Yankees GM Hurt Skydiving

You can add another member of the New York Yankees to the "Walking Wounded" list.

Team general manager went skydiving Monday with the U.S. Army Golden Knights to raise money for charity, when, well, this happened.

According to the New York Daily News, bystanders said Cashman's ankle appeared to broken.  Another onlooker said the bone "was sticking out of his leg". 

Yuck.

The skydive was the GM's first, but Cashman is no stranger to performing stunts for charity. Late last year, he rappelled down a 22-story building in Stamford, Connecticut to raise money.

Must See Harry Caray "Impression"

What's with people doing Harry Caray impressions?

Seriously, it seems like anyone with oversized black glasses thinks they have an open invitation to try and sound like the legendary Chicago Cubs broadcaster.  And, mostly, they come across as hackneyed copies of the impersonation Will Ferrell made popular years ago.

Yeah...looking your way Derek Holland and Ryan Dempster.

So, when I saw that Chicago Blackhawks national anthem singer Jim Cornelison donned the unironic thick black glasses for a "Toast for Harry" event this past Thusday...I cringed.

Then, well, then I watched the video below.

Now, if I can make a suggestion.  Is there any way the Cubs can get Cornelison to take up permanent residence at Wrigley Field now that the team has officially uninvited some of their D-list regulars?

Ichiro Unhurt in Car Accident

 

If you were wondering what that sigh of relief was coming from New York earlier Saturday night, it was Yankees fans finding out that outfielder Ichiro Suzuki walked away from a car accident in Florida unscathed.

"He is fine," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told the New York Post. "His interpreter called to let us know."

According to police, the perennial All-Star was southbound on a Tampa highway around 4 pm Saturday when he hit a woman making a left hand turn in front of him. 

“He struck her,” Tampa Lt. Ronald McMullen said. “She ended up hitting a third car, but there were no injuries.”

"The car was turning left and turned into me. I slammed on the brakes and couldn't do anything about it, but I had the green light," Ichiro said through his interpreter, Allen Turner.  "I realize that air bags actually do exist. You can trust the car makers that they do make good air bags and safe cars."


The Yankees are already without Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson and Alex Rodriguez, so, yeah...they're in no position to lose their starting right fielder.  In 67 games with the Bombers last season, Ichiro hit .322. 


 

Mark Prior Attempting Yet Another Comeback

Alright, stop me if you've heard this one before...Mark Prior is attempting yet another comeback.

That's right, the oft-injured pitcher has joined the Cincinnati Reds in an effort to, for the fourth time in as many years, make it back to the bigs. 

The 32-year-old righty last pitched in the Majors in 2006 for the Chicago Cubs who, coincidentally, were managed current Reds skipper Dusty Baker...the same dude who many say ruined Prior's career.

''He called me in the winter. We talk sometimes. He sends my wife updates on the kids,'' Baker told reporters Friday. ''He never asked me for anything. He said, 'Hey man, I'd like to try it one more time.' I told him, 'If I can help you, I'll make the opportunity.'''

Now, there's probably not a snowball's chance that Prior heads north with the Reds, but a spot somewhere in the Minors isn't out of the question.  Last season, the 2003 All-Star made 19 appearances for the Triple-A Pawtucket PawSox...racking up a 3.96 ERA while collecting 38 strikeouts in just 25 innings pitched.

In his brief Major League career, Prior was 42-29 with a 3.51 ERA.  In 2003, he finished third in Cy Young Award voting.

Amputee Tries Out For Dodgers

Alright...this is my favorite story so far from Spring Training.

Thursday, Daniel "Doc" Jacobs tried out for a spot with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but unlike the countless others that hit the field at Camelback Ranch...dude is a disabled Navy veteran.

You see, seven years and three days prior to his tryout, Jacobs was on a battlefield in Ramadi, Iraq when an IED exploded beneath him.  His body was left shattered, his left leg amputated from the knee down.  The Marine with him...killed.

50 surgeries later, Jacobs, now 27 years old, is back on his feet (well, one of them, his left foot is a prosthetic) fielding grounders while Dodgers scouts look on.  But, Jacobs, who once had dreams of playing in the Majors, wasn't out there to impress the scouts.

"It's all about the experience, and letting America and these guys know that not all disabled veterans are going to be a statistic in the news," Jacobs told the Long Beach Press-Telegram. "I'm here to combat the suicide rate, homicide rate, divorce rate statistics. I just want to get out there and prove to America there are awesome disabled veterans out there and we are making a stand against that."

Do yourself a favor and check out some pictures from Jacobs' day...just CLICK HERE!

Hunter Pence Plays a Mean Ping Pong

After an inspirational postseason, Hunter Pence adopted a pretty unique training regimen to prepare himself for the upcoming baseball season.

More ping pong.

“Sounds crazy, right?” Pence told reporters. “It works your fast-twitch muscles. You react. I just got a bunch of different friends and we didn’t play games. It was just rallies, as hard and as long as we could.”

Apparently the San Francisco Giants outfielder has been a table tennis enthusiast for a while, but it wasn't until his brother Howie pointed out that the more Pence played in the off season...the better he did during the regular season.

And after batting a career low .253 while splitting time between San Francisco and the Philadelphia Phillies...Pence was down to try anything.

“It might be a coincidence,” he added, “but it was worth a try.”

Absolutely.
 

 

Astros Pitcher Hates Dolphins

Ten months ago, Philip Humber threw baseball's 21st perfect game.  Now...the righty is in camp with the Houston Astros talking about, for some reason, his hatred of dolphins.

Wait...what?

Apparently, as the story goes, the then-six-year-old Humber and his family were on vacation and his father gave him some cash to buy a souvenir.  Humber, coincidentally an Astros fan, bought "the most expensive item he could afford"...an Astros ring.

Then, the family went to Sea World in San Antonio.

“I had the ring on, and we go into this dolphin exhibit where you can actually get the dolphins to come up to you and touch them," Humber describes. “The ring falls off. It’s loud in this place, and I’m yelling to my dad, ‘I can’t reach it!’ And here comes this dolphin and swallows that ring. Oh, it was devastating, man. I hated dolphins for a long time after that.”

Grab some pine, ducklips!

***Thanks to Astros County for the tip.***

 

Joe Mauer and Wife Expecting Twins

When word came that Minnesota Twins superstar Joe Mauer and his Maddie were expecting twins...I'm pretty sure fans from Rochester to Fergus Falls completely lost their mind.

Yup, the guy who, when it's all said and done, might supplant Kirby Puckett or Harmon Killebrew as "Mr. Twin" is about to have twins of his own.  And it does make sense though, right?  Mauer was born in St. Paul, grew up a Twins fan and was drafted first overall by his hometown team in 2001.
 
"Obviously, we're both really excited and couldn't be happier," Mauer said on Wednesday.  "Everything so far is good." 

Oh, before you ask, no, the 2009 American League MVP will not be the first Twins player to father Twins.  According to the boys over at Larry Brown Sports, Denny Hocking, who played with the Twins from 1993-2003, and his wife had twins while he was playing for the team.

No word as to whether or not  Mauer and the Mrs. are expecting boys or girls (or one of each), but, well, I'm sure they'll be born with "great lookin' hair".