Temperatures Rising
Posted August 5, 2007, 8:57 PM ET

August is already smokin' hot, and the sports weekend provided some additional heat.

I was thrilled that both A-Rod and Barry Bonds hit home runs on the same day. Like the rest of America, I had grown tired of the inevitable in both cases. Even though, watching the expression of super sour-puss Bud Selig as Bonds connected on 755 was priceless.

Sometime this week, Bonds should finally surpass Hammerin' Hank as the last place Giants entertain the equally pathetic Washington Nationals and Pittsburgh Pirates. It looks like Bonds will get his wish of breaking the record in front of the home-folks...once he does, hopefully Pedro Gomez of ESPN can return home and cease his media-stalk of the King Juicer.

The first slow-clap of the week goes to the Panthers' front office and their first round draft pick, Jon Beason. Finally, both sides came to their senses and they knocked out the deal. The third longest holdout in Panthers history was put to rest and now the kid can report to camp. This deal should have been finalized in five minutes, but the good news is that both sides can breathe easier, and so can Panther fans.

The Panthers made a good move last week with the acquisition of safety Chris Harris. Given the unknown future status of super-classy Mike Minter, and the physical condition of Nate Salley, the Panthers made a smart decision in landing Harris from the Chicago Bears for a 2008 5th-round pick.

In NASCAR news, it's official.....Robby Gordon has lost his mind. His actions on and off the track during the Busch race in Montreal were all-time classics. I've never seen a driver ignore the NASCAR-mandated black flag near the end of the race, and then proceed to drive as if he were the actual winner of the race....and that includes the victory lap and the burnout.

On the Cup series, Kurt Busch dominated at Pocono, and in the process made life very uneasy for Dale, Jr. and his legion of fans. By winning on Sunday, Busch jumped ahead of Junior for the final spot in the Chase for the Cup. Since there are only 5 races remaining until the "Chase", it looks like Junior and NASCAR will be paying close attention. If Junior misses out again to qualify for the Chase, it will put even more pressure on him next season given the circumstances.

You got to love Rory Sabbatini. During the Wachovia Championship this past May, he called out Tiger Woods heading into the final round of the Charlotte PGA Tour event. On the night before the final round, Sabbatini said that "Woods was as beatable as ever". During the final round the next day, Woods drilled Sabbatini and the field to collect the title.

Rory had another chance to back up his claim this past weekend at Firestone. This time, the "Great Sabbatini" had a one-shot lead while being paired with Tiger. For the record, Woods fired a snappy 65 on the last day and "edged" Sabbatini by 8 freaking shots! Even the gallery jumped on the "Great Sabbatini" with his "beatable as ever" remark. On the tenth tee, Rory had police escort a fan off the golf course for reminding him of his earlier statement.

Finally, I'm still trying to get the thought of the X-Games out of my head. The thirteenth edition produced one of the most remarkable falls in sports history. If you missed, you need to find it on Youtube....the kids name is Jake Brown. All he did was lose control of his skateboard at the peak of his performance, and then proceeded to fall nearly face-first 53 feet to the bottom of the ramp.

At impact, his shoes flew off his feet and laid motionless. I thought he was dead.

Remarkably, he got up and waved to the crowd. He's going to be ok, despite some serious injuries and bruises.....and in other news, David Beckham has decided to sit out another week on the Major League Soccer front....it has something to do with a splinter in his ass and a sore ankle.