Our pic of the day is one of my favorite female tennis players. Gabriela Sabatini still looks good:

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That’s the former 1990 U.S. Open champion who was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 2006 at the recent men’s final between Nikolay Davydenko and Rafael Nadal in Key Biscayne last weekend. Davydenko won the match in straights also beating Andy Roddick after his big quarter win over Roger Federer.

Sabatini was always really good looking and was my first tennis crush. Who didn’t fantasize about the beautiful gal from Argentina? She also was a pretty good tennis player who just came along at the wrong time when Steffi Graf was dominating the game. Sabatini’s signature shot was her one-handed backhand. Still one of the prettiest backhands the game’s ever seen.

Her upset win over Graf in 1990 here in NYC turned out to be Sabatini’s only grand slam singles title. She did reach a couple of other finals including 1991 Wimbledon where Gabby fell in a close three set battle to Graf 4-6, 6-3, 6-8.

Sabatini’s career best ranking on the WTA tour was No.3 that same year in which she won five titles but ultimately fell short of reaching No.1 in the world.

She still had a pretty good career and did alright off the court releasing successful perfume lines. Ya think this helped the cause  much?

An oldie but goodie:

Our pic of the day is back and it’s coming from that great walkoff courtesy of the bat of Washington Nationals’ star third baseman Ryan Zimmerman. So enjoy the first of many great baseball moments 2008 style!

AP Photos Courtesy Getty Images by Drew Hallowell

Here’s also a nice shot of the brand new ballpark:

Our pic of the day features Slovakian Daniele Hantuchova, who easily won her third round match over Spaniard Virginia Ruano Pascual 6-2, 6-2 to move into a Round of 16 match-up against Russian Maria Kirilenko- who upset sixth seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze a day prior 6-7 (6). 6-1, 6-2. 

The 24 year-old ninth seed’s draw looks promising. If she gets through Kirilenko, she could play streaky Russian Nadia Petrova for a chance at her first ever slam semifinal.

Hantuchova’s always had the ability to go far in a slam but never a great draw. We’ll see if she can take advantage.

Here, she looks very elegant visiting a Versace store in Melbourne.

Sometimes a picture can say so much. There probably weren’t enough words for winning LSU quarterback Matt Flynn here as he celebrated his Offensive MVP trophy in style thanks to a career best four touchdowns in the senior’s final game- leading the Tigers past the Buckeyes for the BCS national championship last night in New Orleans.

He certainly was money and richly deserved the high game honor. What a way to go out!

It’s been a while since I had one of these but with it being a brand New spankin’ Year and all, I figured what better time than now to start.

Especially when it’s such a nice shot of Slovakian tennis star Daniela Hantuchova. She’s a looker alright on and off the tennis court. And I don’t care what kind of language you speak. In any language- Russian, Slovak, English…she’s quite stunning.

She also has a little game to go with her package if you catch my drift.

Last year was a solid season for the 24 year-old ninth ranked WTA player. She took home her third title at Indian Wells and reached the Round of 16 in a couple of slams. Her record of 52-28 helped boost her ranking back into the top 10- the highest its been since 2002 when she finished ranked No.8.

So, can she take her game to another level and maybe crack a slam quarterfinal- something she hasn’t accomplished since the 2003 Australian Open?

It will most likely depend on who’s in her draw. She’s had the unfortunate luck lately of running into Serena Williams. As any tennis fan knows, a motivated Serena can beat anyone on the WTA tour.

She seems to raise her game when she’s down under where she won last year for the third time. However, even years haven’t treated her well in Melbourne. So we’ll find out soon enough.

In the mean time, let’s enjoy another Hantuchova shot from her hard fought three-set win over Russian Dinara Safina. A solid player in her own right.

Safina does have a solid all around game which includes a deadly forehand which can find angles from anywhere on the court. The key is whether she can maintain consistency and mentally keep it together. She’s been known for melting down in big matches. But this is also a young woman who only a couple of years ago posted one of her biggest wins in Australia over Serena.

