September 2011 Archives
Staff Photo by Keith Birmingham
The sun sets prior to a prep football game between Diamond Ranch and Bonita at Ganesha High School in Pomona tonight.
(AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
The Dodgers' Matt Kemp watches his home run during the first inning against Arizona on Sept. 12 at Dodger Stadium.
Matt Kemp's performance -- a league-best 39 homers, 126 RBIs and 115 runs, second-best with 40 stolen bases, .586 slugging percentage and .986 OPS, and third-best with a .324 average in playing in every Dodgers game in 2011 -- was enough evidence for the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) to announce him as winner of its National League's Most Valuable Player in the first of its 14 annual awards.
1st Place: Matt Kemp, Dodgers
2nd Place: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee
3rd Place: Prince Fielder, Milwaukee
4th Place: Albert Pujols, St. Louis
5th Place: Justin Upton, Arizona
6th Place: Joey Votto, Cincinnati
7th Place: Jose Reyes, New York Mets
8th Place: Roy Halladay, Philadelphia
9th Place: Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado
10th Place: Hunter Pence, Philadelphia
Said Times' baseball writer and IBWAA member, Kevin Baxter: "Consider 2011 a coming-out party for the Dodgers' Matt Kemp, who fully displayed his enormous abilities. No player in the National League had a more complete season than Kemp, who led the league in runs, homers and RBIs, had the third-highest batting average and also stole 40 bases. And he did it all in the middle of a lineup that offered him little protection. Oh, and he also led NL centerfielders with 11 assists."
I'm a voter as well. The top two picks are as I selected, followed by Upton, Lance Berkman, Fielder, Pujols, Votto, Pence, Mike Stanton and Clayton Kershaw.
This was my rationale:
In a numbers' driven sport where you can twist an argument to go your way pretty much at every turn of the slide rule, picking Kemp over Braun added up right in my head after weighing all the options.
The statistical output that the two have now for the backs of their baseball cards will look pretty similar for the 2011 season. But if Braun has an edge in being valuable to a team winning a division title, Kemp was able to have the season he did for a team blanketed in off-the-field distractions without someone like Prince Fielder having his back in the lineup all season.
In fact, Kemp was used as a No. 4 hitter most of the year to protect Andre Ethier - who pulled off a 30-game hitting streak at one point. That shows value to a team as well.
Once Kemp was moved to the No. 3 hole, there was only above-average protection that could have resulted in pitchers getting around him in order to face the next part of the lineup.
How Kemp drove in enough runs to lead the league is crazy in itself coming from this Dodgers team. How he led the league in runs scored is mind boggling considering the rest of the lineup. Stealing 40 bases, none of them just to rack up stats, showed his talents as well (not to discount Braun's stolen bases, either). And improving his play as a center fielder accounts for something as well.
You hate to be accused of having a local bias, but in this case, L.A. is not only where Kemp played, but where Braun grew up. You could find yourself rooting for both to have phenomenal years, which they did. It could have been easy to name them co-MVPs. But that would be the easy way out. This makes more sense.
The IBWAA was established July 4, 2009 by Howard Cole, editor of BaseballSavvy.com and Dodger blogger for the Orange County Register, to organize and promote the growing online baseball media, and to serve as an alternative voice to the BBWAA. Other IBWAA members include Tim Brown, YahooSports; Fred Claire, former Dodgers general manager; Tony Jackson, Dodgers reporter, ESPNLosAngeles.com; Ben Maller, FoxSports.com; David Pinto, BaseballMusings.com; Mike Petriello, MikeSciosciasTragicIllness.com; and prominent baseball authors Peter Golenbock and Dan Schlossberg.
The Associated Press
Tony Reagins abruptly resigned as the Angels' general manager today after the team failed to make the playoffs for the second straight season.
Reagins took over for Bill Stoneman after the 2007 season, rising to the top executive job after starting with the organization as an intern in 1991.
"I felt from my perspective that the club probably needed a different perspective and a fresh direction," Reagins said in a conference call. "I felt that (owner) Arte (Moreno) wants to win, and at the end of the day, if you perform, you get rewarded. If you don't perform, you have to be accountable. I felt accountable, because those are the expectations I put on myself. Arte wants a winning ballclub ... year in and year out."
The Angels won the AL West in Reagins' first two seasons, losing to Boston in the 2008 division series and the New York Yankees in the 2009 AL championship series. But Los Angeles has fallen behind the Texas Rangers in the AL West over the past two seasons despite a payroll well over $100 million, and Reagins' hit-and-miss record on personnel decisions apparently didn't please Moreno.
"Though we finished 2011 with a winning record, we remained short of our objective in winning a championship," Moreno said in a statement. "In moving forward, we felt a change was needed. Throughout his career, Tony has meant a great deal to this organization, and represented the Angels with the utmost loyalty and dedication. He will always remain part of the Angels family."
The Angels said Reagins will remain with the team as a special assistant to chairman Dennis Kuhl.
Team president John Carpino said the Angels have no successor in mind, planning to look throughout baseball for candidates.
"We don't believe the organization is broken by any means," Carpino said, adding that longtime manager Mike Scioscia will be consulted during the process. "It's not like somebody has to come in here and rebuild this entire organization."
A link to the weekly media prose (linked here) that includes more about how TBS plans to cover the upcoming MLB divisional series, how Bill Macdonald went no-socks, no-shoes on his final FSW assignment, and other miscellaneous items that contain the phrase "Jenn Brown."
What isn't included: The fact that network execs who thought they'd start the bidding on a new NFL eight-week early-season Thursday night package found out this week that commissioner Roger Goodell has tabled the talks and now predicts that bundle won't come off for at least another season.
"The way it looks now, the league will probably want to close out its renewals (with CBS, NBC, and Fox) before they come back to Thursday night," one unnamed executive was quoted by Adweek magazine. "It's a little disappointing, but this is the NFL. When they're ready to sit down and talk, we'll be right there with them."
A magazine source also said that early discussions about the Thursday night package were under the assumption that the NFL would coax the players into accepting an 18-game regular season schedule, but that didn't happen after the lockout talks ended.
After the NFL expanded its deal with ESPN, it now faces deals with Fox ($720 million per year), CBS ($619 million a year) and NBC ($603 million) that expire in 2013.
The final Major League Baseball attendance totals Thursday showed the game was actually up by half of one percent from a year ago, ending three straight seasons of drops.
The overall attendance of 73,425,568 this year was the fifth-highest in MLB history. The 30 teams combined to average 30,229, STATS LLC said after the regular season ended Wednesday night. That was up from 30,067 last year,
This, despite the Dodgers dropping 18 percent and failing to reach 3 million for the first time in a non-strike year since 1992. That is, with them counting actual seats sold as part of the average attendance of 36,236 a game. We all know it was closer to 25,000, if that, on many nights, far lower toward the end of the season as those who owned season seats continued to boycot the business dealings of owner Frank McCourt.
The worse drop, however, belonged to AL wild card winner Tampa Bay -- 19 percent, to a meager 18,846 average per game. The Rays drew 29,518 on Wednesday night for their 8-7 win in 12 innings over the Yankees that put them into the playoffs.
Not even Houston, which lost a team-record 106 games, were worst percentage-wise than the Dodgers in the NL. The Astros averaged 25,546, but that was only an 11 percent drop for a year ago.
The World Series champion San Francisco Giants sold out every home game this year and drew rousing ovations in their wrapup Wednesday. San Diego drew over 32,000 fans to Petco for the season finale against the Cubs while Florida attracted 34,615 in the final game at Sun Life before moving into a new ballpark next year.
The NL East champion Philadelphia Phillies led baseball's attendance chart for the first time, drawing 3,680,718 fans. The Phillies have had 204 straight regular-season sellouts at Citizens Bank Park -- Boston has sold out 712 straight games at Fenway Park.
"The resiliency of our sport never ceases to amaze," Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement.
This year's attendance remained nearly 8 percent below the record 32,785 set in 2007. During the Great Recession of December 2007 to June 2009, the average dropped to 32,528 in 2008 and 30,350 the following year.
Cleveland had the biggest percentage increase, up 31 percent to an average of 22,726. Other teams with big jumps were Pittsburgh (22 percent to 24,255) and Texas (18 percent to 36,382).
(By the way, you want one of those crafty L.A. toasters above? It's $39.99 at the Baseball Hall of Fame shop -- linked here That waffle-making gadget, which also works on grilled cheese sandwiches, is $49.99. Find it here).
Perhaps lost in all the baseball history taking place Wednesday night, Bill Macdonald went out in SoCal style on the Angels' Fox Sports West postgame show.
No socks. No shoes. No excuses.
Lifting his leg over the desk on the set out in center field at Angels Stadium, following the Angels-Rangers telecast on the last day of the season, Macdonald revealed what Angels manager Mike Scioscia alluded to in a just-aired post-game interview.
"I know he's not going to leave any socks behind," Scioscia said when asked to comment about the fact that Macdonald's run as a full-time staffer with Fox Sports West and Prime Ticket has officially come to an end after 26 years.
Macdonald, sporting jeans and flip-flops on his final Angels' assignment as he sat behind the desk with Jose Mota, is a Lakers' employee as of Saturday, taking over as the TV play-by-play man for games on FSW and KCAL-Channel 9 once the NBA season decides to begin.
Macdonald said Thursday that FSW has "left the door open" for him to do free-lance work, which could include play-by-play on UCLA football in the coming weeks.
"There's nothing on the schedule, but if the NBA lockout stretches, I could be back on a game or two," said Macdonald. "But they have plenty of guys on staff now who could pick up those things."
That would include Michael Eaves and Patrick O'Neal. It could soon add Chris McGee, who has plenty of play-by-play experience now as a free-lance employee on several sports.
"Billy Mac has been very influential in my career and has been a consistent face in L.A. sports for so many years," said McGee. "He has been a mentor, and someone I have looked up to because of his personality, versatility, and his great wit and sense of humor. I am so happy to see him get the Lakers job, he deserves it and can't wait to hear him as the Lakers' voice."
McGee, a longtime fixture on the beach volleyball circuit, does sport the appropriate hosiery. Just so you know.
How healthy is it for ESPN to approved an endorsement deal for pretend reporter Jenn Brown to work as a spokesperson for GNC nutritional products?
The company has apparently given her muscle to do so after setting down new guidelines for on-air personalities who have promotional deals with companies, particularity trying to avoid a conflict of interest if they provide goods and services to teams or athletes that are "regularly covered" by ESPN.
"Having been a student athlete throughout my life, participating as an honor student in diving, volleyball, basketball, softball and track and field in high school and as a NCAA softball player at the University of Florida, I know and understand the value of education, health and nutrition," Brown said in a statement. "Being part of the GNC team, I am looking forward to continuing my efforts to inform, educate and inspire fellow fitness enthusiasts on living a healthy and balanced lifestyle."
Maybe she can get some folks at ESPN deals on creatine next time she stops into the local mall? Or at least some FDA-approved diet pills?
The GNC press release (linked here) also refers to Brown as a "two-time Emmy Award winning sports journalists" who is an L.A.-based reporter. So maybe we're thinking of someone else then.
Even those at MassholeSports.com could see this coming a half-year away when they posted this Boston Herald cover almost exactly six months ago.
"The 2011 Red Sox havent even played one real game, yet the Boston Herald is declaring the 2011 Red Sox the best Red Sox team ever. No disrespect to the 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 2004 and 2007 teams of course."
At the Boston Herald site that day, however, they kind of couched it (linked here): "Yeah, We're Saying It: This Could Be Sox ... Best Team Ever."
Or more accurately: Best team that gagged on the largest lead for an AL wildcard ever after Wednesday night but gave John Lacky a chance to breath a sigh of relief that he didn't have to go to the mound anymore in 2011.
Go from dunce to diploma in a six-week online course taught by Alison Overholt, a former deputy editor at ESPN who worked for the network's magazine, did special projects, investigative things and helped launch the espnW women's project.
It starts Oct. 18. And it'll cost you $425. A bargain, perhaps, in this economy. Or for someone who didn't get into Northwestern as they thought they could.
"Intro to Sports Journalism" promises that you'll "learn how to write sports articles, interviews, and features" via a MediaBistrol.com online course. We did have a journalism prof who told us that there's no need for that extra comma in this instance betwen the words "interviews" and "and" ... or that once you start a sentence with the verb "to write," it would imply that all nouns after it are related to it, but then, you wouldn't write "interviews," would you? Features, sure. But then ...
Maybe we should sign up (linked here) and see what we can relearn about the craft. Especially if there are better spell-check software uploads available to catch street slang.
What we are told we'll learn:
== Which sports stories editors want to buy and readers want to read
== The best places to break in at the nation's leading sports publications
== How to approach editors and build relationships
== How online sports sites have changed the way we cover sports in a 24/7 news environment
== The effect of increased restrictions in player/coach access
== How to cover sensitive issues including steroids, athlete misbehavior, and astronomical salaries
== The rapidly changing demands of today's sports media consumers
By the end of class, we are guaranteed to have "two polished sports articles, the pitch letters to sell them, and the skills to get them published." Again, that extra comma ...
Considering the state of today's online journalism, we endorse this idea to at least get some basic education into his the process legitimately works. What could it hurt?
UPDATED: THURSDAY 9.28.11 at 4 p.m.:
College football games of note on Saturday:
== UCLA at Stanford, 7:30 p.m., Prime Ticket: Joel Meyers, Brian Baldinger and Jim Knox
== USC vs. Arizona, Coliseum, 12:30 p.m., Prime Ticket: Craig Bolerjack, Joel Klatt and Petros Papadakis.
(Papadakis makes a video with USC running backs coach Kennedy Pola where the former Trojans fullback tries to do every-day drills and blows out a hamstring ... linked here ... it'll appear on a future Prime Ticket "Lane Kiffin Show" episode)
== Washington at Utah, 4 p.m., FSW: Ron Thulin, JC Pearson and Jeremy Bloom
== Notre Dame at Purdue, 5 p.m,. ESPN: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge and Holly Rowe
== Alabama at Florida, 5 p.m., Channel 2: Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson
== Nebraska at Wisconsin, 5 p.m., Channel 7: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit and Erin Andrews
== Texas at Iowa State, 4 p.m., FX: Gus Johnson, Charles Davis and Tim Brewster (and then this crew goes to Kansas City to do the Vikings-Chiefs NFL game at 10 a.m. for Fox on Sunday).
== Air Force at Navy, 9 a.m., Channel 2: Ian Eagle and Randy Cross
== Auburn at South Carolina, 12:30 p.m., Channel 2: Spero Dedes and Steve Beuerlein
== Michigan State at Ohio State, 12:30 p.m., Channel 7: Sean McDonough, Matt Millen and Heather Cox
== Clemson at Virginia Tech, 3 p.m. ESPN2: Mark Jones, Ed Cunningham and Quint Kessenich
== Texas A&M vs. Arkansas in Arlington, Tex., 9 a.m., ESPN: Dave Pasch, Chris Spielman, Urban Meyer and Shelley Smith
The NFL on Sunday:
== Detroit at Dallas, 10 a.m., Channel 11: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Pam Oliver.
== Pittsburgh at Houston, 10 a.m., Channel 2: Greg Gumbel and Dan Dierdorf
== Miami at San Diego, 1 p.m., Channel 2: Ian Eagle and Dan Fouts
== New England at Oakland, 1 p.m., Channel 2: Kevin Harlan and Solomon Wilcots
== N.Y. Jets at Baltimore, 5:15 p.m., Channel 4: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michelle Tafoya
Two ex-USC stars, Keyshawn Johnson and former Heisman winner Reggie Bush, have put their bread together to open another branch of Panera Bread -- store No. 6 in their own personal chain, opening October 8 in Ventura (4910 Telephone Road).
Now, bring back the Cowboys for training camp and avoid any yeast infections.
Pledging to employ, according to the press release, some 50-to-75 more people in the comminity, the group of Johnson, Bush, Dennis Northcutt, Anthony Henry and Terence Newman are the NFL faces who've combined to get out the giant scissors and take ownership in the stores that stretch up to Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Camarillo.
You probably know the menu: Bread, chicken, sandwiches, bread, soups, salads, bread, bagels, patries, free Wifi and bread. Tip your bus boys, please.
Keyshawn, the "renassance man" (listen to the video above) who works for ESPN and had his own reality show where he could redecorate your home, once opened his own great soul food restaurant in 1999 on Restaurant Row in Beverly Hills called Reign.
Appetizers went for $11; entrees were as high as $29.
"I've never failed at anything and I don't expect to fail at this," said Johnson, still playing in the NFL at the time, upon his restaurant opening. It closed four years later.
He's now the CEO of the First Picks Bread Company, a Panera Bread developer in Southern California. Henry joined forces with Johnson because they share the same wealth management firm, RGT Capital Management.
SmartMoney.com says that Johnson's Panera stores grossed an estimated $10 million in sales in 2010, with sales volume 10 percent higher than what's typical for the company.
It also reports that he consults with developer Ed Roski to target franchise locations that have "good traffic patterns, high college-education levels among local residents and proximity to Target stores."
