Rafael Nadal of Spain
shakes hands with Mardy Fish of the United States after beating him at the 2008 U.S. Open.
(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
In case you weren't able to stay up, Rafael Nadal needed until 2:11 a.m. this morning to beat Mardy Fish, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 to make the semifinals at the U.S. Open.
See all the photos here, including bonus photos of some of Rafael Nadal's greatest moments through the years.
Serena Williams, right, shakes hands with her
sister Venus Williams after Serena won their quarter final match at the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)
Serena Williams beat sister Venus Williams in a 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (9-7) win before a rocking nightime U.S. Open crowd--on an overruled line call via instant replay!
The close match could've gone either way, with Serena somehow surviving the big points to secure her spot in the semifinals where she'll face Dinara Safina on Friday.
Unbelievable. (This picture may be a bit too good to be true, but, in all fairness, as a former competitor in the Miss Alaska contest, she likely has worn such outfits in the past... perhaps not with an automatic weapon in hand...)
Oh, and she was an intern and weekend sportscaster at a TV station in Alaska, video of which you can see here. So for all of you 24-year-old former beauty pageant winning sportscasting interns out there, keep the hope alive!
-Click here to see photos of Sarah Palin and family campaigning
-Click here for 19 family photos of Sarah Palin growing up
-Click here for 13 photos of Sarah Palin's daughters, sons, and husband
-- Tim Fiorvanti
(Photo illustration by Nick Stark)
It's Obama over McCain — (Baron Davis over Andrei Kirilenko). This being another partisan work of art created by my friend Nick Stark.
CORRECTION (11:33 a.m. Wednesday): Nick didn't create this image.
— Max
If your fantasy football team stumbles out of the gates this weekend, remember this name: Frisman Jackson.
In 2005, Jackson, a Cleveland Browns wide receiver, had eight receptions for 128 yards and a touchdown in the season opener – just the type of performance that causes a knee-jerk reaction from fantasy owners unsure about their receiving corps.
Jackson proved to be a waste of a fantasy roster spot. He finished the season with 24 catches for 287 yards and never smelled the end zone again.
Far too often, fantasy footballers panic after having a disappointing Week 1. They release a good player who struggled in Week 1 for someone who will more than likely prove to be, well, a Frisman Jackson.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying never to gamble on a relatively unknown player who pops up with a monster game. After all, for every dozen Frisman Jacksons, there's a Maurice Jones-Drew or Ryan Grant – a fantasy stud who emerges from nowhere and turns a good fantasy team into a great one.
The key is to be smart about the players you pick up and release. Don't toss aside a proven or promising athlete who had a lousy season opener so that you can add a player who probably won't pan out.
Before tweaking your roster, ask yourself a couple of questions:
1. Does the player I'm considering adding have a real chance to continue his success?
For example, if Carolina wide receiver Dwayne Jarrett surprises with a big game Sunday, recognize that it would not have been possible if not for the suspension of Steve Smith.
2. Is it really time to give up on the player I'm about to release?
In 2006, many fantasy owners released Buffalo wide receiver Lee Evans after he only had four catches for 44 yards through the first two games.
I know. I was one of them.
Evans, the Bills' first-round draft choice a year earlier, ended up with nearly 1,300 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. I ended up with bruises from kicking myself.
To master the waiver wire, you must find that perfect balance. Rolling the dice here and there can be healthy. Roll them indiscriminately, and you're just begging for a Frisman Jackson.
PLAY
Kurt Warner, QB, Arizona (vs. San Francisco)
Not only did Warner toss 21 touchdowns in the final eight games of last season, he also passed for 484 yards in his only appearance against the Niners.
Selvin Young, RB, Denver (vs. Oakland)
The Raiders gave up 146 yards per game on the ground in 2007, and the Broncos always run the ball well.
Joey Galloway, WR, Tampa Bay (vs. New Orleans)
Galloway has had at least 100 yards receiving or a touchdown in his last seven games against the Saints.
