go Page 661 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

When Mays And Mantle Were Banned From Baseball: Putting A-Rod's Gambling "Problem" In Context
As Alex Rodriguez stays in the headlines because he's Alex Rodriguez (even though he wasn't actually at the high-stakes poker game mentioned in the tabloids since he was playing in the World Series at the time), the real story is the re-emergence of baseball's complicated relationship with gambling....

What Jock Culture Does To Pukes Like You
The following piece originally ran in The Nation's sports issue, on newsstands now....

Matt Stairs: Spectacularly Just Good Enough
Matt Stairs, who on Wednesday announced his retirement, was the character actor who had a few decent roles in the 1970s and played solid bit parts ever after. He was a Ned Beatty of a player. He had a fine career. Always on the roster for his offense, he delivered above-average results with the bat ...

Today Was The Day "Mandingo Cock Deasel" Became An American Hero
His name is Eddie Evans. His superpower is rescuing his fellow man from a burning car at a Chevron gas station in DeKalb County, Ga. His choice of attire is what makes him the Stuff Of Legend....

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...

Jurgen Klinsmann: America's Newest Soccer Jesus
Jurgen Klinsmann was introduced to the media this week as the new coach of the U.S. men's soccer team, a development in the making ever since the U.S. Soccer Federation batted eyelashes at Klinsmann before the 2006 World Cup. The coach spurned the USSF then, and instead led Germany to a third-place...

The Preventable Annual Tradition Of High School Football Deaths
It's that time of year again: when America's high schoolers start dropping dead during football practice. It's become so regular and so common that we can't do anything but shake our heads and move on, as if this is an acceptable rite of passage for youth football as a whole. But these are actual ki...

You Can Own Keith Olbermann's Pseudo-Award That Even Keith Doesn't Want
The Golden Mike Award is...not the biggest award out there. They're handed out by the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California, so if you work in Southern California, you probably have one. Keith Olbermann has 16....

Randy Moss: The Weirdest Ever
Randy Moss is the most dangerous receiver to ever play in the NFL and the single most exciting player that ever played for my favorite team, Adrian Peterson included. He also happened to be the weirdest person ever to step onto a football field. ...

Here's Video Of Manchester United's Goalkeeper Getting Frozen In Place On A Barcelona Goal
With his Barcelona side down a goal in the 70th minute against Man U in D.C. tonight, Thiago took a shot from about 20 yards out. It went upper 90 with the quickness. Poor David De Gea, the new Reds keeper, moved about a twentieth of a foot before the goal netting snapped back....

Did Pat McAfee Kick A 75-Yard Field Goal? (Spoiler Alert: No)
The latest "athlete does something impossible" viral video to make the rounds is Colts punter Pat McAfee nailing consecutive field goals from 65, 70 and 75 yards out. And despite that whole "impossible" thing, there are those who want to believe it's real, citing evidence like "McAfee said it's re...

Rhode Island TV Station Admits It Staged "Some Television Magic" After A Golf Tournament
According to a tipster who goes by the name of The Great One, a "local TV reporter showed up late to a [Rhode Island] golf tournament, decided to ask the participants to recreate the event, got caught by a newspaper reporter at the event and, on Twitter, responded 'Hater's gonna hate.'"...

All Too Good, And Not Good Enough: What Carlos Beltran Meant To The Mets
Carlos Beltran was not a New York Met. I don't mean this literally — Beltran's Mets career spanned six and a half seasons, from 2005 until yesterday. He was with the Mets almost exactly as long as Keith Hernandez was, and longer than Reggie Jackson was with the Yankees....

Tiger Woods's Backyard Practice Facility Is Nicer Than Most Golf Courses
We should not lose any sleep over Tiger's latest setbacks. He could be done for the 2011 season, and he's going through the second difficult break-up of his young life, but he is still terribly wealthy and preparing to move into a Jupiter Island, Fla. estate that is reportedly worth $54.5 million....

Presenting The Ex-Future Mrs. Jay Cutler
As opposed to the future ex-Mrs. Cutler, who is whichever C-lister the Bears QB will glom on to next in his never-ending quest to be a star (just playing football's not cutting it)....

We Hope This Near-Death Experience Also Marks The Death Of Planking
Please, world, let us be done with planking. It has gone too far. People are now falling off of the top of golf carts and then nearly getting run over by said golf carts. A person has actually died. Soon, our pets' heads will be falling off....

A Dejected Tom Ricketts Rides The Train
Sonny in Chicago emailed us today to share an unexpected sighting on his afternoon commute: "I sat on the Metra today, coming back from downtown Chicago to the suburbs, I looked up and what do you know, it's Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts sitting right across from me, on his iPhone with his Cubs ph...

The Incomparable Ichiro Swings Through
Two surefire Hall of Famers played in the Bronx last night. One is having the worst season of his career at 37 years old, hitting nearly 60 points off his lifetime average, and still getting paid $17 million. The other one is Derek Jeter....

Damn It, You Guys, Jay Cutler Dumped His Fiancée
Look at your hands, Deadspin. See that red stuff? It's blood....

Here's Video Of Blind Athletes From Japan And Germany Competing In A Game Called "Goalball"
As a sport for the blind, Goalball isn't a new one; invented in 1946, played at the Paralympics since 1980. As a video, however, this one from a game between teams from Japan and Germany is relatively new (July 15). And, it's kind of mesmerizing....