Jr gets his
But Griffey is far from done as a power hitter. There are still homers to hit, and milestones to reach. He could become the third player ever, joining Ty Cobb and Rusty Staub, to hit a home run as a teenager and as a 40-year-old. He could join Ted Williams, Rickey Henderson and Willie McCovey as the only players to hit home runs in four different decades and he could become the first player to hit 300 home runs for two different teams.
It is easy to look at 600 and wonder what might have been with improved health. But it is easier and more fun to remember Griffey at his best, a wondrous athlete who streaked through the outfield, climbed an outfield wall and made a catch that only Mays could make, then the next inning, hit a ball to places that very few players could reach. Six hundred home runs is a tremendous milestone, but Griffey at 100, 200, 300 and 400 was simply breathtaking.
Panic time in LA?
Two games into the Finals, the Celtics are much closer to winning a 17th championship than the Lakers are to winning a 15th title.
Only three teams in NBA history have come back from 2-0 deficits to win the NBA Finals -- the Celtics in 1969 (against the Lakers), Portland in 1977 and Miami in 2006.
"I'm not worried about which Celtics team shows up," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said resolutely. "I'm worried about what Lakers team shows up. That's the one that moves the ball, and we do things well on the offensive end."
Oh, that one.
The Celtics shouldn't need to change much to hang on to their momentum. Paul Pierce's knee wasn't an issue after a 28-point effort, and the Celtics' defense has been strong throughout the series, a 41-point lapse in the fourth quarter of Game 2 the lone serious dent.
There is, however, their one main problem in the playoffs.
After a 31-10 regular-season record on the road, the Celtics are 2-7 away from home in the playoffs, though they did win two of three in Detroit in the Eastern finals.
"We've played well of late on the road, so that gives us confidence," Boston Coach Doc Rivers said.
Just what the Celtics need. More confidence.
TO's weird saga continues
Terrell Owens is now subject to increased screenings for performance-enhancing drugs after the veteran receiver did not make himself available for a recent NFL-administered random test.
As a result, Owens has been placed in the NFL's "reasonable cause" testing program, sources said, though Owens said he has never failed a test in his 12-year career and passed his most recent test.
Owens said the league did not have an up-to-date cellphone number for him, leading to the miscommunication. While it is not uncommon for players to switch cellphone numbers or have multiple cellphones, changes in off-season phone numbers and addresses must be reported to the steroid program advisor.
"It was openly discussed and cleared up in a meeting that I had at the NFL office last week," Owens said in a statement released by his publicist. "I have been in the NFL for over 12 years and have never had a positive test for substance of any kind. That includes tests that took place as recently as last month. The matter was resolved to everyone's satisfaction last Tuesday, and everyone has moved on."
Fallout from the David Jacobs steroid investigation
Convicted Plano steroids trafficker David Jacobs told The Dallas Morning News that he supplied performance-enhancing drugs to a Cowboys player before and after the 2006season.
In several conversations since January with reporters at The News , Mr. Jacobs described how he prepared spreadsheets detailing a regimen for special teams player Ryan Fowler. It has previously been reported that Mr. Jacobs told federal investigators he sold to offensive lineman Matt Lehr after he left the Cowboys.
Mr. Jacobs, 35, was found dead Thursday at his Plano home. An autopsy revealed he committed suicide in the same room where his ex-girlfriend, 30-year-old Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell, was shot several times. Her death was ruled a homicide Monday. Friends said Mr. Jacobs was extremely jealous and was upset that she had been seeing other men.
A day after the bodies were found, the NFL wrote Mr. Fowler a letter telling him he faces suspension for violation of the league's anabolic steroid policy. According to his attorney, the letter said there was credible evidence that Mr. Fowler "purchased, used or supplied" banned substances.
The existence of the letter was first reported Monday by ESPN.
"I suspect Jacobs said something which the NFL decided to use to threaten my client," Peter Ginsberg, Mr. Fowler's lawyer, said Monday. The league has given "absolutely no justification" for its action, he said.
"Without any corroboration the NFL is threatening to jeopardize my client's career," Mr. Ginsberg said.
He said he has asked the league for substantiation and it has not responded.
The NFL, Cowboys and the Tennessee Titans, where Mr. Fowler now plays, declined to comment.
Mr. Jacobs spoke to The News about his dealings with Mr. Fowler with the understanding that some details not be immediately published. After his death and after Mr. Fowler's attorney linked the league's action to Mr. Jacobs, The News decided to make some of the information public.
Contract boost
Mr. Jacobs said that with his help, Mr. Fowler, who played in Dallas from 2004 to 2006, went from making $400,000 as a Cowboy to signing a four-year, $11.5 million contract with the Titans, where he was a starting linebacker last season.
"After he got his big contract, he came back, knocked on my door and hugged me," Mr. Jacobs said. "He said, thanks, I just got $12 million."
Cedric goes bye-bye
"Cedric displayed a pattern of behavior we will not tolerate," general manager Jerry Angelo said. "As I said this past weekend, you have to protect your job. Everyone in this organization is held accountable for their actions. When individual priorities overshadow team goals, we suffer the consequences as a team. Those who fail to understand the importance of 'team' will not play for the Chicago Bears."
Coach Lovie Smith, who brushed off reporters earlier in the day after Monday's practice, had no comment.
The move came less than an hour after Benson issued a statement he had hoped to make at Monday's organized team activity before he was sent home. The statement, crafted with the help of longtime ally and noted sports attorney David Cornwell, attempted to show remorse for putting the Bears through the latest ordeal.
Big Brown's trainer is not happy
Peterson gets extention from Stars
Toby Petersen worked a long time for his big break, and it came Monday afternoon. The 29-year-old center signed his first "one-way" contract in the NHL, hooking up with the Stars for two seasons at $550,000 a year.
Petersen played eight games during the regular season with the Stars after a call-up from the minors, but he played 16 of 18 playoff games, including some strong performances against Detroit in the Western Conference finals. He is a checking-line center who has some offensive upside and some strong leadership skills with several of the team's younger players
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