Media:ESPN and MLB Reach a Compromise: This was pretty much inevitable, since having ESPN on-location is extremely important for both sides. MLB can only gain from the attention, and it helps ESPN by keeping the network relevant for baseball fans who won't be tuning in at all to ESPN for playoff games this year.
Maple Leafs Say No to Digital Video: To say that this decision strikes close to home for me would be an understatement. Back in March, I purchased a Casio Exilim EX-Z850, an 8.1 megapixel multifunction camera. And everywhere that I've gone, though I may have gotten a few quizzical looks, once I've explained what I was doing, I've been allowed to shoot interviews -- even ones inside of both NHL and MLS locker rooms -- without interruption.
MLB:
The Debriefing: A Letter From Alex Rodriguez's Golden Retriever: But when it's Cynthia's turn to dress me, she has a wardrobe of t-shirts ready for me, all glittery and sequined. There's one for every day of the week. Here's the line-up: Monday: **** YOU Tuesday: **** NEW YORK Wednesday: **** JOE TORRE Thursday: **** THE STATUE OF LIBERTY
Ronnie Woo Woo: Annoying in Any Context: Those of you not familiar with Chicago Cubs human mascot -- and totally annoying, smelly dude -- Ronnie "Woo Woo" Wickers, well, I'm not really sure what to tell you. He's a big hit with the drunkards. Where his schtick is not appreciated, however, is on long flights to Arizona. That had to be a long flight.
The Dugout: Dane Cook Explores All Playoff Possibilities: Today's Dugout, after the jump, provides a "behind the scenes" (industry term) look at the making of these commercials we've grown to be apathetic about.
NCAA Football:Bullish Merchandise Sales: The immediate upshot of the USF Bulls big wins at Auburn and over West Virginia last Friday was not merely being propelled into the #5 ranking in the prestigious BlogPoll. The bigger deal is that USF gear is now hot.
Video: Old School: Emmitt Smith Won't Leave: To set the stage: Emmitt Smith -- who you may have heard of -- is in his junior year at Florida; he plans on leaving for the draft after the year ends. Florida forces Auburn into fourth and long; the Tigers convert. They score a touchdown with 12 seconds left and win. But Emmitt won't leave the field.
Futbol:
Video: Oh, Wait, I'm Supposed to Fall Down Here: A Celtic supporter invaded the pitch and touched up Milan goalkeeper Dida, who finally remembered a few seconds later that he was supposed to look like he had been savagely beaten by riot police.
NFL:
Report: Andy Reid Close to Leaving Sideline: Despite that fact he has tried to fight through the adversity and continue on as the head football coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. Now, with the Birds season crashing downward, there are reports that Reid may put down the headset.
Patriots Unstoppable? Beatpaths Not So Sure: The graph you see here comes from a great web site called beatpaths.com. The graph is a visual representation of everything that has happened through the first four weeks of the 2007 NFL season.
NBA:What a Trashed MJ Looks Like: By the grace of Lion in Oil, here's a photo of Jordan in the throes of revelry, looking especially blitzed. There are some more where that came from, but this is the liquor fume-spewing gun.
Knicks Players Still Love Isiah: Of course the players will galvanize around Zeke -- I watched Ron Artest calmly stroke mortal foe Eric Musselman's cheek after the latter's DUI last fall. It's what men do.
Isiah's Undercover Popcorn Empire: There's no avoiding Brand Isiah when it's a matter of Isiah running a franchise or coaching a team. But something unrelated like popcorn, well, why not make his presence as discreet as possible? While I seriously doubt the man himself made this call, maybe he's in business with some people more savvy than himself.
The Spurs Are Retiring Avery Johnson's Number Why, Exactly? Players whose jerseys are retired should be Hall of Fame caliber. Players who, without question, are dominant superstars without whom the franchise would never have been relevant at all but for that player's time with the team. Does Avery Johnson fit into that category with the Spurs?
