Some Links

Ryan Moats, playing for the Eagles here, was ticketed while trying to see his dying mother-in-law

The last two days for me have probably been two of the worst consecutive days I can remember in  a long time for me, so I decided to scour the internet for some  stories  that put my problems in perspective and make them seem minimal.  I also looked for some feel good stories as well and here is what I have come up with from the sports world.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4017382

This story is about Ryan Moats, a running back for the Houston Texans.  He was stopped for running a red light on the way to see his dying mother-in-law.  In this case the officer pulled him over and then would not let him leave to see her while she was dying.  He proceeded to ticket him for running the red light and by the time he was let go, his mother-in-law was dead.  While the officer was following the letter of the law by giving him a ticket, he acted in a disgraceful way by not letting him go for the time being.  There were extenuating circumstances here and while he did break the law, he should have at the very least been allowed to see his mother-in-law one last time before she died. Moats handled the situation well, never identifying himself as an NFL player.  I don’t believe athletes should receive prefential treatment, but this is a case of life and death and wouldn’t expect anyone to receive treatment like this from a law officer.

Doug Wrenn dunking during his UW career

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2008945829_wrenn30.html

This story is about a former top high school prospect who has fallen on hard times because of some poor decisions.  Doug Wrenn was a star in high school in Seattle while I was growing up and remember his name well.  He had some run-ins with the law while in his freshman year at UCONN, eventually coming back home to finish his college years back home at the University of Washington.  Wrenn had an outstanding sophomore year at Washington and then there was a head coaching change and Wrenn’s style of play did not mesh with new coach Lorenzo Romar.  Wrenn and Romar agreed that it was best for Wrenn to leave the program after his junior year, leaving a promising career unfulfilled after going undrafted. Wrenn traveled the world trying to find basketball gigs, but is now facing prison time for a road rage incident that seems to be a he-said, she-said type deal. Judging by the story, it is difficult to tell which side is telling the truth and while Wrenn’s timeline shows some anger issues in the past, the circumstances are interesting.  Here is to hoping a former high school hero in Seattle can turn his life around for the better.

Mariners bullpen hopeful Chris Jakubauskas

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20090323/BLOG05/903239978/1004/SPORTS

Here is a feel good story about a long-shot pitcher at the beginning of camp for the Seattle Mariners possibly pitching his way on to the opening day roster.  Chris Jakubauskas, a 29-year old right hander signed out of the independent leagues two years ago, has turned heads in Mariners camp by coming in and doing what he does best, throwing strikes. Jakubauskas started his career as an outfielder going undrafted out of Oklahoma, and then converted to pitching upon arriving in the independent leagues in 2003.  I was able to see Jakubauskas throw in person last season for the Tacoma Rainiers and came away fairly impressed.  While he is a bit old for a prospect, I love seeing hard-working players like Jakubauskas rewarded with a trip to the majors.  While he still has a bit of work to do and at best will be possibly a slightly better version of former Mariner pitcher Ryan Franklin, I would love to see him follow in the footsteps of another independent league alum George Sherrill and hold down a steady job in the Mariners bullpen, if only because of his cool last name.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4021552

And finally a curious story about the wife, or soon to be ex-wife, I am sure of Pirates prospect Jose Tabata.  Tabata, a 20-year old outfielder acquired from the Yankess last season, married 43-year old Amalia Tabata Pereira in January 2008 in Tampa.  She falsified a pregnancy and then recently stole an infant from a couple and told Tabata it was their child by sending pictures of the child to him.  Tabata must not have known this woman long as he didn’t know about her past prison sentence and was completely shocked by the fake pregnancy. This is a very odd story of someone marrying someone old enough to be their mother who clearly has some issues. Tabata has said that he will not forgive her and hopefully next time he finds a wife will get to know her a little better.

Chris