First Picks Management describes itself as a group founded in 2006 as "a business development company for the enterprises of professional sports athletes and select high net-worth individuals. The group invests intellectual, human and financial capital into promising businesses for the prudent development and management of enterprises. To date, they have partnered with over a dozen professional sports athletes and business entities to achieve these objectives. They work with start-up entities as well as seasoned brands. More info: www.firstpicksmgmt.com
One hundred and forty two.
That's now many schools have been made "eligible" to be considerd for the final 26 teams that will be invited to add a game to their college basketball schedule in February so that ESPN can televise it and give it a little more RPI cred before March Madness begins.
In what ESPN now calls the "Sears BracketBusters" event set for 13 games played between Feb. 17 and 19, the three-day "event" will play out on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU or lame-old ESPN3. So you're not even guaranteed a game that'll be on TV.
The matchups are purely picked by ESPN, while a committee of Conference commissioners determines the additional non-televised games. Because as it turns out, after the 26 teams are picked for the ESPN platforms, the other 116 not chosen will be paired off as well for a game. Because they're already locked in.
Two West Coast Conference schools (including Loyola Marymount) and nine from the Big West (including Cal State Northridge and Long Beach State) are here in an event that only pulls hungry birds from the the mid-major conferences. There are no teams from the ACC, Big East, Pac-12, Big 12 or Big Ten.
Each team picked has already been designated a home or road team. LMU and CSUN are a home team; Long Beach State goes on the road. Somewhere.
ESPN likes to point out that 13 teams from this event last year made it to the NCAA tournament, and VCU won five games once it got in. CSUN was a "Bracket Buster" from 2009 that made it into the tournament field, as was Long Beach State in 2007.
Ryan Roberts' trip around the bases Tuesday night following an improbable grand slam that capped the Arizona Diamondbacks' two-out, six-run comeback in the bottom of the 10th inning against the Dodgers was so Kirk Gibson-esque.
Capped off by pumping his left arm as he neared second base and headed for third. He pointed toward Gibson, in the Arizona dugout, the entire time.
"Some things rub off," Gibson said, cracking a grin. "He deserved to do it."
Vin Scully, calling Roberts' homer against the Dodgers, didn't use the words "improbable" or "impossible" as he did when Gibson hit his 1988 World Series Game 1 homer for the Dodgers to beat the Oakland A's in the bottom of the ninth.
(On KTAR-AM in Phoenix, Greg Schulte's call went something like this: "Roberts a drive ... deep left field ... Diamondbacks win! ... Are you kidding me!? ... Are ... you ... kidding ... me? A grand slam by Roberts and the Diamondbacks are still alive ... You are kidding me. This crazy, folks. Absolutely crazy. Unbelievable. Unbelievable. It's been that kind of a year.")
Roberts was an 8-year-old kid in Texas when that happened. Most of the 25 players on the D'backs current active roster were little kids when it happened. One -- pitcher Jarrod Parker -- wasn't born yet, but his presence was felt as well Tuesday. He worked 5 2/3 scoreless inning and gave up just four hits in his debut.
The Gibson mindset in these Diamondbacks harkens back to when he carried the Dodgers as the NL MVP in '88, before his post-season heroics.
"We just play until the final out," said reliever Micah Owings, who somehow improve to 8-0 despite giving up five runs to the Dodgers in the top of the 10th.
The D'backs are the comeback kids of '11, with 48 of them this season.
Is it all because of Gibson?
We asked the three MLB studio analysts for TBS about that as they prepare to start their postseason coverage:
Continue reading The baseball gospel according to Gibson's followers.
TBS play-callers for the MLB postseason: No E.J., and no Scully (who plans to 'shut up for a while')
First, our prayers go out again to Ernie Johnson Jr, who won't be part of the TBS MLB postseason calling games or manning the studio. A month after the passing of his father, former MLB pitcher and play-by-play man Ernie Johnson Sr., and four years removed from his own battle with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, E.J. will pass on doing games starting this week because of a new family matter.
His 23-year-old son, Michael, has been coping with muscular dystrophy and has been hospitalized in intensive care for the last two weeks. Ernie and his wife, Cheryl, will take time now to be with Michael, who was adopted from Romania.
Jeff Behnke, Turner Sports' executive producer, made the announcement on a conference call this morning with reporters. He also gave out the four broadcast teams that will begin dong games with the ALDS on Friday (unless there's a one-game playoff for a wildcard spot to be played Thursday):
== Brian Anderson, left, the voice of the Milwaukee Brewers since 2007, will do lead play-by-play now, with analysts Ron Darling and John Smoltz, on whatever series the New York Yankees are involved in, as well as the NLCS round that follows. The 40-year-old Anderson called Roy Halladay's post-season no-hitter last season and has done many TBS Sunday afternoon broadcasts.
== Dick Stockton , a longtime Turner employee, will for some reason continue to be with Bob Brenly, likely on the top NLDS matchup (think Philadelphia vs. whomever).
== Don Orsillo, with the Boston Red Sox, will be paired with Buck Martinez, perhaps on a Red Sox series. There's nothing to preclude that from happening.
== And Victor Rojas, who has been with the Angels' on FSW for the last two seasons, will be paired with Joe Simpson on the "fourth team" doing whatever series is deemed apparently less appealing.
Uh, OK ...
== Also, Craig Sager, Tom Verducci, KCAL/KCBS anchor/reporter Jaime Maggio and Sam Ryan of the MLB Network will be on site at games as reporters.
Behnke said it in regards to why someone like the Dodgers' 83-year-old Hall of Famer Vin Scully, Bob Costas or the New York Mets' Gary Cohen weren't included in the mix:
"I'll just blanket it by saying we looked at and considered everyone. Sure, there are legendary voices out there and unbelievable broadcasters, but it's more of a factor of scheduling conflicts and availability. When you go through the process and hit all the points we need to go through with our decisions, that's what we've done and we feel comfortable whith where we've landed.
"They're all great voices -- and Vin is the legend of all legends."
So, not even a consideration of having him work a couple of innings on any of the four series? Or is he free to play golf this winter?
"That's probably hard to do in the middle innings, and even harder with L.A. not being in the playoffs," said Behnke. "Look, if we were in L.A. and he was available, absolutely we'd do something. The fans love him and baseball people would love him as they always have."
But not enough to even submit an inquiry, apparently. But they were able to ask Rojas, who would be included even if the Angels had been in the playoffs. Rojas was added originally as a sideline reporter but promoted once Johnson couldn't make it.
Despite the online petition launched in June to persuade Fox to include Scully in their World Series coverage (linked here) -- there are more than 7,600 signatures and it has Joe Buck's blessing (linked here) -- there seems to be nothing new with that angle.
When we asked Scully about whether Fox had asked about the possibility, and whether he'd be open to it, he replied: "No to all questions. I plan to shut up for a while."
Our loss.
The TBS schedule could start with a Thursday wildcard game. Here are the scenarios the network offered today:
1:07 p.m. -- A.L. wildcard tiebreaker: Boston at Tampa Bay
5:07 p.m. -- N.L. wildcard tiebreaker: Atlanta at St. Louis
Friday's games:
1:07 p.m. -- ALDS Game 1: Boston or Tampa Bay at Texas or Detroit
5:37 p.m. -- ALDS Game 1: Detroit or Texas at New York
Erin Andrews, promoting herself on ABC sister station "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on Monday night, because she can:
Go find Part II at your own risk.
Does YouTube have some kind of filter that can be uploaded to tone down the nasalness of her voice that most (including Kimmel) seem to tolerate in normal conversation but really isn't conducive to listening to somewhat pertinent information presented during inane, longwinded questions during a college football post-game interivew?
Highlights of the week ahead in sports, both here and afar:
THIS WEEK'S BEST BET
(AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Brewers' clubhouse comedian Nyjer Morgan reacts as he is doused with bubbly after Milwaukee clinched the NL Central title with a win Friday night.
MLB divisional playoffs: ALDS Game 1s: Friday at 3 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., TBS; NLDS Game 1s and ALDS Game 2s: Saturday at 9 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., TBS; NLDS Game 2s: Sunday at 3 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., TBS:
The Southern California Brewers of Milwaukee are where we'll hitch our bandwagon for this postseason. The winners of the NL Central have the L.A.-based owner (Mark Attanasio) and former Dodgers outfielder-turned-Angels-bench coach as its manager (Ron Roenicke), with an MVP candidate out of Granada Hills.
Once you get around Prince Fielder -- not an easy task -- it's Ryan Braun, the potential batting champ, who hit the dramatic home run last Friday that clinched the Brews' first divisional title since 1982 (when they were in the AL East, for cryin' out loud). Back in spring training, Braun bought a boxing-style championship title belt and hung it in the team's clubhouse. It remained all season long. The team became hungry, like Randy Wolf, the starting pitcher out of El Camino Real and Pepperdine with more Dodgers connections. "One thing I always hated was in spring training when you'd have these meetings and say, 'OK, guys, we're going to compete this year'," said Wolf. "That's one of the things that drove me nuts. You have to do more than compete. Competing is just trying. Anybody can try. It was something we talked about in spring training and it's the mentality you have to have. We knew the organization had stepped up to give us a team that could win. It wasn't like we hoped we could do it. We knew we could do it." So now Wolf (13-10, 3.61), on a pitching staff that includes a bullpen of 6-foot-9 Kameron Loe (Granada Hills High, Cal State Northridge), former Dodgers All-Star closer Takashi Saito and one-time Angels' rookie World Series standout Francisco Rodriguez, waits with the rest of us to see how the NL's wildcard shakes out -- Atlanta, or St. Louis? It all matters in how the first-round pairings go with the Diamondbacks and Phillies. The AL pairings are similarly up in the air as the Yankees, Tigers and Rangers wait to see if the Red Sox, Rays or Angels are coming along.
MONDAY
MLB: Angels vs. Texas, Angel Stadium, 7:05 p.m., FSW:
The Angels might have been the MLB's biggest Southern California gate attraction for the first time in 50 years, but there would have been another 130,000 guaranteed for this final series if things didn't end so painfully Sunday against Oakland. Buy your final souvenirs on Tuesday (7:05 p.m., FSW) and Wednesday (5:05 p.m., FSW). The Rangers have won six of 10 against the Angels since the All-Star break to effectively push back their closest competition. The plan is still for Jered Weaver to come back and pitch the finale, especially if the Angels win the first two and are somehow still alive.
MLB: Dodgers at Arizona, 6:40 p.m., Prime:
Things to know about the Matt Kemp MVP/Triple Crown watch for the last three games of the season: The Dodgers center fielder is 7-for-24 this season at Chase Field in Phoenix, with two homers and five RBI. While the D'backs get their rotation ready for the playoffs -- Ian Kennedy made his last start Saturday, improving to 21-4 -- the Dodgers wind down with Eveland, Kuroda and Lilly on Tuesday (6:40 p.m., Channel 9) and Wednesday (6:40 p.m., Prime).
NFL: Washington at Dallas, 5:30 p.m., ESPN:
We'll take a slab of Tony Romo's ribs to go from Tony Roma's takeout and see if this game is all that it's cracked up to be.
Reality show: "Dancing With The Stars," 8 p.m., Channel 7:
World Peace is hopelessly gone. Hope Solo is left. "I wanted both of us to go far in the show and kind of represent the sports world, but unfortunately that didn't happen that way, so I better stand strong until the end," the U.S. women's national team goalie told E! More eliminations on Tuesday. Save yourself, Hope. That Wilson-Phillips chick (she's married to a Baldwin?) could be your toughest opponent.
TUESDAY
Reality show: "The Biggest Loser," 8 p.m., Channel 4:
We didn't realize that we had a rooting interest until we spotted former NFL player Antone Davis (Philadelphia and Atlanta from 1991-'97) stepping on the scale in last week's season opener to show that he dropped 32 pounds, going from 447 to 414. Here's a testament to what can happen, again, with owning a restaurant once you retire from the game. The 44-year-old played at 349 when he was at the University of Tennessee then at about 335 in the NFL. Oh, did we also mention Anna Kournikova has been hired as a "fitness expert," replacing Jillian Michaels?
Documentary: "Catching Hell," 5 p.m., ESPN:
The saga of Steve Bartman, who still hasn't shown his face for an interview since that fateful October day in 2003, gets a new examination by Academy Award winning filmmaker Alex Gibney. The L.A. connections -- former Dodgers first baseman Eric Karros played for the Cubs that season, and was in that NLDS Game 6 at Wrigley Field when all heck broke loose after Bartman upset Cubs left fielder Moises Alou, in pursuit of a foul ball. When the grumbling settled, the Florida Marlins scored eight runs in the eighth inning. "It was like all the air just came out of the place," Karros says in the piece that replays Thursday, 8 p.m., ESPN2; Friday at 7 and 9 p.m. and Saturday at 5 p.m. on ESPN Classic.
WEDNESDAY
Soccer: Galaxy vs. Monaress Morelia, Home Depot Center, 7 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel:
The CONCACAF Champions League series continues with the two teams tied for second place in Group A. The Galaxy lost to Morelia 2-1 in Mexico two weeks ago.
THURSDAY
Golf: Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospital for Children Open, first round, 1 p.m., Golf Channel:
The Fall Season begins in Las Vegas, at the place where Jonathan Byrd hit a hole-in-one on the fourth playoff hole just before dark to win last year's event.
FRIDAY
NHL exhibition: Kings at Ducks, Honda Center, 7 p.m.:
Will Drew Doughty be suited up by this time?
Horse racing: Santa Anita Autumn season, first post, 1 p.m.:
The 24-day race meet runs through Nov. 6 with a four-day race week, Thursday through Sunday, on a new natural dirt main track.
SATURDAY
College football: USC vs. Arizona, Coliseum, 12:30 p.m., FSN:
The Wildcats (1-3) have not seen much of a flex alert. They'e been pounded by three ranked teams -- Oregon, Stanford and Oklahoma State -- over the last three weeks, outscored 130-55 in the process. A perfect opportunity for the Trojans, and their wildcat formation with Marc Tyler, to rebound from their loss at ASU.
College football: UCLA at Stanford, 7:30 p.m., FSN:
It's not as if the Cardinal lucked into a bye week to prepare for these Bruins, but they took it anyway. Andrew Luck has completed 67 percent of his passes and has an 8-to-1 ratio in TDs-to-INTs.
NHL exhibition: Kings vs. Colorado, Las Vegas, 6 p.m.:
The Kings head out to Germany immediately after playing in the annual "Frozen Fury" at the MGM Grand, landing in Europe on Sunday night.
MLS: Galaxy vs. Real Salt Lake, Home Depot Center, 7:30 p.m.:
It's Fan Appreciation Night, since the last three league games are on the road (including one against Chivas USA). Galaxy fans appreciate the fact the team has already secured a playoff spot, pointing toward hosting the MLS Cup game
SUNDAY
NASCAR: Sprint Cup AAA 400 at Dover, Del., 11 a.m., ESPN:
Tony Stewart, who once said he'd be a "total bumbling idiot" if he won the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, is two for two already. "Got eight long weeks still, man," Stewart said. "It's way too early to start counting chickens." The Big D in Delaware could deliver another reason to bank on Smoke taking the title.
NFL: Miami at San Diego, 1 p.m., Channel 2:
Reggie Bush, in his own version of "Dolphin Tale," dogpaddles home to Sea World.
NFL: Pittsburgh at Houston, 10 a.m., Channel 2:
Who's this Tate guy that keeps leading the Texans in rushing each week?
NFL: N.Y. Jets at Baltimore, 5:15 p.m., Channel 4:
Gotta get the Detroit Lions in prime time before things fall apart.
Ten have made it to the finals of the Miss L.A. Galaxy 2012 contest (linked here), where the winner serves as a community ambassador for the Major League Soccer team at dozens of events throughout the year.
They've each recorded a video interview on the team's website for fans to watch, mull over, and then record their votes.
There's Emily, a wedding coordinator. Veronica is a "child life specialist." Ashley, a public relations student, coaches softball at Malibu High.
Marina is an office specialist, Kirsti works as a "face character at a theme park, and Stephanie is finishing up a Master's degree at USC in social work.
Ivana wants to be a sideline TV reporter. Nicole, a former Miss USA Tourism winner, aspires to be a full-time minister. Priscilla is an administrative assistant with a Tae Kwon Do black belt who would like to start her own clothing line.
OK, girl with the straight black hair, dark-rimmed glasses and perfect red lipstick, you're up:
"Hi, my name is Daniella. I'm a licensed funeral director, licensed embalmer and I love cupcakes."
Contest over. Sorry, everyone. Thanks for showing up.
Daniella's got this one dead to rights. She takes the cake.
"Working as a mortician, it is a great conversation starter, right?" Daniella Marcantoni continued to explain over lunch the other day. "Some of my friends call me Morty. Or Tish. Or Mortica. I do collect Frankenstein stuff. I like Halloween. But there are lots of people who aren't embalmers who like that, too."
The 26-year-old from Chino Hills, in the funeral industry for the last six years, was recently promoted to be viewing room specialist at Rose Hills mortuary and cemetery in Whittier.
