Red Sox get Bedard

The Red Sox traded for lefty starter Erik Bedard at Sunday's MLB Trading Deadline. Boston also received right-hander Josh Fields as part of the three-team deal with the Mariners and Dodgers.

The Red Sox send minor league right-handers Stephen Fife and Juan Rodriguez and catcher Tim Federowicz to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for outfielder Trayvon Robinson and then traded Robinson to Seattle with minor league outfielder Chih-Hsien Chiang in exchange for Bedard and Fields.

The team also announced that pitcher Clay Buchholz has been moved to the 60-day disabled list to make room for Bedard on the 40-man roster.  Buchholz would be eligible to come off the DL on August 16th if his back injury heals.

Bedard, 32, is 4-7 with 3.45 ERA, 87 strikeouts and 30 walks in 16 starts for the Mariners sp far this season.

Monday's MLB Pitching Probables

CLE at BOS 7:10 PM
CLE: J Tomlin (R) 11-5, 4.01
BOS: J Lackey (R) 9-8, 6.20

ATL at WAS 7:05 PM
ATL: J Jurrjens (R) 12-3, 2.38
WAS: L Hernandez (R) 5-10, 4.19

CHC at PIT 7:05 PM
CHC: C Zambrano (R) 7-6, 4.59
PIT: P Maholm (L) 6-10, 3.16

FLA at NYM 7:10 PM
FLA: J Vazquez (R) 7-9, 5.10
NYM: M Pelfrey (R) 6-9, 4.55

CIN at HOU 8:05 PM
CIN: B Arroyo (R) 7-9, 5.58
HOU: B Norris (R) 5-7, 3.39

NYY at CHW 8:10 PM
NYY: C Sabathia (L) 15-5, 2.56
CHW: J Peavy (R) 4-4, 5.27

STL at MIL 8:10 PM
STL: C Carpenter (R) 6-7, 3.68
MIL: Z Greinke (R) 8-4, 4.50

PHI at COL 8:40 PM
PHI: C Hamels (L) 12-6, 2.61
COL: J Chacin (R) 8-8, 3.50

LAD at SDG 10:05 PM
LAD: C Kershaw (L) 12-4, 2.72
SDG: C Luebke (L) 3-5, 2.92

OAK at SEA 10:10 PM
OAK: T Cahill (R) 9-9, 3.58
SEA: B Beavan (R) 1-2, 3.04

ARI at SFO 10:15 PM
ARI: I Kennedy (R) 12-3, 3.22
SFO: M Cain (R) 9-6, 2.91

Red Sox/White Sox on TBS on Trade Deadline Day

From TBS Sports -

“Sunday MLB on TBS” Features the Boston Red Sox @ Chicago White Sox on Trade Deadline Day

“Sunday MLB on TBS” continues on July 31, MLB’s trade deadline day, with an American League match-up featuring Paul Konerko and the Chicago White Sox hosting David Ortiz and the Boston Red Sox at 2 p.m. (ET) at U.S. Cellular Field. Andrew Miller (4-1) is scheduled to start for the Red Sox against the White Sox probable starter Mark Buehrle (8-5). Play-by-play announcer Ernie Johnson will be joined by analyst Dennis Eckersley in the broadcast booth.

“Sunday MLB on TBS” includes match-ups on TBS every Sunday afternoon throughout the regular season. Beginning in October TBS will once again provide exclusive coverage of the four Division Series and the National League Championship Series (NLCS).

TBS has served as the exclusive home of Major League Baseball’s Division Series (DS) and one League Championship Series (LCS) since 2007, has broadcasted MLB games for more than 30 years and was home of the Atlanta Braves from 1977-2007.

SUNDAY MLB ON TBS SCHEDULE:
Sun., July 31
2 p.m. (ET) Boston Red Sox @ Chicago White Sox
Announcers: Ernie Johnson (play-by-play) and Dennis Eckersley (analyst)

SUNDAY MLB ON TBS UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
Sun., August 7 1 p.m. (ET)
Atlanta Braves @ New York Mets
Announcers: Brian Anderson (play-by-play), John Smoltz (analyst) and David Wells (analyst)

Sun., August 14
1 p.m. (ET) Tampa Bay Rays @ New York Yankees
Announcers: Dick Stockton (play-by-play) and Dennis Eckersley (analyst)

Hard Knocks Special coming to HBO

From HBO Sports -

HBO Sports® and NFL FILMS announced today that the five-episode Hard Knocks reality series will not be presented this summer. The uncertainty of the NFL’s summer schedule and the incredibly expedited timetable this month made it impractical for a team to commit. The series is scheduled to return for 2012 training camp.

However, a special 90-minute edition of Hard Knocks, celebrating the past ten years of the seven-time Emmy®-Award-winning series will premiere Wednesday, Aug. 31 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT, exclusively on HBO.

"We know football fans are hungry for compelling NFL programming and we think they'll love the 10th anniversary special," said Rick Bernstein, executive producer, HBO Sports.

