eli Page 143 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Here's Pope John Paul II Taking Some Swings At An Indoor Batting Cage
Pitchers and catchers! Popes, ranked! But how's this for synergy? The late Pope John Paul II, on a visit to California in 1987, stepping inside a batting cage to take a few hacks while a dude and a couple of pontificate minimi stand around talking softball. The Vatican's sports broadcasting divisi...

Popes, Ranked
1. John XXIII 2. Gregory I 3. Leo I 4. Peter 5. Gregory VII 6. Pius IX 7. John Paul II 8. Innocent I 9. Clement II 10. Innocent III 11. John Paul I 12. Clement XIII 13. Linus 14. Felix IV 15. Leo XII 16. Pelagius I 17. Boniface IV 18. Pius VI 19. Evaristus 20. Conon 21. Clement XIV 22. Pius VII 23. ...

Felix Hernandez's Contract Extension May Fall Through Because Of An "Elbow Issue"
On Thursday it was reported that the Mariners and staff ace Felix Hernandez had agreed to seven-year, $175 million contract, the signing of which was a mere formality to be completed by spring training. Apparently the source speaking on condition of anonymity because the contract is not official has...

Brand New Star, Same Old Crap. <em>Identity Thief</em>, Reviewed.
Everybody is happy for Melissa McCarthy. After years on TV shows (Gilmore Girls, Mike & Molly) and small parts in movies (she's great in John August's The Nines), she broke through with Bridesmaids, getting an Oscar nomination in the process. She's a really funny lady who's ridiculously effervescent...

Juan Pierre Wants You To Know That "Beast Mode" Is Also "Christ Mode"
Miami Marlins outfielder Juan Pierre has a website. The website is called BeastModeForChrist.com. This is what the "about" page on BeastModeForChrist.com says:...

An Exclusive Interview With The Lady Who Owns The "@Pelicans" Twitter Handle
When news leaked out that the New Orleans Hornets would be changing their name to the Pelicans, each person online seemed to have an opinion. We at Deadspin endorsed it. Yahoo Answers did not. But everyone trying to think through the symbolism of the team's new name missed a more essential concern: ...

Survey: 27 Percent Of Americans Believe God Helps Decide Who Wins Sporting Events
Because it's Super Bowl time, everyone has to get in on the football. The Public Religion Research Institute conducted a survey earlier this month, and asked its random sample of 1,033 adults a bunch of questions about the NFL. Most of the responses aren't surprising or interesting (Lots of people w...

The New Orleans Hornets Are Officially The New Orleans Pelicans
We've been on board the Pelicans bandwagon from the very beginning, but the team made it official this afternoon. Starting next season, the Hornets are no more (unless the Bobcats become the Hornets. Even then the Pelicans will keep the Hornets' pre-2002 history. It's all very confusing.)...

The Union Wants Bud Selig To Force The Marlins To Spend More Money
Here's the projected payroll for the 2013 Miami Marlins. After a fire sale that began with trading star shortstop Hanley Ramirez and ended with trading star shortstop Jose Reyes (and everyone else), this isn't a rebuilding year. It's austerity straight from Christine Lagarde's desk....

Shannon Sharpe Actually Makes Sense Talking About Bill Belichick's Refusal To Do Post-Game Interview
Following his team's loss at home to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship, Bill Belichick declined an on-field post-game interview with CBS's Steve Tasker. It was a childish move, but not necessarily a surprising one. On the the CBS post-game show in studio, Shannon Sharpe actually had som...

Taste Test: The Portable Yogurt That Isn't
Go-Gurt's charmingly daft, hilariously unappetizing name implies its creation myth: the notion that, out there in the world, there were consumers who liked feeding their kids delicious, nutritious yogurt, but were frustrated by its cripplingly immobile nature—"I need a portable, on-the-go yogurt!" ...

Ask Melinda Henneberger About Notre Dame's Sexual Assault Problem
Melinda Henneberger is a political writer for the Washington Post who runs the paper's She the People blog. She's also a Notre Dame alumna who has done extensive reporting for the National Catholic Reporter about the school's shameful treatment of women who have made sexual assault allegations again...


Who Has The Funnier Challenge-Flag-Throwing Motion, Bill Belichick Or Mike Smith?
The Deadspin NFL Coach Challenge Challenge is a tournament pitting the throwing motions of 20 NFL coaches against one another....


The Nebraska Sideline Reaction To A Missed Georgia Field Goal Was Ridiculous
Today's Capital One Bowl (one of only a handful of bowls that are still on broadcast television) has been an exciting barnburner, tied at 31 as of this writing and featuring loads of offensive action. It was a failure to score points, though, that might be the most memorable moment of the game. He...

Who Has The Funnier Challenge-Flag-Throwing Motion, Bill Belichick Or Mike Tomlin?
The Deadspin NFL Coach Challenge Challenge is a tournament pitting the throwing motions of 20 NFL coaches against one another. ...

Venezuelan MLB Players Spend More Time Worrying About Being Kidnapped Than Most Professional Athletes
Becoming a professional baseball player should mean you're pretty much set, right? Forget the odds that a fringe (or star) professional athlete will go broke before he's a certain age—if you spend much of your twenties and thirties making millions or near millions of dollars for playing a game, you'...

College ShameDay: Would Air Force Losing To Rice Be Our Country's Most Shameful Military Defeat? A Shitty Bowl Games FAQ
Our weekly college football shame index previews the bowls through New Year's Eve. ...

With Their Name Change Looming, The New Orleans Hornets Have Also Trademarked "Rougarou," "Mosquitos," "Swamp Dogs," And "Bullsharks"
It is, by now, established that if and when the New Orleans Hornets change their name to the Pelicans, they'll have one of the best mascots in the league. Feisty, local, unique—its got everything you'd want in a mascot, and the Pelicans will rocket to the top of the standings based on their team nam...