Maybe St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa was right and not just hopeful when he predicted Rick Ankiel had a big future as a power-hitting outfielder. The first three weeks or so could not have gone any better. Ankiel’s go-ahead grand slam added another chapter to the former phenom pitcher’s comeback story.
Maybe St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa was right and not just hopeful when he predicted Rick Ankiel had a big future as a power-hitting outfielder. The first three weeks or so could not have gone any better. Ankiel’s go-ahead grand slam added another chapter to the former phenom pitcher’s comeback story.
Yovani Gallardo was way more fired up about escaping a big jam than he was about his second career homer. The rookie right-hander pitched seven sharp innings and went deep in the fourth inning, helping the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-2 Friday night to inch closer in the NL Central race.
Three outs from history, Scott Baker jogged out to the mound and calmly took the ball for the ninth inning — a perfect game dangling right there in front of him. Nervous? Not this cool Cajun from Louisiana. “What did I have to be nervous about?” Baker asked. “I pitched a great game, no matter…
Rejecting the urge to retire, Michael Strahan has decided to play a 15th season with the New York Giants, and possibly even more. The seven-time Pro Bowl defensive end had his agent announce Friday that he was ending a 36-day holdout and would report to the Giants early next week. “He went with his heart…
Rodney Harrison, the frequently fined strong safety who solidified the New England Patriots’ defense through back-to-back Super Bowl victories, will miss the first four games of the NFL season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. “Tomorrow, the commissioner will announce I have been suspended,” a somber Harrison said in a hastily announced conference call…
Maybe Kyle Busch didn’t get the memo.
Coming off a big sweep of Boston, the New York Yankees looked awfully sluggish against Andy Sonnanstine and the improving Devil Rays. Sonnanstine pitched eight innings of two-hit ball and Carlos Pena homered twice, leading Tampa Bay to a 9-1 rout of the lethargic Yankees on Friday night. “I think our intensity was there.
Pedro Martinez may give the Mets rotation a September boost, but John Maine has been an able stand-in all season as New York’s new ace. Carlos Delgado hit a three-run homer and Maine gave up only three hits and one run to lead New York to a 7-1 win over the Atlanta Braves on Friday…
Kyle Kendrick was hit hard only when he batted. The Philadelphia right-hander took a fastball off his right arm trying to bunt in the second inning, but he still pitched seven innings, and the Phillies extended their winning streak to a season-best six games by beating Florida 9-2 Friday night. The Phillies climbed 10 games…
When the preseason mercifully ended for Baltimore and Atlanta on Friday night, Ravens running back Willis McGahee summed it up best. “I’m ready to rock, man,” McGahee said. “It’s time to get down and dirty.” McGahee was one of the few players with name recognition to play in a game decided by second-string kickers.
Latin Rhythms and Rush with Thunder won divisions of the El Cajon Stakes for 3-year-olds on Friday at Del Mar. Latin Rhythms had a 1 3/4 -length victory in the $111,400 second division after Rush with Thunder won the $112,650 first division by 1 1/2 lengths. Third in the recent La Jolla Handicap on the…