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This just in: Winning a Stanley Cup is difficult.

Most of the current Bruins roster knows that firsthand, as two years ago they had to erase 2-0 and 3-2 deficits against Vancouver. They, of course, did that, forcing a Game 7 in Vancouver and winning 4-0 to earn that title. This year, it’s too early to say whether or not their season will have the same end result, but they’re unquestionably in a much better position to do it this time around.

But now, the real work begins. Nothing in the world was more important to the Bruins than winning Game 3 on Monday night. Now, it’s meaningless history, because anything short of a perfect effort Wednesday night in Game 4, and the balance of power in the series will shift right back to Chicago. While it may seem like the Bruins seized control of the series with Monday’s 2-0 win, the fact is that the Bruins have outscored the Blackhawks by just two goals over the course of nearly 13 full periods.

Now, nothing in the world is more important for the Bruins than winning Game 4, thereby inviting Lord Stanley’s Cup to the Windy City this weekend and putting a world of pressure on Chicago going forward. Here’s a look at how they can do it.

1. Survive Early
The greatest mystery of Game 3 was the impossible-to-explain appearance of the Blackhawks simply not giving an all-out effort. The Bruins likely deserve some credit for imposing their will and making it hard for Chicago, but overall, there was very little desperation on display by the Blackhawks. Once they fell behind by two goals, they looked like a team waiting to lose rather than one willing to fight to win — or at least try to win.

If this were an early round and if the Blackhawks were the clearly inferior team, it might be safe to assume they’d roll over and quit. But this is the Stanley Cup Final, and these Blackhawks were the best team the NHL had to offer all season long. They will not fade away quietly, and I expect them to come out guns a-blazing early on in Game 4.

For the Bruins, that might mean treating the first 10 minutes like a road game. If the Bruins can stick with their defensive game plan, limit Chicago opportunities, lay big hits whenever the opportunity presents itself, block shots and allow Tuukka Rask to see shots, keeping the Blackhawks off the board early may deflate their sails, allowing the Bruins to mount an attack of their own.

The Blackhawks are going to hit the ice looking to get an early goal and take the crowd out of the game. It’s up to the Bruins to withstand the surge.

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Williams sparked controversy after saying in the interview that, while not blaming the victim in the Steubenville rape case, “she shouldn’t have put herself in that position.”

“I am currently reaching out to the girl’s family to let her know that I am deeply sorry for what was written in the Rolling Stone article,” Williams said in a statement. “What was written – what I supposedly said – is insensitive and hurtful, and I by no means would say or insinuate that she was at all to blame.”

Continue reading at CBS Cleveland.

In February, Jesus Montero was named in records belonging to Biogenesis of America LLC, the now-closed clinic in Coral Gables, Florida. The clinic is accused of supplying performance-enhancing drugs to a handful of players.

Upon arriving in Peoria for Spring Training earlier this year, Montero denied involvement with the clinic saying he didn’t have anything to do “with those people.”

Heyman says the league has yet to interview Alex Rodriguez and Ryan Bruan — the two biggest names connected to the allegations.

It’s possible the league’s Joint Drug Agreement could announce suspensions before any appeal process because the names have already surfaced publicly. The players union position is that any suspension or announcement of a suspension should be held off until the appeal process is complete.

Among the other players linked to Biogenesis include Nelson Cruz, Everth Cabrera, Jhonny Peralta and Bartolo Colon. Colon was suspended for 50 games on August 22 of last year after testing positive for synthetic testosterone.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

In a game where Thompson could not be denied, the 6-2 forward hit big shot after big shot to lead her team to victory, including a three pointer to beat the shot clock in overtime to give Seattle an 85-80 lead with just minutes left. She finished the game 5-9 from distance, to the delight of Storm fans who filled the arena with chants of her name.

Four of the five Storm starters scored in double figures. Tanisha Wright scored 17 points and dished out a team-high six assists. Temeka Johnson added 16 points and Camille Little scored 15, tying her season-high total.

Washington was led by Crystal Langhorne, who scored 23 points and seven rebounds. Matee Ajavon added 17 points off the bench and Monique Currie and Michelle Snow both chipped in with 12.

Sue Bird returned with the team from its Connecticut road trip and made her first appearance of the season at KeyArena.

The Storm hits the road Friday, June 21, to take on San Antonio at 5 p.m., followed by a game Saturday at Tulsa, with a tipoff time of 5 p.m. The Storm returns home on Friday, June 28, to take on the New York Liberty at 7 p.m.

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Josh Hamilton has just about hit rock-bottom with the bat for the Los Angeles Angels.

The 2010 AL MVP has been a huge disappointment since signing a five-year, $125 million contract in December after leaving Texas in free agency.

Hamilton grounded into a double play his first three times up Tuesday night and struck out his next two at-bats, and the Angels lost 3-2 to the Seattle Mariners on former Angel Kendrys Morales’ RBI single in the 10th inning.

Hamilton is batting .213 with 10 homers and 24 RBIs in 69 games. It was only the second time in 806 major league games that He grounded into more than one double play. He did it twice on June 18, 2010, at Boston.

“That’s a tough night for Josh, but nobody feels it more than Josh,” manager Mike Scioscia said. “For him to hit into three double plays, it obviously doesn’t happen ever.

Charlie Furbush (1-3) faced only one batter to get the victory, fanning Hamilton with runners at first and second to end the ninth.

“It’s hard for me to tell why he’s struggling because I’ve only faced him a handful of times,” Furbush said. “He’s just working through whatever he’s working through to try to get back to the big power numbers that he’s had in the past.

“He’s a great player. But for me, I just try to do the things I’ve got to do to make myself successful,” Furbush added.

Kyle Seager sparked the winning rally with a two-out double in the 10th against Garrett Richards (2-4). Morales, who struck out his previous three times up, then lined a 3-2 pitch off the glove of shortstop Erick Aybar to give Seattle the lead. It was only the third RBI for Morales in 30 at-bats against the Angels since he was traded to the Mariners in December for pitcher Jason Vargas.

Seattle grabbed a 2-0 lead in the second inning when Raul Ibanez and Justin Smoak homered on consecutive pitches by Joe Blanton. But Mark Trumbo connected in the bottom half, and Albert Pujols tied it with a leadoff drive against Tom Wilhelmsen in the eighth.

Rookie Yoervis Medina got three outs for his first major league save.

“There were a couple of guys in the bullpen we wanted to try and stay away from, and Tommy was the guy to go to right there,” said manager Eric Wedge said, who got 16 saves from Wilhelmsen in 20 opportunities before removing him from that role. “It was a fresh inning, and we had to send him out there for the next inning, too. We were planning on saving Medina to close, so we couldn’t go to him right there.”

Blanton gave up six hits in 6 2-3 innings and tied a career high with 11 strikeouts, following an eight-day stretch between starts to work with pitching coach Mike Butcher on his fastball command. The right-hander also fanned 11 Houston Astros on June 3 in a 2-1 loss at Angel Stadium.

“The outcome of a game is kind of out of your hands sometimes, but your job is to keep it right there,” Blanton said. “I’ve given up home runs before. You know how to come back.”

Blanton, whose no-decision left him at 1-10, still shares the major league lead in losses with former Philadelphia Phillies teammate Cole Hamels. He has a 5.62 ERA in his first 14 starts with the Angels after signing a two-year, $15 million contract in December, and has surrendered giving seven home runs during his last four starts.

“Throwing strikes is one thing, and commanding the zone is another,” Scioscia said. “Joe has the ability to throw strikes. It’s just making that quality pitch in a good zone that has kind of wavered a little bit in his game, and that’s when he’s had trouble.”

Jeremy Bonderman pitched six innings of six-hit ball and Oliver Perez got three outs before Wilhelmsen yielded Pujols’ 12th homer on an 0-1 pitch. Until then, right-handed batters were only 5 for 48 against Wilhelmsen, who had not allowed a home run this season in 29 1-3 innings.

NOTES: Smoak’s drive landed in the first row above the 18-foot right field wall. Scioscia came out to suggest fan interference to the umpires, but the ruling was upheld after a video replay. “I saw a hand,” Scioscia said. “I couldn’t tell if it came over the barrier. I couldn’t tell if it hit his hand and rolled out.” … Ibanez has hit safely in his last 13 games at Angel Stadium — one off his career best streak at this ballpark. His first career homer off Blanton came in his 50th at-bat against him. … The Angels have scored no more than three runs in any of Blanton’s last 10 starts while he was still in the game. … The Angels have played in a major league-high 26 games that were decided by a one-run margin (10-16). … The Mariners have hit 49 home runs on the road, compared to 29 at Safeco Field. … Mariners reserve 1B Alex Liddi was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma to make room on the roster for Smoak, who came off the disabled list Tuesday after missing 18 games because of an oblique strain on his right side.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

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The team is creating a “President’s Fan Advisory Council” to help the head honchos in the front office improve the fan experience.

