It was not my pecker

How anybody can figure they know what will happen on any NFL Sunday is beyond me. Hands up if you had the Oakland Raiders scoring 59 in Denver, or the Cleveland Browns winning 30-17 in New Orleans, or Tennessee - with Kerry "Tom" Collins starting at QB - humiliating Philly 37-19?  Liars.

Tough day for Brett Favre.  First up, reports are that he admits the voicemails to Jenn Sterger were in fact his, though he disowned the pecker shots.  Then he went out and got beat up in Green Bay as his Vikings dropped to 2-4.  And compounding all that, his coach Brad Childress largely threw him under the bus and admitted he thought (and is thinking?) of pulling him.

I wasn't in the school that thought there was nobody that could beat Brock Lesnar, but I didn't figure he could be beat as savagely as Cain Velasquez did with a first round TKO to win the UFC Heavyweight title. That cut under Lesnar's eye was nasty. He'll be back, but that was a shocker. Great card overall, with Diego Sanchez win over Thiago Alves the fight of the night for my eyes.  Rest of the results here.

Phil Simms on New England Patriot Danny Woodhead: "You realize what a good athlete is when you talk to him."

26 different teams have played in the last 30 World Series.  There is no league that can even approach that level.

Cleveland is used to this: In each of the past three years, the Browns have beaten the defending Super Bowl champion, including yesterday's shock fisting - see what I did there? - in New Orleans by a 30-17 score.

The Toronto Argos clinched a playoff spot this weekend, not that that is a big chore when 6 of 8 teams, or 75% if you're not a mathlete, make it. Not bad for an 8-8 team. Clearly, the CFL stands for "Charitable Football League".  At least Toronto gets a team in some playoffs now.

Whenever Hawk or Matthews make a play, it's time to cue up their video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1W6-ErrHls

The San Francisco Giants went and knocked out the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday and the ever-classy Philly fans booed the Giants off the field. Brian Wilson closed it out, and as great a closer he is, he's even a more entertaining guy. Check out his act here on Jim Rome is Burning a few weeks back. The World Series starts ???, I've got Texas in six.





Check out this interview with the WWE's Undertaker after Brock Lesnar's loss at UFC 121.  Pretty safe to say that he and Lesnar aren't exactly tight.

Fork? Meet Yankees.

Texas?  Knocked off the team with the best record and then the defending champions. Just better. Period.  Have to say, while I think the San Francisco Giants book their World Series trip tonight, it would be awesome to see Cliff Lee face Philly, just to see if he can go from pitching for them, to pitching against them.  

After the NFL "hits" video was screened, Minnesota Viking Chris Kluwe - yes, they do have more guys than Brett Favre - tweeted out this whiteboard bit from their locker room. Awesome. That's the best whiteboard smack since Shea Hillenbrand famously wrote "the ship is sinking" in the Toronto Blue Jays clubhouse.

For the Jays fans not happy about the "no experience" crack yesterday on alleged new hire John Farrell, I only say this: Carlos Tosca, John Gibbons, Tim Johnson, and Buck Martinez.  Is that all of them? I'm not saying he can't get it done because of inexperience, but the Jays will have a tough time selling that given their lack of success in the last decade - approaching two - with inexperienced skippers.

Have you seen Barry Bonds the last bit?  Curious to hear what kind of "diet" he's on that caused that kind of weight loss.

A fantastic UFC 121 card goes tonight with Brock Lesnar defending his heavyweight title against undefeated Cain Velasquez in L.A.  Undercard is fantastic too.  Should be well worth the internet feed purchase.  Preview and some picks here from The Big Lead.

While reading this blog entry, Joe Girardi intentionally had someone walked.  They subsequently scored.

Have a great Saturday.  Back tomorrow with another Prime Time Pick winner.

Philly grabs one back

It didn't start pretty with the San Francisco Giants out to an early 2-0 lead, and Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay tweaked his groin batting, but the Phillies clawed back and were 4-2 winners to cut the series lead to 3-2 for the Giants.  They'll tangle again at 3:57 (Eastern) tomorrow back in Philly.  Up tonight, it is game six in the ALCS.  Maybe it is loyalty, but I've got a funny feeling the New York Yankees even it up and send it to - gulp! - a game seven against Cliff Lee tomorrow night.

New England Patriot QB Tom Brady isn't a guy that talks a whole lot, but his "they talk a lot for a team that has beat us once in nine years" crack on the Baltimore Ravens is absolutely nuclear.  Awesome.

Things are going to get real interesting on the labour front in the NBA if Commissioner David Stern is serious about rolling back player salaries by a third, or $750-$800 million across the board.  If he's serious, there is no way there is a season to start 2011/12, no?

9,802 in Columbus to see the Blue Jackets on Wednesday with the Anaheim Ducks in town, 8,820 in Atlanta on the same night to see the visiting Buffalo Sabres.  I know Gary Bettman's argument against more Canadian teams is they won't draw well in the U.S., but here's a thought: neither do some U.S. teams.  GB will look real smart if Atlanta fails a second time.  Oh, and not to be outdone, the Phoenix Coyotes drew 6,706 last night.  Picture of league health at right.

The NFL has released its "hits" video that went to all teams this week.  Check it out here.  After yesterday, I'm tempted to suggest this problem is all the result of shoddy officiating, just for fun.  If you're wondering what I'm referring to, check out the discussion that yesterday's crack on officials brought here.

After all that ink wasted, Wayne Rooney has signed with Manchester United for another five years.  It'll be interesting to see if his anger over them saving money on players sold rather than acquiring new ones makes a difference come January's transfer window.

In ESPN The Magazine's "Lists" issue, New Orleans Hornet Chris Paul was asked to name the five best passers in the game. Who did he have tops? Chris Paul.

Also listed, Brett Favre's final pass in a playoff game went to a member of his team six times. Intercepted?  Five. Nice.

Talk about punching above your class: LA Laker Sasha Vujacic is engaged to Maria Sharapova.

I managed to catch a minute of the Toronto Maple Leafs/New York Rangers game last night. Didn't better my life a bit.

Philadelphia Phillies Ryan Howard, batting cleanup, has yet to cash an RBI this playoffs. That's hard to believe, but speaks to the very streaky Phillies offence.

The Dallas Cowboys are using officials in practice this week in an effort to cut down on the penalties they're drawing.  Up next week: using a head coach.

The very evolved NFL analyst Mark Schlereth says that if the NFL continues to look at ways to remove hitting from the game, they'll end up being soccer.  I'd love to get Schlereth on the field some day with a Nigel De Jong say, and show him how little contact there is.  Know what you're talking about, MS, otherwise you look like a pure jerkoff.  Oh, guess the league isn't removing contact entirely if Pittsburgh Steeler James Harrison backing off retirement talk is any measure.  What a shock.

If the stories are to be believed, looks like Boston Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell - experience: zero - is in line to be the new manager of the Toronto Blue Jays.  The largest downside of this hiring for AL East rivals: the Sox pitching is bound to improve after the not-so-great work Farrell did with Josh Beckett, John Lackey and Jonathan Papelbon.

