Australian surfer Mick Fanning won the Hang Loose Catarina Pro event in Brazil yesterday beating out defending two-year title holder Kelly Slater and fellow Aussie Taj Burrows to clinch the 2007 World Championship. You cannot see him from here on the shore, but trust me when I say he’s everything a blonde, blue-eyes Australian surfer should look like.
OK, don’t trust me. Continue reading
Big Ben did his thang last night, leading his Steelers to a 38-7 victory over the Ravens. The Steelers tied their franchise single-game record with 5 TD passes, and the defense lowered the boom, forcing four turnovers, all before halftime.
Ben was hit by Terrell Suggs in the third quarter, but returned early in the fourth quarter. He finished the game with 209 yards, and 5 TD throws, bringing his season total to date to 20, a career record for him in half a season. He also threw a TD pass in his 13th consecutive date, breaking Terry Bradshaw’s team record of 12.
I just have one question. How is the guy up there also the guy here? Continue reading
The Denver Nuggets took on the Seattle Supersonics last night and emerged victorious, but the real story was Rookie Hottie Kevin Durant’s debut. He racked up 18 pts in just over 31 minutes of playing time. When asked to comment about Durant, Hottie Carmelo Anthony said, “He’s going to be all right. I’ve been in that situation. I hope nobody puts too much pressure on him and makes him take that team to the NBA finals this year.” Hahaha, wow Carmelo. Way to jinx the lil’ fella.
It’s kind of hard to follow sports if you have a kid – and if said kid gets sick, forget it. You’re not watching anything.
The bad news is that Baby Mets has an ear infection, and I was unable to catch a minute of the Colts/Jags. The good news is that it should be cleared up by tomorrow, Game 1 of the World Series.
I do know that the Colts won, to keep their perfect season going. They beat the Jaguars 29-7. Continue reading
What a crazy night of baseball!
The Rockies have punched their ticket to their first World Series. They beat the D-backs, 6-4, for the NLCS sweep. Join me on a picture journey through last night’s two ball games…
NBA preseason has started and I have suddenly found myself a New Orleans Hornets fan. How is that, you ask? Because one of My Iowa Hotties, Adam Haluska, was a second-round draft pick for the Hornets. In their first preseason game on Tuesday night, Adam came in for 24 minutes, went 5 for 9 for 12 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal and 1 block. Yahoo! had this to say:
Chandler’s two free throws capped a run of nine straight points to get New Orleans within 54-49, and the comeback was completed when second-round pick Adam Haluska hit back-to-back jumpers to start the fourth quarter to tie it at 70.
Way to go Adam! The following pics were the only ones of him so far as a Hornet, so I have included a third one that shows his cutie face. Yay! [Hawkeye to Hornet, Woot!]
Sad panda
Is this the end for Joe Torre? Told that his job was on the line by The Boss, George Steinbrenner, Torre’s team won on Sunday. But yesterday, the house of cards came tumbling down, and the Cleveland Indians beat the Yankees 6-4. Chien-Ming Wang pitched one inning plus, and the Indians were in command from the first inning on. Grady Sizemore led off the game with a homerun, and the Indians never surrendered the lead. Paul Byrd pitched well for the Indians, going 5 innings and giving up only 2 runs. The Indians bullpen also gave up another 2 runs, but the offense had put up 6 runs, and that was good enough against a Yankee offense that, aside from Game 3, never really got it going against the Indians’ pitching. Sorry to Rob I., James, Sportsgirl365, Becky, Nelson, and all the rest of Yankee fans who were nice to me last week. To the rest of you – suck it! Your tears are delicious.
More pics of the game and celebration after the jump.
Yesterday we had some great baseball to kick-off the playoffs. Pitchers pretty much ruled the day. The first game, which I had to watch in class (booooo), could not have been more surprising. Rockies Hottie Jeff Francis took the mound and only gave up 4 hits, 2 runs and 2 walks. He also had 8 strikeouts over 6 innings. Nicely done, Francis.
It seemed like the game wasn’t going to end, but the Rockies got it done in the bottom of the 13th inning. It was a madcap game right from the start, with the Rockies scoring early off super-pitcher Jake Peavey. But the Padres were quickly back in it after an Adrian Gonzalez-grand slam. Tied 6-6, Scott Hairston hit a 2-run HR in the top of the 13th, but since Trevor Hoffman has never in his life closed out a big game, the Rockies were able to rally and score three runs in the bottom of the 13th, to win it 9-8. A few more pics, after the jump.
