Wiz get third pick in NBA Lottery

Despite a 20% chance to win the 2012 NBA Draft's top pick, the Washington Wizards will be selecting third next month behind New Orleans and Charlotte.

The Wizards, who ranked 22nd in points, 20th in rebounds, 27th in assists per game and 20th in points allowed, are in dire need of upgrades at a number of positions throughout the roster.

Following the lottery, ESPN projected Washington would select Florida freshman Bradley Beal. Described as "Ray Allen meets Eric Gordon," Beal would be an instant-impact shooting guard to pair alongside starting point guard John Wall.

Beal, who averaged 14.8 points on 45% shooting last year, is noted for his shooting prowess. He also used his powerful 6-foot-3 frame to pull in 6.7 rebounds per game, no small feat for a guard. He's got a complete game and would be a great addition to most NBA starting lineups.


But with Jordan Crawford already on the roster, it might make more sense for Washington to draft a big man. And with Kentucky's Anthony Davis the consensus No. 1 pick, other options available could include Kentucky's Michael Kidd-Gilchrist or Kansas' Thomas Robinson.

Kidd-Gilchrist is likely to come off the board at No. 2, leaving the 6-foot-9, 237-pound Robinson as a possible addition.

He averaged 17.7 points and 11.9 rebounds as a junior, and is a gritty, physical player who plays tough defense and is one of the nation's elite rebounders.

"We're very happy with how things shook out, we think we'll add a very valuable piece with the No. 3 pick," team president Ernie Grunfeld said.

Still, with a 20-46 record last year, the team is far away from adding one piece to the puzzle and becoming a playoff contender. Davis would have been a terrific addition, and while Robinson and Kidd-Gilchrist will be good NBA players for years to come, Washington needs more help all over to lock Wall up beyond his rookie contract.

Gordon Ramsay hurt in celebrity soccer game

Famed chef and noted crazy person Gordon Ramsay isn't likely to gain much sympathy.

The guy is known for calling people's risotto "sh*t" and letting chefs know that he wouldn't feed his dog their culinary creations.

The guy is basically a walking troll. The villain in a James Bond movie. The guy everyone boos in professional wrestling. Some would consider him the Skip Bayless of the celebrity chef industry.

So when he appeared in a celebrity soccer tournament in England called Soccer Aid, many fans in attendance were probably hoping to see Ramsay injured.

Those folks got their wish when Ramsay's legs were taken out by Manchester United forward Teddy Sheringham.

Ramsay was taken off on a stretcher, though he'll be fine. At least it was his legs and not his hands. Check out the video below.

Loyola tops Terps in all-Maryland lax final

After a fairytale tournament run that ended with a shot at a national championship, the Maryland men's lacrosse team came up short of a title for the second time in as many years.

The unseeded Terps knocked off No. 7 seed Lehigh, No. 2 Johns Hopkins and No. 3 Duke before falling 9-3 to Loyola, the field's top-seeded team.

Maryland led 3-2 in the second quarter before the Greyhounds ended the game on seven straight goals, including the final three from Eric Lusby, who set an NCAA record for most goals in a tournament with 17.

Despite winning 12 of the game's 15 faceoffs and the majority of the game's ground balls, the Terps were held scoreless for the final 41 minutes of the game, ending the season on a disappointing note for the second straight year. It was the final game of seven players' careers, including Joe Cummings and Drew Snider, who both started every game this season and were the team's top two scorers.

This was just the second time in history that Maryland has lost to the Greyhounds. The Terps own a 19-2 mark in the series, and just a 2-9 record in the NCAA Tournament finals.

Second-year head coach John Tillman has guided Maryland to the finals for two straight years -- both years behind unseeded teams. Former coach Dave Cottle, who led Maryland to a 77-34 record in seven seasons, never took the Terps to the NCAA Tournament finals.

The loss leaves Maryland without a national championship to its credit since 1975. Inside Lacrosse's John Jiloty noted that the weekend attendance in Foxborough, Massachusetts, "was the lowest for the Final Four since 2002."

Ochocinco disturbed by wallet thievery

Everyone knows it sucks to lose your wallet. Replacing your credit cards, cash and driver's license is a royal pain in the butt.

So it's understandable when New England Patriots wide receiver and active Twitter user Chad Ochocinco was frustrated when someone broke into his car and stole his wallet and iPod.

But Ochocinco wasn't worried about that stuff. He was too busy mourning the loss of a specific item in his wallet.

