CANTON, Ohio -- ESPNs Chris Mortensen made an inspirational appearance onstage during the Pro Football Hall of Fame ceremony Saturday night to collect the Dick McCann Award seven months after entering into treatment for Stage 4 throat cancer.Applause greeted Mortensen, 64, as the Hall of Fame recognized him for making a long and distinguished contribution to pro football through coverage.No one is more deserving, ESPN colleague Suzy Kolber said as part of a video presentation as thousands watched from Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.Mortensen initially made his name in journalism as an investigative reporter for the Atlanta Journal Constitution. In 1988, he became the first sports reporter since Red Smith (1951) to win a George Polk Award. Mortensen continued to build his reputation as an NFL analyst for ESPN over the past 25 years.Peers in attendance for the Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremonies described Mortensen as thorough, tough, unassuming and exceptional in his ability to earn trust.When you were a local reporter, he would come visit your team and you would go, I hope Im not reading about this in the Journal Constitution or hearing about it on ESPN, longtime NFL columnist Clark Judge said. You knew he was going to find out something about the team you covered that you didnt know, even though you were out there every day.Mortensen became the 48th winner of the McCann Award and the third from ESPN over the past decade, joining John Clayton and Len Pasquarelli.Will McDonough was probably the first network NFL insider, but Mort took it to another level and transitioned into the world of everyday news like no other, said Bob Glauber, NFL columnist for Newsday. He would break a story any day of the week, any day of the year. He was a true trailblazer in that sense.ESPNs Chris Berman noted during the ceremony that Mortensen has stayed true to the reporting roots that launched his career in television.I know this, he reports 5 percent of what he knows, and his 5 percent is more than the 100 percent for other reporters, veteran NFL columnist Ira Kaufman said.Mortensen appeared onstage with his wife, Micki. McCann Award winners do not give a speech during the ceremonies, but Mortensen waved to the crowd after Hall of Fame president David Baker honored him.Mort is one of the conspicuously nice guys who does a great job, said Frank Cooney, a Hall of Fame selector who has covered the NFL since the 1960s. Mort knows how to get difficult stories. He works with people so well that he is able to get the information he needs even if it isnt comfortable sometimes. Its a tribute to him.USA Todays?Jarrett Bell called Mortensen?a standard-bearer in this industry.Whats so much more defining than the well-deserved honor that marks his career is the person that Ive come to know over the years, said Bell. Chris is as first-class as they come. In a business overflowing with huge egos, Chris is a good, down-to-earth dude who always seemed to me to represent something larger than getting the next story. Thats why Im more proud to call him a friend than a colleague. Wholesale Hawks Jerseys .C. -- Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Bobcats got off to a fast start, and the Sacramento Kings were never quite able to catch up. Cheap Atlanta Hawks Jerseys . - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. http://www.cheaphawksjerseys.com/ . 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SAN DIEGO -- Deep in a rebuilding mode, the San Diego Padres on Wednesday welcomed the first wave of top prospects that they hope will help form their core in the near future.The Padres called up catcher Austin Hedges, infielder Carlos Asuaje and outfielders Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe from Triple-A El Paso.After a day to get acclimated, those four will be in the starting lineup on Thursday night when the Padres open a four-game home series against the San Francisco Giants, who are fighting for a postseason berth.They have every opportunity to become a part of our core, manager Andy Green said before the Padres played the Arizona Diamondbacks in the finale of a three-game series. I think thats the message that should be out there right now. Were hopeful that theyre our core group of guys. When you think about talent arriving at this level, theyre our first wave, and how they perform on this field will determine how much of the core they are going forward, and there will be another wave of talent coming behind them. I think most of our talent after you get past this wave, a lot of it is down at the lower levels. Theyre going to have time and opportunity to perform.The four prospects helped El Paso win the Pacific Coast League championship. The Chihuahuas lost to International League Scranton-Wilkes-Barre in the Triple-A showdown on Tuesday night in Memphis.The Padres, who will miss the playoffs for the 10th straight season, have retrenched with youth after failing to win with several veterans obtained in a wild spree of trades and signings after the 2014 season. They loaded up then with Matt Kemp, Justin and Melvin Upton, James Shields, Wil Myers, Derek Norris and Craig Kimbrel.Only Myers, a first-time All-Star, and Norris remain. Justtin Upton left as a free agent after last season and Kimbrel was traded to Boston.dddddddddddd Kemp, Melvin Upton and Shields were traded this season in a salary dump.Asuaje and Margot were among the four prospects the Padres got from the Red Sox for Kimbrel in November.Renfroe was the teams first-round draft pick in 2013. Hedges was a second-round pick in 2011.The Padres also loaded up on international signings during the summer.Hedges made his major league debut in 2015, playing in 56 games, including 41 behind the plate.Its the first career callups for Margot, Renfroe and Asuaje.Its great for them. This is where theyve tried to be their entire life and theyre finally here, Green said. Their phones are blowing up right now. Theres 1,000 distractions for them to not pay attention to. They need to go about playing baseball. Every bit of experience at this level is useful. It will also kind of give us a little bit of a road map for the offseason.The Padres entered Wednesday nights game in fourth place in the NL West at 64-87, 21 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers.San Diego will finish with its sixth straight losing season. It has had only two winning seasons since making consecutive postseason appearances in 2005 and 2006.The Padres also called up left-handers Buddy Baumann and Jose Torres from El Paso.Last week, Major League Baseball suspended Padres general manager A.J. Preller for 30 days without pay, an unprecedented punishment for failing to disclose medical information when pitcher Drew Pomeranz was traded to the Boston Red Sox in July.---Follow Bernie Wilson on Twitter at http://twitter.com/berniewilson ' ' '