Four Jacks

Olympic Update: (SPOILERS AHEAD - YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!!!)
American gymnasts Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson went 1-2 in the women's final all-around. Liukin becomes just the third American to accomplish the fete. Take that underaged Chinese gymnasts!

Coming off an upset victory of a life time, American James Blake fell to Fernando Gonzalez 4-6, 7-5, 11-9.

Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh overcame a bit of a scare by the Belgium to beat them 24-22, 21-10. They have now won 105 straight games.

Michael Phelps Gold Medal Count: 6

Shout-outs to one of NJ's finest, Rebecca Soni who won a gold medal in the women's 200 meter breaststroke!

Mongolia celebrated its first ever Olympic gold medal thanks to Tuvshinbayar Naidan's judo win on Thursday.

Baseball Update:
The Padres finally figured out a way to snap the Brewers eight game winning streak with a 3-2 win. Jake Peavy outdueled Ben Sheets who held the Padres scoreless until the seventh when San Diego tagged him for three runs.

The Astros on the other hand, continued their winning ways with their eighth straight victory in a form of a 7-4 romp of the Giants.

The Cubs spoiled the Braves first cycle in 21 years with a 11-7 win. Mark Kotsay delievered the cycle for Atlanta but he proved one player cannot win a ballgame even with Tom Glavine making his first start since May. The Cubs sweep of the Braves was their first ever in the regular season.

The Braves optioned Francisley Bueno to Triple-A before discovering the young pitcher had been suspended for three games for throwing a pitch in the head area of Alfonso Soriano on Wednesday. The game was Bueno's Major League debut. Well I guess you can say that it was a memorable first game.

The Chicago White Sox matched a Major League record with back-to-back-to-back-to-back homeruns in the sixth inning of their 9-2 bashing of the Royals. Jim Thome, Paul Konerko, Alexei Ramirez and Juan Uribe combined for the rare baseball fete.

The Rays haulted Brad Ziegler's 39 inning consecutive streak and then beat the A's 7-6 in 12 innings. Ziegler who until that point had not allowed a run in young Major League career tied a 59 year old record for relievers. The Rays closer Troy Percival was injured after trying to field a sacrifice bunt and was forced to leave the game.

Things have gone better for the Rangers after falling to the Red Sox, 10-0 on Thursday. Boston combined for 37 runs in their three game sweep of Texas.

Big news out of LA. Manny cut his hair! Oh and they swept the Phillies with their 3-1 win. And Manny cut his hair!

The Dodgers placed Brad Penny back on the DL a day after the Phillies scored six runs agaginst him.

The Phillies loss spelled opportunity for the Mets who completed their three game sweep of the Nationals with a 9-3 win. The Mets now hold a one game advantage over the Phils in the standings. But after last year, literally no lead is safe if the Mets are the ones holding it!

As the deadline looms, 10 first round picks have yet to be signed.

Bud Selig says Major League parks are getting ready for instant replay.

Hey New Yorkers, mark your calendars, the new CitiField and the new Yankee Stadium will make their grand debuts just two days apart with the Mets opening up against the Padres on April 14th and the Yankees taking on the Indians on April 16th. Well that stinks, no home baseball on my birthday!

The US is now just 1-2 in Olympic play after falling to Cuba 5-4.

Nascar Update:
Off to Michigan we go. The mile and half flat track known for its multi-grove racing surface has been a favorite for Roush Fenway and its drivers who have seemed to figure out something about this track that leaves all others in their dust. So can they continue their winning ways or will it be another team taking it to victory lane? You'll have to tune into ESPN at 1 PM/est for the 3M Performance 400.

News&Notes: The Pats have reportedly signed John Lynch to a one year, $1.5 million contract...New Orlean Saints defensive tackle Hollis Thomas could be out for up to two months with a right tricep injury...John McEnroe proved he's still got it after being tossed in an over 30 tournament in Rhode Island.

Check this out: All of you Harry Potter fans will have to wait a few more months to catch the lastest flick, Half Blood Prince. The studio has decided to push its release from November to July. Click here for the details.

It's been fun blogging with you,
Kate