MSNBC

A draw is a conversation starter, but it may be more valuable as a conversation killer. Once the men and women are locked in their brackets, we can leave behind the airy speculation about “favorites”—a meaningless word if you’re a player—and stop pondering the endless “what ifs” about who might play whom in what round. Now everyone has their path, and they must walk it. Or, if they can, slide it.W...    

Not so long ago, the introductions to my women’s Grand Slam previews all had two words in common: “wide open.” As late as the end of 2011, that’s how the WTA draws always felt. Things have changed in a hurry. Coming into Roland Garros in 2013, the top women are vying with the top men to see who can put a tighter stranglehold on their respective tour. Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Victoria ...    

DETROIT (AP) - Add another near miss in this 2013 baseball season - this time it was Detroit's Anibal Sanchez falling just short of a no-hitter.Sanchez's bid was broken up with one out in the ninth inning Friday night when Minnesota's Joe Mauer hit a clean single up the middle. That was the only hit the right-hander allowed in the Tigers' 6-0 victory over the Twins. It was the fourth one-hitter of...    

When I was young, the majority opinion – at least among the kids at my school – was that the devil played the fiddle better than Johnny did in the song “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” Obviously, that would have messed up the general narrative of that song, but it was a good lesson in subjectivity. It’s all a matter of opinion. There isn’t a best ever. Not really. Not even in a song.But it leads ...    

BOSTON (AP) - Terry Francona is back at Fenway Park as an opposing manager for the first time since he left the Red Sox.Francona brought the Cleveland Indians to Boston for a four-game series starting Thursday night. He was let go by the Red Sox after eight years as their manager following a September 2011 collapse left them out of the playoffs.He was relaxed and spoke calmly for about 20 minutes ...