On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups.
Chicago Cubs (52-35) at St. Louis Cardinals (49-39) - 3:55 PM ET
It's sad to see a friendship go south as apparently the one between Tony La Russa and Jim Edmonds has now that Edmonds is with the Cubs and La Russa is playing ultra-sensitive. But in reality, La Russa and Edmonds are mere players in the larger war that is Cubs vs. Cardinals, with first place on the line and growing ever so further away from the Cardinals. Today, Kyle Lohse is going to have to continue his 2008 magic (remember when nobody wanted Lohse? Yeah, well now he's 10-2) against Ted Lilly.
It looks like David Eckstein can't rely on his scrappiness to rescue him much longer, as the Blue Jays are reportedly in the market to replace him and his offensively challenged partner John McDonald. The Jays are willing to trade A.J. Burnett and his opt-out clause to get that shortstop.
"They're offering Burnett to any team that needs pitching," an American League general manager told the (Toronto) Sun. "They've told us they're not happy with either David Eckstein or John McDonald."
Eckstein, who the Blue Jays inked to a one-year deal before spring training, is hitting .273 with a .360 on base percentage this season, but has struggled in the field. McDonald, who is a defensive specialist signed a two-year deal last fall for $3.8 million, but is only hitting .163 in 29 games so far this year.
The Jays caused heads to be scratched by signing Eckstein while they already had McDonald. Now they don't like either of them? Too bad NFL rules don't apply where one guy plays offense and one guy plays defense. As for who that new shortstop might be? Well I assume that Jimmy Rollins is off the table. Other than that, your guess is as good as mine. I'm not sure there's a shortstop out there that would be available for Burnett while making Jays fans forget the two they have at the same time. Perhaps a better idea would be to trade Burnett for Adam Dunn ... but that's only because I want to see if Dunn either retires on the spot or chokes J.P. Ricciardi.
Many Canadians believe that the NFL's plans to play regular-season games in Canada -- and possibly move a team there permanently -- are a threat to the Canadian Football League's very existence. In response, the CFL has launched an ad campaign reminding Canadians, "This is our league":
The commercial itself is cool, but I really don't understand why so many Canadian football fans are freaking out, to the point where elected officials are trying to pass laws to keep the NFL out. Is the CFL really so weak that putting one NFL team in Canada would put the entire league out of business?
On Sunday, MDS pointed out that Canadian national treasure, Mike Vanderjagt, had accepted a full-time job to play professional football in the motherland, and in his very first game honked three field goals. Not to worry, though; Vanderjagt managed to convert two attempts, and also had a fine day punting.
And come to find out, the three misses weren't even his fault. Vanderjagt's Toronto Argonauts coach even says so.
[Rookie head coach Rich] Stubler believes the Argos have done Vanderjagt a disservice by not practising on a field fitted with uprights, an oversight that will be addressed.
"We had two days all of camp where we went some place that had goalposts," Stubler said. "That's a coaching fault and I'll take that."
Yeah, I'd say that's a pretty big oversight. Luckily, the Argonauts appear to be in very capable hands; Stubler not only takes the blame, but the situation will be rectified. That's leadership, people.
I guess the sight of Vanderjagt taking a nap in the stands during every training camp practice didn't seem unusual to Stubler. Of course, this is the same guy who said of Vanderjagt's three misses (two "wide rights", and one "woefully short"): "In the NFL, those kicks are right down the middle", based solely on the fact that the CFL hashmarks are six yards wider than NFL hashmarks.
Made-up laws of physics aside, Bill Parcells vehemently disagrees.
TrueHoop passes on word from Jose Calderon's official website that the Spanish point guard will stick with the Raptors after reaching a contract agreement last night. No numbers yet, though given the quick resolution $50 million for six years would be the baseline.
Calderon could have been -- should have been -- an All-Star last season. He isn't Steve Nash or even Baron Davis. He's almost an elite roleplayer at the point; he helps his teammates get better looks and he makes absolutely no mistakes. There's no starting point guard in the league better at protecting the ball, a fact bolstered by how many darn assists Calderon deals. Limiting turnovers is a hugely underrated skill among point guards, which serves to dampen Calderon's notoriety.
He's also a good shooter -- 50% on the career -- who has learned when to take the three instead of driving the lane. He's said to be a good locker-room guy, he fits the style Sam Mitchell runs as well as the personnel, and he's popular with the fans. Win, win, win for Toronto and Calderon.
