In a story in today’s Reading (Pa.) Eagle, Edward V. Giannasca II says he will appeal his $33 million loss to former Raven Michael McCrary — and denied he has any intention of fleeing the country with his three children, as alleged by his ex-wife.

“What is she talking about fleeing? I’m right here,” Giannasca told the paper from his office in Reading, where he’s seeking approval for a $2.8 billion mixed-use project on 80 acres along the Schuylkill River.

Giannasca said he “merely got passports for all the children at the same time because one son needed one,” the Eagle reports.

He will have a chance to explain that to visiting Judge Paul E. Alpert, who ordered him to appear in Baltimore City Circuit Court on Monday, June 30, under threat of a body attachment.

But, according to the Eagle, he has other plans.

“Giannasca said he won’t be there because he and his family will be on a weeklong vacation in Hilton Head, S.C.,” the story said.

The Eagle also says Giannasca stayed away from this week’s legal proceedings in Baltimore, despite a court order and his own promise to appear, on advice of counsel.

BARBARA GRZINCIC, Managing Editor/Law

The Baltimore Ravens are looking for a new head coach. The reasons are well, and painfully, documented.

The question now is “Who?”. Reports have the team narrowing the list of potential candidates down to 30 with a further dwindling to eight expected.

Who the next coach will be is extremely important for a team that saw its season spiral out of control, losing 9 of its last 10 games. The lowlight being the loss to New England where, after a heroic performance against the Patriots, the team blamed everyone but themselves for letting a victory slip away and their coach arrogantly defend boneheaded decisions.

Mind you, 40 miles down I-95 in Prince George’s County, the Redskins were dealing with the murder of a teammate and star player and similarly bad play calling and on-field performances. They rallied, though, behind a coach who took responsibility for his team’s lackluster play and brought them closer together.

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First things first. Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti seems to be a great guy. He even returned my phone calls when I covered the sports-business beat at The Sun.

Bisciotti seemed genuinely torn up about firing Coach Brian Billick. But here’s a question: Why haven’t Baltimore’s sports columnists and sports talk show hosts beaten up Bisciotti for “meddling” in the Ravens’ football affairs with the same vengeance that they routinely beat up Peter Angelos with for “meddling” in the Orioles’ baseball affairs?

Is there one iota of difference?

To be clear, I think both Bisciotti and Angelos have every right to “meddle.” They own the teams. You can’t meddle in something that’s your’s.

The reason Bisciotti’s gotten a free pass is that the sports writers also think he’s a great guy. Angelos — well, not so much. (And to be fair, Angelos also always returned my phone calls. We even shared a cab once from Major League Baseball’s New York headquarters to Penn Station.)

But if they think it’s wrong for Angelos to have his hand in baseball decisions, it’s hard for me to imagine why they wouldn’t think it’s wrong for Bisciotti to have his hand in football decisions.

Am I crazy?

ED WALDMAN, Managing Editor/Business

Photo courtesy of scout.com. 

WBAL-AM’s Steve Davis is reporting that Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti fired head coach Brian Billick this morning.

You may have seen a popular profile earlier this month of a die-hard Ravens fan who became a celebrity after camping out on top of a Canton bar to wait out the home team’s losing streak.

Well, Ron Stach was arrested this week, reports The Baltimore Sun, after his ex-wife exposed him as an alleged deadbeat dad.

The AP writes:

Kelly Stach says she thinks it’s horrible that he was being admired as a Ravens supporter but hasn’t supported his children.

She informed city police Wednesday that Stach was wanted on a Baltimore County warrant for failing to appear in court. Court documents say he owes at least $34,000 in child support.

Stach had already climbed down from the roof when he was arrested at a home in Southeast Baltimore. He was expected to have a bail review Friday.

JACKIE SAUTER, Multimedia Editor

I used to hate football. I used to loathe Sundays when the television was commandeered for hours on end of what appeared to be mere chest-thumping male chauvinism.

Then, one day, I decided to stop ignoring it and to start asking questions. And as it turns out, men really love to talk about football.

What does it mean to be “2nd and 2”?
Do you need both feet in for a catch to count?
What is a safety?
Why did the ref stop the play with a flag?
What makes the special teams “special”?

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Even though the home team wasn’t victorious, the Baltimore Ravens may be able to find solace at the top of the cable ratings.

Monday night’s game on ESPN averaged more than 12.5 million homes and 17.5 million viewers, the largest audience yet on cable.

Alright, maybe the Patriots had something to do with it, too.

The AP reports:

The previous highs were 11.8 million households for last year’s Giants-Cowboys “Monday Night Football” game and 17.2 million viewers for Disney Channel’s “High School Musical 2″ movie in August.

Above: Ravens quarterback Kyle Boller talks with coach Brian Billick during the first half of the game. Photo courtesy AP.

-JACKIE SAUTER, Multimedia Editor