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.
AP
LOS ANGELES - Most of the Colorado Rockies are involved in a pennant race for the first time. It seems to be bringing out their best.
Garrett Atkins had four hits, including a home run, and Brad Hawpe and Todd Helton homered as the Rockies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 10-4 on Thursday night to sweep the three-game series and extend their franchise-record winning streak to 11 games.
The Rockies have given themselves a shot at the second playoff berth in the 15-year history of the franchise with the longest winning streak in the majors this season.
“We didn’t set out to win 11 in a row,” Atkins said. “We’ve just taken it game-by-game. It’s most of our first time, but we’re not thinking of it like that. We’ve had good pitching, good hitting, good defense and good luck.”
Formed as an expansion team in 1993, the Rockies made the playoffs two years later. They haven’t had a winning record since 2000.
Hawpe had three hits and four RBIs for the Rockies, who trail first-place Arizona in the NL West by two games and are one game behind San Diego in the wild-card race along with Philadelphia and the New York Mets.
“I don’t think anyone thought we had to win 11 straight just to stay in this thing,” Hawpe said. “We’ve been excited about what we’ve done, where we’re at. We’re looking toward what we’re doing in the next game and not worrying about the big picture.”
The Rockies and Diamondbacks open a season-ending three-game series in Colorado on Friday. Should the Rockies sweep, they will either clinch a postseason berth or qualify for a tiebreaking game to determine the division winner or wild-card team.
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Seven of Colorado’s wins in the streak have come over the Dodgers, who have lost 10 of 11 to fall out of contention. The Rockies (87-72), a franchise-record 15 games over .500, won as many as nine straight once before — from Aug. 26-Sept. 5, 1997.
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“We’re looking to make the playoffs. Anything can happen in the playoffs.”
Helton, who joined the Rockies in 1997, has never played in a postseason game.
“They’re playing well right now,” said Dodgers outfielder Juan Pierre, who played for the Rockies from 2000-02. “Anytime you win 11 games in a row, a lot of things are going right for them. It’s a good makeup over there. They’ve had a lot of young guys they stood by and they let them grow. And now they’re reaping the benefits.”
Rookie Franklin Morales (3-2), a 21-year-old left-hander making his eighth big-league start, allowed four hits and three runs in five-plus innings to earn the victory.
James Loney drove in three runs for the Dodgers to give him 31 RBIs this month — most in the majors.
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.
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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.
