things-we-actually-like Page 16 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

How Those Painfully Awkward Local Commercials With Athletes Are Made
You've probably seen a local commercial with one of your area's athletes, and it was most likely awful and unnatural. For me, nothing will beat Dustin Pedroia's cringe-worthy Sullivan Tire ad. ("I don't believe it. It's Jim Rice.") This funny video featuring Scott Hartnell proves that there's a scie...

New Mexico Fans Have Raised The $2,000 A Rival Fan Should've Won
Last week we brought you the smh-worthy tale of the cosmic nut-punt that went down at a New Mexico State football game. Tired of empty stands, university honchos had whipped up some cash awards to entice students to witness the (winless) Aggies, with a $2,000 prize reserved for a randomly selected s...

Son Surprises His Dad With Bengals Tickets; Dad Gets All Weepy
Until today, I never thought that the Cincinnati Bengals were capable of bringing their fans to tears of joy instead of sorrow. But that's exactly what happened when one Giants fan surprised his father, a lifelong Bengals fan, with airfare and tickets to an upcoming Jets-Bengals game at Paul Brown ...

Here's Vin Scully Calling Don Larsen's Perfect Game 57 Years Ago Today
On Oct. 8, 1956, in Game 5 of the World Series, Don Larsen took the mound at Yankee Stadium against the Brooklyn Dodgers and threw what remains the only perfect game in MLB postseason history. Behind the microphone in the broadcast booth that day was 28-year-old Vin Scully, already in his seventh se...

Here's Hannah Storm Anchoring <em>SportsCenter</em> In Spanish On ESPN Deportes
It's "Ladies Week" on ESPN Deportes (yes, "Ladies Week," as opposed to "Semana De Las Señoras") and tonight's SportsCenter features all-female hosts/hostesses. One of the presenters? The awesome Hannah Storm, from "real" ESPN....

Athletes Among Us: The Stories Behind These Cool Photographs
Last year the photographer Jordan Matter released a super-cool book called Dancers Among Us. He put dancers in everyday situations—in the middle of a park, a subway station, on a busy sidewalk—and photographed them, out of context, doing their dance moves. As a follow-up to the book, Matter has rel...

Ohio State Football Game Makes One Mesmerizing Timelapse Video
This is just cool. Timelapse videos are beautiful, but sort of all look the same at one point. This is a new one on us, though. Here's Ohio State playing Wisconsin last week, sped up beyond recognition. ...

Genius Impressionist Reimagines Mike Francesa As A 1776 Radio Pundit
This, the work of @BizzaroZaun, is one of the best Mike Francesa impersonations you will ever see. And it's not just Francesa's voice that Zaun nails; everything about this impression—the smugness, the dismissive attitude towards callers, the fact that Francesa would have been a loyalist stooge in...

Entire Buckeye Team Lines Up To Hug Anchor After His Daughter's Death
Dom Tiberi, sports director at the CBS affiliate in Columbus, lost his 21-year-old daughter in a car crash on Sept. 17. That Saturday, Ohio State honored the local legend with a moment of silence before its game. Tiberi returned to Ohio Stadium for this weekend's win over Wisconsin, and as the playe...

Let Hunter Pence Teach You How To Play Baseball Like An Idiot
Anyone who’s ever watched Giants outfielder Hunter Pence play baseball has had at least one of the following thoughts cross their mind: Why does he run like that? Why does he throw like that? Who the hell taught this guy how to play baseball?...

UCLA Pays Tribute To Nick Pasquale, Runs First Play With Ten Men
UCLA opened tonight's game against New Mexico State with a symbolic absence: that of receiver Nick Pasquale, who died Sept. 8 when he was hit by a car while walking....

What Flying Looks Like, From An Eagle's Perspective
Fuuuuuuck me this is cool. So cool....

How An MMA Fighter Faked His Own Death
The Times has produced another intimidatingly pretty story this morning, in the "Snow Fall" vein. This one concerns a low-rent mixed martial arts fighter in Michigan, and unlike with "Snow Fall," you will actually read this and enjoy it immensely and not merely pretend to. ...

World's Best Anchor Fills Sportscast With Hip Hop References
Remember Adam Lefkoe, the guy who ingeniously slipped a bunch of wrestling references into his sportscast earlier this month? He topped himself this past Sunday by squeezing 46(!) classic hip hop references into his five-minute segment. Be sure to stick around for the well-earned mic drop at the en...

Young Giants Fan Donates Ball After Sad D-Backs Fan Misses Out On One
This little Diamondbacks fan—or more honestly, his dad—wasn't quick enough to nab a foul ball tossed into the crowd at Chase Field on Sunday. The little kid dealt with his disappointment by pulling his hat over his face so no one could see his sadness. Poor guy....

Starling Marte Hung A Young Fan's Drawing In The Pirates Dugout
Starling Marte went on the DL last week with a hand injury. The Pirates, a game back in the division ahead of a big weekend series with St. Louis, could really use the speedy outfielder back in the lineup....

96-Year-Old Man Gets Hole In One, Dishes Wonderful Golf Wisdom
Before we get into this story, I just want to point out that it features a 96-year-old man named Mel Boonstra and his golfing partner Gord Grevengoed. Every old man in America should be named Mel Boonstra or Gord Grevengoed....

Girl Survives Bear Attack, Is Cooler Than Most Bears
We've got a little change of pace for this week's Bear Friday entry. Today's story features not a bear, but a 12-year-old girl who survived a bear attack and also happens to be the coolest 12-year-old girl ever. ...

I Can't Stop Reading This Book About Cricket And Colonialism
It's a lovely late summer weekend. You should go buy this book about cricket, a sport you almost certainly don't care about, and take it the park or the beach and read it. You'll be happy you did....

Infographic Compares NBA Scoring With Hip Hop Name-Dropping
If you enjoy hip hop and the NBA, then you definitely need to spend some time playing with bdon.org's fancy new infographic. The concept is simple: see how various NBA players' season-by-season scoring numbers stack up against their yearly mentions in hip hop songs....