Welcome to the Speedweek edition of Saturday Scorecard, where the roar of racing engines drowns out the clicking of camera shutters as Milwaukee Mile photographers shoot pictures of Mrs. Dario Franchitti (aka Ashley Judd).
On to the notes...
Whirlwind tour: Between photo shoots and travel obligations, Indy 500 champ Franchitti didn't get a lot of sleep following his victory at the Brickyard on Sunday.
"It's really been a crazy week and I haven't really had time to sit down and just think about what it means to me to win the Indy 500,'' he told reporters Friday at the Mile, site of Sunday's ABC Supply / AJ Foyt 225 presented by Time Warner Cable. "It might be months before I really get to fully digest it.''
It has been 11 years since the Indy Racing League visited Milwaukee following the Indy 500 and Franchitti will try to become the ninth man overall and the first since Al Unser Jr. (1994) to follow a victory at Indianapolis by winning the race in Milwaukee. (Juan Pablo Montoya did the double-dip in 2000, but the Milwaukee race was a CART Champ Car event).
"They are such different tracks, such different things required,'' Franchitti said. ``And with the competition level in this series, at any time, really, it's difficult to win back-to-back. To win the double (Indy and Milwaukee) would be a real accomplishment.''
Local tie: Sam Hornish, Jr., who won the Indianapolis 500 and series championship a year ago, has special feelings about the Milwaukee Mile. His mother, Jo Ellen, grew up in Milwaukee. One of her first dates with Hornish's father was at the Milwaukee Mile.
"We took a lot of childhood vacations to see my Grandma," said Hornish, who grew up in Defiance, Ohio. "We saw some races at the Mile. We also came there at other times of the year to go to the State Fair. We visited at times around Christmas."
Hornisch has finished has three top-three finishes at the Mile. "It's one of my favorite tracks," he said.
Rising star: Keep an eye on Oconomowoc native Bobby Wilson, who will race the No. 1 car in the Indy Pro Series race this evening. Wilson, a 25-year-old who came up from the karting circuit, was confident, charismatic and talented enough to replace 2006 champ Wade Cunningham on the Brian Stewart Racing Team.
Redemption song: The Brewers' 8-5 victory over Florida Friday night at Miller Park featured contributions from players who had been struggling. Tony Graffanino, who hit .169 in May, belted a go-ahead double in the fourth. Kevin Mench, who like Graffanino hadn't driven in a run since May 1, ripped a three-run double in the eighth. Ryan Braun, who was 2 for 19 entering the game, hit a homer, a double and a single.
And Derrick Turnbow, who incurs the wrath of fans with each sub-par outing, threw a scoreless inning. "We wouldn't be where we are without him," Brewers pitching coach Mike Maddux said Friday, referring to Turnbow.
Family feud: A lot of Brewers fans want to see their team beat up on the Cubs next week. That might be hard to do if the Cubs don't stop fighting each other. The dustup between Carlos Zambrano and Michael Barrett on Friday at Wrigley Field was an embarrassing reminder that Cubs management isn't getting much return on its $300 million winter shopping spree. Frustration is rising in the clubhouse and Zambrano, an impending free agent, might just find himself on the trading block a month from now.
Waiting game: How much longer can the Brewers wait before promoting pitching prospect Yovanni Gallardo from Class AAA Nashville? The 21-year-old right-hander struck out 11 batters in seven scoreless innings in the Sounds' 6-2 victory over Las Vegas on Friday night. Gallardo is 8-1 and his earned run average through 11 starts is 2.14. Oh, and he also had two hits, including a double, to raise his batting average to .273 (6 for 22).
Soap opera: At this point in the proceedings, we should probably write something about the strange soap opera that is playing out in the Packers front office. But, there simply hasn't been enough new information unearthed for us to hazard a guess. Stay tuned.
King James: In an article published Wednesday, OMC national sports columnist Steve Czaban built a seemingly credible case that Cavaliers star LeBron James does not have the "it" quality that will lift him to the level of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade.
Who knew that LeBron reads OMC?
In what will go down as one of the greatest efforts in playoff history, James scored 48 points, including the last 25 in a row, and lifted his team to a double-overtime victory over Detroit in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals that put the Cavs on the brink of qualifying for the big stage.
Jock jam: The Admirals are looking for a theme song, and they want Milwaukee area bands, musicians and songwriters to help.
"There are numerous teams in professional sports that have their own song," Admirals president Jon Greenberg said. "For instance, I grew up with the Brewers' "Come See What's Brewin'" and I still whistle it to this day. So, I challenge some of the great musicians in the area to come up with one for us."
The Admirals are looking for a song that inspires, motivates, and portrays the true character of the hockey team. Any and all submissions are encouraged. "We'll know the right song when we hear it," said Greenberg.
The team will shoot a music video from the winning entry and play it on the Jumbotron during the 2007-‘08 season. Submissions can be made on CD, DVD, cassette or even eight-track and mailed to:
Milwaukee Admirals
Attn: Tim Van Wagoner
1001 N. Fourth St.
Milwaukee, WI 53203
The deadline is Aug. 31. The winner will be announced in October.
In the Hall: PGA Tour stars Jerry Kelly and Steve Stricker have been elected to the Wisconsin State Golf Association Hall of Fame. The two, who have combined for five victories and nearly $30 million in prize money on the Tour, were unanimous selections in their first year of eligibility.
Stricker, who was born in Edgerton, won the Wisconsin State Open five times and has finished in the top 10 in 50 PGA tournaments. He currently is ranked 20th in the world. Kelly, a native of Madison, won the State Open once and has 26 top-10 finishes on Tour.
Have a ball: A new study indicates that fans who attend a major-league baseball game have a 0.178 percent chance of catching a foul ball or a home run. If you attend a game with 562 other people and spread out strategically around the ballpark, one person is likely to get a free souvenir.
Rather than carrying a glove to the park to help his chances, our friend Bob carries a baseball with him. The reason? Bob has noticed that many foul balls ricochet off other fans' hands and are picked up off the concrete. In the event such a scramble breaks out in his section, Bob plans to hold up his ball so that everyone else will stop looking for the real ball and he (or his friends) can then claim it.
This has never actually worked, but Bob figures he is prepared if he runs into a player or celebrity at the game.
Host of “The Drew Olson Show,” which airs 1-3 p.m. weekdays on The Big 902. Sidekick on “The Mike Heller Show,” airing weekdays on The Big 920 and a statewide network including stations in Madison, Appleton and Wausau. Co-author of Bill Schroeder’s “If These Walls Could Talk: Milwaukee Brewers” on Triumph Books. Co-host of “Big 12 Sports Saturday,” which airs Saturdays during football season on WISN-12. Former senior editor at OnMilwaukee.com. Former reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
