Though the Halos’ mid-week stumbles against K.C. are now consigned to history (with El Barto taking a loss today against Baltimore), MLB.com’s Larry Santana bore witness to the sort of clubhouse tomfoolery that should have musicologists and Angels fans alike looking for the razorblades (link swiped from the Fanhouse’s Tom Fornelli)
Moments before taking the field to close out a three-game series against Kansas City Wednesday, Angels starter Jered Weaver (above) — the right-hander scheduled to take the mound that afternoon — and reliever Dustin Moseley displayed the dexterity (sort of) they possess in their other limbs.
Trading the high-priced arms they flaunt so masterfully on a baseball diamond for the opportunity to show off the dancing prowess in the limbs below their waists, the pair put on a show for a group of amused reporters as the Shop Boyz’s “Party Like a Rock Star” blared from the clubhouse speakers.
“Party like a rock, party like a rock star. Party like a rock, party like a rock star. Party like a rock, party like a rock star. Party like a rock star. Tuh-tuh totally dude!”
The pregame dance routine apparently remedied the ailing right shoulder and strep throat that kept Weaver from toeing the rubber for 11 days. Through seven innings, he allowed a single run on four hits in a losing effort. Not to be outdone, Moseley tossed two near-flawless innings to end the contest, surrendering only one hit.
But the hip-hop music that inspired the spontaneous display is as permanent a fixture in the Angels’ clubhouse as the players, coaches and physicians that frequent its haunts.
The mix, including tracks from Akon, Swizz Beatz and T-Pain, begins with Rich Boy’s “Throw Some D’s On It,” an ode to extravagant rims placed on equally extravagant automobiles — quite a fitting parallel for the club with one of the gaudiest number of wins in the Majors.
But not every member of the Angels is particularly enthused by this mix. While maintaining that he is indeed a fan of the genre, reliever Chris Bootcheck waxes nostalgic for the glory days of Hip-Hop Past — the days defined by iconic martyrs Christopher “The Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace and Tupac Shakur.
“I’m really diluted to hip-hop right now,” Bootcheck said. “Everything just sounds the same. I really like the older stuff; Biggie, Tupac. They were worth it.”
If Bootcheck is ever granted control of the stereo, perhaps the long-deceased duo will reemerge in Anaheim.
Uh, yeah. And then they’ll get high with Rex Hudler.
Insisting “(Robinson Cano’s struggles are a microcosm of everything that’s so far gone wrong with the Yankees this summer,” the Bergen Record’s Bob Klapisch writes off the Yankee 2B as being “on a long, flat road to nowhere, under-achieving at the ripe old age of 24.”
Cano’s curse is that he was so impressive in only his second year in the major leagues. It’s not just that Cano finished third in the American League in batting last year, it’s that he’d improved by 45 points from his rookie season.
No wonder scouts were touting Cano as the eventual No. 3 hitter in the Bombers’ lineup: His swing was full of power and grace, not to mention that ultra-hip quality that cannot be taught. If Cano could slam 15 homers so early in his career, imagine what he’d do with another 2-3 years of mentoring from Jeter.
“All the time,” is what general manager Brian Cashman said when asked if other executives were asking about Cano. At least they used to. These days, the phone lines are silent. No one’s seeking a trade for Cano. No one seems to be able to figure out who he is in 2007 – whether he’s suffering through a delayed sophomore slump, or if he’s been infected by the malaise that permeates the rest of the lineup, or if Cano has, consciously or not, put his career on autopilot.
He sees only 3.37 pitches per plate appearance, the fewest among the Yankees. The majority of Cano’s at-bats are over in just one or two pitches. Call it anxiety or pressure — or fear of striking out — but Cano hacks at the first good pitch he sees, a philosophy that runs counter to the Yankees’ system-wide indoctrination.
Cano went 0 for 3 earlier today as Chad Gaudin and Rich Harden combined to one-hit the (defused) Bombers, in Oakland’s 7-0 win in the Bronx. I’ve yet to watch a replay of Scott Proctor’s postgame antics, but even Paul Lo Duca thinks he overreacted.
The Juice’s Scott Long wonders “why anyone under the age of 50 watches Larry King?”, despite the fact he answered his own question with the following ;
King was always a weird guy. He has worn more suspenders than Mork from Ork. He has treated people calling into his show like they were telemarketers and he was on a don’t call list. At some point, KIng decided that he needed to offer up his inane movie reviews for public consumption, which outside of PR people form film companies, serves no useful purpose for the planet.. His previously mentioned interview style is one where soft-ball questions are followed up by non-sequitors, which generally leave you scratching your head. Truthfully, his show is such a trainwreck anymore that the only thing that is compelling about watching is to see what crazy-ass comment/question he is going to throw out next.
Well, yeah. Because not only was Larry caling Ringo, “George” kind of a once-in-a-lifetime moment, that wasn’t even the most fucked up part of McCartney & Starr’s sitdown with King. For instance, what could be hotter TV than the former Beatles drummer hailing Macca as “one of the most melodic bassists of all-time”, and Larry asking, “what does…melodic mean?”
The Fanhouse’s Miss Gossip thought it would kinda entertaining to imagine what might happen if alleged recording artist Sean Combs was asked to assess the Draft Night duds of aspiring studs like UNC’s Brendan Wright (above). And while the results were funnier than say, imagining Chris Benoit doing the honors instead (”Smile or die! No need to cover up those braces, there’s no shame in trying to straighten out your grill. Everybody has something they need to work on … my secret is I used to have acne until I started using Proactiv.”), I’ll remind everyone that those assembled at the WaMu Theatre the other night are very, very lucky P. Diddy had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with staging said event.
If the Metropolitans (leading 5-3 after 4 1/2) hang on this afternoon at CBP, they’ll have taken 3 consecutive from the Phillies and 8 of their last 9. That would be an impressive enough achievement coming off a miserable prior 3 weeks of play, but it’s especially noteworthy in light of Paulie Large Nuts’ verbal hate crimes and the way he has singlehandedly fashioned a work environment marked by intolerance and fear.
It was just two weeks ago that a national magazine described David Wright and Jose Reyes “hugging and tussling like puppies.” But last night, the former, impressionable as always —- in a video clip provided by Pick Me Up Some Mets — was shown engaged in the vicious hazing of teammate Ramon Castro.
Clearly, it is time for Omar Minaya to enlist the calming influence of a person so universally beloved, he’s the one man capable of cutting through the racial cliques and bringing this team back together.
For all the ink spilled this week about Kobe and KG possibly overshadowing Draft Night, why, oh, why, could this story have not come out 48 hours ago? From the AP :
The former Knicks executive who is suing coach Isiah Thomas for sexual harassment alleged in court papers that Thomas urged a cheerleader to flirt with referees and guard Stephon Marbury cursed at her, according to newspaper reports Saturday.
Anucha Browne Sanders, a former senior vice president of marketing and business operations, filed documents to answer the Knicks’ attempt to have her lawsuit dismissed.
In the papers, which were unsealed Friday, Browne Sanders alleges cheerleader Petra Pope told her Thomas encouraged Pope to flirt with officials before a game against the Nets in 2004, the Daily News reported.
“What she told me was that Isiah asked her to go into the referees’ locker room and make them happy,” Browne Sanders testified.
Sanders said Marbury directed an obscenity at her after she complained about the player’s cousin – who was also employed by the team – had made graphic sexual comments to her staff.
Marbury, in a January deposition, acknowledged calling Browne Sanders a derogatory name, according to the New York Post.
Sanders also claimed a member of her staff admitted to consensual drunken sex with Marbury after a night at a “gentlemen’s club” and said “she did not believe she could say no because of who Marbury is.”
Sanders said her decision to inform officials about the encounter led to her being fired, according to the New York Post.
It’s fascinating to note the issue of “character” has been raised repeatedly in the past two days since the Knicks acquired Zach Randolph. Presumably, Zach is satisfied that Isiah and Steph are exactly the kind of characters he’d be OK partying with.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are 33-45, 12.5 games behind Milwaukee in the NL Central entering tonight’s contest with the Nationals. They’ve not sniffed the post-season since the Sultan Of Surly wore a size 7 1/8th cap. As such, there are plans for civil disobedience afoot, but the club would prefer no one notice. From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette’s Bob Smizik :
The Pirates are doing their best to downplay the fan walkout scheduled for after the third inning of the team’s game Saturday night with the Washington Nationals.
