Keeping Score

From The Daily News of Saturday, Jan. 26, 2008 . . .

Jerry Crowe, in the Los Angeles Times: “While undoubtedly causing hearts to
stop all across New England, the video of Tom Brady wearing a walking boot
Monday in New York was disturbing only in that it focused so little
attention on Gisele Bundchen. . . . Brady's Brazilian supermodel girlfriend
deserves better.” . . . Jerry Greene, in the Orlando Sentinel: “Surely
you’ve seen the video of Tom Brady apparently wearing a walking boot on his
right foot? The New York Post added this headline: OGirlie Man Limps Home.’
That’s right, make the Patriots angry. That always works.” . . . After
Detroit Pistons guard Rip Hamilton put in 39 points against the Toronto
Raptors, he told The Associated Press: "That's my real estate in the corner.
It's like Monopoly. I've got four houses and a hotel on there. It's what I
do." . . . Hmm, I don’t know about you but there’s no Hamilton Avenue on my
Monopoly game.

Construction on the new Yankee Stadium, which is due to open in 2009, is
ahead of schedule. As David Letterman notes: "There's a good reason for it:
The workers are taking the same stuff the players are." . . . Is there an
athlete today who is more fun to watch than the Cypriot tennis player,
Marcos Baghdatis? It was a joy to watch him lose a five-setter to Lleyton
Hewitt last weekend at the Aussie Open. If ever an athlete just enjoys the
moment, it is Baghdatis. . . . ExtraTV.com has obtained some info that is
part of Shaquille O’Neal’s divorce proceedings. According to an affidavit,
he brings in about $2 million a month. Among his expenses are $110,000 on
monthly vacations, $22,000 in maid services and a monthly cable TV bill of
$1,500. . . . That much for TV? My wife would divorce me, too.

Cam Hutchinson, in the Saskatoon StarPhoenix: “Three things Scotty Bowman
wanted before he would agree to take over the Maple Leafs: 3. Robinson; 2.
Lapointe; 1. Savard.” . . . One more from Hutchinson: “Following an NBA
ruling that a game between Miami and Atlanta will resume with 52 seconds
back on the clock, the Toronto Maple Leafs asked the NHL if Game 7 of their
1993 Western Conference final against Los Angeles could also be replayed.” .
. . By the way, it’s believed the Maple Fleas signed Cliff Fletcher only
because Johnny Bower wasn’t available and Eddie Shack was on tour with some
hockey oldtimers. . . . Note to the producers of CFJC-TV’s Ice Time: Dustin
Butler, not Devan Dubnyk, holds the Kamloops Blazers’ single-season record
for shutouts. Butler had seven last season to break Dubnyk’s record. That’s
what you get for trusting the WHL Guide.

If you are a fan of the Boston Red Sox, you will have to get up early to
watch them open the 2008 season. They will meet the Oakland Athletics in the
Tokyo Dome, March 25 and 26. Game time will be 3:07 a.m. Pacific time. . . .
If you surf over to homerderby.com you should be able to find a compilation
of video clips showing the demolition of various major league parks. . . .
And if you stay there and check out homerderby.com/archives/1776 you will
find clips from the 1997 Grand Forks International tournament. Yes, that is
Josh Beckett, then a junior in high school, on the hill for a Houston team.
And he is facing Kosuke Fukudome, now of the Chicago Cubs. Beckett actually
faced Fukudome three times in that game and walked him each time. Still,
Houston won, 9-1. . . . This is the same kind of tournament that is to be
held in Prince George, July 18-24, 2009. The World Baseball Challenge will
feature teams from Japan, Taiwan, Canada, Cuba, the U.S., and the host city,
and it won't get any better than that. . . . This isn’t quite in that league
but there will be a four-team senior baseball tournament here, April 26-28.
It will feature the Kamloops Black Sox, Prince George Panago Axemen, Tacoma
Fox Homes Cascades and a squad from Surrey.

What will make more noise on Opening Day, the sound of Barry Bonds not
playing or the release of Jose Canseco’s latest book, Vindicated? . . . The
San Francisco Chronicle’s Scott Ostler: "Clemens update: The Rocket, in his
campaign to hold his breath and turn purple until everyone believes he
didn't use steroids, has just reached 'mauve.' " . . . Philip Hersh, in the
Los Angeles Times: “Marion Jones told Oprah Winfrey she finally 'fessed up
about doping because she no longer could carry the Oweight and baggage’ of
living a lie. Why didn't Oprah ask Marion how much heavier that burden
became after the feds pressured her to admit doping because of her
involvement in a check fraud scheme? Without that, Jones would still be in
denial.” . . . King Kaufman, at salon.com, after Jones’ chat with Oprah:
“Showing up for a 2 o'clock autograph session at 3 because you entered it
into your Blackberry wrong? That's a mistake. This wasn't a mistake. Her
Omistake’ was getting caught.” . . .

Ted Wyman, in the Winnipeg Sun: “You have to feel sorry for the Dallas
Cowboys, who probably would have made it to the Super Bowl if Jessica
Simpson hadn't dropped all those passes.” . . . One more from Wyman: “Kent
Austin's timing is beautiful. He has now twice won Grey Cups for the
Roughriders and still managed to be one of the most hated people in
Saskatchewan.” . . . Janice Hough, at leftcoastsportsbabe.com: “Can you
believe Golfweek magazine putting a NOOSE on the cover < and then the editor
said he was shocked at the reaction? What’s next, an interview with O.J. on
the golf course about his search for the real killer?” . . . When crude hit
$100 a barrel, big oil couldn’t wait to push the price of a litre of regular
gasoline in Kamloops to $1.10.9. Is it worth pointing out that the price of
a barrel now is under $90 and the price of a litre of gas remains at
$1.10.9?

Scott Ostler, in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Now that the case apparently
is closed, Nosy Neds like me will never know why a female lawyer working on
a divorce case involving Pacman Jones would meet with him at a strip club.
Doesn’t she have an office? A van? A Starbucks?” . . . Bob Molinaro, in the
Norfolk Virginian-Pilot: “With the death of Bobby Fischer at 64, we’re
reminded of the early ’70s, when Fischer vs. Boris Spassky was as big as
Ali-Frazier, and chess matches were covered like the Super Bowl. Remember
that the next time you think the sports landscape has never been screwier
than it is today.”

Gregg Drinnan is sports editor of The Daily News. He is at
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca. Keeping Score, which appears Saturdays, returns
Feb. 16.