Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Lions fire Marinelli after record-breaking season
ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP)—Rod Marinelli might be a good head coach. He just isn’t going to find out for sure in Detroit.
Marinelli inherited a Matt Millen-created mess and compounded his problems by reuniting with some former Tampa Bay Buccaneers whose best years were in the past. The result was the NFL’s first 0-16 team and a three-year record of 10-38 for Marinelli, who was fired Monday by the Lions.
Instead of making excuses or explaining why it didn’t work out, Marinelli took the high road.
“If I’d have done better and won more games, then we’d have been fine,” he said.
Marinelli eventually raved about how hard his players practiced for him, insisting he could envision the results showing up on Sundays, but it just didn’t happen.
Especially, this year. “You can’t go 0-16 and expect to keep your job,” Marinelli said. The leaders of Detroit’s front office, though, did just that.
Lions owner William Clay Ford elevated Tom Lewand to team president and Martin Mayhew to general manager, announcing the moves in the same news release that included the decision to fire Marinelli.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Friday, December 26, 2008
Great Sports Movies
For Love of the Game
Feature Film|2:17:52|
An aging pitcher learns that he will soon lose his girlfriend and his spot with the Detroit Tigers
Hoop Dreams
Feature Film|2:51:27|
A film following the lives of two African American boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional.
Wimbledon
Feature Film|1:37:53|
Just when it seems Peter Colt's career as a pro tennis player is over, a twist of fate sends him to Wimbledon with a chance to fulfill his lifelong dream.
Phelps ready to jump back into pool
LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Michael Phelps, who took several months off after the Beijing Olympics, is ready to resume training in early February to get ready for the US national championships in July.
The eight-time Beijing gold medallist Phelps will return to the pool on February 1 and then compete in the US nationals, scheduled for July 7-11 in Indianapolis, and the world championships in Rome later that month, USA Today newspaper reported on Wednesday.
NFL star Tom Brady and supermodel Gisele Bundchen engaged
Break out the bubbly! Football star Tom Brady and supermodel Gisele Bundchen are getting married.
Brady, quarterback for the New England Patriots, popped the question on a private jet on Christmas Eve, according to TMZ.com.
And the Victoria’s Secret runway favorite said yes.
Brady, 31, proposed to Brazilian-born Bundchen, 28, as their jet took off from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey – with her parents onboard, TMZ reports.
They celebrated with white roses and champagne after she accepted.
Brady and Bundchen have both made headlines with previous high-profile break-ups.
Bundchen dated actor Leonardo DiCaprio on-and-off for years before the couple split for good in 2005.
Brady dropped then-pregnant girlfriend actress Bridget Moynihan two years ago and paired off with Bundchen soon after.
Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods delivered one of the most dazzling efforts of his career in the U.S. Open, winning an epic battle with Rocco Mediate. It wasn't fully disclosed until after the event, but Woods had been playing with a torn knee ligament for 10 months, then suffered a stress fracture in his left leg.
By Robert Galbraith, Reuters
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Lance Armstrong, Girlfriend Having Baby
CNN
posted: 1 HOUR 49 MINUTES AGO
(Dec. 23) -- Cycling legend Lance Armstrong -- a survivor of testicular cancer -- and girlfriend Anna Hansen are expecting a baby, CNN learned Tuesday through his charitable organization. Cyclist Lance Armstrong has announced he will come out of retirement and race once again in the Tour de France.
The baby is due in June.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Jets' Ellis fined $10,000 for tossing snow at fans
By DENNIS WASZAK Jr.
AP Sports Writer
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- New York Jets defensive end Shaun Ellis has been fined $10,000 by the NFL for throwing snow at fans following the team's loss at Seattle on Sunday.
Several fans threw snowballs at New York players and staff as they walked off the field after the Seahawks' 13-3 victory. Ellis then walked over to a pile of snow, picked up a large chunk and tossed it into the stands at Qwest Field, appearing to hit at least a few fans. No one was believed to have been injured.
Ellis said Tuesday: "It was all in fun."
It's the latest troublesome incident involving Ellis, who was arrested for speeding and marijuana possession last month and could face a suspension next season under the league's substance-abuse
Automakers' woes expected to impact NASCAR
DETROIT (UPI) -- The financial woes of Detroit automakers during the recession could result in a significant blow to the NASCAR racing circuit, experts say.
Auto industry analyst Peter De Lorenzo said with automakers seeking federal aid, the continuation of company contracts with NASCAR racing teams may become a near impossibility, USA Today reported Monday.
"With Washington oversight, it'll be difficult going forward to write hefty checks to NASCAR. This could be the end of team contracts as we know them," he said. "If the manufacturers go away completely, NASCAR's going to be truly hurting."
NASCAR Chairman Brian France supported a federal bailout of the auto industry in a letter to Congress this month, but he assured NASCAR fans the sport would survive.
"But we won't live or die in a pullout or pullback," France said.
Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick agreed, telling USA Today that less involvement by automakers such as Ford and Chevrolet would not be an insurmountable issue.
"Financially, it's not the lifeblood anymore. It's going to hurt if they're not there, but we'll adjust," he said.
Wang and Yankees avoid arbitration
NEW YORK (UPI) -- The New York Yankees and pitcher Chien-Ming Wang avoided arbitration Monday by agreeing to a one-year, $5 million contract.
Wang, born in Taiwan, had back-to-back 19-win seasons before 2008 when he was 8-2 with a 4.07 earned-run average in 15 starts. He was placed on the disabled list in June with a ligament sprain and partial tendon tear in his right foot and did not return to action rest of the season.
Wang, 28, last season's Opening Day starter, has a 54-20 record with a 3.79 ERA in four seasons with the Yankees. His 46 wins since 2006 are tied for the third-most in the American League during that stretch.
