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Officer Shaq:
If I was a criminal and I was arrested by Shaq, I'm
not sure whether I'd try to flee, cower in his huge
presence or ask for an autograph.
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The Lead Item
Two Words For You:
INJURY. REPORT.
The weekly NFL injury report that comes
out Wednesdays is like reading the tea leaves: You
think you see something, but who knows?
What will we find out about the status of
Donovan McNabb?
Likely, confirmation of the report that he suffered a
chest bruise on the opening drive of MNF (via Len P).
Did it affect him? His play spoke for itself, but Andy
Reid said McNabb never said anything about it.
Presumably, if McNabb felt he was compromised
physically, he would have begged out, right? (No?
Maybe afraid of Birds fans questioning his
toughness?)
Here's some hindsight: For the second game in a row,
McNabb gritted through apparent serious injury, played
sub-par and led the Eagles to a loss.
The injury report won't say whether McNabb will sit
out Sunday's game vs. the 49ers. His status is up in
the air, or more appropriately, under-thrown.
The Niners suddenly aren't the joke opponent Eagles
fans probably thought a week ago, but for a
team with nothing less than title aspirations, Philly
should take the long view about McNabb.
If there's even a hint that he's unhealthy, they
should play it safe and keep him out.
The alternative, as seen in Atlanta and Jacksonville,
has been proven to be a loser.
Yankees Clock D-Rays
17 runs?! In their last four losses to
the D-Rays, the Yankees scored a grand total of 16
runs. Apparently, they were saving it for one big
game.
It's just the type of binge to make NYY fans think
that the team has turned a corner vs. Tampa. Back in
June, the Yankees hung 20 on the D-Rays, then
proceeded to lose 4 of the next 5 against
them.
AL wild card watch: The Yankees had better luck
creeping closer to the Red Sox in the East (2.5 GB)
than gaining on the Indians, who beat the A's 5-2 thanks to 7th- and 8th-inning HRs from Ben Broussard (all 5 RBI). Rubber match of the CLE-OAK series is today's must-see.
NL Wild Card
What if it turns out that the NL wild
card was won when Astros P Wandy Rodriguez was called
for touching hand to mouth before a pitch, sending
Juan Pierre to 1B on an automatic fourth ball,
followed by a LoDuca HR to push the Marlins past the
Astros, 4-2?
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CHECK OUT THE QUICKIE EVERY WEEKDAY MORNING! |
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| WHO'S GOT THE MOMENTUM ... |
WNBA Finals: Start tonight with coaches wearing live mics!
Johnny Damon: Shoulder MRI shows no structural damage
Little E: Brings back old crew chief after missing p'offs |
| ... AND WHO'S GOT NO MO' |
Arthur Rhodes: To miss rest of season (family illness)
Justin Zwick: Spotty Ohio St QB benched for Troy Smith
Bellamy Road: Steinbrenner's horse out for year (foot) |
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Bonds Watch
2 AB, Single, 2 BB, 1 K: No
home-run shots, but far more important, his presence
correlated to another one-run Giants win over the
Padres, whose lead in the West is the most tenuous 5
games ever.
With 18 games to play, the Padres are two games
under .500. The novelty-lover in me wants to
see the West won by a team with a sub-.500 record; the
sensationalist wants the Giants to catch them.
(Wait: Can't fans have both?)
Today: Bonds will sit (day game following night
game), so fans will have to see if there's any
residual team enthusiasm with him merely on the
bench.
NCAA vs. Katrina
I admit I'm torn about the NCAA's
decision to reaffirm that any Katrina-related hoops or
football transfers must sit out a year.
On the one hand, it's heartless, because it's not like
these kids are getting the college experience
(athletic or otherwise) they signed up for.
On the other, Myles Brand is appropriate to assume
that excusing the players from the usual transfer rule
would lead to "athletic looting" that could dismantle
affected programs for a decade or more.
If nothing else, it highlights yet another side of the
ambiguous short- and long-term futures of
athletes affected by Katrina.
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NHL Camping Starts
But is anyone watching? Oh, sure,
there's some intrigue about Gretzky's return, but he's
a coach.
This is when the league has to quickly establish its
re-commitment to making hockey the most fan-friendly
product in sports.
Let the fans watch. Access to players. Strategy
tutorials. Introduce them to new players with a "Hi,
I'm ..." campaign. And two words: Free. Stuff.
More Roberts Hearings
Biden expands sports analogy!
Yesterday, I applauded how Supreme Court nominee John
Roberts used a baseball analogy in his opening
statement about judges as umpires.
In the day's hearings, Senator Joe Biden (D-Del)
tweaked it: He noted that baseball umps call balls and
strikes, but can't change the rule that the strike
zone is chest to knees -- but that judges
can.
Which baseball twist will the hearings take today?
Someone's gotta bust out the sabermetrics! How about a
pick for the AL wild card?
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Larry Johnson:
Chiefs backup RB (and trendy FFL player) arrested for
hitting his girlfriend, giving new meaning to the
popular fantasy-draft phrase "handcuff pick."
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Today on ESPN.com
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| Quickie: Live! |
| Page 2 Index |
| Power 16 |
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| NFL Week 2 QB Drama |  Brooks vs. NYG
| Saints at "home" in NY
|  McNabb vs. SF
| Will he play?
|  Culpepper vs. CIN
| Was Week 1 an anomaly?
|  Leftwich vs. IND
| Jags QB making Leap
|  Frerotte vs. NYJ
| | Can't believe I wrote that |
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Chris Carpenter blows a 4-run lead to get a
no-decision. Has Dontrelle Willis pulled even in the
NL Cy Young chase?
More NFL QBs: Kyle Boller is out at least a week, so
let's all give a warm welcome back to Kordell Stewart,
who will back up Anthony Wright.
CFB Watch: Okla RB Adrian Peterson was suspended from
practice Monday (academics). Might not start. Ooh:
What does that mean, a few plays?
Dwight Gooden pleads "not guilty" to fleeing an
officer and reckless driving. So where are the "Free
Dr. K!" T-shirts? Anyone? No one? (Hear you.)
Where will the Hornets play? Leaning toward B.R. or
Okla City (via NO T-P). But don't expect the national
sympathy that the Saints are getting.
Don't forget to make your picks for the Quickie's
Pigskin Pick 'Em (NFL), College Pick 'Em and NFL
Eliminator pools. (For me: EliminatED.)
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