Story Archive for 07/25/2010
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Baseball HOF Induction; Contador Wins Tour de France
Published on July 25, 2010 at 11:25PM
With the NFL’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony coming up August 6, its more lightly-regarded counterpart, the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place Sunday @ Cooperstown, N.Y. Leading the way was the beloved centerfielder Andre Dawson, along with umpire Doug Harvey, manager Whitey Herzog and broadcaster Jon Miller. Dawson, who played for four teams over the course of 20 seasons, posted 438 home runs, 1,591 RBI and 2,774 hits and due to his swiftness (he stole 314 bases as well), fans glowingly referred to him as “the Hawk.” Meanwhile, Harvey was lionized for his efforts as an umpire who never attended umpiring school (but still proved successful) and Herzog, who is best known for his 1982 World Series title with the St. Louis Cardinals, received almost 88 percent of the vote to join his illustrious colleagues. Finally, Miller, who currently serves as the voice of the San Francisco Giants on KNBR-AM 680 in San Francisco as well as the play-by-play broadcaster for ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball, received the Ford Frick award for “major contributions” to baseball. Dawson, who presumably is clean from steroids, thanked the voters for allowing him to be immortalized, but lamented that the game has changed for the worse with the implementation of performance-enhancing substances. I commend Dawson for his candor, I just hope that nothing leaks out that he was ever guilty of taking such drugs.
At the Tour de France, Spain’s Alberto Contador won his second consecutive yellow jersey, capping of what has already been a magnificent sports year for Spain. In the NBA, Contador’s countryman, Pau Gasol, helped the Los Angeles Lakers win their second consecutive NBA championship while tennis star Rafael Nadal has ensued in his mastery on the court, as he won Wimbledon earlier this month. Furthermore, two weeks ago, the Spanish won the World Cup for the first time in history while with the World Basketball Championships coming up from Turkey next month, Spain could ensue in its athletic magnificence on the year. Gasol headlines a solid team which also features the likes of Rudy Fernandez, Ricky Rubio and Jose Calderon so if I were a betting man, perhaps I’d place some bones on the Spaniards. Since I’m not, however, I can hopefully perpetrate my journalistic excellence and continue to give you insightful comments. Thanks for reading!
Stamps, Bombers Impress; Chris Paul on the Move?
Published on July 25, 2010 at 01:12AM
While the 24th of July holiday was great, I, of course, took time to enjoy some great football action from the Great White North. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Calgary Stampeders, respectively, were impressive as the Bombers pasted Edmonton, 47-21 and Calgary overpowered Saskatchewan, 40-20. Winnipeg received a solid performance from reserve signal-caller, Steven Jyles (267 yards, TD, 2 INT’s) who was filling in for the injured Buck Pierce. With this solid win, Winnipeg showed that they’re ready to keep pace with surging Montreal and Toronto in the East. As for the Stampeders, they broke out of a 7-7 stalemate at halftime to score 33 second half points en route to their convincing victory. Henry Burris (279 passing yards, 3 TD’s) and Romby Bryant (7 rec, 116 yards, 2 TD’s) comprised a dynamic duo while the Stamps had the breakout performance they were searching for all season. Now, in my mind, there is no doubt that Calgary is a serious Grey Cup threat.
Meanwhile, the NFL saw one major transaction, with the New York Giants signing ex-Tennessee Titans linebacker, Keith Bulluck. The Giants just go about their business, usually bereft of fanfare, and manage to bring in quality talent. Of course, with head coach Tom Coughlin’s philosophy, it’s never too early to improve yourself, so it’s nice that the Giants adhere to their head coach’s philosophy. Don’t be shocked if you see the Giants go on a deep playoff run this season.
Finally, Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets is reportedly tired of being a Hornet. The word is Paul would like to be a member of the Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks, Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers or New York Knicks. Thus, expect to see some movement on his part within the next few weeks. Thanks again for reading!