$6.666666666666666 million is not the number of the beast

The Ilya Kovalchuk saga is finally over, and he know has an approved 15 year, $100 million deal with the New Jersey Devils, which is oh so fitting because that averages out to $6.666666666666666 million a year.  Of course, that continues to infinity, but thought one decimal place per year was fitting.  That deal, and deal like it, led to a quick change to the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

One baseball man who goes back year's with Cliff Lee says he has no doubt he'll be pitching for the New York Yankees next year.  Me likes.   But speaking of Yankee pitchers, AJ Burnett is a career 22-21 with the Yankees (his great playoff run last year not included).  Over the last 15 years, that's the lowest win percentage among Yankee starters with 50+ starts.  Second lowest?  Javier Vazquez.  They're going to need one of them to show up - at least - come playoff time if they're to win championship #28.

Is the MLS rule that requires a certain number of Canadian players to be on the rosters of Toronto FC, and soon Vancouver Whitecaps and Montreal Impact, about to be eliminated in favor of a "North American player" quota?  It sure seems that way based on what TFC GM Mo Johnston is saying, and that only makes sense for a North American league.  Speaking of TFC, they'll be in tough tonight in Dallas what with it (1) being a road game and (2) three key players staying at BMO Field to suit up for Canada as they face Peru in a friendly.

Since August 15th, Derek Jeter is hitting .157, with more K's (12) than hits (11). Not what one would like in a contract year. Michael Kay, voice of the Yankees, said in his radio show that Hal Steinbrenner will make a fair contract offer to Jeter but he won't exceed it or go into A-Rod money or long years and is pragmatic enough that he'd let him walk. Especially given this year, that's a wise play to hold the line.  So if Jeter walks from 3 years and $60 million, is there anyone that offers much more than half that?  Boston?  Doubt they'd even do it.

There are over 50 NCAA football games on tap today. I got in early on LSU at -6. The line has since moved to -9 after word of North Carolina being down a dozen - yes, a dozen - players, almost all defensive starters, through a last minute suspension after some agent dealings. Inside info?  No, but I'll take luck like that. 

Since losing Justin Morneau, who was an MVP candidate until he got his bell rung against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Minnesota Twins have gone 33-18.


Most of the Euro 2012 qualifying went as expected, unless you're France, 1-0 losers at home to lowly Belarus.  But hey, at least the players knew the words to the anthem, a focal point ahead of the game for Les Bleus.  Then there was Portugal.  Good: scoring four goals.  Bad: Giving up four.  Worse: to Cyprus.  Worse still: at home.

Manny Ramirez has apologized - in English, even - for his behavior in his closing run as a Boston Red Sock.  Love how he praises himself for being such a stand up guy in apologizing.  Guess he forgets that the apology has been due for a couple years now, and that the only thing worse than people thinking you're a quitter is admitting you are.


Here's a look at the eight (alleged) "Code" violations by Washington National Nyjer Morgan in the past week or so.


Former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson is picking the Cowboys to win the Super Bowl.  Good enough for me!


Finally a pair of videos to close things out, from the NCAA.


Another girls cat fight in NCAA soccer.  Sometimes the ladies are more vicious than the guys...



Awesome trick play in the Presbyterian vs. Wake Forest game a couple days back.  How do three guys lose the ability to hear the whistle at the same time?

Money May goes off...

Pittsburgh Steeler legend Terry Bradshaw isn't exactly taking up for his old team in suggesting that Ben Roethlesberger's suspension should be the full six games, and no less, for how he has behaved.  I don't always agree with Bradshaw, but you have to respect he's willing to go out there with an opinion that will ruffle feathers.  In response, the NFL has cut the suspension to four games.

NFL attendance is expected to fall this year, for the third straight year, to its lowest levels since 1998.  Guess the threat of no football in 2012 isn't exactly creating an urge to get to the games.  That, or people are realizing that the sport is a lot better on TV than it is at the game itself.

What to do if you're an NHL team struggling to sell seats?  Put advertising over said seats and make a few bucks that way.  Must make Gary Bettman so proud that his U.S. vision is panning out so swimmingly.

Euro 2012 qualifying gets into full swing with a pile of games today.  Spain, not surprisingly, are the early betting favs to win the tourney, with Germany just behind.  I've got a sprinkle on Croatia today at Latvia.  Should be a comfortable win.

Ever heard of "bubbling"?  It is the creation of a mormon who isn't allowed to look at porn.  Great stuff.

Cheryl Tweedy - aka the wife of Chelsea defender Ashley Cole - has a 2011 calendar.  If this is 2011, it is gonna be a very good year.

Nevermind the rest, but Jersey Shore's The Situation needs his own TV show.  That guy is freaking awesome.  Maybe we'll allow Paulie D to ride shot gun, with cameos by Vinny.  The rest can leave.  Not sure what was funnier, Sitch unwittingly hitting on a dude, or picking up a girl, taking her home and then leaving her waiting in the room while he went and had a bite and a smoke, and then when finishing with her telling her that he had called her a cab and it was time to go.

Nice to see Floyd Mayweather get racial with it in referring to fighting the "midget" Manny Pacquiao, saying he will force Pacquiao to "make some sushi rolls and cook some rice." He also said "we're going to cook him with some cats and dogs."  Have to laugh at his "what the fuck you gettin' a tattoo for if you scared of needles?" bit.

RM returns this afternoon...

Mega 90210 entry...

Here's the Florida Marlins situation, in short (as possible).  For years, the Marlins have cried poor - bad stadium, bad part of town, bad lease agreement that saw them get no parking revenue for example.  They claimed to be a money losing operation and kept squeezing Miami for a new stadium, a squeeze that ultimately worked and a new stadium is being built.  Recently, financial documents leaked that show they're not only nicely profitable and pocketing revenue sharing dollars rather than spending them to improve the team, but they've also collected millions in parking.  Buster Olney (ESPN Insider required) says the government should investigate.  And where is Bud Selig in all this?  He had to have known about this deception.  Guess he's and the feds are more worried about  PED investigations for guys out of the game that used in a time where there was no rule against it than protecting the people who support the team and are taxpayers.  Slimy, real slimy stuff, especially when your read the Marlins are among the most profitable teams in baseball.

For a purported "world championship", the World Basketball Championships sure doesn't have a big feel to it, does it?  Little coverage on TV and in papers, and no buzz at all. I'd wager if you asked 10 general sports fans, 3 max would know where the tourney is (Turkey, by the way).   Of all the team sports, only soccer gets it right on its own. The rest have their biggest stages at the Olympics.

Not sure why SportsNet stays with New York Yankee broadcasts through "God Bless America" in the 7th inning. Less sure why that and anthems remain part of domestic sports.

