Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick has been voted America’s most disliked athlete, edging out Tiger Woods for the dubious title in a poll released Wednesday by Forbes
Vick is still dealing with the backlash from a federal conviction on dog fighting charges, while Woods has dealt with poor performance on the golf course after a cheating scandal led to his divorce.
About 60 percent of fans polled disliked Vick, tying him with Woods, but more people expressed a strong dislike for Vick compared to Woods.
Jets receiver Plaxico Burress, who served jail time for accidentally shooting himself with an illegal handgun, was third with 56 percent. He was followed by Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh at 51 percent and Nets forward Kris Humphries at 50 percent.
Just five months ago, Suh topped a Forbes poll of the most liked players in the NFL. He was later suspended for two games for stomping on a Packers offensive lineman.
Humphries made the list following his short marriage to reality TV star Kim Kardashian.
The top 10 was rounded out by Heat star LeBron James (48 percent), Lakers star Kobe Bryant (45 percent), former NFL wide receiver Terrell Owens (45 percent), Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez (44 percent) and NASCAR driver Kurt Busch (42 percent).
The survey was conducted by Nielsen and E-Poll Market Research.
Seattle Mariners outfielder Greg Halman was stabbed to death early Monday and his brother was arrested as a suspect, Dutch police said……Rotterdam Police spokeswoman Patricia Wessels said police were called to a home in the port city in the early hours of the morning and found the 24-year-old Dutch player bleeding from a stab wound.
The officers and ambulance paramedics were unable to resuscitate Halman.
Wessels said the officers arrested Halman’s 22-year-old brother. She declined to give his name, in line with Dutch privacy rules.
”He is under arrest and right now he is being questioned,” Wessels told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. ”It will take some time to figure out what exactly happened.”
No charges have been filed in the case.
Halman hit .230 in 35 games and made starts at all three outfield positions for the Mariners in 2011 before being optioned to Triple-A Tacoma.
Mariners Chairman Howard Lincoln, President Chuck Armstrong and general manager Jack Zduriencik paid tribute to Halman on behalf of the club.
”Greg was a part of our organization since he was 16 and we saw him grow into a passionate young man and talented baseball player,” they said in a statement. ”He had an infectious smile that would greet you in the clubhouse, and he was a tremendous teammate. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Greg’s family.”
Because he played professionally in the United States, Halman was not part of the Netherlands team that won the Baseball World Cup in Panama last month. The Dutch beat Cuba 2-1 in the final to become the first European team to win the title.
”The loss of a talented 24-year-old young man like Greg, amid such tragic circumstances, is painful for all of us throughout the game,” Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement. ”On behalf of Major League Baseball, I send my deepest condolences to the entire Mariners organization and to all those whose lives were touched by Greg.”
Born in the city of Haarlem, Halman played in the Dutch Pro League and was part of the gold-medal winning Dutch squad at the 2007 European Championship and played for the Netherlands at the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
Former major leaguer Robert Eenhorn, the technical director of the Dutch baseball association, said he was devastated by the news.
”The only thing I can say right now is we are deeply shocked,” Eenhorn, who played for the New York Yankees and Anaheim Angels in the 1990s, told the AP. ”All our thoughts are with his family and how they are going to have to deal with this tremendous loss.”
Michael Weiner, the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, also paid tribute to the slain player.
”Greg was passionate about the game of baseball and generously gave of himself to share his passion with others in an attempt to help grow the sport’s popularity across Europe,” Weiner said. ”He will be sorely missed.”
WEDNESDAY Texas (C.J. Wilson) at St. Louis (Chris Carpenter), 5:05 p.m.
THURSDAY Texas (Colby Lewis) at St. Louis (TBD), 5:05 p.m.
SATURDAY St. Louis (TBD) at Texas (TBD), 5:05 p.m.
SUNDAY St. Louis (TBD) at Texas (TBD), 5:05 p.m.
MONDAY St. Louis (TBD) at Texas (TBD), 5:05 p.m.
WEDNESDAY Texas (TBD) at St. Louis (TBD), 5:05 p.m.
THURSDAY Texas (TBD) at St. Louis (TBD), 5:05 p.m.
* if necessary
Projected Game Time Lineups
RANGERS 1. 2B Ian Kinsler. His .396 OBP in playoffs leads team
2. SS Elvis Andrus. 6 of his 8 postseason hits came in ALCS
3. LF Josh Hamilton. Battling sore groin, has no HRs in playoffs
4. 1B Michael Young. Only 9 postseason hits, but also 7 RBIs
5. 3B Adrian Beltre. All 3 postseason HRs came in Game 4 of ALDS
6. C Mike Napoli. 1 RBI, no extra-base hits in ALCS; but 6 runs
7. RF Nelson Cruz. Had .133 OPS in ALDS; 1.713 OPS in ALCS
8. LF David Murphy. Team-high .500 OBP in ALCS
9. P C.J. Wilson. 6 HRs allowed in playoffs (16 in regular season)
CARDINALS 1. SS Rafael Furcal. Has managed just a .220 OBP this postseason
2. CF Jon Jay. All 7 of his postseason runs came in NLCS
3. 1B Albert Pujols. 6 extra-base hits, 9 RBIs in NLCS
4. RF Lance Berkman. Hasn’t homered since Game 1 of NLDS
5. LF Matt Holliday. Improved health resulted in 10 NLCS hits
6. 3B David Freese. Team-best 4 HRs, 14 RBIs, .426 AVG in playoffs
7. C Yadier Molina. 8 of his 12 postseason hits came in NLCS
8. 2B Nick Punto. Team-high 8 K’s in 15 NLDS at-bats
9. P Chris Carpenter. In 17 postseason innings, 8 K’s and 6 BBs
Keys to Victory
1. Bullpen battle The Cardinals’ (5.43) and Rangers’ (5.62) rotations have posted miserable ERAs this postseason, so starting pitching clearly isn’t what pushed them to this point. Each team lacks a legitimate ace, but both teams feature a reliable bullpen that can deliver plenty of innings. The Cardinals averaged only about a dozen outs per game from their starters in the NLCS, but their bullpen has posted a strong 2.55 ERA and a stellar .177 opponents’ average against this postseason. But the Rangers’ relief corps has been just as good, with a 2.34 ERA and .193 opponents’ average against through two playoff rounds. Texas has the more established and consistent back end in Mike Adams and Neftali Feliz.
