Nathan Fenno
Articles by Nathan Fenno
FENNO: Business as usual after Biogenesis bans: ‘Nobody is bigger than the game’
This scandal, too, will fade. Soon enough, pennant chases and Chris Davis' quest for 60 home runs will chase away the chemically aided storylines that have defined this season. Published August 5, 2013
FENNO: America’s culture of cheating rooted in endless quest for an edge
There's always a rationalization to take the pharmaceutical shortcut in the ultra-competitive world of professional sports. But the sports world mirrors our quick-fix society. Published August 2, 2013
FENNO: Bud Selig’s legacy at root of looming Biogenesis smackdown
Selig once called baseball's first commissioner, Kenesaw Mountain Landis, a dictator, but is poised to issue baseball's most wide-ranging discipline since his heavy-handed predecessor in connection with the Biogenesis scandal. Published August 1, 2013
FENNO: Chase Minnifield practices patience in unforgiving NFL
Robert Griffin III, owner of Washington's most talked-about joint, isn't the only man in Redskins camp returning from two ACL tears in the same knee. Published July 31, 2013
FENNO: Emmanuel Ogbuehi lives his dream in shadows at Redskins camp
Training camp in late July is about players like Ogbuehi, the guys who send you scrambling for a roster to decipher their number before the jersey disappears. Each play, each minute is an opportunity to grab the coaching staff's attention and keep their long odds of an NFL career alive. Published July 29, 2013
FENNO: Tough talk in Ryan Braun case meaningless without impactful penalties
Braun got a 65-game vacation. The Brewers are buried in another futile season. He misses a couple of months and around $3 million in salary. Big deal. Seven years and $127 million remain on his contract. That gold mine isn't touched. This is a speedbump, not a deterrent. Published July 23, 2013
FENNO: NCAA’s concussion culture rooted in denial
This is an organization, after all, founded in 1905 to protect the safety of college athletes. Email after eye-opening email, however, reveals a bureaucratic wasteland that's strayed far from the original mission. Published July 22, 2013
FENNO: NCAA-Electronic Arts fallout could make every avatar a ‘Johnny Football’
That rampant use of likenesses of current and former college athletes without compensation is at the heart of a long-running lawsuit against the NCAA and others. The case could transform college athletics and the NCAA's hasty exit from the Electronic Arts deal is the first significant ripple outside the courtroom. Published July 18, 2013
FENNO: MLB’s Biogenesis squeeze little more than legal hidden-ball trick
In March, MLB filed a civil lawsuit that wasn't intended to right a wrong, but, instead, to dredge up evidence to punish players that otherwise wouldn't be obtainable and, in the process, tidy up the game that isn't as clean as Bud Selig believed. Published July 15, 2013
FENNO: The NFL’s bounty situation won’t go away, as some unusual litigation shows
One pass defended. That's the tenuous line connecting a bounty program alleged under former Redskins defensive coordinator Gregg Williams to a 24-page lawsuit filed by retired Giants linebacker Barrett Green. Published July 10, 2013
FENNO: Scott Hairston deal may not be a big one, but it is an important trade
There's no better reminder that the long-dormant race for the National League East's pennant is finally alive than Scott Hairston. No, that's not a misprint. Published July 8, 2013
FENNO: Davey Johnson not crazy to wait for Nats’ bats to come around
No, the good-natured Johnson isn't about to crack up. He's stuck in the same limbo as the rest of Washington, hounded by a question behind the self-deprecating humor that even the most advanced statistics or experienced manager can't answer. When will the Nationals hit consistently? Published July 4, 2013
FENNO: The NFL does not have a violence problem; American society does
Over the last decade, the arrest rate for NFL players is 2.9 percent compared to 10.8 percent for males in the general population aged 22 to 34, according to a recent study. That won't carry another sky-is-falling segment on CNN. Published July 3, 2013
FENNO: Tiger Woods’ absence dampens AT&T National buzz
Woods doesn't plan to return until next month's British Open, recovering from a strained left elbow that put him under doctor's orders not to pick up a club. But the withdrawal — Woods' third from his own tournament in the last six years — adds to questions about the event's long-term future in Washington. Published June 26, 2013
FENNO: Active plaintiff could be NCAA’s Curt Flood
Someone is going to stand up. Someone, likely a football or men's basketball player, will add his name to the lawsuit that says college athletes should get a cut of the money they're generating. Published June 25, 2013
Wait for justice in Sean Taylor killing drags on
Trials for four defendants, charged with first-degree murder in the former Redskins safety's death, have been relentlessly delayed since the first attempt in April 2008. Last year, for instance, a trial date of April 16 became Nov. 5, then April 5 of this year. The latest try is set for August. Published June 23, 2013
FENNO: Ed O’Bannon lawsuit ruling could hasten end of NCAA model
On Thursday in U.S. District Court in Oakland, Calif., Judge Claudia Wilken will hear arguments on certifying O'Bannon's long-running litigation against the NCAA into a class-action lawsuit. The changes to the structure of college athletics could be seismic. Published June 19, 2013
FENNO: Tim Tebow, the third-stringer we can’t seem to shake
The Quarterback is among the most unusual of America's obsessions, non-Justin Bieber division. He's mocked and deified and, no matter what happens in his limited excursions on the field, can't seem to escape the tractor beam of relentless attention. Published June 17, 2013
FENNO: Longevity on Alfred Morris’ mind as Redskins bruiser prepares for second season
The limited shelf life of top-flight running backs was worth remembering as minicamp wrapped up Wednesday afternoon. This job wears out bodies. At 24 years old, Morris is rapidly approaching middle age for an NFL running back. Published June 12, 2013
As clubhouse chef, Faisal Sultani leads Washington Nationals from temptation
The best time to ask a clubhouse attendant to grab a couple of Big Macs from the McDonald's up South Capitol Street from Nationals Park is not when the clubhouse chef is within earshot. "Are you crazy?" Sultani remembered telling the attendant. "Do not go get him that burger." Published June 12, 2013