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.
Adriano's manners improve
Another positive for the colt is that Motion said afterward that he was much better behaved than he was before the Fountain of Youth.
"I thought another key was that he was very good in the paddock,” he said. “He's very hot-blooded. In the Fountain of Youth, he kind of fell apart that day. The fact that he was good today made a big difference.”
So summing up, we know that Adriano loves the Polytrack and is at home on the lawn, but we have absolutely no idea if he will take a cotton to the sod.
There is a possibility that he didn’t get a chance to show his best in the Fountain of Youth, when he broke from the disadvantageous 12 post, steadied entering the first turn, then chased the pace-setters up the backstretch before beginning a steady retreat.
Unfortunately, we probably won’t get a chance to test that theory before the Derby. Motion indicated he was considering running the colt back in the $325,000 Coolmore Lexington Stakes at Keeneland on April 19. Did I mention that the race will be run over a Polytrack surface?
I’m interested in your thoughts on Adriano. And, more generally, how do you handicap horses racing on artificial surfaces when they switch to the dirt? Do you favor a particular running style for that move? Are speed figures reliable gauges despite the surface switch? Click here to e-mail me and I’ll publish some of the best responses in next week’s column.
A half hour before the Lane’s End, Big Glen got a heady ride from Rene Douglas to win the $100,000 Rushaway Stakes for 3-year-olds. But trainer Frank Brothers made it clear that he was not even considering throwing the son of Cactus Ridge to the wolves in the Derby. “He’s a hard-trying little horse who thinks he’s a big horse,” he told ESPN’s Jeanine Edwards.
Whither War Pass?
In last week’s column, I asked for your opinions on whether War Pass can rebound from his terrible race in the Tampa Bay Derby. Most of you said “no,” opining that the race exposed him as a one-dimensional speedster. But there were some contrarians. Here’s a sampling of your responses.
While handicappers may feel that they have more questions than answers about the Derby contenders so far, the mist should begin to clear in the next three weeks, as major preps around the country unfold.
The big Derby prep this weekend is the $1 million Florida Derby (Gr. 1) at Gulfstream.
Among those expected to go to post are Hutcheson Stakes winner Smooth Air; Fountain of Youth Stakes runner-up Elysium Fields; the highly touted but unproven Big Brown; Peruvian superstar Tomcito; Sam F. Davis Stakes winner Fierce Wind; and sharp allowance winner Hey Byrn. Majestic Warrior, co-owned by Yankees boss George Steinbrenner, is listed as possible. The race will be televised at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Also on Saturday is a race that has yet to make an impact on the U.S. Triple Crown, though it seems likely that it will one of these years — the U.A.E. Derby in Dubai. A field of 12 is expected to face the starter, including three U.S.-bred colts — the famous round these parts colt Numaany, (click here if you haven’t seen his amazing maiden score at Aqueduct yet), Strike the Deal and Massive Drama. The highly regarded Etched had been expected to run but was not listed in the “provisional” entries released Monday.
The first of three pools of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager begins its three-day run on Friday and the bet's opening scenario is very similar to each of its opening pools since the wager was created in 1999.
It's first time that Classic will be broadcast in primetime on Nov. 3.
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.
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