Halladay all day

Toronto FC host Houston Dynamo at a booze free BMO Field today with a 1pm kickoff (coverage on CBC). The league leading Dynamo pounded TFC 3-0 on May 30th in H-Town, so TFC definitely has their work cut out for them today, as former Houston star and now RedDwayne De Rosario mentioned . The Dynamo's all-time leading scorer Brian Ching was fined for tweeting "ref in Seattle cheated the Dynamo...ref is a cheat". Wonder why a league would have a problem with that?...so if you bet on Tiger Woods to win the British Open, forget about it. For only the second time in his career, Eldrick missed the cut at a major. Biggest loser? Ratings, no doubt...not sure why things happen when they do, but seems odd that only now has video surfaced of that fateful night at a Vegas blue collar ballet of Adam "Pacman" Jones making it rain. Quality stuff embedded below...hey Yankee fans, want to buy the interlocking NY from behind the plate at the old Stadium? It can be yours for $50k, and includes delivery and having it transplanted into your lawn. Seriously...Canada faces Honduras today (5pm, SportsNet) in a Gold Cup quarter-final in Philadelphia. Will Ali Gerba continue his scoring hot streak? Let's hope, as it is good to see the red and white make some noise on the pitch...why JP Ricciardi might need to demand less for a Roy Halladay deal: as a guy signed in a multi-year contract, he's entitled to demand a trade in the off-season if he's dealt in the middle of his current year deal so a team could be renting him for a couple months and change. That said, with a no-trade deal, it seems unlikely he'd approve a move to somewhere he didn't plan on staying, but it is possible. Unless they're bluffing, you can count the Chicago White Sox out as manager Ozzie Guillen said "I don't think were going to give up half the organization for one player." Finally, Drunk Jays Fan - a great blog - says it is time to trade Halladay, but that it likely won't happen...not sure what it is about me that takes such great pleasure everytime the Toronto Argos get throttled. This time, they were 44-9 losers in Calgary...word is Shaquille O'Neal is talking about making a splash in MMA and wants a shot at UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar. Lesnar would kill him - maybe literally - in seconds. Shaq would be better served making Kazaam II than thinking he's got a hope against a total athletic freak than Lesnar...Phil Hughes whiffed all six batters he faced to get the win, 5-3, for the New York Yankees last night, not exactly a common event against a division leader...have a great Saturday all.

Check out Derek Jeter's new digs being built in Tampa. A mere 38,000 square feet. Isn't it perfect that the left side of the house in the picture is way less spacious than the right? After all, Jeter struggles to go to the left...Baseball America rated the Top 20 rookies in the game this year at the break and Toronto Blue Jays fans ought to be happy. Not only is Ricky Romero ranked tops, but the Jays managed to land a second in the top 10 at #8 with Scott Richmond...NASCAR's Jeremy Mayfield has now failed two tests for meth usage. Mayfield contends he's being set up. Someone hitting the meth is coming off paranoid? Weird......the Chicago Cubs did indeed take a chance on BJ Ryan and why not for a mere $400k prorated the rest of the way. The NL Central race will be a wild race the rest of the way with only the Pittsburgh Pirates (surprise!) more than 5.5 games behind St. Louis...check out Chris Berman once again playing the bitter guy role at the airport a couple days ago where he was entirely ignored by an autograph hunter who was chatting up Tampa Bay Ray Evan Longoria who was right beside him. Awesome. Here, of course, is the famous first rant from Berman...the British Open didn't get off to as great a start as planned for Tiger Woods. Woods shot an opening round 71 and is 7 off the pace, no doubt sending more than a few gamblers into a panic...David Beckham returned for the LA Galaxy in a 3-1 win over the hapless New York Red Bull last night, though he didn't really have much to do with it other than inspiring thousands to dress as empty blue seats at Giants Stadium. A couple nice goals in the hilite pack below...The Bleacher Report chimes in with the dozen best athlete excuses...Cristiano Ronaldo boldly predicts that Real Madrid will win La Liga and take the Champions League as well. Frankly, anything less is a disappointment, but I'm still going to say Barcelona is a better team and has a few players, unlike Real, capable of defending...Joel Sherman at SI.com says that the time is now for the Toronto Blue Jays to trade Roy Halladay. Interestingly, 11 of Halladay's projected 16 starts remaining if he were to stay would be against the AL East teams ahead of the Jays. Of course, that number could actually increase if the Baltimore Orioles get hot. John Lott says the Jays will not be lowering their lofty demands to deal Halladay...have a great Friday.