To be considered, you must be a season ticket holder. Once chosen, the council will get to share suggestions directly with the people who can make things happen. In a release, Seahawks president Peter McLoughlin says the fan-related issues include “in-stadium fan experience, game presentation and in-stadium technology.”

The team is asking for a two-year commitment.

Get all the details and apply here.

-Rachel Ayres, 1090 The Fan

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

But a unique positive — one that may get past us when we watch games like last night’s beating in Anaheim — is that Seattle, a team destined to finish among the American League’s worst clubs, actually has a handful of players that can garner a decent return in a deadline deal.

The problem with the 2012, 2011 and 2010 clubs had been that when the trade deadline came, there usually wasn’t more than one player to sell off. In 2010, it was Cliff Lee. In 2011, it was Doug Fister. Last year, it was Ichiro Suzuki. For 2013? There are plenty.

Unfortunately, as Todd Pheifer of the Bleacher Report points out, Aaron Harang and Brendan Ryan aren’t on anyone’s wishlist. However, Raul Ibanez, Kendrys Morales, Michael Morse, Oliver Perez and Tom Wilhelmsen definitely have the extra talent a contender may be lacking.

Pheifer says Ibanez, Morales, Morse and Perez would be the easiest to move because they’re all affordable and are all having good seasons. Morales is the only one of the batch who would be demanding a big contract after the season’s over (thank you Scott Boras). So in Morales’ case, teams would have to decide whether or not a potential rental situation is worth forking over a couple prospects.

Read Pheifer’s entire article: Breaking Down Every Seattle Mariner’s Odds of Being Moved at the Trade Deadline

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Bleacher Report contributed to this report.)

BOSTON (AP) — Five things learned in the Boston Bruins’ win over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals Monday night:

___

SUPAH TUUKKA: Tuukka Rask is proving the Bruins right for putting their faith in him. Rask watched the Bruins’ entire 2011 Stanley Cup run from the bench while Tim Thomas led Boston to the NHL title, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy in the process. But after the enigmatic Thomas decided to take a year off from playing there’s been no drop-off. Rask’s numbers this postseason are even better than Thomas’ were two years ago: 14-5 with a .946 save percentage and a 1.64 goals-against average. (Thomas was 16-9, .940, 1.98). Rask had 28 saves Monday night to post his third shutout of the playoffs and extend his shutout streak to more than 122 minutes. He’s the biggest reason the Bruins are ahead 2-1 in the series.

___

LIVELY LINE: The revamped third line of Daniel Paille, Chris Kelly and Tyler Seguin paid off for the second straight game. Boston coach Claude Julien bumped Paille up from the fourth line in Game 2 and he ended up scoring the winner in overtime. Kelly scored Boston’s other goal in the 2-1 win and assisted on Paille’s goal Monday that put the Bruins up 1-0. “I think we are just putting pucks on net and reading plays,” Paille said. “I think we are managing the puck a little bit better. Just on my goal, you saw Kells go in, and I went in and then I shot. I think we are just not giving them enough time to think with the puck and we are able to get it.” Kelly and Paille also drew penalties that led to Patrice Bergeron’s goal with 5:55 left in the second, giving the Bruins a 2-0 lead. “We’re having fun. The three of us are working hard and having fun, which is nice,” Kelly said. “It’s always fun, but some days are more fun than others.” Indeed.

___

FACE-OFF FOLLIES: Patrice Bergeron won 24 faceoffs on Monday night. That’s eight more than Chicago won as a team, and nobody had a worse night in the circle for the Blackhawks than Michal Handzus, who was a perfect 0-for-10 for a Bluto-like average of 0.00. “That’s definitely something that we take a lot of pride in and we talk about a lot,” Bergeron said. “We have some really good centermen, so it’s not just about the four centers, it’s about everyone on the ice chipping in and helping to get those battles.”

___

DAVE’S NOT HERE: Chicago defenseman Dave Bolland had a rough night. He was called for three of Chicago’s six penalties and made two mistakes that helped lead to Boston’s two goals. The first was a turnover that led to Paille’s goal 2:13 into the second period. The second was cross-checking Kelly into the net and Chicago goalie Corey Crawford with 8:00 left in the second. A second Chicago penalty led to a brief 5-on-3 for Boston. Bolland was out of the penalty box, but didn’t have time to get back into the play before Bergeron put Boston up 2-0 with 5:55 left in the second. Chicago coach Joel Quenneville didn’t have much to say about Bolland after the game. “Haven’t talked to him yet,” Quenneville said. “We’ll reassess and reevaluate the game.”

___

HISTORY MAY NOT HELP: The Chicago Blackhawks trailed the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 in the Western Conference finals then won the next three games. So a 2-1 deficit against the Boston Bruins certainly isn’t too big to overcome. It’s just that one comeback may not be the same as another. “I think they’re a little bit different team than Detroit was,” Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford said of the Bruins. “They’re able to sit back and wait for us to collapse defensively. You can’t block everything. But we made some plays, we had some good shots and had a couple of the chances went just wide.”

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

After nearly three full games (13 periods), the Bruins and Blackhawks got past their pleasantries and engaged in a full-on brawl in the waning seconds of Game 3.

With roughly 20 seconds to go and the Bruins leading 2-0, Zdeno Chara dumped Bryan Bickell to the ice on front of the Boston net. Bickell tugged on Chara’s jersey and then cross-checked the much taller defenseman in the side.

Had the cross-check come in the middle of the game, Chara no doubt would have let it go without responding. Such is the price one pays while protecting the front of the net. However, with the game in hand, Chara decided to send a message to the Blackhawks that if they want to camp out in front of the net, they’re going to have to pay a price.

Chara clobbered Bickell, smothering him into the ice and remaining on top of him for several seconds until a sea of white and black sweaters converged upon them.

Out of the scrum emerged Brad Marchand and Andrew Shaw, who said before the series that he’d like to model his game after the pesky Bruins winger. Neither player landed any punches while standing, but after they wrestled each other to the ground, Shaw delivered a heavy right punch to Marchand, who was lying on his back on the ice. It may have violated “the code,” but it likely just canceled out Chara’s bullying of Bickell.

Given there’s so much at stake during these games, it’s almost a guarantee that neither team will be going out of its way to retaliate or threaten to drop the gloves in Game 4 and beyond — at least not unless a game is pretty much over, like it was in Game 3.

Regardless, messages were sent loud and clear. The Blackhawks, who could not generate any traffic in front of Tuukka Rask all game, know they’re going to have to endure a certain level of punishment if they hope to accomplish that. And both ways, the Bruins and Blackhawks know that they won’t be receiving Christmas cards with friendly holiday greetings from each other come December.

Game 4 will take place Wednesday night at the TD Garden.

After playing four extra periods in the first two games, the Bruins made an early night of it with second-period goals by Daniel Paille and Patrice Bergeron to win 2-0 and take a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup finals.

Rask stopped 28 shots for his third shutout of the 2013 playoffs.

Corey Crawford made 33 saves for the Blackhawks.

Game 4 is Wednesday night in Boston before the matchup of Original Six teams returns to Chicago for a fifth game. The teams split the first two games there, with the Blackhawks winning Game 1 in triple-overtime and the Bruins stealing home-ice advantage on Paille’s goal in the first OT of the second game.

But this time the intrigue came before the opening faceoff instead of after the end of regulation.

Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara and Chicago forward Marian Hossa were both injured during warmups. But while Chara needed just some stitches after his collision with teammate Milan Lucic, Hossa was a late scratch with an unspecified injury.

Hossa, who has three game-winning goals in the playoffs this year, was tied for the team lead with 15 playoff points and was third on the Blackhawks with 17 goals during the regular season.

It was a loss the Blackhawks couldn’t afford.

Not with Rask stopping everything that came his way.

The Bruins’ goalie, who was a backup to Conn Smythe-winner Tim Thomas in the team’s 2011 Stanley Cup run, didn’t face as difficult a test as in the first period of Game 2, when the Blackhawks sent 19 shots at him but managed just one goal. But he stymied them all game and got some help from the post on Bryan Bickell’s shot with 42 seconds left in the game.

The puck caromed off the right post and the goal light flickered on briefly, but play continued for another 30 seconds before the whistle blew and the game degenerated into fisticuffs. Chara was on top of Viktor Stalberg, pounding away, and Andrew Shaw got the better of Brad Marchand.

By the time it was all sorted out, the benches were a little emptier but the scoring column for Chicago was still blank.

