Fame

Tampa Bay Rays slugger Manny Ramirez retired from baseball on Friday afternoon after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. It was an abrupt but unsurprising end for one of the most colorful characters in the major leagues over the past decade. Ramirez hit 555 home runs and had 1,831 RBIs in his career, and he was a central figure when the Red Sox ended their 86-year championship drought in 2004. His resume as a player is pretty impressive, but he was twice banned for violating Major League Baseball's substance-abuse policy.

The state Board of Public Works has unanimously approved a long-term lease allowing the construction of the National Sailing Hall of Fame on Annapolis' waterfront. The decision Wednesday came after Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen and Richard L. Franyo, president of the National Sailing Hall of Fame, came to an agreement on the nonprofit museum's compliance with local laws. Because it will be built largely on state-owned land and therefore be exempt from Annapolis laws, residents and some lawmakers raised concerns about the museum's compliance with building rules in the city's historic district and with parking and alcohol regulations.

ESPN's PR staff sent out snippets of their various reporters and commentators discussing Wednesday's Hall of Fame vote. More than anything, I believe it shows just how varied the thought processes are of voters and Hall of Fame (and potential) Hall of Fame members. Curt Schilling (Hall of Fame eligible, Baseball Tonight) on receiving 38.8 percent of the vote “I'm elated. I haven't gotten anybody out in six years. It's incredibly humbling and flattering and I'm excited just to be in the conversation.” Barry Larkin (Hall of Famer, Baseball Tonight)

It's too early to tell Dan Pompei Chicago Tribune Now is not the time and place to determine if Tom Coughlin is a Hall of Fame coach. He still is coaching and could add, or even subtract, from his legacy. What's more, there is a five-year waiting period before a retired candidate can be considered. That period helps put accomplishments in perspective. You can make an interesting case for Coughlin. His career compares well to Marv Levy, who is enshrined in Canton.

MIAMI - Wearing a sand-colored sportcoat he'd been handed as one of the night's guest of honors, Bryant McKinnie was sharing University of Miami memories with a small group of people when the college, and now NFL teammate, he'd just mentioned strolled into the room. McKinnie spotted him and chuckled. “Hey, Bryant McKinnie how does it feel to be back in Miami?” Ed Reed bellowed jovially at his former Hurricanes and current Baltimore Ravens teammate. McKinnie and Reed, who helped lead Miami to the program's fifth and last national championship in 2001, headlined the Class of 2012's induction into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame on Thursday night.

The National Sailing Hall of Fame might soon inhabit some of the most prominent real estate in the city of Annapolis, but the parameters of the relationship between the city and the planned tourist draw near City Dock is far from clear. Although plans for the $30 million nonprofit museum call for it to be built primarily on state-owned land, the city is jockeying to exert some control, despite recent input from the state attorney general's office stating that the city and state could not share control of the museum without a change in state law. The city also wants to ensure that it continues to collect taxes on the part of the land that is privately owned.

Considering all that he's done over the years, you might think that Bob Geldof would be inordinately proud of his past.This, after all, is the man who not only came up with the idea for the famine relief project Band Aid but also co-wrote "Do They Know It's Christmas," which was one of Europe's biggest singles ever. From there, he went on to organize the Live Aid concerts, oversee relief efforts in Africa and write a best-selling autobiography (1986's "Is That All?") -- all while maintaining a musical career that started with the Irish punk act the Boomtown Rats and extends through three solo albums, including his newly released "The Happy Club."

Former Ravens owner Art Modell, on the original list of 103 candidates in consideration for the Hall of Fame, was not among the 26 semifinalists announced today. Modell had been among 18 contributors to the game eligible. Of that group, George Young, Ron Wolf and Paul Tagliabue were selected as semifinalists. Modell relocated the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore in 1996 and headed the team until selling to current owner Steve Bisciotti in 2004. Vilified in Cleveland for moving the Browns, Modell hasn't been a finalist for the Hall of Fame since 2001.

Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger, the Notre Dame football walk-on immortalized in the 1993 film "Rudy," threw out the first pitch before Thursday afternoon's Orioles series finisher against Tampa Bay. Ruettiger's nephew John Ruettiger is an outfielder in the Orioles' minor league system. He batted .280 and stole 28 bases at three stops this season. The runt-sized Rudy Ruettiger recorded a sack on the final play of the final home game of his senior year in 1975.

Colleges Puryear to be inducted into UMBC Hall Fourth-year Navy women's tennis coach Keith Puryear will be inducted into the UMBC Athletics Hall of Fame, the UMBC athletic department has announced. The largest class in the history of the Hall of Fame will be honored Feb. 4. Puryear won 443 matches at UMBC, recorded a 59.4 winning percentage and earned nine conference Coach of the Year honors during his final decade at UMBC.