An unqualified "yes" from A-Rod

Well, at least A-Rod didn't go with the tried (anagram: tired) and true "I didn't knowingly..." or try to minimize his usage of PED's to one or two times to "deal with an injury" or apologize but not speak to what he was apologizing for, or a denial, and good for him for that. I'm sure he'll take plenty regardless, but this ought to save the Roger Clemens treatment at least. Oddest quote of the day goes to A-Rod's New York Yankee teammate Jorge Posada, who when if he would be on the list of 104 that were busted in 2003, said "I hope not. I think I've done things right." Hope? Think? Maybe he's leaving some room in there for something he took from GNC that is now banned, but seems an odd quote...in discussing last the annihilation of BJ Penn and the vaseline controversy, Georges St. Pierre claimed it wasn't a factor but if Penn wanted a rematch, he'd be glad to oblige him this summer and of course, Penn responded that he's willing. No way Dana White and UFC doesn't take them up on that, considering the early returns say the fight was their best ever pay-per-view buy rate...speaking of UFC, UFC97 will be in Montreal on April 18th, with Anderson Silva facing Thales Leites, and Chuck Lidell taking on Shogun Rua. See the rest of the card - so far - here...the way the New York Rangers navigated the early part of the season when they played far more games than anyone and won the vast majority, you'd think they'd be cruising now with a lighter schedule. Instead, they don't score and are sliding down the standings...best line I've heard about Kellog's goal of "protecting children" by dumping Michael Phelps comes from Dave Ziron of ESPN: "if they want to protect children, stop making Frosted Flakes"...Big Phil Scolari is out as Chelsea manager after the side has struggled in form and results the last month. Strange timing with a crucial Champions League match with Juventus but two weeks away...frankly, I'm shocked at the beating the Toronto Raptors are taking in the poll this week. Am guessing a considerable chunk of that is about expectations, but still, for the voters to figure they'll have a worse 2009 than the Maple Leafs who are almost promising ugly results is telling...another PTP winner as the streak of winners continues to six. If you're not on board at Pinnacle yet, shame on you...does it seem like there are loads of long-term injuries of late in the NBA, or is it just me?...Charlie Axel Woods is the new name for Tiger Woods baby boy, delivered Sunday. I'm sure that kid will not have any pressure on him whatsoever...one A-Rod moment begs the question: if his yelling "ha!" was "bush", how is Jose Calderon's clapping his hands in the oppositions face when they're about to shoot not?...have a great Tuesday, back later with your PTP winner.

5:56pm UPDATE: Your pick for the night is the Cleveland Cavs -6.5 -105. Enjoy.

Groin pains

New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul left the Hornets game last night with a groin injury. The Hornets were outscored 42-17 by the Portland Trail Blazers the rest of the way to lose 97-89...heard one NHL rumor floated that had the Montreal Canadiens trading Alexei Kovalev, Andrei Markov and Jaroslav Halak to the Florida Panthers for Jay Bouwmeester and Nathan Horton. No chance the Habs make that deal even if they had a deal to extend Bouwmeester, who is a free agent after this season...separated at birth: The Score's Adnan Virk and the New York Yankees Andy Pettitte...it is almost becoming a weekly installment: wrestling talk. Here's a look at the 20 Worst Mask Gimmicks...two weeks until baseball camps open and there are piles of big name free agents still available. Word is Adam Dunn, regular 40 home run man, could be had for a year and a mere $5.5 million. Guessing Toronto isn't a possibility after JP Ricciardi cracked Dunn last year...speaking of free agents, the latest on Manny Ramirez is he turned down a one year deal for $25 million from the LA Dodgers. No chance he gets an offer for that much elsewhere...when you think top five paid men in baseball for 2008, you likely don't figure Bud Selig checks in third at $18 million. That's a serious ticket...there's a giant fuss made in New York everytime LeBron James rolls into town so of course Kobe Bryant made sure the basketball public remembers who the man is in dropping a Madison Square Garden record 61 points on the Knicks last night...BJ Penn has filed a protest over vaseline that was on Georges St. Pierre's shoulders during Saturday's fight - a no-no. I think he should be more upset about the glue GSP must've had on him too as Penn couldn't seem to get GSP off him for the last three rounds...AC Milan management say that David Beckham wants to stay in Italy beyond the scheduled March return to the LA Galaxy. Gee, play for a top team in a top league or play for one of the worst teams in a lesser league? Hardly a tough decision...managed to catch Sunday's The Office on the PVR last night. As great as it was, not sure there have been a funnier five minutes in the history of television than that opening sequence...back with a PTP winner later today. Have a great Tuesday.

PTP: As you can see to the right, the Prime Time Pick for the day is up. Loving these "totals" of late, and tonight is no different.

Serious Guacamole

How great is that caricature on the right? If you don't agree, you clearly haven't seen who is lounging on Jessica's couch...Shannon Sharpe says that on Super Bowl Sunday, there are enough avocado's consumed to stack them 18 feet high from endzone to endzone. Who figures this stuff out?...in 2008, there was only one left-handed starting pitcher who gave up fewer home runs, pitched more innings and had a lower rate of walks per 9 innings than the New York Yankees Andy Pettitte. That would be CC Sabathia. Two lefties at Yankee Stadium is going to be a real good thing..the Pittsburgh Steelers faced nine of the top 10 defenses this past season. Translation: they'll get theirs against the Arizona Cardinals who are not a top 10 team defensively...maybe it is just me, but I think I'm looking forward to Georges St. Pierre vs. BJ Penn at UFC 94 tomorrow as much as I am the Super Bowl this weekend. If you get a chance to see UFC Primetime - a three part preview of the fight that goes to each man's camp - check it out on Spike pre-fight today or tomorrow. This is gonna be a war. My money is on GSP, but no result would surprise me...it wasn't looking good for the "under" on 195 play last night at 111 points at the half but thanks to a 29 point half for the Cleveland Cavs and 76 on the half including the Orlando Magic, it was a comfortable under in the end and a 99-88 Magic win...it'll be Roger Federer against Rafael Nadal in the finals of the Australian Open. Great weekend for sports, to state the obvious...I get that TSN paid some big bucks to cover the Olympics, but that watermark they're using on screen is a touch oversized, no? Then again, it is more subtle than the four billion ads they ran over the last year plus telling everyone they had the Grey Cup...how has Joe Torre's upcoming book been received by his former employers? Not good. Best line on the subject: "David Wells will be named the team nutritionist before Torre is invited back to the Bronx." Hope it was worth it, Torre. No more number retirement, no Old Timers Day, nada. Asked what he'd do if he saw Torre now, Wells said he'd "knock him out"...Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famer Michael Irvin told Jim Rome that not only will Anquoin Boldin have a greater impact on the Super Bowl than Larry Fitzgerald, he's also a better receiver overall...as you may have seen from GBVH yesterday, Mickey Rourke will not be taking on Chris Jericho at Wrestlemania after all. I'd expect Vince McMahon to kill Rourke for backing out over the coming weeks, but the publicity will be well worth it for the WWE...the United States is putting in bids for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup's. Bet on them getting one of the two. The beauty of the World Cup is that you don't even need to say what sport it is. Really, it is the only true World Cup...back with the Friday night PTP later. Have a great day.