaging 16.6 points and 42-percent FG from deep as a Sun), whose growth Reggie stunted, to single out one former teammate. And, guess what, the 6-8 Jones also rebounds and plays defense.
Afterthought: Let’s not dwell anymore on the past. Fans now get 82 fresh chances to guess when Artest will visit the special prosecutor. How can anyone not like the Heat to sail through the ashy Southeast Division, despite all the new sailors Pat Riley has welcomed aboard? (Coaches have no input regarding personnel changes in Miami and Detroit, to name two places.)
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 12:54 pm
Amidst continued questions regarding newly acquired Knicks C Eddy Curry’s physical condition, the New York Daily News’ Frank Isola throws a new revelation into the mix.
In the summer of 2004, Curry, in an attempt to lose weight, either knowingly or unknowingly began taking ephedra, a controversial diet supplement that increases metabolism. It is not recommended for anyone with a heart condition and federal investigators have linked ephedra to at least 100 deaths – including that of Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler – and to strokes, seizures and heart attacks. It was banned by most sports leagues, including the NBA, long before the federal government finally outlawed its sale last year.
According to a source, the pills were provided by Tim Grover, the Chicago-based trainer whose A-list clients include Michael Jordan and Alex Rodriguez. Curry denied taking ephedra, saying the weight loss was the result of a low-carb diet. Grover did not return phone calls made to his office.
“I wasn’t taking any supplements,” Curry says. “I cut out bread and sugar from my diet. I lost something like 35 pounds and I came in at 275 pounds. I felt uncomfortable. I didn’t feel like myself at all. I wanted to play at 285 or 290.”
According to a source, the Bulls noticed Curry’s dramatic weight loss and became suspicious. Curry gained a reputation as a player who gained weight during the off-season and avoided the Bulls’ training facility during the summer. Curry contends that he preferred to use Grover, whom he hired four years earlier, to monitor his workouts at Hoops the Gym in downtown Chicago.
Although Curry resumed his workouts in early August, there is some debate over just how strenuous Grover’s program was. When Curry arrived for Knicks training camp in Charleston four weeks ago, he was badly out of shape.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 12:03 pm
The Boston Herald’s Michael Silverman writes that Red Sox ownership is fumingover yesterday’s reports of Manny Ramirez demanding a trade, yet reserving the right to change his mind.
“I echo Theo’s remarks today that deplore leaks to the media regarding private conversations,” John Henry said in an e-mail. “I was able to ascertain that today’s story on Manny did not come from the Red Sox.”
A source on the Red Sox said the team was “furious” about the story but given that Ramirez has made and withdrawn similar requests in the past, having him possibly express a desire to be traded once again did not raise anybody’s eyebrows along Yawkey Way. Still, the breach in confidence reportedly bothered the Red Sox a great deal, even if the source was discovered not to be on the payroll.
However, if Ramirez’ request to be traded does remain on the table for a long period of time, the leak does no favors for the Red Sox, who would lose leverage if potential trading partners believe that Ramirez is forcing a trade.
Despite the Mets being on Ramirez’ list of teams that he’d reject a trade to, the New York Daily News’ usually reliable Adam Rubin claims there’s still a chance of such of a transaction being completed.
Ramirez’s agent, Greg Genske, has said Ramirez would want no part of the Mets if he were traded. But that won’t stop the Mets from pursuing Ramirez, according to someone familiar with the team’s thinking.
Given Ramirez’s oft-changing stances, it seems plausible Ramirez could be convinced by Omar Minaya and Pedro Martinez to join the Mets if the teams could strike a deal.
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron
at 11:41 am
Of today’s four late afternoon games that I won’t be watching, Tampa Bay/SF seems like the least attractive matchup. Though if Halloween would come a day early to Monster Park, I might change my mind. From the St. Petersburg Times’ Stephen F. Holder.
Bucs players enjoy Halloween as much as anybody, but we found talking to these guys about their Halloweens past was downright scary. And not because of the frightful reasons usually associated with the holiday.
Players’ memories covered the spectrum, some boasting of clever costumes, others recalling ones that could be described only as bizarre.
Take tight end Anthony Becht (above).
“When I was about 8, that’s when Pac-Man was real big,” he said. “So my mom, she cut a Pac-Man shape out of cardboard that covered almost my whole body. Then she made me wear these yellow tights with some yellow Converse (sneakers). And my sister dressed as one of the ghosts (from the video game). I wasn’t feeling too masculine walking around in that thing.”
If that’s the case, then what eventually happened must have crushed his manhood. Some of his neighbors remarked to his mother, “Your daughter is so cute,” Becht recalled. One problem. They were talking about Anthony, not his sister.
“I was like, “Come on, I’m a guy!’ ” Becht said. “They couldn’t see my face because of the costume. There were just two holes poked into the cardboard for my eyes. I did get a lot of candy, though.”
As an eighth-grader, tight-end Alex Smith, running out of fresh costume ideas, decided to dress as a drag queen. Turns out, it was quite the hit. Then again, that’s the problem.
“The thing was, everybody said I looked good, which is kind of scary,” he said. “I don’t know how I feel about that.”
