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Although the new Chicago Cubs front office led by Jed Hoyer and Theo Epstein made plenty of moves in the offseason to alter the look of the 2012 Cubs, their first major decision in Chicago will be their first round selection in the 2012 MLB Draft. The Cubs' first pick is at No. 6 overall, and if Hoyer and Epstein hit on that pick, it will go a long way to turning the franchise around, even though the prospect would obviously be far away from the majors.

The NFL is known as the league of parity, a place where teams can go from the top of the draft to the top of the standings in just one season. The St. Louis Rams almost tasted that success in 2010 when they missed the playoffs by one game, but in 2011 they fell all the way back to the bottom, thanks to a tough schedule and various injuries. So, what are the chances that the Rams bounce up to the top of the NFC West in 2012?

According to SB Nation's Joel Thorman, those chances are pretty good. In his rankings of the NFL teams that have the best chance of going from "worst to first," Thorman ranks the Rams second behind only the Kansas City Chiefs. Here is a bit of Thorman's reasoning for being a bit optimistic about the Rams' chances:

First of all, the NFC West is a fairly close division. The 49ers won 13 games last year and finished the year as the clear cut best team in the division. That may not change next year but the 49ers aren't a perennial power where we can dub them divisional champs before the year even starts. They need to do it again to prove that they're for real. The Rams have Sam Bradford at quarterback, and despite some of his struggles last year, he's still a young quarterback who should get a lot better. Offensively, one of the Rams best weapons is Steven Jackson, who received some help in the draft with the selection of Isaiah Pead.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Anthony Davis, native of Chicago and Kentucky Wildcats star, is almost certain to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. If that's true, he'll find out where he's going to play professional ball at the conclusion of tonight's NBA Lottery. The two teams with the best chance of getting Davis are the Charlotte Bobcats, who put one of the worst teams in NBA history on the court in 2012, and the Washington Wizards, who two years ago selected ex-Wildcat John Wall with the first overall pick.

Here are the odds that each lottery team will secure the first pick, as well as their chances at getting the second or third picks:

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more coverage of the NBA as the draft approaches, check out SB Nation's NBA news hub.

The Chicago Cubs are enjoying a two-game winning streak at the moment, and with the lineup producing 16 runs in those two games, manager Dale Sveum has decided to keep that batting order in place, one that has SS Starlin Castro batting second and CF Joe Mather in the third hole.

Here are today's lineups for both the Cubs and Padres:

Cubs

1. David DeJesus, RF
2. Starlin Castro, SS
3. Joe Mather, CF
4. Bryan LaHair, 1B
5. Alfonso Soriano, LF
6. Ian Stewart, 3B
7. Darwin Barney, 2B
8. Steve Clevenger, C
9. Ryan Dempster, P

Padres

1. Will Venable, CF
2. Everth Cabrera, SS
3. Yonder Alonso, 1B
4. Carlos Quentin, LF
5. Chase Headley, 3B
6. Chris Denorfia, RF
7. Nick Hundley, C
8. Alexi Amarista, 2B
9. Anthony Bass, P

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage, head over to Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue and Padres blog Gaslamp Ball. For more from around Major League Baseball, visit Baseball Nation.

Weber State point guard Damian Lillard has been impressing scouts and teams in workouts in recent weeks, and it may have pushed him into the top ten of the draft, at least according to the most recent NBA mock draft from DraftExpress.com. In that mock draft, DraftExpress has Lillard going to the New Orleans Hornets at No. 10 overall, who will likely be looking to replace Chris Paul.

That would, at least in DraftExpress' mock, make Lillard the first point guard taken in the draft, ahead of North Carolina's Kendall Marshall, who the website has going one pick later to the Portland Trail Blazers. Lillard vs. Marshall isn't quite going to be Greg Oden vs. Kevin Durant, but the two are expected to be taken very close to each other and will likely be compared for quite some time.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Denver. For more comprehensive draft coverage, head over to SB Nation's NBA news hub.

The Chicago White Sox have been bludgeoning the ball during their seven-game winning streak, and with the team hitting like it is, manager Robin Ventura has little reason to shake up his batting lineup on most days. Today is no exception, as the White Sox are rolling out the lineup that they've used for most games during this win streak.