A walkout is scheduled after the third inning of the Pirates’ game against the Nationals Saturday at PNC Park. The protest is an attempt to draw national attention to the lack of success of the Pirates over the past 15 years.
They have asked their television announcing crew not to discuss the walkout with the media. They have removed all comments about the walkout from their message board at pirates.com. They have the support of their television rights holder, FSN Pittsburgh, which does not plan to show the protest as part of its game coverage.
A near-capacity crowd of 36,000 is expected for the game, where Bob Walk bobbleheads will be given as souvenirs to all ticket holders. Organizers of the protest have asked fans to leave their seats after the third inning and stand in the concourse — without purchasing concessions — or leave the stadium. The protest is an attempt to draw national attention to the lack of success of the team, which is in the midst of a 15th consecutive losing season.
Contacted about the protest, Greg Brown (above), who will do the play-by-play of the telecast along with Walk, said, “I have been asked by the Pirates not to comment and refer all calls to Brian Warecki.”
Warecki, the team’s senior director of communications, issued this statement via e-mail:
“We greatly appreciate the passion of all of our fans and their freedom to express that passion in any way they choose.”
One of the ways they might choose has been blocked. According to Andy Chomos, one of the leaders of the protest, the Pirates have been removing content about the proposed walkout for weeks. E-mails from frustrated fans to the Post-Gazette back up what Chomos said.
Prior to the Mets’ 6-5 win in Philly this afternoon, Newsday’s David Lennon caught an earful from the Mets’ ever shy, retiring Boogie Shoes, who’d have you believe his trips to the racetrack, marital indiscretions and ill-advised remarks about teammates speaking English are all some kind of media creation.
At best, Paul Lo Duca was portrayed in some media circles this morning as a hothead fed up with constantly answering for his teammates. At worst? A racist in one of the more racially diverse clubhouses in the majors. Either way, those comments got Lo Duca called into the manager’s office for a chat that lasted nearly 30 minutes, and the catcher emerged breathing fire to reporters.
“So now I’m a racist,” Lo Duca said. “Right now, I’m a gambler, a racist, and I like 18-year-old girls. That’s the perception of people in New York about me. Is any of it true? No, none of it.Yet, no one knows that. Do you understand where I’m coming from? Do I have a right to be frustrated? Tell me if I’m wrong. You ask any of these guys in the clubhouse and ask whether I have a problem with any of them – if they like me, if I’m an issue. One thing about me – listen, I’ve had issues in my life, I’ve went through marital problems, I understand that.
“If you go to all three of my clubs, name one teammate who has a problem with me. Name one. One person who’s ever said to you that Paul Lo Duca is a cancer in the clubhouse or that Paul Lo Duca is a racist or that Paul Lo Duca has issues. Nobody.”
Full credit to Captain Red Ass : while sitting out the opener of today’s twinbill, there’s no evidence he placed any bets, attended a junior prom or lent his support to the Governor of California. But the day’s not over yet.
Though Dan Patrick is fond of reminding us “you never want to be the guy who replaces ‘the guy’”, he’s supposedly in line for such an audition.
While I’m not questioning Patrick’s qualifications for the gig, I’m sure I speak on behalf of radio listeners throughout America when I plead with the producers of “The Price Is Right” to at least consider Colin Cowherd.
(the members of S.O.D could’ve serenaded Boogie Shoes and his date with their classic, “Speak English Or Die”, but a) Scotty’s a Yankee fan and b) Lo Duca’s date wasn’t old enough to get in)
Given the Mets have won 4 of their last 5 games, now seems like a curious time to be addressing what the Daily News’ Peter Botte calls “their June swoon”, but Flushing’s masters of creating turmoil out of thin air seem to be in the thick of it yet again.
Admitting he was “in a bad mood all day,” Paul Lo Duca announced in a near-empty clubhouse last night – and on the eve of the Mets’ key NL East showdown with the Phillies – that some of his Spanish-speaking teammates need to be held more accountable by the media.
“I’ll do this (interview), but you need to start talking to other players,” Lo Duca announced loudly after he was approached by a radio reporter after the Mets-Cardinals series finale was washed out by rain. “It’s the same three or four people every day. Nobody else wants to talk. Some of these guys have to start talking. They speak English, believe me.”
“Listen up, everybody,” LoDuca had shouted. “Stop asking me when I’m going to drop my suspension (appeal). When are you guys going to drop it? I’m tired of talking about it. Go ask Tony (Bernazard) or Willie (Randolph). God almighty, it’s like the president got killed.”
Billy Wagner couldn’t resist the obvious follow-up query, deadpanning to Lo Duca, “So, when are you going to drop it?”
Lo Duca’s marital problems, gambling habits and personal life were publicly scrutinized throughout last season. He snapped at a reporter two months ago when he was asked about a photograph of himself and a woman in the winner’s circle at Aqueduct. Asked for the woman’s name, Lo Duca erupted, “That’s my life. That’s my personal life. That’s none of your business. How would you like it if I went to your house and took pictures of your wife?”
The Mets are currently leading the Phillies, 6-2 in the 7th inning at CBP behind HR’s from Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado (along with RBI’s from Ramon Castro and El Duque). Hopefully the lot of them can hold a lengthy postgame press conference to take some of the spokesmodel pressure off Paulie Large Nuts.
It would appear as though QB’s aspiring to someday marry Brenda Warner will have to find an apprenticeship elsewhere in the future. From the AP :
The NFL folded its development league in Europe after 16 years on Friday, calling the decision a sound business move that will allow for a stronger international focus on regular-season games outside the United States.
A statement on the German-language edition of the NFL’s Web site said the NFL decided to concentrate its “strategies and resources” on regular-season games outside the United States in an effort to reach as many people as possible.
“We thank our fans for the great support in the past years,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was quoted as saying.
Goodell said it was time to develop a new international strategy, terming the move to fold NFL Europa the “best business decision.” The league reportedly was losing about $30 million a season.
“From now on we will focus on regular-season games and use new technologies to make NFL more popular worldwide,” he said.
With a Friday morning column that was presumably ready to go since last Tuesday, the New York Post’s resident hater of all-things WWE related, Phil Mushnick would like us to remember the real victims of the Chris Benoit Double Murder/Suicide : crusading journalists whose warnings were ignored.
Look what it has taken for the media to finally begin to report that Vince McMahon has been operating a death mill the past 25 years.
Look what it took for the news media to finally learn and report that McMahon produces a TV show that regularly features physically fit and soon-to-be dead young men.
It didn’t take one death, or even 20, for the media to finally wake up. Hell, pro wrestlers have been steadily dying young since the early 1980s, when McMahon began to rule the industry.
And it didn’t take Monday’s suicide of a McMahon-made star, Chris Benoit. It took three deaths in one weekend in one home; it took Benoit’s murder of his son and wife for modern pro wrestling to finally be stamped with a skull-and-crossbones caution label.
Hell, Brian Pillman died at 35; Louie Spiccoli was 27; Chris Candido was 33. For all the drugs Eddie Guerrero relied on to become one of McMahon’s champs, it was miraculous he made it to 38.
“Ravishing” Rick Rude was 41; “The British Bulldog,” Davey Boy Smith, was 39. Curt Henning, “Mr. Perfect,” died at 44. “Road Warrior Hawk” made it to 45, which can be like 85 in pro-wrestling years.
Given cartoon names, they were real people. They are among the most renowned pro wrestlers who died young – just since 1995. There are dozens more from where they came from, and wound up. None of their deaths made for big, nationwide news.
Monday night, in the midst of a plot in which he was supposed to have been murdered, McMahon knew exactly what to do. He replaced that night’s USA Network show with a Benoit memorial. McMahon’s best ratings have been generated by tribute shows following the sudden, real deaths of his performers. He cashes in on these guys coming and going.
Pro wrestling manufactures death. And the guy who owns and operates the biggest factory, the boss who sets the standards, is Vince McMahon. And, though it took 25 years and the deaths this week of Chris Benoit, his wife and son, the media are finally beginning to notice.