LA Galaxy @ New York Red Bull

The Philadelphia Phillies signed Pedro Martinez and he immediately went on the DL with a shoulder strain. That must've been some heavy pen he was using to ink his contract. Pedro signed for a cheap $1 million the rest of the way, with a chance to earn another $1.5 million in bonuses. So much for his $5 million pro-rated he was demanding...is there anybody that is shocked that former Toronto Blue Jays - among others - closer Billy Koch was charged with criminal mischief and battery after getting into it with a neighbor, no doubt in a trailer park? Check out Koch's numbers pre-drug testing in 2003 and after. Anybody think he wasn't juicing?...the construction workers in South Africa working on World Cup 2010 stadia are no longer on strike after picking up 12% raises that will see the highest paid workers now making $336. A month. Seriously...the general consensus among Mariano Rivera, Justin Verlander, Shane Victorino and Michael Young, among others, on what picking up Roy Halladay would mean in a trade is that he'd put a team over the top. Well yeah, if you're a contender, you'd think one of the top five starters in the game would do that...why the New York Yankees should trade for Halladay: you've got about $40 million coming off the payroll this off-season with Andy Pettitte, Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, and Xavier Nady moving out, and a rotation fronted by CC Sabathia, Roy Halladay and AJ Burnett can lead you to 100 win years for the next 3/4 years. No brainer, even if it means dealing Phil Hughes and Jesus Montero...word is season ticket renewals for the NBA squads in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Indiana and Milwaukee are going terribly. Rough times ahead for David Stern's league?...Canadian Justin Morneau is unimpressed that the All-Star Game featured a pre-recorded version of the Canadian national anthem. Good for Morneau. How can games where Toronto is playing always have the anthem sung but the freaking All-Star Game, which has Blue Jays and Canadian players, goes to a canned version? Lame...a French tennis player had a failed drug charge dismissed upon appeal because he claims the cocaine ended up in his system after he kissed a girl at a bar. That's either incredible recall or creativity on his part...Dallas Cowboy back-up Tight End Martellus Bennett staged the Black Olympics where he went for the very evolved contests of seeing who could eat fried chicken quickest, watermelon, and drinking Kool-Aid quickest. The video is just over four minutes, and incredibly, at no point does the term "is this a bad idea?" come up. Video below...if I'm the CFL or MLS, I'm making damn sure I had games going last night sans competition. Alas, neither did and the WNBA was the only action to watch...the British Open is under way and by the sounds of it, everyone and their mother figures Tiger Woods is a lock. Also a lock: wind, torched grass and evil bunkers, if Turnberry is anything like the average British Open track...have a great Thursday.

The AL wins again

Check out the promotional poster for The T.O. Show at right. We get it T.O. - you're ripped. Now put some clothes on...the American League is now 12-0-1 the last 13 All-Star games after last nights 4-3 win. The only surprise in the game last night was that the game was as low scoring, or as quick, as it was at just over two hours. Baseball's all-star game remains far and away the best of the big league sports, not that there is really any competition from the others which only resemble their real games. The AL has also seen one of its players take the MVP of the game award the last 12 years as well, with Tampa Bay Ray Carl Crawford merely the latest..Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson are said to be done, which eliminates another possible excuse for Romo when he plays poorly. Mix in that Terrell Owens is gone now too and any blame to be disseminated will be squarely on the oversized shoulder pads of #9...the Washington Nationals have composed a letter to their eleven fans to let them know that despite their record, former GM's getting bounced for presiding over skimming off draft picks money, firing of managers and a general lack of talent, they really are heading in the right direction. Or something like that...more bobbleheads from The Office? Seriously. Love the Kevin, Andy and Ryan versions...why is it when you see the weather forecast, the probability of precipitation is almost never 50%? Really, isn't that the most accurate assessment a meteorologist could give?...was Chicago Black Hawks former GM Dale Tallon set up for failure? Some seem to think so...Saturday's Toronto FC and Houston Dynamo game at BMO Field in Toronto will be an alcohol free affair after someone drank underage. I don't want to go conspiracy theorist here but there's no way the fact it is soccer doesn't have a lot to do with it. You mean to tell me nobody drank underage at the Rogers Centre for the Buffalo Bills, Toronto Argos or Blue Jays? Don't recall their license being pulled for a sporting event. Maple Leafs or Raptors? Lies...Andre "Bad Moon" Rison declares himself the best wideout to ever play football. No, seriously. I think what he meant to say was he's the best wideout who has ever had their house burnt to the ground by an ex-girlfriend...Child mullets. Rule...have a great Wednesday.

The Halladay Showcase Intensifies

Over at SI.com, Jon Heyman delivers his mid-season trade primer. Who do you suppose is listed as the #1 player available and lone super-star? Yep, Roy Halladay. Halladay figures there is a 50/50 shot he gets moved and said he'd "rather hit than face Jeter, A-Rod, Matsui and Teixeira." Come on Roy, you don't need to go to the NL to make that happen - just go to the Bronx and problem is solved...at 51-37, the New York Yankees would be in the playoffs if they started today. The downside? They're 5-15 against the other division leaders they've played: Detroit Tigers, Anaheim Angels, Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies. The 0-8 against Boston is a big part of that, but sub-.500 against the rest is still sub-.500...speaking of playoffs (playoffs?), Baseball Prospectus has updated its playoff odds for each team qualifying as a Divisional or Wild Card winner. You have to go four decimal places to get a number for the Washington Nationals. Seriously...speaking of Roy Halladay, he gets the start in the All-Star Game tonight. So say he goes out and pitches like he can and is the lead leg to another AL victory, and then gets traded to a contender in the NL, he will have ultimately harmed his new team by being strong in what should be a meaningless exhibition game. Great idea, Bud Selig. Obviously, that's just another scenario as to why the "this one counts" concept is terrible...the San Francisco Giants had 13 shutouts in the first half. That there is some serious pitching. Their ace, Tim Lincecum, goes for the NL tonight...just what the NHL needed to decrease the entertainment factor: Jacques Lemaire is back coaching the New Jersey Devils...David Beckham says the issues between he and Landon Donovan are resolved. Right, because the linguistic genius that is Beck's could even sort out a rationale explanation in a couple days for a couple years of action...I'm told Prince Fielder won the Home Run Derby last night, and Chris Berman overdid the "back back back" thing. I didn't watch to know the latter, some things you just know...J-Gam convinced me that Twitter was fantastic for sporting updates and I finally bit. Track me down here. It'll be a good dose of sporting commentary from yours truly, but not exclusively...and on the heels of yesterday's mention of Chicago Black Hawks GM Dale Tallon's epic error, he's been axed...Ron Artest got off the best tweet ever, on the subject of Allen Iverson: Much love for AI, he's a tough mofo, but these days he's missing more shots than Muhammad Ali with a sniper rifle." Wow...have a great Tuesday.

