john Page 157 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

A Sportswriter Goes To War: John Lardner In The Pacific Theater
From my introduction to Southwest Passage: The Yanks in the Pacific. ...

The Real McCoy
Another classic from Lardner, "The Life and Loves of the Real McCoy":...

Lede Time
Michael MacCambridge does us all a mitzvah with his "Director's Cut" series over at Grantland. Earlier this year he blessed us with one of Lardner's best profiles, "Down Great Purple Valleys," which is most famous for its first sentence:...

Family Business
Today gives tribute to John Lardner. Where to start? How about The John Lardner Reader: A Press Box Legend's Classic Sportswriting (edited by John Schulian). ...

Chad Johnson Gets Out Of Jail, Claims To Be Losing $46,000 A Month
It's been one week since Chad Johnson earned himself a trip to jail for excitedly patting his attorney on the backside (he thought he was getting off without jail time, you see). But the judge has decided that Johnson learned his lesson, and after an apology, he's a free man....

Daddy Was The Coach
We conclude our Father's Day series with the following excerpt from John Ed Bradley's wonderful memoir, It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium. (And in case you missed 'em, check out previous entries from Paul Hemphill, Pat Jordan, Mark Kram Jr., Glenn Stout, Larry L. King, Eric Neel, and yours truly.) ...

Johnny Manziel Sounds Unhappy At Texas A&M
Thanks to the few tipsters who passed along this since-deleted tweet from Johnny Football early Sunday morning. Don't sweat it though, Johnny, whatever the bullshit was, it sounds like it was straight up bullshit. Still, don't be so quick to get out, you're the king of the world in college....

S'Long Suckers
Lucky for us, the Baseball Almanac has reprinted John Updikes' celebrated 1960 New Yorker story on Ted Williams' last game, "Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu": ...

14 Innings And A Bench-Clearing Scrap: Just A Typical Red Sox-Rays Game
A nationally televised game that saw Tampa Bay overcome a 6-0 deficit, Boston take—and blow—a two-run 10th-inning lead, and a final out that wouldn't come until after midnight, and still all anyone could talk about was John Lackey plunking Matt Joyce. Here's a bold statement: Boston-Tampa Bay is the...

Judge Who Wants Chad Johnson In Jail Is Legally Blind
The story out of Florida domestic court this morning was that Chad Johnson was this close to entering his plea deal when, for some reason, judge Katie McHugh asked him if he was happy with his attorney's performance. Johnson said yes and slapped his ass. When Judge McHugh saw this she rescinded the...


Chad Johnson Is Going To Jail Because He Slapped His Lawyer's Ass
Chad Johnson, who was once a famous and talented football player, is going to jail on a probation violation. The reason he's landed himself there? Some locker-room-style maneuvering in the courtroom. Inherit the Wind meets Playmakers, or something. From—where else?—TMZ:...

Not Content Merely To Win, The Bruins Are Traumatizing Franchises
The Boston Bruins will welcome the winner of the Chicago-L.A. series to the Stanley Cup Final because of their utter dismantling of the Pittsburgh Penguins. In that series, the Bruins were able to stonewall a Pittsburgh team that won 75 percent of its regular season games and led the league in scori...

You Can't Go Home Again
John Ed Bradley's memoir of playing football at LSU, It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium, is one of the finest sports books ever written. If you've never read it, do yourself a favor a pick up a copy. It's a beautiful book. ...

Ump John Hirschbeck Gets Drilled With Fastball, Crew Still Blows Call
Umpiring comes with all sorts of occupational hazards, not the least being that a catcher might just whiff on a 93-mph fastball, allowing it to connect directly with one's bare hand. ...

Woman Training For Half-Marathon Didn't Know She Was Pregnant
Odds are, part of the reason Trish Staine's pregnancy took her by surprise was that her husband John had a vasectomy. ...

The Black Berets: Red Smith On The Olympic Black Power Salute
Red Smith is the most respected sports columnist we've ever had. In his prime, Jimmy Cannon, Smith's friendly rival, was certainly as well-known. Cannon, the Voice of New York, was an emotional, colloquial writer whose reputation, unfortunately, has faded. But Smith endures. What is it about his wri...

Keith Olbermann Will Host Turner's MLB Playoff Coverage
Well, Keith Olbermann has a job again. After months of showing up at ballparks, Olbermann is going to be the studio host for Turner's coverage of the MLB playoffs this October. The Hollywood Reporter reports he'll be on with Dennis Eckersley and maybe one other studio guy (Jim Miller broke the Olber...

What The Hell Is Going On With The Grizzlies' Coaching Situation?
Lost though it may have been in the relentless beatdown the Spurs delivered last week, the Memphis Grizzlies had a great season, another tremendous step forward. Under head coach Lionel Hollins, the Grizzlies' winning percentage has increased every year: from .293 in 2008-09 (he coached the last hal...
