Rumors for April, 2010
Manny sent home to avoid New York media circus
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Dodgers manager Joe Torre has sent Manny Ramirez home to Los Angeles to avoid the media circus that will likely surround the slugger during the team’s three-game set with the Mets next week.
Torre said it did not make sense to keep Ramirez with the team especially in New York “where it would be a little bit of a circus.”
Ramirez was placed on the 15-day disabled list for a strained calf and could not play in the series against the Mets, however injured players tend to travel with the team to continue working out and stay under team supervision.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this article.
Roy Oswalt returns to Mississippi to help parents after tornado
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Houston Astros pitcher Roy Oswalt has left the team to return to his native Mississippi to help his parents recover from damage caused by a tornado.
The Astros have said Oswalts’ parents, Billy and Jean, were not injured, and the pitcher will return to the team by Tuesday. He is not scheduled to pitch until next Thursday.
“He just wants to make sure everything is all right,” Wade said. “I told him to do whatever he needed to do. They lived in the house for over 40 years. He’s got a ranch that’s about 30 minutes away [in Kosciusko] that his parents can stay at, but 40 years worth of keepsakes and things like that, I’m sure it’s really tough on his family.”
The tornado moved across three Mississippi counties, killing two people and injuring several others.
Information from the Associated Press was used for this article.
Octavio Dotel's Porsche makes his 7+ ERA disappear
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Can’t cope with a 7+ ERA and having to play with the Pirates? Buy a Porsche – it’ll make all your troubles go away.
Check out Octavio Dotel’s four-door Porsche Panamera all decked out by Miami’s MCA Custom. Jalopnik says the car includes smoked taillights, edged headlights and 22-ince Vellano three-piece wheels with a black-and-white pattern.
We’re not sure which Panamera model this is, but if it is turbo, it only set Dotel back about $133,000 before mods. For a guy that taken home over $28 million in his career, he probably considers it his beater.
Red Sox acquire OF Jonathan Van Every from Pirates
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According to MSNBC the Boston Red Sox have acquired outfielder Jonathan Van Every from the Pittsburgh Pirates for a player to be named later.
Van Every played with the Red Sox in 2008 and 2009. He is a career .286/.355/.464 hitter in 18 career games with the Red Sox. You can see Van Every’s statistics here.
John Smoltz to face-off against Tom Glavine
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No, your vision isn’t playing tricks on you. The two are not facing off on the baseball field.
David O’Brien of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution tells us that the former Atlanta Braves teammates John Smoltz and Tom Glavine will go against each other on the golf course in front of several television cameras.
The two pitchers will play a match on the season-finale of the Golf Channel series Donald J. Trump’s Fabulous World of Golf. All winnings will go to charity and all bragging rights will go to the victor.
“We will make it fun,” Smoltz said Thursday. “You always want to do your best. If you can play your best and have fun and raise some money for charity, it’s worth it.”
“I’m sure he will kill me,” Glavine told the AJC in a text message. “I’m just going to try and be competitive and give him a good match.”
After this event, Smoltz will attempt to qualify for the US. Open by attending a local qualifier at the beginning of May. Smoltz has a 1.5 handicap.
With his gig on Peachtree TV and his golfing scheduling, Smoltz just needs to make his retirement official.
The Dodgers Fashion police get to Rihanna
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Alyssa Milano, founder of Touch, a female sports apparel line, wants to see Rihanna dressed in clothing from her collection.
“The other day I saw Rihanna in the stands in some Dodgers hoodie that I wasn’t a fan of,” Alyssa told In Touch.
“I just called my publicist and said, ‘You guys gotta send Rihanna some stuff!’ So she’ll be getting a good package.”
Rihanna has been dating Dodgers star Matt Kemp, so she’ll need to start dressing up in the Dodger blue. Rihanna recently attended the Dodgers home opener and was pictured cheering on her boyfriend.
Milano, who once dated Barry Zito and Brad Penny, adds a little bit of advice to Rihanna on dating an MLB player, “The best advice I could give anyone is to never forget that laughter can pretty much heal everything. I am a big Matt Kemp fan. I love him!”
Meet Monster99 – the barber of Major League Baseball
Posted by: | CommentsHere’s the resume of Angel Lucas Pena, aka Monster99 aka the barber of Major League Baseball:
Fade: Prince Fielder, Francisco Rodriguez, Alex Rodriguez, Felix Hernandez, Alfonso Soriano, Aramis Ramirez.
Wave: Hanley Ramirez and Adam Jones
Mohawk: B.J. Upton, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Russell Martin
Edge-up: Elvis Andrus, Miguel Cabrera, Manny Ramirez and Jose Reyes
Skinned: Kelvim Escobar
One inch: Tim Lincecum
No. 1: Matt Kemp, Curtis Granderson, Justin Upton, Dustin Pedroia, Milton Bradley and Miguel Tejada
No. 1 and 1/2 on side: Ryan Howard and Carl Crawford
No. 2: C.C. Sabathia and Robinson Cano (with blowout on side), Nelson Cruz, Gary Sheffield and David Ortiz
No. 3: Jonathan Papelbon and Francisco Rodriguez ( fade on side).
No. 4: Kevin Youkilis (goatee only)
No. 5: Carlos Pena, Ryan Braun and Jacoby Ellsbury
No. 6: Cliff Lee
According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Pena got his start in 2006 during the World Baseball Classic. He hooked up with the team from the Dominican Republic and started giving hair cuts to stars like Francisco Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano and David Ortiz and before he knew it he was on the speed dial of all the big baseball players.