She is very dedicated to the dead. And dead serious about the importance of this contest.
Continue reading Miss L.A. Galaxy 2012: Daniella, knock 'em dead.
Major League Baseball filed a petition today with the federal judge in Delware handling the Dodgers' bankruptcy demanding that the team be sold before it is deemed no longer a part of the league.
In response, owner Frank McCourt called the motion "meritless," "offensive" and "a last resort" through his financial communications firm.
A hearing in the case is set for Oct. 12.
The MLB attorneys argue that McCourt "cannot hide the Dodgers in bankruptcy court forever" as he continues to use the team to resolve his personal financial issues. In addition, the MLB contends that McCourt's plan to auction the team's television rights without league approval, a motion filed on Sept. 16, is a breach of the Dodgers' existing contract with Fox Sports' Prime Ticket and could lead to the team's ouster from the league.
McCourt has been holding out that MLB commissioner Bud Selig will approve a multi-billion media deal with Fox Sports that provides him financial stability for years to come. Selig's refusal to do so, based on the belief that McCourt will use advances from that rights deal to pay legal fees in his recently high-profile divorce from Jamie McCourt, will severely damage the team's innerstructure. McCourt also contends Selig's actions led him to the bankruptcy filing on June 27.
"The sale proposed in the media rights motion - the centerpiece of the team's sole reorganization strategy - is dead on arrival," the MLB petition read. "No one will pay (the Dodgers) to broadcast . . . games if the club is not part of Major League Baseball. Consequently, the (Dodgers') path in this case is a dead end or worse."
The league also argues that McCourt is trying to circumvent its authority, which could leave the judge in the position of determining whether the federal bankruptcy code trumps the MLB's constitution.
"Bankruptcy is not a vehicle for rewriting the rules of sports leagues like Major League Baseball," league attorneys said.
In a statement issued through Kekst and Company in New York, McCourt said the MLB action "is another step in the commissioner's continuing effort to cause the sale of the Dodgers notwithstanding that the Dodgers can and will be successfully reorganized as outlined in the recently filed media rights marketing motion.
"In United States bankruptcy reorganization cases, liquidation is the last resort, not the first option."
(AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Dave Chidley)
Philadelphia Flyers' Wayne Simmonds scores on Detroit Red Wings goalie Jordan Pearce during the shootout of an exhibition game in London, Ontario on Thursday night.
The Associated Press
TORONTO -- An incident where a banana was thrown on the ice as Philadelphia Flyers winger Wayne Simmonds was about to take a penalty shot in an exhibition game Thursday was called "stupid and ignorant" by the NHL today.
Simmonds, traded by the Kings to the Flyers in the offseason, said he's "above this sort of stuff" after the banana was thrown from the stands in London, Ontario, as Simmonds was skating toward Detroit goalie Jordan Pearce.
"I don't know if it had anything to do with the fact I'm black," he added. "I certainly hope not. When you're black, you kind of expect (racist) things. You learn to deal with it."
Despite the disruption, Simmonds scored in the shootout, but the Detroit Red Wings went on to win 4-3.
"We have millions of great fans who show tremendous respect for our players and for
the game," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement today. "The obviously stupid and ignorant action by one individual is in no way representative of our fans or the people of London, Ontario.
"It shocked me and I knew I had to keep going and get a shot off," said Simmonds, who is from Toronto. "It was certainly unusual."
He also scored with less than a minute left in the third period to make the score 3-3.
Continue reading Ex-King Simmonds on the banana incident: 'You learn to deal with it'.
A link to today's media column (linked here) where we refocus efforts to figuring out how the NFL, CBS and KCBS Channel 2 combined to muff the transfer of the Raiders-Bills game to the Chargers-Patriots game last Sunday, along with a review of a new ESPN-made flick about Steve Bartman, the Dodgers' new radio home starting next year and the HBO replay of the Mayweather-Ortiz fight complete with Larry Merchant's promise to beat up the winner in a previous lifetime.
What today's column woefally failed to include: A well-deserved thanks and good luck to Don Barrett, who today wraps up his website, LARadio.com, after 15 years. "I get to do something most radio people aren't able to do when their radio station run ends - say goodbye," he wrote." Today closes the chapter on my fifth career. I have been blessed with numerous journeys - radio, tv, movie marketing, family therapist, and author. ... As John Chancellor said when he left NBC, 'the culture has passed me by.' I have similar feelings about LARadio.com. It's just time." The consolidation of local radio, combined with layoffs and the way Facebook and other social media has allowed his "LARPs" to keep in touch all kind of led to this move.
One of the people Don thanks in his final column: Scott St. James, "The Jammer," one of the original on-air folks at the first real all-sports station in L.A. -- KMPC-AM (710) in the early '90s. Writes Don: "And Scott St. James contributed a thought-provoking column for a time a few years ago. His observations about life were always spot on, or at least feisty enough to provoke conversation. Scott was a superstar in St. Louis before becoming a LARP and tv star. I am at a loss to understand why a general talk or sports station hasn't snagged him for a regular show. Never at a loss for words, Scott is a master storyteller and isn't that what radio is all about."
Don was always a great resource on cross-checking stories that could happen all the time at places like all-sports KSPN-AM (710) or KLAC-AM (570), even KLAA-AM (830). He was always willing to give full credit as well when re-running a note he found. His network of sources were invaluable to keeping up on the weekly flip-flopping of programing, talent and station management changes.
And, above all, he's simply a very nice, stand-up guy.
Don goes down smokin' too -- he also had the not-yet-announced news of the Dodgers' pending radio switch from AM-790 to Clear Channel's AM-570 starting next season, calling it a three-to-five year deal. He's always dialed in.
The Dodgers can't get a TV rights deal in place to save their hides. But a radio deal ... that's different. And maybe a new influx of income for the time being.
After airing games the last four seasons on talk-radio KABC-AM (790), the Dodgers are expected to announce Friday a new multi-year deal to move to all-sports KLAC-AM (570) starting in 2012, according to more than one source not authorized to speak about the contract.
The Dodgers, who have apparently got the OK through bankruptcy court to approve the move, had been with KABC from 1973 to 1997 before skipping around to KXTA (1998-2002) and KFWB ('03-'07) prior to circling back to KABC. KMPC (1958-60) and KFI ('61-'72) have also been Dodger flagship stations.
Broadcast pairings for games that seem to matter to you this weekend:
College football on Saturday:
== USC at Arizona State, 7:15 p.m., ESPN: Joe Tessitore, Rod Gilmore and Shelley Smith
== UCLA at Oregon State, 12:30 p.m., Prime Ticket: Bill Macdonald, J.J. Stokes and Amy Bender
== Oregon at Arizona, 7:15 p.m., ESPN2: Carter Blackburn and Brock Huard
== LSU at West Virginia, 5 p.m., Channel 7: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit and Erin Andrews
== Notre Dame at Pittsburgh, 9 a.m, Channel 7: Dave Pasch, Chris Spielman, Urban Meyer and Quint Kessenich
== Cal at Washington, 12:30 p.m., FSW: Craig Bolerjack, Joel Klatt and Petros Papadakis
== San Diego State at Michigan, 9 a.m., Big Ten Network: Eric Collins, Chris Martin and Dionne Miller
== Arkansas at Alabama, 12:30 p.m., Channel 2: Verne Lundquist, Gary Danielson and Tracy Wolfson
The NFL on Sunday:
== N.Y. Giants at Philadelphia, 10 a.m., Channel 11: Kenny Albert, Darryl Johnston and Tony Siragusa
== Kansas City at San Diego, 1 p.m., Channel 2: Ian Eagle and Dan Fouts
== Green Bay at Chicago, 1 p.m., Channel 11: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Pam Oliver
== Pittsburgh at Indianapolis, 5:15 p.m., Channel 4: Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michelle Tafoya.
Part II of "Bill Belichick: A Football Life" (NFL Network, tonight at 7 p.m., following a re-air of Part I at 6 p.m.) promises more surprises in documenting the otherwise stoic existence of the New England Patroits' head coach, geting more into his upbringing, how he has trouble unlocking his car door, and how he dresses for a Randy Moss Halloween party during the 2009 season.
Not to give it away, but with his get-up, he'd be more in line for coaching the Oakland Raiders. Arrrrrrggg.
ESPN aspiring sideline reporter Erin Andrews is featured in the October edition of Self magazine, a fact we only know of now because a publicist from the magazine has given us a heads up.
As well as photos and videos.
The pitch: Andrews is "looking amazing and demoing the latest workout craze-CrossFit. I thought you may be interested in this and the photos."
But, of course.
"Please let me know if you would like any of the other photos."
We insist. Send more. Send them all. Exhibit A, B and C. She can use all the altruistic attention that she continues to bring to herself, despite how readers may interpret it in the privacy of their own homes.
It is worth noting that Ms. Andrews appears to be wearing her cool Reebok ZigTech shoes, which she is still allowed to endorse through ESPN's policy (as long as she's not reporting about a rival shoe company on ESPN time, which would be a conflict of interest, and a huge mistake).
To reset her recent past: She's been through an incident where someone was spying on her through a hotel door peephole camera, going to court, having to testify, having videos of it leaked on the Internet. She says she never wants that to happen again.
Is this considered a compromise? Or more compromising positions to expose herself to the world?
Or is her existence on the planet Naive, which apparenly lacks in oxygen supply to the brain, make this all fine, unable to fathom how it could put her into another bad situation?
Having your picture snapped on the sideline while you're eating a submarine sandwich is one thing. This is another. Like that GQ spread she did two years ago (linked here) getting all dolled up in football equipment and being put in a locker room with some other fellows.
How can anyone feel sorry for her anymore?
We only hope this has an happy ending ...
Let's go to the video:
More questions, and some answers, from NFL TV spokesman Dan Masonson after KCBS Channel 2 questionably left the Raiders-Bills game with 27 seconds remaining and the final score in doubt and went to 90 seconds of commercials and promo before joining the start of the Chargers-Patroits game at 1:15 p.m on Sunday:
Q: Do you think there's someone, based on 20/20 hindsight, who might be able to address this situation? Where did the switch occur, and was it automated, or done by a person following orders?
A: The switch was made by CBS which was following the NFL's secondary market TV policy which states that Los Angeles is a secondary market for the Chargers. All secondary markets must carry in their entirety all road games of their local team. Los Angeles has been a secondary market for the Chargers for at least the past 35 years.
Q: Who can explain why it benefits L.A. to be a secondary-market team of the Chargers if these kinds of things happen?
A: This is based on location of the market - the Los Angeles TV affiliates' signals reach within 75 miles of the Chargers stadium. This benefits Chargers fans in the Los Angeles area who were counting on watching Chargers-Patriots in its entirety.
Q: Can someone explain more protocol on why this happened, versus a forward-thinking person making a judgment based on the fact that an L.A. viewer just invested three hours of watching a game they weren't allowed to see end?
Q: The policy here is not Los Angeles-centric. The same switch to the later game happened in primary and secondary markets for all road teams playing on CBS at 4:15 PM ET on Sunday. This switch follows a TV policy which promises to show road games of the local team in their entirety. If the Chargers had scored a touchdown on the first drive of the game, the team's fans in the Los Angeles market would have missed a key play for a game they were told they were going to get in its entirety.
Q: Here's another way to look at it: ESPN's policy is to stay with a game until it ends. They may direct viewers to another channel (ESPN2, or Classic or whatever) for the start of a game that's coming up and overlapping. Could CBS have moved the start of the Chargers-Patriots to CBS Sports Network cable channel?
A: NFL policy is to stay with the game you start through to its conclusion, unless a switch is necessary to show the local team's game in its entirety. ESPN shows a single game in a national window. That's different from the situation we are talking about with a regionalized game on broadcast television, so switching to a cable outlet is not an option.
Q: Could there have been a split screen -- like CBS has done with the NCAA tournament?
A: No.
Q: What happens in the future if this comes up again -- there are two more cases where CBS has a doubleheader and the Chargers have a road game that starts at 1:15 p.m.? It's a huge disservice to L.A. viewers -- whether or not they follow the Raiders still -- if there's no credible explanation.
A: When situations like this arise in the future, we will take a look at them. We always review our policies and seek ways to improve them. But keep in mind that we have to balance many different factors and conflicting audience desires.
On one end, you've got the creation of Grantland.com, the dreamwork of Bill Simmons and the financial muscle of ESPN backing it up.
Over on this end, there's another classic approach to getting quality sportswriting to the masses.
When we had first come across (linked here) the concept of a sports website called The Classical a few weeks ago, soliciting seed money pledges that would get it to a $50,000 goal so it could launch by Sept. 29, we noted that 98 had signed up, kicked in $3,542 at that point, and there were 44 days to go.
Checking back with 10 days to go, it appears to have reached its goal. And even a little more pocket change -- nearly 1,000 backers are there now, about a grand past the goal, with more probably coming.
Using the website kickstarter.com, which helps groups raise money to fund projects such as plays, technology, documentaries and video games, this New York-based group of experienced sportswriters put out there an idea of wanting to deliver a product "the way that smart people talk about sports," and not make it just another blog or Tumblr. The start-up money will fund a budget for one year to keep at least two people working on it fulltime while "we show and prove ourselves."
You can see by the site (linked here) that one backer kicked in $5,000, but it's the little ones that add up: 163 kicked in $50, 283 had $25, 173 went with $10, 104 had $5 and 43 just was OK with $1.
It adds up, eh? Maybe it will even allow them by buy the domain name www.theclassical.com.
Check out the site for more info on the writers pulling this together, their credentials, and their vision statement.
And, for what it's worth, note that Simmons was voted the No. 1 in the "five biggest jerks in sports" by Maxim magazine in its October issue (Frank McCourt was No. 5) for being the "most popular sportswriter in America (and) also the most thin-skinned."
Highlights of the week ahead in sports, both here and afar:
THIS WEEK'S BEST BETS
Reality show series premieres: "Dancing With The Stars," Season 13, tonight and Tuesday at 8 p.m., Channel 7; "Amazing Race," Season 19, Sunday at 8 p.m., Channel 2:
Metta World Artest Wurrier, or something like that, is on one side of the dance floor, and TV week. World-famous around-the-globe sailor Zac Sunderland is over on the other end, taking on some water. Someday, maybe, they'll meet in the middle of the week on "Survivor." But until then, the ultimate goal for both the Lakers' forward and the Thousand Oaks wunderkind is surviving this latest incarnation of the battle of the reality show stars.
Give Peace a chance here. He's one of two athletes (with soccer goalie Hope Solo, here with her instructor below) who've been recruited to the recurring dance-off taped in L.A., even though the series is very close to slipping on its own banana appeal. Jocks have had the inside track on winning this tango, following in the footsteps of Emmitt Smith, Apolo Ono, Helio Castroneves, Kristi Yamaguchi, Shawn Johnson and Hines Ward. Note: There's never been an NBA dancin' fool. Mostly because the league is full tilt by this time and it's unavoidable.
Over the next 10 weeks, Artest/Peace may hope for some NBA labor peace happening sooner rather than later. When asked by ESPNLA.com earlier this week during his rehersals if it was more fun than he expected, Artest responded: "Definitely. When I first envisioned myself ever doing 'Dancing With The Stars' ... I'm like, 'No. Impossible. I'm not doing that. I could never ever move like that because it looks like a female.' But now that you're actually doing it, it's not that bad, you know? ... I'm sure when my friends see it, they're just gonna kill me." Maybe not when they realize you're donating all your money, starting with the $125,000 appearance fee, to the Cancer Research Foundation, on behalf of his daughter. Our solo hope: Just finish ahead of Chaz Bono.
Meanwhile, when we last saw Kid Sunderland, he was helping rescue his sister, Abby, out of the Indian Ocean when her attempt to beat his record for youngest solo navigator around the planet capsized on her. Here, the 19-year-old Zac is joined by his dad, Laurence, in another adventure.
"We've had to work together in the yachting arena," Laurence says of helping his son achieve his world sailing record. "[There] you don't play for points or money - you play for life." Among the 11 new teams (linked here) are also Olympic snowboarders Andy Finch and Tommy Czeschin, as well as former NFL player Marcus Pollard and his wife Amani. According to spies who report to Wikipedia (linked here), taping of the show started in mid-June as teams were "seen leaving Los Angeles International Airport and heading to Taiwan." By plane? That's way too easy.
MONDAY
MLB: Angels at Toronto, 4:07 p.m., FSW:
Did you know Canadian bacon is actually ham? While the AL West lead is slipping further away, the Angels have four days in Toronto to figure out if they're still going to come home involved in this thing.
MLB: St. Louis at Philadelphia, 4 p.m., MLB Network:
Just another day for Roy Halladay, and his Cy candidacy. Watch and learn, Clayton.
NFL: St. Louis at N.Y. Giants, 5:30 p.m., ESPN:
One giant leap for ESPN viewers, and a week removed from any 9/11 remembrances.
