CBSSPORTS.com's Jason La Canfora cited conversations with prominent NFL coaches, execs and owners reveal that a "developmental league or academy will be much more of a front-burner issue" in '16. Some "prefer an offseason league that would replicate the World League/NFL Europe model domestically," while others "envision an in-season academy in which teams could either assign players to or draw from rosters of players who would get substantial and meaningful on-field practice and coaching time" (CBSSPORTS.com, 6/7).
TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE: In Toronto, Brendan Kennedy noted a McMaster Univ. study has found if MLB "were to introduce a pitch clock to quicken the pace of play and shorten the length of games it would also increase the injury risk to pitchers." Increasing pace of play "is a stated priority" for MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, and the league has "experimented in the minors with a pitch clock that requires pitchers to deliver a pitch within 20 seconds or have an automatic ball added to the batter’s count." Study co-authors Michael Sonne and Peter Keir found that reducing the time between pitches "limits a pitcher’s ability to recover from fatigue, which in turn increases risk of injury" (TORONTO STAR, 6/7).
MOVING THE NEEDLE: In Orlando, George Diaz notes NASCAR driver Danica Patrick "has shown very little progress, in this, her fourth full-time Cup season," but she still is a "marketable asset for NASCAR." She "continues to bring in sponsors smitten by her big-picture appeal." Patrick "ranks 63rd among all athletes in the world" in the ESPN World Fame 100 rankings, "just six spots behind Dale Earnhardt Jr." She also "is one of the most followed drivers in NASCAR on social media platforms." Patrick "moves the needle," and there "will always be a home for her in NASCAR" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 6/8).
