July 30, 2019; Anaheim, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (27) following the first inning against the Detroit Tigers at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Mike Trout is a diehard Philadelphia Eagles fan. He grew up fairly close to the city and has even been seen at their games. So when he got the chance to sign a bat for a Dallas Cowboys star, he made sure to include a message on the Eagles’ behalf.
Trout met Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons on Wednesday while the Los Angeles Angels were visiting the Texas Rangers. Trout even hooked Parsons up with a game-used bat and posed for a picture. Parsons shared that picture and added he was going to try to convert Trout to Cowboys fandom.
@MikeTrout he told he is a eagle guy!! But I told him the cowboys nation would turn him over!!! He gifted me and sick back after he cranked his 10th homer!! All good tho we even now!! pic.twitter.com/vahSIUIsAl
Jan 4, 2022; New York, New York, USA; Executive Chairman and CEO of Madison Square Garden, James Dolan, walks off the court after the New York Knicks defeated the Indiana Pacers 104-94 at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
The New York Knicks’ latest hire might come as a shocking one to some of their old-school fans.
Marc Berman of the New York Post reported on Thursday that the Knicks hired retired former All-Star Tim Hardaway to be a scout. While the team never officially announced the hiring, Hardaway has been interviewing prospects for the Knicks at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago.
Hardaway, now 55, was one of the Knicks’ biggest rivals during his playing career. He was a member of the Miami Heat at the peak of the Heat-Knicks rivalry back in the 1990s. Hardaway is also infamous among Knicks fans for his 38-point performance in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 1997 to help eliminate the Knicks from the playoffs.
Aug 20, 2021; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Football Team quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) talks to fans while leaving the field after the Washington Football Team’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Tom Brady does not lose often, and the quarterbacks that beat them might want to relish the moment. In a certain sense, that happened for journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick when he first beat Brady.
Fitzpatrick recently appeared on ESPN’s “America’s Caddie,” where he was asked his favorite NFL memory. That prompted him to relay a story about the first time he beat Brady, then got snubbed on the postgame handshake.
“Beating Tom Brady, after the first time, because after the first time he didn’t shake my hand,” Fitzpatrick said, via Cork Gaines of Insider. “I was on the Jets [for the second win, four years later], and I had to chase him down on the 50-yard line.
“Apparently, he hates losing more than everybody else hates losing. When he does lose, I want a handshake.”
November 23, 2018; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Turner Sports sportscaster Charles Barkley before The Match: Tiger vs Phil golf match at Shadow Creek Golf Course. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Charles Barkley once memorably said that he was not a role model, and that still rings true some three decades later.
The retired basketball great cursed out some fans who were bothering him while he was on the set of TNT’s “Inside the NBA” on Wednesday. Filming took place outside Chase Center in San Francisco, where the Golden State Warriors played the Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. Barkley kept getting heckled by the fans and turned to address them.
“If you don’t leave me alone, I’ll come to your house and f— your mama,” said an annoyed Barkley.
Take a look at the viral video (but obviously beware of the bad language).
Whatever the case, the Warriors fans got the last laugh since their team won on Wednesday by the one-sided final of 112-87. As for Barkley, his response here was actually pretty tame compared to what he has suggested before for how to handle obnoxious fans.
Aug 28, 2021; Houston, Texas, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) jogs off the field after a game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Tom Brady will take on the role of lead NFL analyst for FOX Sports once he retires. Until then, a former Pro Bowler will handle those duties.
FOX has agreed to a deal with longtime Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen to serve as lead analyst until Brady retires, according to Andrew Marchand of the New York Post. Olsen will be paired with lead play-by-play man Kevin Burkhardt, and the two will also call the Super Bowl together next February.
Olsen always seemed to be the favorite for the role. He and Burkhardt were paired together as the No. 2 broadcast team for FOX last season and received positive reviews. In fact, Olsen was reportedly given a long look for the full-time No. 1 role before FOX agreed to its deal with Brady.
Olsen’s promotion opens up a spot on FOX’s No. 2 team, at least temporarily. There will be plenty of speculation linking another high profile ex-player with that role, in all likelihood.
Sep 18, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers wide receiver Jordan Addison (3) warms up before the game against the Western Michigan Broncos at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
All-American wide receiver Jordan Addison has a new home out west.
Addison announced Thursday that he will transfer from Pitt to USC, where he will play under coach Lincoln Riley. Addison thanked his coaches and teammates at Pitt in a statement, but said he would “continue my full development as a student athlete” with the Trojans.
Addison is a big get for USC. The reigning Biletnikoff winner was an All-American in 2021, he caught 17 touchdowns and tallied 1,593 receiving yards as a sophomore for the Panthers last season. He will have a chance to at least match those numbers in Riley’s high-powered offense with quarterback Caleb Williams throwing to him.
While Addison’s decision is not a big shock, it will definitely sting for Pitt. That’s especially true considering it sounds like the school already had some concerns about what may have gone on between USC and Addison before the wide receiver even entered the portal.
