TV: 3-11 a.m., Bravo
Jennie Finch isn’t the only star on the U.S. Olympic softball team. It sometimes just seems that way. “On some other teams there might be issues of envy, but we know she’s good for our entire sport,” teammate Leah O’Brien-Amico said. “We’re glad she’s getting attention. We’re glad she’s getting people to come watch us.” And Finch. “People” magazine named her one of the world’s 50 most beautiful people. She finished first in an ESPN.com “hottest” female athlete survey, dethroning perennial champion Anna Kournikova. And she has endorsement deals worth about $400,000 this year, huge money in softball. Finch could get a bump in income if the U.S. wins gold, as expected, and her pitching has anything to do with it. The game could use a bump in rabid fans about now. The International Olympic Committee last year considered dropping the sport from the Summer Games, the suggestion being softball is not widely played globally and that it also lacks first-tier interest even in home bases such as the United States and Australia. “It’s disappoint-ing that it’s on the chop-ping block,” said outfielder Laura Berg. “We know how great a sport softball is and how much attention we get.” Or at least how much Finch gets. That may have to be enough.
