The Big Hurt Joins Baseball’s “500 Club”

Congratulations to Frank “the Big Hurt” Thomas, who smashed his 500th career home run today against the Minnesota Twins, becoming only the 21st player in MLB history to reach that milestone, the Chicago Tribune reports. While the Toronto slugger rounded the bases, the Metrodome crowd gave Big Frank a standing ovation.

Thomas, who spent 16 seasons with the Chicago White Sox before playing for the Oakland A’s last season and the Toronto Blue Jays this year, has been an outspoken opponent against doping in baseball. You can be sure that this milestone wasn’t tainted with performance-enhancing drugs.

Who’s Your Favorite Sports Star?

If you’re like most sports fans, Tiger Woods and Serena Williams top your list of favorite sports stars, according to Harris Interactive’s annual survey.

Tiger Woods claimed the top spot for the second consecutive year. Yankees short stop Derek Jeter, Michael Jordan, Packer quarterback Brett Favre and Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James round out the top 5 among the men’s athletes. Barry Bonds, Shaquille O’Neal, and Jeff Gordon dropped out of the top 10 list. Conspicuously absent is the world’s number one tennis player, Roger Federer.

On the women’s list, Williams was followed by Danica Patrick, Venus Williams, soccer mama Mia Hamm and Maria Sharapova to round out the top 5. New to the list was boxer Layla Ali, perhaps on name recognition alone based on her performance on “Dancing with the Stars.” Figure skater Sacha Cohen dropped out of the ladies’ top 10 list.

Perhaps it’s time for the pollsters to eliminate the names of athletes who are not currently active in their respective sport. Jordan was a great player but to still be named among the favorite men’s sports stars when he has not played b-ball in nearly a decade seems unfair to other athletes who are making a huge name for themselves, such as Federer and swimming sensation Michael Phelps. Ditto for the women’s list. We have probably seen the last of Anna Kournakova and Michelle Kwan, and Mia Hamm. It may be time to add a few new faces, such as skater Kimmie Meissner, number one women’s golfer Lorena Ochoa, or Candace Parker of the Tennessee Volunteers.

Buehrle, Sox Close to Extension

It’s amazing what a two-game winning streak will do. After being swept by the Cubs this past weekend and losing 22 of their last 27 games, the Sox were rumored to be oh-this-close to trading starter Mark Buehrle to the Boston Red Sox on Sunday. But Kenny Williams and Buehrle may have had a change of heart while in Tampa Bay this week while the team faces the Devil Rays. The two sides seem to be more willing to get together to agree on a contract extension which could be finalized as early as the end of this week, according to today’s Chicago Sun-Times. Of course, the Times is also the same newspaper that broke the news that Buehrle may be traded to Boston, so who knows what we should believe?

If the extension does happen, that opens the door for other possible trades, most likely starter Jose Contreras whom the New York Mets are interested in.

Keeping Buehrle would be a smart move. If you are going to rebuild a team, you do so around the key guys on the team. The Sox already have first baseman Paul Konerko locked in for several years and will rebuild their offense around him. Buehrle, who came up through the Sox system, is the leader on the Sox pitching staff. If the Sox deal him, I don’t see anyone else among the Sox pitchers who can step into that leadership role. It may be easier to deal Contreras or Javier Vazquez, even though the Sox may not get as much in return. Also, Buehrle is a popular player among his teammates and fans. If the Sox trade him, Kenny Williams would be making a huge PR mistake and could risk losing a lot of fans.

Bears Release Tank Johnson

Chicago Bears’ released defensive tackle Tank Johnson on Monday following his arrest in Arizona last week for speeding and suspicion of drunk driving. The arrest proved to be the final straw for the Bears who have given the beleaguered Johnson the benefit of the doubt since he started having off-field problems and run-ins with the law two years ago.

* In 2005, Johnson was arrested and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge for possession of a handgun.

* Last December when police raided his suburban Chicago home, they found six unregistered guns, which was a violation of his 2005 arrest.

* In March, he served 60 days in jail for violating his probation on the weapons charge.

* Earlier this month, the NFL suspended Johnson eight games for the upcoming season for violating its personal conduct policy.

When Johnson was released from jail in May, he claimed he had turned a corner in his personal life and was going to do everything he could to be a model NFL player and citizen. “We are upset and embarrassed by Tank’s actions last week,” Bears’ GM Jerry Angelo said in a statement released by the team. “He compromised the credibility of our organization. We made it clear to him that he had no room for error.”

Some athletes never learn.

The New Kid on the Golf Course

When the opening round of the women’s U.S. Open begins Thursday at Pine Needles Lodge and Country Club in Southern Pines, N.C., there will be a new face on the course, belonging to 12-year-old American Alexis Thompson, who will become the youngest qualifier to ever compete in the tournament. Thompson shot rounds of 72 and 71 in a sectional tournament in Heathrow, Fla., a few weeks ago in order to qualify for the event.