The Worst Sporting Time Of The Year

On the heels of Brock Lesnar's face caving win over Frank Mir, he's positioned himself as the first legit heel in UFC history, almost wrestling style. Loved his blasting of sponsor Bud Light post-fight because they weren't paying him directly: "I'm going to go home tonight and drink a Coors Light because Bud Light won't pay me," said Lesnar, pointing at the logo of the presenting sponsor of the event. "I'm going to sit down with my friends and family and hell, I might even get on top of my wife tonight." Awesome...this one isn't legit, but Bukkake passed me a rant that the Phat Phree composed on behalf of Washington Redskin Ethan Albright who objected to being the worst rated player in Madden 2007. They wrote a nasty letter to John Madden to express his (alleged) thoughts on the low rating. Freaking awesome...now that we're into a relatively dead period on the global sporting calendar with baseball in its All-Star break, time to unload some curious things in the broader world over the next few days. First up, is the nine least urgent 911 calls, including the famed Mike Forbes - a legend on the Jim Rome Show - at #2 and another featuring the "she are the manager" bit at #5. Love this stuff...WAG's are always a popular topic in this corner of the internet, and in keeping it topical, here are the top WAG's whose better halves will be at the MLB All-Star Game in St. Louis...Jayson Stark at ESPN takes a look at the stranger happenings and better quotes of the first half of the season. Oddly, he didn't cite the familiar April refrain of Toronto Blue Jays fans saying "we've got a shot this year"...turns out Jerry Jones didn't just drop a pile of cash on the Cowboys Stadium to host his football team, NFL style. He's also got an eye towards it being a go-to soccer venue. Check out the video at this link for a peak at the inside of the stadium, and the scoreboard that runs between the 20 yard lines over the field as they get the stadium ready for the CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-finals this week. Insane...could Derek Jeter finish his career somewhere other than in Yankee colours? Seems unlikely, but Sam Borden doesn't think it is impossible...seems Chicago Black Hawks GM Dale Tallon was asleep at the wheel, and in not getting qualifying offers to Cam Barker and Kris Versteeg and then having to pay them above what those offers would've been, they won't likely have enough cap room to ink Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Duncan Keith without moving other, presumably well paid and key, pieces...have a great Monday.

Check out this ridiculous bit of skill from a Brazilian futsaller, courtesy of TFE...

Lesnar wins

UFC 100 is in the books, and Brock Lesnar avenged his earlier defeat by Frank Mir with a curb stomping that was stopped in the second round. Canadian Georges St. Pierre had to work through a yanked groin to win a unanimous decision in his fight with Thiago Alves. In winning, GSP tied Randy Couture for most UFC wins with 14...for the second straight year, the Washington Nationals will enter the all-star break with 60 or more losses...Chad Barrett scored twice and Toronto FC beat the San Jose Earthquakes 3-1 to move into a tie for first in the tight MLS Eastern Conference...David Beckham called Landon Donovan's rip job of him "unprofessional" because he didn't talk to him first. Tough to do when you're not hanging around your team, no? Personally, I hope Donovan pops him in the mouth next time they meet...ESPN's Keith Law - a former Toronto Blue Jays employee - says a Roy Halladay trade is even less likely that it was a few days ago on his Twitter page...Entourage returns tonight. Cannot. Freaking. Wait...Toronto Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo continued a flurry of activity this week in throwing an offer sheet at Jarrett Jack...Dario Franchitti is on the pole for the Honda Indy Toronto today. Always fun seeing the Indy cars steam headlong into Turn 1 on the first lap, you're almost guaranteed action. The race goes at 1pm today...Canadian boxer Arturo Gatti was found dead in a Brazilian hotel room, and foul play is suspected. He had four fights in his career called "Fight of the Year" by Ring Magazine. Gatti was 37...going to be some lean days starting tomorrow with only the All-Star game on the schedule until Thursday but we'll soldier on and find something worth talking about...have a great day.

UFC 100 tonight!

