We are in the midst of the ‘ol middle of summer sports haze. The time of year where it seems like Sports Center covers nothing but baseball. Counting baseball, there is still a lot going on in the world of sports as we slowly make our way towards fall.
The midsummer classic, also known as the Major League Baseball All-Star game was just played on Tuesday night (along with the Major league lacrosse All-Star game on Thursday), NFL training camps are set to begin, the Tour De France is in full swing and the Ultimate Fighting Championship celebrated it’s 100th event with court jester Brock Lesnar creating a little bit of controversy.
MLB: The MLB home run derby and All-Star game took center stage this week on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. Portly Prince Fielder of the Milwaukee Brewers, son of Cecil, beat out Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers 6-5 in the finals to take the derby crown.
In the actual midsummer classic, the American League continued it’s dominance with a 4-3 hard-fought win over a National League squad that just can’t seem to buy a win. Red Sock Jonathan Papelbon got the win and Yankee Mariano Rivera got the save. It’s good to see bitter rivals helping each other out. The AL is now 12-0-1 since 1996 in a game that rewards home field advantage in the World Series to the winning side. I really can’t understand how the AL has been so dominant for so long. It’s just bananas.
NFL: NFL training camp update: T-minus eight days until the first camp opens. Magically, it’s the one closest to me, the Buffalo Bills. I know that I am definitely over confident in the team’s chances, but that won’t stop me from getting really excited for Terrell Owens. I’ve got my popcorn ready.
In actual news, Brett Favre still hasn’t decided if he’s going to play this season or not. He’s made his own deadline for the day the Vikings open their training camp. He said the he won’t play unless he’s convinced he’s 100% healthy. I know I’m not saying anything new here, but I am extremely tired of Brett Favre. He’s totally tarnished his legacy. I’m not talking about his NFL legacy. I’m talking about his Oscar-overlooked acting performance in There’s Something About Mary. I’ll never again laugh at Ben Stiller as he asks, “What about Brett Fav-rah?”
MLL: In case you missed it, the Major League Lacrosse All-Star game was played on Thursday night at Invesco Field in Denver. The game, aired live on ESPN2, was a real barn-burner and great advertisement for the sport. It was match up between the “Young Guns” (plays drafted between ’06-‘09) and “Old school” (everyone else). All-World defenseman Brodie Merrill proved that nothing beats experience as he scored in overtime to lift the old school stars to a 22-21 victory. Brain Langtry of the Denver Outlaws took home game MVP honors with three two-point goals and one assist for seven points. Check out ESPN’s top plays to see some of the shenanigans that happened during the skills competition, including Toronto goalie Brett Queener jumping off of a moving golf cart to score a diving goal. I didn’t dream it, it happened.
Tour De France: I like to referrer to the Tour De France as Le Tour De France, but I pronounce France “Fraaaaaahnce”. I really don’t know why I put that in here; it’s been a long week. The only bike rider that we in the U.S. care about (Lance Armstrong) is in third place through stage twelve. He’s two seconds behind Astana teammate Alberto Contador of Spain and eight seconds behind Rinaldo Nocentini of Italy.
UFC: The Ultimate Fighting Championship held UFC 100 last weekend, and the highlight of the show was the shenanigans that ensued after Brock Lesnar beat Frank Mir. Lesnar began by continually taunting the bloodied and bashed Mir. Lesnar, then followed that by saying that he was going to drink a case of Coors because UFC sponsor Bud Light doesn’t pay him anything. He then went on to explain in less-than appropriate terms what he planned to do with his wife after the fight. He was quickly pulled into a back room and berated like a petulant child by UFC owner Dana White. He emerged from the back and headed to the post-game news conference and apologized to fans and sponsors and was last seen drinking a Bud Light. Personally, I love the villain so this is just amazing to me. It will be interesting to see how the fans react to Lesnar and treat him during his next match.
CFL: Former Texas Tech star quarterback Graham Harrell has signed a contract to play with the Canadian Football League’s Saskatchewan Roughriders. Harrell is the NCAA Division One football career leader in touchdown passes and had a tryout with the Cleveland Browns, but wasn’t signed. I was a big fan of Harrell at Texas Tech, but it will be interesting to see how he plays in the CFL. They actually show CFL games where I live, so I’ll have to check out DMX’s favorite team (See: Roughriders anthem) next time they are on TV. To succeed, Harrell will have to stop, drop and perhaps even open up shop in Saskatchewan. 
*Do you like any sports that you want me to cover next week or any sports stories you want me to mention? This is your article, not mine. Have at it. Throw me an email cosburn@thefatherlife.com
Image credit: Kriss Szkurlatowski, SXC
30 year old freelance writer and The Father Life‘s resident beer columnist and sports editor. He also writes about fine beverages for drinkingmadeeasy.com and Chilled Magazine. On top of that, he writes about college and professional lacrosse for insidelacrosse.com. He’s also written for Genesee Valley Parenting Magazine, the Democrat and Chronicle Newspaper and ESPN.com. “Osburn on Tap” appears monthly in THE FATHER LIFE. For questions, comments, or if you have a story idea for Chris, throw him an email cosburn@thefatherlife.com. Also, follow him on twitter http://www.twitter.com/chrisosburn
That Mir/Mirko Filipovic fight was a joke! Good thing Mir got a K.O. to save the battle.