Archive for January, 2025

Monday, Bloody Monday.

Monday, January 6th, 2025

This is your official thread for today’s NFL coach firings. I will try to keep this thread updated throughout the day, but I have some things going on later in the afternoon that may interfere.

Doug Pederson out as head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. (That link may give you trouble about your ad blocker, but if you reload that seems to clear it. Archive.is seems to be having problems right now, or I would put up the archive version.) 4-13 this season, and 22-29 in Pederson’s three seasons. However, the team is keeping Trent Baalke as GM. ESPN.

Interestingly, the New York Football Giants have apparently decided to keep general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll, even though the team finished 3-14 this season and 6-11 last year.

Edited to add: “Sources say” Lou Anarumo is out as defensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals.

Not a NFL firing, but Wes Goodwin is out as defensive coordinator at Clemson.

Edited to add: Ryan Grubb out as offensive coordinator of the Seahawks according to “sources”.

The NYPost is running their own “Black Monday” ticker as well.

Posted in Firings, NFL, Sports | No Comments »

Hold the Mayo!

Sunday, January 5th, 2025

It’s the hap-hapiest time of the year. That is, the final Sunday of the NFL season, and the lead-up to Bloody Monday.

Except Bloody Monday has increasingly started on Sunday. Like it did this year.

Jerod Mayo out as head coach of the New England Patriots. One year, 4-13.

The Patriots won Mayo’s last game as coach, a 23-16 victory over the Buffalo Bills that dropped New England from picking No. 1 in the 2025 draft to No. 4, instead.

Meanwhile, the Cleveland Browns have fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and offensive line coach Andy Dickerson. Cleveland finished the season on Saturday, and went 3-14.

I’m going out this evening with friends, but if I get a chance and if there are more firings, I’ll try to update here.

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Obit watch: January 2, 2025.

Thursday, January 2nd, 2025

Lenny Randle, who the obits describe (not without reason) as “the most interesting man in baseball”. He was 75. NYT. Baseball Reference.

Randle was on the bench for the Senators’ last game in 1971 when fans invaded the field; bunted to the right side to collide with Cleveland pitcher Milt Wilcox in 1974 and spark a brawl in retaliation for a pitch being thrown behind him; was at second base during the Ten Cent Beer Night riot at Cleveland later that season; was in the batter’s box to face the Cubs’ Ray Burris when power went out at Shea Stadium during the blackout on July 13, 1977; was the Yankees’ roster replacement for Thurman Munson following the catcher’s death in August 1979; and famously got on his hands and knees to blow Amos Otis’ slow roller foul on May 27, 1981, which plate umpire Larry McCoy decided was against the rules and ruled a hit.

…

Randle’s Rangers tenure ended when he punched manager Frank Lucchesi on March 28, 1977. Randle had lost his second base job to Bump Wills during spring training and asked to be traded if he wasn’t going to play regularly. Lucchesi told media he was tired of “$80,000‐a‐year punks” complaining.
Randle punched Lucchesi three times before a spring training game against Minnesota, and the manager suffered a triple fracture of his right cheekbone and needed plastic surgery. Randle said he approached Lucchesi along the third‐base line to talk to him and Lucchesi told him: “What do you got to say, punk?”

…

Texas suspended Randle for 30 days, fined him $10,000 and withheld $13,407.90 of his $80,000 salary.
Randle issued a public apology. He was charged with felony aggravated battery, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor battery and was fined $1,050. In 1978, he settled a lawsuit filed by Lucchesi.

Mr. Randle does, of course, show up in Seasons in Hell. Mike Shropshire I think makes a good point about the Randle/Lucchesi incident: Mr. Lucchesi apparently did not understand that “punk” had a very specific and highly offensive connotation at that time (3b). I’m not saying I condone it, but I sort of understand it…

Posted in Obits, Sports | No Comments »