After a scoreless first period, the Bruins made it 1-0 when Paille slapped in the puck at 2:13 of the second, falling to one knee for extra power. It stayed that way until late in the second, when the Bruins picked up their first power plays of the game on two nearly identical plays, with a Bruin racing to the net and a Blackhawk undercutting his skates and sending him crashing into the left post.

Boston set up their offense during the 11-second two-man advantage, and just five seconds after it expired — but before Dave Bolland was able to get back into the play — Jaromir Jagr slid one across the middle, past Lucic in the center to Bergeron on the other side for the easy one-timer.

It was Jagr’s 197th career playoff point in 199 games, moving him into sole possession of fifth place on the NHL’s all-time postseason points list.

Notes: Jagr had been tied with Paul Coffey on the career postseason scoring list. … Two of Jagr’s playoff points came on goals scored against the Blackhawks when they were swept by Penguins in 1992 final. … Boston’s Gregory Campbell, who broke his leg blocking a shot in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals, attended the game. … The Bruins have killed off 27 straight penalties in the playoffs. … Boston’s David Krejci entered the game tied with Chicago’s Andrew Sharp for the most goals in the postseason with nine. The Bruins center entered the game leading all scorers with 23 points. … The Bruins are attempting to win a Cup for the second time in three seasons for the third time in their history. They also did it in 1939 and ’41 and again in 1970 and ’72. … Bruins won their seventh straight home playoff game. … The Blackhawks fell to 3-5 on the road in the postseason. … Ben Smith, who played just one game this regular season and none in the playoffs, replaced Hossa in the lineup. … Stalberg replaced Brandon Bollig in the lineup for Chicago.

(© 2013 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.)

Well, Crosby’s not even doing the complaining himself, leaving his agent, Pat Brisson, to be his mouthpiece. As Damien Cox of the Toronto Star passed along on Friday, “Sidney Crosby’s agent is convinced Zdeno Chara of the Bruins intentionally punched Crosby where he had broken his jaw in Game 1. Nasty.”

Game 1, in case you have forgotten, took place two full weeks before the agent spread the word. The reason may be because it took a while to not only find footage of the “punch” but to then display in slow-motion in such a way that it looked to be a heavy blow to the jaw. In real speed, Chara’s “punch” of Crosby was nothing more than a shove with his left arm, which only came after Crosby had grabbed the back of Chara’s shoulder pads following a whistle in front of the Boston net.

But in super slow-motion, and with some sort of mega zoom, Crosby and his agent were convinced that Chara had purposefully taken the time to carefully target Crosby’s exposed jaw with a direct jab in the middle of a scrum. And so they gathered the video and sent it along to TSN, which was happy to “report” on the wretched assault on hockey’s golden boy. (TSN’s Darren Dreger actually took Chara aside to show him the video. Chara is in the middle of playing for the Stanley Cup.)

The play in question came just five minutes into Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. Tuukka Rask covered a puck, and Chara shoved Brenden Morrow out of the crease. Crosby reached out with his left hand and grabbed the back of Chara’s neck. Chara turned, saw Crosby grabbing onto him, and shoved him with his left hand to separate himself from Crosby. The Penguins’ captain did not let go of the Bruins’ captain, and after exchanging a few words, they were eventually separated by officials.

While the Zapruder-esque slow-motion footage provided by TSN looks damning for Chara, the video at regular speed (uploaded to YouTube by user @dafoomie) of the “incident” shows it for it is: nothing.

First and foremost, if Crosby’s jaw was not able to withstand the punishment that takes place during Stanley Cup playoff games, then the plastic shield guarding his jaw should never have been removed from his helmet. But it was, and that’s not any opponent’s fault.

“[Team doctors are] comfortable with it coming off, being hit and things like that,” Crosby said of the removal of his face shield prior to the series against the Bruins, thereby indicating his jaw was OK.

If Crosby wanted special treatment due to an injury from which doctors determined he had already recovered, then he shouldn’t have been on the ice at all.

Secondly, and perhaps worst of all, is the fact that this may be the first time in history that a hockey player has complained publicly about generic post-whistle roughhousing two weeks after it happened. Hockey is a man’s game, played by self-respecting tough guys who can get gashed open by a skate blade and still pretend like it doesn’t hurt. And yet, there is Crosby, upset he was shoved by a man whom he had grabbed seconds earlier. Accusing Chara of targeting his jaw two weeks after the fact is no doubt an unprecedented move in hockey’s rich history. (Continued…)

The “intentional” assault on Crosby’s jaw was used to explain why the 25-year-old was so upset at the end of the second period of that game. On his way off the ice after the second with the Bruins leading 1-0, Crosby said something to Chara, drawing a laugh from the 6-foot-9 defenseman. Crosby then bumped into Rask and appeared willing to get into a jousting match with the netminder. Then, after Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron fought each other and fell to the ice, Crosby and Chara confronted each other at the center ice faceoff dot. They exchanged words, with Chara leaning over to look Crosby eye-to-eye, and they eventually walked to their respective locker rooms.

Crosby went on to be held without a single point as his Penguins were swept by the Bruins.

Crosby did sort of refer to the play in question after the game.

“They’re letting a lot go out there, and the more it gets like that, the more it’s going to escalate,” Crosby said of the referees, who penalized him for interference as well as slashing in Game 1. “You can only control and channel that stuff so much. You keep letting guys do that stuff, you’re just going to push the envelope. That’s something we obviously want to stay away from, but it’s kind of a natural thing when it gets like that.”

Crosby might not have referred to the “punch” specifically at the time, because he knew his video team would need some time to rewrite history before it went public.

Just like the many instances of Crosby doing things on the ice that the most talented player in the world does not need to be doing, it’s disappointing to see. It’s why those of us who had hoped we were seeing the next Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux have come to terms with the fact that we simply are not. Crosby may be more talented than anyone else on the planet, but the more he gets caught up in nonsense like this instead of simply dominating hockey games, the less likeable he becomes.

That shift Crosby had in double overtime of Game 3 in Boston, when he lost his helmet and went on a determined rampage to try to score the game-winning goal? That’s the Crosby we all want to see. Knowing he’s capable of that but seeing him get tangled up in this is what makes it so difficult to embrace Crosby as this generation’s greatest player.

By coming out and not only claiming a regular post-whistle shove was a direct punch but also claiming Chara purposely targeted an injured jaw is a legitimately low and contemptible action by Crosby, who continues to act like he is bigger than the game. Hopefully some day, he’ll learn he is not.

Read more from Michael by clicking here, or find him on Twitter @michaelFhurley.

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Aaron Harang has never beaten the Los Angeles Angels in his lengthy career. During his latest attempt, the Seattle right-hander could barely even slow them down — and he still did better than his bullpen on a rocky night for the Mariners.

Albert Pujols had an RBI double among his four hits, Josh Hamilton hit a two-run homer, and Los Angeles pounded out a season-high 21 hits in an 11-3 victory Monday night.

Alberto Callaspo matched his career high with four hits, driving in two runs during the Angels’ seven-run sixth inning. Peter Bourjos had three hits as Los Angeles battered Harang (3-7) and his relievers in its fourth victory in five games.

The Angels pounded out eight hits and four runs in the first two innings alone against Harang, who threw a two-hitter against Houston in his previous start. Harang nearly escaped the second inning, but a leaping Michael Saunders couldn’t haul in Hamilton’s drive over the wall despite getting a glove on it, and the Mariners never recovered.

“I’ve faced a lot of those guys over the last few years, and they know I’m going to be aggressive and try to throw strikes and get ahead early with my fastball,” said Harang, who dropped to 0-4 with a 7.86 ERA in six career starts against the Halos. “After that second inning, we kind of had to flip things around and go with off-speed pitches early and try to get ahead with that.”

None of it worked very well. Harang yielded 12 hits and four runs in five innings, keeping it a 4-2 game — but the Angels beat up on Seattle relievers Carter Capps and Charlie Furbush in the sixth.

“They have guys throughout their lineup that can run, and it changes the whole aspect of the game and changes the way you have to pitch to guys,” Harang said.

Nick Franklin hit an early two-run homer for Seattle in the opener of a four-game AL West series. The Angels made it comfortable for Jason Vargas (6-4), who yielded four hits and recorded a season-high nine strikeouts in seven strong innings while beating his former teammates.

“They had quite a few hits in a short period of time, and (Harang) was fortunate to get out of there with just four runs,” Seattle manager Eric Wedge said.

After Endy Chavez got the Mariners’ first hit, Franklin connected for his third homer. But Vargas didn’t allow another runner past first base, and the Angels put it out of reach while sending 12 batters to the plate in the sixth.

Seattle finished with seven hits, tacking on a run in the eighth on Kendrys Morales’ RBI groundout.

“When you separate it all out, there’s reason for optimism offensively, but it has to come together collectively,” Wedge said.

