Sports Views

With the release of their Ignite line of drivers and fairway woods Nike has proven that they can offer alot more to the golf industry than just a fancy check mark. These clubs have seen great success both on tour and at a retail level. Even before Tiger Woods started playing the Ignite T60 3-wood many considered it to be one of the best fairway woods around.

Not only that, but the bags used to be 5.75 ounces. Now, suddenly, the bags are 5.25 ounces, and the price is the same. Fuck corporations and trying to put one over on the public who made them what they are. And fuck ConAgra for whatever other nasty corporate shit they’re pulling. Plus, on top of everything else, friggin Derek Jeter’s face is on every bag. I actually went to three stores looking for either a bag with someone from the Red Sox on it, or at least a plain old regular bag. No dice. Are the bags of seeds in the Red Sox dugout...

Avid Terry fans have known for some time that I can usually convince someone that Yankees shortstop, captain, and intangibles leader Derek Jeter is a shithead in the span of one randomly selected at-bat. Recently, I've taken to noticing that Jeter overreacts to pitches to try to sway the ump's call: if the ball's on the outside corner, Jeter leans forward, as if the ball were so outside he's just about to fall right over. Similarly, if the ball's on the inside corner of the plate, Jeter stumbles back as if the damn thing almost hit him.

I was not that surprised the HEAT beat the pistons. But, what surprised me was the pistons lossing their cool. I think Shaq was the main reason why the pistons lost their cool. The pistons had to foul Shaq because Shaq was just to tough and in the mist of fouling out; Shaq still made his shots!!! Pistons better be scared because like i predicted once here before this thing is gonna end in game 5 or 6

Wide receivers Mason and Clayton are the big additions but the bigger question is can Kyle Boller get them the ball? Rolle will team up with Chris McAlister to give them a one of the league’s best CB tandems but will Rolle be that much of an upgrade over Baxter? I think they will miss Hartwell more than most people think because even with the move back to the 4-3, Ray Lewis is beginning to slow down. Tommy Polley could prove to be a nice pickup if he can shed his label as being “soft”. He has the speed to make plays from the outside linebacker spot. Guard Keydrick Vincent was a nice addition to a banged up offensive line in need of a boost.

Truly great players possess all of the fundamental skills: shooting, passing, ball handling, rebounding, shot blocking and defending. Now, players like Kobe, McGrady and Kevin Garnett certainly have these skills. But to truly separate players, we need to go beyond these skills. Consider two more factors: the ability to dominate at any position and to make all players around you better. This is the true test of greatness.

I've been thinking about Magazine Man's story about the time he wrote to Carlton Fisk, the legendary Red Sox catcher who smacked the winning homerun in Game Six of the 1975 World Series. Perhaps you've seen the highlight of him bouncing down the first base line as he willed the ball out of the park. For a Red Sox fan, it's a top three memory. Some would argue top two. (Number one is fresh and inarguable.)

Like Magazine Man, I've written a fair share of letters in my life to people that I admired. Although I never wrote to a member of the Boston Red Sox (although I did meet Carl Yastrzemski at the annual "Baseball Dinner" in Manchester), I have also written a few letters to people in my lifetime that shockingly, responded to me.

You know what, Robby, you big whiner? You just made yourself look like one of the biggest pussies of all time. I mean, here are chicks like Annika Sorenstam, just dying to compete with men in spite of all the God-given physical advantages that men have in sports like golf, even though she's pretty sure she's still going to lose. Do you get that? Sorenstam loves the sport, so she naturally wants to be able to say she's competed with the best, regardless of the fact that she can never be as tall or as strong as the men she competes with. Conversely,...

Nobody will catch Justin this time. If they do, it will be the worst meltdown on the PGA Tour since the 60’s.

But when bashers get on their boorrrring “they don’t score enough” rants about soccer, I find another outlet. If their tirades were ever clever (like the “I’m mad as hell” takes can be), I’d appreciate them more.

Flip that reasoning around on the NFL, and you can say the same thing: “The NFL isn’t a sport, because it’s filled with 350 pound guys who can’t play without having an oxygen tank ready on the sidelines!” Try saying that on Jim Rome’s show and see where it gets you.

For our sakes, let’s hope Mr. James isn’t entirely correct about that (although he probably is). Once again, our thanks to Joe for an engaging read. You know, Bill James used to complain that he could never get any of the real baseball “insiders” to listen to his ideas. Well, that has changed, as he’s now on the payroll of the Boston Red Sox. But I hafta say, it’s a pity, now that he’s finally found a job in the baseball world, that the public has limited access to his material. He deserves the recognition,...

Perhaps the most shocking story of the week deals with last week's winner Kenny Perry. Perry completely ran away from the field at Colonial last week on his way to a record-tying finish in Ft. Worth. This week, all he did was shoot 73-74 to miss the cut by five shots. I picked Perry in my FedEx St. Jude Classic preview, and I guess I must have put a jink on him. When Perry is hot, he is hot! But when he is cold, he is very cold. And this week, he was ice-cold. He has been struggling with his eyesight, and the overhauled greens this week could have...

The Red Sox’ Derek Jeter and the Braves Ray Durham are both quietly flirting with .400 and a new CDL record. Both are assured with the batting titles in their respective leagues– and each could set a new league record. The CDL and National League record for highest average was set in 2000 by Dodgers’ Roberto Alomar, who hit .402 that year. Alomar also holds the American League record of .396, set in 1991 when he was a Yankee. Durham has been on a tear of late– 13 of his last 17 games were multi-hit games, including a 5 for 5 performance last night against the Reds. His on base percentage for the season is an astounding .479. Durham’s output defies explanation– he is a .335 career hitter whose previous high season average was .354. Jeter is more or less a regular at the top of the batting average race.