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Today ain’t any normal Monday, and this ain’t gonna be your normal Hit & Run- because we have some serious celebratin’ to do. Perhaps you haven’t heard- but the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies all clinched their division titles over the weekend… and as you might expect, GordonShumway, Clare and I are a tad bit excited about that.
OK, we’re freakin’ ecstatic. We’re bouncing off the walls, rally towel waving, champagne swigging, hugging random strangers, put an empty Bud Light case on our head and dance around in our underwear ECSTATIC. And we’re triple tag-teaming this H&R to share a little bit of our excitement with you.
And, of course, I’ve gathered together plenty of pictures of celebratory ballplayers covered in champagne after the jump…
Hoooo boy. The National League is gettin’ exciting. I realize that, at last count, the last 26 Hit n Runs have been about the playoff races but these are really getting down to the wire. Let’s chase the sun and start with the NL East.
Atlanta Braves Hottie Chipper Jones (I’m sure somebody thinks he’s hot) is now a revered man in Philly and a hated man in New York. His throwing error let Philly put 3 runs on the board and the Nationals took care of business at Shea, led by Ryan Church’s home run and 4 RBIs. The Phillies are now 1 game out of first place.
Look, I’m not a baseball aficionado but even I know that there are a few divisions making this last week of the season interesting. And by interesting I mean giving fans of one team a reason to cheer and fans of others a heart attack. The Mets lost yesterday to Washington which would have been good for the Phillies, except they lost as well to the Braves. And that doesn’t make anybody happy (sorry Metsy and Clare).
The Titans beat the Saints, 34-10, in a game I did not watch because I was busy avoiding the television. The Saints are now 0-3, and c’mon – even the Giants have a win! Anyways, it’s not so bad, at least you have LSU.
And this guy:
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Happy return to baseball, Clare’s Baseball Boyfriend Cole. Hope you don’t mind staying up until way past everyone’s bedtime for the 14-inning 7-4 victory over the Red Birds after pitching 3 innings. 5 hours, 4 minutes, and 19 pitchers. Good lord is September baseball stressful. Just ask the Cubs, Brewers, Yankees, and Tigers. Obviously Pirate fans don’t remember what that feels like.
Damn, that was one ugly loss in D.C. Another four errors? 10 errors in the last two games? What is going on in that dugout? What’s going on in their heads? After getting a four-run lead, the starting pitching imploded, the bullpen did its usual job of pitching batting practice to the Washington Nationals (?!) and the defense needs to, uh, actually play defense. The final score was 12-4, and that’s an embarrassment for a team headed to the postseason. Actually, let me rephrase that – the Nationals are a major league team, and it’s not necessarily embarrassing to lose to them; the Mets’ play on the field is embarrassing right now. I don’t know who in that clubhouse is up for it, but someone needs to call a team meeting, and light some fire under their asses. Continue reading
JIM THOME IS NAUGHT BUT A HOPELESS ROMANTIC
THOOOOOOOOME! Pictured here smooching his wife Andrea (note: not our Andrea), Ol’ Hambone Thome hit No. 500 yesterday, and did it in grand fashion: a two-run walkoff jack, and on Jim Thome bobblehead day. The fellow who caught the milestone ball gave it right back to Jim, and Thome announced after the game that he and his father would deliver it to Cooperstown together.
Excuse me, but it’s gotten dusty in my office all of a sudden. [Sniffle.]
First off, the Ladies would like to extend thoughts and prayers to one of our baseball finds this year, Jarrod Saltalamacchia of the Texas Rangers. He has told the Rangers he will not be available to play winter ball because his wife Ashley is already having complications with the pregnancy of their second child. We hope everything turns out just fine for the Saltalamacchias. [That Must Be a Heckuva Last Name to Consider When Naming Your Children]
The Detroit Tigers stunned the Toronto Blue Jays, scoring four runs in the bottom of the ninth to win 5-4. Roy Halladay pitched into the ninth, and was one out away from completing the game when he ran into trouble, giving up singles to consecutive Tigers. He was pulled for a reliever, who promptly gave up a 2-run single to Curtis Granderson. Placido Polanco then singled, and Gary Sheffield walked to load the bases, making way for Magglio Ordonez, who knocked in the winning runs. By the way, Granderson is only the third major leaguer to get 20 HR, 20 doubles, 20 triples and 20 steals in a season. Who’s your Tiger, indeed? Continue reading
Bronx Hottie Alex Rodriguez became the first Yankee to homer twice in one inning since Cliff Johnson did it in June 1977. Nicely done, A-Rod. The club had been planning on taking Rodriguez out of the lineup last night because of a hurting ankle, but he insisted on playing and it obviously paid off as they beat the Mariners 10-2, giving them a 3-game lead in the Wild Card race. Also, my law school fantasy team thanks you for the two homeruns. [Two Homers in an Inning? That'll Do, Pig.]