Erick Aybar and Chris Iannetta had run-scoring singles for the Angels during the sixth, and they both scored on Franklin’s throwing error on Trout’s bases-loaded grounder.

“You definitely don’t want to take the runs for granted,” said Vargas, acquired from Seattle in an offseason trade. “We know we’re definitely capable of putting up some offense every night. This was a carry-over from what we did in the ninth inning (Sunday).”

Indeed, the Angels picked up right where they left off with a five-run rally that fell just short in a 6-5 loss to the Yankees. Pujols, who struck out with the bases loaded to end it, had hits in his first four at-bats against Seattle.

Howie Kendrick and Mike Trout drove in early runs as the Angels got a hit from all nine spots in their big-budget lineup for their biggest hit total since August 2009. Los Angeles has 67 hits and 36 runs in its last five games after its first 20-hit performance in a nine-inning game since 2008.

“I don’t know if we’re going to get it every night, but 21 hits is a good breakout game for us coming off a good ninth inning Sunday,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.

Trout also scored his 200th career run in the sixth, reaching the milestone in just 249 games — the quickest major leaguer to the mark since 1940. Only seven players since 1916 reached 200 runs more quickly than last season’s AL Rookie of the Year, and five of those players are in the Hall of Fame, including Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams and Lloyd Waner.

NOTES: Seattle RF Jason Bay sat out the series opener with a sore hamstring. The veteran outfielder’s leg tightened up during Sunday’s game in Oakland. … Vargas improved to 8-2 in his career at the Big A, his best winning percentage at any ballpark where he’s made at least three starts. … Aybar, the Angels’ former Gold Glove shortstop, booted a routine grounder in the second inning for Los Angeles’ MLB-worst 54th error. The Angels have committed an error in 10 straight games.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

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This season’s winner is Pittsburgh Penguins’ center Sidney Crosby.

Crosby wins his second Lindsay Award after posting 56 points in just 36 games, before breaking his jaw and missing the team’s final 12 games.

“It is nice to be recognized by the guys that you play against,” Crosby said. “I think it’s obviously a compliment.”

The Penguins’ captain returned to the form he had reached before his concussion issues began at Heinz Field during the Winter Classic in 2011.

“I was well rested,” Crosby joked. “I got [back] to the level that I wanted to.”

Crosby was also nominated for the Hart Trophy, which is the official league MVP. That award went to the Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin.

Crosby wanted to win, but said losing out on the award will not cause him any lost sleep.

Crosby’s teammate, Kris Letang was nominated for the Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman. The award was given to Montreal’s P.K. Subban.

RELATED LINKS:
Ray Shero Named NHL GM Of The Year (6/15/13)
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Maybe they sensed that there would still be a lot more hockey before the night was over.

Ten periods into their championship series, the Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks headed to Boston for Game 3 on Monday night. No one would be surprised if this one’s as close as the first two.

“I think it’s pretty much what everybody expected,” Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask said Sunday. “I mean, I don’t know if anybody expected to go to triple overtime the first game, but still it’s been tight, one-goal games. That’s usually how the playoffs go.”

Neither team skated on the off-day on Sunday, instead choosing to conserve their energy after playing four extra periods while trading overtime victories that left the series tied at one game.

“It’s a lot about getting your rest,” Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith said after arriving in Boston about an hour late because of air traffic. “It’s not rocket science, you just get sleep and do as best you can and do all those little things to get ready to go.”

Read: 3 Keys For A Game 3 Victory

After their triple overtime win in Game 1, the Blackhawks dominated the first period of Game 2, outshooting the Bruins 19-4. Heading off the ice for the first break, Tyler Seguin ditched the microphone he had been wearing as part of the TV broadcast.

Then he went back into the dressing room so the team could hash out its problems in peace.

“It was really a mix of everybody saying something,” Seguin said. “I definitely knew it was coming, so I threw my shoulder pads in the training room and put a towel over it so no one could hear what we were saying. I think we needed that team wake-up call.”

Only Rask prevented things from getting worse.

“Not much needed to be said after that first period,” said Chris Kelly, who was one of the more vocal players in the dressing room.

“I think Tuukka pointed out that was a pretty terrible period by our team. If it wasn’t for Tuukka, it would have been a lot worse.”

Neither Kelly nor coach Claude Julien nor any of the other Bruins would divulge what was said in the room.

But something snapped them out of their funk.

“Claude came in a little bit later, but I think we were all equally upset about that first period,” said Daniel Paille, who scored at 13:48 of overtime to end it.

“Definitely, Claude let us know and it was a way for us to wake up. And, also, players were keeping each other accountable, too, so it was good.”

Whatever was said, the Blackhawks managed only 15 shots over the next two-plus periods to Boston’s 24.

For the game, the Bruins had 50 hits — 10 by Milan Lucic — to 34 for Chicago.

“They’re in the Stanley Cup final for a reason,” Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane said. “It’s not like you’re going to have the momentum or dominate for three periods. Obviously, we’d love that.

“We know momentum is huge in the playoffs. You want to keep it as long as you can.”

But Blackhawks forward Dave Bolland said they relaxed after taking an early lead and dominating the first period. Another goal was disallowed when the referee lost sight of the puck and blew the whistle moments before it rolled under Rask and over the goal line.

Read: 5 Things We Learned In Game 2

“You always have to have your foot on the gas against this team,” Bolland said. “They’re a physical team. You see the guys they have. They’re a big team and they play hard and they’re going to hit, so you’ve got to be ready for that.”

Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said he didn’t think the team lost momentum by having an extra day off before Game 1 on Wednesday and Game 2 on Saturday.

“We had a great first period,” he said. “We did everything we wanted except get to two (goals).”

Follow Jimmy Golen on Twitter at 
http://www.twitter.com/jgolen
 .

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

While it was mission accomplished in that sense, both of these teams know the series is a long way from being decided. The winner of tonight’s Game 3, though, will be in the driver’s seat with a 2-1 series lead.

For the Bruins to gain that lead, here are three keys to Game 3.

Milan Lucic, Wrecking Ball
In the days of Mark Recchi, the nickname “Wrecking Ball” was thrown around for the veteran’s willingness to skate to the dirty areas and take and give out the punishment that comes with the territory. But even Recchi himself never actually resembled a wrecking ball, at least not like Milan Lucic did in Game 2.

Sports Final: Bob Beers On Bruins’ Game 2 Win, Previews Game 3 Of Stanley Cup Final

The big-bodied left winger used his size to his advantage in Game 2, absolutely bullying the Blackhawks with clean but heavy body checks all night long. On the stat sheet, Lucic was credited with a game-high 10 hits, four more than any other player, and though there’s no way to properly quantify their impact, there’s little doubt he helped wear down the Blackhawks. It was evident in the third period, when Lucic would enter the Chicago zone on the forecheck. By that point, Blackhawks D-men could be seen taking circuitous routes to the puck in order to let Lucic get there first. The D-men likely figured they’d have a better chance battling for the puck than they would getting crushed into the end boards.

The question for Game 3 is whether Lucic wore down himself with all that hitting. After more than 38 minutes on the ice in Game 1 and a punishing 24:33 time on ice in Game 2, Lucic is no doubt a little tired heading into Game 3. Then again, so is everyone else. If Lucic can once again impose his presence the way he did in Game 2, it’ll be another long night for the Blackhawks.

Tuukka Being Tuukka
At this point, there’s really not much left to say about Tuukka Rask. He saves just about every single puck he sees, and even some he doesn’t. His numbers are absurd, and he was the sole reason the Bruins had any chance to even win Game 2.

Stanley Cup Notebook: Rask, Thomas Remain Connected

Fortunately for him, it would be hard to believe it could get much tougher than the first period of Game 2, when he stopped 18 of 19 shots, with only a Patrick Sharp shot through a couple of bodies finding its way into the net.

Unfortunately for Tuukka, the man across the ice has been just as good. Here’s how Corey Crawford’s numbers compare to Rask this postseason:

Crawford: 13-6 record, .935 save percentage, 1.72 goals-against average
Rask: 13-5 record, .944 save percentage, 1.73 goals-against average

For Rask, that means there’s no room for a letdown. While he didn’t really have much of a chance on three of Chicago’s four goals in Game 1, he may have to make an impossible save or two to keep similar shots out of the net going forward. Knowing how solid Crawford’s been for Chicago, it looks like these games will all come down to one goal. Rask is going to have to maintain his out-of-control pace as the team’s MVP for the Bruins to keep winning games.

O From D
A major part of the Bruins’ somewhat surprising run to the Cup Final was unlikely scoring from the blue line. Though Adam McQuaid made the play to keep the puck in the Chicago zone for the game-winning goal in Game 2, the defensemen have yet to find the back of the net for the Bruins this series.

