Bill Plaschke

At The Times since 1996, Bill has been named National Sports Columnist of the Year by a variety of organizations, including Associated Press, Sigma Delta Chi, and National Headliners. Bill is also a regular on the ESPN talk show, "Around The Horn. "

At The Times since 1996, Bill has been named National Sports Columnist of the Year by a variety of organizations, including Associated Press, Sigma Delta Chi, and National Headliners. Bill is also a regular on the ESPN talk show, "Around The Horn. "

American Victory Wrestling, Dreams, and a Journey Toward Home Henry Cejudo with Bill Plaschke Celebra: 240 pp., $24.95

Oh, good, it's time for that annual ritual in which the Dodgers attempt to appease those unfortunate ticketholders who spend one inning trying to park and two innings trying to buy a hot dog. OK, so they're attempting to appease everyone, which is why it's called Fan Appreciation Day, occurring Sunday afternoon at Dodger Stadium during a game against the horrid Colorado Rockies, which should be appreciation enough. My favorite prize is four tickets to a regular-season Kings home game.

Come on, Bill Plaschke, you know why Donald Sterling gave free admission to 1,000 underprivileged children for a game against Houston, in March; the Clippers had only two home games in February, against the Bulls and Celtics, teams that people will pay to see. Would Sterling give up 1,000 paying customers to do something for charity? David Saw Diamond Bar :: How dare Bill Plaschke take on Donald Sterling! It would seem that Donald is single-handedly trying to ensure the financial well-being of The Times with his daily advisements touting himself and his rental properties.

The next thing we know, Jimmy Johnson is showing up Sunday with a perm. And agreeing to let Jerry Jones coach the second half. And awarding the game ball to a kicker. The next thing we know, Jimmy Johnson is hoisting a Super Bowl trophy above his ruddy face and announcing . . . that he is leaving the Dallas Cowboys to coach the Jacksonville Jaguars. Could that explain his recent erratic behavior?

A daring cornerback, whose first name appropriately begins with D, will swagger onto a field in a Southern city this weekend with the ability to change a game in one glance, one jerk, one pick. Deion Sanders? No, Darryll Lewis of the Houston Oilers. Another fearless cornerback, whose first name appropriately begins with D, will swagger onto a field this weekend intending to haunt a run-and-shoot quarterback until he crashes and burns. Deion Sanders? No, Donnell Woolford of the Chicago Bears.

Forgive us if we pause a moment amid the late hits and cheap shots and Fox-bashing and Kosar-ripping and Bills-bickering and Glanville-gashing and Babygate and Buddyball and everything else that makes the NFL so much fun. Introducing our three wise men for 1993. They are all great players but, at least for today, that doesn't matter. What is important is that they are also great givers. Not coincidentally, you wouldn't believe the things they have received.

The NFL after Week 4, by fours: FOUR BEST TEAMS 1. Dallas Cowboys. Unless Deion Sanders doesn't show up. 2. Miami Dolphins. An NFC-style team with a tan. 3. San Francisco 49ers. Defensive backfield can't stop Troy Aikman or Dan Marino. 4. The rest of the league. FOUR BEST REMAINING GAMES 1. San Francisco at Dallas, Nov. 12. Can't wait for Jerry Rice vs. Deion Sanders. 2. San Francisco at Miami, Nov. 20. Who says Don Shula doesn't have the schedule maker's ear? 3. Oakland at San Diego, Nov. 27.

* HELLO? ANYBODY HOME? When two members of the Rams' booster club recently met with owner Georgia Frontiere and team President John Shaw, they emphasized the financial guarantees and minority ownership that had been publicly discussed by the Save the Rams group. Frontiere had never heard of either offer. "Johnny," she reportedly said to Shaw, "are there guarantees in their deal?" Later, she reportedly turned to Shaw and said, "You mean there are people here willing to invest?"

