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6348. wabbit - 6/2/2009 9:44:12 PM And I'm way wrong already - Soderling beating Nadal wasn't a fluke, he whupped Davydenko! And then Gonzalez kicked Andy Murray's behind. Perhaps things are looking good for Robredo and Monfils?
Maria Sharapova finally lost, to Dominika Cibulkova. Cibulkova will meet Dinara Safina next. Safina rallied to beat Victoria Azarenka after a demoralizing first set. I expect Azarenka to be #1 within a couple years.
6349. wabbit - 6/3/2009 12:15:53 AM Memo to Danica Patrick: you probably can't remember not having the WWW; you've had a cellphone forever; unless you've been under a rock for the last twenty years, you've been hammered by this topic just like the rest of us. You have no excuse for being so completely clueless about playing by the rules.
The 27-year-old driver was asked the following set of questions by SI columnist Dan Patrick: Dan: "If you could take a performance-enhancing drug and not get caught, would you do it if it allowed you to win Indy?
Danica: Well, then it's not cheating, is it? If nobody finds out?
Dan: So you would do it?
Danica: Yeah, it would be like finding a gray area. In motorsports we work in the gray areas a lot. You're trying to find where the holes are in the rule book."
Since then, Danica Patrick's comments were picked up around the Web and been much discussed among racing fans. Well, d'uh.
U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart told SI.com, "We're glad she apologized, admitting that she made a terrible mistake, and we accept that. But it's clear that cheating, whether you get caught or not, is wrong. And if left unchecked, the temptations to do it are high, which is why you need to have the most effective policies in place to stop the threat of cheating."
Maybe Ms. Patrick is an argument for the necessity of religion. She seems to have a poor ethical compass. She reminds me of the men who say they might (or would) commit rape if they knew they would not be caught. Sorry, stupid girl, but it doesn't sound very funny.6350. wabbit - 6/3/2009 12:16:10 AM The Stanley Cup Finals are underway. Detroit beat the Penguins 3-1 Sunday night, just as they did the previous night, after shutting them out by a combined score of 7-0 in the first two games of last year's finals. Pittsburgh, though, is undeterred. Game 3 is Tuesday night in Pittsburgh, where the Eastern Conference champions will battle a modern-day dynasty and history.
Thirty-two teams have lost the first two Stanley Cup finals games on the road and only the 1971 Montreal Canadiens rallied to win it all. Even though the odds favor the Red Wings being the first to repeat since they did it in 1998, goaltender Chris Osgood isn't getting cocky about their chances against the Penguins. "We're up 2-0, but I think we can play better." 6351. wabbit - 6/3/2009 12:16:47 AM The NBA Finals will be between Los Angeles and Orlando. The Lakers have home-court advantage this year. Games 1 and 2 are Thursday and next Sunday at Staples Center before the best-of-7 series moves to Orlando for up to three games. LA is taking advantage of the six-day break before making one last push at a 16th NBA championship.
Orlando Magic players say Jameer Nelson will play in the NBA finals, even though the All-Star point guard and his coach remain publicly pessimistic. Nelson participated in a full team practice Tuesday for the first time since tearing the labrum in his right shoulder Feb. 2. While Nelson and coach Stan Van Gundy still said the point guard's status won't be determined until game day, players said Nelson looked "terrific" and expect him to be on the court against the Lakers.
