The newest Baseball Hall of Famers, Rickey Henderson and former Boston Red Sox great Jim Rice, had a busy day yesterday as in the morning they were in New York City for a press conference. Later on, they went over to Ed Sullivan Theater to be on “The Late Show With David Letterman” to do the Top 10 list.

Before they were on, Letterman shared a story from the 1978 All-Star Game in San Diego on how he met Jim Rice. Here’s that story for you to enjoy.

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A few minutes later, Henderson and Rice were on the stage to do The Top 10 List.

Here are the Top 10 Highlights of My Hall of Fame Baseball Career by Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice:

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My favorite one was No. 9 although 2 and 3 were pretty good as well. It was good to see Rice show a little bit of a lighter side by doing this.

Videos courtesy of CBS

No, it’s not the Yankees: According to Rob Bradford, former Boston Red Sox utility player Alex Cora is moving on as he signed a 1-year, $2 million deal with the New York Mets. Bradford also notes that Cora made a call to the Red Sox but found they weren’t interested. [WEEI.com]

As we found out earlier this afternoon, the Kansas City Chiefs have hired New England Patriots VP of player personnel Scott Pioli as their new general manager. They will be holding a press conference tomorrow to make the announcement official.

Here are the statements of owner Robert Kraft and head coach Bill Belichick about Pioli.

Robert Kraft:

“Scott Pioli was an integral part of the many championships the New England Patriots have celebrated this decade and I would like to thank him for his countless contributions throughout the past nine seasons. Scott is a great evaluator of talent. He is thorough in his evaluations, extremely organized and has done a tremendous job mining all possible resources to help Coach Belichick and his staff field the players needed to win consistently. He has played an important role in building a championship tradition with players that I am proud to call Patriots. On behalf of the entire Patriots organization, I wish Scott continued success in his new role and offer best wishes to his wonderful wife Dallas, and their beautiful daughter Mia. I think Clark Hunt and the Kansas City Chiefs have made a very wise hire.”

Bill Belichick:

“To sum up in words everything Scott Pioli has meant to this organization and to me personally would be difficult, if not impossible. From the day I met him, he has demonstrated a passion for football and respect for the game that is second to none. It has been extremely gratifying for me to follow Scott’s career ascension from the bottom of the totem pole in Cleveland to his place as a pillar of championship teams in New England. Now with the opportunity to steer his own ship and a vision of building a winner, there is no more capable, hardworking, loyal, team-oriented person than Scott Pioli.”

“On a personal level, the Belichick-Pioli bond runs far deeper than our workplace, as we and our families have shared countless memories away from football. Working side by side with one of my best friends for almost two decades is special enough in itself. But to help each other achieve success beyond our dreams is a blessing and something I will always remember and appreciate.”

While the Boston Red Sox have not closed the door on re-signing Jason Varitek, there certainly isn’t a lot offers rolling in for him. In fact, there are none and the Red Sox are talking with other teams in the meantime as well about a trade for a younger catcher. Had Varitek and Boras agreed to arbitration, they wouldn’t be in this predicament.

But what happens if the Sox acquire another catcher, decide that they do not want to sign Varitek, and other teams remain uninterested in signing him due to the cost of draft-pick compensation? In that scenario, would Varitek be condemned to inactivity by the absence of a market for his services?

Based on conversations with major league officials, the possibility certainly exists. As a Type A free-agent, Varitek would require draft-pick compensation from any club that chose to sign him to a major-league contract before the amateur draft in June. Once the draft takes place, however, a signing club would not have to give the Sox a draft pick as compensation for the catcher.

It’s hard when people don’t understand the business side of baseball. Most Red Sox fans know of the value of Varitek and what he can do for the team and especially the pitching staff. But what they don’t understand is the Red Sox have placed a value they think is fair like they’ve done with their free agents in the past.

Obviously if the Red Sox were to offer him a contract, it would be up to him whether or not he wants to come back.  I’m sure Theo Epstein wants him back but not at what Boras wants. I’m sure Terry Francona and John Farrell want him back. And I’m sure the entire team would want him back too. Ultimately in the end, the decision for Varitek is whether or not he wants to be a member of the Red Sox or move on in his career.

It wouldn’t surprise me if the Red Sox part ways with him like they have with free agents in the past but the fan in me wants him back.

And to think, he could have made around $10 million just by accepting the arbitration offer back in December.

Update: Erin from Jason-Varitek.com reminded me about a great piece from Dan Roche over at WBZ this afternoon on Varitek’s situation.

