HeyJaredThe Dope
Deconstructing the sports world one paragraph at a time, by national award-winning writer Mark Kreidler. Because context is king.
- Indexed issues, last 90 days
- 13
- Latest publication
- Sep 29, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest in this view
- Aug 10, 2026
Latest issues
Old Man Yells At Cloud. (opens the original)
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Case Keenum:—Beat Eagles 27-7 as quarterback of Chicago Bears on Monday night.—Age: 38.—Age in QB years: 79.—Most recent previous NFL start: Dec. 24, 2023.—Days between last two NFL starts: 1,009.—Stats versus Eagles: 24 for 34, 247 yards, two touchdowns.—Turnovers: Zero.—Times blitzed by Eagles’ defense: 12.—Stats versus Eagles’ blitzes: 11 for 11, 145 yards, two TDs.—Teams for which has won a game as QB: Bears, Browns, Broncos, Vikings, Commanders, Rams, Texans.</p
The Time Barry Bonds Wanted To Talk. (opens the original)
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We met in the tunnel outside of the San Francisco Giants’ home clubhouse, deep in the bowels of old Candlestick Park, because a) that is what we had agreed on; b) there wasn’t really anyplace else very private to meet, and c) that’s where the Giants played back then, old Candlestick Park.Side note: Candlestick really did suck. It was host to a plethora of memorable moments for both the Giants (the Loma Prieta quake during the ‘89 World Series) and the 49ers (The Catch, etc.), and we tend to reme
Riding the MLB Ghost Train. (opens the original)
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Thanks for being a subscriber. It makes all the difference.The twinge always hits during the last week of the baseball season — the regular season, not the extended, layered playoff rabble that is about to kick up dust. This last week of the schedule, the one we’ve followed all summer long, stirs a melancholy that emanates from somewhere deep.We’ve been spending some time lately watching teams that are playing out the string, teams that won’t be moving on to the post-season. It’s an odd sensatio
Gambled With Players’ Safety. Lost. (opens the original)
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Thanks for reading The Dope.The five largest North American pro sports leagues acknowledged Tuesday that perhaps the most easily predicted outcome of their getting in bed with gambling sites (besides the one about the leagues getting rich) has come to pass.Their athletes are under siege.Specifically, players — and sometimes their families — are being harassed and occasionally threatened with violence over the outcome of bets on games by losing gamblers. These bets are now legal, “regulated,” san
It Happened While We Slept. (opens the original)
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Thanks for being here.We got the calls; they came before sunrise. It was the only way many of us on the West Coast would have known what was happening so early in the day. My editor at ESPN called and emailed and then called again, trying to piece together what we should say.I wrote, hurriedly, that sports should stand down — but only for a few minutes, relatively speaking. I did not write especially well (the overwrought words will testify), and we were being exposed to grim updates and the unf
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