The Pittsburgh Steelers are expected to announce the hiring of Mike Tomlin as their new head coach.
Details from ESPN News are upcoming…
**UPDATED**
Correction: the report is from SI.com
News and notes while waiting for the date to turn to 4.20….
Hingis, Sharapova, Blake and Nadal all advance in Australian Open (AP/USA Today) Must….refrain….from using….Sharapova….image….again
Scoop Jackson to star in reality TV show for NBA Live (ESPN.com) Brought to our attention by The Big Lead, “Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere’s Scooooooooooooooop.”
Cubs pitcher Prior ready for 2007 (ESPN News Service) What’s he ready for exactly?
Piniella considering Soriano in center (MLB.com) Oh, the comedy potential.
MLB’s Extra Innings package to go exclusively to DirecTV (NY Times) Login required
News and notes while wondering why there isn’t a David Beckham article today…
Sharapova into fourth round at Aussie Open (AP/Yahoo!) Giving us hope that we can follow her all the way through the finals.
Bonds, Giants still negotiating (MLB.com) The joys of being Barry Bonds.
Sarkisian backs out of Raiders search (AP/Yahoo!) The Black Hole is living up to its name.
Padres reach deal with Wells (MLB.com) The old adage is true: left-handers can pitch forever. It’s only this one has gout.
Britain’s Rose on top of Hope Classic after 66 (Reuters) Hitting the links in January must be fun.
Reeves still thinks he can coach, will use Shrine Game as audition (AP/ESPN.com) If the NFL coaching carousel hits ‘recycle’, it wouldn’t surprise us if he lands in Oakland.
Peyton Manning looking forward to his ninth annual Super Bowl watching party (The Onion) Forrest Manning’s wish may just come true.
Felicity star Russell pregnant (People.com) Yet another sign you’re getting old: teenage from WB show is having kids.
Sean Salisbury’s penis takes us to old friend Harold Reynolds (The Big Lead) Buried in a New York Post article in Friday’s editions, writer Phil Mushnick muses why hasn’t Salisbury been canned like Harold Reynolds? And he mentions the fine blokes at The Big Lead for the lead.
Who’s going to fill Bud Selig’s shoes? (ESPN.com)
ESPN baseball insider Jerry Crasnick writes about the possible successor’s to Bud Selig. Former Chicago Cubs president Andy MacPhail and MLB’s current president and chief operating officer Bob Dupuy are considered Crasnick’s 1 and 1A choices.
Vet accused of injecting performance enhancing drugs into horses (AP/ESPN)
A veterinarian in Omaha, Neb. is accused of injecting horses with “performance enhancing drugs”. The drug of choice?
Why vodka, of course.
Samardzija to focus on Cubs career (FOX Sports)
FOX Sports baseball insider Ken Rosenthal writes that Notre Dame wide receiver and Cubs draftee Jeff Samardzija has elected to give up a lucrative football career to focus on baseball.
Cameron, Dolphins in discussions about Miami job (AP/Yahoo!)
The Miami Dolphins are in talks with San Diego Chargers offensive coordinator Cam Cameron regarding their head coaching position. He has been in Miami since Wednesday and returned with owner Wayne Huizenga to the Dolphins complex, leading to speculation he may be getting the nod.
***UPDATED***
ESPN and ESPN News are reporting that the Dolphins have offered Cameron the job.
***UPDATED II***
Cameron has accepted the position.
News and notes while counting votes for NHLer Rory Fitzpatrick…
The NHL’s All-Star voting disaster: A Slate investigation (Slate) That sneaky NHL trying to avoid a PR disaster with another one. Clever minds, they are.
Roundup: Cuts at Sports Illustrated, Separated at Birth, More Rob Parker and why isn’t J.D. Drew’s deal done? (The Big Lead) A mini-collection of notes compiled by The Big Lead.
Sports bloggers agree: we rule (KSK) KSK gives itself a well-deserved pat on the back.
Nixon, Tribe agree on one-year deal (MLB.com) Trot Nixon finds a new home.
Ex-No. Colorado punter due to appear in court (AP/ESPN) The strange story should continue to evolve.