The European transfer window for its soccer clubs that just closed saw teams spend a combined £325,000, or $526,000,000 (Cdn). Crazy money.

I don't think the NFL going to 18 games will ultimately prove to be backbreaking for players bodies.  If anything, the lack of rest they get in the off season and with two-a-day camps has to do as much damage as anything.  But to hear Jerry Jones talk of how there are provisions in the CBA to go all the way to 22 games seems excessive.  Word is the move to 18 games will see each team play at least a game in a non-NFL market - think London, Barcelona, etc. - and add a second bye week.  The Super Bowl would push to mid-February and coincide with Ontario's Family Day weekend, which I'm all for.  What says "family" more than "daddy's hungover"?

Trademark looks in the NFL.  Yes, of course Wade Phillips blank stare when something goes afoul made the mix.  Not sure how "The Manning Look" didn't make it.  You know that one, the utterly stunned look when something goes wrong.

Almost a quarter of Toronto Raptors games this year will appear on SportsNet One, which isn't available to about half of Ontario homes right now, and more than half of Canadian homes.  This is what is known as providing a public service.  For me, SportsNet One has resulted in Yankee games on TV almost nightly, so am pretty happy with its arrival.

Cliff Lee has an ERA of 8.35 his last five starts for the Texas Rangers.  This is only slightly above his career average ERA pitching in Arlington, Texas.  For those thinking he'd resign in Texas: no chance.

A couple people of former New York Yankees - unnamed - say Derek Jeter's pride will make him insist he get A-Rod money in his next contract with the Yankees.  I know it is only money, and the Yankees could probably triple their payroll comfortably, but that's a mistake waiting to happen.  Jeter's defence his slipping, and so is his offence.  You want pride, DJ?  Sign for two more years, get your 3,000th hit sometime next year, maybe win another ring or two, retire.

Pitch F/X, which among other things, tracks pitchers speeds and locations, only has data dating back to the 2008 for regular season. But, Cincinnati Red Aroldis Chapman's 103.9mph fastball in his debut on Tuesday night was the fastest regular season pitch ever recorded. 103.9? Wow.

Audrina Patridge on Dancing With The Stars?  Interesting.

A whole heap of video here today, and all good stuff.

Up first, check out what Arizona Diamondback Adam LaRoche had played for teammate Kelly Johnson for his first two at-bats.  That's what you do when your team sucks, I guess.  Funny stuff.


A real baseball brawl last night.  Check this out.  Washington National Nyjer Morgan charges the mound, misses with a punch, and gets on the wrong end of a beautiful clothesline.


Another angle here, and Nyjer Morgan F-bombing the fans (not seen) and pounding his chest after getting tossed during a brawl.  Classy.  That said, throwing at the guy for doing something perfectly legal and not dirty is bush.


Oh I like the sounds of this!

Breaking sports news video. MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL highlights and more.

In case you missed Roger Federer's "tweener" a couple days back, check it out.

Going into yesterday, the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays had been tied in first in the AL East for eight straight days, a record in MLB.  A Rays curb stomping at the hands of the Toronto Blue Jays and the Yankees beating of the Oakland A's resolved that, at least for a day.  The Yankees have had a share of first since June 22nd, but it is hardly a commanding lead, especially with a tough September ahead.

There have been 24 one-hitters thrown in baseball this year, if you were wondering.  Half of them against the Tampa Bay Rays.  Admittedly, part of that isn't true.

It is almost like we knew something yesterday in speculating that Matt Leinart might be a target for the Buffalo Bills.  Might have something to do with having three quarterbacks, which usually means you have none.  Come to find out the Bills, Oakland Raiders and New York Giants have all placed calls with the Arizona Cardinals to see if they're interested in dealing.

I haven't touched much, if at all, on the baseball money topic that has been bubbling the last week, but will tomorrow.  If you thought Florida Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria - ex of the Montreal Expos - was slime before, you ain't seen nothing yet.  Just too big to cram in right now.

Continuing on yesterday's "booze is good for you" subject, got this pieces from KD that are simply amazing: what booze looks like under a microscope.  And what's more, you can buy these fine pieces as artwork.

The ever forward thinking UEFA - soccer's governing body in Europe - has issued a vuvuzela ban for Champion's League and Euro 2012 games.  They can't figure out how to know for sure if a goal is in or not, but this is pressing.

There are merely 59 NCAA football games kicking off on Saturday.  For fans of the college game, here are the Top 9 places to tailgate.  No argument with LSU.  Went there last year for Bukakke's stag and the scenery was spectacular.  The overflowing Johnny-On-The-Spots, not so much. I hate that our archaic booze laws in Canada don't allow this festival of fun to happen.  That, along with crazy ticket prices, are key reasons why the "Bills in Toronto" series has been such a bust.  Why pay to be fenced in and served way overpriced beer to the strains of Nickelback and the like when you can roll down the QEW to Buffalo and go wild?

Only two words needed to describe this one: Hipster Hitler.    Be sure to check out HH from "First Page" on.  So good.Maybe the best thing I've seen on the internet since Miranda Kerr in 3D.

Check out the Babes of the U.S Open, with extensive galleries of each.

And then there is this: Road Rage Cards.

Those crazy Icelanders are at it again.  Really need to grab me a jersey of this fine squad.

900 posts!

Yep, you read correctly in the subject.  900 blog entries completed.  Not sure if that is worth anything, other than needing my head examined, but here's to at least another 100 more.

Check out these attendance figures for last night in baseball action: 11,000, 18,000, 14,000.  Bottom end teams?  Nope, the playoff bound Tampa Bay Rays hosting Toronto, the NL East leading Atlanta Braves hosting the New York Mets, and the NL Central leading Cincinnati Reds hosting Milwaukee.

Gotta give much respect to the Boston Red Sox this year, as much as it pains me to say it.  They've been absolutely decimated by injuries all year to position players and pitchers alike, but have somehow managed to stay in the race the entire year and in third place, though they're looking about done trailing by seven games entering the final month.  If they get healthy for next year, the AL East is going to be real interesting again, with maybe even the Blue Jays a possibility to make some noise.  And no, 13 games out this year does not qualify as making noise.

I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that the OHB heavily regrets coming back for one year.  In addition to be overweight and losing one of his fav targets in Sidney Rice for at least half the season, he's already taking injections in his wonky ankle.

Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke is pushing for a return of the World Cup, which in itself is comical.  If this is a legit tourney, shouldn't it be regularly on the calendar like, oh, every other World Cup?  With it sounding like NHL participation in the Olympics in 2014 is not happening, now is as good a time as any.  Burke is suggesting every two years and to replace the IIHF "World Championships", though every two years seems excessive.  Then again, isn't like there are qualifiers to play really, what with the dozens handfuls of nations that play hockey in the world.

