Chargers likely to be blacked out this weekend, Adrian likely to be shipped out to Boston, and The Answer retires

Well, I was certainly wrong. Here I thought Charger fans were going to head out to the "Q" in force on Sunday now that the team is in control of the AFC West and winning again. Guess not. With less than 24 hours to go and needing to sell 6,000 tickets (on Thanksgiving) to avoid a black out this weekend, it looks like Chargers fans are going to miss out on watching the game at home for the first time since 2003. My friend, Nick Canepa, in his column today wrote a few reasons why they black out was inevitable, but he forgot one of the main points. Right now on eBay, tickets for the game are essentially being given away. Those do not count as part of the 6,000 when they sell. Why in the world would anyone pay the face value and get a nose bleed seat, when they can pay less than half the face value and have a pretty good seat? I don't think a sponsor, or Chad Ochocinco, is going to buy the 6,000 seats and alas, the game, even on DirecTv, will be blacked out. Knock knock, is that the L.A. market calling the Chargers back when Arnold's new stadium is built? I think so.

In other cheery news, trade talks for Adrian Gonzalez are increasing. Knowing that his value may never be higher, our new GM is doing his best to unload our home grown hero and supply us with a bunch of unknowns for essentially a wasted 2010 season. Call it rebuilding if you want, but I call it no interest at all in providing a quality product, thus I think fans should boycott the entire season. Why pay major league prices to see a minor league team?

I have to say, with the news of Allen Iverson retiring; I am a little bit bummed. I don't think the NBA will be the same without him and am shocked that no team was willing to give him a chance. The New Jersey Nets have lost 13 games in a row. Iverson would love to play in the New York market and he couldn't hurt the team. He'll go down in history with Dan Marino, Junior Seau, Karl Malone, Cal Ripken, Jr. and other greats of their sport that never won a championship. We always want those guys to go out like John Elway, but that rarely happens.

Finally, a follow up to the Antonio Cromartie story, he is still being investigated for throwing a bottle of champagne at a patron in the bar that he, Stephen Cooper and Shaun Phillips were at, at 1:15 in the morning following the dominate win over the Broncos . I am still not sure what was said to cause Antonio to toss the bottle, but the picture is pretty gory. In case you haven't see it. Here it is:

http://www.tmz.com/2009/11/23/antonio-cromartie-photo-bloody-nfl-san-diego-chargers-deadly-weapon-assault-nightclub/

I want to wish everyone a happy and safe Thanksgiving. Until next time.

Cromartie has a smashing good time after Chargers win, Adrian trade talks, and the MLS Cup

Okay, so, this is my first "shorter" post, in my attempt to write more a week while keep them smaller and to the point. Let's see how I do.

First of all, can we get some competition, please? The Chargers vs. Broncos game was great on many levels, but lacked any doubt in the outcome. The Chargers are now in first place and look to run away with the AFC West (don't get excited about your wins yesterday Raiders and Chiefs fans…too little too late, although incredible wins). Why the Broncos did not go out and sign Jeff Garcia immediately is beyond me. Anyway, we all know the score (Chargers won 32-3), but it could have been much higher. On too many occasions, drives were stalled and ended in Field Goals. Fantasy football players are not loving the Chargers right now, expect Nate Kaeding. Despite the game being the biggest let down of the weekend in terms of hype, not of final score (the Browns vs. Lions was much more exciting), the Chargers have a lot to be thankful for this week. The running game was balanced yesterday with L.T., Sproles, Hester, and Tolbert all getting in on the action and the game was relatively injury free for the Bolts. Now it's time to pad the lead with a win over the Chiefs this weekend. I am sure the "Q" will be full of Charger fans this Sunday. All the season ticket holders made their money back with the Eagles game last weekend. Now it's time to ask Santa for some money to pay for the playoff package.

The Chargers top 50 players of all time were announced this past weekend:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2009/nov/16/this-chargers-list-rings-true-canepa/

The fans could not have been more right about the selections. As predicted in two previous articles that I wrote for the San Diego Jewish World, Ron Mix and Sid Gillman were obvious choices. You can read those articles by visiting:

http://sandiegojewishworld.com/san-diego-jewish-authors/jewish-authors-seymour.htm

Now onto the, "Why can't we just get a win without any drama" section of the blog. Last night, while celebrating the win in a local San Diego bar, Antonio Cromartie apparently decided that it would be fun to throw a bottle of champagne at someone. That someone suffered a minor cut and now Cromartie is being investigated for assault with a deadly weapon. Cromartie and two other Charger players, unidentified at this stage, were at Bar West in Pacific Beach when the altercation took place at 1:15 am. Why in the world were they out at 1:15 in the morning after a huge game and a flight home from said game? I know they are adults, but given the Chargers past of incidents like this post game, you would think that Norv would highly suggest the team go home from the airport and rest up. The season isn't over yet and to be honest, a 32-3 butt kicking, that's not worth celebrating. The game was a walk over.

Padres news: Adrian Gonzalez's trade value could not be higher right now and the Padres are either going to have to pay the man or he is walking after 2011. So, what will they do? Right now they are discussing trade options with the Mariners, Dodgers (gasp) and the Red Sox. Our new GM will become an instant villain in San Diego if his first move is to cut Edgar Gonzalez and then trade Adrian Gonzalez. And Jeff Moorad wants me to come back next season and support the team.

Finally, did anyone else watch the MLS final last night? I watched from the 90 minute mark and have to say that the shoot out was very exciting. I don't know anything about soccer, but I do think that if the majority of games ended in a shoot out instead of a tie, that they would be much more interesting to watch. Also, David Beckham is now stating that he'd like to own an MLS team after his contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy is up. San Diego would be a big market for MLS, "Hey David, why don't you start an expansion team down here and bring your spicey wife with you."

My goal was 500 words. It's about 700. I tried. Until Wednesday…

Chargers look to dash the hopes of the Donkeys, SDSU looking to steal away USD’s AD, and Enberg the new voice of the Padres?

Well, it's been a couple of weeks. I've been healing up from a little surgery I had. Fine now, but man, there has been a lot going on in San Diego sports while I was recuperating. Also, I am going to try a new tactic for the next couple of weeks. Instead of one massive weekly blog, I am going to break it up into three smaller blogs a week. I hope you enjoy this. Please let me know your thoughts. Anyway, on to my thoughts about what is going on.

First, of course, the Chargers; since I last wrote, the Chargers won an amazing, last second road victory against the Giants and got a pretty decisive home win vs. the Eagles. In both cases, we saw the passing game really come to life. However, the real story has been daddy-to-be, L.T. finding a last gasp and the end zone a few times. While other running backs of his generation are ending up on the dump heap, Shaun Alexander, Edgerrin James, and Larry Johnson to name a couple, L.T. (most likely fueled by the exciting news that he is going to be a first time father), has gone the route that Ricky Williams has in Miami. Each man has shaken off criticism and found themselves; once again, an important factor in their team's offensive. They've got their fear factor back. Yet, I am hopeful that the Chargers will not use and abuse the resurging L.T. Remember, they still have Sproles who can take a lot of the pressure off. If L.T. is going to be a part of the Chargers surge in the playoffs, he'll need to stay healthy. Just because he's showing glimpses of the old L.T. we know and love, the Chargers need to stick to the passing game first, with Floyd (now that freeloading Chris Chambers has been sent to K.C.), Jackson, and Gates while sharing time with Sproles. If they do this, the Donkey's will be left in the dust this weekend.

Another quick note on the Chargers and Eagles game, I was there and the "Q" was packed. However, there was a lot of green in the stands. Is it possible that the Chargers slow starts have to do with the fact that the fans don't show up until the end of the season when they begin to make their run? Qualcomm will be packed in December and January with Charger fans, but September – November, are these the months that we sell our season tickets on eBay, so that we can afford the playoff package in January? Possibly.

