Celtics Get Biggest Win Since 1970

The Boston Celtics beat the New York Knicks 104-59 Thursday night to improve their record to 12-2. It is the most lopsided victory for any team this season and it is the most lopsided victory for the Celtics since 1970, when they beat the Baltimore Bullets 153-107. Meanwhile, the Knicks scored their fewest points in a game since 2005 when they lost to the Detroit Pistons 91-61. The 59 points scored by the Knicks is the second lowest total in franchise history. Their lowest total came in their good days, back in 2000, when they only scored 58 points in a home loss to the Utah Jazz. The Celtics big three; Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, didn't even receive that much playing time as the Celtics were cruising as early as the second quarter. Garnett only had 8 points in 22 minutes and Pierce and Allen sat out the fourth quarter, both scoring 21 points. The Knicks would've made history with 56 points if it wasn't for Nate Robinson's near-halfcourt 3 pointer at the buzzer, the Knicks would've had their lowest total ever. The Knicks two game winning streak came to an end and their record fell to 4-10. Their has been speculation that Isiah Thomas, head coach of the Knicks, could lose his job with everything that has happened to the Knicks lately. Are the Knicks in a complete disaster? Does Isiah Thomas need to be fired? Are the Celtics the best in the Eastern Conference? Are the Celtics the best team in the NBA?

Williams Out For Season After One Game

Ricky Williams, running back for the Miami Dolphins, is out for the rest of the season with a torn chest muscle. Williams, who got the injury in the only game he played in this season, will have his arm in a sling for about four to six weeks. Williams was just reinstated by the NFL 10 days earlier after missing the entire 2006 season and half of the 2007 season due to suspension for his violation of the NFL drug policy. Williams' agent, Leigh Steinberg, says that Williams will be ready and healthy for the 2008 season. Right now, the Dolphins are 0-11 after their nasty loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers 3-0 on Monday night. Ronnie Brown, the Dolphins starting running back at the start of the season, is out for the season with a knee injury he sustained last month. The Dolphins are now thin at running back and with the injury to Jesse Chatman, their other running back in the Steelers game as wel, they only have Patrick Cobbs and Lorenzo Booker. Was Ricky Williams' presence going to help the Dolphins win a football game? Will the Dolphins go 0-16 this year? Will Ricky Williams' be back with the Dolphins next season?

Taylor Dies A Day After Being Shot

Sean Taylor, free safety for the Washington Redskins, has died Tuesday morning a day after being shot in the leg. Taylor was 24 years old. He was in his fourth season with the Redskins and was really having a good season so far, having 5 interceptions. Taylor was a Pro Bowl safety last year and was definitely heading to the Pro Bowl again this season. There were reports from his former lawyer that he lost a significant amount of blood due to the gunshot severing his femoral artery. From the point when Taylor was shot early Monday morning till his death, he never gained consciousness, therefore giving little hope that he would survive. On Monday evening, the doctors said they were cautiously optimistic once Taylor was starting to respond to simple commands from the doctors. But that was short-lived as well. Taylor's murder happens a little over 10 months after Denver Broncos defensive back Darrent Williams was shot and killed after leaving a party shortly after their season was over. Williams was also 24 at the time that he died. Taylor has known to have been in trouble in the past but there haven't been anything that has been linked to his troubles yet. The same house where he was shot in on Momday was the same house that was broken into eight days earlier. Nobody was in the house at the time but this time around, Taylor, who was injured and returned to his home after receiving treatment for his knee, and his girlfriend, were home. Is this a growing trend with football players with two deaths from murders? Is Taylor's past actions responsible for his murder? Who will the Redskins replace him with? Will the Redskins play their scheduled home game this Sunday against the Buffalo Bills?

