2009 TSL season, Season summary
As the season commenced Glenorchy, Launceston and Burnie were touted amongst most of the State's football writers as premiership favourites with Clarence also looming on the horizon as an ever-present threat.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Poor weather would plague the season, with several grounds falling victim to heavy Winter rain across the State, Hobart received its wettest Winter since 1954 (and wettest year since 1958), rendering most grounds into quagmires, most notably the TCA Ground, KGV Football Park, Lauderdale Oval and North Hobart Oval all being closed by their respective Councils for long periods or even having matches moved away from them.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Both West Park and Devonport Oval would also suffer from the deluge and similarly would end up in very poor condition.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
As it panned out, Burnie and Glenorchy led the competition for almost the entire season, with Clarence making a late charge after an indifferent start to the season.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Launceston, despite getting off to a winning start would suffer from many injuries during the season and struggle to put their best side on the ground for lengthy periods and as a result struggled for consistency but still managed to make the finals.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Devonport coach Errol Bourne had written off his young side's chances before the season had started stating that they would be just making up numbers, but after a strong start, the Coastal Magpies would fall into a heap in the middle part of the season losing six games in a row before they made a last-ditch effort to secure a finals berth, their mission accomplished after a tremendous victory over Hobart at the TCA Ground in which they trailed by 35-points during the final quarter in heavy conditions.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
North Hobart, North Launceston and Hobart would battle it out in the latter rounds of the season for the last finals spot, the Demons produced a fine victory in heavy rain at West Park to lock in sixth spot, while a woefully out of form North Launceston would lose three of their final four matches to drop out and Hobart, under the guidance of stalwart Graham Fox after coach Todd Lewis' mid-season resignation, with a youthful side had produced some excellent wins throughout the season after a nightmare start, but ultimately poor percentage and narrow losses to Lauderdale twice (the latter in near hurricane-like conditions at the TCA Ground which was close to being abandoned at half-time where only one goal had been scored) and Devonport (mentioned above) would come back to haunt them.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Newly promoted former Southern Amateur club Lauderdale would prove a difficult side to beat, especially on their home track, a lack of experience at State League level would see them struggle to win matches, but were far from disgraced in their first season whilst a very young South Launceston side would struggle again and finish last.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
The finals series featured a Top Six for the first time, this was designed to give the finals series a more even blend of sides from the North and South owing to the uneven roster so as to ensure clubs played more games in their home regions rather than large numbers of away games to keep the travel costs for clubs to a minimum.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Clarence took on North Hobart at Bellerive Oval on 29 August in the First Elimination Final, the Roos were untroubled all day in heavy rain to race away to a convincing 43-point win whilst that night, Devonport Oval staged a night Second Elimination Final between Devonport and Launceston.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Also played in atrocious conditions, the Magpies posted a 35-point half-time lead and kept the Blues goalless, a third quarter rally saw Launceston hit back, but Devonport kept the Blues again goalless in the final quarter to run out convincing 37-point winners to book a date with Clarence.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
The First Semi Final between Clarence and Devonport was originally scheduled for Sunday, 6 September at North Hobart, but owing to a week of constant heavy rain in Hobart, North Hobart Oval was closed by the Hobart City Council after junior football had inexplicably been allowed to be played on the ground during torrential rain the previous weekend which turned the ground into a waterlogged quagmire.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Fearing a backlash from the Southern Football League and the Old Scholars Football Association over the condition the ground would be left in after another match at the venue (both competitions had booked the ground to hold their Grand Finals in the coming weeks), AFL Tasmania then at the last minute, controversially switched the date and venue of the match back to the Saturday and moved it to Bellerive Oval as a curtain-raiser to the Glenorchy and Burnie Second Semi Final which prompted extreme outrage from the North West Coast media and the Devonport Football Club over the decision.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
This meant that for the first time since 1921, no finals football was staged at North Hobart Oval.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
The Roos, playing on their home ground never gave Devonport a sniff and raced away to a ridiculously easy 53-point win, while in the second match of the afternoon, Glenorchy made its way into the Grand Final by demolishing an out of form Burnie by 71-points in a magnificent display which had the critics raving and touting them as odds-on for the premiership.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Burnie and Clarence met in the Preliminary Final at Aurora Stadium on 12 September in perfect conditions.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
After an even start, the Dockers began to get on top and eventually opened up a lead of more than four goals in the third quarter before the Roos steadied to reduce the margin to 13-points at three-quarter time.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
In a magnificent game of football, the Dockers then posted what looked to be a match-winning lead midway through the final quarter before Clarence hit back with a succession of goals late in the game to hit the front.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
With only seconds remaining, Burnie's captain-coach Justin Plapp was awarded a free kick 35-metres out, straight in front of goal when the siren sounded.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Plapp's resulting kick after the siren missed to the right and cost his side a grand final spot and sent the Roos into raptures.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
The Grand Final on 19 September pitted strong favourites Glenorchy against Clarence, whose only hope seemed to be the fact that the match was being played on their home ground where their record was 10-nil for the season and where they were unbeaten since the opening round of the 2008 SFL Premier League season.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
After looking ominous early Glenorchy failed to capitalise on their advantage, the Roos then shocked the Magpies (and the 7,534-strong crowd) by piling on six unanswered goals late in the second quarter in the rain to post a 30-point half-time lead.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Glenorchy hit back late in the third quarter to reduce the deficit to 15-points at three-quarter time, with the Roos kicking with the wind to the Southern Stand end in the final quarter.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
After holding firm for much of the quarter, Clarence began to tire, Glenorchy putting enormous pressure on them in the final ten minutes but missed several chances to hit the front before Jeromey Webberley snapped a pivotal 60-metre goal for Clarence against the run of play to give the Roos valuable breathing space as another wave of attacks in the dying minutes from Glenorchy again proved ineffective, with the Roos hanging on to win the premiership by a solitary goal.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
For the Roos, it was their sixth TFL/TSL premiership since 1993 and tenth senior flag overall in seventeen seasons including their eight seasons in the SFL Premier League.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
As a side note, this was the first season at TFL/TSL level where crowd attendances at roster matches were not released to the public.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
AFL Tasmania's reasoning prior to the season was that the competition was about clubs being able to run themselves properly and remain "in profit" rather than concentrating on crowd numbers at this stage.


2009 TSL season, Season summary
Although no official roster figures were released, it is generally accepted that although numbers were reasonable early on in the season, crowd attendances nosedived by mid-season with a mix of odd fixturing and poor weather conditions affecting results, however, the Grand Final attendance of 7,534 was still the largest attendance at a domestic club football match in Tasmania since the 1999 TSFL Grand Final.


2009 TSL season, 2009 Tasmanian State League Ladder, Round 1
(Sunday, 5 April. Friday, 10 April & Saturday, 11 April 2009)


2009 TSL season, 2009 Tasmanian State League Ladder, Round 8
Note: North Launceston wore an alternate playing jumper due to a uniform clash with Lauderdale.


2009 TSL season, 2009 Tasmanian State League Ladder, Round 16
Note: Match transferred to Bellerive due to unfit playing surface at Lauderdale.


2009 TSL season, 2009 Tasmanian State League Ladder, First Semi Final
Note: Match transferred to Bellerive due to unfit playing surface at North Hobart.


2009 TT Pro League
The 2009 TT Pro League season (known as the Digicel Pro League for sponsorship reasons) was the eleventh season of the TT Pro League, the Trinidad and Tobago professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1999. A total of eleven teams contested the league, with San Juan Jabloteh the defending champions. The season began on 8 May, with Super Friday, and ended on 27 October. The format of the season was changed from each club playing three rounds to two rounds in the regular season to facilitate the national team with its attempt to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.


2009 TT Pro League
Police were re-admitted into the league following a one-year absence, whereas FC South End were admitted as a new club. However, North East Stars withdrew siting the state of their home ground, Sangre Grande Recreational Ground, for the past few years as the cause to sit out the season. The Sangre Grande Boys stated that they intend to return to the league for 2010. Furthermore, Caledonia AIA changed the name of the club to Caledonia AIA of Morvant/Laventille.


2009 TT Pro League
The first goal of the season was scored by Caledonia AIA's Walter Moore against Joe Public in the second minute of the first game on 8 May. Kendall Velox of Caledonia AIA scored the first hat-trick of the season against Police on 23 May. Kerry Baptiste won the Golden Boot by providing 35 goals for Joe Public on their way to becoming league champions.


2009 TT Pro League
On 12 September, Joe Public used a 2–1 win over W Connection at Manny Ramjohn Stadium to clinch the regular season crown on 41 points. San Juan Jabloteh, Caledonia AIA, W Connection, Ma Pau, and Defence Force all qualified for the Big Six. On 24 October, Joe Public claimed the league title with a 1–1 draw against Caledonia AIA. The achievement marked their second Pro League title with the first coming in the 2006 season. Having finished as the league champion, Joe Public qualified for the 2010 CFU Club Championship. By finishing runners-up in the league, San Juan Jabloteh also qualified for the CFU Club Championship.


2009 TT Pro League
With an 8–0 loss to W Connection on 1 September, Police finished bottom in the league. The club had a disappointing campaign having only recorded nine points with a -48 goal difference. This marked the first season in which Tobago United did not finish the league season bottom of the table. Furthermore, on 8 January 2010, United Petrotrin announced that they had pulled the club from the Pro League.


2009 TT Pro League, Teams, Team summaries
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2009 TT Pro League, League table, Positions by round
The table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. For example, if a match is scheduled for the tenth round of matches, but then postponed and played between rounds 16 and 17, it will be added to the standings for round 16.


2009 TT Pro League, Awards, Annual awards
The 2009 TT Pro League awards distribution took place on 7 April 2010, at Cascadia Hotel in St. Ann's, Trinidad, prior to the 2010–11 season.


