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      Man falls from upper deck of Senators game

      December 4, 2008 /

      This had to hurt:

      A 21-year-old man was taken to hospital after he fell about 25 feet from the upper deck of Scotiabank Place during the second intermission of the Ottawa Senators’ victory over the Atlanta Thrashers on Wednesday night.

      According to witnesses, the man sailed headfirst past and over a few stunned onlookers in the rows ahead of his seat before clearing the low railing at the bottom of the third level and falling onto a row of seats in the level immediately below.

      Senators president and CEO Roy Mlakar said the man was carrying two beers when he stumbled over a purse.

      “He was not inebriated,” said Mlakar, who confirmed that the man had been treated on the scene for lacerations and that he was taken to a hospital as a precautionary measure.

      What a disaster. The guy probably spent upwards of $80 on the ticket, $25 for parking, another $17 on the beers and then some chick leaves her purse out in the middle of the row and my man flies off the upper deck. He might not have been inebriated at the time, but he sure as hell probably had a beer or two after the fact.

      General Sports, NHL

      NFLPA to file lawsuit on behalf of suspended players

      December 4, 2008 /

      If you thought the suspensions issued to six NFL players on Tuesday would be carried out in a quiet, swift manner – think again. The NFLPA will file a lawsuit Thursday to overturn all of the suspensions in this case.

      The basis for the union’s action is founded on many of the same arguments that resulted in a temporary restraining order issued in a Minneapolis state district court on Wednesday that will allow Minnesota Vikings defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams to return to the team after they were suspended for a mandatory four games in Tuesday’s action.

      The NFLPA’s suit may seek retroactive pay for any player who already as served a suspension in which StarCaps was the product in question. The union, as Williams’ legal team argued Wednesday in court, will cite that the NFL improperly administered the policy for steroids and performance-enhancing drugs by failing to notify players that it had specific knowledge since late 2006 that StarCaps contained the banned diuretic.

      The legal brief filed on behalf of Kevin and Pat Williams also claimed that a politically charged climate contributed to the league’s negligent action.

      This thing is about to get very messy and in the case of Kevin and Pat Williams, they might still be able to play if a judge rules in their favor.

      Related Articles:

      NFL suspends six, including Deuce McAllister, Pat Williams and Kevin Williams

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Love ‘Em & Leave ‘Em: Week 14

      December 3, 2008 /

      Every week, I highlight a few players to start and a few players to sit at each position. I’m a firm believer in starting your studs, so I won’t tell you about how Drew Brees or LaDainian Tomlinson has a tough matchup – just go ahead and start them. I’ll focus on the borderline guys – players you’ll only start under the right circumstances. It’s important to note that depending on your roster and situation, you may not be able to follow these recommendations. For example, if I suggest you bench a solid starter like Tony Romo, only do so if you have a clearly better option on your bench.

      The “love ‘em” players are listed in the order that I’d start them this week.

      LOVE ‘EM

      QB: Matt Ryan is a nice start against a New Orleans defense that was already 24th against the pass even before the suspension of Will Smith, the team’s best pass rusher…Matt Cassel is worth starting against a league-worst Seahawks defense that has yielded 265 yards and 1.6 pass TD per game…Shaun Hill is startable this week against a Jets defense that is ranked 30th against he pass…For the desperate, Gus Frerotte has a tantalizing matchup against a bad Lions defense. The only question is will Detroit put up enough of a fight so that the Vikings will have to throw the ball? Last week against the Titans, the answer was “no,” and Kerry Collins finished with a poor fantasy line…For the REALLY desperate, Marc Bulger and JaMarcus Russell have good matchups against the Cardinals and Chargers, respectively.

      RB: Peyton Hillis is a great start against the Chiefs, who are next-to-last against the run…Steve Slaton has a tantalizing matchup with the Packers, who are awful against the run…Get Tim Hightower in your lineups this week. The Rams rush defense is ranked 30th in the league…Larry Johnson has a nice matchup with the Broncos, who are 28th in the league against the rush…It looks like Ryan Grant is going to play, and that makes him a solid start against a sketchy Texans rush defense…Given the Vikings’ defensive suspensions, Kevin Smith is suddenly an interesting start…If you have a big hole at RB, Cedric Benson is a sneaky good start against a Colts rush defense that has allowed 134 yards and 1.3 TD per game this season.

      WR: Roddy White is a must-start this week against a bad Saints pass defense…Unless the Lions completely fold, I’d expect Bernard Berrian to catch at least one deep pass en route to a good fantasy line…Unless he pulls one of his disappearing acts, Lee Evans should be able to take advantage of the Dolphins’ 26th-ranked pass defense…Reggie Wayne is a must-start, but Marvin Harrison is also startable against a Cincy pass defense that has allowed 218 yards and 1.5 TD per game this season…Matt Jones continues to play well in PPR leagues, so he’s a decent start against the Bears, who have the league’s 29th –ranked pass defense.

      LEAVE ‘EM

      QB: Joe Flacco has had a nice run (11 TD in his last six games), but this week he faces a stingy Washington defense. He’s still startable in some formats, but I wouldn’t expect more than one TD this week…After a brutal 1 TD/4 INT effort against Oakland in Week 10, Jake Delhomme has been decent, scoring four TD over the last three games. This week, the 3rd-ranked Bucs pass defense comes to town, so I’m not optimistic…Phillip Rivers (vs. OAK) and Tony Romo (@ PIT) are still startable, but you may want to look at other options…Leave Ryan Fitzpatrick (@IND) and whoever is QB’ng the Browns (@ TEN) on the bench – they have brutal matchups…Jeff Garcia should ride the pine as he faces the Panthers 12th-rated pass defense. Carolina has only given up 11 pass TD in 12 games…Jason Campbell isn’t playing particularly well right now and given his matchup – the Ravens’ 2nd-ranked pass defense – it would be wise to look elsewhere this week.

      RB: None of the Baltimore RBs look like great starts against a solid Washington rush defense. Besides, I wouldn’t feel confident predicting which one would get most of the touches…He’s still startable, but be wary with Marion Barber this week. He faces the #1 rush defense in the league and has a bum foot…The same goes for Clinton Portis, who can be started in a pinch, but don’t expect much from him against a great Ravens rush defense.

      WR: Derrick Mason is still startable, but despite Mark Clayton’s newfound fantasy success, I’d stay away from him this week against Washington…It’s always tough to bench Braylon Edwards, but given his current QB situation and his matchup against the stingy 4th-rated Tennessee pass defense, he’s not a good start this week…i wouldn’t feel comfortable starting Vincent Jackson or Chris Chambers this week. The Raiders pass defense is surprisingly good, and the Chargers are better off attacking with the ground game…Antonio Bryant is still startable in some formats, but I wouldn’t expect big numbers against a stingy Carolina pass defense.

      THINKING DEFENSIVELY (DTBWW)

      Welcome to the world of Defensive Team By Waiver Wire (DTBWW). Each week, you pick up a defense, usually playing at home against a bad offense. And each week, you get pretty good numbers out of your DT position. All teams are available in at least 40% of ESPN fantasy leagues.

      This week’s picks:

      I love the Cardinals this week, but they are only available in 32% of ESPN fantasy leagues, so they are not eligible.

      IND (vs. CIN)
      SD (vs. OAK)

      Denver (vs. KC) is another option, but it’s tough to say which defense is going to show up.

      Last week’s picks:

      Bills: 10 PA + 3 SK + 1 FR = 10 fantasy points
      Raiders: 20 PA + 1 SK + 1 INT = 2 fantasy points

      Unsurprisingly, the Raiders let us down.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Country clubs in peril?

      December 3, 2008 /

      country clubThe Wall Street Journal has been covering the ways in which our country’s struggling economy is affecting sports culture. The paper is reporting that many country clubs are on the brink of closing as members fail to renew their membership due to financial concerns.

      For instance, you hear a lot of talk about the “walkaway” risk. This is a calculation of the leverage that clubs have or don’t have over members to keep them from leaving. At most clubs at least one newcomer has to join before a current member can cash in his bond, deposit or other type of equity stake and quit. If the annual dues are $7,500 and the equity stake is $20,000, most members will be inclined to stay put until a new member signs up. But if annual dues are high — say, $12,000 or $15,000 — and the projected clearing time on the resignation list is four years (not uncommon in this economy), some financially strapped members will choose to bail immediately.