BENCH
Marc Bulger, QB, St. Louis (vs. Philadelphia)
Bulger had a poor 2007 and was less than stellar in the preseason. The Eagles defense has a strong pass rush and added Pro Bowler Asante Samuel to an already good secondary.
LenDale White, RB, Tennessee (vs. Jacksonville)
White only averaged 39 yards rushing in two games against the Jaguars in 2007, and now he's expected to lose about half his carries to rookie speedster Chris Johnson.
Lee Evans, WR, Buffalo (vs. Seattle)
I might have regretted cutting him in 2006, but now I find him to be a frustratingly inconsistent player. And the Seahawks defense allowed the fewest touchdown passes in the league last season.
Venus and Serena Williams in England in 1997, in an AP file photo
Venus and Serena Williams are close on and off the court, but as you might expect there's a little bit of separation peeking through as they get ready to face each other Wednesday in the quarterfinals at the U.S. Open.
When it came time Tuesday to prepare for their all-Williams quarterfinal at the U.S. Open, the sisters lined up on adjacent courts, hitting beside -- not with -- each other.As we anticipate what could be yet another emotional matchup, check out these 62 photos of Venus and Serena Williams through the years.They often practice together. Not this time. Not with what's at stake Wednesday night in their 17th meeting as professionals. Their father, who along with their mother coaches both women, went back and forth, keeping tabs on his racket-wielding daughters.
Later, the side-by-side training sessions done, the sisters caught separate rides away from Flushing Meadows. As Serena walked alone to the parking lot, checking for text messages on her pink cell phone, she was asked if it becomes less tough to have to look across the net during a match and see Venus standing there.
"It does," Serena said Tuesday. "Each time, it gets easier."
Tiger Woods and his wife Elin are expecting their second child sometime in the winter. They already have one daughter, Sam.
Though Tiger may be recouping from his knee injury for the rest of the golf year, he has reason to celebrate. Woods announced on his Website this morning that his wife, Elin, is expecting the couple's second child sometime in late winter.
Gotta give them credit, the timing this time around is much better. If you remember correctly, their first child, Sam, was born the Monday following the 2007 US Open. With the biggest golf tournaments on the 09 PGA tour starting in early April, Tiger will have plenty of time to spend changing diapers and burping the new addition before having to hit the golf course again.
Check out nine photos of Tiger and Elin and their first baby, Sam.
See 174 photos of Tiger Woods through his career.
--Lizzy
Kei Nishikori, Japan, 18
Juan Martin Del Potro, Argentina, 19
In a matchup of teenage phenoms, Kei Nishikori, the 18-year-old from Japan, plays Juan Martin Del Potro, the 19-year-old from Argentina, at 6:30 p.m. this Monday — Labor Day — evening at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The two young players set up their clash via five-set victories Saturday night in Flushing Meadows. In Louis Armstrong, Nishikori topped fourth-seeded David Ferrer, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 2-6, 7-5, a triumphant defeat of last year’s Spanish semifinalist. The 126th-ranked Nishikori is the first Japanese to reach the fourth round of a major since 1995, and his likely surge in the rankings represents a huge step forward for his country. With his slight, 5-foot-10 build and precocious sense of the moment, Nishikori plays well beyond the years of an individual born in 1989. Through the first round of the U.S. Open, when Nishikori beat 28th-seeded Juan Monaco of Argentina in four sets, the youngster had converted an excellent 42 percent of his break-point chances. He won his first tour event at Del Ray Beach, in Florida, beating James Blake in the final.
Ai Sugiyama, the 32-year-old Japanese pro who has played in 57 straight Grand Slam women’s singles draws, seemed to sense the siginificance of Nishikori’s defeat of Ferrer as she watched from the stands.
Ai Sugiyama, applauding for victorious countryman Kei Nishikori at Louis Armstrong Stadium, had lost earlier Saturday night, 6-2, 6-1, to Serena Williams at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Nishikori blew a fifth-set match point on his serve, but won anyway.
