Surely many people read into that statement and were under the impression that Warren’s name was about to be read. With Cutler having two Sandows to his name, many may have overlooked that defending champion Dexter Jackson was already on the side holding the third place check. So regardless of who won, technically he would have been the ‘new’ Mr. O.

Even though Cutler earned the win, Warren took a major step in his career towards adding his name to the list of Olympia champions. Coupled with his third place finish in March at the Arnold Classic, the Texan has become a major player in the open division and cannot be taken lightly or overlooked.

Since earning his pro card at the 2001 Nationals, Warren has had some success but never the kind where you would pick him as a possible winner of the two major shows, the Olympia and Arnold. That is until this year.

In  his previous Olympia tries, Warren finished eighth (2005) and 12th (2006). As for the Arnold, Warren appeared to be on his way by being named the runner-up in 2006 but took a few steps back with a seventh place finish the following year.

His shelf is not totally void of hardware, though. Warren won the 2005 Charlotte Pro and Europa Supershow, as well as the 2007 New York Pro. While those are proud accomplishments, being remembered as one of the greats of your sport requires at least one O or Arnold.

It was the opinion of many that Warren, 33, was in the best condition at this past Olympia and his size only was accentuated by it. No one came close to matching his legs and his upper body was in proportion with his wheels. His placing may have been considered a surprise by some but for those who have been watching Warren for a while knew that it was only a matter of time before he caught up with the competition.

One more step to go.

Although the Phils are in first place in their division, it is mostly by default. Lidge came crashing back down to earth with an 0-3, 7.86 ERA with 13 saves in 29 games before going on the disabled list. Ryan Madson stepped into the stopper’s role and had nearly as many blown saves (three) as saves (four). With Lidge making his first appearance in nearly three weeks, the fans at Citizen’s Bank Ballpark can only hope that the 2008 version is the one coming back.

Philadelphia leads the Mets – another team decimated by injuries –  by one full game in the National League East with a very paltry 38-34 mark, by far the weakest division leader in Major League Baseball. Considering that we are not even at the half way point in the season yet, it may come down to who can keep the most warm bodies on the field.

Photo by Bill Menzel

Terrell Owens is a magnet for attention, with the majority of it being negative. On the heels of the wideout signing a $34 million, four-year contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys, he has been placed in the NFL’s “reasonable cause” testing program for performance-enhancing drugs. Although Owens has never failed a drug test, his failure to make himself available for a screening was the reason why he is in this situation.

According to Owens, it was a miscommunication over cell phone numbers which caused him to miss the notification from the league. He has met with league representatives to explain the situation, but the NFL refused to comment due to confidentiality requirements in regards to the program. Owens will be subject to up to six offseason tests.