— Dodgers have apparently signed free agent OF Kyle Tucker, who has hit 134 home runs the last five years. He was hampered by a hand injury last year, batting .218 in July, .244 in August after hitting .280 with 17 homers before the All-Star break.
— When I was a kid, one of my favorite TV shows was The Rockford Files, starring the great actor James Garner. It was about a private detective who lived in a trailer on a beach outside Los Angeles. He drove a gold Pontiac Firebird, the show is still on TV, I think on Peacock, but it ran from 1974-80, my high school/college years.
NBC is re-booting the series, but James Garner as Rockford is going to be a tough act to follow, harder than Tom Selleck as Magnum PI, and that hasn’t gone well. Curious to see who they cast as Rockford.
— ACC is adding a conference game to each team’s schedule next year, so teams have to pare down their non-conference schedules. Virginia Tech is paying James Madison $800,000 not to play them next fall.
— The minimum salary in major league baseball this season: $780,000.
— Back in the day, when Al Davis owned the Oakland Raiders, he would interview some coaches he had no intention of hiring; he just wanted to pick their brain.
This week, Raiders interviewed 30-year old Davis Webb, who is the passing game coordinator for the Raiders’ division rival Denver Broncos. Hmmm……
— Famous birthdays, January 16th
Dave Stapleton, 72
Gerald Henderson, 70
Steve Balboni, 69
Mark Collins, 62
Jack McDowell, 60
Don MacLean, 56
Joe Horn, 54
Jack Cust, 47
Albert Pujols, 46
Joe Flacco, 41
Mark Trumbo, 40
Brendan Donovan, 29
— Rules changes for the college basketball transfer portal; players will not be able to enter the portal until the day after the NCAA Tournament, and the portal will be open for only 15 days.
This is a drastic switch (and improvement) from 2024, when the portal was open for 45 days and the process began the day after Selection Sunday.
— North Carolina’s basketball roster is earning a total of $14M this season; they’re 14-3 so far, 2-2 in the ACC, giving up 97-95 points in road losses to SMU, Stanford.
— Gonzaga F Braden Huff is out 4-8 weeks with a left knee injury; massive loss for the Zags. Huff is averaging 17.8 points and 5.6 rebounds/game.
— Virginia Tech is 2-3 in ACC games, with losses by 1-1-3 points; their last six games were all decided by 3 or fewer points. This season, Hokies are 4-0 in overtime games.
— Movie of the Day: Let It Ride (1989)- A cab driver gets a hot tip on a race horse and wins big, but he can’t stop gambling. If you enjoy going to the racetrack, chances are you’ll like this movie.
Richard Dreyfuss is the cab driver, Terri Garr is his wife, Jennifer Tilly is one of the patron’s in the track’s clubhouse, David Johanssen is another cab driver, Robbie Coltrane is great as the teller who takes the gambler’s bets.
Funny movie.
— South Alabama 91, Arkansas State 87, OT
Ark State led by 4 with 0:50 left in regulation.
Jaguars were 21-30 on foul line, Ark State 12-15.
Ark State shot 13-44 on the arc, 18-28 inside the arc.
— Southern Utah 106, Tarleton State 105 OT
Thunderbirds snap a seven-game losing streak.
Southern Utah shot 58% inside arc, 31-42 on the foul line.
6-3 junior Dior Johnson scored 40 points for Tarleton; he didn’t start.
— IU Indy 96, Robert Morris 93, OT
Robert Morris led by 10 with 10:04 left in the game.
IU Indy was 26-35 on the foul line, Robert Morris 21-27.
Jaguars end nine-game losing skid vs D-I teams.
IU Indy is playing fastest-paced games in the country.
— Georgia Southern 87, Old Dominion 84
Monarchs led 48-39 at halftime.
Georgia Southern shot 10-23 on arc, scored 1.22 ppp.
Eagles were 19-28 on foul line, ODU was 10-15
— Cal-Davis 74, Cal-Fullerton 69
Cal-Davis had 20 turnovers, but shot 61.3% inside arc.
Cal-Davis out-rebounded the Titans, 43-32
Cal-Fullerton has #337 eFG% defense in the country.