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 11:23 am
I suppose congratulations of some sort are due to the LA Times’ Bill Plaschke (above), who has proven that despite being barely capable of stringing a sentence together, he can run a Harvard educated executive out of town if he writes the same column enough times.
Some will say Paul DePodesta wasn’t given a fair chance. I say he never should have been hired in the first place.
Some say this makes Dodger owner McCourt look like a man who has lost control. I say this is about him finally taking control, however clueless and callous he appears.
Some say, a hasty firing. I say, a smart trade.
DePodesta and his strange managerial candidate list have been dealt into our memories for Pat Gillick, Orel Hershiser and Bobby Valentine.
Here’s guessing Gillick and his World Series rings will be the new general manager. Hershiser and his World Series ring will be the assistant. Bobby Valentine and his World Series appearance will be the manager.
None of this would be possible if DePodesta were still around.
The kid’s computer, once foolishly hailed by McCourt as the organizational savior, had become little more than a flashy box blocking the door.
McCourt should have known better. Or, at least, he should have asked someone other than Oakland’s Billy Beane, the most famous general manager who has never won a playoff series.
To fill shoes once worn by Branch Rickey and Al Campanis, should McCourt really have hired a 31-year-old who, when with Oakland, had been the most invisible No. 2 executive in the game?
Remember when, during DePodesta’s hiring news conference in February 2004, McCourt mentioned how it was so cool that his teenage son had been surfing chat rooms that claimed DePodesta joining the Dodgers was like Alex Rodriguez joining the New York Yankees?
An opposing viewpoint (to say the least), can be found here.
Permalink
Posted in Boxing
at 11:02 am
A number of comics and z-list celebs recently gathered at the New York Hilton for a Friar’s Club Roast of Don King. Newsday’s Wally Matthews wasn’t laughing very hard, though he does bring up some valuable tidbits from King’s biography, in case they ever do a 2nd roast.
Far too many of us have bought into the popular image of King as a flamboyant but basically harmless boxing rogue.
Freddie Roman, Pat Cooper, Norm Crosby and the rest of them have certainly swallowed it, and though they may be accomplished roastmasters when the subject is your standard-issue celebrity, when it comes to King, they are as clueless as any of the dozens of well-heeled suckers who have fallen under King’s spell, only to be kicked to the curb. As a result, the “roast” was a series of gentle slaps, followed by professions of deepest love and respect for this man who “has done so much for boxing.”
Truth is, the Friars were not qualified to give King the roasting he deserves. That could be done only by those King already has roasted.
People such as Sam Garrett, who worked for King (above) as a numbers runner in Cleveland back in the 1960s. But Garrett couldn’t be there because he was dead, stomped into a coma by King over a $600 debt. According to the police report, Garrett’s last words were, “I’ll pay you, Donald, I’ll pay you.”
People such as Jeff Merritt, King’s first heavyweight, the one who got boxing people to pay attention to his ex-con manager because he could hit like a ton of bricks falling off a roof. But Merritt wound up a junkie and a failure; when last seen, he turned up at the Mike Tyson-Peter McNeeley fight begging his old manager for a few bucks. King had him thrown out by security.
People such as Earnie Shavers, King’s second fighter, whose huge punch propelled King into big-time boxing. He wound up having to cut the lawn at King’s mansion after he was betrayed by his trusting nature – and glass chin.
People such as the employees of financially ailing Forest City Hospital in Cleveland, who in the early ’70s believed King would save them with a boxing fundraiser at which he had convinced Muhammad Ali, whom he had never met, to appear. According to a book by the late journalist Jack Newfield, Ali got $10,000, King got $30,000, the hospital got $15,000. The hospital folded anyway but King met Ali, and the rest is boxing history.
Most of all, you need to talk to Ali, now 62 and in the grip of Parkinson’s disease widely believed to have been caused by repeated blows to the head. The most damaging of those were likely inflicted in his last two fights, against Larry Holmes and Trevor Berbick. Both bouts were promoted by King despite medical reports, as detailed in Thomas Hauser’s comprehensive Ali biography, showing that Ali already was suffering brain damage and should not have been allowed back in the ring.
Permalink
Posted in Rock Und Roll
at 10:48 am
This was a slow news week for the New York Post’s Phil Mushnick. Since his last entry, incredibly, nothing has occured to justify trashing Mike Francesca, Chris Russo, Spike Lee, Vince McMahon, Nike, Stuart Scott or Stephen A. Smith. In Sunday’s column, he could only manage a very brief, negative reference to the video game industry, along with the following revelation :
Sports fans should know they’re not alone in being forced to buy tickets with outrageous face values and added, dubious service charges that are designed to beat scalpers to the sucker punch.
Tickets to the three Cream concerts at the Garden last week were priced at $365 (apiece!), $185, $148 and, if you wanted only to hear the concert, as opposed to also seeing it, $80.
Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce did perform one of Cream’s great old numbers, “I Feel Free,” but apparently they didn’t mean it.
Phil should be encouraged to know, however that tickets for the recent Danzig/Doyle reunion gig in San Antonio were far cheaper.