TUESDAY
MLB: Dodgers vs. San Francisco, Dodger Stadium, 7:10 p.m., Channel 9:
The Dodgers' home schedule comes full circle. It started on March 31 against the Giants with Clayton Kershaw against Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum and the defending World Series champs, and now it's against a Giants team that won't be able to catch Arizona for the NL West lead -- but Cy Young candidate Kershaw is going after his 20th win, while Lincecum would settle for his record not dropping to .500. Prediction: Kershaw picks up the win, and the Big Panda doesn't hit for the cycle. The last two games of the season at Dodger Stadium are Wednesday and Thursday (both at 7:10 p.m., Prime).
MLB: Tampa Bay at N.Y. Yankees, 4 p.m., MLB Network:
East coast bias? Of course. The Rays play seven of their last 10 against the AL East leaders, scrambling for a wildcard spot. Will the Yankees help the Red Sox out here?
WEDNESDAY
NHL exhibition: Kings vs. Phoenix, Staples Center, 7:30 p.m.:
Ice it up. The Kings and Ducks will also square off Sunday (6:30 p.m.) at the Lakers' abandoned home near L.A. Live.
THURSDAY
Golf: PGA Tour Championship, first round, 10 a.m., Golf Channel:
From the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, with Coke sponsoring everything, comes the final 30 left in the FedEx Chase for the Ginormous Glass Cup (is that what it's called again)? Golf Channel has the second round Friday while NBC has the last two rounds (Saturday and Sunday at 10 a.m.). Winner gets $1.4 mil and, perhaps, the whole vat of flavored sugar water.
FRIDAY
Movie: "Moneyball," theatres nationwide:
Women will watch it for Brad Pitt. Men will watch it to see how Brad Pitt pulls off being Billy Beane, and if the baseball scenes are realistic enough with Jonah Hill as a main character. That kind of compromise could turn this into the pits.
MLB: Angels vs. Oakland, Angel Stadium, 7:05 p.m., FSW:
Here's the real "Moneyball" series -- Beane's A's trying to keep the Angels from the playoff payoff. Are the Angels coming home still involved in the AL West race, or just wandering toward the finish line? The home stretch comes back to the Athletics back in town, where the Angels won two of three against them back in Oakland last week. The series finishes up Saturday (6:05 p.m., Channel 13, with a cool gumball machine giveaway) and Sunday (12:35 p.m., FSW).
MLB: Dodgers at San Diego, 7:05 p.m., Prime:
The next-to-last series of the year drags on Saturday (5:35 p.m., Prime) and Sunday (1:05 p.m., Prime).
SATURDAY
College football: USC at Arizona State, 7:15 p.m., ESPN:
The 3-0 Trojans hit the road for the first time, facing their first true "test" - -against a Sun Devils team that just lost to Illinois.
College football: UCLA at Oregon State, 12:30 p.m., Prime Ticket:
We cannot guarantee that Rick Neuheisel will make this trip to Corvallis, but we just know it'll be over quickly. Because it's a day game again.
College football: Notre Dame at Pittsburgh, 9 a.m., ESPN:; Oregon at Arizona, 7:15 p.m., ESPN2; Cal at Washington, 12:30 p.m., FSW:
Keep the camera on Brian Kelly. He may explode this week.
MLS: Galaxy at Columbus, 4:30 p.m., FSW:
A Southern California football team visits Ohio State territory on a fall afternoon.
SUNDAY
Horse racing: Final day at Pomona Fairplex, first post, 1 p.m.:
Can astronauts make a satellite wager from anywhere in space for these races? Can they also order deep-friend butter sticks that are available to fans entering this arena?
NFL Pittsburgh at Indianapolis, 5:15 p.m., Channel 4:
It looked good about a month ago. Really good. Sorry, no flex schedule for a few weeks.
MLB: Boston at N.Y. Yankees, 10 a.m., TBS; San Francisco at Arizona, 1 p.m., TBS:
Hey batta: Get used to this network's coverage: It begins its playoff schedule on Sept. 30. For better or not-so-better.
Beach volleyball: Hermosa Beach Open, 3 p.m., Versus:
Where summer is endless. Except this marks the end of the somewhat abbreviated pro beach volleyball tour. Sorry. Next summer: The Olympics in London.
At 1:13 p.m. today, San Diego kicked Oakland to the curb in the Los Angeles' TV market.
Raiders' viewers who already invested three hours into watching their team take a 35-31 lead at Buffalo with 27 seconds left were faced with this: The Bills approaching the line of scrimmage, third and 10 from the Raiders' 15, about to take a shot at the end zone and possibly seize the lead.
Then a scroll came across the screen on the KCBS-Channel 2 coverage, and a voice said: "Due to contractual obligations, we now leave this game to bring you the start of your next scheduled game after these words from your local station."
The scroll indicated we'd be going to San Diego's game at New England.
"Obligated?" Yes, because, as we've seen in the past, the NFL-less Los Angeles is a secondary TV market to the neighbors to the south, the San Diego Chargers -- meaning, we are force-fed Chargers games under league guidelines.
Why? Because, is all we're told.
You thought 16 years later, after having no team in L.A., someday we'd have the picnic of getting the best games possible, and actually seeing the finish of one that we'd already decided to watch from the start at 10 a.m.?
Imagine if you're the one at the switch having to make that call, knowing the backlash, but just following a lame rule.
Before the shotgun snap even took place with Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick calling signals, the swirling CBS logo came up, followed by a commercial for McDonald's sausage McMuffins, one for a cell phone company, another for Nissan, one more for McDonald's extra-value menu, a station promo the "CSI" season premiere, and then an areal shot of with Jim Nantz proclaiming: "Looking down at Gillette Stadium in Foxoboro, Mass. -- Chargers, Patriots ... hello friends."
Nantz and Phil Simms bantered a bit, sized up the weather conditions, and eventually kickoff occured.
Meanwhile, back in Buffalo ...
While we're not obligated to tell you what happened with the end of Oakland-Buffalo, the scroll roll at the bottom of the screen said at 1:17 p.m. that Buffalo took a 37-35 lead with 14 seconds left. A minute later, CBS left the Chargers-Patriots game and went back to the New York studio where James Brown narrated the game-winning play: Fitzpatrick hitting tight end David Nelson on fourth-down to go ahead. The PAT made it 38-35.
Eight minutes later, the Chargers-Pats game was switched to the studio for the replay of the Raiders' Hail Mary attempt to win, a pass intercepted in the end zone that could have been caught for a game-winning TD.
A KCBS-Channel 2 spokesman suggested we contact a CBS spokesperson. The network referred us to an NFL spokesman. The NFL offered neither an apology nor an offer to revisit the policy to see if it can altered in future weeks.
"Los Angeles is a secondary market for the Chargers," said NFL TV spokesman Dan Masonson. "All secondary markets must carry in their entirety all road games of their local team."
That's all your obligated to say?
"We have nothing to add, that is the policy," he said.
You can revisit the contract, right? You can admit this was a mistake and the rules of this could have been more flexable, correct?
At ESPN, the network policy is to stay until the end of the game, even if it means joining the next one late. Of course, ESPN can always direct viewers to another channel (ESPN2, Classic, etc.) to see the finish. NBC has directed people to its cable channel, Versus, when an NHL playoff game runs long.
What's CBS' options? Or Fox? Apparently with the NFL, it's cut and dried. And their answer -- then go pay $300-plus for DirecTV's "NFL Sunday Ticket."
But that completely misses the point.
"Heidi" and seek, my friends.
It may not have been as important as the so-called "Heidi Bowl" of 1968 (linked here) -- when the Raiders' comeback win over the N.Y. Jets wasn't seen by NBC audiences because the start of the movie "Heidi" aired at 7 p.m. as scheduled.
And know this, Raider fan: If the roles were reversed, and the Chargers were coming down to the wire in a game, and your game was scheduled to come on next, the NFL would stay with the Chargers until it ended.
So maybe it was a public service, as it turned out, that you didn't see how it ended. But you'd at least deserved that right.
Charge this one to our accounts should the Chargers officially move back to L.A. and really obligate us to watch their games.
And if it's any consolation: NFL Network will replay the Raiders-Bills game Wednesday at 5 p.m. PT. Uninterrupted in the final 27 seconds.
The Associated Press
SEATTLE -- With his grandkids crawling all over his bronzed likeness, the Seattle Mariners honored late Hall of Fame broadcaster Dave Niehaus today with the first statue in franchise history.
The sculpture sits on the right field concourse of Safeco Field and the radio booth where Niehaus called hundreds of games serves as the backdrop.
"When I first saw the pictures of the clay version of this amazing statue, I cried with a smile on my face," Niehaus' widow, Marilyn, said during today's ceremony.
"He would be humbled by this honor. I know his family is."
The image created by Chicago artist Lou Cella is of Niehaus, who was the Mariners' lead broadcaster from the first game in franchise history through the end of the 2010 season, sitting behind a desk wearing a headset, with a scorebook and microphone on the desktop.
Today's episode of the Ellen DeGeneres Show (Channel 4, 4 p.m.) will bring back the Galaxy's David Beckham to do a spot-on hidden-camera stunt where he's posing as an employee at Target trying to get women to smell his new perfume.
The kicker: Ellen is in the studio, feeding Beckham all his lines.
Ellen: "It's a very rustic scent."
Becks: "It's a very rough expense."
Even better is when Becks gets the women to smell it after he's sprayed it on his leg. And tries to convince them he's from Australia. And Texas.
"If you stink, come and buy cologne."
See the video above. Thanks to the Galaxy official site for posting it.
Don't get lost in the ratings numbers of the Emmy Awards ceremonies or viewership of the Eagles-Falcons game on Sunday night -- at least DVR the new MLB Network special, "Behind the Seams: The Stat Story" (7 p.m.), just in time for the release of the movie "Moneyball" this coming week.
Bob Costas narrates the special produced by MLB Productions that looks at the evolution of statistics as a means of measuring success in baseball. Those interviewed include the numbers' biggest drivers: SABRmetrics guru and Boston Red Sox senior adviser on baseball operationsBill James, Elias Sports Bureau's Steve Hirdt, MLB's official historian John Thorn, Baseball-Reference.com's Sean Forman, Sports Illustrated's Joe Sheehan, Fangraphs.com contributor Jonah Keri, New York Times writer Alan Schwarz, Rotisserie League Baseball creator Dan Okrent and SB Nation's Rob Neyer discussing the history of baseball statistics, highlighted by the formation of the Society for American Baseball Research.
An MLB Productions crew spent five days at the 41st annual SABR convention this summer in Long Beach taping interviews with members of the organization for the special.
Current general managers, managers and players, including Sandy Alderson, Billy Beane, Tony La Russa and the Angels' Jered Weaver explain how in-depth statistical research have influenced their decisions in baseball today and the growth of fantasy baseball, and Hall of Famers Lou Brock, Tony Gwynn, Tommy Lasorda and Earl Weaver describe the advantages and disadvantages to using statistics during games.
Adds Weaver: "When you're doing good, all the fantasy players say, "Hey, I'm so glad I picked you up." But if you're not doing so good they start talking about who they want to trade you for. [Fantasy players say,] "I'm getting ready to trade you if you keep this up."
Lasorda may be familier with the line: "Numbers are like a French hooker -- you can do anything you want with them."
The former Dodgers manager says in the piece: "Today, they manage with statistics. You can't do it. Statistics are lies. Believe me, they're lies."
UPDATED: 8:45 a.m.
A link to today's media column (linked here), which focuses more into Jay Mariotti's media comeback options now that his personal issues seem to have been resolved (along with a cyberbook tour), the NFL ratings from Week 1 and why Dan Le Batard's dad could have his own TV show with Petro Papadakis' father ... or something like that.
What it doesn't include: Why Jason Smith has left ESPN Radio (he announced Thursday night that he's got a new gig with the Culver City-based NFL Network, starting Sunday, hosting "NFL Fantasy Live" and writing for nfl.com). "All Night With Jason Smith" has been on since he replaced Todd Wright in September, of 2005. He had worked for KSPN-AM (710) before that, and did his ESPN Radio national show out of the ESPN studios in L.A. Live the last couple of years.
Or why Brian Kenney has also left ESPN for the MLB Network. He starts studio work on Monday.
With Smith, Dan Patrick, Tony Bruno and Erik Kuselias gone from ESPN Radio, and Scott Van Pelt and Doug Gottlieb still around, what does the national side still have to offer. If you said Colin Cowherd and Mike & Mike .... sorry.
A 15-year deal announced today between Time Warner Cable and the CIF state offices means that the cable company becomes the "official distributor" of the state and regional championship events starting with the football playoffs at Home Depot Center in December.
Those events have regularily been televised on Fox Sports Net throughout the state with the help of Comcast Cable distributing it in the northern part of the state.
TWC will have a minimum of 60 games to produce for cable TV, the internet and mobile platforms, with a minimum of 80 games throughout the life of the deal.
CIF executive director Marie M. Ishida called it an "unprecidented partnership tha twill bring exposure to CIF schools and athletes like never before."
It is not clear yet whether TWC will sell programming of the games to Fox Sports Net to continue televising it.
Recently, Time Warner Cable purchased the rights to distribute Lakers home and road regular season games on its own cable channel, starting in 2012, but no deals have been announced for what cable systems will be allowed to carry that network.
One of the latest staples to the Staples Center Experience is getting used to the new 4D high-def videoboard, where occasionally you can find the score and time of game mixed in with all the other flashing, strobing and iris-searing visuals.
Add to that a mega sound system, and we're definitely ready to blow the hinges off this office supply store.
Staples Center, starting its 13th year of existence, announced today a new $3.4 million JBL Professional Vertec Audio System, which they say is "a premier loudspeaker system that is in use worldwide to support numerous international tours and special events. ...
"The sound system upgrade was due in large part to address the arena's need to provide the best audio system and technology available on the market to its tenant teams and national touring productions and concerts, as well as for special events like professional boxing. "
The arena "needed" the upgrade? Or someone decided it wasn't loud enough already.
Part of the gagetry, they say, is a Wi-Fi tablet that remotely adjusts delay times, EQ, and levels, so there's better coverage throughout the building.
Sorry, but all the subtleties here aren't something we're bound to hear, with this perpetual ringing already in our ears from previous Staples Center events.
"Technology has grown tremendously since we opened Staples Center in 1999 and as part of our overall annual upgrades we decided it was time for us to improve our audio system," said Lee Zeidman, the arena's general manager, managing to avoid tweeting about the new and improved subwoofers and tweeters.
Thanks, but we'll probably just put on our Bose headphones and enjoy the visual experience as best we can.
Longtime listener, perhaps first-time caller Larry King made it clear that he's dropping his Dodgers' season seats after this season because of his disappointment with Frank McCourt's running of the franchise.
Calling in today to the MLB Network Radio channel on SiriusXM today to vent with hosts Kevin Kennedy and Jim Duquette, the former CNN talk-show host said:
"My contract's up on my season tickets. I'm in partnership with another guy. We're not renewing and the reason we're not renewing is that I think we spent $400 a ticket for a guy to, instead of bidding on any free agent, spent the money on himself. And that to me is inexcusable. And I know Frank McCourt personally, I don't dislike him personally, but he does not belong as an owner of a baseball team in my opinion."
The Brooklyn native King, who only turns 78 this fall, made his intial call to the show to go on a rant about the fact the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw was ejected from Wednesday's game after hitting Arizona's Gerardo Parra in the top of the sixth inning.
"I am really ticked at that incredibly stupid call last night by Major League Baseball and (home plate umpire) Bill Welke in throwing out Kershaw," said King. "I've gone to a lot of baseball in my years. That was dumb, beyond dumb.
"I like umpires...but when umpires take control, more of their control of the game rather than the game playing itself, and they last night took away a chance, the kid was pitching unbelievable. He might win the Cy Young Award. He's already pitched to the guy (Parra) and never threw at him, he's throwing a one-hitter, and the guy leaned in and got hit slightly on the wrist, never hurt, ran down to first base.
"And the umpire not only throws him out, throws him out like he's trying out for a movie to be with (Arnold) Schwarzenegger, a violent heave of the hands like the world has come to an end.
"No one has told Kershaw that if you throw near him you're out, and no one has told (manager Don) Mattingly. The whole thing is a joke. I'd love to hear an explanation by (MLB executive and former Dodgers manager Joe) Torre, Welke and the league. That should not go unheeded because I know that umpires can sometimes run amok. But that was bizarre."
Nearly as bizarre as King thinking he could call into a talk show and actually make perfect sense.
Bill Belichick may not have the stage presence of Bill Bellamy. Or even Billy Barty.
But despite what you may think, something seems to click with "Bill Belichick: A Football Life," which launches tonight (6 p.m., NFL Network).
The New England Patroits' otherwise too-bland-for-TV head coach allowed NFL Films to hook him with a microphone for the entire 2009 season and edit it into a two-part documentary. The second part airs Sept. 22 at 7 p.m.
The attempt of NFL Films here is to create a series with unprecended asses to an individual, to tell their stories as they move through their life in the NFL. Future episodes will focus on Kurt Warner, Walter Payton and the late Reggie White.
