The apple doesn’t fall from the tree, or, in our case, the sour grapes don’t fall far from the vine. Just as athletic ability and brains and blond hair run in families, so too, does whining.

As proof, we offer our choice for Whiner of the Week, Hank “Son of George” Steinbrenner, who’s becoming a regular here at the world headquarters for childish behavior.

Remember back to last year when Hank took over the baseball end of the family business from his ailing father? For years, Hank had shown no interest in running the team. So when he said he was going to give the team a little breathing room, we actually believed him. And when he said he knew the pitching staff needed to be rebuilt and didn’t pull out his father’s annual line about anything other than a World Series title being a failure, we thought a new era of sane ownership was about to dawn in the Bronx. Heck, he said the team might not even make the playoffs.

It didn’t last long. Hank was in full whine before the season began and he’s hardly stopped except to take a breath.

His team has struggled through the first month of the season. The kid pitchers, Philip Hughes and Ian Kennedy, couldn’t get anybody out. Jorge Posada, one of team’s main cogs, went on the disabled list. Alex Rodriguez, the three-time MVP joined him there, as did Hughes. Kennedy has been shipped down to the minors. Even Derek Jeter was out for a while.

But Hank is having no excuses. He told The New York Daily News last week he was disappointed in his team. "We just can’t win one out of five games, every time Wang pitches," Steinbrenner said referring to staff ace Chien-Ming Wang. "It’s not going to work. It’s not a good win percentage. Starting pitching is where it’s at, especially in the postseason. At this point, we’ll see if we even make the postseason."

Yep. Just a mere five months left in the season and Hank’s hitting the panic button. So much for front-office sanity.

Dishonorable mentions:

Eli Holman
Holman was supposed to be a key piece of Indiana’s basketball team next year, but the freshman decided he wanted out of the troubled program. No problem there, but while informing coach Tom Crean of his decision, Holman threw a tantrum that required the arrival of campus cops. No word on whether his last words were, "Don’t taze me, bro."

Billy Wagner
Baseball clubhouses are supposed to be like Las Vegas. What happens there stays there. Apparently, the Mets closer didn’t get the memo, publicly ripping fellow pitcher Oliver Perez after a lousy start. Wagner may have had a point, but the person to make it to was Perez, not the local tabloids.

Rusty Hardin
It was a very bad week for Roger Clemens, with a new tale of infidelity hitting the tabs almost daily — pun intended. At first, Hardin, his lawyer, made himself scarce, not responding to requests for comment. Finally, Hardin broke his silence. So what did he have to say for his client? "He’s getting pummeled," Hardin whined.

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