If the first free agent move the Knicks made this off season is any indication, Stephon Marbury is on the way out of his hometown. The Knicks verbally agreed to a two-year deal with the former Chicago Bulls point guard Chris Duhon. While the deal cannot officially be announced until Wednesday when free agent contracts can first be signed, it's expected that Duhon will get the full mid-level exception of an estimated $5.8 million/year. If......

One short day after the Rangers parted ways with Jaromir Jagr, the 36-year-old wing signed a two-year deal with a Russian team. Jagr's deal with Avangard Omsk, part of the Continental Hockey League (KSL), is reportedly worth $7 million a year. The KHL starts its inaugural season later this year and will likely compete with the NHL for European and Russian talent.......

Red Sox 6, Yankees 4: If Johnny Damon had caught the ball, things might have turned out differently. With the Yankees leading, 3-1, and two Red Sox on base, Kevin Youkilis lifted a high drive to left field, and Damon appeared to have it in his glove. Then gravity kicked in, Damon returned to Earth, and, after literally hanging on top of the wall, the ball fell to the warning track. That proved to be the turning point. ...

Back in 1997, the Rangers lost their captain when Mark Messier headed to the Pacific Northwest to play for the Canucks. On Thursday, they brought Vancouver's captain, Markus Naslund to New York with a two-year, $8 million deal. Thanks to the salary cap and other roster considerations, this move means Jaromir Jagr's New York career is over. Rangers general manager Glen Sather sounded like he had gotten tired of waiting for Jagr to decide what......

If Derek Jeter hadn't made an error that led to two unearned runs being scored in the top of the first, the Yankees still would have lost. That's because the bats, which looked so lively against the Rangers on Wednesday, did nothing against Boston's Jon Lester on Thursday. Jeter's error, the latest downplayed miscue from an aging "shortstop," didn't cost the team the game. Even if he hadn't thrown a ball that should have completed a double play into first-basethe camera well, Andy Pettitte still wouldn't have had his best stuff. This is the first time the teams played after Memorial Day without one of them being in first place since September 2007. The Yanks will need to win two of the next three to avoid falling further behind Boston -- and first-place Tampa Bay....

Sidney Ponson, who will soon be forgotten himself, made a start that will be forgotten. That's thanks in part to his ineffectiveness but mostly to the Yanks' offensive explosion spearheaded by Jason Giambi (grand slam, six RBIs) and Alex Rodriguez (homer, three RBIs, four runs scored). Every Yankees starter had a hit. That includes Brett Gardner, who could be the new center fielder if Melky Cabrera continues his sour play. Ponson, picked up as a stopgap measure, was barely decent -- but fully clothed -- until the sixth inning, when he allowed a pair of two-run home runs. But then the Yankees exploded for a nine-run seventh. ...

Photograph of Tony Armas giving a fist pound to Damion Easley who scored on a double by Ramon Casto by Tom Gannam/AP Mets 7 St. Louis 4: The Mets called up Tony Armas to make this start and while he struggled early, he delivered in the end. The Cardinals jumped out to a 2-0 lead and took a 3-1 lead after two. But, the Mets’ offense struck back while Armas kept them in the......

Photograph of umpire Dan Iassogna and Texas Rangers' Josh Hamilton watch New Yankees catcher Jose Molina after being hit by a pitch by Kathy Willens/AP Texas 2 Yankees 1: For the second game in a row, the Yankees’ offense took the day off. Apart from an Alex Rodriguez home run and a Jason Giambi triple (yes really) the Yankees only managed two other hits and only drew three walks. The lack of punch spoiled......

Mets 3 Yankees 1: It’s clear that Oliver Perez needs to make all his starts against the Yankees. Back in May, Perez dominated the Yankees at Yankee Stadium, Sunday it was another dominating performance, this time at Shea. Perez allowed only three hits over seven innings while striking out 8. Another Met who will be sorry to see the Subway Series end is Carlos Delgado. Delgado hit his third home run of the series, a......