The 6-foot-6, 172-pound Del Potro, is truly a colt (that’s what “potro” means in Spanish), with overpowering force and tactical consistency. His sprawling defeat of the ornery 24-year-old Gilles Simon of France, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, showed the increasing undeniability of Del Potro, who has won the last four tournaments he has entered — 19 straight matches at Stuttgart, Kitzbuhel (Austria), Los Angeles and Washington.
Del Potro’s five-set defeat of Gilles Simon on Saturday represented the Argentine's 22nd straight victorious match.
All of this information and circumstance, presented here clinically to the GameFace reader, imbues Monday’s match with unpredictability, fervor and anticipated excellence.
The winner of the young men's fourth-round encounter would play the winner of the match between 10th-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland and sixth-seeded Andy Murray of Great Britain. Top-ranked Spaniard Rafael Nadal, would likely await in the semifinal.
— Max
Fourth-seeded David Ferrer walks to his post-match press conference Saturday night at about a quarter to 11. The Spaniard said his winning opponent, Kei Nishikori, has a bright future. Sixth-seeded Dinara Safina, in the pink shirt, is behind Ferrer, on her way to Interview Room 2.
(all photos by Max J. Dickstein)
AP Photo
If you're a Knicks fan (and probably even if you aren't), you remember that fateful day back in 1999 when, in the first round of the draft, the Knicks selected Frederic Weis, a french player who has still yet to see an NBA court. His most infamous moment was being absolutely posterized by Vince Carter during a game between the US and France.
The Knicks have finally exorcized those demons, and in return they receive Georgetown forward Patrick Ewing, Jr., the son of one of the most prolific Knicks of all time. Donnie Walsh has been praising Ewing since the pre-draft process.
Ewing has already had an active offseason. He was drafted by the Sacramento Kings, then traded to the Rockets as part of the deal that sent Ron Artest to Houston.
Ironically enough, one of the biggest regrets of drafting Weis was the fact that they missed out on drafting Artest, a New York native who attended St. John's.
Ewing is not guaranteed a spot on the roster, but according to scouts, his height and wingspan project him as a solid defender at the NBA level.
Perhaps he won't bring quite the level of excitement that his father did, but it would be another positive step by the organization towards bringing this team back to what they were in the '90s.
-- Tim Fiorvanti
14-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps was in a pool off Union Square today, charming the lucky kids who got to swim with him.
The photos are great--huge Phelps, helping little kids with the form; and leading them in jumping jacks (in the water of course).
-Click here for all the photos of Michael Phelps swimming with NYC kids
Ivan Ljubicic, the recently elected European Player Board Representative on the ATP Player Council, was seen in the U.S. Open players’ dining area Wednesday afternoon meeting with top-ranked Rafael Nadal and a Nadal representative, who was translating for the 22-year-old Spaniard.
The top three men’s players — Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic — have been critical of recent ATP efforts to remake the tour calendar. The trio also joined the players advisory council this summer.
Ljubicic, a 29-year-old Bosnian and former world No. 3, is not playing at the U.S. Open. Nadal’s session with Ljubicic, who was listening intently and scribbling on a legal pad that rested on a large binder, was likely related to the player leadership’s plans.
ATP director Etienne de Villiers, who had pushed the schedule reform, failed to have his contract renewed for 2009, and gave an emotional farewell speech to a full meeting of players on Saturday.
The ATP formed in 1990 to unite players and tournaments (but not the four Grand Slams) in running the men’s circuit, with equal representation for each on the board of directors.
— Max
We're less than two weeks away from the start of the NFL season. Hope is high for both local teams; one coming off an improbable Super Bowl run, the other executing a highly productive off-season, capped by landing a Hall of Fame QB.