Another juicy sports scandal in San Diego is taking place at the SDSU. Disgraced home wrecker, now former Athletic Director, Jeff Schemmel resigned yesterday after, among other things, being caught attempting to get gas and car rental reimbursements for a trip he took to Alabama to see his mistress. Now the school is looking down the 8 to recruit USD's Ky Sndyer to take over the role as the Aztecs main man. SDSU may be able to offer Sndyer a more lucrative deal economically, but the job itself has proven to be a disaster for those who have previous held it. The Toreros are not only keeping up with the big boys at SDSU and UCSD in athletics, but in many cases, surpassing them. Synder's program at USD is a finely tuned machine and it is my hope that he remains. Good luck to the next sucker who takes the job at SDSU.

In positive Padre news, the team is attempting to sign San Diegan, Dick Enberg to become the new voice of the Padres on Cox 4. Enberg's presence would not only bring about a refreshing change, but also a respectability of having one of the greats broadcasting the games, like the Dodgers have. Also, it would be a sign that the new ownership is truly looking to bring the team out of the gutter and create an interest in them again.

Tomorrow, the Lions of the San Diego Jewish Academy will play in their first CIF football playoff game. It will be the first time in history that an all-Jewish 11-man high school football team competes in an American high school playoff. They take on take on Tri-City Christian tomorrow at El Camino High School. Kickoff is at 7:15.

The Chargers are now looking at a possible site next to Petco Park to build a new stadium…if this actually comes up for a vote with the city, get your popcorn and lawn chair ready, the protests will be very entertaining. I hope negotiations with Oceanside reopen. To me, personally, that is the best location. Easy to convince more L.A. and O.C. fans to come down and spend their money while keeping the team in the county.

Shout out to Adrian Gonzalez for winning the NL Gold Glove this season (you can read about Adrian's career through the minor leagues and growing up in both San Diego and Tijuana, in my book…shameless plug). The news must have been a bit bittersweet since the day before, the Padres cut Adrian's older brother Edgar.

A not so cool to Jeremy Tyler, the SDHS basketballer who left high school to play in Israel. Not only is he not playing well, but his coaches are calling him immature and are, for the most part, regretting their decision to sign him. You wanted to go be an adult Jeremy, better start acting like one. Your NBA stock is quickly dropping. When I drive through McDonalds next year, don't forget to give me my sweet and sour sauce.

Finally, what kind of a sports writer would I be if I didn't mention the Bill Belichick call from last weekend's Patriots vs. Colts game? I am thrilled the Patriots lost, but I understand the call and I think, if the Patriots would have got the first down, people would be singing Bill's praises. He is, and it pains me to say this, a great leader and he made a call, that is what leaders do. It did not work out this time, but it has worked out many more times in the past. This will not hurt the Patriots chances to play in the playoffs and there is a chance that the two will meet again than. Can we please drop this now?

As mentioned, I will write the blog three times a week now. I hope you will keep up with me and as always, please let me know your comments and ways you think I can improve this piece. I will post on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

Baseball Bedroom Drama (no not A-Rod’s picture of himself as a Centaur), San Diegan wins NYC Marathon, and the Chargers barely avoiding Blacking Out…again!

First off, I am not feeling so great. I had to have a minor surgery that has actually taken a lot out of me, so this won't be the longest post. However, I will try to give my thoughts on what is going on in the world of San Diego sports to the best of my ability. I am hoping you saw my interview on Channel Six on Monday morning with Marc Bailey. It was a lot of fun and Marc is a class act. What I found a bit humorous is the story that preceded my interview. It had to deal with more Charger fans getting arrested than Raider fans at this weekend's game. That is probably because the game was in risk (yet again) of being blacked out. So, a good number of tickets were purchased by sponsors and given away. When you are not spending any money on the ticket, you have more for beer. That is possibility number one. Also, I am sure the tickets were just given out to basically anyone who wanted to attend. A final thought is that Raider fans are no longer making the trip down the 5 from Oak town to see their team get beat (for a 13^th consecutive time). At some point, even the most die hard, dedicated, Darth Vader mask wearing Raider fan has to realize that it is not worth the cost of gas (or plane ticket), admission, hotel, etc…to come San Diego just to see their team lose to the Chargers…again. Even my Dad who is a long time Raider fan and lives in San Juan Capistrano did not bother to drive the hour down to Qualcomm to see this game. This brings up another topic, look at the upcoming opponents, beyond the Eagles (which should have a good turnout from PETA) the Chargers face the helpless Chiefs (now with Charger throw away Chris Chambers), the Bengals (who are off to a good start, but I am not sure Bengal fans are ready to take the paper bags off their heads just yet), and the Bingo caller led Washington Redskins. Sponsors, get your check books ready, you're going to be buying a lot of Charger tickets this season. By the way, on eBay right now for the Redskins game, the average price for a pair of tickets is $75, that is less than face value for one.

As for the game, I know I have been skewering L.T. lately and I'm going to do it again. Yes, I know he had two touchdowns, but they were pretty much gift wrapped and my 95 year-old great grandmother could have got through those holes. Also, they were playing the Raiders. Let's see how he does this weekend against the Giants defense. Now with Chambers sent to play in KC, the wide receiving core of Floyd, Jackson, and Gates is about as awesome as you can get. All the Chargers need, in my humble opinion, is a running back that can block and help protect Rivers while he airs it out to one of those guys. Every once in a while, toss in Sproles for a run to mix things up, but just let Rivers do what he does and throw the damn ball. Don't bother with any of this "wild frog" crap. Give Rivers time and protection and the Chargers will be back in the wild card hunt (notice I did not say divisional race, because that is not going to happen this season).

I just finished an article for the San Diego Jewish World on Sid Gillman and found an interesting nugget. Gillman was the first head coach when the Chargers were Los Angeles and then moved to San Diego. He was also general manager during his eleven seasons with the team. His record was 87-57-6. Do you realize he still holds the record for most wins as a Charger coach and the highest winning percentage? No one in the team's history, besides Don Coryell even comes close and even Don was 15 wins shy of Gillman's record. The Chargers have had 14 total head coaches only 6 have winning records and 2 of those 6 are Schottenheimer and Turner. I know it is a bit of an aside, but man, the Chargers have had some bad coaching over the years. On to baseball drama…in the bedroom, not the diamond.

Screw the World Series, boring…is it as funny to you as it is to me that both the Dodgers and Padres are going through mirroring, team shattering divorce scandals? Jaime McCourt cheated on Frank (which, I only have met Frank a couple of times, but he is a really great guy) and John Moores cheated on Becky. Even though the details are sensational in both cases, TMZ is only focusing on the Dodgers situation. That could be a good thing for Padres fans. However, the bottom line is, in an effort to pay lawyer fees and such, John Moores had to sell a major portion of the Padres and it is possible that Frank will have to do the same with the Dodgers. The people that actually get hurt the most, in this particular case, is the fans because the quality of the players decreases since there is a lack of funds to field a team and the NL West will once again become the joke of MLB…all because Moores and McCourt felt the need to go outside their marriage for a little extra lovin'. I hope this new law making it illegal to divorce in the state of California actually wins at the ballot boxes next November…for the sake of our sports teams.

In related news, CBS broadcaster Jim Nantz was ordered to pay $864,000 in alimony to his now ex-wife after admitting to an affair with a 29 year-old. What happened to the sanctity of marriage?