Said Steve Sabol, President of NFL FILMS, “The first 10 years of Hard Knocks has been the ultimate fly-on-the-wall NFL training camp experience. We look forward to taking a look back at those shows and reintroducing the fans to those characters who made the decade of Hard Knocks so memorable.”

The special will combine flashbacks to memorable moments from the Hard Knocks seasons that featured the Baltimore Ravens (2001), Dallas Cowboys (2002 & 2008), Kansas City Chiefs (2007), Cincinnati Bengals (2009) and the New York Jets (2010); a "Where Are They Now?" element; and never-before-seen out-takes and new interviews.

Additional details and the show’s title will be announced in August.

Harden deal off

The Red Sox have called off the Rich Harden deal.  Late last night, the Red Sox told the A's that after looking at Harden's medical records, they didn't think the pitcher could make it through the rest of the season physically.

So, at least for now, first baseman Lars Anderson remains with the PawSox

Now the Red Sox attention may turn to Seattle's Erik Bedard.

Entourage - "Out with a Bang" Preview

Here's the latest preview for Sunday's second episode of season 8 for our friends at Entourage.

Preview #90

10:30pm (ET) on HBO!

Red Sox set to get Rich Harden

I like this move for the Red Sox.  Instead of giving away the farm (4 top level prospects like Cleveland did for Ubaldo Jimenez), the Red Sox are on the heels of getting Rich Harden from the Athletics in a deal involving minor league 1st baseman Lars Anderson.


Click here to read more from MLB Trade Rumors.

I like the deal because Rich Harden is a bulldog who throws strikes. He's 57-35 with a 3.65 ERA and 1.28 WHIP along with a 2-1 strike out to walk ratio.  Sure, he just came off the disabled list but has gone to the tune of a 2-1 record with a 4.30 ERA, 9.2 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 29 1/3 innings.  Plus, he only makes $1.5 million this season.

Sunday MLB Pitching Probables

KAN at CLE 1:05 PM
KAN: K Davies (R) 1-9, 6.75
CLE: F Carmona (R) 5-10, 5.34

LAA at DET 1:05 PM
LAA: J Weaver (R) 14-4, 1.79
DET: J Verlander (R) 14-5, 2.34

BAL at NYY 1:05 PM
BAL: J Arrieta (R) 10-7, 5.12
NYY: F Garcia (R) 9-7, 3.23

TEX at TOR 1:07 PM
TEX: C Wilson (L) 10-4, 3.16
TOR: B Morrow (R) 7-5, 4.71

SFO at CIN 1:10 PM
SFO: B Zito (L) 3-3, 5.24
CIN: J Cueto (R) 6-4, 1.88

FLA at ATL 1:35 PM
FLA: R Nolasco (R) 7-7, 4.04
ATL: T Hanson (R) 11-5, 3.13

NYM at WAS 1:35 PM
NYM: J Niese (L) 10-8, 3.97
WAS: J Zimmermann (R) 6-9, 3.27

PIT at PHI 1:35 PM
PIT: J Karstens (R) 8-5, 2.41
PHI: V Worley (R) 7-1, 2.02

BOS at CHW 2:10 PM
BOS: A Miller (L) 4-1, 5.45
CHW: M Buehrle (L) 8-5, 3.22

HOU at MIL 2:10 PM
HOU: B Myers (R) 3-11, 4.66
MIL: C Narveson (L) 7-6, 4.41

MIN at OAK 4:05 PM
MIN: C Pavano (R) 6-7, 4.60
OAK: B McCarthy (R) 3-5, 3.52

COL at SDG 4:05 PM
COL: J Nicasio (R) 4-3, 4.24
SDG: W LeBlanc (L) 0-2, 5.17

TAM at SEA 4:10 PM
TAM: J Hellickson (R) 9-7, 3.27
SEA: J Vargas (L) 6-9, 4.09

ARI at LAD 4:10 PM
ARI: J Saunders (L) 7-8, 3.63
LAD: R De La Rosa (R) 4-4, 3.49

CHC at STL 8:05 PM
CHC: R Dempster (R) 7-8, 4.98
STL: J Westbrook (R) 9-4, 4.86

Saturday's MLB Pitching Probables

BAL at NYY 1:05 PM
BAL: C Tillman (R) 2-3, 5.16
NYY: B Colon (R) 7-6, 3.30

TEX at TOR 1:07 PM
TEX: D Holland (L) 10-4, 4.14
TOR: B Mills (L) 0-1, 2.57

LAA at DET 4:10 PM
LAA: D Haren (R) 10-6, 3.01
DET: J Turner (R)