Prior to the Final, the blue-liners chipped in with a healthy dose of complementary scoring. Johnny Boychuk netted five goals, which is still tied for fourth-most on the team this postseason. Torey Krug, quite memorably, scored four goals against the Rangers in the second round, while Adam McQuaid doubled his regular-season goal total with two, including the lone goal of the Bruins’ Game 4 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

In this series, goals from the D-men won’t be a necessity, but they may be the biggest key if the Bruins hope to try to build a lead bigger than one goal. Whether it’s a Boychuk blast through traffic, Krug on the power play or a well-placed wrister by Andrew Ference, Game 3 would be a good time for the D-men to get on the score sheet.

Read more from Michael by clicking here, or find him on Twitter @michaelFhurley.

Wedding Dumb Bells?

This week the Boston Bruins’ Shawn Thornton told a reporter he puts his two Stanley Cup Wins on the list of all-time greatest days of his life.  Missing from that list?  The day he married his wife.

Now, I often say NHL players are the toughest athletes in professional sports.  I never say they are the brightest.

Story via CBS Boston

I want to hear from you! Got a fun story sports fans may have missed? Or an obscure, silly and perhaps gossipy tale we didn’t cover? E-mail Tara Lipinsky at tara.lipinsky@cbs.com or send me a Tweet @TaraLipinsky.

___

ALL TIED UP: Many believed Boston and Chicago were the two best teams in the NHL this season, both possessing a lethal blend of potent offense and stingy defense. (Pipe down, Pittsburgh fans. The goal-a-palooza that was Sid the Kid and Co. was a sight to behold, but you have to at least fake some defense.) So it is fitting that the Bruins and Blackhawks head to Boston tied at one game each. The first two games haven’t always been pretty — ahem, Brandon Bolllig — but they have been fast, entertaining and, most important, evenly matched. Fans are definitely getting their money’s worth, and few can argue that the Kings or Penguins would make for a better matchup.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030′s Mark Katic reports

___

WORKING OVERTIME: Of course this game went to overtime. After Boston and Chicago needed OT to settle 10 games already in this postseason, including the 1-hour, 52-minute and 14-second marathon that was Game 1, there was no way this one was going to be settled nicely, neatly or in a timely fashion. At least this one didn’t turn into a night-day game, however, with Daniel Paille scoring 13:48 into the first overtime. No doubt there will be extended practices Sunday after such a short night. Boston is now 5-2 in overtime this postseason while Chicago is 4-2. Oh, and it’s not just the Bruins and Blackhawks logging extra hours. Game 2 was the 26th OT game of the postseason, tied for second most in NHL history. The record of 28 was set in 1993.

___

THE OLD MEN: Kids these days are such slackers. Jaromir Jagr has been playing longer than some of the Bruins have been alive. Really. That’s not an exaggeration. Yet there the old man was, leading Boston with five shots Saturday night, and coming close to ending the game a few times, including banging a puck off the crossbar in overtime. “I wanted to help the team. It was still a tied hockey game,” he said. “To score a goal would have been huge.” Jagr wasn’t the only one doing the senior set proud. Marian Hossa and Patrick Sharp, two of Chicago’s more veteran players, led the Blackhawks with seven shots each, and Sharp had Chicago’s only goal.

___

WHAT IF? Hossa’s disallowed goal isn’t the reason the Blackhawks lost Game 2, but it sure is fun to speculate. Shortly after Sharp gave Chicago the lead in the first period, Hossa appeared to double it. But the goal was waved off, with officials saying play should have been stopped because the referee had lost sight of the puck. Intermission came, the Bruins woke up, the Blackhawks dozed off and the rest is history. “It would have been nice to get it, but those guys make the call they see on the ice,” Sharp said. “As a team, we’ve been in situations where we’ve had some bad bounces and were forced to regroup quickly, so it didn’t affect us too much.” Had Chicago gotten that goal, however, who knows if Boston could have overcome a two-goal deficit?

___

HELLO AGAIN, CHRIS KELLY: Kelly’s tying goal in the second period was his first in the postseason since April 12, 2012, against Washington. Big deal, you might say, that was only last year. But the drought had dragged on for 23 games — or nearly the equivalent of the home schedule in this lockout-shortened season. “Just because he doesn’t see himself as a goal-scorer doesn’t mean he has to continue to have a goose egg on his stats,” Boston coach Claude Julien said. “Sometimes that stuff, whether you like it or not, will weigh on you. When you get a night like that, it certainly takes a lot of weight off your shoulders and creates some positive thinking and some positive energy moving forward.” The other positive is Boston’s record when Kelly scores in the postseason: a sparkling 10-1, including Saturday night’s victory.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

The Blackhawks failed to clear the puck along the boards. Tyler Seguin picked it up and delivered a cross-ice pass to Paille, who beat Corey Crawford on his glove side for the winner at 13:48 of the extra period.

Game 3 is Monday at Boston.

It’s the second consecutive year that the first two games of the finals have gone to overtime, this one coming after the Blackhawks won a triple-OT thriller 4-3 in Game 1.

Crawford and Boston’s Tuukka Rask were outstanding in goal again after coming up big in the opener, turning away shot after shot in the extra period until Paille scored.

Jaromir Jagr just missed scoring the game-winner in the opening minutes of OT when his shot from the right circle hit the right post, his second near miss in as many games. Chris Kelly, who scored in the second period for Boston, had a shot from the slot stopped by Crawford at 5:39 of overtime.

Rask also stood his ground down the stretch, just as he did in the opening period, when Chicago simply fired away at him.

The Blackhawks swarmed the Bruins in the early going, taking the lead in the first on Patrick Sharp’s ninth goal of the postseason.

They continued to dictate the tempo until Kelly tied it with just over five minutes remaining in the second. Paille skated out from behind the net, beating Nick Leddy with a neat move for a wraparound shot. Crawford made the save, but Kelly crashed the net and knocked in the rebound to tie it at 1-all.

The Bruins nearly grabbed the lead with just over a minute remaining, after Paille picked off Duncan Keith’s pass and flipped the puck to a breaking Brad Marchand. He got pulled down by Brent Seabrook as his shot hit the inside of the right post, preserving the tie.

Either way, the Bruins had to like the way the period ended after being dominated most of the way.

They ended up outshooting Chicago 8-4 in the second after getting outgunned 19-4 in that area in the first, with the Blackhawks holding a 28-19 edge through regulation.

Rask had 33 saves while Crawford had 26.

The Bruins nearly took the lead early in the third when Jagr made a cross-ice pass to Marchand for a one-timer. Crawford came across the crease to block it with his body. Boston also had some chances in the closing minutes, with a shot by Jagr getting deflected over the net by Keith and Johnny Boychuk’s attempt from the blue line getting stopped by Crawford.

The Boston rally was in stark contrast to the early going, when the Blackhawks teed off and finally broke through with 8:38 left after Rask stopped a backhand and wrist shot by Patrick Kane.

The flurry continued with a slapshot by Michael Rozsival, and with the Bruins scrambling in the zone, Sharp wound up with the puck on the right side. He fired it past a screened Rask to give the Blackhawks the lead, with the Bruins’ Kaspars Daugavins and Andrew Ference jammed in front trying to cover Dave Bolland.

Chicago continued the siege against Rask, who had 18 saves in the period, but couldn’t add to the lead.

Then again, the Bruins couldn’t get anything going on offense. Sharp alone had more shots than them in the opening period with six, and things didn’t get much better for Boston in the second.

Crawford wasn’t really tested in the early going, other than a nice glove save on a high shot by Jagr midway through the first period and point-blank stop on Rich Peverley with 1:35 remaining. Star wing Nathan Horton was in the lineup for the Bruins after leaving the series opener with an injured left shoulder, a huge boost for a team trying to tie the series.

Horton got tangled up with Chicago’s Niklas Hjalmarsson in the first overtime, a pivotal moment for a key player to go down. But after watching Horton practice on Friday and skate on Saturday, coach Claude Julien declared him ready, saying he saw “absolutely no reason” not to play him.

For excitement alone, it would be hard to match what happened in Game 1, let alone top it.

From the late rally in regulation by the Blackhawks to the string of spectacular saves by Crawford to Jagr’s near-miss off the post and, finally, Andrew Shaw’s double-deflection goal to win it, that one was simply breathtaking. It added up to the fifth-longest Stanley Cup finals game in league history and a 1-0 series lead for Chicago.

Now the series is tied headed back to Boston.

According to kirotv.com, the NHL is talking about bringing a team to Seattle if a deal can’t be made to keep the Phoenix Coyotes in Arizona. KING 5‘s Chris Daniels reports Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn acknowledged Sunday he’s talked with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman.

The NHL, which owns the Coyotes, is trying to sell to an Arizona-based group. If that deal doesn’t work out, the team could be sold to an investor group that might move the team to Seattle, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

The NHL board of governors meets on June 27, and the CBC reports that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wants an agreement in place by then. Bettman says the league wants the Coyotes to stay in Glendale, but there is also speculation the team could move to Quebec City.

The current arena deal in Seattle requires an NBA team to be secured before construction can begin, according to kirotv.com, and it’s unclear whether arena construction could begin with only the acquisition of an NHL team.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. KING 5, KIRO TV and cbc.ca contributed to this report.)

The Storm will have two more nationally televised games on ESPN2; at Phoenix on Aug. 6 and vs. Los Angeles on Aug. 20. NBA TV will carry three away games, with the first coming on June 21 against San Antonio, followed by a July 25 game at Los Angeles and a third game on Aug. 23 vs. Phoenix.

In addition to the games on ESPN2 and NBA TV, the Storm and KING Broadcasting announced a partnership on May 31 to broadcast home games for the 2013 WNBA season on KONG and Live Well Seattle.

Live Well Seattle is broadcasting 13 games on Comcast channel 115 and digital channel 5.2. KONG 6/16 will present the July 20 game against Los Angeles, the Aug. 15 game vs. Chicago, as well as Aug. 23 at Phoenix. Seattle’s June 2 opening night 75-72 victory over Phoenix in front of a sold-out KeyArena was also shown on KONG.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — The Seattle Storm have struggled early in the WNBA season without stars Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson.

Seattle found a way to get past that on Sunday.

Camille Little had 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists and Seattle beat the Connecticut Sun 78-66.

Tina Thompson had 17 points for the Storm (2-3) while Tanisha Wright added 13 points and five rebounds.

Allison Hightower had 17 points and five rebounds for Connecticut (2-5). Tina Charles added 15 points and six rebounds and Kara Lawson scored 11 points.

Jackson chose to remain home in Australia this season to rehabilitate a hamstring injury. Bird had surgery for a cyst on her knee on May 9. Both will miss the entire season.

Bird and Jackson have been the cornerstones for Seattle and led it to two WNBA championships.

“Our mindset is to fight through everything,” Little said. “You can make excuses if you want, but nobody cares if Sue and Lauren aren’t playing. Nobody cares what may-or-may not be going on with our team. We have to believe in ourselves and fight through everything, and tonight we showed that.”

Seattle was tied with Connecticut for ninth in field goal shooting (39.1) entering the game.

The Storm shot 51.4 percent against the Sun.

“It started with our defense,” Little said. “We were intense, more so than we have been in the last couple of games. We were aggressive, and it sparked our offense.”

Connecticut was also short-handed. Reserve guards Renee Montgomery (high left ankle sprain) and Tan White (broken right finger) missed the game. The Sun’s struggles on Sunday had little to do with a lack of players.

“We came out flat,” Charles said. “In the second half we came out flat. Coach (Anne Donovan) gave us a great motivational speech coming out in the beginning and after halftime, but we came out flat. Things weren’t going our way. It’s just really frustrating.”

Seattle led by three points midway through the third quarter, then pulled away with a 10-0 run. Thompson began the run by making the second of two throws. Shekinna Stricklen, Wright and Thompson followed with 3-pointers to give the Storm a 52-39 lead with 4:14 to play.

Stricklen, chosen second by Seattle in the 2012 draft, gave her team a lift by scoring 11 of her 16 points in the first half.

The Storm led for most of the game and ended the first half with an 8-0 run. Tameka Johnson started it with a pull-up jumper, and Little had a layup.

Lawson had a pull-up jumper for the Sun. Little missed a long 3-pointer before the shot clock expired on the Storm’s next possession. She got the offensive rebound, however, leading to Thompson’s 3-pointer.

Wright ended the half with a driving layup as the Storm took a 40-33 lead into halftime.

“We felt like we could be a team like this,” Seattle coach Brian Agler said, “but now it’s just a matter of being consistent and staying this way.”

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Hisashi Iwakuma has been so good for so long that Sunday’s outing seems like some sort of aberration.

Iwakuma lost for the first time since April 23 as the Seattle Mariners dropped a 10-2 decision to the Oakland Athletics.

“He’s not going to be perfect every time,” Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. “This was a tough outing for him. And we were still in the ballgame. We just needed to come back after they scored their second set of runs. We just didn’t have an answer.”

Iwakuma (7-2) gave up four runs — just the second time he’s allowed more than three runs in a game — on a season high-tying eight hits. He went five innings, matching his season low, walking three and striking out three.

Iwakuma’s streak of not allowing an earned run was stopped at 31 2-3 innings, second longest in Mariners’ history to Mark Langston’s 34-inning streak in 1988.

“You guys could see that the pitches they hit were up in the strike zone,” Iwakuma said. “That was the adjustment I couldn’t make. They were being very aggressive early in the count and that’s what got me.”

The outing also ended the Mariners starter’s streak of eight straight quality starts, including allowing one run or less in seven of those games. Seattle starters had allowed two earned runs in their last 48 innings before the A’s scored in the fourth.

“You have to be patient as a starter,” Iwakuma said. “You know runs will be tough against a pitcher like Bartolo Colon, but I was not able to come through in tough situations.”

Endy Chavez had two hits and drove in two runs for the Mariners, who were looking for their first sweep of the season.

Michael Morse, Jason Bay and Mike Zunino each singled to open the second inning for Seattle. After Colon struck out Brendan Ryan, Chavez delivered a two-run single. Nick Franklin singled to reload the bases, but Kyle Seager’s laser shot to right field was caught just above the grass by Josh Reddick and Kendrys Morales flew out to left.

“That was a great play. Seager couldn’t hit that ball any harder,” Wedge said. “He hit it so hard it stayed up for Reddick to get it. He’s got a great arm, too, so that was a tough one there.”

Iwakuma allowed his first earned run since May 26 when the A’s got to him in the fourth. Josh Donaldson and Seth Smith hit back-to-back doubles to open the inning and Reddick, who had four hits, followed with an RBI single.

“I had a feeling about it as I was running in and watching it sink,” Reddick said. “I shoestringed it and was kind of lucky because the ball was moving.”

Colon said the catch gave him new life.

“I did feel tired during the second inning and was just trying to find a way to get through it,” Colon said. “All I can say is that was the best play. I felt, ‘Wow’ and was ready to get the next guys out.”

That catch, with the bases loaded and two runs already in, became the impetus for A’s pitchers to face the minimum 23 batters the rest of the way, with a pair of double plays erasing the lone baserunners.

“He made several good plays,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “That play probably had a lot to do with getting the momentum back and allowing Bartolo to get his second wind.”

Colon (9-2) allowed two runs on eight hits over seven innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out three to extend his home win streak to seven.

“Today could have gotten away from him early,” Donaldson said. “Reddick made that nice catch and it kind of picked him up. Bartolo is a never-say-die guy anyway. You know he’s going to come back and throw strikes.”

Notes: Mariners LHP prospect Danny Hultzen (rotator cuff strain) remains at extended spring training. The former first-round draft pick last appeared in a game on April 19 with Triple-A Tacoma. Manager Eric Wedge said before the game that Hultzen would remain in Peoria while he continues to build arm strength. … INF Justin Smoak (strained right oblique) could return to the Mariners lineup as early as Monday night in Anaheim. … RHP Aaron Harang (3-6, 5.60 ERA) takes the mound for Seattle against the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. He threw a two-hit shutout in his last start.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

By Christian S. Kohl

Both Clayton Kershaw and Clay Buchholz find themselves off to absolutely electric starts in the 2013 season. Their numbers in nearly every statistical category are downright silly, each dominating their leagues with extreme precision. Every GM would donate a kidney to sign either of these young dominate aces. So begs the question, which of them is the best?

>>More Sports Verdict Here

The nod in the early going from a pure stat splits perspective is Buchholz, who is pitching totally outside of his head. He sports a 1.62 ERA, 77 strikeouts in as many innings, and has surrendered just two home runs while featuring an unblemished 8-0 record. Kershaw, almost equally impressive, has fired his way to a 1.85 ERA across 87 innings, while recording 82 K’s as he compiles a more pedestrian 5-3 record. Clearly, run support factors in heavily in such a limited sample, however.

More to the point, in a comparison of the two in terms of who better to trust long term as a franchise ace, most if not all nods go to Kershaw. Not simply because he throws left-handed, or that he is 25 and Buch is now 28. The durability of Kershaw inspires more confidence than Buch. In what is his seventh year of work in the majors, Buchholz has never recorded a 200 inning season. Kershaw sports three, including two over 225 innings. He bests Buch in career WHIP, 1.11 to 1.30. Buchholz has also surrendered more home runs lifetime despite pitching 316 fewer career innings.