Major shout out to former San Diego High School star, Meb Keflezighi (I hope I spelled that right) for winning the NYC marathon this past weekend. He was the first American to do so since 1982. He is now being considered a favorite to medal in the London Olympics of 2012 after his run which he completed in 2 hour, 9 minutes and 15 seconds. Just incredible.

I would also like to thank Bill Walton for his years not only representing San Diego as a basketball player (even playing for our awful Clippers), but as an ESPN analyst. He always made the games more fun to watch. Walton is stepping away from the mike due to increased back problems.

My favorite story of the week: Our favorite slum lord, Donald Sterling agreed to pay $2.73 million dollars to settle allegations that he refused to rent to Hispanics, African Americans, and families with children in his 5,000+ apartment units that he owns in Los Angeles. The amount is a record since the enactment of the Fair Housing act which prohibits this type of discrimination. Maybe now Sterling will have to sell the Clippers. That would be a good thing.

Finally, did anyone notice that Brett Favre completed his mission this past weekend? He can now retire a happy man. Another Super Bowl ring? Screw that. He wanted to beat the Packers in Green Bay and he did. However, that is not the best part of the story. Security had to be beefed up significantly in the sleepy town of Green Bay and armed guards were designated to protect Brett specifically from the moment the Vikings plane landed on Saturday until the moment he took off on Sunday. You could tell with the chorus of boos that rang down every time he got into the huddle, that there is no love loss for Brett in Green Bay. I guess there will never be a retirement ceremony for Favre now and if they did build a statue, they would need to hire security to protect it. Hope it was worth it, Brett. The whole state of Wisconsin wants your head on a cheese platter.

That's it for now. I guess I ended up having more to say that I thought. Hope you enjoyed it. Also, please come out to the San Diego Hall of Champions this Thursday, November 5^th for the launch party for my book. The party starts at 5:30pm and lasts until 7:30pm. There will be door prizes, snacks, a discussion on the book, access to the museum after hours, and an autograph session. For more details visit: http://sunbeltbook.com/BookDetails.asp?id=203

Oh and if you did not get the A-Rod reference in the title, it was reported by an ex-girlfriend that he has two portraits of himself in his bedroom as a centaur, half man, half horse.

 

Chargers to L.A. inevitable? Hoyer named new Padres GM…that’s wicked cool.

We'll start with the news of Los Angeles getting closer and closer to breaking ground on a new NFL stadium in the San Fernando Valley. Last week the Governator signed a bill that will speed up the process to build a new $800 million stadium, which supposedly will be the site for Super Bowl 50 (as per NFL wishes). Obviously the stadium will not be built and then torn down after the event. The goal is to have a NFL team willing to relocate. Seven teams were listed as possible candidates. Let's weed some of the out right now, shall we?

Buffalo Bills: The Bills would move to Toronto before they moved to L.A. Last season they began playing a regular season game in Toronto and will continue to do so. It does not make any sense for the Bills to move far away from their established fan base, if indeed they are to leave Buffalo.

Minnesota Vikings: Even though they have had issues in the dome, the fan base of Minnesota is very loyal and would never allow the team to leave, especially after this season and all that Favre and Peterson are doing to put the team into Super Bowl contention.

St. Louis Rams: The Rams burned L.A. fans and were the red headed step child to the Raiders. Also, the potential new owners will be looking to keep them in St. Louis. What they will need to focus on however is putting a better field on the team. The Rams have been so bad for so long now, that fans have given up. Yet, if a quality product is put on the field, St. Louis fans will support them. Cardinal fans are some of the most diehard in MLB. They'll come back, if they have something to root for.

San Francisco 49ers: Are you kidding me? Do I even need to go on? The 49ers are a staple of San Francisco and even though their stadium is awful (not as bad as the Oakland Coliseum, but close), the fans would never let that happen. They would agree to a tax hike in San Jose to build a new stadium there before the team ever moved.

Oakland Raiders: Al Davis won't move them back to L.A. and after the crypt keeper dies, any new ownership, whether they want to move the team to L.A. or not will be met with resistance. The Raiders left a stain when they departed and it is my opinion that fans would not welcome them back. The team comes with a lot of baggage and I think, for whichever team eventually moves into the stadium, there will need to be serious consideration given to the fact that fans will want to make that team their own and I do not believe L.A. wants the Raiders back.

That leaves two teams that I think are the best and most likely candidates.

Jacksonville Jaguars: The team is hurting so badly economically that any opportunity to move to a location that will allow them to stay afloat would be warmly welcomed. Their games have been blacked out this season and the product on the field is not so good. Jacksonville, besides Green Bay and Buffalo, is one of the smallest markets in the league. A fresh new start in Los Angeles would be just thing remedy for the Jaguars. Also, I believe that L.A. would embrace the team.

San Diego Chargers: Issues with Qualcomm stadium and the city of San Diego continue to be sore subjects for both parties. New locations for a possible stadium come and go with the wind. When you speak to dedicated fans and ask them what they would think if the team moved, they say, "let them go." When the Chargers are competing for the AFC West title, the Q is packed. When they are not, you see a sea of the other team's jerseys. Also, San Diegans are no strangers to teams up and leaving them. Finally, the move would make the most sense geographically and economically. The diehard fans would travel to the new stadium, L.A. and Orange County fans would want to be a part of the scene, and so it would be a win-win for the NFL and Los Angeles. I certainly hope this does not happen. I think the Chargers belong in San Diego and that the best possible solution would be a stadium in North County, one that is close enough for L.A. and Orange County fans to come down to and support the team while San Diegans would still have the chance to keep the team in their county.

There is another scenario in which the NFL could get a team in Los Angeles and no current team, including the Chargers, would relocate to the San Fernando Valley. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has made it no secret that he would like to have a team in London. If this were to occur then it is highly possible that Los Angeles would get an expansion team and two additional teams would be added to the league.

Enough about the move, for everyone who saw the Chargers route of the Chiefs yesterday, don't get too excited, it was the Chiefs. For those who say "this is how we started last season" and are holding on to hope, start planning on next season, because even though yesterday's win was a dominant one, a few major hurdles remain. The first being a sense of loyalty to L.T. Norv Turner attempted, on four downs, to get L.T. a touchdown and failed all four times. It was pathetic. The defense, for the most part held their own, but once again…Chiefs. The third, and most important issue, is that the Broncos are flying high (in their balloon) in Denver and if they get past the Ravens this week, will amass a lead that I do not believe can be overcome, like last season. The Chargers will dominate the Raiders this weekend, but in order to get back into the race, they need the Ravens to step it up and bring the Broncos back down to earth, maybe in a nice, soft, grain field.

Final football note, my condolences go out to the family of Walt Daniels who died last week from injuries sustained after falling out of the Press Box prior to last Monday Night's game.

The San Diego Padres decided instead of history (hiring the first female GM) to go with Boston Red Sox GM, Theo Epstein's, protégé 35 year-old Jed Hoyer. You've got a mighty task in front of Hoyer, Good luck. Also in Padres news, CEO Jeff Moorad and the sales staff decided to send a mass mailing campaign urging former season tickets (of one I am which) to return in a highly glossed folder that came with a DVD of Moorad stating all the reasons why we should return. Let me share some of them with you…maybe you'll get excited and want to give the Padres your hard earned money:

1. They've kept the season ticket prices the same as 2009. How nice, they are not jacking up ticket prices from a team that lost 87 games and were essentially out of any race prior to the All Star Game. Come on, Jeff, you should be smarter than that. Lower the ticket prices and prove that you've got a decent squad for 2010 and then the fans will be willing to trust you.
   
2. Removed new membership and relocation fees. I've never heard of relocation fees and if you were charging new ticket holders fees to join, maybe that is why Petco was so empty last season.
   