Injured San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds, at the center of an offseason-but-still-simmering steroids scandal, provided a urine specimen to a Major League Baseball lab technician Wednesday as part of the league’s random testing for performance-enhancing drugs, according to ESPN. Several of Bonds’ teammates also submitted to the required testing.

Funny, when Barry Bonds started breathing down Babe Ruth’s neck, speculation over the former’s use of illegal substances ran rampant. But as Craig Biggio’s assault on Don Baylor’s HBP mark continues, media and fans alike turn a blind eye. More on the subject (sort of) from the Tacoma Tribune’s Larry Larue.

Early this week, Alex Rodriguez admitted something that has long been kept silent among superstar athletes. In an interview on the television show Extra this week and to an audience of children, the Yankee’s early-season MVP admitted he is in therapy.

I have a new article up over at Sports Central today. This one is about greedy and selfish players in the NFL. Here is the teaser:

The NFL off-season has been marred by a few selfish acts. It is depressing to think about some of the antics athletes pull off. SC's Kevin Holtsberry takes a look at the immaturity and self-centeredness of some pro athletes and contrasts that to the end of a classy legend's career.

Foeget about Jason Giambi. Look at Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez this year. He is down from 215 pounds to 187 pounds. We cannot prove that he was ever doing steroids but it is an interesting exercise in journalism to read the comments of players, teammates and managers as players shrink before our very eyes.

Seeing baseball in person makes me appreciate the amount of athleticism in this game, all the mundane plays look damn impressive up close. Also, I know there are a bunch of Sox fans here, but even y'all gotta admit that Derek Jeter is the muthaf*&king man. I know y'all know what I'm talking about. Just stop. I see you. Stop fronting.

Prime examples are the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East and the San Diego Padres in the National League West. Although the Orioles just got a dose of bad news regarding their All-Star catcher, Javy Lopez, I believe they have the pitching, offense and bench depth to hold off the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. The same can be said for the Padres who have one of the best young pitching staffs in baseball, a potent offense, solid bullpen and a steady hand at the helm in manager, Phil Garner.

And, I'm sorry if you're a Barry Bonds fan and think he was clean, but come on! Get with reality. He was juiced and gets paid a gazillion dollars. What's sad is that the guy had loads of natural talent and would have had a great career without it. I'm also not buying the native Spanish speaking athletes who say that, because their grasp of English isn't perfect, they weren't aware that what they were doing was wrong.

In any event, Detroit has way too much depth and postseason experience not to win this series. They’ll end it in six — possibly five if Shaq doesn’t return to form.

But Shaq can take solace that with D-Wade at his side, the Heat will make another playoff push next year. The same can’t be said for his former sidekick in L.A.

It seems Shaq wants to be an undercover cop…. Yeah, cause he blends in…Well at least online he would. He’s reportedly joined a Department of Justice task force that ferrets out Internet based sex offenders.

Mark Cuban (blogmaverick.com) vs. Mike Celizic (MSNBC): Cuban, as we all know, is the dot com billionaire who purchased the Dallas Mavericks. He's also a pretty interesting blogger, which makes him pending the appeal in this case in California a journalist. Recently, Celizic wrote a column questioning why the Mavericks didn't take an opportunity to trade for Shaquille O'Neal last off-season. This set Cuban off. Cuban has a particular distaste for journalists who don't call him to check their facts, and in this case, Cuban says he would have told...

Verdict: A draw. Cuban's blog has revolutionized the idea that even billionaires have tools to set the record straight. On one hand, Cuban is definitely correct to point out that Celizic should have contacted him for comment. But on the other hand, Cuban needs a lesson in the basic difference between facts and opinions. Facts are things you can check for veracity. Commentaries, such as the one that Celizic wrote, have both fact and opinion. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference, but the notion that the Mavericks could have had Shaq is unquestionably...

I have been saving the best for last. I don’t know where my SP found such a perfect gift for me: RED SOX POINT PROTECTORS. Yes. Point protectors. Which I needed. But these are in the shape of red socks. As in, the World Champion Boston Red Sox. At this point I was completely delirious.

I love Star Trek, my Jeep (does everyone own one here?), Ham Radio and Baseball. I do not like hanging drywall, Microsoft, Barry Bonds and broccoli. My current passion is Nomad Gamer and the hope that one day it will actually make enough money to buy a happy meal.

Yankee slugger Alex Rodriguez hit one out of the park for troubled souls everywhere yesterday when he bravely declared that he sees therapists to deal with his personal demons.

Back in the friendly confines of Oriole Park of Camden Yards and the comfort of their own league, the Orioles got back on the right track in a big way, in a rousing come-from-behind 3-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners. In fact, Sammy Sosa, who’d been on the disabled list with an abcess and staph infection on his foot, welcomed himself back to the lineup with a clutch RBI, reminding Orioles fans just how much his contributions were missed (and in case you were wondering how much they were missed, chew on this: before last night’s game...

More than 120 players have officially petitioned for early-entry into the NBA draft ... that's not counting NCAA seniors ... But there are only 60 picks in the draft, total, which goes to show just how much bad information kids are getting from advisers and agents ... Most of these kids have no business thinking about the draft just yet ... a good example is Martellus Bennett, the Alief Taylor star and Texas A&M football and basketball signee ... I know 'Tellus. He has NBA written all over him, if that's what he wants. He also has NFL written all...

Colin Cowie is a renowned event planner, and his company Colin Cowie Lifestyle is regarded as one of the premier event design and production companies in the world. He has produced weddings, parties and charity events around the globe. His celebrity weddings include those of Jerry Seinfeld, Kelsey Grammer, Lisa Kudrow, Jenny McCarthy, Sela Ward, Sugar Ray Leonard and Barry Bonds, among others. Renowned parties include Oprah Winfrey’s 50th birthday celebration, birthday celebrations for John Travolta and Quincy Jones, the grand opening...

