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      MMA Review for Friday, January 16

      January 16, 2009 /

      BJ PennHere’s a weekly rundown of MMA content from Ben Goldstein of CagePotato.com:

      – Former UFC heavyweight Jeff Monson was charged with “malicious mischief” after he was photographed spraying an anarchy symbol on the Washington State capitol building. (That’s frowned upon, apparently.) He faces up to ten years in prison.

      – “UFC Primetime” debuted Wednesday night on Spike TV. The slickly-produced three-part documentary series focuses on the rivalry between lightweight champion BJ Penn and welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, leading up to their superfight on January 31st in Las Vegas.

      – Exiled from the U.S. because of a steroid charge, Brazilian heavyweight Antonio Silva may soon be fighting Aleksander Emelianenko in Japan. He’s also not the biggest fan of Kimbo Slice.

      – We’d let sexy jiu-jitsu champion Kyra Gracie choke us out any day.

      – T-shirt powerhouse Affliction will hold their second MMA show next Saturday in Anaheim, featuring a kick-ass main event. But will anybody be watching?

      – Newly-crowned UFC light-heavyweight champion Rashad Evans may have to defend his belt against former champ Quinton “Rampage” Jackson after just a ten-week layoff. It would be the first time in UFC history that two African-American fighters fought for a title.

      – “UFC 93: Franklin vs. Henderson” goes down tomorrow in Dublin, Ireland. CagePotato.com will be liveblogging the pay-per-view broadcast beginning at 3 p.m. ET. For a preview of the action, check out this rundown of the three marquee matchups, these profiles on the five fighters who will be stepping into the Octagon for the first time, and some helpful betting advice.
      Ben vs. Ben: UFC 93 Edition
      UFC 93 New Guys
      UFC 93 Gambling Addiction Enabler

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Yankees want taxpayers to chip in for new stadium

      January 16, 2009 /

      The Yankees are reaching out to New York tax payers to help cover the cost of their brand new stadium, which is set to open this season.

      New Yankee StadiumBut the same team that was so generous with its players now wants New York taxpayers to be even more generous than they already have been in helping fund for a stadium built for the singular purpose of making the Yankees even more money.

      The Yankees are going back hat-in-hand this week to ask the city for another $259 million in tax-exempt bonds on top of the $940 million in similar bonds they’ve already gotten for the new stadium, saying the extra money is needed, among other things, to pay for a state-of-the-art big screen and to properly finish off the stadium’s luxury suites.

      Now I’m no economist, but doesn’t something seem a little off here?

      Just weeks after committing some $423.5 million for Sabathia, Teixeira and A.J. Burnett, the Yankees need to float nearly that much in bonds at taxpayer expense just to finish the stadium? Couldn’t they reach out to their new players and get a loan from them instead?

      Yankees president Randy Levine insisted Wednesday in a contentious hearing that the team is paying for its own stadium and that grandstanding politicians are to blame for even making an issue out of the latest request. Although he’s right about the issue becoming a political, er, football, the fact remains that the city of New York and its taxpayers are heavily subsidizing the stadium, too.

      They’re hardly setting a precedent. Since the Baltimore Orioles soaked taxpayers for the first retro stadium, Camden Yards, in 1992, baseball owners have managed to con the public in 17 other cities for new parks of their own. In almost all cases, the majority of the money spent on these new stadiums has come from taxes or fees imposed for just that purpose.

      In the case of Yankee Stadium, it will be the Yankees paying off the bonds. But because they’re tax free, it means the bonds will carry lower interest rates and the team will avoid spending tens of millions of dollars it would have otherwise had to pay on the borrowed money.

      When everything is included, it adds up pretty quick. Figures released by the city’s Independent Budget Office tallied a whopping total public subsidy at more than $500 million, with another quarter billion dollars or so for the Mets’ new stadium in Queens.

      Like the writer, I don’t live in New York so I can’t be outraged over the fact that taxpayers have to chip in to help with the cost of the Yankees’ new stadium. And it’s hardly fair to criticize only the Yankees for doing this when 17 other teams are doing the same thing.

      But in a time of economic hardship, this doesn’t seem right. Baseball needs a cap. If teams like the Yankees didn’t spend millions of dollars on free agents every year, maybe they could foot the entire bill for a new stadium.

      MLB

      Rosenhaus shoots down idea of T.O. being released

      January 16, 2009 /

      Ed Werder of ESPN.com reported on Thursday that the Cowboys were entertaining the idea of releasing receiver Terrell Owens sometime this offseason. But T.O.’s agent Drew Rosenhaus thinks that idea is ridiculous.

      Drew RosenhausAgent Drew Rosenhaus definitely isn’t sweating the speculation about the Cowboys cutting his most famous client. He completely dismissed the possibility that T.O. has cashed his final check from Jerry Jones.

