A-Rod strikes out on the homefront

Alex Rodriguez's wife filed for divorce and a lawyer representing Cynthia Rodriguez said her husband's association with Madonna was "the straw that broke the camel's back," even though Madonna has denied any romantic involvement.

Meanwhile, the tabloids and late-night talk show hosts are having a field day.

Jay Leno, making jokes about the hot weather, said, "It was so hot, Madonna called A-Rod's wife just to get the cold shoulder."

Also, Candice Houlihan, a former dancer at a Boston gentleman's club, told the Boston Herald that she had a brief affair with Rodriguez in 2004.

She said one of her hookups with A-Rod came during the Yankees' visit to Boston for the American League Championship Series that year. Boston won the series and went on to win its first World Series since 1918.

"He said he had a big game the next day," she told the paper. "I like to say I helped us win. I reversed the curse."

Man took a seat - all 75,123

Jim "Mouth" Purol, an Anaheim, Calif., stuntman, planned to sit in every seat at the Rose Bowl to raise money for a charity.

But he's not the first.

Steve Kelley, a Denver radio and television personality, sat in all 75,123 seats at Mile High Stadium in October 1981 for charity and then did the same thing at Invesco Field in September 2001.

Kelley's other feats for charity have included washing 10,000 windows on a Denver skyscraper, swimming 101 miles, going 41 miles on a pogo stick and attempting to top the world record of 26 miles for crawling on hands and knees.

It took Kelley four days to sit in all the seats at Mile High. He says he slept only 11 hours during that stretch, and laid down wherever he stopped. It took him five days to sit in approximately the same number of seats at Invesco.

"Mile High was easier because it had about 90 percent bench seats and you could slide," Kelley said. "It was a lot more up and down at Invesco. I feel for the guy at the Rose Bowl. He's finding out just how monotonous and repetitive it is."

Kelley didn't have to deal with heat, but said, "I had to deal with everything else Denver can throw . . . rain, snow, sleet and freezing temperatures." That was during his Mile High seat feat.

And in 2001?

"It wasn't as bad," he said, "except for a day-and-half downpour."

If only gasoline mileage were as good

The average American walks about 900 miles a year, according to a Harvard study. And the average American drinks 22 gallons of alcohol a year, the American Medical Association says.

Concludes Jack Finarelli of SportsCurmudgeon.com: "This means, on average, Americans get about 41 miles to the gallon. Kind of makes you proud to be an American."

Not every American's idol

Chipper Jones is from the Daytona, Fla., area so he's used to getting recognized when he's in town, but he told ESPN the Magazine that he was thrown for a loop at the Daytona 500 last year.

"Kelly Clarkson, who had sung before the race, came into the room," Jones said. "She walked my way, looking at me like she knew who I was, so I started to put out my hand. Then she pulls out a camera and asks me to take a photo of her and her friends . . . I was so embarrassed that I just wanted to go get a beer. Boy, was I put out."

Don't be on Barkley giving up gambling

Charles Barkley recently swore off gambling, but there he was in Las Vegas last week, playing in a celebrity poker tournament.

It didn't count, Barkley said, because all of the winnings would go to charity. He did plan on indulging in another vice, however.

"I can't gamble, so I gotta drink," Barkley joked. "Can you imagine how bad life would be if you couldn't gamble or drink?"

For Duke, devil is in the detail

Duke football coach David Cutcliffe is having his team go around campus picking up trash as part of a team unity and school pride exercise.

It turned into a laugh fest when they came across a pile of four or five dirty diapers near the football stadium.

"One of our coaches picked it one with his hand before he realized what it was," a linebacker said.

Kids serious about Packers football

Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy made an appearance at the Boys and Girls Club of Green Bay on Wednesday and was grilled with questions about Brett Favre's rumored comeback - by the kids in attendance.

Eleven-year old Miranda Black of nearby Oconto Falls began the inquest with the biggest question in the state these days: "Um, is Brett Favre coming back?"

McCarthy sidestepped.

"I want to know which one of those media individuals made you say that," McCarthy said, referring to reporters standing in the back of the room.

But the questions continued. Many of the 75 kids shouted questions about Favre such as: Why did he quit? How old is he, anyway? The barrage finally ended when one child asked McCarthy to sign some T-shirts.

"Sure," McCarthy joked. "It's better than answering these questions."

Soccer ref celebrates before the game

A referee for a Belarus League soccer game drew attention last week when he began behaving erratically, eventually stopped running with the action and officiated the latter stages of the game from the center circle.

Sergei Shmolik appeared to be suffering from a back injury as he staggered off the field with the aid of a trainer after the game. He was taken to a hospital for tests, which revealed the problem: He had high levels of alcohol in his system.

"I haven't seen a drunk referee before," Belarus national coach Berndt Stange told the Telegraph. "It's just beyond my comprehension."

Nerves of steel helped POW McCain

Presidential candidate John McCain was campaigning in Pittsburgh last week and did an interview with television station KDKA in which he recalled how the Pittsburgh Steelers helped him during his time at a POW camp during the Vietnam War.

"When I was first interrogated and really had to give some information because of the physical pressures that were on me, I named the starting lineup - defensive line - of the Pittsburgh Steelers as my squadron-mates," McCain said.

Tiger's knee trumps Johnson's wrist

Golfer Zach Johnson developed tendinitis in his wrist during the U.S. Open and is playing this week for the first time since. He joked about being miffed about the lack of attention.

"What was frustrating was I get hurt and I thought it was a pretty big deal," Johnson said. "But 'SportsCenter' was Tiger and his injury. I got nothing." - From Wire Reports