Author: lleonardbw

NHL Podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Patrick Kane could be done with NHL if rape evidence proves out

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Join Mary Lisa Walsh in her discussion regarding the Chicago Blackhawks Patrick Kane who is awaiting rape examination lab results from a woman who says she was raped by Kane. Hamburg New York authorities are awaiting results from the rape kit. The victim said she was overpowered by Kane August 2nd after she and her friend met Kane at SkyBar Restaurant in Buffalo and her friend wanted to go to Kane’s house. The victim said it was not a good idea to go there alone and another woman verified it was not her idea to go Kane’s house.

After the alleged rape the woman was taken the hospital for a rape examination and results are pending. In the meantime EA Sports has removed Kane’s image from the cover of their game cover of NHL 16. In another case Kane and a relative assaulted a cab driver over a 20 cents difference in cab fare in Buffalo and assault charges were later dropped in the 2009 incident. Kane is using the same attorney in the taxi assault case to defend in the rape charge with lawyer Paul J Cambria. Cambria represents many high profile clients and practices nationwide.

Also Mary Lisa discusses the NHL expansion of 2017 as Las Vegas and Quebec City were chosen out of 16 other teams to expand. Quebec City lost the Nordiques to Colorado in 1995 and have vyied for NHL expansion ever since and with a new arena Videotron Centre with 18,259 seats there is little doubt that Quebec’s wait is about to end with an expansion team. It will be Canada’s second NHL team to be welcomed back in recent years the last being the Winnipeg Jets who returned after playing in Atlanta.

Listen to Mary Lisa in the podcast below for the latest in the NHL.

San Francisco 49ers podcast with David Zizmor: How the 49ers will fare in first exhibition game in Texas Saturday night

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by David Zizmor

SANTA CLARA–After all that’s happened this week starting with the Aldon Smith DUI situation and his release from the San Francisco 49ers the team needless to say has been in a state of confusion and they’ve been shocked by the turn of events of the off season. A lot of that stuff happened when a lot of the players weren’t actually in the building at Marie DeBartolo Centre training camp in Santa Clara.

This happened away from the practice facility and they have to ask themselves a few questions already and these incidents took place away from the field and the players have had some questions the last week or so. The media has been focused on what the game on Saturday is going to mean in Texas. They’re going to find out with the players that remain on the 49ers roster.

The retirements and the releases of players obviously that’s news in the big picture and it’s not the immediate news story that’s not fresh. The 49ers are really dealing with the aftermath. What does that mean for this 49ers team and their performance in the 2015 season. How will they do and how many wins will they get. How many loses will they get? Pre season with the first game on Saturday will be an opportunity to see how they’ve adjusted.

The 49ers coaching staff are trying to fill those holes and see whose up and down on both sides of the ball particularly on the offensive line. How are the players filling those new roles going to adjust and whose going to be effective? It’s the biggest question, it’s only pre season but it’s a start. The first pre season game the starters play for the first couple of series.

After the starters play for a quarter or less then it’s the second tier to fourth tier guys who won’t make it out of the second week of training camp. There will be a lot of guys who will be playing their first game and their looking at getting their first chance with the Niners. A lot of these guys are going to get cut in a week.

The starters the Colin Kaepernicks of the world, Anquan Boldin he’s going to get some time in the game but head coach Jim Tomsula doesn’t want to risk injury to his players. The Niners shouldn’t have too many distractions and it should be what’s in front of them on the field. It’s going to be about the football and 100 yards and trying to beat their opponents in front of them.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

(photo Anquan Boldin Sirius Radio)

Cal Bears Podcast with Morris Phillips: Former Cal safety suing for concussion related medical malpractice

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by Morris Phillips

BERKELEY–Former Cal safety Bernard Hicks has filed a lawsuit against Cal for concussion medical malpractice. Hicks played from 2004-2008. Hicks claims he sustained several concussions during that time and was allowed on the field after suffering in game injuries. Hicks claim is that after being allowed to come back in the games he suffered neurological injuries and has continued to suffer from pain and injuries from his playing days.

Hicks attorney Matthew Whibley says that Hicks was not informed by the university of the long term effects from the injury of neurological disorders related to concussions and subconcussive to the head. Whibley said that the university is the caretaker, “we think it would be fair for them to at least inform the players what they’re getting themselves into.” said Whibley.

