Never… never turn your back on the javelin competition.

Because, let’s face it: it’s too damn hot and I’m too damn lazy to it myself today.

Dan Patrick leaving ESPN is okay with me as long as there’s still a podcast. If I have to subscribe to SIRIUS or some garbage like that he’s dead to me (Awful Announcing)

The all-cereal All-Star lineup totally snubbed Frankenberry, who really gets a bad rap because of his notoriously slow starts (Gheorgie: The Blog)

While Marco is away, the Action News Team will play, and I really enjoy the “Why I Blog” series (Just Call Me Juice)

The Folly Floater is always worth a watch (One More Dying Quail)

A great new series over at Rumors and Rants: D-bag of the week… how they can narrow it down to only one expresses a great deal of skill.

If David Beckham’s soccer career is anything like his press conference, this is going to be a fantastic disappointment (Signal to Noise)

A-Rod sticks it to the Yankees.. what else could go wrong with the season in the Bronx? (Sports Shows on Mute)

After 26 years, Oregon will play baseball again. I wonder if this has anything to do with the “state school” winning the whole thing? (College Baseball Blog)

Baseball needs to ditch the whole, home field thingy tied to the All-Star game… or do they? (The Sports Flow)

An argument for Omar Vizquel’s entrance into the baseball hall of fame (Mickey Mantle’s Liver)

Looks like fantasy sports are proving to be important for more than just a drain of time and overpriced Jostens rings. Assistant professors at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are looking at different leagues to look at how players adapt to strategies and much much more.

Fantasy baseball leagues — and other fantasy sports games — require a great amount of research and learning on the part of participants, the researchers noted.

One initial finding: A woman who knew little about baseball said her participation in a fantasy baseball league has led her to become more of a fan of the game, and she now listens to games on the radio.

This is excellent news, because from now on when you get caught proposing trades at work from now on you can simply say that you are studying the way people learn, which will of course be beneficial to your career and company. Hell, how do you think these two actually got this project off the ground in the first place? Probably got caught debating whether or not to pick up Jack Cust to replace Pat Burrell and the department chair walked in. Even cooler are the possibilities: fantasy baseball for college credit!

• Fantasy Gaming Gives Insight Into Learning (Health Day News)

For a President who presides over the team who fired the reigning manager of the year, Florida Marlins president David Samson is not afraid to throw his share of stones. At least when it comes to Ichiro’s fat new contract that is, which I will admit this much: I understand its about more than just baseball with Ichiro; but 200 singles and 30 stolen bases are NOT worth $18 million per season. That is… well, let’s let Davey boy tell you what it is:

“It’ll take the sport down, that contract,” Samson vented. “Right back to the ridiculous contracts. It can’t be.”

In case he’d been too vague, Samson went on to call the contract “a joke” and “inexcusable,” then accused the Seattle Mariners of “mismanagement.”

Damn straight… terrible move. Maybe not quite the end of baseball as Samson so emphatically predicts, but it just wasn’t the best investment for that kind of dough. You let A-Rod go. You let Griffey, Jr. go. You let Johnson go. And you throw in all your chips for Ichiro? Wow. Just… well, wow.

Two days, two consecutive posts, and both share the same conclusion.

Damn it feels good to be an A’s fan.

• Five and Fly: Apocalypse prediction (Yahoo! Sports)

If there is one opinion I have never swayed from, its the fact that San Francisco GM Brian Sabean is completely and totally incompetent. True he helped the Giants to the World Series with a few moves, and has had 8 winning seasons during his tenure… oh and he’s also raped and pillaged the Giants farm system - so he’s got that going for him too.

After growing up in the Bay Area, I’ve always had a place in my heart for the Giants, but as a fan who has common sense and a rational train of thought, it’s impossible for me to be a fan of the franchise as long as they stand idly by and let Sabean tear the team down bad decision after bad decision. I was truly hopeful, that one day soon the Giants ownership would not only see this, but that they would emphatically tell Brian to pack his shit and hit the road. I won’t even re-hash the atrocious trade that sent Francisco Liriano, Boof Bonser, and Joe Nathan to the Twins for a mediocre backstop… who is of course no longer with the team. I will point out though the problems with Brian’s strategy. For example, last season Sabean traded away a young relief pitcher who is closing out games right now in Toronto with a good deal of success (Jeremy Accardo) for a first baseman who was recently waived by his team (Shea Hillenbrand). If that’s not being completely and totally neglectful of your team’s future, I’m not sure what is.

So you can only imagine how many breakable objects near my persons were in danger when I read this headline: Giants, Sabean talking extension. Despite my instincts, I read on past the title, hoping that by “extension” that Brian needed a longer rope or possibly an extension cord to hang himself with. Sadly I was incorrect; the Giants not only are somehow neglecting the fact that the team is currently going to finish their third straight losing season and that they have very little to rely in in terms of prospects as their best and brightest youngsters have been dealt away for crappy short-term veteran help… but they are actually going to reward the man with a new contract and like his work? This must be opposite day… someone, is this opposite day?

Contrary to rumors that the Giants are preparing to fire Brian Sabean, ownership has decided it wants Sabean back next year for a 12th season as general manager, and the two sides have begun discussions about a contract extension, The Chronicle has learned.

The reasons are unclear, and nobody involved in the discussions would comment Tuesday.