Permalink
10.29.05
Posted in Football
at 11:54 pm
How to pick Saturday’s top soccer story? The 1-1 draw in the North London derby? Manchester United’s worst Premiership defeat in 6 years, 4-1 to hosts Middlesbrough?
Ten man QPR winning at Derby? (ok, probably not the top story) How about Paul Gascoigne, victorious in his managerial debut with non-League Kettering? A nightmare showing for Wisdom Weasel’s Norwich City, 1-0 losers to Sheffield Wednesday, as calls for Nigel Worthington’s head rise to a crescendo? Inter Milan falling to 3rd place in Serie A after a 2-2 draw at Sampdoria?
I’m not gonna pick the MetroStars getting knocked out of the MLS Playoffs on the grounds that it was totally unfair of New England to activate Tedy Bruschi.
(Wigan goalscorer Pascal Chimbonda — actually, they’re number 2)
With apologies to all of the above, Saturday’s mind-blower goes to Wigan Athletic, not so much for their referee assisted 1-0 defeat of Fulham, but rather, for how difficult it is to absorb the following : the Lactics are now 2nd in the Premiership.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 6:43 pm
From the Tampa Tribune’s Carter Gaddis :
“A couple of years ago, I actually sensed that what’s in my heart is baseball,” Mike Schmidt said Friday during a conference call with reporters, shortly after he interviewed for the Devil Rays’ vacant manager position. “It was sort of wasting away, a lot of knowledge, secrets I’d learned about how to win a baseball game. I’m a baseball man, and I’m a baseball man without a place to prove it.”
Schmidt, 56, requested the interview with Rays team president Matt Silverman and director of baseball development Andrew Friedman. After a tough 2004 season as manager of the Single-A Clearwater Threshers — during which he became convinced life in the low minors was not for him — Schmidt said he was intrigued by the chance to help shape the direction of an organization being rebuilt “from the ground up.”
Schmidt had hoped merely for a foot in the door. He came away after spending the early afternoon with Silverman and Friedman feeling confident about his chances to at least be considered a finalist for the job as Lou Piniella’s replacement.
Schmidt said he hopes his status as a Hall of Famer could be an asset to the organization off the field, as well as on it. He also said he learned a lot in ‘04 with the Threshers, despite resigning after a 55-81 season.
“I’m a communicator. I think my strongest asset going is my bedside manner,” he said. “I love to create relationships with the young men on the team and create an environment where they have their best chance of reaching their potential in the game. In any way, shape or form … having passed through my watch, it’ll make them a better player.”
I suppose part of baseball’s universal appeal is that it is such an incredibly simple game to manage, so much so that a guy can leave the game for 14 years, lead a club in the lowest rung of the minors to the worst record in their league, and still be considered a viable candidate for a big league opening a year after quitting.
Or failing that, be considered a candidate for the Devil Rays vacancy.
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron
at 4:26 pm
No doubt chuffed to bits over their 5-2 start and no. 9 ranking,
Notre Dame has signed head football coach Charlie Weis to a new ten year agreement that will bind him to the school until 2015. This agreement supplants a prior deal that ran through 2010.
Not only should said agreement end speculation that an NFL club might buy Weis out of his contract for a million or so, but will also provoke comparisons to the Irish’s treatment of Tyrone Willingham (8-0 after his first two months at South Bend).
In other happy news, Air Force are currently trailing those masters of urban recruiting, BYU, 31-7 in the third quarter.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 3:04 pm
ESPN Radio and a number of other outlets have already reported this is a done deal. From the San Bernadino County Sun’s Tony Jackson.
Dodgers general manager Paul DePodesta (above), the primary architect of a team that went 71-91 and finished fourth in the National League West, appears to be on the verge of being fired, a source with knowledge of the situation said late Friday night.
The move comes at a curious time, given that DePodesta was four weeks into a managerial search, the result of Jim Tracy having left the club on Oct. 3 in what officially was termed a “mutual agreement.” It isn’t clear what the move will mean for that search, which DePodesta had whittled to three final candidates in Dodgers player development director Terry Collins, Texas pitching coach Orel Hershiser and former Detroit manager Alan Trammell.
Hershiser became the first managerial candidate to meet with Frank McCourt earlier this week, but the fact he didn’t meet face to face with DePodesta (the two had spoken previously by telephone) was curious, at best, even though DePodesta was busy for three days this week with the club’s annual organizational meetings.
Collins was scheduled to meet with McCourt on Friday night. But when reached in his downtown hotel room, Collins, who lives in Florida, said that meeting had been postponed until sometime next week because “something came up.”
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron, Racism Corner
at 2:00 pm
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer’s Ted Miller writes that Air Force football coach Fisher DeBerry is merely guilty of speaking the truth.
We are so hung up on not offending someone — and many seem to relish being offended — that the public discourse has moved beyond being sanitized: It has become dishonest.
Perhaps DeBerry should have stuck to acceptable, disingenuous football-coach code.
If he had said, “TCU has better athletes than we do; we need to recruit better athletes,” everyone in the room would have known that he was saying the Falcons needed more African American players, but they would have felt comfortably ensconced in unoffensive code.
