From the House of Sports - June 18

Does The Punishment Fit The Crime?

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and was sentenced yesterday in Florida to one month in jail. Before you go ballistic over what initially appears to be a slap-on-the-wrist miscarriage of justice, let’s take a closer look. Stallworth was also sentenced to two years’ house arrest, eight years’ probation, loss of his drivers license for life, 1,000 hours of community service and an undisclosed financial settlement with the family of the man he killed, Mario Reyes. Let’s be honest here: what good would be served by locking up Stallworth for five or ten years? At least he remained at the scene of the crime when countless others would have fled, he took responsibility and admitted his guilt, and has agreed to the Reyes family’s desire to avoid a protracted legal proceeding. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Rundle emphatically stated, “He is being punished appropriately. This is what the family wanted.” Even a representative for Mothers Against Drunk Driving said the deal was the best outcome. “I think there are a lot of kids as well as adults who will listen to his message,” said Miami-Dade MADD Director Janet Mondshein. “I think he’ll do more good being out of jail and being active in prevention.” Now Stallworth must await further punishment from the NFL, usually meted out in the form of game suspensions.

Tiger Time

A fully recovered Tiger Woods can make history by winning this week’s U.S. Open in Farmingdale, NY. Playing on a course that will include THREE par-4 holes of 500 yards or more for the first time ever, Woods will try to become the first man since Curtis Strange in 1988-89 to win back-to-back Opens. Already the owner of a whopping 14 Major championships at age 33, Tiger modestly summed up the possibility of taking home the 109th Open trophy by saying, “I like my chances in any Major.”

Someone Finally Said It FINALLY!

A professional tennis coach has spoken out on an aspect of the game that we’ve felt needed to be addressed for quite some time. Nick Bollettieri believes some sort of action should be taken against touring players who GRUNT loudly during matches! “There is a need for some sort of regulation,” declared Bollettieri. “Players on both the men’s and women’s tours grunt. Something eventually needs to be done.” We couldn’t agree more, Nick. In fact, we’d like to see Maria Sharapova and other main offenders play a match with their mouths taped shut so they can’t bellow like farm animals on every serve and shot.

NBA Wipeout

No surprise here. The five NBA Finals games just shown on ABC between the Lakers and Magic recorded a viewer loss of 10% compared to last season’s matchup between the Lakers and Celtics. May not sound like much to the average Joe but to the NBA, ABC and the game advertisers, the dropoff was HUGE.

Danica, Danica...

Here’s the most interesting news we’ve heard in awhile. Even though she says she won’t make an announcement about her future in racing until after the current IndyCar Series season ends in October, Danica Patrick is supposedly gathering info about a possible switch to NASCAR! Although many Sprint Cup drivers have dismissed Patrick’s abilities with comments like, “You’ve got to DRIVE these cars, not just point ‘em straight ahead,” the fact is NASCAR is struggling in a major way this year and the addition of a mega-star like Patrick would give stock car racing a desperately needed boost in 2010.

Thoughts from the House of Sports.com.

Thoughts and Opinions from HOS

So Long To A Class Act

NBA Hall of Famer Chuck Daly, who coached the Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships with the Detroit Pistons, died over the weekend at the age of 78. Perhaps more than any other professional basketball coach, Daly was able to transform a group of marginally talented players with wildly divergent personalities into a cohesive, motivated unit (remember Bill Laimbeer and Dennis Rodman?). Daly took over the Pistons in 1983 and led them to nine consecutive winning seasons. After leaving Detroit, he coached New Jersey and Vancouver before retiring in 1998. A snappy dresser, Daly will forever be remembered by the nickname Daddy Rich, bestowed upon him by Piston John Salley in honor of Daly’s penchant for impeccably tailored suits. Here’s to you, Chuck...

What’s In A Name?