UFC 100 goes tonight and it is going to be a huge one. Here's a peak at the three big fights on the card, headlined by Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir. I like Lesnar in that one. Sure, Mir can submit him if he gets him down, but there's nothing that says Lesnar even goes to ground unless he wants to. Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves should be an incredible fight given Alves defence and GSP's relentless attack. Have to go with our Canuck GSP there. Here are five things to watch on the card...Baseball America rhymes off their Top 25 prospects in the game, and an unranked list of the next 25. Keep an eye, Toronto Blue Jays fans, some of these guys could be coming your way for Roy Halladay...as a result of some ill-advised financing - they're spreading the payments over 40 years - the Florida Marlins new playpen will end up costing a mere $2.4 billion. Good thing for the Marlins that Miami-Dade County is financing the new digs...Rickey Henderson will have his number 24 retired by the Oakland A's on August 1st. If TV execs know what is good for ratings, they'll all simulcast Rickey's speech. It'll be that good...Canada scored a pair of goals in three minutes as part of a 2-2 draw with Costa Rica, winning their group at the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Seriously, for how horrible they were last year in World Cup qualifying - albeit under Dale Mitchell - did anyone figure on this with several of the top players out?...Entourage returns tomorrow, and in honour of that, how about a look at some of the sweet ass that has graced the show over the years?...through May 11th, the Toronto Blue Jays were 22-12. Since then, they're 22-32, including 5-13 against the AL East rivals above them...the New York Mets have been shut out three times in the last six games and five times since June 21st. Wonder if former manager Willie Randolph is enjoying this at all?...have a great Saturday.

We open this edition with a question: how is Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson better than Michael Jackson? Answer below...San Francisco Giant pitcher Tim Lincecum took a no hitter into the 7th but it wasn't to be. That ought to cement him as the NL starter in Tuesday's All-Star game, no?...after a relatively disappointing off-season, Manchester United may make a big move in adding Zlatan Ibrahimovic, which almost surely would put Wayne Rooney out on the wing given the log jam up front...the workers constructing stadiums in South Africa for next year's World Cup are on strike and that could threaten the completion of stadia in time for next year's event. Yeah, that's what soccer needs - incomplete stadiums for its marquee event in a country that many questioned if it was fit to host. Germany, you're on stand-by...the Toronto Sun's Frank Ziccarelli speculates whether the Toronto Raptors latest moves might be enough to convince Chris Bosh to stay. I'd wager now that he's staying, especially with the cap looking set to fall considerably, limiting other teams ability to sign him. That doesn't mean he'd see the entire contract through, of course...the Toronto Blue Jays are now sub-.500. Hard to believe after that smoking start in April/May, but it will go that way after you lose 10 of 12 and see Roy Halladay go 0-2 in his last three starts since coming off the DL...the Colorado Avs don't do everything with class - especially when it comes to the timing in which a coach is fired after another one has already been hired - but they got it right in announcing Joe Sakic's #19 will be retired. None of this "honoured" garbage the Toronto Maple Leafs try to do...a 31 point fourth quarter shot the Montreal Alouettes to a 50-16 win over the Edmonton Eskimos. What is more shocking, the 31 points in a quarter, or that the Eskies only scored 16 on the night?...Oasis general Noel Gallagher says in his drug days, he figures he spent £1 on drugs before going clean in 1998. And here I thought he was just a machine when it came to pumping out songs...Canada can clinch their group at the CONCACAF Gold Cup with a win or tie as they face Costa Rica tonight in Miami. It is a pretty big deal when Canada manages any soccer success. In last night's play, Mexico and Panama got ugly, as you can see below...the answer to the question above? Ferguson can play Giggs...have a great Friday.

It is becoming an annual thing for Toronto Blue Jays GM JP Ricciardi to undo a bad contract, and the latest is BJ Ryan, who in addition to, well, sucking, had the balls to say it was mostly because he wasn't getting enough work. The Jays will eat the $15 million remaining on his contract and Ryan will likely end up a lefty specialist, where he actually has great numbers. With Brian Bruney a question mark in New York, I fear, despite the numbers, he may end up a Yankee, though the Bleacher Report figures on a few other contenders. For his time in Toronto, 155 appearances, Ryan will have earned $303,225 per appearance. That's about double what A-Rod gets over the same time frame...Joel Sherman of the NY Post tweets on Roy Halladay: "Yankee officials tell me zero chance on Halladay for same reason no Santana 2 yrs back: Combo of too many prospects/dollars." In other words, if he becomes a free agent, look the hell out. Of course, the Yankees have bluffed before...Cristiano Ronaldo thanks Sir Alex Ferguson for making him a less arrogant player and more of a team player. At least he recognizes that. Now if he can stop flapping his arms when a teammate doesn't get to a pass and track back after the ball, he'll really be on his way to one of the all-time greats for Real Madrid...the huge event once known as the Molson Indy is in Toronto this weekend amid a sea of garbage, and is now known as the Honda Indy Toronto. Has it ever fallen off in terms of buzz and popularity? Toronto is a funny town, once you're no longer the cool thing to do, you never come back to your previous level of popularity...Week 2 of the CFL season starts tonight with the Edmonton Eskimos visiting the Montreal Alouettes in what is usually a good game. Have to like the home side in this one...Bartolo Colon is due to pitch for the Chicago White Sox AAA affiliate, but is nowhere to be found. I've got my money on a buffet somewhere as his hiding spot...until they hit a double last night, with three on the night, the New York Mets had gone over four games without an extra base hit...Bob Elliot at the Toronto Sun weighs in on his odds of Halladay getting moved to certain locations...have a great day, back in the morning.