The university countered saying that it does care about it’s former athletes and supplies it’s athletes with the “best and up to date guidelines, the medical care we provide our student athletes meets or exceeds the standard collegiate and national sports medicine.” said a Cal statement.

Since leaving Cal Hicks has suffered “permanent and debilitating” neurological injuries that has caused depression, suicidal shots, dizziness, memory loss, and blurred and double vision the lawsuit read.

In the Pac 12 it is expected that there will be a number of teams that will be in the mix for a shot at the bowl. Then there’s the possibility of having a USC who would be a top ten mainstay this year and there’s Oregon that’s floating in there as well. With Grambling and S San Diego State coming into Cal to open the season the Bears will be good early.

This is a more experienced Cal group one thing we know about Cal they can throw it and catch it. They got Jared Goff a great receiving crew with wide receiver Bryce Treggs. Cal is expected to do better against the lesser competition and after that it will be a real test for them. This year your evaluating Cal on two different levels.

Cal will be evaluated on how many games they win or lose but also on their ability to improve because their schedule is tough and they may not win the way that a team that really is improving would go 6-6 but it will be an improvement none the less. Were not evaluating them given the high level of difficulty of the schedule it’s a week after week process in the Pac 12.

It couldn’t have been a harder introduction for the Bear Raid offense since head coach Sonny Dykes took over and the Bears just didn’t have enough good players on defense. It didn’t matter because of what they were doing and what they were doing offensively it involved too many turnovers with deflected balls, fumbles, and spurts of great offense mixed in with a lot of mistakes.

Morris Phillips is a beat writer for the Cal Bears and does weekly podcasts on Cal at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NFL Podcast with Tony Renteria Thu Aug 13, 2015: Jets Geno Smith got in Enemkpali’s face was smug before the punch say teammates

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by Tony Renteria

Former New York Jets linebacker IK Enemkpali was merely asking for the $600 he loaned Jets quarterback Geno Smith in the Jets locker room that paid for a plane ticket. Smith got angry about Enemkpali having the gull to ask for the loaner back and got in the linebacker’s face and pointed his finger in Enemkpali’s face making contact in Enemkpali’s face and that’s when Enemkpali laid Smith out breaking his jaw.

Here’s Smith making bank and for him not to pay his teammate back, it’s a guy barrowing a lot of money from a guy who doesn’t make a lot of money and not paying it back. If you were a quarterback in that leadership role your the guy who actually hosts camps with your teammates. Your the guy who picks up the check at dinner.

There’s great stories about quarterbacks buying cars, expensive wrist watches and getting their linemen gifts. To barrow money from another guy on the team especially someone on the other side of the ball and not paying him back is just ludicrous. Now mind you there is no excuse for violence in the dressing room. You wouldn’t imagine former Packers quarterback Brett Farve being in the at situation, or a Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning being in that situation.

You wouldn’t imagine a Raiders quarterback Derrek Carr being in that situation, you wouldn’t imagine the Colts Andrew Luck being in that situation because these are guys who are leaders on and off the field. This situation that took place between Enemkpali and Smith was described by Jet teammates as something that would take place in the sixth grade level. These other quarterbacks are guys who know what it’s like to be the number one person in the huddle.

I’m not saying that Enemkpali got what he deserved but what Smnith didn’t do would establish himself to be in that elite part of the locker room knowing that that’s his locker room. Smith is a young kid whose immature and didn’t take the lead role of being the quarterback and all the intangibles that go along with it.

Tom Brady after court appearance will get some looks during exhibition game on Thursday night: Brady will get in about three plays and as many as 12 plays. That package has already been set. Brady shouldn’t be distracted by what’s going on with the court appearance Brady and head coach Bill Belichick you almost have to believe that the Patriots arrived in a little bit of controversy.

Matter of fact it’s going to be fuel for Brady this year, if Brady’s suspension is reduced one or two games even with that the Pats still can make a run at Peyton Manning’s touchdown season total. The Patriots want to go into this leaving no doubt that they are still the top team in the NFL.

Listen to Tony for more on the NFL Podcast as he talks about the Raiders quarterback Derek Carr and more at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Oakland Athletics 2015 “This is the business we have chosen”

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by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

OAKLAND–Unless the Athletics win 40 of their next 45 games of the season and the four teams on top totally collapse, there will be not World Series in Oakland this year.