2009 TT Pro League, Awards, Annual awards
Joe Public took home the majority of the league honours including Team of the Year. Eastern Lion Kerry Baptiste was named the league's Player of the Year for the first time in his career, by providing 35 league goals. Baptiste also received the Golden Boot and was named the Best Forward. Joe Public manager Derek King became the youngest manager in the Pro League to win the league championship and claimed the Manager of the Year. In addition, Joe Public's Alejandro Figueroa, Trent Noel, and Keyeno Thomas were named the league's Best Goalkeeper, Best Midfielder, and Best Defender respectively. The remaining team award was won by Caledonia AIA for the Most Disciplined Team of the Year. FIFA international referee, Neal Brizan, won the Referee of the Year for the third consecutive year, whereas Boris Punch won the Match Commissioner of the Year in back-to-back years.


2009 TUMS Fast Relief 500
The 2009 TUMS Fast Relief 500 was the 32nd race of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup season at the beginning of the second half of the 2009 Chase for the Sprint Cup. The 500-lap, 263 miles (423 km) event, the only race on the Chase that is held on a short track (.526 miles (0.847 km)), was held on October 25, 2009 at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Virginia. Denny Hamlin won while points leader Jimmie Johnson finished second.


2009 TUMS Fast Relief 500
This was also the last career start for NASCAR veteran Sterling Marlin who retired shortly thereafter. This was also the first race in over 3 years for 1990 Daytona 500 winner Derrike Cope.


2009 Table Mountain fire
The 2009 Table Mountain fire was a large fire in and around the Table Mountain National Park in Cape Town, South Africa. It broke out at approximately 20:30 on 17 March 2009 in the vicinity of Rhodes Memorial and initial fears were that the fire would spread to UCT's Upper Campus. The Table Mountain National Park quickly deployed firefighting personnel on the mountain, but the fire spread due to the strong winds.


2009 Table Mountain fire
At around 23:20 on Tuesday evening, the fire started moving up Devil's Peak and by 00:00 was at the tip and making its way around the mountain to the suburbs of Tamboerskloof, Oranjezicht, Vredehoek and Gardens on the north side. The flames were engulfing the mountain and the huge amounts of smoke made it hard for rescue and fire-fighting helicopters making their way to the fire. By 00:30, people from the aforementioned areas were told to evacuate due to the strong winds pushing the fire around the mountain. By this time, Fire & Rescue Services had deployed 29 fire engines and 90 firefighters who were assisted by 45 firefighters from the South African National Parks and volunteers of Disaster Management


2009 Table Mountain fire
The day following the fire, four helicopters, including a South African National Defence Force Atlas Oryx, were called in at dawn to water-bomb the fire, and to lift a team of firefighters high onto the mountain. Table Mountain National Park Fire Manager Philip Prins said about 500 hectares (1,200 acres) of park land had been burned: some fynbos, some renosterveld, some grass, and stands of pine trees.


2009 Table Mountain fire, Evacuations
Loudhailers were used to order residents of High Cape to evacuate, as well as in the aforementioned areas. The fire had originally spread from the UCT and Rhodes Memorial area to the other end of the mountain within 2 hours. Hundreds of homeowners did not know that there was a massive fire raging and were woken up and told they had only minutes to flee before the fires would reach the houses. News report indicate that no houses were burnt down.


2009 Table Mountain fire, Evacuations
From around 06:00 on Wednesday 18 March 2009, people were allowed to return to their properties. Houses near the top of the building lines, were covered in ash.


2009 Table Mountain fire, Deaths and Injuries
Only 7 people were injured as officials were quick to respond. 2 of them sustained 3rd degree burns. The first - and thus far only - death was that of fisherman Willem Simons. He was a shareholder in the Tuna Hake Fishing Corporation. Simons died from his injuries in hospital. He and his companion were critically injured in the blaze while they were sleeping in bushes in Oranjezicht on the slopes of the mountain. His companion remained in a critical condition.


2009 Table Mountain fire, Road Closures
Firetrucks were positioned along De Waal Drive and the M3, as well as near UCT. The fire reached down to the M3's hospital bend, opposite Groote Schuur Hospital, thus causing traffic officials to close the road and re-route all incoming traffic onto Mowbray Main Road. Other roads which were closed include Tafelberg Road towards the Lower Cable Car Station and Signal Hill Road.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash
The 2009 Taconic State Parkway crash was a traffic collision that occurred shortly after 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 26, 2009, on the Taconic State Parkway in the town of Mount Pleasant, near the village of Briarcliff Manor, New York, United States. Eight people were killed when a minivan, being driven by 36-year-old Diane Schuler, traveled 1.7 miles (2.7 km) in the wrong direction on the parkway and collided head-on with an oncoming SUV. Schuler, her daughter and three nieces, and the three passengers in the oncoming SUV were killed. The crash was the worst fatal motor vehicle accident to occur in Westchester County since July 22, 1934, when a bus accident in Ossining claimed twenty lives.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash
The ensuing investigation into the crash's cause received nationwide attention. Toxicology tests conducted by the medical examiner revealed that Schuler was heavily intoxicated with both alcohol and marijuana at the time of the crash. Her husband, Daniel Schuler, has consistently denied that she used drugs or alcohol "excessively" and has made multiple national media appearances to defend his late wife and call for further investigation into other possible medical causes for her erratic driving. An independent investigator hired by the Schuler family obtained DNA testing and toxicology testing of Schuler's samples, and also confirmed the results of the original testing.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
At approximately 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, July 26, 2009, 36-year-old Diane Schuler left the Hunter Lake Campground in Parksville, New York, in a red 2003 Ford Windstar that belonged to her brother. Riding with Schuler were her 5-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter, and her brother's three daughters (ages 8, 7, and 5). Her husband, Daniel Schuler, left the campground at the same time in a separate vehicle since he had a pickup truck and took the family dog with him. A co-owner of the campground later said that Diane appeared sober when she departed.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
On the way to their home in West Babylon, Schuler stopped at a McDonald's restaurant and a Sunoco gas station in Liberty. Surveillance video at the Sunoco shows Schuler arriving and leaving the station and going inside the gas station store. There is no audio. Schuler’s husband, sister-in-law, and an investigator working on their behalf all made claims and/or inferences that Schuler spoke to the Sunoco clerk attempting to buy over-the-counter pain-relief medication, although the gas station did not sell any. However, these claims cannot be verified as the Sunoco clerk never spoke to police nor gave any statements or interviews, and there is no audio for the surveillance video to reveal what Schuler might have said, if anything.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
Schuler left Liberty just after 11 a.m., traveling along Route 17/Interstate 86 and the New York Thruway (Interstate 87), entering the Ramapo-Sloatsburg service area, and crossing the Tappan Zee Bridge heading east. Several witnesses later reported seeing a red minivan driving aggressively on Route 17/Interstate 86 and Interstate 87, including aggressively tailgating, flashing headlights, honking the horn, moving in and out of lanes, and straddling two lanes. At 11:37 a.m., Schuler called Warren Hance, her brother and father of her three nieces, from the van. She reportedly told him that they were being delayed by traffic. According to a police report, Schuler was seen by witnesses at approximately 11:45 a.m. by the side of the road with her hands on her knees, as if vomiting; she was seen again in the same position a short time later, north of the Ramapo-Sloatsburg rest stop.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
At about 1 p.m., another call was made to Hance from Schuler's cell phone. During this call, one of Schuler's nieces reportedly told her father that Schuler was having trouble seeing and speaking clearly. Schuler herself then talked to Hance and said that she was disoriented and could not see clearly. Police believe that the car was stopped in a pull-off area beyond the Tappan Zee Bridge tollbooths for at least part of this call. Hance reportedly told Schuler to stay off the road while he came to meet them; follow-up calls from Hance to Schuler were not answered. For some reason, she left her cell phone on the highway; it was found by another motorist by the side of the road near the tollbooths.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
Investigators have not determined what route Schuler took from the bridge to the Taconic State Parkway ramps near Briarcliff Manor. At 1:33 p.m., two drivers called 9-1-1 after noticing her van edging onto the parkway's northbound exit ramp. The end of the exit ramp, at the intersection with Pleasantville Road, is marked with two signs that read "Do Not Enter" and two signs that read "One Way". Within the next minute, four more 9-1-1 calls were placed by motorists who reported that a car was traveling the wrong way down the parkway going approximately 75–85 miles per hour (121–137 km/h).


