It's Friday

It's Friday. Here's what's happening....

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Today is May 30th, the 150th day of 2014. There are 215 days left in the year.

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Rangers blank Canadiens, reach Stanley Cup Final.

Kings' Doughty says Game 6 'has to be ours'.

Visit the official league website, http://www.nhl.com/.

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Today's Birthdays: Ted McGinley (The Love Boat, Happy Days, Jefferson Darcy on Married With Children) is 56; Singer-actress Idina Menzel, aka 'Adele Dazeem' (sang the Academy Award-winning song Let It Go in Frozen) is 43; Cee Lo Green is 40.

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Tampa, FL. -- View some of our favorite photos of the Lightning Girls from the 2013-14 season at the Tampa Bay Times Forum and pick your own favorite....

Read the rest here.

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Hernando de Soto, the Spanish explorer, landed in Florida with 600 soldiers to search for gold on this date in 1539.

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U.S. National Inline Team Roster Announced Team USA Opens IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship Sunday COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Hockey today announced the 14-player U.S. National Inline Team roster for the upcoming 2014 International Ice Hockey Federation Inline Hockey World Championship to be held June 1-7, in Pardubice, Czech Republic. The U.S. won the gold medal at last year’s world championship and has played in the gold-medal game in four of the past five tournaments. “We’ve compiled an extremely talented and deep group of players for this year’s world championship,” said Dan Brennan, general manager of the U.S. National Inline Team. “We’re very excited to try and defend our gold medal next month in the Czech Republic against the best inline teams in the world.” The roster is highlighted by eight players that were members of the gold medal-winning 2013 U.S. National Inline Team, including goaltender Jerry Kuhn (Southgate, Mich.); defensemenCody Kettler (St. Louis, Mo.), Raf Rodriguez (Oceanside, Calif.) and Greg Thompson (Bayport, N.Y.); and forwards Junior Cadiz (Los Angeles, Calif.), Travis Noe (Thousand Oaks, Calif.),Kyle Novak (O'Fallon, Mo.) and Matt White (Whittier, Calif.). For the complete U.S. roster, click here. For Team USA's schedule, click here. Notes: Join the conversation on social media by using #USInline ... Follow @USAHockeyScoreson Twitter for in-game updates ... Former U.S. National Inline Team member Joe Cook (Mission Viejo, Calif.) will serve as head coach of the U.S. National Inline Team for the fifth time … In the 17-year history of the IIHF Inline Hockey World Championship, the United States has captured six gold medals (1996, 1997, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2013), four silver medals (1998, 2001, 2009, 2011) and three bronze medals (2000, 2003, 2005). There was no tournament held in 1999.

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On this date in 1783, the first daily newspaper was published in the U.S. by Benjamin Towner called "The Pennsylvania Evening Post"

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Lots to Say: 8 best quotes of Johnson's presser.

A statement from Commissioner Mark Cohon.

Please visit the league's official website, cfl.ca.

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The U.S. territories of Nebraska and Kansas were established on this date in 1854.

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Tampa, FL. — 2014 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Cheerleader Auditions: The Finale.

Read the rest here.

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Saturday is Hug Your Cat Day.

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St. Petersburg, FL. -- The First-Year Player Draft is the lifeblood for any organization -- particularly one like the Rays, given the team's finances. Drafting and developing their own from farm to table is a necessity.

Read the rest here.

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A new report says that obesity is now so common that 30% of the world is fat. [And they all seem to sit next to me on airplanes.]

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St. Louis, MO. -- The Giants displayed basically the same style Thursday night that has earned them the Major Leagues' best record. They showed off their revived power, generated two-out runs and sealed their 6-5 triumph with gritty pitching.

Read the rest here.

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Japanese researchers have discovered the perfect way to eat a hamburger. Three "experts in fluid mechanics, engineering, and density" say thumbs and pinkies on the bottom, middle three fingers on top. The uniformly spread fingers help keep the burger together at all times, thus keeping the contents from mushing out preemptively.

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Aunt DD gives Jimmy some chicken nuggets.

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You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as getting your tablet replaced, isn't it?

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Today in Elvis History

1956 - In "Time" magazine, an article entitled "Teener's Hero" referred to Elvis Presley's appeal. It said "his movements suggest, in a word, sex." 