TAM at SEA 4:10 PM
TAM: A Cobb (R) 3-0, 2.57
SEA: M Pineda (R) 8-7, 3.64

CHC at STL 4:10 PM
CHC: R Lopez (R) 2-2, 3.49
STL: K Lohse (R) 8-7, 3.46

BAL at NYY 7:00 PM
BAL: Z Britton (L) 6-7, 4.05
NYY: I Nova (R) 8-4, 4.12

KAN at CLE 7:05 PM
KAN: F Paulino (R) 1-8, 4.54
CLE: J Masterson (R) 8-7, 2.57

NYM at WAS 7:05 PM
NYM: R Dickey (R) 5-8, 3.74
WAS: J Marquis (R) 8-5, 3.95

PIT at PHI 7:05 PM
PIT: J McDonald (R) 7-4, 3.95
PHI: C Lee (L) 9-7, 3.05

BOS at CHW 7:10 PM
BOS: J Lester (L) 10-4, 3.23
CHW: P Humber (R) 8-6, 3.27

HOU at MIL 7:10 PM
HOU: J Happ (L) 4-12, 6.12
MIL: Y Gallardo (R) 11-7, 3.89

FLA at ATL 7:10 PM
FLA: A Sanchez (R) 6-3, 3.60
ATL: T Hudson (R) 9-7, 3.42

SFO at CIN 7:10 PM
SFO: M Bumgarner (L) 6-9, 3.56
CIN: M Leake (R) 8-6, 4.04

COL at SDG 8:35 PM
COL: U Jimenez (R) 6-9, 4.20
SDG: A Harang (R) 9-2, 3.45

MIN at OAK 9:05 PM
MIN: N Blackburn (R) 7-7, 4.21
OAK: G Moscoso (R) 3-5, 3.47

ARI at LAD 10:10 PM
ARI: M Owings (R) 4-0, 2.36
LAD: C Billingsley (R) 9-8, 3.92

Adam's Wrestling Blog: More Wrestling Pictures

Adam's Wrestling Blog: More Wrestling Pictures: " "

Two Phone Calls With CM Punk (Part 3/3)

I made thousands of phone calls while working on the WWE Creative Team to various talents.  Usually to fill talents in on what they were doing on TV or run a future idea by them.  I was calling CM Punk to wish him a Merry Christmas and Punk’s response to me was not festive; it was cold… it was standoffish.  After what had happened the week before at ECW TV and really the entire year before in 2007 in WWE, his frustration was justified.

Back in September 2007 when CM Punk won the ECW Title, there was a hope he was turning the corner with those in power in WWE.  After the suspension of various talents, Punk was presented for exactly who he was straight edge, as a way to combat the bad PR.  CM Punk the poster boy of WWE?  While WWE wanted to clean up its image externally, the internal feelings over Punk still remained the same.

Elijah Burke

After beating John Morrison on TV, Punk’s first title defense on PPV was against Elijah Burke.  After losing to John Morrison on PPV three times in a row, Punk needed a strong and decisive victory to show he was a deserving champion.  Elijah beat on Punk for a large majority of the match.  Without a comeback, Punk simply rolled up Elijah to get the victory.  No real chance for Punk to shine.  No use of his finishing maneuver – the GTS.  He was the champion who survived a beating and was able to roll up the challenger who looked far superior in the match.

You might say, “You wrote it that way.”  I’ll explain what a “WWE Writer” is involved with and not.  Our job is to create the stories that surround the matches and characters.  Sometimes they are as simple as “I’m better then you because…”  and sometimes they are as complex and silly as “Dawn Marie falling in love with the father of Torrie Wilson”.  We pitched these stories based on the marching orders of Vince and Stephanie and created the show scripts with the matches and interviews.  Once we arrived at the arena, the matches are worked out NOT by the writers but instead by the former wrestlers called Agents/Producers.  The agents communicated the “message” of Vince to the talents about what the match should accomplish.   Once they leave the agent meeting, it’s in the hands of the agent and the talents to create the match.

Big Daddy V

CM Punk made his first trip to Chicago as ECW Champion for the 2007 WWE PPV No Mercy.  I never asked Punk how big a deal this was to him but I knew how it felt to me to do shows in Philadelphia.  Going to see live wrestling at Philadelphia Spectrum or the Civic Center as a kid made me want to work in wrestling.  Being part of creating memories for a whole new generation of fans in the town I grew up in was one of the coolest parts of the job.  That night in Chicago, CM Punk faced Big Daddy V in his second defense of the ECW Title.  Big Daddy V was a complete relaunch of Viscera with a new look and a new attitude – a killer, monster heel.  As soon as he was repackaged and getting over, we were told that Big Daddy V would be “moving up” to Raw or Smackdown.  That night in Chicago, Punk walked into a slaughter but still “walked out” champion.  Probably not the memorable moment that Punk wanted in his first major match with WWE in Chicago.

As Punk walked into Chicago for Money in the Bank this past month vs. John Cena, I thought back to this match.  There was no way Vince McMahon would have had CM Punk beat Big Daddy V.  CM Punk had fallen into that “Rey Mysterio Champion” mold in Vince’s mind.  That he’s “lucky” to be champion and that he has to squeak out victories.  In a finish that made no sense, Matt Striker, after Punk knocked down Big Daddy V, attacked Punk in front of the ref costing his man the ECW Title.  These type of finishes do not help the champion or the challenger.  It’s this type of booking that cause people to scratch their head at WWE.  It’s this type of booking that built the frustration inside CM Punk.

