ap Page 1647 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Americans' Favorite Soccer Clubs, As Determined By <i>FIFA 12</i> Plays
ESPN FC had a neat piece this week on the ties between soccer video games and soccer fandom, and the idea that even in the days of satellite television, nothing's done more to grow the sport in the United States than gaming. Here's the money quote, from social scientist Rich Luker:...

Pennsylvania Governor's Handling Of The Jerry Sandusky Investigation Is Now An Election Talking Point
Soon after Jerry Sandusky's arrest last November, the focus turned toward the insular overlap of several powerful Pennsylvania institutions: Penn State, The Second Mile (Sandusky's charity), and governor Tom Corbett, who had launched the Sandusky investigation during his previous tenure as state att...

Cheerleaders, Endless Chants, And Fan-Created Performance Art: Why Baseball Games In The Far East Feel Like College Football Games
On my flight to Busan, South Korea I sat next to an older Korean woman sporting a Detroit Tiger hat. It seemed serendipitous that I'd be seated next to a fellow Tigers fan on a vacation planned entirely around seeing baseball games. The issue, which was a big issue, was expressing this....

Reminder: Pennsylvania's Child Protective Services Failed To Stop Jerry Sandusky, Too
Punishments and investigations have come down on Penn State for the university's handling of Jerry Sandusky, with two PSU administrators still awaiting trial. And Sandusky's charity, The Second Mile, is still being investigated by a number of state and federal law enforcement agencies....

Bobby Valentine Expects To Be Back Next Year. Ben Cherington Is Already Thinking About His Next Manager Search. The Red Sox Are Fantastic.
We thought we ought to check in with the Red Sox, just a year removed from being the Best Team Ever. (Seriously, will this cover ever get old?) Yesterday was the season's final game at Fenway, and to celebrate the Sox held a ceremony honoring their All-Fenway Team....

As Playoff Dreams Drift Away, Phillies Fans Will Do Anything To Mask The Stench
With the Nationals and Braves storming to guaranteed playoff spots, it stands to figure that the teams would leave some division foes in the wake of their success. Sure, the Marlins and Mets found themselves buried with regularity this year, but for Phillies fans accustomed to the team's success, b...

ESPN Wanted To Do A "Character Study" On Jonathan Vilma, Who Then Conducted His Own
A word to you sports television producers out there: Be careful who you contact for certain segments, as sensitive info has a way of making its way back to the source, and the results may not be pretty. In this case, it's Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma, who was none too happy to hear that Eric Bar...

Rejoice, NFL Fans: The Referees Are Coming Back This Weekend
After 48 regular season games that nearly brought the National Football League to its knees and turned the league's officiating into a recurring national joke, the NFL and the referees union have agreed to a new eight-year deal and the officials will be back on the job Thursday night in Baltimore. ...

Charles Barkley Lost Money On Packers-Seahawks, And He's Mad As Hell
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: Barkley learned a valuable lesson about replacement refs and bad breaks....

Which MLB Pundit Makes The Worst Predictions? Grading ESPN And <em>Sports Illustrated</em>
Republished with permission from PunditTracker.com, which just launched its fancy new site....

No, The City Of Detroit Will Not Lose $84 Million If The NHL Season Is Canceled
The lockout has officially arrived when newspapers start reporting half-baked economic impact projections that are so far removed from reality as to be laughable. You know the sort. "Team X brings in so much money, without them the city would go broke and revert to feudalism OMG." These studies are ...

Rays Fans Have Found A Unique, Horrifying Solution To The Attendance Problem
The Rays extended their winning streak to six in beating the Red Sox last night at Fenway, on a night that attempted to take Bostonians' minds off this year's misery and focus it instead on the glory of 2004. It brought out the rich and famous, as well as these Rays fans who brought along a few hea...

Eric Gagne Estimates 80 Percent Of His Dodger Teammates Were Taking PEDs
"I knew I had the mental attitude to be a closer, it was just a matter of doing it in the major leagues." That was Eric Gagne after he won the 2003 Cy Young Award, following a perfect season in which he converted all 55 save opportunities and struck out 100 more batters (137) than hits allowed (37)....

Someone Is Actually Sticking Up For The NFL In This Labor Deal Mess
It was bound to happen. Call it Murphy's Law of Contrarian Journalism. Two weeks back, it was ESPN's Darren Rovell looking to blame the NHL lockout on "die-hard fans," and now Ashley Fox, his colleague at the WWL, has stepped her toe into the shitstorm that erupted Monday night. Seems we've really a...

Ask George Atallah, Spokesman For The NFL Players Association, About Last Night's Shitshow In Seattle
As the NFLPA's assistant executive director for external affairs, George Atallah is the official spokesman for the NFL players. As you might expect, he's a busy man right now. "What a nutty day," he told us earlier, when we approached him to see if he'd be willing to do a live chat. ...

Science! Proves That Hawk Harrelson Is More Biased Than Every Other AL Broadcaster Combined
Today is probably a good day for the other sports to drop bad news. Maybe announce some NCAA sanctions, or failed steroid tests. Everything non-scabby is completely under the radar, so it would have been lucky timing for the White Sox broadcasting team to be selected as far and away the biggest home...


The Packers-Seahawks Refs: Who Are Those Guys?
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Here's The NFL's Official Statement On The Refereeing Clusterfuck
Hot off the presses!...

"If They Overturn This, The Officials Will Not Get Out Of Here Alive": Highlights From Last Night's Dueling Packers-Seahawks Radio Calls
Last night's debacle in Seattle is prompting national outrage today, with (one assumes) the exception of the state of Washington. To Seahawks fans, the right and proper call was made—and listening to the Seahawks Radio Network on KIRO in Seattle, it's evident their broadcasters helped prompt that r...