This 2015 season has been a disappointment from the very beginning. Somebody once said that you cannot win the pennant in April and May, but you sure can lose it. The Athletics fell into a hole so deep, so early, that they just have not been able to get out of it.

2015 is not as bad as 1979(I remember that) when they won 54 games and lost 108. Nobody (that I know)picked the A’s to win their division this season, but most people in the baseball world picked them to be a competitive team. And they can be competitive, especially when Sonny Gray is starting a game, he is one of the very best young hurlers in the game today, and he will be in sole possession of the Athletics for a few years to come, until he can become a free agent, and then everybody and their grandmother, knows what happens. Adalberto, aka Ucho, is a good friend of mine who has been an A’s fan and followed the A’S since they moved to Oakland in 1968, he told me last winter that the A’s should sell their Jerseys blank- with no specific name of a player– and sell the names of the players individually in Velcro so fans can buy the Jerseys and then just inter-change the name of the players as they come and leave. He told me he had just bought a Céspedes jersey and two weeks later he got traded. Maybe I will tell that to the A’s marketing department, but then…

So is the life in Oaktown these days. I do feel for A’s skipper Bob Melvin, a very good manager and a class human being. Like in the movie The Godfather Part II, Melvin will be like Hayman Roth telling Michael Corleone: “this is the business we have chosen!”. Melvin knows that from the first moment he took the job as manager of the A’s, Players are discarded regularly in the A’s system when things do not work, players in Oakland have to do well in a short amount of time, or they are gone. Right now the way Josh Donaldson and the Toronto Blue Jays are playing(they beat the A’s today and have an 11-game winning streak, second 11-game winning streak for them in 2015)Josh could be the favorite, with the Angels Mike Trout to win the American League Most Valuable Player. Yes, that same Josh Donaldson that played here, has talent, star-power and lots of class and I feel great for him.

Just like a strike out for a player these days is not really a dishonor, a team finishing in the cellar is also no big deal, because we live in times when you can finish last one year and win it all the next. The Oakland Athletics could finish last this season and that is not a regular situation for them these past few years, but then that would not be that bad at all. The American League west doesn’t have a perfect team, and I could easily see the A’s competing in 2016, with some more trades and some luck, all is possible.

Athletics fanaticos have to put things in perspective, there are teams that have never even been in a World Series; right in their division. The Seattle Mariners, who in the last two off seasons spent enough money to bail out Greece, are competing with the A’s to finish out of last place. And then the Chicago Cubs, of course, who are looking like a postseason team this year, they are the biggest example of long time suffering, since 1908. Manager Joe Maddon(first season with the Cubs) was the perfect RX for this organization, he brought a winning culture to the north side of Chicago, but most important the Cubs ownership cultivated some great young talent and the Cubs look deep and very much competitive for the near future.

Soon in time, the A’s will be the only residents at the OCO. I cannot see the Raiders staying much longer at Oakland, they are a prime candidate to move and return to Los Angeles, for a second time, and this time to stay.

The Oakland A’s organization and the stadium situation is hanging on like a bad disease, although the Oakland Coliseum is not the oldest park in major league baseball, Dodger Stadium is older, so is Fenway Park in Boston and Wrigley Field in Chicago. Still the Coliseum at Oakland is not a positive for the organization, when you win, that is forgotten, but when you do not win, that plays another part into the problem. Some say that they need a new ballpark so they can increase their revenues and build a winning organization, while others would say, they have been winning in the recent past and doing decently at the gate, and always making money.

I have friend that tells me the ownership is fine, because it is a business and they’re in business to make money, others tell me, this ownership is happy finishing over .500 even if they do not play deep in October. The problem is that this year there is a very good chance they will finish under.500.

In the end baseball is entertainment. When you go to a movie and you pay $10 to see a first run movie, you expect the movie to be good, but if it isn’t you are not allowed to ask for your money back, same principle in baseball. A’s fans hope the 2015 A’S movie is not back in 2016.

Finally, the best thing to say about the Oakland A’S of 2015 is a very common saying these days: “It is what it is.”

