Pat LaFontaine has waited long enough - and New York Islanders fans have waited right along with him. On Saturday afternoon at UBS Arena, one of the most electrifying, beloved, and downright iconic players ever to wear the Islanders crest will finally take his rightful place in the Islanders Hall of Fame. And let's be honest: this honor is long overdue. Hall of Famer. Franchise pillar. Face of an era. Pat LaFontaine has been all of that and more.
Impact free agents like Devin Williams and Dylan Cease have already signed, and the trade market has been buzzing all winter long with deals like the Brandon Nimmo for Marcus Semien swap, Boston's acquisition of Sonny Gray, and last night's five-player deal between the Pirates and Red Sox. The activity should only ratchet up from here leading up to and throughout the meetings, with plenty of exciting moves to come in the next few days.
Over the course of his 16-year career, the designated hitter played for the Cincinnati Reds, Blue Jays, Cleveland Guardians, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, and Chicago White Sox, making a name for himself in his third full season with the Blue Jays. After 16 seasons in the big leagues, Encarnación finished with a .260/.350/.496 slash line with 424 home runs in 8,126 plate appearances for a 125 wRC+ and 33.5 fWAR. Unfortunately, Encarnación will not make the Hall of Fame.
Bruce Bochy is nearing a deal to return to the Giants in an advisory role. CEO Greg Johnson first told Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle on Tuesday that the sides were working on a deal. Bochy confirmed to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic this evening that he's in the process of finalizing a special assistant position. He'll be on hand as an excellent resource for first-year manager Tony Vitello.
Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Don Mattingly and Dale Murphy were held over on the Hall of Fame's contemporary baseball era committee ballot and will be joined next month by former Toronto Blue Jays Carlos Delgado and Jeff Kent, along with Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela. The 16-person committee meets Dec. 7 at the winter meetings in Orlando, Fla., and a 75 per cent vote is necessary for election.
"That's why I'm trying not to show all my emotions," Schottenheimer said. "You're going to see me skipping down the hall. I might even call the guys up and be like, 'Hey, guess who I just hung out with? He came to see me?' No, like I said, I'm a football junkie, and [he's] one of the best all time, man."
Former NFL star Shaun Alexander and his wife, Valerie, are adding another player to their team. The Seattle Seahawks' all-time leading rusher announced on the " Up & Adams Show" with host Kay Adams on Sept. 24 that Valerie is pregnant with the couple's 14th child. "We're just now starting to tell people, but No. 14 is in the belly," Alexander said. "We're just now starting to tell everybody."
Fred Warner is in the eye of the 49ers' defensive hurricane. New teammates are swirling around him. He is not calm, however. He is All-Pro Fred, and that means he is hollering, hustling, and huddling up with intensity. He's still the one out there chirping and yelling and screaming and getting everybody pumped up, defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said. So, he hasn't changed in that regard. The game hasn't jaded him, if that makes sense.
Though it's difficult to call a first-ballot Hall of Fame inductee underrated, that label applies to the newest center in Springfield, Massachusetts. As of 2021, Howard was one of 26 players in NBA history with at least five first-team All-NBA nods. The other 25 were named to the league's 75th Anniversary Team that year. Howard was not.
Jared Allen, known for his signature cowboy hat and celebratory calf-roping act, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame after a successful 12-year NFL career.
The Hockey Hall of Fame has added memorabilia from Ovechkin's 895th career goal to its "NHL Today" showcase, including a jersey and the socks Ovechkin wore when he broke Wayne Gretzky's NHL goals record.
From 1947 to 1956, Reese appeared in no fewer than 140 games and was one of the pillars of the franchise. Reese wasn't an MVP-level player, but he was what embodied that caliber teammate and role model.