"Crazy I found my wallet using (Social Media) Unreal how powerful this site is, they left I.D. n credit card but stole my Starbucks card WTF," he tweeted afterwards.

You'd think a guy worth millions and millions of dollars wouldn't be broken up about losing a Starbucks card. But it wasn't just any Starbucks card.

"I earned the gold card. You know how many coffees I've had to drink and lemon loafs I've had to purchase to get to that gold card? I had $220 left on my Starbucks card. Not just any Starbucks card, but a gold Starbucks card," Ochocinco said in a video posted on his Twitter account.

Luckily, Starbucks saw the message on Twitter and came to his rescue.

"what a bummer! We gotcha your back... and we'll send ya a new card ;-)" the company's official Twitter account posted.

Happy ending and an impressive display of the power of social media.

High schooler Tebows at graduation

Chuck Shriner, a graduating high schooler at Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers, Florida, pulled off a ballsy move at graduation.

He "Tebowed," the act of getting down on one knee and praying. It's the move former Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow coined as a celebration.

"They said what I did would give underclassmen inspiration to do something else, that it might lead to something else. So they were trying to set an example," Shriner said.

Unfortunately, the school's administration didn't find it so funny.

In return for pocketing $5 for his efforts, Shriner was punished by having his diploma withheld, then was forced to clean up the school gymnasium.

Shriner's mom teaches math at the school. According to local television station WPTV, she asked the principal to withhold the diploma.

"She was really mad, but I think it was worth it," Shriner said.

As for the lighthearted, easy-going Shriner, he wasn't trying to make national headlines or even draw much attention.


"I just thought it was fun. I was just doing it to make graduation memorable," he said.

Reds fan catches two home runs

Cincinnati Reds fan Caleb Lloyd had a pretty amazing Monday night.

Sitting in the outfield bleachers with some of his friends, the 20-year old caught a home run -- specifically Cincinnati pitcher Mike Leake's first career home run.

Lloyd caught the ball barehanded without so much as bobbling it. That's pretty impressive in any right.

"It hit my hand. I didn't expect to actually catch it. I never actually caught a home run ball. It hurt really bad," Lloyd said after the game.

Plenty of people catch home runs and foul balls all the time. So what makes Lloyd special?

Well, three pitches later, Reds batter Zack Cozart hit a home run. It went straight to left field -- right where Lloyd was sitting.

The ball bounced and Lloyd secured it with his one free hand while the other held on to the first home run ball.

"The second one bounced behind me and bounced right into my lap. I was like, 'Oh my gosh, that's just crazy!' I couldn't believe my eyes. Right now, I still can't believe it's happening," Lloyd said.

Like the good guy he is, Lloyd gave away both balls. He offered Cozart's dinger to the friend who gave him a free ticket to the game, and he gave Leake's home run to Leake himself, in exchange for an autograph.

Check out the historic footage below.

Orioles out to terrific start in '12

We're officially one-quarter of the way through the 2012 MLB season, and the Orioles are looking like an inspired bunch.

Sitting 11 games over .500 for the first time since 2005, Baltimore is in sole possession of first place in the American League East. And if the playoffs ended today, the Orioles would claim the top overall seed.

Led by star outfielder Adam Jones, who, heading into Monday night's game against the Red Sox was on pace for 54 home runs, 112 RBIs and 23 stolen bases for good measure, Baltimore has settled into a groove.

Jones, Nick Markakis and J.J. Hardy lead the Birds in home runs, and as a unit have guided the team to lead the league in dingers. It's a big reason why Baltimore is winners of five of its last seven games, and has already won a series against each of its AL East opponents.

But it hasn't been all offense. The team's bullpen has been outstanding. Relief pitchers Jim Johnson, Pedro Strop, Darren O'Day, Matt Lindstrom and Luis Ayala have combined for 100 2/3 innings pitched and a lights-out earned run average of just 1.26.

The starters have mostly pulled their weight, too. Jake Arrieta, one of the organization's top prospects for the last few years, is finally living up to the hype and appears to be working his way into the role of the team's ace. His 51 strikeouts to 13 walks have shown he's taken a step in his command.

Newcomers Jason Hammel and Wei-Yin Chen have been excellent additions, too. Hammel, acquired for longtime starter Jeremy Guthrie, has a 5-1 record behind 46 strikeouts and 16 walks. His 3.12 ERA and ability to be an innings-eater have already given the team significant value, while Guthrie has struggled in Colorado.

