TODAY'S HEADLINES

UPDATED: SANTONIO HOLMES KICKED OFF PITTSBURGH FLIGHT

Last night, Santonio Holmes sent the following message out on Twitter: "Only guy on the plane headed to Pitt from NJ, wearing my green n white. GO JETS!"

Coincidentally (or not), it was reported this morning by WPXI that Holmes was escorted off said plane at Pittsburgh International Airport for what investigators call being a "disruptive passenger." 

No other facts have been released, so we can let our speculation run totally and irresponsibly wild.

My theory? The Twitter message/sentiment of Holmes and the fact that he was on a plane in Pittsburgh was a combustible and toxic combination. Like I keep saying, he's your problem now, Rex Ryan.

UPDATE:

KDKA has more info on the incident. So much for my vision of a wild altercation with bitter Steeler fans:

"Holmes was apparently told he had to turn off his iPod, but he refused - at which time he was removed from the flight. After he spoke with officials, he said he understood and was allowed back on the plane."

Santonio not wanting to follow a rule? I find that incredibly hard to believe.

'Disruptive' Santonio Holmes Escorted Off Pittsburgh Flight [WPXI]

Ex-Steeler Holmes Escorted Off Airplane [KDKA]

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TERRY BRADSHAW JUMPS OUT OF JAY LENO'S CAKE

What to get the talk show host who has it all (including my beloved Coco's old time slot)? How about a nearly-nude Terry Bradshaw, wearing merely a pair of boxer shorts?

That's what talk-show host Chelsea Handler (who's dealing with her own issues right now) had in mind for one Jay Leno, who was celebrating birthday #60 on Wednesday night. 

Any chance we might see another Steeler QB jumping half-naked out of a talk show host's cake roughly 30 years after he finishes playing? I'm guessing that's a hard no. But I wouldn't put it past Skippy Reed.

*Hat tip = Kiss Morning Freak Show blog

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RINKU AND DINESH: THE MOVIE

SIDNEY CROSBY A FINALIST FOR HART TROPHY

The NHL announced the finalists for the 2009-10 Hart Trophy (league regular season MVP), and they are...

Sidney Crosby (51 goals/58 assists/109 points)

Alex Ovechkin (50/59/109)

Henrik Sedin (29/83/112)

For the record, Crosby's won once (2006-07), Ovechkin's taken home the last two, and Sedin's just happy to be there. Actually, this is the first time Sedin has topped the century mark in points, with his previous high being 82 points in 2008-09.

The winner is announced June 23 at the year-end awards ceremony in Las Vegas, but I don't feel like waiting that long for the results and figured we could vote on it right now.

Online Surveys & Market Research

Ovechkin going for 3rd straight award [ESPN.com]

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100 FREE GILLETTE PROGLIDE RAZORS UP FOR GRABS

If I may interrupt things for a brief commercial break, Gillette is providing a total of 100 Mondesi's House readers with one of their Proglide razors, absolutely free of charge.

All you have to do is click on the Proglide Challenge above and take it from there. These will probably come in handy in a few months when everyone shaves off their playoff beard (in celebration, of course).

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MONDESI'S HOUSE INTERVIEW: PENS VP OF COMMUNICATIONS TOM McMILLAN

I recently had the opportunity to ask a few questions of Pittsburgh Penguins VP of Communications Tom McMillan, who is the man pictured above left showing anthem singer extraordinaire Jeff Jimerson around the exterior of the Consol Energy Center.

Tom joined the Penguins in 1996 after working as a writer, columnist, editor and broadcaster, covering the team exclusively for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette during their Stanley Cup runs in 1991 and 1992. He is an encyclopedia of knowledge on the team, its players, and its new facility, and I jumped at the opportunity to ask him about all of that and much more.

We managed to cover a lot of ground and Tom answered every one of my questions, so if you're a Pens fan on any level, this should be right up your alley:

CAPS LOSE, PENS GET CANADIENS

With the Washington Capitals choking their way to golf season, the Pittsburgh Penguins will now face the hockey version of David, the Montreal Canadiens, in a best-of-seven series, with the first game being held at the Igloo on Friday night.

