QUITE FRANKLY: STEPHEN A. SMITH EATING CHEEZ DOODLES AT THE NBA DRAFT

Quite frankly, the man was heckled



What kind of man invites such ridicule and risks displaying a Doodle 'Stache on national television?

I love how Bilas and Greg Anthony politely decline Smith's charitable offering of passing around the Cheez Doodle bag - a bag he repeatedly dipped into after licking his fingers (as if they would even eat that crap). Does Smith think that Greg Anthony made it to the NBA on a strict twinkie, donut and cheez doodle diet?

What's the correct spelling? Cheese Doodles or Cheez Doodles? Even though Jay Bilas has a law degree I think this is the only area where Stephen A Smith is the better expert to ask.




Got Doodles?

2006 MIAMI HEAT JUST LIKE THE 2003 FLORIDA MARLINS

There are several obvious and subtle similarities between the 2006 Heat and 2003 Marlins, both improbable champions.

1) Sunshine
*Both teams played in Miami

2) Coaches
*Marlins Manager Jack McKeon took over after Jeff Torborg managed the team to a 16-22 (.421) record
*Heat coach Pat Riley took over after Stan Van Gundy coached the team to a 11-10 (.524) record



3) Strong finishes
*The Marlins went 75-49 (.605) under McKeon
*The Heat went 41-20 (.672) under Riley

4) Anticlimactic
*The Marlins played the Yankees in the World Series after the American League champs played an epic 7-game series against the rival Boston Red Sox in the ALCS
*The Heat played the Mavericks in the NBA Finals after the Western Conference champs played an epic 7-game series against the rival San Antonio Spurs in the Conference Semis

5) Blunders
*Game 4: Instead of Mariano Rivera, the Yankees brought in Jeff Weaver who gave up a game winning home run in the 12th inning
*Game 5: The Mavericks called a timeout after the Heat's first of 2 free throws with 1 second left in overtime.



6) Similar ending
*After the Yankees went up 2-1, the Marlins won the last 3 games to win the series 4-2
*After the Mavericks went up 2-0, the Heat won the last 4 games to win the series 4-2

7) The future is now
*Phenom Josh Beckett was World Series MVP
*Phenom Dwayne Wade was NBA Final MVP

8) The Boss
*Eccentric, wacky George Steinbrenner saw the Marlins clinch in New York
*Eccentric, wacky Mark Cuban saw the Heat clinch in Dallas

WORLD CUP: POLAND V. ECUADOR

Make your predictions in the Comments section below...

1) Score at halftime
2) Second half score
3) Final score
5) How many penalty kicks?
4) red cards, Poland
5) yellow cards, Poland
6) How many Poland substitutions?
6) red cards, Ecuador
7) yellow cards, Ecuador
8) How many Ecuador substitutions?

WORLD CUP: GERMANY V. COSTA RICA

Make your predictions in the Comments section below...

1) Score at halftime
2) Second half score
3) Final score
5) How many penalty kicks?
4) red cards, Germany
5) yellow cards, Germany
6) How many German substitutions?
6) red cards, Costa Rica
7) yellow cards, Costa Rica
8) How many Costa Rica substitutions?

LAWYER: JASON GRIMSLEY IS A PAWN, FEDS ARE AFTER BARRY BONDS

Grimsley's lawyer says feds after Bonds - Baseball - MSNBC.com

This story gets curiouser and curiouser. Jason Grimsley's lawyer is now asserting that his client was a merely a tool for the feds to get more evidence on Barry Bonds.

Grimsley's lawyer, Edward Novak, said the authorities tried to get Grimsley to wear a wire in order to implicate Bonds in further trouble.

Jason Grimsley, who was cut by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday after admitting to steroid use, was only a pawn in federal agents' attempt to gather evidence against Barry Bonds, Grimsley's attorney told the Arizona Republic.

According to Grimsley's lawyer Edward F. Novak, the feds tried to
pressure Grimsley into wearing a listening device to lure other players into
confidential conversations, all in an effort to find evidence against Bonds of
steroid use.

"It was a specific effort to target Bonds," Novak told the Republic.
"We were told that Jason's cooperation was necessary to their case."

Grimsley denied that he named names.

Novak denied reports that Grimsley volunteered names of other users to the feds, saying that instead, agents asked the pitcher about specific athletes and what he knew about their drug habits.

"They asked him specifically about Barry Bonds and Jason said he didn't know Bonds well and didn't know if he did or didn't use drugs," Novak told the Republic. "There is a lot in the affidavit that my client would dispute."

But his client wouldn't dispute, Novak said, that he used steroids himself.

Grimsley's defense is that he took steroids, but he's no rat.

JASON GRIMSLEY & STEROIDS: NAME THE ALL-AMERICAN HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE TEAM

Jason Grimsley named names. An affidavit is heavily redacted in which Grimsley gives up a plethora of baseball players to FBI agent Joe Novitzky.

[SMOKING GUN]: Grimsley was asked about his knowledge of other Major League Baseball Players who took anabolic steroids . Grimsley named, xxxxxx xxxxxx, Jxxxx xxxxx (whom he stated was xxxx xxx xxxx), xxxxxx xxxxxx (whom Grimsley stated was very obvious and had the worst back acne he'd ever seen), and xxxxxx xxxxxx as anabolic steroid users. Grimsley also stated that xxxxxx xxxxxx had a doctor in Colorado that supplied him (xxxxxx) with amphetamines.

Here's the game for readers.. Try to guess the players who will be implicated in the inevitable fallout when enterprising reporters find out the names of the players redacted from that affidavit.

Fill out your guesses accordingly. Good luck!

SELIG'S HEROES: THE ALL-AMERICAN HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAM
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
OF
OF
DH
SP
RP

See other blogs like Double Play Depth.

JASON GRIMSLEY: LATINO BASEBALL PLAYERS WERE MAJOR SOURCES OF STEROIDS AND HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE

It looks like there might be a logical correlation between the advent of Latino baseball stars and the proliferation of steroids, human growth hormone and other performance enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball


Grimsley received a package containing two kits of human growth hormone April 19 at his Scottsdale home.

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Jason Grimsley told federal investigators he used illegal performance-enhancing drugs, according to court documents unsealed late Tuesday.

It looks like Grimsley has named names.

According to Novitsky, Grimsley told him the names of other players he believed were using, but the names of those players were blacked out of the court records.

"I have no comment about that and no idea about that," Grimsley told The Arizona Republic on Tuesday, hours before the Diamondbacks played the Philadelphia Phillies.

Don't be surprised that baseball players are now using human growth hormone because drug testing is only being done for steroids.

The Republic reported that Latino players were cited by Grimsley in the court documents as a major source of amphetamines, as were major leaguers on California teams who could easily travel to Mexico to buy the drugs.

The newspaper reported that the affidavit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Phoenix, said that Grimsley took delivery of two kits containing human growth hormone at his home on April 19.

Let's see if the baseball media follows up on this.

ESPN.com - MLB - Arizona reliever's home searched in steroids probe

The original story from the Arizona Republics by reporters Craig Harris, Joseph A. Reaves and Nick Piecoro

Arizona Republic: D-Backs Grimsley implicated in steroids probe

STEROIDS: STEVE FINLEY, INCREDIBLE SHRINKING BASEBALL PLAYER? YES OR NO?

April 28, 2004


San Francisco Giants' Steve Finley reacts after striking out in the ninth inning against the Florida Marlins' Monday, May 29, 2006 at Dolphin Stadium in Miami. The Marlins won 5-1. (AP Photo/Steve Mitchell)