Chen, who signed a three-year, $11 million contract in coming over from Japan, has a 4-1 record and could easily be 6-1 if not for a few tough breaks. He's sporting a strikeouts-to-walks ratio of 37 to 17 and has a solid 3.35 ERA.

Back in 2005, the Orioles sat at 42-31 before ending up 74-88 and in second-to-last place in the AL East. Baltimore hasn't seen its baseball team in the playoffs since 1997. Ending this season with a postseason appearance would do wonders for the town that has all but written off the O's.

Terps topple Hopkins, advance to Final Four

After beating No. 7 Lehigh last weekend in a last-second thrilling finish, Maryland men's lacrosse head coach John Tillman must have appreciated his team's "boring" win on Saturday.

The Terps crushed No. 2 Johns Hopkins 11-5 and advanced to their second straight Final Four in what was one of the least suspenseful games of the NCAA Tournament thus far.

Hopkins got out to a 1-0 start behind a goal from Mark Goodrich, but Maryland answered 90 seconds later with a goal of its own. It never trailed after that.

Knotted up at 2-2 early in the second quarter, the Terps scored a flurry of goals and ended the half up 6-2. By the fourth quarter, they led 10-3.

"This one is definitely extra-special because it's Maryland-Hopkins, it's a huge rivalry. There's a lot on the line. For our guys to play with the composure, with the energy and to have a complete team win like we had, it was really exciting," senior attackman Joe Cummings told Washington Times reporter Patrick Stevens.

It was a dominant win made even more impressive by Maryland's fundamentally impressive performance. The Terps won nearly two-thirds of ground balls and faceoffs and outshot the Blue Jays 28-16.

It was Maryland's second win over its in-state rival this season. And with the win came a bit of history, as Tillman became the first coach to lead an unseeded team to two Final Fours.

Amazingly, he did the same thing last year in his first season under the Terps -- and led the team to an NCAA Tournament runner-up.

"I thought we got outplayed. I thought we got outhustled. And I thought they deserved to win," Hopkins coach Dave Pietramala told Stevens.

Maryland faces off against No. 3 seed Duke next Saturday on ESPN2 at a time to be determined. The Terps split the season series with the Blue Devils, winning 10-7 in the regular season and losing 6-5 in the ACC Tournament.

Delta Airlines offers unique NHL flight

Their arenas separated by just 13 miles, the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers must have some happy fans for their Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Finals series.

And Delta Airlines is trying to capitalize on it by getting a little creative with its latest promotion.

It announced it's offering New York Rangers fans a free flight from LaGuardia Airport to Newark Airport.

The two airports are just 22 miles apart. That's a 40 minute drive, according to Google Maps. It's a reasonable trip on the subway. Some fans will probably even cab it from Manhattan to Jersey. It's close enough that between getting through security and boarding, there's no way it'll save anyone any time.

"It's obviously a very unique flight. We thought it would be a great way to get some buzz going and get some Rangers fans really excited for the game on Saturday," said Delta spokesperson Leslie Park.

CBS New York reported that, "Seating will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Fans must have tickets to the game and be able to present valid identification."

Credit to Puck Daddy blogger Sean Leahy, who dug up this extra nugget: "It's not the first time such an offer has been available for fans. In 2005, United Airlines had a promotion with the Chicago Tribune and another paper where Chicago White Sox fans could fly from O'Hare Airport to Midway Airport for that days game against the Cubs."

VCU leaves CAA for A-10

Perhaps Shaka Smart was making a wise decision to turn down high-profile job offers this season and last.

The Virginia Commonwealth men's basketball coach will see an immediate bump in the level of competition this fall as the Rams are headed from the Colonial Athletic Association to the Atlantic-10.

And it's not coming without some drawbacks.

The Associated Press reports that the Rams "are forfeiting nearly $5 million in NCAA tournament money due them over the next six years under the guidelines of CAA bylaws, will pay the CAA a $250,000 exit fee and a $700,000 fee to join the A-10, interim athletic director David Benedict said."

VCU -- which becomes the third "Rams" team in the conference (alongside Fordham and Rhode Island) -- will also no longer face off against in-conference rivals Old Dominion and George Mason, though Smart said the team plans "to maintain our key rivalries with CAA teams, now and in the future," through nonconference scheduling.

A-10 powerhouse Temple is headed to the Big East. And the conference isn't totally immune to more defections, either. The Big East could logically pluck Xavier, Saint Louis or Dayton to add to its basketball-only list of members.