Former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt was finally back on a football field Saturday after a nearly two-year absence. It took him some time to shake off the rust.
Playing for the Canadian Football League's Toronto Argonauts against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Vanderjagt missed his first three field goals. He did, however, finally straighten out and hit a 49-yarder and a 44-yarder in the game's last four minutes to help the Argos to a 23-16 win.
Vanderjagt also punted for the Argonauts, and he did it well, averaging 48 yards and at one point uncorking a 60-yarder after his protection broke down and he was nearly tackled.
All things considered, it wasn't a disastrous outcome for Vanderjagt, who previously played in the CFL in the 1990. But it also wasn't particularly impressive, and it was a reminder that Vanderjagt, who was once among the NFL's best field goal kickers, will never be that kind of player again.
Elie Seckbach, the Embedded NBA Correspondent, brings his exclusive NBA reporting to FanHouse. Check back here regularly for more videos.
In this video we catch up with WNBA star Candace Parker who tells us about her dunking ability. You might be surprised to hear what she has to say about it. We also interview her brother, Anthony Parker, the star of the Toronto Raptors. Around 2:15 into the video find out from Candace which sibling is more popular.
For O'Neal, this is the fresh start he's been waiting years for. He's still a capable big man, and working in tandem with Chris Bosh means he doesn't have to shoulder the load under a body riddled with injuries.
For Ford, this settles the question of whether the Raptors wanted him or Jose Calderon. Ford has still proven he can be capable, and he goes to a team rebuilding, again, but with a lot of talent, again. The Pacers are very quietly building a considerably deep backcourt. Now they just have to do something with it. There's a lot of talk about how this is a win-win situation, but that's only if O'Neal stays healthy. If he does, though, the Raptors will have a frontcourt that could destroy small worlds. Likewise, TJ Ford has to prove his neck is up to go full speed. So many questions, and we're not even to draft night yet. Hang on to your hats, folks. This one's about to get rocky.
Crystal Ballin'takes a team-by-team look at what should, could, and probably will happen in the June 26th NBA Draft.
The Toronto Raptors, the only team where sniveling prospects can blame their lack of desire to attend another low-first workout on passport issues!
Picks: #17. Needs: Bryan Colangelo and/or Sam Mitchell never seem(s) to be satisfied with the swing positions, though the qualifying offer extended to Carlos Delfino last week was a bit of a surprise. Center Centre should get a strong look, too. Rasho Nesterovic's contract with Satan is just about up for renegotiation, and I hear Mr. Nesterovic had the ol' snip-snip. (Mrs. Nesterovic couldn't take his chronic urination all over the house. Bad Rasho!)*
Best case scenario: At #17, there's a sincere possibility a great little prospect could remain on the board. Darrell Arthur's bangerball or Kosta Koufos' pick-and-pop machismo could fit in Smitch's offense just fine. Brandon Rush would also be a victory.
As I mentioned over the weekend, the Toronto Blue Jays had to place Shaun Marcum on the disabled list due to some problems with his elbow. More specifically, the fact that it had been hurting him the past few weeks. Marcum was scheduled for a visit with the famous Dr. James Andrews on Monday to find out what exactly was wrong, and to see how long he's going to be out.
He got some good news, as it doesn't appear that Marcum is going to miss too much time.
During an examination in Birmingham, Ala., Andrews confirmed Marcum was suffering from strained ligaments around the elbow and forearm. The injury wasn't deemed to be severe, and Andrews gave Marcum the go-ahead to begin a throwing program as soon as Saturday.
According to the team's website, there's still no established timetable for Marcum's return. He is eligible to be activated from the 15-day disabled list in time for Toronto's July 4-6 road series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, but it's more likely that the Blue Jays will take extra precaution, meaning Marcum could be sidelined until around the All-Star break July 14-16.
While it's good news that Marcum will not be needing surgery and that it's an injury that should heal with rest, it still comes at a bad time for the Jays. They had lost seven in a row before beating the Pirates on Sunday, and have lost 14 of their 19 games in June to fall behind everybody in the AL East. Considering how well everyone else in the division has played this month, by the time Marcum makes it back to the mound, Toronto may be completely out of the race.
It looks like 
On Sunday, 
TrueHoop 
Former Colts kicker 
The rumors had been fluttering for the past 24 hours, and it's apparently a done deal. 
As I mentioned over the weekend, the Toronto Blue Jays had to place 
