Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Eleven shots separated Phil and Tiger Sunday at Pebble Beach as Lefty secured his 40th Tour win. Jason Sobel had hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
AFP - Getty ImagesSo you have to pay attention to Chicago, something that’s a lot easier to do with Ozzie Guillen on the bench. Plus, this is the first year in about forever that they’ve begun a season without Frank Thomas on the roster. In his place is Jim Thome, who was missing in inaction in Philadelphia the past two years. He’s had a great spring, and if he returns to the form he had in Cleveland, we could be looking at another runaway win for Chicago.
The Angels are the popular pick in the AL West, but how will their pitching staff perform without Benjie Molina behind the plate? And what about the A’s, who always find a way to be there in September? Oakland still has a pretty good starting rotation. All you want there is for the season to get into the final weeks and for the Angels and A’s to slug it out again.
Finally, there’s the NL West. Yes, there will be a spotlight on the bloated one in San Francisco, the real fun could be further down Interestate 5 where the Padres have a mix of old — creaky Mike Piazza is attempting a renaissance there — and new — middle infielders Josh Barfield and Khalil Greene — and some pretty high hopes. But the smart money — and the season will show how smart it is — is on the Dodgers, which has collected players from everywhere in an attempt to return to championship form.
Nomar Garciaparra is there to play first by way of Boston and Chicago. Bill Mueller is at third, also from the Red Sox. Rafael Furcal arrived from Atlanta to play short. And at second is Jeff Kent, which makes for an impressive infield. Gone are Jeff Weaver and Milton Bradley. Still there to save the day is Eric Gagne.
That’s barely scratching the surface of what’s ahead of us. Will Ichiro threaten to hit .400? Will Albert Pujols win a second straight MVP and finally get recognition as the best player in the game? Will A-Rod hit into a double play at the year’s most critical moment? How long until David Wells again says something stupid? How long before the Rangers rise up in rebellion against Buck Showalter? Will anyone detect a pulse in the Rockies?
How will Jim Leyland play in Detroit? Can Cleveland fill the Jake again?
These are the stories, and most of them are good ones. So let’s not let Barry do a Bode on the season. Let’s not ruin it before it starts. Let’s try something new this year. Let’s try enjoying the ride.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
DeMarco: Plug in a well-heeled ownership group and negotiate one of those mega-bucks TV deals that are going around, and the Dodgers could become the west coast version of the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox.
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Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
After leading by 18 points in the first half, the Los Angeles Lakers were staring at a four-point deficit with less than two minutes to play.