The problem with a lot of teams at the NBA level is that front offices either can’t commit to a coach or or go spineless when players can’t handle being motivated by coaches. In Philly’s case, it’s probably a little of both. They’ve had 4 coaches in the last 3 years. And O’Brien was fired because the young players didn’t like him. In other words, they got upset because they were treated according to how they played.

What the younger players should have done was take a cue from Allen Iverson (yes, I said that) He wasn’t enamored with O’Brien either, but he had his best season last year.

Today, I was at the Third Planet comic shop when a tall guy kind of slid past me at the racks. I looked up and thought, that is one tall comic book nerd. Then I noticed the huge tree trunk calfs and took a 2nd look at his face and I realized it was Yao Ming. He was there with a chinese guy in a shirt and tie who did some translating. I wanted to say hi, but I thought I should get something for him to sign first so I wouldn't bug him twice. I grabbed some free comic preview thing and asked the owner for a pen, but he shut me down and told me the store's policy was to not bother celebs and treat them like regular customers. I wasn't aware that Third Planet was such a hot bed of celebrity shopping...

In the final round, Kenny fired a one-under par 69 to match his 72-hole mark at 19-under 261. with this win, he joins Golfing greats like Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson as the only player to have multiple victories to his name this season.

After all the questioning, Shaq did end up starting for the Miami Heat and came out of the gates strong, hitting on his first 4 field goals. He ended the game with 20 points in 33 minutes on 9-of-14 shooting. Eddie Jones was the Heats leading scoring with 22 points, while Dwayne Wade only had 16 points on 7-25 shooting.

Sammy Sosa's infected left foot is healing quickly enough for the Baltimore Orioles' outfielder to hit off a tee on Wednesday.

I can’t get into that Arena football league- believe me I tried because for one thing I LOVE football, and since hockey has been on a permanent vacation and baseball hadn’t started I really wantd to like it. I didn’t, it’s a bunch of guys who were not good enough to make the NFL in my opinion, now if it could be used as some sort of minor leagues sytem for guys out of college who aren’t quite ready for the NFL I could see it survivng, but for my money I’d rather watch college football than this.

Paula Creamer - She was the youngest to win some kind of tournament today - I believe it was the Sybase tournament. Who cares, it's women's golf. Unlike women's tennis, the ladies in the LPGA are hardly women at all. Does this surprise us? Their sport's training ground demands that you walk around for 4 hours a day and drink about a six pack before the 18th hole. Oh Paula, go to college and drop the clubs!

Yes, let's put the blame on urban black culture, which must be the ONLY placd David Ortiz has heard misogynist language in his life, and harken back to the days of "pre-hip hop" baseball when sexist comments were never made.

Since there is no way I will ever vote for Alex Rodriguez, Brandon Inge of the Tigers gets my vote here. He doesn’t have as much power as A-Rod, but he has gotten on base more frequently and has gotten a hit once every three ABs. He is the only Tiger currently batting over 300 with over 20 RBIs.

I would like to take issue with A's Fan charge of eastern media bias. He uses as an example of this Miguel Tejada. He neglects to mention that plenty of attention was paid to Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez, who plied their early years in even more obsure Seattle. The reason Miguel didn't get the press is that he wasn't as good as the other three shortstops; he didn't have a good OBA until 2002. I know Oakland fans loved him, and he's certainly an excellent player, but until 2002 he was the 4th best shortstop in the AL offensively.

But on to the rants and raves ... China wants Yao Ming back for the Asian Games, which is really going to put a crimp on Yao's hopes of resting and working on things here over the summer. Now, you must understand these Asian Games are not Olympic qualifiers or even important in any way ... I had one Chinese sportswriter, whose name I cannot pronounce, but he lets me call him, "Rick," tell me the Asian Games are considered a joke even in China ... They are unimportant and mostly second-level players will be competing ...

Even without the number-one player in the world in the field, expect a good turnout of veterans as well as some up-and-coming stars on the LPGA Tour. Let's take a look, shall we?

From 48-year old Beth Daniel, winner of 33 LPGA events and a golfer who hasn't missed the cut this year to 18-year old Paula Creamer, the talent is varied this week. Creamer is a newcomer on tour but has already made $168,811 playing in LPGA events. Brittany Lincicome, 19 and another 2005 tour rookie, doesn't have the stats of Creamer, has only made $26,582 on tour to date and jumped directly into the LPGA after an opening-round 66 in the 2004 U.S. Women's Open.

In the beginning of the 2005 season the LPGA had sixteen players 22-years old and younger with six players still teenagers, not including Michelle Wie, who will not be attending the event. Many of these younger players don't just sit on the sidelines, they contend each week. Junior golf programs on the rise throughout the country train young golfers early on to compete at a higher skill level making the transition to the LPGA tour seamless.

Gary Sheffield has heart. I once heard him recall the moment when Derek Jeter flew into the stands to catch a foul - almost breaking his neck - as a defining moment for him as a ballplayer - a moment when he realized he’d been putting his ego ahead of the game…and he regained his heart. Matsui has heart. Tony Womack seems to have it in bunches. The young pitcher Wang seems to have the stuff. I believe Robinson Cano has it; he certainly LOOKS like a Yankee.

DH David Ortiz (.284/.367/.588) Deserves All-Star bid soley on name: Big Poppi

Phil Mickelson, the fourth-ranked golfer in the world, will be headlining the strong field in Fort Worth this week. The lefty had originally acted as if he wouldn't be playing this week. But after thinking it over, he has decided to play afterall. And he will surely be the favorite. Phil won this event in 2000 and has made it to the victory circle three times already in 2005. Mickelson's wins this year include the FBR Open, Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and the BellSouth Classic. Phil had it going last week at the Byron Nelson before having a shaky Saturday....

