Durham Bulls’ Dan Johnson hit 25 home runs to edge Lehigh Valley’s Andy Tracy in the Triple-A Home Run Derby competition Monday night at Lehigh Valley.

Johnson, who leads the International League with 24 home runs and 80 RBIs, beat Tracy in a tiebreaker round after coming from behind with two homers to tie it in regulation. He had the highest combined homer total in the first two rounds with 13 but the numbers are wiped away for the finals.

The News & Observer today appropriately pointed out the connections that Yankees owner George Steinbrenner had with UNC-Chapel Hill. Steinbrenner died this morning of a heart attack in Tampa.

The Steinbrenner family donated a million bucks to the renovation of Boshamer Stadium on the Carolina campus. In fact, when you walk in you pass the Steinbrenner Family Courtyard. Jenny, his daughter, graduated from UNC in 1981. During her years there, Steinbrenner sent the Yankees to Chapel Hill three times for exhibition games.

I was at Carolina during the same era. In fact, noted sportswriter Dick Shaap, who passed away a few years ago himself, called the Daily Tar Heel offices and asked if I would get some information on Jenny for him to include in his then-upcoming book on George Steinbrenner.

I did. Without personal computers then, I forget how I got the info to him but I remember talking to a woman at his house that had a thick foreign accent and I couldn’t figure out if it was a wife, a housekeeper or someone else. I feared that Shaap wouldn’t get my message but he evidently did.

The material made the book, almost one whole page worth, but unfortunately I never even got a free copy of the book, much less any compensation. Oh well. During the team visits, I did get to meet such Yankee icons as Yogi Berra, who was a coach at the time, and Ron Guidry, one of the best Yankee pitchers of all time who the previous season was the best in the league with 25 wins.

While I’m a Red Sox fan and, like most everyone else, I tired of the storylines around Steinbrenner, including the love-hate relationship with Billy Martin, I’m appreciative of Steinbrenner’s support for UNC baseball and the fact that he afforded me opportunities of a lifetime to chat with baseball legends.

DUKE ATHLETICS NEWS RELEASE – Tom D’Armi, a fixture around Duke University athletics for nearly three decades, died Saturday in Wilson, N.C., at the age of 75.

D’Armi coached the Blue Devils’ baseball program for seven seasons and also served as the director of athletic facilities and game management for all of the school’s sports — totaling 28 years of service to the university when he retired in 2004.

As a coach, D’Armi guided Duke baseball to 125 wins and five consecutive winning seasons during his seven-year tenure from 1978-84. He coached eight All-ACC selections and seven Major League Baseball draft picks during that time.

D’Armi’s family has asked that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to the Tom D’Armi Scholarship Fund, c/o Mary Dinkins, Duke Athletics, Box 90542, Durham, NC 27708.

D’Armi was predeceased by his wife Jane D’Armi and is survived by his son Mickey D’Armi. A celebration of his life is being planned for August.

An Associated Press article in the News & Observer today told readers that Eagles QB Michael Vick was a no-show for a football camp in Raleigh this weekend but what it didn’t make clear was that Vick has been barred from leaving Pennsylvania by probation officials.

Vick, who is on probation from a 2007 dogfighting conviction, recently held a birthday party and invited some of the bad element that got him in trouble to begin with. As a result, there was a shooting at the June 25 party in Virginia Beach. He was cleared of criminal wrongdoing but he may have violated his supervised release.

He also is in trouble with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell who reinstated Vick to the NFL in 2009 under conditions – conditions he may have violated. It certainly was a bad idea to have the party and it was a worse idea to invite his old friends.

Vick also missed his own celebrity golf tournament as a result of the order to remain in Pennsylvania. The AP reported that Vick was paid a $2,000 deposit of a $4,000 fee to appear at the Raleigh football camp, which was built around his appearance. Campers paid $175 each and were promised packages that included Vick photos and autographs.