RandoMango returns early afternoon.

Will Bukkake grace us with another CFL pick for his beloved Eskies?

Halladay market open?

Toronto Blue Jays GM JP Ricciardi says he'll listen to offers for ace Roy Halladay now. If a team is smart, and loaded in cash, they'll offer up some prospects and take on the albatross of a deal entitled "Vernon Wells" and mix Halladay in as the focal point. How could the Jays not consider that when Wells has $98.5 million left over the next 5 years? As great as Halladay is, you have to figure he's beyond 30 and the Jays badly need the Wells salary cleared, and he could net a pile of prospects. Buster Olney speculates as to who might be in on the bidding. Joel Sherman thinks the New York Yankees will pass, and the Jays could well be last in the AL East next year. Jon Heyman says the Jays want a top shortstop prospect in the mix. Richard Griffin figures a deal is more likely in the offseason...Lance Armstrong is currently tied for the lead (as of 9:22am) in the Tour de France in the 5th stage. Wouldn't it be awesome if he won it with all of France's finest drug testers chasing harder than the peloton? I really just wanted to use the word "peloton" there more than anything...Joe Sakic is retiring from the NHL and the Colorado Avs. Was there ever a quieter, more non-descript star? And make no mistake, he was a big star with a hell of a resume...Canada won again at the Gold Cup, with Ali Gerba again doing the damage in a 1-0 victory over El Salvador. They only need a draw with Costa Rica to ensure they advance to the knockout stage...if you're Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh or others in the vaunted 2010 NBA free agent class, moving is looking like it'll be a lot tougher with the salary cap projected to drop between $5 million and $8 million. Andrea Bargnani wasted no time in getting his, signing a five year extension that will keep him in Toronto...continuing the great baseball tradition of freak injuries, Ryan Dempster broke his big toe jumping over the rail in front of the dugout to celebrate the Chicago Cubs win on Sunday...two days in a row now I've seen giant lineups at the Canadian Tire gas bars and wondered what it was about. Today, I saw the sign that revealed the reason: you could save five cents a litre on that day at that location if you sign up for a credit card. So there are dozens of cars, idling for 15-20 minutes each I'd guess, to save $3 on a 60-liter (15 gallon) tank. People are freaking idiots...have a great Wednesday.

CR9

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone says his comments about Adolf Hitler were "misunderstood", as was Adolf, I'm sure...I felt sorry for Andy Roddick after playing such a great match Sunday in losing to Roger Federer at the Wimbledon final, until I remembered he's got Brooklyn Decker to comfort him...With Sasha Baron Cohen's new flick "Bruno" just around the corner, here's a primer for those unawares. 13 offensive Bruno moments...finally today, a public service announcement for the loyal readers of RM, particularly if your special lady friend cares about having good teeth...biggest lock of the NHL season for 2009/10 - the Toronto Maple Leafs will lead the league in program sales...a mere 80,000 people - a full stadium! - showed up in Madrid to greet Cristiano Ronaldo as he claimed - as mentioned here months and months ago - his new #9 jersey...Alexei Kovalev has jumped to the Ottawa Senators, signing a two-year, $10 million deal with the Montreal Canadiens closest rival. A bit of a head scratcher there, no? If coach Cory Clouston clashed with Dany Heatley over his lack of defensive responsibility, he's going to age quickly with the incredibly hot and cold Kovalev...good of BJ Ryan to blame his woes on a lack of work. So, Cito Gaston, nevermind logic, your job, fan base and the rest of the team, get the man some innings so he can feel good about himself. What a tool...on the plus side for the Jays, hard not to figure Ricky Romero is the lead candidate for AL Rookie of the Year at this point...maybe the most bizarre comment from an umpire I've ever heard comes from Marty Foster, who called Derek Jeter out yesterday in the first inning yesterday despite Jeter clearly having slid under the tag. Says Jeter: "He didn't tag me." Foster: "He didn't have to, the ball beat you." Huh? Even crew chief John Hirshbeck couldn't defend the comment...Canada plays El Salvador tonight in Columbus in their next Gold Cup game. Coverage at 9pm on SportsNet. Canada has won three straight. In soccer. Seriously...finally today, turns out that people are selling tickets to the Jacko memorial in L.A. this morning for as much as $9,000 and more than a few people are upset. Right, because nobody will profit from an event at the Staples Center with Pepsi signs throughout the building- give me a break...have a great Tuesday.