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
The van traveled south for 1.7 miles (2.7 km) in the parkway's northbound passing lane before colliding head-on, at approximately 1:35 p.m., with a 2004 Chevrolet TrailBlazer, which then struck a 2002 Chevrolet Tracker. At the time of impact, Schuler was traveling approximately 85 mph. Schuler, her daughter, and two of her nieces died at the scene of the crash (the children did not appear to have been in car seats, or even to have had seatbelts fastened), along with the three men in the TrailBlazer: 81-year-old Michael Bastardi, his 49-year-old son Guy, and their friend, 74-year-old Dan Longo.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
The two occupants of the Tracker suffered only minor injuries. Schuler's severely injured third niece and her 5-year-old son Bryan were taken to area hospitals, where the niece died later that day. Bryan is the only passenger of Schuler's vehicle to survive, suffering from broken bones and severe head trauma. He remained hospitalized before returning home in early October.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Day of incident
Two men who witnessed the accident and smoke rising out of the van ran to assist the occupants. After removing Schuler from the van, the two men saw a large, broken Absolut Vodka bottle by the driver's side. The men tried to pull the girls out of the van and noted that they had no pulse. Because the children possibly were not wearing seatbelts and had been thrown together, the men did not notice Bryan stuck under another child. Bryan was the only survivor of the accident.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
The investigation of the collision drew nationwide attention, as Schuler's husband Daniel strongly disagreed with the conclusion that she was heavily intoxicated at the time of the crash. A toxicology report released on August 4 by Westchester County medical examiners found that Schuler had a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.19%, with approximately six grams of alcohol in her stomach that had not yet been absorbed into her blood. The legal BAC limit for driving while intoxicated in New York is 0.08%. The report also said that Schuler had high levels of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, in her system. She could have smoked marijuana as recently as fifteen minutes before the accident.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
In an August 8 press conference, Daniel Schuler and his attorney Dominic Barbara initially denied that Diane did drugs or was drinking that weekend at the campground since several children were with them. Daniel then changed the story and consistently denied that his wife ever "drank to excess" or could have been drunk while driving that day. When Larry King and Oprah Winfrey asked Daniel about the vodka in the van, he claimed that they always kept an old bottle in their camper. He further stated that Diane did all the packing for the camping trip, so she must have moved the bottle into the van.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
Daniel eventually admitted that he and his wife had been drinking during the camping trip, but denied that Diane had anything to drink on the day preceding the crash. The campground co-owner (who knew the Schulers well) saw them off at approximately 9 a.m. that morning, and stated that Diane appeared sober. The gas station employee whom Schuler asked for pain medication at around 11 a.m. also said, "[I knew] for a fact [that] she wasn't drunk when she came into the station." According to Tom Ruskin, a private investigator supposedly hired by Daniel for $30,000, none of the McDonald's employees saw anything in Schuler's behavior to suggest that she was intoxicated. In fact, she was observed carrying on an extended conversation while ordering her food and orange juice.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
Ruskin told reporters in September that he had interviewed relatives, none of whom had ever seen her in a drunken state. He also pointed to autopsy results that showed an absence of organ damage often found in alcoholics, although an uninvolved medical examiner said such results do not rule out alcoholism. Schuler's relatives have also disputed that Diane was known to drink heavily or irresponsibly.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
Daniel denied that his wife did drugs, but told investigators that his wife smoked marijuana only "occasionally" and the family told People magazine that she used it to relieve insomnia. Although Daniel was an officer in the Public Security Unit of the Nassau County Police Department, he was not required to report his wife's drug use as he is a civilian. In November, it was reported that Diane's sister-in-law had made a statement to police that she actually smoked marijuana on a regular basis.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
Daniel and Barbara believed that Schuler drove erratically due to a medical issue, such as a stroke. According to Barbara, Schuler was obese for much of her life and suffered from diabetes, although additional sources cite Diane as only having had gestational diabetes, a temporary condition related to a prior pregnancy rather than a chronic condition. Barbara has also mentioned an abscess that had persisted in Diane's mouth for seven weeks before her death, and a lump in her leg, about which she said, "[ It] might have been an embolism". The results of an autopsy conducted by a Westchester County medical examiner one day after the accident found that Diane had not suffered a stroke, aneurysm, or heart attack.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
In September, New York's top forensic pathologist said that a hair test should have been done to determine Diane's drug history. Daniel and Barbara announced plans to exhume the body to perform the hair test and other examinations; experts said that this was unlikely to produce any new information since tests from two separate labs came up with exactly the same conclusion. Daniel also intended to re-test the fluid samples taken during the autopsy.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
The Westchester County medical examiner's office, which performed the autopsy, said that the degradation of the fluids over time was likely to result in lowered alcohol and THC readings; however, several toxicology experts said that the results should be similar to the previous test if the fluid samples had been properly stored. On November 7, Ruskin announced that the Schuler family had raised the money to retest Diane's tissue samples and that the retesting would take place soon. In July 2010, it was reported that Daniel had accepted a $100,000 offer from a film company, Moxie Firecracker Films, to record his wife's exhumation for an HBO documentary. The money would reportedly be placed in trust for Bryan.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
Daniel's persistence in disputing his wife's intoxication and drug use was condemned by relatives of the three TrailBlazer victims. When Daniel appeared on CNN's Larry King Live to demand more testing of his wife's remains, Longo's brother Joseph issued a statement saying in part, "I want Daniel Schuler to know that he keeps inflicting more pain on all concerned once again [by] going to the media to try [to] paint a picture of a perfect wife and mother."


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
Bastardi's daughters appeared with their lawyer on NBC's Today, during which they questioned Daniel's culpability in enabling his wife's substance abuse and called for him to undergo drug testing himself. "It makes me angry that he keeps denying it," said Margaret Nicotina, Bastardi's daughter. "Every time he does it, he brings it back for us. I just wish that he would just admit that she was drunk. Maybe if he knows what happened that morning, if they argued or anything, that would be the truth. He wants the truth. So do we." Their lawyer called Daniel's position totally outrageous, an insult to the intelligence of the American public, and a hoax. Ruskin said on The Oprah Winfrey Show in October 2009 that Daniel had avoided media appearances since Larry King Live out of respect to the Bastardi family.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Intoxication levels
In June 2010, the New York State Police issued its final report on the accident following eleven months of analysis. The report upheld the previous toxicology findings that Schuler was highly intoxicated and had high levels of THC in her system at the time of the accident.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Legal action
According to a Westchester County medical examiner, the crash was ruled a homicide soon after it occurred because the victims were killed due to Diane Schuler's negligent driving, regardless of toxicology findings. On August 18, Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore said that no charges would be filed in the incident, because Schuler was the only person responsible for the deaths. "Diane Schuler died in the crash and the charges died with her," DiFiore said.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Legal action
In October 2009, DiFiore faced accusations from both Dan Schorr (a Republican challenger for her office) and a Bastardi family attorney that she had mishandled the Schuler case by neglecting to initiate a grand jury investigation into the crash. In response to Schorr's comments, DiFiore responded, "Is he suggesting that there was criminal evidence of a crime committed by someone and we wouldn't pursue it? That's just silly." DiFiore won re-election in November. The Bastardi family said that if DiFiore did not convene a grand jury, they would seek support in the matter from the state attorney general and the governor.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Legal action
Following a request from the Bastardi family that an administrator be appointed for Diane's estate so that a lawsuit could be filed, Daniel officially declined the role in November 2009, leaving it to a county-court judge to appoint a public administrator. On December 10, the Bastardi family filed suit against Diane and her brother, Warren Hance, seeking unspecified damages for wanton, willful, and reckless conduct. According to the family's lawyers, they were required by state law to include Hance in the suit because he was the owner of the van.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Legal action
In July 2011, Jackie Hance, who lost her three daughters in the accident, filed suit against Daniel, her brother-in-law. The suit claimed that the three deceased Hance girls suffered terror, fear of impending death, extreme horror, fright, and mental anguish. On July 26, 2011, the day after the premiere of the HBO documentary and on the second anniversary of the crash, Daniel sued the state for not "keeping the road safe" and his brother-in-law Warren Hance as the owner of the minivan that Diane was driving. By July 2014, all lawsuits by all parties were either settled or dropped.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Child Passenger Protection Act
In August 2009, New York Governor David Paterson proposed the Child Passenger Protection Act, which would make it a felony to drive while intoxicated if a passenger under the age of 16 is in a vehicle. The proposal became known as Leandra's Law following the October 2009 death of 11-year-old Leandra Rosado, a passenger in a vehicle whose driver was drunk. The Child Passenger Protection Act was signed into New York law on November 18, 2009.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Media
In September 2009, the syndicated talk show Dr. Phil broadcast an episode about drunk-driving moms that focused heavily on Schuler and the crash. The next month, Oprah Winfrey devoted an episode of her show to the crash, interviewing Tom Ruskin via Skype, with Winfrey responding incredulously to several of his claims.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Media
The Law & Order episode "Doped," which first aired in November 2009, centers on a crash extremely similar to the crash. The fictionalized version features a woman who speeds down the West Side Highway in the wrong direction before crashing and killing herself, her daughter and her two nieces, and another family in another car. Bastardi relatives reacted with anger upon hearing that the NBC drama would be basing an episode on the real-life tragedy.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Media
There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, directed by Liz Garbus for HBO Documentaries, establishes a timeline of events prior to the accident. The documentary suggests that Diane Schuler could have been suffering from severe pain caused by a tooth abscess during the drive home, causing her to look for painkillers at the gas station and, upon failing to find any, self-medicating with drugs and alcohol. The pain of the abscess, combined with vodka and marijuana, could have put her in a temporary state of delirium that triggered her fatal behavior.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Media
In the documentary, Daniel and Barbara claim they gave Ruskin $30,000 to conduct an independent investigation and to re-test samples. Throughout the documentary, Daniel and Jay Schuler, Diane's sister-in-law, claim that Ruskin was not returning their phone calls for nine months. At the end of the documentary, Ruskin states that he had called Jay months previously with the results and that she refused to pick up her phone. She is seen claiming that "she was told not to pick up" and "that she didn't understand any of it." Ruskin then informs her that his tests corroborated the previous tests; that Diane was highly intoxicated from alcohol and marijuana. Schuler's family persisted in refusing to accept the test results.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, Media
Jackie Hance wrote a book called I'll See You Again in which the tragedy is revisited, focusing on her initial grief and later reemergence into life. Stephen King's short story "Herman Wouk is Still Alive" in his horror fiction anthology The Bazaar of Bad Dreams (2015) is, according to King, a story directly based on the Taconic State Parkway accident.


2009 Taconic State Parkway crash, The Hance Family Foundation
Jackie and Warren Hance formed a foundation, the Hance Family Foundation, whose main purpose is to honor the lives of their three daughters by ensuring healthy, happy, and safe children through innovative self-esteem educational programming. The foundation's central project is Beautiful Me, a self-esteem program designed to educate girls by promoting appreciation for their genuine qualities, accurate self-awareness, and the satisfaction of helping others.