Vick should never have been reinstated. We are a country of second chances, true. But it’s disturbing that we crave celebrity from people who get in trouble more than we crave celebrity from people who do it right the first time. People who have lived their lives well from the get-go don’t seem to be as honored or respected as those who do wrong and then “turn their life around.”

Sometimes we should let a person turn his life around without it including stardom and millions of dollars.

LeBron James made national news with his announcement last night that he will take his talents, as he puts it, from Cleveland to South Beach, Miami. But, those of us in North Carolina should perhaps be more interested in the LeBron James Skills Academy which was held this week in Akron, Ohio.

2011 UNC basketball recruit PJ Hairston, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Greensboro, missed the first two days with an ankle injury but he came back the third day to show flashes of his scoring abilities. He is transferring before his senior season from Greensboro Dudley to Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia.

Hairston, who wrongly guessed that James would go to the Knicks, said it had been a media circus at the camp with everyone following James’ every move. “I don’t really have an explanation for it,” he said. “It’s just crazy, what’s going on over a human being.”

The only rising sophomore to attend the camp was Rodney Purvis, a 6-3 shooting guard from Upper Room Christian Academy in Raleigh. Purvis, who grew up a Carolina fan, is already being compared to John Wall. He has been offered a scholarship from Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. Others pursuing him are UNC, Duke, N.C. State, Kentucky, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and Xavier.

Many of the top players are in Europe competing for Team USA in the FIBA Under-18 national tournament. Still, the state of North Carolina (with eight) had the most players in attendance at the camp.

It’s reported that one of the North Carolina players – Dominique Pointer, a 6-5 guard from Winston-Salem – drilled a three with LeBron James covering him. With retaliation in mind, James called for the ball and blew by Pointer for slam dunk. During five-on-fives, a team that included James and former UNC player Jawad Williams of the Cavaliers lost to a group of high schoolers.

FROM ACC NEWS RELEASE – ESPN and the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) have reached a 12-year agreement for exclusive rights to every conference-controlled football and men’s basketball game, plus women’s basketball and Olympic sports matchups, and conference championships.

The agreement, which begins in 2011-12 and continues through 2022-23, was announced by George Bodenheimer, President, ESPN, Inc. and ABC Sports, and John Swofford, ACC Commissioner. It will result in approximately 4,800 ACC events over the 12 years on ESPN’s television outlets, digital and mobile platforms, syndication and more.

Among the entities included are: ESPN, ESPN on ABC, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3.com, the new ESPN 3D network, ESPN Mobile TV, ESPN GamePlan, ESPN FULL COURT, ESPN International, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Classic and ESPN.com. Numerous events will be produced in high definition across ESPN HD, ABC HD, ESPN2 HD and ESPNU HD.

Additionally, through a new sublicense arrangement with ESPN, Raycom Sports will continue its long-standing position as the syndication home of ACC content for over-the-air and regional cable network distribution in the ACC market and beyond. Raycom Sports will also continue to manage the ACC’s official corporate partner program and the exploitation of its digital assets, including www.theACC.com, the official conference web site.

Joe Corvo, who was traded to Washington late last season, is back with the Carolina Hurricanes, adding experience to a team that has gotten significantly younger.

Corvo, a 33-year-old defenseman, is expected to be paired on the ice with defenseman Tim Gleason.

“My family is really comfortable here, and I’m really comfortable with the coaching staff and what goes on here,” said Corvo, whose family, including two young sons, stayed in Raleigh after he was traded to the Capitals.

He said that he plans to make his home in Raleigh permanent. ”When I first got here we bought a house with that the thought that it was going to be temporary, but we had the talk that we were going to stay here until after I retired,” Corvo said. “You can’t go wrong with the weather, the schools and the golf.”

The Triangle area has become an asset for the Hurricanes in acquiring established veteran players looking to settle down. And while the Hurricanes have some good, young talent, they’ll need older guys like Corvo and his friend Erik Cole, 31.