When considering the combination of favorite son Sidney Crosby returning to Canada, a red-hot goalie in  Montreal's Jaroslav Halak, and the matchup of an eight-seed against the defending champs, and I think the country of Canada may self-combust in anticipation. Something tells me the city of Pittsburgh will be pretty fired up, too.

The full slate of games in the series:

*Sid/Ovie photoshop: Sports Pickle Twitter

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TODAY'S HEADLINES

PIRATES' WIN STREAK REACHES TWO

The 2010 Pittsburgh Pirates are masters of the dramatic victory, and they would prove that again with a 6-5 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in 14 innings on Tuesday afternoon. Of the Pirates' nine wins, three of them on the game's final hit and six of them  came in the ninth inning or later, so this was basically par for the course.

Ryan Doumit hit a pinch-hit solo home run off of the detiriorating Trevor Hoffman in the ninth inning to tie the game, and Garrett Jones hit a two-out, run-scoring double in the 14th to win it for the Bucs. DJ Carrasco closed out the Brewers in the bottom of the 14th frame for his first win of the season, wrapping up three innings of shutout relief.

The Pirates got four hits and two home runs from Andrew McCutchen, three hits from Aki Iwamura, and a two-run homer from Andy LaRoche to supply the bulk of the offense. They finished with a respectable 13 hits on the afternoon, keeping in mind that it did take them 14 innings to rack up that many.

Paul Maholm allowed seven hits and four earned runs over seven innings, and the bullpen did a tremendous job by allowing just one run in the last seven innings. Believe it or not, but these teams now have twin 9-12 records after 21 games in the 2010 season. Personally, I'm still trying to wrap my head around that fact.

The Bucs have a long flight to Los Angeles, where they meet the Dodgers for a four-game series. Brian "Don't Call Me Plaxico" Burres amd his 9.31 ERA faces off against Clayton Kershaw in the first game on Thursday night at 10:10.

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PIRATES' FEAST-OR-FAMINE SEASON CONTINUES

The Pirates collectively decided not to continue playing like they wanted to get their manager fired, pulling out a dramatic 7-3 win in Milwaukee last night (as if the Pirates could win any other way).

The unlikely turn of events came in the ninth inning, when aging closer Trevor Hoffman surrendered a tying solo shot to Ronny Cedeno and a grand slam to Ryan Doumit that sent the Brewer faithful scurrying for the exits as if the stadium was on fire. It was the first win for the Pirates in Milwaukee in their last 23 games, dating back to May 3, 2007.

Even more unlikely was the Pirates getting a quality start from newly-recalled Jeff Karstens, who was sporting a 7.31 ERA at Indianapolis. But Karstens held the Brewhas to two runs and six hits over six and 2/3, and the bullpen let only one more in the rest of the way. Combine that with the red-hot bat of Andy LaRoche (seriously, the guy's hitting .400), some power via Doumit, Cedeno, and Jeff Clement, and voila! The Pirates proved they can win a game after all. Whether or not we can count on a grand slam off the all-time leader in saves in the ninth inning on a regular basis is a question for another day. Let's just enjoy this for what it is, the baseball equivalent of a downpour in the middle of a drought.

The 8-12 Bucs and 9-11 Brewers meet today at 1:10 in a getaway game, with Paul Maholm facing off against something called a Chris Narveson. After that, the Pirates head to Los Angeles, where the Dodgers are surely plotting revenge for that season-opening series at PNC Park.

Karstens, Doumit stamp out Pirates' worst week [PG]

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BEN ROETHLISBERGER MENTIONED IN AN EMINEM SONG

"F**k that, I'd rather turn this club into a bar room brawl. Get as rowdy as Roethlisberger in a bathroom stall"

That's a line from the classy new Eminem song, "Recovery", which is up for your review at the Kiss Morning Freak Show Blog (and very unsafe for young ears, it's worth noting). I'm sure Roger Goodell is positively giddy with this tune hitting the airwaves in frequent rotation.

If you're scoring at home, we've now seen stories about Ben's mullet, his subsequent haircut, his slow merchandise sales, his sign being taken down at the zoo, and even one of his funded police dogs getting kicked off the force. And that's leaving out about a billion other stories about Roethlisberger that I missed. But for those who cry "overkill" at blogs and media outlets for their coverage of the story, take a look at the most read stories on the Tribune Review's website today. Three of the top six, including the top two overall, are on Roethlisberger, and we're almost two months removed from the Milledgeville story. People may say they don't care about the story any more and want to move on (as do I - honestly), but actions speak louder than words - and actions (or in this case, clicks) are indicating that Big Ben is still the the dominant topic of the day in Pittsburgh.