CM Punk wasn’t the only talent that high ranking members of the WWE looked at with a warped perception on the ECW roster.  John Morrison and the Miz came to ECW in the summer because RAW and Smackdown didn’t know what to do with them.  Dusty and I happily took the challenge of finding new things for these talents.  ECW in 2007, carrying the theme of the original brand, was the “island of misfit toys”.   Johnny Nitro had reinvented himself as John Morrison.  Viscera went from being the pajama wearing joke to a killer Big Daddy V.  And the “annoying” Miz had reinvented himself as the “The Chick Magnet”.  

If you’ve followed the story of the Miz in 2010/2011, you know how he the locker room in 2006/2007 treated him.  It was the longest running storyline of 2007 that started to change the perception on Miz.  Yes, Balls Mahoney vs. The Miz was the longest running storyline of 2007.  And it showed the range that the Miz had.

When CM Punk walked into Cyber Sunday, the audience was going to vote on who faced him for the ECW Title.  Big Daddy V, The Miz or John Morrison.  Morrison seemed to be the logical pick since he had the most history and would be the “better match” for voters.  Big Daddy V had destroyed Punk at the previous PPV and fans could want Punk to get revenge.  But the fans chose The Miz.  This was the first inclination that the Miz was connecting and this was the first major title defense that Punk won decisively.  The next month at the Survivor Series, Punk had defeat Miz and Morrison in a triple threat match; pinning Miz after the GTS.  The tide was turning and Punk was gaining momentum as champion.

Miz & Morrison

The long term plan was to make Miz the ECW Champion but when we put the WWE Tag Team Titles on Morrison and Miz instead of Mark Henry and The Great Khali, (hear this story in this podcast with John Carle here) the story needed to be altered.  Chavo Guerrero was chosen to be an interim challenger for CM Punk.  This was to kick off in a special episode of ECW where it was United States Champion MVP vs. ECW Champion CM Punk.  The approved pitch in the agent meeting was to see CM Punk to make his comeback on MVP and just as he’s about to hit the GTS, MVP takes a walk and be counted out.  That way Punk is looking great when Chavo Guerrero hits from the audience to attack Punk and make his statement.   That’s not what happened.

MVP gets disqualified for kicking the crap out of Punk and refusing to stop after the five count.  Then a dead CM Punk is jumped by Chavo Guerrero.  This is an example of how a finish changes during a taping day.  It didn’t help Chavo and it made Punk look bad.  Just when Punk thought he was starting to see some daylight in the making waves in the company.

This segment was the last thing that happened before I made that Merry Christmas phone call to Punk.  He was mad.  I tried to explain the original pitch for the segment and he knew how the system worked.  I was simply who he was taking his frustration out on; I knew my job.  When a talent is told, “Creative has nothing for you”, it usually  means that Vince just didn’t see making money with that talent.  When ECW had a bad show full of bad matches, it wasn’t the agents who took an earful for three hours on a plane flight home, it was creative.  I genuinely liked Punk because he did voice his frustration.  Most of the talents would pretend to be “buddy buddy” with members of the team in hopes that it would “lead to a push”.   Punk did apologize to me for the phone call after the holidays but I understood his frustration.  It was Punk’s natural human reaction; instead of a lot of talents who let it eat away inside them and lash out in stupid ways.  Punk always stuck to his guns and never changed who he was; he’s still the same way.

I made another phone call to Punk a little over a month later that was much different.  It was me calling to let him know I had been dismissed from WWE and we wouldn’t be working together anymore.  Punk was the first talent I called.  Again, we weren’t friends but I respected him enough that I wanted him to hear it from me and not read it online.  The tone of the conversation was much different then the previous.  Punk was sympathetic of my situation and appreciative of what we had done working together.  I wished him luck in the future and told him I knew he’d do great going forward.   I had similar calls with Miz and Morrison; these guys were genuine as well.  The talents who were “buddy buddy” didn’t call.  In fact, I heard all about the BS they said after I was gone.  That’s wrestling though and it’s a business full of “what can you do for me.”  And now that I couldn’t do anything for some, they took pleasure in talking.  I’m glad I don’t have to be those people because there will come a point where they realize they can’t do anything for themselves.

I saw Punk a few time since then.  My favorite was one of those moments you think only happens in movies.  You’re walking by an airport bar and you see someone you haven’t seen in almost two years.  Yup, CM Punk was in a bar… drinking water and by his feet was his second Money In the Bank briefcase.  He was heading home from the WWE TV tapings in Los Angeles and I was heading to Philadelphia for ROH TV tapings.  He was on the cusp of starting his first heel run with WWE; where he really shined and hasn’t looked back since.  While 2007 really was a hard year for him, the years since have built an even larger fan base for Punk.  To see him catch fire over the last month simply by being himself gives hope.  If you walk away with one lesson from CM Punk and these posts  – being yourself and never compromising what you believe will make you successful.

__________________________________________________________________

Part 1 - Which Hall Of Famer Saved CM Punk

Part 2 - How CM Punk Won His First Title 

Part 3 - Two Phone Calls With CM Punk

__________________________________________________________________

Post Your Comments!

