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      Ex-teammate: ‘Favre is being selfish’

      May 8, 2009 /

      Even though the Jets have moved on from the 2008 experiment with Brett Favre, his ex-teammates still can’t help but to lob a few grenades in his direction while he flirts (flirted?) with the idea of joining the Vikings.

      To a man, the Jets said they weren’t surprised by the latest on Favre, and many wished him well, but there were traces of bitterness. After all, he quit after only one season with the Jets, claiming he was finished with football. Now there’s talk of him playing for the Vikings.

      The media-friendly Kerry Rhodes refused to discuss Favre, saying, “I don’t want to get into it.” Jerricho Cotchery said, “Before he came to us, the whole thing was he wanted to go to Minnesota. You kind of feel bad if you were the team he settled for.”

      Another player, who requested anonymity, launched this salvo at the future Hall of Famer: “I’m tired of being part of his soap opera. If he really wanted to win a championship, he’d be right here. Let’s call it for what it is: He wants to play for Minnesota so he can stick it to Green Bay twice a year. He’s just being selfish. I’m not surprised.”

      Late Thursday, Yahoo! Sports reported that Favre had informed the Vikings that he’s going to stay retired, although nothing official came from Favre – his agent told ESPN that Favre is retired but left the door open for a change of heart.

      I wasn’t around the situation to know for sure, but it seemed like Brett never embraced the Jets. Granted, maybe he never embraced the Jets because he felt as though they didn’t embrace him, but you got the sense that the Big Apple was just going to be a brief stint for him, which it inevitably turned out to be.

      I don’t blame Jets players for questioning Favre’s motives to play last year and his possible motivations for continuing to play. Does he really want to help a team win a Super Bowl or is he only continuing to play to fulfill some self-serving prophecy? Did he really want to help the Jets win last year or did he just want to prove to Ted Thompson and the Packers that he could still play?

      It seems that if he is going to come back, he’ll only do so if it’s the absolute best situation for Brett. I don’t know whether or not to applaud him for being smart (after all, what player in their right mind would want to join a situation where they might not succeed?) or join the unnamed Jets’ player and call him selfish.

      NFL

      Dirk Nowitzki’s roommate/girlfriend/fiance arrested

      May 8, 2009 /

      There’s a weird story coming out of Dallas and it involves the Mavs’ best player, Dirk Nowitzki.

      Dallas police officers went to Nowitzki’s house to arrest Cristal Taylor after confirming the existence of warrants for her arrest in Texas and Missouri, according to Dallas Police Department spokesman Lt. Andrew Harvey.

      Sources close to the situation confirmed to ESPN.com the warrants were discovered when Nowitzki’s team of legal advisers hired a private investigator to research Taylor’s background, amid growing concern among those closest to the player inside and outside the Mavericks’ organization. Two Dallas television stations (KXTA-TV and WFAA-TV) have reported Taylor to be Nowitzki’s fiancée.

      Taylor was still in Dallas County Jail on Thursday on $20,000 bond after being taken into custody on warrants accusing her of violating a probation sentence for two counts of forgery and one count of felony stealing in Missouri and a theft-of-service charge for failing to pay for an estimated $10,000 in dental work in Beaumont, Texas.

      She was booked into jail Wednesday as Cristal Taylor, but authorities in both states have linked numerous aliases to the 37-year-old, including Crystal Ann Taylor, Christian Julie Wellington, Christian B. Travino, Crystal Nobles, Christy Nobles, Kristi Briana Westerhauf, Cristal Taylor Westerhaus, Christa A. Westerhays, Deborah Jackson, Shana Mancini, Crista Santiago, Crystal Ann Santiago, Crystall Ann Taylor and Kristin L. Rogers.

      When pressed about the nature of his relationship with Taylor, after talking to reporters for some seven minutes, Nowitzki said three times that he would not comment further and asked if there were any more “basketball questions” before the interview was halted.

      This story has a mug shot of Ms. Taylor/Wellington/Travino/Nobles/Westerhauf/Westerhaus/Westerhays/
      Jackson/Mancini…ah, forget it. If you’re expecting her to be a knockout, be prepared for disappointment.

      The first thing that jumps to mind — can’t Dirk do better than a 37 year-old, average-looking felon? What’s he thinking here? How does he get into this situation?

      NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip, Women

      Do the Giants have the most to gain from Manny’s suspension?

      May 8, 2009 /

      For at least a moment, let’s put away all of the Manny-Ramirez-disgraced-the-game headlines and talk a little baseball, shall we?

