Larsen’s perfect game uniform sold for $756,000
Larsen’s perfect game uniform sold for $756,000
NEW YORK — The uniform Don Larsen wore when he pitched the only perfect game in World Series history has sold for $756,000.
The former New York Yankees’ right-hander achieved perfection in Game 5 of the 1956 Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers.
The pinstriped uniform with No. 18 on the back received 22 bids in an online auction on Steinersports.com. The winning bidder was Pete Siegel, CEO of GottaHaveIt.com. His company has been building a collection of Yankees memorabilia that it plans to put on display.
The price includes a 20 percent buyer’s fee above the final bid of $630,000.
Larsen said he was auctioning off the uniform to pay for his grandchildren’s education.
Steiner Sports had predicted the uniform could sell for as much as $2 million.
Rodman must pay $500K in child support
ORANGE, Calif. — Former NBA star Dennis Rodman has been found in contempt of court and ordered to pay $500,000 in back child support to his ex-wife, her attorney said Thursday.
The flamboyant basketball player known for his off-court antics was also sentenced to informal probation, his ex-wife’s attorney, Mary Ann Noiroux, told City News Service. Orange County Superior Court Commissioner Barry Michaelson warned Rodman could face jail time if he doesn’t pay the child support, she said.
Rodman’s attorney, Linnea Willis, didn’t return an email from The Associated Press and a phone number did not take messages.
Rodman and his ex-wife, Michelle, must still work out custody and visitation for their two pre-teen children: a son and a daughter.
A trial is set for Jan. 24 on those issues, but the two hope to work out an agreement before the court date, Noiroux said.
Rodman, recognizable by his facial piercings and his hair that’s died in brilliant colors, was ordered to perform 104 hours of community service in May after being found guilty of four counts of contempt for failure to pay child support for 2009 and 2010. He is completing that work in Florida, where he lives.
Wisconsin turns to former coach for Rose Bowl
MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin is going retro for the Rose Bowl.
Left without a coach when Bret Bielema bolted for Arkansas, the Badgers asked former coach and current athletic director Barry Alvarez to lead them when they face No. 8 Stanford on New Year’s Day.
“We wouldn’t want anyone else but coach Alvarez to coach us in this game,” linebacker Mike Taylor said Thursday. “Kids like me, growing up in Wisconsin, you watched him on the sidelines and you always dreamed of playing for him.”
The return is for one game only, Alvarez said. He’s already started the search for a new coach, and plans to begin interviewing candidates next week.
“I don’t want this to be about me,” Alvarez said. “I want it to be about the players. I want to give them as good an opportunity to win the Rose Bowl as we possibly can.”
NHL rejects players’ offer to break labor impasse
NEW YORK — The NHL has rejected the players’ latest offer for a labor deal, and negotiations have broken off at least until the weekend.
Donald Fehr made two separate appearances Thursday night in front of a large throng of reporters just moments apart after talks with the league ended. Initially, Fehr said he believed the sides had agreements on some key issues, but he returned soon after to say NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly left a voicemail saying that the players’ offer wasn’t good enough.
The voicemail, left for union special counsel Steve Fehr, stated that “some things or everything” the league has offered is now off the table, according to Donald Fehr, who added that this is not a positive development.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was expected to speak later Thursday, the 82nd day of the lockout. Bettman was not part of the one-hour meeting earlier in the day.
Federer hopes to play in 2016 games in Rio
SAO PAULO — Roger Federer says he won’t play as often in the next few years and hopes to compete in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
The 31-year-old Federer says he’ll be more mindful about the tournaments he plays in the future to make sure he can keep playing at a high level.
“I have to make sure that I take care of my schedule, of my body, of my mind,” he said Thursday before an exhibition match with Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci. “Hopefully I can still stay on tour for many more years and hopefully play the Olympics here in three and a half years or so, so I have to look far ahead and not just the next six months.”
Others in the exhibition include Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka, Serena Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Tommy Robredo and Tommy Haas. The Bryan brothers, Bob and Mike, are also participating.
Federer has competed in four Olympics, winning gold in doubles at the 2008 Beijing Games and silver in singles at the London Games.
From wire sources