Last week's hockey summit in Toronto included discussion of a women's NHL.  Right, because that would ever fly.

Come to find out that heavy drinkers outlive non-drinkers.  So crack yourself a beer or dozen.  Repeat.

Arizona Cardinals QB Matt Leinart - yes, he's still in the league - is a little bent that, well, the starting job isn't just being handed to him, I guess.  Very classy going to the media to ask the questions, though.  Am sure that is scoring points with his coaching staff and teammates alike.  If he's not careful, he'll soon be trying to sling the ball around Buffalo, which would be fun to watch in the wind.

Speaking of Buffalo, the over/under on Bills wins for the year is a mere 5.5, and you have to give extra to bet the under.  Ouch.  "And with the first pick of the 2011 NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills select..."

A trio of videos to close things out for today, starting with the Top 5 goals in Italy's Serie A this weekend.  Slim pickings, however, what with the lack of them.


Check out this high school football vid.  Love how the running back goes about 35 yards in the wrong direction before deciding that treating the ball like a live grenade is the best way to dispose of it.


The Cleveland Cavs lost LeBron, the Indians stink, and if this is any indication, the Browns are in for a brutal year.  Check out Detroit Lions rookie Ndamukong Suh - one of the best names in sports, by the way - try to decapitate QB Jake Delhomme on Sunday night and the response of the Browns is, well, see below.

Weekend wrap

The Tampa Bay Rays, tied for the best record in the bigs, hosted the Boston Red Sox last night.  Big game, no?  You wouldn't know it by the empty seats in the pic at right.  Sad.

The Manny Ramirez deal to the Chicago White Sox is now done.  Manny, ever classy, had his last at bat as a Dodger yesterday and was thrown out for arguing balls and strikes with the bases loaded.  The strike?  Merely strike one.  Way to keep your eye on the prize, ManRam.

Frankie Edgar pounded out a five-round shutout of BJ Penn on Saturday night at UFC 118.  Not sure Penn is done, but a fast, scrambling guy like Edgar is a big match-up problem for him.  In the sideshow of the night, James Toney couldn't even come close to backing up all the junk he was talking as Randy Couture finished him barely three minutes into the first round.

Ahh, Toronto FC.  One game you have me believing you can go all the way if you can just get into the playoffs, a couple games later I've got a fork out for you.  As good as Real Salt Lake is, home draws will not do at this time of the year.

Been a while since we ran a Top 10 list, so here's a Top 10 Athletes Attacking Fans.

On a bit more of a serious note here, interesting project at CNN where they've got pictures taken of New Orleans five years ago after Hurricane Katrina hit and what the same spots look like today.  In many cases, not much has changed.  Pretty sad. The Lower Garden District picture (#21) is hilarious.

One game into the Spanish La Liga season and the talk is already of Jose Mourinho leaving Real Madrid to take over for Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United when he retires. Wesley Sneijder, who used to play for Mourinho, says the thought of returning to England "turns [Mourinho] on".  Weird.
 
Loving Fox Soccer's weekly EPL roundup.  Check this out, especially Dimitar Berbatov's beauty for Manchester United.
<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/foxsoccer/video?vid=55f36423-8667-4aca-a038-0ada1f915021" target="_new" title="">PL: Weekend Roundup</a>

A whole lotta football...

The Score may have lost the English Premier League, but they've got Italy's Serie A coverage this year, starting with a pair of games today in Udinese and Genoa at noon, and Roma hosting Cesena at 2:45pm. Me, I'm an AC Milan guy insofar as Italy goes but man are they ever an old squad.

Starting September 7th on GTV - Gaming TV - Gabriel Morency returns to TV with Richard Garner riding shotgun in a mostly gambling related show that will appear at 6pm weeknights. Am sure their old buddy at The Score, Cam Stewart, is thrilled. GTV appears in 5.4 million Canadian homes, a million less than The Score by way of comparison. Nice work on Morency's part. There's talk of a U.S. TV show soon too. 

Saturday night at BMO Field with TFC hosting Real Salt Lake at 7pm.  A dozen guys in a limo leaving a pub after Manchester United's 12:30 tilt with West Ham United to head to Toronto. What could go right here?  Not much I figure. Can't wait. Will be at The Brazen Head in Liberty Village if you're around. About 4ish I'd guess.

Call it the Curse of the Expos, if you will, but the Washington Nationals are paying for the karma of how they ended up in D.C. with brutal teams, and now the introduction of Stephen Strasburg to Tommy John Surgery after blowing out his arm last weekend.  Turns out the body isn't a fan of throwing 90+ off-speed stuff.  Speaking of, Aroldis Chapman should be making his Cincinnati Reds debut shortly.  Scouts are saying he hit 104mph on the gun this week with his fastball and a 91mph slider.  Here's a look at more of baseball's fallen phenom's.

Hard not to figure why CONCACAF - the regional soccer governing body - might have shady officiating, when you hear its President is on the take and involved in scalping tickets.  Very classy.

Pretty freaky videos of female tennis players in super slo mo.  More accurately, females, and Serena Williams.

Check out these pics of MLB managers when they were players.  Joe Torre looks bad ass with those 'burns.

Driving is chore enough for some.  But how about mixing in masturbation and watching porn on top?

It isn't often you see a professional sports team openly mock another one, but after Panama's Arabe Unido made a mockery of the game, manhood and anything one should have pride in, Toronto FC, via TFCTv, couldn't resist.  This is awesome, though it would have been better with the Benny Hill theme music (Yakety Sax) methinks. 

At tomorrow night's Toronto FC game, you can donate to Pakistan relief, and MLSE and the Canadian Government will match your donation.

Quickly here...

Quick one today as work made me, well, work. 

Nice to see Pete Rose weighing in on Roger Clemens, saying that he would be best served to come clean.  I'm sure the Rocket is thrilled to hear Rose coming off as the honest one in that pair.   Both should be in the Hall of Fame, in my book.  It is about baseball fame, not about the Hall of Nice Guys.  That, and if they let Ty Cobb in, they've lost the ability to play on guys morality.

