Yankees 10 Seattle 2: A-Rod didn’t want to go for a MRI and while the results were negative, he had to talk Joe Torre into putting him into the lineup. Good thing he did, because A-Rod hit two home runs in the seventh as the Yankees exploded for eight runs in inning. A-Rod’s home runs and the Yankee explosion will overshadow a great start by Phil Hughes, but they shouldn’t. Hughes was brilliant over six......

Mets 10 Reds 4: It was September 27th, 2006, when we last saw him. Something was obviously wrong and as he left the mound that night Mets’ fans everywhere felt their playoff dreams go down the drain. It took almost 49 weeks, but the Mets got their ace back Monday. Pedro returned to the mound and while the radar gun readings weren’t pretty, he got the job done. Five innings, two runs and four......

Yankees 9, Devil Rays 6: Mike Mussina might want to worry now. Ian Kennedy threw seven innings of three-run ball -- though only one run was earned -- as the Yankees evened their series against the Devil Rays. Mussina might start if Roger Clemens is unable to go Monday, but the rookie Kennedy probably earned himself a few more starts with this one. Alex Rodriguez found himself at the center of everything today. He hit......

Phillies 11, Mets 10: When a team enters a four-game series against a team six games behind in the standings, one thought has to be, "Let's not get swept." Well, the Mets got swept, and they didn't look good doing it. They put up several fights Thursday, battling back from 5-0 and 8-5 deficits to take a 10-8 lead into the eighth. But Billy Wagner, summoned to pitch an inning early, allowed a home run......

Yankees 5, Red Sox 3: This game wasn't important in the American League East race. If a miracle occurs over the next three weeks, it may be looked upon as signifcant, but right now it simply helps the Yankees in their quest to make the playoffs as the wild card. Andy Pettitte threw seven innings of three-run ball, and the Yankees broke a 3-3 tie when Johnny Damon homered off Daisuke Matsuzaka in the seventh......

The best part about the end of summer? Maybe that's the U.S. Open, which starts Monday in Flushing. The tennis season's final Grand Slam provides the players with a grueling test to cap what feels like a condensed hard-court season. On the men's side, there's Roger Federer and everyone else. Federer has won three straight U.S. Open titles and hasn't lost a non-French Open Grand Slam since the 2005 Australian Open. He's made every final......

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. In Gothamist's neck of the woods, they found out that many things are possible: A man caught a 40+ pound fish off the Rockaways and took it home on the subway. Graffiti......

Superbowl MVP, Colts quarterback Peyton Manning is set to host Saturday Night Live tomorrow. Saying, "The only thing I've done live is play football, and that's the best thing I do. I've told everyone those commercials are very taped and very edited, but being live is kind of like a game." Statistically he's one of the best quarterbacks of all time, but he'll be taking on a new challenge hosting the show. He's been tackling......

Happy Holidays! Chances are, you're reading this the day after Christmas, back at your day job after all-too-short a holiday, and the last thing you want from us is stuff about the holidays. But that's just too bad. Because, see, here in the Ist-A-Verse, we do things ahead of time. It might be December 26 for you, but that's what you get for not checking your Favorite Local Blog on Christmas Eve. Austinist is......

-Yankees 9 Orioles 4: Sal Fasano became a Yankee because of his defense and not his hitting, but on Sunday he showed that he has some offensive skills too. Fasano went 2-4 with a three-run homer as New York cruised to an easy victory. Derek Jeter extended his career-best hitting streak to 20 games and drove in four runs. It looked like Jaret Wright might actually pitch seven innings, but he tired and left the......

After rain washed out Tuesday's action, plenty of tennis made up for the lost time on Wednesday. Mikhail Youzhny took out Rafael Nadal in four sets, opening the draw for Andy Roddick, who disposed of Lleyton Hewitt. Roddick has enjoyed a resurgence since he hired Jimmy Connors. His backhand has improved -- it couldn't get worse -- and his attitude has changed. Could Roddick beat Roger Federer if they met in the final on Sunday?......

With the U.S. Open behind thanks to two days of rain, plenty of tennis was played on Sunday in Flushing. Andre Agassi's final match, a loss to qualifier Benjamin Becker, drew most of the headlines, but Andy Roddick's resurgence also deserves some attention. He won his third-round match over Fernando Verdasco and will play Becker -- not Agassi -- in the fourth round. Jimmy Connors may have helped the 2003 champion, but only time, and......

He's only won two matches, but Andre Agassi has already made his final U.S. Open memorable. Thursday's win over Marcos Baghdatis, the No. 8 player in the world, came after a tortuous match. After leading by two sets, Agassi dropped the third, but he rebounded to take a 4-0 lead in the fourth set. Baghdatis rallied to take that set and an early break in the fifth, but Agassi broke right back, and neither player......

