Archive for September 20th, 2006
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
We know that Darryl Strawberry has made considerable strides toward cleaning up his life in recent years, and for that we applaud him: Not everyone can be Dwight Gooden, after all. But we still find it somewhat, eh, curious by this auction currently up for bid at MLB.com.
This auction features the opportunity to have Darryl Strawberry come to YOUR school! The winning bidder of this auction will have the chance to have New York Legend Darryl Strawberry attend your school for a special appearance for up to an hour. Strawberry will also give a short speech to your school on valubable life lessons. Don’t miss out on this rare opportunity to have a super star like Daryl Strawberry come to YOUR school!
(We hope Darryl’s first comment is, “It’s two ‘R’s, you dope.’”)
The current bid is $250, and the auction ends Saturday; only schools in the New York City tri-state area need apply. While we hope the kids are able to resist the temptation to taunt with “DAR-RYLLLLLL!” repeatedly, we do enjoy that the auction includes the addendum: “This item has an MLB Hologram affixed to guarantee the item is 100% authentic” and stipulates that there is a $10 shipping fee. (Oh, and you can’t ship to P.O. Boxes.) In other words, you can’t tattoo Darryl and mail him somewhere, which is good, because, really, hasn’t Darryl suffered enough?
Have New York Mets Legend Darryl Strawberry Come To Your School [MLB Auctions]
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
So here’s something that took us back a bit: Sacramento Kings guard/forward/madman Ron Artest is apparently on tour right now to support his modestly titled album “My World” — TRU WARIER! — and he’s clearly playing the most amped up, crazy venues.
How do we know? He’s playing the Assembly Hall in Champaign, Illinois, home of our Fighting Illini! (And our graduation proceedings in 1997; our speaker was Diane Sawyer!) OK, so he’s actually opening for Ludacris — star of the Oscar-winning, and SO COMPELLING Crash! — and Yung Joc, and it’s this Friday, tickets still available. It’s Ron Artest, in the home of REO Speedwagon. What more could you want?
But for heaven’s sake, don’t throw water on him.
Ron Artest At Assembly Hall [Assembly Hall]
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
With November 5th drawing nearer, reports now indicate that Dream Stage Entertainment have settled on their semifinal matches for the 2006 PRIDE Welterweight Grand Prix.
Many Brazilian sources have began to indicate that Dream Stage Entertainment will announce Paulo Filho vs. Kazuo Misaki, and Akihiro Gono vs. Denis Kang as the Grand Prix semifinal bouts for PRIDE’s Welterweight Grand Prix finale at the Yokohama Arena on November 5th. These reports likely are coming as a result of Brazilian Top Team trainer Luis “Bebeo” Duarte, and Filho himself, stating that Filho is nearly certain to face Misaki in the semifinals.
Dream Stage Entertainment has offered no word on the official pairing yet. Realistically, the rumored combination of participants is one of only two plausible configurations, as Dream Stage Entertainment would more than likely not match Gono and Misaki, close friends and training partners of Team GRABAKA, against one another in the semifinals, despite DSE boss Nobuyuki Sakakibara’s stated wish to see a bout between Denis Kang and Paulo Filho.
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
Some good news for Isiah Thomas (seen here having dinner with Dennis Rodman at an Outback Steakhouse): He is actually able to establish a functioning work environment! Who knew?!
Mind you, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, that work environment is one that’s openly hostile to women, particularly former Knicks senior executive Anucha Browne Sanders, who has filed a sexual harassment suit against Thomas and the team. But hey, Thomas is making strides: When he ran the CBA, by the time he was done, there was no work environment whatsoever. So in a way, it’s an improvement.
It’s important to remember that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s findings are not a jury trial or anything, confirming once and for all that Thomas fostered an atmosphere of sexual harassment and then tried to save himself by accusing the accuser of just being out for money. That confirmation won’t happen until later, though, by then, Thomas will surely have hired Jerome James to represent him.
Report Supports Claims In Suit Against Thomas [New York Times]
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
I’ve long hated the Evil Empire, but, after reading Tom Verducci’s SI cover story on Alex Rodriguez, I’ll be rooting for at least one Yankee come October. But, before I get too ahead of myself, allow me to backup for a moment. Verducci’s piece is a delicious insider’s account of what it was like for A-Rod as he struggled through those mid-season months when New York’s fate actually hung in the balance.