"I expect I'll be just as emotional at St. Andrews. I'm a sentimental old fool," said Nicklaus, who was in Britain for the launch of a Polaris World golf and property development in Spain. "I enjoy being part of history and what's going on, but I don't consider myself competitive any more and the Open will probably end my competitive career." Nicklaus holds the record with 18 professional major victories. In addition to his three British titles, he has won The Masters six times, the US Open four times and the PGA Championship...

With 10 home runs halfway through May, it's time to start wondering if Tino can set the May record. It's currently held by Barry Bonds, who hit 17 in May 2001. The AL Record is 16 held by Yankees great Mickey Mantle, who hit 16 in 1956. Mark McGwire also hit 16 in May 1998.

After watching Annika Sorenstam steamroll the competition at last week's Chick-fil-A, SI.com's Seth Davis asked his employers to cancel the magazine's Sportsman of the Year search. So what if it's mid-May? Davis wants to give Sorenstam the honor right now.

The biggest positive, and probably the most important, was Allen Iverson, A.I., Bubba Chuck. Allen Iverson, at the age of 29, had his best season by far. Not only statistically, but personally. I am afraid to say it, for lack of embarrasing myself, but I think A.I. has matured.

Sad as it is to say, I have less confidence that my dawg, Barry Bonds will make it that far. I think he will pass Babe Ruth, but it is going to depend on his desire when he comes back whether or not he will pass Aaron. It is remarkably sadder to say that Alex Rodriguez maybe the most likely to hit number 755. He is seven homers short of 400 and three years younger than Manny. And if he gets out of New York and gives up a little of his crazy contract so he picks up a few fans, I think A-Rod will make it. As with all players, it all depends on...

Tiger Woods is in the news for all the wrong reasons. First, he missed the cut at the recent Byron Nelson Championship in Irving, Texas after a record number of tournaments. Now, the latest is that he is set to lose his number 1 ranking to Fijian Golfer Vijay Singh. The rankings are scheduled to be updated this coming Sunday.

I've been a bit of a Miami Heat skeptic for most of the season. Obviously, they're a very good team. Obviously, they're better than the Wizards. But "better than the Wizards" only gets you so far in the NBA. So much better than the Wizards that you can sweep them in four games even with Shaq riding the pine for the road games and clearly nowhere near 100 percent in the earlier ones, however, is another matter. Assuming Shaq gets healthy, Detroit (or Indiana!) has a lot to fear.

Obviously, these numbers don’t mean everything. There’s plenty of flaws, like that all differences are weighted equally, or that blocks is as important as effective field goal percentage. But the fascinating thing is that there is no way that you can say Wade’s season doesn’t compare to the 23 year-old seasons of Kobe Bryant and Larry Bird. And that’s just the regular season, not including any of Wade’s post-season heroics.

Last fall, I posted after the brawl in Detroit regarding the idiocy surrounding the rash of fan-related incidents of violence in American sports. This week, the fans in Oakland have added another notch to their incredibly disgusting behavior record; a fan threw a beer at Jason Giambi and hit him in the head as he was walking off the field after flying out. I hate the Yankees as much as anyone does, and after his run-for-the-money and steroid-apology-that-wasn't-an-apology, I take pleasure in watching Giambi fail. This, however,...

Okay, I’ll admit that the past two weeks of putrid baseball have made me grumpy, but if I hear one more manager or player question why A’s fans would boo Jason Giambi, I’m going to blow a gasket. For those athletes who don’t quite understand what it means to be a fan of a team, let me explain it to you in terms that you can better understand.

Ernie Els looks as though he belongs with the other stars at the Byron Nelson Championship. The Big Easy is part of the ``Big Four'' that includes Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson. The top four pla...

As Eric McErlain at Off Wing Opinion suggests, it would be nice to see the identities for some of the blue dots, specifically Phil Mickelson or Vijay Singh or Ernie Els. I'm also curious about the blue dot on the far left side of the graphic. Over the last five years, his accuracy has remained very high, while his length off the tee has hardly changed -- nearly every PGA Tour player is longer than he was five years ago. Fred Funk was my first guess, but after taking a look at his stats, even he appears to be too long off the tee...

Tino Martinez continued his incredible pace of late, hitting two home runs to tie him with teammate, Alex Rodriguez, for the league lead at twelve. Since making two critical errors in the tenth inning of a game on May 6th, Tino has unstoppable at the plate, hitting eight home runs with 19 RBI”s over eight games. Nobody expected a revival of this magnitude when he retuned to the Yankees, but with Jason Giambi’s continued struggles, it is a welcome addition to the team.

When I heard that Lebron James had fired his professional agent and replaced him with a high school teammate, I had a sense of foreboding for the young star. Sccop Jackson felt the same way.

All due respect to Mickelson (26 wins), Vijay (27 wins), Goosen (5 wins), Els (15 wins) and Woods (43 wins). Annika has 60 wins as of her 10 shot victory today at the Chick-Fil-A Championship. Annika has more wins than Phil, Vijay and Goosen combined. She has more wins than Woods & Els combined. I could do all the combinations but I think you get the point.

The only thing counting against Annika is that she’s on the LPGA Tour. For that reason, some will discount her accomplishments.

It is Annika's 60th win on the LPGA Tour, her 39th coming from a leading position, and her fourth number-one this year. Her winnings are now over $900,000 dollars. If you count Sorenstam's 12 international wins which are not part of her official LPGA stats, the 34-year old swede officially claims 72 wins.

Sorenstam now ties LPGA veteran Patty Berg for third place on the list of career wins, with only Kathy Whitworth (88 tour wins) and Mickey Wright's (1964 - 82 tour wins) records left to conquer. The young collegiate golfers watch her during a round as if she's giving a clinic. Even though a bit intimidating to play against, Annika has become an icon to the younger set. There is even a Swedish saying which Annika Sorenstam plays by which states that every hole at the golf course can be birdied. She doesn't see anything as impossible and that is what makes her a superstar.