Hoo boy. Phil’s made the same points about Vinnie Mac being a death merchant on a number of occasions. And while there’s some meat to said charges, Mushnick does his readers no favors by his willful selectivity. Nowhere in the above piece does Phil ponder the possibility that Benoit’s state of mind could’ve been affected by anything other than his vocation. Likewise, Phil relies on the ignorance of his editors in citing Louie Spiccoli and as “amongst the most renowned pro wrestlers.”
But the portion of Mushnick’s argument that holds the least water of all is his claim that McMahon cynically used Benoit’s death to cash in last Monday night. Given the WWE only learned of the bodies being found in Fayette a few hours before the broadcast (well, supposedly), it wasn’t as though the promotion had any opportunity to fully exploit the tragedy. Nor did the story hit the wire services or much of the internet until early that evening.
I’m not saying McMahon would pass on a chance for higher ratings. But had he opted to ignore Benoit’s death or just mention it in passing at the top of the broadcast, he’d have been pilloried by Mushnick and the WWE’s fan base alike.
Among the flurry of deals last night that I neglected to mention was Golden State’s trade of Jason Richardson along with 36th overall pick Jeremao Davidson to Charlotte in exchange for the rights to no. 8 overall selection Brendan Wright (above). According to the LA Times’ Mark Heisler, the Warriors might not be finished wheeling and dealing, with Chris Mullin supposedly “offering Wright with center Andris Biedrins and guard Monta Ellis and enough salary to make the deal work to Minnesota for Kevin Garnett.”
You can count Heisler amongst those skeptical about the Knicks’ addition of Zach Randolph, writing “the chunky Randolph will play alongside even chunkier Eddy Curry, in a tandem that should be good for 40 points a game, at both ends of the court.”
Add the New York Post’s Peter Vescey to those unimpressed by the acquisition of “the Blazers’ adolescent go-to guy”, noting the remaining $61 million owed to Randolph over the next four campaigns further places the Knicks in Salary Cap Hades, not to mention the (ahem) basketball considerations.
No matter how flashy Randolph’s scoring and rebounding (a 25-and-10 guy for most of last season), and how tricky and physical he is in the post, Isiah Thomas already flaunts one of those space/shot eaters.
As I recall months ago, Thomas branded Curry his team meal ticket, er, leading man.
As much guaranteed scratch as the Knicks squander annually, correct me if I’m wrong, they’re still limited to using one ball on each offensive possession.
How long did it take Thomas to convince “point atheist” Stephon Marbury the offense revolved around Curry? How often does that message need to be reinforced? Will Starbury ever really believe he’s not the team’s true franchise player?
And these two Knicks shouldn’t remotely conflict; one works the perimeter for jumpers or takes his man off the dribble to the hoop. Imagine how congested the middle will be and how frustrated Marbury will become if there’s no room whatsoever to drive. Imagine the gridlock, not to mention the constant conflict, if there are two dinosaurs brandishing a scorer’s mentality choking the occupied area. Also, doesn’t Zach take a swath of David Lee’s daylight?
Dickau meets Dickhead? Newsday’s Allan Hahn reports Isiah Thomas had a busy Thursday with Zach Randolph is headed to the Knicks in exchange for Channing Frye and Stevie Franchise, while the WWL says Dan Dickau and Fred Jones are part of the package to boot. True Hoop’s Henry Abbott wonders, “what about Channing Frye and LaMarcus Aldridge together? They are kind of clones. You can’t get away with two spindly guys like that, can you? Very jump-shooty. And willowy. But you know what? With Greg Oden on the floor, you sure can have two guys like that. It’s a new way of thinking for Portland, which now has a big defensive center,” but I’m simply pleased Portland’s sudden depth opened the door for the Knicks getting any value whatsoever for Francis.
(jeez, you’d think someone would’ve slipped G.O. an early iPhone)
Jason Cohen writes, “I should have taken a picture of the crowd storming the floor at the Oden pick. It was slightly less frenzied than when a 15 seed knocks off a 2 in the NCAA.” Hey, I’m sure this is a big, big night in the history of Rip City, and if they can just somehow get Art Alexakis to retire from music, they’ll really have something worth celebrating.
As it turns out, Draft Night ‘07 has been almost as frantic for the Blazers as last year’s ; they’re sending loot plus a second round pick to Philly for tonight’s no. 30 overall selection, Finnish PG Petteri Koponen.
The sort of analysis you just don’t get from Doug Gottlieb : “Josh McRoberts, known homosexual from Duke, goes to the Trailblazers to violent boos from the crowd. I wish he went to the early 2000s Trailblazers. McRoberts would be the white guy in Chappelle’s Mad Mad Real World, crying, getting raped, and watching Ruben Patterson and Sheed DP his girlfriend.” (The Blog Of Hilarity)
Though the Daily News’ Dick Weiss acknowledges the Nets have “gambled on character before” (ie. their selection of UConn’s laptop enthusiast Marcus Williams a year ago), they’ve stepped out a tad and perhaps snapped one of the first round’s bargain’s in the form of BC center Sean Williams at 17, while Charlotte opted for the Eagles’ Jared Dudley at no. 22.
A woman who worked on the set of the ESPN talk show “Cold Pizza” is suing the sports network, saying she was fired after complaining about sexual harassment by the show’s host and a regular panelist.
In the lawsuit, which also names ESPN host Jay Crawford and sports commentator Woody Paige, Rita Ragone claims she was subjected to crude sexual comments from Crawford and that Paige pinched and fondled her.
Ragone, a makeup artist and hair stylist, said Paige once grabbed her backside so forcefully that she was “propelled forward and into the air.”
“It is not true,” Paige said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. He declined further comment.
Ragone said Paige, a columnist with The Denver Post, repeatedly made vulgar remarks about her appearance. Crawford, she said, made unwanted sexual advances, told her she only got the job because of her looks and contributed to a locker-room atmosphere by making disparaging remarks about another hair stylist.
Ragone said the situation was exacerbated by a few female employees who didn’t seem to mind the atmosphere, including a stylist who gave the men lap dances.
Doug Gottlieb subbed for Mike Golic alongside Mike Greenberg on ESPN Radio Tuesday morning, and The Starting Five’s jweiler is amongst those amazed that once, former Mets GM Steve Phillips came off like the smartest guy in the room (link swiped from Repoz and Baseball Think Factory)
Tuesday is “Just Shut Up” day on that show, and the just shut up contestants were those who believe Sammy Sosa is a first-ballot Hall of Famer versus those who believe he is not. Gottlieb (above) was adamant in his opinion that Sosa did not belong in the Hall of Fame based on three main points:
1) he obviously used steroids since his body changed dramatically and he went from being a pretty good player in 1997 to a monster player for the next several seasons.
2) he lamed out at the 2005 Congressional hearings, pretending he didn’t speak English and dodging the questions, just like McGwire.
3) he got a huge benefit from playing in Wrigley Field where, Gottlieb noted several times, he hit 350 of his career homeruns.
Gottlieb finally had to admit, when Phillips challenged him in a subsequent exchange between the two, he had no evidence of Sosa’s use except that “it’s visual.” Sammy got bigger – therefore, he took steroids. Gottlieb did make one important point: this debate, over Hall of Fame voting, is not ultimately going to play out in a court of law, but in the court of public opinion, and in the court of public opinion, if relevant people (like voters) believe something it might as well be true. But, it is, on some leve,l the height of arrogance to believe that you know how a person changed their bodies merely by looking at them. And, I presume, in the case of Gottlieb and Sosa, not even in person, but on television.
During Phillips’ exchange with Gottlieb (Greenberg sat mutely through the entire conversation), the former Mets’ GM asked Gottlieb whether he would assume that a player who 39 homeruns one year and 61 the next was cheating. Almost before Philips could finish his sentence, Gottlieb said emphatically “yes.” And, demonstrating that baseball isn’t Gottlieb’s long suit, he didn’t realize that Phillips was, as he then informed Gottlieb, referring to Roger Maris, who hit 39 homers in 1960, 61 in 1961 and never hit more than 33 in a season after that. Phillips also noted that George Foster jumped from 29 to 52 in a season (from 1976 to 1977). Gottlieb did respond that Sosa got dramatically better for several seasons, but it would be an absurd standard of judgment to say that if a player improves dramatically in their late twenties and got bigger in the process, that is all we need to go on, to accuse someone of steroid use.
