It’s traditional that after winning a national championship, the individuals on a sports teams roster get invited to the White House to meet with the President. This tradition extends to the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and most NCAA programs. Which is why on Monday the 2010-2011 Boston Bruins were in D.C. to meet with President Barack Obama one day before his State of the Union address.

Notably absent from the gathering, however, was Stanley Cup Playoffs Hero Tim Thomas. The Bruins goaltender issued the following statement following his decision to snub the O invite:

“I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People.

“This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government.

“Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.

“This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT”

For the record, I have no problem with what Thomas decided to do. He’s 100% correct that as a “Free Citizen” he has the right to turn down the trip. I just don’t get why. Seems like a trip to the White House is a pretty rare thing, and to pass up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to protest some vague disappointment in our government as a whole seems silly.

Timmy, if you don’t want to go, send someone else in your place! Take some kid off of the Make A Wish List, or find some liberal looney from Beantown who’d be more than happy to represent you. Slap a fake beard and some goalie pads on Newt Gingrich and send him incognito. It’s like you got a gift certificate for free girl scout cookies but left it in your drawer until it expired. What a waste!

Most dissapointing, however, is Thomas’ lack of explanation. He just points a big ol’ glove hand at all three branches of the government, calls them “out of control,” and refuses to elabaorate. Just dull.

The idea that a professional athlete would turn down an opportunity to meet the President, and then NOT use that very platform to say something completely and blatantly moronic is nearly unbelievable. Claim its a protest of SOPA, blame the CIA for giving Central American dictators cancer, ask serious questions about the super-tall guy at Kim-Jong Il’s funeral, say something racist, Blame Obama for JoePa’s death, do SOMETHING that at least adds some flavor to the whole thing.

If you’re going to turn down a trip to the White House, the least you can do is give us some crazy conspiracy to make fun of you for believing in.

Coming straight from his twitter feed, the self-described Most Dominant Player of All Time, Shaquille O’Neal announced his retirement from the game of basketball today. While Shaq’s influence on the Association was non-existent this season, playing in a career low 752 minutes per game, his retirement will still shake the sports world like one of his thunderous, glass-shattering dunks… which we haven’t been witnesses to for like a dozen years now.

No one man is bigger than the game. But if there was ever any athlete even remotely close, it would probably be Shaq, a fact demonstrated through his plethora of different nicknames.

The Big Aristotle, The Hobo Master, The Diesel, Shaq Fu, The Big Daddy, The Big Agave, The Big Cactus, the Big Shaqtus, The Big Galactus, Wilt Chamberneezy, Dr. Shaq, the Big Shamrock, Shaqovic… the man was seemingly incapable of definition. He was as good for the game as he was good at it, and at the height of his playing career, I can think of no one more dominant.

However, the future is bright for Shaq and Shaq fans alike. The 15-time all-star earned himself an MBA online through the University of Phoenix, in the event that he’d one day “have to put down a basketball and have a regular 9-to-5 like everybody else,” but The Diesel at a Desk Job doesn’t seem too likely. Instead, look for TNT to swoop in and plant him next to Sir Charles Barkley in their pre and post game shows, which would offer viewers the most deep-voiced commentary in the history of sports analysis.

Or maybe he’ll take this opportunity to re-up his rap career. whatever the future holds in store for Shaq, we can’t wait.

View the video of Shaq announcing his retirement directly to the fans here

Today’s post is a contribution form NY Sports Digest writer and patron saint, Anthony Strait. Follow him on Twitter, or check out more of Ant’s stuff by CLICKING HERE.

By Anthony Strait

Just when it seemed like the New York Yankees were becoming the Bronx zoo and hogging the back pages, New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon insured his team will never lose the title as Champions of bad PR.

The Mets are exceeding expectations by overcoming a 5-13 start to climb back close to the .500 mark. Last week we saw the Yankees go into crisis mode following the Jorge Posada soap opera. This week it’s “Owners Gone Wild!” with Wilpon publically bashing three of his top players on the roster. In an interview with The New Yorker, he took jabs at Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran. What was suppose to be an article based on his rags-to-riches story turned into yet another reason why Mets fans would love nothing more than to see him sell the team to someone with a brain.

Some of the comments he made represent the kind of poor taste and classlessness that has played a part in the Mets being a Family Guy punch line. He slammed Reyes by stating he will not be getting a super-huge contract from the Mets.