Kerr carded 7 birdies and a bogey-free round but came in solo third place even though she had birdies on both 17 and 18 like Kung. Kerr won last week after playing a grueling36 holes on Sunday at the Michelob Ultra Open with Sorenstam in the field, but could not chase down Annika this week.

Brit Laura Davies, who lead in first round action, eagled twice today at the 6th and 18th today to finish in a tie for 7th with Lorena Ochoa and three other great golfers.

In the bottom of the ninth, however, David Ortiz walked. Kevin Millar, who had hit a ninth-inning walk-off game-winning homer the previous night flied out to left field. Up walked catcher Jason Varitek who promptly poled the game winner just inside the Pesky Pole in right field for the perfect ending to my first Major League Baseball game.

Egad. The Discovery Channel had one of those awful call-in polls selecting the "100 Greatest Americans," and Kevin Drum and his commenters go off on it. I'm not gonna bother (it's being scorned quite well without me piling on), but if you want to be astonished/amused/disturbed, go look at it. Some of the more egregious choices: from Hollywood: Katharine Hepburn, Lucille Ball, Marilyn Monroe, Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise, and Tom Hanks; from politics: both Bushes, John Edwards, Rudy Giulani and Barack Obama; from sports: Pat Tillman and Brett Favre.

The White Sox and the Orioles began their day with the White Sox having taken the first two games of this series, with White Sox began their day six ahead of the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central and the Orioles a single game up on the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. The two surprisers swapped single runs in the opening inning. First, Roberts swatted a 1-1 pitch on a hanging rope off the right field wall, took third on a sacrifice from a Hall of Fame sportswriter’s son (David Newhan), and brought home the first Oriole run as Melvin...

As was I checking into the Oakland Hilton this evening, I noticed some rather tall gentlemen in line with me. That, the extra security, and the line of fans outside the door prompted me to ask the front desk clerk if a basketball team might be in the vicinity. "Yes, it's the LA Lakers." Then I recognized Kobe and Shaq, though the others only looked vaguely familiar.

Long story short, I ended up going to a basketball game this evening with a friend. We sat with the "large male dance squad," which is a story in itself. The hot dog was good. The game, eh. Apparently I'm still sports-appreciation impaired.

This article reports that Stern greeted with boos in Indiana. The article reports that NBA commissioner David Stern was booed by Indiana fans. It takes for granted that the boos were the result of Stern's decision to suspend several Pacers after the Detroit brawl. But I don't think that's the whole story. There is a conspiracy theory among Pacer fans, probably unfounded that the NBA has consistently offered the Pacers unfavorable officiating in the playoffs from a desire to see bigger names and bigger market teams in the Finals -- Shaq when he was...

I did get to see Game Three at Wrigley. I'd left the day before with my sister's ex boyfriend. Somehow, I lost all my luggage, and I spent the better part of three days wearing a black trench coat, with a shirt, tie, and vest underneath it. (These were the clothes I'd been wearing on the way, you see.) I bought my first two jerseys that day; a Cooperstown Ernie Banks and a Sammy Sosa alternate. Even though the Cubs lost, it was fully worth it.

And I hope that the World Baseball Classic doesn’t inherit any traits of the World Cup of Soccer because I would really hate to see “Big Papi” David Ortiz rip off his jersey while running the bases after a home run.

I don't know what Brett Favre is thinking doing this lame-o COUPON AD for Sensodyne. .. sure, atheletes do a lot of endorsements and sure, I uses Sensodyne and like it.. but when I saw this today all I could think was "oh how the mighty have fallen." Think this will be his last year?

The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting today that Eagles owner Jeffery Lurie has said that Terrell Owens’ contract renegotiation is a “non-issue” and that if Owens wants to win a Superbowl he should return to the team. In addition to Lurie’s comments, Donovan McNabb has recently stated that he expected Terrell Owens to return to the team since Owens has a valid contract and signed the dotted line on it.

The Baltimore Orioles’ team physician says right fielder Sammy Sosa could be out for a month with a staph infection on the bottom of his left foot, multiple media outlets were reporting Thursday night.

Full of itself the NoFunLeague is a fountain of petty rules that suck any individuality out of the events. Peyton Manning wants to wear black high tops to honor Johnny Unitas? No Way! You want to wear a number in the 40’s when you play linebacker? NO Way! Now a coach wants to wear a suit on the sidelines. Give me the college game everytime.

Dave Pell: “There’s almost no unembarrassing reason for an NFL runningback to be caught trying to sneak a dildo through an airport. . . .”

Now I know that his father, who had the same name, was a football coach, best known for letting Richard Nixon call a play for the Redskins, and for a management philosophy called "The future is now," sort of a prototype for the Bush tax policy. I sort of assumed that the Senator played or coached in the NFL himself, but I got curious about it today. Did he? No. He played a little bit at UVA, apparently. (Of course, I worked for a guy who had a couple of championship rings and was in the Hall of Fame, and you were allowed maybe, at most, one glancing...

In the course of looking this up, I came across an interview with Allen for nfl.com that includes a question from one Adam Schefter so merciless and piercing that that this guy deserves a spot in the White House press corps:

For that same money, the city of New York could buy the New York Knicks for $500 million or so, fire the idiot Isaiah Thomas, replace him with Daniel Doctoroff or anyone else with an IQ over ten, earmark the remaining $100 million to sign LeBron James a few years from now, and then spend the next decade after that quietly collecting the $150 million in annual revenues that the Knicks rake in now, even sucking as badly as they currently do.

And speaking of the mighty who have fallen, the Yankees are said to be mulling a demotion to Triple-A for Jason Giambi, the slumping, no-longer-BALCO-abetted former slugger who would be, at $15.5 million, the highest-paid athlete in the history of minor league baseball. With the possible exception of Michael Jordan.