Average attendance in Europe's four biggest soccer leagues for 2009/10:
Germany: 42,441
England: 31,150
Spain: 27,699
Italy: 24,603

Total payroll by league for 2008/9:
England: 1.90B
Italy: 1.34B
Spain: 1.15B
Germany: .98B

Revenues for 2008/9:
England: 3.35B
Spain: 2.27B
Italy: 2.16B
Germany: 2.15B

Top Paid player:
Spain: Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid, $17.1m
Italy: Samuel Eto'o, Inter Milan, $13.8m
England: Emmanuel Adebayor, Manchester City, $11.2m
Germany: Arjen Robben, Bayern Munich, $7.2m (31st highest paid in the worldy)
From: ESPN The Magazine, Aug 23 2010.  Yes, I typed that all out, just for you.  Cannot believe that Adebayor is the highest paid player in the EPL, especially a guy who is three or four down the depth chart at the moment.

Speaking of soccer, UEFA President Michel Platini says that video replay is not needed.  Platini, you're an idiot.

Check out this soccer commentator get brained.  Amazing.

RM returns by at 2pm this afternoon...

The fix is in, TFC on wrong side

Not sure if Jose Bautista has ever used PED's, but in light of all the conversation this week, hard not to laugh at this screen capture from a couple nights's ago.  If you haven't figured it out, look at the advertising behind him.  Last night's, his Blue Jays were on the wrong end of an 11-5 curbstomping at the hands of the New York Yankees.

It all seemed set perfectly.  A reputed so-so team, albeit on the road, hosting Toronto FC in Champions League play.  To make it better, the hosts goalie was named Jose Calderon.  Surely the Reds would score at will, no?  Nope.  In a game that was officiated so badly WWE officials would be red faced, TFC were 1-0 losers.  I have read Declan Hill's book called "The Fix" and quite honestly, after what I saw last night, he might be ready to add a chapter.  Nobody can be that inept, can they?

Tweets Bill Simmons, aka "The Sports Guy" on Chris Bosh not playing for the U.S. national team this summer:"I'm OK w/ Chris Bosh skipping out on Team USA, he didn't need any more big game reps. The 2003 NIT, 1 Olympics + 11 playoff games is enough."  Awesome.

Philadelphia Phillies starter Cole Hamels went 102 batters and 372 pitches between runs scored in support of him by his Phillies.  Ouch. 

A great career retrospective on Roger Clemens, from the fine folks at The Sports Pickle.

With UFC legend Randy Couture set to face former heavyweight boxing champion James Toney this weekend at UFC 118, here's a peak at the top 10 freak fights of all the times.  Toney, if you've yet to see, is taking smack talking to some impressive levels ahead of this one.  Seems positively annoyed that few are giving him a big chance in this one.  If he gets off a punch, sure.  If Couture gets in tight and gets him down, he's cooked.

Detroit Tiger Johnny Damon was placed on waivers a couple days ago and claimed by his former team, the Boston Red Sox, a team and city that as recently as last week he disparaged in an interview on The Michael Kay Show.  So with a chance to join a playoff contender, what did Damon do?  Weigh his options, and value his legacy as a Yankee far greater, says Lee Jenkins at SI.com, as he declined a move to Boston.  Well played, JD. 

The San Francisco Giants are .000944881889764 games out of the NL Wild Card position with 35 to go.  No, seriously.

Real Madrid and Barcelona have five of the world's seven highest paid soccer players. 

Bonus picture.  Check out a member of the U.S. Army Rangers - their elite crew - parachuting into the Texas Rangers game last night. Those pesky flag poles!

There's a Tiger on the loose!

Manchester City throttled Liverpool 3-0 yesterday in English Premier League play.  If Fernando Torres doesn't get healthy and find his game real soon, they're in for a horrible season.  Oh, and key midfielder Javier Mascherano refused to play yesterday.

Roger Clemens rejected a plea deal that would have saw him get no jail time in exchange for pleading guilty.  Call me crazy, but I think he actually believes he didn't take the spike.

Now this is good stuff. The Bleacher Report has put together a list of the 100 hottest athletes of all time.  Hard to believe they missed anybody when they went that deep.

If the Philadelphia Phillies didn't already regret dealing Cliff Lee, I'm sure the fact that one of the prospects they had sent back - Tyson Gillies - getting popped for cocaine possession, has them regretting it.  As for Lee, ESPN's Colin Cowherd put it out there yesterday that Lee is a New York Yankee next year.  Thanks for getting on board, Cowherd, been saying it here for months.  Lock, or I'll retire this blog permanently.

Speaking of the Yankees, they started five players last night with less than two year's major league experience.  All three relievers out of the pen were homegrown, too.  So much for the fools who think they only buy players. It was almost still enough to beat the Toronto Blue Jays.  Jose "The Question" Bautista hit his 40th home run and after staring down and spitting in the direction of David Robertson before circling the bases over the course of 30 seconds, can pencil himself in for a rib shot before too long.  Funny though that he made the jabbing motion of a needle when he got to the plate though.  Bautista took exception to an Ivan Nova pitch sailing high and well over the plate - near his head, in his estimation - to which both Jays commentators replied it was accidental.  Strange rage then, no?  What could cause that?

Is there a worse guy that gets tonnes of air time than SportsNet's Jason Portuondo?  The only name he gets right consistently is his own.

The Texas Rangers passed the torch around for an almost-no hitter last night against Minnesota.  Starter Rich Harden took it 6 2/3 before handing it off to the 'pen and they went into the 9th before Joe Mauer busted it up.  Also impressive?  Twins starter Kevin Slowey was working a no hitter through seven before being pulled.  See, this is what winning teams do - the right thing, not what they think will help them sell the odd ticket the next night like desperate teams do.

Tiger Woods is officially divorced.  Somewhere, Roger Clemens, LeBron James and the OHB are celebrating their push from the top headlines.  Okay, not OHB.  Here are seven pick-up lines to try on Elin Nordregen now that she's available again.  As for Tiger, how many whores do you figure he taps now?

Caroline Wozniaki won the Rogers Canadian Championship yesterday.  I only say this to introduce pictures of her in a bikini.

As if Dancing With The Stars didn't get big enough ratings, The Situation has joined on for the coming season.  How's that going to play with his GTL routine?

The picture today?  Sloan of Entourage fame (aka Emmanuelle Chriqui), if you didn't know.  What a season this year.

Weekend wrap

Damien Cox at the Toronto Star asks the question most would rather not contemplate, and that is whether Toronto Blue Jays feel good story Jose Bautista, who never in his career hit more than 20 homers but is about to double that this year, might be getting a little help of the pharmaceutical variety.

Lou Pinella announced that yesterday would be his last game managing, and the Chicago Cubs sent him out on the wrong end of a 16-5 loss to Atlanta. 

The Yankees final 13 games are against the Rays, Red Sox and Blue Jays, which will make things interesting. For the Rays, they play four in The Bronx from Sept. 20-23 and then their final 10 games are against bottom-feeding Seattle, Baltimore and Kansas City. So the Yanks probably had better have some cushion with 10 to play if they are going to win the division.