How CM Punk Won His First Title (Part 2/3)

Chris Benoit

CM Punk stood face to face with Chris Benoit on ECW just days before their ECW Title Match at Vengeance Night of Champions.  June of 2007 was to be the launching of a new era in ECW and the next step in the evolution of CM Punk.  The match never happened.

If you flashed back to a year earlier, ECW was meant to be on the same level of Raw and Smackdown.  Stars like RVD, Kurt Angle, Big Show were brought in to compliment the returning ECW stars like Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Sabu.   On the day of the WWE Draft in June of 2007, RVD, Angle and Big Show were all gone from WWE/ECW and the ECW Originals were being phased out.  This draft was meant to was meant to shape the new “New” ECW.  But we all remember what the MOST important thing to happen the night of the WWE Draft 2007; Vince McMahon Appreciation Night and his limo going boom. This angle was to kick off a long storyline about who did it and a power struggle over who controlled WWE.

With so much time and attention being put into the McMahon story, ECW was once again pushed down the ladder of importance.  By this point, some weeks the ECW Team would be lucky to get five to ten minutes to pitch our show to Vince.  We would wait all day for a meeting and then be told, “Just email Vince”.  My marching orders were to get one thing approved.  That way we could provide something Kevin Dunn’s TV crew could edit a commercial for Raw.  We knew “our place” in the WWE Creative food chain.  We had to be fine with it because we knew it wasn’t going to change.  Our goal for ECW was to focus on young talent and give them a platform to develop.  The key to this plan was centered around Chris Benoit coming to ECW.

Night Of Champions

Chris Benoit was to be the veteran leader for the ECW locker room.  He was excited to be coming and helping groom the up and coming talents like Miz, John Morrison, Marcus Cor Von, Kevin Thorn, Elijah Burke and especially CM Punk.   Benoit was fresh off working with MVP in their feud over the United States Title.  The finals of the ECW Title tournament was to feature CM Punk vs. Chris Benoit at Night of Champions.   On that night, Chris Benoit was scheduled to win the title and enter into long term story with CM Punk; Punk attempting to beat the veteran to win his first title.

When Chris Benoit did not appear that day in Houston, a decision was made to replace him in the match with Johnny Nitro (making his ECW debut).  We had no information on Benoit at the time beyond the phone calls that his family was sick.  The decision was made to have Nitro win the title and leave options that if/when Benoit came back – he could challenge Nitro for the title.   

When news broke over the Benoit Family Tragedy, wrestling storylines weren’t important.  I remember hearing Vickie Guerrero scream in shock when we all heard the news.  That sound will always stick with me.  Those are emotions I don’t think any of us ever want to live through again. The McMahon story was dropped and everything planned was put on hold.

John Morrison

When we finally got back to work, ECW’s Champion was John Morrison (changing his name and persona from Johnny Nitro) and Punk was the number one contender.   The name change gave Morrison a fresh canvas to paint on and create a whole new persona.  It was Morrison who came up with his entrance (including the slow motion and the fans).  He would come up with his promos and the crazy catch phrase.  Punk, being himself, was the perfect opponent for Morrison.

They had 3 PPV matches against each other (Night of Champions, The Great American Bash, and Summerslam).  Morrison won all three.  We wanted Punk to win at Summerslam but Vince didn’t want to make the switch.  I could tell the frustration with Punk of “well, what now?”  I could never pin down the issue with putting the title on Punk in any of those three matches.  

Morrison was improving as a heel but WWE had always been a babyface territory – a hero who would defend and fight off the oncoming challenges.

The Boogeyman Eating Worms

We were instructed to come up with a new opponent to face Morrison for the title.  The babyface roster was pretty thin on ECW but we picked Boogeyman.  I can see eyes rolling across the world on the choice of Boogeyman because the match wouldn’t be a five star classic.  But I liked the Boogeyman; he was a great character and figured it would be a good victory for our champion.  

We scheduled a four way match to determine the new #1 contender with CM Punk vs. Boogeyman vs. Big Daddy V vs. The Miz. The show aired live on 8/28/07.  I remember sitting in the Gorilla Position (where wrestlers walk out / where the agents and Vince sit) and noticing that Vince wasn’t there.  The main event had gone in the ring before Vince walked in and sat down at the monitor.  After a moment, he waved over Fit Finlay (the agent of the match).  A quick but quiet discussion was had.  Finlay went over to the microphone hooked up to the ref and fed something to the ref.  None of us knew what was going on until we looked at the monitor.  Punk hit his flying clothesline and then the GTS on The Miz. 1…2…3.  CM Punk won the match and was announced as the number one contender.  Vince walked out of gorilla and didn’t tell us anything.
 

ECW Champion

Over the next few days, the world found out about this news story breaking in Sports Illustrated.  John Morrison (along with a large number of other talents) were suspended for 30 days for wellness violations.  Punk vs. Morrison for the ECW Title was scheduled for that Sunday at an ECW taping.  It was called “CM Punk’s Last Chance” to win the title.   And the crowd reaction that night in Cincinnati spoke to the hard work of CM Punk over the previous year.  CM Punk was finally their conquering hero.

