rap Page 114 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

It's Women's Semis Day At The U.S. Open. Let's Watch It Together
Every year, the Friday after Labor Day provides a pretty awesome respite: Two women's U.S. Open semifinals, played in the middle of the afternoon. It helps shorten the already short week. First up: French Open champ Maria Sharapova against Aussie Open champ Victoria Azarenka. Then we've got Serena W...

When High School Football Meets The Campaign Trail, The Results Are A Lot More Awesome Than You'd Expect
We're well into high school football season, which means you've probably been exposed to your local newspaper's special edition highlighting the region's top teams and star players....

It's Still Preseason For ESPN's Promo Department, Too
Monday Night Football starts in a week, and the Worldwide Leader started promoting its first week doubleheader this weekend during college football programming. (You know, the doubleheader that will star Chris Berman in the announcing booth.) That's not the only blunder ESPN's made with the opening...

Maria Sharapova And Sasha Vujacic Are Through. Now's Your Chance, Slovenian Basketball Groupies.
Did you remember Maria Sharapova and Sasha Vujacic were dating? Neither did we. But somehow they were together for two years and were all set to get married in November....

Remembering The Night A Ref Punched A Player And A Goalie Choked The Ref
The New Haven Register is in the middle of a series highlighting the 200 greatest moments in New Haven sports history, and if that's a good enough excuse for them to highlight one of the dirtiest hockey games you've probably never heard of, it's good enough for us too....

If Patrick McEnroe Is Talking About Andy Roddick, Then Generic Text Goes Here
It seems even the Worldwide Leader can be at a loss for words sometimes, as this SportsCenter report from Pat McEnroe about the impending retirement of tennis star Andy Roddick provided us some Fun With Graphics fodder....

For The Person Who Always Thought <i>The Wizard Of Oz</i> Was Crap Without Boston Sports Teams
I have two pieces of excellent news for you. First, this work of art, "There's No Place Like Home," can be yours for only $1,000. A thousand bucks! What a bargain for this "beautiful hand painted mural by and up and coming local artist." You can't just walk into the Musee d'Orsay and take home a Gau...

Maria Sharapova Is Pimping Her Stupid Candy, And Other Important Storylines: A U.S. Open Preview
You could argue the turning point of the 2012 U.S. Open—which starts today—already happened. Well, three turning points, actually....
![NBC's <em>The 'Lights</em> [Sic]: Like <em>SportsCenter</em>, But With Sports](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/17wziwoeubmmijpg.jpg)
NBC's <em>The 'Lights</em> [Sic]: Like <em>SportsCenter</em>, But With Sports
The morning after the London Olympics came to a close, NBC Sports Network (né Versus, né Outdoor Life Network) premiered The 'Lights, described by the network as as "a catalyst for our new programming lineup" that "will quickly provide sports fans all of the scores and highlights they crave as they ...

Bill "Spaceman" Lee, Age 65, Threw A Complete Game Last Night
The high—and I do mean high—priest of baseball eccentrics hasn't pitched in the majors since 1982, but he's still out there, you know, man, and he's still pitching, 65 years young. Last night, the Spaceman took the mound for the San Rafael (Calif.) Pacifics of the independent North American League. ...

Last Night's WNBC Evening News Featured A Graphic Only <em>Celebrity Jeopardy!</em>'s Sean Connery Could Love
Here's a lower third graphic teasing Bruce Beck's sportscast for last night's 6 p.m. news on WNBC in New York. It's a priceless find for anyone familiar with this wonderful moment in SNL history or those who occasionally miss spaces. (Or toilet bowls.)...

Minnesota State Head Football Coach Todd Hoffner Reportedly Booked For "Using Minors In A Sexual Performance"
The possible charges for Minnesota State head football coach Todd Hoffner continue to grow as the Mankato Free Press is now reporting he's been booked on requested charges of using minors in a sexual performance....

KCAL Forgot Which Teams Were Playing At The End Of Last Night's Giants-Dodgers Game
KCAL broadcasts Dodgers games exclusively. They aren't part of some Fox Sports conglomerate that might have a crew handling Rangers and Astros or Rays/Marlins game in the same day or anything like that. They have a unique graphics package and, of course, Vin Scully....

What's ESPN Hiding Under Its Desk?
Yes, that's just a screen grab of Scott Van Pelt, Todd Blackledge, and Kirk Herbstreit on the air last night breaking down something or other about the upcoming college football season. But shift your gaze downward, toward the display ads on the front of the table at which they're sitting. The World...

The Six Things You Should Know About Joe Posnanski's Paterno Book
Joe Posnanski has written a mostly sympathetic biography of Joe Paterno, which shouldn't be a surprise, given some of Posnanski's previous statements. It's a book at war with itself. At its best, it's a clear-eyed biography of a guy who became a cautionary tale about the dangers of mythmaking; at it...

There Are Closed Captioning Typos, And Then There's Calling Carlos Peña "Hitler"
Closed captioning transcriptionists have hard jobs, especially in sports. Fast action, foreign names, and occasionally-drunk announcers all throw stumbling blocks in the way of providing meaning for the hearing-impaired....

Jay Glazer's NFL Training Camp Survival Kit Included A Steak Knife Under His Pillow
There's a quick question and answer profile on Jay Glazer in the Albany Times-Union that covers most of the usual bases. Terribly boring and soul-crushing jobs at the outset, dogged determination, a secret mixed-martial arts career and eventual success in one's profession....

The Famous Photo Of Juan Marichal Beating Johnny Roseboro With His Bat, In Color
How many times have you seen the AP photo of an enraged Juan Marichal hammering Dodgers catcher Johnny Roseboro with his bat. Unfortunately, the AP still shot mostly in black-and-white in 1965. So Reddit user "BradyIsAnElitePunter" took a whack at colorizing the picture in Photoshop. (Click to see t...

Did Performance-Enhancing Drugs Actually Help Melky Cabrera?
Since MLB announced Melky Cabrera's 50-game suspension for testosterone earlier this afternoon, a few folks have been crowing about what a fraud Cabrera is. Evidently Cabrera's sin is worse than the usual steroid stuff because he improved dramatically over the last two years and planned to parlay th...

Melky Cabrera Tests Positive For Testosterone, Is Suspended 50 Games, Can Still Win The Batting Title
The Giants' Melky Cabrera wowed us this year. That doughy loser who couldn't cut it in New York or Atlanta managed to hit .346/.390/.516 in 113 games, and for good measure, he won the All-Star Game for the National League. But that will be all for him in 2012, because Cabrera, MLB says, was pumped f...