A tour of an old newspaper facility and a talk with a couple of old baseball writers. Like there could be a better way to spend an afternoon. I did mention they were old baseball writers? It's coming your way Thursday, April 19, at noon. It's part of a monthly program at The Times, Thursdays @ The Globe , that includes a mini-tour of the newspaper and an opportunity to interact with reporters, columnists, editors and executives. This time out the The Times offers columnist Bill Plaschke and national baseball writer Bill Shaikin.

I am from Louisville. I am not from Kentucky. My birth certificate is clear, but my heart contradicts, and will pound appropriately Saturday during the most deeply personal of basketball games. I am Louisville. I am not Kentucky. The two schools play in an NCAA national semifinal basketball game that, to the rest of the nation, might seem like little more than an odd rivalry between two campuses separated by about 75 miles of the same backwoods state. Yet for those who have lived there, it is about a cultural divide that can define a life.

The Lakers have only played four games, but four games were enough to end an era last spring, so it should be enough to form an opinion now. I like Mike Brown. There, I've said it, mere months after writing that he was an uninspiring hire and the wrong guy to lead the Lakers into this strange new world. Yes, I've said it, just one long off-season after wondering what Brown could do for you, and guessing not much. PHOTOS: Lakers vs. Knicks I like Mike Brown, but it has nothing to do with his ability to coach the Lakers.

So, Joe Paterno enjoys the all-time college football coaching win record. My question to JoePa: Was it worth it? Konrad Moore Bakersfield :: Joe Paterno said, "With the benefit of hindsight, I would have done more. " Joe, with the benefit of hindsight, I would be a gazillionaire. This is about doing the right thing, the moral thing in the moment. Paterno passed. See no evil, speak no evil. Pass the buck down the road and let someone else deal with it. Joe Paterno is a silent partner to Jerry Sandusky's horror.

He sounded like a coach. He sounded like a statesman. But more than anything, Derek Fisher sounded like he was dribbling the ball up the court against the Boston Celtics in the 2010 Finals, daring anybody to step in his path. "There have been moments when it's been draining," he said, his voice rising. "But it's not draining me of my overall energy and passion for playing this game I love to play. " Fisher may currently have the worst sports job in America, but it's exactly where he belongs, the Lakers' soul now serving as the locked-out NBA union's spine.

In the eternal conflict between baseball's uniformed personnel and umpires, it's the dog-you days of summer. The temperatures soar, the season drags, and everyone wants a piece of each other. Managers charge umpires. Players scream at umpires. Entire teams physically restrain star players who are literally attempting to attack umpires, which, by the way, looks especially dumb. It's so bad, the other day I saw Boston Manager Terry Francona arguing with an umpire who had just made a home-run call after examining instant replay.

Five years ago, when Tim Green realized he had a story to tell, he didn't even know how to type. Each night after finishing work as a defensive end for the Atlanta Falcons, he would sit in front of a laptop computer, searching for the right keys. Sometimes his fingers were swollen and bloodied from the day's work, but he pounded away. Often his entire body ached, but he stayed in his chair until he was out of words. Soon, he was typing on team airplanes and in team hotels before games.

If I was asked to assemble a team of American athletes to compete against similarly composed teams from the rest of the world in any sport, the most important decision would be the easiest. I would take a team of women. I would take a team that would play like a team, unselfish and unaffected, tough and tireless, playing for victory not credit, playing for each other instead of themselves. I would take a group like the U.S. women's soccer team, and not because it is playing Japan on Sunday for the World Cup championship, but because of how it played in reaching this stage, stoic through their storms, sharing through their failure, winning not with shots off fancy feet, but passes off rock-hard heads.

How fast is Peter Bourjos? In the first at-bat of his life, he singled to center, caught the ball and tagged himself out. True story. It was his T-ball debut, and he was accustomed to chasing down his own hits when playing at the park with his father. So when he knocked the ball into the gap, he sprinted into the outfield, picked it up, and ran it back to the infield. "I gave the ball to some kid on the other team and he was like, um... " said Bourjos. How fast is Peter Bourjos?