In the end, the greatest season in Cleveland Cavaliers' history, the one supposed to end in a title triumph, was like all the others. LeBron James and his teammates came up short. James was selected as the league MVP. Mike Brown, coach of the year. The Cavs won 66 games in the regular season. They were nearly unbeatable at home and won their second Central Division crown in 33 years -- by 25 games. They earned the top seed in the NBA playoffs. They coasted through two rounds, winning eight straight games by double digits. They had the look of a champion. They had the King. The Cavs had it all. It all went for naught. And did you catch LeBron's post-loss interview? Oh right, he didn't give one. Cue up the Rafa tape for him. 6352. wabbit - 6/3/2009 12:36:41 AM Calvin Borel has been all tangled up in the drama involving the possibility of Rachel Alexandra and Mine That Bird meeting in the Belmont Stakes. And now that it won't happen, he has a chance to make history: the first jockey to capture the three legs of the Triple Crown on two horses. Borel won the Kentucky Derby on 50-1 long shot Mine That Bird. When Rachel Alexandra entered the Preakness, Borel switched horses to the filly he had ridden to five straight victories. Rachel Alexandra then edged Mine That Bird to thwart the gelding's shot at a Triple Crown. Now Rachel Alexandra is skipping the Belmont, and Borel is back aboard Mine That Bird. Those twists and turns created the possibility of another kind of Triple Crown. Personally, I'm rooting for Mine That Bird. He's a plucky little horse and the distance should suit him, but out of the corner of my eye, I'm looking at Mr. Hot Stuff.
Vincent O'Brien, one of horse racing's great European trainers during a career that lasted more than a half century, died Monday. He was 92. O'Brien, an Irishman, died at his home in Straffan in County Kildare, his family said. He retired from training in 1994 and had been spending his winters in Australia. He won 16 English and 27 Irish classics in addition to 25 victories at Royal Ascot and 23 at the Cheltenham Festival. He began training in 1943 and masterminded the career of three-time Champion Hurdle winner Hatton's Grace. He won straight Grand National steeplechases with Early Mist, Royal Tan and Quare Times. O'Brien later switched to thoroughbred racing and trained Nijinsky, Sir Ivor, Alleged, Sadler's Wells, Golden Fleece, The Minstrel, El Gran Senor, Ballymoss and Roberto. 6353. wabbit - 6/3/2009 9:02:19 PM The field is set for the Belmont Stakes on Saturday, and unsurprisingly, Mine That Bird is the 2-1 morning-line favorite. Calvin Borel will attempt to become the first jockey to win all three Triple Crown races with different horses.
A field of 10 3-year-olds was entered Wednesday, with Mine That Bird drawing the No. 7 post position. Charitable Man, who missed the Derby and the Preakness, was the second choice at 3-1. He drew the No. 6 post. Also entered, from the rail out, are: Chocolate Candy (10-1), Dunkirk (4-1), Mr. Hot Stuff (15-1), Summer Bird (12-1), Luv Gov (20-1), Flying Private (12-1), Miner's Escape (15-1) and Brave Victory (15-1).
Borel guided Mine That Bird to a breathtaking last-to-first run along the rail to win the Derby by 6-3/4 lengths on May 2, and the gelding finished a diminishing length behind Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness two weeks later under Mike Smith with another come-from-behind run. In the Belmont, the longest and most grueling of the Triple Crown races, Mine That Bird may be closer to the leaders because the early pace is not as fast as in shorter races. 6354. wabbit - 6/3/2009 9:02:53 PM Getting into a groove at the French Open, Roger Federer is two victories from completing a career Grand Slam and tying Pete Sampras' record for major titles. After three consecutive so-so performances, Federer was challenged only fleetingly in the quarterfinals Wednesday at Roland Garros before beating 11th-seeded Gael Monfils of France 7-6 (6), 6-2, 6-4. Federer reached the semifinals for the 20th consecutive Grand Slam tournament, extending his own record. He will play No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro for a berth in the final. The 6-foot-6 Argentine advanced to his first Grand Slam semifinal by beating No. 16 Tommy Robredo 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.
One shot by Serena Williams sent Svetlana Kuznetsova to the court in a messy spill that left her covered with clay. The Russian was down but not out. Showing newfound resilience, she squandered a big lead in the second set Wednesday but ended Williams' 18-match Grand Slam winning streak in the French Open quarterfinals, 7-6 (3), 5-7, 7-5. Williams, seeded second, was seeking her third successive major title and the 11th of her career. Kuznetsova, the 2004 U.S. Open champion, seeks her second major title. Her opponent Thursday will be Samantha Stosur of Australia, who reached her first major semifinal by beating Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-1, 6-3. Stosur, 25, has never won a tour title. 6355. wabbit - 6/6/2009 3:52:15 PM Svetlana Kuznetsova has won her second Grand Slam title, beating top-ranked Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-2 in an all-Russian final at the French Open.