Slap Fights rule...especially when one ignores the first and only rule of Slap Fights

EMBED-Play Fight Goes Very Wrong - Watch more free videos

Toronto Blue Jays reliever BJ Ryan is not a major league calibre pitcher anymore, or at least not one you want in a high leverage situation. Ryan couldn't break a pane of glass with his fastball and is in the running with Vernon Wells for most overpaid Blue Jay, except Wells can at least play the field. Ryan came in to the 5th inning yesterday with the Jays up 8-7 and promptly gave up a two run homer to Derek Jeter and the Yanks went on to win 10-8, their fifth straight against the Jays, and they'll look to complete the four game sweep today at 1:05pm with Ricky Romero and Andy Pettitte your starters....six times have Roger Federer and Tiger Woods won tournaments on the same day...if you're going to break into a house, make sure it is not the home of a former boxer, even if he is 72 years young now. Check out the picture of this guys grill after Frank Corti got a hold of him...the Toronto Sun's Bob Elliot gives his take on the new Yankee Stadium...with UFC 100 just around the corner, why not a look at UFC ring girls, past and present?...the MLB All-Star game rosters are out, and as always, there are a few question marks for a game that allegedly counts when you've got to have each team represented. Nice work voting in Josh Hamilton, fans. Shame he's been out for good chunks of the first half and shouldn't be there. Fan voting blows. And how to the New York Mets merit four guys on the NL roster?...when a team pays £80 million for you, as Real Madrid did for Cristiano Ronaldo, your best course of action when asked is to be humble about it and downplay it. But Ronaldo of course says he's worth it because that's what two teams agreed upon. That may be the truth in a "you're worth what someone is willing to pay" sense, but it is also a hell of a figure to live up to so your best bet, CR9, is to be humble about it, even if you don't mean it or are incapable of such. Real is also about to drop £30million on French striker Karim Benzema. Is there anybody not a fan of Real that doesn't want to see them flame out badly in La Liga and the Champions League next season?...good of Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone to go Marge Schott on us and say that Adolf Hitler "got things done"...nice of Roger Clemens people to let us know that he is not on the list of failed drug tests for 2003. As if that means much now...while crafting today's blog, Edmonton Eskimo Jessie Lumsden hurt his other shoulder. Speaking of the Esks, am a big fan of their throwback jersey. Bukkake and the boys should collect some funds and send one this way for their fav Ontarian's birthday coming soon. I kid, Bukkake...have a great Monday.

Link free for a day

A link free RM today after a small renovation forced me to pull the plug on my PC for the day. All back up and running tomorrow, but for now, it is a BlackBerry edition...my initial reaction to the death of Steve McNair was that I wasn't shocked things ended badly, but that's because I got him confused with Vince Young momentarily. When I cleared that up, total shocker. Sad news. Then I figured as it was McNair, I hoped he didn't go Chris Benoit from all the concussions he had, but it now sounds like he was the victim, and the woman involved the shooter and then suicide case...you can forget Roy Halladay starting the All-Star game if he has another underwhelming performance like his last two. The New York Yankees drilled three homers off Halladay, a rarity for him, and won 6-5 in 12 innings to move a game back of division leading Boston, who lost - again - to Seattle...love that the Toronto Star is trumpeting the "Toronto Factor" on the cover today as why Hedo Turkoglu chose to sign with the Raptors. An insecure lot, them Torontonians, despite outward appearances. Love that the article ignores that he had a verbal deal with Portland set. What, he suddenly realized Toronto has a larger Turkish community and is a shorter flight to Turkey? Let's not forget there were a few million other reason$ he went to the Big Smoke...Andy Roddick wasn't broken once until the final game, as Roger Federer won the fifth set 16-14 and set the all-time Grand Slam record with his 15th win. A class of his own for Federer, fittingly...Serena Williams won the women's title yesterday in about the time it'll take to write this sentence...back tomorrow with loads more.

Due to technical difficulties, RandoMango will return this afternoon.

I swear that I don't have a gun...

The Seattle Sounders of MLS played the Portland Timbers of the USL in the U.S. Open Cup and a Portland fan held up the sign at right for Sounders goalkeeper Kasey Keller. Kurt Cobain, of course, was from Seattle...a rare weekend of no games for Toronto FC. Dullsville. The Reds are off until July 11th when they'll visit San Jose...New York Yankee AJ Burnett exacted some revenge on his previously poor start against the Toronto Blue Jays. He struck out 7 over 7 with two walks and two earned runs and the Yankees won 4-2. Burnett is on a serious roll now and has allowed three earned runs in 27 1/3 innings (0.99 ERA) and 33 k's since his horror show in Boston five games back where he vowed to improve. Safe to say he's done that. Today likely won't be so kind to the Yankees, as Chien-Ming Wang is on the bump - bad for the Yankees - while Roy Halladay goes for the Jays - worse for the Yankees...it is one week until the mega UFC 100 card. As a bit of a primer and a look back, here's a look back at a top 10 of the previous best cards...the LA Dodgers went a strong 29-21 without Manny Ramirez, and ManRam returned last night. The Dodgers won 6-3 at San Diego and ManRam was 0 for 3 with a walk amid mixed boos and cheers. The Dodgers are going to absolutely flatten that division...Andy Roddick ruined the hopes of Great Britain by taking down Andy Murray in four sets and now Roddick will attempt to beat a guy who has owned him in Grand Slam finals, and a guy who is looking to win a record setting 15th Slam in Roger Federer who took out Tommy Haas in straight sets. That's one great reason to get up tomorrow morning. The ladies final is set for 9am this morning...Rosario Dawson. Just because...a poll of 380 MLB players had 26% selecting Lou Piniella as the manager they'd least like to play for. Bobby Cox topped the list of managers they'd most like to play for. Meantime, Joe Torre finished top five in both categories. Guessing the group that wouldn't want him as a skipper could be labelled "relievers"...Roddy Piper was busted on a DUI. Shame, Roddy...what are the odds that it would be Ali G - as in Gerba - that would stab Jamaica in the heart and give Canada a 1-0 win in their opening game at the Gold Cup? The recent Toronto FC signing scored a beauty midway through the second half at the game played in Carson, California...scratch Rick Nash off the rumoured Toronto Maple Leafs wish list. He signed an eight year extension for $62.5 million with the Columbus Blue Jackets yesterday...and a happy Fourth of July to our friends south of the border. In your honor (your spelling, not ours), here are ten hatchet jobs of anthems, mostly American...have a great Saturday.

