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.
The Astros and SS Jed Lowrie avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year contract.
The deal carries a $1.15 million base salary. Lowrie requested $1.5 million and was offered $900,000 when arbitration figures were exchanged in January. It took around a month for the two sides to find a middle ground.
Astros' general manager Jeff Luhnow said Wednesday that the team's closer spot is wide open.
As it should be. Brandon Lyon (shoulder) and David Carpenter are the leading candidates for the gig, but other relievers like Wilton Lopez could also be in the mix. Astros' manager Brad Mills will likely settle on a closer by the end of spring training, but we suspect this could be an area of flux during the season.
Astros manager Brad Mills said Wednesday on 1560-AM in Houston that Brett Wallace will take grounders at third base during spring training.
Wallace began his professional career as a third baseman as a farmhand with the Cardinals, but he made the move over to first base following trades to Oakland and Toronto. His defensive chops are still questionable, but some versatility could help his chances of providing value to the Astros with Carlos Lee expected to serve as the club's starting first baseman this season.
Astros signed OF Justin Ruggiano to a minor league contract.
Ruggiano was designated for assignment by the Rays late last month and elected free agency after passing through waivers. The 29-year-old batted .248/.273/.400 with four home runs, 13 RBI and a .673 OPS over 111 plate appearances with the Rays last season. He'll try to win a spot as a reserve outfielder during spring training.
Astros signed RHP Livan Hernandez to a minor league contract.
The deal includes a spring training invite. We barely heard a peep about Hernandez this offseason, but he is certainly capable of providing rotation depth. The 36-year-old right-hander posted a 4.47 ERA and 99/46 K/BB ratio over 175 1/3 innings last season for the Nationals. He has logged at least 175 innings in each season dating back to 1998.
Jason Castro (foot surgery) has been cleared to start jogging and increasing the intensity of his workouts.
Castro had surgery in early-December to remove the sesamoid bone from his left foot after injuring it while playing in the Arizona Fall League. While the 24-year-old backstop considers himself ahead of schedule and hopes to be ready for the start of the Astros' Grapefruit League schedule, he has no plans to push himself too soon. "I'm not going to rush anything when I first get to camp just so that I'm ready to play when games start and kind of make sure I'm strong enough and my foot is ready for game-speed-type stuff," said Castro, who missed all of last season with a torn meniscus and ACL in his right knee. "We'll take it as it comes, and when I get to camp, feel it out and see what I'm ready for and progress from there." The Astros have Chris Snyder and Humbero Quintero as in-house insurance policies if Castro suffers any setbacks.
Astros signed INF Mike Hessman to a minor league contract.
The deal does not include an invite to big-league camp. Hessman spent last season with the Orix Buffaloes of Japan's Pacific League. The 33-year-old has regularly mashed minor league pitching, but has a lousy .188/.272/.422 batting line over 250 plate appearances in the majors. He'll serve as organizational depth this season.
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.
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.
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