Here’s some more code translation:
When coaches talk about the athleticism of the SEC, they are talking about a recruiting area with a significant black population.
When coaches talk about recruiting hotbeds in Florida, Texas, Georgia and Southern California, they are talking about areas with a large black population.
To localize it: When Pac-10 coaches outside of Los Angeles talk about recruiting in Southern California, they are talking about recruiting black players.
Those in the arena — the athletes and coaches — recognize the reality. The vast majority, apparently unlike DeBerry, know to keep quiet about it, at least on the record.
Make a list of the most spectacular athletes in history. No, Larry Bird, one of the greatest basketball players in history, wasn’t a spectacular athlete. What’s the racial makeup of your list?
No one is saying whites or Asians can’t be fast or jump high. It’s just that every single piece of empirical evidence suggests that blacks are more likely to run fast or jump high. The sociological theories, convincing when used to explain academic gaps between the races, feel as substantial as cobwebs when applied to times in the 100 meters.
DeBerry critics also are pointing toward the racist stereotype that blacks are physically gifted but mentally deficient, an extreme extrapolation that has no launching pad in his comments.
Where did the idea develop that physical ability automatically diminishes mental ability anyway? There’s no scientific basis for the idea that physical and mental abilities are a zero-sum allotment.
Black folks on a daily basis face slights, sideways glances and inconveniences that are foreign to most white folks. Being told they, on average, are faster than white people probably isn’t very high on the list of annoyances.
Seems to me that attributing TCU’s dominance over Air Force to the former’s pleathora of black athletes diminishes their accomplishments and implies, however slightly, that the Frogs had a competitive advantage solely due to the racial makeup.
Not because they were smarter, worked harder, “wanted it more” or any of the other labels regularly slapped on white athletes. Or because the opposition had a better coach. But perhaps I’m just looking for a reason to be offended.
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 1:36 pm
(”Dokken” rhymes with “rockin’”, which almost rhymes with “Larry-Brown-stalking”)
After the turnover-crazy Knicks dropped last night’s exhibition tilt to the Jason Kiddless Nets, the Newark Star-Ledger’s David Waldstein hinted that Larry Brown and George Lynch (above) might be reunited. Waldstein also noted the following bit of creativity from the MSG Sales Department :
The Knicks have an innovative new partial season-ticket plan that commemorates the migratory career of their new coach. It’s called the Brown Seats Plan and includes tickets to games against teams Brown coached in the past. Fans can choose seven games from among the seven teams Brown led before coming to the Knicks: the Pistons, Sixers, Clippers, and the four former ABA teams — Nets, Spurs, Pacers, Nuggets.
Plus, there are two twists. The fans can also choose a Charlotte Bobcats game as a substitute for the old Carolina Cougars, the first team Brown coached in the ABA from 1972-74. Of course, Brown also coached the Kansas Jayhawks to a national championship, so fans will be offered a discounted ticket to the Kansas-St. Joseph’s game at the Garden in December.
Additional kudos to NY’s marketing geniuses for the catchy slogan “You Gotta Be There To Say You Were There”, which easily beats my suggestions of “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere” and the Rick Pintino-inspired “Louis Orr Ain’t Walking Thru That Door”
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 1:12 pm
Here we go again. From the Boston Globe’s Chris Snow.
Gene Mato, one of Manny Ramirez’s representatives, communicated to Red Sox owner John W. Henry yesterday that Ramirez wants to be traded, and will not report to spring training if his wish to be dealt is not met, according to a team source.
Ramirez is a 10-5 player, meaning he has 10 years of major league service, five consecutive with the same team. That seniority entitles Ramirez to block a trade to any team he doesn’t wish to join. With that in mind, Mato told Henry that Ramirez might decide during the process of being shopped that he wishes to remain with the Sox.
How can these conditions not undermine Boston’s ability to get anything approaching fair value? If Ramirez has specified only two teams that he’ll accept a trade to — one without young talent to spare yet capable of absorbing the salary hit (Angels) and another with a surplus of quality younger players, yet unlikely to take on Manny’s full salary (Indians) — there’s no reason to think this will be resolved in the near future.
Permalink
Posted in Hockey, Sports TV
at 11:03 am
Great news for many NYC TV viewers —- cloudy looking Rangers games and “Survivor” re-runs are headed your way. From the NY Post’s Phil Mushnick.
The dispute that kept OLN’s NHL cablecasts off Cablevision systems has been resolved.
Cablevision’s digital basic subscribers thus will be able to watch Monday’s Canadiens-Rangers, as well as the rest of OLN’s regular-season telecasts and exclusive Stanley Cup playoff telecasts, including the first two games of the finals. OLN will no longer be sold by Cablevision within a $4.95 per month digital tier package.
OLN is owned by Comcast, which, with Time-Warner and the Mets, will this spring launch SportsNet New York, the Mets’ new cable TV home. Met rights previously were owned by Cablevision.
The NHL/OLN- Cablevision settlement, however, does not indicate that Cablevision will be any more willing to clear the Mets’ new station than it was when it lost Yankee rights to YES.
