| | The Daily Insider
Morning News & Headlines
Friday, March 26, 2004
9:00am ET | |
| |
| • | Tony Kornheiser Today To Host Final ESPN Radio Show … At Least For Now |
| • | Yankees, Devil Rays To Arrive Today In Japan For Season-Opening Series |
| • | Cyclist Becomes First U.S. Athlete Suspended For Synthetic Hormone EPO |
| • | Orlando’s Tinker Field Poised To Receive National Historic Places Designation |
| • | Marlins To Offer Free Admission To Military Personnel For Second Straight Year |
| • | Morning Briefs/In Other News/Laugh Track/TV Monitor/Final Jeopardy! |
TONY KORNHEISER TO HOST FINAL ESPN RADIO SHOW TODAY
Washington Post columnist and ESPN’s “PTI” co-host TonyKornheiser hosts his final ESPN Radio show today, but the NashvilleTENNESSEAN notes that Kornheiser “has said all along he is only taking a breakand acknowledged he had problems with the management at ESPN Radio.” During a recent segment, Kornheiser toldN.Y. Daily News basketball writer Dick Weiss, “You know I’ll beback.” Colin Cowherd will fillKornheiser’s slot beginning Monday (NashvilleTENNESSEAN, 3/26).
YANKEES AND DEVIL RAYS ARRIVE TODAY IN JAPAN FOR MLB OPENER
The ST. PETERSBURG TIMES notes that the Yankees and DevilRays arrive today in Japan for their season-opening two-game series nextTuesday and Wednesday. Since the DevilRays basically sold “two home games to the Japanese promoters, they’ll bereimbursed for the lost net revenues from those games … plus the three homespring training games they had to give up. Though official figures are not available, it’s safe to assume theyprobably won’t come out behind in the deal.” The team is “incurring additional expenses by bringing along some topsponsors, which will cut into their proceeds.” But Devil Rays Managing General Partner Vince Naimoli indicatedthat it “was still a good deal” (ST.PETERSBURG TIMES, 3/26).
The N.Y. DAILY NEWS notes that Black Hawk helicopters willtake the Yankees to Camp Zoma for a “meet-and-greet with American soldiers” (N.Y.DAILY NEWS, 3/26).
MARYLAND STADIUM AUTHORITY WOULD GET NEW LOOK UNDER BILL
The Baltimore SUN reports that the Maryland House ofRepresentatives today will consider legislation regarding the Maryland StadiumAuthority, which was approved yesterday by a House subcommittee. If the bill becomes law, the authority“would become the Maryland Development Authority and add three new votingmembers. Two non-voting lawmakers alsowould be added to the seven-member board. Additional rules would require the authority to be more closely alignedwith the state’s standard procurement policy” (BaltimoreSUN, 3/26).
ADAM SBEIH BECOMES FIRST U.S. ATHLETE SUSPENDED FOR EPO
The L.A. TIMES reports that U.S. cyclist Adam Sbeihyesterday became the “first U.S. athlete to be suspended from competitionbecause of a positive test for the synthetic hormone EPO.” Sbeih’s two-year suspension is moot becausehe announced his retirement last month. The positive test “made it too tough for Sbeih to land a sponsor” (L.A.TIMES, 3/26).
TINKER FIELD TO JOIN NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES
The ORLANDO SENTINEL reports Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer today is expected to announce thatTinker Field is “poised to receive a historic designation from the NationalRegister of Historic Places. The statuswould make the 89-year-old ball field eligible for grants that could go towardrenovation of the field’s grandstands and other features.” Dyer said that a “local group of investorsis continuing to put together a plan to lure a minor-league baseball team tothe field, which was once home to spring-training teams and the minor-leagueOrlando Rays” (ORLANDOSENTINEL, 3/26).
MORNING BRIEFS
The WASHINGTON POST reports that NBA officials and playerreps met yesterday in N.Y. for the “first in a series of scheduled meetingsregarding labor negotiations. No formalproposals have been exchanged yet” (WASHINGTONPOST, 3/26).
The AP reports that for the second consecutive season, theMarlins will allow “free admission to home games for military personnel. Marlins VP/Marketing Sean Flynn:“Last year, we had about 5,000 folks take advantage of it” (AP, 3/26).
The Ft. Lauderdale SUN-SENTINEL notes that for the second consecutive year, Dolphinsplayers will wear orange jerseys for one home game (Ft.Lauderdale SUN-SENTINEL, 3/26).
The WASHINGTON TIMES reports that the Maryland AttorneyGeneral’s office has ruled that Univ. of Maryland officials “can restrict theuse of vulgar signs and chants by fans at campus sporting events.” Maryland Assistant Attorney General JohnAnderson wrote in a memo, “I do not conclude that the First Amendmentcondemns any such effort to failure” (WASHINGTONTIMES, 3/26).
The AP reported that a European League basketball game inIsrael was canceled yesterday “because of security concerns, and officials areconsidering moving next month’s club championship from the country.” Spanish club Pamesa Valencia was to haveplayed Maccabi Tel Aviv (AP, 3/25).
