Happy Wednesday everyone, here's my Top 5 for December 23, 2009 from Len Berman at ThatsSports.com
1. Quick Hits
- The Yankees send outfielder Melky Cabrera to Atlanta in a deal that brings back pitcher Javier Vazquez to the Bronx. Vazquez is best known for yielding Johnny Damon's grand slam homer in game 7 of the Yankees epic collapse to the Red Sox in 2004.
- This just in. The Mets announce.......nothing.
- Typical boxing. There's finally a fight people are excited about, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao in March, but the two sides are bickering over drug testing. That's the problem with boxing, no central control.
- Can't anybody stay together? First Tiger and Elin, then A-Rod and Kate go splitsville. But the final straw for me, Jerry Ferrara (Turtle on Entourage) and Jamie-Lynn Sigler. I'm crushed.
2. Flip Flop
Jets coach Rex Ryan certainly pulled a doozy. After the Jets lost Sunday he declared the team dead. No playoffs. Overnight a miracle occurred and by Monday they were alive.....barely. It's been a heullva year for the Jets. From Ryan saying the Jets aren't here "to kiss Bill Belichick's ring," to quarterback Mark Sanchez reading a statement to the media after a game. The Jets are certainly entertaining. Except on the field.
3. Award Season
On the heels of Tiger Woods winning Athlete of the Decade honors, Serena Williams, despite her U.S. Open outburst, has been named AP female athlete of the year. She beat out a horse, Kenyatta. I guess character isn't an issue in these awards...because I hear the horse is a little loose.
4. Hockey, Eh?
A subscriber asked me recently when will I ever mention hockey? I joked "The Stanley Cup Finals." Actually, I talked about the great Martin Brodeur yesterday. So here's some more for you hockey pucks out there. Forbes listed the best and worst hockey fans based on home attendance, TV ratings and merchandise sales. And Pennsylvania beat out Canada. Pittsburgh is # 1, Philly # 3. Toronto is # 2, Montreal 4. The worst fans are all in the southern tier, what a shock. Atlanta is 29th, and Florida is last.
Wasn't that fun? We'll talk more hockey in June.
5. All the Sports that's Fit to Print
Here's a warning to wayward athletes and other denizens of the sports world. Word is that the launch of TMZsports.com is right around the corner. That's not good news if you misbehave. From Babe Ruth, to Mickey Mantle athletes were protected by the old school media. But now the jig is up. Perhaps the threat of TMZsports.com will force sports people to be on their best behavior? Yeah right.
Happy Birthday: My favorite marathon runner, Bill Rodgers. 62.
Bonus Birthday: Pearl Jam's lead singer, Eddie Vedder. 45.
Today in Sports: The Pittsburgh Steelers miracle touchdown scored by Franco Harris, known as The Immaculate Reception. (Featured in my best selling kids book, The Greatest Moments in Sports, which comes with a free audio CD of some of the great moments. 1972.
Bonus Event: Relatively speaking, Woody Allen marries Soon-Yi, the adopted daughter of his "domestic partner" Mia Farrow. He's 62, she's 27. You do the math. 1997.
Tomorrow: The Top 5 "Best and Worst of 2009."