3. Printed the day of the game price on season tickets instead of discount prices. The only people who ask to do this are ticket brokers who are trying to make a profit. Basically, you've just said, "okay third party ticket brokers, now we've given you a chance to hose our fans."
   
4. Given season ticket holders a "go to" account specialist. What did they do in the past, call an automated system? Was your customer service that bad in the past that you needed to revamp them with these new account specialists? Another reason why the stadium may have been so empty, but awful business practice if true.
   

He goes on to note some of the up and coming prospects. Whether or not they turn out to be good, I can assure you that up and coming prospects do not excite fans, especially in this economy. They want to know they are getting a bang for their buck and that bang is in the form of a big time, free agent…no, not like David Eckstein.

It is a desperate attempt, albeit a good and pretty one, I am just not sure fans are going to fall for it. From my days working for the Kansas City Royals, their fans knew that they could walk up on the day of the game and buy great seats behind home plate, thus they never bought packages. This is the future for the Padres unless they lower prices and bring in a big name that they can rally behind. In 2005/06, I was with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California and even though they had a strong team, they brought in a few more free agents to make the team more solid. All that did was sell out the season ticket allotment for the first time in team history.

The last story I want to bring up is a "no good deed goes unpunished" tale. Hot tennis star Caroline Wozniacki (you remember her from the U.S. Open) was winning her first round match at the Luxemburg Open last week 7-5, 5-0 when she retired due to injury. She knew she was hurt and would not be able to compete in the next round, by retiring it would give her opponent the chance to go on. Well, she made the decision with her father/coach who came on the court to discuss her options with her. Too bad her dad could be heard on the open mike and thus a wave of bets in Europe for her opponent came pouring in, after the exchange. Wozniacki retires and a couple people make a quick buck. Gambling in tennis, like most sports, is a sin, but now Caroline's deed has come under fire. People believe her and her father had something under handed planned. I think that is ridiculous and I hope she gets better soon. Also, what casino's are allowing bets to continue to come in after the match begins? That's crazy.

Shout out to Mark McGwire the new batting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals. While others who took steroids continue to play, Manny, A-Rod, Pettitte, Big Papi and others, McGwire had to hide in the shadows (and yes I know he's never admitted it, but come on). He is one of the greatest hitters the game ever had and along with Sammy Sosa, helped save the game of baseball during their historic (although tainted) home run race.

A very not cool to Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson who has been throwing around homophobic slurs like hot potatoes lately. Now GLAAD (gay & lesbian alliance against defamation) is asking the NFL to take action. I certainly hope they do. Larry, come on man, I know you are frustrated with the way your team is playing and the decline of your career, but you don't need to use these words to express your emotions.

I think this is my longest blog to date. There was a lot to cover. Anyway, on November 5^th from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm there is a "Kick Off" party for my new book, San Diego's Finest Athletes: Five Exceptional Lives, it would be great to see you there. Here is the link to register. There are only 200 tickets remaining before the event sales out. Click on http://sunbeltbook.com/BookDetails.asp?id=203 to reserve your spot today!

Okay…now it’s time to bolt ship.

I wanted to wait until tonight's incredibly important and eventual season ending match up with the Broncos was over, before I wrote this. I think reliving the nightmare would be pointless, but with a 3.5 lead to overcome and already one loss, there is no chance for the Chargers to win the division. Also, there is no way the AFC West is sending two teams to the playoffs this year. The question remains, what went wrong? The Chargers were picked as Super Bowl favorites in the beginning of the season and no one gave the Broncos a second thought. Well, what happened is simply, the Charger defense is awful. The secondary can't wrap up and allows a ridiculous number of yards after the catch. Tonight Broncos Quarterback, Kyle Orton, had no pressure, while Philip Rivers was running for his life. The defense is not the only negative element to this ship wreck, L.T. can't block, he can't run, and he has a bad attitude. The two turn over's Rivers had were simply L.T.'s inability to block the oncoming rush. How is it that the 5'6 Darren Sproles can block monster defensive ends and L.T. can't? This was L.T.'s best game of the season and he had 68 yards. Wow, I'm impressed. It's time that L.T. backs up Sproles for good. Finally, on the first scoring drive, when L.T. was benched for Sproles, he threw a temper tantrum on the side line. L.T. you have no right to complain. You don't deserve the ball. Someone call Atlanta and beg for Michael Turner back. Finally, the play calling was abysmal. The Norv Turner chopping block conversation needs to begin soon, not until after the season of course, because…well, this season is over for all intents and purposes and what are we going to do, promote Ron Rivera? Yeah right. Curious to see what the crowds look like over the next couple of games? Raiders and Philly games should be okay, but K.C., Washington, and Cincinnati; it's going to tough a tough sale.

The Padres may be looking to make history with the choice of their new GM. Kim Ng; assistant GM for the Dodgers is being rumored as the top candidate to replace Kevin Towers. Wonder if that'll be a blow to Tower's masculinity? I think Ng would do an excellent job and the Padres could use the positive publicity, but as a man, Towers might be a bit embarrassed that he is being replaced by Ng. She's been with the Dodgers for 8 years after working for the Yankees and White Sox. Keep your eyes on Kim Ng, she may be running the show soon enough, especially since CEO Jeff Moorad seems like a hands off guy.

Up the freeway from Qualcomm, well take the 8 to the 5 and then north from there, the Angels may have saved their World Series hopes with a fantastic come from behind, extra inning game vs. the Yankees while the Dodgers in Philadelphia had the game and a chance to tie the series until the bottom of the ninth with two outs and Jonathon Broxton on the mound, they blew their lead and are now down 3-1 to the Phillies. As predicted, the Freeway series won't happen, but let's keep our eyes on the Angels. A Phillies – Yankees series will bore anyone not on the east coast. A final baseball note, the Dodgers – Phillies game on Sunday night got a worse rating in L.A. then the Sunday Night Football game, Bears vs. Falcons…I think Dodger fans have jumped ship already. That's a nice thought for Padre fans.

Major props to the Aztecs for hanging in with #18 BYU in a losing effort. The game was much closer than the 10 point loss seems.

USD men's soccer is alone at the top of the WCC and looking good for a national ranking. Our American footballers may not be up to par this year, but our college footballers are on top of their game and look to continue their streak against Loyola Marymount this Thursday.

A prayer for Walt Daniels, a Qualcomm Stadium worker who, prior to tonight's game, fell 30 feet from the Broncos Press Box to the Loge level. Daniels' sustained a head injury and was rushed to the hospital. No further update has been given on his condition.

My final thoughts on this week in the NFL are as follows, Favre looked good as the Vikings remain undefeated. Former Charger, Drew Brees was lights out against the Giants and will be leading his team to the Super bowl, possibly against former Charger Michael Turner and the Falcons. P.S. Brady's back. Six touchdowns, five in the second quarter, are you kidding me? Thank goodness he's my fantasy quarterback. Raiders shocked Philadelphia, but Eagles fans are too busy cheering on the Phillies to care. Rams, Lions and Redskins suck. Finally, all teams other then the Dolphins need to stop using the wild cat. You can't do it.

A shout out to Pini Gershon, head coach for the Maccabi Tel-Aviv Israeli basketball team who threw an awesome tirade in the team's preseason charity match up against the New York Knicks. Pini refused to leave the court after being ejected for disputing a call until a Rabbi came down to the court and calmed him down. You have to see this.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4574912

A not so cool to Steelers tight end Matt Spaeth for being cited in public for peeing in the street outside a bar after the Steelers win over the Browns on Sunday. Kicker Jeff Reed was arrested for public intoxication. Come on guys, you beat the Browns? Is it really a cause for that much celebration?

That's it for this week. I'm going to mope some more over the Chargers loss, but not for too much longer.