REUTERS reported that Italy’s government has “shelved plansfor a decree” that was expected to “allow [soccer] clubs to spread the paymentof tax arrears over many years, putting them on a sufficiently sound footing totake part in next season’s lucrative European competitions” (REUTERS,3/25).
The DENVER POST reports that snowboarders are expected to“account for more than 31[%] of total skier visits this season, an all-timehigh” in the U.S. (DENVER POST, 3/26).
A LIGHTER BUZZ
The TAMPA TRIBUNE reports that the Lightning’s mascot,ThunderBug, was scheduled Thursday to “start living on top of the St. PeteTimes Forum roof and stay there until the Bolts sell 21,500 tickets for each ofthe first two home games in April.” Theclub “resorted to the same stunt last season and [ThunderBug] lived atop thearena for 15 days” (TAMPATRIBUNE, 3/26).
THE BACK PAGES
The Morning Buzz offers today’s back page sportscovers from some of the nation’s major metropolitan tabloids:
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| N.Y. Post | N.Y. Daily News |
| | |
| Philadelphia Daily News | Philadelphia Daily News |
TODAY’S EVENTS
The N.Y. chapter of the National Sports Marketing Networkwill host a panel discussion, “College Marketing – More Than Just The FinalFour,” at 9:00am ET at the Grand Hyatt N.Y. The Daily/SportsBusiness Journal Editor-at-Large TerryLefton will moderate a panel that includes CBS Senior VP/Programming MichaelAresco, MSG Senior VP/Sports Joel Fisher, Van Wagner President MichaelLevine and Worldwide Marketing & Media Group President Ed Manetta.
The Plaza Club, the membership-dining club at Memphis’AutoZone Park, is closing today, a “victim of operating costs and a public lessinclined to private dining. The downtown club opened in 1999 as asubsidiary of the Memphis Redbirds Foundation” (Memphis COMMERCIAL APPEAL,3/26).
The Mike Schmidt statue being installed outsideCitizens Bank Park will be blowtorched at 2:00pm ET at Laran Bronze Foundry. Blowtorching the statue, which will changethe color to its final patina color, is the final step before it arrives at thenew facility.
The Heat will host their inaugural Sports &Entertainment Career Fair from 2:30-6:30pm ET prior to the team’s 8:00pm ETgame against the Mavericks at AmericanAirlines Arena.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…..
Every Friday, the MorningBuzz highlights a video clip, chart or piece of information that might havefallen through the cracks. This week,CBS’ Jim Nantz recaps the most-discussed story of the NCAA Men’sBasketball Tournament – the Billy Packer-Phil Martelli flap –prior to last night’s Wake Forest-Saint Joseph’s game (THE DAILY).
IN OTHER NEWS….
BLOOMBERG NEWS notes a Commerce Department study releasedyesterday reports that the economy grew at a 4.1% annual pace in Q4 ’03. Coupled with 8.2% growth in Q3, the economyexperienced the “fastest six-month growth in almost 20 years.” The report included a revision showing thatconsumer spending “grew more than previously estimated” (BLOOMBERG NEWS,3/26).
WWE late yesterday announced that it expects worldwide PPVgross revenues for “WrestleMania XX” to be $40-45M, making it the highestgrossing PPV event in WWE history. WWE’s net share is expected to exceed $20M after revenue sharing withcable and satellite providers (WWE).
FINAL JEOPARDY!
Last night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “InternationalPlaywrights.”
“During Apartheid, this man chose to premiere several of hisplays, including ‘A Place With The Pigs,’ here at Yale.”
LAUGH TRACK
LATENIGHT LAUGHS:
CNBC’sDennis Miller: “The 19-year-old woman who accused NBA star Kobe Bryantof rape last summer testified this week about her sex life. ... Although it’sbeing kept secret, the rumor has it that the woman says she’s into group sex,particularly an act she reportedly referred to in her testimony as the tripledouble. ... On Wednesday, Greece completed its main Olympic security exercisesimulating a variety of terrorist attacks. The government called the exercise successful, saying their forces areready to completely capitulate to the terrorists in record time” ("DennisMiller," CNBC, 3/25).
THURSDAY NIGHT’S TV MONITOR
| Net | Show | Lead | Next Items |
| ESPN | 10:40pm ET “SportsCenter” | Islanders-Flyers | The Players Championship; Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez |
| FSN | “BDSSP” | Kobe Bryant case | Southern Miss naming Larry Eustachy hoops coach; Eagles WR Terrell Owens |
| FSN | “Pittsburgh Sports Tonight” | Pitt-Oklahoma State | Pirates LF Jason Bay; Pirates-Reds |
| FSN | “Arizona Sports Report” | White Sox-D’Backs | D’Backs-Expos trade; The Players Championship |
ESPN’s “Around The Horn” and “PTI” were preempted due to thenet’s coverage of the The Players Championship.
FINAL JEOPARDY ANSWER
“Who is Athol Fugard?”
If you haveany questions, comments or suggestions, please let us know at:
dailyinsider@sportsbusinessdaily.com
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