Here are today's lineups for both the White Sox and Rays, with Jose Quintana on the mound for Chicago and Alex Cobb on the hill for Tampa Bay:

White Sox

1. Alejandro De Aza, CF
2. Gordon Beckham, 2B
3. Adam Dunn, DH
4. Paul Konerko, 1B
5. Alex Rios, RF
   
6. A.J. Pierzynski, C
7. Dayan Viciedo, LF
8. Alexei Ramirez, SS
9. Orlando Hudson, 3B

Rays

1. Carlos Pena, 1B
2. B.J. Upton, CF
3. Matt Joyce, LF
4. Ben Zobrist, RF
   
5. Luke Scott, DH
   
6. Sean Rodriguez, 2B
7. Drew Sutton, 3B
8. Jose Molina, C
   
9. Elliot Johnson, SS

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage, visit White Sox blog South Side Sox. For more from around Major League Baseball, head over to Baseball Nation.

The St. Louis Cardinals already have one of the strongest farm systems in baseball, and the rich will have a very good chance at getting richer in the 2012 MLB Draft. The Cardinals have two picks— their own, and one from the Los Angeles Angels as compensation for Albert Pujols. In recent years, St. Louis has drafted both a high school player (Shelby Miller) and a college player (Kolten Wong), and they're generally believed to be open to many players in this year's draft.

In his most recent 2012 MLB mock draft, ESPN's Keith Law sees the Cardinals taking two high schoolers. The first, at No. 19 overall, is Louisiana high school catcher Stryker Trahan, who was seen as a top prospect earlier in the draft process but who has slipped a bit after a disappointing season. That said, Law believes the talent is still very much there and that he could be a bargain at that pick.

With their second pick, Law sees St. Louis taking Hunter Virant, a high school lefty pitcher from California. According to Law, Virant, who is 6' 3" but only 172 pounds, could add a good amount of velocity in pro ball as he fills out.

For more on the Cardinals, stick with SB Nation St. Louis. For more news, notes and analysis head over to Viva El Birdos. For more from around the league, check out Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer.

One of the strongest and most persistent criticisms of Chicago White Sox general manager Kenny Williams has been his drafting, as the White Sox entered the season with what many people believe to be one of the worst farm systems in baseball. Granted, Williams and owner Jerry Reinsdorf prefer to spend their money in free agency as opposed to the draft, and Williams has had some hits in recent years, including SP Chris Sale and closer Addison Reed.

This year, the White Sox are picking at No. 13 overall in the first round, and they'll have a chance to get a very solid prospect. That prospect, according to the most recent 2012 MLB mock draft by ESPN's Keith Law, could be Ohio high school LHP Matt Smoral. The White Sox don't have a long history of drafting high schoolers, and Law does note that he believes that Chicago is otherwise looking at college pitchers.

Here's a slice of Law's scouting report on Smoral, who has been compared to San Francisco Giants SP Madison Bumgarner:

...his trouble staying healthy is a real red flag for teams, perhaps not enough to send him to UNC but enough to push him out of the top half of the first round, even though there are a number of similarities to Bumgarner that would otherwise put him there.

(via ESPN.com)

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of the Chicago White Sox, head over to the White Sox blog South Side Sox. And to learn more about the latest MLB prospect news and ratings, drop by Minor League Ball with John Sickels. For more general baseball news, check out Baseball Nation.

The Chicago Cubs pick at No. 6 overall in the 2012 MLB Draft, and at that position they're guaranteed to get a top prospect, but who exactly will be available to them is still, of course, very dependent on what happens in front of them. Outside of the consensus top two picks— Standford P Mark Appel and Georgia high school outfielder Byron Buxton— any other top prospect in the draft could conceivably be available for the Cubs.

ESPN's Keith Law, in his most recent 2012 MLB mock draft, sees the Cubs taking California high school LHP Max Fried. Law believes that the Cubs have more or less narrowed their board down to Fried, University of San Francisco righty Kyle Zimmer or Miami high school CF Albert Amora.

Here's a small slice of Law's scouting report on Fried:

He has the projection left to add a grade of velocity, and with more consistency you can see a No. 2 starter with three above-average to plus pitches.

(via ESPN.com)

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more on the Chicago Cubs, check out the Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue. And to learn more about the latest MLB prospect news and ratings, drop by Minor League Ball.

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As the old saying goes: if it's averaging 11 runs in its last three games, don't fix it. Well, okay, that's not an old saying at all, but it's definitely the mindset of Chicago White Sox manager Robin Ventura, who has seen his team absolutely clobber the ball during its recent four-game winning streak. With that in mind, he's sending out what should more or less be his typical lineup going forward.

