NASCAR Senior Dir of Communications for Competition KERRY THARP and his staff this week have "been arranging interviews and media events to deliver word" to fans near Kentucky Speedway. His "sales pitch: Give NASCAR a chance." Tharp, who "often oversees news conferences for NASCAR's three national touring series, has to combat the dwindling number of reporters on the other side of his microphone." One solution his team found is "opening tracks' media centers to college students." The other half of Tharp's job is "making sure people understand auto racing" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 6/27).
CHARITY STRIPE: A handful of Mariners players, coaches, and personnel, manager LLOYD MCCLENDON, GM JACK ZDURIENCIK and a group of donors attended a charity golf tournament Thursday at the Golf Club at Newcastle for the 29th Annual Mariners Golf Tournament to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The Mariners expected to "bring in the same amount this year" as the '13 total of $220,000. The event has raised about $5.11M since it began in '86. Mariners LF DUSTIN ACKLEY and P CHARLIE FURBUSH served as the tournament's co-hosts (MLB.com)....Orioles 3B MANNY MACHADO on Thursday "held the first Manny Machado Celebrity BaseBowl bowling tournament to benefit the Baltimore City Recreation and Parks' Play Baseball summer program." Sponsors "paid between $5,000 and $25,000 to share lanes with Machado and several Orioles teammates," including LF NELSON CRUZ, SS J.J. HARDY and RF NICK MARKAKIS. Orioles manager BUCK SHOWALTER and VP/Baseball Operations BRADY ANDERSON also attended the event (Baltimore SUN, 6/27).
AT-BAT VIDEO: In St. Louis, Joe Strauss profiles former MLBer RANDY FLORES, whose start-up video capture company, OnDeck Digital, recently "announced a licensing agreement" with the Cape Cod Baseball League. It is "a subscription-based concept that allows parents, coaches, recruiters and scouts to pay for catalogued high-definition footage of amateur baseball and softball players, teams and leagues." A parent "can pay about $20 monthly to exclusively see his or her son’s at-bats or pitching performance." Steeper price points "are available for those who want to watch the Cape’s entire schedule, more than 200 games." Flores: "Live streaming is painful to watch. It’s typically one camera. The broadcasts typically aren’t good. They’re usually not in Hi-Def. I contend today’s generation is about ‘my stuff,’ quick, 140 characters, ‘I want to see my kid, my at-bat, customized'" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/27).
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Big Ten Network celebrates eastward expansion
during event at Cipriani in N.Y. |
NAMES: NHL Commissioner GARY BETTMAN will receive the '14 Green Sports Alliance Environmental Leadership Award on Tuesday, July 22 in Santa Clara, Calif. (Green Sports Alliance)....Former U.S. President GEORGE W. BUSH spoke at the ’14 Int’l Bowling Expo (IBE)….The Big Ten Network on Thursday night hosted 1,000 guests at a party at Cipriani in N.Y. to celebrate the conference and network's expansion to the east. BTN President MARK SILVERMAN and conference Commissioner JIM DELANY were both in attendance (THE DAILY)....L.A. Superior Court Judge SCOTT GORDON on Tuesday “issued a tentative ruling that the ex-wife of former Dodgers owner FRANK MCCOURT must reimburse him” $1.9M in legal fees “after she unsuccessfully contested their divorce settlement” (AP, 6/25)….WNBA Mercury G DIANA TAURASI purchased a 2,040-square-foot house in Manhattan Beach, Calif., for $3.3M (LATIMES.com, 6/26)….Free agent NBAer TREVOR ARIZA’s 5,722-square-foot house in Windermere, Fla., closed on Wednesday at $1.5M (LATIMES.com, 6/26)….Patriots Owner ROBERT KRAFT and his girlfriend, RICKI NOEL LANDER, recently attended the premiere of “TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION” in N.Y. (BOSTONHERALD.com, 6/26).
