Somewhere, Michael Vick must have been shaking his head. Joey Harrington just shrugged off Atlanta’s season opener as a stroke of bad luck, but this was a troubling start. The Minnesota defense overwhelmed Harrington with six sacks and two interception returns for touchdowns, and rookie running back Adrian Peterson finished off the Falcons in a 24-3 victory by the Vikings on Sunday.
The crown prince of Dubai, a familiar buyer at Keeneland horse sales, paid $2.4 million Monday for a dark bay colt — the high price through the morning auction. The yearling purchased by Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum was one of two $2 million horses during early buying on the first day of Keeneland’s September sale.
It isn’t enough that the Los Angeles Angels’ pitchers might have to deal with Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez again should they face Cleveland in the postseason. Now, Ryan Garko has given them something extra to think about. Garko hit a three-run homer, Aaron Laffey pitched out of trouble for his third win in six big league starts, and the Indians beat Los Angeles 6-2 Sunday night to split a…
Randy Moss caught a long pass and stepped into the end zone, flashing the dominant playmaking ability that made him one of NFL’s most feared wide receivers. Looks like it’s time for opposing defenses to get scared again. Moss caught nine passes from Tom Brady for 183 yards and a touchdown in his New England debut, leading the Patriots to a 38-14 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday.
Steve Smith conjured echoes of the 2003 playoffs with another long touchdown catch that propelled the Carolina Panthers and quieted the same St. Louis crowd. Smith outsprinted Tye Hill on a 68-yard catch for the go-ahead play in Carolina’s 27-13 opening victory on Sunday. As Smith eased into the end zone, Hill could only watch as he stumbled and then slid on his stomach for several yards.
Individual accomplishments were about all the Colorado Rockies had to talk about this late in seasons past. Not this September. There’s plenty more to discuss. Colorado beat San Diego 4-2 on Sunday to take two of three in the series and close within three games of the wild card-leading Padres. The Rockies are six behind first-place Arizona in the NL West, while San Diego is three back.
Baltimore Orioles outfielder Jay Gibbons received performance-enhancing steroids and human growth hormone after both substances were banned by baseball, SI.com reported Sunday. Gibbons is the latest athlete to be linked to the Florida pharmacy under investigation for illegally distributing prescription medications.
Arizona manager Bob Melvin walked to the mound with two outs in the ninth inning Sunday and didn’t say a word to his closer. “I didn’t tell him anything,” Melvin said of right-hander Jose Valverde. “He didn’t want to see me. He’s a pretty superstitious guy.” Valverde retired pinch-hitter Yadier Molina with the bases loaded for the final out, and the Diamondbacks held off the St.
One dramatic hit will not make up for Ray Durham’s down season — yet it sure brightened the Giants’ mood for a day against their archrivals. Durham stepped in as a pinch-hitter and had a go-ahead, three-run homer in the eighth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers missed another chance to gain ground in the playoff race with a 4-2 loss to San Francisco on Sunday.
The juiced-up defense that Wade Phillips supposedly is bringing to the Dallas Cowboys isn’t here yet. Luckily for him, Tony Romo, Terrell Owens and Marion Barber are still around. Barber got things rolling with an 18-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-1, Owens added two highlight-reel touchdown catches and Tony Romo made up for a late interception with a 51-yard touchdown pass to Sam Hurd to seal a…