When he announced he would retire after the U.S. Open, Andre Agassi made himself the story until he is eliminated. That almost came sooner than fans -- or CBS and USA -- wanted. Agassi survived three tiebreaks and beat Andrei Pavel in four sets to advance to a second-round match against Marcos Baghdatis on Thursday. The 36-year-old could have given up when, after splitting the first two sets on tiebreakers, he fell behind 4-0 in......

Joy for tennis fans around New York City as the US Open officially started today out in Flushing despite some unfriendly tennis weather. Fun outings (with outrageously priced food and drink) for the whole family! With first-round matches underway, one seeded player has already fallen. 19th seed Dominik Hrbaty lost to Mikhail Youzhny in straight sets in opening round play. Some other big names advanced without much resistance. In men's singles, Andy Roddick easily......

Andres du Bouchet’s regular gig is that of Boliviguayan Entertainer of the Year Francisco Guglioni, MC of Giant Tuesday Night of Amazing Inventions and Also There is a Game!!! at Rififi. But beneath that vague mask of South American host con el most there is a real person. A man. With stories to tell. In the form of a one-man show. Tonight is the last night to see his show of assorted monologues entitled Naked......

In this era of tennis that does not see American men or women dominate the sport, the United States Open has struggled to maintain its appeal to American sports fans. The casual observer, whose fandom has made the US Open's popularity soar, has paid attention n the past because Americans have been winning. They don't appreciate the genius of Roger Federer or the deceiving power of Justine Henin-Hardenne. No longer can the USTA rely on......

As depressing as the end of summer is, at least New York has the U.S. Open at the National Tennis Center in Queens. The season's final grand slam is a made-for-television event and has produced some of the most memorable moments in sports. It probably draws the most attention of the mainstream American sports fan out of the four grand slams, and the success of Americans, especially men, has made it a favorite each September.......

The 2004 US Open kicked off with a bang last night, as evidenced by Serena William’s latest attire. Williams, never one to shy away from spectacle, dispatched Sandra Kleinova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-3 in a just 53 minutes. What did her opponent think of Williams threads?"I tried not to look at it," Kleinova explained later. When asked if she wear an outfit like that Kleinova said "No, I'm not that kind of......

Andy Roddick? Done. Venus Williams? Done. Lisa Raymond? Done. Chanda Rubin? Done. Mike and Bob Bryan? Done. To say yesterday was a bad day for US tennis would be an understatement. The entire women's singles team was eliminated from play. For the first time since tennis returned to the Olympics as a medal sport in 1988, no U.S. woman will win a singles medal. Williams, the defending Gold medalist from the 2000 games in Sydney,......

Second seeded Andy Roddick started out strong, but it was not meant to be. Roddick used his powerful serve to set up his equally formidable ground game in taking the first set of the Wimbledon Men's Final from Roger Federer but ultimately fell 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (3), 6-4. "I wasn't wanting to get in rallies where he could kind of do his thing, come up with spectacular stuff," Roddick said. "I went out and......

Unlike the French Open, Americans are playing well at All England Lawn Tennis Club. Yesterday, Andy Roddick and Lindsay Davenport both marched through the round of 16 to the quarter-finals. Roddick, seeded 2nd for the tournament, defeated Alexander Popp in straight sets (7-5, 6-4, 6-4) while Davenport, the 5 seed, trounced Karolina Sprem in straight sets as well (6-2, 6-2). Jennifer Capriati and Serena Williams both advanced today in straight sets. Capriati beat Nadia Petrova,......

The 108th edition of Wimbledon got off to a rousing start today as nine time champion and 47 year old Martina Navratilova won her opening round match against Colombia's Catalina Castano 6-0, 6-1. The match, which lasted a mere 46 minutes, was Navratilova's first singles win in 10 years. It was only Castano's second match ever at The All England Club. "It's almost like playing my mom," said Castano, whose mother is 50. Navratilova will......

There are no American men (or Reebok trucker hats) left in the men's side of the draw as 2nd seed Andy Roddick lost to Frenchman Olivier Mutis in five sets 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-2. Mutis had not won a tour match this year until the first round at in Paris. Now he has the biggest win of his career. Roddick hit 15 aces but lost his serve nine times. His groundstrokes became more......

On Monday Wheaties announced that Andre Agassi would be gracing a special edition of the cereal box to coincide with the start of the French Open. Agassi then went out and suffered one of the most surprising and unexpected losses in the Open era, ranking with Pete Sampras' loss to George Bastl at Wimbledon in 2002, and Lleyton Hewitt's loss to Ivo Karlovic there a year ago. Jerome Haehnel, a 23 year old qualifier from......

The 2004 French Open gets underway at Roland Garros today. The pre tourney buzz is, as usual, all on the women’s side of the field. 47-year-old Martina Navratilova will be playing singles for the first time in a decade. Navratilova, who won the French Open in 1982 and 1984, will face Gisela Dulko, a 19-year-old Argentine born one year after her last French title. The seeding on the women’s side drew some criticism when......