Super Bowl XLVI
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.
Adreian Payne scored 15 points, Draymond Green added 12 and defense-minded No. 11 Michigan State beat No. 3 Ohio State 58-48 Saturday night, ending the Buckeyes' 39-game home winning streak.
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.
Marlies Schild of Austria won her sixth World Cup slalom of the season Saturday after overall leader Lindsey Vonn and defending champion Maria Hoefl-Riesch crashed out in the opening run on the windy Pyrenees course.
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.
Orioles signed RHP Luis Ayala to a one-year, $925,000 contract with a $1 million club option for 2013.
Ayala had to settle for a minor league deal last offseason, but he's getting a guaranteed contract after posting a 2.09 ERA and a 39/20 K/BB ratio over 56 innings with the Yankees last season. The 34-year-old right-hander will give O's manager Buck Showalter another experienced late-inning option setting up for projected closer Jim Johnson.
Orioles designated OF Matt Angle for assignment.
He was cleared to make room for the newly-signed Luis Ayala on the 40-man roster. Angle, 26, batted .177/.293/.266 with one home run, seven RBI, 11 stolen bases and a .559 OPS over 95 plate appearances with the O's last season. He can play all three outfield positions, has plus-speed on the basepaths and some patience from the left side of the plate, so he could draw some interest on waivers.
Orioles signed 1B Nick Johnson to a minor league contract.
Johnson will also get a spring training invite. The oft-injured 33-year-old returned from wrist surgery last season and batted just .201/.316/.332 with six home runs, 13 RBI and a .648 OPS over 216 plate appearances with the Indians' Triple-A affiliate. While he's obviously no sure thing, he could find himself in the mix at first base if Chris Davis struggles.
Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun gets the sense that the Orioles and Adam Jones could settle before an arbitration hearing scheduled for February 17.
Jones, who is arbitration-eligible for the second time this winter, filed for $7.4 million and was offered $5 million by the Orioles when arbitration figures were exchanged last month. Assuming the two sides settle on a one-year deal, the 26-year-old center fielder will likely have a 2012 salary around the midpoint of $6.2 million.
The Yonhap News Agency reports that the South Korean governing body of baseball (the Korean Baseball Association) has banned Orioles' scouts from attending games in their country.
The ban comes after the Korean Baseball Organization, a separate organization, filed a complaint with MLB earlier this week alleging that the Orioles broke protocol by signing 17-year-old left-hander Seong-Min Kim last month. The violation appears to be that the KBO was not informed that Baltimore was negotiating with the player. If it sticks, this could have some wide-reaching implications in the future, as the ban will reportedly extend to major league teams who sign Korean players before their final year of school. Stay tuned.
Brad Bergesen lost his arbitration hearing against the Orioles and was awarded an $800,000 salary for 2012.
Bergesen filed for a $1.2 million salary last month and stated his case during an arbitration hearing on Wednesday, but the three-person panel of arbitrators ultimately ruled in the team's favor. The 26-year-old right-hander was arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter after posting a 5.70 ERA over 101 innings last season.
Orioles signed C Dane Sardinha to a minor league contract.
Sardinha, 32, batted just .219 with a .669 OPS in 43 plate appearances last season for the Phillies. But he's always been a pretty solid defender and will operate as organizational catching depth in 2012 for the Orioles.
Adreian Payne scored 15 points, Draymond Green added 12 and defense-minded No. 11 Michigan State beat No. 3 Ohio State 58-48 Saturday night, ending the Buckeyes' 39-game home winning streak.
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.
Trae Golden scored 17 points, Jeronne Maymon added 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Tennessee upset No. 8 Florida 75-70 Saturday, ending the Gators' home-winning streak at 19.
