'Apprentice' alum fired from Tropicana Field

"Apprentice" castmate and Jersey shore realtor Brian McDowell was ejected from Tropicana Field during the sixth inning of Game 2 of the World Series after having a few too many beers, reports Mike Phillips, Internet radio host at NowLive.com. Phillips knows a thing or two about beer consumption - he is a beer vendor at Citizens Bank Park.

Phillips tells us he met McDowell on an Amtrak train to Florida on Tuesday and the pair also caught up at Game 2, where Phillips says he saw McDowell drinking heavily. When we reached McDowell by e-mail Friday, he replied that not only was he not at the game, he wasn't even in Florida, and also that he no longer drinks. When we later e-mailed McDowell to say that we had seen his cell-phone number in Phillips' call logs from Thursday night at the time Phillips said the two were together, McDowell changed his tune.

"We were cheering excessively for the Phillies in a section of Tampa fans," says McDowell, who stated that he and a friend were not ejected from the park, but were moved to another section populated by Phillies fans. Despite the account by Phillips, who also broadcasts online on MySpace, McDowell says that he hasn't had a drink since August 2007. "Not because I have a drinking problem, but it's made me more productive," he said. McDowell was ejected from the 5th season live finale of "The Apprentice," for an unclear reason in a video that can be seen here.

When we asked why he denied being at the game in the first place, McDowell explained that "I just don't want my name in lights anymore." Perhaps McDowell, who was one of the first contestants booted from the third season of "The Apprentice," didn't learn enough from Donald Trump, who knows well that all publicity is good publicity.