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Chicago Cubs reliever Rafael Dolis has gone from middle reliever to closer back to middle reliever and now to Triple-A Iowa all within the span of one week. The young Dominican reliever has been optioned to the minors with the Cubs recalling Carlos Marmol from the 15-day DL.

Dolis to Iowa for Marmol.

— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) May 28, 2012

Dolis has seen his ERA skyrocket after a string of rough outings. He'll go to Iowa with a 5.68 ERA, a 1.50 WHIP and, most troubling, 17 walks and only 11 strikeouts in only 25.1 innings. That said, if Dolis can get things straightened out in Triple-A he may be back with the club soon, as the Cubs could use his power arm if he can command his pitches.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage, head over to Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue and Padres blog Gaslamp Ball. For more from around Major League Baseball, visit Baseball Nation.

With the St. Louis Cardinals battling a host of injury to many of its key position players, manager Mike Matheny has had to do enough mixing and matching to make old Cards skipper Tony La Russa proud. WIth the Cards suffering a bit of a slump lately, Matheny has tried various combinations of outfielders and infielders, and with the Cardinals playing an early game on Memorial Day, his lineup today features a few subs.

That includes Daniel Descalso, who gets the start for David Freese, and Skip Schumaker, who gets the start at CF, where the Cardinals have missed starter Jon Jay.

Here is Monday's lineup for St. Louis' opening series game vs. the Atlanta Braves:

1. Rafael Furcal, SS
2. Skip Schumaker, CF
3. Matt Holliday, LF
   
4. Carlos Beltran, RF
   
5. Matt Adams, 1B
6. Yadier Molina, C
7. Daniel Descalso, 3B
8. Tyler Greene, 2B
9. Lance Lynn, SP

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals.

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With the Chicago Cubs mired in an epic losing streak, manager Dale Sveum has decided not to shake up his lineup in an effort to squeeze some runs out of what has been a very stagnant offense. During their 12 game losing streak, the Cubs offense has put more than four runs on the board only twice, and in last weekend's series vs. the Pittsburgh Pirates, they scored six runs in three games with only six extra base hits.

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Ryder Hesjedal was the racer that made headlines on Sunday, winning the 2012 Giro d'Italia over longtime leader Joaquim Rodriguez thanks to a furious finish in the individual time trial in Milan. Hesjedal erased the 31-second lead that Rodriguez had held for much of the race's final stages, eventually finishing the race in 91:39:02, which bested Rodriguez's 91:39:18 by 16 seconds.

But Hesjedal wasn't the only racer for his team, Garmin-Barracuda, to have a successful Giro d'Italia, as the team managed to place three racers in the top 30, and 7 in the final standings overall. Here is the final placements and times for the seven Garmin-Barracuda racers (full standings are here):

• 1. Ryder Hesjedal, 91:39:02
• 22. Christian Vandevelde, 92:17:25
• 27. Peter Stetina, 92:33:27
• 114: Jack Bauer, 95:29:29
• 125: Sebastien Rosseler, 95:53:57
• 137: Ramunas Navardauskas, 96:04:07
• 150: Alex Rasmussen, 96:34:55

For more on the 2012 Giro d'Italia, stick with SB Nation Denver and visit cycling blog Podium Cafe.

WIth his victory at the 2012 Indy 500 on Sunday, Dario Franchitti joined an exclusive club of race car drivers to have won the Indy 500 at least three times. Of those 10 racers, one— Helio Castroneves, who won his third Indy 500 in 2009— is still active, otherwise the feat hasn't been accomplished since the late 1980s.

Here's the full list of drivers to have won at least three Indy 500s (in chronological order):

1. A.J. Foyt (4)
2. Al Unser (4)
3. Rick Mears (4)
4. Louis Meyer (3)
5. Wilbur Shaw (3)
6. Mauri Rose (3)
7. Johnny Rutherford (3)
8. Bobby Unser (3)
9. Helio Castroneves (3)
10. Dario Franchitti (3)

Franchitti and Castroneves are two of only four active drivers to have won an Indy 500. The other two are Buddy Rice, who won in 2004, and Scott Dixon, who won in 2008.

For more updates on the Indy 500, stay tuned to this StoryStream. For more on Indy racing, including the 2012 Indianapolis 500, please visit Pop Off Valve.

