- 05:23 AM
- 05/17/08
Pistorius makes strides is his quest to compete in Beijing. The double-amputee won his appeal against the IOC in his hearing with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (previous SpoFi discussion on this topic here and here; note Amateur's graphic that suggests how far Oscar still has to go in competition).
posted to Olympics at 8:56 AM CDT
Mets' Wagner calls out teammates for ducking media Outspoken Mets closer Billy Wagner lashed out at truculent teammates Thursday for dodging reporters and ducking "being accountable" by failing to talk to the media. Wagner, who ripped his teammates earlier this season, caused the flap on Thursday when he questioned some players' failure to make themselves available to the media after the team's deflating 1-0 loss to Washington.
posted to Baseball at 6:07 AM CDT
Has this season done a number on Carlos Delgado's reputation?
posted at 10:20 AM CDT on May 16
Say It Ain't So, Chuckster A prosecutor says retired NBA star Charles Barkley will face felony charges if he fails to repay a $400,000 gambling debt to a Las Vegas Strip casino.
posted to Basketball at 12:32 PM CDT
I think he's worth much more than you think
Pretty much sums it up. Various outlets say he admits to losing $10 million dollars on gambling. Reframing your argument, it could be that he does TNT and ads because he needs the money.
posted at 7:06 AM CDT on May 16
A dazzling Manny being Manny moment I saw this on ESPN this morning and burst out laughing as soon as I saw the high-five. There are few players who could get away with doing something like that.
posted to Baseball at 11:18 AM CDT
Let's say he didn't get the ball back to the cut-off in time to double the runner off, then what
Then they would have sent the training staff out to see why Manny collapsed and died. Given his defensive reputation, the runners took off on contact and never looked back. He could have had a sip of the guy's drink and signed an autograph and still had time to double someone off.
posted at 7:08 AM CDT on May 16
Here's a Q&A with the "slap four" recipient.
posted at 10:24 AM CDT on May 16
Page 2's Bill Simmons channels Doc Rivers A knee-jerk tirade to an un-expected loss that upon more sober reflection turns into a tongue-in-cheek commentary on coaching.
posted to Basketball at 4:46 PM CDT
I cannot take this team's morph from an attack the basket and swarm on defense to normal, crappy jump-shooting team. I'd like to think the second half last night meant something, but I know better. Sam Cassell is getting a lot of minutes for a guy who's a hell of a defender, judging by the way he stops Boston's offense cold. And it's a weird time for Doc to make up new rotations (as Simmons suggests).
posted at 6:36 AM CDT on May 15
soon as we . . . knock off the Cavs.
That's the question for me: can they? And, if so, if it takes 7 games, would it be worth it? I was talking to a fellow long-time C's sufferer last night and we both agreed (perhaps over-dramatically) we'd rather see them flame out here than limp into a series with the Pistons if the Celtics are going to play like this. The Cavs played the Celtics hard all season, but the Celtics never looked bad, as far as I remember. If this were December-January, I'd be all "Bring on the Pistons", but right now I'm scared of having to sit through a slaughter.
posted at 10:43 AM CDT on May 15
Except the Celtics look like shit compared to themselves during the regular season. "Ubuntu" is about all Doc Rivers has given them to go on. And if this were a Linux distro, right now it'd be Defecating Dog.
posted at 7:10 AM CDT on May 16
yerf, that linux joke was awesome.
Cool. It felt like a longshot, but it had to be done.
posted at 10:19 AM CDT on May 16
Boston Herald Apologizes for False SpyGate Story "On Feb. 2, 2008, the Boston Herald reported that a member of the New England Patriots' video staff taped the St. Louis Rams' walkthrough on the day before Super Bowl XXXVI," the paper announces in today's edition. "... we now know that this report was false, and that no tape of the walkthrough ever existed." One fan's reaction to the Pats' hometown newspaper running a false story about the team the day before the Super Bowl: "now and forever the Herald is dead to me."
posted to Football at 7:45 AM CDT
Don't hold your breath waiting for the "Who was spying on the Pats" story to break in the national media. Only the Patriots do bad things.
posted at 9:43 AM CDT on May 14
Apparently Comcast isn't satisfied.
posted at 12:34 PM CDT on May 14
Relax! Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James now has mom as an enforcer Why was anyone ever worried about the hard fouls issued to LeBron James? Cleveland fans don't have to worry about James as long as his mom is in the house.
posted to Basketball at 5:54 AM CDT
While LeBron James told his mom to "sit down,"
Seems like they left a little out of that quotation.
posted at 9:48 AM CDT on May 13
How is it that you can just take one little piece of what I wrote to try and make a point? Which, by the way, you did not make.