On top of that, one of the biggest draws for the Rams staying in the CAA was that the conference's tournament is held less than a half-mile off campus in the Richmond Coliseum. Now, VCU will travel to Brooklyn to play in the Barclays Center for the next five A-10 conference tournaments.

"The expected returns are far greater that the short-term losses," VCU president Michael Rao said in a press conference.

On the other hand, the A-10 gets a team that has visited the NCAA Tournament four times since 2007, has won its conference tournament and was the conference's regular season champion three times each since 2007, and reached the Final Four in 2011 and nearly reached the Sweet 16 this year.

It gives VCU the opportunity to rekindle the crosstown rivalry with Richmond, an A-10 member since 2001.

The Rams are bolstering the league's level of competition, alongside newcomer Butler, a two-time runner up in the NCAA Tournament over the last few years.

Geographically, joining the A-10 isn't a huge difference. VCU will have to travel several hundred miles to face Butler and Saint Louis, but it was already traveling to Massachusetts to play Northeastern (and now will play UMass) and to Georgia to play Georgia State. Now, VCU is the southernmost member of the conference.

And perhaps most importantly, the CAA has received just four NCAA Tournament at-large bids since 2000. The A-10 has earned three at-large bids every year for the last five seasons. With VCU, it might bump it up to a four-bid league regularly.

"We are extremely excited by the opportunity to join the Atlantic 10 Conference. It is a phenomenal league, made up of programs with both rich traditions and recent track records of success," Smart said.

Pankey third player to leave Terps team

Redshirt freshman Ashton Pankey is leaving the program, becoming the third defection this offseason after guard Terrell Stoglin and wing Mychal Parker.

The decision came out of personal reasons, according to the University's press release:

"My mom is the rock in my life and I promised her I would take care of her like she did for me. Therefore, I am choosing to put my family first and look for a school closer to home," he said.

The Bronx, New York native missed almost his entire freshman season with a stress fracture in his leg. He redshirted and appeared in 32 of the Terps' 33 games last season, averaging 4.7 points and 4.9 rebounds in 20 minutes per game.

He was expected to challenge for a starter's spot next year, but would have likely ended up one of the first players off the bench. And next year's minutes may have very well played a decision in the 6-foot-9, 220-pound forward's choice to transfer.

"Ashton was raised in a close-knit home. He and his mother are very close. ... It was great to have Ashton as a part of our program. ... He has a lot of potential and we wish him success moving forward," head coach Mark Turgeon said in the release.

Moving back closer to home means he may end up requesting a hardship waiver, meaning he could play immediately without having to sit out the NCAA's mandated one year. Fordham head coach Tom Pecora recruited Pankey when he was coaching at Hofstra, and could be the frontrunner to land him. Other possible landing spots near New York City include St. Bonaventure, Wagner, St. Francis (NY) and Iona.

"I thank my coach, assistant coaches and teammates, as well as the continued devotion of Maryland fans," Pankey said.

The move paves the way for highly touted incoming freshmen Shaq Cleare and Charles Mitchell to join senior James Padgett and sophomore Alex Len as a fairly clear-cut rotation of big men.

Pankey's transfer marks the fourth departure from the five-man class of 2010. Haukur Palsson left after his freshman season, and Pankey, Parker and Stoglin have left since this past season ended.

Also amazing is that almost exactly one year after former head coach Gary Williams retired, just two players remain from that roster: rising junior Pe'Shon Howard and Padgett, a rising senior.

Caps coach Hunter steps down

Just days after Washington lost in Game 7 to the New York Rangers, Capitals coach Dale Hunter has resigned from his position.

To the casual fan, it might have been a shock. But to insiders, it didn't catch many off-guard.

Hunter finished 30-23-7 over six months as head coach of the Caps. But he signed a one-year contract, during which the entire time, he maintained his ownership of the Ontario Hockey League's London Knights. His family stayed in Ontario, too.

"This was a tough decision. It was the right thing for me and my family," Hunter said.

The resignation leaves Washington in the same position as it was in late November. Only this time, the Caps will have the luxury of spending some time in the off-season finding Hunter's replacement. That's a better situation than scrambling to find Boudreau's replacement during the middle of the season. But it's still not an enviable situation for a team that will soon have its third coach in nine months.

Some have suggested longtime Capital Adam Oates, who currently serves as an assistant coach for the New Jersey Devils, would be a suitable replacement. Others have recommended commentator Don Cherry, Caps assistant Jim Johnson or Hershey Bears coach Mark French.

Regardless of the decision, general manager George McPhee plans to take his time. 

"I don't know whether it will be by the draft or sometime in August, like New Jersey did. We're going to take our time and get the right person," he said.

Terps beat Lehigh in lax thriller

Lehigh's men's lacrosse team played in its first-ever NCAA Tournament game yesterday. It was the first time the Mountain Hawks had played Maryland in 84 years.

And judging by the way things played out, Lehigh will probably want to wait another 84 years before playing the Terps again.

Behind last-second heroics from senior All-ACC selection Joe Cummings, Maryland won 10-9 in a thrilling finish that required no knowledge or passion of lacrosse to enjoy.

Cummings scored the game-winner -- his second goal of the game -- after Maryland milked nearly five minutes off the clock in a knotted 9-9 tie.

After getting out to a 6-1 lead halfway through the second quarter, the Terps saw Lehigh score back-to-back-to-back goals, thanks to two from Kyle Stiefel to cut the deficit to 6-4 at the half.

The Mountain Hawks continued their tear in the second half, scoring four straight to tally seven consecutive goals with 11 minutes left in the third quarter.

After being shut out for the entire third quarter, Maryland's Drew Snider scored one of his three goals just two minutes into the fourth quarter. But Lehigh's Dante Fantoni scored 30 seconds later and the Mountain Hawks maintained a 9-7 lead. Unfortunately for Lehigh, that was the last goal it would score.

Snider and Mike Chanenchuk scored back-to-back goals for the Terps to tie the game with under seven minutes. And Snider finished things off with a terrific goal that only surfaced in super-low resolution on YouTube (below).

Maryland faces No. 2 Johns Hopkins this Saturday on ESPN2 at 12pm. The Terps beat Hopkins 9-6 last month, but the Blue Jays are 12-3 and one of the odds-on favorites to win the NCAA Tournament.

Is Strasburg baseball's most dominant?

It feels a bit premature to name Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg the best pitcher in the majors right now.

After all, the 24-year old has pitched 136 career innings over three partial seasons with the Nats.

But there's an argument to be made that, despite his limited innings, he's the most shutdown pitcher in the league.

When he made his major league debut in 2010, Strasburg didn't appear to have the rookie jitters that many young pitchers suffer from. He struck out 92 batters and walked just 17 in 68 innings, while serving up a sub-3.00 earned run average.

He missed much of the 2011 season rehabbing from an often career-ending Tommy John surgery, yet bounced back this season as if he never missed a beat.

Through seven starts this year, Strasburg has allowed just nine runs in 44 innings pitched, has notched a 3-0 record, boasts a 1.64 earned run average and opposing batters are hitting just .195 against him.

He ranks in or near the top 10 among all pitchers in innings pitched, strikeouts, earned run average, opposing batting average and walks plus hits per inning (WHIP). Few other pitchers are so consistently excellent across several statistical categories. Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia, for instance, leads the league in strikeouts but has a 3.51 ERA.

And thanks to their young ace -- and fellow talented young starters Ross Detwiler, Gio Gonzalez and Jordan Zimmermann -- the Nats find themselves at 19-12, good for the third-best record in the National League.

Caps beat Rangers, force Game 7

Facing elimination, the Washington Capitals did indeed bounce back from a pair of heartbreaking losses to the New York Rangers, taking Game 6 by a score of 2-1.

(No, Benched Press is not turning into a full-time Caps blog. But DC-area sports fans aren't used to winning and playoffs, so deal with it.)

Washington got on the board first with a goal from star Alexander Ovechkin and another from Jason Chimera to lead 2-0 with one minute remaining in regulation.

But the Rangers pulled goalie Henrik Lundqvist, allowing  Marian Gaborik to score a goal and give Caps fans a bit of high blood pressure.

Still, goalie Braden Holtby and the Washington defense killed the remaining 50 seconds and escaped the Verizon Center with a win, forcing its second Game 7 in as many playoff series this year.

It was a gutsy performance from the Caps, who have proven to be a team that just won't go away through two playoff series in their quest for the Stanley Cup.

Holtby turned in another outstanding performance -- gee, that sounds familiar -- stopping 30 of 31 Rangers shots. It prompted NBC Sports to offer up an interesting stat.

Following a playoff loss, Holtby is 6-0 in goal, stopping 192 of 200 Bruins and Rangers shots for an outstanding .960 save percentage.


New York and Washington face off in Madison Square Garden on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. The winner of the pivotal game will face a well-rested New Jersey Devils team that made quick work of the Philadelphia Flyers, winning the best-of-seven series in just five games.

