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5710. robertjayb - 8/10/2007 6:07:10 PM Discovery team abandons...
PARIS (AP) -- Lance Armstrong's former team is disbanding. Discovery Channel said Friday it will cease operations at the end of this season because it has been unable to find a new sponsor. Doping scandals have left cycling reeling and made sponsors jittery.
''I do not think you have seen the last of this organization in the sport,'' Armstrong, the seven-time Tour de France champion and co-owner of the team, said in a statement. ''But clearly things need to improve on many levels, with a more unified front, before you would see us venture back into cycling.''
Discovery Channel featured the winner (Alberto Contador of Spain) and third-place finisher (Levi Leipheimer of the U.S.) at last month's Tour de France.
5711. concerned - 8/10/2007 10:44:34 PM Bonds becomes the first baseball player in history to medicate his way to the lifetime home run record. 5712. wabbit - 8/13/2007 1:00:50 PM  Jambalaya found a seam down the stretch and used it to catch and pass the defending champion The Tin Man and win the 25th Arlington Million in Arlington Heights, Ill. The Tin Man, at age 9, was poised to become the first back-to-back winner but was caught inside the 16th pole by the Canadian-bred Jambalaya and beaten by three-quarters of a length. John Henry, who claimed the first Arlington Million in 1981, is still the only two-time winner, having also won in 1984.
The victory allows Jambalaya, a 5-year-old gelding who was previously nominated, to an automatic entry in the $3 million Breeders’ Cup Turf. Trained by Catherine Day Phillips and ridden by Robby Albarado, Jambalaya started on the inside, stayed close in the fourth position and then came on at the end of a slow-paced race. Jambalaya won the 1.25-mile turf race in 2 minutes 4.76 seconds and paid $17.20, $6.60 and $3.80. The Tin Man, taking second by a nose, returned $3.80 and $2.60. Doctor Dino paid $3.60.
The $400,000 Secretariat Stakes for three-year-olds was won by Shamdinan as he caught Red Giant right before the wire. Ridden by Julien Leparoux, the colt covered the 1 1/4 miles in 2:04.02 on the turf course. The victory puts Shamdinan into the Breeders' Cup Turf along with Jambalaya.
Royal Highness prevailed over Irridescence to win the $750,000 Beverly D. Stakes on the turf. With Rene Douglas in the saddle, the German-bred mare covered the 1 3/16 miles in 1:56.68. Royal Highness is now guaranteed a spot in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf.
5713. wabbit - 8/13/2007 1:01:10 PM  Novak Djokovic called his Rogers Cup semifinal victory over Rafael Nadal one of the biggest victories of his career. It turns out he was only getting warmed up. Djokovic upset world No. 1 Roger Federer 7-6 (2), 2-6, 7-6 (2) Sunday to win the $2.45 million Masters Series event, solidifying himself as a serious contender to win the U.S. Open beginning later this month in New York. It was third-seeded Djokovic's fourth tournament win this year and his first win in five career matches against Federer, whose 16-match Rogers Cup winning streak ended. The Swiss star won the tournament in 2004 and 2006, and sat out in 2005 with a foot injury. With wins over Andy Roddick and No. 2 Nadal in his previous rounds, Djokovic also became the first player to beat the world's top three players in the same tournament since Boris Becker defeated No. 3 Michael Stich, No. 1 Pete Sampras and No. 2 Goran Ivanisevic in succession in 1994 in Stockholm.
5714. wabbit - 8/13/2007 1:01:28 PM  Eric Gagne sat in front of his locker, his head down and his shoulders sagging. He wasn't the one who gave up the game-winning home run to Kevin Millar, yet the struggling reliever heaped all the blame for Boston's latest defeat squarely upon himself. Again. Millar hit a three-run homer in the 10th inning after Miguel Tejada tied it with a shot off Gagne in the eighth, leading the Baltimore Orioles past the skidding Red Sox 6-3 Sunday. It was the fourth loss in six games for the Red Sox, whose lead over the second-place New York Yankees in the AL East shrunk to four games -- Boston's smallest margin since May 1.
Strutting into Jacobs Field for the weekend, the Yankees made themselves right at home. They bullied the Cleveland Indians before leaving with three wins and the same confidence that has made them champions many times before. Pettitte didn't have much trouble with Cleveland's lame lineup and Jason Giambi homered for the second straight day as the Yankees beat the Indians 5-3 to complete a series - and season - sweep on Sunday. Written off in May when they trailed first-place Boston by 14 1/2 games, the Yankees pulled within four of the Red Sox , who lost 6-3 in 10 innings at Baltimore. It's the closest New York has been to the top of the AL East standings since April 24. The Yankees have won eight of nine, and with an offense mashing like no other, improved to a baseball-best 23-8 since the All-Star break.