WWE had gone through some of its worst publicity ever in a three-month span with the Benoit tragedy and the Sports Illustrated article.  The media were having a field day with these stories and attacking the company.  Vince McMahon made the choice to go with the straight edge superstar CM Punk to represent his company.  

In the late summer of 2007, Punk, being exactly who he was when he walked into WWE, won his first title in the WWE.  And in 2011, it was CM Punk being himself that has brought him more notoriety than anyone in the WWE had ever thought was possible.

__________________________________________________________________

Part 1 - Which Hall Of Famer Saved CM Punk

Part 2 - How CM Punk Won His First Title 

Part 3 - Two Phone Calls With CM Punk

__________________________________________________________________

Post Your Comments!

Which Hall Of Famer Saved CM Punk? (Part 1/3)

On December 4th, 2006, Paul Heyman left the WWE Creative Team, for the final time.  This also meant that for the first time ever, Heyman would not be involved in the creative process of ECW.  Stephanie McMahon walked into the writer’s room to tell us Paul would no longer be involved and that I was now in charge of ECW.  This was as much news to me as it was the rest of the team.  As had happened with Alex Greenfield when he took over Smackdown, I wasn’t talked to about the new position.  I wasn’t doing backflips about this because I knew the baggage that came with it.  I had run Smackdown for four years before this and knew how Vince and Kevin Dunn viewed ECW.  The world saw how they viewed the brand for the five months before this and especially the night before on PPV with December to Dismember.

December To Dismember

The PPV from Augusta, GA  featuring an Extreme Elimination Chamber match was the least bought WWE PPV in history.  The show was handicapped by zero promotion from Raw and Smackdown and being the 2nd WWE PPV in eight days; following Survivor Series.  The main purpose of the event was to crown Bobby Lashley as the new flag bearer for ECW.  The event had only two matches announced before hand, the Elimination Chamber and the reuniting of MNM vs. The Hardyz.  While Lashley was going to be the “man” that night winning the title, there was a pitch by Heyman to have CM Punk and Big Show start the Chamber and for Punk to eliminate the Big Show with the Anaconda Vice.  Big Show was behind the idea and felt it was the right move to make.  There were a few different long term pitches off of this including Punk vs. RVD at Wrestlemania.  Heyman had protected Punk, including making sure his debut match was at the Hammerstein Ballroom.  This pitch was meant to establish Punk as the “next” guy after Lashley.    If you’ve seen the match, you know this didn’t happen.

The Anaconda Vice became one of the things that the agents picked on Punk for.  Vince had mocked Punk in meetings by doing the wrist gesture and even instructed announcers to NOT mention his Muai Thai background. Everything that made Punk unique was questioned and mocked.  “Don’t think people can relate to with a character who doesn’t have an occasional beer”, said one agent.  In 2006, Vince McMahon looked at Punk and “didn’t get it”.  Plus, when you have Paul Heyman pushing heavily for you in that environment – you get the stigma of being a “Paul Heyman Guy”.   I had the stigma because I worked with Paul on every run he had on creative from 2002 – 2006.   Punk suffered for those sins and that night in December, he did not make the Big Show tap out.  The agents who didn’t like him made sure the audience would not get a moment from CM Punk that night; Punk was the first man eliminated in the match.

nWo

In under 24 hours, everything about ECW had changed.  Heyman was out, Big Show was gone, and I was left with a mess.  CM Punk, a lot like ECW, Goldberg, the NWO and especially WCW, were not WWE creations.  The track record has shown that Kevin Dunn and Vince McMahon do not support ideas that were not generated inside their bubble.  Punk got the tag line of “King of the Indies” and those agents who didn’t like him before Heyman was gone, they were out for blood now.

I’m no Paul Heyman.  I won’t ever try to sell you that I’m a genius, instead just a guy who always wants to do the best for the talents and projects I work on.  I had a connection with ECW, it’s what kept me excited about the business in 1994 and 1995 when there wasn’t much to be excited about.  That spirit of ECW was what we tried to continue in the new ECW, including launching a new star like CM Punk.   But I didn’t have an ally, especially a veteran voice, in that agent meeting.

The voices in that meeting room pushed for Hardcore Holly.  Now, I am a fan of Hardcore Holly.  When Brock Lesnar had broke Holly’s neck, it was Bruce Prichard and I who suggested Holly coming for revenge.  (watch here) It was the hottest Holly ever got but he didn’t connect with the audience and they had a forgettable match at the Royal Rumble 2004.  Here it was 2007 and the agents were pushing for Holly ahead Punk.   In their matches during December and January, Holly beat down Punk in the corner, ignoring the ref’s count and getting disqualified. (watch here)  And then Hardcore Holly hands Punk his first loss.  (watch here)  I had heard rumblings of agents pushing Vince to show Punk the door.  ECW started to receive less and less attention and then we had the horrible show in Little Rock in mid-January.  The matches were bad, the interviews were bad; the plane flight home from that show was worse.  It was the longest flight of my life.   The next day I sat down to talk with Stephanie about that flight but more importantly about what I thought ECW needed.  I needed a veteran voice to help turn the tide.  I needed an ally.