NFL Week 12

Week 12 of the NFL season had some good games and surprises as usual. The game that turned out to be the best game of the week was the Sunday night matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots. The Patriots, who were undefeated at 10-0 at that point, came into the game heavy favorites against an Eagles team who has been struggling all year. Eagles starting QB Donovan McNabb did not start due to a knee injury he sustained last week against the Miami Dolphins, meaning the Eagles had to go with backup QB A.J. Feeley. Feeley played good enough to win, going 27-42 for 345 yards and 3 TD but also had 3 INT. Tom Brady, who's on pace to set numerous records, clearly had his worst game of the year under constant pressure from the Eagles' defense, but the Patriots prevailed, winning 31-28. Another good game was the Thanksgiving game between the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions. Brett Favre, the Packers QB, was very effective, going 31-41 for 381 yards and 3 TD. This game was a hyped game because the Lions were finally a decent team on their annual Thanksgiving game for the first time in a long time. But the Lions didn't have much firepower for a better Packers team, as the Packers won 37-26. Another good game was the Denver Broncos and the Chicago Bears game. The Broncos, leading by 14 in the fourth quarter, lost in overtime 37-34, when the Bears scored 17 unanswered points in the fourth and overtime to win it. Devin Hester, their incredible special teams player, had two TD returns. The surprise of the week was the Minnesota Vikings' 41-17 win over the New York Giants. It was very surprising because the Giants were clearly the better team coming into the game but Giants QB Eli Manning was ineffective, throwing 4 INT. Three of them were returned for touchdowns by the Vikings defense. Did the Eagles expose the Patriots weaknesses? Are the Packers a legit team in the NFC? Did the Bears' win save their season? Are the Giants a serious contender after their embarrassing loss?

BCS Rankings

The new BCS Rankings came out on Sunday and there were no surprises in the new rankings. The Missouri Tigers, who beat the Kansas Jayhawks 36-28 in one of the most anticipated matchups this season, is the new #1 team. The LSU Tigers, who was the #1 team last week, fell to #7 in the rankings after their loss to the unranked Arkansas Razorbacks. The win for the Razorbacks wasn't enough to get them into the top 25 in the BCS Rankings. The new #2 team in the ranking is West Virginia, who beat UConn 66-21 on Saturday. Kansas, who was the previous #2 team, fell to #5 in the rankings. Ohio State and Georgia, respectively, are #3 and #4 in the rankings to round out the top five. Ohio State, Georgia, and Kansas don't play another game until their bowl game but Missouri has to play in the Big 12 championship game against the #9 ranked Oklahoma Sooners. West Virginia has to play their last game before the bow game against the Pittsburgh Panthers. This has created a little controversy in the system because Missouri has to play an extra game, which is a conference championship game, before their bowl game. The Pac-10 Conference and the Big 10, two big conferences, don't have championship games to determine the conference winner. Their conferences are won outright by their season record in the conference. That means Ohio State, who is in the Big 10, don't have to play another game because they already won the conference by their conference record. Is this fair to Missouri? Should every conference have a conference championship game? Is this another major flaw in the BCS system? Will Missouri win and if so, will they stay #1 and make it to the national championship game?

Redskins' Taylor Shot And Critically Injured

Washington Redskins free safety Sean Taylor was shot early Monday morning at his home in Florida and investigators believe it may have been a possible burglary attempt. Taylor, who's tied in the NFC for the most interceptions with Dallas Cowboys defensive back Anthony Henry at 5, was taken to a hospital in a helicopter and was listed in critical condition. Taylor, who played for the University of Miami Hurricanes in college, has a home in Miami. The Redskins just came off of a game in Florida against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which they lost 19-13. Taylor did not play in that game because of a knee injury which has forced him out the past two games. No information from his family or from investigators has been released about how many times he was shot. Taylor has been in trouble throughout his 4 year NFL career on and off the field. He was fined $17,000 after spitting on Buccaneers running back Michael Pittman two years in a wild card playoff game. Taylor was also in trouble with the law two years ago after brandishing a gun in a crowd and threatening people he believed stole his ATV vehicle. He reached a deal in which the felony charges were dropped in exchange for community service time. What do you think this shooting was related to? Was it just a burglary attempt or was it payback for something Taylor did previously? Will this affect Taylor's possible long career? Will it affect the Redskins this season?

