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?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
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: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
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.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
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.
APBut everything changed with the trip down I-95 to Citizens Bank Park.
Rodriguez's two-run homer in the third inning of Game 3 was a momentum-changer. The Phillies had grabbed a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second against Pettitte, but Rodriguez answered with a memorable, opposite-field shot off a television camera that extended a bit too far over the right-field wall.
It took the first usage of instant replay in the World Series to decide it, overturning the original ruling of a double. And by the fifth inning, the Yankees took the lead and chased Cole Hamels, and hung on for an 8-6 win in the series' pivotal game.
You know the Phillies were fearful of the damage Rodriguez could do by the way they pitched him throughout the series — hard and in — sometimes too far in.
Rodriguez twice was hit by a pitch in Game 3, and then again in his first at-bat in Game 4. Later in that game, he got a measure of revenge with the go-ahead, ninth-inning RBI in the Yankees' 7-4 victory.
“There's no question; I've never had a bigger hit,'' Rodriguez said of the RBI single to left field.
“I made an adjustment after the first two games. What I was doing was very simple; I was expanding the strike zone, and that's something I didn't do against Minnesota or Anaheim. When I get good pitches to hit, and I put a good swing on it, good things usually happen.''
If that sounds like a calmer, more-relaxed Rodriguez than the one who played the worry-wart like no other superstar before him, you're not the first one to notice.
“I wasn't here before this season, so I couldn't tell you how he was before that,'' A.J. Burnett said. “But I know he's about as relaxed as I could imagine him being.
“It doesn't matter what the situation is when he comes up. He's confident, he's loose, and he's hitting the ball, and he's having a blast.''
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
HBT: Prince Fielder is gone and Ryan Braun will likely miss a third of the season because of a failed PED test. Can Milwaukee stay in contention until he gets back?
 | Slideshow |
 |
more photos |
HardballTalk headlines |
 | Interactive |
 |
| Slideshow |
 | Unbreakable records in baseball A look at the most unbreakable records in baseball including Nolan Ryan's seven no-hitters. |
| Slideshow |
 | The top tools of baseball You hear a lot about the tools of baseball, but who are the best hitters, fielders and pitchers? We break it down. more photos |
 | Slideshow |
 |
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.
The Red Wings have finally started to embrace a record they've been chasing.