‘Wicked Fingers’ cleans up
June 27, 2008 - 9:00 pm
When will Boston stop winning?
The Red Sox, the Celtics, the Patriots, Wicked Fingers.
Back up -- Wicked Fingers?
Chicopee, Mass., native and wicked hahd-core Sawx fan Sean "Wicked Fingers" Sears bested a field of more than 300 to win the 2008 Bud Light/USA Rock Paper Scissors League Championship last weekend at Mandalay Bay.
For the win, Sears hauled in $50,000 and a spot in the inaugural International Rock Paper Scissors Federation Championship during the Summer Olympics in Beijing.
"My friends initially thought I was just kidding," Sears told Dan Lamothe of the blog Red Sox Monster. "Once they saw the stories, they thought it was both hilarious and the greatest thing ever. Who wouldn't want to win $50,000 from Bud Light playing rock-paper-scissors? As for the ladies, we'll see if this helps out my game at all."
* UNDERDAWGS -- At one point during the college baseball season, a $10 wager on Fresno State would've netted you $2,000 -- at least from the Las Vegas Hilton.
During a rough patch this season for the Bulldogs, who clinched the College World Series on Wednesday, the Hilton sports book had them at 200-to-1 to win the national title. According to sports book director Jay Kornegay, there were not takers until the Bulldogs were listed at 50-1. At the beginning of the eight-team Super Regionals, Fresno State was listed at 25-to-1.
* CHILL OUT -- Forget the MLB, Houston Astros pitcher Shawn Chacon should consider the UFC.
Chacon engaged in fisticuffs with Astros general manager Ed Wade after the GM interrupted his post-batting practice meal on Wednesday.
"He started yelling and cussing," said Chacon, who was angered at being dropped from the Astros' rotation. "I said to him very calmly, 'Ed, you need to stop yelling at me.' Then I stood up and said, 'You better stop yelling at me.' I stood up. He continued and was basically yelling and stuff and was like, 'You need to (expletive) look in the mirror.' So at that point I lost my cool, and I grabbed him by the neck and threw him to the ground. I jumped on top of him because at that point I wanted to beat his (butt)."
The Astros released Chacon on Thursday.
* TEMPER, TEMPER -- Chacon is not the only athlete with anger-management issues.
On Sunday, Bud Withers and Ken Armstrong of The Seattle Times reported the story of Washington State linebacker Andy Mattingly's dustup with North Idaho University soccer players in January.
After getting his teeth punched out during an argument, Mattingly, Cougars tight end Trevor Mooney and another friend drove to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, where two of the soccer players shared an apartment. After the front door was kicked down, a scene from "The Matrix" unfolded.
"The midfielder grabbed a steak knife, the goalie a butter knife. Mattingly picked up a frying pan off the stove," Withers and Armstrong wrote. "The midfielder jumped out a window. This left the goalie -- Cesar Lira, 5 feet 10 inches, armed with a butter knife -- to contend with Mattingly, a 6-4 linebacker swinging heavy kitchenware."
Despite pleading guilty to two misdemeanors -- a year after being convicted of possessing alcohol as a minor -- Mattingly still will lace it up for Wazzou next season.
COMPILED BY JON GOLD REVIEW-JOURNAL