Photograph of Carlos Delgado leaping for an errant throw from David Wright and trying to tag Alex Rodriguez out (but A-Rod was ruled safe) by Julie Jacobson/AP Yankees 3, Mets 2: Andy Pettitte pitched through a rain delay, and Johan Santana couldn't pitch through another meager output from the Mets bats. Pettitte came out after a 53-minute rain delay and gave up a solo homer to David Wright. But that only made the game......

Photo of David Wright congratulating Carlos Delgado after a grand slam in Yankee Stadium by AP/Frank Franklin II Photo of Jose Molina congratulating Bobby Abreu at Shea Stadium by AP/Julie Jacobson Eight hours of baseball in two different stadiums ended with both the Mets and Yankees scoring 15 runs and earning a split of their doubleheader. The first game was the “Carlos Delgado Show” as Delgado hammered Yankees’ pitching for nine RBI’s thanks to......

Boy were we wrong about fan reaction at the NBA Draft. Not only did the fans boo the Knicks selection of Danilo Gallinari, but they even started a “Fire Donnie” chant. Why the hate for Gallinari? Well, the fans wanted OJ Mayo and drafting a European player probably brings back memories of Frederic Weis. Perhaps the booing was just Knicks fans getting out their leftover animosity from this past season. Gallinari isn’t a bad pick......

Tonight will be different at Madison Square Garden because for the first time in years, the Knicks will do something and not be booed. While all signs point to the Knicks sticking with the #6 pick, you can be sure that could change because the top of the draft is very fluid. For weeks it has all been about Derrick Rose and Michael Beasley going 1-2, but with Chicago reportedly picking Rose, the Heat are......

While the Jets are polling their season ticket holders about personal seat licenses, the Giants have announced that they're going forward with PSLs for the new shared stadium in the Meadowlands. The licenses will range from $1,000 to $20,000 depending on the seats. Giants co-owner John Mara said that the charge is necessary given construction costs and that the fees will go towards paying for the yet to be named stadium.......

Don’t look now Jets’ fans, but it sounds like seats at the new stadium are going to cost more- a lot more. In a survey sent to season ticket holders last week, the Jets asked fans if they would be “interested” in paying prices between $1,200 and $30,000 in order to guarantee their seats. The holder of the seat license could then sell that license at a future date for a possible profit. Sounds like......

Photograph of David Wright being congratulated by third base coach Luis Aguayo after his solo home run by Julie Jacobson/AP Mets 8 Seattle 2: New York came out angry and scored early as they romped to a sweep-avoiding victory. Maybe it was Jerry Manuel’s decision to change the team's warmup routine, maybe it was the thought of being swept by the worst team in the American League. Whatever the reason, the Mets showed some......

Photograph of Jerry Manuel arguing with home plate umpire Brian Runge, who then threw Manuel out of the game, by Julie Jacobson/AP Mariners 11, Mets 0: Yes, the Mets are on the verge of being swept by the worst team in baseball. Seattle rocked Mets starter Oliver Perez for six runs in five innings and the Mets looked lost against Mariners knuckleballer R.A. Dickey. To be fair, they would look lost against a slow-pitch......

Fred Wilpon has come out and publicly endorsed his GM Omar Minaya and defended the handling of Willie Randolph’s dismissal. “I think Omar has done a great job,” Wilpon told reporters Monday at MLB headquarters while also explaining the thought process behind Randolph’s termination saying it was handled the way it was out of respect for Willie. "You can always look over your shoulder and think things like that, but the intent here clearly was......

Photograph of Carlos Beltran sliding into home--and Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez--by Seth Wenig/AP It seemed like such an innocent play at the time. Willie Blumquist grounded to third for what should have been an easy out, but David Wright bobbled the ball and the bases were loaded. But, the pitcher was due up and pitchers can’t hit, especially American League ones, right? Wrong, Felix Hernandez became the first AL pitcher in 37 years to......

Yankees 4 Cincinnati 1: The Yankees did just enough to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Reds. Andy Pettitte went six-strong, not allowing a run and striking out four. He probably would have pitched longer, but the game was delayed 50 minutes due to rain. Jason Giambi provided the big hit, a two-run double in the sixth that gave New York a comfortable lead. Mariano Rivera, who had to come into the game......

If Larry Brooks is right, the Rangers will let Jaromir Jagr enter free agency on July 1st and therefore risk losing their captain to another team once their exclusive negotiating rights expire. And, despite the backlash such a move would create, letting Jagr walk is a smart move for a franchise that is clearly at the crossroads. Yes, Jagr has been wonderful in a Rangers’ uniform since the lockout ended. His 54-goal season in 2004-05......

Photo of Dutch fans in Basel, Switzerland, by Matt Dunham, AP The European Cup soccer tournament heads into the quarterfinals this weekend and it's shaping up to be one of the most exciting and highest-rated international tournaments in some time. For those who contend that soccer is too boring to watch, one should try watching it surrounded by football fanatics who can not only clue you in on the finer parts of the game,......

Cincinnati 4 Yankees 2: It has been 32 years since the Reds last appeared at Yankee Stadium and they picked up where they left off. In 1976, it was a two-game sweep to win the World Series. In 2008, the stakes were not as high, but the Reds had Edinson Volquez, the best pitcher in the NL so far, on the mound and he delivered. Volquez earned his 10th win of the season, allowing only......

The value of a switch hitter in baseball is great, but what about the value of a switch pitcher. Imagine a pitcher that can throw to hitters on either side of the dish. That's what the Staten Island Yankees have in Pat Venditte, a 22 year-old switch pitcher. Venditte was drafted by the Yankees in 2007 and again 2008 after he returned to Creighton University for his senior year. Venditte's first minor league appearance......

Willie Randolph, who went from being perceived as terse and incompetent to bloodied scapegoat in the matter of three or four days, tells the story Friday of his midnight firing in an article in the Daily News. In it, he says how stunned he was when Mets general manager Omar Minaya told him the bad news in the Anaheim hotel. He also gives a blow-by-blow account of how it happened. When Minaya started talking to......

Yankees 2, Padres 1: If Joba Chamberlain weren't in the rotation right now, Dan Giese, owner of 0 big-league starts, would be the team's fourth starter. Instead, Chamberlain is striking out nine Padres -- yes, they still count -- and helping the team win its seventh straight. Alex Rodriguez -- still not clutch -- got the go-ahead single in the sixth inning. Jose Veras picked up the win in relief, but Chamberlain was the pitching......

For many people, the best part about watching hockey is the fights. For those fight-lovers, there's some rumbling between the Rangers and the National Hockey League that could interest you. Back in September, Madison Square Garden sued the NHL for antitrust violations, claiming the league monopolized team promotions via the Rangers' website. Court papers filed yesterday included a letter from NHL commissioner Gary Bettman that asked the court to rule that the Rangers were in......

Some say that Jerry Manuel and Willie Randolph are too similar, but somehow we can't envision Randolph, the former Mets manager saying what Manuel did on Tuesday night, even jokingly. When Jose Reyes was removed from the game after he experienced tightness in his hamstring, he had a helmet throwing-hissy-fit. Reyes later apologized to Manuel, but the new manager cracked to Reyes:"I told him next time he does that I'm going to get my blade......

Photograph of Alex Rodriguez celebrating with third base coach Bobby Meacham after A-Rod hit a third-inning home run by Frank Franklin II/AP Yankees 8 Padres 5: Is it a coincidence that the Yankees have gone 19-9 since A-Rod returned to the lineup? You certainly have to give Posada some credit too, but the lineup is scoring again and the Yankees have been able to overcome some rough pitching, especially from their bullpen. Wednesday night......

While ticket prices at the new Yankees Stadium prices are high, the last season at Yankee Stadium is also proving lucrative with all sorts of memorabilia to remember the house that Ruth built. Yesterday, pitcher Joba Chamberlain unveiled a special All-Star Game T-shirt at Modell's in Times Square. Since the game is being held at Yankee Stadium, the shirt features the phrase, "Heroes Made. Legends Remembered, with images of Yankee Stadium, the Statue of Liberty......