Now it's JJ's turn to say, "Yes, I did" and then one of you says, "So's your old man", etc.
posted at 9:41 AM CDT on May 14
Are we to believe his ghost is that powerful?
posted at 12:27 PM CDT on May 14
Whatever blows your hair back, sicko.
posted at 1:26 PM CDT on May 14
She's too busy slaving away to have time for you.
posted at 4:18 PM CDT on May 14
It's time to pitch the DH. The most astonishing occurrence in the first six weeks of the baseball season — other than the decline of my World Series favorites, the Seattle Mariners, who played like the Seattle Pilots — was that the National League outscored the American League.
posted to Baseball at 6:09 PM CDT
The best part of the terrifically shit logic is that he kinda, sorta, almost sees why his point is a mess. It could be that pitchers in the NL are fantastic hitters, but it could also be the emphasis on offense in the AL means AL teams are willing to pay more for pitching, resulting in a concentration of good pitching in the league.
posted at 6:32 PM CDT on May 12
Maddux becomes ninth pitcher in MLB history to reach 350 wins Greg Maddux reached another milestone in his long, brilliant career. It might have meant more to a catcher making his big-league debut than it did to the pitcher with Hall of Fame credentials.
posted to Baseball at 7:35 AM CDT
I'm assuming that's ERA+ and not OPS+ for them or OPS+ against.
posted at 7:11 AM CDT on May 16
Clemens reportedly had affair with country star Roger Clemens has another potential scandal he's already denying. He reportedly had a affair with country singer Mindy McCready in a decade-long relationship that began when she was 15 and Clemens was a 28-year old with the Red Sox. This could be especially damaging as Clemens' defamation suit against Brian McNamee proceeds.
posted to Baseball at 9:54 AM CDT
That is the way I used the term mudslinging. Nothing more, nothing less. No need to look further into it.
Then you'll have to pardon me for pointing out bperk's point, which is (AS FAR AS WE KNOW) that McNamee's side didn't sling anything, the lawyer was called for comment and gave one.
posted at 12:40 PM CDT on April 30
If I was McNamee, and was able to prove, without a doubt, that I am "innocent", then I'd want my lawyer to concentrate on that
That's a tautology. If you were able to prove without a doubt you were innocent, you wouldn't be in court. Except the law isn't math and there's no "without a doubt" except relative to the frame of reference of a set of jurors or a judge.
posted at 2:16 PM CDT on April 30
"This fella, Ronaldo, he's a cod" RTE's TV pundits show they really don't like Cristiano Ronaldo (via). Why does he seem to polarise opinion in a way that other players don't?
posted to Soccer at 3:44 AM CDT
I am light. I am love. You twat.
If that's not in Psalms, it should be.
posted at 3:26 PM CDT on April 25
Chiefs trade Jared Allen to Minnesota: League leading sack specialist Jared Allen has been traded to Minnesota for first and third round draft picks.
posted to Football at 11:36 AM CDT
Interesting:
'When I asked one Chiefs official how the Chiefs possibly could get better without the NFL’s sack leader, he asked back: “How many of those sacks were in the fourth quarter?” The correct answer to that is zero.'
posted at 1:35 PM CDT on April 23
"How frequently were their opponents throwing the ball in the 4th quarter?"
Fantastic point. Plus how often did KC have a reason to give 100% by then?
posted at 3:05 PM CDT on April 23
The Ten Worst Number One Overall Picks A look back at the surefire picks that weren't.
posted to Football at 6:11 PM CDT
just because Vick went to jail, I personally can't consider that being a bust
I agree, because there's no way a team could foresee that, but he never turned into that game-changer people thought he could be coming out of college. While he was a fantastic running back and amazing athlete, he wasn't enough of a QB to dominate like he did in college.
Still not a bust though.
posted at 10:08 AM CDT on April 23
Perfect? Despite Super Bowl loss, 18-1 football team wants "19-0" trademarks
posted to Football at 11:00 AM CDT
You can't try to corner the market on perfection, as the Patriots are doing, without opening yourself up to a healthy amount of ridicule
Yeah, my immediate thought upon seeing this post was, "Thank God. I was worried I might be allowed to forget about how last season ended and not have to see the Pats reviled even more."
posted at 1:21 PM CDT on April 22
Jays release Frank Thomas: After a slow start, and a dispute over benching the aging star, the Blue Jays release Frank Thomas
posted to Baseball at 11:28 PM CDT
In baseball terms, to a thirty-nine year old player, that's code for: it's time to retire.