What makes it so interesting and entertaining are the direct and uncomplimentary quotes from members of the leaders of the Yanks clubhouse, including Derek Jeter, Joe Torre and, most notably, Jason Giambi. Yet it’s this passage that resonates the most with me:
“One day last month, [Verducci] asked Rodriguez whom he has relied on most during his difficult summer. He first mentioned [his wife] Cynthia. But to whom has he turned on this Yankees team? He looked down and thought in silence. Ten seconds passed.
Finally he said, “Rob Thomson.” Thomson is the team’s special-assignment coach who throws batting practice. “And Mo. Mariano is the best. Those three.”
And that was it.”
That’s sad. The guy’s an outsider on his own team, which doesn’t mean he’s a sociopath or anything of the sort. When I was in high school, I got along with most people except for the guys on my baseball team. We’d go on a California trip to play in a tournament every spring and it was always the worst week of the year for me. Sure, traveling to LA and facing prime competition was great, but it was miserable trying to mesh with guys day in and day out just for the sake of fitting in.
Would I mesh with Jeter? With Giambi? Probably not. I don’t like their personalities from afar and I doubt I would in-person either. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t produce my senior year and it isn’t preventing Rodriguez from knocking in 125 runs this year. That’s not to compare me to him or the George C. Marshall Statesmen to the New York Yankees, but still.
Anyway, read the piece. It’s the second in a stringof great SI cover stories (Gary Smith on Pat Tillman being the other), and it’s absurd that I’m still paying for SI (the magazine) when I’m already reading SI (the web site) two days before it hits my mailbox.
And one last note on A-Rod before moving on. He has 463 career home runs and is 31 years old, which means that, if he continues hitting 40 per year, he’ll break Hank Aaron’s record in May of ‘14 at the age of 38. So be prepared for that. I’m sure Giambi will remain unimpressed. Prick.
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
DEEP have announced two more additions to their October 10th Korakuen Hall card.
DEEP had previously stated when they announced the October 10th card that they planned on importing more Brazilian talent, and have done so with the includion of Pancrase veteran Flavio Luiz Moura and Fabricio “Pitbull” Monteiro, who competed at DEEP’s Club DEEP in Tokyo card in July, where he defeated a far outsized Hiroyuki Abe, after weighing in an embarassing 3.8 pounds overweight.
Moura will meet longtime PRIDE mainstay Daijiro Matsui, who will be making his second appearance in DEEP, having fought Ryo Chonan in January of 2004, losing a majority decision. Matsui is coming off of a loss to Pancrase champion Yuki Kondo at Pancrase’s summer super card, where he dominated from bell-to-bell by the champ. Like Matsui, Moura is coming off of a lost in his last fight to Leandro “Batata” Silva in Brazil last month, and will look for a reversal of fortunes, against the former Takada Dojo member.
Fabricio Monteiro will face a tougher task, stepping into the ring with DEEP’s welterweight champion Jutaro Nakao in a non-title bout. Monteiro’s performance in his DEEP debut was dominating, however tainted by him coming into the bout overweight for a 70 kilogram fight, against a fighter who usually competes at 65 kilograms. “Pitbull” will now have to silence his critics against the Japanese veteran, who showcased an unusual killer instinct in his August bout with Kousei Kubota, stopping him with a brutal barrage of soccer kicks in the second round.