New Eminem Freestyle Mentions Big Ben [Kiss Morning Freak Show Blog]

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ALAN FANECA SIGNS WITH ARIZONA

So much for Alan Faneca becoming the next player on the Steelers' 2010 "Back to the Future" roster.

The nine-time Pro Bowler, cut over the weekend by the New York Jets, quickly reached a deal to join the Pittsburgh West Cardinals, joining old coaches Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm and former teammates Joey Porter and Clark Haggans.

Unless I'm missing something, the Cardinals were down to only those two linebackers among Steeler castoffs. As far as the other ex-Steelers, Brian St. Pierre is a free agent and recently tried out to be Tom Brady's backup, Jerame Tuman and Dan Kreider are both without a team, Sean Morey is suiting up for Pete Carroll in Seattle, and Bryant McFadden is back in Pittsburgh.

But back to Faneca, whose new deal is for one year, $2.5 million - a far cry from the five year, $40 million deal he landed with New York in 2008, when he looked first for a place where he could win. Apparently a 4-12 team fit the bill at the time; besides, it's not like he walked away from the Super Bowl 43 champions or anything.

This time around, Faneca's refusal to take a pay cut takes him from the chic team in the AFC to a question-mark of a Cardinals squad in a topsy-turvy NFC West that's seen the import of Pete Carroll and Sam Bradford, among others, over the past few months.

The Cardinals' active offseason has seen them wave goodbye to a bevy of productive veterans, including Kurt Warner, Anquan Boldin, Antrel Rolle, Karlos Dansby, Bertrand Berry, Jerheme Urban, Neil Rackers, and Morey. They've added Porter, Derek Anderson, Kerry Rhodes, Paris Lenon, Rex Hadnot, Jay Feely, Dominique Byrd, and Dan Williams to help fill the holes, and will keep their fingers crossed that Matt Leinart can live up to his pedigree at QB. But that seems like an awful lot of roster turnover in one offseason; I guess they figured one more big splash couldn't hurt.

Adam Schefter [Twitter]

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COMING SOON: NATALIA AND VLADIMIR MALKIN

The sweet smell of borscht will be in the Pittsburgh air soon, as the familiar, friendly faces of fan favorites Vladimir and Natalia Malkin will be returning to the city tomorrow, according to their hockey-playing son (via the PG's Empty Netters blog).

If you need a briefing on the enthusiastic parents, I recommend this article as a starting point in your Malkin family history. You'll also want to check out Mama Malkin's borscht recipe (Evgeni's favorite) and this classic moment from last year's playoffs when Vladimir celebrated one of Evgeni's goals by hugging a blonde who was not his wife. Big mistake.

Regardless of past errors in celebrations, it's fantastic to have the Malkins back in town. The playoffs have now officially begun. 

Kunitz day-to-day; Malkin's parents due tomorrow [Empty Netters]

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BREWERS 17, PIRATES 3

It's only April 27, and the 2010 Pittsburgh Pirates have already left me speechless.

MIKE TOMCZAK ARRESTED

It's been a bad run for Steeler quarterbacks of late, first with you-know-who and now with former Steeler QB Mike Tomczak, who was arrested Monday afternoon in connection with a domestic dispute.

According to Bell Acres, Pa., Police Chief Brian Brown, “Mike lunged at his wife, grabbed her and stepped on her foot."

Per WPXI, Tomczak was charged with two counts of simple assault. He was arraigned before District Judge Robert Ford and released on his own recognizance, police said.

Tomczak, a member of the Super Bowl XX champion Chicago Bears and the guitar player in the infamous Super Bowl Shuffle video, was a Steeler from 1993-99 and their primary starting QB in 1996. Tomczak took that 1996 team to the second round of the playoffs and eventually lost to the New England Patriots by a 28-3 final in extremely foggy conditions. Tomczak struggled mightily that postseason, with zero touchdowns, four interceptions, and a 40.9 rating; he would later lose his starting job to Kordell Stewart in 1997. Tomczak ended his career as a Detroit Lion in 2000, suffering a broken right tibia in an exhibition game against Oakland in the preseason. Currently, Tomczak is a director at SMG Sports Management and has continued to work as a sports commentator.