#1 LSU Championship Hopes Derailed

The Louisiana State Tigers, who were ranked #1 in the latest BCS Rankings, lost to the Arkansas Razorbacks on Friday, 50-48 in 3 OT. This was the second time this season that LSU was ranked #1 and lost to a SEC opponent. Back on October 13, the Kentucky Wildcats beat the Tigers 43-37 in 3 OT as well. This will result in a shakeup in the BCS Rankings, as well as all national championship hopes for LSU gone. Darren McFadden, the Razorbacks' running back and a Heisman trophy candidate, rushed for 206 yards on 32 carries on a good Tigers' defense. McFadden, who rushed for a Razorbacks' single season record 1,647 yards last season, topped that today, now totaling 1,725 yards on the season. The loss for LSU gives other teams hope of playing for the national title. Kansas, who's ranked #2 on the BCS Rankings, can move up to #1 with a win against Big 12 foe Missouri. If Kansas loses as well to Missouri, that can open the doors for Missouri, who is currently ranked at #4, West Viriginia at #3, and Ohio State at #5, to move up to the #1 spot. Ohio State, who was ranked #1 earlier this year until their loss against the Illinois Fighting Illini, don't play another game until a bowl game, so they increase their chances if other teams keep falling because they can't mess up. West Virginia has to go through #20 ranked UConn and unranked Pittsburgh. Kansas has the toughest road, having to go through Missouri, and if they win, possibly Oklahoma or Texas in the Big 12 championship game. Who will be the new #1 when the BCS Rankings come out on Sunday? Will Ohio State get back to #1 before the final BCS Rankings are put out? Which two teams will be playing for the national championship?

Blue Jays' Pitcher Kennedy Is Dead

Toronto Blue Jays' pitcher Joe Kennedy died on Friday morning at his parents' home. He was 28 years old. The cause of death has not yet been determined but there were reports that he collapsed shortly after he woke up just after 1am. He was taken to Brandon Hospital in Hillsborough County, Florida where he was pronounced dead shortly after. Kennedy has been with five teams since 2001, when he made his debut with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He also played with the Colorado Rockies, Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks and currently the Blue Jays. Kennedy's last appearance on the mound was on September 29, when he made a relief appearance for the Blue Jays in their 5-3 win over the Devil Rays. His career ERA was 4.79 with 222 career appearances on the mound. Kennedy, according to the Blue Jays, was going to be a part of the organization next season after spending the 2007 season with three different teams. The Blue Jays said they definitely had interest in keeping him for the 2008 season. Now, the Blue Jays will have to fill that void with another pitcher. Kennedy was married and had a 1 year old son, who many say he was very involved with. Should the Blue Jays honor him at the start of next season, even if he wasn't a big name on their pitching staff? How will Kennedy's death affect, not only the Blue Jays, but also Major League Baseball?

Wizards' Star Out Three Months After Knee Surgery

Gilbert Arenas, point guard and leading scorer for the Washington Wizards, will miss three months after having two different surgical procedures on his left knee. Arenas, who has been the star on this team and responsible for the Wizards playoff appearances the past three seasons, was averaging just over 22 points per game this season for the Wizards. The Wizards have not played well in Arenas' absence in the past. Their record in the past five seasons without Arenas is 15-26, and they were swept in the first round of the playoffs last season against the Cleveland Cavaliers without him. Arenas missed the playoff series against the Cavaliers last year because of the left knee problem which was operated on also and it hasn't gotten any better in the offseason. He has gotten that left knee drained earlier this season and it was clear that the problem definitely needed to be corrected. There was a lot of swelling and soreness in the knee which has been affecting Arenas' performance this season. Arenas, if everything goes on schedule, should be able to come back around February. This is not the only significant injury for the Wizards. Etan Thomas, the Wizards' backup center, is out for the entire season after having heart surgery before the start of this season. He was a big part of the team as well and now the Wizards are thin at the center position. Will the Wizards be able to make the playoffs with Arenas' long absence? Will this injury affect Arenas for the rest of his career?

