The Ultimate Baseball Fan Guide

Are you a rookie fan looking for a MLB team to follow, or are you just interested in finding the right team for your personal preferences?  Well we have the answer for you...Start in the center of this baseball fan flowchart and answer the various questions to find your favorite team.

(Click on the chart to zoom in)

More NCAA Football Arrests

With the Sports Illustrated report regarding arrests in college football only around a week old, there are now more to add to the list.  Auburn kicked four players off their team today after recently being charged with robbery, burglary, and theft.  Here is a link to the story.

In similar fashion, 2 Michigan State players were arrested after a recent altercation at an Aspen, Colorado bar.  Neither Auburn nor Michigan State were on the Top-25 list published by the Sports Illustrated report, but theses recent events may send them into the rankings.

What is disappointing about this story is how Sports Illustrated reported it.  Any previous run-in with authorities was reported in their findings, with no mention of the severity of the offense.  Boise State, for instance, was number 4 on the list, but after Boise news sources dug into the players' records, it was determined that almost every player only had a traffic violation on their record, or a "minor in possession of alcohol."

Whereas at other schools, including Oregon and Auburn, a good deal of the arrests were for major offenses such as burglaries.

Virginia Blows 10-Point Lead...With 30 Seconds Left

In order to blow a ten point lead, you really don't have to work too hard.  All the other team really has to do is go on a quick run and hit a few baskets.  In order to blow a ten point lead with 38 seconds left, it takes some serious skill.  Virginia had three chances, yes 3 chances, to inbound the ball, get fouled, and make a few foul shots.  Well, they blew them all and Miami capitalized, and eventually won the game in OT.  Here is a clip of the mayhem:

Links...

Do you have a child and want to know their athletic potential?  Well here is the information for you.

Michael Jordan knows who his MVP is.

The Big East officials from yesterday's Rutgers debacle have decided to withdraw from the tournament.

Yogi Berra was taken to the hospital today for precautionary measures after falling.

And finally, the haircut of the day.

Rutgers SCREWED By Big East Officials

Justin Brownlee runs towards the sidelines as time expires
(NY Times)

I have seen some terrible calls over the years watching sports, but nothing compares to what happened Wednesday afternoon at Madison Square Garden in the Big East Tournament.  With 4.9 seconds on the clock Rutgers was inbounding the ball with a chance to either tie, or win the game with a 3.  The Rutgers player heaved the ball across half court and after what looked like a St. Johns foul, a St. Johns player ended up with the ball.  Thats when the situation got out of control.

Justin Brownlee ended up with the tipped ball and ran towards the sidelines as the clock slowly ticked away.  With about a second and a half on the clock, Brownlee stepped out of bounds near the scorer's table, along with taking four steps without dribbling the ball.  He then finished it all off by chucking the ball out of bounds with time still remaining on the clock.

What you would assume is that the referees would confer and put time back on the clock because of the travel, or the fact that Brownlee stepped on the sideline.  However, the refs raced up the tunnel and towards the locker room before any review was initiated, or even talked about.  St. Johns won the game by a margin of 65-63, when clearly, and I mean CLEARLY, the game should have continued.

Luckily, the head of NCAA officiating, John Adams made a statement following the game stating that the call was "unacceptable," and there was "definitely a mistake made."  The loss will be hard to swallow for Rutgers though, since they at least should have had another shot to send the game to OT, or to win outright.  Its a shame that a team, especially one without tournament hopes, should have to end their season in that manner.

Here is a clip of the atrocity:

Sluggerrr Sued For Doing His Job as a Mascot

Sluggerrr isn't that terrifying of a guy, but apparently to John Coomer he is.  Coomer testified this week that  he suffered a severe eye injury, when his eye was the recipient of a thrown hot dog in 2009.  The Kansas City Star was great when covering this story.  Here is their story:

"In his lawsuit, Coomer said that Sluggerr attempted to heave the frank into the stands with a behind-the-back throw.  Instead of placing the hot dog in a high arch, Sluggerrr lost control and threw it right into Coomer's eye, the suit alleged."


"At the stadium, he fired some hot dogs through an air cannon. Those dogs wore bubble-wrap blankets.  But the ones Sluggerrr threw by hand were wrapped in foil.  Shores described multiple types of tosses, including underhand, overhand, and behind-the-back."


"During cross examination, Hofer showed Shores a video of a toss he made during a 2009 game and invited him to discuss the hot dog's 'arc' and 'velocity' as it sailed away."

What bothers me is the fact that this man was at a baseball game.  Your job as a fan at any sport, but especially baseball, is to constantly be on the lookout for flying debris from the field, court, etc.  If a bat, or ball has a chance to hit you in the face at a high velocity, you should at least be able to avoid a hot dog.

Word of the Day...

In a recent report from the The Arizona Republic, it was reported that Rays 3B Evan Longoria's classic 1967 black and white Camaro RS, was "purloined" from an overflow lot in Chandler, AZ.  Its sad that the man lost his classic ride, but what I'm more interested in is that word.  Stolen would have been my choice of word, but I guess that's why I'm a blogger, and not a big time sports writer.