Not sure what is more impressive in this clip from a youth hockey game.  The celebration after the goal, or that it looks like they drew a bigger crowd than the NHL cities named above.

Hockey snow angels @ Yahoo! Video

Signs of life in The Bronx

San Francisco Giant Buster Posey may look like a kid, but he's playing like a seasoned vet in his rookie year.  A mere 4-for-4 night led the way for the Giants in a 6-5 win where they scored the winner in the last inning for the guy who has to be the 2010 NL Rookie of the Year (apologies to Jayson Heyward).  The Giants now hold a 3-1 lead over the Phillies with Game 5 slated for tonight.  Pretty decent pitching match-up in Roy Halladay and Tim Lincecum, no?  That one goes at 7:57pm (Eastern).  I might be in the minority, but baseball's playoffs rule, save for the commercials that stretch games way beyond what need happen.

The New York Yankees finally showed some signs of life last night and rode the back of a gritty CC Sabathia start in a must-win game to a 7-2 win.  The ghosts of Yankee Stadium showing up and pushing the Texas Rangers into a mistake filled second inning didn't hurt the cause, nor did homers from Nick Swisher and Robinson Cano.  Game 6 goes in Texas tomorrow night.

Pittsburgh Steeler linebacker James Harrison is said to be contemplating retirement because he's so livid over the NFL's $75,000 fine on him for his nasty hit on Mohammod Massaquoi of the Cleveland Browns Sunday.  Of course, Harrison didn't help his cause by admitting Monday he was out to hurt guys.  Retirement?  Really?  Me thinks Harrison is a bit of a drama queen.  Who would retire with your team just about the favorite to win the Super Bowl right now?

Champions League group play saw eight games take place yesterday. Inter Milan raced out to a 4-0 lead after an early red card on Tottenham's 'keeper Gomes, but Spurs made it real interesting and it ended 4-3.  The group stage is now half complete and only Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Lyon, Real Madrid and Arsenal are a perfect 3-0.

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson says the Wayne Rooney issue will be "put to bed" this morning.  I'm sure a guy who has had several allegations of marital infidelities recently is thrilled with Ferguson's choice of words.  Former EPL cokehead striker Robbie Fowler, now playing in Australia, says that Rooney is interested in playing in the Aussie A-League.  Right, just as soon as he spends a couple years with Toronto FC.

I can't say I've ever much paid attention to or respected the dozen's of NFL Power Rankings that appear every week, but this one caught my eye simply for the dominance of the AFC.  You're into the sixth slot before a single NFC team appears.

Dallas Cowboys Tight End Jason Witten tweeted that his kids were going to go out as Buzz Lightyear and Woody of Toy Story fame for Hallowe'en.  So of course, yours truly thought it would be a good idea to respond with this: "dressing as Wade and Jason far scarier."  In typical Cowboy fashion, he did not respond.

I generally take up for Terrell Owens because he has always kept his nose clean of a lot of the off-the-field that a lot of other guys get a pass for to a greater degree than you should relative to a guy who trashed the odd QB (see Favre, Brett).  And while I'd never take up for Ben Roethlesberger and his act of recent years that saw multiple allegations of sexual assault, T.O. trying to compare his suspension to Michael Vick's and imply he got off lighter is just rhetoric.  One, Roethlesberger wasn't charged with anything and got four games.  Two, Vick was charged with something got three games.  It was the John Q. Laws that took care of the rest of his time from the game with a stay in the crowbar motel.

Do not mess with the St. Leonard Cougar's of the Ontario Football League.  Check out their act at Ivor Lose Stadium in Hamilton on Saturday in their league semis, as a dozen or so players ventured into the stands with bad intentions and got into it with fans.  My personal fav comes around the 21 second mark.  Watch left of the screen as #40 crowns a guy with a milk crate shot that Mick Foley would think was stiff.  Good of the refs to let it go for a couple minutes before slowly wading in to try to separate people.

Simply a heroinic performance

Well that was fun. AJ Burnett was half decent through five before being inexplicably left in for the sixth, despite numerous long breaks while the Yankees were at bat throwing away chance after chance to blow open a 3-2 win.  His second last pitch, on an intentional walk, nearly sailed over catcher Francisco Cervelli's head.  You'd think maybe that was a sign to Yanks manager Joe Girardi, but nope, he let him go another batter.  Next pitch, outta the part for a three run shot and a 5-3 Texas lead.  Boat race on, 10-3 final and a 3-1 series lead.  Can the Yanks come back?  Possibly.  But seems pretty unlikely with a 3-1 deficit, two games left in Texas, and now they're minus Mark Teixera for the rest of the playoffs after a pulled hamstring.  Oh, and they're showing no signs of life.  Hello, offseason.   Credit where due though, Texas has simply been better in every way.  Josh Hamilton's home run exploits have been heroinic.

Have a strong feeling we could be in for a Texas-San Francisco World Series, and who would've figured that a week ago?  The Philadelphia Phillies are inexplicably sending Joe Blanton to the hill for Game 4 today with the Giants up 2-1.  Madison Baumgartner goes for the Giants, a far better starting option.


Champions League play resumes today with another 8 games after yesterday's eight.  If you were following (wagering) along with the three plays yesterday, they were all winners.  Today, playing Inter Milan -1, Valencia and Barcelona -2. 

Buster Olney at ESPN with a few Cliff Lee bits.  The lowest playoff ERA's with five starts or more: Sandy Koufax: 0.95, Christy Mathewson: 1.06, Cliff Lee: 1.26, Eddie Plank: 1.32.  Most 10-strikeout games in postseason history, again with a five start minimum: Cliff Lee: 5, Randy Johnson: 5, Bob Gibson: 5, John Smoltz: 4, Mike Mussina: 4.  Pretty healthy company for Mr. Lee.  Quoting here: "Nolan Ryan was in the Rangers' clubhouse after the game and was asked what it would take to keep Cliff Lee and he said, in so many words, to go ask the Yankees. In other words, the Yankees will bid heavily on the left-hander, and with every dominant performance Lee's bargaining position just gets better and better. There is no question he will get offers for something in the range of CC Sabathia's $23 million a year; the question will be whether he gets a five-year or six-year or seven-year offer. Typically, the Yankees would rather pay more annually for a shorter-term deal."


Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed yesterday what we had been speculating about a couple days ago: Wayne Rooney does indeed want out of Manchester United.  So much for his proclamations of how he'd never wear another jersey in the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's departure, though word is that Man U's non-spending ways on big names is a part of Rooney's displeasure.Oh, and Jose Mourinho, Real MadridRooney will stay, manager, says continuing his streak of speaking definitively on topics that are more opinion than fact.

Word is Toronto FC has only seen about 35% of their season ticket base renew for next year with tomorrow's deadline fast approaching.  Way to blow the best sporting experience in Toronto, MLSE.  But hey, MLS Commish Don Garber says that TFC is still a "model franchise".  Presumably he means "among Canadian teams not currently in MLS".  John Molinaro thinks the honeymoon is over.  Yep, and divorce papers are being drafted for many.