Permalink
Posted in Blogged Down, Will Leitch Sucks
at 2:19 am
“Press boxes are the most depressing places on earth.” – Will Leitch, interviewed on yesterday’s Metsblog podcast.
Indeed, I’ve often heard that the atmosphere in Busch Stadium’s press box is far worse than say, Rwanda circa 1994.
In the course of the brief chat, Will did stress that today’s new generation of bloggers have a degree of credibility/autonomy that old media fucks jockeying for positions on “Around The Horn” cannot claim.
Quite frankly, what’s so bad about a guy that’s dying to be on TV?
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 1:57 am
(memo to all Long Island hospitals and CVS employees : the man on the left is Mike Cameron)
From Newsday’s Michael Frazier :
It seemed improbable that New York Mets outfielder Mike Cameron would roll up to various hospitals in a borrowed white limousine, seeking painkillers. And sure enough, Nassau police said Friday they arrested a Freeport man and accused him of using the outfielder’s highly publicized season-ending injury to score drugs.
Police arrested Michael Davis, 35, of 156 Washburn Ave. Wednesday on a charge of second-degree identity theft. He is being held on a $50,000 bond at the Nassau jail and is scheduled to appear in Nassau County Court Monday
Davis also dropped Cameron’s name to arrange limousines, stay at upscale hotels and lure women, police said. “The guy really went all out,” Det. Dave Lesko of the Sixth Squad said. “It’s really strange that people would believe this much without seeing some proof or identification.”
Acting as Cameron, Davis persuaded a Connecticut car dealer to let him borrow a car on a promise of future purchases. He also signed autographs as part of the role.
Cameron’s season ended Aug. 11 when he collided with Carlos Beltran while both dived for a fly ball in a game at San Diego. He suffered multiple facial fractures, but should be ready to play next season.
Cashing in on the well-publicized injury, Davis made special arrangements for hospital visits, police said.
First, he called the hospital and acted as if he was a Mets official, telling the staff that Cameron was coming in and to “not make a big deal,” Lesko said. Davis then had a white limo drop him off at the hospital, Lesko said.”
There’s no truth to the rumor that once informed of the ruse, Omar Minaya attempted to trade Davis to the Yankees in exchange for someone who can impersonate Gary Sheffield.
Permalink
Posted in The World Of Entertainment
at 1:48 am
(a stunned Coach Madden tries to explain to Country’s Newest Hitmaker that Tinactic is only to be used topically)
The New York Times’ Neil Genzlinger on Rick Moranis’ new country CD.
His album, “The Agoraphobic Cowboy,” 13 sly songs delivered in deadpan style atop some intricate string-playing, went on sale this month. Those who know Mr. Moranis as the bespectacled father of the “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” movies, or as Dark Helmet in Mel Brooks’s “Spaceballs,” or as Bob McKenzie of the dim-bulb Canadian comedy team the McKenzie Brothers, may have a hard time picturing it, and they should: Mr. Moranis is a long way from the rugged, shaggy country look of Alan Jackson or Toby Keith.
“For some reason I just started writing these songs,” said Mr. Moranis, 52, who is from Toronto but has lived in New York for 20 years. “And I was singing them to a couple of friends on the phone. After I had three or four, they started saying to me that I should do something with them.”
So he did, and the result is an album of original songs that might strike some as mere novelties, others as sublime comic gems. Sure, there are lyrics about booze and babes, but there’s an opening track, “Nine More Gallons,” whose chorus drops references to Truffaut and Nicholson:
“Two more times a lady,
Three more hundred blows,
Four more easy pieces,
Five more days on the road.
Seven more days a week, now,
Eight more lives, a cat,
Nine more gallons and I’ll have me a hat.”
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 12:57 am
I don’t know how they managed not to break into the Kings/Lakers exhibition game tonight with the news that Cincinnati have declined their $2 million option on Rich Aurilia for 2006.
Permalink
10.28.05
Posted in Hockey
at 11:41 pm
The ChiSox Sweep? Swoopes Coming Out? Manny Legace Being Manny? A NYC-based social climber continuing to bore us with his blatant homesickness for St. Louis?
(cold, cold medicine, brewing again for Bruins fans)
All worthy nominees, but instead, I submit the following, culled from the Providence Journal’s Joe McDonald . Not only are the Providence Bruins wearing a 3rd jersey (gold, ala the 1960 Boston Bruins), but the Baby B’s venue, the unfortunately named Dunkin’ Donuts Center (formerly the Providence Civic Center) is now servingNarragansett Beer for the first time in 25 years.
Permalink
Posted in Football
at 9:32 pm
Exiled at Withdean track & field facility for the past 6 years, Brighton & Hove Albion will finally have their own stadium writes the Independent’s Andy Tiley.
Brighton’s manager, Mark McGhee, is determined to go down in club history as the man who led them into their new stadium. Despite fierce opposition from local residents, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott has ruled the club’s new 23,000 capacity stadium can be built on the South Downs at Falmer.
The Seagulls hope to move from their 6,500-capacity temporary home at Withdean into their new home by 2008 after being without a home since the Goldstone Ground (above) was sold by the previous owners in 1997. They have been playing at the ill-suited Withdean since 1999 following a groundsharing spell at Gillingham.
There was a message of goodwill from Championship rivals Coventry City, where former Brighton manager Micky Adams, who led Albion for two and a half years, is now in charge.
“When I was Brighton manager we were groundsharing at Gillingham and the supporters were making 140-mile round trips just to watch their team play. The club have already done fantastically well to survive on gates of 6,000 at Withdean. But now the Premiership is not out of the equation, is it?”
The Seagulls chairman, Dick Knight, said: “This is the greatest home win ever in the club’s history. Brighton deserves a stadium and we’ve been very patient because it’s been the longest-running inquiry in football history.
“Never mind over the moon, we’re over Jupiter.”
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 7:31 pm
Surely the Bucks didn’t draft Utah’s Andrew Bogut as the first overall pick to serve as Jamaal Magliore’s understudy? That’s the question being posed by the Racine Journal Times’ Gery Woelful.
According to Bucks officials, Bogut simply isn’t ready for prime-time action. Excuse me for being a tad cynical, but what’s being ready? Wednesday night against Denver, Bogut played 37 minutes. He competed against two quality big men in Marcus Camby and Nene. Bogut scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds. He also made seven of 10 shots from the field. Most centers in the NBA would only dream of posting such numbers.
And he’s not ready?
After drafting the 7-foot center, the company line among Bucks officials was that Bogut was more equipped to play immediately than Williams because of his vast international experience. They said Bogut was more mature, more physically able for the rigors of the pro game. They acknowledged Williams had an enormous upside, but they simply couldn’t wait for him develop.
But now they’re waiting for Bogut to develop. When he will develop into a starting-caliber center, at least in the minds of the Bucks’ brass, is anyone’s guess. After all, Magloire isn’t going anywhere. The Bucks invested too much in him: they gave New Orleans a starting small forward in Desmond Mason and their No. 1 pick in next sumer’s draft. Magloire is also only 27 years old. Is it too farfetched to speculate even now that Bogut will never supplant Magloire as the team’s starting center?
The NBA’s last 10 Rookie of the Year performers have been Emeka Okafor, LeBron James, Amare Stoudemire, Pau Gasol, Mike Miller, Steve Francis, Elton Brand, Vince Carter, Tim Duncan and Allen Iverson.
With each of them, they were a starter from Day One and remained a starter for virtually all of their rookie seasons. Each of them, with the exception of Miller, has evolved into an outstanding player.
It’s way too eary, way too premature to write off Bogut, but the early signs definitely aren’t good.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 6:59 pm
(several thousand White Sox fans try to decide which is more offensive, the sound of Steve Perry or an item from yesterday’s Onion)
Witth Chicago’s World Series championship less than two days old, already the challenges are flying fast and furious, one from overseas , another from closer to home. (the latter link courtesy of Jay Strell).
(If Bobby Valentine tried leaping from the roof of, say, Minute Maid Park, it is doubtful there’d be as many people waiting to catch him)
Permalink
Posted in Gridiron
at 6:15 pm
Third-year CB Terrence McGee has signed a 4 year extension with Buffalo worth a reported $18 million, $5 of that from an immediate signing bonus.
Eagles CB Lito Sheppard is questionable for this Sunday’s game with Denver after colliding with WR Greg Lewis yesterday in practice. Rod Hood will get the start if Sheppard is unavailable.
Ravens FB Alan Rickard was placed on injured reserve earlier today, ending his 2005 campaign after a series of calf injuries. Rickard’s non-prescence so far this season has surely been a factor in Jamal Lewis’ poor showing.
It isn’t often a team is rewarded for their inability to count to 11, but sometimes it’s better to be lucky than fully manned.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 2:56 pm
From the Boston Herald’s Tony Massarotti.
According to baseball sources, current Red Sox assistant GM Josh Byrnes will be named the general manager of the Diamondbacks as soon as today. Byrnes, 34, joined the Red Sox staff shortly after Epstein became general manager following the 2002 season and has remained a confidant of Epstein ever since.
Byrnes (above, right) could not be reached for comment, but he likely will take over a Diamondbacks operation previously headed by former GM Joe Garagiola Jr. Garagiola left the team during the season to become the executive vice president for baseball operations at Major League Baseball, where he replaced Sandy Alderson, now CEO of the San Diego Padres.
Along with current Padres GM Kevin Towers, Byrnes was one of only two real candidates for the Arizona opening. Continuing what is a growing trend in baseball, the Diamondbacks opted for a promising, young executive with no previous experience as a GM. Earlier this month, following the departure of GM John Hart, the Texas Rangers similarly settled on 28-year-old Josh Daniels as Hart’s replacement.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 2:12 pm
White Sox fans had to endure 88 years of disappointment, but how does that legacy of failure compare to the horror inflicted upon those good people by Journey vocalist Steve Perry?
Today’s White Sox victory parade was culminated with an excrucitating acapella rendition of “Don’t Stop Believing”, as Perry (joined by would-be Bronson Arroyo’s AJ Pierzynski and Joe Crede) attempted to lead thousands of well-wishers in a singalong few seemed willing to participate in.