The University of Illinois-Chicago Flames are no stranger to the NCAA Baseball Regionals, having won the Horizon League tournament four times since 2003, including in 2007 when they hosted the tournament as they are this year. They now find themselves a game away from another postseason birth after defeating the Valparaiso Crusaders on Saturday night.

The Flames jumped out to an early lead on Saturday night, and wil surely be looking to get the same type of momentum going on Sunday. The winner of today's game will receive the Horizon League's automatic bid to this year's regionals, where they'll be sent to a double elimination mini-tournament with four total teams on the campus of the host school, which will likely be a team from the ACC, Big 12 or SEC.

Game date/time: Sunday, May 27, 12:00 p.m. CT

Location: Les Miller Field, Chicago, Ill.

Streaming: horizonleague.org

For more on the 2012 Horizon League Baseball Tournament, keep it locked to SB Nation Chicago.

Rafael Dolis' turn as closer of the Chicago Cubs was a short one, as manager Dale Sveum has removed the young Dominican after he allowed a hit, walked two batters and eventually brought the winning run home for the Pirates with a HBP in Saturday night's 3-2 loss. Sveum told reporters that he doesn't know where he'll turn next, but all signs point to Jeff Russell, who has been arguably the most consistent Cubs reliever this year.

Sveum, at this point, is just looking for a closer who can come in and not walk or hit anyone:

"If something happens, it's going to be because (the opposition) hit the ball, not losing the back end of these games because of walks," Sveum said. "That's the most frustrating thing about this... Nobody is really hitting the ball or doing things. We're imploding by walking guys and hitting guys."

(via The Chicago Tribune)

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage, head over to Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue and Pirates blog Bucs Dugout. For more from around Major League Baseball, visit Baseball Nation.

Roy Halladay vs. Adam Wainwright would've been one of the premier pitching match ups in baseball just a few years ago, but when the two face off Sunday in St. Louis they'll be looking to answer some questions. Both Halladay and Wainwright are having off years, though in the case of Halladay it's only compared to his insanely lofty standards and Wainwright, of course, is coming off of Tommy John surgery.

Halladay's ERA is at 3.58 after giving up five earned runs in six innings to the Washington Nationals earlier this week, and that's a far cry from where his ERA has hovered in his time in Philadelphia. Of course, most everyone expects Halladay's ERA to drop back down, and he may start the reversal in St. Louis.

Wainwright meanwhile has struggled to find his form after missing all of the 2011 season, but he is recently coming off of a four hit complete game shutout. Of course, that was against the San Diego Padres, so maybe a small asterisk is necessary, but it was no doubt an encouraging sign for a slumping club.

Game date/time: 1:15 p.m. CT

Location: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Mo.

TV: Fox Sports Midwest

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals and The Good Phight for more on the Phillies. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

The Chicago Cubs have lost 11 games in a row and now have the worst record in baseball— all that's left for them in Pittsburgh is to try and leave with some shred of dignity. Chicago will send Matt Garza to the mound on Sunday afternoon, and in two starts vs. the Pirates in his career Garza has given up only three earned runs in 14 innings while striking out 19 batters.

Of course, starting pitching hasn't been the Cubs problem in this series, and the bad news is that they'll be facing Pirates ace Erik Bedard who will be seeing the Cubs for the first time in his career. If there's a silver lining here it's that Bedard has been shaky in his last two starts, giving up eight earned runs in 11 innings as his ERA has risen almost a full run to 3.52.

Game date/time: Sunday, May 27, 12:35 p.m. CT

Location: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, Penn.

TV: WGN

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage, head over to Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue and Pirates blog Bucs Dugout. For more from around Major League Baseball, visit Baseball Nation.

The Chicago Cubs front office would probably like to find just about anything to take the focus off the fact that its team is mired in one of the worst losing streaks in franchise history, but news that team financier Joe Ricketts is funding another round of anti-Barack Obama propaganda is likely not the distraction they're looking for.

The New York Times reported today that Ricketts is one of a dozen or so backers behind a "documentary" based on the book The Roots of Obama's Rage by influential conservative writer Dinesh D'Souza. This comes after an aborted attempt to fund an attack campaign against Obama that focused on his ties to the Reverend Jeremiah Wright.