Said Jon Gruden on The Jim Rome Show: "I try not to talk too much" on Monday Night Football.  Fail.  For the record, my money is on Gruden as the next Cowboys head coach.


Good of the Dallas Cowboys to implement a team rule that will forbid endzone celebrations after two huge penalties for that the last couple games, including one that essentially cost them a win against Tennessee two weeks back.

Jessica Alba, just because it has been a while.  And for the UFC fans out there, check out Arianny Celeste (NSFW, by the way).

Bob Elliott at the Toronto Sun says that Sandy Alomar Jr.'s interview with the Toronto Blue Jays yesterday lasted all day.

If you're at all a fan of Jersey Shore or South Park, be sure to check out the latter's skewering of Snooki in a recent episode, passed on by Bukakke.  Must be seen to be believed.

Check out Canucks meathead Rick Rypien suckerpunch a guy, and then even better, take a run at a fan who did...nothing.  Way to go, hockey.

Unbe-LEE-vable

Cliff Lee, you filthy, filthy lefty.  If anyone thinks he's not the best playoff pitcher of at least the last half decade or more, you're dreaming.  After a dominant run last year, he's been almost untouched through three starts against the Tampa Bay Rays and now the New York Yankees, dominating the Yanks in what ended up an 8-0 beatdown after a six-run eighth.  And with Lee favored to end up a Yankee, he's picked a hell of a time to throw a gem like last night's.  The Rangers now have a 2-1 series lead and Yankee fans will be gripping with AJ Burnett on the bump tonight, unless the Yankees change course at the last minute and throw CC Sabathia.   Tommy Hunter goes for the Rangers.  That one goes at 8:07.  At 4:19pm, Cole Hamels starts for Philadelphia with Matt Cain up for San Francisco, who are at home.  That series is tied at 1-1.

Ran into a guy I went to grade school and high school with a couple weeks back rocking a Green Bay Packers hat, which I ignored commenting on it being leather to ask how long he's been a fan of them, as I didn't recall that growing up with him.  He ignored the question and responded "Aaron Rodgers, best QB in the league".  I simply laughed at him, knowing that's just not true. He proceeded to ask how long I'd been a Yankee fan to which I reminded him that he organized the purchase of a Yankees jersey for my birthday in Grade 7.  Boom, outta here.  And now I stumble across this from ESPN Radio's Colin Cowherd: Aaron Rodgers, in games decided by 7 points or less is 7-13.  Just for comparison purposes, Vince Young is 18-5 in games decided by 7 or less.  As you can see at right, the Packers are ready for Brett Favre's visit this Sunday, as you can see at right.  Did you notice that Jenn Sterger's last name backwards spells 'regrets'?''

Former NFLer Junior Seau was arrested for domestic assault early yesterday morning, and once released, decided to take his Cadillac Escalade over a cliff.  That's one way to react, I suppose.  Maybe he's just extra upset about the plight of his long-time team, the San Diego Chargers, unlike a former teammate.  More on that below.  Seau is now saying it wasn't a suicide attempt and he went Bruce Smith at the wheel.

Could the the New Jersey Devils, six unimpressive games into the season, be ready to tie a can to coach John MacLean?  At least they're not overreacting.

I'm sure NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is thrilled to hear Pittsburgh Steeler James Harrison talk of how he doesn't care if he hurts people.  Stick to the tried and true "I don't try to, and it is unfortunate, but these things happen in a physical game," James.Word is the NFL is ready to announce it will start suspending players for nasty blows to the skull.

No, I am not avoiding mentioning the Toronto Maple Leafs strong start to somehow avoid jinxing it. Fact is in an 82 game NHL season, most teams will roll off a four or five game win streak and it barely deserves a mention.  So are the Leafs still considered undefeated after last nights 2-1 loss to the New York Islanders in overtime?

ProFootballTalk says the Dallas Cowboys are "fascinatingly bad" because they're ranked fourth in the league in yards gained, while the defense is ranked third.  That's hard to do, unless you are awesome at mind-numbing penalties that take points off the board.  Despite all that, says PFT, they're not out of it yet in a weak NFC East and NFC overall.  I'm a little more suspect than that.
What do you figure New York Jet LaDanian Tomlinson is enjoying more, his own resurgence in the face of a lot of naysayers, or the demise of the San Diego Chargers, his old team?

If not for $4.75 million to Alexei Yashin and $1.33 they're paying Brendan Witt, the New York Islanders would be below the NHL's minimum salary floor.

A full day of Champions League group play goes today at 2:45pm.  I'm really liking Real Madrid over AC Milan and Chelsea over Spartak Moscow.  Also worth a watch are Arsenal hosting Shaktar Donetsk, which might be worth an over play.

If you believe the Twitterverse, Sandy Alomar Jr. is heavily in the mix as a Toronto Blue Jays managerial possibility.

The Dallas Cowboys season doesn't seem nearly as bad when it has "Yakkety Sax" as the soundtrack...

We're back!

Expect a ridiculous amount of coverage on the hits delivered yesterday and the concussions that resulted, including a "severe" one for DeSean Jackson of the Philadelphia Eagles.  Also expect plenty of arms in the air about the safety of an 18-game schedule.  Was listening to ESPN Radio's coverage of the games yesterday and three concussions happened in a span of 8-10 minutes.  Pretty crazy.  Says former headhunter Rodney Harrison, now a commentator: "You didn't get my attention when you fined me five grand, 10 grand, 15 grand.  You got my attention when I got suspended...you have to suspend these guys. These guys are making millions of dollars. The NFL [has to say], 'We're going to really protect our players. We're going to suspend these guys, not one game, but possibly two or more games."

It was a tight Game 2 in the NLCS last night until the 8th, when the Philadelphia Phillies bought themselves some breathing room and jumped back into level territory with a 6-1 win over San Francisco.  That series now goes to San Francisco for three games starting tomorrow.

Admittedly, I'm become pretty used to the New York Yankees season going into October, but I don't recall too many seasons where they're still playing and the Dallas Cowboys are dead and buried for all intents and purposes.  Nice job, Wade Phillips.  Dust off that resume.  Take Jason Garrett with you, while you're at it.  That said, Jerry Jones says he won't even consider it.  One thing for certain: Dez Bryant is part man, part beast.  Not sure there are many stronger wideouts than that guy in the entire league.

Think there's much pressure on Andy Pettitte tonight?  Game 3, at home, with Cliff Lee on the bump for Texas.  Oh, and if you lose and are done early, the prospect of AJ Burnett in Game 4 and a blown out pen has to be real tantalizing.  Go get 'em, 46.

Congratulations, Toronto FC and MLSE.  Your handling of the franchise and poor treatment of your fans has even made the New York Times with this bang on piece sent to me by GBVH.

So it seems that a bad ankle isn't why Wayne Rooney has been lacking playing time with Manchester United.  Rooney says that he's fine and hasn't missed one practice which of course, now has brought the news out that he's fallen out with Sir Alex Ferguson, who is the Rocky Marciano of fights with his players - undefeated, untied - and Rooney is said to be on his way out of town in January, with leading candidates said to be Barcelona and Real Madrid.  Memo to Jerry Jones: get Sir Alex Ferguson as your coach.  If nothing else, your squad will know how to play disciplined.