Tomczak married model Dawn Osthoff in 2008, and their wedding was chronicled by Pittsburgh's Whirl Magazine, which Osthoff modeled for. 

Former Steelers QB Tomczak Accused In Domestic Dispute [WPXI] 

Dawn Osthoff & Mike Tomczak [Whirl Magazine]


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BEN ROETHLISBERGER ISSUES STATEMENT

Here is the latest direct from the mouth of Ben Roethlisberger - or at least someone close to him. Personally, I get very little value out of canned statements like these or the one read by Tiger Woods a few weeks ago. But if the powers be feel that this will make some sort of a difference in his long road back to restoring his name on some level, then by all means, release as many scripted statements as necessary.

And now, in the words of Big Ben himself:

TODAY'S HEADLINES

2010 NFL UNDRAFTED FREE AGENT SIGNINGS FOR STEELERS, PITT, PENN STATE, WVU

Here's some very early 2010 NFL undrafted free agent signings, with more surely to come.

PENS ADVANCE IN DRAMATIC FASHION

Pascal Dupuis added another chapter to the storied annals of Penguin playoff history, ending their first-round series against the Ottawa Senators in dramatic fashion with a goal 9:56 into overtime, giving the Pens a spot in the second round with a 4-3 win on Saturday night.

Dupuis' goal completed an amazing Pittsburgh comeback, clawing back from a 3-1 hole in the third period behind goals from Bill Guerin and Matt Cooke, who scored twice on the night. The Penguin secondary scoring was huge in this one, considering the fact that Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were held mostly in check. The dynamic duo was limited to one Malkin assist on the evening. 

A major storyline in this game was the two goals lost on video replays, one for each team. A Mike Rupp goal that would've tied the game at one was wiped out for the Pens, and a Mike Fisher goal that would've given the Senators a commanding 4-1 lead was taken off the board for Ottawa. But I'm sure Carrie Underwood will make Fisher feel better when he's golfing next week.

As for the goalies, Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 28 of 31 shots for the Penguins, and  the smoldering Pascal Leclaire stopped 39 of 43 for the Senators. But make no doubt about it, this game turned in the critical third period, when Pittsburgh scored twice and outshot Ottawa 18-4. 

It was bad enough that this series was forced to a sixth game (and another overtime contest at that), but make no doubt about it - the Penguins wanted no part of a seventh game, even if it was at the Igloo. This series had to end tonight, so kudos to Dupuis for making that happen. For his efforts, he will receive a lifelong entry in the lengthy list of electric Penguin postseason moments, and his teammates get a pass into the next round of the NHL's championship tournament.

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BEATEN AND BRUISED

Starting pitcher Chris Jakubauskas was hit in the head by a Lance Berkman line drive in the bottom of the first inning, adding injury to insult in yet another loss for the offensively-challenged Pittsburgh Pirates. 

In their latest defeat, the Pirates managed just five hits in a 5-2 loss in Houston on Saturday night. The only good news of the night is that the CAT scan and x-rays were negative on Jakubauskas, per Rob Biertempfel of the Trib.

The 7-10 Pirates have now lost their last five games by a combined score of 45-6; their hit totals in those games were 6, 4, 8, 4, and 5. Regardless of their league-worst pitching and team ERA of 7.07, it's hard to win many games scoring one run a night. As a team, they are hitting a lowly .225, which somehow is only 28th in the 30-team league. 

Saturday night's lineup featured more of the ineptitude that we've become accustomed to. The 3/4/5 of Andrew McCutchen, Garrett Jones and Lastings Milledge was a combined 1-for-11 with four strikeouts. The only batter with any significant contribution was Jason Jaramillo, who hit a solo homer in the seventh.

I could go on, but I think everyone gets the point. The dual 7-10 teams wrap the series on Sunday at 2:05, when Charlie Morton and his 16.55 ERA throw batting practice against Brett Myers (0-1, 4.05).

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STEELER DRAFT UPDATE: DAY 3

The Steelers picked up eight players on Saturday, seven through the draft and one through a trade. Here's a recap of the newbies: