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
PHILADELPHIA - The 100th anniversary of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” was Friday. No truth to the tale that Jamie Moyer was the first to sing it.
In a World Series full of juicy subplots, perhaps the most intriguing of all is about to play out: Can a 45-year-old man with a heater that rarely cracks 85 mph stop a lineup stacked with brash boppers?
Game 3 is Saturday night, weather permitting, when the ol’ left-hander and the Phillies face the Tampa Bay Rays with the teams tied at a game apiece. Steve Carlton will throw out the first ball — Moyer won his major league debut in 1986 by outpitching the future Hall of Famer.
Moyer gets his chance to finally pitch in a World Series, fans of a certain generation get an opportunity to root for one of their own.
“The age thing, it’s not an issue, but it’s been around for a while with me and I think I’m kind of over it, because I’ve been around a lot of younger players,” Moyer said during Friday’s off-day. “Some kids haven’t even been born yet when I was in the major leagues.”
“It’s kind of weird to think about it,” he said. “But back a few years ago when I played in Texas, I had two teammates, Nolan Ryan and Charlie Hough, that were in their 40s, and I really looked up to them and respected who they were and what they did in their careers. And now I’ve kind of come full circle with it.”
Moyer will become the second-oldest player to appear in a Series. Jack Quinn was 47 when he pitched for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1930.
A month shy of his 46th birthday and coming off two losses in the NL playoffs, Moyer could become the oldest pitcher to win a postseason game.
“He’s obviously extremely mature,” teammate Chase Utley said, smiling. “It’s fun to play behind him.”
That is, if the rain holds off. The forecast called for showers into the night. When the Rays and Phillies finished batting practice, the grounds crew rolled out the tarp to protect the field before the first Series game at Citizens Bank Park.
Matt Garza, the MVP of the AL championship series, was set to start for Tampa Bay. At 24, he said he couldn’t imagine pitching two more decades.
“At 45, I want to be watching my son play,” Garza said. “He’s doing it with will and guts. Pitching at 45 is amazing. That’s a feat. It’s undeniably amazing.”
And not always a joking matter. Phillies reliever Ryan Madson learned his lesson a few years ago while playing with Tim Worrell and Rheal Cormier.
“I made a comment to them, and I didn’t have any clothes left in my locker,” Madson said.
Rays stars Evan Longoria and B.J. Upton, both born after Moyer began his pro career, knew better than to belittle Moyer’s soft stuff.
“You’ve just got to try to be patient,” Tampa Bay outfielder Carl Crawford said. “Look for your pitch. It’s going to be a little slower.”
Phillies hitters weren’t in a kidding mood, either. Especially after they went 1-for-28 with runners in scoring position during the first two games at Tropicana Field. They get a chance to break loose as the Series returns to Philly for the first time since 1993 — that October, the most memorable game at Veterans Stadium was Toronto’s 15-14 win.
“Baseball is a funny game,” Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. “And people look at it like, ’Gee, I mean, how come they don’t come out here and hit like they do during the season, something like that?’
“We might walk out tomorrow and score seven, eight, 10 run in the first inning, who knows? But we also might come out and a guy might have his good stuff and he might pitch real good. That’s baseball.”
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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