chicago Page 143 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Open Thread: Bulls vs. Heat
This one might be my favorite of all the first round playoff series. Each team thinks they're championship worthy, and there's no shortage of hatred to go around. There's some hatred in Toronto/New Jersey, too, but it comes from the fans ... I doubt there are too many Toronto Raptors who can muster ...

Free Darko Playoff Pants Party: Heat Vs. Bulls
With last night's wrapup of the regular season, the playoff matchups are set. There are eight conference quarterfinal contests, and the whole shebang kicks off this Saturday....

Brian Urlacher Deplenished Of $100 Grand Worth Of Fluid
OK, so we'll say it: We don't find Gatorade the slightest bit replenishing. We think it mostly tastes like urine distilled through a coffee machine, but that's less to the point; when we work out, the last thing we want is a sugary thick beverage. We're working out to lose calories; why would we wan...

Finally, The Playoffs Are Set
You know, for a regular season that, all told, was rather lackluster, the NBA first-round playoff matchups look rather compelling. The Raptors-Vince Carter reunion is self-explanatory, but we also have Kobe against the Suns again, the Spurs against Carmelo and Iverson, a truly solid and evenly match...

There's Nothing Quite Like A No Hitter
We love no-hitters; we're kind of obsessed with them, actually. It's one of the reasons we love baseball more than any other sport; any time you show up at a game, there's a chance you'll see one, which is their appeal. They're rare enough to be spectacular, but they're common enough that they seem ...

The Daily Closer: Blue Monday, Oh, Blue Monday
Notes from a day in baseball:...

Last Chance For Midwest Pants Party Tickets
A while back, we let you know about The Deadspin Midwest Pants Party, coming this May to U.S. Cellular Field. Well, this is the last week to get tickets, so we figured we'd remind you....

Devin Hester Is Virtually Fast
If you're like us — and Lord help you if you are — much of the summer is spent counting down the days until the new version of Madden is released. (This year, the Buzzsaw is gonna be good! Leinart to Boldin ... Buzzsaw!) Even though the NFL Draft still hasn't happened, they've already released some ...

Love Your Local Beer Vendor
We'd never heard of this before, but its existence makes us extremely happy: It's the Beer Vendor Association, consisting (apparently) of only Wrigley Field pourers. They even have their own trading cards....

Your NL Central "Preview"
Look, guys: We didn't pick the Cardinals! (We still think they'll win the wild card.) Yes, our flirtation with the Brewers continues; we actually picked them to win the wild card at midseason last year. So there's that....

NBA Roundup: Yep, Bulls Are In The Playoffs
Notes on Thursday's games in the National Basketball Association ......

Your AL Central "Preview"
Everyone says it's the toughest division in baseball, but we think it's just the mostly hotly contested: You could pretty much interchange any of those top four teams and not sounds like a fool. But those Royals ......

Baseball Season Preview: Chicago Cubs
You might remember, from back at the beginning of the NFL season, when we previewed each team by having a writer we liked write about their favorite team....

We Think Ninjas Would Make Great Closers, Actually
You might think of Ryan Dempster as the red-bearded "closer" for the Chicago Cubs ... but he knows himself as something so much more. Ryan Dempster ... ninja!...

Ozzie Guillen Is Back, And Man, He's The Best
You know baseball is almost upon us when Ozzie Guillen is saying crazy things again....

Tank Johnson Needs The Squirrel Master
Tank Johnson, the troubled Chicago Bears defensive lineman who was recently sentenced to 120 days in prison, is having problems making new friends in his new home. He's in protective custody, which means he's not having any contact with other inmates. When he first came into booking, though, Tank wa...

He Might Want To Lay Off The Nickname In Jail
So, for all of those who were losing faith in the justice system, you might this morning find yourself with some faith: Bears defensive lineman Tank Johnson is going to serve some jail time for the probation violation that involved all the, you know, artillery. A judge in Chicago sentenced him to 12...

Looking Back At Sosa's Halcyon Days Of Yesteryear
Among the worthless — but muscular! — heap of relics from the 1998 Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa home run chase? The priceless Slammin' Sammy: The Sammy Sosa Story, an animated "feature" about Sammy Sosa and "how a hero became a legend."...

It's Casual Dress During Spring Training
This guy was spotted in the stands of the White Sox-Cubs spring training game yesterday, and though we're not quite ready for that kind of fierce crosstown rivalry business just yet — it's like trying to have an argument too early in the morning, before you've had your IV of coffee — we like the spi...

Fever Pitch ... Throughout History
The Sporting News has a good piece about the evolution of pitching, which we read with interest until seeing the dreaded word "gyroball," which tends to provoke in us the same reaction as the word "disco." But until then there are some fun tidbits, such as the fact that until 1881, the distance from...