But even in putting Sabean on notice during spring training, Magowan said, “I think the world of Brian. He’s done some great things for the organization. I expect him to be our general manager in the future.”

Obviously I highlighted my favorite part of the article… “the reasons are unclear.” The local paper too, has no idea why this would happen. I’m stunned, I hope Giants fans are stunned as well. I know Dayn Perry of Fox Sports is stunned too. The frequent contributor to FOXSports.com and author of the new book, “Winners: How Good Baseball Teams Become Great Ones” wrote - 117 days ago - about how Sabean was done in SF:

There’s no questioning his record of success as the Giants’ GM, but it is appropriate to ask whether the Sabean model (willful neglect of the draft, prospects as nothing but trading chits, aging veterans above all) is sustainable for much longer. Barry Bonds is nearing the end of his career, and the team will be saddled with the thoroughly ill advised Barry Zito contract for years to come.

If there is one thing that I can take out of this as a positive, just one thing, its that Brian Sabean makes me remember why I’m an A’s fan.

In Billy We Trust

Great idea. Get a bike and ride it downhill at 170km/hr. Nothing could possibly go wrong… unless of course he bought that bike at Wallmart…

Very, very Kobe-ish behavior coming out of Seattle.

Look, I know Mike Hargrove quit because of “personal reasons”; he couldn’t feed the fire within to keep himself motivated, right? Wow, funny… same thing happened to Stan Van Gundy in 2005. Okay, so we know this: fact 1 - Mike Hargrove quits. Now we also know this: fact 2 - the Seattle Times reports Ichiro is now suddenly close to signing a five year, $100 million extension with the Mariners.

So, what we have is either a clear case of Kobeitis (which I think can be cleared up with some penicillin and a diamond ring for the loved one in your life), or this is one of the bigger coincidences in the history of professional sport. Because as far as I was aware, Ichiro had one foot out the door already and was openly not a fan of the M’s former manager. Now all of a sudden Hargrove is gone and Ichiro is reported to be in it to win it in Seattle.

You know, just once I’d love for a pro sports team to actually tell it like it is:

Seattle Mariners: Hello, and thanks for coming to the press conference. We’d just like to announce today that despite the recent winning streak, and the fact that this seriously jeopardizes our chances at the AL West and AL Widlcard, we have decided to fire Mike Hargrove so we might re-sign Ichiro. Yes… you have a question?

Reporter: Yes, what will happen to Mike Hargrove? Will he be retained at all or will he be completely fired from the organization?

Seattle Mariners: F**k Mike Hargrove! Didn’t you hear what I just said? We might get Ichiro back… think of the jersey sales! Jager bombs on me!

A man can dream.

• M’s set to sign Ichiro to 5-year deal (Seattle Times)

Say what you want about the All-Star Break… it sucks to be a sports fan right now. So much so I have to get my stories from abroad.

This one comes from Spain, and if you ask me, this is taking equal rights and the women’s movement a bit too far:

Women in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona, world-famous for its ferocious bull-running festival, are demanding their own version complete with cows instead of bulls.

A student Web site, www.estudiln.net, set the ball rolling with its campaign “Cows want to run” which asks for a separate encierro, as the bull-runs are known, where only women are allowed to take part.

The students say it’s only logical that women should have their own bull-run.

I really have two very different takes on this one. First off, no, it is absolutely not logical that women have their own bull-run. There is currently a bull-run that is open to anyone and everyone. The bulls do not discriminate, so there is no argument for a women’s only run. It makes less sense than the Chewbacca defense… which by the way makes more and more sense if you really look at it.

But, I will say this: Jackpot! Are you kidding me? A second, wimpier version of the bull-run for all those tourists and people with a little less sense of adventure, yet want to take part in this? This is a cash cow… pardon the terrible pun… waiting to happen. There’s absolutely no downside… well, unless you see so many different silly “bull-runs” popping up left and right until its a friggin’ ride at Disney Land as a negative. I guess that’s a downside. Do it anyway Spain, you’re going to have to do something to make up the losses in tourism from Beckham leaving Real Madrid.

• Women demand female Pamplona bull run - with cows (Reuters)

I’m not quite sure at all how this helps further humanity… but it fun to watch. Also, I bet that thing makes a killer margarita.

I’m too busy watching baseball today to put out any more, ahem.. “quality” content. Instead, why not take a gander at some of the work of the underground. Oh, an by the looks of it.. the Rockies are really bonding lately.

Sidney Crosby isn’t even 21… but he is one of the “most influential” players in the NHL, that’s for certain (A Price Above Bip Roberts)

China has a Dong that can help them “beat anyone”. Greatest headline ever, well maybe best headline of the summer (Awful Announcing)

Sporting News Radio’s Dave Smith thinks that an America vs the World All Star game would be good for baseball… but Justin Morneau and Russell on Team America? Does that mean we get Sid the Kid for the next Olympics too? (One More Dying Quail)

How is it possible that we have never submitted a team to the American Football World Cup before? Well, now that we have, if we don’t win this thing I’m going to puke (Rumors and Rants)

Who should sports fans hate more: Barry Bonds… or Todd Bertuzzi? (Signal to Noise)

Slapping hands and faces of the winners and losers of the 2007 NBA Draft (Sports Shows On Mute)

An early look of the can’t miss games of the 2007 NCAA football season (The Sports Flow)

You too can own a piece of baseball history… for the low, low price of $10,000. Get it while its hot! (WBRS Sports Blog)