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 ImagesColorado’s Aaron Cook wiggled out of bases-loaded, no-out jam in the 10th. Grady Sizemore and Evan Longoria grounded into forceouts at the plate, and Tejada made a charging, flying throw to get Morneau on a slow grounder.
In the 11th, Pittsburgh center fielder Nate McLouth made a perfect throw to nail Navarro at the plate on Young’s single, with Dodgers catcher Russell Martin applying the tag.
The NL loaded the bases with one out in the 12th before Kansas City’s Joakim Soria struck out Uggla, and Baltimore’s George Sherrill fanned Adrian Gonzalez.
For much of the past few days, the question that hung over the game was whether Francona would use Papelbon, his guy, to close or Rivera. Papelbon, while praising his rival, said Monday that he wanted the ball.
That caused an angry responses, and Red Sox players were greeted with profanities Tuesday during a red-carpet parade up Manhattan’s Avenue of the Americas.
“I had my kids with me, so there was probably a few choice words that we wouldn’t like a 6- and an 8-year-old to hear for an hour,” Red Sox captain Jason Varitek said. “But it’s part of what goes on in the rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox.”
Papelbon, mocked with chants of “Mariano!” and “Overrated!” gave up Gonzalez’s sacrifice fly in the eighth but Wagner allowed Longoria’s tying double in the bottom half.
A sellout crowd of 55,632 came to honor the 85-year-old ballpark, home to Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and the most glittering lineup of greats any team can boast.
Prior to the game, 49 Hall of Famers led by Yogi Berra and Gary Carter walked in from the bullpens in left-center to their former positions, waved to the sellout crowd and stood as the All-Stars assumed flanking positions alongside them during a half-hour ceremony. George Steinbrenner, who has owned the Yankees since 1973, delivered the balls for the ceremonial first pitches from a golf cart.
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“We were going to go on hours,” Francona said, “not pitches.”
Notes: The previous longest game by time was 1967, which took 3:41. ... There were a record six steals by the AL and a record seven overall. ... The NL was 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, the AL 3-for-22. ... The Hall of Fame collected two souvenirs — Rivera’s jersey and dirt from the pitcher’s mound. ... The teams set record for strikeouts (34), runners left on base (28) and players used (63). Ill Giants pitcher Tim Lincecum was the only player who did not get in.
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.
