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1.31.2005
Safin Rolls: With his win over Lleyton Hewitt in the finals of the Australian Open, Marat Safin served notice that men?s tennis might be more than just Roger Federer winning all the time. Safin defeated Federer in an epic semifinals match, then rallied from one set down against Hewitt to win 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
It was Safin?s second Grand Slam title and his first Down Under after losing two finals. ''It's psychological -- you start to have doubts, like really I could do this or not,'' said Safin. ''It's the third time, you get so nervous, so uptight.'' Hewitt, who really looks all buffed out this year, didn?t have it in the final and failed to give the host country its first men?s champ since 1976.
Mitchell Faced: Philadelphia Eagles receiver Freddie Mitchell will get a lot of attention this Super Bowl week because of his mouth, not his play. The guy who calls himself the ?People?s Champ? has already insulted the New England Patriot defensive backs, raising their hackles. Kind of
1.31.2005
Safin Rolls: With his win over Lleyton Hewitt in the finals of the Australian Open, Marat Safin served notice that men?s tennis might be more than just Roger Federer winning all the time. Safin defeated Federer in an epic semifinals match, then rallied from one set down against Hewitt to win 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.
It was Safin?s second Grand Slam title and his first Down Under after losing two finals. ''It's psychological -- you start to have doubts, like really I could do this or not,'' said Safin. ''It's the third time, you get so nervous, so uptight.'' Hewitt, who really looks all buffed out this year, didn?t have it in the final and failed to give the host country its first men?s champ since 1976.
Mitchell Faced: Philadelphia Eagles receiver Freddie Mitchell will get a lot of attention this Super Bowl week because of his mouth, not his play. The guy who calls himself the ?People?s Champ? has already insulted the New England Patriot defensive backs, raising their hackles. Kind of
1.29.2005
Gutsy Serena: Unlike Roger Federer (see yesterday's entry), American Serena Williams was able to shake off an injury during her Australian Open tennis match and emerged victorious over fellow Yank Lindsay Davenport, 2-6, 6-3, 6-0, to win the women's singles final. Needing treatment twice on her back, Serena thoroughly dominated the third set to win her seventh Grand Slam singles title. The last few years have been rough for Serena and her sister Venus, with injuries and the accusations that Serena was more interested in starting a clothing empire than winning tennis matches being the focus. Serenea declared the Williams sisters are back and while that remains to be seen, it can be only a good thing for American tennis.
American tennis took it on the chin, however, on the men's side as Aussie Lleyton Hewitt took advantage of a heckling countryman to unnerve Outsports favorite Andy Roddick en route to a 3-6, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4), 6-1 win; he'll meet Russian Marat Safin in the men's final. Hewitt has a chance to become the first Australian man to win the Australian Open since Mark Edmondson in 1976. Melbourne Park should be rocking for that match.
Homophobe Hingis: In 1999, out lesbian tennis star Amelie Mauresmo was beaten by former Number 1 Martina Hingis at the Australian Open and afterwards Hingis said that Mauresmo was "half a man". She's all woman to us, but in any case, Hingis has been on the shelf since retiring due to injuries in 2002. She recently played a match in Thailand and when Amelie was asked about it at a press conference, Mauresmo was blunt: ?I have nothing to say, absolutely nothing at all". That wasn't good enough for the questioner, who asked again, which prompted Mauresmo to say "Nothing" and walk out of the press conference. We're going to go out on a limb here and speculate that Amelie Mauresmo hasn't forgiven or forgotten Hingis' remark.
1.28.2005
It's Why They Play: One of the truly great things about sports is that it's one of the very few forms of drama that no one knows the outcome in advance. There's an old cliche that's trotted out after big upsets: "It's why they play the game". After our entry of January 26th, perhaps we should have kept this hoary old chestnut in mind. After saying that no-one could beat the amazing Roger Federer the Australian Open men's singles title, how predictable that Marat Safin defeated Federer in their semifinal match 5-7, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (6), 9-7 to hand Federer his first loss in 26 tries. As boring as the men's game can be sometimes, this was a classic, with plenty of twists and turns in the four and half hour match to make it memorable. Federer was in pain during the latter stages of the match, as he needed treatment for a tender nerve running down his racket arm but he made no excuses afterwards. "It's really unfortunate. I thought I played really well under the circumstances. A point here and there changed the match," he said. "It's a pity. At least I gave it a fight."
On the other hand.... We'll contradict our statement "no one knows the outcome in advance" by noting a big scandal in the world of German football (soccer). A 25-year old referee, Robert Hoyzer, has admitted that he profited via gambling by helping to fix matches. Authorities were alerted when a large amount of money was placed on Paderborn SC in their German Cup match against Hamburg SV in August, won by Paderborn SC 4-2 after Heyzer made some bizarre calls. What raised suspicion is that Paderborn SC is a regional team and Hamburg SV are a Bundesliega team, roughly the American equivalent of a rookie league baseball team taking on a team from the major leagues. It has the makings of a good scandal, with whispers of others involved and Croation gambling mobs getting in on the action. Things like this go to the core of sports, so we hope it's an isolated incident.
1.27.2005
Homophobia in the Darts World: All six members of a British pub dart team have been banned from league play for life after they taunted a gay and lesbian team with homophobic insults. The teams are based in Brighton, England, and play in the Sussex United Darts League.