Not really, it seems to be almost entirely a money move. Gibbons and JP are developing a shitty track record of people management in Toronto.
posted at 7:18 AM CDT on April 21
This move frees up 10M for a more productive player next year
Sure, but that's an interesting approach for a GM & manager who might not see next year. How long will Toronto fans be willing to wait?
posted at 10:45 AM CDT on April 21
Frank Thomas in the HOF? Always has been a tough question to answer.
Only if "Yes" isn't one of the options. What makes him "one of the games biggest jack-offs"?
posted at 2:15 PM CDT on April 21
Always trying to hit a hr instead of moving the runner to the next base
Don't forget Wade Boggs was an asshole for never trying to hit a home run and just moving runners ahead instead.
Refusing to talk to the press because he didnt recieve more money
Citation, please? I don't even know what that means. "BK" has me confused as well. Around here it's Burger King. Call me when Dale Murphy's numbers get within shouting distance of Frank's.
posted at 8:16 AM CDT on April 22
There's no arguing with math.
posted at 1:21 PM CDT on April 22
Ziggy Stardust David Bowie? Ashes to Ashes Bowie?
posted at 2:36 PM CDT on April 22
Fukudome doesn't find racist T-shirts in Wrigleyville funny A Fukudome T-shirt with a racist image is the hottest-selling item at a souvenir stand that sells unlicensed Cubs-related merchandise across Addison Street from the ballpark.......... The Cubs front office was flooded with angry emails from fans in response to a Sun-Times story about a controversial T-shirt being sold outside of Wrigley Field. The ballclub does the right thing (update inside) after the uproar, for those of you who feel we've licked the problem of Racism in America, Guess Again!
posted to Baseball at 10:43 AM CDT
brandy, hi and welcome to Spofi. Please take a peek at our guidelines, specifically, "No personal attacks. A good comment is respectful of members and their opinions. Address the argument, not the person making it."
posted at 3:27 PM CDT on April 21
WTF is going on around here?
If you don't know, you're about to have your mind blown: Looking Glass, Brandy, You're a Fine Girl.
the garbage plate at Nick Tahou's in Rochester, New York . . . stories of the late night crowd at Nick Tahou's
Nick's is no longer open all-night, which is a goddamn shame since most of my best memories from college happened there.
posted at 8:24 AM CDT on April 22
I'd love to be able to make the hot sauce, but something tells me that whatever is in that stuff is better left unspoken.
Word. I've never seen anything that looked quite like it before or since. Maybe if you took grape Nerds and left them out in the sun (which would obviously require you to leave Rochester to find some sun).
posted at 10:44 AM CDT on April 22
I have always been a huge fan of Bernard Hopkins since he was a jail fighter.
Who televises that?
posted at 11:28 AM CDT on April 22
What the fuck? He told me he knew Birdman and everything.
posted at 2:36 PM CDT on April 22
Please stop telling us everything you know and show us in full sentences with some sort of logical flow to them. You don't need a degree in anything, you just need a point and the ability to express it in a way that non-autistics could grasp.
posted at 3:33 PM CDT on April 22
Let me know how this works out. I'm dying to know.
posted at 3:40 PM CDT on April 22
Yerfatma, I HAVE to agree with Brandy on this one. I have family members who are autistic, and I'm offended by this. Seriously.
Sorry. However, I stand by it: her comments in this thread, taken in their entirety, seem to have an internal logic and consistency that's completely impenetrable to me.
posted at 7:47 PM CDT on April 22
Children and adults who struggle with the STIGMA of being autistic aren't helped by your casual use of the word to describe a poster you have issues with.
I refuse to give up metaphor, to give up language for fear someone, somewhere will be offended. I have a close relative dealing with cancer right now. Does this mean the phrase "clubhouse cancer" should be banned from the site for fear of stigmatizing or upsetting someone? It makes me think of George Carlin on shell shock.
"And I've noticed Americans have a problem with reality; they prefer to avoid the truth and not look it in the eye. I think it's one of the consequences of being fat and prosperous and too comfortable. So, naturally, as time has passed, and we've grown fatter and more prosperous, the problem has gotten worse."
posted at 6:54 AM CDT on April 23
You are equating Autism with an internal logic and consistency that's completely impenetrable to me.