2. Star power The Cardinals have one of the deepest playoff lineups, but the Rangers have the deepest. From the top spot to its No. 7 hitter, Texas is powerful. Although ALCS MVP Nelson Cruz doesn’t have the average (.243) or on-base percentage (.300) of some other playoff stars, he has gone ballistic at the right times with six homers and 13 RBIs—and he hits seventh. On the other side, Albert Pujols’ .419 average, .490 on-base percentage, 10 RBIs and six walks prove he has been a factor all postseason. If David Freese, the NLCS MVP, can continue to solidify the heart of the order, the Cardinals’ attack can be just as deadly as the Rangers’.
3. The aces Neither team was pushed to a Game 7 in its LCS, so each will trot out its top starter in Game 1 in hopes of setting a positive tone. Cardinals righthander Chris Carpenter has pitched three times in October but has produced just one quality start: a complete-game shutout against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 5 of the NLDS. He has been mediocre (at best) in his other two outings, one coming on short rest. Rangers lefthander C.J. Wilson hasn’t been any better, surrendering 14 earned runs in three starts (15 2/3 innings) this postseason.
By the ninth inning, the fans were chanting “Tex-as Ran-gers” the way New York Yankees fans chant “De-rek Je-ter.” In case there was any doubt — and there shouldn’t have been after the Rangers’ ridiculous nine-run third inning — the passing of the torch was complete.
It started last season actually, when the Rangers won their first American League title. But then they lost left-hander Cliff Lee to free agency and nearly traded their longest-tenured player, Michael Young. Undaunted, the Rangers finished with the league’s second-best regular-season record, just behind the Yankees….Still, as one rival GM said Saturday, people don’t seem to talk about them — perhaps because they play in the AL West, not the AL East. Maybe, the GM mused, the lower expectations work to the Rangers’ benefit. No longer: The Rangers, the first back-to-back AL champions since the 2000-01 Yankees, will not be overlooked again.
Game 6 of the American League Championship Series was a 15-5 bludgeoning of the Tigers, an almost predictable eruption by the Rangers after a series of tight games. The Rangers were better offensively, defensively and on the bases. Their rotation had a 6.59 ERA in the series, averaging fewer than five innings per start. Not to worry; the relievers accounted for nearly as many innings as the starters and produced a 1.32 ERA.
“I honesty feel like they’re a team that, once one thing starts going in their direction, they absolutely snowball,” Tigers third baseman Brandon Inge said. “Just look what they did to us. Fifteen runs. Nine in one inning. I was like, ‘Good God.’ ”
Justin Verlander struck out 11 in eight gritty innings and Jose Valverde stopped a New York Yankees rally for the second straight night, whiffing Derek Jeter with two on to close out the Detroit Tigers’ 5-4 victory Monday. Delmon Young hit a tiebreaking homer in seventh off Rafael Soriano and the Tigers took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five American League playoff, pushing the Yankees to the brink of elimination.
Back on the road in the playoffs, the Texas Rangers won again. Colby Lewis outpitched All-Star David Price, Mike Napoli hit a go-ahead two-run homer and the defending AL champions survived a shaky night from the bullpen to hold off the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 Monday night in Game 3 of their postseason series. The Rangers’ fourth straight division series road win matches the third-longest streak in major league history and gives Texas a 2-1 lead.
In nearly a century of storied slugging, the Bronx Bombers had never put on a show quite like this. Nobody had, in fact….The New York Yankees became the first team in major league history to hit three grand slams in a game, with Robinson Cano, Russell Martin and Curtis Granderson connecting Thursday in a wet, wild 22-9 romp over the Oakland Athletics.
”I’m surprised it hadn’t been done before with all the great teams and great individual hitters that have come throughout the course of the game,” Granderson said…..With MLB in its 136th year and approaching its 200,000th regular-season game next month, the Yankees knew it was a slammin’ day. Not until they saw a note posted on the video board about the three slams, however, did they realize exactly what they’d achieved…The 22 runs marked the most allowed by the Athletics since 1955, when they were based in Kansas City and lost 29-6 to the Chicago White Sox.
Check out the latest MLB Power Rankings….are the Milwaukee Brewers for real…can they make a run….see where they end up in this week’s rankings!! click here