Levitating bat!
Toss him in the river, see if he floats!
There aren’t many things more beautiful than this.
I still can’t shake this bug, so join me
as we peek in on the action around the majors via a series of photos. Continue reading
I’m hopped up on Ny-Quil, and slightly delirious after the Mets’ sweep of the Braves, so bear with me.
The Mets division lead is back up to 5 games, thanks to said weekend sweep of the Braves, and yesterday’s 10-4 win over the Reds. Well, I guess I also have to thank the Marlins for taking 2 of 3 from the Phillies, and the Braves for beating the Phillies today (whew!). Pedro pitched 5 good innings, giving up 3 runs, 2 of them earned. The Mets’ offense woke up: Moises Alou, David Wright and Carlos Delgado all homered for the Mets. Let’s see if the bats can stay awake during this final stretch run. Continue reading
Today’s Hit and Run is all about the big dudes, so stock your fridge and don’t be surprised when you find canoe-sized shoes at the foot of your bed.
Ry Ho and Shane share a tender moment.
Let’s start with Ryan Howard’s walk-off two-run opposite field blast to lift the Fightins over the Mets 4-2. (Yes, I know Metsy started with a Phillies item yesterday, but it’s my Hit and Run, I’ll do what I want!) I was there for last night’s game and to say the mood in the CBP was euphoric would be an understatement of the highest degree. I high-fived people I’d never met and I heckled a group of kid Mets fans. It was fabulous.
Before the game, I hung over the bullpen railing and watched Tom Glavine warm up. (I refuse to hear you say I’m a turncoat. How many times in your life do you get to watch a 300-game winner warm up from 15 yards away?) Dude is INTENSE. From where I was sitting, it looked like he p4wned the Phillies over seven strong innings, but according to the NYT’s article about the game, he was gassed: “Glavine scattered eight singles in seven scoreless innings but had thrown 102 stressful pitches, he said, and could not go out to start the eighth.”
Chase Utley comes back from his hand injury, and goes 3-5 with a homer and 2 RBI, as the Phillies beat the Mets (sad Metsy) 9-2. I guess some other stuff happened, but I ignored that noise. Oh, I did see that it was some sort of mascot function at Citizens Bank Park, so I entertained myself with that. Alas, I couldn’t find any pictures of the mascot hotness, but I did see that some Spartan was there, as was the New Orleans Hornet, and Li’l Red (yeah, whoever that is). Also, I heard Keith Hernandez wonder why the flowers in the bullpen were purple and not red. Keith, you’re so weird. Continue reading
Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings so early in the day, but Ladies… it looks like David Wright is going to be a confirmed bachelor for the near future. That’s right- return the wedding dress, cancel the caterer and see if you can get a refund on that church deposit– because the #1 thing in DWright’s life is white, spherical and has big ol’ red stitches across its face… and I’m not talking about Mr. Met.
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And while Davey’s Mets were getting pounded by Boomer Wells and the Dodgers (sorry, Metsy), fellow New Yorkers of the pinstriped variety ran into problems of their own with the Tigers– and Curtis Granderson‘s inside the park homerun helped lead Detroit to the W. Wonder if those wheels Curtis has can take them all the way to the playoffs? |
This is a traveshamockery! (I hope I got that right.) Kevin Durant was cut from the American team last night, because the team needs “more experience”. I’ll tell ya what the team needs, it needs hott. And also players who will crush international competition. Continue reading
So I go away for a few days, and the next I thing I know, the other Ladies… have conquered the world. Fantastic work, y’all!
I’m airport blogging it again this week, this time from scenic LaGuardia Airport in New York (thanks to a cancellation of my flight back to Chicago from Boston yesterday) — so let’s all get caught up on the latest hottie news together, shall we?