Do the Caps have enough to bounce back?

The Washington Capitals advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals, beating the No. 2 seed Boston Bruins in an exhausting seven-game series that saw four overtime games.

Most fans probably thought the hardest part of the quest for a Stanley Cup was behind them.

After all, getting past the defending Stanley Cup champions in a series

Today, the Caps are staring a 3-2 deficit in the face, coming off a pair of overtime losses in their last three games.

But the way they have lost those games makes one wonder if they'll be able to bounce back and rally to advance to the Eastern Conference finals.

The first -- Game 3 -- was emotionally draining enough, with Washington losing in a triple-overtime sucker punch. Both teams were deadlocked at 1-1 after the first period, the same score that showed on the scoreboard at the end of the second overtime.

In the third overtime period, Marian Gaborik found the back of the net. Washington goalie Braden Holtby's .959 save percentage just wasn't enough for the low-scoring Caps to take the series advantage.

And on Monday, in Game 5, the Caps led 2-1 with just seconds remaining on the clock before Brad Richards scored with less than seven seconds left on the clock in regulation, taking advantage of a Washington power play to tie the game.

It took the Rangers just two short minutes for Marc Staal to score the game-winner, sending the Caps into Game 6 with a dangerous lose-and-you're-out situation.

But does Washington have anything left in the tank? Are two brutal losses in three games too much for the Caps to overcome?

Only time will tell. But you can't fault them for coming out flat in tonight's game, if only because it's so difficult to win back-to-back games after losses that are so tough to overcome mentally. The Caps have given it a pretty unbelievable run through the playoffs so far. It's hard to blame them for bowing out now after two incredibly unlucky breaks.

Hamels targets Harper, gets suspended

Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper, once called "Baseball's Chosen One" and considered baseball's version of LeBron James, has drawn plenty of attention for his MLB debut two weeks ago.

The 2010 No. 1 draft pick is hitting .308 for the Nats, who have gone 4-4 since his promotion. And much like James, Harper has commanded a lot of attention for a single player in a nine-man batting lineup.

On Sunday, Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels seemed to take exception for the fiery Harper for one reason or another. Out of nowhere, Hamels beaned Harper with a pitch in the first inning. (Harper went on to make SportsCenter when he stole home in the same series.)

After the game, Hamels admitted he was aiming for Harper.

"I was trying to hit him. I'm not going to deny it. It's something I grew up watching. That's what happened. I'm just trying to continue the old baseball. Some people get away from it. I remember when I was a rookie, the strike zone was really, really small and you didn't say anything. That's the way baseball is. Sometimes the league is protecting certain players. It's that old-school prestigious way of baseball," Hamels told Philadelphia Enquirer reporter Matt Gelb.

Catching wind of that statement, Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo fired back. "Players take care of themselves. I've never seen a more classless, gutless chicken [bleep] act in my 30 years in baseball," he said to the Washington Post's Adam Kilgore.

The MLB didn't much appreciate Hamels' actions, taking to its PR department's Twitter feed to announce that Hamels would be suspended: "Cole Hamels suspended 5 games for intentionally throwing at Bryce Harper last night. Unless appealed, suspension will begin tonight."

The good news is that's a bit of justice. The bad news is that a five-game suspension for a starting pitcher means he might not even miss a start. Boo. 

Mass. high schoolers in trouble for racism

Immediately following the Washington Capitals' win in game seven of its first-round series against the Boston Bruins, fans took to Twitter to express their frustration. 

But rather than tweeting "You suck, Joel Ward!" many went a different route.

An uglier route.

Ward is in an overwhelming minority among professional hockey players. He's black.

And hundreds (or more) Bruins fans took to Twitter to blast Ward for being black. Sports blog Deadspin compiled an ugly post titled "Here's How Racists On Twitter Reacted to Joel Ward’s Series-Winning Goal Against Boston" to show just how bad it was.

Credit to Ward for not getting upset by it. The next day, he told USA Today, "It doesn't faze me at all. We won, and we are moving on. ... People are going to say what they want to say." 

And while it's good and well that Ward is brushing it off, it's even better that some people are taking action. 

You see, some of those Twitter users are high school students at Gloucester (Mass.) High School. And Superintendent Richard Safier issued a statement saying that the students who were seen tweeting racist comments will "lose participation in a sport for a considerable length of time." 

Those with "leadership opportunities in extracurricular activities, or sports," are facing serious suspensions. 

