In our frequent discussions with sports journalists, without question, they seem most embarrassed by Jay Mariotti of the Chicago Sun-Times. He’s viewed by many as a coward who takes joy in lobbing knee-jerk grenades throughout Chicago, but refuses to face those he disparages in print. At least every other week we get an email about how Mariotti sits isolated from other journalists at major sporting events, and wears a perpetual scowl as he forms his incendiary columns. Some view him as a glorified blogger - a strictly opinion-based Negative Nancy who has the access to ask pointed questions, but never does because he’s allergic to locker rooms. He might as well opine from his sofa.

According to Teddy Greenstein of the rival Tribune, writers at Mariotti’s paper - in particular, columnist Rick Telander - seem to be disgusted by Mariotti’s hack tactics. Back in 2003, Telander and Mariotti nearly went to blows in the Wrigley Field press box, and last week, a similar incident played out in the offices of the Sun-Times “after [the paper's] editors refused to run columns Telander filed for the Wednesday and Friday papers.” Telander was reacting to yet another idiotic Mariotti column, but was censored.

Why the paper’s editors continue to protect one of the biggest jokes in sports journalism is beyond us. Does anyone else think that maybe Around the Horn would become watchable if Mariotti were no longer on the show? We’ve had many folks ask us to interview Mariotti, since it’s wrong for us to go after him without giving him a chance to respond. But he won’t do it. If a guy won’t face athletes, why do you think he’d face a big, bad, blogger?

Sun-Times colleagues go after Jay Mariotti (Chicago Tribune)
TweedleRick and TweedleJay (Chicago Reader)