Who is the key witness in the Roger Clemens perjury case?  Clemens old buddy, Andy Pettitte. Funny reading that neither Clemens nor Brian MacNamee were found to be credible witnesses. The Sports Pickle says Roger Clemens will enter prison in a Red Sox cap.

After yesterday's win, the New York Yankees are a surprising 12-0 this year with A-Rod not in the lineup. Helps that MVP candidate Robinson Cano seems to go wild everytime he hits in the four hole. He had a mere 6 RBI yesterday.

Toronto FC were pounded 4-1 by the New York Red Bulls at home on Saturday, ending their much hyped unbeaten run at home.  They're in real tough with ten games to go for an MLS playoff spot.

I don't know what inflation has been since 1992, but surely the Pittsburgh Pirates spending $2 million more on their payroll this year than they did in 1992 isn't keeping pace.  But hey, they're profitable as hell.  Who cares about the 18 years of losing baseball?

They may have announced nearly 40,000 in attendance Thursday at the Rogers Centre for the Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills pre-season game, but word is it was half that. Guessing the NFL didn't have this in mind when they booked the "Bills in Toronto" series. The attendance woes aren't confined to Toronto. The Tampa Bay Bucs fell in line with the Lightning and Rays in drawing sparse crowds as they barely had 30,000 show up to their Saturday game vs Kansas City.

Another wild weekend of English Premier League action with Chelsea winning its second straight by a 6-0 scoreline, this time over Wigan. Arsenal hammered Blackpool, also by a 6-0 score.  Newly promoted Newcastle United also joined that parade, with a shocking 6-0 win over Aston Villa. Manchester United and Fulham played an entertaining 2-2 draw. Up today at 3pm on TSN2 is a Liverpool visit to Manchester City. Should be a great one.  Hilites of the weekend's action here:
<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video?vid=9467e988-9112-41b8-9f11-0016873e1559&from=IV2_en-us_foxsports_articles" target="_new" title="Super Sunday Pus: Man Utd frustrated">Video: Super Sunday Pus: Man Utd frustrated</a>

Roger Clemens is being indicted for perjuring himself during his testimony in 2008.  What took them so long to get around to a mere decision?  Clemens faces 30 years in the Crow Bar Motel and up to $1.5 million in fines.  This is gonna get good.  Clemens tweeted "I never took HGH or Steroids. And I did not lie to Congress. I look forward to challenging the Governments accusations, and hope people will keep an open mind until trial."  Well that takes care of it.  Call off the trial!  And finally, the Sports Pickle weighed in with this gem: "Still not sure if a perjury charge is worse than being a Blue Jay."

Detroit Tiger Johnny Damon told The Michael Kay Show that you "can count on" the New York Yankees chasing soon-to-be-free agent Carl Crawford this off season.  Me likey.  He also said "no question" that he preferred playing in New York over Boston.

The NHL is experimenting with rule changes at a Mississauga rink this week.  Some of the changes are interesting, like one faceoff circle in the middle of each offensive zone, while others are lame, like being able to pick who to take a faceoff against when the original guy is thrown out.  Those, and others, discussed here.

I always thought "hot yoga" was about the temperature of the room.  No more.  It is hot yoga when 2007 Playboy Playmate of the Year Sara Jean Underwood demonstrates moves.  Kudos to the camera man here for some fantastic work.

Here's an interesting stat:  in 2009-2010 Manchester United racked up 13,500 travel miles.  Houston Dynamo of the MLS racked up 54,700 miles.  North America is big, in case you were wondering.

If you're wondering what any MLS player is making, wonder no more.  The complete listing here, in order by team.  Toronto FC's Nana Attakora and Dan Gargan need to find themselves new agent, the kid is pulling a mere $40k.  Of course, that will change.  As for TFC's Julian de Guzman, he must show up to collect his pay cheque with a gun and ski mask.  He's pulling $1.7 million.

Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen got off another priceless blast, this time on the subject of Jim Thome no longer being with the Pale Hose - and why doesn't that term get used anymore? - and coming back to kill them with a walk off shot the other night.  Read here for that, and a collection of Ozzie's finer works.

In addition to being smokin' hot, and being able to talk like a badly overdubbed kung fu movie, Abbey Clancy has forgiven Peter Crouch over the allegations he got busy with an Algerian hooker.

OHB is back, the world yawns

OHB says this will definitely be his last year.  If he means on the planet, we accept. Looking forward to seeing the New Orleans Saints, Dallas Cowboys and others send the sink at him.   The OHB says he "owed it to" the Minnesota Vikings to return.  Clearly, much has changed in the past week or two when the subject of owing the Vikes anything wasn't even uttered.  That, or he has changed his name to "Minnesota Vikings" and we're just finding out.

The Boston Red Sox are a perfect 9-0 against the LA Angels this year.  Struggling in Boston this year?  Scalpers, who say they're down 70% or more on Sox ducats.

Tony Dungy is by all accounts a decent guy, and football man.  But him suggesting that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell look into the language used by New York Jets coach Rex Ryan on NFL's Hard Knocks is laughable.  Dungy is the exception to the sporting language that applies universally - one of f-bombs as a starting point.  Interesting though that he took up for dog killer and herpes dispenser Michael Vick but wants to crack a guy for colourful language on HBO.

There are some handy blogs out there, but none I've seen in the game of soccer, from a Canadian perspective, than this one, that offers a daily update as to games being broadcast in Canadaland.

French and Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka was suspended for 18 games by the French Football Federation for the shenanigans in South Africa.  His response was to laugh, noting that he had no intention of playing for France again.  Typical French, one quitting, the other going to a war it knows it cannot lose.  Well, guess that part is rare.

A great collection of athletes getting hit in the face with balls.  Not that kind, Bukkake.

Those crazy Icelandic footballers are at it again.  A pair of videos here.  Not sure what wins for best celebration, but the baby one sure is creative.

TFC stun Mexican'ts

Toronto FC stunned themselves and their fans with an incredible performance in downing MexicanCruz Azul 2-1 powerhouse in the opening game of Champions League group play.  Martin Saric and Mista scored a pair of first half goals for a dominant TFC squad that could easily have led by two or three more.  That night at BMO Field made up for a lot of painful days and nights over the previous few years.

I'm sure that the people of Cleveland are thrilled to hear the news that LeBron James is open to one day returning to play for the Cavaliers. Going to go out on a very thick limb here and suggest that bridge is torched and they don't feel the same. What a tool.  James also told GQ that he didn't find Charles Barkley's attempts to be humourous when talking about LeBron to be very funny.  He's the only one who figures Chuck was joking.  LeBron also said his performances on and off the court even spoiled his own family.  Class act.

You're the Boston Red Sox, sitting third in the AL East. The LA Dodgers are likely to put former BoSox left fielder Manny Ramirez on waivers. Do you block the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees by putting in a claim, or let them have a stab at him?  Pretty wild scenario potentially, not to mention how ManRam might react to going back to a place he fought so hard to leave.  Defensively, however, ManRam remains in the AL East in the form of Toronto Blue Jay Travis Snider.  Nice butcher job last night. 

Werder Bremen and German midfielder Mesut Ozil is off to join Real Madrid.  Looks like new coach Jose Mourinho clearly wants to top Barcelona this year. Not sure how great a move it is for Ozil in a very crowded Real midfield with Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Xabi Alonso, Rafael Van der Vaert, Sami Khedira and more.  Only so many minutes and touches to go around.

My new nickname for fading Captain Derek Jeter: "Captain Crutch". It works on so many levels, tying in his gimpiness, his lack of range, and his lack of clutch performance. It does not include saying the Yankees can lean on him anymore.

Not exactly a ringing endorsement of MLB umpires when a recent study by ESPN showed that 20% of calls made are wrong. No word on how heavy Joe West weighed in on those figures.

Didn't we say something about the OHB returning in time for the third pre-season game?  Guess what?  He's back.

K-Rod Drama Karma

Who says there is no karma?  New York Mets closer Francisco Rodriquez might be out of a job.  Seems the Mets are looking to void his contract for tearing ligaments in his hand last week while laying a beating on his father-in-law, an injury that ends his 2010 season.  Gonna make Christmas extra special in K-Rod's house I'm sure if he's jobless with $17 million down the drain, the remaining number on his contract.

In baseball, ESPN's Jayson Stark has come up with a stat called the CUS - "Criminally Unsupported Start" (ESPN Insider only).  That's when a pitcher goes 6+ innings but his team scores one run or less while he is in the game.  So real quality starts, real poor support.  If Felix Hernandez, currently 8-10, had won all his Criminally Unsupported Starts he'd be 19-3. Cliff Lee would be 17-1, Cole Hamels 15-4 and Johan Santana 18-3.  Some other interesting stats on Josh Johnson, who might well be the best in the game: he has 5 Criminally Unsupported Starts, and his Florida Marlins have scored more than four only once while he was in a game since May.  Crazier stat?  His bullpen has blown six games in which he handed the ball over with a lead.

Do Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs ever age?  Both were fantastic yesterday in Manchester United's 3-0 demolition of Newcastle United.  Could easily have been double that or more.  Gotta give some praise to the Magpies Joey Barton for his ridiculous mustache, something he's keeping until Newcastle wins.

If you wondered why the Buffalo Bills, with Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch in the backfield, not to mention multiple (yes, MULTIPLE) other needs drafted CJ Spiller at running back, wonder no more: he's now the starter with the other two banged up.

Another night in which Derek Jeter could come up big for the New York Yankees in the ninth, and he came up oh so very small by hitting into another GIDJ...err...GIDP.  Captain Clutch is a fading myth.

Man owns pit bull.  Man has sex with said pit bull.  Man arrested.  Man will not be anybody's bitch in prison, methinks.

For a guy who some perceive to be having a terrible year, New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez' projected 30 home runs and a league leading 138 RBI sure don't seem too bad.

In a season of cameos, Chris Bosh on Entourage has to be the low point.  Could he have seemed more wooden in offering $1,000 for a bottle of vodka at a tequila party?  That's CB4, always just a little out of position.  Speaking of tequila, here's video of what happens when one tries to chug an entire bottle of Patron.  Step up there fella, get to the Cabo Wabo already.

How is it $2.50-$3.00 to fill an 18L bottle of water, but a litre of Evian costs $1.29?

It is well established that I think any football pre-season is a waste of time, but when I hear that New York Giant Eli Manning got busted up against the New York Jets last night, a video huntin' I go.  Question: if you're the Giants team doctor, how are you going to know if he's not displaying symptoms of a deeper head injury?  Dude sounds like he's concussed at the best of times.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes...some good, some strange

Want a ticket to the Miami Heat home opener? The average ticket price is a mere $805 against cross-state rival Orlando.  How reasonable.  $805 with no guarantee LeBron James and Chris Bosh show up.

Since 2007, Boston Red Sox purported ace Josh Beckett's ERA is 4.46.  This season, he has recorded all of three outs after the 7th inning.  Good thing they signed him to a big extension this year.  Oh, and the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays own him.

No shortage of goals in the opening weekend of the English Premier League.  Champions Chelsea hammered West Brom 6-0, with Didier Drogba netting three.  Tottenham and Manchester City played a wild scoreless draw that should've seen Spurs win going away, if not for a fantastic game from Joe Hart in goal for City.  Blackpool made a shocking debut in the EPL with a 4-0 win over Wigan.  Arsenal and Liverpool drew 1-1, thanks to 'pool's goalie Pepe Reina dropping a last minute deflection into his own net.  The rest of the scores here.  Up today at 3pm, Manchester United host a returning Newcastle United, with a 3pm kickoff.

With an election not too far off in Ontario, Premier Dalton McGuinty figured it time to flip flop again and is now allowing MMA into the province.  About time, DM.  You don't have to like it, but there is no sensible reason to keep something that is legal in 49 American states and every other province in Canada out, not when your province could use the millions that will pore in each time the UFC touches down.  Word is a card is being worked for 2011 at Rogers Centre, which they're aiming to break the UFC's 30,000 attendance record.  My bet?  They blow that figure away.

San Francisco Giant Tim Lincecum has thrown the third most pitches in the bigs since 2008, and given his slight build and drop in velocity, is messing with his mechanics to try to hump the fastball back up.  That's a potential recipe for disaster.

One of the things most people would agree in soccer is not the best way to sort out a draw is penalty kicks.  Little disputing that among fans, or those who don't like the game (won't use "haters" because that term is so played).  So what is FIFA President Sepp Blatter musing on?  Going to the PK's in all World Cup games that finished tied.  Ridiculous.  For the record, I don't know that there is a perfect solution to games that go through extra time all square.  Continuing on indefinitely risks injury too greatly, particularly in the heat.  Allowing more subs only freshens teams up and takes away from the long time rules of the game only allowing three subs and the relative time boxing of the game.  Not sure what the right call is.  Thanks to GBVH for the (infuriating) link.

Have a great day.

K-Rod...Douche of the Week

The details of Francisco Rodriguez beatdown of his father-in-law in the New York Mets family room are starting to emerge.  Seems K-Rod was cursing out his wife when her father intervened and tried to cool him off, at which point K-Rod went off on him like he was charging the mound, and it took a few security guards to pull him off.  Class act, buddy.  And here I thought there couldn't be a bigger douchebag in the closer fraternity than Jonathon Papelbon.