Chiefs' Franchise Rushing Leader Calls It Quits

Priest Holmes, running back for the Kansas City Chiefs and the team's all time leading rusher, has retired from the NFL. Holmes, who is 34 years old, has been suffering from a neck injury that he suffered in the 2005 season against the San Diego Chargers. Larry Johnson, who was their backup running back at the time, was thrust into the starting role and flourished, never giving up his starting spot. It took Holmes two years to get back onto the field and he played his first game this season against the Oakland Raiders. Johnson, who is still the starter, got hurt against the Green Bay Packers and that gave way for Holmes to get more carries. In this past Sunday's 13-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Holmes felt tingling in his body again after several hits from the Colts' defense. It was another occurrence of his neck problems and he thought about, in the last couple of days, whether he should return or whether he should retire. He decided to retire after talking with his family and medical experts about his latest setback. Holmes, who was a 4 time Pro Bowler, is the Chiefs' all time leader in rushing touchdowns with 76 and total touchdowns with 83. Holmes first played with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Texas. He came to Kansas City in 2001 and has flourished since. Was this a good decision for Holmes and his family? Will Holmes' number be retired? Will he try to attempt a comeback?

Rollins Wins NL MVP

Jimmy Rollins, shortstop for the Philadelphia Phillies, has won the National League MVP in a close race, receiving 16 out of 32 first place votes. Rollins was very instrumental in getting the Phillies to the playoffs for the first time since 1993, when they lost the World Series to the Toronto Blue Jays. Rollins narrowly beat out Colorado Rockies' left fielder Matt Holliday, who received 11 first place votes. Rollins, along with second basemen Chase Utley and first basemen Ryan Howard, was able to produce for the Phillies late in the season in September, when the New York Mets had a seven game lead in the NL East division with 17 games to play. The Mets started reeling while the Phillies were red hot. The Phillies won the division on the last game of the season with their victory over the Washington Nationals, while the Mets lost to the Florida Marlins. Rollins definitely had MVP numbers at the leadoff spot, batting .296 with 30 home runs and 94 RBI, impressive for a guy who bats first. He also was in the top five in many statistical categories. He was #1 in runs, triples, games played, and at-bats. He was second in hits and extra base hits. He had a phenomenal season but some felt that Matt Holliday should've won the MVP, as he was instrumental in helping the Rockies make the playoffs late in the season. Holliday had a better batting average and was more of a run producer for the Rockies than Rollins was with the Phillies. Should Holliday have won the MVP? Is Rollins even the best player in the infield with Utley and Howard? Will the Phillies make the playoffs again next season?

Vick Starts Serving Sentence Early

Michael Vick, who was the quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons and the one who was convicted for his involvement in a dogfighting ring, surrendered to authorities to start serving his prison sentence three weeks before he was sentenced to get a head start on his prison term. Vick is definitely anticipating that he will not get probation in the sentencing, which was supposed to be heard on December 10. Vick pleaded guilty in August of a federal dogfighting conspiracy charge after a home that was registered to him in Virginia was found to have numerous dogs that were in bad condition. Vick, at first, claimed that he was innocent and did nothing wrong. But there were a lot of people who came out, including an anonymous source who came out on an interview on ESPN and said that Vick was a "heavyweight" in the dogfighting operations. After three of his co-defendants pleaded guilty and was going to cooperate with federal authorities, Vick finally pleaded guilty as well, with the original notion that he might get lesser punishment, perhaps no jail time. But the public scrutiny that Vick was under is a clear indication that Vick will not get off that easy. Vick got even more scrutiny when he tested positive for marijuana in September, which was against the law under the circumstances that he stay home until his sentencing. Vick has also lost a lot of money in this whole ordeal. The Falcons asked for $20 million from him from guaranteed playing bonuses. He is also beingsued about $4 million from banks that claim that he defaulted on loans. The future only gets worse for Michael Vick. If he gets jail time and gets out of jail before the start of next season, will he be in an NFL uniform? Will the Falcons, who are currently struggling with quarterbacks Joey Harrington and Byron Leftwich, take him back once his punishment is over. Will Roger Goodell decide to ban Vick from the NFL for life?

A-Rod Wins Third MVP

Alex Rodriguez, third basemen for the New York Yankees, has won the American League MVP for the third time in his career when he received 26 first place votes in the MVP voting. Rodriguez, who had a monster season this past year with a .314 batting average, 54 home runs, and 156 RBI. This is the second time Rodriguez has won the MVP award with the Yankees. He won it the first time with the Texas Rangers in 2003, where he played shortstop. The New York Yankees are the United States' most winning franchise with 26 world championships and the Yankees have failed to get one in the four years Rodriguez has been in New York. Rodriguez has repeatedly stated that he'll trade in all of his personal accomplishments for a world championship and that has been the biggest reason he wanted to come to the Yankees. This offseason, Rodriguez opted out of the last three years of his 10 year $252 million contract on the advice of his agent Scott Boras. Rodriguez and his agent were apparently looking to get a contract of more than $300 million. There were no teams that were willing to give him that much money and he ended up ditching Boras and negotiating on his own with the Yankees on a new contract. It has been a blow to Boras' reputation, as he was recently fired by pitcher Kenny Rogers. It was reported that Rodriguez ditched Boras in the contract negotiations on the advice from billionaire Warren Buffet, who has been friends with Rodriguez. Nonetheless, Rodriguez has turned in another good regular season but has not turned it into playoff success, as the Yankees fell to the Cleveland Indians 3 games to 1 in the American League Division Series. Magglio Ordonez was a distant second in the MVP race. Was this Rodriguez's best season in his career? Will Rodriguez duplicate this past season's performance next season? Will Rodriguez win a championship with the New York Yankees?

BCS Rankings

The new BCS Rankings has come out on Sunday and there is yet another #2 team in the rankings. This time it is the Kansas Jayhawks, who are undefeated at 11-0. LSU has stayed #1 after their 41-24 win on Saturday against Mississippi. Notable teams who have slipped in the rankings are previously #2 ranked Oregon and #4 ranked Oklahoma after their losses this weekend. Oregon was upsetted by Arizona 34-24 on Thursday, as Heisman hopeful Dennis Dixon got injured and was lost for the rest of the season. They fell to #9 and their national championship dreams were thrown out in the process. Oklahoma, who also was upsetted by Texas Tech 34-27 on Saturday, dropped to #10 in the BCS Rankings and their dreams of the national championship were thrown out as well. West Virginia, Missouri, and Ohio State rounds out the top 5 in the BCS. #2 Kansas plays #4 Missouri this week in a game that will crush one team's national championship hopes and boost the other's. Kansas is the new team on the watch, as five previous #2 ranked teams have lost and fallen out of the spot. Will Kansas be the #2 team to lose this week? With Ohio State having played their last game in their 14-3 against Michigan, will they go up to the #2 or possibly the #1 spot? Will LSU win out and stay at #1?

NFL Week 11

In Week 11 of the NFL Season, there was no clear cut must-watch game this week but there were a couple of good games and some surprises. One of the good and crazy games was the Cleveland Browns against the Baltimore Ravens game. Kyle Boller started the game for the Ravens instead of Steve McNair and Boller didn't do much to help the Ravens either. He went 22-41 for 279 yards and a TD but also had 2 INT, which one of them was returned 100 yards for a Browns touchdown by Brodney Pool. Derek Anderson was efficient again but did not throw at TD pass. He was 24-38 for 274 and an INT. The crazy part of the game came at the end when Browns' kicker Phil Dawson kicked a 51 yard field goal which was ruled a missed at first. The Ravens appeared to have won the game but then the referee ruled that the kick was good so both teams had to come back out for overtime. Phil Dawson kicked another field goal in overtime to win the game 33-30. Another good game was the Washington Redskins vs. Dallas Cowboys game. Terrell Owens, the Cowboys' wide receiver had a huge game with 4 TD receptions, accounting for all of the Cowboys points in a 28-23 victory over the Redskins. Tony Romo, the Cowboys' QB played good again, going 22-32 for 293 yards, 4 TD and an INT. Jason Campbell, the Redskins' QB, played well enough to win the game, going 33-54 for 348 yards, 2 TD and an INT. That INT was a critical won which secured the victory for the Cowboys in the fourth quarter. Other good wins this week was the New York Giants 16-10 victory over the Detroit Lions on the road and the New England Patriots dominating 56-10 victory over the Buffalo Bills in which wide receiver Randy Moss had 4 TD receptions. The surprise of the week was the New York Jets' victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Jets won 19-16 in overtime when kicker Mike Nugent kicked a game-winning 38 yard field goal. It was a disappointing loss for the Steelers, who are considered an elite team in the AFC with the Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts, who struggled in their 13-10 home victory against the Kansas City Chiefs. Will the Patriots keep up their undefeated season and run the table? Are the Cowboys the best in the NFC? Are the Browns going to make the playoffs?

#4 Sooners Latest To Go Down

The #4 ranked Oklahoma Sooners lost to the Texas Tech Red Raiders 34-27 at the Jones SBC Stadium in Texas. In a year full of crazy upsets and plenty of shifting in the BCS Standings, the Sooners were the ones to be upsetted after Oregon was upsetted by Arizona two days earlier. The Sooners still had hope of reaching the title game after Oregon's loss by winning the remainder of their games. But Texas Tech came and did what many unranked teams have done this year; destroy the chances of teams to reach the national championship game. Graham Harrell, the quarterback for the Red Raiders, threw for 420 yards and two touchdowns while completing 47 of his career high 72 pass attempts. It was a lot of passes thrown but it got the job done as the upset minded Red Raiders completed the job. Sam Bradford, the quarterback for the Sooners and the nation's leading passer, left the game with a concussion in the first quarter with the Sooners up 7-3. After he left the game with the lead, the Red Raiders pulled off 24 straight points to go up 27-7. The Sooners were down by 17 at halftime and they tried to play from behind the rest of the way and they couldn't come through. With the loss, there are many teams who can start thinking about the national title still. Kansas, Missouri, West Virginia, and Ohio State all won their games yesterday, keeping their hopes alive in this crazy college football season. With the loss of Oregon and Oklahoma, will Kansas play in the national championship game? Can Ohio State climb back into the title game?

Another #2 Goes Down

The Oregon Ducks, who were ranked #2 in the BCS Poll this week, lost to the unranked Arizona Wildcats in Arizona Stadium 34-24 to give the Ducks their second loss of the season. Oregon, who were supposed to possibly be in the national championship, lost all of their title hopes with this loss and it opened the doors for teams like Kansas and Oklahoma to move up in the BCS Rankings. Oregon has been the fifth team this year and the third from the Pac-10 Conference to be ranked #2 and lose to an unranked team, joining USC, California, South Florida and Boston College. Dennis Dixon, their Heisman hopeful quarterback, was injured when he twisted his left knee in the first quarter. Brady Leaf, the backup for Oregon and younger brother of NFL quarterback bust Ryan Leaf, took over after Dixon's injury and could not lead Oregon to victory. Arizona was able to play good offensively and in special teams in the first half. Oregon had a chance to make a comeback when they were down 31-24 but their defense failed to make some stops in a critical drive for Arizona. There was a fumble that Oregon recovered but it was concluded that the quarterback Willie Tuitama's knee was down before he handed it off to the running back. Many say this loss proves that Dennis Dixon should be the Heisman Trophy winner because his team was terrible in his absence. Dixon may be lost for the season if this injury is bad enough. It might've been his last college footbal game, as he is headed most likely for the NFL next year. With this Oregon loss, will Kansas be able to maintain a top two spot in next week's BCS Rankings or will they lose to Missouri? Who will now be the teams in the BCS National Championship game in New Orleans?

Bonds Indicted

Barry Bonds, formerly of the San Francisco Giants, has been indicted on charges for perjury and obstruction of justice for lying to a grand jury about not knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds, who is the all time home run leader with 762 career home runs, can face up to 30 years in prison if found guilty on all charges. Bonds former personal trainer, Greg Anderson, was released from prison after he refused to testify against Bonds, his longtime friend. Bonds has been the subject of public scrutiny for every home run he hit. When he broke Hank Aaron's 33 year old home run record against the Washington Nationals on August 7, Hank Aaron was not present at the game. Many rumored him to not be at the game because he didn't feel that a cheater and steroid user should get a prestigious record. Aaron repeatedly denied that claim, claiming that he was busy during the time of the chase. Aaron was reportedly sleeping when the home run was hit. Commissioner Bud Selig also did not attend the historical home run. Bonds has had a cloud over his head since hitting 73 home runs in 2001, which was and still is the single season home run record. The investigation into Bonds eventual indictment has been going on for a long time, and now some wonder why he is getting indicted now after four years of investigation. Some feel that there was the same amount of evidence against Bonds before he set the home run record and they feel like they wanted him to set the record before they could hand down the indictment. Do you feel Barry Bonds is guilty? Will this be the end of his career? Will another team sign him with this indictment hanging over his head? Will this tarnish his legacy?

Pads' Peavy Wins NL Cy Young

Jake Peavy of the San Diego Padres has won the NL Cy Young award in an unanimous decision, becoming only the 12th pitcher in the history of the award to win it unanimously. Peavy, clearly the ace of the Padres and the National League's best pitcher, was 19-6 with a 2.54 ERA, which was the best in the majors for any starting pitcher. Peavy is the first Padres' player in 18 years to win the award, when Mark Davis won it in 1989. Brandon Webb of the Arizona Diamondbacks, who was last year's NL Cy Young award winner, was second in the voting, but had no first place votes. Peavy was one of two excellent starting pitchers on his team. The other starter, Chris Young, was the National League starter in the All-Star game. Peavy had a chance to put the Padres into the playoffs for the third straight year. But he had a bad performance in the one game wild card game against the Colorado Rockies. He gave up six runs, and the Padres would eventually lose in 13 innings when legendary closer Trevor Hoffman blew an 8-6 lead and gave up three runs. The Padres were eliminated and the Rockies coasted all the way to the World Series before losing to the Boston Red Sox. Was there any other better pitchers than Peavy in the National League? Considering his performance against the Rockies in the last game of the season, should he have won the Cy Young award still?

Williams Reinstated by the NFL

Ricky Williams, who was serving an 18 month suspension for another failed drug test, was reinstated by the NFL and may play with the Miami Dolphins, the team he was with when he was suspended, as soon as November 26, when the Dolphins play against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh. Williams, who has had a history with failed drug tests, applied for reinstatement on October 1. He was playing in the Canadian Football League this past year and while with the CFL, he broke his forearm. He played in 11 games and had a somewhat productive season. Now, Williams hopes to get back with the Dolphins, as it is not a guarantee the Dolphins will take him back. Cam Cameron, the head coach of the Dolphins, has not made it clear that Williams will be back on the Dolphins. The Dolphins can't do much with Williams because the trading deadline has already passed. The most they can do is cut him or play him through the rest of the season and try to trade him in the offseason. Williams first retired abruptly in 2004 right before training camp. He later returned in 2005 for reasons unknown, but it was speculated that he was going broke and did not have a lot of money. Should Williams have been reinstated? Should the Dolphins play him now that current starting running back Ronnie Brown is out for the remainder of the season?