My initial stop was a surprising article by Daniel McGraw at Reason Online. The article centers around Jerry Jones' successful push for a new Dallas Cowboys stadium even though he had no claims of losing money. In fact, this is a pretty clear case of Jones getting the public to help fund his venture to make more money then he already is making. Let me assure you, the public will not be the ones benefiting from the Cowboys' increased revenue.

The map of the new Dallas Cowboys stadium was released on Monday, and I finally got a chance to digest some of the changes on Tuesday evening. Once it's finished, I don't expect it will be a major impact to the ballpark, unless both are playing at the same time, in which traffic goes to hell. I've been around Texas Stadium, and the traffic is a nightmare there. The roads in the new area are going to be even WORSE, so I don't think I'm gonna want to be anywhere near the new Jones Stadium during gametime. That might seriously affect my Rangers...

I for one have identified at least five categories in which players fall under and therefore, receive different treatment from the referees (keep in mind, this can be favorable or unfavorable treatment) — Rookies (think Chris Bosh in his rookie year), Whiners (think Vince Carter in any year after his rookie year), Old-School players (Charles Oakley comes to mind), Up-and-comers (Dwayne Wade) and Superstars (Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, and Lebron James just to name a few). This situation has gotten so out of control, I’m beginning to...

May has been a slow month so far. I don't typically watch other teams that often, but I have caught a few of the Heat games. Mostly because they are Florida's "other" team and Shaq plays for them. If the Heat don't go all the way this year, they are a lock for next year. Shaq has dropped a lot of weight; add another summer of training and the rest of league is in trouble.

The Baltimore Ravens today released outside linebacker Peter Boulware, the all-time sack leader in their franchise history. Boulware was a member of the 2000 Super Bowl team and teamed with Ray Lewis to form one of the most vaunted defenses the NFL has ever seen. Boulware spent all of 2004 on Baltimore’s physically unable to perform list while trying to recover from a knee injury. In seven seasons of play with the Ravens, Boulware totaled 67.5 sacks, including a career-high 15 sacks in 2001. Boulware, the 4th overall pick of the 1997 NFL...

The buzz in golf this year has been the "Big Four," and IMG figured it could not go wrong by inviting Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson to showcase their skills on prime-time television later this summer in the "Battle at the Bridges."

The A’s clung to their lead thanks to some masterful pitching from their promising reliever, Huston Street. Octavio Dotel took the ball to nail down the save in the ninth. I happened to be talking to Jeff over Instant Messenger at the start of the inning and when I saw that Millar would be the third batter to face Dotel, I said to Jeff, “if he sees 4 pitches from Dotel it will be a moral victory". After all, Millar had been made to look foolish by Huston Street earlier in the game and the nastiest righthanders tend to have their way...

"A John Paul II trading card has sold for $8,100, says a Beckett Media guide. The late pope outdid Barry Bonds, whose cards haven't exceeded $1,200."

Five tournaments in the making, Annika Sorenstam's winning streak ended with one miserable hole.After climbing the leaderboard Sunday morning, Sorenstam dropped out of contention with a double-bogey on the third hole of the final round of the Michelob Ultra Open. She finished at 2-over 286, leaving her well behind leader Cristie Kerr and ending her hopes of winning a record sixth straight tournament."I wanted to do it,"said Sorenstam, who shot a 3-over 74 in the final round.

The Yankees finally took a step in the right direction this weekend, shutting out the Oakland A’s 6-0 and winning their first series at home since they took two of three from Boston to start the season. Much-maligned Kevin Brown pitched seven shutout innings a day after Mike Mussina pitched the first complete-game shutout for the Yankees in nearly two years. Alex Rodriguez, Tino Martinez and Jorge Posada all had home runs, and for two days at least, the Yankees looked like the Yankees.

"Over this past weekend, coach Van Gundy publicly apologized for his comments last week suggesting bias in the leagues refereeing relating to Yao Ming. He has also confirmed directly to an NBA representative that, during the Houston/Dallas playoff series, he did not have any communication with a referee (working or non-working) other than, of course, during an ongoing game. In fact, his only conversations with league employees during the series were with league personnel in the normal course. In light of these circumstances, we now consider the matter to be closed."

World number two Vijay Singh closed the gap on top-ranked Tiger Woods after winning the Wachovia Championship in a playoff at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina on Sunday.

Philadelphia is not your ordinary sports town. People here bleed green. Eagles flags out number the american flag two to one, every paper has Eagles on the front page, the news begins and ends with Eagles reports, the local paper ran articles before the NFC championship on which bird was more powerful, an Eagle or a Falcon. I have, simply by my proximity to Eagle fans, learned the fight song, I know the starting roster, and many of the back ups. I also own a Terrell Owens jersy (given to me by my mother and father in law). In short, I know more...

Though stooge of the day Jason Giambi is only hitting .196, his 18 walks put his on base percentage at a respectable .386. So if anyone says he’s taking up valuable roster space for the Yankees, the answer is staring Joe Torre in the face (and looking like A.J. Soprano in the process) ; Giambi should bat first. Once he walks, pull him for a pinch runner!

For most part of the tournament, it was all about Sergio Garcia who dominated the proceedings. However, everything changed in the last round at the Wachovia Championship. Vijay Singh clinched his third PGA Tour victory of the year overcoming the challenge from Sergio Garcia and Jim Furyk.

Vijay Singh was delighted with his performance and spoke to the media after winning the tournament: “In a playoff you only think of that one shot at a time. You’re not even worried about anything else that’s going on, just one particular shot, and probably that’s why it’s a little bit easier to go ahead and play it. Maybe I should do that all the time.”

Shaq and the Miami Heat defeated the Washington Wizards 105-86 in the opening game of their Eastern-Conference-semifinals playoff series. While Shaq and his team took game one, Steve Nash was awarded the league’s MVP award. In very close balloting, Nash received 65 first-place votes, while Shaq garnered 58 first-place votes. Including all voting, Nash barely edged Shaq with 1,066 to 1,032 total points.

