abe Page 32 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Twin Sisters Are Iditarod Racers
We don't get much Iditarod coverage around these parts, so thank you to tipster Brandon for sending this along. Anna and Kristy Berington are Wisconsin natives living in Alaska. Above all else, they are trailblazing dog racers. As you read this they are probably mushing their way through the Alaska...

Some Dude From Brooklyn Who Thinks He's A Jedi Master Is Whining About His Light Saber Getting Stolen
"The Bedford-Stuyvesant engineer was at a Myrtle Avenue bar last fall when a thief snatched what Obi-Wan Kenobi once described as 'an elegant weapon for a more civilized age' - a $400 custom sword Michael used to teach young Jedi honor and self-esteem. 'Who steals somebody's light saber? It's like ...

ESPN Reports That Mike Vrabel Is Now Black And Filipino-American
So says ESPN's player page about the retired Steelers, Patriots, and Chiefs linebacker, who looks an awful lot like Browns wide receiver Jordan Norwood, who is black and Filipino-American. At least Vrabel's lost some weight. [ESPN Player Stats, h/t Emil and Aaron]...

Roy Hibbert Is Tired Of People Asking If He's Hasheem Thabeet
Every morning, the fine folks at Sports Radio Interviews sift through the a.m. drive-time chatter to bring you the best interviews with coaches, players, and personalities across the sports landscape. Today: Hibbert also talks his Parks and Recreation cameo....

The Rangers Tossed Yu Darvish The Most Money, Dmitri Young Is Still Skinny, And More Hot Stove News
Your roundup of all the hottest hot-stove items of the day (and whatever shit Ken Rosenthal is throwing against the wall). This is ... HOT FUCKING STOVE!!...

New Reality Star Anna Benson Says The Mets Were "Scared Of My Big Fun Bags"
Anna Benson, the buxom brunette who has long had the distinction of being more famous than her husband, a former journeyman Major League pitcher named Kris, is going to star in VH1's new reality series, "Baseball Wives," according to the New York Post....

Michael Jordan The Player Would've Hated Michael Jordan The Hardline Owner
Over at SB Nation, Tom Ziller has compiled some of Michael Jordan's contradictory views on the NBA lockout. In a meeting during the '98 lockout, for example, Jordan the player told Wizards owner Abe Pollin, "If you can't make it work economically, you should sell the team." Ziller points out that in...

This Is Why You Don't Ask A Professional Athlete To Be A School "Reading Champion"
I absolutely cannot think of a better inspiration for getting schoolchildren to read than by choosing a man who got very rich without ever having read a book in his life....

Sherri Shepherd And Elisabeth Hasselbeck Unite To Protest The NBA Lockout On <i>The View</i>
Sherri Shepherd and Elisabeth Hasselbeck have been staging an on-air protest against the NBA lockout for the past week or so. How did we miss this? Perhaps because we are more familiar with Saturday Night Live's version of The View than we are with the actual The View....

Raja Bell: David Stern "Rules With An Iron Fist"
Every morning, the fine folks at Sports Radio Interviews sift through the a.m. drive-time chatter to bring you the best interviews with coaches, players, and personalities across the sports landscape. Today: Raja Bell spits truth....

Statistics Are Ruining Baseball
Back when I was a kid, you didn't need to bring a calculator to the game. You went, you cheered, and if you were lucky, the third base coach would share a pack of Chesterfields with you. But now everyone has computers, and stat guys, and the game has become unrecognizable....

Deadspin Classic: The Forgotten Man Of <em>Moneyball</em>
Moneyball the movie is in theaters on Friday. Eric Walker doesn't appear in the film, and he's mentioned only briefly in Michael Lewis's book, but he was central to the statistical revolution that Moneyball chronicles—the "pebble that started the avalanche," in his words. Two years ago, he told us h...

Rick Pitino Is Introspective About The Big East Exodus, Invokes "Good Old Abe Pagoda"
Because Pitino is the Louisville coach, he's concerned with what Syracuse and Pitt leaving the conference will mean for those left behind. Because Pitino is Italian, he doesn't know how to describe his feelings with anything but a Godfather reference. (Warning: crappy music plays automatically at Pi...

Here's An Actual Sport That Requires Nothing More Than Holding A Beer
No, really. That's it. And it's called Masskrugstemmen. "The game is far more popular in Germany, where it is played in beer halls and outdoor festivals. Contestants line up, extend one arm parallel to the ground, grip a one-liter beer, and try not to spill. Drop any brew, and you're eliminated." [...

Mexico Rides Strong Pitching To The Top Of Our Unnecessarily Abstruse Little League World Series Power Rankings
Welcome to the second installment of DRURY, our exclusive Little League World Series power ranking and prediction engine. Yesterday's edition was postponed due to the earthquake and lack of interest. The ranking is a composite of the teams' box score statistics and schedule strength—see the original...

Sabermetrix Are For Kids: Introducing Our Little League World Series Power Ranking And Prediction Engine
We're a few days into the Little League World Series, which means it's time to unveil our system for evaluating the teams: DRURY, or Determination of Robustness of Undoubtedly Rambunctious Youths. It takes box score statistics from every game, converts them into a composite runs scored and allowed p...

If Albert DeSalvo Wasn't The Boston Strangler, Who Was? Bill James Investigates
During the years 1962-64, 13 women in the Boston area were molested and then strangled by an assailant who came to be known as the Boston Strangler. In 1965, Albert DeSalvo, a convicted sex offender and patient at a local mental institute, began telling people he committed the murders. With the help...

This Evening: Anyone Out There Have A Match?
Your p.m. roundup for Aug. 3, the day Dick Vitale kissed the pope's ring. H/T to Disco Choo for the photo of Bears rookie Gabe Carimi. Got any stories or photos for us? Tip your editors....

UAE Soccer Player May Be Punished For "Disrespectful"-But-Also-Awesome Backheel Penalty Kick
On Sunday, Theyab Awana, a 21-year-old winger with the United Arab Emirates national team, scored on a penalty kick in a friendly against Lebanon. Only he did it off of a 180 and using his heel. UAE was up 5-2 at the time, and they ultimately won 7-2, so the stakes weren't very high for either tea...

Derek Jeter, Josh Hamilton, The Dodgers And Cliff Lee All Had Shining Moments Yesterday
Your morning roundup for July 10, the day it pays to be wary of people with wide faces....