New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez should be thankful Fay Vincent is no longer the commissioner of baseball.
In a radio interview Tuesday with TSN in Canada, Vincent called Rodriguez a "disgrace" and said the baseball fan base doesn't "owe him anything."
"I think the Rodriguez situation is a travesty," Vincent said. "It's a remarkable episode in American sports, largely because he's 40 years old, he's been telling us over and over that (A) he did it, and (B) how sorry he was. Then when [Rodriguez] gets caught again, he says, 'No, I didn't do it,' and expects us to believe it.
"The only guy who ever believed him was [New York radio talk show host] Mike Francesa, who made a fool of himself, believing A-Rod and slamming [former commissioner Bud] Selig, when it turned out all along that baseball was 100 percent correct."
Vincent, 76, added that Rodriguez is a "sad figure" who the fans now have to endure as he tries to make his baseball comeback.
"The Yankees owe him money, because they made a terrible deal. We have to put up with it," Vincent said. "I have no interest in Alex Rodriguez. I think he's a disgrace. I don't think we owe him anything as a fan base. I think the sooner it's over the better. I do not find him attractive. I can feel sorry for him because he's so stupid. But I can't really feel very sorry for him."
Challenge accepted
During a timeout with about five minutes left in Wednesday night's game between Florida State and Miami, Xavier Rathan-Mayes said one of his teammates came to him with a challenge.
"Montay Brandon looked at me and told me that he needed me," Rathan-Mayes told Yahoo Sports' Jeff Eisenberg. "When one of your brothers says that he needs you, you're going to do anything you can to respond to that call."
Inspired by his teammate's words, the 6-4 guard scored 30 points, including 6 three-pointers, 2 layups and 8 free throws, in the final 4:38 of the Seminoles' 81-77 loss to the Hurricanes. Rathan-Mayes finished with a career high-tying 35 points.
"To score how I was doing it today, I've never done that before," Rathan-Mayes said. "The only thing I've seen like that was when I was watching the Golden State Warriors and Klay Thompson scored 37 in one quarter."
Bad break
Toronto Blue Jays left fielder Michael Saunders, acquired in a trade with the Seattle Mariners in the offseason, stepped on a sprinkler while shagging fly balls Wednesday. He tore cartilage in his left knee as a result and will be sidelined until the All-Star break.
Saunders, 28, said he felt a pop after stepping on a sprinkler head while going for a ball at the team's training facility in Dunedin, Fla.
"I just tried to walk off the field and not draw any attention to myself," Saunders told The Associated Press. "Then when I got into the training room, my knee felt like it was getting tight on the inside. I've never had issues with my knees, so that's when I knew something was wrong."
"It is just one of those things," General Manager Alex Anthopoulos said. "Bad luck, and a tough loss, but we'll get through it and he will be back. We're still going to have him for quite a bit of time."
Sports quiz
How long did Fay Vincent serve as Major League Baseball commissioner?
Answer
Three years (Sept. 13, 1989 to Sept. 7, 1992)
Sports on 02/27/2015