The ban came after the ?straight? team from the Bevendean Hotel allegedly mocked and scorned the gay players from the Stag pub, according to British media reports. The Bevendean team refused to shake their opponents? hands, eat their food (the game was at the Stag) and repeatedly made anti-gay remarks.
The best account came from the London Telegraph: Fran Bailey, the captain of the Stag's team, insisted that her team had endured "constant abuse all night", adding: "We heard them say, 'don't shake hands - you never know what you're going to catch'. If their darts fell on the floor, we heard them say, 'I wouldn't bend over to pick up your darts in this pub. I would rather buy a new pack.'
"It is courtesy to supply food when you are the host pub for a match but when we said we were going to bring it out they said, 'We don't want to eat in here because we don't know what we are going to catch.' They even booked their taxi well in advance and we heard them say that they would rather pay waiting charges to the taxi than stay another minute longer in the pub.
"We were intimidated in our own pub. Their behavior was disgusting and offensive." A female Stag player said her opponents taunted her in the toilet and asked her if the was "in the right loo".
A Bevendean representative denied the charges, saying, "I never heard any of my side make any anti-gay comments. The lads in the side are placid and certainly not homophobic. The only conclusion I can make is that it is just sour grapes."
But the league thought otherwise. Secretary Peter Crook said, "We cannot tolerate homophobic behaviour of any kind." We?ll drink a pint to that!
1.26.2005
Roger, Over and Out: The way Roger Federer is playing, they might as well hand him another Australian Open trophy. Federer, the top-ranked player in the world, blew by Andre Agassi in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, to reach the semifinals. He made it look so easy that Agassi supporters in the crowd were fairly subdued.
''He was too good. I would suggest to his next opponent that he doesn't look to me for advice,'' Agassi said. On the Outsports discussion board one fan said Federer has been ? somewhat arrogant, lacking in a touch of humility.? But perhaps it?s just confidence from being at the top of his game. Martina Navratilove, for one, is a Federer fan:
''Today, the courts are slower, the rackets faster,'' Navratilova said in Melbourne, where she is competing in doubles. ''Anyone can hit a passing shot from the baseline. If we played on grass, you'd see more serve-and-volleyers. We've lost finesse, variety. Federer is a great role model. But that style of play isn't encouraged. I'll ask some kid, 'Why don't you go to the net?' They say, 'My coach tells me not to.' ''
Andy Reid, Theater-Goer: Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid is considered boring, but we did like this anecdote from SI?s Peter King: ?During the Eagles' off-week between the end of the regular season and their first playoff game, Reid took his family -- wife Tammy and kids -- up from Philadelphia to Broadway to see Wicked, the spoof of the ?Wizard of Oz.?
Reid and his family were sitting near the back of the theater and got up to stretch. "Someone must have recognized me,'' Reid said, "because I'm standing up to stretch, and I hear someone yell, 'Go Birds!' When the play's over, we're walking outside, and I hear a few people in the crowd go, E! A! G! L! E! S! EAGLES!' '' My daughter says, 'Uh-oh. There's been an Elvis sighting.' "
1.25.2005
Serena Rolls: Serena Williams served notice that she will again be a force as she easily beat second-seed Amelie Mauresmo, 6-2, 6-2, in the quartefinals of the Australian Open. Up next for Williams is Maria Sharpova, whom Williams lost to in last year?s Wimbledon final.
Playing in searing 90-degree heat, Williams needed just 71 minutes to beat Maursesmo. ''I feel great,'' Willaims said. ''I played really well -- I was just really focused.'' A focused Williams is bad news for the rest of the field.
Steel Love: It is unusual, but still cool, to see pro athletes let their emotions show, so it was nice to see the reaction of the Pittsburgh Steelers a day after they lost the AFC Championship Game to the New England Patriots. There was a shot of wide receiver Hines Ward with tears in his eyes the day after the loss. And center Jeff Hartings used language seldom heard in the macho world of pro football. "We honestly love each other. It's definitely the tightest team I have ever been on, " he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "It's a privilege to play with them. I kind of felt at the end that I would rather lose a game like that with this team than win a Super Bowl with a team I didn't even enjoy playing with."
1.24.2005
Patriots, Eagles in Super Bowl: Super Bowl XIX in two weeks in Jacksonville will pit the New England Patriots against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Patriots won the AFC, beating Pittsburgh, 41-27, while the Eagles beat Atlanta, 27-10, in the NFC.
For New England, this is their third Super Bowl appearance in the last four years, while the Eagles are making their first trip to the big game in 24 years. The oddsmakers have made the Patriots a touchdown favorite.
Check out our complete recap of Sunday?s action, including the lowdown on the best and worst hair.
Australian Open: The Australian Open heads into its final week and some of the best commentary anywhere can be found on our Discussion Board. Check it out.
1.22.2005
Soccer players to play: In contrast to the acrimonious negotiations between the NHL owners and the locked-out hockey players (see yesterday's item), the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) and the players for the U.S. national team agreed to terms that will prevent a strike in the run-up to the 10 qualifying matches for the 2006 World Cup in Germany. The players and the federation agreed to a contract that increases fees for appearences by the players when they play for the United States. However, the agreement only lasts until December, which leaves open the possibility that the U.S. could qualify for the World Cup but have the players that got them there go on strike, leaving replacement players to actually play in Germany. After a strong showing in Asia in the 2002 World Cup, a lot is expected of the United States team, but that could all go by the wayside because of, what else?, money.
Weather report: After seeing how weather has affected some of the National Football League playoff games so far (especially the Colts v. Patriots game in Foxboro last week), one of the most important factors for the upcoming AFC and NFC Championship games will be the weather. As of this writing (Friday at 8:30 pm PST), the weather in Philadelphia on Sunday looks to be miserable: morning Snow/Wind and a high temperature of 25 degrees. We (editor's note: NOT Jim) want the Eagles to lose to the play-in-a-dome Atlanta Falcons because they're choking dogs, not because of the weather.
At the western end of Pennsylvania, it's going to be even chillier in Pittsburgh, with a high of 18 degrees forecast for Sunday, with the same morning snow predicted. The Steelers play a team that has a reputation for playing well in abysmal conditions, the New England Patriots, so maybe the Steelers home field advantage could be neutralized.
1.21.2005
At least they're talking: Despite a pretty overwhelming sentiment of "So what?" from a lot of American sports fans and media, the National Hockey League continues to claim that there might be a season after all. So far, over half the season and the All-Star game have been lost to a work stoppage that began September 15, 2004. One of the bizarre things about this is that both sides, the owners and the players, don't seem to have any urgency about sitting around a negotiating table. After two days of meetings in Chicago and Toronto--only the third time since September that the two sides have held meetings--the two sides are still far apart on basic economic issues that are driving the strike. The players won't accept a salary cap, whatever the owners might call it (our favorite: "cost certainty").
One idea that has been floated is contraction. We've long maintained that the NHL is bloated, with too many teams competing for a limited amount of the sports market. NHL officials, speaking waaaay off the record, have hinted that one option is to eliminate some of the weaker franchises. Who those might be wasn't made clear, it would be a radical solution for a great sport that has been in decline in the marketplace for over a decade. The split between US-based and Canadian-based teams has grown, with the Canadian teams unable to compete financially for a variety of reasons. If the negotiations don't go anywhere, at some point the NHL is going to have to cancel the 2004-05 season. It's hard to imagine that the NHL would want the dubious distinction of being the first major sport in North America to cancel a whole season, but unless the two sides actually start negotiating in good faith and in a spirit of compromise, that's what will happen. Will most sports fan even notice though?
1.20.2005
Piazza to Wed Playmate: New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza, who publicly declared in 2002 he was a heterosexual, will reportedly marry ... a man in Canada. No, just kidding! Piazza will wed "Baywatch" actress and former Playmate Alicia Rickter in late January, the New York Post reported.
Piazza, the subject of a 2002 blind item in Post that he was gay, took the unusual step of holding a press conference at the time and stating, "The truth is that I'm heterosexual and date women." At the time, another Playmate that Piazza was dating, Darlene Bernaola, said, "Our sex life was very, very healthy."
Of course, this will put an end to those nasty rumors. It is interesting, though, that having very public relationships with Playmates is the way for jocks to prove they are straight. NFL quarterback Jeff Garcia, who also has denied rumors he is gay, made news when his girlfriend Carmella DeCesare, the 2004 Playboy Playmate of the Year, allegedly karate kicked another woman that Garcia had dated during a tussle at a Cleveland nightclub.
1.19.2005
Bad Time for Streak to End: Wake Forest had made a men?s college basketball record 50 straight free throws, but missed at the worst possible time. Taron Downey hit a game-tying 3-pointer against Florida State with 4 seconds left, but then missed the game-winning free throw. The result was overtime and the Seminoles went on to a 91-83 win over the No. 3 Demon Deacons.
Over in the Southeastern Conference, No. 22 Alabama handed No. 17 Mississippi State its worst defeat in 50 years, beating the Bulldogs by 49 points.
Clemens Wants $22 Mil: Houston Astros pitcher Roger Clemens is 42 and is not sure he wants to play again. But this didn?t stop him from asking for a Major League Baseball record $22 million in salary arbitration. The Astros offered him ?only? $13.5 million. Clemens went 18-4 a year ago in helping to lead the Astros to the playoffs. Lest anyone think Clemens is greedy, just remember that this is a business, and both sides try to get as much or pay as little as they can. Still, it would be nice to know our fallback was a cool $13.5 million for working every fourth or fifth day.
1.18.2005
Tennis Down Under: It?s always a bit odd watching the Australian Open in the northern hemisphere. Here it?s the middle of winter and in Melbourne it?s mid-summer and players have to worry about heatstroke and not frostbite. But it?s always great for tennis fans when the tournament rolls around, since it?s the first of the Grand Slam tournaments.
Gays and lesbians have always been huge fans and players, as the gay tennis circuit is very active year-round. The same holds true for Outsports readers, who make the tennis threads on the Discussion Boards a must-stop for fans. As is the case everywhere, it?s the women tennis players who garner the most attention. Posts on the female side of the Aussie Open has twice as many entries as the men. It?s one of the few sports where women draw the most notice.
Bulls Win Again: The Chicago Bulls have sucked in the years since Michael Jordan left, but the current team is showing some signs of life. With their 88-86 win over the New York Knicks on Monday, the Bulls have won seven in a row, their longest streak since 1998. They stand at 17-18, but that?s good enough right now to make Chicago the eighth seed in the weak NBA Eastern Conference.
The Bulls have been sparked by the play of former Kansas star Kirk Hinrich, who will become a fan favorite with his hustle. ''About a month and a half ago I thought we had the makings to be a good team, then we put together a couple of good stretches,'' Hinrich said. ''We have been playing like a good team, we're No. 1 in the league in defensive field goal percentage, and that's a sign of a good team.''
1.17.2005
Kwan Skates to Title: Overlooked amid all the NFL playoffs
talk this weekend was an impressive performance by Michelle Kwan, who won her ninth U.S. figuring skating title on Saturday. She now heads to the world championships in Moscow in March, gunning for her sixth title there.
Kwan still has one goal that has so far eluded her?Olympic gold and she gets her next shot in 2006. There will be a new scoring system in place (don?t ask us to explain it) that will do away with the 6.0 perfect scores, of which Kwan had gotten 42 of in U.S. competition. "I'm going to be sad when the 6.0 goes," Kwan said.
Down to NFL?s Final Four: Check out our weekly look at the NFL, including the divisional playoffs.
1.15.2005
Leinart stays at USC: In something of a surprise, University of Southern California quarterback Matt Leinart passed up instant millions in the NFL and decided to stay in college for another year. Instead of being a first round draft pick, he'll return to USC to try and win an unprecedented third national title (BCS title game location in 2005: the Rose Bowl). Yes, yes, we know, one of the two titles was a co-champion split based on the two major polls, but still. On one side were people saying that he had achieved such a pinnacle--Heisman Trophy and national champions in the same season--that he shouldn't risk injury and jump to the NFL while he was hot. Our rebuttal to that: Willis McGahee. On the other side were Matt Leinart and his family. While the second straight Heisman and the third straight national title are incentive enough, it seems that maybe he made the right move. In discussing his situation in August 2004, he said that he was leaning towards returning to USC because "he needed to get stronger physically and make other improvements". Now the pressure will really be on Matt Leinart, because there will be constant media coverage of his draft stock; a poor season could hurt his marketability.
1.14.2005
It?s a start: It?s not the sweeping legislation that some had hoped for, but major league baseball?s laughably weak policy towards steroid use by players got a little tougher Thursday. In the wake of such name players as Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield being embroiled in a steroids scandal in California, the pretense that no players were juicing pretty much ended. Baseball?s response, under pressure from Washington legislators? Escalating punishment that was only really punitive after the fifth offense. The new guidelines have stiffer graduated penalties, with a fourth positive test?still far too many in our opinion?bringing a one year ban without pay. The players will be randomly tested throughout the year, including the offseason.
It?s still kind of amazing to see the Major League Baseball Players Association cave on an issue; they had previously been doing well by stonewalling the issue, but the heat is too much at this point for them to oppose testing or the stiffer penalties without appearing to be completely out of touch with reality. One aspect that was not addressed is the use of greenies, the ever-present amphetimines that players use to make it through the seeminly never-ending baseball season. However, the list of banned substances was expanded, and with the new penalties, major league baseball has taken some baby steps to addressing the steroid problem in the sport.
1.13.2005
Sex and the Mascot: Ever want to have sex with a school mascot? Us, either. But apparently some people find the idea alluring, according to an entertaining report in the London Guardian.
"There's a whole sports mascot sort of groupie thing that goes on ... sports mascots get laid like crazy because people are so attracted to them,? Minnesota sexologist Ducky Doolittle (her real name) says. ?Women are all over them."
"For some reason, girls think we're immature," Pete Nelson, aka T-Rac, the giant racoon mascot of the Tennessee Titans told the paper. "They think we're funny to begin with, but they get tired of us after a while." Gee, we wonder why.
We did find a gay angle in all of this, a story we happened to miss at the time. As the Guardian wrote: "In 2002 Goldy Gopher, mascot of the University of Minnesota's various sports teams, 'came out' as part of the college's attempt to show solidarity with its gay and lesbian students. Cue hoo-ha. In the face of mounting public pressure, Goldy was officially reclassified as being both genderless and asexual. But even this sordid compromise failed to satisfy the slavering homophobes.
So soon Goldy was seen in an ESPN TV sting chasing women in bikinis. And this was promptly followed by an interview in Playboy in which the formerly homosexual rodent drooled about opposing teams' (female) cheerleaders. There is, it seems, only one sort of sexuality allowed in mascot land. And that is male heterosexuality."
Once we get equal rights in the mascot world, then we all can rest easy.
1.12.2005
Liquored-Up Kicker Speaks: Mike Vanderjagt, the Indianapolis Colts kicker who says what's on his mind, has sparked a mini-war of words with the New England Patriots, the Colts' next playoff opponent. "I think they?re ripe for the picking? Vanderjagt said in a TV interview. "I think they?re not as good as the beginning of the year and not as good as last year."
Bulletin board fodder is always desired by teams as a way to inspire them, as some Patriots reacted with umbrage. Vanderjagt is the same guy who two years ago ripped his quarterback Peyton Manning and coach Tony Dungy for basically being losers. This prompted Manning to famously call him an "idiot kicker" and "liquored-up kicker."
"He should focus on making the field goals, not worried about what we?re doing over here, OK?? Patriots safety Rodney Harrison said. "I mean, he has to be a jerk, Vanderjerk, if he sits there and criticizes Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy, one of the best quarterbacks in the game and one of the best coaches in the game. And then for him to put his foot in his mouth again just shows what type of character he has."
"Vanderjerk" is pretty clever, but it's hard to imagine either side taking a kicker seriously.