He’ll usually meet players when they’re in Boston, but he’s been known to give haircuts anywhere. Milton Bradley flew Pena out to Seattle recently from Boston to give him a cut. He trimmed Tim Lincecum’s hair in a car in San Francisco. He styled Francisco Rodriguez’s hair aboard a boat in Miami and did Diasuke Matsuzak’s hair in Japan.
One unknown fact was the origin of Manny Ramirez’s #99. Pena was building a collection of jerseys with “99″ on the back so whenever he was cutting a player’s hair he would wear the matching jersey. He inspired Ramirez to wear the #99 when he was traded to the Dodgers in 2008 and none of his preferred numbers were available.
Nightengale says that Pena has a dream of having his own barbershop one day, but for now, he’ll go by his motto of “anyone, anytime, anyplace.”
Dallas Braden – welcome to A-Rods privileged world
Posted by: | Comments5/10 02:30: If you’re looking for video and information for Dallas Braden’s perfect game, you can check it out here:
4/24 00:12: According to Joe Stiglich of the San Jose Mercury News, a teammate of Braden posted a 2009 New York Post headline above Braden’s locker that read “A-Hole”, a reference to Rodriguez’s steroid controversy.
When reporters asked Braden if he believed Rodriguez’s claim that he didn’t realize that he broke baseball etiquette, Braden said,
“That’s what you’re supposed to do when you know you’ve made an error in judgment and you really don’t want to own up to it immediately,” Braden said. “He’s an intelligent individual. He knows what happened.”
4/23 12:02: Here’s an updated video:
4/22 19:07: When you make over $25 million a year or hit 500+ home runs, you tend to get your way more times than not. Just ask New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez.
However, if you told that to A’s pitcher Dallas Braden, none of that would matter. His only rule is – don’t cross my mound!
According to Jane Lee of MLB.com it’s an unwritten rule in baseball to cross another pitcher’s mound, but A-Rod did that after he rounded third on a foul ball. (For the record, I was not aware of this unwritten rule.)
What resulted was a little shouting match between two. Check it out here:
No punches or balls were thrown at either team as a result of the mishap. Rather the two do what rich baseball players do – argue through the media.
“After the double play, he was looking at me and [cupped] his ear like, ‘What did you say?’” Braden explained. “I made sure he understood me.
“He should probably take a note from his captain over there and realize you don’t cross the pitcher’s mound in between an inning or during the game. I was just dumbfounded that he would let that slip his mind — being someone of such status.”
“He just told me to get off his mound,” Rodriguez said. “That was a little surprising. I’d never quite heard that, especially from a guy that has a handful of wins in his career.”
Rodriguez added, “I didn’t even know he was talking to me. I’ve never heard of that in my career. I still don’t know. I thought it was pretty funny, actually.”
“I don’t go over there and run laps at third base,” Braden said. “I don’t spit over there. I stay away. He ran across the pitcher’s mound, foot on my rubber. No. Not flying.”
The A’s and Yankees meet just before the All-Star Game in July, so we’ll see if this rivalry continues.
PRO Rumors: Chris Snyder, Heath Bell, Pinstripes Bowl, Nick Punto, Pierzynski, Guillen
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Here are your end of the week PRO Rumors:
- Peter Gammons (during an interview with WEEI) says Red Sox may not want to take on Arizona’s Chris Snyder and his $5 million contract. There were rumors that Snyder could be traded to the Red Sox. Gammons adds that Wilson Ramos of the Minnesota Twins may be the best catcher in the Minor Leagues that could be traded.
- According to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com, the Twins had what they viewed as a workable deal to acquire Padres closer Heath Bell, but veered away because they were nervous over character issues.
- The NCAA has approved the New Era Pinstripe Bowl to take place on December 30 at Yankee Stadium. It will match up the No. 3 team in the Big East and the No. 6 team in the Big 12. (Rivals.com)
- Kelly Thesier tweets that Nick Punto will go on the disabled list. Luke Hughes will get called up to take Punto’s place on the roster.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports says he doesn’t see Chicago White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski as a good fit for the Red Sox.
- Lynn Henning of The Detroit News says the Tigers have called up Brennan Boesch to take the place of injured Carlos Guillen.
Kevin Kennedy thwarts terror plot on airplane
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According to CNNSI.com, former Major League manager and current Tampa Bay Rays broadcaster, Kevin Kennedy, was among a group of eight men who subdued Dwayne Sheffield, 46, who threatened to blow up an airplane.
The terror suspect sprayed the first-class cabin with a water bottle, tried to open a cabin door and threatened to blow up the plane.
“When he started threatening bombs it was for real. I knew it was anyway,” Kennedy said before Tampa Bay faced Toronto on Friday night. “We all kind of looked at him. The guy next to me, he was saying ‘Hey buddy, let’s calm down here.’ We tried to talk him down but it wasn’t happening. It was actually getting worse.”
Delta flight 2148 was flying from Los Angeles to Florida, but was diverted to Albuquerque.
“There were seven other guys,” Kennedy said. “A couple of young guys got there first. One kid flew up the aisle. We all were there. Probably four or five (guys) getting him down and the other guys helping. Eight in all.
Sheffield was charged with interference with flight crew members and destruction of aircraft. The FBI do not believe the incident was related to terrorism.
Kennedy, 55, managed the Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox in the mid-90’s. He may be best remembered for his time from 1999-2008 with Fox with co-host Jeanne Zelasko. He is currently a part-time television analyst for the Rays.