The embarrasing sight of the Lakers’ Mark Madsen dancing will forever burn in the memory of Los Angeles fans, much as the rap stylings of Tony Parker completely confounded Spurs supporters at the end of San Antonio’s victory parade last June. But neither of those men brought Perry’s long history of musical atrocities to the table, and as such, the organizers of these events could be excused for not knowing what they’d unleashed. There are no such mitigating circumstances in this instance.
Banner of the afternoon : “TRIBUNE CO. GET OUT OF BASEBALL”. Nice to see Ben Schwartz took part in the festivities.
Permalink
Posted in Sports Radio, Sports TV
at 1:38 pm
This afternoon, ESPN Radio’s Dan Patrick has offered his own, not-so-scientific analysis of the World Series’ lower than low ratings, along with the annual plea (echoed by several listeners) that perhaps Fox could think of the kids, ie., schedule a Series game or two in the afternoon.
Says the New York Times’ Richard Sandomir, dream on.
The notion that baseball – or any sport – would accept less money is absurd even if it is logical to those who advocate earlier games to appeal to young or dozing fans. But leagues never willingly accept less cash from the television networks; if a network wants to pay less, leagues find more willing suitors.
The flip side is that networks pay dearly to carry marquee sports that will help in prime time, but those hefty price tags must be supported by selling more commercials, which cause the length of games to bloat.
Some fans resist the idea that baseball is a prime-time entertainment product like a drama, a comedy or a reality series. Fox uses World Series games as prime-time chess pieces; the games would wield less power in the day. Prime time begins at 8 p.m. Eastern time on every day but Sunday, when it starts at 7, but Fox will not cut football (which is much costlier) to start the World Series earlier. An N.F.L. game is a most powerful lead-in.
There is nostalgia about daytime World Series games, a fuzzy feeling that returns us to the pre-Walkman, pre-iPod days of sneaking transistor radios into classrooms while feigning interest in biology. Until 1971, every World Series game was carried in the daytime, according to Nielsen Media Research; that year, one game was carried in prime time. In 1972, there were two night games, but there were three in each of the next two years. In 1975, the tide turned, and five of the seven games in the Boston-Cincinnati Series were in prime time.
From 1977 to 1984, there were two weekend day games in each Series and none during the next two years. The last one was in 1987, when the Minnesota Twins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in a seven-game series.
Patrick should be enouraged, however, that his parent company’s telecast of the MLS Cup will take place in the afternoon.
It was quite an afternoon for Olbermann’s past running mate yesterday, as his guests included Lawrence Taylor (plugging his new “Playmakers”-esque video game) and George Bush The First. I tuned in earlier in the day just in time to hear a squeaky voiced male rambling on about all the things Bill Romanowski was forced to do during his playing days in order to “slay the dragon”.
My first thought was, “wow, this guy has quite a crush on Romo.” It took me about 5 minutes to figure out that this was, in fact, Bill Romanowski himself. Apparently, Romo’s Promo tour is all part of the healing process.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball
at 12:53 pm
About time, too. I hope they give that annoying little fuck the electric chair.
Permalink
Posted in Baseball, Sports TV
at 11:02 am
(ariel view of a town that isn’t NY or Boston)
Despite being bigger than, say, St. Louis or San Francisco, Chicago and Houston came up terribly short in World Series ratings bragging rights (though why this really matters to anyone besides Fox and their advertisers, I dunno). From the Associated Press:
The Chicago White Sox’s first world championship in 88 years was also the lowest-rated World Series ever.
Chicago’s four-game sweep of the Houston Astros averaged an 11.1 national rating with a 19 share on Fox. That’s down about 7 percent from the previous low, an 11.9 with a 20 share for the 2002 World Series between the Anaheim Angels and the San Francisco Giants.
While the 2002 World Series, which went seven games, rated higher overall, it was only averaging an 11.0 through four games.
However, this dark cloud for Rupert Murdoch has a silver lining:
Wednesday night’s 1-0 Chicago win had a 13.0 preliminary national rating with a 21 share. It was the highest-rated prime-time show on Fox since the final of “American Idol” in May, but still not enough to save the series from being the lowest-rated.
Permalink
Posted in Sports Radio
at 11:00 am
The Boston Globe’s Bill Griffith reports today that Sporting News Radio has decided to end all locally-based programming on Boston’s WWZN.
Said move means that this afternoon’s Breeders’ Cup preview could be the final broadcast in the long, illustrious career of legend-in-his-own-mind Eddie Andleman. If the radio listeners of the Boston area are lucky, that is.
The station launched in the fall of 2001 with hopes of carving a sports audience in a Boston market dominated by WEEI (850 AM). It paid a lavish amount for the Celtics’ radio rights and put on high-profile shows with Andelman and Sean McDonough (”The McDonough Group”). However, then-GM Mike Kellogg wasn’t able to complete his vision of all-day local programming before SNR pulled the funding plug, leaving the station struggling to stay afloat and pay the Celtics’ rights fee.
The Zone got out from under the Celtics deal this season when WRKO (680) bought the rights.
But it apparently didn’t happen in time to save the local operation.