Big Ben Steps Up: One more reason to like Steelers rookie quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. "I?m going to donate my game check this week to the tsunami relief ? and hopefully maybe (it will be) a challenge for other people to do that, too," Roethlisberger said of his $18,000 gesture. Roethlisberger said he became motivated to act after numerous NBA players donated a certain amount of dollars per point.
How nice to read about an NFL player thinking of someone other than himself, and what a contrast to the ultra-selfish Randy Moss (despite the love Cyd has for him). We can imagine Moss saying: "No tsunami's gonna tell Randy Moss what to do."
1.11.2005
NFL MVP: Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, who enjoyed perhaps the finest regular season ever by an NFL quarterback, was the near unanimous choice for league MVP. Manning, who threw a league record 49 touchdown passes for the Colts, received 47 of 48 first-place votes in the balloting.
Manning was the engineer of the Colts video game-like offense that scored 40 or more points in six games this season, including Sunday's 49-24 whipping of the Denver Broncos in the AFC wild-card game. In addition, Manning has also won three of his last four playoff games, erasing the notion that he can't win the big one. However, Manning still has one huge demon to slay -- the New England Patriots, who have beaten Manning in their last five meetings. In the past, it seemed the Patriots knew Indy's play book better than the Colts did, so Sunday's upcoming game will be a big test for Manning. The matchup of Manning and New England head coach/genius Bill Belichick will be the most intriguing of the playoff weekend.
There was little doubt that Manning deserves his MVP award, which is given for regular-season excellence. However, as one writer has said, Manning needs to beat New England to achieve God status. Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick received the other first-place vote.
Big Unit in Big Apple: Gee, Randy Johnson and the New York media will get along really really well. The ink had barely dried on Johnson's contract with the New York Yankees when he got into a confrontation with a television cameraman from WCBS TV.
``Get out of my face, that's all I ask,'' Johnson said to the camerman. "I don't care who you are. Don't get in my face.'' ``I'm just taking a picture,'' said the cameraman, identified by the station as Vinny Everett. Responded Johnson: ``Don't get in my face, and don't talk back to me, all right.'' Johnson, who has never been known as the most personable of players, is in for a rude awakening.
1.10.2005
Beltran Almost a Met: In the baseball nuclear arms race, where the rich teams play a game of ?Can You Top This?,? the New York Mets are trying to steal a bit of the thunder from their more successful cross-town rival.
Just days after the Yankees signed ace pitcher Randy Johnson, the Mets announced an agreement in principle to ink All-Star outfielder Carolos Beltran to a $119 million deal that includes an $11 million signing bonus.
These are the same Mets who signed Pedro ?Who?s Your Daddy? Martinez to a $53-million deal in December. Given the Mets? recent history of free-agent signings, the team better hope Beltran doesn?t become this year?s Mo Vaughn, who couldn?t hit his weight. We did discover a Website of someone who thinks Mo is a babe. Eye of the beholder.
NFL Wild Card Weekend 17: Check out our look at the NFL playoffs including Randy Moss? simulated mooning in Green Bay.
1.8.2005
The thrill is gone: It took a little over two months, but sure enough, the glow is off the Boston Red Sox winning their first World Series title in 86 years in late October, 2004. First baseman Doug Mientkiewicz was acquired by the Red Sox in late July from the Minnesota Twins and had a nightmare of a season. After some great years in Minneapolis, Mientkiewicz laid an egg in Boston until he caught the final out in the World Series. Now that baseball is part of an ownership war between the Red Sox and their rent-a-player Mientkiewicz. With the explosion of the baseball memorbilia market in the last few years, the auction of the baseball that Mientkiewicz caught could easily fetch a million or more dollars. Both sides are saying the right things as of now, so let?s hope that this issue doesn?t end up in court.
Niners suck: How sad are the San Francisco 49ers now? Very, it seems. The NFL team has won five Super Bowls but after a disastrous 2-14 season, drastic changes have to be made. The team started this process by firing coach Dennis Erickson and general manager Terry Donahue earlier this week. Whoever gets those two jobs has a huge task in front of them. Coming fresh off a college football championship, USC coach Pete Carroll immediately squelched rumors that he was headed to the Bay Area. Nobody in their right mind would take the 49ers job now; there?s a void at quarterback, the team has horrible salary cap problems and they?re struggling to get a new stadium built so they can leave hopelessly outdated Candlestick Park. The 49ers might be smart to sign a hungry assistant that?s ready to move in to the head coaching ranks; if they?re shrewd in player deals and stay within budget, they could be contenders within a few years.
1.7.2005
Hall of Fame adds two: Baseball's Hall of Fame added two new men who will get bronze plaques at Cooperstown when Wade Boggs and Ryne Sandberg were voted in this week. Boggs was an amazing hitter for 18 seasons, amassing 3,101 hits, 5 batting titles and a lifetime .326 average. He was also a solid third baseman for the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees (where he won his only World Series ring) and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Wade Boggsi was also one of the most susperstitious players in a sport that has plenty of 'em; he famously ate chicken before every game, for example. He was also famously about Wade Boggs above all else; his decision to sit out the final two games of the 1986 season to preserve his lead in the batting title race did not go over well in Boston. All in all, a deserving player is in the Hall.
