Monday Water Cooler – May 24th, 2010
Here we go with today’s sports water cooler talk. Here, you won’t just find the straight news; you’ll find the stuff everyone is talking about – the ice breakers, the Twitter Sports Picks and topics…well, basically all the stuff you discuss at the water cooler.
Enjoy!
The sports week opens with some sobering news, as a colourful MLB player lost his life over the weekend.
MLB news: Jose Lima dies of heart attack; Pujols peeved at La Russa?
The majors lost one of its funnier, more memorable characters over the weekend when former pitcher Jose Lima, 37, was found dead in his Pasadena home. Cause of death wasn’t determined right away but it’s believed he died of a massive heart attack.
Lima, a 13-year major-league veteran, was known for being a fiery, colourful personality on and off the field and for his love of merengue music. He was named to the All-Star team in 1999 when he won 21 games for Houston.
Is there trouble in paradise for Albert Pujols and Tony La Russa? They had a heated exchange on Friday night when La Russa made a questionable managing decision. With two outs, a four-run lead and Pujols at the dish, La Russa called for a Ryan Ludwick steal attempt. Ryan Ludwick? Naturally, he was thrown out. The inning ended and Pujols threw a mini tantrum at La Russa’s decision.
They had choice words and La Russa ended up help telling Pujols, “I f*ckin know how to manage.”
NFL news: Brett Favre confirms he had ankle surgery; Goodell wants concussion crackdown
The odds of Brett Favre returning for another NFL surgery went up over the weekend after he confirmed that he had the elusive ankle surgery that was necessary for him to continue playing. The arthroscopic procedure removed bone spurs and scar tissue from the ankle, which Favre said “had been bothering me for some time.”
After seeing the careers of Troy Aikman (and Kurt Warner?) cut a bit short by serious head injuries, it’s no wonder NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants the U.S. to take concussions more seriously. He sent a letter to 44 United States governors urging them to adopt a law similar to one in Washington State.
The law demands that parents and coaches remove athletes from games if they suspect a concussion and that concussion victims get medical clearance before returning to action.
NBA news: Cavaliers fire Mike Brown; Obama steering LeBron to Chicago?
The Cleveland Cavaliers indirectly made the first step toward retaining LeBron James on Sunday when they fired head coach Mike Brown.
After five generally successful seasons and posting the league’s best record the last two seasons, Brown couldn’t elevate Cleveland to the next level: an NBA championship.
Mark Cuban was fined $100,000 for commenting on his desire to sign LeBron James but no one can fine President Barack Obama for speaking out on LeBron, right? He told TNT over the weekend,
“You know, like I said, I don’t want to meddle. I will say this: Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, it’s a pretty good core. You know, you could see LeBron fitting in pretty well there.” Obama also compared James’ situation to earlier moments in Michael Jordan’s, Shaquille O’Neal’s and Kobe Bryant’s careers when they hadn’t yet learned to trust their coaches and teammates.
Sounds like meddling to me, Mr. President. You are from Chicago, remember.
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