Fast forward to the agent meeting in Houston.  Vince McMahon was scheduled to appear on ECW for the first time in the start of a new storyline.  He was going to rid ECW of it’s “Original” stars and make the way for a “New Breed”.  The meeting quickly turned into another CM Punk bash fest.  My role was to run the meeting but dare not speak out of turn on the veteran agents.  This was how the previous months meetings had gone but this day was different.  It was a new voice in the room that changed everything. “Um, if you don’t like something the kid is doing, why don’t you work with him to fix it… instead of killing him”  That voice belonged to Shawn Michaels.

Shawn Micheals

In January of 2007, Shawn Michaels was my consultant on ECW.  I was able to get in his input on the shows, thoughts on talents and in this situation the voice needed in that agent meeting.   Like getting to work with Paul Heyman, Vince McMahon, Dusty Rhodees, working with Shawn was a dream come true.  In that meeting in Houston, Shawn brought up that guys like him and Undertaker will not be around forever and, while everyone liked Holly, it was guys like Punk who were the future.  The mood in the room changed, the den of negativity that existed was silenced for the time being.  Punk wasn’t pushed strong that week or even the next week but the ship had turned. Punk was positioned better from that point forward.

Shawn Michaels was pulled back into active duty when Triple H was hurt and programmed to face John Cena at Wrestlemania 23.  Dusty Rhodes ended up joining me to help book ECW.  And CM Punk made Wrestlemania 23 as the only ECW guy in the Money In the Bank Ladder Match.

In that Money In the Bank ladder match, Punk was involved in the finish of the match.  He was finger tips away from the briefcase only to have Mr. Kennedy knock him off and grab the case.  This was just foreshadowing as Punk did go on to win the Money in the Bank briefcase in back to back years to win his first two World Titles.

Imagine if those agents would have gotten their way back in early 2007?   We might have never gotten to see this at the 2011 Money in the Bank PPV.

 __________________________________________________________________

Part 1 - Which Hall Of Famer Saved CM Punk

Part 2 - How CM Punk Won His First Title

Part 3 - Two Phone Calls With CM Punk

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Post Your Comments!

The CM Punk Story By David Lagana

David Lagana is a former WWE Writer/Producer from 2002-2008. He wrote for Smackdown and then ECW. 

When Paul Heyman left the WWE Stephanie McMahon put David Lagana in charge or ECW. This was when CM Punk was first starting out in WWE on the show ECW and it was David Lagana who was pushing for CM Punk to become a star in WWE. 

David Lagana has just posted a 3 part series telling his side of the CM Punk story. I am going to post each part of the 3 part series here on my blog in 3 separate posts. 

__________________________________________________________________

The CM Punk Story:

Part 1 - Which Hall Of Famer Saved CM Punk

Part 2 - How CM Punk Won His First Title

Part 3 - Two Phone Calls With CM Punk

__________________________________________________________________

You can also:

check out his website

http://iwantwrestling.com/

add him to Twitter

@Lagana

add him to Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/TheDavidLagana

__________________________________________________________________

Post Your Comments!

Sin Cara Removed From Smackdown

Tonight's episode of SmackDown! has already aired overseas and Sin Cara has been removed from the intro.

The masked grappler is currently serving a 30-day suspension due to his first violation of WWE's Talent Wellness Program. Though he is advertised for upcoming events, it is still possible that WWE may terminate their partnership with him after his suspension concludes.

CM Punk In TNA

TNA's website is advertising that CM Punk is coming to TNA OnDemand. 

Nearly three hours of matches, never before have these bouts from Punk's early career been rebroadcast in their entirety. 

Watch as CM Punk battles Abyss, Raven, Terry Funk, Sabu, Shane Douglas and many more! 

Check back to IMPACTWRESTLING.com  
on Thursday to watch it!

John Cena To Make WWE History

As of today, June 29th, John Cena has spent 1,028 days as WWE Champion. This includes all 9 of Cena's reigns with the Title. Today is significant because Cena surpasses Pedro Morales who spent 1,027 days as WWE Champion. Cena right now is in the #4 spot for most days spent as WWE Champion behind #3 Bob Backlund, #2 Hulk Hogan and #1 Bruno Sammartino(4,040 days!) This is only for the WWE Title, not the World Heavyweight Title.

If you include Cena's 2 reigns with the World Heavyweight Title, it brings his total days as a WWE World Champion up to 1,133. If Cena can remain WWE Champion until SummerSlam on August 14th he will hit the 1,149 day mark, surpassing Triple H's total days as a WWE World Champion. Triple H's combined 8 WWE Title reigns and 5 World Heavyweight Title reigns come out to 1,148 days as Champion.

Patriots cut Ty Warren

The Patriots have made several roster moves Friday, including cutting veteran defensive lineman Ty Warren.

Among the other cuts are tackle Nick Kaczur, LB Tully Banta-Cain, CB Tony Carter, DL Marcus Stroud and TE Alge Crumpler.

Classic Moments In Wrestling History

Here are just a few of the classic momenst in wrestling history that I felt like sharing on my blog. Some are hillarious, some are amazing matches that most people never knew existed, and some are just worth remembering. Here are my top 20!