Jeff Weaver is accustomed to slow starts. He's also getting used to dominating late in the year. Weaver pitched his second shutout of the season and Adrian Beltre hit a two-run homer to lead the Seattle Mariners past the Chicago White Sox 6-0 Sunday. Weaver, who started the 2006 season 1-7 before becoming the World Series hero for the St. Louis Cardinals, has won consecutive starts after losing four straight. Before beating Baltimore 10-3 on Tuesday, Weaver hadn't won since June 25 against Boston. Bobby Jenks pitched a perfect ninth for Chicago, breaking David Wells ' American League record and tying the major league record of 41 straight batters retired. Jim Barr also set down 41 straight for San Francisco in 1972.
MLB scores
5715. wabbit - 8/13/2007 1:01:46 PM  On Sunday at the 89th PGA Championship, Tiger Woods seemed to know exactly what score he would need on win. He was alternately pretty good, great and just good enough. Not at his best on the hottest day of the hottest major on record, a Sunday when the high hit 102 and the heat index 110, Woods shot a one-under 69 to finish eight under and hold off a surging Woody Austin and Ernie Els at Southern Hills. He was met in the scoring hut by his wife, Elin, and their infant daughter, Sam Alexis, who was attending her first major. "It's a feeling I've never had before, having Sam there and having Elin there," said Woods, whose fourth career PGA Championship victory puts him one behind Walter Hagen and Jack Nicklaus. "It feels a lot more special when you have your family there." Woods wins $1.26 million and increases his victory total in the majors to 13, five behind Nicklaus's record of 18 and equal to that of Bobby Jones, counting Jones's U.S. Amateur victories. (Although it would only seem fair to also include Woods's three U.S. Amateur titles.)
Sergio Garcia was disqualified on Saturday for signing an incorrect score card. Boo Weekley, who kept Garcia's card, mistakenly gave him a par 4 on the 17th hole when Garcia actually made a bogey 5. Garcia signed his card for a 73, which should have been a 74, and was disqualified. Weekley said later that he realized he'd made a mistake while he was still in the scoring cabin but Garcia was already gone. The Spaniard was in a bad mood, apparently, after three-putting the final hole. Weekley tried to call Garica back but he was already bouncing up the temporary stairs leading to the clubhouse. He caught up with Garcia later to explain what happened. Garcia's 74 would've left him nine over for the tournament and hopelessly out of contention anyway, but even so, it's an embarrassing situation for Garcia.
5716. wonkers2 - 8/15/2007 3:39:19 AM Grosse Pointe YC Regatta 8-11-07 5717. wabbit - 8/15/2007 1:21:18 PM  His speed and spunk made him a Hall of Famer.
"Holy cow!" made Phil Rizzuto famous.
Popular as a player and beloved as a broadcaster, the New York Yankees shortstop during their dynasty years of the 1940s and 1950s died Monday night. "The Scooter" was 89.
Rizzuto had pneumonia and died in his sleep at a nursing home in West Orange, N.J., daughter Patricia Rizzuto said Tuesday. He had been in declining health for several years... NY Times obit5718. hobbes - 8/21/2007 2:02:31 AM "He has hit more home runs than anyone who has ever played the game."
I guess he forgot about Sadaharu Oh. 5719. wabbit - 8/21/2007 11:57:48 AM Hey Hobbes!
The rap I've read about Sadaharu Oh was that he played in a league where the pitching wasn't up to the same standard as what he would have seen in the US. I don't know enough about baseball in Japan to know whether that's a fair criticism or not. 5720. wabbit - 8/21/2007 12:13:35 PM What do you suppose happened to the "I'm innocent" whine? Michael Vick will plead guilty to federal dogfighting charges. Now let's see the scramble to make excuses for him and keep his waste-of-oxygen ass out of prison. More than football, Michael Vick's freedom is the question now.
With three associates prepared to testify that he brutally executed dogs and bankrolled gambling, the NFL star agreed Monday to "accept full responsibility" for his role in a dogfighting ring and plead guilty to federal conspiracy charges.
Worries about playing time will have to wait while Vick faces prison time -- from one to five years.
The maximum term is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, although federal sentencing guidelines likely would call for less. Defense attorneys would not divulge details of the plea agreement or how much time Vick can expect to serve.
However, a government official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the terms are not final, told The Associated Press that prosecutors will recommend a sentence of a year to 18 months.