Sabathia beats Beckett for AL Cy Young

C.C. Sabathia of the Cleveland Indians won the American League Cy Young award, beating the Boston Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitcher John Lackey. Sabathia received 19 of 28 first place votes to take the award and he is the first Indians' pitcher since 1972 to win the AL Cy Young Award. Beckett was Sabathia's closest competition, as Beckett was the only 20 game winner this year. Beckett also outplayed Sabathia in the playoffs. Beckett was phenomenal in the playoffs with 4-0 record and a 1.20 ERA. Sabathia, on the other hand, did not have a single good playoff outing, with a 1-2 record and a 8.80 ERA. Beckett's Red Sox defeated Sabathia's Indians in the ALCS and the Red Sox ended up winning the World Series for the second time in four years after going 86 years without one. But the Cy Young award goes to the best pitcher in each league in the regular season. Sabathia was clearly better than Beckett. He had a better ERA than Beckett and he pitched 41 more innings than Beckett. Sabathia also has faced a lot of good pitchers in his division in Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins and Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers. Sabathia is also the first African-American pitcher to win a Cy Young award since Dwight Gooden won it with the New York Mets in his rookie year in 1985. Should Sabathia have won the award, considering his postseason performance? Should the award go to the person with only the best regular season performance?

Marbury Fined For Leaving Team

Stephon Marbury of the New York Knicks was fined $195,000 for leaving the team and missing yesterday's 113-102 loss to the Phoenix Suns. There were a couple of stories that were made as to why Marbury left the team. Marbury told the New York Post that he got permission from head coach Isiah Thomas to leave. Marbury wouldn't make it clear if he would be back for the team's next game against the Los Angeles Clippers. But there were many reports that Marbury left the team because he learned on the team plane from teammate Eddy Curry that he would not be starting at point guard in favor of Temple alum Mardy Collins. Marbury then confronted Thomas about the situation and then returned back to his seat on the plane and start bragging about the amount of stuff he knows about Thomas. Thomas would not confirm Marbury's claim that he sent him back to New York but there were reports that the two actually started to fight on the plane. Those reports were denied by a Knicks' spokesperson but Marbury and Thomas clearly are not on good terms with each other. Thomas went through a lawsuit in the summer time about sexual harrassment and Marbury also testified in the case as well about his involvement in the whole ordeal. Marbury is the team's star and is from New York. Is it right for someone to leave a team on his own? Is Thomas right for reportedly taking Marbury out of the starting lineup? Does Marbury need to be traded or does Thomas need to be fired?

Pacman To Plead No Contest in Las Vegas triple shooting

Adam "Pacman" Jones of the Tennessee Titans, who is currently serving a one year suspension for his run-ins with the police, will plead no contest to a charge of conspiracy to commit disorderly conduct in exchange for probation. Jones, who's been arrested numerous times since he was drafted in 2005, wanted to get this process over with very fast so he can play football next season. He already met with commissioner Roger Goodell and Goodell would not lift the suspension early in order for him to play this season. If the case would've went to a trial, it would've taken about six months to a year and he might've lost another year of eligibility in the NFL. Jones' defense attorney says that if the case would've went to trial, he was confident that he would've won the case but it would've taken a long time to complete. Jones must complete 200 hours of community service and must take anger management classes. Jones still has civil suits pending against him, as the three who was shot at the club have all filed civil suits against Jones. Do you think Jones has cleaned up his act? Should he be allowed to play in the NFL again? Do you think the Titans need him anymore?