The baseball team in London, Ontario, Canada is a new entry in the independent Frontier League, a 14- team circuit in the US and Canada, whose 2012 season begins in mid-May. When London unveiled their new logo and nickname recently, sparks flew immediately, especially with women's groups.
The image on the poster introducing the London Rippers bears a strong resemblance to the notorious English serial killer Jack the Ripper, complete with top hat and dagger. No one believes that the Ripper, who is named Jack, is not based on the London murderer, who terrorized the British capital in the 1890s, stalking and brutalizing women.
A Toronto sports marketer named Richard Powers notes that the team is naive to think they did not have Jack the Ripper in mind when the logo was designed.
Curtis Leskanic was a pitcher on the 2004 world champion Boston Red Sox and is currently listed as a pitching coach at Lake Mary High School near Orlando; at least he is for now.
Leskanic was arrested last Monday evening when police found him asleep at the wheel in the middle lane of a Central Florida road. Not able to follow simple instructions, including touching his nose, the 43-year-old later recorded a blood alcohol level of .331 at the police station, much lower than his lifetime ERA of 4.36, but considerably higher than the Florida state limit of .08.
Sadly, Leskanic's five-year-old daughter was in the vehicle with him during the incident and he could not even explain where he had picked her up from soccer practice.
C.J. Nitkowski pitched for 10 Big League teams (including two stints with the Tigers) during a rather pedestrian 10-year career. The Suffern, New York native compiled a record of 18-32, with a career ERA of 5.37. In the years since his American baseball career came to an end, the lefty spent some time hurling fastballs in the professional leagues of Japan and Korea.
The baseball team in London, Ontario, Canada is a new entry in the independent Frontier League, a 14- team circuit in the US and Canada, whose 2012 season begins in mid-May. When London unveiled their new logo and nickname recently, sparks flew immediately, especially with women's groups. 
Curtis Leskanic was a pitcher on the 2004 world champion Boston Red Sox and is currently listed as a pitching coach at Lake Mary High School near Orlando; at least he is for now. 
C.J. Nitkowski pitched for 10 Big League teams (including two stints with the Tigers) during a rather pedestrian 10-year career. The Suffern, New York native compiled a record of 18-32, with a career ERA of 5.37. In the years since his American baseball career came to an end, the lefty spent some time hurling fastballs in the professional leagues of Japan and Korea.