NHL
– A source in the Calgary organization said Wednesday that the Flames have not discussed a trade involving F Jarome Iginla with any NHL team. The rumour will was in full effect on Tuesday night when the Kings put prospect F Brayden Schenn in the minors on a conditioning stint. The blogosphere lit up with trade possibilities involving Schenn being packaged to the Flames for Iginla, but that speculation appears to have a hit a brick wall with this latest news. Still, the Kings are believed to be interested in the Calgary winger and the rumours likely won’t go away especially with the Flames’ captain struggling this season.
– Canadiens’ D Marc-Andre Bergeron’s agent Paul Corbeil said he has spoken with Lightning’ GM Steve Yzerman about the possibility of his client signing with the Lightning. “I’d say they are serious. They are doing their homework about Marc-Andre, and I am doing it about them. I think it would be a good match.” Bergeron earned a salary of $750K last season with the Habs, while producing 13 goals and 34 points in 60 games. He can be a real force with the man advantage as seven goals and 15 assists came on the power play.
MLB
– According to Enrique Rojas of ESPN.com, the A’s have offered 3B Adrian Beltre a 5-year/$64M contract. This is the same exact contract Beltre signed with the Mariners when he cashed in on a near-MVP season with the Dodgers in 2004. Not a bad offer for a soon-to-be 32-year-old.
– According to Jayson Stark of ESPN.com, the Phillies have done “extensive” groundwork on a potential trade for OF Carlos Quentin. There’s no word on if the Phillies have actually spoken with the White Sox about Quentin, but he is one potential replacement for OF Jayson Werth, even though he is a liability defensively. According to Stark, the Phillies also have varying degrees of interest in free agent OF Jeff Francoeur and OF Jermaine Dye.
– According to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, 1B Adam Dunn is “moving closer” to a deal, possibly with the Tigers. The Tigers have been very aggressive so far this winter, wrapping up deals with Brandon Inge, Jhonny Peralta and Joaquin Benoit. Dunn has been reluctant to accept a DH job in the past, but a few extra million could probably change his mind. He hit .260/.356/.536 this year with 38 homers and 103 RBI over 558 at-bats.
– Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the White Sox are talking to free agent DH Hideki Matsui. According to Heyman, the White Sox are looking for two lefty bats this winter. Godzilla, 36, batted .274/.361/.459 with 21 homers, 84 RBI and an 820 OPS with the Angels this past season. Though he has never homered in 85 career at-bats in U.S. Cellular Field, he could thrive in the hitter-friendly ballpark.
– The Tigers have signed RHP Joaquin Benoit to a 3-year/$16.5M contract. Not bad for someone who had to settle for a minor league deal with the Rays last winter. Benoit will make $5.5M per season and will have a chance to earn $1M annually in additional incentives.
– Twins’ manager Ron Gardenhire was named the AL Manager of the Year. Gardenhire, who finished as the runner-up on five previous ballots, received 16 first-place votes to top Rangers’ manager Ron Washington, who received 10 first-place votes. Joe Maddon, Terry Francona, Cito Gaston and Joe Girardi rounded out the AL ballot. Gardenhire is the second manager in Twins history to be recognized with the honor and the first since Tom Kelly in 1991.
Padres’ manager Bud Black was named as the Manager of the Year for the NL. Black beat out Reds’ manager Dusty Baker by just one point to take the award. Though Baker appeared on more ballots, Black had the edge in first-place votes. The Padres finished with a 90-72 record this past season, and while they ultimately fell short of the playoffs, they were arguably the biggest surprise in baseball during the regular season. Bruce Bochy, Bobby Cox and Charlie Manuel also received one first-place vote each, while Astros’ manager Brad Mills rounded out the ballot with one second-place vote.
NFL
– Texans’ coach Gary Kubiak revealed that QB Matt Schaub (knee) was hospitalized Tuesday night with a bursa sac problem in his knee. Kubiak didn’t say if Schaub had surgery. The head coach only passed along that Schaub is “doing well” and should be back with the team tomorrow. Dan Orlovsky took the first-team reps Wednesday.
– The Panthers have placed RB DeAngelo Williams (sprained left foot) on the IR, ending his season. Williams finishes with career lows across the board. The contract-year back presumably had a setback with his foot injury, which was only revealed to be a sprain. He was shut down with seven games left, so it’s hard to imagine that the injury wasn’t something more serious. Williams, 27, is no lock to return to the budget-tight Panthers in 2011. They don’t figure to let him walk in free agency, but could franchise tag him and place him on the trade block to get something in return.
– ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Vikings’ WR Sidney Rice’s (hip) agent, Drew Rosenhaus, expects his client to be activated by next Wednesday and play this season. Rosenhaus said he was “hopeful (Rice) will be healthy enough to play this week” and that they didn’t give “any consideration to him not playing this season.” Vikings’ beat writers Judd Zulgad and Chip Scoggins are on record as predicting Rice wouldn’t risk a return this season and listed Rosenhaus as a major reason why. It sounds like their prediction won’t come to fruition, though. Rice started practicing earlier this month and was looking like a “go” for Week 10 but ultimately decided he wasn’t quite ready. He has to be activated by next Wednesday or will be placed on the IR.
– NFL Network’s Jason La Canfora reports that Saints’ RB Pierre Thomas (ankle) could be sidelined a few more weeks. Thomas has reportedly returned to practice, but probably isn’t doing much. The Saints will get Reggie Bush back this week, but with Thomas and Chris Ivory still out, the running back corps is still in shambles. It sounds like Thomas is taking baby steps and will avoid the IR, but his recovery has been slow.
– Steelers’ FS Troy Polamalu (strained right Achilles tendon) is “potentially bothersome,” according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ed Bouchette. Coach Mike Tomlin said the team is “probably going to slow (Polamalu) down here in the early portions of the week… with an eye toward practicing in the latter part of the week.” Tomlin expects Polamalu to play this weekend, which is certainly encouraging, but keep a close eye on this one, as it’s certainly an injury that could get worse.
WWE
– WWE star Alex Riley (aka Kevin Kiley) was arrested early Wednesday morning and spent the night in a Tampa, Florida jail. Kiley, who is currently the sidekick of The Miz, was arrested this morning in Tampa, Florida and charged with Driving under the Influence. The arrest took place 1:14 a.m. at Kennedy BL W/MACDILL AV N in Tampa, Florida. He spent the night in jail and was released at 9:33 a.m. on $500 bond.
TNA
– Former TNA star Homicide was interviewed by Canada’s Slam Wrestling and spoke candidly about his release from the company. Here are some highlights of what he said about:
Politics In TNA, Being Miserable & His Eventual Release: “I’m not going to lie to you, I was telling my girlfriend honesty, it hurts everybody. When I speak the truth, it hurts. I didn’t say anything aggressive. I was frustrated in the end. I’m very confident that I can do better. Politics just got me in the butt and just caught me. I was miserable at the end of my days in TNA, I didn’t like it.”
Looking back on TNA: “I miss the boys, I miss the staff, I miss everything. I became a smarter businessman when I went to TNA.”
Working With Hernandez & Konan In Mexico: “He’s in Mexico right now, he’s still in TNA, but he’s doing more coverage in Mexico. There’s a big rumor that me, Hernandez and Konnan are going to do the 5150 tour in Mexico, and hopefully we’re going to bring it to the States and we’re going to have a LAX reunion.”