On November 5^th, the San Diego Hall of Champions will be hosting a "Kick Off" party to celebrate the release of my book, San Diego's Finest Athletes: Five Exceptional Lives, the event will start at 5:30 pm and last until 7:30 pm. The cost to attend is $15, but that gets you an autographed copy of the book, participation in the discussion on the book, sports themed snacks, and access to the museum. I hope to see you there. Please contact me with any questions.

 

Slow weekend in SD sports, Baseball sweeps, and Football blow outs.

Since the Chargers were on a bye week, next much to report there, however there is an interesting story developing, in which a Chargers season ticket holder named Patrick Cronin is suing the team, the city and just about anyone else he can think of over an incident in 2007 where he claims he was hit in the face by another Chargers fan, Donald Etheridge. Here is the kicker, or I guess, puncher, Etheridge claims that Cronin was actually the one instigating things and that he was known for selling his tickets to opposing teams fans. This is where I hope you weigh in on the comment section, my thought is, if you are a season ticket holder and you can't make a game, okay, offer the tickets to friends and/or family first, hopefully someone who is a fan of the team. If you need to sell them, put them on a local craigslist site or eBay, but once again, try, if you can, to sell them to a fan of the team. Understandable that through those sites you never really know who is purchasing and you are allowed a pass a few times…BUT, if you are purposely selling your tickets to fans of the opposing team, 1) you are not really a fan of the team because you are not using your tickets, you are just trying to make a profit and 2) you deserve to be punched in the face if the fans of the opposing teams are constantly ruining the experience for the other season ticket holders around you. I am 100% on Etheridge's side in this matter and think this guy Cronin held the tickets just to try and make a buck while the Chargers were hot in 2007. You can read the story by clicking on:

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/oct/08/season-ticket-holder-sues-chargers-city-over-incid/?chargers

Unfortunately, there is more domestic violence to discuss and no, Tila and Shawne are not back together (however, it might help if they did get back together because the last thing Merriman hit, was Tila…allegedly). Former Padre and brother of Brian, Marcus Giles, was placed under citizen's arrest early last week when wife Tracy, claimed that she had been hit by him. Marcus was arrested on battery charges, yet, Mrs. Giles was unhurt. Domestic abuse is no laughing matter, despite my lame joke above, but what I do not understand is why these men (Giles and Merriman) were arrested when there was no sign of abuse on either of these women? How can someone claim battery when they were never actually touched? Obviously, in the horrific case of Chris Brown and Rihanna, that boy needed to be arrested. Let's say a male athlete who was hit by his wife or girlfriend, called 911, and made a citizen's arrest on battery charges…well, the media, especially the sports media, would mock him, but when the male athlete is accused of battery whether he touches the woman or not, it becomes a circus (Merriman case) in which social debates begin to take place. I am not sure why these two cases have occurred recently in San Diego and are so similar, but what I do believe is that Merriman's case, even though dismissed, could be part of the issue in decline of his performance (being off the steroids might have something to do with it as well). All I am saying is that facts should be checked and there should not be a rush to judgment in siding with the accuser without knowing all the details, especially when the accuser was not actually hit.

Okay, time to admit a few things: do I believe Bret Favre came back only for revenge against the Packers, yes, but do I believe he can still play, oh yeah. Who would have actually cared about the Minnesota Vikings, besides people in Minnesota, if not for Favre? Fox is playing all of their games, the stadium is sold out, and his jersey is selling like crazy and to top it all off, they are winning and by a lot. I still think, towards the end of the season, there may be a decline in performance, but Adrian Peterson will pick him up and the Vikings are a team to look out for. The Manning brothers are unstoppable. If you need to make some cash, go to Vegas each weekend and put your money on Favre, Eli, and Peyton. Don't put any cash on Brady and the Patriots. The Broncos played incredible defense yesterday and I think it is going to take another season until we see the Brady of old.

MLB Nightmare, this weekend, the Angels swept the Red Sox, the Dodgers swept the Cardinals, and the Yankees swept the Twins. That is a total of six potential, revenue generated games that will not be played because of the sweep. Only one series remains, and of course it is the lackluster series featuring the Rockies and Phillies. The scenario could not have played out worse for MLB. Here's hoping, for their sake, that the Angels and Yankees live up to the billing, because if MLB has to deal with another sweep in the AL League Championship series by either one of those teams, it'll really hurt. I still think the World Series will feature the Yankees and the Rockies, even though a So Cal freeway series would be nice, the Yankees are too powerful and the Rockies are built for playoff baseball (even when it is 20 degrees out).

The hockey season began, anyone notice? The Phoenix coyotes are playing despite being bankrupt. I know San Diego ran the NBA rockets out of town to Houston and Donald Sterling (slum lord, see: http://www.tmz.com/2009/10/10/west-wing-star-feels-heat-apartment-burns-up/) packed up the Clippers and left town, but the San Diego Gulls and hockey in general were always popular. I do see a positive opportunity for the Sports Arena, if there was a chance to get the Coyotes moved to San Diego. There would be an initial interest by San Diegans to attend and thus a positive flow of revenue. If the team could compete with the rest of the west, then I think a NHL team could make it.

I'm very excited that the 2016 Olympic Games will feature Rugby. Not so excited about golf, but despite Obama's effort and tax payer dollars, the folks in Rio are definitely going to spice things up with the addition of Rugby.

Let's wrap up this week with a "not so cool" to St. Louis Cardinal Catcher, Yadier Molina who is being sued for taking $90K for autograph signing sessions and not showing up.

An "isn't it ironic" moment goes to new Jets Wide Receiver Braylon Edwards. Just hours after your beef with LeBron James took place, you were shipped to New York. No worries though, you and LeBron will be together again when he signs with the Knicks next season and let's face it, the Jets are a much better team (even though I think Miami pulls off an upset tonight).

Last, my shout out goes to Sunbelt Publications for publishing my book, San Diego's Finest Athletes, which comes out this week. I am thrilled. The book looks great and I cannot wait for you all to read it. Reminder I will be doing a book signing at the Chula Vista Borders at 878 Eastlake Parkway in Chula Vista from 4 pm – 6 pm. I hope to see you there.

You can check out the book at www.sunbeltbooks.com where it is the featured book of the month.

Until next week…

No need to hit the panic button just yet Chargers fans…Padres season ends on a positive note.

We'll start with the Padres this week. Kevin Towers, the long time GM of the team and architect of some incredible NL West champion seasons over his tenure, is now gone. Who is going to replace him? No one knows. Is the team going to be dismantled? We'll have to wait and see. However, there are some hopeful numbers for our young Padre team. They ended the season 37-25 in their final 62 games. They kept the Dodgers from winning the NL West in San Diego, even though I think the Dodgers tanked the games so that they could win the title at home and sell out a few more games in the process (which they did). Heath Bell led the NL in saves with 42 (the Padres were 62-3 when leading after 8 innings). Anyone still missing Trevor time now? Kevin Kouzmanoff ended the season with a .990 fielding percentage, the highest ever by a third baseman. Finally, Adrian Gonzalez, once again, if not for the fact that he plays the same position as and is the same league with Albert Pujols, should have won the NL MVP this season.

Seems like there is a lot of hope for next season with all the young talent, here's the problem. The team will be operating on a $40 million dollar budget next season. Yankees third baseman, Alex Rodriquez, makes more than that. The Padres will have one of the stingiest payrolls in Major League Baseball next season. That's not to say they can't win, look at the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays. However, Kouzmanoff and Bell are due hefty raises and after this season, they'll be looking for their pay day and if they don't get it, there will be a lot of teams waiting with check book in hand. If this occurs you lose two major pieces to puzzle. However, it will all remain a mystery until we find out who will be the new GM. Will they want to come in and rebuild the team in their own imagine or realize that there are some signs of life with the squad they have now?

