Sporting News
Sporting News (previously The Sporting News, and known colloquially as TSN) is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball". It is currently owned by Charlotte, North Carolina-based American City Business Journals, a subsidiary of Advance Publications.
SN currently covers seven main sports — Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Football League (NFL), the National Hockey League (NHL), NASCAR, and NCAA men's basketball and football — with occasional coverage of other sports.
Following 122 years of existence as a weekly publication, the magazine switched to a bi-weekly publishing schedule in 2008. Earlier that year, it launched a daily online newspaper, Sporting News Today. Then, in 2011, its print publishing schedule changed again; the magazine is now issued monthly.
History
TSN was founded by Alfred H. Spink, a director of the St. Louis Browns and former writer for the Missouri Republican daily newspaper. Each number was 17 by 22 inches, eight pages, price five cents (Cooper 1996). The Browns were champions of the American Association, one of two major leagues in baseball, with a claim to the championship of the United States or the world based on the disputed 1885 World Series contest with regional rival Chicago, and the undisputed 1886 winner. Meanwhile the sporting weeklies Clipper and Sporting Life were based in New York and Philadelphia. By World War I, TSN would be the only national baseball newspaper. Al Spink had long turned it over to his brother, first hiring Charles as business manager, then selling his stock, and finally departing from writing and editorial work in 1899 (Cooper 1996).
Throughout much of the 20th century TSN was decidedly non-glamorous, consisting of black-and-white newsprint with staid graphics. However it was the only vehicle for serious sports fans to follow teams from around the nation. For example, each week it printed a box score and blurb for every baseball game played in the major leagues and numerous minor leagues. Similarly, every issue had a report on each major league baseball team, usually written by a local newspaper's beat writer for that team. Franklin Gritts, the Cherokee artist, served as TSN's art director from the early 1950s to the mid-1970s.
Other publications of the Sporting News included the annual Baseball Register, an almanac of baseball statistics for that year. Its subtitle from the 40s through the mid 60s was The Game's Four Hundred.
The Spink family sold TSN to Times Mirror in the mid-1980s. Also around this time the company began publishing annual previews for professional and college football, professional and college basketball, baseball, and hockey.
With the advent of national sports media in the 1980s such as USA Today and ESPN, and of comprehensive web sites run by the major sports leagues in the 1990s, TSN lost this unique role. Consequently, it evolved into more of a conventional, glossy sports magazine in both appearance and contents. Box scores disappeared from its pages in the late 1980s, but were still made available to subscribers in a separate publication for an undetermined period of time afterwards. The online SN Today revived the tradition of publishing boxscores in its virtual pages.
In 2001, the company acquired the One on One Sports radio network, renaming it Sporting News Radio. The same year, it was purchased by Paul Allen's Vulcan Inc.
In September 2006, American City Business Journals acquired TSN and its online division. With the change in ownership, the company ceased most of its book publishing efforts. The 2006 Baseball Guide, a TSN annual in one form or another since the 1920s, was its last. The 2007 Baseball Register, an annual since the early 1940s, was its last. The 2007 Baseball Record Book was only available online, as a download. None of these guides were published in 2008.
In 2011, Sporting News appointed Garry D. Howard as editor-in-chief of Sporting News magazine, Sporting News Today and its website, Sporting News Feed. Howard came to Sporting News from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, where he was sports editor. Howard also was president of the Associated Press Sports Editors. Also as part of its reorganization in 2011, Benson Taylor was named managing editor of SN magazine and Paul Kasko was named managing editor of SN Today and SN Feed.
J. G. Taylor Spink Award
In 1962, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) instituted the J. G. Taylor Spink Award as the highest award given to its members. The award was named after J. G. Taylor Spink, publisher of The Sporting News from 1914 to 1962, who was also the first recipient.
Sportsman of the Year
- Note: A different Sportsman of the Year award is presented by Sports Illustrated magazine.
From 1968 to 2008, the magazine selected one or more individuals as Sportsman of the Year. On four occasions, the award was shared by two recipients. Twice, in 1993 and 2000, the award went to a pair of sportsmen within the same organization. In 1999, the honor was given to a whole team. No winner was chosen in 1987.
On December 18, 2007, the magazine announced New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady as 2007 Sportsman of the Year, making Brady the first to repeat as a recipient of individual honors. Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals was also honored twice, but shared his second award with Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs.
In 2009, the award was replaced by two awards: Pro Athlete of the Year and College Athlete of the Year.