Sep 11, 2021; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
Alabama coach Nick Saban sought to clarify his comments about Texas A&M and NIL rights after a furor erupted over them Thursday.
In a speech Wednesday, Saban had expressed concern about how NIL rules were being enforced, and singled out Texas A&M by claiming they “bought every player on their team.” After a furious response from the Aggies, Saban went on ESPNU Radio to clarify his comments.
Saban said he should not have singled out any schools by name and apologized for that. He reiterated that his remarks were motivated by “concern” for college football and what the current rules will lead to.
Nick Saban with @SXMCollege: "I should have never singled anybody out, and I apologize for that part of it."
Nick Saban on ESPNU Radio: “My concern is college football in general. I think a lot of us are concerned about that. A lot of people are concerned about what’s happening. People really want to understand what’s happening in college football."
Saban also added that he had never actually accused Texas A&M of doing anything illegal.
“I really wasn’t saying that anybody did anything illegal in using name, image and likeness. I didn’t say that,” Saban said, via Mike Rodak of AL.com. “That was something assumed by what I said. That’s not what I meant nor what I said. … There’s nothing illegal about this. Its the system that allows you to do it, and that’s the issue that I have.”
Saban added that he had reached out to Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher to try to clear the air, but never received a response.
Nick Saban says on ESPNU Radio that he reached out to Jimbo Fisher and “never got a response. … I feel bad about it, but I’m not changing my philosophy."
Fisher had issued a fiery response to Saban’s comments earlier Thursday. Fisher worked as an assistant under Saban, but said that he considers their relationship to be over in light of the remarks. We will have to wait and see if he changes his tune now that Saban has at least partly apologized.
Texas A&M is fuming over comments Alabama coach Nick Saban made about the team’s recruiting class, and the school’s athletic director clearly wants the SEC to do something about it.
Saban said in a speech Wednesday that the Aggies “bought every player on their team” by exploiting Name, Image, and Likeness rules. The comments provoked a firm response from Texas A&M Ross Bjork, who accused Saban of violating SEC sportsmanship bylaws by making the remark.
“This is personal. Coach (Jimbo) Fisher views this as a personal attack on his integrity and on Texas A&M’s integrity,” Bjork told Ross Dellenger of SI. “To have personal attacks, to say that the only reason A&M is [recruiting well] is NIL money is wrong. … There are sportsmanship bylaws in the SEC. We believe Coach Saban violated those bylaws.”
Bjork, who accused Saban of feeling “threatened” in making the comments, added that he has been in communication with SEC commissioner Greg Sankey. The athletic director refused to go into specifics about what those conversations entailed.
SEC bylaws prohibit coaches and administrators from “public criticism of other member institutions, their staffs or players.” Of course, Alabama would likely argue that the response to Saban’s comments also constitutes a violation of those bylaws.
Bjork’s comments are not quite as heated as Jimbo Fisher’s were earlier Thursday. They didn’t need to be to convey how angry Texas A&M is, and how personally they view this budding rivalry.
Apr 16, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) before game one of the first round for the 2022 NBA playoffs against the Toronto Raptors at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
The City of Brotherly Love showed plenty of it to Joel Embiid this week … albeit in truly laughable fashion.
Anna Orso of the Philly Inquirer reported on Thursday that the Philadelphia City Council officially passed a resolution naming the 76ers All-Star Embiid MVP … “Most Valuable Philadelphian.”
Embiid famously missed out on the NBA MVP award this season, finishing second to Denver Nuggets counterpart Nikola Jokic. But while this “MVP” honor stands for “Most Valuable Philadelphian,” it could also stand for another very apt description — “most very pathetic.”
It really doesn’t get much more participation trophy-esque and “it’s giving loser vibes” than that. Philadelphia might as well have passed a resolution declaring that the 76ers, who lost in the second round this year, were their own personal NBA champions too.
That is not to take away anything from Embiid, who had a fine season with an NBA-high 30.6 points per game and battled admirably through multiple injuries in the playoffs. But we doubt that this so-called “MVP” award will make Embiid feel too much better, especially with how disappointed he sounded about not winning the real thing.
The New York Mets will be without ace Max Scherzer for quite some time after he left Wednesday night’s start.
The Mets announced Thursday that Scherzer has a significant oblique strain and will be placed on the IL. He may be out for as much as two months as he works his way back from the muscle injury.
Mets announe Scherzer has a moderate to high grade oblique strain and anticipate he will miss 6 to 8 weeks.
The issue flared up in Wednesday’s start against the St. Louis Cardinals. Scherzer is notorious for his toughness, so it was clear something was notably wrong when he asked out of the game himself.
The Mets have had a great start to the season, but this will hurt. Scherzer, the team’s marquee free agent addition, has been as advertised this season. He has paced the staff with a 5-1 record and a 2.54 ERA in eight starts.
