Happy Thursday everyone, here's my Top 5 for May 26, 2011 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
- In the NBA playoffs, Dallas is going to the NBA Finals after beating Oklahoma City 100-96 and winning the series four games to one.
- In the NHL playoffs, Tampa Bay forced a 7th game tomorrow night in Boston with a 5-4 win. The winner will play Vancouver for the Stanley Cup.
- Game of the night. The Phillies beat the Reds 5-4 in 19 innings. The game ended at 1:20 a.m. with Phillies infielder Wilson Valdez pitching the top of the 19th. He got the win.
- The National League rookie of the year, Buster Posey may have suffered a serious ankle injury in a brutal home plate collision last night in the Giants 7-6 12-inning loss to Florida.
- Yankees reliever Mariano Rivera appeared in his 1,000th game yesterday. The 15th pitcher, but the first to do it with just one team.
- Keeping up. Kris Humphries of the New Jersey Nets is engaged to Kim Kardashian.
- Elsewhere on the wedding front, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has received special permission (because of the lockout) to attend this weekend's wedding of Dallas quarterback Tony Romo.
2. Mea Culpa
I found it interesting how quickly Mets owner Fred Wilpon reached out to the players he criticized. Why did he have to do that? He was speaking the truth. But Fred's a gentleman, and I'm sure he felt bad that he might have ruffled some feathers. Lord knows his team has enough trouble. I'm guessing George Steinbrenner didn't apologize when he dumped on his players. How do you start that conversation exactly? "Hey, Hideki Irabu, this is George Steinbrenner. You're really not that fat a toad...."
3. A Good Deed
Has there been an athlete more bashed than Barry Bonds? His home run record is now considered fake, by most sports fans. But as disliked as Bonds is outside the Bay area, here's something he did right. He has offered to pay for college for the two kids of Bryan Stow, the Giants fan who was critically beaten outside Dodger Stadium. Kudos to Barry. At last, a genuine home run.
4. Star Power
There's never been anyone quite like Anna Kournikova. She's always voted one of the most beautiful people in the world. Now she's been named the trainer on NBC's The Biggest Loser. She's made untold millions in endorsements. She's singer Enrique Iglesias' girlfriend, which only adds to her celebrity. An amazing career. All for someone who's been retired from active tennis for eight years, and has never won a singles tournament. Not one. Proving once and for all that winning isn't everything. Heck, it's not anything. But good looks and sex appeal? Now that's game, set and match.
5. If You're Scoring at Home
Yesterday I wrote about the privacy issue in Britain involving an alleged affair between a married soccer star and a busty model. I gave you links to both the model, and a story about English privacy law. I just wanted to see what a serious group I have reading the top 5. The results are in. 13 percent of the clicks on my Top 5 wanted to read about legal issues. 46 percent of the clicks wanted to see hooters. And for good measure, 36 percent of the clicks checked out the Preakness bikini contest. I couldn't be prouder.
Happy Birthday: Sportscaster Brent Musburger. 72.
Bonus Birthday: Singer Lenny Kravitz. 47.
Today in Sports: The Pirates Harvey Haddix pitched 12 perfect innings, only to lose to Milwaukee in the 13th. 1959.
Bonus Event: Hey those mounds are big. (No, not yesterday's clicks.) Lewis and Clark first see the Rocky Mountains. 1805.
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