This year’s ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ – the final player chosen in the NFL Draft – has been saddled all his life with a name that sounds like a vulgar insult. So when he appeared before the Kansas City media during a rookie minicamp on Saturday, he was ready for question No. 1. Your last name — uh, exactly how is it pronounced? “It’s ‘suck-up,’, believe it or not,” Ryan Succop said with a big, good-natured grin. When the room fell silent, he looked around and grinned again. “I’ve heard them all,” he said. “If you come up with something new, I’ll be impressed.” Succop failed to mention that he was teammates on last year’s South Carolina Gamecocks team with QB Chris Smelley.

Not So Fast, My Friends

With an injured Yao Ming on the bench for Sunday’s LA Lakers - Houston Rockets NBA Playoff game, the wagering public knew the Rockets had no chance to win and bet accordingly. WRONG! The line closed with Houston a whopping 8-point underdog and the home team never needed the points, cruising to a 99-87 upset that evened their Western Conference semifinal at two games apiece. Houston’s Shane Battier, who sank five 3-pointers while adding 23 points, said it best: “I think everyone but us got the memo that we weren’t supposed to show up without Yao.” The Lakers Kobe Bryant was held to a mere 15 points in the loss and the series now shifts back to LA where the home team has been installed as 12-point chalk in tomorrow night’s contest.

Horning In On The Action

Obviously distressed by all the attention given to Manny Ramirez’ recent drug-related suspension, NASCAR’s Jeremy Mayfield proved that the stock car boys can fail a random drug test just as easily as Major League Baseball players. Mayfield tested positive for a banned substance last weekend at Richmond International Raceway and has been suspended indefinitely by the sport’s ruling body. One thing is for sure: the substance could NOT have been performance-enhancing. Mayfield is currently mired in 44th spot in the 2009 Sprint Cup points standings, 1153 points behind leader Jeff Gordon.

Quote of the Week

Miami Herald columnist Greg Cote, arguing that QB Michael Vick should be reinstated in the NFL:“Ever hear of Leonard Little? The veteran St. Louis Rams defensive end once killed a woman while driving drunk. He was playing in a Super Bowl 16 months later. It was not to be his last DUI episode, either. He’s still in the league. But Vick can’t be? I’m sorry, anamalitos, but what Little did to that woman’s family is worse that what Vick did. By a lot. ”

Infomation from the House of Sports.

Time to Chime In

King James Rules

Unstoppable at both ends of the court this season, LeBron James captured the NBA’s MVP trophy, the first Cleveland Cavaliers player to win the award. James received 109 of a possible 121 votes, easily outdistancing L.A.’s Kobe Bryant. “I’m 24 years old,” said LeBron. “To be up here and win this MVP award, I never thought it would happen this fast.” James, who averaged 28.8 PPG during the regular season, celebrated by leading his team to a 99-72 destruction of Atlanta last night in the opening game of the Cavs’ semifinal series against the Hawks.

Triple Crown Time?

It’s official. Mine That Bird was proclaimed ready for the Preakness Stakes following his startling victory as a 50-1 longshot in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby. Trainer Benny Woolley Jr. said the horse will remain at Churchill Downs until May 12 before being sent to Baltimore. Mine That Bird won the Derby by 6 3/4 lengths – the largest margin since Assault way back in 1946. Jockey Calvin Borel, who rode MTB to the stunning upset, won the Captain Obvious Award for the week by saying, “He’s plenty of horse.”

Say It Isn’t So!

We begged... we pleaded... but somehow it just wasn’t enough. Yes, if you thought NFL QB Brett Favre was actually going to stay retired this time, well... guess again. Favre, who did enormous damage to his legacy by holding the Green Bay Packers hostage last summer before being traded to the Jets for a single season, had apparently come to grips with reality and announced he was calling it quits last week. However, ESPN reported that an “anonymous source” says Favre is scheduled to meet with Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress about a possible comeback (insert your own joke here).

Dodgers On The Brink

A 3-1 win over Arizona last night gave the LA Dodgers their 12th consecutive victory at home to start a season, matching the modern-day record of Ty Cobb’s 1911 Detroit Tigers. It was the Dodgers’ sixth consecutive win overall and pushed their record to a league-best 20-8. Joe Torre’s crew looks to be a lock to break that record tonight when they host the woeful Washington Nationals at Chavez Ravine. Las Vegas agrees, installing the homeboys as a 2-1 favorite.

