Ken Griffey Jr. is back in Seattle, home again where he belongs

Ken Griffey Jr. has made another transition in his late great baseball career. After departing Cincy then moving on to the WhiteSox the star veteran slugger has found his place back where he started. The Mariners have offered him a contract to play for a year worth $2 million. He'll have to work on staying healthy this off-season and be ready to spring into action. I have a feeling Griffey will be used as a DH and avoid having to play the outfield so often to conserve his energy. I'm so glad to hear the news because he certainly has always belonged with that franchise in my own eyes.

Seeing him get a shot at momentous occassion for a grand finale possibly approaching his career end would make it sweet. The team as of now has much restructure needed I do believe with the lack of star power and chemistry to give them the drive needed to succeed this coming season. It's going to take a while for adjustments probably to have the roster suitable for the right mix of talent to be displayed. With Spring Training underway Ken Griffey Jr. will have to work out the kinks and get the timing back a little at a time. The 39-year-old has is a excellent low-ball hitter and can even make the extra effort with dazzling catches on the field. I wouldn't rule out this future baseball Legend by stretch of the imagination.

Tarheels stomp way to 89-80 triumph

What another impressive season so far for the Tarheels. With all conference challengers UNC has not backed down at all. Their win against rival NC State showed their got plenty game left for the remainder of the year. Prevailing 89-80 this helped bump the Tarheels record to 24-2. Paving the way for the game was Tyler Hansbrough as usual with a dominant 27 point, 7 rebound showcase. The Wolfpack put up a fight in the first half giving their share of collective efforts. UNC held a good advantage in the first half and exploded with prowess hitting 63% of their shots in the latter half.


Embarking on a quest for a title run UNC will look to run rampant in the NCAA tournament. They still have much left to accomplish until they hit March Madness. Keys components to team strategy will be Danny Green, who netted 19 points in the victory over N.C. State as well as Wayne Ellington. The pair bring energy and spark transition which the Tarheels feed off each other. I hope to see this excitable UNC team make headwaves in the tournament this year. They have to finish off their conference opponents until then with great things to develop.

East take a beating in All-Star game, MVP award shared

Well, what a disappointment for the East All-Stars. Lebron James and company had quite the spirited battle on their hands. The West had all the right moves with a sweet scoring shoot, prevailing 146-119. I thought Dwayne Wade and Lebron would have made a bigger impact in this 2009 eventful clash. The duo combined for 38 points while the bench supplied 54 total points. Of course, the main attractions came from the West as they unveil a few new choice talents. Brandon Roy was one of the newcomer who put on a nice show, finishing the game with 14 points (7-of-8 FG) with 5 assists.

The MVP award was delivered to Kobe Byrant and Shaq. For reasons unknown to me the trophy was shared despite that the veteran center only played 10 minutes while dropping 17 points. This was completely unnecessary since his limited action and performance wasn't deserving of splitting this award. Nobody needs to be glorified and honored like him while the rising stars and other talent needed to be given further recognition and consideration. The leading star for the game was Kobe Byrant who rattled in 27 points while fueling the offensive efforts for the West. As usual the East had their trouble overcoming a more potent Western conference squad. Better luck next I suppose.

Davidson's Curry busts out for 39 against Wofford

Davidson has a shining star which had heighten their success by leaps and bounds. They own a 21-4 record. That's garnered after dusting off the Wofford Terrriers yesterday in a 78-61 victory. Stephen Curry shot lights out for 39 points on 14-of-24 shooting from the field. He drilled 5 three-pointers. A big edge in comparison for the Wildcats were offensive rebounds. They snared 14 opposed to 4 by Wofford. This young, gutsy Davidson team is one of the best overlooked contenders in the southern conference and the nation.

No team will deny Davidson from making noise in the tournament come March Madness. They've got a good supporting cast which has okay depth off the bench. The true warrior and leader, Curry is keeping them on top while averaging 29.1 ppg. Their nifty win Thursday showed they can make easy work of less developed teams as guys step up like Andrew Lovesdale to contribute 10 points and 9 rebounds. Their focus now is keeping up the winnings ways and garnering a top seed for the tournament. Up next on their schedule is Furman, Citadel, and Butler. Stephen Curry will aim to improve on 38% shooting from beyond the arch and draw Davidson closer to fantastic regular season finish.

