By Jim Caltagirone For the Mirror Thanks to the proliferation of social media outlets, anyone with an opinion, comment or observation can share it with everyone who utilizes their platform of choice. If you are a famous athlete, there’s a good chance that a post deemed controversial ...
By Paul Newberry The Associated Press The National Hockey League is an embarrassment. This is not a new development, but it’s worth revisiting. As long as the league condones the sort of mindless, reckless violence we’ve seen this week, it will never be anything more than MMA On ...
By Paul Newberry The Associated Press One quarterback. Then another. And yet another. For the first time since 1999, the top three names in the NFL draft were all QBs. Before the opening round reached its midway point, two more signal-callers had come off the board. By all indications, ...
By Tim Dahlberg The Associated Press Andy Ruiz Jr. has heard all the fat jokes, and understands he has a reputation to rehabilitate. The former heavyweight champion also knows his comeback fight Saturday night against 40-year-old Chris Arreola has been criticized both for the quality of ...
By Thomas Smith For area sports enthusiasts, especially basketball fans, another thrilling March Madness has just ended, accentuated by a one-year pandemic hiatus. Once again, however, Penn State did not qualify for the NCAA or the NIT tournament. Last year (2019-20), the Nittany Lions ...
By Paul Newberry The Associated Press It’s always mesmerizing to watch greatness in real time. A young Mike Tyson. An ageless Tom Brady. The Boston Celtics of the 1960s. The New York Yankees of, well, several different eras. Which brings us to the 2021 Los Angeles Dodgers. This ...
Over the last year, in every-day life and sports, COVID-19 has demonstrated repeatedly that it will not play fair or treat everyone equally. From the depletion of rosters in the college and professional ranks, to extended pauses in competition on all levels, some teams are shouldering an ...
By Paul Newberry The Associated Press In 1964, less than two decades removed from World War II, Japan used the Summer Olympics to showcase its astonishing recovery from a horrific defeat. It was an undeniable triumph for the host nation. This time, the Tokyo Games will be a ...
By Paul Newberry The Assoociated Press AUGUSTA, Ga. — Lee Elder was 40 years old when he made history as the first Black player to tee it up at the Masters, after so many prime years had already been stolen from him by the scourge of racism. When Augusta National finally extended him ...
By Bill Contz For the Mirror Once considered a safe haven for shielding players from hecklers or nuisance autograph seekers, the Major League Baseball dugout is no longer completely off limits to anyone not wearing stirrups and spikes. This sanctity of this semi-secluded enclave once ...
The Masters is on my bucket list of sporting events I want to attend. In normal years, next to the Super Bowl, it is typically the most expensive sports resale ticket in the United States. The actual ticket costs $115 and is sold by lottery and to lifetime patrol holders. The 2021 ...
By Tim Dahlberg The Associated Press I’m not all that familiar with law enforcement in Los Angeles, especially at the top levels. For all I know, Sheriff Alex Villanueva might be great in reducing crime, though he does appear to be a little star struck when it comes to Tiger Woods. After ...
Tiger Woods has experienced his share of bad breaks, including those that have been self-inflicted. Despite his well-documented achievements on the golf course, Woods is once again an underdog. To regain his stature as one of the world’s premier golfers, he will need to overcome ...
By Paul Newberry The Associated Press All around the country, states are rushing to approve laws to address a supposed problem that, in reality, doesn’t actually exist. Has there even been a case where a transgender athlete actually stole a college scholarship or gained an unfair ...
By Tim Dahlberg The Associated Press The 1970s were coming to a close when Bob Arum, fresh off promoting a pair of fights between Muhammad Ali and Leon Spinks, checked his mail one morning to find a letter from two Massachusetts politicians with the kind of power he knew would be unwise to ...
By Glenn Mollette For the Mirror Have you ever thought changing jobs? Have you ever aspired to be a college basketball coach? Now is a great time to get your resume together. John Calipari is the University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach. His pay this year is over $8 million.He has ...
L ast week our benevolent governor, Tom Wolf, relaxed the existing guidelines to permit fan attendance at indoor venues around the commonwealth, and it didn’t take long for controversy to rear its ugly head. Some 2,800 fans assembled inside PPG Paints arena to witness Pittsburgh’s ...
LAS VEGAS — He’d had a nice first month at his new job, had quickly settled in and was falling into a familiar rhythm. A win was coming, Kyle Larson could feel it, and he was right. And yet a past mistake remained the dominant narrative of Larson’s return to NASCAR. He wondered via ...
Despite the optimism that enveloped the greater Tampa area before this past NFL season, conventional wisdom said that it would be improbable for Tom Brady to switch teams, adjust to the competition in a new conference and division, and appear on stage after Super Bowl LV clutching the Vince ...
By Paul Newberry The Associated Press ATLANTA — Get ready for another season — hopefully, the last — of the most hapless act in sports. Pitchers trying to pass themselves off as hitters. Pity those like Atlanta phenom Ian Anderson, who’s not exactly looking forward to stepping ...