Phillips is not naive and he surely has his own suspicions about who was and who wasn’t using. We all do, however well we can or can’t substantiate those suspicions. But, on every key point Gottlieb made yesterday, he was either flat out wrong on the facts, or was using notably thin arguments. But, unusual for the medium, someone was actually there to call him on it, not with even more shrill hyperbole, but with a superior grasp of the facts and context of the situation.
If you think Mike Hall and Dee Brown have it rough, consider the plight of Zach Selwyn aka Zachariah. With failed pilots and sundry G4 appearances under his belt (and I say this in only the nicest way possible), Zach has a considerable head start on becoming a real-life American answer to Alan Partridge another 10 or 15 years down the road. There’s no infomercial on his c.v. yet, but give the man some time.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Sekou Smith suggests the 3-way trade between the T-Wolves, Hawks and Suns (KG to Phoenix, Amare Stoudemire (above) to Atlanta, the no. 3 overall pick plus expiring contracts to Minnesota) was “only a pipe dream”, but ESPN’s Chad Ford suggests the deal would’ve happened, were it not for “the perils of dealing with the Hawks — arguably the most dysfunctional franchise in the league.”
The Hawks ownership group, Atlanta Spirit LLC, is embroiled in a nasty lawsuit with former partner Steve Belkin. Belkin won a lawsuit against Atlanta Spirit LLC last summer and a judge ruled that he could buy out the owners of Atlanta Spirit and gain full ownership of the team. Atlanta Spirit is currently appealing the ruling.
In the meantime, Belkin holds some authority over the team. He can veto any trade or free agent signing that takes the team above the NBA salary cap. Several sources suggested that it was Belkin who vetoed the trade.
This fiasco isn’t the only situation the Hawks are dealing with. Sources said that Knight is in a dispute with some of the Hawks owners over who to take at No. 3. Knight prefers Florida’s Al Horford. Some in the Hawks ownership, including influential owner Michael Gearon Jr., want to draft Yi Jianlian out of China.
Ford claims the Charlotte Bobcats are suddenly in the mix instead of Atlanta, with Minnesota coveting Charlotte’s no. 8 overall pick, Stoudemire going to the Nuevo Jordanaires, and KG proceeding to Phoenix.
Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski tips a pair of mega-swaps to occur either before or after tonight’s festivities, with Jermaine O’Neil going from Indy to the Swap in exchange for Richard Jefferson, Nenad Kristic and Jason Collins. Wojnarowski also claims the Knicks and Blazers are discussing a trade of Stevie Franchise and Channing Frye for Zach Randolph and Martell Webster.
While the Oregonian’s Casey Holdahl reports no. 1 overall pick Greg Oden will wear Buck Williams’ old number 52 in Portland, Doubt About It tries to evision how the Blazers would handle tonight’s big decision if the ownership and management of the Pittsburgh Pirates had their druthers. Hint : they wouldn’t take Oden or, yet would still find a way to pay Jeromey Burnitz.
If WFAN can turn a blind eye to Don Imus’ polarizing qualities, who’s to say Chris Benoit won’t someday be inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame? From the New York Daily News’ David Hinckley.
Fired morning host Don Imus will be heard again tomorrow on WFAN (660 AM), like in the old days.
In fact, it will be the old days.
As part of WFAN’s 20th anniversary weekend, Mike Francesa and Chris Russo will host four hours of highlights, 6-10 a.m., from the show that anchored WFAN mornings for almost its entire history.
While it’s unusual for a station to feature a host it has terminated, WFAN program director Mark Chernoff said Imus’ contribution couldn’t be ignored.
“He was such a big part of the station for all those years,” said Chernoff.
Well put, and hopefully Chernoff will not ignore the contributions of other crucial players from the early days of WFAN. If Imus is worthy of 4 hours of taped highlights, surely there’s a way of combining Mike Lupica, Len Berman and Jim Lampley’s finest moments into 4 minutes of clips.
Which reminds me, is Eli From Westchester the only person who hasn’t been considered for Imus’ old morning slot?
In light of Chris Benoit’s suicide and double murder of his wife and son, perhaps this isn’t the right moment to make light of a video project starring Nancy Benoit’s first husband. But I probably won’t remember to do so in a few months.
Join Kevin Sullivan in this remarkable DVD as he sits down in our mock booking office and proceeds to rewrite the year 1984 in the WWE. The task we’ve given him…make 1984 the breakout year it was for the WWE, but without Hogan. Watch as Sullivan hires, fires, and books scenario after scenario in the wrestling organization that he never actually booked for! Kevin Sullivan is a former booker/wrestler and he now bring his experience and vast knowledge to our booking session in the first edition of Guest Booker! Hop in our time machine and watch as Sullivan books twelve months of pro wrestling culminating in a Christmas Day Supercard, before your eyes. Watch the onscreen calendar as new Heavyweight, Intercontinental, and Tag champs are decided, as well as the major angles for the year. You’re not just going to hear about the anatomy of booking…YOU’LL WATCH IT!
I’ve got to admit, it’s a hell of a concept. Hopefully someone at ESPN or MLB Advanced Media will take a tip and begin production on “Guest GM With Steve Phillips : Reimagining The 1998 New York Yankees”.
Saying the issue needed more study, the American Medical Assn. on Wednesday scaled back a controversial proposal that sought to declare excessive video-game playing a mental disorder akin to pathological gambling.
The association also decided against urging parents to limit to two hours a day the amount of time their kids play video games, watch television and surf the Internet.
Instead, the medical association Wednesday removed the word “addiction” and decided to simply forward its report expressing concerns about “video-game overuse” to the psychiatric group, which is revising its mental-health manual.
Juice Newton was unavailable for comment, though presumably, displeased.
WWE instituted its drug testing program in the aftermath of the 2005 death of Eddie Guerrero, who was just one among dozens of wrestlers who have died at age 45 or younger in the last decade, of causes related to long-term abuse of steroids and prescription medications. It’s a shamefully inadequate policy. According to documents to be found on the company’s Web site, for instance, “A Testosterone/Epitestosterone (T/E) ratio of four (4) or less shall be regarded as a negative test result.” Without going into eye-glazing detail, T/E ratio is the chemical clue steroid tests are often actually used to find. A normal ratio is 1-to-1; baseball, following World Anti-Doping Agency standards, considers 4-to-1 a failure.
Many people think that baseball’s drug testing policy is a transparent public relations ploy. It truly isn’t. Determined athletes can beat it, but it’s close to state of the art — independently administered, adhering to the anti-doping agency’s protocols on technical matters like proscribed substances and T/E ratios, and by all accounts intolerant of quack prescriptions. WWE, on the other hand, not only counts athletes with hugely elevated testosterone ratios as clean, but allows them to use whatever drugs they can lay their hands on so long as they can get some doctor somewhere to write a prescription. That’s not a policy, it’s a fig leaf.
Baseball has to start doing a better job of educating the public about steroids, because no one else is going to do it. Right now, many people believe that steroids drove Benoit to strangle his own child — a belief so self-evidently simplistic and ridiculous that it allows WWE to point to its pathetic drug policy and ignore the real issues at play, which involve not only Benoit’s own private demons, but a brutal, dehumanizing schedule, work that requires a level of physical punishment the body just can’t handle, drug abuse as a near condition of employment, and a string of dozens and dozens of deaths about which no one has cared.
This is a problem for baseball because it shows how deep the ignorance about steroids runs. If people truly find it plausible that someone can murder his own family simply because of an injection of Winstrol, there’s no reason to expect them to know or care that baseball’s stance on T/E ratios and unannounced specimen collection shows the sport to be profoundly serious about doing its best to eliminate drug abuse from baseball.