The Philadelphia Phillies fans are still representing hard.  Check out this one yacking on Saturday night in the front row.

PTP

Play Indianapolis -3. Enjoy!

Best Favre Thing Ever

Pretty safe to say that right now, there is no more dominant playoff pitcher than Cliff Lee.  Lee was absolutely filthy last night in shutting down the Tampa Bay Rays with a complete game, 11 whiff effort, and the Rangers were 5-1 winners to take the series 3-2, the first series they've won in franchise history.  The home team was winless in all five games of that series.  They Rangers will host the New York Yankees in the ALCS starting Friday night.  As for Lee, his timing couldn't be better - he's a free agent this off-season and word is he's after CC Sabathia money: 8 years, $160 million, give or take.

Another day of Euro 2012 qualifying went down yesterday, and the story of the day might have been England,  held at home to a scoreless draw by Montenegro, who aren't exactly a powerhouse, and a tiny country of only 620,000.  But it is not.  The story of the day is for a game that didn't end up taking place, thanks to Serbian fans rioting in Genoa, Italy ahead of their game, led mostly by fans of Red Star Belgrade who were sour the national team was starting a goalie who went from them to rival Partizan Belgrade.  A few death threats and fake obits at the team hotel were merely the start.  Mix in some flares lobbed pre-game, including at the Italian goalie, some fascist salutes and chants, and the officials had little choice but to shut it down.  But at least the Serbian fans aren't taking things too seriously (end sarcasm).  Italy will likely be awarded a 3-0 win.  Video below, some pictures here.   The rest of the qualifying wrap here.

A New York Jets fan set out to the tailgate on Monday night with pictures of Brett Favre's "Little Gunslinger" planning to show the pics and see what people's reactions were.  Worth every minute you'll spend watching, check this out. Not safe for work, for language and the title of the page.  Also, Bukkake passed on a link to Favre's official site with a holier than thou rebuke from a Darren Grossman blasting Deadspin.

LeBron James left last night's Heat game with what they're calling a muscle cramp.  Give my voodoo doll some credit, won't you?

The Pittsburgh Pirates interviewed former Toronto Blue Jay manager John Gibbons for a managerial position Monday.  Yeah, that ought to get the fan base thinking the last two decades or so of futility are about to come to an end.

How pimp is the Tampa Bay Bucs backfield with a Blount and a Cadillac?

Tough NFL betting in 2010. Most fans tend to bet faves, but check out the underdog records against the spread by week: (1) 7-7-2, (2) 10-5-1, (3) 11-5, (4) 9-5, (5) 9-5.  That's 46-27-2 so far, or a smoking 63%.

If the Philadelphia Phillies go to World Series, Game 1 will take place across street from Philadelphia 76ers' opener vs. LeBron James and the Miami Heat.  Loved hearing that Shaq O'Neal is referencing the Heat's "Big Two", and refusing to refer to Chris Bosh by name.  Of course, it would've been funnier if O'Neal wasn't deep into the back nine of his career.

L.A. NFL stadium developers are working on a stadium design to also host World Cup soccer action, with the U.S. a strong contender for 2018 hosting rights. 

Check out the neck ink of Denver Nugget Chris Anderson.  Scary.

Speaking of ink, when you're getting ready to get some done, and the tattoo artist shows it to you in a mirror and it shows up backwards, that means it is in fact, backwards, as this knucklehead found out the hard way when getting a Chicago White Sox tattoo.

Loonie tune Elizabeth Hasselbeck has a conspiracy theory - surprise! - on the Brett Favre Pecker Pics escapade.   She's surprised that the pics and voicemails would leak just ahead of a Vikings visit to the Jets?  Come on, what better time for them to leak!?

James Sharman of The Score offers up his take on Toronto FC's (latest) big winter.

Other than any divisional series win celebration, here are 20 overzealous sports celebrations, complete with video evidence.

I'm off on holidays for the next few days so you won't be seeing any updates.  Back Monday, but first, a couple vids to close things out, 

Check out the Serbian fans run wild in Italy yesterday in their Euro qualifier.  Classy.





Your "luck" may be changing, Buffalo Bills fans.  Here's a look at Andrew Luck, Stanford QB, who could well be the #1 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.  Note: he's the guy blowing up a USC player after a fumble.

Nice weekend for the NHL

Did somebody tell Brett Favre last night was a playoff game?  Sure seemed that way when he tossed a terrible INT in the dying seconds. The New York Jets went house call on it to help cover the -4.5, and win the game 29-20. OHB also set a record last night for most fumbles in NFL history to go with lobbing his 500th TD. The Vikes host the Dallas Cowboys Sunday in a loser-is-all-but-done matchup of surprise 1-3 teams.

The San Francisco Giants beat the Atlanta Braves 3-2 to take their series 3-1. Very classy of the Giants to stop their celebrations on-field to line up and salute retiring Braves manager Bobby Cox, another guy for whom leaving Toronto only meant good things.  They'll start the NLCS on Saturday in Philadelphia. How does Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay starting strike you?

Cliff Lee and David Price will take to the hill in Tampa Bay tonight in their deciding Game 5 of the ALDS. Hard not to bet on the Rangers with a +109 price. Like their offence's chances to do damage more than the Rays to get to Lee.  First pitch is 8:05pm. 

The New Jersey Devils, in a hell of a cap bind, dressed 15 players for their loss Saturday afternoon to Pittsburgh. Three games into the year - with no wins - and Lou Lamoriello is playing cap games to save dimes. Tell me again how great caps are? Oh yeah, and Sidney Crosby is playing on a line with Mike Comrie and Chris Kunitz. Thanks, Cap.

San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York says his 0-5 49ers will still win their division. In any other division, I'd say impossible, but in the NFC West, perhaps there's a slight chance, though being three back of Arizona makes it a chore and then some. Check out their remaining schedule. Laughable.

At the other end of the spectrum - in terms of ownership perspective, but still on the subject of horrible teams - Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson acknowledges that the state of his squad is "bad" and that they're about three years from turning it around.  He also says that at 92, he probably won't be around to see it happen which will bring about a whole other kind of mess for the franchise.   If Pinnacle offers a line, I'm going to bet it takes more than three years, and he's around for more than three.

Is Jon Gruden paid by the word?

The Sportspickle tweets a beauty: "Gamecocks beat Alabama, Bobby Cox's career ends, Brett Favre. It's been a big sports week for Cocks/Cox/cocks."  Guess he didn't notice that Courtney Cox is on the market again.

Euro 2012 qualifying resumes today and no game is bigger than Italy taking on Serbia, with both teams struggling in the early stages.  All the fixtures here.

Damien Cox via Twitter: "Nice Thanksgiving weekend for NHL. One arrest, one obscene gesture, one dirty hit, one player taken off on stretcher." If you're wondering, it was Mike Ribeiro of the Dallas Stars on a DUI, James Wisniewski (video below), Niklas Hjalmarrson with the dirty hit (video below), and both Jason Pominville and Andrej Pavelec taken out on stretchers.