- 1968 - Denny McLain, Detroit Tigers
- 1969 - Tom Seaver, New York Mets
- 1970 - John Wooden, UCLA basketball
- 1971 - Lee Trevino, golf
- 1972 - Charlie Finley, Oakland A's
- 1973 - O.J. Simpson, Buffalo Bills
- 1974 - Lou Brock, St. Louis Cardinals
- 1975 - Archie Griffin, Ohio State football
- 1976 - Larry O'Brien, National Basketball Association commissioner
- 1977 - Steve Cauthen, horse racing
- 1978 - Ron Guidry, New York Yankees
- 1979 - Willie Stargell, Pittsburgh Pirates
- 1980 - George Brett, Kansas City Royals
- 1981 - Wayne Gretzky, Edmonton Oilers
- 1982 - Whitey Herzog, St. Louis Cardinals
- 1983 - Bowie Kuhn, Major League Baseball commissioner
- 1984 - Peter Ueberroth, Olympics organizer
- 1985 - Pete Rose, Cincinnati Reds
- 1986 - Larry Bird, Boston Celtics
- 1987 - (none)
- 1988 - Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Olympics
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- 1989 - Joe Montana, San Francisco 49ers
- 1990 - Nolan Ryan, Texas Rangers
- 1991 - Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
- 1992 - Mike Krzyzewski, Duke University basketball
- 1993 - Cito Gaston and Pat Gillick, Toronto Blue Jays
- 1994 - Emmitt Smith, Dallas Cowboys
- 1995 - Cal Ripken, Baltimore Orioles
- 1996 - Joe Torre, New York Yankees
- 1997 - Mark McGwire, St. Louis Cardinals
- 1998 - Mark McGwire, St. Louis Cardinals, and Sammy Sosa, Chicago Cubs
- 1999 - New York Yankees
- 2000 - Marshall Faulk and Kurt Warner, St. Louis Rams
- 2001 - Curt Schilling, Arizona Diamondbacks
- 2002 - Tyrone Willingham, Notre Dame American football
- 2003 - Dick Vermeil, Kansas City Chiefs, and Jack McKeon, Florida Marlins
- 2004 - Tom Brady, New England Patriots
- 2005 - Matt Leinart, USC Trojans football
- 2006 - Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
- 2007 - Tom Brady, New England Patriots
- 2008 - Eli Manning, New York Giants
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Pro Athlete of the Year
- See also: Associated Press Athlete of the Year, Best Female Athlete ESPY Award, Best Male Athlete ESPY Award, Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year
College Athlete of the Year
High School Athlete of the Year
Athletes of the Decade
- See footnote[7]
- NFL Athlete of the Decade
- College Football Athlete of the Decade
- MLB Athlete of the Decade
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- NBA Athlete of the Decade
- College Basketball Athlete of the Decade
- NHL Player of the Decade
- NASCAR Athlete of the Decade
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Major-league baseball awards
- See also: Baseball awards and List of MLB awards
SN sponsors its own annual Team, Player, Pitcher, Rookie, Reliever, Comeback Player, Manager, and Executive of the Year awards. Prior to 2005, the SN Comeback Player Award was generally recognized as the principal award of its type, as MLB did not give such an award until that year.
Annual
One-time only
- 1998
- The Sporting News list of Baseball's 100 Greatest Players[19]
- 1990s
- The Sporting News Player of the Decade (1999)[20] – Barry Bonds (Pirates–Giants)
- 2009
- Sporting News Top 50 Players (in 2009). The list is based on the polling of a panel of 100 baseball people, many of them members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and winners of major baseball awards.[21]
- 2000s
- Sporting News All-Decade Team (2009):[22][23] C – Joe Mauer, Twins; 1B – Albert Pujols, Cardinals; 2B – Jeff Kent, Giants–Astros–Dodgers; 3B – Alex Rodriguez, Mariners–Rangers–Yankees; SS – Derek Jeter, Yankees; OF – Barry Bonds, Giants; OF – Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners; OF – Manny Ramirez, Indians–Red Sox–Dodgers; DH – David Ortiz, Twins–Red Sox; SP – Randy Johnson, Diamondbacks–Yankees–Giants; RP – Mariano Rivera, Yankees
Minor-league baseball awards
- Sporting News Minor League Organization of the Year[26]
Professional basketball awards
College basketball awards
Honors lists
- 50 greatest coaches of all time (MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, college basketball, and college football) (2009)[28]
Writers
See also
- ^ ABC
- ^ Bradley, Ken (Dec. 17, 2009). "2009 Sporting News Pro Athlete of the Year: Mariano Rivera, Yankees closer". Sporting News. http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/article/2009-12-17/2009-sporting-news-pro-athlete-year-mariano-rivera-yankees-closer. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ Greenberg, Steve (Dec. 15, 2010). "2010 SN Pro Athlete of the Year: Roy Halladay". Sporting News. http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2010-12-15/2010-sn-pro-athlete-of-the-year-roy-halladay. Retrieved 2011-07-27.
- ^ Bradley, Ken (Dec. 17, 2009). "2009 Sporting News College Athlete of the Year: Colt McCoy, Texas QB". Sporting News. http://www.sportingnews.com/college-football/article/2009-12-17/2009-sporting-news-college-athlete-year-colt-mccoy-texas-qb. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ Greenberg, Steve (Dec. 15, 2010). "2010 SN College Athlete of the Year: Kyle Singler". Sporting News. http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-basketball/story/2010-12-15/2010-sn-college-athlete-of-the-year. Retrieved 2011-07-27.