Annika continued, "I had a great opportunity… and it just didn't happen, unfortunately. I'm a little sad about that." The last time Annika played 36 holes on a Sunday, she won her seventh major at the 2004 LPGA Championship.

In the long run, it might not matter. My guess is they both win a boatload of majors in the next 20 years, helping the LPGA take the next step. Add young players like Lorena Ochoa and Jennifer Rosales to the mix, and you start thinking Annika won't have to carry the Tour much longer.

LeBron James has a slurpee at half time, he gets out onto the court, gametime, when all of the sudden… BRAINFREEZE! No matter how strong a man is, he cannot resist being incapacitated by a brainfreeze. Suppose Adam Vinitieri was sitting crosslegged at the Super Bowl, he goes up to kick one of his game winning kicks, and his foot is asleep?

The Boston Red Sox called up pitcher Jeremi Gonzalez from Triple-A Pawtucket on Monday and designated first baseman David McCarty for assignment.Gonzalez, the starter for Monday's game against Detroit, was 1-2 with a 3.00 ERA in four starts for Pawtucket. He has made 79 major league appearances with the Cubs (1997-98) and Devil Rays (2003-04), going 24-32 with a 4.69 ERA.

While Barry Bonds continues to rehabilitate his troublesome left knee, Major League Baseball is conducting its own investigation into the troubled slugger, major league sources told the Daily News.

1) Yao Ming missed five straight free throws. This is surprising, considering his 78 reg. season %. I was impressed, though, by his aggression and passion in the second half. I’d never seen him dunk that much in a half. If he could be that aggressive on offense the whole game, most games, he’d be the force everyone feels he’s capable of being. The problem is he’s slow, and Avery Johnson has exploited the hell out of this by playing small-ball against him. In the playoffs, it’s normal for him to get into foul...

Expected outcome - Miami normally doesn’t pay much attention to the offensive boards, but it is there for the taking if they want it. Washington normally doesn’t play defense much and doesn’t foul a lot, but they’re going to have all sorts of difficulty with Shaq, so expect something close to a normal amount of free throws for the Heat. Washington will gamble for turnovers, and have some luck with it.

I kept expecting to get a “your order has been cancelled” email from the NFL about the jersey. They just couldn’t actually allow this item to be created, could they? Last week, I saw this story about the Ron Mexico moniker being added to the NFL’s naughty words filter:

A few “Ron Mexico” T-shirts have popped up on eBay, though none of the NFL’s licensed replica jerseys have been sold or posted for sale on the Internet auction site.

OK…living in the Detroit area and not having cabel were killers for me during this year’s NFL draft. I heard all about the Lion’s draft…they’re going to be terrible again this year. I heard one guy say this weekend, “this is going to be their year.” I just laughed.

So it seems that Phil Jackson may return to the Lakers as a coach next year.� At the very least, it's a possiblity.� Now I hear many of you going off on tirades about how Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson just can't get along (mainly because of Kobe) and that it would never work.� Well just stop.� You know it's silly, and I know it's silly, so just stop.

-- Call for Cameraphone ban on Golf Tournaments - Ernie Els - The world's No.3 golfer - called on golf chiefs to ban cameras and mobile phones at all major tournaments

If the rumors are true, the Canadian born player would be joining an elite group of guards Bob Cousy, Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Allen Iverson, and Michael Jordan to have won the title. Nash joined Phoenix Suns last summer as a free agent after spending six seasons with the Dallas Mavericks and led his team to league-best 62-20 record.

The Wachovia Championship is the place to be for golf fans who love to have the PGA Tour's biggest stars gathered in one place. Starting with today's first round at Quail Hollow Country Club, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Sergio Garcia and the rest are expected to put on quite a show.

Where some sense fear, cornerback Fabian Washington finds excitement. Staring down a talented wide receiver such as Randy Moss isn’t scary, it’s a challenge.

Right now, the Baltimore Orioles are high flying and in 1st place in the AL East while the Cubs are walking in winning runs their way towards last place in the NL Central. You really can’t help but wonder if Sammy Sosa’s sparkplug personality is a factor in Baltimore’s rise while the lack of it is a factor in the decline of the Cubs. In retrospect, if Sosa’s boombox was really such a problem, why could not team management have sit down with him and told him to use headphones and not subject the rest of the team to his...

Chris DiMarco set his sights on a first PGA Tour victory in three years after completing a four-under-par 68 in the rain-delayed third round at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans on Sunday.

The Yankees have significantly aged, and are showing the signs of a team that is worn down. This is a group that has been together for 8 or 9 years now and has been a good dynasty of a team. While experience in the major is an ally, being over worked is another thing. When a team has played as many games as the Yankees have over the past several years its really not hard to figure that they are tired and time is catching up on them. If you account for all the regular season games, and post season games, including playoff rounds, and world series...

What the Yankees have done while making big blockbuster trades for stars like Gary Sheffield, and Randy Johnson, they have depleted their farm system. The same farm system that produced stars like Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera, Bernie Williams, and Andy Pettite, has been drained significantly and has left the Yankees with no hope for the apparent future. Trading for big name players is a double-edged sword as a team gives up on the hope for the future for needs for the present; meanwhile they give up on the talent they have to take...

NEW YORK - A press conference is scheduled for 5:30pm today to announce the signings of Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriquez to the New York Knicks. Derek Jeter will be paid $190 million dollars for the next 10 years and A-Rod will be given a record setting $250 million dollars for 10 years.

Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, the National Cheerleaders Association and the Herkie jump (more on that later), may have put modern cheerleading on the map. But the Texas House of Representatives, concerned that high school cheerleading is becoming too raunchy, has approved a bill that would allow state education officials to prohibit "overtly sexually suggestive" cheering and drill team routines.

