
Posted: Monday January 23, 2006 10:14AM; Updated: Monday January 23, 2006 12:25PM
1. The Mets traded pitcher Kris Benson to the Orioles on Saturday for two pitchers. New York executives insisted that the antics of wife Anna Benson -- including posing topless and speaking explicitly about the couple's sex life -- didn't cause the trade. Actually, they were the only reason the Mets kept Kris around so long in the first place. 2. While the 10 Spot is reluctant to criticize Mrs. Benson since it's the antics of folks like her that keep us in business, we did find the couple's press conference rather amusing. Anna, at one point, blamed the media for overexposing some of her antics, such as when she wore a low-cut red dress while dressed as Mrs. Claus at a team Christmas event. Guilty as charged here, since SI.com did display that photo. But so did Benson on her website, complete with a caption that read, "Got Milk, Mrs. Claus?" 3. Plus, the Bensons announced their press conference with an e-mail (annoyingly marked as "high importance) to the media from a PR firm. For some reason the e-mail was sent to the 10 Spot, so we reproduce it here, in its entirety, bizarre syntax intact: "Kris Benson, traded today from the NY Mets to Baltimore Orioles, and Anna Benson, his loving wife will hold a press conference, tonight, Saturday January 21, 2006 at 8 PM at [location]. Ms. Benson, who was informed about the trade today while on the set shooting for the April Cover of FHM, along with her husband will respond to the many questions concerning the trade." We especially loved the way it oh-so-subtly mentions Anna's upcoming FHM cover. Oh yes, and it's the dastardly media that's playing up Anna's pin-up image, not Anna herself. 4. The Steelers beat the Broncos 34-17 in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday in Denver. The Broncos were plagued by unsightly mistakes, especially Jake Plummer's beard. 5. Though it will doubtless be mocked by smart-aleck sportswriters from across the nation over the next two weeks, Detroit is an eager host for Super Bowl XL. In fact, the city has pledged to adopt both teams for the big game. That way, Detroit football fans can finally finish .500. 6. Kobe Bryant scored 81 points in the Lakers' 122-104 win over the Raptors on Sunday night, the second-highest total in NBA history. It's by far the most Kobe has ever scored without having to buy his wife a diamond afterward. 7. Roger Clemens sank a hole-in-one on the 180-yard, par-3 second hole on Saturday to help his team win the celebrity competition in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. The brilliant stroke came after a long delay on the tee as Clemens, as usual, struggled to pick a club. 8. Payback is a, well, you know: A bank in Lexington, Ky., is suing Christian Laettner over a $375,000 loan. Branch Banking and Trust says that Laettner defaulted on the loan that was made last November. The lawsuit, of course, comes 14 years after Laettner broke the hearts of many in Lexington by hitting the last-second shot in a 104-103 overtime victory in the NCAA East Regional. It would be even more interesting if the bank sent out Aminu Timberlake to make the collection. 9. The U.S. government has reversed course and will allow Cuba to compete in March's World Baseball Classic after all. A State Department spokesman said that the initial rejection was based in part on concerns that Cuban spies might accompany the team. Of course, everyone knows that Communists are notorious sign-stealers. 10. The unkindest cut: Tickets for the Steelers-Broncos game were so hot that a doctor in Fort Collins, Colo., was offering to trade a vasectomy for two tickets. The good (?!) doc and Broncos fan said that the surgery, including pre- and post-operation visits and lab exams, was worth $675. Wow, he must have really wanted to go to the game, as 10 Spot reader Scott of Cleveland put it, to "be willing to give somebody else's left nut."
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