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for the A’s and Spanish TV voice for the Angels and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers update: Kaepernick says that Aldon never smashed his alleged Mercedes

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by David Zizmor

SANTA CLARA–49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick says that internet trolls claim that he and Aldon Smith had a problem TMZ reported that Kaepernick was involved with Smith’s girlfriend which led to Kaepernick’s Mercedes being smashed on Thursday was a complete internet lie. According to a report from website mediatakeout.com Smith smashed up Kaepernick’s new Mercedes last week Thursday.

Kaepernick talking to the media at the 49ers camp on Wednesday said last week Thursday there was no practice that day in the first place the day that the site claimed Smith smashed up Kaepernick’s Mercedes and second Kaepernick said that he drives a Jaguar that he’s endorsed for the company for years and does not even own a Mercedes. “I do realize we didn’t have practice Thursday so we weren’t at the facility. Along those lines anybody that believes that and goes about that reporting just doesn’t have the best integrity in mind” said Kaepernick.

“Well if I was a reporter I would go about things logically, I would realized that I have a deal with Jaguar and have had it for a few years now so I wouldn’t be driving a Mercedes” said Kaepernick. According to Kaepernick he also said that he and Aldon Smith were close friends and wished that something like this never happened, “it’s really tragic (Smith’s DUI that led to him being released from the 49ers) and I wish him the best. I hope he’s doing well. I hope everything turns out alright for him and he gets back on track.”

David Zizmor covers the NFL at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amuary’s Podcast,News and Commentary: Gifford was part of what many say the best NFL broadcast team in history

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by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

OAKLAND–One more thought on the late Frank Gifford who passed this week at the age of 84 he was most likely part of the best talented broadcast teams in the history of netowrk TV. You have to remember that Monday Night Football revolutionized sports with the Dandy Don Meridith, Howard Cosell, and Gifford may he rest in peace.

Those three are inseparable in the success of the football broadcasting booth although Cosell didn’t get along with the jocks in the booth, he didn’t get along with Frank but the Giff was a class act. Gifford was one of those guys who played for the New York Giants and in the 60s in New York the biggest star was Mickey Mantle and then Gifford. Remember the NFL wasn’t big yet in the 60s.

The NFL became big because of TV and because of these three guys in the MNF booth Cosell, Meridith, and Gifford who worked together from 1971-1977. These three revolutionized MNF and later you got guys like Al Michaels, Tony Kornheiser, Jon Gruden, Dennis Miller and many more and Michaels you might remember was the voice of the San Francisco Giants in 1974-75.

These three guys revolutionized national television on Monday Nights and MNF became more than a game MNF became an event and now we see what happens the NFL is the leading league in all of sports and is the number one league. Every single game is on TV with Sunday night, Thursday night and on Monday night.

So those three revolutionized the national TV spotlight, Gifford came from humble beginnings born in 1930 grew up in California during the depression, moved 47 times before high school, his family was so poor they ate dog food during the great depression to survive, Gifford went to Bakersfield City College and got enough credit to go to USC and was a fast runner on the football team there and got noticed and was drafted to the NFL and after his playing days went onto work in acting and television broadcasting.

Listen to Amaury Pi Gonzalez on the podcast below as he also discusses more on Gifford and MLB headlines, Amaury is the Spanish radio voice for the A’s, the Spanish TV voice for the Angels, and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O & Jerry Feitelberg Tue Aug 11, 2015

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by Charlie O Mallonee & Jerry Feitelberg

The A’s you would think after the fire sale everthing would be a little depressing for them around there and yet they just had a very good homestand against the Houston Astros last weekend. They had a 6-4 homestand they lost to Cleveland in three 2-1 and went 1-2 against Baltimore.

That series didn’t surprise Baltimore right in the throes of the wild card so their very motivated right now but then coming back and taking three out of four at the Coliseum against Houston no one saw that one coming. The A’s could have come back in the fourth game and they came back from behind to tie it but they lost it when the bullpen let them down.

To see the A’s come together well and to do that well and your starting to get a little glimpse for what maybe next year for the A’s. It’s still tough for them their still 51-63 and their still in last place in the AL West. Their ten games behind Houston and their 1.5 games back of Seattle.

The Athletics are 9.5 games back of the wild card, so for the A’s it’s an interesting situation that they are where they are and if you wipe out that first six weeks of the season it’s an entirely season for the A’s. The A’s have had good games and they’ve had some poor games. On the current road trip their in Toronto, the Jays are a very potent and very red hot team that Oakland is going into the Sky Dome to face and the A’s found that out by dropping Tuesday night’s game to them 4-2 in the series opener.

