The Boston Red Sox’s highly acclaimed pitcher Curt Schilling has been recovering from the right shoulder injury he suffered during spring training sessions and took to the bullpen mound in
The New York Yankees fast improving pitcher Mike Mussina showed his class in the match against the Minnesota Twins last Friday and is determined to hold his place in the starting rotation policy of the Yankees. This is the eighth victory for Mussina this season and his subtle pitching changes helped the Yankees to overcome a 3-0 deficit. The Yankees coach Joe Girardi appreciated the efforts of Mike Mussina and complemented him for accumulating 109 pitches, a season high for him. Yankees fans who had bought tickets to watch the game at
The 2005 first round pick of Minnesota Vikings Erasmus James has been shown the exit doors by the Vikings as he has not been able to play for a considerable length of time due to persistent injuries. James, a leading player of the world’s premier sport, American football, has spent more time in the sidelines than on the field for the past three seasons and the Vikings team felt that it is better to relieve the defensive end rather than having him on the disabled list for most matches. The Vikings really missed the services of the James at the defense for the past two seasons and was one of the reasons for the team taking the last position of the league in pass defense.
All eyes are on Jay Bruce now as the young star is set to take the world by storm with his shining talents. He is said to be an All Star material as the Reds have already seen his potential and promoted him to play in the major league. His first game will be against the Pirates and the rookie is expected to have the crowd cheering on their feet. The strapping young man made the first round draft pick in the year 2005 and has proven his mettle, enough to be noticed by the big boys. The peak of his play was during 2007 when he hit .305/.358/.567/ when he was just a 20 year old lad. The left handed baseball player then went on to hit .456 since May 3, 2008.
The Atlanta Falcons have made a big hole in their pocket by signing in quarterback Matt Ryan for a six year contract at an astronomical sum of $72 million last Tuesday. Arthur Black, the Falcons NFL owner, and his team were very keen to get Matt Ryan into their team with an aim of bringing refreshing change into the side. The new general manager Dimitroff and new coach Mike Smith, one of the leading sports personalities in the world, felt that Ryan was a long term prospect who could gather the Falcon team around him. Ryan, a player with good reviews in the NFL circuit, has been signed to play as a starter in the Falcon squad.
Kansas City Royals and Joakim Soria made a deal of $8.75 million with three year extension of the contract. According to Soria, it was a big deal for him as it gives security for his family and career. He turned 24 yesterday. Soria was picked up in the winter meeting draft of 2006 when he was left by San Diego Padres. He made 2.48 ERA in 2007 and has 17 out of 21 save chances to his credit. According to the deal, he will receive $426,500 in this year, $ 1 million in next year, $ 3 million in 2010 season and in 2011 he will be eligible for $ 4 million.
NBA, one of the leading sports organizations in the world, selected its all rookie team through balloting by the head coaches in the league on Tuesday. The only player who was unanimously selected was Al Horford of Atlanta. Seattle’s Durant, who received good reviews this season, entered the all–rookie team with 57 votes. The other players selected to the first team include Luis Scola of Houston who got 53 votes, followed by Al Thorton of Los Angeles Clippers and Jeff Green of Seattle. Horford was ranked first in double- doubles and rebounds among the rookies. Kevin Durant is the only player to lead in five categories in his team like points, steals, free throws, blocks and in free throw percentage. In the league he has blocked 75 shots.
The Cincinnati Reds reliever Bill Bray made a short trip to his hometown Norfolk to play for Triple-A Louisville team in a bid to hone his pitching skills and played in a single game for Louisville as he was recalled back to the Reds team after veteran Kent Mercker was put in a 15 day disabled list. Dusty Baker, the manager of the Reds, said that the team sent Bray to Louisville to improve his overall skills of America’s favorite sport baseball. Bray hoped that his small stint at his hometown would bring in a world of good reviews for him playing for the Reds.
Fresh from winning the Barcelona Open, the world number two player and top Spaniard Rafael Nadal has now set his sights on winning the Roma Masters Open that started on Monday and if he wins here, it will be his fourth successive title this season. Nadal is the top seeded player in the Roma Masters tournament and it is a tournament that he has not lost so far as he has won in the three previous visits here. This is the fourth Masters tournament of the season and is the second one to be played on clay, a favorite surface of Nadal.
The Cincinnati Reds are at a crosscroads: To trade or not to trade Ken Griffey Jr., outfielder for the Reds? They can either keep the 38 year old player where he is after his contract ends, and pay him $16.5 million to maintain his position in the regular lineup, or they can buy out the option for a mere $4 million. But rumors are rife about them trading him out after a bout of bad performances on the field. The Reds’ GM Walt Jocketty has refused to comment regarding this matter but he also did not refute the statement. The Reds suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of the Cubs and are currently in last place in the NL Central.