      “It’s not going to happen,” Rosenhaus said on WQAM Radio in Miami. “The reason why they got rid of Pacman is because Pacman has terrible off-the-field problems, and the guy just simply can’t play anymore. He’s just not that good.

      “Terrell’s never had off-the-field problems, and he’s been one of the greatest players ever. And they just gave him a monster contract. I mean, they just gave him a huge extension before the season.

      He’s not going anywhere.”

      Rosenhaus might be right about T.O. returning to Valley Ranch. But T.O. and Pacman have more in common than Rosenhaus wants to admit, although you don’t have to worry about T.O. getting arrested.

      Like Pacman, T.O.’s performance might not justify the distractions he creates anymore. That’s what the Cowboys front office needs to determine.

      Rosenhaus makes good points but what else is an agent going to say? That there’s a major possibility one his clients isn’t wanted anymore? Not a chance.

      In the end, I don’t think Jerry Jones would ever go through with releasing T.O. Jones has a new stadium ready to open and he needs players like Owens on the field to put butts in the seats. Plus Jones likes to take on semi-dysfunctional (or fully dysfunctional in the case of Pacman Jones) players and make them into winners. So Rosenhaus is probably right – Owens will be in a Cowboy uniform again next season.

      NFL

      Pete Carroll slightly peeved about Mark Sanchez’s decision to turn pro

      January 16, 2009 /

      USC quarterback Mark Sanchez has decided to skip his senior season and become eligible for April’s NFL Draft.

      Here’s Trojan head coach Pete Carroll’s reaction to Sanchez’s decision:

      Trojan beat writer Scott Wolf, for example, described the scene as “pathetic”:

      USC coach Pete Carroll was extremely ungracious during the Mark Sanchez press conference. He stormed out of the room and did not even sit at the table before Sanchez addressed the media. Something he never did when Matt Leinart, etc., announced their decisions.

      Carroll never sat down at the table but stood with his palms on the table. His anger was clear if you spend time around him.

      Not a great moment.

      Wolf is not known as “Caesar’s” biggest fan, but Rose agreed that Carroll was “peeved,” and that seems to be the reaction that’s picking up steam. Sanchez is earning his degree this spring (from the Annenberg School of Communication, which ain’t no joke), and he said all the right things today. I don’t know where Sanchez is going to be drafted or what kind of career he’ll have, but it seems an especially inopportune time for his coach to tell to a rapt media audience, essentially, “I expect this kid to fail.” I don’t know what else he could mean by pointing out the “less than 50-50” success rate of first round quarterbacks.

      I equate Carroll’s reaction to a father who’s disappointed in one of his son’s big decisions. Carroll wants Sanchez to stay in school, get another year of experience under his belt and then turn him loose on the NFL world.

      But like a father voicing his displeasure with his son’s decision in front of his friends and peers, Carroll shouldn’t have done it this way. There’s no doubt deciding to go pro was a hard decision for Sanchez and now that he’s made his decision, this should be a time for celebration. Regardless of how Carroll felt, he should have supported Sanchez, wished him luck and then got the hell out of the way. If he wanted to voice his displeasure, he should have done it behind closed doors, which I’m sure he did anyway.

      It wasn’t Petey’s moment – it was Mark’s. Yet because Carroll’s ego got in the way and because he wanted to “state for the record” that he wasn’t happy with Sanchez’s decision, he came off as kind of a jerk in my eyes.

      College Football

      Dodgers release Andruw Jones – are they making room for Manny?

      January 16, 2009 /

      The Dodgers decided to release outfielder Andruw Jones after just one season despite giving a two-year, $36.2 million contract.

      Andruw JonesThe 31-year-old center fielder reported to spring training overweight, then was booed roundly by fans as he struggled at the plate during the season. He had knee surgery in May and finished the season on the bench as the Dodgers won the NL West and beat the Chicago Cubs in the NL divisional series before losing to Philadelphia in the NL Championship Series.

      Jones asked to be traded after that and the Dodgers tried, but found no takers. The Dodgers owe Jones $22.1 million, which he’ll receive over the next six years.

      When the Dodgers added Manny Ramirez in a trade deadline deal July 31, that left Jones with minimal opportunities. But with the staggering performance by Ramirez (.396 with 17 homers and 53 RBIs in 53 games) and the fine work of fellow outfielders Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier, Jones was hardly missed.

      With Jones out of the way, it’ll be interesting to see if the Dodgers put an end to their dance with Manny Ramirez. The club is offering him a two- to three-year contract, but Manny wants a deal somewhere in the five-year range. The Dodgers seem to be the only true contender for Manny’s services, especially now that rumors of the Giants being interested have proven to be false.

      What’s next for Jones? A once promising career appears to be falling apart and it’s highly unlikely any team signs him for more than one year after the debacle in L.A. Maybe he can return to Atlanta?

      MLB

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