Top 5 Sports Stories

Stephen Strasburg has pitched exactly 5 games. Should he take the All Star spot of somebody who has earned it over half a season? Of course he should. All Star games are exhibition showcases.
This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.

Happy Wednesday everyone, here's my Top 5 for June 30, 2010 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.

1. Quick Hits

* Free agency starts in the NBA tonight at midnight. The Nets and Knicks will reportedly meet with LeBron James tomorrow in Ohio.
* The women's semis at Wimbledon it'll be "Serena and the 3 Whos?" Serena Williams (1) vs. unseeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic and Vera Zvonareva (21) of Russia vs. unseeded Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria.
* In the World Cup, Spain and Paraguay advance. Portugal and Japan go home.
* South Carolina beats UCLA 2-1 in 11 innings to win their first ever College World Series.

2. Rumor Has it

Tonight at midnight, LeBron James becomes a free agent. An unnamed NBA executive says he's going to sign with Chicago. A well known NBA writer, Stephen A. Smith, says it's a done deal in Miami. The New York Post says, of the New York teams, the Nets have the edge. There you have it Knicks fans. Have a great summer.

3. Starry Starry Night

Since sports fans have nothing better to do, why not a debate over whether the kid phenom from Washington should be named to the All Star Team? Stephen Strasburg has pitched exactly 5 games. Should he take the spot of somebody who has earned it over half a season? Of course he should. All Star games are exhibition showcases. So what if they've trumped it up by giving home field in the World Series to the winner. Strasburg is the hottest attraction in baseball. Suit him up!

4. A-Fraud

The all-time home run mark in baseball used to be the most hallowed record in sports. That was before Barry Bonds came along. And now, as Alex Rodriguez stands 6 homers shy of 600, America yawns. As the New York Daily News pointed out yesterday, A-Rod's admission to using performance enhancing drugs is the reason why. In my new kids book, due out in September, The 25 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time, Rodriguez is the only active player chosen by my Blue Ribbon Panel. I was forced to tell kids about his steroid use, and how that is viewed as cheating. Rodriguez and Bonds may have the numbers, but Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth have our respect.

5. Running Out of Limbs

New Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson has a San Diego Chargers tattoo on one calf, with the years 2001-2010. Now that he's joined the Jets, he has inked a Jets tattoo on his other calf with 2010-____. We know he'll fill in the second date when he leaves the Jets. The question becomes, if he gets traded, where will the third tattoo go?

Happy Birthday: Boxer Mike Tyson. 44.
Bonus Birthday: Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps. 25.

Today in Sports: Sandy Koufax pitched the first of his 4 career no-hitters. It was against the Mets. In the first inning he struck out 3 batters on 9 pitches. 1962.
Bonus Event: The first Corvette rolled off the assembly line. It sold for $3,250. 1953.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot