daily-closer Page 3 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

And We Don't Care About the Old Folks, Talking 'Bout the Old Style Too
Notes on the teams Clare cares about from a day in baseball......

Gagne is French Canadian for "No Longer the Closer"
• Game 2 of the Doubleheader - Angeles 7, Red Sox 5. After losing the first game 8-4, the Angels were able to take advantage of "Mr. Blown Closer" Eric Gagne and score 5 runs in the final two innings. Gagne left the clubhouse without talking to the press, and seemed to only have the tepid endorsemen...

Our Only Regret Is That Gary Sheffield Does Not Have A Blog
This just in: Joe Torre is still a racist. He also hates puppies, and Flight of the Conchords. Let's get him! Such would be the cry if Gary Sheffield ran baseball....

Jobu Come, Take Fear From Bats
Fausto Carmona made sure that the only really compelling race in baseball stayed that way on Wednesday. What, Brewers-Cubs? Yankees-Red Sox? This is me yawning. OK, now this is me going to the fridge for an RC Cola. While I'm gone, reflect on Carmona's career-high 10 strikeouts and his 14th win, the...

Central Heating: Tigers Are Getting Warmer
The Tigers submitted a letter of intent to win the Al Central on Tuesday, as Curtis Granderson made the kind of diving catch we all fantasized about in our backyard when we were 10 ... or, um, in my case, I'll admit, last weekend (your fantasy may vary)....

Are The Yankees Doomed?
That was quite a heartfelt mea culpa by WWL columnist Jeff Pearlman on Monday, eh? Basically, Pearlman proferred a sloppy apology to Joe Torre for writing off the Yankees — and calling for Torre's head — in May. You can get in on the fun right here. But here's the thing: What if New York still ends ...

The Orioles Were Who We Thought They Were
And Kevin Millar has left town ... no need to worry about him for awhile. For those who are not Boston fans (and therefore do not have their heads in ovens right now), it was ex-Sox Millar's game-winning home run that gave the Orioles a 6-3 win over the Sox on Sunday; while Jason Giambi was homering...

He's A Rick ... House
When Rick Ankiel made his debut, I was sort of hoping he'd continuously foul tip the ball to the backstop, just like old times when he was a pitcher. But rather than indulge in my fantasy, Ankiel basically shut all of us up Thursday night, then duct taped our mouths shut Saturday night with his fir...

The Real Pennant Race Borders Lake Michigan
• Ha-Ha, My Win Cancels Out Your Win. Looks like the NL Central is the lone division that knows how to orchestrate a damn pennant race. The Chicago Cubs won 6-2 over the Colorado Rockies, and they remain just ½ game behind the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers also won, but with a smaller margin of vic...

Drama At Shea Extends Over The Fence And Into The Clubhouse
Remember the old days in the NL East, when the Braves were pulling this crap on the Mets all the time? Willie Harris provided the heroics in the outfield and Chipper Jones the muscle in the clubhouse as Atlanta picked Mr. Met's pocket, 7-6. Harris leaped above the left-field fence to pull in Carlos ...

Welcome To Barry's Inferno
If it were possible to open the human mind and step inside, to shine a flashlight into the dark corners of the psyche and root around in our deepest anxieties, then you might possibly see what occurred in the left field bleachers of AT&T Park on Tuesday. Mets' fan Matt Murphy, as we all know by now,...

Yankees Fight For A Little Recognition
As New York continued to spit vitriol at Bonds (the Daily News came up with the gimmick of actually putting him on trial), it kind of forgot that the Yankees and Mets also played on Tuesday. In fact, the Yanks won; got into a scuffle with the Blue Jays, and crept to within five games of the Red Sox ...

Byrd Is the Word
Behold the leg kick, the high socks, the windmill windup; all he needed was the little stubby-billed cap to make one think that it was Christy Mathewson out there befuddling the Twins....

Today's Story: Coco Crisp And The Very Careless Moose
It's always a sad thing when a moose goes bad. One minute he's delighting children with his playful antics, and the next ... vehicular assault. The victim: Boston's Coco Crisp, who was minding his own business, warming up for Sunday's game in Seattle against the Mariners. The assailant: Mariner Moos...

Bonds, Barry Bonds: Licensed to Thrill
Those were the words that adorned one of the posters that decorated the bedroom wall of my adolescence. Back then Barry Bonds was one of my favorite athletes in the world; now I stare at the Arizona State throwback jersey and think of happier times. Before his head physically swelled and before he w...

This Place Is Restricted, Wang
Who needs an A-Rod long-ball when you've got a Wang that just won't quit? Sir Alex failed to hit his 500th homer (again) but Robinson Cano picked up his slack (again!) as the Yankees dominated the Royals 7-1. Chien-Ming Wang allowed just 8 men to reach base in seven innings of work while Odalis Per...

Ned Yost Needs To Get Back In The Game
Remember when the season was young, when the Brewers had a spring in their step and a 12-person beer bong in their parking lot? Milwaukee fans, so thirsty for a championship, drank their fill; enjoying the tasty buzz of an 8 1/2-game lead in the NL Central on June 23. But with every 12-station drink...

Kevin Garnett Brings The Heat
The Celtics landing Kevin Garnett was great and all, but I know that ever since the deal was announced, many of you have secretly longed to see Garnett in a Red Sox uniform. And so you shall. Don't get too exited, greater Boston area ... Garnett was at hand at Fenway on Wednesday just to throw out t...

The Day That Aaron Boone Went Yard
And methinks the one kid in the video is a little too much into the butt-slapping, probably. He's wearing No. 12, which that season was Kenny Lofton ... shouldn't he switch places with No. 2? Anyway, The Shot Heard Round The Leggo Box is also good (hmm, is that a row of Jar Jar Binkses in the stands...

Cubs Are Iguchied, Drop One Game Back Of Brewers
No first place for you, Chicago Cubs. Oh, why, why? (Bangs head against refrigerator). The Philadelphia Phillies, bolstered just before game time with the addition of pitcher Kyle Lohse from the Reds (6-12, 4.58 ERA, tiny, ill-advised goatee), beat the Cubs 4-1 on Monday. The loss dropped Chicago to...