Over the span of the past 18 months, the NHL was secretly pining away in their marketing cubicles, trying to come up with new ways to get the fans excited upon the league’s return from the lock-out. They came up with a few ideas to whet the fans’ whistle –
1. New rules. The rules were designed to make play better. Enough with the clutching and grabbing, they said. Wipe out the center red line and watch end-to-end passes and awesome break-aways. For the most part, the rules worked after players finally figured out how to play within them. The only thing left to do is get rid of the third and fourth liners who have no business in the game (i.e. having the same value as the stars of the game) and we’re finally onto something.
2. Parity. Well, not quite parity. It’s more like everyone having equal footing with each team having a salary cap. While the ‘cap is still in its infancy, one can sense that spending should keep teams during free agency periods in line. The true test will arguably come this offseason when more players of higher caliber should be hitting the marketplace.
3. A new network. The league’s higher ups over the years grew increasingly hot-and-bothered by the lack of attention they received from ESPN. Sure, they liked the exposure they received in reaching far more homes in non-traditional hockey markets with the “Worldwide Teaser”, but the league always felt that when push came to shove, they were treated like a second class citizen. To counter this, the league made the ill-fated jump to Versus (nee OLN), assuming they’d get better coverage with a network that was “serious” about growing. As it turns out, it has been a miserable experiment and they’ll be locked into the network till 2009.
This leads us to the fourth idea — uniform makeovers.
Things to look over while Peyton Manning prepares for his next close-up…
Serena stays alive with upset win over Petrova in Australia (Reuters/ESPN) The out of shape Williams sister trudges forward.
Tigers’ Rogers discusses that ‘thing’ on his hand (MLB.com) Three months later, still no mea culpa. Oh well, the right team won.
Lawrence appears on Mariners’ radar (MLB.com) The rehab project is now the most sought after name on the market. Just imagine what’s going to be thrown his way this crazy offseason.
Teresa Earnhardt wants Junior back at DEI (AP/Yahoo!) You’re bleary eyes aren’t fooling you — a NASCAR story! File this under: entertainment.
Time is now for Manning (USA Today) Like it wasn’t time for Manning the past few years? Stop with the bullsh*t column filler and come up with something original.
Cubrir! It’s Mexicanic for cover (KSK) The folks at KissingSuzyKolber make their fearless forecast with their usual sense of humor.
Diamondbacks, Davis agree to deal (MLB.com) After making the deal with Milwaukee to land the lefty, Arizona came up when they needed to in extending him.
Indy coach Dungy hoping for Colts-Bears Super Bowl (Reuters) We thought for sure that Dungy would be pulling for New England.
Isles send Flyers to eighth straight defeat (AP/Yahoo!) My how the mighty Flyguys have fallen. The drive for the number one pick is in earnest.
Hasselbeck has surgery on ailing shoulder (ESPN.com) Lenny Pasquarelli of ESPN reports that Hasselbeck goes under the knife.
Penguins meeting ends with no deal (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) Penguins, state meet on arena deal; sides part ways with nothing in place
Remarks by Sen. George J. Mitchell at Major League Baseball Owners Meeting in Phoenix, Ariz. (MLB.com)
The former U.S. senator provided an update to all major league owners on his steroids investigation (dubbed ‘The Mitchell Commission). He warns that Congress may step into the fray.
An excerpt:
We have reached out to many persons associated with the game, past and present. And, as I have made clear from the beginning, my door is open to anyone who wants to speak with me about these matters.
I’ve led and participated in many investigations, as a state prosecutor, as a federal prosecutor, as a United States Senator, and, more recently as the Chairman of independent commissions.
Those investigations have involved many subjects, from a wide range of federal and state crimes, to allegations of impropriety in bidding for the Olympic Games, to violence in the Middle East. There is a time-tested process involved. An investigation of the kind in which we’re involved must first cast a wide net. This involves, among other things, a detailed review and analysis of documents, and interviews of many witnesses who may have relevant information.
Then, based upon an evaluation of all that information, the individuals who may be involved must be interviewed, and given an opportunity to respond to the allegations and to comment on the evidence supporting those allegations.
