(“The TEN” is not a top ten but ten items worth being included in “The TEN”)
1. In the second round of the NFL draft the Rams selected RB Cam Akers from Florida State at #52 and receiver Van Jefferson from Florida at #57.
2. The Philadelphia Eagles took Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts in the second round at #53 overall.
3. Jace Prescott, brother of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, passed away at the age of 31.
4. Former Buena Park High School defensive back Jaylinn Hawkins (California) was drafted in the fourth round by the Atlanta Falcons.
5. Washington State defensive back Bryce Beekman passed away of an accidental drug overdose an autopsy revealed. Beekman was found dead in is apartment last month.
6. The LA Chargers drafted UCLA running back Joshua Kelley in the fourth round, #112 overall.
7. Beginning May 1, the NBA is allowing teams to open their practice facilities to players in cities and states where local governments have eased stay-at-home orders.
8. Former Dodgers broadcaster, the legendary Vin Scully, was released from the hospital Saturday after being injured in a fall at his home.
9. “I’m gonna go in there and compete my nuts off”. – Washington quarterback Jacob Eason who was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth round.
10. “So this was the “Jordan Rules”. Every time he comes down the lane knock him on the (F bombing) ground” – Dennis Rodman #TheLastDance
With no fans, a robot umpire and pitchers having to throw every 25 seconds sounds good. Will Trout and Pujols get there contract billions for this mini baseball?
USA Today Sports reported online that MLB owners are working to start the 2020 regular season in late June or early July. The 30 teams will reportedly play a schedule consisting of 100 to 110 games, and they will compete in mostly-empty stadiums.
This plan will depend heavily on the ability of the players and others involved to be regularly tested for the coronavirus.
One highly-interesting aspect of the plan is that the National and American Leagues would not exist as such during the 2020 regular season.
Instead, the major-league clubs would be organized into three 10-team divisions, known as the East, Central, and West Divisions. Each team would only play opponents who are in their own geographical division; the intent there is to limit travel to an absolute minimum during the regular season.
The proposed West Division would be made up of the L.A. Dodgers, L.A. Angels, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, Texas Rangers, and Houston Astros.
This could actually work. Again, in my opinion, the key will be the availability of diagnostic tests for the coronavirus.
The Lakers are a family-owned business, but they’re not a small business by any means, not with their ticket revenue, big TV contracts, and sales of merchandise around the world.
Indeed, something smells; that pandemic loan program was expressly intended for small businesses, many of which got shut out when the funds quickly dried up. It was highly inappropriate for the Lakers to even apply for their $4.6 million loan.
The fact that the team actually received the money was far worse. Staffers at either the Small Business Administration or a contracted financial institution blatantly violated the spirit of the law, and there were no checks in place to prevent that kind of misconduct.
Corruption abounds in the Age of the Coronavirus.
The Lakers announced today they are returning $4.6 million in loan money from a Federal program that’s supposed to help small business weather the effects of the shutdown. This raises the question of WHY the team applied for this bailout in the first place. We do know that when a loan issues, some banker gets a commission, so that’s why the thing happened. To sweeten the deal, kickbacks to team management may have been offered, the discovery of which needs to be hidden at all cost, which probably motivated the return of this money. Far be it from big sports management to actually want to do the right thing….it’s all about covering their crooked behinds.