Manny-ball, Lin-ation, and quick hits

Being Latino Deportes
by Ryan Almodovar

Happy Friday, sports fans! With the close of another week, let’s take a look into the world of sports…

Mannyball?
It’s been reported that the Oakland Athletics are close to signing notorious free-agent slugger and dreadlock enthusiast Manny Ramirez to a minor-league deal. For those that may not remember, Ramirez’s latest return to baseball was marred by a positive test for performance enhancing drugs. Rather than serve his league mandated 50 game suspension, Ramirez declined his contract with the Tampa Bay Rays, opting to enter semi-retirement while he looked for a new team.

Being Latino Deportes

Being Latino Deportes
by Ryan Almodovar

Welcome to the first edition of Being Latino Deportes – your weekly wrap up of all things deportes in el mundo Latino!

Here, we will be covering all of the biggest stories and events – stay tuned for updates every week.

The Giants are Super

Nuñez and Carmona: MLB’s problem in Latin America

by Ryan Almodovar

On September 23, 2011, CBS Sports reported that Leo Nuñez, the closer for the Miami Marlins, had been playing under an assumed name.

Team management was notified, and within days Nuñez had fled the country to his native Dominican Republic – only to be arrested by authorities when he tried to renew his visa. The man who had posted a decent 4.06 ERA and 36 saves in 2011 is not Leo Nuñez at all, but really Juan Carlos Oviedo – a man who had falsified both his name and age (Oviedo is a year older than Nuñez), before reaching the majors.

Victor Cruz, ‘doesn’t want Super Bowl run to end’

…unless it results in a New York Giants victory. Of course.

Cruz, a wide receiver, has quickly become a standout in professional football, both for his prowess on the field and for his struggles to make it to the biggest game on Earth.

A bet between two championship cities

Football-fever is in full pitch. Fans all over the country are either crying in their towels or suiting up for the game before The Game. The championship games are this Sunday and the residents of four cities are going crazy. Sports retail stores are selling out of jerseys and many people are signing up for salsa lessons. The most interesting pre-game stories tend to be the bets between city mayors.

Is the draft killing PR baseball?

There is no debating that baseball is big business. Fans in the U.S. suffer through football season while they watch the off-season bargaining. Winter ball, in Puerto Rico, used to serve as both a diversion from winter doldrums and a way to allow fresh, young talent to be seen by major league scouts. However, recently, winter league play has seen a steady decline in both fans attending games and the number of teams.

Ricky Rubio a perfact match for the Timberwolves

– via ESPN

Photo Ales Fevzer/EB/Getty Images

Can Ricky Rubio and the Minnesota Timberwolves save each other?

That is the question after news broke Wednesday that the Wolves have finally signed Rubio — the fifth pick in the 2009 NBA draft — to a contract.

Victor Cruz-es into the record books

– via ESPN

Photo Sportige.com

Victor Cruz may not be headed to the Pro Bowl, but the undrafted 25-year-old wide receiver is having one helluva year for the Giants.

Cruz, who had six catches for 178 yards and a touchdown on Sunday night in his team’s 31-14 victory over the Cowboys at MetLife Stadium, finished the regular season with a franchise record 1,536 receiving yards. That total ranked third in the NFL behind Lions superstar Calvin Johnson (1,681) and Patriots standout Wes Welker (1,569).

Will Leo Messi become one of the best to ever play soccer?

 by Cristopher Rubio

Perhaps the greatest stories to tell are the ones that should have never happened in the first place. Lionel Messi’s story is no different. Born on June 24, 1987 in Rosario, Argentina, a young Messi was diagnosed with a hormone deficiency that restricted his growth. Treatment was very expensive, but fortunately for Messi, his talent would help pay for treatment. At 13, Spanish club Barcelona offered to not only give Messi a chance to play for the club but to also pay for his medical bills. His family soon moved to Spain.

The rest, as they say, is history…

Racism in Soccer: Liverpool striker Suarez punished for racial abuse

via CNN —

Liverpool striker Luis Suarez “needs education” after continuing to protest his innocence despite being punished for racial abuse, according to a former English player.

Suarez was banned for eight games and fined $63,000 on Tuesday, pending an appeal, for comments made to Manchester United’s Patrice Evra during a match in October.