Nets’ Brooklyn arena: The Barclays Center (AP/Yahoo!) 
The New Jersey Nets announced a naming rights deal with the British banking conglomerate Barclays on Thursday. Rights fees weren’t announced, but New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg said the bank would be investing somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 million over 20-years.
That Jay-Z: always thinking outside the box.
Kwame Brown does damage…to an unsuspecting man celebrating his birthday (The Big Lead)
There really isn’t words to describe the comedy in this, but the Big Lead brings this interesting story to the fold.
An excerpt:
About 1:45 a.m. Martinez left the restaurant, his birthday cake in his arms, and walked north. He stopped in front of Blue 32. According to Martinezs report, Brown came along, grabbed the cake out of his arms and threw it at him. The report gives no indication why Brown would do such a thing.
Folks, this is the assholish move of somebody who just doesnt give a fuck. Just how much of a childish, foolish prick is Brown? Read this and get back to us.
If you dont have time for it all, print it out and read it on your lunch break. Its fascinating insight into the kid from one of the great sportswriters left in newspapers today. There isnt much not to love. The line that left an indelible mark on us is about how Brown would come home with his suit on, wad it into a ball, and just throw it in the corner.
Were not ready to label Brown the biggest bust in NBA draft history, but he damn sure is close.
Growing Pains (Washington Post Magazine)
Brown in Cake Caper (Los Angeles Daily News)[In a strange twist, we actually knew a family that rented their house to Brown when he was living in DC. For what its worth, they said he couldnt have been a nicer guy.]
Some news and notes while waiting to see if Ron Mexico will try to board another plane with a water bottle again…
Vick water bottle confiscated; player won’t be charged yet (AP) His new name: Don Aquafina.
Braves putting together a nice bullpen (ESPNINsider) Buster Olney blogs how Braves GM John Schuerholz is up to his old tricks again. Other notes include: baseball owners don’t seem interested in jacking up amphetamines penalites; Jim Hendry of the Cubs trying to explain that their arbitration offer to Mark Prior wasn’t a ’slap in the face’; Gary Sheffield opened his yap again, this time in a book; and the Yankees are still thinking on Bernie Williams.
Doctors say Waters’ brain tissue had deteriorated (ESPN News Services) An update on the sudden suicidal death of ex-NFLer Andre Waters.
Schottenheimer’s latest playoff failure is a lesson in post-season pressure (USA Today) There is no trend!
David Stern talks it up with the ‘Journal (Wall Street Journal) The commish give his views on the current state of the NBA.
Nadal battles into third round (Reuters) The Aussie is shaping up nicely on the men’s side.
The zucchini bread fart (plus the Steve Irwin Memorial Meast of the Week) (KSK) The guys at Kissing Suzy Kolber delve into farts and of course, a little sports.
Things to look over while eating those tasty cornflakes and wondering if Michael Vick smokes before or after eating…
BC dismisses center Williams, forward McLain (ESPN.com) Troubles afoot at a fine Jesuit school.
Clijsters, Hingis advance in Aussie (AP/ESPN Services) It’s starting to look like some names are emerging in this major.
Blake gets by Kuznetsov (Reuters) American downs a fellow American in Aussie Open.
Galaxy searches for unknowns to play with Beckham (Reuters) Ya didn’t think we’d go another day without another
Beckham story, did you?
Report: Owens to need further surgery on finger (ESPN News Services) All the fans in Dallas have another finger in mind when it comes to dealing with T.O.
Nationals set to add Womack (MLB.com) The Nats are looking for some bench depth.
MLB considers adding playoff ‘off day’ (MLB.com) Somehow, MLB doing the right thing makes us smile.
New NHL uniforms promise better play (USA Today) Uniforms will better play? Sure thing, Gary.
Bonds: McGwire, Rose should be in Hall (AP/USA Today) It is a nice gesture, but Barry should be worrying about other things.
Seattle’s Putz nets $13.3 million deal (AP) The price of pitching continues to amaze.
Michael Vick had water bottle with secret compartment at Miami Airport, busted for pot (NBC6.net)
The brothers Vick have similiar issues. It looks like Falcons owner Arthur Blank has a PR blunder on his hands.
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