NEWS FLASH Summer heat trigger...

If you live anywhere in or around South Florida I’m sure you’ve noticed that it has been extremely hot lately, more so it seems then usual. It may be my age getting to me but I try to avoid the extreme heat. Any day over 95 degrees tells me it’s going to be brutal out there and it’s time to seek a lower temperature. I realize that some people like the heat but for me it’s all about the comfort of air conditioning. I might spend more time indoors but of course if your a sports fan like me this can be a benefit as there is quite a bit to enjoy from the comfort of my 74 degree sport’s observation platform AKA my living room couch!

The Wembledon Tennis Championships in London are in full swing and as expected Novak Djokovic is ripping up the competition. The Tour de France bike race continues on with the riders on stage (day) 10 of a 21 stage race to Paris. Down under the woman are preparing for the start of the FIFA Woman’s World Cup in New Zealand and Australia while all of us here in America are patiently awaiting the start of football season. It might not be an exciting time to be a football fan but there’s sporting events aplenty to keep us occupied as the world around us melts like butter on a frying pan.

Apparently the NBA Summer League is now a thing with games being televised almost nightly by ESPN. Personally I like the play with the rookies all playing hard for a spot on a roster. The games fill a void that has existed in this mid summer period and if we know anything we know that advertising revenue makes the sports world go round so more power to them I say. I think the NBA is working hard to come up to par with the NFL. It’s not quite there yet but the added exposure of the summer League will pay off. Now we just gotta keep the players off the off court news feed.

Speaking of ESPN, if you haven’t noticed lately there has been a major shake up, or shall I say house cleaning, of some the the networks top personalities. Such long time notables as Neil Everett, Susie Kober, and a host of others, over 25 I believe, have been given their walking papers. The new faces are a fresh (and much less expensive) look for a Disney subsidiary that has lost almost a billion dollars in revenue to streaming media. It’s a sign of the times. When losses go up heads will roll and in this case it was certainly the most expensive heads on the ESPN set. The movie industry, which is a big part of The Disney Family, has never recovered from The Covid Era and if my sources are correct the movies they produce these days leave a lot to be appreciated. Maybe Mickey Mouse has just gotten too big for his britches.

If you love Major League Baseball like millions of Americans you live for the all star break. It’s definitely a time for baseball to shine as all the stars come out for not only the All Star Game but for The Home Run Derby as well.

I used to be kind of Ho-Hum about the all star break. It wasn’t a really big deal to me but I’ve begun to come around. The All Star game and The Home Run Derby are definitely a fan driven event. It’s good to see both the players and fans interacting and having a great time with smiles and laughter all around. Its a game and it’s supposed to be fun right? I think that we as fans sometimes loose site of that. It’s a welcome break to the stresses we deal with everyday. People are just out there having fun and who can knock that right? Baseball, like all professional sports in America, isn’t perfect and often makes mistakes like anyone but it got the All Star Game and Home Run Derby right and I’ll throw may hat in with it and give it a “Well Done”.

If you think it’s hot in South Florida now you should wait until the debut of Lionel Messi for Inter Miami Soccer this coming week. MLS Soccer is banking a lot on this international super star to give it a much needed shot in the arm. Inter Miami itself has lost not only millions in investment revenue but also 10 out its last 12 games. As some who has watched Messi in Barcelona when I lived in Spain and has also been to Stad Olympic in Paris to watch soccer I think he’s gonna be a bit disappointed by the Inter Miami Stadium which is actually in Fort Lauderdale. There hasn’t been much going on there since Pink Floyd Toured. Thankfully Lionel Messi has yet to learn to speak English so I’m sure his comments will be brief. Hopefully his play will do all the talking for him. We’ll have to take a wait and see attitude with this one.

For the rest of us American sports fans the count down to football’s start continues. I presently have it at 6 weeks(?). I think I speak for many when I say it can’t get here quick enough. I’m not going to dive into the rumor mill quite yet but I want everyone to remember two words. Tom Brady. That’s right. From what I’ve heard on the street we have not heard the last of Tom Terrific. It might be in a new uniform, it might be in an old uniform but I’m told there’s a good chance it’s gonna happen. Fort Lauderdale might have the worlds greatest soccer player but all of America has Tom Brady! Get those number 12 jerseys back out people and give it a good yell! Play On!

Kev