Ahh, as one season ends (NFL) another begins (MLB, F1), and another takes a (NBA All-Star) break. Here are some items you may have heard about, or just plain ole missed. That's what the grab-bag is for! One stop info gathering!
In NFL football post Super Bowl news, let's send positive energies to those who have survived the post Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl championship parade in Kansas City, where it was estimated over one million attended. I'm happy to report all the survivors have been released from the hospital. In related news, Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift and Patrick Mahommes each donated 100K to the family of the one person who was killed at the scene. From arrest records, it appears several juveniles got into a fight, and shots were fired, and two adults have been charged in the shooting. I feel compelled to mention that Missouri ranks 48th in the United States in gun safety laws.
Back to the game itself, which I covered in a previous post, San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw, in what I and many can only call a freak of nature accident by tearing his Achilles tendon as he was running off the sidelines onto the field, had successful surgery and is hopeful to make a full recovery by pre-season. We need our enforcer back!
In a move that surprised a lot of people, mostly due to the fact it happened two days after the Niners lost to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, the team has fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks after just one season. One of the big reasons for the firing is the massive drop-off in run defense, where in the last several games, opposing teams have been able to run at will against the 49ers vaulted defensive line, which for the last three seasons, the 49ers were in the top three in stopping the run. A replacement will be looked for both within and outside the organization for this critical role in the Niners quest to return (and win!) the next Super Bowl, which next year will take place in New Orleans. An added note, free agency kicks into gear in March, and some players will be leaving for other teams, but what players are the 49ers able to sign, considering they are very tight at the salary cap. Then there is the NFL Draft in late April to consider as well.
In other Super Bowl news, Super Bowl 58 nearly set an all-time record, with 23.7 million watching the game here in the US, while world-wide and other streaming platforms the number jumped to 129 million! Swiftie Nation is for REAL, ya'll! (A shirtless Usher certainly didn't hurt!).
Basketball notes: I do not follow college basketball too closely, but did want to give a shout-out to Iowa senior Caitlin Clark for setting the all-time NCAA women's basketball record for most points scored! Congrats, Caitlin, and a big future ahead for you!
NBA All-Star weekend was upon us, and while the game itself was absolutely dreadful to watch, with over 300 points scored (I only watched a few minutes of it, I was as bored as the announcers were, it was like watching a pick-up game on your high-school's gymnasium.), the NBA did surprise me and a lot of other viewers with Saturday's Skills Night. In short, it had a relay, a passing, and more to make it entertaining. It also had the slam dunk contest, which the shortest of the bunch, at 5'10, Mac McClung, from the Orlando Magic G-League (basically the minor league teams for the NBA), once again won (with some help from a famous participant) win his second Slam Dunk contest in a row! Here is the live video courtesy of Bleacher Report! Just absolutely amazing, right Shaq?
There was also the traditional 3 point contest, which in a nail biter, Damian Lillard won for the 2nd time, being the first to do so since the 2007-08 season! Now the real challenge everyone was waiting to see was the first ever match-up between the two best 3-point shooters in the game: Golden State Warriors Steph Curry and WNBA's New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu , and shoot-out surpassed fan and pundit expectations! I won't list who won, as you can enjoy the excitement in the video below, once again thanks to Bleacher Report!
Moving on to Major League Baseball, players are now reporting to their respective camps for Spring Training, and as of this writing, the San Francisco Giants DID sign a slugger (and he comes in with a built-in nickname), Jorge Soler! Here are the details of the signing (yes, he passed his physical!), from Susan Slusser of the SF Chronicle: SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Jorge Soler now officially embodies the San Francisco Giants’ latest attempt to find someone who can provide them with regular power in the middle of their order.
After Soler, 31, passed his physical Sunday, San Francisco made his three-year, $42 million deal official. He is coming off a 36-homer season for the Marlins, and in 2019, he led the American League with the 48 hit for the Royals. Manager Bob Melvin said he envisions Soler, the 2021 World Series MVP with the Braves, going straight into the everyday cleanup spot, mostly as the designated hitter.
“We view him as someone in his prime,” Giants vice president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said. “Obviously, he was an All-Star last year. … The (three-year) deal was never an issue for us.” I can already see the Soler Power placards waving at Oracle this season! :)
BREAKING: The Panda is back! Fan favorite Pablo Sandoval is in Scottsdale, Arizona as a non-roster invitee during Spring Training. Will the Panda make a comeback? Time will tell.
Before we finish with the Locker Room Buzz, some quick hits: Netflix's F1 series "Drive to Survive" premieres on Friday the 23rd. The ten episodes will focus on last season's races and the drama of F1 2023. F1 drama of 2024 will have to wait to be seen on Netflix in 2025, and boy, do they have DRAMA to show! F1 2024 kicks off in Abu Dhabi Feb 29th! A primer post will be coming! In tennis, the marquee match-up between the young phenom from Spain, Carlos Alcaraz and his idol Rafael (Rafa) Nadal takes place in Vegas on March 3rd, 12:30 PST on Netflix!
BREAKING: On Tuesday, Carlos twisted his ankle in the very first game of his match in Rio. First reports say that the injury isn't that serious, but further tests are forthcoming to determine the extent of his injury.
Locker Room Buzz: Amazon Prime Video is getting into the NFL Playoff arena! They have paid 110 million to broadcast a playoff game next season! Paramount Plus and Peacock streaming services are allegedly in talks to merge!!! Jimmy Garrapolo was found to have taken a substance that while doctor approved, was not NFL protocol approved, so hence come early March, the LA Raiders will cut him from the team, and Jimmy G loses 11.5M due to this blunder!
Lastly, over at F1, following up in the last buzz I had on Red Bull Principal Christian Horner, I can now confirm that there are text messages, dating a while back, between Horner and a Red Bull female employee, who did NOT want to be receiving said text messages! I remind everyone that Horner is married to the stunning Geri Halliwell, aka Ginger Spice! <smh>
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