Ryne Sandberg is a little more of a stretch. While it's true he was a great second baseman on some really awful Chicago Cubs teams, he also lead the Cubbies to two playoff appearances in 1984 and 1989 with his steady glove and solid bat. Sandberg is one of those players that kind of flies under the radar and is usually overlooked for the Hall of Fame in that his stats are not overwhelming but it's said that one criteria for the Hall of Fame is that you be the dominant player at your position in the era you play in and Ryne Sandberg was certainly that.
In some good news in the Hall of Fame voting, Pete Rose got less votes for admission this year than he did last year, after he pathetically admitted what people have known for years: that he bet on baseball, which he had vehemently denied. What an idiot Rose is; he could have admitted this years ago, cried his eyes out on TV, admitted he had a gambling problem and he'd have been forgiven by now, his lifetime ban from baseball would probably be lifted and he'd be in the Hall of Fame.
1.6.2005
Poll Silliness: A day after USC thoroughly whipped Oklahoma, 55-19, in the Orange Bowl, the Sooners were still voted No. 3 in college football by AP writers, ahead of No. 4 and unbeaten Utah. The coaches? poll was even worse, placing Utah behind both Texas and Oklahoma. (USC and Auburn finished 1-2 in both).
Did these people watch the same games we did? Oklahoma stunk and for the second straight year proved it didn?t belong in the BCS title game. Utah won its bowl game handily and anyone watching the Utes saw an offense that could have dropped 40 points on the befuddled Sooners. So what accounts for the final poll places? Regional prejudice, of course. Many simply assume that a team from the Big XII is automatically superior to that in the Mountain West. It?s the same prejudice that for years has led people to underrate the Pac-10 conference.
Niners Clean House: The San Francisco 49ers, once NFL royalty with their five Super Bowl wins, fired general manager Terry Donahue and coach Dennis Erickson after the franchise went 2-14. The Niners have become team dysfunctional since ex-owner Eddie DeBartolo had legal and financial woes and gave up control to his sister Denise DeBartolo York and her husband, John York. The 49ers won the Super Bowl following the 1984 and ?94 seasons; after 2004, they need to start from scratch.
1.5.2005
Trojans Crush Sooners: USC beat Oklahoma, 55-19, to win the Orange Bowl and the mythical college football national championship and we loved every minute of it. Not that we?re great USC fans, it?s just that living on the West Coast has made us realize how underrated Pac-10 football is. USC got screwed out of playing for the title last year, just as Oregon and Joey Harrington did in 2001, all because the conference has an undeserved rep for being ?soft.? As if anyone playing big-time college football can be called soft.
USC, with its pro-style offense, completely overwhelmed a cocky Oklahoma team that looked like it had never seen an opposing team throw a pass; since the Sooners play in the pass-deficient Big XII, that?s not much of a stretch. USC quarterback Matt Leinhart was terrific, throwing five touchdowns. His receivers were even better, with three guys--Dominique Byrd, Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith?making circus-like grabs for scores.
It was also gratifying to see Oklahoma shut up. It was the Sooners who did most of the trash-talking before, so it was great to see them totally exposed and fall apart.
And afterwards on ABC, Sooners coach Bob Stoops was totally classless. He whined about four first-half turnovers and twice stressed that the Sooners were in the right defense on two long USC TD passes. Translation: I coached fine, it was our players that screwed it up. Talk about someone afraid to take responsibility. When you lose by 36 and your team collapses, the blame starts at the top. It?s always nice to see the arrogant humbled.
1.4.2005
Auburn Sweet as Sugar: Auburn completed its unbeaten, untied college football season with a hard-fought 16-13 Sugar Bowl win over Virginia Tech. With Auburn winning, college football is assured of three unbeaten teams?the Tigers, Utah and either USC or Oklahoma (who play in the Orange Bowl).
Auburn was anything but dominating and survived Virginia Tech dropping a touchdown pass and missing a field goal. But absent a true college football playoff, the Tigers have as much right to call themselves champions as any.
The Orange Bowl mercifully ends the college bowl season that becomes more bloated and meaningless each year. It will be nice to not have sponsor references crammed down our throats every 30 seconds. The NOKIA Sugar Bowl. The TOSTITOS Fiesta Bowl. The FED-EX Orange Bowl. The VIAGRA/CIALIS/ROGAINE/JUST FOR MEN Middle-Aged White Guys Who Wants to Recapture Their Youth Bowl.
What?s disgusting is the constant dropping of sponsor names by ESPN and ABC announcers even in general conversation. While a normal person, in referring to a game two days old, would say, ?What a terrific Rose Bowl,?? ABC shill Mike Tirico said, ?What a great Rose Bowl presented by Citi.? No one talks that way unless instructed by their corporate masters.
Dumbest Name Ever: The American League Angels play in Anaheim, Calif., in Orange County. But owner Artie Moreno has now decided to call them ?The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim,? in an appeal to broaden the market. The city of Anaheim will fight the name change.
Moreno, a pretty good owner, is making a PR blunder that opens him to needless ridicule. It?s also nonsensical. Anaheim and Los Angeles are two distinct cities, 25 miles apart. It would be like the Yankees changing their name to the ?New York Yankees of Hoboken? to broaden their appeal in New Jersey.
1.3.2005
Amare Hits 50: The Phoenix Suns continue to be the NBA?s surprise team and Amare Stoudemire (left) one of its bright new stars. Both were on display Sunday night in Phoenix?s 117-98 win over Portland.
