Happy Wednesday everyone, here's my Top 5 for May 26, 2010 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
* The Meadowlands will host the 2014 Super Bowl. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, apparently overcome with giddiness, predicted the Giants will play the Jets. The tooth fairy will handle the opening toss.
* The Suns and Lakers are now tied at 2 games apiece after Phoenix wins game 4, 115-106. Even though Phoenix might win the series, President Obama picks the Lakers to beat the Celtics in the NBA finals.
* Venus Williams easily advanced to the 3rd round of the French Open. She wore the same "lingerie dress" that she wore in her first round match. Presumably she had it washed between matches.
2. XLVIII
They will stage the first outdoor cold weather Super Bowl in the New Meadowlands Stadium in 2014. Subscriber Steve C. asks a good question on Facebook at "Len Berman's Top 5." He wonders what would happen if a major blizzard rolls in? Would they postpone the game? Play it with few fans in the stands? The truth is, this has little to do with the fans. The fans of the two teams in the game (assuming the Mayor is wrong and Giants and Jets don't make it), will spend several late January or early February days in New York/New Jersey. Yup, prime time for tourists indeed. Truthfully, this may be about naming rights for the new stadium. The Giants and Jets now have a better chance to cash in. More money to pour into the owners pockets. I'm sure that's why those people in Times Square were so excited about the announcement yesterday.
3. Who Cares?
Yesterday I talked about the "numbing down of America." Sports fans are so over-loaded or fed up with sports drug talk, they don't seem to care anymore. Here's a fabulous counter to that from a TV sports producer friend of mine. "Although many couldn't care less about the use of drugs in sports, it seems very important to send the message to young people that cheating, short cuts and the use of dangerous and illegal drugs are not acceptable and do have ramifications. Looking the other way doesn't seem a fitting answer. In our biz, we have to keep reporting and disregard that many people don't care."
Spot on.
4. Pet Peeve
This one's at the top of my list. If I were commissioner for a day, only winning teams would make the playoffs. Sorry Philadelphia Flyers. They'll be competing for Lord Stanley's Cup despite winning 41 of their 82 games. They weren't winners, so in my world they'd be out. But hey, everyone makes the playoffs (except the Rangers) right? At least these Flyers were better than the 1938 Chicago Blackhawks. They won the Stanley Cup despite winning only 14 of their 48 regular season games. They charged into the post season with a sterling winning percentage of .250.
5. Police Blotter
Former Yankee pitcher Hideki Irabu was arrested outside L.A.. Irabu is the pitcher who was famously called a fat toad by George Steinbrenner. He was charged with drunk driving, or as it was listed on the police report, Mr. Toad's wild ride.
Happy Birthday: Sportscaster Brent Musburger. 71.
Bonus Birthday: Grammy winner Lenny Kravitz. 46.
Today in Sports: Harvey Haddix of Pittsburgh throws a 12 inning perfect game but loses 1-0 to Milwaukee in the 13th inning. 1959.
Bonus Event: The first intercollegiate bicycle race is held in Manhattan Beach, N.Y. A wheely big deal. 1896.