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Posted 05/25/2007 at 02:44 PM
Lots of talk these days about athletes and their behavior off the field/court/diamond/ice...whatever. TennesseeTitans CB Pacman Jones has basically become more famous for his criminal record than anything he has done so far in the NFL and even Michael Vick - once a marketing gold mine - is doing his best to become known as a thug with a stable of fighting pit bulls.
But the latest involving Tampa Bay Devil Rays OF Elijah Dukes takes its to a whole different level.
While most of the news on athletes that crosses the police blotter involves drinking and driving, drugs of some sort or fights outside of clubs, I think the average fan isn't left feeling as if they would be scared to have these athletes in their community, even as a neighbor. Ok, so maybe I don't want Bears DT Tank Johnson and his cache of semi-automatic weapons just down the block but you get the point.
But like I said, Elijah Dukes is a different story, a different case, a different animal - so to speak. In short, I am scared of Elijah Dukes and wouldn't want this guy within six connecting states of my family.
Dukes has a long rap sheet. So long in fact that he found a new way to get promoted to the big leagues. After spending the past two years at Triple-A Durham and Double-A Montgomery those clubs told the execs at Tampa they had seen enough...and I'm not talking just about his talent to crush a baseball.
Now with the Devil Rays and leading all AL rookies with 8 home runs, Dukes is in hot water again for allegedly threatening to kill his wife and her kids.
NiShea Gilbert - the wife of Dukes - has a voice-mail that she claims the outfielder left on her cell phone. According to St. Petersburg Times reporters, this is what the message says: "Hey, dawg. It's on, dawg. You dead, dawg. I ain't even bulls-------. Your kids too, dawg. It don't even matter to me who is in the car with you. N-----, all I know is, n-----, when I see your m-----f------ a-- riding, dawg, it's on. As a matter of fact, I'm coming to your m-----f------ house."
I don't know about you, but that sends a chill down the spine. It will certainly be interesting to see how this story unfolds and how the Devil Rays handle Dukes and his enormous talent. College football can't come soon enough.
Thoughts/questions/comments? Send me a note at:
christian@vegasinsider.com
Free baseball play of the day:
Rangers (McCarthy) +171 vs. Boston (Matsuzaka)
Good luck!
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