‘Straight cash, homey.’
August 6, 2011 § Leave a Comment
August 2011 opened with a bang, as the NFL received a scoop unlike many in recent history: according to his agent Joel Segal, Randy Moss was retiring from professional football at age 34 and after 13 seasons. 
The reaction was two-fold. On the one hand, many people (exhibit a) did not believe him and tried to call Moss’s bluff for what it was: a simple plea for a team or two to give in to his financial demands for a new contract. Never mind that Moss is not Brett Favre, the professional athlete of today whose word you can definitely doubt when he says he’s retired; Moss is not Tiki Barber neither, broke beyond repair and almost forced to try a comeback at 36 years old and after 5 years away from football. Moss’s decision doesn’t make sense when you consider that he had 83 catches for 1,264 yards and 13 touchdowns in the 2009 season. That is why this decision is hard to accept: Moss can still play football, despite what last year says, and it doesn’t make sense for him to retire. « Read the rest of this entry »
It’s too late to apologize, Manny
April 18, 2011 § Leave a Comment
To his credit, Manny Ramirez stayed true to himself and to what he believed in all the way to his retirement from major league baseball.
On April 8, 2011, the MLB bode farewell to one of its most polarizing figures in recent history, Ramirez deciding to end his stellar 19-year career rather than serve a 100-game suspension, ESPN.com reports.
Manny Ramirez in left field during a game in 2007 (Photo courtesy of Ewen Roberts)
For baseball historians, Ramirez’s actions – caught using banned substances – might be a big deal, but not for me. I was raised in the 1990s and probably attended 15 to 20 games of Nos Z’Amours, les Expos de Montréal, before they left for Washington; and I have clear memories of about 5.
(Unfortunately for my sake, one was in sixth grade and the narrative includes such things as “overconfident 12 year olds,” “girls from the suburbs” and the “DGenerationX salute.” Details are unimportant.) Growing up, baseball was not my first love but I watched enough to know that something shady was unfolding. At first however, I mostly just loved the baseball hats. My first, of course, was from the hometown Expos. Then came a Boston Red Sox hat and after, one of the Okland A’s surprisingly — seriously, who wants to grow up to be an A’s fan except for Billy Beane, right? « Read the rest of this entry »
NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor sentenced to probation
March 28, 2011 § 1 Comment
On March 22, ex-NFL player Lawrence Taylor was given six years’ probation according to an ESPNNewYork.com report. Taylor, 52, chose to plead guilty in January to charges of sexual misconduct and patronizing a prostitute, both of which stemmed from a May 2010 incident in Ramapo, NY, for which the ex-New York Giants linebacker had been arrested.
Lawrence Taylor in 2007 (Photo courtesy of Barbara, shgmom56)
Had he decided to fight the charges and go on trial, Taylor would have risked a four-year prison sentence as one of the original charges in the case was statutory rape (on an underage girl as the prostitute in question was 16 at the time of the incident). Instead, he receives the probation and will be registered as a low-risk sex offender.
Some might think that Taylor is getting easy, or isn’t, but that’s not what this story is about. Besides, American law is far beyond the pay grade of this blogger. Regardless of public opinion, justice has been served in the eyes of Justice William Kelly who was presiding over the case.
When there’s more to charity than charity
March 25, 2011 § Leave a Comment
This story starts with Aaron Rodgers, quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, but it’s not the story you think.
Aaron Rodgers, QB extraordinaire (Photo courtesy of avinashkunnath)
It’s not the story of Rodgers winning the MVP Award of Super Bowl XLV on February 6, 2011. This story starts a little earlier, so in this sense it might be old news already but please stay with me.
It starts at an airport and with a video.
In the video, Jan Cavanaugh, breast cancer patient and Packers superfan, is waiting for the Packers football team at an airport. “I’m still hoping to get Aaron to sign this hat I’m wearing,” says Cavanaugh. « Read the rest of this entry »
The case against the WTA
March 7, 2011 § 5 Comments
On Feb. 28, ESPN.com reported that Serena Williams underwent treatment for pulmonary embolism.
The former No.1 player in the world, now 29 years old, hasn’t played an official WTA match since winning Wimbledon last July, the 13th Grand Slam title of her career.
Serena Williams in 2009 (Photo courtesy of burntfilm, Rob Young)
Needless to say, may Serena Williams have a speedy recovery. For one thing, I don’t wish harm on anybody. Plus, women’s tennis is better with her. « Read the rest of this entry »