Stoudemire scored 50 points as the Suns scorched the Blazers to win their 26th game against only four losses. ?I wasn't thinking about (scoring 50),'' Stoudemire said. ``I heard one of the fans say 46, and that's when I thought about it, but I wasn't pressing and trying to get 50 points. It just came to me in the flow of the game.? Some flow?Stoudemire hit 20 of 27 shots from the floor and also led the Suns with 11 rebounds.
NFL Week 17: Check out our weekly look at NFL Sunday from the hottest plays, to the hottest players.
1.2.2005
The BCS was right, Part 2: The college football bowl system, the Bowl Championship Series, has been under fire this season for some controversial decisions. But for the second time in days, the BCS people look like geniuses. The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, the Grandaddy of Them All, was openly hoping for a traditional Pac 10 v. Big 10 matchup, but under the Byzantine rules of the BCS system, it was #6 rated Texas of the Big 12 Conference that faced the Big 10?s #13 Michigan Wolverines. What a game it was: Quarterback Vince Young of Texas had a career game, running for 192 yards and four touchdowns, including a couple of great runs for scores. Michigan was actually leading 37-35 with 2:57 left, but Texas QB Young cooly led the Longhorns from their own 34 down the field, allowing kicker Dusty Mangum to nail a 37 yard field goal as time expired to give Texas the win. It looks like Texas coach Mack Brown?s whining and pleading in the press to get Texas in the Rose Bowl paid off.
In other games? In a wild finish in Orlando, Florida, the #11 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes tossed a 55-yard pass on the final play of the game to defeat last years BCS championship game winner LSU 30-25. The defeat was bitter for departing LSU coach Lou Saban, who is leaving LSU to take up the reigns of the NFL?s hapless Miami Dolphins. The Utah Utes completed their dream season by putting on an offensive clinic, easily beating the Pitt Panthers 35-7 in Tempe, Arizona, to complete a 12-0 season. Utah coach Urban Meyer is also on the move from his team, leaving to take the Florida Gators job. He?ll be lucky if he has a quarterback the quality of Alex Smith waiting for him in Florida; Smith orchestrated an NFL-style offense that was fun to watch.
1.1.2005
2005: Cyd and Jim want to wish all of our readers a terrific 2005. May you hit the winning shot in every aspect of your life.
Bowl Roundup: Of the four college football bowl games played on New Year?s Eve, the most entertaining was Louisville 44-40 win over previously unbeaten Boise State in the Liberty Bowl. The 7th-ranked Cardinals came from 34-21 down to seize control of the game in the final period.
In other action, Minnesota held off Alabama in the Music City Bowl, 20-16; Arizona State used its backup quarterback to nip Purdue in the Sun Bowl, 27-23, and Miami beat Florida, 27-10, in a Peach Bowl snoozer.
12.31.2004
Happy New Year! Have a great 2005!
The BCS was right?: One of the few things that gets everyone agreeing around the Outsports office is: the college football Bowl Championship Series sucks. For example, there were howls of outrage from fans and pundits about #6 Texas getting a Rose Bowl bid instead of #4 ranked Cal. If Cal had gone to the Rose Bowl, it would have restored the traditional Pac 10 v. Big 10 rivalry in the traditional New Years day game, as Michigan was invited as well. Wouldn?t you know it though?the BCS is now looking like a work of genius after Cal?s Bears stunk up the Holiday Bowl in San Diego, getting smacked around in a 45-31 loss to #23 Texas Tech. The game wasn?t even that close, really, as Cal were simply outplayed by the bigger and stronger Red Raiders. "We didn't lose the game tonight because we didn't go to the Rose Bowl," Cal coach Jeff Tedford said. "It had nothing to do with focus and preparation because we didn't go to the Rose Bowl". Um, okay; that?s as good an explanation as "We got our ass kicked".
Maybe so, maybe not:What the New York Yankees want in terms of players, their financial muscle usually allows them to get whatever they want. A three-way trade between the Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers that would have brought Cy Young winner Randy Johnson to the Bronx collapsed recently. It was announced Thursday that the Yankees will indeed get Johnson in a trade from Arizona, without the Dodgers involvement. The deal isn't finalized, but the Diamondbacks said that the paperwork will be finished after New Years day. After the Yankees flamed out of the playoffs last year, it seemed like it was time to rebuild and go for a youth movement, but with this team that?s not possible; the brutal New York tabloids and fans wouldn?t put up with mediocrity for long for a future payoff.
12.30.2004
Atlanta orders gay rights at golf club: A golf club in Atlanta, Ga., Druid Hill Golf Club, has been fined $90,000 by the city for not extending to same-sex partners the same rights afforded to spouses of members.
"Atlanta has a proud history of promoting and celebrating diversity," Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin wrote in a recent letter to the club's president, Kent Smith. "Given the club's failures to address the issues internally I am compelled to act."
The action came after complaints by members Randy New and Lee Kyser that their partners were not given the same rights and priviledges as spouses. In fining the club, Franklin invoked legislation passed four years ago that protected human rights.
"The dispute has now ranged over more than a year - it sure would have been better if the mayor had done this earlier," New told the Associated Press. "The club was under the impression she wasn?t going to do anything to them - we?re hopeful they will change their mind."
The club has said it will fight the fine.
12.29.2004
Vandy RB killed: Vanderbilt running back Kwane Doster was shot and killed Sunday after he and a group of friends trash talked about their car to another group of men.