McNamee Preserves Right to Sue Clemens
Brian McNamee files paperwork preserving right to sue Roger Clemens in New York
NEW YORK December 23, 2008 (AP)
The Associated Press
In this Feb. 13, 2008 file photo, Former New York Yankees baseball pitcher Roger Clemens, right,... Expand
In this Feb. 13, 2008 file photo, Former New York Yankees baseball pitcher Roger Clemens, right, lawyer Charles Scheeler center, and his former personal trainer Brian McNamee, are sworn-in before testify on Capitol Hill in Washington, before the House Oversight, and Government Reform committee hearing on drug use in baseball. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais/FILE) Collapse
(AP)
Roger Clemens' former personal trainer filed paperwork preserving the right to sue the seven-time Cy Young Award winner in New York.
Brian McNamee, who told federal investigators that Clemens used performance-enhancing drugs, contends the pitcher defamed him after McNamee spoke to investigators for former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell. The summons, filed in Queens Supreme Court last week, preserves McNamee's right to sue, Richard Emery, a lawyer for McNamee, said Tuesday.
Clemens filed his own defamation suit against McNamee in January after the trainer said in the Mitchell Report that he regularly injected Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone. Clemens later told a congressional committee under oath he had never taken steroids.
In the federal case in Texas, McNamee's attorneys say the trainer was forced to talk to investigators under threat of prosecution, rendering him immune from any defamation lawsuit. A federal prosecutor backed McNamee's claim, but a judge has yet to rule on his request to toss the case.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Angels withdraw offer to slugger Mark Teixeira
"And starting at first base for your 2009 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim . . . Kendry Morales?
Get used to it, Angels fans. Mark Teixeira is not coming back.
The Angels withdrew their eight-year offer -- believed to be for $160 million -- to Teixeira on Sunday afternoon, and team spokesman Tim Mead said the Angels will no longer pursue the free-agent first baseman.
When pressed on whether this was a negotiating ploy, whether the Angels were playing hardball with agent Scott Boras, Mead, the team's vice president of communications, said, "We're out."
General Manager Tony Reagins did not return calls Sunday evening. In an e-mail to selected media outlets, Boras wrote: "Mark Teixeira enjoyed his time with the Angels and was an integral part of their success last season. His interest in returning to the club has been sincere, real and continues to be one of his earnest priorities throughout this off-season."
The Angels are the second team in three days to pull out of negotiations with Teixeira, following Boston owner John Henry's declaration late Thursday that "we are not going to be a factor."
The Red Sox, who met with Boras and the slugger at Teixeira's Dallas-area home Thursday night, offered Teixeira an eight-year deal for about $170 million.
But unlike the Angels, whose intentions were made quite clear by Mead, the Red Sox are still considered the front-runners to land Teixeira, who many believe wants to play for a contending team on the East Coast.
The Washington Nationals, who reportedly offered eight years and $160 million, and the Baltimore Orioles, who reportedly offered seven years and about $150 million, remain involved in the bidding.
There have been conflicting reports about the New York Yankees' level of interest in Teixeira, whom the Angels acquired from the Atlanta Braves on July 29 and was the team's top priority this winter.
Boras is reportedly seeking an eight-year deal for at least $180 million, and a source familiar with the Angels' thinking maintained all last week that owner Arte Moreno had no plans to sweeten his offer, which was extended at the winter meetings in Las Vegas.
"Arte is sticking to his guns on this one," the source said.
The Angels will receive a first-round draft pick and a compensation pick between the first and second rounds in June as compensation for losing Teixeira, but he will be virtually impossible to replace next season.
When the Angels traded promising young first baseman Casey Kotchman and double-A pitcher Stephen Marek to the Braves for Teixeira, they thought they had finally ended their three-year search for that elusive big bat to complement slugger Vladimir Guerrero.
Though they led the American League West by 11 games at the time of the trade, the Angels also thought Teixeira was the missing piece that would propel them to their first World Series title since 2002.
Dec. 21, 2008 NFL Scores
| Final |
| Cincinnati (3-11-1, 1-7 away) |
| Cleveland (4-11, 1-7 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| T |
| 14 |
| 0 |
| Final |
| Pittsburgh (11-4, 6-2 away) |
| Tennessee (13-2, 7-1 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | |
| 0 | 10 | 7 | 14 |
| T |
| 14 |
| 31 |
| Final |
| San Francisco (6-9, 3-5 away) |
| St. Louis (2-13, 1-7 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | |
| 0 | 13 | 0 | 3 |
| T |
| 17 |
| 16 |
| Final |
| Carolina (11-4, 3-4 away) |
| New York Giants (12-3, 7-1 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT |
| 7 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 3 | 10 | 7 | 8 | 6 |
| T |
| 28 |
| 34 |
| Final |
| New Orleans (8-7, 2-6 away) |
| Detroit (0-15, 0-8 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 14 | 14 | 14 | 0 | |
| 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| T |
| 42 |
| 7 |
| Final |
| Miami (10-5, 5-2 away) |
| Kansas City (2-13, 1-7 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 10 | 14 | 7 | 7 | |
| 7 | 21 | 3 | 0 |
| T |
| 38 |
| 31 |
| Final |
| Arizona (8-7, 3-5 away) |
| New England (10-5, 5-3 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | |
| 14 | 17 | 13 | 3 |
| T |
| 7 |
| 47 |
| Final |
| New York Jets (9-6, 4-4 away) |
| Seattle (4-11, 2-6 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 7 | 3 | 3 |
| T |
| 3 |
| 13 |
| Final |
| Philadelphia (8-6-1, 3-4-1 away) |
| Washington (8-7, 4-4 home) |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| T |
| 3 |
| 10 |
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