For the less statistically oriented and more subjective fan, Buchholz also is more of an unanswered question than Kershaw. Buch’s injuries in 2011 led to difficulties in 2012 relocating his elite stuff. He all reported issues with his delivery and kinks in his mechanics. While he exhibits an unquestioned mental toughness, the longevity of this run he is on remains difficult to handicap. Conversely, Kershaw has displayed a pattern of workhorse dominance more or less consistently throughout his entire career. He also applies less pressure to his defense, consistently recording strikeout totals which dwarf those of Buchholz by a margin of nearly 2:1 lifetime.

Right now, Buch is the better story, as everyone enjoys a good comeback. He has always been a tough competitor who battles during every start, and his ferocious beginning to 2013 feels entirely earned after putting in the difficult work to recapture his stuff these past few years. Kershaw is every scout’s dream, the robot who fits every physical and velocity profile and simply delivers without wavering. Both of these guys are incredibly special to watch, and their futures remain bright for the next decade and possibly beyond. But the more likely to maintain this level of play by the end of 2013 and beyond is Kershaw without question. Like every GM in the world, if tasked between picking either of these hurlers to anchor my staff, I take Kershaw without hesitation and sleep without an ounce of regret. He wins this week’s showdown of elite fireballers.

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Christian S. Kohl is a sports contributor for CBS Local Digital Media.

ATLANTA (AP) — Angel McCoughtry didn’t want the Atlanta Dream to slow down without Sancho Lyttle on the floor.

“We played Dream basketball, forcing turnovers, contesting shots and running our offense up-tempo,” McCoughtry said. “Sancho is a great player, but while she’s gone, other people have a chance to step up.”

McCoughtry scored 23 points and Jasmine Thomas added 13 to lead the Dream over the Seattle Storm 68-59 on Friday night.

McCoughtry, last season’s leading scorer in the WNBA, also had team highs with nine rebounds, seven assists and five steals to help as the Dream improve to 5-1.

Tina Thompson and Temeka Johnson scored 11 points apiece for the Storm, who dropped to 1-3.

The Dream played the first of six games without Lyttle, their leading rebounder and second-leading scorer this season. With Lyttle playing overseas for Spain’s national team, Le’Coe Willingham started in her place and went scoreless but did haul in eight rebounds.

Lyttle is expected to return before a July 9 game against Minnesota. Her absence gave Atlanta coach Fred Williams a chance to give additional minutes to Tiffany Hayes, Aneika Henry and Willingham, a trio that lacked offensively, but did a good job stepping in Seattle’s passing lanes and disrupting their offense.

“Getting more subs in, more fresh legs in (is important),” Williams said. “Offensively we got some things off the boards, some putbacks, and we had a few more set plays when things kind of slowed down.”

Seattle, the league’s lowest-scoring team, managed just four points in the third quarter — coming on two baskets by Johnson — and trailed by 16 before an 11-1 run pulled them to 58-52 on Camille Little’s layup midway through the fourth.

But that was as close as the Storm would get. Erika De Souza stole the ball from Tanisha Wright a few minutes later and passed it upcourt to McCoughtry for a fast-break layup and a 10-point lead.

“We just have to be aggressive,” Johnson said. “Take what we want, not what people give us. And have the taking mentality in the third quarter.”

Williams could tell in the first 4 minutes of the third that his team was ready to take control of the tempo.

“I told them in the huddle to come out on fire,” Williams said, “to get in the passing lanes and gamble for some buckets.”

Alex Bentley added 11 points for Atlanta, which leads the league in team defense, allowing 68.7 points per game.

The Storm used a 17-3 run in the first, ending on Shekinna Stricklen’s layup, to take a 19-13 lead in the last 2 minutes of the quarter.

Seattle either led or tied for most of the second before McCoughtry stole the ball from Wright with 2.9 seconds before halftime and hit a layup at the buzzer to put Atlanta up 38-35.

The Storm, coming off a nine-point home loss last week to Tulsa in which they went 0 for 17 from 3-point range, hit seven of 19 attempts — but Thompson and Stricklen were a combined 1 for 8 from beyond the arc.

“We’re going to have to just keep fighting,” Thompson said. “We’re not going to give in. Just going to keep fighting. Keep working, getting better, executing. I think that if we continue to focus on that then we’ll be OK.”

McCoughtry promised to keep her teammates from falling into a collective funk without Lyttle.

“This is a good team, but we can get a lot better,” McCoughtry said. “There’s a lot of stuff to clean up, but we’re off to a pretty good start.”

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Listen to the full show HERE.

The WNBA will announce the starters on ESPN2 on July 18 during the nationally televised game featuring the Phoenix Mercury at the Los Angeles Sparks. Reserves will be announced on ESPN2 on July 23, during the game between the New York Liberty and the Indiana Fever.

Seattle’s Thompson has made the All-Star team eight times in her career, though she was unable to play in 2006 and 2003 due to injury. Thompson was named MVP in 2000, scoring 13 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and recording three steals, leading the West to a 73-61 victory over the East. Thompson recently announced she would retire from the WNBA at the end of the season.

If selected, this would be the first All-Star appearance for Johnson, Wright, Little and Quinn. Johnson is a 2009 WNBA champion with the Phoenix Mercury as well as the 2005 Rookie of the Year. The 5’3’’ guard has 1,036 assists in her nine-year career. Wright and Little were a part of the 2010 Seattle Storm championship team.

The fan voting will determine the starting lineups for the game. Voters are asked to select two guards and three frontcourt players (forwards and/or centers) from each conference. A write-in option is also available, allowing fans to choose players not listed on the ballot.

2013 WNBA All-Star Balloting presented by Boost Mobile allows fans worldwide to vote daily for their favorite players. Fans can cast their votes on wnba.com, on mobile devices by visiting wnba.com/asb, on any wireless carrier and on the WNBA Center Court presented by Boost Mobile app. Balloting will conclude at midnight ET on July 14. ABC will nationally broadcast the game, which will take place on Saturday, July 27, at 3:30 p.m. ET.

During the 10-year history of the All-Star Game, at least one Seattle Storm player has played in every All-Star Game. The Storm had three players in the starting lineup in 2009 (Bird, Cash, Jackson) and has had two players in the starting lineup five times (2011, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2003). In 2002, the Storm had one player in the starting lineup, then-rookie Sue Bird.

Most recently, the East won in 2011, defeating the West 118 to 113. The West leads the East 7-3 in the all-time WNBA All-Star Game series.

The WNBA did not hold an All-Star Game in 2012, as the league halted play for one month, allowing players to participate in the London Olympics. Likewise, there were no games in 2008 or 2004. In 2010 the USA national team took on WNBA All-Stars from all over the country. Seattle Storm head coach and general manager Brian Agler coached the WNBA All-Stars against Team USA. Team USA earned a decisive win with a final score of 99-72.

Assistant coach Jenny Boucek has also made a coaching appearance in the All-Star Game. Then head coach for the Sacramento Monarchs, she coached the West in 2007 in a close game against the East. The final score was 99 to 103 with the East getting the win.

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Over the last few years, the team has been successful at finding players in late rounds and in other parts of the football world. So, Todd Pheifer of the Bleacher Report has compiled a list of five undrafted players to be on the lookout for in 2013 — one of them could very well be the next star to come out of nowhere.

The first person Pheifer looks at is linebacker John Lotulelei. The 5’11″, 233-pounder out of UNLV won’t win any races, but can certainly make a running back think twice about trying to run up the middle. Pheifer says of Lotulelei, “he is an instictive defender and he racked up 120 tackles in 2012.”

Pheifer also points out the team awarded Lotulelei with a $25,000 signing bonus, so there is definitely some interest in him.

Read about the other 4 players to look out for in Pheifer’s article: 5 Undrafted Seattle Seahawks Players Who Could Prove to Be Gems

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Bleacher Report contributed to this report.)

He was one of three rookies the Boston Bruins were relying on to stabilize an injured blue-line as they began their Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the New York Rangers, and he burst into the playoffs with a bang.

In his first playoff game, he scored his first NHL goal — on the power play nonetheless — to help Boston to a 3-2 overtime victory. He’d score three more times in the four remaining games of the series, as Boston convincingly advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals.

With injured veteran defensemen Andrew Ference and Dennis Seidenberg returning from injury, both rookies Dougie Hamilton and Matt Bartkowski found their way back to the ninth floor. But Krug, with a new nickname and veteran-like presence on the ice, remained as the Bruins swept their way to the Stanley Cup Final against the favorite Pittsburgh Penguins.