      Who stands to gain the most from Manny’s 50-game suspension? Your answer might be the San Francisco Giants.

      The Dodgers are the best team in the NL West regardless whether or not Ramirez is in their lineup. Andre Ethier is absolutely raking at the plate, Orlando Hudson is getting on base like it’s his life mission and 24-year old Chad Billingsley (5-0, 2.21 ERA, 42 Ks) is pitching like a Cy Young candidate.

      The loss of Manny certainly hurts, but it’s not like the Dodgers have been a one-man wrecking crew in amassing the league’s best record to this point. Guys like Ethier, Hudson, James Loney and a couple of live arms in the starting rotation are good enough to compete in a weak NL West with or without Ramirez.

      But there’s no question that having Manny in the lineup makes Ethier, Hudson and Loney better, while Juan Pierre (Ramirez’s sub in left field) is a massive drop off in every offensive category outside of stolen bases. The bottom line is that the Dodgers are a better offensive club with Ramirez in the lineup – much better.

      Heading into Friday’s action, the Dodgers own a 5.5-game lead over the Giants, a 7.5-game lead over the Padres and 8.5-game leads over the Diamondbacks and Rockies in the NL West. Arizona can’t hit and is in turmoil after firing manager Bob Melvin, Colorado still has plenty of young talent but has been inconsistent to this point and one has to wonder if San Diego will stay competitive long enough not to be tempted to trade ace Jake Peavy in order to start building for the future.

      That leaves San Francisco, who at 14-13 certainly isn’t a powerhouse, but it has enough pieces to make a run at the Manny-less Dodgers.

      Continue reading »

      MLB

      Marvin Harrison has no plans to retire

      May 8, 2009 /

      Remember Marvin Harrison? Well, apparently the 37-year old receiver is healthy, has no plans to retire and wants to play in 2009.

      “I played in 15 games last year and a playoff game, and I intend to play again this season,” Condon said Harrison told him in a conversation Thursday afternoon.

      Harrison, who turns 37 in August, was released by the Colts after the 2008 season, in large part for salary-cap relief. Harrison, who didn’t agree to a restructured contract, was scheduled to count more than $13 million against the Colts’ 2009 cap.

      Last season, Harrison had just 60 catches for 636 yards and five touchdowns — the lowest full single-season totals of his career. He missed 11 games in 2007 because of a knee injury, catching just 20 passes and scoring one touchdown.

      There hasn’t been much interest in Harrison at this point, but Condon said he expects his client to sign with a team close to the time that training camps open later this summer.

      The knock on Harrison is that he won’t play for a veteran’s minimum salary, but considering no teams have showed interest in him to this point, he might change his tune once the season draws near. One would think that a receiver-needy team would have interest in a receiver of Harrison’s stature, but nobody wants to overpay for a 37-year old with knee issues.

      NFL

      D’Backs fire manager Bob Melvin

      May 8, 2009 /

      The Diamondbacks fired former 2007 Manger of the Year Bob Melvin and are expected to replace him with A.J. Hinch, who is the club’s vice president of player development.

      The 47-year-old Melvin’s firing comes after a disappointing start by the Diamondbacks, who entered Thursday 8½ games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West. Melvin, who went 337-340 in four-plus seasons, had one year left on a contract he received after being the 2007 NL Manager of the Year.

      Melvin’s stock rose when he guided a youthful but talented group to the NL West title two years ago. He was dismissed because many of the same players have failed to live up to expectations based on that season, when the Diamondbacks posted an NL-best 90-72 record despite being outscored by 20 runs across the season.

      Speculation about Melvin’s future grew with every 1-2-3 inning by the Diamondbacks’ hitters. Arizona entered Thursday with a .225 batting average, by far the worst in baseball.

      Arizona’s offense was a major question mark coming into the season, but as long as the pitching came through the D’Backs were expected to compete in a weak NL West. But Brandon Webb’s shoulder injury (and subsequent trip to the DL) was a crushing blow to the club’s starting pitching and the offense has been even worse than expected.

      Melvin can’t do anything about Webb’s injury, Conor Jackson hitting .191 or Eric Byrnes averaging a paltry .139. But the reason he was inevitably fired is because the club has lost all emotion. It’s only May and the D’Backs are playing like it’s August and they’re 15 games out of first. Maybe the 34-year old Hinch can breathe some life into a club that certainly has talent, but is currently lacking any kind of desire.

      MLB

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