Most pre-teens might be intimidated by the prospect of playing on the same course as Annika Sorenstam and world number one Lorena Ochoa, but Thompson is taking her success in stride. “It’s great that I made it and I’m having an awesome experience already, but I’m just out here to play golf,” she told Reuters. “If I make the cut, it’s going to be really awesome and if I don’t it’s all right,” she adds.

It’s refreshing to hear some humility and modesty in a young player. Wish some of it would rub off on Michelle Wie.

Sammy Slams Number 600

The sports world is filled with ironies. Wednesday night saw one more as Sammy Sosa hit his 600th career home run against his former team, the Chicago Cubs, in Texas Rangers' 7-3 victory. He is only the fifth player in MLB history to reach that milestone and the first Latino player to do so.

We'll probably never know for sure how many (if any) of Sammy Sosa's homers were a result of taking performance-enhancing drugs. But you can't ignore the fact that he is one of the sport's most charismatic players. Give him credit for reinventing his career this season with Texas after a year away from the game.

PGA Tour May Adopt Drug Policy

Of all the sports that could possibly need a drug policy, golf would be at the bottom of the list. But Tim Finchem, PGA Tour Commissioner said that the tour may institute a drug policy, including testing, by the end of this year, according to the New York Times. The Tour is in the process of creating a list of banned subsances that will be covered under the policy and it will implement a program to discuss with players testing procedures, penalties and health risks. Several players, including Tiger Woods, approve the idea of a drug policy for the PGA Tour. Last November, the LPGA announced it would begin testing for drugs in 2008.

Yeah, I can see doping becoming a big problem in golf. What can the PGA Tour possibly test for? Vitamins? Alcohol? Viagra?

Cubs’ Barrett Traded to San Diego

Michael Barrett isn’t having a very good summer. The Cubs’ catcher got into a fight with teammate Carlos Zambrano a few weeks ago in the dugout at Wrigley Field, resulting in a black eye, a fat lip (with stitches) and a fine from Cubs’ management. Several days later he had a heated conversation with another pitcher, Rich Hill. His playing time has been reduced in recent weeks, surely a sign that Barrett is either a) hurting or b) not playing well or c) about to be traded. The correct answer is c. Today, Barrett was traded to the San Diego Padres for catcher Rob Bowen and a minor league player. When things start to go wrong for a player, sometimes the best thing to do is to give him a change of scenery.

With everything that has happened in recent weeks with Barrett, it is obvious that the Cubs management lost faith in their starting catcher. And perhaps the pitchers lost faith in him too. Once a catcher loses the trust of his teammates, the only other place for him to go is out.

Actually, Barrett came out of this pretty well. He’s going to a first-place team with one of the best pitching staffs in the National League. The chances of Barrett heading to the postseason are better with the Padres than they are with the Cubs.

I’m sure Sox fans will be disappointed too. It means there won’t be a rematch of the Barrett-A.J. Pierzinski slugfest when the Cubs face the White Sox this weekend.

Broadcast Boot Camp

Have you ever watched a football telecast with a former player doing commentary or analysis for the first time? They twitch nervously on screen while words come stammering out of their mouths like volcanic lava. Most former players making the transition to the broadcast booth have little or no broadcast training. For some former players, it can be more intimidating to face a little red light on top of a TV camera than it is facing a 300-lb. linebacker on the football field.

The NFL has introduced a new program that might change that, reports the New York Times. Known as broadcast boot camp, the program is an intensive three-day off-season seminar in which current and former players go through a series of training sessions led by top executives, producers and on-air personalities on how to analyze films and work more comfortably in front of the TV camera. The program is one of several that the league and the players’ union have introduced to help players transition into life after football.

Former Eagles’ QB Ron Jaworski, now with ESPN, said in the Times article, that he wished there was a broadcast boot camp when he retired from football. “The things these guys are going to learn in three days, I learned in three years,” he said.

It’s a great idea and long overdue, not just for the NFL but also for other major sports. Most athletes love the idea of doing broadcast work but don’t have the proper training to succeed. Some do it anyway without any training, and the result is awful. If more sports leagues provided this kind of training, more athletes would be better prepared to provide lively, insightful and entertaining analysis of sports events that would be worth watching.

Captain Konerko Says “Don’t Give Up on Us Yet”

White Sox fans, myself included, are beginning to lose hope, if not patience, as the team continues its downward slide. In a private meeting with GM Kenny Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen on Monday, first baseman and team captain Paul Konerko asked for more time for the team to come out of its slump before making any trades. Konerko said he felt that once Scott Podsednik and Darrin Erstad returned to the team from the DL, hopefully sometime within the next two weeks, the team could pull together for a strong stretch run. I know a lot of fans won’t be too thrilled with the decision from the Sox camp, but then again, there might be some wisdom in what they’re doing.