Baseball has every right to unapologetically point out that no matter how deep the steroid crisis in the game is, it has only affected competition — something that’s not the case in, say, bodybuilding, prowrestling, and even football, which have seen violence, suicide, mental illness and all sorts of early deaths connected to steroid use. Baseball also has every right to point with pride to a comprehensive drug testing policy that’s better than that found in any other major team sport. Instead, baseball threatens to suspend Jason Giambi unless he cooperates with the sad, impotent investigation helmed by Senator Mitchell. This is anti-publicity. It’s time for baseball to stop playing into the hands of the hysterics.
It’s been a few months since the publication of John Amaechi’s coming out tome ‘Man In The Middle’, and for better or worse, he’s become a more recognizable public figure writes the Guardian’s Gary Younge.
There is a scene in the TV series Footballers’ Wives that has seared itself into John Amaechi’s mind. Noah Alexander, a gay player who has recently been outed, runs into what he believes to be a mob of adoring fans only to find they are a homophobic mob, who proceed to beat him up badly. For Amaechi, the former National Basketball Association star who, four months ago, became the first player in the premier-league sport to come out, it is just a little too close for comfort. Standing 6ft 9in tall, with a mocha complexion and broad frame, Amaechi is used to being both easy to spot and a victim of mistaken identity. The thing is that the distance at which they spot him is having a decisive impact on which mistake people now make about his identity.
“At 400ft they see a big black man and they cross the road to avoid me,” he explains. “At 200ft they cross back because they realise that I’m a professional basketball player and they want a closer look.” But recently, he says, they have come a bit closer and then crossed again. “At 50ft they recognise me as the gay bloke who just came out and then they cross back across the road again.”
“In Britain I think they find it easier to take it all in,” he says. “Here in the US they say, ‘He’s black and English and a basketball player and clever and gay …’ It’s all a bit overwhelming. They can only deal with one thing at a time and that one thing now is the gay bit. It’s disappointing, because you spend all that time studying, researching, training, and after all that work I’m just that ‘big gay bloke’.”
He finds being gay in Britain easier than in the US. “In Britain we’ve basically got to a point where it’s a human rights issue … with objections,” he says. But in the US, the intense levels of religiosity make the debate tougher. “It’s the inconsistency I can’t stand,” he says. “If you’re going to quote Leviticus, then don’t eat shellfish or wear mixed fabrics. Poke your eye out if you look at women other than your wife … then come to me.”
It cost more than $200,000 in legal fees, a $25,000 settlement and the addition of nostrils and a tuft or “blaze” of hair between the eyes of their longhorn logo for Texas A&M graduate and College Station resident Fadi Kalaouze and his wife to continue selling “Saw Em Off” T-shirts parodying UT’s prominent logo.
“It was worth it,” Fadi Kalaouze said. “We have been selling these shirts for over 10 years, and now we know Aggies can wear this logo and no one can stop them.”
UT and the owners of three Aggieland Outfitters stores in College Station settled their suit last week, which was filed against Kalaouze in December – 10 days after the Texas A&M football team upset the Longhorns 12-7 the day after Thanksgiving. The recent agreement requires that the couple stop printing and selling the old shirts within three months.
“We have already ordered the new shirts and are selling them,” Kalaouze said. “No one is really buying them, though, because the [old shirts] are a collectors item.
“The color terms were essentially that they would not make it look like a UT shirt,” said Allan Van Fleet, the Kalaouze’s lawyer. “It’s not like they would be able to sell those in College Station anyway.”
This past Monday night, I witnessed fans of the Astros’ PCL affiliate cheering wildly for Brewers farmhand Manny Parra as the 24 year old lefty completed a perfect game for Nashville against Round Rock. Express manager Jackie Moore failed to chastise the locals for their disloyalty…and perhaps he should’ve, if you buy what Bill Masse is selling. From Tuesday’s Manchester Union-Leader :
Clay Buchholz, the No. 3 prospect in the Red Sox organization, threw a four-hitter over 6.1 innings, leading Portland to a 5-4 Eastern League win over New Hampshire before a solid Monday night gathering of 6,831. To Buchholz’ surprise, he left yesterday’s game to a standing ovation, after surrendering his fourth hit, a clean single to left by Chip Cannon on his 91st delivery to the plate with one out in the seventh inning.
“I didn’t expect it, but it was nice,” he said.
In the Fisher Cats’ clubhouse after the game, Masse questioned the local fans’ loyalty to the hometown team.
“I think it’s sad,” Masse said. “We’re not playing the Boston Red Sox. We’re playing the Portland Sea Dogs. Unless you’re from that area, you root for your hometown team. This is New Hampshire’s team, Manchester’s team and to see Clay Buchholz get a standing ovation was absolutely disgraceful.”
When told that many of the fans in attendance attend Red Sox games or follow the Red Sox, Masse said, “We’re not playing the Boston Red Sox. It’s Manchester against Portland. There’s not a park in the world that would have given him (Buchholz) a standing ovation for throwing six innings for one run and 11 strikeouts. I guess I will never understand how you can root for the Fisher Cats when we don’t play Portland and root for them when we do play them.”
The roaring applause underscored the nature of operating a Blue Jays’ farm team within the heart of Red Sox nation — a paradox that reached a fever pitch on Monday.
Some Fisher Cats felt slighted. One player, who requested anonymity, said he felt like vomitting during the ovation.
“When I came to the dugout after that standing ovation, players were not happy. I just think it rubbed my team, and especially myself, the wrong way,” New Hampshire manager Bill Masse said yesterday after a day of reflection. “These guys are out there competing every night and giving the fans some awesome games, and they came away feeling like they were the visiting team.”
Fisher Cats reliever Tree Thorpe, a third-year member of the team, is one player fed up with Sea Dogs hype.
“As far as announcing in the third inning, ‘Fans come to tomorrow’s game to watch Red Sox No. 1 prospect Clay Buchholz,’ I think that’s bullcrap. We’re the home team,” Thorpe said. “To me, I take those things personally, and I’ll do anything to beat (Portland).”
…but perhaps this is the Chicken’s subtle way of saying he’d rather look at the other side of the poster than be tempted by the image of Heather Thomas. (from Kenny Smith.org, link supplied by Liz Clayton).
If the words “Heather Thomas” weren’t enough to have you wondering “what year is this?”, consider today’s time-reversing performance by Greg Maddux (7 IP, 1 earned run, 5 hits, 4 K’s), who allowed little more damage than a Pedro Felix HR in San Diego’s 4-2 defeat of the Giants. SF starter Matt Cain was almost as sharp (7.1 IP, 2 earned runs, 4 hits, 7 K’s) in picking up his 9th loss of the season. Incredibly, Cain in winless since May 13, despite compiling a 3.63 ERA over his last 8 starts.
Though I must admit I’m a tad surprised Simmons finds the work of Judd Apatow as troublesome as that of Werner Herzog, as always, the dudes-night-out worldview oozes all over the Sports Putz’ writing.
I’ve seen “Knocked Up” and it’s a-ok for a laugh or 4 dozen. And while the prospect of Seth Rogan bagging Katherine Heigl — as Simmons’ own readers acknowledge — is pretty farfetched, stranger things have happened. Not, for instance, Bill seeing past the dubious import of “hanging with his buddies”, but we can dream, right?
If there’s a prospect scarier than a lifetime as The Most Whipped Man This Side Of Doug Christie, it’s gotta be partying with Sully instead. Or considering films through the limited prism of “chick flicks” versus “guy flicks”. How about those with an all-male cast, Bill, are those “guy flicks”? Or is there some tiny chance there are women (presumably those who find the charms of Page 2 elusive) who dig movies that don’t end with pregnancy and/or weddings?
If you wanna go through life as a total cliche, be my guest. The rest of us will continue to enjoy a cultural universe that couldn’t possibly suck as much as yours.
Sorry, that should read, “Scott Boras’ Plan To Revitalize The World Series”, a headline supplied by Maura Johnston, who forwards the following item from the Bergen Record’s Bob Klapisch.
With America having gone to sleep on the White Sox and Astros in 2005 and further ignoring the Tigers and Cardinals last October, Boras (above) recently proposed turning the Series into a best-of-nine contest, with the first two games played at a neutral site.
That way, the entire industry could turn the Fall Classic into a bustling convention – not unlike the Super Bowl, which has become America’s favorite TV sports event. By comparison, the World Series continues to suffer from its hurry-up, hastily thrown-together agenda, a victim of the league championship’s unpredictability.