      Clubs don’t like that because dues and the additional spending of an active member are more important than $20,000 in the bank. That is particularly true for the many clubs these days that are servicing big debt loads piled up in better times for multimillion-dollar course renovations or clubhouse expansions, and for new clubs, some in stalled real-estate developments, that haven’t yet reached their full quota of members.

      For clubs unable to adapt in their current form, the next step is often allowing paid play by outsiders at off-hours — that is, becoming semipublic — and after that full conversion to a public facility. At that point clubs often look for ways to sell off the property to housing developers or for other uses, giving equity members a windfall, but zoning laws make this impossible in all but about one in 10 cases, according to the National Golf Foundation study. Each conversion of a private club to a daily-fee course, usually a high-end one, gives would-be club members in that area one fewer reason to make the expensive, long-term commitment to join a club, and the cycle propagates itself.

      There’s a country club where I live in southern California. However, there are also three public courses. The game has never particularly appealed to me; I can count the number of times I’ve played on one hand. Though the sport’s television ratings haven’t dwindled, its ability to entice kids to pick up the game has. The same has happened with tennis, as American youngsters typically opt to play football, basketball, baseball, and soccer. I had always been under the impression that country clubs would become obsolete because my generation would find better ways to invest their time and money. Turns out, the current economy is accelerating the process as would-be members can’t afford the fees. Instead, they’re playing the public courses like every Tom, Dick, and Harry.

      Golf

      Who will sign Rafael Furcal and Garrett Anderson?

      December 3, 2008 /

      FurcalThe Los Angeles Angels have passed on offering arbitration to veteran left-fielder Garret Anderson. This comes as no surprise since the organization previously spent $3 million to buy out Anderson’s $14 million contract. The Los Angeles Dodgers have also refused arbitration to a former All-Star, shortstop Rafael Furcal.

      The Angels spent $3 million to buy out the $14-million option on Anderson’s contract, but Monday’s decision doesn’t necessarily mean Anderson’s 15-season career with the Angels is over. The team can still negotiate with the outfielder, who has hired Scott Boras as his agent.

      Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti said Furcal’s days with the team aren’t necessarily over.

      “We obviously have interest in the player and the player has interest in being here,” said Colletti, adding that he spoke over the weekend to Arn Tellem of Wasserman Media Group, which represents Furcal.

      But the Dodgers’ refusal to offer him arbitration is further evidence that Furcal’s demand for a four-year deal isn’t the only point of contention in their negotiations. The Dodgers are also reluctant to re-sign him at the average annual salary of $13 million he made over the three years of the contract he completed this year, and an arbitration hearing might have resulted in a raise.

      The Angeles will be fine in the outfield, whether they decide to re-sign Anderson or not. They have Torii Hunter, Gary Matthews Jr., Juan Rivera, Vladimir Guerrero, and Chone Figgins, all who can play the outfield positions. Hopefully, the Angels are doing a salary dump with Anderson’s contract so they can secure Mark Texiera to at least a three-year deal. Texiera was the only Angel who could swing a bat in the ALDS against the Red Sox. If they lose him, they’ll be without a gold-glove first baseman and have to rely on Guerrero as their only source of power. Anderson still has one or two productive years left in him. He’s mediocre at best in left field, but can still hit around .300 and give you 17 home runs. He’s also a California loyalist and could find a perfect fit with…

      The Los Angeles Dodgers seem to be setting themselves up for failure. It’s true that Manny Ramirez propelled the team into the NLCS with his bat, but he was able to do it with the exceptional pitching of Derek Lowe, Chad Billingsley, and Hiroki Kuroda. Lowe will likely return to Boston next year, so the Dodgers will be without an ace in their rotation. Now, they’re going to let Rafael Furcal go, either to Oakland, San Francisco, or Atlanta. If the Dodgers are dumping contracts in order to sign Ramirez, the future Hall of Famer will garner a contract so large that they team will be unable to fill the holes left by Lowe and Furcal.

      Why not just let Ramirez go back to the American League where he can’t harm their already pathetic division? The Dodgers could then make an attempt to sign CC Sabathia, and bolster their already strong rotation. Re-sign Furcal and then go after Adrian Beltre and Garret Anderson to fill the position at third base and left field, respectively. I know Sabathia will land a gigantic contract, but it won’t be nearly as disgusting as Ramirez’s. If Dodgers GM Ned Colletti plays it wisely this off season, he can definitely put together a team that reaches the playoffs once again.

      MLB

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