TOP 100 SPORT SITES
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| Redskins-Cowboys give NBC best primetime ratings in 13 years Sunday night's Washington Redskins-Dallas Cowboys game gave NBC Sports the best overnight rating for a season opening prime-time game in 13 years. feeds.bizjournals.com |
Rodriguez's HR in 9th sends Yankees past Orioles, back into first place Alex Rodriguez hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning, his second of the game, and the New York Yankees rallied for a 4-3 victory over the ... rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Arizona Cardinals dominate TV ratings Phoenix continues its evolution into a Cardinals town with the team’s Sunday game against the Oakland Raiders earning the highest television ratings in the Phoenix market. feeds.bizjournals.com |
Steve Busfield: MLB, play-offs and no-hitters The post-season began with three games live in the UK and Roy Halladay pitching only the second ever play-off no-hitterI love ESPN America. Maybe too much. Having been sucked into loving baseball by Channel 5's now-departed through-the-night coverage when working on night shifts, it is now so good to be able to watch the sport at a more reasonable hour of the (UK) day on ESPN.And last night was a real treat: the opening night of the 2010 post-season featuring one real rarity. Philadelphia's Roy Halladay pitched a no-hitter as the Phillies beat Cincinnati 4-0, meaning that not one Reds batsman reached first base with a hit. This was only the second no-hitter in post-season history, the last one being Don Larsen's for the New York Yankees in the 1956 World Series. Larsen's was in fact a "perfect game": the difference between the two being that Halladay allowed a walk.While the thrill of baseball normally comes with the big hits, the rising tension at Citizens Bank Park was palpable as Halladay closed on his landmark. And it was very nearly ruined off the very last pitch of the game:As fans roared and waved white rally towels in anticipation of history with two outs in the ninth inning, Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips hit a 0-2 curveball in front of the plate. Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz ripped off his mask and pursued, but the bat landed in fair territory and the ball rolled up the length of the bat. Ruiz dropped to his knees, picked up the ball and made a perfect throw to Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard to beat Phillips to the bag. "I was panicking," Ruiz said.Funnily enough I almost saw a no-hitter against the Phillies earlier this season. Los Angeles Dodgers' Hiroki Kuroda was within five outs of achieving the feat in August before Shane Victorino stroked a single. The Dodgers won 3-0. Coincidentally, during the same trip to California, I also saw the Dodgers play last night's other team, the Reds.Last night also saw the Yankees come from behind to beat the much-fancied Minnesota Twins 6-4. The Twins had a great record during the regular season, but, as Jim Caple of ESPN says:Season after season, the Twins win the AL Central. And October after October, the Yankees beat them senseless in the postseason. It's like winning the lottery one day only to have the IRS, your credit card company, your student loan lender, your mortgage holder, your ex-spouse, your unemployed cousins and your bookie show up at the front door the next day and take all the money, then raid the fridge for good measure.Indoors or outdoors; home or road, summer or autumn – it doesn't matter. The Twins played their first outdoor postseason game in 40 years on Wednesday night, led early, threatened late and still lost to the Yankees as usual, this time 6-4 in the opener of their American League Division Series. It was Minnesota's 10th consecutive postseason loss and 13th in its past 15. Ten of those 13 losses have been against the Yankees.I had gone to bed by the time the Yankees worked their voodoo on the Twins, but, thanks to ESPN's entry into the UK TV sports market, I had already seen history being made.For those who are interested, the Texas Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays in the other play-off game.MLBUS sportSteve Busfieldguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
LeBron James not affected by racially charged tweets Heat forward LeBron James says he isn't affected by people sending him negative and often racially charged messages on Twitter. James posted ... rssfeeds.usatoday.com |