Texas Rangers starter C.J. Wilson held his second annual “Strike Out” charity tournament on Thursday at Splitsville Lanes. The event benefited his children’s charity, which assists children suffering from chronic, life-threatening illnesses and their families.

The Miami Herald noted that the Dolphins canceled a 5 PM practice yesterday, boarded 3 charter buses, and headed to a local bowling alley for a little afternoon fun.

The Sacramento Bee’s Oakland Raiders blog noted that coach Tom Cable took his entire team bowling in Napa Wednesday night as a result of losing a wager on last spring’s NBA Finals with cornerback Mnam Asomugha. Left tackle Mario Henderson proved to be the best of the bunch, posting 204-194-175=573 despite having to use a house ball and rental shoes (the blog noted that he has his own equipment).

The Oakland Tribune noted that Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Josh Johnson and Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch, both alumni of Oakland Tech High, had a bowling night at Albany Bowl on July 9 prior to their youth football camp at their alma mater. Several other current NFL players with ties to the area also participated.

A Minneapolis Star-Tribune blog notes that Twins second baseman Orlando Hudson will host a “Twins & Pins” charity bowling event on July 29. A page linked in the above article stated that the event will take place at the Brooklyn Park Brunswick Zone and will benefit Hudson’s C.A.T.C.H. Foundation and the Autism Society of Minnesota. Centerfielder Denard Span is one of the other current and former Twins players who will participate.

This press release notes that bowling will be part of “YES Escape 2010” on Friday at the Le Reve Estate near Atlanta, with the event being hosted by New York Giants linebacker Gerris Wilkinson, a graduate of Georgia Tech.

A website focused on Valparaiso University notes that the Chicago White Sox will host their first-ever celebrity bowling fundraiser at the Chicago Lucky Strike Lanes on August 23. The event will benefit pediatric cancer research and treatment programs at two area children’s hospitals.

A report out of Baton Rouge, LA indicates that Indianapolis Colts running back Joseph Addai, a product of LSU, will don bowling shoes Thursday for “Super Bowling With Joseph Addai & Friends” at Metro Bowl. Participating will be alumni of the LSU athletic program, as well as PBA bowler Steve Weber. The event will benefit the Heritage Ranch Champions for Children program.

The Boston Globe’s celebrity column notes that New England Patriots left tackle Matt Light celebrated his 32nd birthday Wednesday night by bowling a few strings at King’s in Dedham.

This Boston Red Sox blog notes that pitcher Josh Beckett will hold his annual “Beckett Bowl” event on July 29, and the Boston Lucky Strike Lanes will host the event for the second straight year. Children’s Hospital Boston is the principal beneficiary of the event.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a “Rookie Club” aimed at getting their first-year players involved in the community, and, as a blog about the team notes, they will host a bowling outing for at-risk kids in Tampa on Thursday.

A TV station report out of West Palm Beach, FL notes that David Clowney of the New York Jets will host a celebrity basketball and bowling event next weekend at Atlantic High School.

The Chicago Tribune’s sports blog notes that Bears coach Lovie Smith generally takes his team bowling on the 14th day of OTAs. Since the blog notes that yesterday was the 9th OTA day, you may assume that the bowling trip will take place on Monday.

A post on PRWeb.com announced that New York Mets pitcher Johan Santana, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, will hold his “All-Star Bowling Classic” at the Manhattan Lucky Strike on June 21. The event benefits his charitable foundation, part of which focuses on skin cancer awareness.

NESN notes that Boston Red Sox reliever Manny Delcarmen will hold his annual “Bowlin’ Strikes For Schools” charity event on June 28 at Jillian’s on Landsdowne St. outside of Fenway Park. The benefit supports the Boston public school system, which Delcarmen is a product of.

The Arizona Cardinals reported that head coach Ken Whisenhunt took the team out yesterday for one of those bowling OTAs that seem to be popular with both the coaches and the players.

The Examiner notes that New York Giants wide receiver Steve Smith will hold his “All-Pro Charity Bowl” at Chelsea Piers on June 14, and will be joined by former members of his team, as well as former members of the Jets, Mets, Rangers, and Yankees.

OTAs in the NFL are in full swing, usually meaning that some teams have bowling outings as one of the OTAs for team-building, and the Pittsburgh Steelers will have one of those on Tuesday, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette notes.

The Houston Chronicle notes that Texans fans will have an opportunity to bowl with their team’s players at the second annual “Pins and Pigskins Bowling Challenge” on June 9 at 300 Houston.

I normally reserve “Cross-training” mentions for active players, but since this has to do with one of my personal favorite former players, and the event being fairly local, I’m bending the “rules” for this…

On Tuesday, during open bowling, former Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi threw a 300 game at North Bowl in N. Attleboro, MA. A post to the ESPN.com Patriots blog includes video of a segment from Wednesday’s “NFL Live” program (on which Bruschi is now an analyst) which includes, among other things, cellphone video of the three-time Super Bowl champion throwing the last strike.

Could #54 be contemplating a bowling career now? 😀

This Ohio River valley area TV station report notes that New York Jets wide receiver Brad Smith will hold a “Bowling With The Stars” benefit in conjunction with his youth camp on June 25 at Camelot Lanes in Boardman, OH to benefit his True Foundation youth charity.

A local report out of Ft. Myers, FL notes that Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Earnest Graham will hold a bowling tournament on Saturday at the Pin Street Bowling Alley in Ft. Myers as part of his charitable weekend. Graham will be joined by some of his Buccs teammates, as well as students and staff from his high school alma mater, Mariner High School in the nearby town of Cape Coral.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review noted that the Pirates’ Zach Duke, along with his wife Kristin, will host the sixth annual “Bowling with the Bucs” charity event on May 9 at AMF Noble Lanes in Crafton, PA. The event benefits the team’s charitable foundation.

This arrived to Google News late (it wasn’t in my search yesterday), but the Denver Post noted that Broncos (and former Patriots) long snapper Lonie Paxton would be holding a draft party and bowling bash last night at the Brunswick Zone in Lone Tree, CO. Money raised by the event benefited the Active Force Foundation, which provides adaptive sports equipment to sports programs for the disabled and wounded soldiers.

This one is close to home. 🙂

This New England Patriots blog notes that linebacker Jerod Mayo recently held a “Mayo Bowl” charity tournament to benefit New England children’s charities (the article didn’t name any specifically). Many of Mayo’s teammates were present, and the article names some in particular.

This Canadian news site picked up a wire service report that notes that Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook will host a celebrity bowling tournament Saturday night to benefit the Oklahoma City Urban Youth Scholarship Fund. Westbrook’s Thunder teammates are expected to participate, along with Reggie Wayne and Cato June of the Indianapolis Colts.

Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia noted that the Flyers spent an afternoon bowling while in Dallas on a road trip, for no other reason than to spend time with each other away from the hotel.

This feature on Houston Rockets guard Aaron Brooks notes that he recently had a personal-best bowling game of 297, adding that his unusually large hands are an asset in bowling as well as basketball. I’ve always considered former MLB pitcher John Burkett to be the best-ever bowler for a major professional athlete. Can Brooks be just as good? Time will tell.

The Chicago Bears noted that fullback Jason McKie will host a “Celebowl” fundraiser on May 18 at the Vernon Hills Brunswick Zone. Proceeds will benefit McKie’s charitable foundation, which provides scholarships for children and spouses of military personnel killed or injured in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Denver Post notes that the Nuggets recently held their sixth annual “Nuggets Bowling Ball” at the Denver Lucky Strike Lanes, benefiting Kroenke Sports Charities, part of which supports Craig Hospital, which serves those recovering from brain and spinal cord injuries.