Dan Patrick, ESPN Mum On Status Of Contract Negotiations

ESPN’s Dan Patrick “didn't show up” for his ESPN Radio show Thursday, “fueling speculation he's still in a protracted contract battle” with the net, according to the N.Y. POST.  There was a rumor that Patrick was going to “make ‘a major announcement’” on the show Thursday – “perhaps telling listeners he was leaving ESPN after 18 years.”  But ESPN officials now say that “contract talks are ongoing” (N.Y. POST, 7/6).  In Chicago, Teddy Greenstein reports Patrick is currently on vacation and will not return until after the weekend.  A source said that Patrick is “poised to announce his departure, but an obvious sticking point is that [he] is under contract” through ’08 (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 7/6).