Finally, an alarming number for the front office, attendance was down 21% this year! That is an incredible down turn. I have worked in ticket sales for six years and have been able to sell everything from baseball to hockey to exhibition tennis. Beyond a new General Manager, the Padres desperately need a new sales staff with a new strategy for filling up Petco Park. San Diego has one of the premier destinations for baseball and the fact that they only had 3 sale outs (two of them thanks to Dodger fans) is unbelievable. The fact of the matter is, you have to price your tickets based not on what you've got in the past, but on what the fans are willing to (and can) pay for now. A combination of economic strife and poor first half performance turned Padres fans off from attending live games, but if you are sympathetic with the fans and create ticket packages and pricing that can fit their budget, you'll see a positive turn out at the games, which leads to concession and merchandise sales and most importantly, shows the fans that you care and understand and when things turn around for them, they'll be willing to pay more, provided there is a winning product on the field to go with that increase. I can guarantee that if these suggestions are not considered and the team performs equal to the way they did this year while the economy continues to be poor, attendance will continue to drop and so will the payroll for the team.

Onto our beloved, beleaguered, and bemoaned Chargers. Yes, they wanted to get off to a fast start and not have to wait until the last week of the season and an 8-8 record to win the division, however, it's looking like the mirror image of last season all over again (as I predicted a few weeks ago). I don't think it is time to panic just yet, as I knew that competition outside of the division would be rough. The test comes next Monday vs. the undefeated Denver Broncos at home. As long as the Chargers can hand the Broncos their first loss of the season, we'll still be on track to see the Chargers make a post season run. Yet, the defensive problems must be fixed immediately. Sunday night's game versus the Steelers was one of the most pathetic displays of defense I have ever seen the Chargers put on. Every Steelers scoring drive was at will and at minimum 75 yards. That is insane. Special teams came up big and after a shaky first half, Philip Rivers got the pressure that he enjoys playing under and along with Antonio Gates, brought the team to within a touchdown. Alas, the Charger defense could not get a crucial stop and what looked to be an exciting finish, fizzled out. There's no need to hit the panic button just yet, but this Monday's game will set the stage for the rest of the season.

A couple thoughts on sporting news going on outside of San Diego: After her major meltdown at the U.S. Open, Serena Williams is once again ranked #1 in women's tennis after winning an event in China this weekend. Hopefully she won the title without offering any of the lines people a tennis ball sandwich. The Bret Favre revenge tour got one step closer to accomplishing its overall mission, by beating the Packers last night. Yet, the prophecy will not be fulfilled until #4 takes the field in Green Bay and wipes the turf with the Packers for a second time. Remember Favre heads, he started quick with the Jets last season and fizzled out. Don't start anointing the Minnesota Vikings as the Superbowl Champions just yet. Today there will be exciting one game playoff for the AL Central Division title between the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Lions, it was supposed to be played yesterday, but as always the NFL supersedes and the Monday Night Football game took precedence. I'm not sure who will win, but I am sure that they will lose to the Yankees in the first round.

Shout out to the Manning brothers and Matt Schaub, you guys won me $690 this week in Vegas (and yes I know you were respectively playing the Seahawks, Raiders and Chiefs).

A not so cool to Cleveland Browns WR Braylon Edwards for punching a friend of LeBron James at a nightclub last night. Edwards is 6'4, this guy was 5'7. James called Edwards "childish" and said "it was like hitting one of his kids." Edwards will most likely be suspended. However, the issue here is picking a fight with James, who is the biggest star in Cleveland whereas Edwards has been nothing short of a disappointment for the disappointing Browns. Edwards may be run out of town for this.

Until next week. I hope to see you at my book signing at the Borders in Chula Vista on Saturday, October 17^th from 4 pm – 6 pm.

Chargers party like it’s 2008 all over again and the Famous Joey Jinx

The Broncos, despite all the preseason chatter that they were going to be awful this season, are 3-0. Our Chargers are 2-1. Granted the Broncos should be 2-1 as well if not for a crazy, heads up, lucky play by Brandon Stokley against the Bengals (who actually should be 3-0). Regardless, it looks as if we are going to have a mirrored season to 2008. The Chargers and the Broncos will beat up the Raiders and the Chiefs, while losing to teams with more talent. At the end of the season, they will battle it out for the AFC championship. At least we now know where the season is headed and so, each week, we'll do our Broncos tracker (we don't need to worry about the other two teams in this division…unless Matt Cassell gets traded to the Raiders and JaMarcus Russell is sent to the UFL). As I foresee it, by simply looking in the 2008 mirror, it'll be up to Rivers and the boys to beat the Broncos in order to win the division. That's it.

I do see next week's game versus Pittsburgh as a possibly positive match up for the Bolts. Even though San Diego has never won a regular season game in Pittsburgh, the Steelers are beat up right now. The weather will not be too bad. Rivers is showing that he is going "to go all Philip Rivers" on any team with a weak secondary by airing it out to Malcolm Floyd, Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates. Chris Chambers has the best gig in the NFL right now. All he has to do is line up and run. He certainly isn't catching anything. Darren Sproles will continue to shine in his starting role, as I believe, despite what L.T. said in the preseason, his best days are behind him and who knows if he'll be back in the lineup and if he is, how successful will he be? Anyone missing Michael Turner as much as I am?

As I wrote about in my second blog, I still feel the Chargers will win the division, but I think we're in for a bumpy ride, just like 2008 (unless we play the Dolphins each week).

Well, the MLB season for San Diego is coming to an end. The Padres have had a pretty impressive September so far. Adrian Gonzalez hit his 40^th Home Run last night. If not for the fact that he plays the same position as and is in the same league with Albert Pujols, Adrian should be considered for the NL MVP. Alas it was all too little too late and the best we can do is hope they beat the Dodgers and Giants this weekend. Come on, sales staff at the Padres, why haven't you taken my advice? Let's get some fans in the ball park this weekend to end the season on a high note. Let's see some end of the season deals.

Now is the part of my blog where I share my super power with you, my reading public, all 10 of you. This power was first discovered when I was a young man. I would predict that something was going to happen in a game and then complete opposite would occur. Example, in 2002, I thought there was no way the Anaheim Angels would overcome their deficit in game 6 of the World Series to the San Francisco Giants. I turned off the television and walked away. To refresh your memories, it was the bottom of the bottom of the seventh, the Giants were eight outs away from winning the series, and then, the Angels scored three runs in the seventh and three in the eighth, winning the game and then winning game seven. It was incredible. I didn't see it though. Since then, the power has increased in strength. Only a few people, until know, knew about it. It has frustrated and angered them because when I become so certain about the outcome of a game, the opposite more often than not, happens. My best friend, Jeremy, has coined it the "Joey Jinx." As we sat at the Dolphins-Chargers game yesterday and Kaeding was set to kick a field goal to tie the game after the Chargers came up short on a drive that I had predicted would end in a touchdown, I made the fatal mistake of discussing how clutch he's been this season. He missed. If any of you read my last blog, I predicted the first night of Monday Night Football games would be boring blow outs, they were excited nail biters. I also said that Roger Federer would win the U.S. Open Final. Nope. It's a terrible gift. Each year though, it seems to get stronger and more powerful. Anyway, I have now shared my secret with you…it should make reading my blog a bit more interesting. You can start to follow the strengthening of my powers.

Interesting stories from the rest of the world in sports: I watched the Australian Rules Football Grand Final on Saturday night. It was an amazing match. I know Americans will never care for soccer, especially when they try to sell us on the fourth chipmunk, David Beckham and his toothpick wife as being the saviors of the sport. No thanks. However, Aussie Rules is a great sport with awesome hits and a competition level that is intense. The passion for the sport down under is unmatched and I think it is great that ESPN Classic showed the match. I highly suggest following the sport next season.