The Jays came into the series having won nine in a row, swept the Yankees in Yankee Stadium where they’ve had 17 loses before that and took all three games. They made two blockbuster deals getting Troy Tulewski and pitcher David Price and plus some other minor deals. They also got veteran pitcher LeTroy Hawkins who just picked up a save with the Jays, Cliff Pennington from Arizona, and Mark Lowe from Seattle joining the Jays.

The big news in the off season was Russell Martin and Josh Donaldson who joined Toronto. From Toronto the A’s go to Baltimore for four games before going to face the Dodgers in an interleague game on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. For the series it’s going to be very tough in Toronto. On the MLB Network they were talking about Donaldson could possibly be the MVP for the A.L. and it’s like stabbing A’s fans in the heart. He may not overcome the Angels Mike Trout but there is a chance that Donaldson could become the MVP.

Charlie O and Jerry Feitelberg did the A’s podcast for this week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sportstalk Podcast at Chops Steakhouse downtown Sacramento Mon Aug 10, 2015

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Cast: Michael Duca (host), Charlie O, Daniel Dullum, Jerry Feitelberg, Jeremy Harness, and Lee Leonard (producer) enjoyed podcasting and dining at Chops Steakhouse at 1117 11th Street downtown Sacramento for catering and reservations call 916-447-8900. Owners Trisha Flynn and Denise Fleming. When at Chops Steakhouse try some of Sportstalk’s favorites Prime rib, The Surf’s up Dungeness Crab Cakes, Sautéed Jumbo Prawns, King Crab Legs, Lobster tails, Grilled Sirloin, Braised Short Ribs, or try the Dinner for Two which is Chops Signature 28 oz, Porterhouse Steak hand carved for two, sauced with veal demi-glace and two Dungeness Crab Cakes.

On the Sports Discussion tonight a Sportstalk Tribute to the late ABC Monday Night Football play by play announcer Frank Gifford who passed away on Saturday at age 84. His life, his football career, his days in the Monday Night booth with Howard Cosell and Dandy Don Merridith. Also the Sacramento Kings and the progress of their new arena and some of the new players the Kings have acquired Willie Cauley-Stein, Rajon Rondo, and also how Kings star DeMarcus Cousins will do this season.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Cubs manager Joe Maddon is the game changer in Cubs game

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by Michael Duca

Regarding the Chicago Cubs you can throw out that old label the “Lovable losers” during the series with the Giants at Wrigley Field they became more like the Headhunting Cubs it’s a little bit scary when the players reactions from getting hit in the mouth. Is Cubs manager Joe Maddon using pitchers to throw inside as part of the strategy to keep the Giants off balance? If you ask the Boston Red Sox they would say it’s more like 100 percent, it’s like the War of the Roses with them.

Maddon left Tampa Bay and the American League and who knows that’s why the Sox stopped playing MLB but it doesn’t seem to be happening this year. Maddon is an extremely good manager, he keeps his team loose, the team is having a lot of fun and he’s wondering what’s next. All of that is great when you got a young ball club which was Tampa which is now the Cubs.

Whether of not the propensity to appear to be throwing inside a lot and seems to try to intimidate good offenses is directly traceable to him or not I honestly don’t know and I don’t want to cast aspersions that I know for sure. It’s certainly a tactic and I can’t necessarily say that the Cubs are headhunting. Cubs Sunday starter Jake Arieta didn’t seem to be too remorseful about when it happened.

Arieta didn’t come off the mound after nearly hitting a batter or if he hit a batter he did send an Amazon drone delivering a package close to the Giants Hunter Pence right there after. This is a different Giants team that won the three previous championships, they won the championships with pitching and defense and the torture was are they going to score any runs?

Right now they’re wining with defense and offense and the torture is are they going to prevent any runs and what this does do it makes for a longer game. So they seem to be more torturous in that sense. All you have to do is try to understand what Maddon’s character is all about and go out and exploit it. All you have to look at what happened to the Dodgers and Pittsburgh to see what happens when an offense goes out and wins every game.

Michael Duca does the SF Giants podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com listen to the podcast below