Under Boras’ revamping – explained in a letter sent to MLB’s headquarters – Game 1 would be played on a Saturday in a warm-weather city, where there’s a low probability of rain or even snow. The night before, he said, would be like “the Oscars” where players from both teams would be introduced and feted before a national TV audience. But the event wouldn’t be just for pennant winners; everyone would be there, including the game’s biggest stars, along with the networks and the advertisers.
“There’d be interaction between players and management, the interaction between players and corporations would increase, the boundaries would be removed,” Boras said. “The Super Bowl does that, although it’s a terrible event.”
I beg to differ. Were it only for the early broadcasts of “Super Night At The Super Bowl”, I’d not have marveled at a) the sight of Chuck Fairbanks in a suit nor, b) the vocal stylings of Smoking Joe Frazier.
Returning the Fall Classic to a best-of-nine doesn’t strike me as nearly as bad an idea as starting the series at a neutral site (surely going back to a 154 game regular season schedule would allieviate some weather concerns?). But nothing about Boras’ scheme is quite as dopey as awarding home field advantage based on the results of the All-Star Game.
Though it has been more than two years since Bobby Short’s passing, this 2000 clip from Al Goldstein’s late, lamented “Midnight Blue” is just one way of remembering a splendid entertainer.
On the same morning the SF Chronicle’s Scott Ostler wonders why Barry Bonds is still being pitched around (”he has no protection in the lineup, so why bother to pitch to him? There has never been a superstar slugger left so naked in the lineup for so many years. Also, Bonds is a liability on the bases, so his walks are devalued. He’s a poor baserunner now, sometimes doesn’t even pay attention to where the ball is hit by his teammates.”), the AP adds injury to insult with the following item :
Barry Bonds’ son, a bat boy for the San Francisco Giants, is on the disabled list for his dad’s home run chase.
Nikolai Bonds tore two ligaments in his left ankle last week when he dunked during a pickup basketball game and came down on someone’s foot — and now the 17-year-old is hobbling around the clubhouse in a walking boot for the initial stage of what is expected to be a two-month recovery.
That means he might not be in a Giants uniform working as a bat boy when his father breaks Hank Aaron’s home run record, as the younger Bonds has been for many of his dad’s other milestones in recent years.
“He’ll still be there,” Barry Bonds said. “It’s not serious. I don’t think anything’s that serious at 17. Who says he won’t be down there. Who knows? We’re not there yet.”
I am sure CSTB Nation joins me in wishing Nikolai a speedy recovery. After all, who else can his dad use as a human shield the next time a press conference becomes contentious?
The Boston Red Sox, who had jumped out as the clear favorite to acquire White Sox left-hander Mark Buehrle during the weekend, have pulled out of the sweepstakes, according to one source. And not because the asking price of top minor-league prospects was too high or because they no longer coveted Buehrle’s services, but because Buehrle is no longer on the trading block for the time being.
The Sun-Times has learned that a change of heart in both the Buehrle and White Sox camps during the last 48 hours has led to talks about the sides somehow getting together and agreeing on a contract extension by the end of the week.
That sentiment also was expressed by one Sox player, who said the ”climate” was right for Buehrle to sign an extension in the next few weeks.
If Williams can move Jose Contreras or JavierVazquez, along with Dye and Iguchi, and lock up Buehrle, he would be left with players he now considers ”the core,” changing on the fly during this disappointing season.
It also would leave him with a 2008 rotation that has Buehrle and Jon Garland in the top two spots, followed by rookie John Danks and Vazquez, if he survives the housecleaning.
The Sox think enough of Gavin Floyd, Nick Masset and Gio Gonzalez to let those three battle it out for the final spot or two.
The following are chilling words for anyone who cares about baseball in Phoenix, as penned by the Arizona Republic’s Dan Bickely ;
As good as the Diamondbacks have been, Eric Byrnes is the only position player that remotely doubles as a drawing card.”
Victimized by a 10th inning Tony Abreu HR in last night’s 6-5 loss to the Dodgers, the Snakes might as well lobby for contraction if the local pundits are championing Byrnes (above) as the face of the franchise.
DC Sportsblog’s Dan Steinberg spoke with the Wizards’ Gilbert Arenas about the next big thing on Agent Zero’s shopping list.
You’ll recall that he just got back from a vacation in Tahiti. I asked what he did there.
“Everything,” he said. “I swum with sharks, sting-rays, parasailing. A lot of stuff wasn’t supposed to do. I just enjoyed myself, family vacation. You know the island [residents], they’re so together, I’ve never seen anything like it. They have no drugs, no weapons, no crime. They’ve never had a murder.
“If someone comes to town, everyone knows you. Everyone owns land. There’s no poor people. They said if you see a poor person in Tahiti, in that country, they’re rich somewhere. So they own a few hundred acres somewhere, they own an island, but they’d rather work somewhere else. You’ll see someone on the side of the street, poor? They’re not poor. They own the city, they own stuff.”
“Yes,” he said. “I want to buy an island. Because Diana Ross has an island. Marvin Brando had an island.”
“Who?” I said.
“Marvin Brando,” Gilbert said. “Marvin Brando? Wasn’t he the actor?”
“I’m just thinking about it,” he continued. “Like, a million dollars, to own a whole island and do whatever you want on it?”
Indeed, Arenas is quite correct. Marlon Brando did own an island.
OK, I’m cheating. This picture was from Monday night. But a solo HR from Kevin Kouzmanoff off Scott Messnger in the top of the 10th has the Padres leading the Giants, 3-2.
A nightmarish road trip for the Astros got a little bit worse with last night’s 11-5 beating at the hands of the Brewers, Houston’s 6th loss in their last 8 tries. Milwaukee’s 9 run 6th inning was marked by Johnny Estrada’s grand salami off Boomer-alike Rick White.
That said, things were looking up a tad for Houston’s PCL affiliate, as Round Rock rebounded from being Manny Parra’s perfect game patsies on Monday with a 9-3 defeat of Nashville. Chan Ho Park earned his first win in an Express uniform, striking out 5 over 7 innings, allowing just one earned run.
Said efforts were dealt a blow this evening with the following report from the Associated Press :
A professional wrestler who killed himself and his family was a former customer of a company implicated in an upstate New York investigation of illegal steroid sales.
That’s according to the Albany County District Attorney’s Office, which is conducting the investigation here.
In Albany, the DA’s office confirms the 40-year-old Benoit was a customer as recently as last year of the south Florida company MedXLife.
2 of its co-owners pleaded guilty to drug charges in Albany County in April, admitting they helped get prescriptions drugs in 2006 for customers in upstate New York who had no medical need for them. The pair testified Signature Pharmacy of Orlando filled the orders.
Though recent evidence has shown Danny Ainge attempting to surround Paul Pierce with the likes of Shawn Marion, Kevin Garnett or Jermaine O’Neal, none of the above are particularly thrilled at the prospect of relocating to Boston, writes Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski. And as such, it seems Pierce — taking a tip from KG and Kobe — is ready to talk his way out of town.
According to a league executive, Paul Pierce has finally told team management that unless the Celtics come out of this week with a talented veteran co-star for him, they should expect him to make a public declaration soon after Thursday’s draft that he wants a trade.
“Danny is under tremendous pressure, from inside and outside, to get a deal for someone done this week,” one league executive said.
As hard as the Celtics, Pacers, Timberwolves and Lakers worked on the collapsed deal that would’ve sent Kevin Garnett to Los Angeles, Boston and Indiana couldn’t come to terms with what they were to receive. The Pacers were uncomfortable with Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom without minimally the Lakers’ pick at 19, just as the Celtics believed they had to get more back for sending Jefferson, the emerging forward, and the fifth pick to Minnesota.
There was some belief that Pierce was going to demand a trade upon his return from a wrist injury during the regular season, when the bottom fell out of Boston’s season with 17 straight losses. He didn’t do it.