The seventh-seeded Kuznetsova was broken in the first game Saturday, but she broke right back and then held serve until breaking again for a 5-3 lead. Safina managed to break back, but Kuznetsova broke for the third time to take the set.
In the second, both players held serve until the sixth game, when Kuznetsova broke for a 4-2 lead. She then held and broke again for the title when Safina double-faulted for the seventh time of the match. It was a sad and disappointing end to the match.
Kuznetsova also won the 2004 U.S. Open. She lost in the 2006 French Open final and the 2007 U.S. Open final. 6356. wabbit - 6/8/2009 2:15:08 PM  The Detroit Red Wings got exactly what they needed: a big win and long break. After hearing how tired and beat up they were through four games of the Stanley Cup finals, the defending champions busted out with a devastating display of offense and defense and rolled to a 5-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night that put them a win away from another championship. The veteran-laden Red Wings lead the series 3-2 and are closing in on their 12th Stanley Cup title and fifth in 12 seasons. Detroit can wrap this one up Tuesday night in Pittsburgh.
Detroit's two-game losing streak in Pittsburgh quickly became a distant memory as the Red Wings returned to the friendly confines of Joe Louis Arena and blew away the supposedly fresher Penguins.
The home team is 5-0 in the rematch of last year's finals, so the Penguins still have that going for them.
NHL scores
6357. wabbit - 6/8/2009 2:23:52 PM 
A son of Belmont winner Birdstone won the Belmont — just not the son most people expected would win. Summer Bird won the Belmont Stakes, rallying past Mine That Bird to spoil jockey Calvin Borel's attempt at winning all three legs of the Triple Crown. Mine That Bird, with Borel aboard, came from last to take the lead right before the final turn. But Summer Bird galloped to the front and pulled away Saturday.
For a brief moment on the turn for home, Borel looked like a winner. His tough little gelding took the lead, and even Borel believed his victory guarantee was assured. With the crowd of 52,861 cheering on the leaders in the stretch, Mine That Bird passed Dunkirk. But it was Summer Bird who pulled away from them both for a 2-3/4 length victory, with Dunkirk second and Mine That Bird a neck back in third in the field of 10 3-year-olds. The winning time for the 1 1/2 miles was 2:27.54. Charitable Man finished fourth, followed by Luv Gov, Flying Private, Brave Victory, Mr. Hot Stuff, Chocolate Candy and Miner’s Escape.
Summer Bird, sent off at 11-1 odds, gave jockey Kent Desormeaux a Belmont victory he desperately wanted. Last year, he won the Derby and Preakness aboard Big Brown, only to have to pull up the colt in the Belmont. And in 1998, he brought Real Quiet into the Belmont for a Triple try only to get beat by Victory Gallop by a nose in a heartbreaking defeat.
Summer Bird, trained by the recently licensed Tim Ice, returned $25.80. $9.30 and $4.70. Dunkirk paid $5.40 and $3.60, and Mine That Bird returned $2.60 to show.
Across the pond, Sea The Stars won the English Derby on Saturday, becoming the first horse in 20 years to win the Epsom classic after capturing the 2,000 Guineas. Mick Kinane rode the 11-4 shot to a 1 3/4-length victory over Fame And Glory to emulate the double last achieved by Nashwan in 1989. Masterofthehorse was a neck behind in third.
6358. wabbit - 6/8/2009 2:25:05 PM  Orlando had their chance and couldn't capitalize. So dominant in winning the opener, the Lakers squeaked by in the second game of the NBA finals. The Lakers needed a miss by Orlando rookie guard Courtney Lee on a perfectly executed alley-oop play in the final second of regulation to get to overtime, then escaped with a 101-96 win over the Magic on Sunday night to take a 2-0 lead in the series.