Bees!

It'll be an all Williams sister final at Wimbledon this year. My money is on Venus. Hilarious hearing Jason Whitlock - no lightweight himself - mention on the Jim Rome Show how Serena Williams driver's license lists her at 135 but he said there's no way she's under 200. Not sure about 200, but she's closer to that than she is 135. Meanwhile, the men's semis are going today with Roger Federer taking on Tommy Haas and local fav Andy Murray facing Andy Roddick...Landon Donovan isn't shy about his opinions on David Beckham's act in Grant Wahl's new book The Beckham Experiment, an excerpt of which you can read here. Thanks to GBVH for that one...finally somebody decided to lay the old dimensions of Yankee Stadium over those of the new, and there are a few noticeable differences, particularly right centre. Also of note is that the wall is shorter. Short of losing seating capacity by a higher wall blocking out a row or two, not sure how you fix that side of the equation...there was a 52 minute delay in the San Diego Padres and Houston Astros game last night. Rain? No. Bees. This makes the midge attack in Cleveland on Joba Chamberlain in the 2007 playoffs look tame...word is Bayern Munich and French star Franck Ribery wants to join Real Madrid. Freaking insanity...on the move is Michael Owen, who will be joining Manchester United on a free transfer. Could be a great move for both if he can stay healthy, but that's a giant "if" with Owen...remember "Guido Beach"? Well, before that, there was "Wildwood, New Jersey"...the Toronto Blue Jays are in New York for a weekend series that gets under way at 1pm today for those not working...former MLBer Jim Leyritz, two months shy of a trial for a DUI manslaughter charge, doesn't believe in keeping a low profile. He's now added a battery charge after smacking his wife around...have a great Friday.

Free agent frenzy!

Fixin' to be a big year for the CFL in Hamilton if you figure swaths of empty seats for the home opener with their closest and most hated rival in for a game are a good sign. The Ti-CatsToronto Argos lost 30-17 to the ...since his two day break for fatigue, A-Rod is hitting .435 (10 for 23) with four homers, 13 RBIs and 10 walks as the New York Yankees have now rolled off seven straight wins. Speaking of the Yankees, they've graciously included free tickets to a fireworks show on the Fourth of July this Saturday under the name of "Chien-Ming Wang". There is a risk however that the show doesn't come off as those holding the matches are the pop-gun offence of the Toronto Blue Jays...class act that Dany Heatley. Heatley was looking for a trade from the Ottawa Senators because he doesn't like that his coach expects him to occasionally work on something other than scoring, so the Sens accomodate him to save a $4 million pay day that is due if July 2nd hits, and then the Sens make a deal - and a good one for them too - with the Edmonton Oilers for centre Andrew Cogliano, winger Dustin Penner and defenceman Ladislav Smid. Shame that Heatley appears to have declined a move to Edmonton, because he wanted to be moved to the New York Rangers when they freed up some cap room after trading Scott Gomez to the Montreal Canadiens, who also made a nice move in inking Mike Cammelleri. Problem is the Rangers inked Marian Gaborik to a five year, $37.5 million deal. Here's hoping the Sens force him to stay and if he doesn't like it, he can stay home...the Chicago Black Hawks inked Marian Hossa to a 12 year deal. Yes, 12. I'll never understand those deals...and hey, the Toronto Maple Leafs made a huge move that ought to get the city of Toronto planning the parade route: they signed Colton Orr. Okay, they also signed Mike Komisarek which is nice, and shipped Pavel Kubina to Atlanta...Tony Romo was talking some junk to Tiger Woods in their pro-am event yesterday. Woods showed up wearing a Washington Redskins jersey...

Happy Canada Day!

RandoMango returns tomorrow.

Best email ever?