Ainge and Doc Rivers traveled to Phoenix on Monday night for a shared workout with the Suns that included Florida’s Joakim Noah and Corey Brewer and Georgetown’s Jeff Green on Tuesday. If Ainge has to pick one of those players – never mind China’s Yi Jianlian – it appears that Pierce will soon let him know that he’s not interested in the painstaking process of watching the kid develop beside him.
Just curious — if the real reason the proposed KG-to-L.A. deal died on the vine was the T-Wolves’ Glen Taylor not wanting Garnett to toil for a Western Conference rival, how long did it take the Minnesota owner to realize which conference the Lakers played in? Wouldn’t that have precluded the discussions from even taking place?
While I’m sure it’s tempting for the likes of Jim Rome to sneer at the crazy foreigners and suggest there’s something inherently fucked about soccer to cause such incidents, all smugcasters should check back Friday to see how this compares to the iPhone launch.
The Wilson asterisk, made of foam rubber and available for $9.95 at fanslovebaseball.com, is similar to a “We’re No. 1″ foam finger. It comes in four colors and reads “Steroids” on one side and “Asterisk” on the other.
The five-pointed star lacks the aerodynamic properties of a Frisbee, although one supposes it could be thrown gently in the direction of Barry Bonds, as the Regrettable Hulk nears Hank Aaron’s all-time homer record of 755. Not that Wilson, 48, a Los Angeles actor, independent filmmaker (Nobody Productions), and gadfly, advocates civil disobedience or, for that matter, littering.
He simply wants Bud Selig and Donald Fehr, the commissioner and players union boss who enabled Bonds, to know fans are on to the fraud. “It allows fans to demonstrate in a peaceful, simple way that we were not blind. We were not fooled. We did not look the other way when the integrity of the game was ground into the dirt,” Wilson said in an advertisement The Sporting News ran.
That took some gumption by the self-styled “Bible of the Sport,” because Wilson has not had much success stocking the asterisks in stores around major-league ballparks. “The store owners like them, but they sell MLB-licensed merchandise and they’re afraid it would be pulled out of their stores,” Wilson said in a telephone interview.
He is not alleging any conspiracy to restrain trade, although he is a self-described “little guy who believes in capitalism” who thought he had a timely idea and has been hassled every time he tries to sell it.
He had sold 50 asterisks after he showed up outside Dodgers Stadium when Bonds’ San Francisco Giants were in town. Then what he calls the “vendor police” showed up and told him to move along because he didn’t have a permit. At Wrigley Field, ticket-takers weren’t going to let him in with the foam-rubber stars until Wilson said: “They’re seat cushions. I sit on my asterisk.”
A film crew has recorded some of Wilson’s jousts with the authorities, in the manner of documentary-filmmaker Michael Moore. “Except I’m a lot thinner than he is and so is my wallet,” Wilson said.
“In an alternate universe, in which the Knicks never traded for Eddy Curry, they might be pondering another dozen intriguing prospects who will fill out the upper half of the first round,” writes the New York Times’ Howard Beck. Instead, Beck quotes Knicks President Isiah Thomas who expects us to believe “there are no saviors in the draft after Durant and Oden, and that every player taken from Nos. 5 to 35 will have comparable potential.” So being stuck at no. 23 overall is just as useful as Boston at no. 5, right? Maybe Isiah can repackage his no. 23 pick for Jermaine O’Neal?
There are widespread reports that Thomas has already locked in on the rangy DePaul forward Wilson Chandler. The 6-foot-8 Chandler averaged 14.7 points and 6.9 rebounds as a sophomore last season and, like Trevor Ariza, Renaldo Balkman and David Lee, is an exceptional athlete. Like those players, Chandler has limited offensive skills and has been projected as a second-round pick.
The Knicks are also said to be fond of Daequan Cook, a 6-5 shooting guard from Ohio State. Thomas has sent signals that he would not draft another big man, which would rule out some of the other players being linked to the Knicks, including Glen Davis of Louisiana State and Sean Williams of Boston College.
Thomas seems comfortable with his big-man rotation of Curry, Lee, Frye and Randolph Morris, whom the Knicks signed — through a loophole — out of Kentucky in March.
There is a chance the Knicks could trade up in the draft, but they have already rejected at least one offer to move into the top 10. (Doing so would have cost them Lee and another key player, possibly guard Jamal Crawford.)
It would not be surprising if Thomas traded his draft pick, perhaps for a future pick. The Knicks already have an abundance of young players and they have 14 players, one short of the maximum, under contract for next season. Keeping their pick could prevent them from signing a free agent.
The following (terrifying) press release comes to us from Maury Brown’s Biz Of Baseball (thanks to Repoz for the link) :
EMI Music Marketing announced today the upcoming album “Music From The Mound” from Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. EMI will distribute the album in the United States , Toshiba/EMI will distribute the album in Japan.
“Music From The Mound” features a compilation of Matsuzaka’s favorite and inspirational songs from various American, English and Japanese recording artists. The album also features the new original track “Gyro Ball”, which includes guest performances from former J. Geils harmonica player Magic Dick (above), former Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt as well as Boston Red Sox television announcers Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy.
“I listen to both Japanese and English/American artists, and I enjoy a wide variety of music, especially Rock, Hip Hop and R&B,” said Matsuzaka. “I am excited to share my favorite inspirational songs with everyone in Red Sox nation and beyond. I’m also thrilled to work with the Red Sox Foundation, the official team charity of the Red Sox on this project.”
Nuno Bettencourt? Who knew Dice K was down with that Guitar Player magazine crud? Who do up and coming guitarists Peter Gammons and Theo Epstein have to fuck to make their debuts on a Japanese-distributed title?
I do, however, realize this ill-conceived project was designed to benefit charities, and as such, I will try to concentrate on the positive. For instance, there’s no mention of Dickey Barrett having anything to do with this.
Oakland’s plans to trade Milton Bradley to the Royals were scuttled last week when the hot tempered outfielder flunked a physical. Prior to said transaction, Catfish Stew’s Philip Michael “concocted this elaborate post where Billy Beane had employed a team of statistical analysts to produce a chart that predicted the likelihood of Bradley remaining injury-free for the remainder of the year.” (link courtesy Sam Frank)
If Dan Duquette hasn’t already offered Mike Gimbel a job as the new Israeli league’s statistical analyst, I certainly hope Philip gets the gig.
Earlier this evening while attending a minor league ballgame in Williamson County, I received several text messages and IM’s from persons claiming Chris Benoit had died. ESPN Radio confirmed as much a few minutes later, but with no details other than the bodies of Benoit’s seven year old son, Daniel and his wife Nancy (formerly the spouse of Kevin Sullivan) were found as well.
Monday night, the largest wrestling organization in the world grappled with a real-life murder mystery: What led to the apparent murder-suicide of superstar wrestler Chris Benoit, his wife and child inside their expansive Fayetteville, GA home?
Officials have not disclosed how the family died, other than to say the deaths did not involve a gun.
“The details, when they come out,” said Fayette County District Attorney Scott Ballard, “are going to prove a little bizarre.”
Sources in the Fayette County Police Department are now working under the theory that Chris Benoit killed Nancy on Saturday, son Daniel on Sunday, and then killed himself earlier today.
Benoit was found dead in his weight room. Nancy was found dead in the lving room. Daniel was found dead in his bedroom, accordig to an unnamed source in the department.
For those who’ve not followed the pro-wrestling-thing, this might seem like a bit much over who-the-fuck-cares, and if you’re amongst those who don’t give a hoot, by all means, please click somewhere else. For everyone else, however, Benoit was a stylistic pioneer who rose to his sport’s pinnacle during an era in which doing so in the USA without being monster huge and/or skilled on the microphone was virtually unheard of.
There are far better places to read about his tenures in ECW, Japan and his pivotal role in the rise and fall of WCW, but suffice to say that while it has been many years since I saw Benoit wrestle in person, calling him a craftsman is a huge understatement. The circumstances surrounding his death are bound to be disturbing, and it might ultimately be impossible to remember Benoit independent of this tragedy. But on a night when he’s arguably more famous in death than he was in life, his level of artistry and superior work ethic are worthy of acknowledgement.