Pau Gasol scored seven of his 24 points in overtime and Bryant finished with 29 for the Lakers, who became the fifth straight team to win the first two games of the series at home. In that span, only the 2006 Dallas Mavericks failed to win a title after being up 2-0. Since the NBA went to the 2-3-2 format in 1985, 11 of 12 teams winning the first two games have gone on to win the championship.
The Lakers are now off to Florida for Game 3 on Tuesday night at Amway Arena. They'll play at least two games there with a chance to win their 15th title.
NBA finals
6359. wabbit - 6/8/2009 2:25:30 PM 
Tiger Woods had undergone knee surgery last June, a day after wincing his way to a victory at the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines. In a memorable performance, he caught Rocco Mediate with a birdie putt on the 72nd hole and then beat him with another birdie putt on the final hole of the 18-hole playoff a day later.
Then came eight months of rest, rehab and, eventually, practice before he came back to competitive golf in late February. Even though he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational and was in contention in several other tournaments, some had wondered whether at 33 years old he or his reconstructed knee would ever be the same Tiger.
After getting off to a rocky start on Thursday, Woods climbed out of a four-way tie with a 7-under 65 to win the Memorial Tournament on Sunday. It was a record fourth time he had won the event created by his idol and measuring stick, Jack Nicklaus. He birdied three of the last four holes and hit a highlight-reel chip-in for eagle a few holes earlier.
Thousands of spectators followed every shot of the drama as Woods climbed the leaderboard at Muirfield Village. He started the day tied for seventh, four strokes back of co-leaders Matt Bettencourt and Mark Wilson with Jim Furyk, Jonathan Byrd, Geoff Ogilvy and Davis Love III also standing in his way. Despite four birdies on the front nine he still trailed Byrd, who had holed an 82-yard wedge for an eagle at the seventh hole, by three strokes as he played the 11th hole...
6360. wabbit - 6/8/2009 2:36:24 PM  History was at stake, and Roger Federer was at his best, completely outplaying No. 23-seeded Robin Soderling en route to a 6-1, 7-6 (1), 6-4 victory in a French Open final that lacked suspense but not significance. With his latest masterful performance, Federer tied Pete Sampras' record of 14 major singles titles and became the sixth man to complete a career Grand Slam.
Only 7-13 against Rafael Nadal, Federer entered Sunday 9-0 against Soderling and, other than the threat of postponement because of rain, there was never any doubt that would become 10-0 by day's end. Federer show the athleticism and artistry that carried him to five championships at Wimbledon, the last five at the U.S. Open and three at the Australian Open. Federer hit more aces than Soderling, 16-2. He broke Soderling four times. He won 40 of the first 47 points on his serve. He won five points with delicate drop shots.
Even the whackjob who ran out of the stands waving a Barcelona flag and trying to put a hat on Federer couldn't screw him up this day. Federer was outstanding at the start, taking a 4-0 lead, and close to perfect in the tiebreaker. That was Soderling's chance to get into the match, but Federer wouldn't allow it. The Swiss star served four points and all four were aces, ranging from 118 mph to 132 mph. Federer called it "one of the greatest tiebreakers in my career."
Soderling never really stood a chance, not against Federer, not on this day, not on this stage, and was gracious about the loss. "You really gave me a lesson in how to play tennis," Soderling told Federer.
6361. wabbit - 6/13/2009 2:44:09 PM  With Sidney Crosby limping and Conn Smythe winner Evgeni Malkin not finding much open ice, Maxime Talbot played a game worthy of franchise icon Mario Lemieux by scoring both goals as the Penguins became the first team in 38 years to win a finals Game 7 on the road, holding off reigning champion Detroit 2-1 on Friday night.
Winning the championship for the first time since 1992 against the team that defeated them just a year ago, the Penguins defied history. They are the first team to win Game 7 on the road since the 1971 Montreal Canadiens, and the second, with that Canadiens team, to lose the first two games and come back to win it all. They are also the first team to win with a rookie coach who took over at midseason. Stuck in 10th place in the Eastern Conference in mid-February, they fired coach Michel Therrien although he had taken him to the finals last year and replaced him with minor-league coach Dan Bylsma. Bylsma immediately installed a more uptempo, press-the-attack offense that eased the tension in an unhappy locker room and the Penguins took off, going 18-3-4 down the stretch. They pulled off an upset in the second round when they out second-seeded Washington by winning 6-2 in Game 7 -- yes, on the road.