The official said such a sentence would be more than what is usually recommended for first-time offenders, reflecting the government's attempt to show that animal abusers will receive more than a slap on the wrist... I hope that's true, but it seems to me that the dogfighting is a side issue in this case. What he'll go down for is gambling. Cruelty and being a scumbag are just part of what makes Vick a "great" football player, I guess.5721. wabbit - 8/21/2007 12:26:53 PM  Tim Wakefield's name never comes up in Cy Young talk. But the Red Sox knuckleballer is tied for the MLB lead with 15 wins after his 6-0 conquest of the Devil Rays on Monday night. Wakefield improved to 19-2 -- including a 9-0 mark at Tropicana Field -- all-time against the Devil Rays. It's the most wins by any Tampa Bay opponent. Wakefield (15-10) struck out five and walked one, and moved into a tie for the major league lead in wins this season. He has not allowed a run in 15 consecutive innings. He has also blanked Tampa Bay 19 innings in a row. Wakefield has a decision in all of his 25 starts, the first to reach that number since Jack McDowell posted decisions in his first 27 starts with the Chicago White Sox in 1993.
Three weeks after making his major league debut, Ryan Budde doubled in the winning run in the 10th inning and the Los Angeles Angels beat the New York Yankees 7-6 Monday night, improving their major league-leading home record to 41-17. Budde hit a 2-0 pitch from Sean Henn (2-1) into right-center to score Howie Kendrick , who had doubled to right with one out. It was Budde's first RBI and first extra-base hit in the majors.
A sapped Mark Teixeira hit a pair of homers for the second consecutive game Monday night, leading the Atlanta Braves to a 14-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds that showed what the power hitter can do on a nearly empty stomach. Brian McCann hit a first-inning grand slam, and Andruw Jones added a two-run shot as the Braves sent the Reds to a loss that matched their most lopsided of the season. With Atlanta's offense fully revved, Tim Hudson improved to 9-0 in his last 11 starts and became the first NL pitcher to reach the 15-win mark. The right-hander wasn't quite up to form - his delivery was a bit out of whack - but the offensive splurge eased his way.
MLB scores
5722. hobbes - 8/24/2007 2:12:27 AM Hey, Wabbit, do I know you by another name at RI?
Also, Oh, as a manager encouraged his pitchers not to pitch to batters who were ready to pass his single season Home Run mark. He did this to three hitters. This actually was the plot of that forgettable Tom Selleck movie several years ago. 5723. wabbit - 8/24/2007 7:12:15 PM Hey hobbes, I'm some variation of wabbit (maybe viwabbit?) at RI, but I haven't posted there in ages.
Didn't see that movie, but I had heard that Oh made some effort to protect that record. Kind of cheapens it, imho. 5724. wabbit - 8/24/2007 7:23:17 PM Michael Vick is copping a plea to everything but gambling. Michael Vick filed his plea agreement in federal court Friday admitting to conspiracy in a dogfighting ring and helping kill pit bulls. He denied ever betting on the fights, only bankrolling them.
The Atlanta Falcons quarterback is scheduled to formally enter his plea Monday in U.S. District Court. He signed the plea agreement Thursday.
"Most of the Bad Newz Kennels operation and gambling monies were provided by Vick," a summary of facts in the case said, echoing language in plea agreements by three co-defendants who previously pleaded guilty.
The statement said that when the kennel's dogs won, the gambling proceeds were generally shared by Vick's three co-defendants -- Tony Taylor, Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips.
"Vick did not gamble by placing side bets on any of the fights. Vick did not receive any of the proceeds of the purses that were won by Bad Newz Kennels," the summary said... It doesn't matter what else he did, as long as he didn't place a bet, he'll get to play pro ball again in a couple years. I'll be interested to see if there is any way to prove he placed bets on the fights, or if there is any effort to investigate that aspect of the case.
I hope the NFL adds a clause requiring players to exhibit some semblance of humanity to their code of conduct. No, I'm not holding my breath on that one.5725. wonkers2 - 8/26/2007 11:35:28 PM Thursday night beer can race 5726. wabbit - 8/27/2007 1:01:26 PM  When Street Sense hit the top of the stretch in the $1 million Travers Stakes, it looked like the race was over. It was just beginning. Instead of pulling away from his less-than accomplished rivals, Street Sense found himself hooked up in a stretchlong duel with Grasshopper before prevailing by a half-length on a hot and steamy Saturday at Saratoga Race Course. The Kentucky Derby winner has lost his share of close calls -- the Preakness by a head, the Blue Grass by a nose -- but this time he came through after giving trainer Carl Nafzger a few anxious moments. Despite the absence of his toughest rivals -- Preakness winner Curlin, Haskell winner Any Given Saturday and Derby runner-up Hard Spun -- Street Sense needed his best effort to beat a horse running in his first stakes race. With the victory Street Sense becomes the 10th horse to win the "Run for the Roses" and the "Mid-Summer Derby" double. Thunder Gulch was the last to do it in 1995. Street Sense, trained by Carl Nafzger, was sent off as the 1-5 favorite in the seven horse field. Grasshopper set the pace around the first turn and into the backstretch followed by C P West, Street Sense and For You Reppo. The time for the 1 1/4 miles was 2:02.69. It was a much better race than most expected, including me.