1968 - The Elvis Presley movie "Clambake" opened at London's New Victoria Cinema. 

1977 - In Florida, Elvis Presley played at Jacksonville's Veteran's Memorial Coliseum. It was his last show in Florida.

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A 29-year-old banker in China decided to taunt police from his BMW. He decided it would be fun to beam out images of his reckless driving. One had him holding a beer. It was accompanied by the text: "Is it unlawful to drive while drinking?" Another caption offered: "Do you really think ten beers is too much to drive with?" He posted the images on China's equivalent of Facebook. Police caught up with his car. Though he allegedly claims the beer bottle in the image was empty and he was only having fun, he has been charged with numerous traffic violations.

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Today in Beatles History:

1964 - The Beatles single "Love Me Do" hit #1 in the U.S. 

1964 - The Beatles' "Cry for a Shadow" hit #1 in Australia. 

1966 - The Beatles' "Paperback Writer" b/w "Rain" single was released in the U.S. 

1968 - The Beatles began recording the ablum "The Beatles." The album is known as the "White Album" due to its plain white cover.  

  

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IN THEATERS - Maleficent (PG) and A Million Ways to Die in the West (R)

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Today in Sports History:

1890 - Dave Foutz hit the first Dodger home run. 

1894 - Bobby Lowe (Boston Red Sox) became the first player to hit four home runs in one game. 

1911 - Ray Harroun won the first Indianapolis Sweepstakes. The 500-mile auto race later became known as the Indianapolis 500. Harroun's average speed was 74.59 miles per hour. 

1922 - Max Flack (Chicago Cubs) and Cliff Heathcote (St. Louis Cardinals) were traded for each other between the morning and afternoon games of a Memorial Day twin bill. They played one game for each team. 

1925 - Peter DePaolo became the first man to average over 100mph at the Indianapolis 500. 

1927 - Walter Johnson recorded his 113th career shutout. It was also the final shutout of his career. 

1927 - Jim Cooney (Chicago Cubs) became the sixth player to record an unassisted triple play against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He caught Paul Waner's line drive, stepped on second to double Lloyd Waner and then tagged Clyde Barnhart coming from first. 

1927 - Johnny Neun (Detroit Tigers) became the seventh player to record an unassisted triple play.

1932 - The New York Yankees dedicated a plaque to Miller Huggins. 

1935 - Babe Ruth (Braves) played in his final game. He went hitless against the Phillies. 

1937 - Pitcher Carl Hubbell got his 24th consecutive victory. 

1946 - Carvel William "Bama" Rowell (Braves) hit a home run that shattered the Bulova clock in Ebbets Field. 

1955 - Bob Sweikert won the Indianapolis 500. During the race Bill Vukovich hit the 3-car pileup of Al Keller, Johnny Boyd, and Rodger Ward. He was killed when his car became airborne and went out of the course, landing upside down and on fire. 

1962 - Pedro Ramos (Cleveland Indians) pitched a three-hitter and hit two home runs in a 7-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. One of his home runs was a grand slam. 

1970 - Voting for baseball's All-Star game was returned to the fans. 

1971 - Willie Mays hit his 638th home run. He set a National League record of 1,950 runs scored.

1977 - Dennis Eckersley pitched a 1-0 no-hitter against the California Angels. 

1981 - The Los Angeles Dodgers became the quickest to get 1,000,000 people to attend games in a season. It took 22 games. 

1982 - Cal Ripken, Jr., began a record streak of playing in 2,632 games. The streak ended on September 20, 1998.

1983 - Yankees owner George Steinbrenner was suspended for one week for his public criticism of umpires.

1986 - Bobby Rahal became the first driver to average over 170mph in the Indianapolis 500.

1987 - Eric Davis (Cincinnati Reds) became the first National League player to hit three grand slams in a month and set a National League record of 19 home runs in April and May.

1992 - Scott Sanderson (New York Yankees) became the 9th pitcher to beat all 26 teams.

2001 - Barry Bonds hit two home runs to move into 11th place on the major league career list with 522. 

