Wednesday, 14 November 2012 15:03
The following is a collection of news, notes and outtakes. Just be glad you’re not a Miami Marlins fan. And if you are, sorry.
1. Never thought I’d type these words: Ozzie Guillen is the smartest man in baseball. Not only did he get himself fired as the Marlins manager, he’s still getting paid the last three years of a $10 million contract without having anything to do with that sad sack owner who duped taxpayers into paying for a new ballpark and then got rid of virtually all his team.
2. So Tim Tebow has hooked up with TiVo. Of course he has. The Quote of the week, Tebow Division, is what he said about why he agreed to endorse TiVo: “I like it.”
3. Too bad there won’t be a wedding reception anytime soon for Hope Solo and Jerramy Stevens . . . you could sell tickets to that one.
4. Hello, Tiger, Nick Faldo has a message for you: He doesn’t think you’re going to break Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major titles. Tiger, you may need something a little more substantial than that if you need to get fired up.
5. In the final Nielsen ratings from last week, the most-watched cable TV program was the Eagles-Saints on ESPN with 12.9 million and the most-watched network TV program was the Texans-Bears on NBC with 20.9 million. (Program note: The fifth most-watched cable program was ‘Walking Dead,’ which is also next season’s new nickname of the Miami Marlins.)
6. The NBA projects a record $5 billion in revenue this season, a 20 percent increase over two years ago, which was the last time a full season of games were played.
7. NHL Lockout Day 60 Update: Nothing.
8. Quote of the Week, NFL Division, from Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, commenting on whether Byron Leftwich (who hasn’t started a game in four years) is going to start at quarterback Sunday against the Ravens for the injured Ben Roethlisberger: “Excuses are tools of the incompetent.” (It’s from a poem believed to originate in the ‘Farmers Almanac’).
9. In Sarasota, Fla., a judge threw out a case against a man arrested on theft charges, accused of re-charging his cell phone at a picnic shelter.
(19th hole: And a happy 64th birthday to Prince Charles. Try to have a good time.)