James Wisniewski gives it to Sean Avery...


Niklas Hjalmarrson crushes Jason Pominville, blind side...


The "Carlton" made its long awaited NFL debut in Detroit on Sunday...

Get a coffee, we're in for a long one today...

A wild one in Atlanta yesterday saw the San Francisco Giants working a shutout into the eighth before - who else? -  Eric Hinske hit a 2-run homer to give the Braves their only two runs of the game, and 2-1 lead. Hinske, you may recall, has been in the last three World Series with the Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, and New York Yankees. Could he make it four with Atlanta?  How crazy is that streak as it stands?  I digress.  The Giants came back and won it with a pair of their own in the 9th for a 3-2 win.  Probably helped that Braves 2B Brooks Conrad had a day for the ages with three brutal errors.  The Giants now lead that series 2-1.

The Philadelphia Phillies did the expected yesterday and eliminated the Cincinnati Reds with a dominant start from Cole Hamels, a complete game shutout, for a 2-0 win.  The Reds managed all of 11 hits in the series, not good for a team that led the NL in hitting this season.  Chase Utley was greeted by chants of "Cheater!" after selling a hit by pitch.  Funny, don't see the front page debate on that like it was when Derek Jeter did the same which, of course, was my point back then: if it isn't a Yankee, people don't care near so much.

Arizona Cardinals beat the defending Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints yesterday. Guess if anyone is going to have a Super Bowl hangover, you'd have to bet on New Orleans. Looks like the Madden Curse is alive and well.

Phil "Any Dead Air" Simms is at least the spiritual brother of Pierre MacGuire, no?  Never a moment of silence. Loved his saying that Miles Austin is one of the key reasons the Dallas Cowboys got rid of Terrell Owens. That would've been some serious crystal ball work, since Austin surprised everyone last October after having no previous impact or even consideration, six months after they cut ties with T.O.  Keep swinging, Simms.   The Cowboys once again were their own worst enemies in a 34-27 loss to Tennessee.

The AFC South is a four-way tie at 3-2.

Word is the Brett Favre/Jenn Sterger case is on the fast track with the NFL. No word from Tiger...errr...Favre since. He may even be suspended. Somewhere, Ben Roethlesberger is smiling.

Had a debate recently over the merits of Carson Palmer, who I think has been ridiculously overrated in general, but especially since blowing out his knee almost five years back. Yesterday's showing against Tampa Bay convinced me he's more than just overrated, he's terrible.

Speaking of QB's having rough days, I didn't expect much from the Chicago Bears Todd Collins (4 INTs), but Aaron Rodgers brutal showing in a 16-13 loss in Washington was unexpected.

Settle down, Toronto Maple Leafs fans, the salute the players did to the fans at the end of Saturday's game is not something so original you should be celebrating. It is something teams like the New York Rangers have done for years, and something soccer teams the world over have done forever.  Stay in your lane, the season is but two games old.

Carolina, Buffalo and San Francisco are all 0-5 on the NFL season.  While Buffalo's mark isn't that surprising, and Carolina's you could have maybe seen coming, San Francisco's is something else when they were touted to win their (joke of a) division.  The Bills Donte Whitner says they're the "laughingstock of the league".  Don't be see hard on yourself, DW, you've got plenty of company.  That said, moving to a 3-4 defence hasn't done wonders, as the Bills have given up a league high 161 points.

After divorcing the Toronto Raptors and separating from the Leafs, I'm looking at counseling with the Dallas Cowboys.

A real tough call tonight for the Prime Time Picks (now sitting at 7-3, details on the right side of the page).  Minnesota badly needs at win and are visiting the New York Jets, who appear to be rolling.  Mix in Randy Moss on a Monday Night for the second straight week and you get even more plot-lines. My inital thought was Jets -4.5 (+102) and I'm sticking with that.

Love Chris Berman's Freudian slip here...

Start sweepin' the brooms...

The New York Yankees completed the sweep of the Minnesota Twins with a 6-1 beatdown.  Phil Hughes was fantastic, and Curtis Granderson continues to be a difference maker for the Bronx Bombers.  Incredibly, the Yankees saw 78 pitches before they swung and missed for a strike.  More incredible?  A Twins team that has been real strong over the years is 18-57 under manager Ron Gardenhire, playoffs included, against the Yankees.  The Yanks will now sit until Friday when the ALCS starts.

The Tampa Bay Rays did what we predicted here yesterday, getting off the carpet with a 6-3 win at Texas, although it was 1-1 in the 8th so they took their time doing it.  The Rangers now lead 2-1, and am guessing the Yankees will be hoping they go to a 5th game to push Cliff Lee and David Price, who would pitch a game 5 Tuesday, out of the opening game of the ALCS Friday and minimize the number of starts both could make.

Dallas Cowboy Dez Bryant finds it funny that his dinner bill of $55,000 for the Cowboys a few weeks back has sparked such consternation.  For all those saying it is in poor taste in this economic time, I suppose none of the food or beverage purchased or the services delivered helped anybody out.  Relax people.  Word is some players were going home with unopened $900 bottles of wine.  A stat: with 53 guys on the team, they spent over $1000 a head.

Most appropriate thing I've heard about Randy Moss last days in New England: he reminded Bostonians of Manny Ramirez days with the Red Sox.  Performing when he wanted, sulking and slacking when he didn't.

Yet another take at the worst 15 uniforms in sports history.  How the Toronto Raptors original unis didn't make the grade is beyond me.

Niko Kranjcar scored a pair for Croatia in a big 2-1 Euro 2012 qualifying win at always-tough-at-home Israel.  France also downed Romania 2-0 in the other qualifier of the day.

Sitting at 6-3 on the Prime Time Picks, a superb-if-you-know-anything-about-sports-gambling 66.7% rate, I have to say that maybe that success is going to my head for how much I love the Philadelphia Eagles (+3 +112) tonight at San Francisco.  Honestly, I was convinced I read the line wrong.  What have the 49ers done to be favored against anybody?  I may be wrong in the end, but think the Eagles are very likely to win the game outright, so will gladly take the three points.

The Kansas City Chiefs are at Indianapolis today and the Miami Dolphins of 1972 had best get the champagne ready as the last undefeated team - yes, it is actually the Chiefs - is likely to see that improbable run come to an end, especially against a desperate Colts squad, who are far more a force at home than they are on the road.

Finally today, not sure what to make of Anaheim Duck Joffrey Lupul taking up for Brett Favre via Twitter with this: "Wait, Favre is in trouble w/ the league for sending 'racy' txt msgs... You can get in trouble for that? I certainly hope not..."  Something tells me Lupul's sent some objectionable content in the past himself.

Have a great Sunday, back tomorrow for more.

Ankiel slays Giants

For openers today, in honour of what should be the official start of the NHL season - it being Saturday after all - we've got The Sports Pickle's Official 2010/11 NHL pickup lines.  By the way, nice tramp stamp, Ovechkin.