So she’s fully capable of playing some good tennis. We’ll certainly be following her plight when the Australian Open begins the following week.

Today’s picture of the day comes courtesy of the revamped Ralph Wilson Stadium which is finally ready for the second ever NHL Hockey Heritage Outdoor Classic. Here, a few Sabres get in some practice time to familiarize themselves with the created ice rink.

They’re supposed to faceoff against rating Hart Trophy winner Sidney Crosby and the Penguins on New Year’s Day with the activities set to get underway at 1 ET/10 PT tomorrow on NBC.

It is expected to snow up in Buffalo. Hopefully it will be of light variety so the festivities aren’t delayed which would be a complete debacle for the league.

More than 73,000 spectators are expected to be there for this exciting event.

“Today was fun, (Tuesday) will be a lot more serious, get down to business,” Buffalo defenseman Brian Campbell told the Associated Press.

“We’re privileged to be part of this,” Pens’ coach Michel Therrien stated. “But in the meantime we’ve got to understand this is a regular-season game, and I’m sure Lindy Ruff (is saying) the same thing. He wants to have those two points and we want to have those two points.” 

While today’s weather conditions were picture perfect, that’s not expected to be the case tomorrow where they’re forecasting temperatures to drop into the mid-20’s and maybe reach 32 degrees with a 90 percent chance of snow.

“I think we were kind of spoiled with the weather,” the 20 year-old Crosby pointed out. “Everything seemed pretty perfect. Have to see tomorrow how it is. If it’s a little bit colder maybe you adjust.”

“Things that we can’t control – the weather – we can adjust for it,” Sabres’ netminder Ryan Miller noted. “But it’s going to do what it’s going to do.”

If they do get snow, there’d be nothing better than seeing players fight through some light flakes with windy conditions.

Pond hockey. For now, just wait and see.

Our pic of the day comes courtesy of the Trenton Thunder’s 10-5 Game Four win over Akron which helped them wrap up their first ever Eastern League Championship. Congratulations to the entire Yankee Double-A farm team in helping deliver the franchise’s first ever title in 14 years!

Congratulations to everyone involved!

Our pic of the day comes courtesy of rejuvenated St. Louis converted outfielder Rick Ankiel. You remember him, don’t you? The former top pitching prospect of the Cardinals a few years ago who was fallen by wildness and arm problems is back with a vengeance as an outfielder.

Now 28, the former 1997 second round pick has made the transformation to the batter’s box. He scrapped his pitching career a couple of Springs ago and has since been in the minors turning himself into a pretty good power hitter. So much so that his 31 dingers with Triple-A Memphis ranked second in the minors before the Cards finally decided to recall him for his much anticipated return. Well, if you didn’t notice, then that’s too bad.

We had been keeping a close eye on him and kept waiting for that recall. So, how has Ankiel done thus far? In his first game back, he went yard and got a standing ovation in a win. After a 1-for-4 effort in a loss Friday, the major league version of Roy Hobbs responded with his first multi-homer game and a great over the shoulder catch in right during a 6-1 win to keep his team within 6.5 of first place Milwaukee.

That’s three long balls already for what could evolve into a great feel good story. So how does he feel about all the attention?

“Don’t hold me to days like this. … I always believed in myself. It’s just a matter of getting out there, feeling comfortable and letting your talent take over.”

The reality of the situation hasn’t been lost on skipper Tony La Russa:

“It’s been a lot of fun. Everyone is really happy to see him, but this is the big leagues and you need to perform and be productive. There’s a lot of good guys, but if they can’t play, pretty soon you get somebody else.”

Such is how things are when your team despite still being six under .500 is in a pennant race because both the Brew Crew and the Cubbies haven’t been able to put enough distance between themselves and the defending World Champs.

Think they can’t sneak up and steal the division? Don’t blink cause you never know what could happen next.

Who had them winning it all last Fall? Exactly about the same amount who saw Ankiel tearing up the minors and now trying to write a great chapter in his renewed ballplaying career.

For now, we’ll be pulling for Ankiel to continue to have success in his comeback and see where it takes him and his ballclub.