As recent MLB history shows, a resurgence isn’t out of the question. Last year, the Minnesota Twins were 12 games out of first place in late June, and won the AL Central by one game over the Tigers on the last day of the regular season. In 2005, the Cleveland Indians closed to within 1 ½ games behind the White Sox after falling behind by 15 games in late July. Granted, there are a lot of ifs, ands or buts involved. The Sox need to begin playing better – soon, and the other teams in the AL Central would have to play mediocre baseball a good part of the way. But if the Sox can hold the fort for a week or so, I believe it’s possible that fans’ – and Kenny Williams’— patience will eventually pay off in a big way.

Beard Bares It All for Playboy

I’m baffled by the reaction that Olympic swimmer Amanda Beard has received to her decision to bare it all for the July issue of Playboy magazine. Among them are Sun-Times columnist Carol Slezak who called Beard’s posing “selfish” and former swimming champion John Nabor who said on ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” that it would hurt Beard’s career. Other critics suggest that her appearance in the buff discredits women athletes and hurts her image as a role model to young female swimmers.

Beard defended her position on ESPN and in Playboy saying this was “a business decision” and a “lifetime opportunity.” Beard has appeared in three Olympics and won seven medals, two of them gold. She has already accomplished more in her swimming career than most people will do in their entire lives. If she makes the U.S. Olympic team for the 2008 Beijing Games, Beard will be 26 and likely will make her final appearance on the Olympic scene. She is, as she says, taking advantage of a business opportunity and preparing herself for a career after swimming.

Why do people care so much if women, especially female athletes, pose nude for Playboy? If Beard, or any other female athlete, has the body and the guts to pose in the nude, more power to them. Why should the rest of us criticize their choice?

A Playboy cover won’t take away any of Beard’s Olympic medals nor will it hurt her career, as some critics believe. I’m willing to bet that 10 or 15 years from now, most people won’t even remember the Playboy feature.

Bulls’ Trade for Kobe Just a Pipe Dream

Ever since Kobe Bryant wrote on his Web site (kb24.com) several weeks ago that he wanted to be traded from the Lakers, analysts have been speculating about whether a trade would actually take place. Bryant named the Chicago Bulls as one of three NBA teams that he would like to play for, but I think a trade by the Bulls for Bryant is highly unlikely.

Since taking over as Bulls’ GM several years ago, John Paxson has rebuilt this team on good sportsmanship and unselfish play. He and coach Scott Skiles have weeded out deadbeat players and brought in players who play hard and with heart. Good character is just as important as talent. There are no superstars on the Bulls; Ben Wallace is about as close to one as you’ll find. The trio of Luol Deng, Ben Gordon and Kirk Hinrich are emerging superstars in their own right. The Bulls already have good team chemistry, and they have earned a reputation in the NBA as being an unselfish team. Bryant, on the other hand, isn’t exactly known for his generosity on the court. Paxson and Skiles are looking to improve for the immediate future, and Bryant would certainly provide some of the inside scoring that the Bulls desperately need. But Bryant’s character may not fit in with the Bulls’ team philosophy, which is why this trade is just a pipe dream.

The Sad Misadventures of the 2007 White Sox

An article earlier this week on Fox Sports Web site suggested that Ozzie Guillen's job may be in jeopardy because of the White Sox's dismal performance so far this season. In case you've been vacationing on planet Mars in recent weeks, all the Sox relievers, with the exception of Bobbie Jenks, tanked at the same time in mid May and saw their collective ERA balloon to nearly 9.00. The Sox offense has had its share of problems too. They are last in the American League in runs scored and batting average, which has baffled many baseball analysts. No one expected a team with Paul Konerko, Jim Thome, Jermaine Dye and Joe Crede to have such cold bats. Injuries to Darrin Ersted, Scott Podsednik, Pablo Azuna and Joe Crede have hurt the team, especially at the top of the lineup. It's difficult to generate any kind of momentum when nearly half of your roster is filled with Triple A players. I'm not quite sure what will turn things around for the White Sox this season. They're lucky to be only 10 games out at this point.


After witnessing the lifeless White Sox lose 16 of their last 19 games I am beginning to wonder if and when the Sox will hold their White Flag sale. While Guillen says no at this point, things can change in a big hurry, especially if they don't start winning any time soon. Expect to see Mark Buerhle and Jermaine Dye gone by the All-Star Break. (I can feel my heart breaking already.)

What Dynasty?

Since the San Antonio Spurs swept the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals to clinch their fourth title in nine years, basketball experts and analysts have been debating whether the Spurs are a dynasty.