The Cincinnati Reds went "slo-pitch squad" in the 7th inning last night, with mistakes you have to see to believe. That, as part of four errors and three hit batsmen by the Reds, helped the Phillies rally to a 7-4 win to take a 2-0 lead in the series.

Sometimes redemption takes a long time to come around, but after one-time pitcher Rick Ankiel, who famously couldn't find the plate in a playoff game a decade ago and switched to outfield permanently, brought the Atlanta Braves back to even footing with a dramatic 11th inning homer yesterday to give the Bravos a 5-4 win in San Francisco.  Both NL game three's go tomorrow.

A pair of MLB playoff games today, American League only after last night's all-NL schedule. In two games, the Tampa Bay Rays have eight hits and one run.  Makes their freaking out over a checked swing not called a strike three in game two ring pretty hollow, even if it led to a run.  They've got Matt Garza on the hill today facing Colby Lewis, 5:07pm first pitch.  The Rangers, of course, are up 2-0.  The New York Yankees go home to try to close out the Minnesota Twins, with Phil Hughes and Brian Duensing the starters.  I'm thinking the Rays win one with a strong Garza outing, and the Yanks close out Minny.

The Brett Favre news went to the mainstream media yesterday, and Deadspin sums up the coverage here.  Jason Whitlock says that "Roger Goodell needs to resolve this prickly dilemna" and that this makes the Jets/Ines Sainz issue earlier in the year seem like a "bunch of third graders playing spin the bottle."  Whitlock also says that if the media had a field day on Tiger Woods once they got his voicemails, they should be doing same with Favre.  Love Whitlock.  The NFL now admits it is looking into the allegations, and there is even more stories coming out about Favre's act in NYC.

It is a dark weekend for soccer leagues around the Europe with another bout of  Euro 2012 qualifying slated for yesterday and today.  Only two games today with France hosting Romania and Israel hosting Croatia.  Yesterday, Italy were held to a shocking draw at Northern Ireland, who aren't exactly powerhouses.  Portugal got off the schneid with a 3-1 win over Denmark, and the shocker of the day saw Serbia lose - at home - to Estonia.  Rest of the games wrapped up here.  All the games and scores here.

The good news for Manchester United: they had a record operating profit last year of £100.8.   The bad news: they still lost £83.64 million.  With the Boston Red Sox set to own Man U's rival Liverpool, am hoping that the New York Yankees get in and save Man U from this mess.

Alex Rodriguez his last 19 playoff games: batting .368 with five doubles, 7HR, 20 RBI and 18 runs.

Have a great Saturday, back with more tomorrow.

OHB exposed

For months now, there have been rumors about Brett Favre being less than the faithful husband while he was in New York with the Jets.  Well, what a coincidence then that just days before Favre and his Minnesota Vikings are to visit the Jets on Monday Night, out comes voicemails with someone who, if it isn't Favre, is one great impersonator who is creeping on a 25-year old Jets sideline reporter, and knows a lot about the Jets staff, and, well, there are some pecker shots text messaged as well.  Deadspin provides the evidence.  Wonder if Roger Goodell, umm, cock blocks Favre?   Note: this is the first time he's been referred to by name in these parts in over two years.  Wanted there to be no confusion who was being referred to.  There's video below of Favre getting asked about the reports at the bottom.


The San Francisco Giants opened their playoff series with the Atlanta Braves with a 1-0 win, led by Tim Lincecum's 14 strikeouts.  I predicted that would be a really low scoring series, but didn't figure on a 1-0 game.


The Tampa Bay Rays are done, for all intents and purposes.  After dropping game one at home, they came back and were lifeless in a 6-0 whitewash at the hands of the Texas Rangers.  Now, I routinely hammer the five game set as being not a legitimate test when a team just played 162 to get there, but the way the Rays are playing, they might even prefer if it was a 2-of-3 and call it a day.


Then there are the New York Yankees and their wholly owned subsidiary, the Minnesota Twins.  The Yanks won again last night, 5-2, to run their record in Minnesota to 7-0 in playoff games.  The Twins have had 11 leads in the last seven playoff games against the Yanks and have blown every one of them, losing all those games.  They weren't so unfortunate last night as the Yanks went wire to wire with another strong Andy Pettitte playoff performance.  For those that haven't been paying attention, Curtis Granderson is on fire the last month plus.  Since 1997, there have been 66 playoff saves of greater than one inning pitched, and Mariano Rivera has 31 of them.  31 of Rivera's 41 career playoff saves are more than one inning pitched.  He might or might not get the most saves record, but is there any doubt he's the best there is, was or ever will be?

Up today,  Cincinnati tries to get a hit in Philly at 6:07, and the Atlanta Braves try to score a run in game two of their series in San Francisco, 9:37 first pitch, all times Eastern.

The Buffalo Bills will be blacked out for the first time since 2006, with 12,000 tickets left unsold.  What, the entire world doesn't want to see them host Jacksonville?

What is it with wives, present and former, of Roberto Alomor saying that he had unprotected sex with them as an HIV carrier?  Maybe that's why the current wife is divorcing him?

Former Tampa Bay Buc Derrick Ward gets off one of the blasts a team never wants to hear: his former teams doesn't actually want to win.  Ouch.

Yep, as predicted, Facebook is on fire with lame Leafs and Habs smack, as if one game in early October means a bloody thing.  Word is the Leafs won 3-2?

This is called "winning a trade": the New England Patriots gave up a 4th round pick for Randy Moss when they acquired him.  A few years later, they dealt him for a 3rd rounder.

Check out the Vikings press conference yesterday in which the subject of Brett Favre's stalking voicemails and more came up.  Love that he said "I've got my hands full".  Sure did!  Haven't seen someone haul that hard off a water bottle since Roger Clemens was getting grilled after his steroid allegations came up.


I'm really happy for Roy Halladay, who by all accounts is as solid a guy as he is a pitcher.  But the world did not need this.  Dude did it in his mirror, no less.

Roy Throws a No-Hitter

Roy Halladay is probably wondering why he didn't get out of Toronto sooner if this is what playoff baseball is for him.  A no-hitter to open the NLDS, including driving in a run, as his Philadelphia Phillies beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-0.  Not sure one hitter really had a hope yesterday.  Having a laugh at the Twitterverse putting him up there with Don Larsen.  Didn't know that throwing a no hitter in the divisional round was the same as throwing a perfect game in the World Series.


The New York Yankees rallied from a 3-0 deficit and ultimately were 6-4 winners after Mark Teixera broke a 4-4 tie with a 2-run Tex Message into the right field stands.  If you're in to patterns, last year, Alex Rodriguez opened game one of the divisional series with Minnesota with a fly to right field, then a strikeout, before getting on his third at-bat and going on to dominate the playoffs.  Last night?  Opened with a flyout to right field and then a strikeout, then worked a walk into a stolen base and scored the Yanks second run.  If September's AL Player of the Month stays hot, could get real interesting for the Yanks.  The Yanks have to be salivating over facing former teammate Carl Pavano tonight at 6:07pm.



Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon has set himself up for some serious second guessing going with James Shields in Game 2, especially after losing the opener 5-1 led by a dominant Cliff Lee. Shields allowed 246 hits this year, tied with Mark Buehrle for most in the bigs.  The Rangers will send a hot CJ Wilson to the bump.  One reason to cheer against the Rays: Maddon, who I generally like, is encouraging Rays fans to show up to the park in plaid.  As if the cowbells weren't annoying to one sense, now they're aiming to assault your vision, too.

The New York Islanders top line has John Tavares earning $900k, $800k to Blake Comeau and $600k  to P.A. Parenteau for a total of $2.3 million.  By way of comparison, the New Jersey Devils have eight forwards making more than that individually.


Seriously, I have a hard time believing that the New York Yankees (1) create (2) sell and (3) have any of their fans buy this stuff.  I generally don't buy gear with dates on it, and certainly don't buy it for a Wild Card for a team that has won 27 World Championships and has been a playoff fixture since 1995 save for one year.

On the heals of the Randy Moss deal back to Minnesota, Moss will become just the 6th player to play 17 games in a season since bye was instituted in 1990.  That assumes, of course, that he stays healthy.  For the record, the Pats won no rings with Moss in the lineup.  Jason Whitlock says that the move reeks of desperation for the Vikes.

There are five NHL games on tonight to open their far-too-long schedule, including the Montreal Canadiens visiting the Toronto Maple Leafs, which can only mean one thing: Facebook is about to be inundated with a lot of ridiculous posts about how the losing team sucks based on one game.  Watch baseball tonight people, at least that actually means something right now.


Merely the latest best thing ever...



A ridiculous goal scored in Northern Ireland.  Be sure to watch closely.

Playoff time!

Texas and Tampa Bay will get the MLB playoffs under way at 1:37pm (Eastern), with Cincinnati at Philadelphia at 5:07 followed by the New York Yankees in Minnesota at 8:37.  Gonna be a good day for sports. The Big Lead has a great little feature: The 2010 Hater's Guide to The MLB Playoffs.  What is most impressive in this is the sheer consistency of the bile spewed.  Worth printing off and enjoying over a few coldies tonight.
It started innocently enough last night with Bill Simmons - aka The Sports Guy - thinking he was direct messaging someone on Twitter.  Instead, he posted a blurb for all to see that he had information that the New England Patriots were going to move Randy Moss to the Minnesota Vikings.  Shortly after, Twitter threatened to take down the internet for all the word flowing after that. Looks like the deal could be completed as soon as this morning.  Makes next week's visit by the Dallas Cowboys to Minny even more interesting: revenge plot for last year's playoffs, and Moss has historically shown up big against the team he most resents for not drafting him.  Somehow, you have to figure the Pats know what they're doing here.  Moss does have only nine catches on the season.  Edit: ESPN is reporting the deal is now done.

Liverpool looks like they'll have new ownership any minute, and replacing American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett could be John Henry.  Yes, the very same John Henry that owns the Boston Red Sox.  Personal Hate Level: climbing.  There's an Asian bid in the mix too, and the current owners are fighting for their lives against a board that is pushing them out the door.  Meantime, Liverpool sits third last in the English Premier League.  "Disaster" might not be the most accurate word, but it is the first that springs to mind.  Edit: And now comes word that the purchase by John Henry and the Sox ownership is now complete.

It is getting better for Tour de France champion Alberto Contador, and by better, I mean "worse".  The latest is his blood has shown traces of plastic in it consistent with having had a transfusion performed, something that he previously denied, and of course, is performance enhancing.  But hey, his people say he didn't do it.  Good enough then.

The danger of deferred money for sports teams is gobs of "dead" money down the road.  The Detroit Tigers are looking at around $13 million in dead money next year payable to Gary Sheffield, Pudge Rodriguez, Maglio Ordonez, Edgar Renteria, and Jose Valverde, who at least remains with the team.  The Tigers will be paying Gary Sheffield between $1million - $2.5 million between 2010 and 2019.  Ouch.

In a year of great baseball injuries, it is never too late to add another to the pile.  Baltimore Oriole Brian Roberts admitted a couple days ago that the concussion-like symptoms he's been feeling the last couple days might be from getting hit in the head by a bat.   Swung by one Brian Roberts.

Thanks to our friends to the south, the 25 Funniest Defaced Dollar Bills.

The New York Rangers may have sent Wade Redden to the minors but it isn't all bad for the $6.45 million man. While in the AHL, he won't be paying an 18% escrow payment so he effectively got a raise. Further, there is no state tax in Connecticut so Redden is going to make more money than ever.
Since 2001, the Detroit Lions are 8-66 on the road.

So Dwayne Wade lasted all of three minutes and change last night in the Miami Heat's pre-season opener before leaving with a bad hamstring.  Looks like my voodoo doll is in mid-season form.  Wait til I start poking at Chris Bosh and Lebron James knees.

For the Jays fans out there, here's a look at all 54 of  Jose Bautista's home runs this year.  Nice editing work from the Jays though, cutting out the ball actually leaving the park so you can't count how many landed in an empty seat at Rogers Centre.

I love a game show trainwreck, and there are all kinds here in the Top 10 Dumbest Answers in Family Feud History.  And nothing better than a ridiculous answer followed up by "good answer!"

Think San Francisco Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum is ready for the playoffs?  Check this out.  Warning: objectionable language for some that may be around you.

Back!

Back after a day on the down low after a wild one in Buffalo on Sunday.  The game sucked, but had a great time.

The MLB playoffs are set to start tomorrow, and the first round is never one I'm fond of with the far-too-short best of five format which can see a team that had a far better regular season wiped out in a few days.  That said, in the American League, I'm liking the New York Yankees to take out Minnesota in four, the Tampa Bay Rays to take out Texas in three.  In the National League, I'm going to pick San Francisco to take out Atlanta in five low scoring games, and the Philadelphia Phillies will wipe out Cincinnati in three games.  With regard to the Twins, they'll be minus Justin Morneau for the duration of the playoffs, still suffering from post-concussion symptoms suffered in July.  Would like to see him out there, frankly, Yankee loyalties aside.

Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick of 2009 Nazem Kadri's, sent down to the Marlies in the AHL yesterday, would have made an NHL salary of $810,000 had he made the big club. Kadri's AHL salary: $67,500. Or broken down: $4500 a day in NHL; $375 a hockey season day in AHL.  That'll get you motivated if anything does.  Personally, I'm glad he's down, mostly so we can stop with the coverage that is treating him like he's the second  coming of Gretzky in Toronto.

A fantastic piece here from a Toronto FC blog called View From The South Stands (no, it isn't me) that looks at Dwayne De Rosario's consisting whining over his contract, an annual event now going back into his days in Houston.

Bad news for those that can't stand the grunting/screaming of a tennis match.  Research suggests that the louder the grunt, the more likely the player is to hit a winning shot.

Buster Olney's pick's for the MLB awards for the 2010 season: NL MVP: Joey Votto. AL MVP: Robinson Cano. AL Cy Young: Felix Hernandez .  NL Cy Young: Roy Halladay. AL Rookie of the Year: Pedro Feliz.  NL Rookie of the Year: Buster Posey. AL Manager of the Year: Ron Gardenhire.  NL Manager of the Year: Bud Black.  I could see all of those coming through, though I think David Price and CC Sabathia are better Cy Young choices than a 13-12 guy who skipped his last start to stay above .500, ostensibly.