Yes. As opposed to what, suggesting people with autism are broken or have nothing to contribute? There was a fantastic post on Metafilter about autism and comments there echo what I was trying to get across, that there could be reams of truth in what's being said and I just can't see it because my perceptions and mind work differently. From the author in that post:
"We do have ways of communicating with things around us that are mutually comprehensible for many of us (not all of us, and not all the same things are comprehensible, there seem to be groupings in that regard). Our interests and our reactions are not random, purposeless, or useless, and are certainly not ugly things to be hidden away or trained out of."
posted at 1:13 PM CDT on April 23
Was there a time when everyone used autistic to describe bad posts, and now we need different language to do so, as Carlin says about shell shock?
When you spend your time trying to defang words that describe conditions you are doing nothing except making yourself feel better. It does nothing for the person actually suffering. I yield.
Autism or Autism spectrum disorder should used when appropriate.
Ok. I can see where that would make a huge difference in everyone's life.
Here's your original post . . . If you had said the second more thoughtful comment, we wouldn't be having this conversation
So me trying to clarify my position with a "more thoughtful comment" leads to you bringing back up my previous comment to hash that again instead of responding to anything in the comment you deem worthy of this forum. Why? If you are looking for an apology, find someone else to browbeat.
posted at 2:05 PM CDT on April 23
"more thoughtful comment " took you 18 hours and fifty posts to come up with is that you were probably desperately googling for some rational reason that you called her autistic that wasn't a stupid insult, instead of just copping to it like a man
Okley-dokley. I've said any number of awful things, but I tend to own up to them. I don't have a problem with what I wrote and I would write it again. If you want to continue this, my email's in my profile so people can always hold me accountable for what I say. Maybe add yours.
posted at 4:10 PM CDT on April 23
Tejada tells team he’s 33, instead of 31. Houston Astros shortstop Miguel Tejada told the team he’s actually 33, two years older than he’s listed in the club’s media guide and other baseball records after being shown a copy of his birth certificate by ESPN.
posted to Baseball at 10:44 PM CDT
That's been a great trade for Houston.
posted at 8:45 AM CDT on April 18
The original phrase was "bold-faced liar", but "bald-faced liar" has come into common usage
Not to nit-pick, but isn't the present tense a little misleading when discussing the mid-Seventeenth Century?
posted at 2:18 PM CDT on April 21
Top 10 Unbreakable Sports Records Whenever the inevitable debate arises among sports fans concerning the record that is the least likely to ever be broken, many people are quick to cite Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hit streak. But there are many others...
posted to General at 6:59 PM CDT
Nice work, BOP.
posted at 2:35 PM CDT on April 18
WHAT GIVES, GUYS? Nelson says there's no problem, Davis says very little For Warriors coach Don Nelson, the mind-boggling question everyone wants answered is really a no-brainer. Why didn't he play Baron Davis in the second half of Monday's playoff-elimination game in Phoenix?
posted to Basketball at 8:05 AM CDT
Not at all because you only provided information to make it seem as if it was in fact a wise move to make
The guy was having a bad game, they were trying to make the playoffs. I don't think crunch time is when a coach should be thinking about free agent signings. I know there's "Win now" vs. long-term planning, but come on.
posted at 10:10 AM CDT on April 17
That's if he re-signs with the team this off-season since he will also be a free agent besides The Beard.
Which is exactly the implication of the first clause in nemo's sentence that you pull-quoted. Re-stating it doesn't invalidate his argument.
posted at 8:48 AM CDT on April 18
Where have you gone Darius Miles? Former basketball phenom Darius Miles waived by the Trailblazers after the team, and an independent doctor appointed by the NBA, deem his injuries "career-ending".
posted to Basketball at 11:17 AM CDT
The team will pay Miles the remaining $27.5 M left on the contract, which will not count against the cap.
David Stern really does hate the Celtics. Where was this when Reggie Lewis died? When Dino Radja should have died?
posted at 1:43 PM CDT on April 15
/bangs fists on head, calls Zach Randolph
posted at 8:35 PM CDT on April 15
"Tech doping"? How Speedo's LZR suit breaks swim records As the Associated Press reports, "the LZR now has been worn for 21 of the 22 world records set since it was introduced in February."
posted to Olympics at 10:51 PM CDT
If we were truly septic, no one would get into the pool.
posted at 9:39 AM CDT on April 16
"Greg Maddux? I bet you could catch him with your eyes closed." What you are about to read is a story about grown men who should know better. It is included here as a means of illustrating the legend of one man and his unique place in baseball history. It should not be construed as an endorsement of the activity described, although we must admit it makes for a pretty cool story.