Malkin, who assisted Talbot's first goal, finished the playoffs with a league-high 36 points and earned the Conn Smythe Trophy for most valuable player in the postseason. The Pittsburgh center, who won the Art Ross Trophy with 103 points during the regular season, became the first player since Wayne Gretzky to capture both scoring titles in the same season in 1993.
6362. wabbit - 6/15/2009 1:44:45 PM  Kobe Bryant finally emerged from Shaquille O'Neal's massive shadow Sunday. Bryant, the winner of three titles this decade as the sidekick to O'Neal, cemented his place in basketball history Sunday as the unquestioned on-court leader of a championship team and a Finals MVP. His Lakers stomped the Magic 99-86 to win the series 4-1 and claim the 15th title in franchise history. After winning his 10th title, Lakers coach Phil Jackson finds himself atop another list. Jackson, who previously won six titles with Michael Jordan and the Bulls and three with the O'Neal-Bryant Lakers, broke a tie with Celtics legend Red Auerbach and set a new NBA record for championships by a coach.
The Lakers, whether they were led by George Mikan, Magic Johnson, O'Neal or Bryant, have spent plenty of time atop the NBA. As the Minneapolis Lakers, they won the title in the NBA's first season in 1950. The 2008-09 title is the first since Bryant, Jackson and O'Neal teamed to lead Los Angeles to three consecutive titles from 2000-02. Jackson retired after the Lakers lost the 2004 Finals to Detroit, and the Lakers traded O'Neal to the Heat after electing to build around Bryant. Jackson returned a year later, and the Lakers made the Finals in 2008, where they fell to Boston in six games. This year, the Lakers nearly mirrored last year's Celtics, winning the first two at home, dropping Game 3 on the road and storming back from a seemingly insurmountable deficit to win Game 4. The only difference? The Lakers didn't need a sixth game.
6363. wabbit - 6/24/2009 2:05:47 PM  U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover of Greenville, S.C. is now 18th in the rankings, a climb of 53 places because of his grinding, soggy, two-shot victory Monday over Phil Mickelson, David Duval and Ricky Barnes at Bethpage Black. Duval's jump in the rankings may be more dramatic than Glover's -- 740 places, from 882 to 142 -- but the world golf pecking order may have gotten shaken up just a little bit more by Glover's unexpected victory. The 29-year-old who listens to Sinatra music in the car, dips tobacco and had enough rain-delay time on his hands to plow through a handful of books at Bethpage, earned more than the $1.35 million for his triumph at the Open. He's exempt through 2014 on the PGA Tour and has a 10-year U.S. Open exemption.
A captain's pick for the Presidents Cup by Jack Nicklaus in 2008 but overlooked by Ryder Cup captain Paul Azinger in a similar situation last year, Glover may have earned himself a record for perseverance on a demanding U.S. Open course that required both patience and shot-making. He proved he's capable of delivering on each of those qualities. Not only was he top 10 in driving distance by averaging about 291 yards, Glover was fourth in greens in regulation and 11th in putting. In short: He's long and he can putt. That's not such a bad combination.
As it turns out, Glover is a man of few shots, and choice words. He held the silver U.S. Open trophy and was asked about how it felt. "Heavy," he said…
PGA news
6364. wabbit - 6/24/2009 2:06:19 PM After more than a quarter of a century of serving as the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, Donald Fehr is retiring. Fehr helped preserve the status quo, which was to allow baseball and its record book to be decided by which great ballplayers used the best chemists and the best drugs, and to push the clean players of his union to either cheat or be competitively disadvantaged. Even now, with the reputations of most of the greatest players of a generation ruined, Fehr leaves with little contrition.