Permalink
Posted in The Law
at 10:43 am
From the New York Daily News’ John Mahoney.
The worst of the state’s convicted perverts have been ordered to make themselves scarce on Halloween, the Daily News has learned.
Under rules to be enforced by the state Division of Parole, registered sex fiends must abide by a curfew that begins at 3 p.m. Monday and runs until 6 a.m. Tuesday.
They also are barred from wearing masks or having any interaction with young trick-or-treaters who ring their bell.
“As a parent, I know that nothing is more frightening than the prospect of someone preying on your child,” Pataki said. “That is why we have directed the state’s criminal justice agencies to do everything in their power to make sure our children are safe from sexual predators on Halloween and every day.”
The new restrictions apply to 270 Level 3 sex offenders – the worst of the worst – in the five boroughs and 539 in the rest of the state, officials said.
To make sure the convicted molesters and rapists get the message, Pataki said parole officers will be knocking on their doors and calling their homes “throughout the night.”
So if it wasn’t tough enough to be a registered sex offender, now these troubled individuals will have to cope with the inevitable vandalism that will occur when furious kids from their neighborhood realize they’ve bailed on their candy-giving responsibilities.
Of course, they should’ve thought of that before they joined they seminary.
Permalink
Posted in Basketball
at 10:33 am
Not even a period of Katrina-enforced exile in Oklahoma City is enough to spare Hornets coach Byron Scott — a favored target during his days in New Jersey —- from the NY Post’s Peter Vescey.
Lord Bye-Ron, you may recall, was jettisoned by Jersey just after the mid-point of the season before last. Not even the Nets’ 101-63 regular-season record during the previous two — highlighted by a Final Frolic in 2003 — was enough to save Scott.
Finally, after endlessly ignoring how harmful to his team’s health his coach had become, Nets president Rod Thorn made his Dread Scott Decision in favor of no-experience Lawrence Frankincense who nearly went undefeated for the remainder of the season, that’s how giddy Jason & The Argonauts were to see Bye-Ron beheaded.
Scott, by all accounts, was (choose one):
a) A lazy lump;
b) Dangerously smug;
c) Out-coached and simply out of it;
d) Any combination thereof.
Scott took over as head coach of the New Orleans Hornets prior to the 2004-2005 season . . . and promptly guided them to a franchise-worst 18-64 record.
As putrid of they were/are, the Hornets did/do have some marketable members. Chief among them: Jaamal Magloire (above), who, despite missing 59 games last season (fractured right ring finger and back spasms), was an ‘04 All-Star.
The Toronto native, entering his sixth season, was actively sought by the Raptors prior to last June’s draft (the price of two No. 1s, management felt, was too stiff) and remained a coveted commodity during this past offseason.
Yours truly, the hack journalist, had the temerity to type such blasphemy into last Sunday’s column. Sources had told me there was ongoing trade conversation with numerous teams re Magloire. Bye-Ron responded by telling the local (temporary digs of Oklahoma City) and New Orleans media that I have no clue what I’m talking about and never have.
Three days later, Magloire was traded to the Bucks for former Oklahoma State standout Desmond Mason, an ‘06 first-rounder and cash.
Jim Bower, a recent GM replacement for the terminated Allan Bristow (the club erroneously announced he left for medical reasons), openly admits the Bucks’ offer was just one of many proposals. In fact — perish the thought — the Hornets had actually initiated some of the discussions.
Meaning, either Bye-Ron is completely out of the loop or he’s terminally fruit loops. Either way, he ought to consider coming off the golf course more often or, at the least, subscribe to The Post on line so he can keep up to date with what his team is trying to do.
“What I meant to say,” Scott hedged, “is we wouldn’t trade Magloire for Jackie Mason. And another thing; Malcolm-Jamal Warner isn’t going anywhere.
For his part, Mason was quoted by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Charles F. Gardner, calling the Bucks liars.
Mason, who played for two-plus seasons in Milwaukee, focused his anger on Bucks general manager Larry Harris and owner Herb Kohl in a radio interview aired on WAUK-AM (1510).
Mason called Harris “a snake in the grass” and said he “flat out lied to my face” about the chances of being traded, even after the Bucks signed free-agent forward Bobby Simmons during the summer.
After the Bucks’ practice Thursday, Harris said the deal came together quickly early this week, after the general manager had a Pfister Hotel coffee shop session with Sen. Kohl on Monday morning. Harris had become concerned about the Bucks’ depth at power forward and center, but he denied he was shopping Mason to other teams.
“Certainly, no one wants to be called that,” Harris said of the “snake in the grass” comment. “All I can say is I know he has a great passion for Milwaukee. It was a shock to him when I phoned him, I knew that.
“Obviously, he’s a very emotional young man. It’s the nature of the beast, and we move on.”
In an interview with radio host Steve Haywood, Mason said: “It’s hard for me to say this about somebody, but Larry’s a snake. He’s a snake in the grass. I thought my situation with Seattle (being traded to the Bucks in 2003) was tough.
“The magnitude of things that Larry Harris told me this summer, this season, all those things. I mean, he told me a lie to my face.”
Permalink