Read: Bruins Shake Off Triple-OT Loss In Game 1

But Krug quickly returned to earth with one errant pass in Wednesday night’s Game 1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. As he attempted to clear the puck out of the Boston zone his pass was picked off by Andrew Shaw, giving the Blackhawks a two-on-one that ended with Dave Bolland beating Tuukka Rask.  That pulled Chicago within a goal midway through the third period, and would be a huge swing in momentum as the Blackhawks tied the game just a few minutes later, and Krug found himself on the bench until his fresh legs were needed during the triple-overtime affair.

Welcome to the Stanley Cup, kid.

Mistakes happen to everyone. Some are big, some are small, but they happen. Whether they are a simple typo, a missed meeting, or a turnover that leads to a goal in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, they happen.

What matters most is how people bounce back from those mistakes. And that is why Claude Julien was quick to back his rookie defenseman on Thursday, and from all that the head coach said, it doesn’t sound like he’ll be making any changes on Boston’s blue line because of one error — however costly.

“When you look at games, there are a lot of mistakes made,” Julien said from the team’s hotel on Thursday. “Some end up as goals, and some you’re able to recover from. We certainly shouldn’t look and judge this player on one game where he might have been average instead of real good, like he has been. Those are part of a player getting better and it doesn’t mean we lose confidence in him because we still had the confidence to put him out there in overtime.”

Read: Leftover Thoughts From Game 1

“It is what it is,” said Julien. “It’s easy to focus in on one thing, and yes, it was a mistake to throw that puck up the middle, but if you look back at the play, I didn’t think we had a good line change and he didn’t have a ton of options. There could be some blame shared on that goal.”

As for Krug, he’s just looking for an opportunity to make up for his error.

“When you make a mistake like that all you want to do is get out there and redeem yourself, make sure you can help your teammates,” the anxious 22-year-old said Thursday. “There’s a group of guys in there that you feel like you let down. I’m itching to get back on the ice to have that opportunity.”

“For me it’s once again earning the coaches trust,” he said. “Taking that responsibility and making something out of it, that opportunity and using it to your advantage.”

“My game is a risky game,” he explained. “That was a risky play that I would probably try again in the future — I would just execute it differently. Playing that way you have to have a short-term memory, and I think the best players do. I’ll quickly forget about it; I’ll learn from it but I’ll forget about it.”

That, in a nutshell, is the Boston Bruins. They’ve made it a point to learn from, but move on from those kinds of mistakes. As Julien said, the Bruins had other opportunities they did not take advantage of and committed other mistakes throughout the marathon loss in Game 1.

Read: Injured Horton Day-To-Day

But that is all behind them, as their focus has shifted on to Saturday night’s Game 2.

“What makes this team special is just having that short-term memory and understanding this is a series. They made it that way for a reason and it’s not over until it’s over,” said Krug. “We’ve been on both sides of that. It’s one of those things you can lean on the guys that have been through everything and use it to your advantage.”

Krug has plenty of veteran players to lean on and learn from, and he should get a chance to show what he’s learned from that one play come Saturday night.

Tune in to every game of the Bruins-Blackhawks Stanley Cup Final on 98.5 The Sports Hub — the flagship station of the Boston Bruins. Pregame coverage begins one hour before, with full postgame coverage with Dave Goucher and Bob Beers after each game.

A part of Boston’s top line, Horton was injured during Wednesday’s 4-3 triple-overtime loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. Game 2 is Saturday at the United Center, and coach Claude Julien said Thursday the Bruins are “keeping our fingers crossed” that he won’t miss any time.

He said he’s “not going there” when asked what Boston will do if Horton is unavailable because “that decision hasn’t been made.”

Horton got tangled with Blackhawks defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson with about seven minutes remaining in the first OT. He skated off the ice and headed to the locker room.

Losing Horton would be a big blow for the Bruins. He has seven goals and 11 assists in the playoffs and leads the league at plus-22 in the postseason. He also suffered a concussion during Game 3 of the 2011 Stanley Cup finals against Vancouver and missed the rest of the series as the Bruins went on to win the championship.

“He’s a guy that’s been coming up big for us in the playoffs,” defenseman Torey Krug said. “To not have him in the rest of that game definitely hurt us. But we have confidence in our guys.”
(TM and © Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

(1090 The Fan / AP) — The Seattle Seahawks are bringing back a familiar face to compete for their backup quarterback job.

The Seahawks announced they have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with quarterback Tarvaris Jackson to compete with Brady Quinn for the backup role behind starter Russell Wilson.

Jackson won seven games for the Seahawks as their starting quarterback in 2011. He was traded to the Buffalo Bills during training camp last season when it became evident he would not win the starting job over Wilson and Matt Flynn.

The Bills released Jackson earlier this week after they added Kevin Kolb in free agency and selected E.J. Manuel in the first round of the NFL draft.

With the move, the Seahawks released quarterback Jerrod Johnson, an undrafted rookie who signed with Seattle in April. 

Johnson joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in early 2012, but was released before the season started. Prior to the Steel City, a similar situation happened to Johnson with the Philadelphia Eagles; He signed on July 26, 2011 but was released during training camp on August 18.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

On Friday, the Mariners signed catcher Henry Blanco and simultaneously designated catcher Kelly Shoppach for assignment, according to the team.

The 41-year-old veteran Blanco was released by the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday.

In 16 Major League seasons, Blanco has been regarded as one of the better defensive catchers in baseball, but is not an offensive threat. The Venezuela native has never tallied at least 70 hits in a season (career high is 67) nor reached 50 RBIs (career high is 37).

Meanwhile, Shoppach’s line for 2013 is .196/.293/.346. The Mariners have ten days to trade, release or outright his contract.

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Coming off a week of questionable player moves — and an agonizing loss to the Houston Astros, the Mariners’  teed up yet another opportunity for Seattle sports fans to groan in unison. Like many in the Emerald City, Sandmeyer, Swartz and guest Art Thiel could not resist questioning the employment of Lincoln and Armstrong.

One of the astonishing revelations from the conversation was when Thiel reported that at one time Dusty Baker was not considered as a managerial candidate because his grandson wandered onto the field during a playoff game. Lincoln said because of that instance, Baker was an “undisciplined dugout manager.”

Listen to the entire segment below:

Deadspin reports that the incident occurred when retired Gen. Peter Chiarelli visited Carroll at the Seahawks headquarters last spring. Carroll reportedly asked if the terror attacks that killed thousands was “planned or faked by the United States government,” especially the attack on the Pentagon.

“Every 9/11 conspiracy theory you can think of, Pete asked about,” Riki Ellison, a former NFL linebacker who runs the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance and introduced the two, told Deadspin. “And he didn’t stop at 9/11 – he had lots of questions about the role of the military today.”

Chiarelli reportedly told Carroll that he lost many colleagues when American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon.

According to Deadspin, the talk got “hostile” and Chiarelli left the room at one point. Ellison tells the website that is not true and the two had a “fun” discussion.

“Pete grew up in California during Vietnam, and during Watergate,” Ellison told Deadspin. “That’s just the perspective he brings to the table.”

Ellison added: “Pete had a four-star general in the room, one of the Army’s top guys. Why wouldn’t you push the envelope?”

Carroll has not been immune to controversy. The University of Southern California football team he coached in 2004 was stripped of its national championship when running back Reggie Bush accepted improper gifts from a sports marketer.

Carroll is 25-23 in three seasons as the Seahawks head coach.

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Listen to the 3:00 p.m. hour HERE.

Listen to the 4:00 p.m. hour HERE.

Listen to the 5:00 p.m. hour HERE.

On this day last year, the Mariners were 27-37. Despite some free agent acquisitions, trades and call-ups in the past year, Mariners are sitting ugly at 29-38 in 2013.

Holmes has four suggestions for the club:
1) Move Ackley to the outfield
2) Promote Brad Miller
3) Have a good, old fashioned mid-summer fire sale
4) Clean house

In regards to pulling the cord on GM Jack Zduriencik and Manager Eric Wedge, Holmes says, “time and patience when considering their body of work in Seattle the past few years is wearing thin.” Under Zduriencik and Wedge’s watch, the team is 171-220.

However, if Wedge gets canned, the Mariners will have had eight guys manage the team since Lou Piniella’s departure after the 2002 season…

Read Holme’s entire article: Adjustments the Seattle Mariners Need to Make to Get Back on Track

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Bleacher Report contributed to this report.)

Locked in a 3-3 tie more than 10 minutes into the third overtime of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, Michal Rozsival hit a shot from the right point that was tipped by Dave Bolland before Andrew Shaw put the puck in the net, beating Tuukka Rask for the win in the fifth-longest Stanley Cup Final game in history.

“We knew it wasn’t going to be pretty,” Shaw said. “It was a great shot, great shift. It was unbelievable. All the guys deserved this. It was a great battle for us.”

With a 1-0 series advantage, the Blackhawks will face the Bruins again at the United Center on Saturday evening for a chance to go up 2-0.

Watch the video here.