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.
WASHINGTON NATIONALS
2005 finish: 81-81, 5th place in NL East
Manager: Frank Robinson (5th season)
Incoming: 2B Alfonso Soriano, RHP Brian Lawrence, RHP Ramon Ortiz, SS Royce Clayton, IF/OF Damian Jackson, IF/OF Marlon Anderson, C/1B/OF Robert Fick, OF Michael Tucker, RHP Pedro Astacio, RHP Felix Rodriguez, LHP Mike Stanton, C/1B Matt LeCroy, C Mike DeFelice, C Alberto Castillo, C Wiki Gonzalez
Long gone: 1B/OF Brad Wilkerson, 3B Vinny Castilla, RHP Esteban Loaiza, OF Preston Wilson, RHP Hector Carrasco, IF Jamey Carroll, C Gary Bennett, IF Carlos Baerga, IF Deivi Cruz, OF Terrmel Sledge
Rotation: RHP Livan Hernandez, RHP John Patterson, RHP Tony Armas Jr., RHP Pedro Astacio, RHP Ramon Ortiz, RHP Ryan Drese (DL), RHP Brian Lawrence (DL)
Relievers: Closer: RHP Chad Cordero; Setup men: RHP Gary Majewski, LHP Joey Eischen, RHP Jon Rauch, RHP Felix Rodriguez, LHP Mike Stanton, RHP Jason Bergmann, RHP Travis Hughes, RHP Luis Ayala (DL), RHP T.J. Tucker (DL)
Regulars: CF Ryan Church, 2B Jose Vidro, RF Jose Guillen, 1B Nick Johnson, 2B Alfonso Soriano, 3B Ryan Zimmerman, C Brian Schneider, SS Royce Clayton
Role players: C Matt LeCroy, C/1B/OF Robert Fick, IF/OF Damian Jackson, IF/OF Marlon Anderson, OF Michael Tucker, OF Marlon Byrd, SS Cristian Guzman (DL)
The pressure is on: Alfonso Soriano finally has switched positions; now he must produce offensively.
Breakout candidate: John Patterson wore down in September with a work load he wasn’t used to, but we’re going to assume he’ll stay strong all season, and win a handful more than the nine games he won in 2005.
Rundown: Last year, the Nationals rode a wave of positive emotion with the move to the nation’s capital, and it carried them through an overachieving first half. They won’t have that advantage this time, and in fact, with lease details for a new stadium stuck in bureaucratic limbo for much of the winter, new ownership still isn’t in place. That limited what interim GM Jim Bowden could do with a $60-million payroll, and as a result, the Nats don’t appear to be as strong as last year. Even though they finished dead last in the NL in runs, home runs, batting average and stolen bases, they lost more offense (Brad Wilkerson, Vinny Castilla, Preston Wilson) than they added (Alfonso Soriano). On top of that, their best hitter and run producer last season – Jose Guillen – suffered a spring wrist injury on top of trying to come back from shoulder surgery. At least Soriano finally has agreed to move to left field and leave second base for a healthy-again Jose Vidro – a move that improves the Nats offensively and defensively. Castilla was sent to San Diego for Brian Lawrence and to make room for top prospect Ryan Zimmerman, 21, who could emerge as a strong Rookie of the Year candidate. But that deal already has backfired, as Lawrence has a torn labrum, and will be out until at least the All-Star break. Steady veteran Royce Clayton will replace injured Cristian Guzman at shortstop, and barring a spring deal, Ryan Church is expected to get a chance in the outfield, which would put an inexperienced hitter at the top of the lineup. A handful of other solid role players have been added in Michael Tucker, Damian Jackson, Marlon Anderson and Robert Fick, who underwent arthroscopic elbow surgery this spring. Still, this pitching staff has to be ready for another season of non-support. Fortunately for Robinson, there are some quality arms here – just not enough of them. Workhorse Livan Hernandez has averaged 245 innings over the last three seasons, and is 41-35 with a 3.60 ERA in that time. Plus, he should be healthy again after pitching late last season on a knee that required off-season surgery. John Patterson should have won far more than nine games with a 3.13 ERA in 31 starts and 198.1 innings – the most of his career. But with Bowden unable – so far – to land Javier Vazquez or another quality starter, the rest of the rotation is very marginal. With Lawrence out, they signed Pedro Astacio to a one-year deal. That puts him in the mix with Tony Armas Jr., Ramon Ortiz and Jon Rauch for the last three spots. At least they will have the benefit of pitching half the time in one of the league’s most-spacious and pitcher-friendly parks in RFK Stadium. The bullpen was outstanding a year ago, but won’t have setup man Luis Ayala, who blew out his elbow in the World Baseball Classic – an event the Nats lodged a protest to keep him from participating in. That leaves Gary Majewski and Joey Eischen as the top two arms behind elite closer Chad Cordero. New ownership will take over sooner or later, and the future could be better, but the Nats will take a step backward first.
Predicted finish: 4th place, 76-86
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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.
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.
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