Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
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.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
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.
Reuters fileThe contract ties for the sixth largest overall, matching the $126 million, seven-year extension agreed to this month by Toronto and center fielder Vernon Wells. The Giants were looking for someone to fill the void left when ace Jason Schmidt departed earlier this month for the rival Los Angeles Dodgers.
“This was a definite want and need on the part of our ballclub,” general manager Brian Sabean said. “On a whole, everybody in the organization, including the players, are beside themselves for what this means for the organization.”
Zito is determined to become a better hitter considering his at-bats will be far greater in the National League. He has one hit in 29 career at-bats and plans to take any advice he can from Bonds, who agreed to a $16 million, one-year contract to return to the Giants for a 15th season.
The 42-year-old Bonds is 22 home runs from passing home run king Hank Aaron’s all-time record of 755. Zito expects the two Barrys to co-exist nicely.
“To play with Barry Bonds is something I think every guy would want to do,” said Zito, flattered to be talked about in the same breath as the seven-time NL MVP. “It gave me chills actually. It’s great to be mentioned in the same sentence as Barry Bonds. I used to watch Barry growing up.”
Zito insists all the money won’t affect him and he will remain focused on his job: getting batters out and staying ready every fifth day.
He said that “when you try to become some superhuman cartoon character ... that’s when things go wrong.”
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The 28-year-old Zito, a three-time All-Star, was a 16-game winner in 2006 and helped the A’s win the AL West and reach their first AL championship series since 1992. Oakland GM Billy Beane knew he had little chance at re-signing Zito, who will lead a rotation also featuring Matt Cain, Noah Lowry and Matt Morris. The No. 5 spot is still to be determined.
“I think it’s a great addition,” Morris said. “Barry is an upper-echelon pitcher who is going to go out every fifth day. He’s very reliable and durable and gives you a chance to win every time out. It’s a ton of money, but that’s what they’re paying. I think it’s great.”
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
HBT: Prince Fielder is gone and Ryan Braun will likely miss a third of the season because of a failed PED test. Can Milwaukee stay in contention until he gets back?
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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.
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.
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.
