November 18th, 2009 10:36pm
by OldSchool
The Bruce Gradkowski era begins Sunday, when the quarterback starts for the Raiders against the Bengals in the wake of JaMarcus Russell’s demotion. If Gradkowski can launch a career to match other QBs whose name ended with “ski,” the Raiders would be quite pleased. For example:
Ron Jaworski had a long and distinguished NFL career (1974-89), including four very good seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Steve Bartkowski, the former Cal star, was …
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November 17th, 2009 02:29am
by OldSchool
Andrew Bailey was the well-deserved winner of the AL Rookie of the Year award. He led AL relievers with a .167 opponents’ batting average to go with a 1.84 ERA. He didn’t blow a save after June 16, and his 26 saves tied for the sixth most ever by an AL rookie and is an Oakland franchise rookie record.
The A’s have a particularly rich history of rookie-of-the-year winners. Bailey is …
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November 16th, 2009 02:50am
by OldSchool
Tom Kelly is among the managers on baseball’s Hall of Fame ballot, the results of which will be made public on Dec. 7. Kelly isn’t likely to make it — he’s up against heavyweights Billy Martin, Whitey Herzog and Danny Murtaugh — but Kelly deserves mention.
He was only 36 years old when he was named Minnesota Twins manager for the final 25 games of the 1986 season. The next year, …
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November 14th, 2009 07:37pm
by OldSchool
I have to work tonight (Saturday) and won’t be able to see the Pacquiao-Cotto welterweight mega-fight on pay-per view. If I had my druthers, I’d be watching it, as I’ve watched so many big pay-per-view fights over the past dozen years or so, with father-son boxing aficionados Alex and Steve Pletkin, whose graciousness and good humor and passion and knowledge for the sport made those get-togethers so enjoyable and so …
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November 11th, 2009 08:09pm
by OldSchool
You might ask: Which Sugar Ray? Well, since there were two truly elite fighters with the Sugar Ray moniker, let’s speculate on both — one at a time.
First, Sugar Ray Robinson. As a welterweight, Robinson was virtually unbeatable, with a perfect balance of power punching and ring generalship. As a middleweight, Robinson was superb, but less than perfect and, frankly, more interesting. In Robinson vs. Pacquiao in their primes as …
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November 11th, 2009 02:33am
by OldSchool
An argument can be made, and a darn good one, that if Manny Pacquiao wins his seventh weight-class title Saturday in a welterweight championship fight against Miguel Cotto, Pacman legitimately could be considered as the best pound-for-pound fighter ever.
I’ve got a lot of admiration for Pacquiao, but I have to point out that (through no fault of his own), his achievements are somewhat watered down.
There are so many weight classes, …
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November 10th, 2009 07:24pm
by OldSchool
Manny Pacquiao takes on Miguel Cotto Saturday for a version of the welterweight title. If he wins, Pacman will be crowned in his seventh weight division.
Other multi-weight class fighters he reminds me of …
Roberto Duran. In the 1970s and ’80s, he won lightweight and welterweight titles.
Sugar Ray Leonard. In the 1980s, he won welterweight and lightweight titles.
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November 9th, 2009 03:12am
by OldSchool
On Saturday night, Manny Pacquiao will challenge Miguel Angel Cotto for a version of the world welterweight championship. If Pacquiao wins, it will be his seventh title in a different weight class.
Granted, the number of weight classes has more than doubled since I first started following boxing in the 1950s and ’60s, and the number of sanctioning bodies have quadrupled, thereby somewhat watering down Pacquiao’s achievements. Still, he has demonstrated …
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November 7th, 2009 09:15pm
by OldSchool
A play about legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi (five NFL championships, including the first two Super Bowls, from 1961-67) is set to open next year on Broadway.
As far as I know, the only actor ever to portray Lombardi is Ernest Borgnine, in the 1973 TV movie: “Legend in Granite: The Vince Lombardi Story.” Since Borgnine is 92, the Lombardi role this time will have to go to another …
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November 7th, 2009 04:31am
by OldSchool
A new soccer movie called “Damned United” lasted only a week at the Rialto here in Santa Rose, but I thought it was a darn good movie. And I’m not even a soccer fan.
But that’s just it. You don’t have to be a soccer fan to like it. Because like all truly great sports films, it transcends a particular sport and speaks truths about bigger things. In this case, it …
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Robert Rubino has been a daily copy editor for nearly 30 years and a weekly sports columnist for 15 years. 