Here are my predictions for the 2008/09 NFL Season:
AFC East
1) New England Patriots
2) New York Jets*
3) Buffalo Bills
4) Miami Dolphins
The Patriots are just too good not to win this division. The race for second will be a tough one, as the Bills will fight tooth and nail for a wild card berth with the Jets. Favre will help put them over the top in that battle, though. The Dolphins are still rebuilding, though the week one matchup of Favre vs. Pennington in Miami is certainly intriguing.
(CLICK BELOW TO CONTINUE)
-- Tim Fiorvanti
Beware a new USTA policy. Apparently fearing for plastic explosives stuffed into the tubes of bicycles, U.S. Open officials are working with NYC Parks Department in Flushing Meadows to remove all bikes locked in the vicinity of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
I have this from an NYPD officer who told me this as I unlocked my bike to ride back to the amNewYork office yesterday afternoon.
The officer said had I come 30 minutes later, I would have found that my locks had been clipped, a summons issued and a $50 storage fee levied.
Today, on that officer's advice, I parked and locked my bike near the bike rentals trailer about 500 feet from the USTA East Gate. No incidents.
But be careful where you anchor your wheels if bike to the U.S. Open you do.
— Max
Nine year old Jericho Scott has been told he's "too good" to play baseball in New Haven little league because he has a 40 mph fastball. Parents allegedly complained that he was too good, and officials have attempted to disband his team.
UPDATE It's been reported that every single adult in this poor Jericho Scott's life is failing him. His family is officially suing the league that disbanded his team over him being 'too good to play.' However, all is not lost for little Jericho, who turns 10 today. The New Britian Rock Cats have invited him and his family to attend a game against some farm team of the Mets, as well as meet the players, and throw out the cermonial first pitch.
When Jericho took the mound recently, the opposing team packed up their stuff and promptly forfeited the game. The Associated Press reporter that the nine-year-old 'felt bad' that nobody gets to play because he's too good.
Uncomfirmed reports, however, indicate that Hank Steinbrenner was sniffing around the dugout at Jericho's last game. God knows the Yankees need as much pitching help as they can get, nine years old or otherwise.
Check out our pictures of Jericho Scott, pitching phenom, in action.
--Lizzy
LPGA player Ai Miyazato chips onto the green at the seventh hole during the second round of the LPGA Championship at Bulle Rock in Havre de Grace. (Baltimore Sun photo by Lloyd Fox / June 6, 2008)
Our Newsday colleague Mark Herrman posted an excellent column about the LPGA's new "speak-English-or-you're-out policy", which gives its heavily-international golfers two years to learn English, or get suspended.
Herrman makes the point that although the Ladies Professional Golf Association--facing a tough fight to get sponsors in a declining economy--may be implementing the policy out of a sense of necessity, the way they're forcing this on their players is just bad PR.
Not to mention un-American--and, unnecessary.
How international are LPGA players? See photos from the 2008 LGPA championship
Continue reading "LPGA's 'Speak English or leave' policy only courting PR mess" »
 |
| Ahman Green (Photo by Getty) |
Read the full article by clicking here.
In addition to those who made the cut in the article, I also have tried to steer clear of these players this season:
All Texans running backs. Ahman Green is 31 years old and injured. Chris Brown is always hurt. If neither Green nor Brown is in the lineup, there’s no telling whether Chris Taylor or Steve Slaton would get the start. Save yourself some headaches and just avoid the whole complicated situation.
Cadillac Williams, RB, Tampa Bay. He suffered a pretty gruesome leg injury last season. Many wondered if it would end his career. I believe he’ll return at some point in his career, maybe even later this year. But don’t expect him to be his old self in 2008. Besides, the Bucs have enough options at running back (Earnest Graham, Michael Bennett and Warrick Dunn) to keep Cadillac parked so that he can fully recover.
Santana Moss, WR, Redskins. He’s not awful as a No. 4 receiver on your team, but he’s usually overrated in fantasy rankings. The former Jet has only surpassed 1,000 yards one of the past four seasons. His reliability index is a miserable .357. (Click here for an explanation of the reliability index.)
