Update (5/31): Reds placed 1B Joey Votto on the 15-day DL on Saturday for personal reasons that Votto has asked to keep private, according to MLB.com. "He's dealing with a personal issue," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "He wants us to respect his privacy about that." Votto had dealt with dizziness off and on -- the result of an inner-ear infection -- but this absence apparently isn't directly related. "It's partly that. Let's leave it at that," Reds general manager Walt Jocketty said. "It's basically something that Joey needs some time away to deal with. We gave him that time. It's not a big deal, but it's something that was affecting his ability to play at the level he wants to play at."  

After another dizzy spell pulled Reds' star first-basemen Joey Votto out of the game Friday night, the Reds have to decide what to do with their most productive player. Votto has had an unbelievable season so far batting .357 with eight homeruns and 33 RBIs in 38 games. However, he is also a cornerstone of the this franchises future and they can't afford to risk his well-being for the long term just to win a few games in the short term. It's going to be a tough decision, but I think I'm leaning towards the same line of thinking as Lance McAlister (This Must Stop). You have to protect the most important player in your franchise's future, and him falling into a fastball or falling in the way of a runner could be extremely dangerous.

Here's the story about Votto's latest bout with dizzyness Friday night by MLB.com's Mark Sheldon: Votto Stricken Again During Game

MLB joey votto, cincinnati reds, dizzyness, lance mcalister, mark sheldon, mlb.com

from Bloodhorse.com:

Rachel Alexandra will not be running in the June 6 Belmont Stakes (gr. I), Jess Jackson, the co-owner of the filly announced May 29.

Jackson said in a statement that Rachel Alexandra, who won both the May 1 Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) and May 16 Preakness Stakes (gr. I), deserves a vacation.

The move clears the way for jockey Calvin Borel to return to Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner Mine That Bird in the Belmont.

Borel will be trying for a personal Triple Crown, as he won the Derby aboard Mine That Bird and the Preakness with Rachel Alexandra.

COMPLETE ARTICLE

Horse Racing triple crown, belmont stakes, rachel alexandra, mine that bird, calvin borel

from HolyTaco.com:

In an effort to really explore what we learned from playing high school football, we decided to look at five types of people on a high school football team, and where they are now. 

The Meathead

The Meathead is the guy on the team who is abnormally large and/or strong for his age, and therefore has been on the Varsity squad since he was a freshman.  For him, the high school population is broken down in to three simple categories: “people I can pick up and lift over my head”, “f*&kin fags”, and “people I want to stick my penis in.”   Sometimes, all three of those are the same person, but you probably won’t find that out until the reunion years later.  Normally, the Meathead is easy enough to manage; just apply the same rules to him that you would apply to a grizzly bear: try to observe him at a distance, and if you have to go near him, make sure he’s really sleepy or he just ate.

What He’s Doing Now:  Lives within an 11 block radius of the school, with a wife who was incredibly hot in high school, but three kids later looks like John Goodman after getting kicked out of a corndog eating contest. 

COMPLETE LIST

Just For Fun lists, humor, high school football

If you're like me you probably could care less about the French Open or tennis in general, but this is pretty hilarious. Listen to Michelle Larcher de Brito grunt ... err wail during her match at the Open. 

And even better than that... This NY Times article talks about how she is upsetting the rest of the tour with her antics and poor sportsmanship and her unwillingness to be an uppity snob in general.

Tennis michelle larcher de brito, french open, tennis, grunting

from Lexington Herald-Leader...

There may come a day when John Calipari's detractors will finally catch the coach red-handed at something other than guilt by association.

But this isn't that day.

Here's why: The NCAA allegations against the Memphis basketball program aren't a John Calipari issue.

They're a Derrick Rose issue.

Page 8 of the 13-page letter outlining the allegations sent by the NCAA to the University of Memphis states:

"It is alleged that (name redacted), prospective men's basketball student-athlete, failed to deport himself in accordance with the generally recognized high standards of honesty and sportsmanship normally associated with the conduct and administration of intercollegiate athletics for his knowing fraudulence or misconduct in connection with his entrance examination."

COMPLETE ARTICLE

College Hoops kentucky, kentucky wildcats, uk, john calipari, derrick rose, memphis

Check out this video of Carlos Zambrano performing a classic tantrum. The Cubs pitcher was suspended for six games after this episode Wednesday.

MLB carlos zambrano, suspended, chicago, cubs, pittsburgh, pirates

Just in time for the weekend...

Hair of the Dog (Shot)

Ingredients:
½ oz tequila
½ oz Irish whiskey
¼ oz Tabasco
¼ oz salt

To make: Combine first three ingredients in a shot glass. Layer salt on top. Shoot.