Charles Barkley rips LeBron James.  Another reason to love Sir Charles. But careful, Chuck, LeBitch is "taking notes"  Oh, Chuck don't sweat that:

“I heard about LeBron’s little tweet that he’s remembering everybody who said anything bad about him. He said “everybody.” Well I want him to make sure that he puts my name on that because I thought that was a little…you know his little one-hour special was a punk move. I thought them dancing around on the stage was a punk move, and I thought he should’ve stayed in Cleveland. Him joining Dwyane Wade’s team was very disappointing to me.”

This is just getting good.  Memo to 'bron: don't respond.   You don't have the game to stay with Chuck in a war of words.  Game recognize Game.

Manchester City has spent aproximately $234 million in transfers the past two years - and that doesn't include salary - so they'll be interesting to watch this year. Their latest pickup is Mario Balotelli from Inter Milan, the talented and slightly psychotic striker.  Still, they were very lucky to get the draw at Tottenham this morning, who looked fantastic.

Abbey Clancy, who is a long time fav in this corner and appears above in nothing but body paint, is said to be on the outs with boyfriend Peter Crouch, Tottenham Spurs striker. Crouch, who must not have recognized he was punching way over his weight class as it was, allegedly cheated on Clancy with an underage Algerian hooker. Classy.  Pics of both in that link so you'll know what I'm talking about.



Jackson 5's "Rockin' Robin" and Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit".  Toss the two together, and somehow it works. 

Something wrong with this picture...

Good of the NHL to take the Prince of Wales Trophy and engrave "Washington Capitals" on it instead of "Chicago Blackhawks", particularly when the Capitals, unless they're moving to the Western Conference, can't win the Wales trophy. That, and the Blackhawks did.
As painful as it'll be if he actually does win, I hope Tiger Woods does so we no longer have to hear the arm chair psychologists offer suggestions as to what he should do with his playing career and life. The guy is ending up a sympathetic character.

Crazy read on MLS goalie Jimmy Nielsen of the Kansas City Wizards, who had/has a severe gambling problem. Severe enough to put a bookie out of work.  Oh, and he still wagers occasionally.

Germany went a different route in planning for England at the World Cup in South Africa. They had a group of 55 students at the Sports University in Cologne - I think I might go back to school now! - study how England played and determined it was better to play long and quick passes than their typical shorter and quick passing game. If you recall how they took them apart, they followed the plan to the letter. Incredible read here. 


The English Premier League starts tomorrow and it is shaping up to be a killer season. I'm going to pick Manchester United to win a record 19th title, with the top five rounded out - in order - by Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea. Yep, I'm feeling like the champions will slip to fifth. My hate is bold.

Hard to believe, but it is 16 years since to the day that it was announced that the MLB season for 1994 would not be completed.  Not announced that day was that it would begin the death spiral of the Montreal Expos.

Check out this clip of a guy calling 911 for a ride to the liquor store. Incredible.

Toronto FC did plenty to create chances in New York last night, but couldn't find the onion bag and were 1-0 losers. Solid efforts in particular from Dwayne DeRosario and Nick Garcia (no, really). Not a good result for TFC who now trail New York by five points for second place in the East, which also guarantees an automatic playoff birth. Up next is a date with Mexican powerhouse Cruz Azul in Champions League play on Tuesday at BMO Field which will make it 12 games in 57 days. Ouch.

Very classy of New York Mets reliever Francisco Rodriguez to beat up his father-in-law in the Mets clubhouse after a Mets loss last night. He was arrested. Is there a guy who leaves the LA Angels and performed that does anything great after?  See K-Rod, Chone Figgins.

100 pictures of the smokin' hot Abbey Clancy. Just because.

In June, word is both Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade hired the same production company to film their visits - which now appear more charade than ever - to other teams during their free agency.  Sheer coincidence, I'm sure.  In other news, Bosh says that LeBron James is using the criticism of his act this summer to fuel his fire.  Nice to see a guy making the money he does needs fuel for the fire.  Guess wanting to win wasn't enough.

It didn't take Cristiano Ronaldo long to jump into the familiar #7 jersey that was long occupied by Raul at Real Madrid.  With Raul gone, CR7 is back.

Four "hidden" pages at Manchester United's website have player profiles for Mesut Ozil, Wesley Sneijder, Sami Khedira and Mario Ballotelli.  Those are links to all of them.  Obviously, that isn't all happening.

New York Mets starter Johan Santana is being sued for raping a woman.  Now, that said, there wasn't enough evidence to press criminal charges so take that with a heavy dose of Salt Peter.  The lady needs some legal advise if she's suing for damages over a rape and only looking for $15,000.  Tough times in Metsland.

Brandon Morrow's story of living with diabetes is getting some run after his great start Sunday.  Wasn't aware he was diabetic, but does explain his less than pleased appearance after getting pied twice.

A great piece from Fox Sports on how the EPL's "big four" are going to face a monster challenge this year.  Have I mentioned I'm jacked for the season?

Kansas City Chiefs wideout Chris Chambers got married in July.  Big deal, right?  Well, it is if you consider that the woman he married was once charged with stalking him and members of his family just this past December.  Weird.

Okay, we've done football, basketball, hockey, baseball, and soccer.  I'll leave next on the target list to the first one to respond in the comments section.  So if you want to crack at a given sport, first one to start on something gets the topic of the day.

Kovy a free agent...will others join him?

So the NHL not only voided Ilya Kovalchuk's 17-year $102 million deal with the New Jersey Devils, but are now said to be looking at other front-loaded deals like Roberto Luongo's. Marian Hossa's and others. Ridiculous. Going back after teams have been paying players out and operating through season's under those terms is total bush league.  I'm all for fixing mistakes, but if you allowed ridiculous deals under the CBA, tough to roll them back mid-stream, no?  If you're the Vancouver Canucks, you probably want that deal voided, no?

Chelsea's bid to defend its English Premier League title just took a huge blow with arguably their best defender Ricardo Carvalho off to - where else? - Real Madrid. John Terry is in for a tough year with his saftey blanket gone. In a bit of funny EPL news, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard says teammate Joe Cole is better than Barcelona's Lionel Messi. I dig Cole, but that is laughable. Stevie G will have a solid post-football career in comedy if the D.J. thing doesn't pan out.  Oh, wait...

Heard on the Jim Rome Show: there's a slo-pitch team called "The Step Dads".  Why? "We'll beat you and you'll hate us." Only in slo-pitch.


