Happy Wednesday everyone, here's my Top 5 for January 13, 2010 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
* Jose Canseco says Mark McGwire is the one who's lying. (See # 2)
* You go Goose! Hall of Fame reliever Goose Gossage says the steroid cheats should be banned from Cooperstown.
* The Florida Marlins have agreed with the players union to increase team payroll. Why? They spent only $37 million and finished 6 games out of first. The Mets spent $136 million and finished 23 behind.
* Lane Kiffin bails out on Tennessee after one season to be the new football coach at USC. His short tenure was marked by NCAA violations and arrests of his players. Can you say just another carpetbagging coach?
2. Jose Can you Lie?
He's at it again. Jose Canseco is bristling at suggestions by Mark McGwire that he, Canseco, is lying. Canseco wrote in his book, Juiced, that he and McGwire injected each other with steroids. McGwire says it never happened. Canseco says he passed a lie detector test on the issue. Most fans dismissed Canseco as a quack when he wrote his book. Now he seems to be the pillar of truth when it comes to roids. Is this a wacky sports world or what?
3. I'm Here to Talk about the Past
So here's my question. Lets take Mark McGwire at face value. The steroids didn't help him hit home runs, they just helped him heal faster. Well, isn't that performance enhancing? You can actually make the argument that all medical treatment is performance enhancing. Steroids are a legal medical treatment for all sorts of problems. So, where do you draw the line? Well I guess obtaining steroids illegally is one place to start. Then there's this little pesky thing called "side effects." Yes, Mark, you have to have excellent eye/hand coordination to hit homers. But cortisone shots and other "legal" remedies don't turn warning track power into tape-measure blasts. Want to rethink your defense?
4.Tabloid Wars U.K. Style
Its a battle royal in London among the speculating tabloids. The News of the World reports that Tiger Woods will stay away from golf until 2012. The rival Guardian quotes his former coach Butch Harmon as saying he'll return in March. While the Mirror reports he'll be back for the Masters and that he'll make a "grovelling mea culpa speech in which Woods will admit to his affairs in front of TV cameras." I lean towards the Guardian and the Mirror. I thought from the start that since Tiger is so "majors-obsessed," that he would return for the Masters. I'm not sure about the grovelling part. A simple, "I messed up, I'm trying to do better," will suffice.
5. Wedding Bells
Rumor has it that Derek Jeter is getting married on Long Island this November 5th. The World Series is scheduled to end November 4th. Hmmm... a coupla of postponed games... and I'm wondering how amenable the florist and caterer will be to a rain delay? Instead of an aisle will they walk down a tarp? Will they exchange World Series rings? One Top 5 subscriber asked if A-Rod will be the best man? (No!) Another asked if the World Series lasts too long, when will the rehearsal dinner be? The bachelor party? I think some of you have too much time on your hands. Which for my Top 5 community is a good thing .
Happy Birthday: Was he better known for making a bare-handed catch in left field for the Giants, or for supposedly forgetting to wear his cup during his 10th inning at bat in game 6 of the 1986 World Series with the Mets? Kevin Mitchell. 48.
Bonus Birthday: Dr. McDreamy, actor Patrick Dempsey. 44.
Today in Sports: Golfer of the Year Arnold Palmer scores a 12 on the 18th hole at the Los Angeles Open. Asked how he scored a 12, Arnie answered, "I missed my putt for an 11." 1961.
Bonus Event: Wham-O came out with the Pluto Platter. They changed the name of their flying plastic thing the following year to Frisbee. 1957.