Our pic of the day comes from the one and only Paris Hilton, who looks as weepy as a spoiled brat is supposed to look when a Los Angeles judge reversed a decision which would’ve allowed The Simple Life star to serve out the remainder of her 45-day jail sentence at her home in Hollywood due to an unspecified medical condition. Instead she was ordered to return to an L.A. County jail to be determined after she undergoes psychiatric examination:

It’s about time someone taught her a lesson!

Our pic of the day comes courtesy of East Rutherford where Blazers NBA Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy and GM Kevin Pritchard react to winning the NBA draft lottery last night. The Blazers, who won 32 games (one less than the Knicks folks) had their slim 5.3 percent chance come through to pull an upset over the NBA’s worst Memphis and the Celtics:

With a core which includes the gifted Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Zach Randolph, Jarrett Jack, Travis Outlaw and Martell Webster, the Blazers certainly have a young nucleus in place where selecting either Greg Oden or Kevin Durant could just vault them back into the playoffs.

The question is what will Pritchard do with the moody Randolph. The former Spartan is a talented player who averaged a double double (23.6 PPG, 10.1 RPG) in 68 games. He turns 26 later this summer. Does he fit in or will Portland finally trade him? He’s a solid scorer and rebounder but is injury prone and has had his reputation questioned.

Maybe the Blazers go in a different direction here. Winning the No.1 overall pick gives them many options. Will some team make them a can’t miss offer to move down that puts them into serious contention sooner than people expect like ESPN’s Jon Barry asserted to the shock of Stephen A. Smith at a roundtable discussion?

You never can tell. Especially with a franchise which once passed on Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley and John Stockton to select Sam Bowie second overall over two decades ago.

With the Grizzlies and Celtics upset (if you saw Jerry West’s face and Boston’s Lottery Party reaction you know- not even kidding here! ), the Sonics moved up to No.2 while the Hawks were third which was good news for them because had they dropped further, that pick would’ve gone to Phoenix (gulp). Instead, the Hawks boast both the 3rd and 11th overall selections. They desperately need a point guard. So figure Mike Conley, Jr. to fit the bill there with one of those picks.

Memphis, Boston and Milwaukee (NBA’s three worst teams) slipped to fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.

So, does anyone want to try to caption this pic of a demoralized West. Just look at it and his reaction:

“It’s about as disappointing as you could ever hope for. It’s like pitching pennies. It’s grossly unfair to the team, but I’ve said it before, I don’t think the lottery is fair. I never liked it. I don’t think it’s a good system at all, period.”

What a bitter old man. As if he didn’t have a lot of luck when he built those championship Laker teams. You chose to work in Memphis when you could’ve ridden out to the sunset. Take it like a man or just do everyone a favor and get out!

Does anyone want to put a real caption on that sad photo? Any takers?!?!?!?!?!

The Bulls had the rights to the Knicks’ pick as part of the Eddy Curry deal. The good news for lifetime man Isiah Thomas is that Chicago wound up with the ninth pick. They should still get a good player (Joakim Noah???) but at least it’s not the dreaded worst case scenario of either Oden or Durant.

Here’s the full lottery results with the draft in NYC set for June 28th:
1.Portland

2.Seattle

3.Atlanta

4.Memphis

5.Boston

6.Milwaukee

7.Minnesota

8.Charlotte

9.Chicago (from Knicks)

10.Sacramento

11.Atlanta (from Indiana)

12.Philadelphia

13.New Orleans

14.L.A. Clippers

One quick thought on Vince Carter’s demand for a three-year $60 million extension:

No freaking way the Nets and Rod Thorn do that. As the NY Post’s Peter Vecsey pointed out in a Tuesday column, the 30 year-old small forward is slowing down which also might explain the more predictable bail outs in Vince’s game against smaller defenders. He’s still explosive but just not as consistent. And as I’ve pointed out here before, the former Air Canada has never been a clutch playoff performer.

It’s time for the Nets to move on. If that means signing and trading the superstar, then they should do it. They can definitely find a taker and get something back for him.