"Bill Belichick doesn't only make history - he studies it; he understands his place in it; and he appreciates our desire to capture it," said NFL Films President Steve Sabol. "Like Vince Lombardi's Packers in 1967, Belichick and the Patriots gave us access to his football life and what we created is a portrait of the coach, the father, the taskmaster - and most importantly - the man."
Actor Josh Charles narrates it. A quick preview (linked here).
So here's a construction truck, driving down the street recently. Apparently in search of a particular kind of pipe to use on his next job.
Bag it. The NFL's on. It can wait.
Here's what the networks have to offer those without DirecTV's "Sunday Ticket":
== Oakland-Buffalo, 10 a.m. on Channel 2 (with Kevin Harlan and Solomon Wilcots)
== Chicago-New Orleans, 10 a.m. on Channel 11 (with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman)
== San Diego-New England, 1 p.m. on Channel 2 (with Jim Nantz and Phil Simms)
== Philadelphia-Atlanta, 5:15 p.m. on Channel 4 (with Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth).
Why it matters?
A record 107.4 million viewers flocked to Week 1 of the NFL, according to Nielsen's numbers for games televised between Sept. 8-12 on Fox, CBS, NBC and ESPN. That translates into the most-watched opening weekend ever in league history.
NBC's prime-time lineup benefitted the most, having more than 27 million viewers for its Sept. 8 New Orleans-Green Bay Thursday night opener, and then 25 million more for Sunday's Dallas-N.Y. Jets contest on 9/11. It didn't hurt that both went down to the final minute before the outcome was determined. The top six highest-rated prime-time TV shows for the week of Sept. 5-11 were those two football games and related pre-game shows and NFL specials.
In all 30 NFL markets, the NFL was the top-ranked TV event, and it was tops in 53 of Nielsen's 56 metered markets - including L.A.
Fox's Sunday afternoon national window of the N.Y. Giants-Washington game had 25.8 million viewers as well. The L.A. market was initially slated to get that game, but KTTV-Channel 11 made a late switch to carry Minnesota at San Diego when the Chargers sold out. With that game drawing a 10.2 rating in L.A., there's more than 800,000 viewers that could have been added to the Giants-Redskins total.
The viewership spike comes despite the fact fewer watched ESPN's "Monday Night Football" doubleheader than did in 2010. The New England-Miami game had 14.6 million viewers (down 3 percent from the N.Y. Jets-Baltimore game a year ago), and the Oakland-Denver game had 11.1 million viewers (down 7 percent from San Diego-Kansas City last year).
How much can the NFL break this stuff down?
It notes in a press release that the Cowboys-Jets was the first meeting in five years between starting quarterbacks with Hispanic heritage. Meaning, the lure of Mark Sanchez and Tony Romo were responsible for the fact that "Sunday Night Football" had a record 2.74 million Hispanic viewers?
The Associated Press
Tim Shriver, the CEO and President of Special Olympics, addresses the Staples Center crowd during the announcement today that the 2015 Summer Games will be held in Los Angeles.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver was "always the master of the bait and switch," said her son, Tim, with a slight grin.
"She was great at gathering everyone together to believe they were going to meet some 'real big stars,'" he said, "but eventually we'd realize that we were about to meet some other kinds of 'real' stars."
Those would be the competitors for the Special Olympics, an organization Eunice Kennedy Shriver started with a summer day camp in 1963 to help empower children and adults with intellectual disabilities through sports and therapeutic physical fitness.
In a city already chock full of Hollywood's brightest, Los Angeles will see things in a whole special light with the formal announcement Wednesday that the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games are officially a Southern California event.
Tim Shriver, Eunice's third-oldest of five children and the current chairman and CEO of Special Olympics, told a Staples Center press conference audience that included his sister and former California first lady, Maria, that L.A. will "be a home to our call for global action to teach everyone that nobody is a 'nobody.' . . . you can look to Special Olympics to learn about courage, guts and raw determination."
In less than four years from now, some 7,000 Special Olympic athletes from the four million who compete worldwide in 170 nations will descent upon Southern California, along with about 3,000 coaches, in what is being called the "largest humanitarian event" on the planet.
With the campuses of USC and UCLA designated as the Olympic villages, there will be 21 sports staged, open to the public and free of charge, in places such as Long Beach (sailing and rowing), Home Depot Center in Carson (soccer, tennis), Griffith Park (golf, cycling) and the L.A. Equestrian Center.
USC will also be used for track and field, basketball and swimming, while UCLA will host volleyball, judo, gymnastics, soccer and power lifting.The South Hall of the L.A. Convention Center will be put to use for bocce ball, roller skating, table tennis and team handball.
All of this will generate the need for some 40,000 volunteers, said Pat McClenahan, the president and CEO of the 2015 Special Olympics Organizing Committee.
"It's a huge responsibility and we are glad to accept it," said McClenahan, a former longtime TV executive in Southern California whose 24 year old daughter, Kelly, is a Special Olympic athlete with cerebral palsy.
UPDATED: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday:
Did Jay Mariotti beat the system? It beat him up pretty good, thanks for asking.
The former Chicago Sun-Times columnist who ventured out to AOL Fanhouse and ESPN "Around The Horn" bellower pleaded no contest today to bargained-down misdemeanor charges of stalking and assault connected with a former girlfriend, and was sentenced to 90 days community service, a year of counseling and five years probation.
Basically, so he could leave it all behind. Somewhat.
Attorney Shawn Holley said her client maintained his innocence and pleaded no contest as a "practical consideration in light of the expense and unpredictability of trial. ...
"Although Mr. Mariotti would have liked to have told his side of the story at trial, the fact that he is an accomplished writer provided him another avenue, in this case a book, to tell his side in an unconventional but progressive manner."
So, as far as the system goes, the last words here will come from Mariotti, in a Kindle, $8.99 version of a 328 KB book he's written called "The System" (linked here).
The Amazon.com description calls it "a raw, revealing, hold-nothing-back look at his eventful life. Mariotti takes the reader to places most authors do not, detailing his ordeal in a Los Angeles court case -- the lies, run-arounds and suspicious machinations involving police, prosecutors, lawyers and a money-seeking opportunist -- at a time when the justice system is being examined more critically than ever.
"Mariotti also rewinds a career filled with powerful experiences, fond memories, cautionary tales and a relentless trail of tumult and personal hardship. Whether he's maneuvering through the corruption of the Chicago media industry, covering the rock-star career of Jordan, enduring a heart attack while on assignment in Katrina-ravaged New Orleans or dealing with a homophobic slur that became a national story, Mariotti recounts his three decades in journalism, including his travels around the world while following the biggest events, greatest athletes and most notable stories. He is a survivor who cuts through the traditional filters of his industry -- and the one he covers -- to deliver what people should know about sports, the media, the legal system and life in 21st-century America."
Mariotti emailed us a copy of the book in PDF form, and we've started reading.
Ever see the movie "Something Wild" with Jeff Daniels and Melanie Griffith in 1986? There's a starting point.
Mariotti describes his something of a mid-life crisis, escapes Chicago for L.A., gets involved with a woman, and his life is turned upside down because he stepped in a trap.
This is his account of the whole thing, starting with a chapter that reads "Used and Abused" and begins:
"At this point I might suggest children turn away and watch 'Glee.' I am exposing intimate details of a difficult relationships, a hard lesson for those too trusting about romance and shortsighted motives."
Mariotti explains how between the legal system and this woman, he probably spent more than $700,000 to try to get himself free -- that includes losing three jobs along the way, including a sports-talk gig at 710-AM KSPN.
You can follow him on a new (for legal reasons) Twitter account -- @MariottiJ -- where just a few minutes ago he wrote: "The book should answer all questions and serves as a cautionary tale for those in the public eye in the 21st century."
We'll talk to him as soon as we're finished with the manuscript.
Brooke and Andy Collins, on their wedding day, July 23, 2011.
The moment came two minutes into the first telecast of the rest of her life.
Brooke Collins was on the sidelines, but almost lost in the shadows cast by the portable lights at tiny Fitton Field in Worcester, Mass., as the school was hosting the first night game in its 116 years of existence.
She got the cue in her ear from the producer. She looked into the camera.
The smile on her face lit everything up.
"Is there anything cooler than a night game?" she asked just prior to kickoff for the UMass-Holy Cross college football game - the Sept. 1 season-opening telecast for the CBS Sports Network. "I don't think so."
A couple of moments later, she sent it back up to the booth. She could exhale.
"When I heard them say my name, for the first time, it was a peaceful, wonderful thing," she said a couple of days later. "Yeah, I am Brooke Collins."
The wife of the late Andy Collins, who suddenly died exactly one month earlier, at age 27.
#######
They were only married for 10 days.
Two and a half years ago, Brooke Olzendam, a Spokane native and Washington State grad, was living in Redondo Beach, doing sideline reporting on UCLA games for FSWest. She had been gained exposure in the business for her work hosting Fox Sports Net's "Runnin' With The Pac" magazine show.
Andy Collins, a Washington native recruited to play quarterback at the University of Oregon, never got to see that happen. After a redshirt year in 2002, he transferred to Eastern Washington, and then found a quarterback spot for three years at Occidental College from 2004-06.
The conference's three-time offensive player of the year led his teams to an incredible 27-0 run in the regular season while he was calling signals. At 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, he threw for 2,189 yards and 26 touchdowns, with eight interceptions as a senior, ranking 12th in Division III in total offense.
The NFL's New York Giants invited him to training camp. But at this point, he was just trying to stick with an Arena League team -- this time, with the L.A. Avengers.
Not as a QB, but as a linebacker. He was one of the team's final cuts at the start the 2008 season, but they kept him as a practice squad player.
So it was this one night when the two happened to be at Nikki Beach, a bar in Venice. Neither had intentions of going out that night, but Brooke had a friend in town who wanted to see L.A., so she obliged. Andy left only to make sure his friend, Peter Gallagher, a Hollywood talent agent, had a ride.
Brooke and Andy eventually were introduced and connected immediately as they talked about their Washington state roots and their love of sports. By the time 4 a.m. rolled around, they shared a cab ride back to Andy's home. They exchanged phone numbers, knowing they'd see each other again.
Andy had always thought he was going to be a Catholic priest someday. As he kept seeing Brooke and wanting to know if he was making the right choice, he once went home and said he needed a week to pray about his calling.
It only took him a couple of days to realized he knew he wanted to be with her.
Andy kept trying to hook on with indoor football teams up and down the West Coast, as Brooke kept working on goal to ascend in the sports TV business, working in Portland and parts of the Northwest.
After Andy proposed to her in San Francisco on Valentine's Day weekend last February, they knew they'd be going at this thing together.
On Saturday, July 23, they were married in Seattle with some 300 guests present, many from Southern California.
But their honeymoon really wasn't a honeymoon. Brooke had to start on a new job.
They flew to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., after Brooke turned down a chance to work in Portland near her family, convinced by Andy to take a position with CBSSports.com. The company wanted her to host a fantasy football show as well as do live news updates and report for the website. She would also work for the cable network as a sideline reporter.
Andy, who missed playing football in 2009 because of a torn MCL, couldn't come back from a shoulder injury while with the indoor Tri-Cities Fever in 2010. He admitted his dream to play pro football was probably over.
His thoughts turned to going back to school to be a physician's assistant. Meanwhile, his good looks and athletic build could keep landing him roles in TV commercials.
Most of their belongings were in Brooke's SUV that was being shipped on a cross-country journey from Washington to Florida.
They'd have their official honeymoon, maybe on one of the islands off the Florida Keys, sometime in the next few weeks.
There was no rush.
#######
"Anyone who met Andy for the first time . . . it was overwhelming, he was like a Disney character, just larger than life," said Brooke.
It has taken her more than a month, Brooke admits, to finding the inner strength to discuss, other than with family members, this surreal experience in her life over the last several weeks.
There'd be some moments of pausing, collecting her thoughts, laughing at things that happened in their relationships that her mom once described as "watching a couple of 13-year-olds" enjoying each other's company.
But this was time, she said, to let everyone know the kind of man he was, as she was able to see it through this brief window.
On Monday afternoon, Aug. 1, Brooke and Andy were in their hotel room, about to go to dinner to meet some of Brooke's new colleagues at CBS. They had done some house hunting earlier in the day.
Andy asked if Brooke if she wanted to head down with him to the workout room.
"We only had 45 minutes before we had to leave," Brooke said. "I was in charge that morning to do the ironing.
"I asked him what he was going to wear, a T-shirt or a collared shirt, because whatever he decided, that would determine if I had enough time. He picked a collared shirt, because he joked that he wanted to impress my new bosses. So I started ironing.
"I told him the shirt would be ready up in the room when he was done and I'd meet him in the lobby."
When she eventually went downstairs, Andy wasn't around yet. She phoned him. She texted him. Three times. No response.
A few minutes later, a fire truck pulled up in front the hotel at about 6 p.m., and paramedics rushed through.
"It just had the weirdest feeling," she said. "I ran back up to the room, and nothing had been moved."
One of the EMTs called Brooke from Andy's cellphone. He said Andy had lost consciousness while on the treadmill. A nurse who was at the pool nearby started to try to resuscitate him. An ambulance arrived, and Brooke, in a daze, rode along to the hospital.
"Then, I just lost it," she said. "We were in there 20 minutes, alone together in a room, and I could tell from everyone's demeanor, something was really wrong. They were trying to calm me down but . . .
"Then there was a priest giving him his last rights. I just kept saying, 'Please, come back.'
"I was holding his hand when they said he was gone."
Andy had suffered an apparent fatal heart attack. Preliminary autopsy reports is he had a condition where the arteries near his heart was smaller than normal, causing him to exert nearly 10 times the extra effort to do the things a normal person would do.
"This was the healthiest person I knew," Brooke said. "Looking back, now I know why he'd get tired so quickly. He hated running, which is so strange since he was in such great shape."
#######
The prayer card given out at Andy Collins' funeral on Aug. 7, 2011 included this meditation from Cardinal John Newman (linked here): "I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons ..."
Brooke says she has no recollection of what happened after that. Somehow, her mother arrived on a red eye and they flew back to Spokane in a daze.
A week later, a funeral was held in Andy's hometown of Zillah, Wash. Many of their friends who had just flown up for the wedding were back now to say goodbye.
Andy's coach at Occidental, Dale Widolff, called him the "best player to play for us in the 30 years I've been there. No one was even close."
Dozens more spoke from the heart during his rosary.
"I already knew he was an amazing person, but I didn't know everyone else did, too," said Brooke. "I was getting emails from people telling me about how he changed their life - not just because of his faith, but how, because he died so young, they want to take better care of their husbands, listen more to their children, just be a better person in general."
Brooke had realized by then how much Andy had changed her life. He used to kiddingly call her "IG," as in "instant gratification," trying to get her to reflect on her impulsive behavior and examine her priorities.
He had got her to attend church more often - "and he never missed Mass, anywhere," she said. "We'd be in a city somewhere, and we'd have to find a church.
"But all the decisions he made were for the right reasons. He had the will and sacrifice to do the right things. I learned so much more about making better decisions. He really brought faith back into my life. I'll never be able to thank him enough for that."
#######
Understandably, Brooke was very close to not returning to TV work. Not earlier this month. Not even this season.
She said she had been "in bed for weeks, in the fetal position" and didn't want to face the world.
She still hasn't looked at their wedding pictures, and has had her mom help return their wedding gifts, some of which were converted to gift cards and donated to some of Andy and Brooke's favorite charities.
It was only when Brooke decided to see what would happened if she tried to do some prep work for the Sept. 1 UMass-Holy Cross assignment that some normalcy set in.
"It was the first two hours in the last 17 days that I hadn't cried," she said. "That was the only thing that I could focus on to take away the pain. Then I almost felt guilty about it.
"My mom said it was up to me if I wanted to do the game, but she noticed it was the only thing I seemed to be able to do without losing it. It was just so cathartic."
There were some changes in the broadcast team that Brooke was part of at CBS last year. But because Aaron Taylor, the former Notre Dame star offensive tackle, was still part of the crew as a game analyst with Jim Bates, she felt some comfort in returning.
Taylor, whom Andy was excited about meeting for the first time months earlier, greeted her with a big hug that that he had promised in some text messages to her over the previous weeks.
"I think for her, that (first game) was a defining night for a lot of reasons," said Taylor. "This was 30 days later (after Andy's death). It marked a point where she can look back and say that was the first day of the rest of her life.
"As trying as it is, life goes on. It's 3½ hours where she can be present, and focus on something she loves to do, and not think about what's understandably a devastating loss."
On the Wednesday before that first game, Brooke said she "had an emotional evening by myself, but I had a talk with Andy. It was tough to wait all day (Thursday) for the kickoff.
"But when I was on the field, for some reason, I felt OK. I remembered that I usually get anxious, and my heart starts pounding. But this time, I didn't feel that way. It was a real calm, peaceful thing. That's very odd for me. I know he was there with me."
Dennis Kirkpatrick, who produced the "Running With The Pac" show for FSN with Collins for several seasons and is now an assistant professor of journalism and athletics at the University of Arkansas, watched Brooke's game from his home.