The discussion, according to authorities, centered on whose car was better. The two parties went their separate ways, but the gunmen apparently then followed Doster and his friends. When they stopped at a sandwich shop, a gunmen got out of his car and opened fire. Doster was the only person injured.
Athlete or not, it's just terrible to hear these stories of mindless death. It's hard for many of us to comprehend how an argument about whose car is better can lead to someone dead. We can only hope that Doster's death is not in vain - and that his teammates and friends will learn something about the volatility of some people in this world.
12.28.2004
UCONN Headed for Greatness? The University of Connecticut football team joined Division 1-A just a couple years ago, but they've already been to their first bowl - and posted their first big bowl win. The Huskies blew out Toledo on Monday night, 39-10, in the Motor City Bowl and improved to an 8-4 record that the rest of the nation should take notice of.
The score was the most lopsided in the eight-year history of the bowl, played annually in Detroit. UConn quarterback Dan Orlovsky was named the game's MVP after throwing 239 yards and two touchdowns.
NFC Wild Card Still Wide Open: The St. Louis Rams' victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football has kept them in the hunt for a playoff spot in the weak NFC. Had they lost, they'd be planning their winter vacations early.
The Rams won the game, 20-7, behind the coming-out party for Steven Jackson, the heir apparent to Marshall Faulk. Jackson carried the bulk of the load Monday night with 148 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries. While the Rams are still alive, they'll need some help from Minnesota, Carolina and/or New Orleans to get in.
12.27.2004
Reggie White Dies: Reggie White, the All-Pro defensive lineman who helped the Green Bay Packers win the Super Bowl in 1996, died at his home in Houston. He was 43 and the cause of death was apparently respiratory failure related to sleep apnea.
On the field, White was a ferocious pass rusher and was the league's defensive player of the year in 1987 and 1998. He also was chosen for the Pro Bowl a record 13 consecutive seasons.
White was an ordained minister who worked with young people in the inner city. But he was also a nasty, unrepentant homophobe who in a 1998 speech before the Wisconsin state legislature called homosexuality ?one of the biggest sins in the Bible.? White never backed down from those comments and made these others about gays:
"Homosexuality is a decision, it's not a race. People from all different ethnic backgrounds live in this lifestyle. But people from all different ethnic backgrounds also are liars and cheaters and malicious and back-stabbing. "
"Now, I believe that one of the reasons that Jesus was accused of being a homosexual is because he spent time with homosexuals. I've often had people ask me, would you allow a homosexual to be your friend. Yes, I will. And the reason I will is because I know that that person has problems, and if I can minister to those problems, I will."
"I'm offended that homosexuals will say that homosexuals deserve rights. Any man in America deserves rights, but homosexuals are trying to compare their plight with the plight of black men or black people. In the process of history, homosexuals have never been castrated, millions of them never died. "
Far from apologizing for these remarks, White and his wife, Sara, defended them. When White missed out on getting an announcing job with CBS, Sara White said the network was ?too scared of the Sodomite community.?
12.25.2004
Packers Win Division: In a hugely entertaining Christmas Eve game, the Green Bay Packers scored 10 points in the final six minutes to beat the host Minnesota Vikings, 34-31, and win the NFC North Division and an automatic playoff berth.
The Vikings took a 31-24 lead in the fourth quarter on a 15-yard Chris Claiborne interception return, but then neither the Vikings offense or defense could make a play down the stretch. Packers quarterback Brett Favre threw a short, fourth-down touchdown pass with less than four minutes left, then moved the Packers 76 yards on their final drive to set up Ryan Longwell?s 29-yard field as time expired.
The game was typical of the Vikings disappointing season. In the second quarter they scored three touchdowns on three consecutive offensive plays, but were only able to score three offensive points in the second half. This mirrored the team?s 5-1 start this season before heading into a 3-6 slide. For the Packers, they started the season 1-4 but have won 8 of their last 10 to claim the division title for the third straight year.
Happy Holidays: Cyd and Jim want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a terrific 2005.
12.24.2004
Bertuzzi gets off: One of the more depressing sports stories of the year was the vicious hit by the Vancouver Canucks? Todd Bertuzzi on Steve Moore of the Colorado Rockies in a March 8 game. Retaliating for a hit that Moore delivered on Cauncks captain Markus Naslund three weeks previously, Bertuzzi inflicted some serious damage on Steve Moore. Moore suffered three fractured vertebrae and a severe concussion among other injuries and it?s highly doubtful he?ll ever play pro hockey ever again, even if the NHL ends its strike. On Thursday, the jurisprudence side of the story came to a conclusion: Todd Bertuzzi, charged with assault, was put on the Canadian equivalent of probation and ordered to perform 80 hours of community service.
While we understand the legal reasoning for Bertuzzi taking a plea bargain deal that the prosecution offered because they felt that a conviction was not a certainty, it seems like a slap in the face to Steve Moore. To compound this, the deal was struck so quickly that Moore didn?t have time to fly to Vancouver to read a statement in court; the judge overruled an extension of the sentencing. While Todd Bertuzzi hasn't been completely untouched by events--he's lost over $500,000 in salary and has been banned from playing in Europe?he most likely ended a fellow player?s career with a mugging, a mugging that has ongoing consequences for Steve Moore. Getting off with a relative wrist slap just seems wrong.