Close, but not quite.

The truth is the dynasty discussion is more media hype than reality. The NBA Finals ended sooner rather than later, so the media need to stretch it out as long as possible. So the debate continues.

Sure, winning four titles in nine years is impressive, but it only shows that the Spurs are a very good team. None of their titles came in consecutive seasons, and they haven't dominated their division or conference the way previous dynasties, such as the the Celtics, Lakers and Bulls, did. The Spurs were one of several strong teams to come out of the Western Conference. The Utah Jazz and Dallas Maverickswere also quite capable of winning the national title. It also helps to come from a major market with higher profile players. When the Spurs can dominate the league and win consecutive titles, then maybe I'll put them in the same league as the Celtics and Lakers. But they have a ways to go to get there.

Time for Wie to Grow Up

Teenage golfer Michelle Wie is beginning to show her age. Or should I say, lack of maturity.

Last week, the 17-year-old Wie pulled out of a tournament in North Carolina, complaining of a wrist injury. Two days later, fellow golfers noticed she was practicing at Bulle Rock Golf Course in Maryland, where the LPGA Championship began on Thursday. That prompted former number one and tournament host Annika Sorenstam to criticize the teenager for showing “a lack of respect and class” in dealing with her injury. What makes matters more intriguing is that Wie pulled out when she was 14 over par, two bogeys shy of an 88. As a non-member of the LPGA, if she had reached that score, Wie would have been barred from competing on the tour for the remainder of the year. Wie denied the scoring issue, sticking to her injured wrist story. “I think it was very insulting because I tried my best,” she told reporters.

Wie has made a name for herself more by trying to compete on the men’s tour rather than finetuning her golf skills and competing with the ladies. To date, she has not won a single tournament, although she tied for fifth at last year’s LPGA Championship. However, she has earned more than $20 million in 2006 just in endorsements and appearances. Sounds like another Anna Kournakova minus the modeling contracts.

If Wie wants to play with the Big Boys and Girls, it’s time she started to act like a Big Girl herself.

NHL Champs Are a Bunch of Quacks

The Anaheim Ducks clinched the NHL Stanley Cup last night, defeating the Ottawa Senators 6-2 and winning the series 4-1. I don't know about you, but I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that the new NHL champions are a bunch of ducks.



Quackers, anyone?

Are Athletes Fair Game for the Media?

It used to be that sports writers could keep an athlete’s personal affairs out of the public domain, but that may be changing, writes Teddy Greenstein, who covers the sports media for the Chicago Tribune. With the New York Daily News story last week that Yankee superstar Alex Rodriguez was seen with a blonde woman who was not his wife, and another story that his wife had left their Manhattan apartment with two suitcases, the New York media may have crossed over into territory normally reserved for the Hollywood paparazzi. All this media attention begs the question: Have athletes become fair game for the media where once before they were spared reporters’ scrutiny of their private lives?


During the Sunday Night Baseball telecast on ESPN this past weekend, analyst Joe Morgan said that most ball players aren’t looking for the spotlight outside of baseball the way that Hollywood celebs seek publicity. To some celebs, even negative publicity can be positive. But for ball players, says Morgan, they’re not used to it, nor do they actively seek it out. In A-Rod’s case, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong woman in the wrong city – and the NY media took advantage and splashed the story across their front pages.

I’m inclined to believe that the A-Rod headline is a rare situation, a result of a combination of circumstances that probably would produce different results if it occurred anywhere else. But because of who A-Rod is, the fact he plays for the Yankees, lives in New York City, and isn’t exactly a fan or media favorite there, the story became bigger than life. Put this same story in another market, with the exception of maybe LA., with an athlete who isn’t as talented, wealthy, or well-known, and chances are, it doesn’t even get mentioned in the local gossip column.

A-Rod in Chicago

Piniella Takes the Heat for Players

MLB may have suspended Cubs' skipper Lou Piniella for an undisclosed amount of time after his tirade during Saturday's game against the Atlanta Braves, but in hindsight, Lou's on-field outburst may have been a semi-intentional ploy to take the pressure off his players. The ploy may have succeeded on two fronts. First, it helped the team refocus their efforts on winning on the field, which the Cubs did in fine fashion today by a score of 10-1.


Second, Piniella took the focus away from Carlos Zambrano and Michael Barrett, who fought in the dugout and in the clubhouse during Friday's game. Funny thing happened since his tirade. The media stopped talking about the fight that broke out in front of 40,000+ fans Friday because Lou Piniella gave them something else to talk about. As any good manager will do, he took the pressure off his players and put it on himself. If Sweet Lou doesn't do something, you can bet the media would still be writing and talking ad nauseum about Friday's fight.