“He thinks he’s going to get Carl Crawford money,” Wilpon says, referring to Crawford’s seven-year, $142 million contract with the Boston Red Sox. “He’s had everything wrong with him. He won’t get it.”

Granted, Reyes have had injuries the last few seasons that limited his playing time, but this year he is batting around .300 and is well on his way to being the Mets lone all star representative in Arizona come July. Wilpon forgot to mention that Reyes is a two-time all star and is as exciting a player to watch as there is. Even if (when) he is traded at some point this season, this is such a low blow to a player who has publically stated how much he love playing for the organization, its embarrassing.

Wilpons jab at Beltran, meanwhile, was just as laughable. He mentions Beltran’s huge postseason with the Houston Astros in 2004 and says, referring to himself: “We had some schmuck in New York who paid him based on that one series. He’s 65 to 70 percent of what he was.”

If he thought that was comedy material he is mistaken. Wilpon is the one who ordered Omar Minaya to sign Beltran to that big contract. Wilpon was the one who was amazed by Beltran’s 2004 post season. Beltran isn’t the player he was early on in the contract and will never be again. It is still no reason to poke fun at him for taking the called 3^rd strike in the 2006 league championship series-even if Mets fans haven’t forgiven him. You have to wonder where were the jokes when Beltran was one of the key reasons they got to that point.

His comment about David Wright was the kicker: “Really good kid. A very good player. Not a superstar.”

Wright has only been the face of the franchise the last few seasons while so many teammates went down to injuries. When the Mets win he is front and center; when they lose he is in front of the camera fielding questions. Wright’s power numbers dipped when the Mets moved to Citi Field, but not his integrity to play for a team and owner who can’t stay out of the spotlight off the field.  With all the problems this team has had in the public eye- do it really make sense to bashed the one guy who has proven to be a gamer day in and day out? He only played with an undiagnosed back injury for a month.

When the late George Steinbrenner publicly picked fights with players, it was charming yet entertaining. It was his personality, designed for motivation and lighting a fire within the team. In Wilpon’s case, it’s just pathetic and simply sad. Here is a guy who was taken for million’s in Bernie Madoff’s ponzi scam, being sued for $1 billion more by the victims of Madoff. I’ve got no problem trying to make sense of things with humor but never at the expense of your own team.

Wilpon should walk into the locker room and apologize to each player eye to eye like a man-if he still remembers how to actually be one after this. He should also fire his publicist for not pulling him to the side and warning him to be careful with his words, especially with to a journalist. With all that is wrong with the Mets these days, did they really need their sucker for an owner taking shots at their top players in print?

He called his team “snake-bitten” in the article. It’s been unfortunate with injuries perhaps but hard to see a team snake-bitten when all the problems were caused through ownership and the General Manager that worked for them. Fred Wilpon pulled a low punch, even for Mets standard, by bashing his players. The victims of Madoff’s scheme won’t have to discredit Wilpon’s character. as he is doing that to himself these days.

Reyes and Beltran are pretty much gone at some point because they are not getting big contracts from the Mets. Wright’s stature in the organization looks diminished with these remarks as well. They should be shown some pride and respect while they still wear Met uniforms. Wilpon is exactly why no one will be getting big contracts nor will any free agents be coming to Queens. At this point his best bet is to just fade out of the spotlight until portions of the team is finally sold and they can rebuild from yet another mess. Apparently rags-to-riches stories don’t include class or intelligence these days.

Look, you probably suspect that I am posting this article simply because of this person’s name. (more…)

Today’s post is a contribution form NY Sports Digest writer and patron saint, Anthony Strait:

Earlier this week I was at home watching WWE Raw when I get a text from my brother. He asked me the same question two other people asked me and several others asked on their facebook status-“Who’s ordering Wrestlemania?”

The flagship event for Vince McMahon’s World Wrestling Entertainment has grown from humble beginnings to a world wide phenomenon. Whether you’re a fan or not, there is no denying the significance this once-a-year event has taken across the world as the latest edition this Sunday will be broadcast live in an estimated one million homes across the United States and over numerous countries across the globe. The pageantry that rivals Super Bowls and concerts along with world class athletes at the top of the game makes this one night must see television even for non-wrestling fans. It is pop-culture in its rawest form-it is hinged in our society, like it or not.