In the supporting $250,000 King's Bishop Stakes, Kentucky Derby runner-up Hard Spun also needed a full effort in defeating First Defence. Hard Spun, ridden by Mario Pino, posted a 1 1/2 length victory in the seven-furlong sprint. This was the first win for Hard Spun since the Lane's End Stakes in March.
Shadwell Stable’s homebred Shakis (Ire) rallied late along the hedge and closed resolutely for a three-quarter-length victory in the $200,000 Bernard Baruch Handicap (G2) on Saturday at Saratoga Race Course to secure his first stakes victory. Shakis saved ground early on in fourth through an solid opening quarter in :23.10 and dropped back to sixth, more than 2-1/2 lengths off the pace, while Ballast (Ire) completed a half-mile in :47.10. The seven-year-old Machiavellian horse moved up along the inside, squeezed through a narrow opening in upper stretch, and quickly accelerated to the front with a furlong remaining. Under Alan Garcia, Shakis shook clear to complete 1 1/8 miles on firm turf in 1:45.33.
5727. wabbit - 8/27/2007 1:01:43 PM  The New York Yankees hit the ball hard Sunday. The Detroit Tigers just kept making all the plays. The Tigers used three early homers and three late defensive gems to beat the Yankees 5-4, and can win their first series since mid-July with a victory in the series finale Monday night. The Tigers moved within 5-1/2 games of the Seattle Mariners in the wild-card race. Detroit began the day 2-1/2 games behind Cleveland in the AL Central. New York fell 2-1/2 games behind Seattle, and seven behind Boston in the AL East.
David Ortiz hit a two-run homer, and J.D. Drew and Bobby Kielty ended long homerless droughts to back Julian Tavarez's first win since late June as the Boston Red Sox finished a four-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox with a 11-1 victory Sunday. Strangely enough, Drew's last home run was in the same game as Tavarez's last win: June 20 at Atlanta. Kielty homered for the first time since last Sept. 19, when he was with Oakland. The Red Sox outscored Chicago 46-7 in the series, dropping the White Sox to 18 games under .500. Boston has won four in a row, improved baseball's best record to 80-51 and increased their lead over second-place New York to 71/2 games in the AL East. Tavarez (7-9), who has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen, was making just his second start since the beginning of August, but struck out seven and handcuffed the White Sox to two hits in six innings. He was 0-5 in his last seven starts, going back to June 25. Ortiz's 24th homer capped off a four-run fifth inning as the Red Sox ended Javier Vazquez's perfect month and sent the White Sox to their fifth straight loss and 13th in 15 games.
Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez singled home runs with two out in the 11th inning and the Cleveland Indians rallied for a 5-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday. The Indians, who scored a run in the ninth to send the game into extra innings, remained two games ahead of the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central. The Tigers beat the Yankees 5-4. Hafner's single off John Bale, the sixth Royals pitcher, scored Franklin Gutierrez, who led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. Grady Sizemore, who was hit by a Bale pitch, scored the second run of the inning on a Martinez single. Joel Peralta (1-3), the fifth Royals pitcher, walked Gutierrez and was charged with the loss. Rafael Betancourt (3-0), who threw 18 strikes out of 22 pitches, struck out three in two perfect innings to pick up the victory. Joe Boroswki got his 37th save in 42 chances.
MLB scores
5728. wabbit - 8/27/2007 1:06:24 PM  Dalton Carriker said he couldn't feel his legs as he rounded the bases. His home run in the bottom of the eighth had just given Warner Robins, Ga., a thrilling 3-2 victory over Tokyo to win the 2007 Little League World Series title.
"I felt like I was flying, like Peter Pan," Carriker said. "I didn't know what I was doing."
Adrenaline took over from there, said the 12-year-old slugger with braces. His dramatic home run over the right-field wall off a 2-1 pitch from Japan's Junsho Kiuchi gave the United States three straight Little League championships.
5729. robertjayb - 8/27/2007 4:44:35 PM Michael Vick said in a press conference this morning that he has found Jesus and axed him for forgiveness. He accepts full responsibility for his actions. Amazing how Jesus turns up when the jailhouse threatens.
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