R.I.P. Stuart Scott 1965-2015

He wasn't an athlete on the field, but he made as big of an impact as some of the ballplayers who have entertained me in pro sports - there were others of course, but Scott always kept me tuned in to SportsCenter, because it seemed he was having the most fun, sharing his love of sports with audience.

It was refreshing to watch highlights with all the catchphrases that would come out from his mouth [that I'd find myself repeating and smiling about when appropriate] - boo yah!

Don't hate the playa, hate the game

You don't got to go home, but you gotta get the heck up outta here

Cool as the other side of the pillow.

Gettin' his freak on! (or ...his schwerve on!)

I ain't sayin' nothin', but that ain't right.

When other ESPN sportscasters had their schticks, I realized Stuart got the most blowback for what he did on the air and it kind of bothered me - as much as I enjoyed him personally, there were sports fans who didn't care for what he did, because it was too urban and maybe just too black.

Featured autograph - Mark Mulder

As far as pro sports are concerned, it's a noble thing for a Major League team to go see if Mulder has anything left - but if his comeback falls short, the Angels have lost an opportunity to give someone else a little younger and more able to make their pitching staff this upcoming season.

I remember picking this 2006 Upper Deck Sweet Spot card years ago and wondering why exactly - while never dominant, Mulder was really quite good as part of the Big 3 in Oakland and in his final full season with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2005, won 16 games and pitched over 200 innings.

After being out of the game for so long, maybe the more realistic goal is for Mulder to compete for a job in the Angels TV broadcast booth - he looks the part and has been doing ESPN the past two years, so why not give Mark Gubicza something to think about.

Featured autograph - Erin Andrews

At the 2010 Futures Game in Anaheim - she scrawled out her autograph quickly on one of those white, thick filler decoy cards. I saw her again signing along the railing before the Futures Game and got her to sign a random International League baseball that I got during BP at an Angels game.

Recently I was leafing through Athlon Sports Baseball 2011, one of the baseball fantasy/preview/guides - there was a blurb about one-time independent league and current Boston Red Sox outfielder Daniel Nava always leaving tickets for Andrews in the minor leagues.

It isn't a new story, just adds to Nava's feel-good rookie year in 2010 - I'm not going to say it is disturbing at all, Andrews has been all over the place [good and bad] in the last couple of years and she's a fantastic gal to look at.

The blurb was pretty straightforward, but image used in the magazine blurb just struck a certain cord - I may have no life, but I was compelled to pick up the magazine for $8 and clip the blurb out with Andrews all glammed up and wearing an outfit highlighting her best assets.

Instead I saved my $8 and found full-size images online, making me very happy - I cropped one of the images I thought was probably the most similar to the one I saw in the magazine.

Edit: Added the first image, which definitely was the one used in the magazine. 4/2/11