MLB News

Four weeks are now in the books in Major League Baseball and that means we’ve got enough data to give some consideration to developing stats and trends so far this season. That said, let’s get to work with some “news you can use” on the diamonds!

1) Los Angeles Dodgers are 12-0 at home. Remember, when you simply play on a streak until it loses you only lose once. That’s a low-risk, high reward strategy!

2) Boston is 10-2 at home this season and they were one of the league’s best at home last season, too!

3) Philadelphia is 8-2 on the road this season. When you play a team on the road you’re able to get better line value and the Phillies have certainly been rewarding their backers away from home so far this season.

4) San Francisco is 3-8 on the road. They’re solid at home but the Giants are burning money away from the Bay this season!

5) Baltimore is 3-9 on the road. Only a game under .500 at home but take them out of Camden Yards and the Orioles have struggled!

6) Washington is just 2-10 on the road. With the worst record in MLB, the Nationals are just plain bad all around but they’ve proven especially weak on the road.

7) Right is Wrong: Six teams are already at least four games under .500 against right-handed starters. They are Atlanta, San Diego, Houston, Cleveland, Baltimore, and Washington.

8) Lefty is Right by Us: The Dodgers, Mariners, and Phillies all have played at least six games against a left-handed starter and yet they each have just one loss against a southpaw.

9) Hit the Lights please: Eight teams have at least six losses coupled with no more than three wins in day games. Those who disappoint under the sun are: Minnesota, Atlanta, San Diego, New York Mets, Tampa Bay, Oakland, Baltimore, and Washington.

10) We’ll take the Night Shift: The Dodgers, Cardinals, and Royals are the only three teams that have won at least two-thirds of their night games... that’s making some serious money under the lights!

This is courtesy of the House of Sports.

New Feature at 3Daily Winners

NFL Rookie Salary Insanity

SOMETHING needs to be done pretty soon about the ridiculous amounts of money going to the top NFL draft picks. Why? Because right now new Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford, who hasn’t thrown a pass in the NFL, makes more money than three-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady! The rookie salary scale needs to be capped or at least restructured where picks are slotted into established salaries and first-rounders don’t make more than established stars. Here’s the problem: The players getting hurt most are the lower-round draft choices and the veterans who become salary cap casualties later on in their careers. If a good portion of the Lions’ dollars are going to Stafford, that means less at the back end for a solid, productive veterans. The way it is now, if a team is wrong on a high, first-round pick, the franchise is doomed for years. If Stafford turns out to be Joey Harrington, the Lions will be hamstrung for years to come — in much the same way as the San Diego Chargers, who were terrible for years after bagging the useless Ryan Leaf. Cap critics complain that in a league with a rookie scale, there’s far less incentive for an athlete to stay in school and improve his stock. Our answer to that argument? Our bologna has a first name and it’s O-S-C-A-R...

Back Up The Van

Brett Favre was released from the reserve-retired list by the New York Jets on Tuesday, making the quarterback a free agent if he decides to AGAIN come out of retirement. The 39-year-old Favre, who spent one disappointing season with New York, had requested the move several weeks ago through agent Bus Cook, but insisted he has no plans to come out of retirement for a 19th season. “Nothing has changed,” Favre said as reporters rolled on the floor in laughter. “At this time, I am retired and have no intention of returning to football.” Also getting the pink slip was Arizona Cardinals RB Edgerrin James, a move that many expected when the Cards used their 1st round draft pick to snare Ohio State RB Chris ‘Beanie’ Wells. Arizona also released CB Rod Hood and DE Travis LaBoy to clear salary cap space in order to sign new deals with linebacker Karlos Dansby and safety Adrian Wilson – and eventually with WR Anquan Boldin (now officially known as ‘The Disgruntled Anquan Boldin’).

Thoughts from the House of Sports.