"I'm real proud of how she did," said Kirkpatrick, who talked to her several times in the last month by phone. "She was focused, did great interviews during the action. That's a real sign of maturity.
"It's incredible the way she's been able to come back from all this so quickly and do this well. It would be impossible for some people. I know she'll get through this.
#######
Before the 2003 college football season, Kellen Clemens came in and won the Oregon starting quarterback job over Andy Collins, who was a year older. But Ducks head coach Mike Bellotti, who recruited Collins, didn't want him to leave. He asked him to switch to linebacker.
Collins had it in his head he was still a quarterback, so he eventually found a landing spot at Occidental College instead.
Clemens wasn't the reason Collins left. Just the opposite. The two had become close friends. Clemens and Collins were groomsmen at each other's weddings. Clemens was then an honorary pallbearer at Collins' funeral.
Clemens, who spent five years with the New York Jets wearing No. 11, the last two as Mark Sanchez's backup, had a recent tryout with the Washington Redskins before he was released last week. Clemens didn't make a big deal about it, but he took No. 1. It was on honor of the number Collins wore at Occidental.
"He was the best of everything - a great friend, a phenomenal athlete . . . I still can't wrap my head around what happened," said Clemens. "When you're two quarterbacks at the same place going for the same job, maybe you keep each other at a distance. But we ended up getting really close, maybe let our guard down, hanging out at my parents' ranch (in Burns, Ore.), talked about all the challenges we faced. I knew he was going to be a good buddy.
"If you got to know him, which only took about four minutes, you realized he was 10 times the person that he was an athlete. He's left a huge void in so many people's lives, but also a lasting impression that made you want to be better. And I'm one of those."
Gallagher -- the one who dragged Andy to the bar that night he met Brooke -- said that sometimes in death, "people have a tendency to romanticize a persons life and to overemphasize the type of person they were. This isn't possible with Andy. The things people say about him, the stories that have been told are all true. He really was that great of a guy."
Gallagher lived with Andy, "the best friend a guy ever had," during Andy's tryout with the Giants, through his days with the Avengers and then, after the AFL folded, was there to help when came back to L.A. to do commercials.
"He never judged other people," said Gallagher, a talent agent with Brillstein Entertainment Partners in Hollywood. "He was a leader by example, living his life on his terms, in accordance with the Catholic Church and silently challenging you to do the same. He loved God, he loved football and he loved Brooke.
"He spoke often about how proud he was of his brothers and sister. He took nothing for granted. He had the greatest laugh (see photo above), and when you heard it, you knew you earned it. He often referred to me as the older brother he never had, and while I downplayed it most of the time, I realize now its the greatest compliment I've ever had. I only wish I had told him how much I appreciated that, but I'm sure he knew.
"I miss him terribly. He knew everything about me, not just my dreams and victories, but also my fears and disappointments. And I knew his. He was my best friend in every sense of the word, and while I feel a terrible sense of loss knowing I'll never see him again, I feel an equal amount of pride to have called him my friend and consider myself blessed to have shared every minute I did with him."
Zillah High School will rename its football field in Collins' honor on Oct. 14. They're raising money now to put a memorial plaque at the site in time for the dedication.
Tributes like that continue to resonate as the impact of Andy Collins' passing is felt.
She has this week off - last Saturday, it was a trepid trip back to Florida to do the Boston College-Central Florida contest. She'll take another deep breath, visit some family members, and maybe hold on them more than usual.
"I never had a tragedy in my life - the closest thing was my parents recently splitting up after 30 years, and Andy was there to get me through that," said Brooke. "I thought that was the worst thing ever. But I had no idea.
"I have such a different perspective on things now. I'm so much more of a better person now because of him. I was so blessed to have known him. The only way to thank God is to live my life better. I wish more people could have known him.
"I think I just want everyone to know that that there are God fearing, dedicated, honorable athletes. There are some professional athletes who have given the profession a black eye when it comes to living with morals and values. There are others like Andy, who should be honored too.
"Of course, I still have my grief, but it's usually behind closed doors. Every night, it still hits me. And I can get pretty emotional. But I have felt him with me a couple of times now. He's given me strength. And my parents, even though they're apart, circumstances change, but they're still here (her dad lives in Seattle). That's what matters.
"That fact I got to be his wife, that was a no-brainer. I know 100 percent he's in heaven. I will see him again someday. I'm just proud to have been married to him for those 10 short days. I will take that over never meeting him in a heartbeat.
"I feel strongly about being Brooke Collins now. No matter what happens, I'll always be Brooke Collins."
Note: The Zillah (Wash.) School District will officially rename the Zillah High School football field Andy Collins Memorial Field on Oct. 14. Donations are accepted by mailing checks to the Zillah Booster Club with "Andy Collins" in the memo section. They can be mailed to: P.O. 1044 Zillah, WA 98953. More information: http://www.zillahschools.org/zhsalumni/#news
And follow Tom Hoffarth's pathetic attempts on Twitter: twitter.com/tomhoffarth
(AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Louis Stanfill of the U.S. holds the ball as he is tackled by Ireland's Jeamie Heaslip, bottom right, during their Rugby World Cup game in New Plymouth, New Zealand, on Sunday.
Things you're missing if you don't have Universal Sports:
Fred Roggin and Bill Seward keeping a safe distance from former U.S. team captain Brian Hightower as they break down the American team's chances for a run in the World Rugby Cup, after its loss to Ireland on Sunday night, with a matchup against Russia on the horizon.
That's the best we got right now.
Universal Sports, the Westlake Village-based network, has more explaining to do.
It launched a campaign today called "I Want Universal Sports" which is, it says, "designed to inform viewers and industry leaders of the Olympic and endurance sports network's transition from over-the-air multicast distribution to availability as a multi-platform, high-definition service on cable, satellite and telco platforms beginning in January 2012."
You wanted your MTV back in the '80s, right? And you got it.
Maybe a campaign here with an astronaut planting a Universal Sports flag into the center line of the next U.S. rugby match will get someone's attention.
We endorse it, if that helps.
Universal Sports would like you to call 1-800-55-GET-US and rattle some cages as the Olympics draw near. The channel is in the top 10 U.S. media markets (Channel 625 on DirecTV).
Highlights of the week ahead in sports, both here and afar:
THIS WEEK'S BEST BET
Boxing: Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Victor Ortiz, Saturday at 6 p.m. PPV:
Whether or not you think Mayweather should be man enough to take on Manny Pacquiao instead, you've probably been watching HBO's "24/7" documentary/promo series to figure out who's worth having a rooting interest for in this bout. Ortiz is defending his WBC welterweight title here, but Mayweather's uncle and trainer, Roger, says he "wouldn't know (Ortiz) from a bag of white rice." Maybe he caught the segment that showed how Ortiz was abandoned his mother at age 7 and then by his father, leaving him and his little brother, Temo, to fend for themselves in their trailer in Garden City, Kan., with no food or electricity. Now they're on your TV for $59.95 (or $69.95 if you're into HD) at the MGM Grand in Vegas. In the co-feature, Saul "Canelo" Alvarez will defend his WBC junior middleweight belt against Alfonso Gomez at Staples Center (starting at 5:30 p.m.).
MONDAY
Tennis: U.S. Open, men's singles final: Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal, 1 p.m., Channel 2:
For the fourth straight year, it's an unforced error that pushes the men's final on a Monday at the Open because of scheduling snafus caused by wicked wet weather. Tournament director Jim Curley said the schedule was changed "in an effort to be fair to the players and our ticketholders." This matchup, a rematch of the Wimbledon final, should be worth the wait. Just ask Roger Federer.
NFL: New England at Miami, 4 p.m., ESPN; Oakland at Denver, 7:15 p.m., ESPN:
Somehow, it all circles back to Reggie Bush, the defrocked Saint who plans to be a big fish again in a school of Dolphins after the free-agent shark frenzy last summer. Jeff Darlington of the Miami Herald asked the former USC Heisman Trophy winning tailback about his knowledge of Dolphins' history. "I don't know a whole lot," Bush admited. "You know the obvious history of the organization: Dan Marino, and I forget what year it was that they went undefeated." No worries. The 1972 team has no fear that this squad will even come close to its 17-0 season. Starting with tonight. Meanwhile, do the Patriots know there's a two Gronkowski/one Gostkowski limit on all NFL rosters?
MLB: Angels at Oakland, 7:05 p.m., FSW:
The last regular-season roadie goes 10 games and 11 days through three cities and two countries. But it starts in Oakland, where they'd best have the A-game, and runs Tuesday (7:05, FSW) and Wednesday (12:35 p.m., FSW).
MLB: Dodgers vs. Arizona, Dodger Stadium, 7:10 p.m., Prime:
The Dodgers' last homestand is a 11-game, 12-day experience that includes more fireworks, blanket giveaways, Hello Kitty crown promotions, USC- and UCLA-style L.A. caps ... pretty much whatever's left over the junk drawer. If only the baseball gods allowed for a Clayton Kershaw-Ian Kennedy matchup on either Tuesday (7:10 p.m., Channel 9) or Wednesday (7:30 p.m., Prime). Kennedy, the former USC standout who is 10-1 in his last 11 starts after the All-Star break, 9-0 overall vs. the NL West games and 3-0 against the Dodgers, will go after his 20th victory in the middle game. Kershaw seeks his 19th win Wednesday against 16-game winner Daniel Hudson.
Series: "Numbers Never Lie," ESPN2, 12:30 p.m.; "Dan Le Batard Is Highly Questionable," ESPN2, 1 p.m.:
No lie, a questionable move by the network. These new series in the new ESPN2 lineup will include Charissa Thompson in a Michele Beadle-kind of role looking at numbers that matter. Sounds good on paper. Then it's Flounder from "Animal House" hoping he learned enough from his sub-roles at "Pardon The Interruption." The changes also mean "Jim Rome Is Burning" comes over from ESPN and fills the 1:30 p.m. slot.
TUESDAY
Soccer: Galaxy at Monarcas Morelia, CONCACAF Champions League, 5 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel:
The Galaxy's opponent sounds like a goalie that Chivas USA once tried out but couldn't sign. Whatever happens here in central Mexico, these two will meet again at Home Depot Center at the end of the month.
WEDNESDAY
MLB: Cleveland at Texas, 4 p.m., ESPN; N.Y. Yankees at Seattle, 7:10 p.m., ESPN:
Games the Angels will pay attention to, after their afternoon dance with Oakland is finished and they're on a plane flying East.
THURSDAY
MLB: Dodgers vs. Pittsburgh, 7:10 p.m., Prime:
The four-game set ends Sunday (1:10 p.m., Prime) with Fan Appreciation Day, which could draw as much as 40,000. That's for the whole series, which includes Friday and Saturday (both 7:10 p.m., Prime). Have a ball.
Golf: PGA BMW Championships, first round, noon, Golf Channel:
Webb Simpson has been the web sensation since winning the Deutsche Bank Championship on a second playoff hole for his second title in three weeks, so now it's down to the final 70 in the FedEx Cup point standings at Cog Hill Golf & Country Club in Lemont, Ill. This is the final event before the last 30 standing play in the Tour Championship in Atlanta. Golf Channel has the second round (noon), while NBC has the final two rounds (9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Channel 4).
FRIDAY
MLB: Angels at Baltimore, 4:05 p.m., FSW:
Who from the AL West plans trips to Baltimore this late in the year unless there's some kind of blue-shell Maryland crab fest? They were just there in July and won two out of three. This continues Saturday (4:05 p.m., Ch. 13) and Sunday (10:35 a.m., FSW).
SATURDAY
College football: UCLA vs. Texas, Rose Bowl, 12:30 p.m., Channel 7:
Go ahead, Longhorn fan: Remind us what's "big" and "12" about the Big 12 these days.
College football: USC vs. Syracuse, Coliseum, 5 p.m., FX:
No excuses for this one being close. The Orangemen barely beat Rhode Island last week.
College football: Auburn at Clemson, 9 a.m., Channel 7; Michigan State at Notre Dame, 12:30 a.m., Channel 4; Tennessee at Florida, 12:30 p.m., Channel 2; Washington at Nebraska, 12:30 p.m., ESPN; Ohio State at Miami, 4:30 p.m., ESPN; Oklahoma at Florida State, 5 p.m., Channel 7; Utah at BYU, 6:15 p.m., ESPN2; Stanford at Arizona, 7:45 p.m., ESPN:
The Buckeyes and Hurricane exchange NCAA crib sheets, while the Utes and Cougars fight for the rivalry's Diet Pepsi Trophy.
MLS: Galaxy vs. Vancouver, Home Depot Center, 7:30 p.m., FSW (delayed at 10:30 p.m.)
Landon Donovan scored twice in a 4-0 win over the Whitecaps at the end of July, then went out and got white caps for his teeth.
IRL: Japan 300, 8:30 p.m., Versus:
The IndyCar road course series finishes in Motegi, Japan with Will Power holding a 14-point lead over Dario Franchitti in the points race for the road course championship. Power's wins in Sonoma and Baltimore puts him just five points back of Franchitti in the overall standings with three races left in the 2011 series, ending in Las Vegas on Oct. 16.
SUNDAY
NFL: Philadelphia at Atlanta, 5:20 p.m., Channel 4:
Sure, they remember Michael Vick in the ATL. But they're not crying about having Matt Ryan. This one goes up against the Primetime Emmy Awards show in L.A.
NFL: San Diego at New England, 1:15 p.m., Channel 2:
Bill Belichick will not be miked. Would you now like him to be?
NASCAR: Geico 400 at Chicago, 11 a.m., ESPN:
Even a caveman can figure this one out: The 10-race Chase for the Cup title begins with races on nine of the next 10 Sundays up against the NFL (the other is on a Saturday night on Oct. 15).
As long as the sun is shining in Southern California, Dodger fans will be forever over the moon about Wally Moon.
The All-Star surprisingly traded to L.A. from St. Louis in 1959 created a Coliseum phenomenon that only Vin Scully could accurately describe at a point in history when the Soviets and United States were immersed in space race.
Moon's "moon shot" was launched by an inside-out swing from the left-handed batter's box, a technique suggested to him by former teammate Stan Musial, forcing the ball on a sky-high trajectory that cleared the 40-foot left-field screen just 250 feet from home plate.
The last one happened 50 years ago Monday (box score linked here), in the first inning off the Phillies' John Buzhardt that surprisingly wasn't enough to launch a victory for roommate Sandy Koufax, roughed up in a 19-10 defeat.
"Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life" (Mill City Publishing, 340 pages, $24.95) is the 81-year-old's new autobiography, selling on his official website (www.wallymoon.com) and will be available during a book signing tour through L.A. next week that includes a stop at Dodger Stadium before Tuesday's game.
"I have no complaints," he said the other day from his home in Bryan, Tex., just outside College Station and his alma mater, Texas A&M, where he earned a master's degree in administrative education. "The Lord's been good to me. I'm a happy camper. My old heart's pumping now, because I'm getting anxious to see all my friends in L.A. again."
He explains more in a Q-and-A:
Vin Scully is "the no-contest hands-down greatest announcer in any sport of all time," writes Daniel Riley in the October issue of GQ.
Thanks for reinforcing the beliefs of anyone who has ever taken a breath of Southern California air.
Riley says he asked the 83-year-old Baseball Hall of Famer to do him a favor: Recall the greatest baseball moments he'd seen up close.
Like, Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round The World" in 1951 (which he didn't call, but was present in the Polo Grounds press box doing the Dodgers games with Red Barber): "I guess I thought, 'I'll never see anything like that again.'"
Continue reading Vinny's IQ of the GQ memorable moments.
The Associated Press
TORONTO -- Brad Pitt has fond memories of the 1979 football movie "North Dallas Forty." After all, for a kid who shouldn't have even been in the theater, it opened up a whole new world.
The actor was asked about his favorite sports movies today as he debuted his new project, "Moneyball," at the Toronto International Film Festival.
"As a kid I loved 'Bad News Bears," he told a news conference. "I had loved 'North Dallas Forty' with Nick Nolte. I think it was the first R-rated film I ever snuck into, so it has a special place in my heart."
Pitt stars as Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane, who used an analysis system called sabermetrics in hopes of competing against teams with larger payrolls. Based on the 2003 book by Michael Lewis, the film has traveled a rocky road.
Three writers and three directors have had a hand in the movie, which opens Sept. 23 and co-stars Jonah Hill as Peter Brand, the nerdy whiz kid who helps Beane, and Philip Seymour Hoffman as A's manager Art Howe.
Pitt came aboard in 2007 and said he stuck with the troubled project because he was captivated by the way the main characters reinvented themselves.
A link to today's media column:
http://www.dailynews.com/sportscolumnists/ci_18857715
With updates on the ESPN-"Monday Night Football" extension, this weekend's NFL TV broadcasting lineup and why Fox Sports pulled the plug on "The College Experiment."
And no insight as to why NBC is reporting that Thursday's night's Green Bay-New Orleans game was the second-highest rated NFL regular-season primetime game in 13 years (17.2 rating, not quite reaching the Denver-Miami game on Dec. 21, 1998) and only the second-best "NFL Kickoff" game ever (next to last year's Minnesota-New Orleans game), even though it was the night's highest rated show by 283 percent over the next-most watched show of the night.
The Associated Press
ESPN has removed fantasy leagues with anti-Semitic names from its website after the Simon Wiesenthal Center pointed them out.
The Jewish human rights organization is praising the sports network for quickly responding to its complaint, which it brought to ESPN's attention on Wednesday.
The Wiesenthal Center says that among the offensive team names were "Jews are Immoral" and "Jews Are Terrible."
Network spokesman Josh Krulewitz said that while ESPN has systems in place to protect against inappropriate team and league names "clearly with millions of users and deceptive ways around the safeguards, we can never completely eliminate it."
Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the Wiesenthal Center said today that ESPN responded in good faith to its concerns.
Go ahead, call Lindsay Soto a fantasy football geek. She can handle the truth.
One of the new co-hosts for the NFL Network's "Total Access" hour-long news shows cringes when she says she's an owner in six fantasy leagues now. Even if it's a job-related accident that workers' comp probably doesn't cover.
She also aims to win them all.
"I've turned into a dork, seriously," she admitted. "I can get competitive. I have that in my blood."
The payoff to this should be obvious: By knowing all there is to know about the NFL, she's much more entrenched in her role and can talk off the top of her head easier about stats, injuries, roster moves and past performances.
On the days she isn't working on the Lane Kiffin USC show for Prime Ticket, Soto is as focused on Arian Foster's hamstring as anyone else with a faux roster to worry about.
"You find yourself up on players who aren't so much the bigger names, but you need to know about," said Soto. "It's become a fun way to do your normal research. Honestly, we find ourselves talking more about fantasy leagues, and by doing it, my depth of knowledge is a byproduct.
"I never did any of it before last season. The fantasy football editor at NFL.com got me involved. I thought I should get a team so I knew what I was talking about. Before I knew it, I had six teams - one with NFL.com, my brother's friends, my fiance's friends, my sister-in-law . . .
"By the end of last year, I was coming to (the NFL.com fantasy editor) for questions, doing mock drafts on my computer . . . boy, a lot has changed."
Continue reading Soto learning to geek it as a fantasy follower.
The L.A. County Fair has deemed Thursday, Sept. 15 as "Dodger Day" -- without current Dodgers there to chow down on deep-fried Oreo cookies.
Instead, they've set up a booth where fans can again meet (and supposedly get autographs from) Davey Lopes (12:30 to 2 p.m.), Ron Cey (2:30 to 4 p.m.), Bill Russell (4:30 to 6 p.m.) and Steve Garvey (6:30 to 8 p.m.). Autographs from the four a year ago were $2, with the money going to the team's ThinkCure foundation.
The fair offers discounted admittion tickets via the website: LACountyFair.com to those who "show up wearing Dodger blue" and the first 10,000 who show up with "receive a premium Dodger gift item" and the first 2,500 will get two free tickets to an upcoming game (there aren't many left after Sept. 15).
Read between the lines there all you want. Maybe they've got some Rafael Furcal game-used batting gloves they can distribute.
The 9/11 commerative football jersey: A one-of-a-kind way to remember the victims in uniform fashion
Of all the ways sports can be used to help us remember what happened on Sept. 11, 2001, Jessica Azbell figured out a way to wear it.
After years of mulling over different project ideas, the Corona woman recently started the non-profit Fallen2light organization -- www.rememberthem911.org -- and began producing 2,982 unique football jerseys. That accounts for each victim of the 9/11 events in New York, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania, as well as six more in honor of those who perished in a car bombing at the World Trade Center in 1993.
While each blue or white jersey may look identical, the individual patch with the name, age and site of each victim is what sets them apart.
All proceeds from the $179 jersey sales go to the Twin Tower Orphan Fund (www.ttof.org), which allocates money to the 9/11 families who lost loved ones.
Christopher Sullivan, the brother of Azbell's brother-in-law, was one of the 343 New York firefighters and paramedics who didn't make it home that day trying to do their jobs.
Azbell explains not only how she felt the need to get involved, but how sports played a natural part in that:
And this Letterman wannabe wasn't even close.
See the video above, or go to this link and see for yourself why Fox Sports felt it was apporpriate to issue a mea culpa that read:
"We sincerely apologize to President Nikias and the entire USC community for the production and posting of the video. The context was clearly inappropriate and the video was removed as soon as we became aware of it. We will review our editorial process to determine where the breakdown occurred, and we will take steps to ensure something like this never happens again."
University of Colorado ethnic studies professor Darryl Maeda told the Associated Press earlier: "This is demeaning to millions of Asian Americans who have put down deep roots in the United States, claim English as their language and root vigorously for their favorite sports teams."
Deadspin.com reported on this video originally last week.
The annual online vote to determine three of the 10 finalists for the National Baesball Hall of Fame recepient of the Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasting excellence starts with a list of 75 names for fans to pick over.
Through Sept. 30, you can go to the Hall's Facebook page -- www.facebook.com/baseballhall -- and pick a name from the list (linked here). One vote a day permitted.
This is the ninth year the Hall has been doing this fan-interactive vote.
The list is based, they say, on popularity, longevity and past voting results by fan balloting. The requirement is 10 years of continuous service with a team, network, or combination.
Results will be revealed Oct. 5, and the final ballot of 10 will be sent to the Hall's pannel of voters, with the winner announced on Dec. 6. The Hall's final selection team includes previous Frick winners Vin Scully, Jaime Jarrin, Jerry Coleman, Joe Garagiola, Tony Kubek, Jon Miller and Bob Uecker.
There are two names per MLB team on the fans' list -- the Dodgers are represented by Ross Porter and Rick Monday, while the Angels have Dick Enberg and Jose Mota.
The "at-large" candidates look pretty sweet, though: Al Michaels, Joe Buck, Tim McCarver, Joe Morgan and Phil Rizzuto, just for starters.
Larry Dieker, the former Taft High of Woodland Hills star who pitched many years for the Houston Astros, is one of the two candidates for that franchise.
Bill King, the former L.A. Raiders play-by-play man who did Oakland A's games for many years, is on that team's ballot as well. He was one of the 10 finalists from a year ago.
Highlights of the week ahead in sports, both here and afar:
THIS WEEK'S BEST BET
NFL season openers: New Orleans at Green Bay, Thursday, 5:30 p.m., Channel 4; Pittsburgh at Baltimore, Sunday, 9 a.m., Channel 2; Philadelphia at St. Louis, Sunday, 9 a.m., Channel 11; N.Y. Giants at Washington, Sunday, 1 p.m., Channel 11; Dallas at N.Y. Jets, Sunday, 5:20 p.m., Channel 4:
There's the ceremonial opener in Green Bay to celebrate the new Super Bowl champs, where we can do without the pregame concert promised by Kid Rock, Lady Antebellum and Maroon 5. Then comes the full-throttle remembrance of Sept. 11, 2001, on the 10th anniversary, with a prime-time contest at the Meadowlands, and all the star power you could ask the league to provide. For many, it's the start of Fantasy Football Leagues, three months of Sundays planting themselves on the couch, and, in L.A., five guaranteed TV games per weekend, and DirecTV's "Sunday Ticket" expanding its service to be watched through PlayStation 3 video game consoles. God Bless America. And bless the company that has created a remote control, that has a beer bottle opener built right in. Find "My Clicker" (find it here). Just $24.99. A worthy investment.
MONDAY
MLB: Dodgers at Washington, 10 a.m., Prime:
More than a year - 368 days, in fact - since he left to have some Tommy John surgery, Stephen Strasburg makes his return in Game 2 of this four-game set in D.C. (Tuesday, 4:05 p.m., Channel 9). The 23-year-old from San Diego State finished 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 12 games last season after his June debut, striking out 92 in 68 innings and sparking talk of an All-Star appearance. Some have already called this the "Strasurrection." The series continues Wednesday (4:05 p.m., Channel 9), with Dana Eveland earning another start for the Dodgers, and ends Thursday (10:05 a.m., Prime) under much calmer conditions.
MLB: Angels vs. Seattle, Angel Stadium, 6:05 p.m., FSW:
When he made his big-league debut for the Mariners last time in Anaheim, Trayvon Robinson had a homer and a home-run saving catch. Last week, he went 0-for-8 with seven strikeouts in the recent four-game series that the Angels and Mariners split in Seattle. This series continues Tuesday and Wednesday (7:05, FSW both games).
College football: Miami at Maryland, 5 p.m., ESPN:
An early Hurricane warning along the Eastern seaboard, with NCAA compliance officials watching with a closer eye than usual. Some Miami impact players aren't there because of suspension. Maryland has had to suspend a few, too.
MLS: Galaxy at Kansas City, 3 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel:
Sporting K.C. is the team that gave Chad Ocho Cinco some kind of fake tryout during the NFL lockout last March. On a scale of uno to diez, he was muy malo.
TUESDAY
WNBA: Sparks vs. San Antonio, Staples Center, 7:30 p.m., Prime Ticket:
For the second season in a row, the Sparks are trying to lock up the final Western Conference playoff spot with a losing record. Their last three are at home, starting here and including Friday (vs. Tulsa, 7:30 p.m.) and Saturday (vs. Chicago, 7:30 p.m.) before coach Jelly Bean Bryant knows whether he has the rest of the fall off.
Soccer: U.S. men at Belgium, 11:30 a.m., ESPN:
Jurgen Klinsmann's men play its first match in Europe since 2009 against the second place team in Group A qualifying for the 2012 European Championships. These two countries haven't met since 1998. The Galaxy's Landon Donovan won't be with this squad, staying home to play the MLS schedule.
WEDNESDAY
Horse racing: Del Mar season closes:
The 37-day meet comes to an end with the "One Last Taste of the Track" special (linked here): A $25 ticket gets you in when the gates open at noon, the racing starts at 2 p.m, a two-hour buffet featuring 15 restaurants put out there stuff, the Del Mar Futurity, and then a concert by Super Diamond at 7 p.m. We're a believer.
THURSDAY
College football: Arizona at Oklahoma State, 5 p.m., ESPN:
It smells like a Sun Bowl matchup this December. Mark our words.
FRIDAY
MLB: Angels vs. N.Y. Yankees, Angel Stadium, 7:05 p.m., FSW:
If looks mean anything, the Angels' last 19 games over the next 20 days sure seem to be more appealing than what the Rangers have to mess with. Yet eve with Mike Scioscia's success rate against the Yankees over the years, the Angels have already lost four of six to the Yankees during two series this year at Yankee Stadium. The series continues Saturday (6:05, Channel 13) and Sunday (12:35 p.m., FSW).
MLB: Dodgers at San Francisco, 7:15 p.m., Prime:
The Dodgers can have a giant say in who wins the NL West -- of their last 19 games, 12 are against either the Giants or D'backs. The series continues Saturday (6:05 p.m., Prime) and Sunday (1:05 p.m., Prime).
College football: Missouri at Arizona State, 7:30 p.m., ESPN:
It smells like a Holiday Bowl matchup this December. Mark our words.
MLS: Galaxy vs. Colorado, Home Depot Center, 8 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel:
Without Landon Donovan or David Beckham, the Galaxy throttled the defending champion Rapids 3-1 back in June, helped by an own-goal.
Movie: "Warrior," PG-13, in theatres nationwide:
One fights for his country. The other fights for his family. And Nick Nolte is their dad. A Lionsgate film about two brothers who end up in an MMA title fight. They're calling it the "Rocky" of this genre, with the trumpets blaring, and way better than "The Wrestler." From Gavin O'Connor, the director of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team story "Miracle," the word "miracle" is thrown around alot in the dialogue just based on the trailer. Maybe it's the perfect double-date flck for the Klitchkos to take in.
SATURDAY
College football: USC vs. Utah, Coliseum, 4:30 p.m., Versus:
Norm Chow will know which press box booth to plant himself when he returns with another team to the Coliseum, but maybe Lane Kiffin could use his knowledge instead. That Barkley-to-Woods play should be fairly easy to predict at this point. The Utes may not have as great a challenge in their Pac-12 opener as they once thought.
College football: UCLA vs. San Jose State, Rose Bowl, 7 p.m., FSW:
The Spartans are a welcome guest, no matter who the Bruins use at quarterback this week. San Jose State lost to Stanford by 54 points last week -- somehow scoring three points. It'll be closer this time.
College football: Alabama at Penn State, 12:30 p.m., Channel 7; Notre Dame at Michigan, 5 p.m., ESPN; South Carolina at Georgia, 1:30 p.m., ESPN; BYU at Texas, 4 p.m., ESPN2:
There's probably a booth at the L.A. County Fair where you can sit and watch all these games while hamming down some deep-fried butter sticks.
Tennis: U.S. Open women's final, 5 p.m., Channel 2:
The Tennis Channel ran a recent special about the U.S. Open's creation of "Super Saturday" back in 1984, where anyone who's willing to sit in the main stadium from 11 a.m. to about 11 p.m. could be in for a tennis marathon of legendary proportions. It caused one writer in the piece to comment, however: "The schedule at the U.S. Open is -- how can i put this politely -- a bit messed up." Meaning, there's a volley overload. Sloane Stephens, the 18-year-old who splits her time in Los Angeles and Ft. Lauderdale, left her mark on the first week of play. But now, the heavyweights take over, with the semifinals set for Friday (9:30 a.m., Channel 2).
SUNDAY
Tennis: U.S. Open men's final, 1 p.m., Channel 2:
If Rafa Nadal muscles his way to the end against either Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic, it means that U.S. component will have long gone from this event. Not even the Bryan brothers, dumped in the first round of the doubles competition, are near here today. The semifinals are Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Channel 2.
Rugby World Cup: U.S. vs. Ireland, 10 a.m., Channel 4:
The tournament, which started Friday, becomes your alternative NFL coverage from New Plymouth, New Zealand through Oct. 23.
MLB: Chicago Cubs at New York Mets, 5 p.m., ESPN:
More 9/11 remembrances for those who want to spend the time in a New York sports facility, with the Yankees all the way over in Anaheim.
Golf: Walker Cup, noon, ESPN2:
From the Royal Aberdeen Golf Club in Scotland, officially the sixth oldest course in the world, the 10-man match of the world's top amateurs pits a U.S. team against one combined from Great Britain and Ireland every two years. UCLA 19-year-old Patrick Cantlay will be on the American team along with Kelly Kraft, who upset him in the U.S. Amateur men's championship recently. This is a two-hour recap of the event (televised by the BBC) which has a alternate-shot foursome and singles matches format starting on Saturday.
(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
USC tailback D.J. Morgan, out of Taft High, leaps Minnesota defenders during the first half of Saturday's season opener at the Coliseum.
On the list of things that could make or break USC's football season in 2011, the choice of the hosiery worn by the Trojan players during home games might rate somewhere between what direction the blades of grass are mowed on the Coliseum turf two days prior to kickoff and what brand of water is used in the giant fans spritzing everyone on the sidelines.
Then again, it depends on who's doing the ranking.
Chances are, without any prodding, very few in the overheated crowd of some 68,000 Saturday even noticed the entire Trojan roster sported black socks for the first time, breaking from years of all white, as USC nearly tripped themselves up in a 19-17 win over Minnesota. On TV, it wasn't even mentioned.
"I hadn't noticed it until it was pointed out," Marcus Allen, the 1981 Heisman winner from USC, said Saturday watching a TV monitor from the set of a new Fox Sports Net college football show.
If traditional-minded ex-players, alums and long-time donors sensed there was something different, maybe they couldn't put their arthritic V-shaped fingers on it. Now, they could be willing to put their foot down against it.
Black socks this year. A black jersey next. A black helmet after that. Before this slip-n-slide is finished, you've got a giant black eye, selling off pieces of your soul to gain favor for some one or some thing.
"When does it stop?" said Allen.
When someone swaps Traveler out for Black Beauty?
How dare Pat Haden and John McKay, the old guard and new caretakers of the program, sign off on Lane Kiffin's trendy request. At a time when buzz words like "win forever" have been replaced by a "culture of compliance," with university president Max Nikias looking over everyone's shoulder, there's an undercurrent of clothes, cleats and costume taking precedence, with Nike looking over everyone's shoulder pads.
It shouldn't be a black-and-Charlie White issue here, but it really turns out to be that if you consider the outside influences here.
Those who sew up the uniforms -- Nike, Under Armor, Adidas and Reebok, for starts - are the ones who push for as many alternative pieces of equipment to inspire more sales. Then the players get caught up in it.
The coach may push back, but he's eventually put in a position of compromise. Especially when they're put in a spot where there's a kid trying to decide whether to go to USC or, say Oregon -- De'Anthony Thomas, anyone? - and suddenly, he's swayed by the uniformity issues. Who can pass up on a chance to wear fluorescent yellow socks?
(And why, may we ask, is USC a Nike school anyway? Why doesn't the school just write a donation check directly to Phil Knight so the rival Ducks can fund another new weight room?)
"Don't let Nike tell us what to do; we're not Oregon," said Allen. "I hope that's really not what it is. They have an outside interest and don't understand the culture we've created and what has made us special all these years.