That proposed ad campaign was criticized by Republican candidate Mitt Romney's campaign, which is trying to move away from the type of attacks aimed at Obama in the 2008 election in favor of criticizing his first term as president.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage, head over to Cubs blog Bleed Cubbie Blue. For more from around Major League Baseball, visit Baseball Nation.

The three racers that make up Row 1 of the 2012 Indianapolis 500 aren't exactly familiar with being at the head of an Indy 500 pack. Those racers— Ryan Briscoe, who holds the poll, James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Hunter-Reay— all finished outside of the top 20 in last year's race, though Briscoe did finish fifth in 2007 and Hunter-Reay sixth in 2008.

Last year's winner was Dan Wheldon, who died in October of 2011 in an accident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway during the IndyCar World Championship.

Here's the starting lineup for Sunday's Indianapolis 500, with the starting grid being grouped in threes:

1. Ryan Briscoe
2. James Hinchcliffe
3. Ryan Hunter-Reay
4. Marco Andretti
5. Will Power
6. Helio Castroneves
7. Josef Newgarden
8. Tony Kanaan
9. EJ Viso
10. Rubens Barrichello
11. Alex Tagliani
12. Graham Rahal
13. Ana Beatriz
14. Charlie Kimball
15. Scott Dixon
16. Dario Franchitti
17. James Jakes
18. J.R. Hildebrand
19. Takuma Sato
20. Townsend Bell
21. Justin Wilson
22. Michel Jourdain
23. Simon Pagenaud
24. Sebastian Saavedra
25. Sebastien Bourdais
26. Wade Cunningham
27. Oriol Servia
28. Ed Carpenter
29. Mike Conway
30. Katherine Legge
31. Bryan Clauson
32. Simona De Silvestro
33. Jean Alesi

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of the 2012 Indy 500, head over to Indy racing blog Pop Off Valve.

The Indy 500 will be broadcast on ABC once again this year, but those without a TV or who just want to get a different view of the race have some options this year. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway will be doing a general live streaming of the race on their website, though details on what exactly that entails are currently sparse.

ESPN will also be utilizing ESPN3 to show the race from various dashboard cameras. The network will give viewers a look at the race from the vantage point of the following racers: Marco Andretti, Rubens Barrichello, Helio Castroneves, Dario Franchitti, James Hinchcliffe, J.R. Hildebrand, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Tony Kanaan, Charlie Kimball, Will Power and Graham Rahal.

Though ESPN will not have a camera mounted in pole sitter Ryan Briscoe's car, Hinchcliffe and Hunter-Reay are joining him in row one.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of the 2012 Indy 500, head over to Indy racing blog Pop Off Valve.

The Creighton Bluejays started the 2012 MVC Baseball Tournament as the No. 8 seed, but they finished it as champions. The Bluejays defeated the Southern Illinois Salukies 8-6 on Saturday night to capture their second straight MVC championship, and third total under head coach Ed Servais.

The Bluejays swept their way through the tournament, going 4-0, but the title game was far from a cakewalk. They found themselves down 5-1 early in the game after the Salukis jumped on starter Ty Blach. But the Bluejays, who were the worst hitting team in the MVC in the regular season, clawed their way to make it 6-4 before exploding with four runs in the bottom of the seventh to make it 8-6. The big blow came when freshman second basemen Jake Peter singled in two runs to put the Bluejays ahead.

Creighton, who was the lowest seed to ever win the MVC tournament, will now wait to see where they'll be sent for this year's Regionals. Last year the Bluejays were sent to Corvallis, Ore. for the Oregon State Regional, where they won one game before being eliminated.

For more on the MVC tournament, stick with SB Nation St. Louis.

After a week-plus of qualifying races and other pre-race activities, race day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway has arrived. Pole position belongs to Team Penske's Ryan Briscoe, who will be joined on the first row of the grid by James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Hunter-Reay of Andretti Autosport. Briscoe finished 27th in last year's race, while Hinchcliffe finshed 29th and Hunter-Reay 23rd.

Last year's winner was Dan Wheldon, who died this past October after in an accident at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This year's Indy 500 does feature three past winners, including three-time champion Helio Castroneves, as well as 2008 winner Scott Dixon and two-time winner Dario Franchitti. Castroneves will start off in row two, with Dixon in row five and Franchitti in row six.

Race date/time: Sunday, May 27, 2012, 11:00 a.m. CT

Location: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, Ind.

TV: ABC

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of the 2012 Indy 500, head over to Indy racing blog Pop Off Valve.