The scenery in Pawtucket is lovely this time of year.
* While the big boy Sox didn’t fare so well against the Angels on Sunday (maybe they were hungover from Saturday’s night’s 10-run tear?), the AAA-PawSox were looking mighty fine against the Syracuse Chiefs on Sunday in Pawtucket. Ladies’ mascot Jacoby Ellsbury, freshly back from his appearance in Boston on Friday, scored the game-winning run.
* It was the Day of the Pitcher on Sunday: the Twins’ Johan Santana fanned a career-high 17 batters, the Braves’ John Smoltz struck out 12 en route to a club record, and the Padres’ Greg Maddux prevented a Houston sweep and picked up career W #342. Maddux and Smoltz just go to show that hottness knows no age.
Cal Ripken, Jr., was tapped by Condi Rice to be the U.S. Public Diplomacy Envoy. The administration wants him to spread the lovely to motivate through his integrity and iron man work ethic. About the appointment, Ripken said: “This is not a political statement for me necessarily. This is about the kids, and planning, you know, using baseball for good reasons.” Someone should send Ripken to the Middle East to solve that thing.
Today’s H&R is gonna be quick and dirty, coming at ya all GordonShumway style from the Philadelphia airport. I have precisely 20 minutes to put together some hottie tidbits- so my selections today are coming straight off the top of my head. After six days of baseball games, my attention span is running short anyway- so play along while I randomly skip around the sporting world.
* First off, have to give some love to dirty sexy hottie Aaron “Bacon Pants” Rowand for putting on a show against the Braves over the weekend- including a spectacular home run and an even more spectacularly crazy catch in the outfield that saved our bacon (ahem) and helped clear the way (along with a giant 3-run homer by cutie Ryan Howard) for the Phillies’ 5-3 victory over Atlanta. All despite some horrific baserunning by Pat “Slowcamotive” Burrell.
2nd place in the NL East means we’re coming for you, Mets!
* And then there’s golf hottie Sergio “Make It Rain… With Spit” Garcia, who found yet another new and exciting way to lose a major when he signed an incorrect scorecard on Saturday, DQing him from the PGA Championship. Never trust a guy named “Boo”, Sergio- it’s doubtful he’s functionally literate, much less able to keep up with scoring a tourney properly.
Fortunately, hottie Tiger “Make It Rain… With Birdies” Woods stepped right in to claim the victory.
There are eleven McDonald’s within a ten mile radius of my apartment, all of which have identical hours. They all open at 5 a.m. and close at 2 a.m. which means that every day, I have twenty-one hours and almost a dozen options for getting a Big Mac (and perhaps some Apple Dippers). This also means that the only time I ever want a Big Mac is approximately 3:28 a.m. For my entire life, I’ve noticed that I only ever really want the things that I can’t have, which explains why I’ve always developed irrational crushes on married celebrities (Good morning, Hugh Laurie!), why I blow out the candles on each birthday cake while silently wishing I would grow a tail (for myriad reasons, all to be explained upon request), and why every time I lose a 10-K (which is every time I run a 10-K), I long to be a born-again Kenyan.
Today’s Hit and Run is filled with athletes who all want stuff that they aren’t going to get either, and you readers probably all want transitions that aren’t quite as lazy as that one.
Take, for example, the round one leader of the PGA Tournament, Graeme Storm, he of the most spell-checked name in the field (although phonetically, it’s pretty sweet and by “pretty sweet”, I mean “sounds like he may have starred in Orgy Party 6“). He’d just like to get through the rest of the weekend without soiling his pants, being mistaken for a Harry Potter character, or have every mention of his name followed by the word “Who?” I’d like to see Greaeaeameae to at least make the cut…he could probably use his winnings to buy an extra consonant or two. Continue reading
The Hotties of the Colorado Rockies completed a 3-game sweep of the NL Central-leading Brewers yesterday afternoon with a 19-4 routing. That’s practically a football score! (In fact, one year the Iowa/PSU game was 6-4, so I think this one counts as a football score). 3B Garrett Atkins and SS Troy Tulowitzki had 4 hits apiece and drove in 9 of the team’s 19 runs. Plus, they are both really cute. Tap the Rockies, indeed. [The Cubs and Cardinals (Who Are Not Out of It Yet, Thankyouverymuch) Would like to Thank the Colorado Rockies and Their Brooms]
Garrett Atkins
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