2009 Tail Savannah Challenger
The 2009 Tail Savannah Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor green clay courts. It was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Savannah, United States between May 4 and May 10, 2009.


2009 Tail Savannah Challenger, Singles entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Tail Savannah Challenger, Champions, Doubles
Carsten Ball /  Travis Rettenmaier def. Harsh Mankad /  Kaes Van't Hof, 7–6(4), 6–4


2009 Tail Savannah Challenger – Doubles
Carsten Ball and Travis Rettenmaier won in the final 7-64, 6-4 against Harsh Mankad and Kaes Van't Hof


2009 Tail Savannah Challenger – Singles
Michael Russell won the first edition of this tournament, after he beat Alex Kuznetsov in the final 6–4, 7–6(6).


2009 Taiwan Live
2009 Taiwan Live (stylized as 2009 TAIWAN LIVE) is the second Fanclub Exclusive live DVD released by Japanese singer-songwriter Koda Kumi. It was her first concert in Taiwan and received generally positive reviews by Taiwanese fans. She toured 4 days around Taiwan and performed in front of over 8,000 fans.


2009 Taiwan Live
The DVD includes off-shot footage of Kumi's time in Taiwan, along with her personal commentary.


2009 Taiwan Series
The 2009 Taiwan Series was played by Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions and Brother Elephants, winners of the first and second half-seasons. After seven games, the Lions defeated the Elephants four games to three and won the title.


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 1
October 17, 2009 at Tainan Municipal Baseball Stadium, Tainan City


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 2
October 18, 2009 at Douliu Baseball Stadium, Douliu, Yunlin County


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 3
October 20, 2009 at Chengcing Lake Baseball Field, Niaosong, Kaohsiung County


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 4
October 21, 2009 at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium, Taichung City


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 5
October 22, 2009 at Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium, Xinzhuang City, Taipei County


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 6
October 24, 2009 at Tainan Municipal Baseball Stadium, Tainan City


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 6
This game is the currently the longest game (17 innings) in CPBL's history.


2009 Taiwan Series, Summaries, Game 7
October 25, 2009 at Tainan Municipal Baseball Stadium, Tainan City


2009 Taiwanese local elections
Local elections were held in Taiwan on 5 December 2009 to elect magistrates of counties and mayors of cities, councillors in county/city councils, and mayors of townships and county-administered cities, known as the three-in-one elections (Chinese: 三合一選舉). The elections were not held in the special municipalities of Kaohsiung and Taipei as well as the counties and cities that were set to be reform as special municipalities in 2010, including Taipei County, Taichung County, Taichung City, Tainan County, Tainan City, or Kaohsiung County. The new formed municipalities has their elections in 2010.


2009 Taiwanese local elections, Election summaries, Magistrate and mayor elections
In the elections held for the 17 posts of county magistrates and city mayors, the Kuomintang (KMT) won control of 12 Counties and Cities, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won control of 4 Counties, while the remaining county, Hualien, was won by an independent candidate. The DPP won 1,982,914 votes, or 45.32 per cent, which was a substantial increase from its 41.95 per cent in the 2005 elections. On the other hand, the KMT received 2,094,518 votes, or 47.87 percent, which was less than the 50.96 percent it won in the 2005 elections of 23 county magistrates and city mayors.


2009 Taiwanese local elections, Election summaries, Magistrate and mayor elections
The KMT's traditional strongholds of Northern Taiwan was maintained, although its complete dominance in Northern Taiwan, was terminated when DPP candidate won the Election for the Yilan County Magistrate by a large margin. However, this north-eastern county was once a DPP stronghold for more than two decades until KMT incumbent Lu Kuo-hua, won power four years ago. In Keelung City and Hsinchu City the KMT incumbent Mayors won by a considerable margin, although in Taoyuan County, the KMT candidate won by an unexpectedly narrow margin. The fiercely contested position for Hsinchu County Magistrate, was eventually won by a KMT candidate who received 38% of the vote, whilst the DPP candidate garnered 31%, and an independent candidate received 30%.


2009 Taiwanese local elections, Election summaries, Magistrate and mayor elections
In Central Taiwan, all four of the incumbent Magistrates secured their second term. In the traditionally Pan-Blue stronghold of Miaoli County, the KMT incumbent Magistrate won his second term with a large margin of approximately 30% of the votes. While in Changhua County and Nantou County, the KMT incumbent Magistrates both gained just over 50% of the votes, to secure their second terms. In Yunlin County, the DPP incumbent Magistrate gained nearly twice the number of votes as her opposition KMT candidate to secure her second term.


2009 Taiwanese local elections, Election summaries, Magistrate and mayor elections
The DPP maintained its traditional strongholds of Southern Taiwan, winning both Chiayi County and Pingtung County by a great margin of 15% and 20% respectively. The KMT incumbent Mayor of Chiayi City won her second term by an unexpectedly narrow margin of 8000 votes. In Eastern Taiwan, the KMT's candidate for Taitung County Magistrate won the DPP's candidate by less 6000 votes, whilst Hualien County Magistrate was won by an Independent Candidate who gained more than twice the number of votes of his opposition KMT candidate. In the outlying islands, the incumbent Magistrate of Penghu County won the DPP's Candidate by less than 600 Votes, whilst in Kinmen County and Lienchiang County, the KMT Candidates gained respectively 38% and 57% of the vote to win both posts.


2009 Taiwanese local elections, Election summaries, Councillor elections
The KMT maintained its unchallenged majority in the county and city councilmen elections, winning 289 seats of the 17 County and City Councils. The DPP won 128 seats, the Taiwan Solidarity Union won 3 seats, the People First Party won 1 seat and the Labor Party won 1 seat. The remaining 170 seats were won by independent candidates. The KMT won 43.94% of the votes, while the DPP won 24.42%.


2009 Taiwanese local elections, Election summaries, Township Chiefs
The KMT maintained its unchallenged majority in the township chiefs elections, winning 121 posts. The DPP won 34 posts, while the remaining 56 posts were won by independent candidates. The KMT won 48.82% of the votes, while the DPP won 20.04%.


2009 Tajik League
The 2009 Tajik League was the 18th season of Tajik League, the Tajikistan Football Federation's top division of association football. Regar-TadAZ were the defending champions, having won the previous season.


2009 Tajikistan Cup
The 2009 Tajik Cup was the 18th edition of the Tajik Cup.


2009 Tal Afar bombing
The 9 July 2009 Tal Afar bombing was a double suicide bombing which occurred in Tal Afar, Iraq in July 2009. The bombing occurred when two men detonated explosive vests.


2009 Tal Afar bombing
The attacks targeted the Governor of the Iraqi Central Bank. However, he was unhurt in the incident. Thirty four people were killed and more than 60 were injured.


2009 Talaud Islands earthquake
The 2009 Talaud Islands earthquake occurred on February 12 at 01:34 local time (February 11, 2009 at 17:34 UTC) near Talaud Islands (Indonesian: Kepulauan Talaud), Indonesia. This reverse-type shock had a moment magnitude of 7.2 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong). There were at least 64 people injured and 597 buildings damaged in Talaud Islands. This earthquake could also be felt in the Philippines.


2009 Taldykorgan fire
The 2009 Taldykorgan fire occurred on 13 September 2009, when at least 38 people were killed in a fire at a drug abuse clinic in Taldykorgan, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan. At least 10 others were re-hospitalised after the fire. Two of the dead were staff, the other 36 were patients. The building dates from 1951. The cause of the blaze is unknown.


2009 Taldykorgan fire, Fire
The fire started at 5:30 AM. The fire quickly spread through the single story Soviet-era building. Locked doors and barred windows blocked many escape routes, and screams were heard coming from the building for over 20 minutes. 40 people were evacuated from the building by rescuers. Ten people were taken to the hospital, where they were treated for severe burn injuries. Firefighters extinguished the fire after several hours. The Bodies of 36 patients and 2 workers were recovered from the building, and taken to the city morgue where relatives were witnessed wailing.


2009 Taldykorgan fire, Fire
One victim's sister criticised police for taking him away because "he was drinking too much. They said they were taking him away for six months to cure him of alcoholism but now he's dead". Another woman, this one named Fatima, stated: "I heard them screaming for 20 minutes. They were screaming, 'Save us, save us'". Relatives of the victims were warned by police not to talk to journalists, but a woman who lost her husband spoke to Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity. Journalists were not allowed to speak to victims in the hospital, but one patient whose bed was by the window told journalists that patients at the drug clinic had been locked in when the fire started before he was discovered by a police officer and pulled from the window.


2009 Taldykorgan fire, Reaction
Karim Massimov, Kazakhstan's Prime Minister, asked for an investigation to take place. The Emergencies Ministry later released a statement saying: "The fire had spread rapidly because fire fighters had been alerted late". Serik Akhmetov, the Deputy Prime Minister, is to fly to Taldykorgan.


2009 Taldykorgan fire, Reaction
A commission to investigate the fire was established. The building itself was visited by fire safety inspectors in May 2009. A number of violations were discovered, and the building was found to have no alarm system. Some violations had since been fixed, but an alarm system had still not been installed.


2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger
The 2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Tallahassee, United States between 20 and 26 April 2009.


2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger, Singles entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger, Singles entrants, Other entrants
The following players received special exempt into the singles main draw:


2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger, Champions, Men's doubles
Eric Butorac /  Scott Lipsky def. Colin Fleming /  Ken Skupski, 6–1, 6–4


2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger – Doubles
Rajeev Ram and Bobby Reynolds were the defending champions. They chose to not play this year. Eric Butorac and Scott Lipsky won in the final 6–1, 6–4, against Colin Fleming and Ken Skupski.


2009 Tallahassee Tennis Challenger – Singles
Bobby Reynolds was the defender of championship title; however, he lost to Ryan Sweeting in the first round. John Isner won in the final 7–5, 6–4, against Donald Young.


2009 Tamarua by-election
The Tamarua by-election was a by-election in the Cook Islands electorate of Tamarua. It was held on 3 February 2009, and was precipitated by the death of sitting MP Mii Parima.


2009 Tamarua by-election
The by-election was won by the Cook Islands Party's Pukeiti Pukeiti.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The 2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 34th season in the National Football League, the 12th playing their home games at Raymond James Stadium, and the first under head coach Raheem Morris. The Buccaneers looked to improve on their 9–7 record from their 2008 season and 3rd-place finish in the NFC South but failed to do so as they finished the season at 3–13, missing the playoffs for the second straight year.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The Buccaneers played seven of their home games at Raymond James Stadium. One of their home games was played at Wembley Stadium, as part of the International Series, in which they lost to the New England Patriots 35–7.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The Buccaneers unveiled a Ring of Honor to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the 1979 franchise. Lee Roy Selmon was the first inductee when the team wore throwback uniforms on November 8 in a game against Green Bay that they won 38–28.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
Despite the disappointing season, the Buccaneers were able to upset the eventual Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints in Week 16, marking the first time in franchise history that the Buccaneers defeated the eventual Super Bowl champion.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Off-season, Coaching change
On January 16, 2009, less than three weeks after the 2008 regular season concluded, head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Bruce Allen were fired. The following day, Raheem Morris, recently promoted from defensive backs coach to defensive coordinator, was instead elevated to head coach, with Mark Dominik named general manager. The remainder of the coaching staff was finalized by mid-February.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 1: vs. Dallas Cowboys
The first regular season game for head coach Raheem Morris saw the Buccaneers fall to the Dallas Cowboys by a score of 34–21. Running back Cadillac Williams returned as a starter, and rushed for 97 yards and one touchdown. Quarterback Byron Leftwich threw for 276 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions. The Buccaneer defense, however, gave up three big plays in the loss.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 1: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Dallas quarterback Tony Romo threw for a career-best 353 yards. Three long touchdown passes (66, 80, 44 yards respectively) put the game out of reach. Early in the fourth quarter, Tampa Bay closed the deficit to 20–14, but Romo's 80-yard catch & run to Patrick Crayton put the Cowboys ahead for good.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 1: vs. Dallas Cowboys
On specials teams, kicker Mike Nugent had one field goal attempt blocked, and shanked another.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 2: at Buffalo Bills
The Buccaneers made their first regular season trip in franchise history to Ralph Wilson Stadium to meet the Bills. The Buccaneers had played only one time at Buffalo, a preseason game in 1977. Byron Leftwich threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns, but the Bills held Tampa Bay to only 57 yards rushing, and the Buccaneers had 13 penalties for 112 yard in the loss.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 2: at Buffalo Bills
Leading 20–7 with less than a minute remaining in the first half, Buffalo looked to score once more. However, Fred Jackson fumbled at the Tampa Bay 16, and Sabby Piscitelli recovered. Piscitelli ran 72 yards to the Buffalo 8, and after a touchdown on the next play, Tampa Bay trimmed the deficit to 20–14.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 2: at Buffalo Bills
Late in the fourth quarter, Leftwich led the Buccaneers on 14-play scoring drive, twice converting on 4th down. The touchdown could have brought the Buccaners within 8 points, but a failed two-point conversion ultimately foiled the comeback. Tampa Bay dropped to 0–2, and lost their sixth consecutive game, dating back to 2008.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 3: vs. New York Giants
Still looking for their first win of the season, the Buccaneers went home for a Week 3 duel with the New York Giants. Tampa Bay would trail early in the first quarter with Giants running back Brandon Jacobs getting a 6-yard touchdown run. The Buccaneers'deficit would climb in the second quarter with quarterback Eli Manning's 4-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Steve Smith.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 3: vs. New York Giants
New York continued its dominance in the third quarter with kicker Lawrence Tynes nailing a 26-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, the Giants would close out the game with Manning's 18-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Sinorice Moss.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 4: at Washington Redskins
Following their shutout home loss to the Giants, the Buccaneers flew to FedExField for a Week 4 duel with the Washington Redskins. Due to Byron Leftwich's poor performance during the first three weeks of the season, quarterback Josh Johnson would get his first career start.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 4: at Washington Redskins
Tampa Bay would come out firing in the first quarter with Johnson's 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Antonio Bryant, followed by kicker Mike Nugent's 37-yard field goal in the second quarter. However, the Redskins came back with a vengeance in the third quarter. Kicker Shaun Suisham would get a 42-yard field goal, followed by quarterback Jason Campbell's 17-yard touchdown pass to tight end Chris Cooley (with a blocked PAT) and a 59-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Santana Moss. The Bucs tried to rally in the fourth quarter as Nugent nailed a 22-yard field goal, but Washington's defense would prevent any further progress.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 5: at Philadelphia Eagles
Hoping for their first win of the season, the Buccaneers flew to Lincoln Financial Field for a Week 5 duel with the Philadelphia Eagles. Tampa Bay would immediately trail in the first quarter as Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb hooked up with wide receiver Jeremy Maclin on a 51-yard touchdown pass. Philadelphia would increase their lead in the second quarter with McNabb completing a 20-yard touchdown pass to fullback Leonard Weaver. The Buccaneers would get on the board with quarterback Josh Johnson's 9-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Winslow, but the Eagles would close out the first half with McNabb finding Maclin again on a 40-yard touchdown 40-yard touchdown pass.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 5: at Philadelphia Eagles
In the third quarter, Philadelphia would increase their lead with running back Brian Westbrook getting a 7-yard touchdown run. The Eagles would then start off the fourth quarter with kicker David Akers nailing a 44-yard field goal. Tampa Bay tried to rally as Johnson connected with Winslow again on a 9-yard touchdown pass, but Philadelphia closed out the game with defensive end Darren Howard tackling running back Cadillac Williams in his endzone for a safety.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Carolina Panthers
Still trying to acquire their first win of the season, the Buccaneers went home for a Week 6 NFC South duel with the Carolina Panthers. Tampa Bay sailed off to a good start in the first quarter with a 20-yard touchdown run from running back Cadillac Williams. However, the Panthers would tie the game in the second quarter with running back DeAngelo Williams getting a 20-yard touchdown run.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Carolina Panthers
During the second quarter, punt returner Clifton Smith left the game due to a concussion caused by Panthers cornerback Dante Wesley ramming into Smith. Wesley was flagged for unnecessary roughness and was ejected.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Carolina Panthers
Carolina would take the lead in the third quarter with quarterback Jake Delhomme completing a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeff King and running back Jonathan Stewart getting a 26-yard touchdown, yet the Buccaneers immediately got themselves back into the game as rookie wide receiver Sammie Stroughter returned the kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, Tampa Bay tied the game with safety Tanard Jackson's 26-yard interception return for a touchdown. However, the Panthers delivered the final blow with Williams' 1-yard touchdown run.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 6: vs. Carolina Panthers
With the loss, the Buccaneers fell to 0–6 for the 1st time since 1985.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs. New England Patriots
Still on the hunt for their first win of the season, the Buccaneers flew to Wembley Stadium for Week 7's NFL International game with the New England Patriots. For this game, Tampa Bay was listed as the home team.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs. New England Patriots
The Buccaneers would trail early in the first quarter as Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather returned an interception 39 yards for a touchdown, followed by quarterback Tom Brady finding wide receiver Wes Welker on a 14-yard touchdown pass. New England increased their lead in the second quarter as Brady completed a 54-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Sam Aiken, yet Tampa Bay would get onto the board with quarterback Josh Johnson completing a 33-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Antonio Bryant.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs. New England Patriots
However, the Patriots took control throughout the second half as Brady hooked up with tight end Benjamin Watson on a 35-yard touchdown pass, while running back Laurence Maroney got himself a 1-yard touchdown run.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs. New England Patriots
With the loss, the Buccaneers went into their bye week at 0–7 for the 1st time since 1985.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 8: BYE
With the Rams' win over the Lions and the Titans win over the Jaguars in the same week, the Buccaneers were the NFL's only winless team.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers
Coming off their bye week, the Buccaneers went home, donned their throwback uniforms, and played a Week 9 duel with the Green Bay Packers. This game would be the first career start for rookie quarterback Josh Freeman.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers
Tampa Bay would trail early in the first quarter as Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed a 74-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver James Jones. The Buccaneers would get on the board with Freeman finding running back Derrick Ward on a 6-yard touchdown pass, but Green Bay answered with running back Ryan Grant getting a 2-yard touchdown run. In the second quarter, Tampa Bay fired back as cornerback Ronde Barber returned a blocked punt 31 yards for a touchdown, but the Packers replied with Rodgers hooking up with wide receiver Donald Driver on a 32-yad touchdown pass. The Buccaneers would close out the half with kicker Connor Barth booting a 38-yard field goal.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers
After a scoreless third quarter, Green Bay would strike again in the fourth quarter as Rodgers got a 12-yard touchdown run. Afterwards, Tampa Bay took the lead as Freeman completed a pair of 7-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Winslow (with a failed two-point conversion) and rookie wide receiver Sammie Stroughter (with a successful two-point conversion pass to wide receiver Michael Clayton). The Packers tried to get a comeback, yet safety Tanard Jackson came through with a 35-yard interception return from a touchdown.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 10: at Miami Dolphins
Coming off their home win over the Packers, the Buccaneers flew to Land Shark Stadium for a Week 10 interconference duel with their in-state rival, the Miami Dolphins. In the first quarter, Tampa Bay struck first as kicker Connor Barth got a 51-yard field goal. However, the Dolphins would answer with a 1-yard touchdown run from running back Ronnie Brown (with a blocked PAT). Miami would add onto their lead in the second quarter with a 49-yard field goal from kicker Dan Carpenter. The Buccaneers would reply with Barth's 50-yard field goal, but the Dolphins would take a huge lead as quarterback Chad Henne completed a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kory Sperry, followed by Carpenter getting a 30-yard field goal.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 10: at Miami Dolphins
Tampa Bay would get the only score of the third quarter as Barth nailed a 54-yard field goal. The Buccaneers would creep closer in the fourth quarter as rookie quarterback Josh Freeman completed a 33-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Maurice Stovall, yet Miami continued to have their way as Carpenter booted a 45-yard field goal. Tampa Bay would take the lead as running back Cadillac Williams got a 1-yard touchdown run, but the Dolphins got the last laugh as Carpenter made the game-winning 25-yard field goal.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: at Atlanta Falcons
Trying to avoid a 3-game losing streak, the Buccaneers flew to Georgia Dome for an NFC South rivalry match against the Atlanta Falcons.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: at Atlanta Falcons
In the first quarter the Bucs trailed early as kicker Jason Elam nailed a 45-yard field goal, and then with QB Chris Redman making a 22-yard touchdown pass to RB Jerious Norwood. Then the Bucs replied with QB Josh Freeman making a 42-yard touchdown pass to WR Antonio Bryant, then kicker Connor Barth made a 39-yard field goal. In the third quarter the Bucs took the lead when Freeman hooked up with Cadillac Williams on an 8-yard touchdown pass. Then the Falcons lost the margin when kicker Jason Elam got a 37-yard field goal. In the final seconds of the fourth quarter the Bucs fell behind when Redman made a 5-yard touchdown pass to WR Roddy White.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 12: at Atlanta Falcons
With the loss, the Buccaneers fell to 1–10 and stay winless on the road after 5 visits. Additionally, the team was officially eliminated from postseason contention.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 14: vs. New York Jets
The Jets were without starting quarterback Mark Sanchez, but the Buccaneers were unable to take advantage. The Tampa Bay defense allowed 175 yards rushing, and quarterback Josh Freeman, coming off a five interception game the previous week, struggled to read New York Jets coach Rex Ryan's exotic blitzes. Freeman finishing the day with three interceptions and a passer rating of just 12.1, well below his season average of 59.8.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: at Seattle Seahawks
Coming off their home loss to the Jets, the Bucs flew to Qwest Field for a week 15 duel against the Seattle Seahawks. After a scoreless first quarter, Seattle got on the board first with QB Matt Hasselbeck's  29-yard pass to tight end John Carlson. The Bucs got on the board with Connor Barth's 28-yard field goal to end the first half.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: at Seattle Seahawks
In the third quarter, Tampa Bay took the lead after a 45-yard field goal and a 22-yard touchdown pass by QB Josh Freeman to running back Cadillac Williams, set up by a Tanard Jackson interception. The Buccaneers further extended their lead with a 28-yard pass to running back Derrick Ward, with a successful two-point conversion. In the fourth quarter, Barth kicked another field goal for 39 yards. Seattle tried to rally, but Hasselbeck threw an interception (his fourth) in the end zone to cornerback Elbert Mack for a touchback.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 15: at Seattle Seahawks
With the win, the Buccaneers improved to 2–12. Not only was it their first road win since November 23, 2008, it also marked their first win on the west coast since winning Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego and their first win in Seattle since 1999.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 16: at New Orleans Saints
The Saints dominated the first quarter and entered halftime riding on a 17–3 lead. Tampa Bay scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including a 77-yard kick return by Micheal Spurlock, to tie the game at 17. As time expired, Garrett Hartley  attempted a 37-yard field goal that would have salvaged the game for the Saints, but the kick hooked left. In overtime, Tampa Bay won the coin toss, received the kickoff, and drove down the field to win the game with a field goal, for a final score of 20–17.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 16: at New Orleans Saints
This was the first time in franchise history that the Bucs defeated the eventual Super Bowl champions.


2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Game summaries, Week 17: vs. Atlanta Falcons
At 44 °F, it was the second-coldest home game in Buccaneers history.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season
The Tampa Bay Rays' 2009 season was their 12th season of baseball on the Gulf Coast of Florida. The team attempted to defend their American League Championship they won in the previous season. Although they missed the playoffs, they still finished with a winning record (84–78) – only the second in franchise history.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
For the most part, the Rays' main roster remained intact. Eric Hinske's contract expired at the end of the 2008 season, and the team did not exercise options on Rocco Baldelli, Cliff Floyd or Trever Miller, making all four free agents. None were offered salary arbitration. In addition, Jonny Gomes was non-tendered on December 12, 2008, making him a free agent as well.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
During the offseason, starting pitcher Edwin Jackson was traded to the Detroit Tigers for corner outfielder and Tampa native Matt Joyce. Prior to that, the Rays also considered a trade with the Florida Marlins for corner outfielder Jeremy Hermida, but declined to make a deal. They also considered trading with the Minnesota Twins to re-acquire center fielder Delmon Young, whom they traded (along with Brendan Harris) to the Twins in the 2007–08 offseason for Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
The Rays signed relief pitcher Joe Nelson to a one-year, $1.3-million deal on December 30.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
The Rays had discussions with free agents for a designated hitter, including Jason Giambi, Bobby Abreu and Milton Bradley. They also considered re-signing Baldelli as a full-time DH. However, on January 5, 2009, they signed ex-Phillie left fielder Pat Burrell to a two-year deal worth $16 million.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
On January 12, outfielder Gabe Kapler was signed to a one-year, $1-million deal.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
On February 17, free agent infielder Adam Kennedy was signed to a minor-league contract and invited to spring training.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
The only player who was eligible for salary arbitration that went to a hearing was catcher Dioner Navarro. He lost his hearing on February 10, and was given $2.1 million for 2009; he sought $2.5 million. Two players avoided arbitration: shortstop Jason Bartlett, who signed a one-year contract just short of $2 million on January 20; and Willy Aybar, who signed a two-year deal with an option for 2011 worth up to $4.5 million on February 18.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
Matt Garza, Andy Sonnanstine and B. J. Upton all had their contracts renewed, and the Rays signed 15 other players on February 25.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Offseason
At the end of spring training, starting pitcher Jason Hammel was traded to the Colorado Rockies for pitching prospect Aneury Rodríguez. Jeff Niemann joined James Shields, Scott Kazmir, Matt Garza and Andy Sonnanstine in the starting rotation to begin the season, as David Price was optioned to Triple-A Durham.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Organizational changes
Quality control coach Tim Bogar was hired by the Boston Red Sox to be their first base coach. Todd Greene signed on to replace Bogar in Tampa Bay.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Organizational changes
The Rays unveiled a new third jersey to be used in 2009, which is a dark blue shirt with the Rays logo. The color is similar to the main color of their batting practice jersey, but without the different-colored panels on the sides. The manta ray logo will not appear on the alternate jersey.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Organizational changes
The team's spring training operations will move from St. Petersburg to the rebuilt Charlotte County Stadium in Port Charlotte. Previously, they used Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg for spring training, and the Vince Naimoli Sports Complex for extended spring training.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Organizational changes
Charlotte County Stadium will also be home of their Advanced-A Florida State League minor league franchise, the former "Vero Beach Devil Rays", who will be renamed to the Charlotte Stone Crabs. In addition, their regular Class A franchise in the South Atlantic League will move from Columbus, Georgia, to Bowling Green, Kentucky, and become the Bowling Green Hot Rods.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Organizational changes
Their Appalachian League Rookie-class team, previously known as the "Princeton Devil Rays", will become known as the Princeton Rays, excising the "Devil" from the name and adopting the team colors and typeface after previously using the green-based color scheme from 2001, and the original typeface from 1998. The only minor league teams that will not change are the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits and the Short-A Hudson Valley Renegades.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Organizational changes
The Rays will also open a second Rookie-class team in the Gulf Coast League, the Gulf Coast Rays, which will also play at Charlotte County Stadium.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Media changes
Fox Sports Florida will take over the entire television contract, the beginning of an eight-year exclusive contract, and will broadcast 75 games, with another 75 games broadcast on sister network Sun Sports. It is unknown how much of the schedule will be broadcast in HD. Some cable networks have not begun to air games that are on Sun Sports, because of a disagreement on what fees the networks will pay the station for the games. The companies still in dispute will not broadcast games airing on Sun Sports.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Media changes
Dewayne Staats returned as the play-by-play announcer, but Joe Magrane moved to MLB Network. On February 16, it was made official that Kevin Kennedy would split time in the booth with Brian Anderson, as well as Todd Kalas, who is currently the Rays' pre-, post- and in-game host.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Media changes
At least five games will appear as Saturday afternoon games nationally on MLB on Fox: May 9 at Boston, May 16 hosting Cleveland, May 30 hosting Minnesota, June 20 at the New York Mets, and August 29 at Detroit. The May 10 game at Boston aired on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball, just the second time the Rays appeared on the premier primetime package. More games may be moved to national coverage during the season. The season opener at Boston on April 6 was scheduled to air on ESPN, but was postponed to the next day, April 7, and the rescheduled game was not picked up by ESPN. The July 5 game at Texas aired on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Summary, Media changes
620 WDAE was announced as the new radio flagship. Sister station 1250 WHNZ had been the previous flagship station since 2005, but WDAE aired some Monday night games in 2008. Andy Freed and Dave Wills will return to do play-by-play with Rich Herrera serving as pre- and post-game host. All three will be in their fifth season with the team, after replacing the team's original radio announcers, Paul Olden and Charlie Slowes, after the 2004 season.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, April
The Rays began their American League title defense on the road against division rival Boston. Before a pitch was even thrown, the Rays already had a franchise first. Their scheduled Opening Day was postponed due to inclement weather, making it the first time that the first game of the season for the Rays had been postponed. After dropping the rescheduled season opener the following day, the Rays ended up winning the next two games of the series. This was the first opening series win for the Rays since 2002, when they swept the Detroit Tigers in a 3-game set.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, April
The Rays came home after splitting their first two series, opening Tropicana Field against the New York Yankees, and raising their American League East and AL Championship banners on April 13. B. J. Upton returned to the team having started the season on the disabled list. There was also a moment of silence held for Harry Kalas, Phillies radio announcer and father of Rays television analyst Todd Kalas, who died earlier in the day. The Rays won their home opener, 15–5.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, April
Matt Garza lost a bid for a perfect game in the 7th inning against the Boston Red Sox when Jacoby Ellsbury hit an infield single. Retiring the first 18 batters, this was the furthest any Ray pitcher had taken a perfect game, as well as the first time any Ray pitcher had retired 18 batters consecutively.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, April
Evan Longoria, with a .369 batting average, 6 home runs, a tie for the American League lead in RBI with 24, and a slugging percentage of .714, was awarded with the Player of the Month award for the American League. This was the first time a member of the Rays had won the award.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, April
The Rays finished the month 9–14, and were 5+1⁄2 games behind first place. They had not won a series since the opening series in Boston. Their longest win streak was two, which occurred twice.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
On May 3, Carl Crawford set a team record and tied a modern-day league record with six stolen bases. The last player to steal six bases was Eric Young while he was a member of the Colorado Rockies on June 30, 1996. It was only the fifth time since 1912 that a player had stolen that many bases, which was also the last year it had happened in the American League. After the game Crawford stated that he didn't know he had tied a record, or else he would have made an attempt for seven.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
On May 15, the Rays trailed the Cleveland Indians 7–0 after the top of the 4th inning, but would rally to score eight unanswered runs over the remainder of the game to win, capped off by a walk-off home run by B. J. Upton to lead off the bottom of the 9th inning. At the time, this was the largest come from behind win in franchise history, but remains the largest deficit overcome at home. Previously, the Rays had never won a game in which they had trailed by at least seven runs. They had come back from a six-run deficit on five occasions.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
Prior to a game against the Cleveland Indians on May 17, Rays manager Joe Maddon incorrectly filled out a lineup card that listed Evan Longoria and Ben Zobrist both as the third baseman. As the plan was to have Zobrist play the position at third base and have Longoria as the designated hitter, having them both as the third baseman left the Rays without a player listed as the designated hitter in their official lineup card.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
As stated in part of Rule 6.10(b) in the official rulebook of the league, "It is not mandatory that a club designate a hitter for the pitcher, but failure to do so prior to the game precludes the use of a Designated Hitter for that game." Indians manager Eric Wedge brought the error to the attention of the umpires at the beginning of the bottom of the first inning.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
Because there was no designated hitter, and since Zobrist had already taken the field as the third baseman, the Rays would have to use starting pitcher Andy Sonnanstine as the third batter in the lineup where Longoria would normally bat. Longoria would enter the game later, in the seventh inning as a triple-switch when Sonnanstine was relieved from the game, moving Zobrist to right field in place of Gabe Kapler and shifting the pitcher's spot to seventh. Almost a week after the game, MLB umpiring vice president Mike Port stated that the umpires were wrong in allowing Longoria to come into the game at any point after it began. The Rays ultimately won the game, 7–5. Sonnanstine went 1-for-3 with an RBI double.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
On May 22, the Rays placed Troy Percival and Scott Kazmir on the 15-day disabled list, and called up infielder Reid Brignac and relief pitcher Dale Thayer. The move left the Rays with four starting pitchers, suggesting another move may be made later on to fill the vacant starting role later on.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
The Rays lost starting second baseman Akinori Iwamura for the season to a leg injury that occurred on May 24 against the Florida Marlins. While Iwamura was making an effort to turn a double play, Marlins infielder Chris Coghlan awkwardly slid into Iwamura's leg in an attempt to disrupt the throw to first base. Iwamura fell to the ground and had to be taken off the field on a cart. The next day after an MRI, it was announced that he suffered a torn ACL, "involvement" on the MCL, in addition to torn ligaments in his ankle.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
Even before the announcement was made, hopes of a speedy recovery were not promising, as Iwamura was seen around the clubhouse on crutches "saying goodbye", and as Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett put it, "From what I heard, he's not going to be back soon." Bartlett himself would be put on the disabled list one day later, with a sprained ankle.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
David Price, the team's first overall pick in the 2007 MLB draft, made his season debut on the road against the Cleveland Indians on May 25. After 100 pitches in 3+1⁄3 innings, Price was taken out of the game.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
On the same night as Price's first start of the 2009 season, the Rays jumped out to a 10–0 lead over the Indians, but were unable to win the game, as their opponents rallied for 11 unanswered runs. The Rays allowed 7 runs to cross the plate in the bottom of the 9th inning, ended by a walk-off 2-run single by Víctor Martínez. The Indians scored their last five runs with two outs, as the game's last six batters reached base. This having been the first of a 4-game set for the Rays on the road, the Indians eventually won every game in the series, extending the Rays' losing streak for road games against Cleveland to 17 games. The last time the Rays won in Cleveland was September 28, 2005.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, May
At the end of May, the Rays were 25–28, 4th place in the division, and 5+1⁄2 games out of first place. They were 5 games behind first place for the Wild Card.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, June
On June 22, Akinori Iwamura underwent surgery to repair the injuries suffered the month before. It was discovered that his ACL was only partially torn, meaning he would not require reconstructive surgery. Instead, an arthroscopic surgery was performed, and a report on the successful operation stated that he could return in 6–8 weeks.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, June
On June 28, the Rays became the fastest team to hit 100 home runs and steal 100 bases in a single season, needing only 77 games. They were the fifth to do it before the all-star break, and the first since the Florida Marlins in 2003 to do so.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, June
The Rays would go 19–7 in the month, improving their overall record to 44–35, and riding a seven-game winning streak into July. They set a new franchise record for home runs in one month with 41. While not having gained much ground on the division lead, finishing the month 4 games behind, in the wild card race, they went into July only 1+1⁄2 games behind.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, June
Carlos Peña led the American League in home runs at the end of June with 23, which was third best in the entire league.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, June
For the second time in the season, a Rays player was named the American League's Player of the Month. B. J. Upton, with a .324 batting average, 5 home runs, 22 RBI, 10 doubles, a .562 slugging percentage, a .395 on-base percentage, and league best 14 stolen bases, won the award this time.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
Unfortunately the Rays' winning streak did not carry over into the next month. They lost their first four games in July, including being swept on the road by the Texas Rangers, and did not win until their first home game of the month. By the All-Star break, the Rays were 48–41. They were 6+1⁄2 games behind first place in the division, and 3+1⁄2 behind for the Wild Card.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
Four Rays were selected to make the All-Star Game. Evan Longoria, after having to rely on the All-Star Final Vote to take the final spot on the roster in his rookie year in 2008, was elected as the starting 3rd baseman by the fans. Longoria had the third highest votes out of players in the American League, but did not participate in the game due to an infection in his finger. Making the All-Star roster by means of player voting, was Carl Crawford, his third selection, and Jason Bartlett, his first selection.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
As manager of the American League champions in the previous season's World Series, Joe Maddon automatically became a manager of the American League All-Stars. Part of his job as manager was to select players for the team after the fans and players voted. One of Maddon's selections was the Rays' own Ben Zobrist, which was his first selection to the midsummer classic.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
The Rays would send a fifth player, making it the most they had ever sent to one All-Star Game, which was a record that had been set the previous season. Carlos Peña, who had never been to the All-Star Game, was a nominee for the All-Star Final Vote, a process in which fans choose one of five players in each league to take the final roster spots on the All-Star squads. Voting began after the initial All-Star rosters were announced.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
To help garner votes for Peña, the Rays started the "Vote for 'Los" campaign, having T-shirts made with Peña's face on them which players wore during batting practice. The Rays asked fans to bring their laptop computers to Tropicana Field and vote online during the game, as well as using advertisements, online commercials, fliers, merchandise, and even a video message from comedian Rob Schneider. Despite all efforts, Peña would ultimately finish fourth in the voting. Brandon Inge of the Detroit Tigers received the most votes to get the last remaining spot.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
Even though he didn't win, Peña said he was flattered and humbled to see how many were in support of him to make the All-Star Game. Peña would eventually make the team anyway as a replacement to Dustin Pedroia, who would have been the starting 2nd baseman, as he pulled out due to a "serious family health matter" involving his wife.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
Peña would also take part in the Home Run Derby. In the first round, he hit 5 home runs, good enough for fourth place. Two other participants would do the same, and so a "swing-off" was needed to determine who would advance to the next round. In the tiebreaker, Peña would only hit one home run, and was eliminated after Albert Pujols hit two.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
Crawford was named MVP of the All-Star Game, for taking a home run away from Brad Hawpe in the bottom of the 7th inning. Had Crawford not made the catch, Hawpe would have broken a 3–3 tie in favor of the National League. Crawford's grab turned out to be a major factor in the game, as the American League would go on to win 4–3.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
On July 23, Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox threw a perfect game against the Rays. It was only the eighteenth example of a perfect game in  Major League Baseball history.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
On the road against the Toronto Blue Jays on July 25, the Rays were down 8–0 after four innings, and losing 9–1 entering the 7th inning. However the Rays would score eight runs over the next 3 innings to tie the game, including two solo home runs in the 9th inning. The game would enter extra innings, where the Rays would take a one-run lead into the bottom of the 12th inning. Joe Nelson would come in to pitch as the Rays' last remaining relief pitcher available. The Blue Jays would load the bases with one out, but could not capitalize. This became the largest come from behind win in franchise history for the Rays, a record previously set earlier in the season.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, July
Finishing the month with an even 12–12 record, the Rays had an overall record of 56–47. Even with the fifth-most wins in the American League, they were 6 games behind for the lead in the division, and 4+1⁄2 games behind for the wild card. They made no big moves on the July 31 trade deadline, though they were rumored to be interested in several players, including Victor Martinez and Cliff Lee of the Indians. Ultimately, Martinez would be traded to Boston, while Lee was sent to Philadelphia.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, August
On August 7, the Rays acquired catcher Gregg Zaun from the Baltimore Orioles for a player to be named later. To make room for Zaun, the Rays designated another catcher, Michel Hernández.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, August
On August 29, the Rays sent starting pitcher Scott Kazmir to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in exchange for two minor league prospects and a player to be named later. Initially, there was confusion about whether or not a deal had been made, or if it had been in the works before falling through. Kazmir himself said he knew nothing about a trade, asking reporters who were questioning him if they were joking.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, August
The Rays would not confirm that a trade was being made, but a leak to the news by the Angels reportedly almost led the Rays to call it off because of their policy to notify the player first. The websites for ESPN and MLB reported in the afternoon that the trade had been completed, however MLB took down their report and replaced it with a story stating that the trade would not occur. Kazmir was in uniform for the Rays that night as they played the Detroit Tigers, but was not the starting pitcher in the game.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, August
After the conclusion of the game, it was confirmed by the Rays that Kazmir had been dealt. Drafted by the New York Mets, the Rays acquired Kazmir in a trade considered to be one of the best in franchise history. In his six seasons with the Rays, Kazmir became the club's all-time leader in wins, strikeouts, and games started. He was also the team's record holder for ERA and strikeouts in a single season. In 2007, Kazmir led the majors in strikeouts with 239. He was also a two-time all-star, and the winning pitcher in the 2008 All-Star Game. Andrew Friedman, the Rays' Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations, said that Kazmir's contract was not the primary reason that he was traded, but was an element in the decision.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, August
A day after the Kazmir trade, the Rays activated Akinori Iwamura from the disabled list.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, August
Going 15–12 for the month, the Rays had a 71–59 record overall, assuring themselves of having at least the second best season in franchise history. The Rays had fallen behind the New York Yankees for the division lead by 11+1⁄2 games, but were still within reach of the wild card, trailing the Boston Red Sox by only 5 games.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
When rosters expanded on the first day of September, the Rays called up four players. Relief pitcher Jeff Bennett, outfielder Fernando Perez, catcher Shawn Riggans, and starting pitcher Andy Sonnanstine, with Sonnanstine scheduled to start for the Rays that night.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
The Rays were struggling to keep up in the wild card race, but took a blow to their lineup on September 7 when Carlos Peña, who was leading the American League in home runs, was hit on his fingers by a pitch during the first game of a doubleheader. It wasn't until after that first game that the Rays announced Peña had two fractured fingers and would be out for the remainder of the season.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
Peña said that it was a wonder that he didn't pass out from the pain of taking a fastball to the fingers, and that the X-ray of his middle finger looked like "a pencil snapped in half", but upon the realization of having to miss the rest of the year, "hurt more than the hit by pitch itself."