All In One Solution Inc. Presents DEEP: 26th Impact
October 10th, 2006
Korakuen Hall
Tokyo, Japan
Doors Open: 17:30
Fights Start: 18:30
Tentative Fight Card (Card Subject To Change):
2R 5M
Kousuke Umeda (R-BLOOD) vs. Takuhiro Kamikozono (Kiguchi Wrestling School)
2R 5M
Kousei Kubota (Sakaguchi Dojo) vs. Kim Dong Hyun (CMA KOREA)
2R 5M
Anthony Netzler (Team BOON!) vs. Seigo Mizukuchi (Freelance)
2R 5M
Hiroshi Nakano (Mach Dojo) vs. Hirokazu Konno (BLUE DOG GYM)
2R 5M
Daijiro Matsui (Freelance) vs. Flavio Luiz Moura (Gracie Barra Combat Team)
2R 5M
Jutaro Nakao (Freelance) vs. Fabricio Monteiro (Gracie Barra Combat Team)
2R 5M
Min Soo Kim (CMA KOREA) vs. Tsuyoshi Kurihara (Team ROKEN)
2R 5M
Noboru Onishi (TEAM ROKEN) vs. Sen Nakadai (PRB)
2R 5M
Hidehiko Hasegawa (SK Absolute) vs. Ken Hamamura (CMA Kyoto Keiseikan)
2R 5M
Kazunori Yokota (Team GRABAKA) vs. Michihiro Omigawa (Yoshida Dojo)
For The DEEP Featherweight Championship Title
65 KG, 3R 5M
Takeshi Yamazaki (Team GRABAKA) vs. Masakazu Imanari (Team ROKEN)
Also Scheduled To Participate:
Yuya Shirai (Team MAD)
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
It’s hard to believe, but the NBA season is just around the corner (no, not that corner; that’s curling). We don’t know about you, but we’ve barely had time to miss Ron Artest and Mark Cuban before they’re back again. And that’s a good thing. So let us celebrate with five tiny tidbits on each team, starting with the Pacific Division and that rollicking powerhouse known as the Golden State Warriors. We’ll rip through the rest of the Pacific D. this week and next, so do us a favor and send us your tips on those teams via tips@deadspin.com.
• 1. Free Zarko. Introducing … the frohawk. Part afro, part mohawk, it’s all Zarko Cabarkapa; his new look for the 2006-07 season. It’s got the traditional Mohawk swirl with hair on both sides; the Yugoslavian forward/center debuting the new do while partying at the Video Music Awards in August. Teammate Monta Ellis dubbed it the “Jimmy Neutron Special,” and Ray Young never tires of describing it. By the way, thanks to SFGate.com for running a story on this and not including a photo. Jerks.
• 2. Sorry We Suck — Jason Richardson. Joining Michael Jordan as only the second NBA player ever to win two consecutive Slam Dunk Contests, Jason Richardson also takes this losing stuff pretty hard. After the Warriors failed to make the playoffs for the 12th straight season (the active NBA record), Richardson organized an apology to Warriors’ fans in the form of a full-page newspaper ad, reportedly ponying up half of the $100,000 fee himself.
• 3. Le Boom Goes The Dynamite. Want to learn more about Mickael Pietrus? You’d better learn french. Pietrus may be the only player in the NBA whose Web site is entirely in a foreign language.
• 4. There Was No There There. Led by prodigal son Rick Barry, whose highly effective underhanded free throw style failed to catch on anywhere, the Warriors scored what some consider the greatest upset in NBA Finals history in 1975, beating the Washington Bullets in a four-game sweep. So confident was the Warriors’ front office that season that the team’s home, the Oakland Coliseum Arena, was booked solid with other events during the dates of the NBA playoffs. And so, the home games of the Warriors’ only West Coast championship were played not in Oakland, but at the Cow Palace in Daly City, across the bay.
• 5. He’s Richer Than Latka Gravas. Andris Biedriņš is the youngest millionaire in Latvia, making $1.5 million this season with the Warriors (he’ll make $3,609,636 by the end of his four-year deal). But as they say, money can’t buy you free throw accuracy. Biedriņš has a .366 career free throw percentage, just more than half of his .620 career field goal percentage. Hey Andris, may we suggest the underhand method?
Continue Reading September 20th, 2006
Need to be reminded of just how old you really are? Old Falcons kicker Morten Andersen, considered one of the best kickers of all time, last made a Pro Bowl in 1996. The guy was an All-American kicker for Michigan State in 1981.
And now he’s an Atlanta Falcon again. Disappointed in the kicking of Michael Koenen — who was punting as well — coach Jim Mora Jr. has signed the 46-year-old, and he’ll be the guy for their game Monday night against New Orleans.
Andersen is 76 points away from the all-time NFL scoring record — he trails the oft-mistaken-for-Morten Gary Anderson — and has been playing in NFL Europe, waiting to get back in the NFL. You can make fun of that if you’d like, but it’s a helluva lot better than “Dancing With The Stars.”
Now Kicking For Your Atlanta Falcons … Moses [God Send Jen]
(By the way, that gorgeous, GORGEOUS oil painting is from Armando Delgado, the “painter of legends.” So you know.)
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