I don't want my blog to get into politics, but I do want to mention that our President is flying to Denmark to fight for Chicago's right to host the 2016 Olympics (and party). Are tax payers paying for this trip? Is he going for any other reason than to meet with the International Olympic Committee? I just lost my job last Thursday; I think there are more important issues facing our country right now than Chicago getting the 2016 Olympics. Maybe it's just me?

In tennis, the women's game is about to get a blast from the past as Justine Henin will return to the sport. With Kim Clijsters winning the U.S. Open and showing she's still got it after becoming a mom, I think the Williams sisters will be spending more time on their fashion lines then on the court. Who's next, Steffi Graf? Martina Hingis? Jennifer Capriati?

A shout out to Japan's Kimiko Date Krumm at 38 year-old tennis player from Japan who just became the oldest woman to win a WTA tournament. She won the Korea Open Title. Her last title came in 1996 in San Diego. Oh and the record she broke, previously belonged to one Billie Jean King. Not bad company, Krumm. The drought is over. Also a shout out to my high school, Edison High in Huntington Beach, CA. The football team should end up being ranked 2^nd in the state after a huge win against Servite this past weekend. Oceanside High also beat a very good Long Beach Poly team.

Final shot out to my friend Joel who predicted the Jets would have a great season and I told him he was crazy…Joey Jinx strikes again.

That's enough for this week. A final update, my book signing will be at the Borders in Chula Vista on Saturday, October 17^th from 4 pm – 6 pm. Last blog I reported that it would be on the 10^th. I hope you can make it. In the mean time, check out www.sunbeltbook.com/BookDetails.asp?id=196 to order you advance copy today!

Padres…playing well down the streak, too bad it’s to keep from ending up in Last Place

For the few people who are actually going to Petco to see our Padres play or flipping the channel between football games and the U.S. Open to catch the score, the boys have actually been playing pretty well. Too bad the only fight they are in is with Arizona to keep from ending up in NL West cellar (again). At least this season we don't have to suffer the embarrassment of 99 loses. In fact, the Pads have won 11 of their past 14 series. Promise for next season? I think so, but there is still a lot of work to do, to get back to contending for the NL West championship. I'll wait until the end of the season before I voice my hopes and thoughts for improvements to the roster next year. In the mean time, even though we are all focused on the Chargers right now, maybe we could dedicate a few minutes to see if the Pads can end this year on a positive note. A quick comment to the Padres sales staff, the Milwaukee Brewers have their $1 upper deck seats. Give it a thought. The average attendance at Petco has been around 18K. Not good. The Angels and Dodgers (and yes I know they are in the playoff hunt) are more than doubling that on a Tuesday night. The Padres had 18K sold (much less than that in the Stadium) this past Friday vs. a division foe.

A quick follow up from last week's blog on the discussion of Shawne Merriman and that girl that accused him of something (I don't remember her name). Anyway, charges have been dropped and "Lights Out" will be dropping Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell to the turf all night, tonight.

Prediction for tonight's game, Chargers vs. Raiders…Chargers will win by 14 which is kind of a bummer because the game will not be competitive (nor will the Bills and New England game which precedes it). If not for an amazing finish to the Bronco's game yesterday – head's up Brandon Stokley – the rest of the division would have been 0-1, aiding in the Chargers smooth ride to the AFC West Title. There will be a few bumpy games, but not too much to stress about until the Playoffs. Regardless, beat down Al's boys tonight. Another prediction, 3 ints for the Charger's secondary in this game.

Since this is the SD Sports report, I opened with San Diego topics, but what a weekend in sports in other parts of the country! I have to begin with Serena Williams. I am a huge tennis fan. I spent the last three summers working in the front office of the Newport Beach Breakers of World TeamTennis and have met both Serena and Venus Williams. Even if you don't follow tennis, you heard about Serena's incredible melt down on Saturday night. If not, let me paint the picture for you. It's match point, Serena has been playing pretty poorly against the resurgent, Kim Clijsters, but as she's done so many times in the past, Serena looked as if she could have begun an epic come back. Yet, on match point, she was called for her second foot fault of the match (previously in the match she had smashed her racquet and received a code of conduct violation) and she lost it on the poor, little old lines lady. To paraphrase the rant, Serena threatened to shove a tennis ball down the lines lady's throat while wielding her racquet and dropping a number of f-bombs. Needless to say, Serena received a second code violation which cost her a point and the loss of that point; cost her the match, sending Clijsters to final (which she won). Serena has since been fined and the matter is being investigated. Remember, we are talking about tennis here, not the NFL. If you haven't seen it, check it out on YouTube. Williams joked about it last night on the VMA's. Even though she lost her cool, she apparently has not lost her sense of humor.

The Favre revenge tour got off to a great start yesterday as the Vikings dominated the Cleveland Browns. Whereas, Favre's numbers were not overly impressive, he did what he came to Minnesota to do, hand the ball to Adrian Peterson. Favre did toss his first Vikings TD to rookie WR, Percy Harvin (who is young enough to be Brett's son). Look for the wins to continue as next week Favre and the Vikes face Detroit (who, for the most part held their own yesterday against the Saints) and the following game against the 49'ers. Then, it is time for the Packers to come to town. I will be watching this one closely, but it'll be four weeks after this initial contest, in which the master plan will reach it's pinnacle, as Favre returns to Green Bay (hopefully to a chorus of boos – like Kayne West last night at the VMA's).

By the way, as I announced here last week, there will be a second heir apparent to the Brady thrown. When I had published my blog last week, Tom and his Giselle had not made the announcement. Well, not two days after posting, they did. I might just be starting out with this thing, but I've already got one breaking story under my belt.

Another Prediction: Roger Federer wins Grand Slam number 16 tonight (I know, bold prediction, right?).

Finally, a "Not Cool" shout out to Fox NFL Analyst, Chris Myers for his comment yesterday during the Detroit – New Orleans game. Myers was giving the line up for the Detroit defense and when he came to line backer Larry Foote, formally of the Steelers, he noted, "Going from two Super Bowls in Pittsburgh to the winless Detroit team -- that's like going from dating Beyonce
to Whoopi Goldberg."

That's it for this week. As always, please leave me comments about the report and let me know what you think. Are there any other sports topics you think I should be discussing? Also, I will be signing my new book, San Diego's Finest Athletes: Five Exceptional Lives, at the Borders in Chula Vista on October 10^th from 6 pm – 8 pm. I hope you can make it.

I believe you Shawne…What I can’t believe is Padre’s “fans”

 

I was having lunch at the ESPN Zone in Los Angeles with my friend Jessica before going to see the Dodgers play the Padres (more on that later) at the Ravine when what do I see scrolling across the wire, Shawne Merriman arrested for choking his girlfriend. Like, as I am assuming, most Charger fans, I thought to myself, "Here we go again." After the game I read a little bit more about the story and noticed the photos of Shawne and former reality star Tila "I'm Allergic to Alcohol" Tequila, having a grand old time at a night club in San Diego. Then I saw Shawne's statement and after analyzing the time line, it is more than probable that Tequila in fact had too many Tequila shots and was not fit to drive. It seems to me that Shawne did the respectable thing by attempting to not let her leave. Whether Ms. Tequila is just using this to get her name mentioned again (look I'm doing it) or the alcohol impaired her judgment so, that she believed she was being abused, the fact is, I believe Shawne and hope that our favorite captain of the defense will actually get through a full season this year, but Shawne buddy, Tila Tequila? You can do better than that.

