Yankees fan gets no rest after nap flap

Television cameras focused on Andrew Roberts Rector for almost a minute during an April 13 game at Yankee Stadium between the Yankees and Boston Red Sox.

For most fans, that would be quite the thrill.

Not for Rector, who instead of bragging about his short-lived fame has filed a lawsuit against Major League Baseball, ESPN New York, The Yankees and ESPN commentators Dan Shulman and John Kruk.

The suit stems from when ESPN cameras caught Rector in the fourth inning of that game while he was slumped over in his chair sleeping. He claims defamation in the suit over what Shulman and Kruk said while cameras were on him. Shulman and Kruk spent more than a minute discussing his ability to sleep through a ball game.

Shulman: "We've got to see how long this guy is out for."

Kruk: "It's only the fourth inning, you don't think he can sleep though ..."

Shulman: "Did he sleep through the [Carlos] Beltran homer? Forty-five thousand people standing up cheering and he sleeps through it?"

It all sounds fairly tame, but Rector claims in his suit that it triggered internet comments alleging he was unintelligent, not worthy of being a Yankees fan, is a "fatty cow that needs two seats" and that he does not know the difference between his home and a public place.

Maybe Rector should just down a cup of coffee before his next ball game.

Summer work

There aren't too many veterans on NBA summer league rosters.

The league, run in either Las Vegas or Orlando, Fla., is used mostly for rookies who were just drafted and young players looking to find a roster spot on a team.

Brian Cook is there, too.

Cook, 33, hasn't played for any NBA team the past two seasons after a nine-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, Clippers and Washington Wizards. He stepped away from the game in 2012 to help his wife through a battle with cancer.

Now he's looking to return, and the route he's chosen is through the summer league. So far, he's averaging 7.0 points and 3.5 rebounds in 2 games for the Pistons' summer league team.

"My wife had cancer, so I've had to be at home a little bit the last couple of years," Cook told basketballinsiders.com. "I'm ready to get some competition back in me, so it's been good for me to get out here and be with these younger guys, these hungry guys, because I'm hungry, too. I'm trying to squeeze out a few more years."

Cook received a shot with the Pistons thanks to Coach Stan Van Gundy, who coached Cook in Orlando. Cook didn't mention his wife's current condition, but he could be back in the league next winter.

"I'm hoping to get something this year. I love playing the game of basketball," Cook said. "I've still got something left, a couple more seasons in me."

Watch what you say

It seems everyone has an opinion on whether the Washington Redskins should change their name, but expressing that opinion can prove costly for some.

Jacob Close, 25, was asked his opinion by the Bloomsburg (Pa.) Press Enterprise late last month, and he gave the newspaper an answer and posed for a photo.

"I think they should keep the same name but change the mascot to a potato," Close said.

It turns out that Close, a student at Bloomsburg University, was wanted by police in Ithaca, N.Y., for a fine in a drug and drunken driving case. Police saw his comment and mug shot in the newspaper, contacted Bloomsburg University police, and he was arrested a few days later.

He was sent to Columbia County prison on $25,000 bail, according to The Associated Press.

Sports quiz

Q. What were Brian Cook's career averages for points and rebounds per game in the NBA?

A. Cook averaged 14.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.

Sports on 07/09/2014