Duke's addition to the All-Star team gives the Pirates two representatives for just the third time since 1994.

Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel from India's Million Dollar Arm Challenge are about to debut for the Bradenton Pirates. Since we last read about them, they've added a changeup and breaking ball to go along with a low 90's fastball. I hope they make it!

One of the great things about the Bay Area is that it represents four major sports leagues, which means there should be several Giants/Sharks fans on this board (hello, Dave Valentine and serrapadre).

"From 4:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday, more than two dozen players, coaches and others — big names like Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito and Mike Krukow — will hold court at the Britannia Arms in downtown San Jose. They'll sign autographs and celebrity bar tend, and then they'll head over to the Sharks-Hurricanes game, where Lincecum will drop the first puck."

Sounds like a great time out.

Cool site for the more statistically-inclined of FTF.

"'This was not so much a legal defeat for Cuban as it was an old-fashioned ass-whupping,' said John O'Connor, Nelson's lawyer. 'We couldn't have done any better. This is a home run.'"

Just two years removed from the epic 2007 playoff series, Nellie gets the better of Cuban again, this time in the courtroom. The result: an extra $6.3 million in Nellie's bank vault once he rides off into the Maui sunset.