While it's kind of odd to suspend kids from athletics for their actions off the field, it's a solid move by the school system to show these students the importance of sportsmanship and how ugly racism is. Applause all around for Safier and co.

Suggs injury hurts Ravens

Just two and a half months removed from last season's AFC Championship game, the Baltimore Ravens were dealt a blow when Pro Bowl linebacker Terrell Suggs tore his Achilles heel this week.

Suggs, who has appeared in 141 of 144 career games, insists he'll be back this season, but an Achilles injury is no joke, and if it's fully torn, he'll require surgery and almost certainly miss the entire 2012 season.

Last season, the Ravens ranked third in the NFL in sacks with 48 -- one-third of them coming from Suggs, one of the league's best pass-rushers.

While it's a tough break for Baltimore, it's not devastating. And it's not worth calling quits on the season before it even starts.

For one, Baltimore returns eight defensive starters -- Suggs excluded -- on a team that ranked third-best in points and yards allowed, second against the run and fourth against the pass.

Unfortunately, both outside linebackers won't be in the starting lineup come September. In addition to Suggs, the Ravens lost Jarret Johnson in free agency to the San Diego Chargers.

On the bright side, second-year linebacker Sergio Kindle and newly drafted linebacker Courtney Upshaw, both of whom have tremendous (and untapped) upside, will have a chance to compete for a starting spot.

Kindle, like Upshaw, was a first-round talent who Baltimore selected in the second round of the NFL Draft. He missed his entire rookie season after suffering a fractured skull in the offseason, then deputed last year on special teams.

"This is his year. He has to show us that he can do it this year," said player personnel director Eric DeCosta to the Baltimore Sun.

The Ravens originally targeted Upshaw with the 29th overall pick, but traded out of the first round and still got the Alabama linebacker six picks later.

Between the two of them, one likely needs to make the leap to becoming an NFL starter. Luckily for Baltimore, both appear to have future star written all over them.

On the other side of the ball, roughly 10 starters return from last year's team. And while Baltimore's offense was middle-of-the-road last year, there's reason for optimism while quarterback Joe Flacco gets another year to work with pass-catchers Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith, Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta.

So keep your chins up, Ravens fans. This is just a temporary setback. And while Upshaw and Kindle won't make you ask "Terrell who?" in October, there's still plenty of reason to be excited about the upcoming season.

Sincerely,
A Redskins fan

Paralyzed LeGrand signs with Bucs

It was one play. One freak accident. And it changed Rutgers defensive tackle Eric LeGrand's life forever.

During a game against Army in October 2010, LeGrand went to tackle Black Knights running back Malcolm Brown. Upon collision, Brown got up. LeGrand didn't.

He was carted off, taken to the intensive care unit at Hackensack University Medical Center. Doctors told him the bad news: he was paralyzed from the neck down.

Fortunately, the story has a happy ending. Months of intensive rehab led to LeGrand regaining movement throughout his body, including his arms and shoulders.

Due to the severity of the injury, it clearly wasn't something that Rutgers' coach at the time, Greg Schiano, would forget.

And after signing on to become the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Schiano let LeGrand know he was still a part of the team. He signed LeGrand to Tampa Bay's 90-man offseason roster. LeGrand is a Buccaneer.

"Leading up to the draft, I couldn't help but think that this should've been Eric's draft class. This small gesture is the least we could do to recognize his character, spirit, and perseverance," Schiano said.

LeGrand was stunned. "I had no idea, no idea this was going to happen. Honestly, it's amazing. It is. It really is."

Of course, LeGrand won't actually play for the Bucs. He still spends his days rotating between a wheelchair and standing upright, assisted by a metal frame. But he will be a sportcaster for the team. And his dreams of being in an NFL clubhouse will come true.

Schiano hasn't even coached a game at the NFL level, yet he's already making fans around the nation for this.

Breaking down the Redskins' draft

If we weren't rudely interrupted by Maryland basketball star Terrell Stoglin getting booted off the team yesterday, we would've been reading the Redskins' draft roundup.

Arguably the biggest topic of discussion leading up to the 2012 NFL Draft was Washington's decision to trade up from the No. 7 pick to the No. 2 pick to select Baylor quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III.

Indeed, the Redskins selected Griffin with the second-overall pick last Thursday. It's the third first-round pick the Redskins have spent on a quarterback since 2002, and the highest pick they've used on a quarterback since drafting Heath Shuler in 1994.