Jerry Porter, WR, Jacksonville. He’s been fighting a hamstring injury and has yet to play in a preseason game. That’s a major concern for a receiver trying to learn a new offense and build chemistry with a new quarterback. And oh yeah, Porter has never had a 1,000-yard season.
Donte Stallworth, WR, Cleveland. He was disappointing with Tom Brady as his quarterback, and that’s tough to do. There’s a reason he is playing for his fourth team in four seasons.
All Seahawks receivers. Deion Branch and Bobby Engram are out with injuries, leaving Nate Burleson, who is averaging just 33 receptions over the past three seasons, as the Seahawks’ only experienced receiver to begin the season. But even Burleson is an unknown because his inconsistent play throughout his career makes him a huge question mark after Branch and Engram return. Making matters worse, Matt Hasselbeck seems to have a chronic back injury that may or may not be a factor during the season. Again, let someone else in your league worry about this mess.
Darrell Jackson, WR, Denver. The fact that rookie Eddie Royal appears to have beaten him out of a starting job is an indication that Jackson's best days are behind him.
Composite photo of Boris Becker, John McEnroe, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Monica Seles back at the U.S. Open tennis tournament made from AP and Getty Images.
Former champs were back in the house for the opening gala of the U.S. Open tennis tournament last night in Flushing, Queens--and it was great to see some familiar faces still looking good.
Tennis royalty were joined by Hollywood and fashion celebrities like Anna Wintour, Martha Stewart, Paula Abdul and others.
* Click here to see about 20 photos of the tennis and entertainment celebrities at the gala
* Click here to highlights from the tennis matches
* Click here to see 90 photos of Roger Federer winning, losing, and at play through the years
Composite photo of Anna Wintour, Martha Stewart, Paula Abdul, Maria Sharapova, and Roger Federer at the U.S. Open tennis tournament made from AP and Getty Images.
It's actually not that crazy of an idea. With Osi Umenyiora done for the season after suffering a preseason knee injury against the Jets, the defending fluke-of-nature Super Bowl Champs New York Giants need someone to fill that void?
And guess what. For the cheap price of $8 million dollars, some chocolate chip cookies, and a kiss on the forehead, Michael Strahan and all of his madness can be your man.
The New York Daily News reported today that the gap-toothed wonder would end his 77 day retirement and flake out his Fox Broadcasting contract (side note: if he does, I will be very sad about that. Someone needed to become Emmitt Smith's replacement. Strahan's lisp would have been perfect) for $8 million dollars and some kind words.
Although right now, it seems G-men coach Tom Coughlin has different ideas in mind, replacing Osi with Mathias Kiwanuka, a former defensive end turned linebacker turned back to defensive end. Man, unretirment is the new black this year isn't it...
Check out Michael Strahan's career in tons of awesome pictures!!
--Lizzy
Roger Federer and Serena Williams at the U.S. Open tennis tournament Wilson Party at Mansion in New York City photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images
With the Olympics over, the U.S. Open tennis tournament moves onto center stage in the sport world. We have tons of coverage, beginning with:
-Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Novak Djokovic, Jonas Bjorkman, Jelena Yankovic, Tracey Austin, Mary Joe Fernandez, and even Virginia Wade at parties around town
-Quick profiles of the five men and five women favorites
-Sports Editor Max Dickstein's breakdown of the men's field
-Quick profiles of the five men and five women favorites
-90 photos of Roger Federer over the years (with special appearances by one Rafael Nadal)
I was admiring Ryan's Photoshop handiwork, and I figured I'd dust off my own skills and give it a whirl.
After their gold medal victory in Beijing, the US Men's Basketball team headed out on a celebratory world tour. When Lebron got to select the first stop, his decision turned a few heads and started some serious speculation.
-- Tim Fiorvanti