Speaking of the Chargers season, I mentioned last week that I was going to talk a bit about my feelings regarding the upcoming year for the bolts. Preseason was a bit shaky, I have to admit, but a few players did stand out. The first being our go to guy if our go to guy goes down, Billy Volek. Volek was incredible during the preseason and I am certain he could be starting for many other teams (San Francisco, you might want to look up his agent's number). Also, Larry English's name was called so many times at Qualcomm during the two home games, that the fans have quickly dubbed him a favorite. Beyond preseason play however, the fact remains that the Chargers play in the AFC West.

Let's see, if my math is correct that is essentially 7 bye weeks. One actual bye week and the six freebies we get from the Broncos, Chiefs, and Raiders respectively. Oh no, the Raiders just traded for Richard Seymour (Seymour hasn't even shown up to Oakland yet and is considering retiring over playing for them). Here is my major problem with that; we also play the Browns, Bengals, and Redskins (at the end of the season when they'll already be out of the running because of Philadelphia and the NY Giants). What are the Chargers going to do when they get to the playoffs and have to face actual competition?

I know it'll be fairly easy to coast through the year, but, and I hate to say it, the Chargers are going to have to play go-for-the-jugular, Patriots-style football. Run the score up. Keep the first string out on the field even when you are up by 30 points. The path is certainly paved for the Chargers this season to the playoffs, the question is, will they be ready for the caliber teams they'll be facing in the playoffs? I certainly hope so or else this season will end as the last few have, preseason hype and expectations dashed by the inability to raise to the competition level.

As mentioned above, I went to Dodger Stadium on Sunday and saw the boys in blue take on our Padres. I had my SD hat on and a Padres shirt. I was sitting in the Beach section where you get a free Dodger towel and sit behind Manny Ramirez (two sections above Manny Ramirez) all for $45…and people actually paid it. The sales staff at Petco are all going to start calling Dr. Conrad Murray soon to get some Propofol to help with the sleepless nights due to their lack of ability to sell…anything. And the Dodgers are selling these seats (I was sitting next to a vent in which the smells that we coming out of it where none to pleasant) for $45 and people are paying for it. Oh, and the team is winning. I forgot to mention that part. Oh and they keep signing veteran players to help improve their team while fostering their young talent. Alas, there are still plenty of great deals at Dodger Stadium…deals to justify making the drive up from San Diego to see your team take on their hated rival in a series that they…won!

But, no…you didn't come. None of you came. In a sea of blue, I was one of very few Padre fans representing. It was pathetic. The Dodger fans were actually nice to me. I think they felt bad. I cheered by my lonesome, looking around for someone in an SD hat or jersey to high five with or just give a smile to…since, the Padres won the series (did I mention that). So, I gotta say Padre Nation, I'm a bit disappointed. L.A. isn't that far and besides, you could've stopped and taken your picture on the Hollywood walk of fame before going to the game.

Okay, enough San Diego rants for this week. Let's look at some other news going around the World of Sports. The U.S. Open's men's draw is, as expected, boring. Andy lost (I think I jinxed him). However, the women's draw is looking very exciting. The semi finals could have three out of four players who are unranked, including the comeback kid, Kim Clijsters and the American sensation, Melanie Oudin. I still think Serena will win, but I'd love to see Oudin and Clijsters in the final. Derek Jeter remains hitless in his last two games. He only needs four more to become the all time hits leader on the Yankees. This is the part of the blog where I admit my man crush on Derek Jeter. Hopefully he gets it by the end of the weekend. Finally a shout out to Tom Brady, my fantasy football Quarterback in all three leagues, it looks like his knocked up his amazingly hot Brazilian wife Gisele Bundchen, but Tom, please a beg of you…focus on the season. I need to win my league(s).

Last week I began a column for the San Diego Jewish World. You can read my first story be visiting www.sandiegojewishworld.com and scrolling down to the sports section. Until next week…

 

San Diego brings home a championship…curse over, not exactly

Yesterday, in what could be considered the most exciting baseball game a team representing San Diego has played all season took place in South Williamsport, PA as our Chula Vista All-Star Little League team won the Little League World Series beating Taiwan 6-3. In front of an electrifying crowd which included Vice President, Joe Biden, the boys from Chula Vista battled back from an early 3-0 deficit to defeat the heavily favored Taiwan team. As the boys at Petco look to officially find themselves eliminated from contention (they were never really in it, but there is just something about seeing that “E” next to games behind that really stings), at least San Diego can enjoy this glorious moment and welcome home the boys from Chula Vista with great enthusiasm and pride. Unfortunately, the boy’s title does not remove the curse that San Diego (professional) sports has found itself under since 1963 when the Chargers won the AFL Championship.


There are some who doubt there is a curse and even I chalk it down to incredible bad luck, but for arguments sake, let’s use the term curse. The fact remains that San Diego is the largest city to have never had one of its professional teams (I am talking about the Big 4, NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA) win a championship. We had the San Diego Sockers, an indoor soccer team that dominated their league(s) by winning ten championships. The San Diego Buds of World TeamTennis won the Billie Jean King Cup in 1984 and 1985 and of course, our very own San Diego Gulls hockey team were the champions of the International Hockey League in 1993, then became members of the West Coast Hockey League which they won five titles from 1996 – 2003 and finally, before ceasing operations (in 2006), the Gulls brought home a championship as members of the East Coast Hockey League in 2004. We’ve seen our minor league and exhibition teams and now our little league team achieve glory, but the pro’s continue to break our hearts.

Firstly, when talking about the professional teams, people may want to forget or have actually forgotten, but San Diego had not one, but two professional basketball teams. From 1967 – 1971, the San Diego Rockets (now residing in Houston) never won a title and, shockingly, the San Diego Clippers (now the Lakers red headed step brother) also never brought home an NBA trophy. They competed in San Diego from 1978 – 1984. What we are left with is a “rebuilding” Padres club who has come oh so close and our only hope, the Chargers (more on my thoughts about the upcoming season next week). All we can do is wait and see and continue to hope that one day we’ll see a ticker tape parade up Friars road.

In the mean time, my new book, San Diego’s Finest Athletes discusses some of the greatest individual athletes to come out of San Diego and their accomplishments both on and off the field. I recommend checking it out if you are a true fan of San Diego sports or just a history buff. Their stories are inspiring and prove that even though we may not have a professional team that has claimed a championship yet, we have these exceptional stars who have certainly made us proud. You can check out more details at http://www.joeyseymour.com/ (I promise I won’t use every blog to pitch the book).

A couple thoughts on sporting news in other parts of the county; The United States Tennis Open began today in New York and it is one thing to see either Venus or Serena winning the women’s title, but if one of the U.S. men, specifically Andy Roddick who came one bad shot away from winning Wimbledon this year, cannot overcome Nadal or Federer, it will be yet another tennis season in which our boys were thumped by international competition. The Bret Farve Revenge Tour continued tonight as Bret had an impressive outing vs. Houston. It’s all leading up to the away game in Green Bay. It’s amazing what spite can make a person do…by the way, he’s already complaining of an injured rib. Beyond the rib injury, the twin cities got some more bad news today when over hyped Spanish guard, Ricky Rubio decided to stay in Spain and play for team Barcelona through 2010. Finally, former Marlin, Dodger, Red Sox pitcher, Brad Penny, claiming all he was drinking was “ice water” while leaving a Los Angeles bar on Sunday night, said he would never play for the Dodgers again. Today he made it quite clear the he did not enjoy the way things ended at Chavez Ravine by signing with the Giants. Maybe Brad can help the Giants to close the gap on the Dodgers? It would certainly be sweet justice for us Padre fans.

Until next Monday…please feel free to share your thoughts.