UNC vs. Duke, a classic epic battle ready to unveil

College basketball fans enjoy rival week. Since I'm a big ACC fan it's natural for my interest to be spurred for the Duke vs. UNC clash set for tonight. With one of the top scorers in the nation in Tyler Hansbrough against a lethal outside shooting Blue Devils team the match-up is sure to be another hit in collegiate history. The Heels with seniors Danny Green and Hansbrough on board are 4-0 against their nemesis at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The two dominant contenders have swapped wins and losses yet the intensity is always the same.

Jon Scheyer is expected to take his share of threes, giving Duke a jump start on offense while point guard Greg Paulus gets his teammates involved, running the well crafty plays set out by Coach K. Duke will have their hands full in trying to contain Tyler Hansbrough who is averaging 22 ppg along with 8 rebounds. I'm sure the resilient, tough senior won't forget the incident in the past from a flagrant foul which injured his nose and caused blood to flow. These battles do tend to get ugly as much as they're fierce. Leave it to Ty Lawson to run the show, use his speed-demon ability to fret the Blue Devils' defense. He has come up with inspiring, excellent performances in the last few weeks.

Roy Williams knows these games are so highly anticipated and come down to the wire. He's got to utilize the best of his talent. Which means not allowing the freshman who is still learning to fill too many minutes and urging the ball to go inside more to the big fella. Wayne Ellington can get the hot hand with his clutch streaky shooting. In another ACC encounter this year the sharp-shooter almost set a new mark in school history for three-pointers made in game which Hubert Davis holds at 9. One thing which will be crucial will for UNC not to allow the Blue Devils to whip them on the offensive boards. This epic battle could very well be decided on who plays better interior D and makes the most off second chance scoring attempts. I look for the Tarheels to rise to the occasion!

A-Fake: The saga to cheat baseball history resumes

If the ever lingering nonsense legal ramblings tied to Barry Bonds won't fizzle out there is another new problem in baseball now. After discovering that A-Rod tested positive for anabolic steroids in 2003 which has come seemingly out of no where to the forefront. Chasing a historic mark in his career A-Rod is yet another player trying to surpass the homerun record yet has brought further shame to baseball. He has been caught like many others in the past: a cheater which got ahead by using performance-enhancing drugs. Way to go A-Roid!

How many players does it take to be caught to fully destroy the game? After Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Jason Giambi, and Sammy Sosa being busted players ought to be removed from baseball for at least a year until they show progress through a drug rehab program. If they don't refrain from using illegal performance drugs than they aren't allowed to return to baseball. It's as simply as that. Too many players had their bouts with overdosing years ago and now it's apparent there is no way to control rampant drug use in the Major Leagues. Fans are fed up with hearing about new players being revealed and how they have tarnished the game.

Since the Mitchell Report only a few names have surfaced linked to testerone, hormone-growth, and anabolic steroid use. A-hole was one player who kept quiet for too long after signing a whooping ass contract for over $30 million a year for the Yankees. Geez, I wonder why their franchise is in turmoil. After the whole controversy between Joe Torre and Bernie Williams, Giambi's cover-up for a while, playoff expectations fizzle away, and now the new shock to the organization with their superstar things have took a downward spiral. The Yankees were lucky to have one thing though work out last year. That was not having A-hole participate in the Derby for the All-Star at Old Yankee Stadium.

Lebron James outpowers weakened Knicks, loses triple-double in game

Earlier this week Lebron James busted out for a huge game against the Knicks which resulted in a 107-102 win for Cleveland. The superstar forward had a breakout game with 52 points, 11 assists, and 9 rebounds. The scorer's records actually showed him having another rebound to accomplish a triple-double. The mistake was wiped clean from the books. As it stood Lebron didn't obtain another dubious mark yet the Cavaliers remain atop the Eastern conference. Nobody in the league can deny him his points in the paint when he's determined and gets in that hot mode.

The Knicks have suffered their 3rd loss in 5 games yet Al Harrington did his part with an impressive 39-point explosion. Steady progress cannot be made without enough reliable support as New York is slipping behind in Atlantic division. After having Kobe pop 62 points a few nights prior to Lebron arriving in town the Knicks have caught more than just bad breaks. Obviously, Eddy Curry's absence is effecting their inside offense with more left to be desired on the other end of the court. Lebron had actually scored 20 points in that game at MSG for the first quarter and could have shattered the new mark set. There is likely more historic games to be played at the Garden later this year. Still they may not be favorable for the Knicks.