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.
Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has 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 ImagesQ: As a Yankees fan, I have a question: Why does the media love the Red Sox and hate us? And please, don't tell me it's not true.
— Jon Rappaport, Las Vegas
A: That's a bit of a generalization, Jon. The media don't totally agree on anything. As someone who grew in the Detroit area as a Tigers fan, and now splits time between Colorado and Arizona, I see a definite national television networks bias to both the Red Sox and Yankees.
It seems that one of those two teams is part of most every national telecast, and I know a lot of people in the midwest and west who agree with me.
But I do get where you're coming from. The hate-the-Yankees thing is a deep-rooted feeling that has been around for decades — caused mostly by the Yankees' on-field dominance.
The 26 World Series titles, the one-time bluster of George Steinbrenner, the ridiculous revenue advantage over the rest of the teams, the new, $1.3 billion palace, etc., etc. Simply put, from Reggie Jackson to Alex Rodriguez, the Yankees are the team everybody loves to hate.
The Red Sox-as-heroes thing is a much more recent development, led, of course, by the cast of characters that broke the curse in 2004. And I must say, ESPN goes a long way to feeding the whole 'Red Sox Nation' idea, with their home base in Connecticut and several on-air employees admitted Red Sox homers.
Funny thing is, though, the Red Sox are becoming a lot more like the Yankees than they care to admit. They made for a great story in 2004, but with their big payroll, big revenue streams and World Series-or-nothing expectations, they have become a bit insufferable in the minds of a lot of baseball fans.
Q: With Manny Parra being a mess, do you see the Milwaukee Brewers making a trade for pitching?
—Steve Smith Sr., Rhinelander, Wis.
A: Besides Parra's struggles, the Brewers' need for another starting pitcher heightened with David Bush going on the disabled list Tuesday due to a triceps injury.
That leaves two holes in the rotation, with Parra now trying to work out his problems at Triple-A Nashville. So yes, I do think it's likely that Brewers GM Doug Melvin will address that need soon with a trade.
Trouble is, the Brewers find themselves in the midst of a 19-game stretch against five other contenders: the Twins, Giants, Mets, Cardinals and Dodgers.
Mike Burns has been recalled from Nashville to pitch in Bush's spot Thursday, and Seth McClung will make a spot start on Sunday. It might be a couple turns through the rotation before Melvin can find the right deal.
And as of now, he has said it is highly unlikely that top young players Mat Gamel or Alcides Escobar would be dealt – unlike last season, when Matt LaPorta was sent to Cleveland in the package that landed CC Sabathia.
If Gamel and/or Escobar aren't involved, that means whatever deal is done likely will be for a back-of-the-rotation type, and not a front-line starter.
Q: With 16 teams in the National League and 14 in the American League, isn't there talk of balancing the leagues by sending one to the AL? Which one would it be?
— Pablo K. Ramos, Houston
A: Not sure where you're hearing that, Pablo. An odd number of teams in each league would make scheduling impossible. That's not going to happen.
Funny thing is, though, that situation will be in play for at least the 2010 exhibition season. With the Cincinnati Reds' move from Sarasota, Fla., to Goodyear, Ariz., and a two-team complex they will share with the Cleveland Indians, there will be 15 teams training in each state.
So how will all teams be able to play exhibition games every day? In Arizona, at least, there is an effort to bring a Japanese League team to train. Otherwise, there will have to be far more split-squad games on the docket.
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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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.
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.