Dustin Pedroia MLB 09 The Show Cover
Paw Prints – The Daily Roundup – 1/8
It’s time for the overslept edition of the UConn Huskies news for today.
Rob Lunn tells us that the national championship game has already been played over at Thoughts From a Fat White Guy.
Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant has a look at the recruits for the UConn football team.
John Silver of Journal Inquirer talked with Randy Edsall about Dahna Deleston.
Desmond Conner of the Hartford Courant has a look back and a look ahead for the UConn football team.
The UConn football team scored very high in the NCAA graduation success rate for African-American athletes that played in a 2008 bowl game.
Kemba Walker has some “family” from his AAU team playing in the Big East.
A.J. Price won’t get down after having a bad game like he did against West Virginia.
Kemba Walker is getting used to the rigors of the Big East.
UConn is the top choice to knock off North Carolina for the title this year.
Maya Moore is approaching the 1,000 point plateau in her UConn career.
Geno Auriemma likes to compare the UConn women to the New York Yankees.
The UConn women are featured in two items on the WBCA website this week.
Geno Auriemma was among the winners in the 2009 WBCA Superlatives.
The trip home for Tiffany Hayes brought both pleasure and pain.
UConn women’s hockey player Dominque Thibault will be returning to the team after winning a silver medal with Canada in the 2009 MLP Cup.
The UConn women’s softball team was picked to finish 5th in the Big East.
Heidi Watney Dating Former Red Sox Grounds Crew Member
No More Captain? According to the Inside Track gals, NESN’s Heidi Watney is dating former Boston Red Sox grounds crew member Paul Williams. He is most famous for being arrested during Game 3 of ALCS in 2003 when he got into a fight in the bullpen with former New York Yankees Jeff Nelson and Karim Garcia. [Inside Track]
Report: Smoltz Close To Signing With Red Sox
According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, free agent pitcher John Smoltz could be on the verge of the signing with the Boston Red Sox.
As of last night, sources indicated that Smoltz was leaning toward Boston’s offer which was said to be somewhere in the vicinity of $5.5 million guaranteed with the opportunity to earn a few million in incentives which could hike the salary up to $10 million. The Sox and Smoltz have been talking since before the Winter Meetings. The Sox do not anticipate that Smoltz will be ready until later in May, but one of the incentives being discussed would be a roster bonus if he’s with the team by June 1.
Smoltz has spent all of his major league career with the Atlanta Braves. Smoltz would provide depth to the Red Sox rotation and he could also pitch out of the bullpen but he does prefer to remain a starter.
I like the signing if it happens. It’s a low risk, high reward signing for both Smoltz and the Red Sox.
Update: According to Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Smoltz will indeed sign with the Red Sox as early as tomorrow afternoon.
A Major League source who was in contact with Smoltz on Wednesday night said the 41-year-old right-hander will be calling the Braves on Thursday morning to tell them that he has decided to sign with the Red Sox.
Rockets Beat Stumbling Celtics 89-85
Celtics Lose 3rd straight: Yao Ming’s 26 points helped the Houston Rockets send the Boston Celtics to their 3rd straight loss and their 6th in the last 8 games. Aaron Brooks came off the bench for Houston to score 19 points and Ron Artest added 17 points. Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 26 points while Kevin Garnett chipped in with 18 points. Former UConn Husky Ray Allen added 13 points and 6 assists while Glen “Big Baby” Davis had 12 points. Things won’t get any easier for the Green as they head to Cleveland to face LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Friday night. [ESPN.com]
Red Sox Set To Sign Rocco Baldelli
According to Peter Gammons of ESPN.com, the Boston Red Sox are set to sign former Rays OF Rocco Baldelli to be their 4th outfielder. The announcement could come at tomorrow night’s Boston Baseball Writers’ Association Dinner.
Baldelli recently underwent a series of tests as Massachusetts General Hospital and the results were positive. The Red Sox were struck by Baldelli’s persona and are optimistic he can be a significant contributor in 2009.
Baldelli is a Rhode Island native and will probably end up being a fan favorite at Fenway due to his local ties in similar fashion to NESN analyst Lou Merloni.
In 5 years, the last 3 of which he’s only played only 155 games, Baldelli is a career .281 hitter with 52 home runs and 234 RBIs. In 23 games at Fenway Park, Baldelli has hit only .231 with 4 home runs and 15 RBIs.
If Baldelli stays healthy, I fully expect to be a solid contributer to the Red Sox as a right handed bat off the bench and he’ll be able to spell Jason Bay, Jacoby Ellsbury and J.D. Drew as well.
Browns Hire Jets Reject Mangini
According to Michael Smith of ESPN.com, the Cleveland Browns have hired former New York Jets head coach Eric Mangini to be their next coach. The deal is for a reported 4 years.
Mangini started out in the Cleveland organization as a ballboy and worked his up way there landing as an assistant coach on Bill Belichick’s staff there in Cleveland in 1995. He then coached in Baltimore for a year, then the Jets as an assistant coach and then came over to the New England Patriots with Belichick.
It’s quite possible that former Browns head coach Romeo Crennel could stay on as a defensive coordinator. Crennel and Mangini coached together with the Patriots from 2000-2004.
This probably also rules out Patriots VP of player personnel Scott Pioli from taking the job as GM with the Browns.
2009 Pro Football Hall of Fame Finalists
2009 Pro Football Hall of Fame Finalists:
[NFL.com]
Ask Mel Thomas A Question For A Chance To Win Her New Book “Heart of a Husky”
Attention UConn Huskies women’s basketball fans!!!
Would like you a chance to ask former Husky great Mel Thomas a question and a chance to win her new book “Heart of a Husky”? If so, continue reading on to learn the details.
I was presented with an opportunity to interview Mel about her book from the publisher and immediately said yes I’d love to do it. And after I thought about it, I said why not give her fans a chance to ask some questions. So I presented that to Mel and the publisher and they have kindly agreed to let fans ask questions of Mel about the book.
I was also given a copy of the book, which I already own, so I’ll be giving away a copy of the book as well.
The rules are pretty simple to have a chance to win the book. Ask Mel a question here in the comments below and you will be entered in a drawing to win a copy of “Heart of a Husky”. Please try to ask questions about the book but I’m sure she’ll answer some questions about playing in Ireland and about her dreams of playing in the WNBA as well. One entry per email address. Any questions deemed derogatory in nature by myself will be removed.
We will take the best 10-15 questions and Mel will answer them for you in the coming days. But remember even if you’re question doesn’t get answered, you will still have a chance to win the book.
I have read the book and it’s very well written. It gives you a great glimpse into what it’s like to play for Geno Auriemma and what it’s like to be a star athlete at UConn. She also reflects back on her younger days as well. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed when you read this book. So if you can’t wait for the chance to win the book, you can purchase one through Mel’s website, melthomas.com.
Remember, ask your question about the book below in the comments for a chance to win the book.
A special thanks to Howard Cohen and Mel Thomas for making this possible.
Road to the Doghouse – Puppedential Debate
Anderson Cooper shows his lighter side when he hosts a debate on who will be the Obama adminstration’s first dog.