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 three goals as the New York Rangers beat Philadelphia 5-2 on Saturday for their seventh straight win over the Flyers.
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
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.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
Move over, Hollywood and NFL types, golf's two real A-listers take center stage Sunday at Pebble Beach, both in need of a win.
The United States swept favored Switzerland out of the Davis Cup on Saturday when Mardy Fish and Mike Bryan beat Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Luis Suarez's refusal to shake hands with Patrice Evra overshadowed Manchester United's 2-1 win over rival Liverpool that lifted the defending champions to first place in the Premier League on Saturday.
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
NEW YORK - Alex Rodriguez may not become the first reigning MVP to switch teams, after all.
With a deadline imposed by Texas Rangers owner Tom Hicks looming Tuesday for the trade of baseball’s only $20 million-a-year players — Rodriguez to Boston for outfielder Manny Ramirez — there appeared to be no more negotiations.
Following weeks of discussions, Hicks said Monday that he hadn’t spoken to anyone from the Red Sox in three days. And Boston was standing by its position that the proposed deal was “dead.”
Red Sox owner John Henry did not alter that position or say, in response to an e-mail from The Associated Press on Monday, that his club would contact the Rangers before Tuesday afternoon’s deadline.
If the deal is to be revived, Henry said, “I don’t believe there are any public statements I could make that would be helpful to the process other than to say that although there have been disagreements, I believe the principals involved on all sides have had good intentions thus far.”
Hicks didn’t respond Monday to phone messages or e-mail from the AP, but told The Dallas Morning News for its Tuesday editions that the deadline was final.
“If the deadline passes, we are going to put it behind us,” Hicks told the newspaper. “And the best player in baseball is going to be our team leader next season.”
Rodriguez’s agent, Scott Boras, believes Rodriguez would remain the Texas shortstop next season if the deadline passes without any action.
“Tom Hicks told me he’s setting forth his plan for 2004 beginning Wednesday,” Boras said. “He said the team needed to make moves and put their marketing plan together.”
Red Sox president Larry Lucchino proclaimed the trade “dead” Thursday, blaming the players’ association for not approving a steeper proposed reduction in Rodriguez’s contract. Texas also blamed the union, but didn’t give up on the deal.
If Rodriguez went to Boston, the Red Sox presumably would then trade longtime shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, possibly to the Chicago White Sox.
Rodriguez’s $252 million, 10-year contract has seven years and $179 million remaining. Ramirez has five years and $97.5 million left on the $160 million, eight-year contract he agreed to the same day Rodriguez got his record deal.
During negotiations last week, the players’ association said Rodriguez’s agreement could be restructured but not reduced, and rejected Boston’s proposal, which the union said would cut $28 million to $30 million.
Instead, the union said it would approve a change that would lower the contract by $12 million to $13 million in exchange for Rodriguez getting the right to use Boston’s logo and trademarks in marketing deals. In addition, he’d be able to become a free agent after the 2005 season.
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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Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Doron Lamb hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to put No. 1 Kentucky ahead to stay, and the Wildcats took a big step toward a Southeastern Conference regular-season title by beating Vanderbilt 69-63 Saturday night for their 17th straight win.
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.