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
If losing Peña wasn't bad enough for the Rays, their losing streak at the time reached 11 games before it was snapped, although they never fell below a .500 record. On September 22, the Rays were officially eliminated from postseason contention, but would still finish with the second winning season in team history, winning their 82nd game of the season on September 30. They went 11–17 in the month of September.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
B. J. Upton became the first player in franchise history to hit for the cycle, doing so on October 2, against the New York Yankees. Upton hit a triple, a double, a home run, and a single, in that order, all before five innings were completed. He would later add another single to finish the night 5 for 5 with a career-high 6 RBIs.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
Though they were not successful in defending the division and league championships won in 2008, the Rays did finish the season 3rd place in the AL East with an 84–78 record. Average attendance, as well as overall attendance at Tropicana Field increased again to become the highest since their inaugural season in 1998.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Regular season, September/October
Evan Longoria was given a Gold Glove award for third base in the American League on November 10. Longoria, who was the AL's 2008 Rookie of the Year, became the second player in Rays history to win a gold glove after first baseman Carlos Peña, who won in 2008.


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Player stats, Batting
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases


2009 Tampa Bay Rays season, Player stats, Pitching
Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts


2009 Tampere Open
The 2009 Tampere Open was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor red clay courts. It was the twenty-eighth edition of the tournament which was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Tampere, Finland between 27 July and 2 August 2009.


2009 Tampere Open, Singles entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Tampere Open, Champions, Doubles
Peter Luczak /  Yuri Schukin def. Simone Vagnozzi /  Uros Vico, 6–1, 6–7(6), [10–4]


2009 Tampere Open – Doubles
Ervin Eleskovic and Michael Ryderstedt were the defending champions, but they didn't compete this year. Peter Luczak and Yuri Schukin won in the final 6–1, 6–7(6), [10–4], against Simone Vagnozzi and Uros Vico.


2009 Tampere Open – Singles
Mathieu Montcourt cannot defend his title. He died on 6 July 2009. Thiemo de Bakker became the new champion, after defeating Peter Luczak 6–4, 7–6(7) in the final.


2009 Tashkent Challenger
The 2009 Tashkent Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the second edition of the tournament which was part of the 2009 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan between 12 and 18 October 2009.


2009 Tashkent Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2009 Tashkent Challenger, Champions, Doubles
Murad Inoyatov /  Denis Istomin def. Jiří Krkoška /  Lukáš Lacko, 7–6(4), 6–4


2009 Tashkent Challenger – Doubles
Flavio Cipolla and Pavel Šnobel were the defending champions; however, they decided to not compete this year. Murad Inoyatov and Denis Istomin won the tournament in their country, after defeating Jiří Krkoška and Lukáš Lacko in the final.


2009 Tashkent Challenger – Singles
Lu Yen-hsun tried to defend his 2008 title, but he was eliminated by Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr. in the second round. Marcos Baghdatis defeated Denis Istomin 6–3, 1–6, 6–3 in the final.


2009 Tashkent Open
The 2009 Tashkent Open was a women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 11th edition of the Tashkent Open, and was part of the WTA International tournaments of the 2009 WTA Tour. It was held at the Olympic Tennis School in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, from 21 September through 27 September 2009. Shahar Pe'er won the singles title.


2009 Tashkent Open, WTA entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw


2009 Tashkent Open, Finals, Doubles
Olga Govortsova /  Tatiana Poutchek defeated  Vitalia Diatchenko /  Ekaterina Dzehalevich 6–2, 6–7(1–7), [10–8]


2009 Tashkent Open – Doubles
Ioana Raluca Olaru and Olga Savchuk were the defending champions, both of them were present this year, but played with different partners. Olaru partnered with Galina Voskoboeva, but they lost in the first round against Arina Rodionova and Olga Savchuk. Savchuk partnered with Arina Rodionova, but they lost in the semifinals against Vitalia Diatchenko and Ekaterina Dzehalevich.


2009 Tashkent Open – Singles
Sorana Cîrstea was the defending champion, but she chose to participate at the Hansol Korea Open instead. Shahar Pe'er won in the final 6-3, 6-4 against Akgul Amanmuradova.


2009 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election
Periodic elections for the Tasmanian Legislative Council were held on 2 May 2009. The three seats up for election were Derwent, held by Labor MLC Michael Aird; Mersey, held by retiring independent MLC Norma Jamieson; and Windermere, held by independent MLC Ivan Dean. These seats were last contested in 2003.


2009 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Derwent
Derwent had been held by Michael Aird for Labor since a 1995 by-election; he had previously served in the House of Assembly from 1979 to 1986 and from 1989 to 1995. A minister in Michael Field's government from 1989 to 1992, he had served as Treasurer and Minister for Racing since 2006. The Tasmanian Greens endorsed Susan Gunter, a shearer and former environmental lawyer. Independent candidate Jenny Branch, Glenorchy Alderman and President of the Tasmanian Parents and Friends Association, was a Liberal Party member but resigned from the party prior to the election.


2009 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Derwent
The former federal member for Franklin, Harry Quick, initially nominated as a Greens candidate, but he withdrew his nomination.


2009 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Derwent
Since Aird won a majority on the first vote, no preference count was conducted.


2009 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Mersey
Independent MLC for Mersey Norma Jamieson decided to retire after one term, having been first elected in 2003. Four candidates, all independents, contested the election. Mike Gaffney was a teacher and public servant who had been Mayor of Latrobe Council since 2002 and President of the Tasmanian Local Government Association since 2006. Although running as an independent, Gaffney had previously run for the Labor Party at the 2002 state election and received some support from the Labor government. Norma Jamieson's daughter Carolynn was a small business owner.


2009 Tasmanian Legislative Council periodic election, Mersey
Lynn Laycock had been Mayor of Devonport since 2005; she had some Liberal connections, having worked as an assistant to Liberal Premier Tony Rundle. Steve Martin was running primarily on the issue of Mersey Community Hospital, which had passed to Commonwealth control the previous year. He had previously worked for Labor MPs and was a restaurateur at the time of the election.