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?
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.
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'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.
Lefty wins his 40th PGA Tour event with his never-ending supply of tricks up his sleeve. What We Learned this week at Pebble Beach.
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.
APQ: Among the league's biggest surprises this season (Tigers, Rangers, Mariners, Marlins, Giants), which do you think has the best chance to stay in contention this season?
—Paul Meagan, Las Cruces, N.M.
A: I really like the Giants' chances of not only winning the wild card, but perhaps even challenging the Dodgers in the NL West race.
Every year, there is a team that gains some early confidence and momentum, builds on it and overachieves its way to an unexpectedly good season. Last year, it was the Tampa Bay Rays. To me, the Giants are that team this season.
With Matt Cain’s emergence to join Tim Lincecum as an All-Star — thanks to finally getting some run support (more on that below) — the Giants are a good bet to win in two of every five games. (And I’m assuming, of course, that Cain taking a line drive off his arm isn’t going to cause any long-term problem).
And now we'll see where Jonathan Sanchez's season goes after throwing a no-hitter — one of a league-leading 13 Giants shutouts — in his first start after returning to the rotation following a demotion to the bullpen to iron out his early-season problems.
But the surprising thing about the Giants' pitching, which led the NL in ERA at the break, is the quality work of middle/setup men Brandon Medders, Justin Miller and Sergio Romo.
The other factor in the Giants' hold on the wildcard spot is their offense isn't as bad as everybody expected. It currently is middle-of-the-pack in runs scored in the NL, and that has translated into a +44 run differential that trails only the Dodgers and Phillies.
If GM Brian Sabean can add one more quality hitter — and not necessarily a power bat, maybe somebody like a Freddy Sanchez or Nick Johnson — to deepen Bruce Bochy's lineup, the Giants could be a very dangerous team to face in a five-game division series. The problem is, for the moment, the pitching depth has been lessened by injury.
Q: Can Jason Marquis keep pitching like this?
—Michelle Lopez, Denver
A: He sure thinks so. And his last few starts leading into the All-Star break indicated the same thing. He was positively Greg Maddux-like in Dodger Stadium on June 30th, needing only 86 pitches in a complete-game two-hit shutout, and followed that up with seven shutout innings against Washington at Coors Field.
However, detractors will point to his rather decisive career pattern of strong first halves (60-39, 4.16) and weaker second halves (30-37, 4.93). And it's no secret that on three different occasions, he was left off post-season rosters due to those poor late-season performances.
But Marquis' answer to that is the fact that he has made mechanical changes in his delivery, and feels he isn't the same pitcher he was with the Braves, Cardinals and Cubs.
He also has an ideal working relationship with Rockies' pitching coach Bob Apodaca — and never forget the motivation of a player in the final year of a big contract who is looking for another long-term deal.
That's the situation Marquis finds himself in, and while I'm not going to guarantee that he'll match his first half and end up a 20-game winner, he does have a real good shot at 16-18 wins and a career year.
Q: I have often heard and seen back-to-back-to-back home runs, but what is the record for home runs in a row?
— Mal Eckert, Lee, Mass.
A: The record is four consecutive homers, and it’s been done four times. You may remember the last time, Mal, given your Massachusetts home — the Red Sox did it to Yankees rookie Chase Wright in a 7-6 win on April 22, 2007. Trailing 3-0, the four in a row by Manny Ramirez, J.D. Drew, Mike Lowell and Jason Varitek gave the Red Sox a 4-3 lead.
The others, strangely enough, all came in a four-season period:
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
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The Show: Cliche Counter July 15: Taking a look at what some players and teams might accomplish in the second half, and we break out the cliche counter. |
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The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
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.
Paul Pierce has been around long enough to know what Rajon Rondo's performance can mean for the aging Boston Celtics.