Herm Edwards likely to get fired: According to Michael Smith of ESPN.com, the Kansas City Chiefs have hired New England Patriots VP of player personnel Scott Pioli to be their new general manager. Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio will replace Pioli as VP of player personnel. [ESPN.com]

Earlier this afternoon, the Baseball Hall of Fame held a press conference to introduce the newest inductees, Rickey Henderson and former Boston Red Sox great and current NESN analyst Jim Rice.

Since I’m sure you’ve already read what the Boston media said about Jim Rice getting into the Hall of Fame,  I won’t inundate you with a bunch of links as not to waste your time. But if you havent, what I’ll do is send you over to our friends at Boston Sports Media Watch where you can see all the local links about Jim Rice.

As for my thoughts again on Rice. It’s been a long time coming for him and it’s about time he got in.  People will say what they want on him but one thing’s for certain, Jim Rice is in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Some will say he’s not worthy but again I say, Jim Rice is in the Baseball Hall of Fame and there’s not a darn thing you do about it.

The press conference  with Rice and Rickey was actually very entertaining after you get past the introductions of them and they start to answer the questions.

So for your enjoyment, here’s the press conference in it’s entirety (video may load slowly).

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STORRS, Conn. (January 13, 2009) — The University of Connecticut football team will have five players take part in upcoming all-star games in January.

Defensive end Cody Brown (Coral Springs, Fla.), cornerback and wide receiver Darius Butler (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and offensive tackle Will Beatty (York, Pa.) will all take part in the Senior Bowl, which takes place on Saturday, January 24 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala. The game will be televised by the NFL Network and the three Huskies will play for the North squad. That team will be coached by Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis and his staff.

All three of these Huskies were first team All-BIG EAST picks following the 2008 season.

UConn strong safety Dahna Deleston (East Hartford, Conn.) and defensive end Julius Williams (Decatur, Ga.) will both take part in the Texas Vs. The Nation All-Star Game on Saturday, January 31 at the Sun Bowl in El Paso. Texas. That game will be televised by CBS College Sports and the “Nation” team will be coached by the legendary Howard Schnellenberger, now of Florida Atlantic.

Beatty helped anchor a UConn offensive line that allowed junior Donald Brown (Atlantic Highlands, N.J.) to be the leading rusher in the country as the Huskies ranked first in the BIG EAST, and 13th nationally, in rushing yards per game at 216.38 yards per game.

Cody Brown was second in the BIG EAST in sacks per game at 0.77 per contest and was also second in the league in tackles for a loss. He made a total of 56 tackles on the season.

Butler made 40 tackles on the season with four pass break-ups and also saw time on the other side of the ball as a receiver for the Huskies with receptions for 123 yards.

Deleston had 60 tackles on the year for UConn with three for a loss and two interceptions, including one that he returned for 100 yards in the Huskies’ 38-20 win over Buffalo in the International Bowl.

Williams had 41 tackles on the season with 11 of them for a loss and six sacks.

Earlier this afternoon, Boston Red Sox great and the newest member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Jim Rice, held a press conference at Fenway Park.

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video courtesy of NESN

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video courtesy of NESN

It took 15 years but Boston Red Sox great Jim Rice has finally been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. Rice will join Rickey Henderson and Veteran’s Committee pick Joe Gordon.

Rice received 412 of a possible 539 votes (76.4%). He needed 405 votes to be elected and got 7 more than needed. Henderson received 511 votes (94.8%). Henderson and Rice become the first left fielders elected to the Hall of Fame since Carl Yastrzemski in 1989.

Unfortunately for Tommy John, who was in his 15th and final season, he fell short receiving 31.7% (171) of the votes. John will now be eligible for the Veteran’s Committee ballot since he received over 5% of the votes in each of his 15 seasons.

Andre Dawson fell short again receiving 361 (67%) of the vote as did Bert Blyleven who got 338 (62.7%) votes. Dawson’s total was up from last season when he received 65.9% of the votes and Blyleven’s went up as well (61.9% last year).

There was 9 players who didn’t receive the required 5% of the vote to stay on the ballot for next year. They are Mark Grace, David Cone, Matt Williams, Mo Vaughn, Jay Bell, Jesse Orosco, Ron Gant, Dan Plesac and Greg Vaughn. Gant, Plesac and Vaughn didn’t receive a single vote.

Not to be forgotten, Tony Kubek, who won the Ford C. Frick Award, and Nick Peters, who won J.G. Spink Award, will also be honored along with Henderson, Rice and Gordon on July 26th at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.

A full look at the ballot totals after the jump.

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