Not sure I remember a team ever giving up more special teams big plays than what the Miami Dolphins did last night.  That was comical, unless you're a Fish fan.  New England stomped the Dolphins 41-14, and more important, Prime Time Picks are now at 66.7% on the season.

By the way, if you've not checked out HBO's Boardwalk Empire yet, be sure to get on it.  Exceeds the hype coming in.

Manchester City's Nigel de Jong, who famously drop kicked Spain's Xavi in the World Cup final, is back to his butchering ways, this time breaking the leg of Newcastle United's Hatem Ben Arfa with a nasty tackle that broke both his fibula and tibula.  Not for the squeamish. 


Counties Manukau loose forward Fritz Lee has been suspended for three weeks for a dangerous tackle on Northland scrum-half Luke Hamilton.  Translation: dude delivered a hell of a clothesline.

Most NFL eyes will be focused on Philadelphia today, where Donovan McNabb makes his return with the rival Washington Redskins to face the Eagles, led by Michael Vick at QB. Guessing when McNabb lobbied Eagles management to bring Vick in, he probably didn't figure it would end this way.

Why the Boston Red Sox could bounce back real strong next year: they had their full lineup for only eight games all year.  Presumably, they don't have Josh Beckett and John Lackey combine for a 4.99 ERA next year either.

Girl power?  A recent graduate at Duke produced a PowerPoint that has gone public detailing all her hook-ups, including several with known athletes at the school, and breaking each down into impressive detail on conversations, crank size and so on.  Funny that she deducted points for "rudeness or being Canadian".

Pittsburgh Steeler Hines Ward says that 18-game NFL seasons will shorten careers.  Wait a minute.  You mean to tell me that if you have a limited quantity of something and you increase the frequency with which you do it, said quantity disappears more readily?   Smart man, that Hines.  Guess he didn't figure out that shorter careers also lead to fewer contracts leading to more controllable salary scales.  Ultimately, people don't care if a guy plays five years or six, as long as the guy coming in is perceived to be as good or better.  Looking forward to someone reminding Ward his blind-side "blocks" also shorten careers.

The New York Mets are finally going to do what most have expected for well over the last year: they're going to tie a can to GM Omar Minaya and manager Jerry Manuel.  Somewhere, Joe Torre is placing phone calls.

Lord Alan Sugar, a prominent government member in England, spoke on foreign ownership of English Premier League teams and said he has fears over the futures of Liverpool and Manchester United, both heavily leveraged by their owners and paying massive sums just to cover off interest payments.  He raises some good, an ominous, points.

Steve Davis at SI.com looks at Toronto FC's Dwayne De Rosario's act last week and how it illustrates the problems of the "designated player" rule in the MLS, which allows teams to sign three players that only count for a limited number against the salary cap.

Bill Simmons - The Sports Guy - took some real heat for a column saying that he was rooting for Michael Vick and talked of the hypocrisy of people - himself included - in condemning his dog fighting ways.  For those that don't have ESPN Insider, I'll include this Deadspin piece on it that includes the key points.  The last point on his having paid his debt and seemingly being rehabilitated is dead on in my book.

Playing the New York Giants tonight at -3.5 as the Prime Time Pick.  Not loving that one, but always like to take a team in a pretty desperate situation at home, particularly when facing a team that has overachieved this year in the Chicago Bears and coming off a short week after their Monday Night win over Green Bay.  The Giants have out-gained their opponent in their two losses so far, and if Eli Manning can stop turning the ball over, they should take care of business tonight.

Off to Buffalo. Go Bills!

Super Saturday...

After LeBron James and his people suggested the reaction to his Miami move was rooted in racism, you had to figure it was only a matter of time before Charles Barkley weighed in.  And weigh in he did, swinging some heavy lumber: "The only criticism I've heard about LeBron and it was my biggest criticism, that decision thing was just stupid. It was stupid.  The second thing when they all came out there dancing around on stage, that was silly. That's the only thing I've heard LeBron get criticized about. That has nothing to do with race. It's like watching a movie, just when you think it couldn't get any stupider, it gets more stupid."  Barkley also took his own network - TNT - to task for "unprecedented ass kissing" in their coverage of the Heat.

Another busy day of soccer action in all the major leagues across Europe. If you're looking to catch some games on this side of the pond, your best bet is to check this awesome site.


If you're looking to get down a World Series futures wager, consider this: the Philadelphia Phillies will have 17 of 19 starts made by the hot trio of Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels.  Click on the Pinnacle link above to get down.

The Stanley Cup rings that the Chicago Black Hawks will be rocking might be the most awesome I've ever seen.  A mere 8 carats over 404 diamonds.

Michigan offensive lineman Taylor Lewan might have the best game for meeting ladies I've ever seen.  Lewan had a mustache tattooed onto his finger that he holds up when meeting ladies.  Awesome.

With regard to Felix Hernandez Cy Young candidacy: no pitcher has won the award while winning fewer than 60% of his decisions.  That year, it was Gaylord Perry who went 24-16.  Jayson Stark at ESPN told The Michael Kay Show yesterday that when you ask pitchers about the award, they - to a man - laugh out loud that people are considering anything other than wins to be most important.

Maybe the Texas Rangers will be able to compete in signing their pending free agent Cliff Lee after all, now that they've signed a massive local television deal that will see them bring in $75-80 million a year over the next 20 years.  Maybe they'll be able to throw enough at Lee to make him forget his worst stats in his career come in Arlington, home of the Rangers, and that not only are the New York Yankees interested, but that he's good friends with CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett, and that the Yankees are interested.  On second thought, it changes nothing.

The final road trip of any baseball season is the time when most teams run their fairly tame rookie initiations.  This year, the Florida Marlins is noteworthy, especially the Baywatch outfit of Logan Morrison. 

Since joining the San Francisco Giants in May as a rookie, only four National League players beat Buster Posey in batting average and slugging: Albert Pujols, Carlos Gonzalez, Joey Votto and Matt Holliday.  That is a star in the making.

Anna Kournikova will be joining "The Biggest Loser" - a weight loss show - to give tennis lessons to those looking to lose weight.  That ought to be motivating, a rake of a girl who pretty much has made a career on good looks.

Manchester City's wild spending last year left the team a mere $191 million (USD) in the red last year. Guess that's bound to happen when you spend $475 million on players and still don't qualify for the Champions League after a fifth place finish.  City says they'll scale back spending.  Ya think?

Pick-up line: ask a girl if she has a boyfriend.  If she replies yes, ask her if she would now like a man-friend.  The author?  Ben Roethlesberger.  Oh, and the Steelers like to smoke weed.

Inter Milan's Wesley Sneijder says he'd only play for Manchester United if he were to leave Inter.  See you in January, Wesley.

A great short film on the inner workings of Toronto FC management and MLSE, by extension. Incredible.