- ^ Greenberg, Steve (Dec. 15, 2010). "SN 2010 High School Athlete of the Year: RB Mike Bellamy". Sporting News. http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2010-12-15/sn-2010-high-school-athlete-of-the-year-rb-mike-bellamy. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
- ^ "Sporting News' Athletes of the Decade". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/nhl/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-athletes-decade-0. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' NFL Athlete of the Decade: Peyton Manning, QB, Colts". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2009-09-24/sporting-news-nfl-athlete-decade-peyton-manning-qb-colts. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' College Football Athlete of the Decade: Matt Leinart, QB, USC". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/college-football/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-college-football-athlete-decade-matt-leinart-qb-us. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' MLB Athlete of the Decade: Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-mlb-athlete-decade-albert-pujols-1b-cardinals. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' NBA Athlete of the Decade: Kobe Bryant, SG, Lakers". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/nba/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-nba-athlete-decade-kobe-bryant-sg-lakers. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' College Basketball Athlete of the Decade: Tyler Hansbrough, C, North Carolina". September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/college-basketball/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-college-basketball-athlete-decade-tyler-hansbrou. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' NHL Player of the Decade: Nicklas Lidstrom, D, Red Wings". September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/nhl/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-nhl-player-decade-nicklas-lidstrom-d-red-wings. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ "Sporting News' NASCAR Athlete of the Decade: Jimmie Johnson, No. 48, Hendrick Motorsports". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-nascar-athlete-decade-jimmie-johnson-no-48-hendrick-motorspo. Retrieved 2009-12-17.
- ^ From 1925 to 1960, the team was a combined team for both leagues. Starting in 1961, a team was named for each league. Patrick Mondout, "The Sporting News All-Stars" (1925–2005), Baseball Chronology. Archived from the original on 12 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
- ^ Sporting News All-Star Team (1964–2009). Fanbase. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
- ^ Sporting News All-Star Team (2009). Fanbase. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
- ^ Bahr, Chris (December 23, 2010). "Mauer, Cano unanimous selections for Sporting News' 2010 all-star teams". SportingNews.com. http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/feed/2010-10/2010-baseball-awards/story/mauer-cano-unanimous-selections-for-sporting-news-2010-all-star-teams. Retrieved 2011-08-06. "[S]elected by a panel of 24 Major League Baseball general managers."
- ^ Baseball's 100 Greatest Players (The Sporting News). Baseball Almanac. Retrieved 2010-09-23.
- ^ The Sporting News Player of the Decade. The Sporting News, July 12, 1999. TSN.sportingnews.com. Retrieved 2009-09-26.
- ^ For the complete list, scroll to the middle of the following webpage. Wolfley, Bob (May 20, 2009). "Braun makes greatest list". Milwaukee, Wisconsin Journal-Sentinel. http://www.jsonline.com/sports/45556307.html. Retrieved 2010-09-16.
- ^ a b c d e f g Gonzalez, Alden, "Pujols is TSN's Player of the Decade: Slugger topped a .300 average in each of his nine seasons", Sept. 24, 2009. St. Louis Cardinals official website; MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media, L.P. Retrieved 2009-09-29.
- ^ a b c d e f Stone, Larry, "Ichiro on Sporting News All-Decade team. Who is the Player of the Decade?", The Seattle Times, Sept. 24, 2009. The Seattle Times Co. Retrieved 2009-09-26.
- ^ "Sporting News' MLB Athlete of the Decade: Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals". Sporting News. September 24, 2009. http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/article/2009-09-24/sporting-news-mlb-athlete-decade-albert-pujols-1b-cardinals. Retrieved 2009-09-29.
- ^ See also: The Sporting News Executive of the Year Award.
- ^ "PRESS RELEASE: Angels' GM Tony Reagins given contract extension". Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim official website. MLB Advanced Media, L.P.. November 6, 2009. http://losangeles.angels.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20091106&content_id=7633344&vkey=pr_ana&fext=.jsp&c_id=ana. Retrieved 2011-11-02. "[From 2002–07], the Angels' affiliates reached the playoffs 18 times while capturing 15 division titles and three league titles. The Angels' farm system posted winning records in four of the six seasons (2003-05-06-07) and was named "Minor League Organization of the Year" in 2003 by The Sporting News."
- ^ a b From the 1950s through 1979, The Sporting News published All-Conference teams. In 1980 it instead began choosing an All-Pro team.
- ^ D'Alessio, Jeff (July 29, 2009). "Sporting News' 50 greatest coaches of all time". SportingNews.com. http://www.sportingnews.com/college-basketball/article/2009-07-29/sporting-news-50-greatest-coaches-all-time. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
References
- Cooper, Mark (1996). "Alfred Henry Spink". Baseball's First Stars. Edited by Frederick Ivor-Campbell, et al. Cleveland, OH: SABR. ISBN 0-910137-58-7
External links