AFP - Wesley Sneijder may be the one reaping the praise for his attacking play, but to many afficionados eyes it is Rafael van der Vaart who has been the lynchpin in the Dutch success so far at Euro 2008.
Reuters - The struggling Toronto Blue Jays fired
manager John Gibbons and replaced him with Cito Gaston, who led
the Major League Baseball club to back-to-back World Series
championships in the early 1990s, the team said on Friday.
AP - Tommie Harris says the talks that led to his four-year, $40 million contract with the Chicago Bears were businesslike and "classy." -- read full article
AP - Chicago Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano will miss his next scheduled start because of shoulder trouble and will undergo an MRI exam Friday. -- read full article
AP - John Gibbons was fired Friday by the last-place Toronto Blue Jays and replaced by Cito Gaston, who led the team to World Series titles in 1992 and 1993.
AP - Jack Nicklaus always thought the U.S. Open was the hardest and most complete test in golf. That's what made Tiger Woods' victory even more impressive to the man whose major record Woods is trying to beat.
AFP - The 2007 Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli moved closer to another shot at success on grass as she reached the semi-final of the Eastbourne Championships here on Thursday.
AP - Jay Feaster has the easy job — "idiot-proof" is how the Tampa Bay Lightning general manager puts it — and is all but absolutely certain he will select forward Steven Stamkos with the No. 1 pick in the NHL draft on Friday night.
AFP - Germany marched into the last four of Euro 2008 after Portugal pressed the self-destruct button in a five-goal thriller of a quarter-final here on Thursday.
AP - Joba Chamberlain struck out a career-high nine, Alex Rodriguez delivered another key hit and the New York Yankees beat the San Diego Padres 2-1 Thursday for their seventh straight victory.
AP - Through a haze of his own cigar smoke, Paul Pierce peered through sleepless eyes at the sea of green-clad fans and thrust his golden MVP trophy skyward.