20

Macho Man & Elizabeth At Home

19

Miss Elizabeth's Decision

18

Wrath vs The Renegade

17

Kronik Debut

16

The Undertaker vs Adam Bomb

15

Adam Bomb vs. Razor Ramon

14

Scott Steiner & Buff Bagwell

13

Big Poppa Pump With His Freaks

12

Scott Steiner With The Nitro Girls

11

Evan Bourne vs AJ Styles

10

AJ Styles vs. The Hurricane

9

Randy Orton With Stacy Keibler

 

8

Evolution Turns On Randy Orton

7

Stacy Kiebler Debut

 6

Triple H vs Sycho Sid (Champion vs Champion)

 5

Ultimate Warrior Body-Slams Andre The Giant

 4

Ultimate Warrior On The Arsenio Hall Show

3

Edge Cashes In Money In The Bank

2

Miss Elizabeth Removes Her Skirt 
(Video is 8 Minutes Long, you can skip to the last Minuate)

1

Wrestlemania 21 Promo (Basic Instinct)

Friday's NFL Moves

Free agency officially begins at 6pm around the NFL today, but that's not stopping more moves today:

* Atlanta signs DE Ray Edwards away from Minnesota.

* RB Willis McGahee moves from Baltimore to Denver.

* Nnamdi Asomugha has his choices down to Dallas or NY Jets, according to sources.

* Brandon Jacobs re-ups with the NY Giants.

* QB Jake Locker signs his rookie deal with Tennessee.

* QB Matt Moore leaves Carolina for Miami. The Dolphins have moved of from trying to get Kyle Orton from Denver.

Click here for the latest. 

NFL Frenzy Continues - Thursday Update

Another huge day of moves around the NFL Thursday. Here's our daily roundup:

* The Patriots make two trades acquiring WR Chad Ochocinco from Cincinnati for a pair of late round picks in 2012 and 2013.  The Pats also get Albert Haynesworth from Washington for a 2013 fifth round pick.  New England also cut Marcus Stroud.

* Houston signs cornerback Jonathan Joseph from Cincinnati.

* The Falcons agree to terms with rookie WR Julio Jones - 4 years, $16.2 million.

* San Francisco brings in kicker David Akers from the Eagles and lets Joe Nedney go.

* The Dolphins trade for Saints RB Reggie Bush, sending safety Jonathon Amaya to New Orleans.

* Philadelphia sends QB Kevin Kolb to Arizona for CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a second round pick.

Publish Post

* The Titans release QB Vince Young, who wants to play in Philadelphia.

* Denver signs rookie linebacker Von Miller (four years, $21 million).

* TE Greg Olsen gets traded to Carolina from Chicago for a player and draft pick.

* The Chiefs cut guard Brian Waters.

* The 49ers cut CB Nate Clements.

Friday's MLB Pitching Probables

KAN at CLE 7:05 PM
KAN: J Francis (L) 3-11, 4.65
CLE: C Carrasco (R) 8-8, 4.25

LAA at DET 7:05 PM
LAA: T Chatwood (R) 6-6, 3.64
DET: R Porcello (R) 10-6, 4.67

BAL at NYY 7:05 PM
BAL: J Guthrie (R) 4-14, 4.33
NYY: A Burnett (R) 8-8, 4.21

NYM at WAS 7:05 PM
NYM: D Gee (R) 9-3, 3.75
WAS: C Wang (R)

PIT at PHI 7:05 PM
PIT: C Morton (R) 8-5, 3.69
PHI: R Halladay (R) 12-4, 2.55

TEX at TOR 7:07 PM
TEX: A Ogando (R) 10-4, 2.79
TOR: B Cecil (L) 3-4, 4.71

SFO at CIN 7:10 PM
SFO: R Vogelsong (R) 8-1, 2.10
CIN: D Willis (L) 0-1, 3.71

FLA at ATL 7:35 PM
FLA: C Hensley (R) 1-2, 2.88
ATL: B Beachy (R) 3-2, 3.58

BOS at CHW 8:10 PM
BOS: T Wakefield (R) 6-3, 5.15
CHW: G Floyd (R) 8-9, 4.11

HOU at MIL 8:10 PM
HOU: J Lyles (R) 0-5, 4.55
MIL: R Wolf (L) 6-8, 3.62

CHC at STL 8:15 PM
CHC: M Garza (R) 4-7, 3.72
STL: E Jackson (R) 7-7, 3.92

MIN at OAK 10:05 PM
MIN: F Liriano (L) 6-8, 4.82
OAK: G Gonzalez (L) 9-7, 2.67

COL at SDG 10:05 PM
COL: J Hammel (R) 5-10, 4.75
SDG: T Stauffer (R) 6-7, 3.05

TAM at SEA 10:10 PM
TAM: J Niemann (R) 4-4, 3.86
SEA: E Bedard (L) 4-6, 3.00

ARI at LAD 10:10 PM
ARI: J Collmenter (R) 6-5, 2.74
LAD: T Lilly (L) 6-10, 5.08