Ever wonder where the expression “Hair of the Dog” came from? From what we know, it originated in the time of Shakespeare, the product of some of the weird folk remedies that were popular then. Specifically, they claimed rabies from a dog’s bite was prevented by rubbing the wound with the hair of the dog that bit you. Thus, the tradition of drinking a little alcohol in the morning to ease your hangover was like rubbing the wound with the hair of the dog that “bit you.” This shot takes its name from that bit of folklore.

COMPLETE LIST (AskMen.com)

Just For Fun lists, hangover cures

Also posted on BleacherReport.com:

Prior to last season the Bengals were a hotbed for fantasy owners to pluck for talent on draft day.

Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, and Rudi Johnson were all elite performers that could be counted on for big-time production.

Palmer went down with a season-ending injury and the tank went empty on Johnson out of the backfield, leaving the Bengals with a mediocre unit.

Palmer is healthy. New players have entered the mix.

What's Carson going to do this year? When is worth taking a look at Chad Ochocinco and Laveranues Coles? Does Chris Henry deserve a look? Is Cedric Benson ready for a breakout? I answer all these questions and more in this cool slideshow.

Let’s take a look at what players can and can not be counted for fantasy owners in 2009.

COMPLETE OVERVIEW

Fantasy Football bengals, carson palmer, cedric benson, chad ochocinco, laveranues coles, chris henry, chase coffman, shayne graham

Are you aware that today May 28th? A better question is are the Reds aware of it?

The team just wrapped up a 6-3 homestand to move a season-best six games over .500 at 26-20.

They've done it despite having their best hitter battling dizzy spells. With their best fielder and cleanup hitter dealing with a fracture thumb while sitting on the pain. And with their top winner from last year sidelined with back spasms.

Now, the true test comes with a seven-day, seven-game road trip against the two teams above them in the NL Central Standings.

It starts with a weekend stop in Milwaukee for a showdown with the Brewers, followed by a four-game series with the Cardinals in St. Louis.

The Cardinals (28-19) lead the division over the Brewers by one game (27-20) and have a 1.5 game lead over the Reds.

Following a sweep over the last place Astros, Reds' outfielder Jay Bruce made a prediction that summarized the team's enthusiasm.

We're coming home in first," Bruce told the Dayton Daily News.

With the Cubs struggling so much, it appears that the NL Central is up for grabs. Whether or not the Reds can be one of the teams to stay in the race all year remains to be seen, but if you have to like what you've seen so far!

MLB reds, cardinals, brewers, cubs, astros, nl central

It didn't take long for the vulchers to begin to swarm in Lexington and around the Commonwealth on Wednesday. Despite all of the optimism and buzz on created around the University of Kentucky basketball program with the arrival of new head coach John Calipari there has been a small group of haters.

They have warned that playing with fire will get you burned and many have accussed Calipari of being "a snake" and "a cheater".

The Memphis Commerical Appeal reports that the notice of allegations -- that's the official term for it -- charges Memphis with six different major infractions, three of which involve Jenny Bruun, the former coach of the women's golf team.

The other three are about hoops. It's honestly not as bad as it could be. Two of the charges involve the associate of a player who traveled with the team -- getting free hotels and airfare -- who should have paid his own way. By all accounts, the person did reimburse the university for other trips he made. So this may amount to no more than a simple accounting and monitoring error.

On June 6, the University of Memphis will appear before the NCAA's Committee on Infractions in connection with allegations of three major rules violations under Calipari, including the charge that one player -- Derrick Rose? -- didn't take his own SAT. Calipari is not personally implicated in any of the allegations.

The haters are going to take this and run, but I will choose to take the wait-and-see approach. Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty?

The reality of the matter is that the NCAA's rules are broken in some shape or form by nearly every major program in the country. 

Fans cry for squeaky clean programs, but I challenge them to list five that have had sustained success.

I don't know whether or not Calipari is guilty or not. I do know that UK just landed its best recruiting class in a decade. I do know that I am as excited as I have been in years about the upcoming Wildcats' season.

Adding fuel to the fire for Calipari on this day was news that five-star recruit John Wall plead guilty to a Class I misdemeanor for breaking and entering.

Meanwhile, former Kentucky men's basketball coach Billy Gillispie sued the school Wednesday, seeking at least $6 million he says he is owed on his deal for being fired without cause.

It wasn't the best day for the school by any means, but let's not get too carried away.

College Hoops kentucky, kentucky wildcats, uk, john calipari, john wall, billy gillispie