We've discussed the pros and cons of trading up to draft Griffin ad nauseum, so it's time to look at what the Redskins did after that.

Of course, Washington didn't have a second-round draft pick (as part of the Griffin trade). By the time the Redskins had another selection, it was the 71st pick, which they used on Southern Methodist guard Josh LeRibeus.

NFL.com pegged LeRibeus as a fifth-round talent. But in him, Washington saw some potential. He started the final 26 games of his college career -- separated by academic ineligibility as a junior -- and lost a significant amount of weight heading into his senior season. NFL.com's Mike Mayock said he has "a nasty disposition."

The Skins added depth on the offensive line in drafting Iowa guard Adam Gettis in the fifth round and South Dakota tackle Tom Compton in the sixth. Gettis started only one year for the Hawkeyes and played over half a season just once in his career, but NFL.com noted that he excels in both run and pass protection. Both will fight for a roster spot, but it would be unlikely to see either get much playing time during the regular season.

In the fourth round, Washington pulled off a typical move, drafting Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins. The move was particularly head-scratching since the Redskins clearly mortgaged the future to move up and draft Griffin.

Clearly Washington believes it can develop Cousins behind Griffin and dangle him as trade bait (a la Matt Schaub and Matt Cassel). But that seems like a luxury for a team that needs help at almost every position on the field and is without a first-round pick until 2015.

That said, Cousins is a guy the Redskins had pegged as a second-round talent, give or take. He's a three-year starter at Michigan State and was an Academic All-Big Ten selection and a three-time captain. If he were slightly taller, stronger and faster, he'd be a top pick.

Later in the fourth round, Washington drafted Texas linebacker Keenan Robinson, a three-year starter for the Longhorns with a solid build for an inside linebacker. It also took a late-round flyer on Florida Atlantic running back Alfred Morris, who was ultra-productive as a three-year starter, carrying the ball 726 times for 27 touchdowns and a 4.8 yards per carry clip.

All in all, the Redskins addressed several areas of need. They didn't land any surefire starters beyond Griffin, though. And for a team with several glaring holes, some of the selections appear questionable.

Stoglin leaves Terps

After an up-and-down sophomore season that concluded with earning second-team All-ACC honors, Maryland combo guard Terrell Stoglin is leaving the team and testing NBA waters for good.

A few weeks ago, Stoglin announced his intentions to return to school for a junior year. The sudden decision to leave was puzzling until UMTerps.com, the school's official sports website, announced he had been suspended for a year for a "violation of the University of Maryland Student-Athlete Code of Conduct."

"Being a University of Maryland student-athlete carries a tremendous honor and responsibility. As much as we appreciate the effort [Stoglin] gave to the program this season, [he was] unable to live up to that responsibility. We're disappointed, but hope [he uses] this as a learning experience," said athletics director Kevin Anderson in a statement released by the school.

Stoglin's up and down season included highs of four 30-point games and leading the ACC in scoring at 21.6 points per game. But he frequently butted heads with head coach Mark Turgeon, which resulted in him coming off the bench twice and getting benched at the end of the Duke game after a 4-for-16 shooting performance.

Following the game, Stoglin tweeted "Loved sittin that bench today. [Smh] wow," before deleting the tweet an hour later.

Several media outlets confirmed that the suspension was drug-related, which makes sense given that the star's Twitter feed featured several marijuana-related tweets on April 20, a national holiday in the pot-smoking community.

But the suspension was about more than just a kid who liked to smoke pot. This was Stoglin's third strike, and his attitude hadn't changed, despite the fact that he and Turgeon had seemed to come to an agreement about "buying in" to Turgeon's philosophy.

With the most recent failed drug test, it showed that Stoglin continued to do the same actions that got him in this mess in the first place. It showed that he thought he was untouchable as the team's star player and an All-ACC talent.

Publicly tweeting about drug use to your 4,600-plus followers, many of whom are players, coaches and media, is practically begging to get caught.

Stoglin's departure means the incoming freshman guards -- Seth Allen and Sam Cassell Jr. -- will be leaned on to play from Day 1. Sophomore wing Nick Faust will have to make the sophomore leap and shoulder some -- or most -- of the pressure Stoglin faced last year. And junior Pe'Shon Howard, who suffered through a broken foot and torn knee ligaments last year, will need to play starter's minutes again next season.

For Terps fans, it's the second season in a row where the team's star player left (following Jordan Williams in 2011-12) and the second season in a row where the team's prospects fell from ACC competitor to struggling for a postseason berth.