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.
Getty Images... and Scott Kazmir's take on Percival.
"You never know what he's going to throw. He's the type of guy you can't have a scouting report on. He's just a competitor out there, and you're going to get the best of what he has, whatever he's got that day. He's just the guy who gets it done."
Percival also knows that being the oldest guy on the active roster doesn't make him king of the castle. "In my mind, this is Carl Crawford's locker room," Percival says of the Rays' left fielder, who has been with the club since 2002. "He's been here the longest. He's been fantastic. I didn't know what to expect because I had heard this was a bad, bad clubhouse and he was never happy, but now I see him come in here happy, and that lifts the spirits of everybody else because he's one of our superstars."
Crawford, like Percival, deflects any credit toward his teammates. "My clubhouse?" he says. "Nah, I'm just still learning this stuff. It's a team thing. Everybody's contributing in their own little way, showing their own leadership. It's nobody's clubhouse, really — it's just a matter of everybody being accountable for the things they need to do."
Accountability and Rays players had been rare bedfellows until this season, but then again, so had long-term contracts and rising stars. Already in 2008, the team has signed Kazmir, No. 2 starter James Shields and rookie third baseman Evan Longoria to multiyear deals. "This is obviously the place I want to be for a long period of time, so signing a long-term contract for me is a big plus," Longoria says. "Shields and Kazmir are our No. 1 and 2 guys, and they're going to be that for at least the next three years. And when C.C.'s (Crawford's) contract is up, hopefully they'll sign him to another long, big deal that he deserves and we keep this going. If they keep the guys together, it just shows the fans that we're going in the right direction." Crawford, who will turn 27 in August, is signed through this season, and the club holds options for 2009 and 2010.
With an outstanding young rotation, a veteran bullpen and a young core of five-tool players, it doesn't appear the Rays are going to slip back any time soon .
"They have one of the most athletic, if not the most athletic, teams out there, especially in their outfield," a veteran scout says. "Now that they have Kazmir back in the rotation (after an elbow injury), they have a pretty solid starting staff. The surprise has been Andy Sonnanstine and his ability to be successful. He doesn't have the type of stuff that (Edwin) Jackson or Kazmir or (Matt) Garza has, but he has excellent control and deception."
The franchise is embracing the uncharted territory in which it finds itself, and that suits Maddon just fine. See, Maddon has a pet peeve.
He has been in the game professionally for 34 years, and, frankly, is tired of hearing the same baseball terminology and cliches thrown around. Maddon is all about original thoughts — last year, his team motto was "Tell me what you think; not what you've heard." He developed his 2008 concoction this winter while on a bike ride in California, and he passed out new T-shirts a few weeks ago. The back simply reads, in large yellow letters, "9=8."
At its most basic level, it means if his Rays have nine players playing hard for nine innings every night, they'll be one of the eight teams to earn a postseason berth. That's not all, though. "It's the artichoke theory — it only comes in layers," Maddon says. "As we keep going on, I'll bring up the next portion of it. I haven't decided exactly the appropriate time it's going to be because I think once we get to the next part of it, the rest will just tumble."
In a good way, that is, as in things tumbling into place. Not in the usual way for the Rays, as in tumbling to the depths of the A.L. East standings. These are the new-look Rays, having dropped Devil from the team name. Players, coaches and even team office staffers are barred by management from saying the D-word. "I'm working on that, actually," Kazmir says. "A couple of days ago I messed up again, so I had to pay the dollar fine. I'm working on it. It's tough, but it's getting easier."
Tough, but getting easier. Percival can relate.
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.
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