w Page 4931 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

<em>ESPN The Magazine</em> Flosses Rick Reilly®'s Column From Its Pages
We're told that Rick Reilly's next ESPN The Magazine column will be his last for the magazine, which means he will now annoy the world on only two ESPN media platforms instead of three. Progress!...

Springtime For Customized Jerseys
Because it's Friday and this has been one of the lamest weeks in recent memory, why not resurrect everyone's favorite clothing-based photo gallery feature, a.k.a., people who wasted a lot of money on ideas they didn't fully think through....

Things So Bad For Ducks, They're Cheering For Huskies Now
Oregon fans gave Brandon Roy a standing ovation before last night's game. UW's Brandon Roy. Who was decked out in purple UW gear. What's wrong with this picture?...

Olbermann Joins The Sports Fella Pile-On
On Simmons: "I am again left to marvel how somebody can rise to a fairly prominent media position with no discernible insight or talent, save for an apparent ability to mix up a vast bowl of word salad very quickly."...

Brittney Griner Suspension Is Typical, But Not Enough
NCAA rules demand that a player who throws a punch in a game get an automatic one-game suspension. Brittney Griner's coach gave her one more to grow on but even if that's normal, it's not really what she deserves....

Slipping And Tripping In Warren Sapp's Hometown
You're familiar with Dark Side of the Locker Room. Consider this the THX Edition of Dark Side. Our storyteller is Padgett Powell, author of Edisto, The Interrogative Mood, and the following dispatch from Plymouth, Fla., which was spiked by ESPN....

Civic-Minded Wrestler Of The Week: Tiger Jeet Singh
There's a minor controversy brewing in Ontario, where trustees have voted to name a public school after longtime wrestler Tiger Jeet Singh. Why all the fuss? It's not like he attacked audience members with his sword that many times....

IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A CHEEZ DOODLE
Just this once, the library is relaxing the rules against talking. And yelling. (By the way, if you were a kid, wouldn't this be the absolute worst field trip ever?) [Twitter]...

Cincinnati Reds: The Looming Tower
Will Leitch will be previewing/musing on every baseball team each weekday until the start of the season. You can pre-order his book and follow him on Twitter. Today: The Cincinnati Reds....

Spring Training Win Way More Important Than Silly "World Series"
According to awesomely free Philly Metro, a ninth-inning rally by Wilson Valdez exacts "some measure of revenge" for the Yankees beating them at that whole "world championship" thing last fall. I guess one micron counts as "some measure."...

Last Night's Winner: Football Dorks
In sports, everyone is a winner—some people just win better than others. Like nerds who get excited about tender offers, no-trade clauses, and transaction wires. It may be the offseason, but not for restricted free agent hounds....

It's 6:30 AM, And Jake Delhomme Just Threw Another Interception
Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter's anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and the blogosphere to bring you everything you need to know to start your day....

A Children's Treasury Of Mascots Eating People
Mascots are running wild at our sporting events, both home and abroad. Who will put a stop to the madness? And why won't the music coordinators at these arenas use Temple of the Dog in place of Weird Al?...

Sports Fella Doubles Down On The Stupid
Remember that foolish thing Bill Simmons said the other day about Tiger and Muhammad Ali? Well, Bill has taken a step back, read some old Sports Illustrateds, and decided to be foolish again, only at much greater length. [Charles Pierce]...

Wizards Tickets Less Valuable Than A Pot Of Coffee
The NBA has an exciting new promotion where fans can earn two free tickets to a Washington home game simply by drinking five cups of Dunkin Donuts coffee. Or save up for a sixth cup....and get another cup of coffee!...

Tim Lincecum Isn't Always High, He Just Seems That Way
Here's Lincecum modeling a Giants Snuggie, and pretending to be a wizard. Wonder if this violates his probation for that possession bust....

Dead Wrestler Of The Week: "The Big Boss Man" Ray Traylor
Every week, the Masked Man, Deadspin's pro wrestling correspondent, honors the sport's fallen and examines their legacies — famous and obscure alike. Today: "The Big Boss Man" Ray Traylor, who died of a heart attack in 2004. He was 42....

Kansas Coach Apparently Has Quite The Social Life (UPDATE)
It was a full house in Lawrence as KU downed K-State for the Big 12 Championship, including one well-known adult film star. So who hooked her up with floor seats?...

This Explains A Little More About AI's Absence
Tawanna Iverson filed for divorce, after 8 1/2 years of marriage. Unemployed father, sick child, broken home; it's like the Iversons are a microcosm for every recession-hit Rust Belt family. Besides the millions of dollars. [Philly Daily News]...

Joe Mauer's Imaginary Contract Has A Lot Of "I"s To Dot
Remember when Joe Mauer "agreed" to that 10-year contract over a month ago? Well, Mauer's agent plans to discuss the matter with Twins management very soon. Maybe. They're very close! (Yeah, they're not close.) [SN/Star-Tribune/NYT]...