The Beat

The U.S.Open attracted all types last week, from Olympian Rulon Gardner to first daughters Jenna and Barbara Bush to Farrah Fawcett. The latter (below), who is an avid tennis player, made an appearance at Flushing Meadows, N.Y., while filming Chasing Farrah, her new reality show for TV Land. The six-episode series has a twist: While she's having her every move filmed, Fawcett, 57, will have her cameraman training his lens on the TV Land crew. "It's a reality show about the making of a reality show," says executive producer Craig Nevius. At the Open, Fawcett visited the players' lounge and was introduced to Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova. ("I know who she is," said the former Charlie's Angel about tennis's latest It girl. The two gabbed about speedminton, a combination of tennis, badminton and racquetball that Sharapova promotes and Fawcett plays.) When asked whom she was picking to win the Open, Fawcett, showing she has a little to learn about starring in a reality show, displayed tact and steered clear of controversy. "I have lots of favorites," she said, refusing to make a prediction.

After 23 years of selling vowels, Pat Sajak wants to start selling baseball tickets. Sajak, 56, recently became a principal investor in the Golden Baseball League, along with former NFL players Christian Okoye and Mike Sherrard. The league, which will have six teams in California and Arizona and begin play next summer, is the brainchild of Stanford Business School classmates Dave Kaval and Amit Patel, who wanted to bring minor league baseball to suburbia. Kaval met Sajak, who grew up near Comiskey Park in Chicago and hosts his own show on MLB radio, while working on a documentary on major league ballparks. "I make a nice living, but I'm not going to go out and buy the Dodgers," Sajak told the San Francisco Chronicle. "This seemed like a way to get involved and get closer to the game. I just want to say I'm a baseball owner."

When British soccer skipper David Beckham, 29, was asked recently how he and his wife, Victoria, dealt with public scrutiny this year after news of his alleged affair with assistant Rebecca Loos, he said, "We close ranks and we sort it out. We stay strong and that's what gets us through it. And we get pregnant." The latest little Becks will join brothers Brooklyn, 5, and Romeo, 2, in March. The former Posh Spice--who spent last year, Beckham's first with Real Madrid, in England--intends to move to Spain before the baby is born.... The last time we saw John Rocker, he was a Devil Ray. But last week the ranting reliever, who has been out of baseball since 2003, was angelic, pitching in to help with hurricane relief in Wauchula, Fla. Rocker, who flew to Tampa from his home near Atlanta, used a chain saw to cut through fallen trees in the clean-up effort. He said, "It's going to take a year and a half to rebuild this town. It won't kill you to come over and just burn one of your Saturdays and come help your neighbor out." Rocker, 29, hopes to make a return to baseball after he completes shoulder rehabilitation for a recurring injury.

THIS WEEK'S SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE

English inventor Giuseppe Cannella has developed a jet-powered wheelchair that travels over 60 mph.

They Said It

IKE TAYLOR

Steelers backup cornerback, after being given the chance to start in one of the team's exhibition games: "You only get a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so many times."

 

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VINCE FLORES/CELEBRITY PHOTO.COM (FAWCETT)

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DAVID DUROCHIK/SPORTPICS (TAYLOR)

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RICK STEWART/GETTY IMAGES (SHOE AND BASE)

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If anyone was waiting for Orlando Cabrera's other shoe to drop last Friday night, they wound up sadly disappointed. Unlike his left spike, his right one stayed on his foot as he rounded second base in surging Boston's game against the Rangers (page 42). The man with one red sock safely went from first to third on Texas shortstop Michael Young's throwing error in the fifth inning of Boston's 2-0 win.

COLOR PHOTO

DAMIAN STROHMEYER (CABRERA)

PICTURE THIS

If anyone was waiting for Orlando Cabrera's other shoe to drop last Friday night, they wound up sadly disappointed. Unlike his left spike, his right one stayed on his foot as he rounded second base in surging Boston's game against the Rangers (page 42). The man with one red sock safely went from first to third on Texas shortstop Michael Young's throwing error in the fifth inning of Boston's 2-0 win.