Vince McMahon’s creation took its baby steps in the 1980s. As he looked to take the ‘sport’ to another level, he began to bring in celebrities from the world of entertainment. Rock and wrestling was as good a mix as oil and water; but seeing Cindy Lauper and Mr. T regularly taking part in the then World Wrestling Federation (WWF) opened the door for more mainstream activities.

The cross promotion of MTV and WWE took the sport to the level of sports/entertainment. On vacation, McMahon came up with the idea of Wrestlemania in the hopes of it being as big as the Super Bowl. Long before the days of pay per view-the first Wrestlemania was broadcast on closed circuit television in theaters and arenas. Question was, would anyone pay to sit in a theater to watch wrestling?

A star crossed evening at Madison Square Garden saw the likes of Muhammad Ali and Billy Martin in the same ring as Hulk Hogan and Roddy Piper. At the end of the night and after all the numbers came in, McMahon’s big gamble had paid off. The success of the first Wrestlemania ultimately led to the start of the yearly event. The second edition was actually held in three different venues in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

But it would be the third edition that put WWE on the map for good while cementing Wrestlemania as the premier event. Two larger than life figures, Hogan and Andre the Giant, fought in the main event in front of 93, 173 at Detroit’s Pontiac Silverdome. That indoor world attendance record stood for 23 years before 2010’s NBA all star game took that mantle.

Twenty-seven years later, Wrestlemania has grown into not just an event but an unofficial holiday as it is normally held around the beginning of spring. It has introduced wrestlers like Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker, The Rock and John Cena to the mainstream and made them household names. Wrestling fans have been able to simply go back and pick their favorite moment while casual viewers for one evening can overlook the storylines and monikers and be entertained for four hours. It has grown to be more than just an event but a week long celebration filled with activities for the fans, numerous promotional opportunities and a series of charity events.

Who can forget the numerous celebrities that made Wrestlemania different than anything else? What started out as Liberace dancing with the Rockettes in the very first Wrestlemania has turned into a who’s who of participation. Any boxing fan remembers Mike Tyson’s involvement in 1998 as well as Floyd Mayweather actually being on the fight card against the Big Show in 2008.

A Giants fan can revert back to Lawrence Taylor defeating Bam Bam Bigelow in 95 or Pete Rose’s constant torment at the hands of Kane each time he appears.

From Kim Kardashian to Snoop Dogg to Snooki, celebrity participation brings attention to the sport that normally would not recognize the industry’s popularity. From movie stars, athletes from other sports to music artists like Kid Rock and P.O.D; participation in Wrestlemania is not just another notch on the belt but an honor and privilege to be part of such a grand spectacle.

Noteworthy is that its not often local and international media cover a press conference in Times Square like the one held for Wrestlemania 27 earlier this week.

The show’s growth is as iconic as the times. It is now held in football stadiums that can fit up to 80, 000 people to match the pageantry. America the Beautiful is sung instead of the traditional national anthem that is performed at other events.

It has created its own mystique, thanks to the many wrestlers over the years. The Undertaker’s undefeated streak and if it will ever be broken or Shawn Michaels memorable matches year after year are memories the hardcore fans will forever cherish. The $50 million in generated revenue sticks to the host city while the many records stick to the legacy of the event. For over a quarter century it has brought the industry that was once frowned upon to the level of worldwide acceptance.

It has brought families and friends together as well. Being a lifelong fan myself, my earliest childhood memories of begging my mom to order the pay per view and mimicking either a Stone Cold Stunner or a leg drop. Now I get to look forward to watching it with my family every year and allowing my niece to (playfully) try some moves on her dear old uncle. Wrestlemania wasn’t quite the Super Bowl but it had the feel of one and to a point proved more memorable. It has become just as part of the identity of the country in terms of dreaming big and the symbolism of unity.

Fan or not, hate Vince McMahon or love him; there is no question that Wrestlemania is as American as apple pie.

Tomorrow will be a sad day for Yankee fans. Andy Pettitte is set to announce his retirement tomorrow at a press conference.

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Football is embarrassed today.

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Today the Yankees offered Cliff Lee, star playoff pitcher and the man who helped beat them in their 2010 World Series run, a 6-year $140 million contract. (more…)

Derek Jeter, captain of the Yankees, is one of the greatest baseball players ever. (more…)

Jeez. If Eva Longoria can get cheated on, what hope does that leave for the rest of us?!