posted to Baseball at 4:48 PM CDT
+1 LionIndex
posted at 8:36 PM CDT on April 15
Say it ain’t so, George! Report: Boston Red Sox T-shirt buried in new Yankee Stadium by construction worker.
posted to Baseball at 10:12 AM CDT
posted at 1:13 PM CDT on April 18
Basqueing in Glory: Athletic Bilbao is Europe's most exotic football club. For 80 years, the legendary club has managed to keep itself in Spain's top division, fielding players recruited exclusively from the Basque region. But how long can the fiercely independent club continue to resist the trends of globalization?
posted to Soccer at 2:35 PM CDT
Fantastic, thanks.
posted at 4:09 PM CDT on April 11
Since when does tradition equal Xenophobia?
posted at 11:33 AM CDT on April 14
Rushin' to the Olympics: Former Silver Stars guard Becky Hammons becomes a naturalized Russian citizen in order to compete in the 2008 Olympic games.
posted to Olympics at 11:12 AM CDT
I believe it's licensing and logo gear and the like that accounts for the bulk of it, not butts in seats.
TV contracts dwarf all else and that's pretty much based on popularity.
I quit caring about the Olympics when they started letting professionals play.
1928?
posted at 1:54 PM CDT on April 10
Olympic torch put out by protests. Security officials canceled the final run of the Olympic relay through Paris after chaotic protests Monday, sending a snuffed-out torch to its destination on a bus in a humiliating concession to protesters decrying China's human rights record.
posted to Olympics at 12:24 PM CDT
China's government . . . will find it very hard to filter out the things they don't like
You'd be surprised. There was an episode of Frontline last year where they showed a picture of the guy from Tiananmen Square in front of the tank to 4 students from an elite college. They had no idea who it was. This recent article from The Atlantic on the Great Firewall gives a good picture of China's approach to information: it's not so much about hiding it as making it irrelevant.
posted at 6:53 PM CDT on April 7
Question: why do you care? Does everyone have to establish credibility before they comment?
posted at 11:18 AM CDT on April 8
Echoing grum's comments, I think last week's On the Media has an Olympics segment worth a listen:
"And then in 1968, you saw the first real Third World country, at least at that time, hosting the Games, which was Mexico City. This led to a very disturbing incident ten days before the opening ceremonies. The Mexican military killed approximately 250 people, nonviolent protesters, on the streets of Mexico City. The International Olympic Committee took the position that this was a domestic issue and that they shouldn't say anything about it, and it shouldn't have any effect on the Olympics going ahead.
Yet a couple weeks later, two American athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, staged a silent nonviolent demonstration on the medal platform after winning the Gold and Bronze Medals in the 200 meters. This was known as the "Black Power Salute" protest.
And the International Olympic Committee was so outraged at this ruining of their ritual that they ordered Smith and Carlos out of the country or else American athletes would not be allowed to take part in the rest of the Games."
posted at 6:23 PM CDT on April 9
UFC Fighter Knocked Out in Eight Seconds In a Colorado ring thronging with his fans last night, Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter Houston Alexander was knocked out by James Irvin in eight seconds, the shortest bout in the sport's history. "Houston Alexander has been utterly exposed," Michael Rome declared on the blog Bloody Elbow. (See the video.)
posted to Boxing at 8:05 AM CDT
"Houston Alexander has been utterly exposed"
I'll admit upfront that I don't watch UFC/ MMA because when someone pins an opponent and starts wailing on them it makes me claustrophobic, but I have to wade in here to address that comment. I am suspicious of everyone I've met who is really, really into UFC; they don't seem to have ever been in a fight themselves. Getting knocked out in 8 seconds is easily possible: just don't block the first blow and it lands cleanly and you're done. I don't see how that happening proves anything or "exposes" someone, like the guy's a complete fraud even though he was willing to get in the (octagonal) ring with an opponent. There seems to be a lack of appreciation for the damage that a fist or foot can do. It's not like when you're 8 years old and maybe you get a scratch.
posted at 8:32 AM CDT on April 3
Are you sure you wanna admit to watching that piece of shit of a film?
Yes.
posted at 10:05 AM CDT on April 4
No, it's lost to the ages. I just find great irony in someone crapping on Idiocracy in a thread about UFC.
posted at 11:52 AM CDT on April 4
Barry Bonds signs with Yankees!
The New York Yankees have pulled out all the stops to win this season and have signed Barry Bonds to act as their DH. This comes on the heels of Jason Giambi being diagnosed with another stomach tumour (his first one was in 2004). Bonds is expected to practice with their Florida State League team for a couple of weeks before being called up to the majors. The terms of his contract are currently unavailable.
posted to Baseball at 12:14 AM CDT
They got slashed, killed, run through the wrong end of a printing press and put in a big old Caddy. Or did you mean after?
posted at 8:04 PM CDT on April 1
Critics Go Ape Over LeBron James Magazine Cover A picture of NBA star LeBron James and the model Gisele on the cover of April's Vogue is attracting controversy over their pose. The shot taken by renowned photographer Annie Leibovitz has been compared by some detractors to King Kong holding Fay Wray. ESPN.Com columnist Jemele Hill called it "memorable for all the wrong reasons." The photo is remarkably similar to "Destroy This Mad Brute," a famous World War I recruitment poster.
posted to Basketball at 10:16 AM CDT
Don't forget that the WW1 poster is referring to Germans
Negatively portraying them as apes. Everytime we have a racism/ sexism thread, it gets drowned out by "The world's so PC" and "What about [tangentially-related ethnic group]? They're not offended."
posted at 2:39 PM CDT on March 27
Chris Webber retires Here's A Look Back at a Career That Was Above Average.
posted to Basketball at 4:12 PM CDT
Hold on, hold on, time out!
Whoops
posted at 4:58 PM CDT on March 26
A Short History of the Baseball Played in a (Small) Coliseum With the Red Sox and Dodgers set to play three in LA, a little back-story to the field.
posted to Baseball at 3:36 PM CDT
Great stuff, Monkeyhawk. In re:
Houston's pseudo-old ballpark has that rise in center field that echoes Crosley Field's earth ramp caused by a sewer pipe or something.
A number of parks had those. Fenway had one nicknamed "Duffy's Cliff" after the centerfielder (Hugh Duffy?) who patrolled it. They fell out of favor once a CF became an expensive thing to injure.
posted at 7:22 PM CDT on March 26
Jose Canseco Has 'Stuff' on A-Rod Throughout this whole somewhat tainted steroids era, Alex Rodriguez's name has never really been slung through the mud. He obviously has a lot of home runs for his age, but he's never hit an exorbitant amount of them in one season. The general perception is A-Rod is just really, really good at what he does.
posted to Baseball at 10:40 AM CDT
uhm . . . you know Jose's not a Congressperson . . . yet, right?
posted at 3:34 PM CDT on March 26
He said he left it out because everyone knew he hated A-Rod so he didn't want it to hurt the credibility of the other statements
posted at 8:08 AM CDT on March 27
If it's not true, what would be the reason to not respond?
Public figures have a much higher bar to climb to prove libel in the US due to the Constitution. While it affects the famous in general, it's written that way to make sure we can all express our feelings, how ever ill-considered, about politicians.
posted at 2:48 PM CDT on March 27
dyams, doesn't that suggest Canseco was the brains behind the movement, an originator who figured out something no one else had really put together? I find it difficult to see that guy as a first mover.
posted at 5:50 AM CDT on March 28
SI: The Vault Sports Illustrated has opened up its archives. For free.
posted to Culture at 4:38 PM CDT
chico.
posted at 10:39 AM CDT on March 25
The Red Sox and Oakland open the season in Japan with Dice-K returning home to start. Usually these trips result in a lot of grousing by the players (most famously, Mike Mussina), but there's not a lot of sympathy when you're getting $40,000 for your troubles. Except if you're not: the MLB has announced that while players and managers will receive the stipend, coaches will not. Red Sox players are threatening to walk off the field today if the MLB does not reverse its reversal of its original stance.
posted to Baseball at 9:03 AM CDT
It's not entirely clear what the Sox players agreed upon in their closed-door meeting. Rob Bradford suggests they're threatening to not board the plane to Japan.
posted at 9:05 AM CDT on March 19
Does MLB actually believe that the coaches should travel to Japan-unpaid-for this game?
According to the Sox players, coaches and manger, MLB had said agreed to pay earlier this winter.
posted at 12:13 PM CDT on March 19
And yet he just got renewed, didn't he? It's clear the owners' priorities don't line up with the fans. I'm not sure they ever did, but 100+ years into a sport, some notion of a public trust would seem to come into play. It's amazing they'd let this bad publicity fester over a few hundred grand.
posted at 2:08 PM CDT on March 19
he's being sarcastic
Sort of. Wallace Matthews, on the other hand, is not. All the angles are covered at the Providence Journal's blog.
posted at 9:06 AM CDT on March 20
Yeah, I don't get Abraham either. The Projo blog used to regularly link to him as a voice of reason on the other side, but that obviously wasn't paying the bills. Or something.
posted at 12:14 PM CDT on March 20
The words are ephemeral, like Boston lyrics. Can't pin 'em down.
posted at 11:15 PM CDT on March 21
Stars and Pinstripes No runs, two hits but plenty of thrills for the Virginia Tech baseball team and community as the Yankees visit to fulfill a pledge by George Steinbrenner to aid the universitys healing.
posted to Baseball at 7:20 AM CDT
That's a great story, plus the A-Rod thing makes it even better. Thanks.
posted at 8:41 AM CDT on March 19
posted to Basketball at 5:27 PM CDT
Attn: News Media
Re: Trolls
Don't feed them.
posted at 7:34 PM CDT on March 18
Well, other than Bird being terrific as a coach and the fact the Celtics did want him, spot on.
posted at 11:01 AM CDT on March 20
Union to examine why Bonds has no offers The lack of offers to Barry Bonds will be examined by the baseball players' association as part of its annual review of the free-agent market. Less than two weeks before opening day, the 43-year-old home run king remains unsigned.
posted to Baseball at 4:21 PM CDT
If there's a team avoiding him for any reason other than the potential headaches and distraction of having him in the dugout for 162 games, I'd like to know about it. Maybe some NL teams don't have a place for him, but most every AL team could hide him at DH or LF.
posted at 8:40 AM CDT on March 19
What they found was that HGH does add muscle, but in terms of aiding actual performance in athletic exercises, it did nothing
I saw a number of objections to this study, but the immediate one was the fact no one was really arguing HGH was great for building more muscle; it was for recovering from injury.
posted at 8:24 PM CDT on March 19
I'm sure that study's going to be referenced everywhere, but:
The scientists note their analysis included few studies that measured performance. The tests also probably don't reflect the dose and frequency practiced by athletes illegally using the hormone. Experiments like that aren't likely to be conducted . . . There was no difference found in strength or exercise stamina between the two groups, but there were only two strength studies and eight that measured exercise . . . The review couldn't consider long-term effects, since the longest study was three months, and most were much shorter.
posted at 4:55 AM CDT on March 20
NCAA tourney is the best, but it could be even better. The NCAA tournament is the best three-plus weeks of hoops, maybe of anything, on the planet. But that doesn't mean it's perfect. It isn't.
posted to Basketball at 10:55 AM CDT
So the most accurate metric for the best-ness of an event is how many yobs are willing to bet on it around the office water cooler? I guess based on that, NASCAR really sucks.
This should end well/ wendell/ bell end.
posted at 4:45 PM CDT on March 17
Barkley, Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden
Every material on earth is, at the initial level, constructed from b-balls. Carbon is b-balls. The blood flowing through our b-ball veins is made of b-balls. Every star in our cosmos is b-ball in origin. Understand this, and you may begin to understand Barkley, Shut Up And Jam: Gaiden.
Once you've digested that, download the game. [via]
posted to Basketball at 6:51 AM CDT
Twelve years prior to the game, Charles Barkley, in an attempt to impress his son, performs a Chaos Dunk -- and inadvertently kills almost everyone present. As a result, basketball was made illegal and nearly all great players were killed in "The Great B-Ball Purge of 2041" (a.k.a "B-Ballnacht") . . . In 2053, another Chaos Dunk rocks Manhattan, killing fifteen million, and the blame falls on Charles -- who is believed to be the only human capable of performing the Chaos Dunk.[1] With the help of the Ultimate Hellbane, Charles escapes his pursuers: the B-Ball Removal Department. Charles follows him through the B-Ball Catacombs to the tomb of Lebron James, discovering that the Ultimate Hellbane is actually Balthios - the Octoroon great grandson of Lebron James. James contacts Charles from the B-ball dimension, offering him a warning which tells him to "seek the Cyberdwarf."
It's pretty simple, really.
posted at 10:51 AM CDT on March 17
And they could be programmed to fake it, too. Like those soccerbots FIFA was working on.
posted at 3:20 PM CDT on March 17
John Daly disqualified at Bay Hill One day after swing coach Butch Harmon fires him, Daly misses his tee time and is disqualified from Arnold Palmers Invitational. Said Harmon, "My whole goal for him was he's got to show me golf is the most important thing in his life," Harmon said. "And the most important thing in his life is getting drunk."
posted to Golf at 10:45 AM CDT
Daly is, and always has been, a preemptive bottler.
And here I thought his problem, like mine, was always letting the stuff back out.
posted at 9:01 AM CDT on March 14
Because we want those sorts of stories, The Natural who comes from nowhere who can't possibly make it, a combination of so many faults and errors against Accepted Wisdom that his very appearance at the top levels of the sport anger the Establishment. Or maybe just 'cause he drinks beer from a can and likes boobs.
posted at 10:39 AM CDT on March 14
What Part Of "Spring Training" Don't You Guys Get? Spikes go high and benches clear between the Yanks and Rays. To paraphrase, Man, we talkin' practice here! With nifty spikes-to-crotch photo action!
posted to Baseball at 4:00 PM CDT
I think that you're giving Gomes way too much credit here . . . Very weak.
What exactly were you hoping for, that he'd trade him multi-million dollar contract for a prison sentence?
posted at 10:39 AM CDT on March 13
But that's easy to say. Instinctively, plenty of people might sprint in. When you start there's no thought to it, you're just upset. But during that 100 yard (or so) journey, you have time to think about just what you're going to do when you get there and how there aren't too many good options. Only a complete meatstick never thinks about the consequences of what will happen next.
posted at 12:43 PM CDT on March 13
Back In The Swing: In February 1962, Sports Illustrated sent the illustrator Robert Weaver to cover spring training in Florida. He then created a series of paintings that appeared in the March 5, 1962, issue of the magazine.
The drawings that follow are from his sketchbook.
posted to Baseball at 12:51 PM CDT
Great link. They're all good, but yeah, some of them just have a little extra that makes them great.
posted at 1:25 PM CDT on March 11
Billy Crystal joins the Yankees. The 59-year-old comedian will sign a one-day, minor league contract with the New York Yankees and play in Thursday’s exhibition game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, wearing #60, a day before his 60th birthday. Crystal said, “I’ve been waiting 50 years for this call ... I know this’ll be tougher than the Broadway Softball League, but I’m looking forward to helping the younger players, which by the way is all of them."
posted to Baseball at 11:38 AM CDT
Right, because it's 1920 and there are a ton of Moonlight Grahams in the Yankee system whom, if they don't receive one additional at-bat, will never be discovered.
posted at 7:36 PM CDT on March 11
So you're saying no one ever turned the head of a major-league organization because of a sequence of events that started from one at-bat in a spring training game?
Nowadays? Yes, I am saying that. There's so much data and analysis available on everyone still in camp that it would be an indictment of the Yankees scouting if one at-bat or one game revealed Deep Hidden Truths about a player.
posted at 6:40 AM CDT on March 12
What if that at-bat injures a unknown future star and he winds up never making the majors because he wasn't saved by a celebrity? What of that possibility?
posted at 9:48 AM CDT on March 12
the argument was carried out on both sides with honour and intelligent discourse
And according to Her Majesty's Rules for Sporting Discourse. Well, right up 'til the end anyway.
posted at 6:14 AM CDT on March 18
Pat Riley's scouting trip reminds Bob Ryan of a trip he took with Dave Cowens back in 1979.
posted to Basketball at 8:55 AM CDT
The second link goes to the blog post. The inefficiencies of posting style.
posted at 9:46 AM CDT on March 11
PGA Tour player Tripp Isenhour faces criminal charges for killing hawk It wasn't an accident, but it was with a hit golf ball. How many strokes off for killing a migratory bird?
posted to Golf at 7:15 PM CDT
4) It's secretly an impressive feat.
"Mein Gott, Josef, twenty million! I only killed sechs and I had to leave my own country to do it!"
posted at 1:02 PM CDT on March 7
So you freaks think if you kill an animal with a car you should be punished?
Or is that an accident? Either way the animal is still DEAD.
I want you as my defense attorney if I ever kill anyone. Just don't call the jury "freaks" and we'll do fine.
posted at 11:06 AM CDT on March 8
I don't play video games, but what I saw some kids playing recently just floored me. It was killing and destroying people, animals, whatever, just for the heck of it
Of course, all the studies of this issue have shown 0 correlation and some studies suggest the stress relief has a calming effect, but carry on. Remember that awful era of kids jacked up on funny books running riot? Me either, but that didn't stop the media and politicians from acting. There have been a zillion things that were going to turn kids evil (rock and/or roll, jazz, etc.); so far none of them have, but it's an easier explanation than accepting people have the capacity for evil in them.
posted at 11:11 AM CDT on March 10
He has a mechanical advantage over other runners.
I'm not sure I disagree with your larger point, but can we agree his "advantage" may be offset by certain disadvantages?
I don't want to watch a pogo competition with a seven foot Jeremy Wariner
Speak for yourself.