Longoria's car was valued at $75,000, and detectives noted that it was a very "sloppy" job.  Now why was such a common word like "sloppy" used, when there are so many other options like: haphazard, or slapdash?

Anyways, police believe the car may be sold for parts, along with a Buick that was stolen from the same lot valued at $25,000.  The thieves just better watch their backs because everyone in America knows what Evan Longoria is capable of doing with a bat.

If National Geographic Televised College Football

Some people have way too much time on their hands...Here is what last years Wisconsin at Iowa game may have been like if National Geographic televised it:

Have an Extra $1.5 Million Laying Around?

Courtesy of the great site Last Angry Fan.com:

I get that NASCAR fans love their favorite drivers to the point of near obsession, but even most die-hards would have to say that this eBay auction for the hearse that transported Dale Earnhardt to his final resting place is a bit too much.

Or maybe they won’t.  I’m sure there’s more than a couple fans of “The Intimidator” out there who would kill to get their greasy hands on this truly unique piece of Dale Earnhardt memorabilia, despite it’s hefty $1.5 million price tag.  That’s just slightly more than it’s sale price of $8,800, which is what former owner Bill McKeithan sold it for on Craigslist just a few weeks ago.

From eBay…

Rare: 1996 Lincoln Town Car Hearse

Great NASCAR history.

This Hearse was the last ride of Dale Earnhardt SR.

On Feb. 21, 2001 this hearse took Mr. Earnhardt from a Huntersville , North Carolina funeral home to his final resting place

This 100% verifiable to qualified buyers

Serious inquiries only.

Wait—if you’re considering bidding $1.5 million for a car that once transported a famous dead NASCAR legend, isn’t the phrase “Serious inquiries only” fairly obvious?

Explosive Device Found at Pebble Beach

A strange, and I'll admit random, story has come out of Central California today, as authorities safely removed 2 explosive devices from the cliff side next to the 9th green at Pebble Beach.  Around 8:30AM a local resident walking along the beach below the cliffs noticed what appeared to be 2 pipe bombs lodged in the cliff.  He immediately called the police, who quickly showed up and took control of the situation.

There is still no word as to why the bombs were there, or any information regarding a possible suspect.  Luckily the explosives were removed before any damage could be done to arguably one of the world's best golf holes.

Blooper of the Week

Here is the Blooper of the Week, featuring Lebron James and Chris Bosh.

Kings to Anaheim? Not if the Lakers and Clippers Have Their Way

The Sacramento Kings proposed move to Anaheim is still very much on the table.  The NBA gave the Kings an extension last week to apply for a change of scenery, and the Maloof's seem ready to do anything to move the team.  This would be a huge blow for the city of Sacramento, and especially the die-hard fans that have been with the team through the good times and bad times.  Ironically though, the Kings biggest rivals, may be the team that help keep the Kings in Sacramento, or at least out of LA.  According to Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News, the Lakers and Clippers oppose the move:

"The move to Anaheim will be opposed by the Lakers and Clippers, who see it as an encroachment on their territory. But sources close to the Maloofs say they're willing to pay the two L.A. teams whatever it takes to relocate. That would be in addition to the league's relocation fee of $30 million."


Neither team has given any indication as to what it would take for them to approve of the King's move.  It's a shame though that the Maloof's are willing to do this to a fan base that has given the team so much support....

Post-Regular Season NCAA Basketball Awards

The regular season has finally come to a close, and the Snider Sports Network has decided to release its first annual NCAA basketball awards. Here are the awards:

Best regular season performance by a team:
The Ohio State Buckeyes win this award despite their late season stumbles at Wisconsin and at Purdue.  They still have the nation's best record, and currently hold the #1 ranking.  The Buckeyes should be the team to beat come tourney time.

Best individual performance:
Jimmer Fredette easily wins this award as he finishes the season with 11 30+ point games and after averaging 27.9 points a game.

Best game that had meaning on the national title race:
Boise State vs. San Jose State on January 6th, when the Broncos defeated the Spartans 102-101 in 4OT's in San Jose.

Best student section:
Most would think this award would go to the students from a school like Duke, Kansas, North Carolina, or Syracuse.  Not the case however, as San Diego State dominated the competition with their brilliant performance against BYU on February 26th.  Here is a photo:

We also have to give an honorable mention award to the Iowa students as they went nuts against (6)Purdue on March 5th.

Best use of an UGLY jacket!:
There were really only two obvious candidates for this award: Louisville's Rick Pitino and Tennessee's Bruce Pearl.  However, once again we have a surprise winner in Morehead State's womens basketball coach Tom Hodges.  Much like the San Diego State student section, Hodges was clearly the winner of this award.

The what the hell is going on picture of the year:
Who knows what game Syracuse and Villanova were playing, but it definitely led to a great picture.

And finally...The dunk of the year by a team manager:

This award without question has to go to Chris Steele from the University of Southern California.

Play of The Week

Derrick Rose is not only an NBA MVP candidate, but also the creator of this weeks SSN Play of the Week.