The Tampa Bay Rays are the fifth team all time to have 100 home runs and 100 stolen bases by the all-star break, with plenty of time to spare...the Washington Nationals are 11-7 in games they're trying to avoid a sweep, and 11-44 in all others. Guess they do have some pride...best email yesterday to the Jim Rome Show on Jelena Jankovic: "she's the best tennis player. Period."...with three at home to Tampa Bay, and they lost last night with Roy Halladay on the bump, followed by four in New York and another three in Tampa, the Toronto Blue Jays best get things turned around or they'll be double digits off the pace in the American League East and their torrid start a distant memory. They're now 7 back...if I'm an NBA GM, I'm not sure that I ever draft guys over 7' tall. Greg Oden has been in and out of the Portland lineup since being drafted, and now comes word Yao Ming's foot injury could be career threatening. Goes to show how special Shaq has been...the Buffalo Bills have already sold out four of their seven home dates this year before individual game tickets become available. Looks like Toronto's game has driven demand in Buffalo through dwindled supply. Classic Economics...San Francisco Giant Tim Lincecum tossed his third complete game of the year, a two-hitter in which he fanned eight. Tiny Tim is a stud, and now has 132 strikeouts in 114 innings pitched...A-Rod's got more walks than strikeouts for the first time in his career, and if his batting average on balls in play (BABIP) starts to resemble something normal, he could be in for an incredible second half. Interesting read here...Centre Court at Wimbledon finally used its fancy roof, and Andy Murray of Scotland took to it well in a five set victory. Curious to see what happens to the grass after prolonged used under the lid...if you've never read the insane ramblings of The Ultimate Warrior, now is a good time to start as he riffs on the departure of Michael Jackson. By the way, the guy had his name legally changed to "Warrior"...more on Jacko: U.S. soccer has released a Michael Jackson tribute jersey. Seriously...the CFL season starts tomorrow. Some predictions: a team under .500 will make the playoffs. The playoff format will continue to confuse. The Argos will continue to suck. And Bukkake will continue to remind us why we should all be Eskimos fans, and that I am...have a great Tuesday.

500 and counting

The United States stunned the soccer, nay, the sporting world by racing out to a 2-0 first half lead over star studded Brazil, who looked incapable of defending themselves to any U.S. attack. The second half proved a different tale as Brazil raised their game and completely dominated, scoring three to make the final 3-2 and win the Confederations Cup, the warm-up before next year's World Cup in South Africa. It was hard not to pull for the U.S., as the States play the game right - Charlie Davies had a clear foul on him and rather than going to ground to make sure it is called, he kept pushing forward and kept his feat. If you don't like the U.S. team for acts like that alone, you're letting political views get in the way of sporting ones...Roy Halladay returns tonight for the Toronto Blue Jays and not a moment too soon - his Jays are now fourth place after losing yesterday while the Tampa Bay Rays were winning their fifth straight. Count the Rays out this year at your peril. They score loads of runs, and if they get their pitching right, they're going to be a load in the second half...those Blue Jays "you belong at the game" ads are pretty solid, but shouldn't the part where they show a full Rogers Centre be in black and white just so they're not falling into the realm of false advertising?...Yankees closer Mariano Rivera nailed down his 500th career save last night, and had an RBI, in the Yankees 4-2 win over the Mets to sweep that series, also their fifth straight win...Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson is going with the tried and true "show me how much you care" when it comes to the subject of more Bills home games being played in Toronto. Let's be serious, he couldn't care less if there's a single body in the seats if the cheque doesn't bounce from Rogers to bring the game north...Tony Romo will be partnered in a Pro-Am this week with Tiger Woods. Tough times for Romo. Word is Eldrick is going to give a dissertation on the importance of finishing strong and keeping the ball out of trouble...it didn't take long for a website to round up all the Michael Jackson jokes that have been floating about in the last few days, as well as years prior. Here it be...have a great Monday.

A+ A.J.

AJ Burnett whiffed 10 and took a no-hitter into the sixth en route to a one hitter, with the bullpen finishing it, for the New York Yankees and a 5-0 win over the New York Mets. That's four hits total for the Mets on the weekend off Burnett, just returning from suspension, and CC Sabathia. 14 of the 18 innings on the weekend the Mets have gone down 1-2-3. You have to figure the Mets won't have as tough a time tonight with Chien-Ming Wang on the bump for the Bronx Bombers...seven Swedes were taken in the first round of the NHL draft. There were seven Russians drafted - total. Odd...a Calgary Flame defence headed by Dion Phaneuf and newly acquired Jay Bouwmeester looks pretty freaking good for the next decade, no? Bouwmeester is a free agent come July 1st, but you have to figure the Albertan signs...the top seed in the women's draw at Wimbledon, Jelena Jankovic, after her loss to the unheard of Melanie Oudin blamed "woman problems." Feminists must be so proud. At least Serbian Viktor Troiki had a good reason for getting blown out by Andy Murray in straight sets: he's allergic to grass...Brazil and the U.S. will contest the Confederations Cup final today at 2pm. Coverage on CBC. Be sure to check the video below for the strange trip to the finals for the Yanks...Toronto FC stunk it up badly in Salt Lake last night, 3-0 losers to the hosts...those wacky Phillipino prisoners are at it again, this time staging a tribute to the departed Michael Jackson. Question: is the "P" on their prison garb for "pedophile"?...a Tampa Bay Rays fan - yes, they exist - was grabbed by the throat by the Philadelphia Phillies JC Romero after the fan made a steroid crack to the just-returned-from-suspension Romero. Wonder if he made a comment about Roid Rage after Romero released the choke hold?...not sure why the Milwaukee Brewers and San Francisco Giants went with Hispanic names on their jersey's yesterday, but I like it. More pics here...finally today, what do Ed McMahon, Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson expect for Christmas? Patrick Swayze...have a great Sunday.


The U.S. road to the Confederation Cup final...