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Lindsey Vonn looking good

Athletically speaking, in this case. During her training run on Monday, American downhill skier Lindsey Vonn had the fastest time on the track’s upper section. Vonn is trying to overcome a bruised shin.

From FOXSports.com:

The women will ski the bottom section later Monday, following the conclusion of the men’s downhill race — the first Alpine competition at the Vancouver Games. Vonn finished in 1 minute, 30.75 seconds, which was 0.39 seconds faster than teammate Julia Mancuso.

Vonn bruised her right shin during practice in Austria on Feb. 2. She stayed off skis for more than a week, but tested the injury — with encouraging results — in an unofficial slalom training run Sunday.

The shin was a little tender Monday morning, but that was to be expected. And it didn’t seem to hurt her skiing.

“After skiing four runs of pretty good intensity slalom on salted snow, with the conditions the way they are here now, I think even if you had healthy shins, you’d probably have a sore shin today,” said Thomas Vonn, who serves as a coach and adviser to his wife. “She’s happy to be where she’s at, as opposed to where she was a couple of days ago.”

This should quell any fears that Vonn won’t compete. The United States is currently atop the leader board with eight total medals (two gold, two silver, four bronze) and Vonn’s presence should add to that count.

The women’s downhill race is scheduled for Wednesday.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

Martinez wants to stay in Boston, but won’t talk contract during the season

Victor Martinez would prefer to stay with the Red Sox past 2010, but he isn’t open to negotiating a contract extension with the team during the season.

From the Boston Herald:

“As soon as the season starts, I don’t want to be talking about numbers or be talking about something that can distract me from the game and distract my teammates,” Martinez said. “That’s the last thing I want with this great team they’ve put together. Maybe, who knows, they come to me in spring training with something.

“Honestly, I’m all open now until the season starts. As soon as the season starts, I barely talk to my mom.”

While I fully endorse young men talking to their moms as much as possible, I love V-Mart’s attitude and take on this topic. Players should focus on their game during the season and not on their contract. I understand a player’s contract is highly important, but that doesn’t mean a player shouldn’t fulfill his promise for the final year of his current deal just because he hasn’t been offered an extension.

Too many players gripe about their contract during the season and become a distraction. Good to see Martinez won’t be one of them.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

St. Louis Rams 2010 Team Needs

As part of our 2010 NFL Draft coverage, I will be breaking down positional needs for all 32 teams, starting in reverse alphabetical order. Next up is the St. Louis Rams. Check out other team needs by clicking here.

1. Quarterback
A team doesn’t land the first overall pick in the draft without having a ton of holes that need to be addressed before the start of a new season. But even with all the areas of need that the Rams have, it all starts with the quarterback, which should be the Rams’ top priority this offseason. Marc Bulger turns 33 in July and ever since he signed a six-year, $65 million contract extension in 2007 he’s been worthless. Whether it comes in free agency or the draft, the Rams must upgrade the quarterback position this offseason and close the book on the Bulger era in St. Louis. They can’t possibly head into 2010 with Bulger at the top of the quarterback depth chart, especially considering they select at the top of each round in April and seeing as how Michael Vick could probably be had via trade. Rams GM Billy Devaney is familiar with Vick from their time together in Atlanta and Steve Spagnuolo has had nothing but positive things to say about the troubled quarterback so far this offseason. Vick could be acquired for cheap and while he certainly wouldn’t be a long-term answer, he would bring some excitement to the position and give the Rams more playmakers on offense. If not, the Rams could look at drafting a signal caller in one of the first two rounds.

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Now fans can pay extra to see Cubs lose

The Cubs finished five games above .500 last year, so it makes sense that the organization would charge it’s long-suffering fan base 20 to 15 percent extra to buy tickets for the 2010 season early.

From the New York Times:

But the Cubs are adding a twist this year. On Monday, fans will be able to buy tickets to every Cubs home game, but at a premium of 20 percent over the face value, or 15 percent if they pay with a MasterCard. The MasterCard First Chance Presale will last until Thursday and include an undisclosed percentage of the pool of the Cubs’ single-game tickets.

“We believe there are fans who will pay extra, just like they’ll pay for a Fast Pass at the amusement park,” said Wally Hayward, the Cubs’ chief marketing officer. He said he was unaware of another team that holds a similar sale. “There’s a tremendous demand for Cubs tickets, especially from people coming from out of town, when there are games you must have.”

It’s a good business move for the Cubs and it makes sense from a profitability standpoint. But considering the state of the economy, it would be nice if teams lowered the prices of their tickets instead of backing their fans into a corner and forcing them to pay more for games they really want to see. And when it comes to the Cubs, there’s a good possibility that the product on the field won’t be that good again next year so why should fans have to pay more?


Photo from fOTOGLIF

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