When told of Brewers farmhand Manny Parra tossing a perfect game tonight against Round Rock, Bob Uecker was heard to utter, “that’s pretty good at any level…even the sandlot.” And while I’ll characterize guys with big league resumes like Humberto Quintero and Jason Lane as a notch above the sandlot, there’s no doubt in my mind that Parra-is-for-real. He struck out 11 Express hitters in Nashville’s 3-0 win and was nothing short of overpowering without breaking much of a sweat. An opposite field line drive to the warning track by Lane in the 7th was the hardest hit ball the hosts managed all evening.
As my family, friends, work colleagues and estranged spouse can well attest, I’ve attended many ballgames in my time. Never before have I witnessed a no-no or a perfect game in person, and while I don’t spend much time rooting for the Brewers’ organization, I feel fortunate to have been on hand for Parra’s gem.
The 3 or 4 thousand fans who stuck around for the duration at the Dell Diamond were openly rooting for the 6′ 3″ lefty from the 7th inning on, even when Nashville were only up by a run. I’ve never heard so loud an ovation at the end of an Express loss, except for perhaps the occasion when they were giving away leftover fried dough.
For Round Rock, it can only get worse. The Express will send Chan Ho Park to the hill tomorrow night.
Mets prospect Phillip Humber limited the Memphis Redbirds to a mere three hits during New Orleans’ 4-1 win Monday night. Memphis starter, Toma Ohka, just signed by the Cardinals, allowed 3 earned runs and 8 hits over 8 innings, including a solo HR to Andy Tracy. I’m not sure which is more incredible, that Sandy Alomar Jr. might be wearing a Mets uniform very shortly (ie. whenever Captain Red Ass serves his two game suspension) or that he’s currently hitting .325 in the PCL.
You’ve probably all heard about Paul Lo Duca’s freak scene at Shea Saturday evening, and while the New York Times seemed to credit Captain Red Ass for rallying the troops, The Human Whoopee Cushion’s Understudy characterized the Mets’ craddle-robbing backstop as “childish, dumb and embarrassing.” One of Deadspin’s commentators went a step lower, insisting that Paulie Large Nuts “gives a bad name to Dagos everywhere.”
The powers that be seem to concur,having suspended Lo Duca for two games “for his inappropriate actions” the other night. To which I can only reply, fuck off and die, the whole lot of you. Perhaps the Amazins’ (un)Humble Humbert of Home Plate could’ve showed greater restraint, but you don’t rack up impressive 2nd place finishes in the All-Star voting without showing a little emotion every now and then. These assholes are so quick to condemn, but I say, walk a mile in Paul’s Boogie Shoes before passing judgement.
How many of you know what it is like to show up for work with your every move being scrutinized by some 40,000+? Knowing that somewhere in the vast crowd, your 16 year old girlfriend’s dad might be poised to open fire with a concealed handgun? Try explaining to that old crank Glavine that you got crossed up on a pitch because your creditors are heckling you. It’s not all bobblehead dolls and blowjobs from teens autograph sessions at Last Licks.
Appealing his grossly unfair suspension, Lo Duca is in the Mets lineup tonight, and Carlos Gomez has hit a solo HR off St. Louis’ Mark Maroth, the former Tiger’s first longball allowed in the NL, as New York leads 1-0 in the last of the 4th.
Nor does he have quite the range of Tom Dempsey. Drew Brees was so troubled by the above photograph, he chose to spend a day in prison. First person to say something like “haven’t the people of New Orleans suffered enough?” is banned from the comments section for at least a day.
The owners of the Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves have begun talks for a trade that would involve sending Kevin Garnett to the Lakers, league sources said today.
The Times first reported the talks as a multi-player negotiation involving the Lakers, Minnesota, Indiana and possibly a fourth team. Sources now say the Lakers are dealing directly with Minnesota and disagree about the involvement of the Pacers and a fourth team.
The Lakers are reportedly offering the Timberwolves Andrew Bynum (above), Lamar Odom and Kwame Brown for Garnett.
Jerry Buss and Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor spoke by phone for 20 minutes Friday. Buss reportedly ended the conversation by suggesting that Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak and Timberwolves vice president of basketball operations Kevin McHale would continue the discussion today.
There’s at least one kinda believable report the Celtics are in the mix this megatrade’s 4th team, with Jermaine O’Neal bound for Boston.
The Kansas City Star’s Bill Reiter wonders “Just how far will bloggers’ roles evolve?”, observing that those of the sporting variety might consist of “sites such as Deadspin.com that attract millions of visitors a month to guys in their underwear taking shots at Buddy Bell or Herm Edwards.” An unpleasant image to be sure, but slightly better than Buddy Bell in his underwear reading Deadspin.
“I think the time is coming when bloggers will be credentialed and at games,” said Will Leitch, editor and founder of Deadspin.com. “Teams are always saying it’s very difficult to figure out who’s a legitimate blogger and who is not. It’s not difficult at all. I’m a Cardinals fan, and if I was with the Cardinals’ public relations department, it would take me maybe 20 to 25 minutes to find out who the top St. Louis Cardinals bloggers are.”
In what many see as a precedent-setting move, the New York Islanders are planning a blogger’s box for next season — a press-like area set aside just for them, believed to be the first of its kind.
“We’ve learned really quickly in the 10 days since we announced this that it appears a lot of other people in hockey and pro sports are keeping an eye on us,” said Chris Botta, the team’s vice president of communications.
“We’ve heard from some other leagues already. I don’t think anybody is looking to jump on board and set up their own blog box for the next season, but I think everybody’s looking at us as the guinea pig. Who knows where this will go?”
If the Isles are the guinea pigs for this noble experiment, what does that make the Washington Capitals?
Though it was encouraging to see David Berman taking a reasoned approached to the matter of Pacman Jones, leave it to Utter Wonder to give the sort of TLC the NFLPA should otherwise provide.
A wealthy Florida chiropractor thought she was dating Mets ace Pedro Martinez, but the lovelorn back cracker wound up being scammed out of almost $1 million.Dr. Rhonda Schroeder says she was fleeced by Shirley Gordon, a career con woman who enlisted two male pals to pose as the superstar pitcher.
Schroeder, 34, is suing the imprisoned grifter to get back some of the cash she splurged in an effort to keep her bogus boyfriend happy, the St. Petersburg Times reported yesterday.
The phony romance started in January 2005 when Schroeder went on a date set up by Gordon with a man she believed to be Martinez, prosecutors said.
Much later, Schroeder identified a photo of the man – who turned out to be Kenneth Day (above), an ex-boyfriend of Gordon’s, prosecutors said. Day, who has not been charged in the case, bears a resemblance to the eight-time All Star pitcher, although he has a scar above his left eye, the newspaper said. Martinez has no such mark.
That led to a cyber-courtship that went on for months, only this time Gordon’s jailbird boyfriend, Greg Buchanan, allegedly was playing Martinez.
If this case and the recent Ben Roethlisberger impersonation are anything to go, I might as well start telling women my name’s Robert Redford (the Craig Finn scam wasn’t nearly as lucractive as I’d have liked).
(UPDATE : some heavy background on Shirley Gordon from the St. Petersburg Times)
In a story shockingly reminiscent of Jim Brown leaving the NFL before his 30th birthday, the following comes to us from the Daily Telegraph.
Takeru Kobayshi said he can only open his mouth to make a gap the size of a fingertip after being diagnosed with jaw arthritis.
In an entry on his blog entitled Occupational Hazard, Kobayashi said: “My jaw refused to fight any more.”
The injury occurred only a week after the slender 29-year-old started training to win his sixth straight title at the annual July 4 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating contest on New York’s Coney Island.
“I feel ashamed that I couldn’t notice the alarm bells set off by my own body,” he said. “But with the goal to win another title with a new record, I couldn’t stop my training so close to the competition.
“I was continuing my training and bearing with the pain but finally I destroyed my jaw.”
Kobayashi, who has become a niche celebrity in Japan and the United States, had already halted his competitive eating activities for several months due to mourning his mother’s death earlier this year.
But he said he still wanted to go to the competition in New York.
“I want to be the pride of my mother,” he said in the blog entry posted Sunday.
…besides the late John McGeoch really knowing how to rock a pink jumper, we’ll take 4 minutes and 40 seconds to ponder the genius of Magazine’s “The Light Pours Out Of Me”.