"Regardless of what other people say or do or ask, you have to be stronger than that. If there's one thing we have that others don't, and why others like to change, is our history of success. I prefer things to be as they are.
"I think I have a greater understanding of this now. This is what makes us different -- and not so much the uniform but the way we've done it. It may seem conservative to some, which is fine with me, but that's the way it's supposed to be done."
By Rachel Cohen
The Associated Press
NEW YORK -- NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell spoke to CBS's NFL commentators when they were in New York for preseason meetings. His message: The business of the league is going up, up, up by every measure.
The NFL soon will be talking to its network partners about increasing another financial figure. The league's TV deals go through the 2013 season, but Fox Sports Chairman David Hill expects it won't be long before negotiations get going.
"Always a fabulously interesting time," he said. "Not one for the faint of heart."
During the labor discussions, the players contended that the NFL would sign new media
deals worth $8 billion, nearly double the current total. Considering the oft-mentioned factoid that the league is a $9 billion-a-year business, a significant increase in TV rights is a major change in the size of the revenue pie divvied up by the new collective bargaining agreement.
The players get 55 percent of national media revenue under the CBA, the 10-year deal that guarantees a long stretch of stability for the companies investing billions of dollars in the NFL.
The NFL was of course a highly valuable property when the last TV contracts were agreed to in 2004 and 2005. But even in the short time since then, the league's place in the overall television landscape has shifted dramatically.
UPDATED: 11:45 a.m.
Bringing back some info from last week's media column (linked here):
The upcoming high school football coverage for FSW/Prime Ticket at FoxSportsWest.com this month:
All games at 7 p.m. unless otherwise noted:
Week 0:
== Tonight
Prime Ticket: Bakersfield Centennial at Mission Viejo (8 p.m.)
Web: Mira Costa vs. Loyola at LA Valley College
Web: Venice at Harvard-Westlake
Web: Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks at Serra (Gardena)
Web: Tesoro vs. Hart at College of the Canyons (7:30 p.m.)
== Saturday:
Prime: Bellevue (Wash.) vs. Oaks Christian at Mission Viejo, 8:30 p.m.
Week 1:
== Friday, Sept 9:
== FSW: Crenshaw at Norco (7:30 p.m. kickoff, but 10:30 p.m. delayed telecast, after Angels-Yankees)
Web: St. John Bosco at Lakewood
Web: Santa Margarita vs. Tesoro at Saddleback College
Web: St. Bonaventure at Centennial (Corona) (7:30 p.m.)
Web: Bishop Amat vs. Servite at Cerritos College (7:30 p.m.)
Week 2:
= Friday, Sept. 16:
FSW: Servite vs. La Habra at Cerritos College (8 p.m.)
Web: Mira Costa at Serra (Gardena)
Web: Rolling Hills Prep at Avalon
Web: Centennial (Corona) vs. Mater Dei at Santa Ana Bowl (7:30 p.m.)
Web: Tustin vs. Orange Lutheran at Orange Coast College (7:30 p.m.)
Week 3:
= Friday, Sept. 23
FSW: Alemany at Chaminade (10:30 p.m., tape delayed)
Web: St. Bonaventure at Oaks Christian
Web: Newport Harbor at Corona del Mar
Web: Long Beach Poly at Mission Viejo
Web: San Clemente vs. Mater Dei at the Santa Ana Bowl (7:30 p.m.
Week 4:
= Friday, Sept. 29:
FSW: Santa Margarita vs. Los Alamitos at Veterans Stadium (7:30 p.m.)
Web: Norco at Roosevelt (Corona)
Web: Chaminade at Mira Costa
Web: Vista Murietta at Crespi
Web: Esperanza at Villa Park
We'll take this account straight from today's Sports Business Daily:
College football reporter Bruce Feldman, whose reported suspension from ESPN in July produced an uprising on Twitter, has joined CBS as a college football analyst, according to Richard Deitsch of SI.com (linked here).
While ESPN has denied that it suspended Feldman for his role in former Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach's book, Feldman said network execs were "stopping me from being able to do my job."
"Let's put it this way, I was told not to blog, not to tweet, not to do any radio interviews," Feldman said. "When I asked on that conference call (with ESPN officials), which was on a Thursday, about being scheduled to cover the SEC media kickoff in Alabama a week from then, I was told, 'No, you can't go.'
"The day after the conference call, when ESPN was claiming that there was no suspension, Chad Millman, the editor-in-chief of 'ESPN The Magazine,' actually added more restrictions.
"What is unfortunate with all this is there was all this talk about whether I was suspended or not -- and ESPN spent so much effort to try to downplay that story -- but what is at the root of this is I was given permission to work with Mike Leach on the book."
In response to Feldman, ESPN VP/Communications Mike Soltys said, "We have significant disagreements with his account. Beyond that, we are not commenting."
Continue reading Feldman on escaping ESPN for CBS: I'm glad I'm at a different place.
That's the beauty of the Forbes.com headline (linked here) regurgitating the L.A. Times' story today.
It also reminds us that the Dodgers did take a roadie to China to play during 2008 spring training, when it also had shortstop Chin-Lung Hu and eventual All-Star reliever Hong-Chih Kuo on the team. Only one of them stuck around long enough for bobblehead immortality.
A story from The Observer, an independent paper covering Notre Dame and St. Mary's in South Bend, Ind. (linked here), focused on the return (again) of Irish quarterback Dayne Crist, the former Notre Dame High of Sherman Oaks standout:
When Dayne Crist snaps on his helmet and runs out of the tunnel for Saturday's season opener, it will not be the first time he has participated in the Irish pregame ritual. But the senior quarterback will have a different feeling now, having battled back from a season-ending knee injury for the second consecutive year to reclaim the role of starting quarterback.
"More than anything, [running out of the tunnel] will have a very gracious feel to it," Crist said. "I'll be incredibly thankful for the opportunity to go out there and play again and do everything and do the things I love. After that it's time to get to work and focus on South Florida."
A two-year contract extension signed last week sets Kings' Hockey Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Miller up through the 2012-13 season, which would mark 40 seasons with the organization.
"My nightmare is that the season I leave, the team finally wins the Stanley Cup," said Miller, who'll turn 73 in October.
Miller had been signing one-year contracts recently, and was told by the team it was up to him on whether he wanted to return each year.
With the recent announcements that Vin Scully would come back for his 63rd season and Jaime Jarrin would be back for his 54th next year with the Dodgers, Miller's extension, which has yet to be announced by the Kings, seems only natural.
The extension means that all four Kings broadcasters will have their contracts end in 2013 -- TV colorman Jim Fox, in the middle of a three-year deal now, as well as radio broadcasters Nick Nickson and Darryl Evans.
Miller and Fox will start their 22nd season together this fall on the TV side.
"To be honest, I've had more people ask me lately how long I wanted to keep doing this, and I'm sure age has something to do with it," said Miller. "There is a point where you wonder whether it's worth being away from home, all the travel. But the other thing is that you can get worried that if you say you'd like to retire, but a month into the season you really want to come back, then it's too late.
"If there are physical issues, that's one thing. There's no second-guessing that. But I don't want to leave and have to regret it later."
Miller said from his home in West Hills that he's already doing prep work for the season that starts next month.
"Every year about this time, you get anxious to get things going," he said. "As long as you feel that way at the end of August and in early September, you keep doing it. The team has been very good for me. I just know I won't be challenging Vinny for 63 years. I'd be 98."
But more than likely, sounding just as enthusiastic and spot-on with his calls.
(AP Photo/Kevin Rivoli)
Tiger Woods, left, high-fives teammate Suzann Pettersen after she birdied the seventh hole during the Notah Begay III Foundation Challenge golf tournament in Verona, N.Y., on Wednesday.
The Associated Press
The next tournament in America for Tiger Woods will be in California, at The Frys.com Open at CordeValle golf resort, just south of Morgan Hill in Northern California.
The question now is whether he can play another tournament in California at the end of the year.
Woods, as host of the Chevron World Challenge on Dec. 1-4 in Thousand Oaks, has to make the field by having enough world-ranking points. Two years ago, the event began awarding world-ranking points, but it could only award sponsor exemptions to players in the top 50 in the world.
Woods, who started the season at No. 2 in the world, dropped to No. 38 this week.
The cutoff to be in the top 50 is Sept. 20, after the BMW Championship. Tournament director Greg McLaughlin is confident Woods will be in the top 50, although it still depends on which PGA Tour players do well during the next two playoff events, and on certain Europeans faring well in Switzerland.
Asked if the tournament would consider relinquishing world-ranking points for a year if Woods needed a spot, McLaughlin said, "We haven't contemplated anything relative to that at all."
"We're confident he's going to be in the top 50 and will be eligible to play," McLaughlin said.
Then came a dose of sarcasm to show he was not worried about Woods making it to his own tournament.
"He most likely would need an exemption," McLaughlin said. "We have two, and we would happily extend one to him."
== How did Woods end up at the Fry.com event in the first place? (linked here)
A brief Q-and-A with Joel Klatt, the former University of Colorado quarterback under Gary Barnett and current Pac-12/Big 12 analyst for Fox Sports Net, who is calling Saturday's UCLA-Houston game (Prime Ticket, 12:30 p.m.) with Craig Bolerjack and Petros Papadakis:
Q: Not to steel your thunder from Saturday's broadcast, but maybe you can give us your take on the UCLA quaterback situation. Rick Neuheisel has said Tuesday that Kevin Prince will start, but Richard Brehaut will also get in, and there are followers who say actualy the freshman Brett Hundley is the one who could be there. If you're looking at the big picture here, building positive sutations, is this the best way to attack it?
Klatt: "Clearly there's the old adage where if you have two quarterbacks it means you don't have one. It's true that UCLA has struggled here. Kevin has had a heck of a time staying healthy, but Rick seems to be so much more comfortable with him than Brehaut, who tends to look better. You can't underestimate how important it is for a staff to be comfortable with who's taking the snaps. Clearly, that's Kevin.
"I'm excited to see both guys play. UCLA has a good offensive package, a good offensive line, great running backs. It just seems to be the need to get the quarterback spot to click.
"And Rick has really figured out how to draw focus away from those two, and Hunley, by saying he's on the hot seat. That's a brilliant move. You only get three hires as an athletic director. That's terrific on his part, to take pressure off everyone else."
Q: So you don't buy that Neuheisel is in trouble?
A: "He's a smart individual. We know him well in Colorado. He was here (starting in 1994 as an assistant, then '95-'98) long before I played (2002-05), but he's well known in the circle of alumns. All the players who played for him speak well of him.
"I think coaches that know they're in trouble and don't have a good feeling about the upcoming season won't address it. They talk about everything else except their status. So, especially from a veteran guy, he quietly knows he has a good club. He's sitting there thinking, 'Boy, you know, clearly people say I haven't had success. I'll admit that.' But if you get the attention away from everyone else, they can have success."
Q: Were you ever in a smiliar quarterback situation coming up at CU back in the day?
A: "Every quarterback goes through that. In my first year, it was a battle to see who'd start. In 2003, I was able to come out and have some success early. We beat a ranked Colorado State team, and we beat UCLA at home, and we got momentum early. But the next year, we struggled and I got sat down. I didn't deal with it to the extent Prince and Brehaut are dealing with it. But unless you're name is Colt McCoy or Tim Tebow, you have to battle for your job. It's only going to make them stronger team leaders."
Q: Again, looking a the big picture, will Neuheisel have critics no matter what he accomplishes this season, or doesn't accomplish? How much of this is really a make-or-break season or just a facade as you think?
A: "Clearly, he's had some success tanglable success. If ask people last year that UCLA will go on the raod and beat Texas, and then beat handily a Houston team with Keenan at quarterback, they'd say the team would win eight, nine, 10 games. That didn't happen. But those are games that fans want to use to say 'we're getting better.' The fact that Houston and Texas fell off the map hurt those as benchmark wins. Then they struggled in the Pac-10. For me, they need more tangible wins. A total of seven or eight would be about average for this team, candidly. They're a better team, and in this new Pac-12 format, I'm much higher on UCLA than most are. Is Rick in trouble? He's got a great chance to win eight, nine or 10 games."
Q: How does Colorado and Utah fit into the Pac-12 picture?
A:"It's harder for me to speak to Utah. I'm not as familiar with them, having covered the Pac-10 and Big 12 the last few years. Utah is an anomaly. Four years ago, I wouldn't have thought a team from the Mountain West could give any big conference team a legitimate game, but Utah has proven to be a proven commodity, winning BCS games. The fact USC can't play in a championship game really helps Utah. They can be with UCLA and Arizona State battling it out for the South title.
"As for Colorado, it's a perfect fit for the Pac-12. I don't know if many in the Pac-12 footprint agree, but there is so many alumni out West. I know when we played UCLA out there in 2002, we had two sections of the Rose Bowl filled, field to the top. Colorado fans always travel well.
"The past five years hasn't been a good representation of the program. Colorado is a football program, on top, since 1989, Top 20 programs, contending for conference championships, national titles, Heisman winners. When John Embry (left) -- not if, when -- he brings them back to that level, it'll be a fantastic addition for the entire Pac-12. This year, they'll struggle with a new staff and having to right a lot of wrongs, but it coule be a year to upset some pretty good teams and find itself in a bowl game. Colorado has the toughest schedule in the NCAA. So it will be some tough sledding, but they'll be down the road a great addition."
== Klatt is a sports-talk show host with former Colorado quarterback C.J. Johnson on 102.3 FM "The Ticket" in Denver from 3-to-7 p.m. Mountain time.
By Doug Ferguson
Associated Press
Even without Tiger Woods dominating golf, the PGA Tour announced today its longest network television deal in history that secures broadcast rights for the next 10 years.
The tour agreed to a nine-year deal with CBS Sports and NBC Sports. PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem did not disclose financial terms, although he said there was an increase in the rights fee and players would see modest advances in prize money.
And that's without any assurance that Woods -- golf's biggest television draw -- could get back to the top of his game.
"In our business plan, we did not assume any golfer was going to be as dominant as Tiger had been in the past," CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus said. "Tiger played in a relatively small number of PGA Tour events, anyway. It would be great if he came back. It would be great if we were dominant again. But we were not assuming that in our numbers."
The TV contract was the last big hurdle in getting through an economic crisis. The tour still managed to sign 10 new title sponsors of tournaments, and it renewed contracts with title sponsors of 12 other events.
Now, it has its television partners locked up for the next 10 years. One reason for getting a nine-year deal was to be concurrent with the 15-year deal the tour signed with Golf Channel, which began in 2007 and expires in 2021.
"A 10-year runway gives our sponsors a lot of confidence in where the television side of the sport is going to be, and that helps us in terms of creating value for our sponsors, maintaining continuity with our sponsors and extending our sponsors into the future," Finchem said at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Finchem said he expected golf's schedule to be largely unchanged. CBS would have about 20 tournaments, starting with the West Coast at Torrey Pines and concluding with the first FedEx Cup playoff event. NBC would have about 10 tournaments, including the Florida Swing, its limited-commercial presentation of The Players Championship and the last three playoff events.
NBC has two World Golf Championships early in the year, while CBS has the other at Firestone in late summer. The network deals with the major championships are separate.
Golf Channel would have the other tournaments.
Continue reading With or without Tiger, PGA profits from TV .
Marcus Allen, the 1981 Heisman winner from USC, will join Kevin Frasier in a revamped version of a Fox college football studio show airing on FSN and FX, starting Saturday.
Said Allen on today's conference call about what issues that need to be addressed by the NCAA: "The state of football on the field is excellent but off the field there are tremendous challenges. There has to be major changes and we're kidding ourselves if we think we don't have to. There has to be something done to give guys an incentive to stay in school.
"Schools are making a lot of money off of these young men and yes, they're getting an education but there has to be something else. If you pulled back the curtain I'd think that every program is compromised in some way."
It came from an interview Andy Roddick did with ESPN2's Chris Fowler after a tight, first-round win over 96th ranked Michael Russell 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 in the U.S. Open on Wednesday night.
Fowler: "You know there's a million people, a million voices. A lot of money. ESPN telling you how you should play. You shouldn't do this. You should do that. Are you searching or is it clear to you?"
Roddick: "I'm convinced being a tennis analyst is the easiest job in the world. Whatever the person does, if it works you say 'that's what's good.' If it doesn't work you guys just go, 'he should have done the other thing.' So you know I'm pretty convinced I could be a tennis analyst when I'm done."
Fowler: "I know you could. But it's not in your near future."
Roddick: "Well, yeah, it just doesn't take much thought. If I'm grinding and I'm winning you guys are like 'he's reinvented himself,' and if I'm playing like crap and pushing then it's 'he's horrible and needs to hit the ball.' Everyone's an expert but I'm better than most have been."
Fowler: "You're kind enough to take the mirror and use it very well."
Roddick: "Hey you guys can take it too, you know."
ESPN notes on its "SportsCenter" this morning that Roddick is 11-8 in matches since his last ATP Tour title, with four first-round losses.
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