Brett Favre, bored to tears with the Marquette “Gold” debacle, has decided to announce his retirement this afternoon so people can have something else to talk about.

Favre used to be the best QB in the league. But those days were long ago. Now, he's simply above average. Right now, if I had to choose between Jake Delhomme and Brett Favre to be the new QB of my favorite team, I'd pick Delhomme in a heartbeat. I'd also take Pennington, McNabb, Cupepper, Peyton, Brady, Brees, Green...shit, I'd probably take Bledsoe.

I don’t know how the rest of you are coping with the realization that not everything we read on Barry Bonds’ website is 100% accurate, but the unsentimental Neil Hayes of the Contra Costa Times has come to the grim conclusion that the Sultan Of Surly is going, going gone.

It's nice to see that this Pistons fan is being charged for throwing a coin at Allen Iverson, but it's hard to escape the conclusion that this behavior was encouraged by Stern's response to what happened last November in Auburn Hills. Wouldn't some serious consequences for the owners in Detroit have helped to prevent this latest incident? I'll admit to being a Pacers fan (I grew up in Indianapolis), but it's not the severity of Artest's punishment that's at issue here -- it's the fact that there was essentially no penalty for the Pistons organization....

By now you all know that Houston Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy was fined $100,000 for comments he made regarding the officiating of Yao Ming. But now the fundraising part has begun to pay this hefty fine, not that Van Gundy needs it making $5 million a year. Gallery Furniture owner Jim “Mattress Mac” McIngvale has offered to pay the $100,000 fine, stating that he likes what Van Gundy stands for. Since no one else can directly pay the fine for Van Gundy, “Mattress Mac” has even thought of a loop-hole to get Van Gundy the...

World number three Ernie Els closed the gap on second-ranked Vijay Singh after cruising to a 13-shot victory at the thunderstorm-hit Asian Open in Shanghai on Monday. South African Els now trails Fijian Singh by just 1.12 points in the official world rankings.

This past weekend, I attended my first professional sporting event. It was called How the New Jersey Nets can only be from New Jersey. Those Nets. They have Heart. They can have Zing. And even a dollop of skewed, lack of open-space-panache. But they can also be scrubby. Like they were on Sunday, against the blaze of the Miami Heat. Shaq didn't even do anything; he ran up and down the court a couple times for cardiovascular upkeep.

Also on this week's celebrity shit list: Shaquille O'Neal, who, with his wife, recently blew $50,000 on his son's 2nd birthday party. Question: what two-year-old needs a $50,000 birthday party? None. This was about his parents' social status, not the needs of the kid. Of course, as Jay pointed out, it was most likely Shaq's wife who planned the fete, as no man in his right mind would blow $50K on a kid's party. I tend to agree with Jay that this party was more likely about Shaq's wife showing off for the friends and relations ("Look how much...

According to this ESPN article, the Wonderlic is a short-form IQ test given to NFL draftees, with only one NFL player known to have ever managed a perfect score. I scored a perfect 15/15 on the sample test provided with the article, without even putting pencil to paper to work any of the problems out. See how you do on the test, and remember, no cheating now (and in particular, no disregarding the 5 minute time limit!)

The Yankees immediately responded with a resounding 19-8 win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. “I’m thrilled to the bones that we beat Tampa,” said a decidedly unenthused Steinbrenner. “I’m glad to see Alex Rodriguez get five hits and two homeruns off the Devil Rays. But now I’d like to see him hit that way against someone a bit more formidable than kids three days out of high school.” Tuesday, when ace Randy Johnson was pounded by the lowly Rays, Steinbrenner's anger...

So, for those of you not in the know, here's the four sentence overview. LPGA Tour player hires a caddie who is 11 years younger to loop. She flirts with him and talks to him about the difficulties she (and her husband) are having trying to conceive a child. The caddie and Tour Player end up having relations and she thus becomes pregnant, and it's a strong likelyhood the Caddie is the father of the child. The Caddie is emotionally distraught and is now taking legal action against Tour Player.

Ridiculous. Albom’s mistake should have been corrected with a short letter from the editor, end of story. But instead, he was forced to write two entire columns defending himself and his reputation, which up until now was sterling. Albom knows all too well that once an opinion takes hold in the sports world, it becomes gospel: Barry Bonds and Randy Moss are jackasses. The Boston Red Sox are just the scrappiest, most lovable lil’ ballclub ever. Kobe Bryant is the Next MJ—no, wait, he’s Evil Incarnate.

Saunders is a fine coach, who did an excellent job in Minnesota turning an NBA joke into an NBA title contender. Saunders developed Kevin Garnett, and he's one of the best X's and O's strategists in the coaching ranks. LAist still wonders why the T-Wolves fired him in a season where Latrell Sprewell's inability to feed his family, and Sam Casell's whining had a lot more to do with the team's slow start than Flip himself.

They have played baseball on 161st Street in the Bronx since 1923. In all that time, with so many legends having roamed the grounds, no player has ever been responsible for 10 of his team's runs in a game. Not Babe Ruth or Lou Gehrig. Not Joe DiMaggio or Mickey Mantle. Not Derek Jeter.

All of those players are known as true Yankees, a title that has eluded Alex Rodriguez. While he waits for another chance at October, Rodriguez added to his legacy by doing something never seen on baseball's grandest stage.

He blasted three home runs in the Yankees'...

The Dallas Cowboys backfield just went from thin to crowded with the siging of former NFL Rookie of the Year Anthony Thomas from the Chicago Bears. With Julius Jones firmly entrenched a the starter, Richie Anderson released, Eddie George released, RaShard Lee proclaimed a liability in pass protection, Eric Bickerstaff recovering from a torn achilles tendon, and neither Lee nor Bickerstaff established on the team, the Cowboys were looking at another season of Julius Jones and fantasy owners were licking their chops. When the ‘Boyz drafted...