Six runs in the first inning helped the Philadelphia Phillies relax and get back on track Tuesday night. "We got some big hits early. We got some runs and we got a lead and was able to hold it," manager Charlie Manuel said after the world champions got seven RBIs from Chase Utley and John Mayberry to rout the Tampa Bay Rays 10-1. Utley and Mayberry both homered in support of Jamie Moyer (5-6) to help the Phillies shrug off a 1-8 interleague homestand that dropped the NL East leaders nine games below .500 (13-22) at Citizens Bank Park. Philadelphia is a baseball-best 24-9 on the road.
Tommy Hanson won his third straight start, Brian McCann had two RBIs including a solo homer and Atlanta threw consecutive shutouts for the first time in four years with a 4-0 victory Tuesday night. New York managed just four hits and left 12 runners on base as Chien-Ming Wang (0-6) lost his sixth straight start. In the Yankees' first visit to Turner Field since 2000, Atlanta's pitching staff combined for its first consecutive shutouts since June 21-22, 2005, when it beat Florida by a combined 13-0 score. New York has lost three straight and four of six.
Manny Ramirez, easing back into playing shape after a 50-game drug suspension, suited up for the Albuquerque Isotopes as they beat Nashville 1-0. Ramirez wore No. 99 for the Dodgers' top farm club. "People love me everywhere I go," Ramirez said before the game. Wow.
MLB news
6365. wabbit - 6/24/2009 2:52:07 PM Wimbledon is underway. James Blake and now-retired Marat Safin are both out, losing in the first round. 17th seed Blake was upset in straight sets 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) by the on-song Italian Andreas Seppi on Court 3, the old No.2 Court, known as the “Graveyard of Champions”.
Safin, a double Grand Slam winner, bowed out in the first round to qualifier Jesse Levine on Court 18. From the outset of what was to end up a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 defeat, the Russian No.14 seed looked distinctively out of sorts. Balls were flying off his frame, wild ground strokes were in abundance and at 4-1 down in the opening set he was handed a code violation for racket abuse. Later there was the rant at the umpire. Safin confessed that he was 'relieved' that this was the end of his Wimbledon road. "It was not really my day. Not the perfect thing. Not the way to finish Wimbledon story. But anyway, it's okay. That's life. There is plenty of years coming towards me, so..." 6366. wabbit - 6/25/2009 2:55:18 PM  The LSU Tigers won their sixth national title Wednesday night, breaking open Game 3 of the College World Series finals with a five-run sixth inning that carried them to an 11-4 victory over Texas. Jared Mitchell hit a three-run homer in the first inning as LSU (56-17) built a 4-0 lead. Texas (50-16-1) pulled even, but Mikie Mahtook's tie-breaking double ignited the Tigers' big sixth against the mistake-prone Longhorns. Mitchell added to the title he earned as a wide receiver on the 2007 LSU team that won the BCS championship. Earlier this month, he was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the first round.
It was the first national title for 51-year-old coach Paul Mainieri, who played his freshman year at LSU in 1976 and returned to the school after coaching stops at St. Thomas (Fla.), Air Force and Notre Dame. LSU won national titles in 1991, '93, '96, '97 and 2000 under Skip Bertman. Though the Tigers made it back to the CWS two times under Smoke Laval -- he went 0-4 here -- the program fell off before Mainieri arrived three years ago.
6367. wabbit - 6/25/2009 3:24:52 PM  The U.S. soccer team is in the final of the Confederations Cup, beating mighty Spain 2-0. Even more stunning, the Americans were on the verge of elimination and ready to head home last weekend before a reversal of fortune. On Wednesday, goals by Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey led to an upset of the planet's top-ranked team. Altidore scored in the 27th minute and Dempsey added a goal in the 74th as the Americans became the first team to defeat Spain since Romania in November 2006.
Call it a miracle on grass -- maybe not the World Cup, but still an American soccer echo of the U.S. hockey team's upset of the Soviet Union at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. By winning, the maligned United States advanced to its first men's FIFA final since starting play in 1916. The U.S. will play defending champion Brazil or host South Africa in Sunday's final, which concludes a two-week tournament designed to prepare the organizers of next year's World Cup.
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