The New York Knicks went into the tank for two years to clear enough cap space to get into a room with LeBron James for a couple hours only to be rejected and subjected to another couple years of mediocrity at best.  The NHL has seen teams run ridiculous deals to circumvent the cap since it came in.  Don't tell me it is the solution to a sports problems when it creates as many.  As Seth Everett of Baseball Today says: the problem in baseball isn't the lack of a salary cap, it is the lack of a salary floor that has let teams like Florida, Pittsburgh and KC profit greatly while taking huge money in revenue sharing and not putting it back into their teams.

An amateur hoops game played in The Bronx on Saturday saw Corey Fisher score 105 points.  Who was guarding this guy?  Jose Calderon?  Yep.  Jose Calderon.  Just not the Toronto Raptors version.  Maybe it is just the name?  Nah.

If you missed Tim Tebow's haircut from the Denver Broncos earlier in the week, look no further than to your right.  That is incredible.  He's since shaved the halo off.


Toronto FC are in New York tonight at beautiful Red Bull Arena to face - who else? - the Red Bulls.  GBVH tells me TFC are +429 for the win.  Awfully tempting, even with their weak road performances for the most part this year.

If you can get a lady to a ball game, good for you.  But at least if a foul ball is headed your way, don't bail away from her leaving her to get cranked with the ball.  Love him saying he lost the ball in the lights.  Seems to me he saw it just fine before alligator arming it.

Wondering what sparked that wild brawl in Cincinnati last night between the Reds and Cards?  Seems the Cards didn't like being referred to as "little bitches" by Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips.

And in today's skewering of a sport, we take on soccer.  I'll get it started momentarily.

Back tomorrow.

$20 million to OHB?

Hard not to love the Sports Pickle in general, but when they produce fine work like at right, it is damn near impossible.  Speaking of the OHB, Jay Glazer at Fox Sports looks at why he went from out last week to now reconsidering it.  Let's just say if he had Terrell Owens old P.R. hack, she'd be saying he may have $7 million more reasons to come back this year, on top of the $13 million he'd be scheduled for.  $20 million?  At least he's not holding the Vikes hostage.  Worst guy in sports.

Well at least this one is new.  Houston Texan Brian Cushing, under suspension for a failed drug test, says the elevated testosterone levels he showed when tested are the result of Overtraining Syndrome, which does actually exist according to some researchers.  How is he going to explain the New Jersey locals who have talked of how he routinely blows up every summer for the last decade or so?  Bonus points for "not knowingly" at least.  Then again, it is the NFL and it'll be forgotten before his suspension is even done.

Here's a solid idea: MLB is going to start its 2011 season on a Friday, and more importantly, not have it end past October.

Interesting article from Joel Sherman at the New York Post on how a pre-game conversation with Alex Rodriguez the day he hit #600 helped A-Rod out.  The cool part: it is about Wayne Gretzky.

Good God, Leafs Fan, the potential move of Tomas Kaberle is hardly sea changing for the NHL or your team.  Cool it with the ridiculous scenarios already.

ESPN SoccerNet has a great transfer rumors blog running that is updated constantly through the day.  Get your fill here.

Not sure I'll hear anything more ridiculous this year than the owner of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, whose name escapes me - which is fitting - threaten to move the team from Hamilton if they don't get a new stadium.  Where are they going to go to?  Ottawa?  Halifax?  Not sure there are any CFL-ready stadiums in this fair land, nevermind in cities clamoring to get in the league.  Maybe he should threaten Phoenix?  That'd be at least funny.

It warms the cockles of my heart to hear from Didier Drogba that he doesn't think Chelsea are ready to defend their English Premier League title this year.  Methinks DD is right.

In the comments section today, it is hockey's turn to take a fisting, with GHVH's epic blast from a couple weeks back set to be copied over to lead the charge.  Feel free to join in on the fun.  Up tomorrow is one that ought to inspire strong feelings: soccer.

A flight attendant on JetBlue asked a passenger to sit down just after a plane landed and the passenger started grabbing her bags.  When he approached, the passenger cracked him in the head and cursed him some more.  His reaction?  He got on the P.A. and cursed everybody out, grabbed a few beers and dropped the emergency slide out of the door and slid off.  Now that is a walk-off shot.

Speaking of headshots, best concert headshot comes to the mellon of Justin Bieber.  This is awesome.

Guess who's back in circulation?

If you watched last night's Hall of Fame game beyond the first series, you have issues. The Dallas Cowboys downed the Cincinnati Bengals 16-7, but really, it was 3-0 if the only real part of the game is considered. And for this people pay regular season prices.  Lame.

Boston Red Sox starter Josh Beckett has made four starts this year against the New York Yankees and lasted exactly 4.2IP in three of them.  The Yanks now lead the AL East by 2.5 games after beating Boston 7-2 while the second place Tampa Bay Rays were getting swept in Toronto on the strength of an impressive 17k, one-out-short-of-a-no-hitter effort from Brendon Morrow, who might've had it if Aaron Hill makes a play. Funny hearing some Jays fans protest it was Error Hill led by the plank that is Sam Consentino. It wasn't. Period. Former Toronto Star journo Dave Perkins was the official scorer, his first series in that role. Shame with one of the best team's in baseball visiting only 24,000 were in attendance.

Emmitt Smith went out of body for his 24 minute, no notes or teleprompter speech at the Football Hall of Fame inductions on Saturday. His only mistake was a bush league move by him for not mentioning Florida, where he starred before moving to the NFL, though he later called it a mistake which sounds unlikely given his rocky history since leaving as a junior.  Emmitt reverted to old form at half-time of last night's game with a series of crimes against speech. Check this out.

Tiger Woods finished an 18 over par at a tournament he's won over a handful of times in the past.  Ouch.

Chad Ochocinco wonders - rightly - why he and Terrell Owens are depicted as bad guys and pub hounds, but OHB is deified and continually pulls the same shtick.  He's not to the degree he used to be, but he doesn't get routinely hammered like T-Ocho do.

Just days away from kicking off what should be a fantastic English Premier League season with Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester City and Aston Villa all set to make noise at the top.  Man U beat Chelsea 3-1 in yesterday's Community Shield, the unofficial start to the year.

Toronto FC picked up a big three points Saturday with a 2-1 win over Chivas USA.  With mostly road games left, they're going to need to find some magic away from home if they're to make the playoffs.

If I recall, we were mid-baseball bashing a week and change ago when vacation time hit, so I'll pick that up today in the comments section.  Feel free to join.  GBVH fired up a great hockey one too I'll post over tomorrow to carry on.  Participating is a good idea.

CFL touchdown celebrations are taking on a soccer feel.  Nice work here.