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Misplace your phone? To save you from frantically searching under sofa cushions and in bags, someone has created an iOS app called Marco Polo that turns this potentially stressful situation into a fun game of find-and-seek. Like the classic summer pool game, simply shout "Marco!" and your phone will respond with "Polo!" You can shout as many times as you need to locate your phone -- it'll keep responding until you find it. ' app link

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Coming Up:

Tonight --

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox 7:10pm EDT

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 8:15pm EDT

Saturday --

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 2:15pm EDT

Nascar Nationwide Series -- Buckle Up 200 Presented By Click It Or Ticket at Dover International Speedway 2:30pm EDT

Verizon Indy Car Series -- Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit Race 1 3:30pm EDT

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox 7:15pm EDT

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Fedex 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway 1:00pm EDT

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox 1:35pm EDT

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 2:15pm EDT

Verizon Indy Car Series -- Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit Race 2 3:30pm EDT

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by, see you tomorrow!

It's Thursday

It's Thursday. Here's what's happening....

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Today is May 29th, the 149th day of 2014. There are 216 days left in the year.

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Blackhawks stay alive, beat Kings in double OT.

Canadiens' vets stress opportunity in Game 6.

Visit the official league website, http://www.nhl.com/.

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Today's Birthdays: Annette Bening (Open Range, American Beauty) is 56; Rocker Melissa Etheridge is 53; Lisa Whelchel (Blair Warner on The Facts of Life) is 51; Singer Melanie "Scary Spice" Brown (Spice Girls, Dancing with the Stars) is 39.

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Tampa, FL. -- Stability in net has often eluded the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Read the rest here.

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South Carolina was formally incorporated as a royal colony on this date in 1721.

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Buffalo to Host Two World Championships in 2015

IIHF Under-18 Women's Worlds and IPC Ice Sledge Hockey Worlds to be Played at Buffalo's HARBORCENTER

BUFFALO, N.Y. - USA Hockey announced today that it will bring two major world championships to Buffalo, New York, in 2015, with both being staged at the soon-to-be-completedHARBORCENTER. From Jan. 4-12, 2015, the 8th annual International Ice Hockey Federation Under-18 Women’s World Championship will take center stage in Buffalo with the top eight nations in the world competing to win the gold medal. Then from April 24-May 2, 2015, the International Paralympic Committee Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship will be contested with eight nations vying for the coveted gold medal. “We’re extremely pleased to bring these two world championships to HARBORCENTER,” saidDave Ogrean, executive director of USA Hockey. “The athletes and fans will be treated to a state-of-the-art facility in an area where hockey is an everyday passion. Between the HARBORCENTER and Sabres staff, the local community and our terrific New York affiliate, we have an infrastructure in place that will ensure an outstanding experience for everyone involved.” “To have the opportunity to host two world championships in the span of four months is terrific not only for HARBORCENTER, but also our community,” said John Koelmel, president of HARBORCENTER. “We’re proud of the confidence USA Hockey has in us and we look forward to welcoming athletes and fans from across the world.” "A strong relationship with USA Hockey is important to us," said Ted Black, president of the Buffalo Sabres. "We're excited to bring these two world class events to Buffalo and HARBORCENTER. We'll work hard to have visitors leaving these events excited to come back." HARBORCENTER, which is slated to open in downtown Buffalo in early October, includes two ice sheets, each 200’ x 85’, as well as 11 lockerrooms. The main arena has seating for 1,800, while the second rink has a capacity of 500. The IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship will feature teams from the United States, Canada, Czech Republic and Russia in Group A and Finland, Sweden, Japan and Switzerland in Group B. Team USA, which has played in the gold-medal game in each of the first seven editions of the event, has captured the event’s top prize three times (2008, 2009, 2011). “It’s exciting to bring the Under-18 Women’s World Championship to HARBORCENTER,” saidReagan Carey, director of women’s hockey for USA Hockey and also the general manager for the 2015 U.S. Women’s National Under-18 Team. “Fans will have a unique opportunity to see the best athletes in the world compete for a gold medal.” The IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship has been conducted in the United States on just one other occasion, that in 2010 in Woodridge, Illinois, at Seven Bridges Ice Arena. The IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship will be staged for the eighth time in 2015. The event, which showcases the world’s best sled hockey teams, was played for the first time in 1996 and also conducted in 2000, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2012 and 2013. The United States, which has captured the world championship gold medal on two occasions (2009, 2012), has hosted the event twice previously. In 2000, the U.S. finished sixth in Salt Lake City, Utah, while in 2008 Team USA captured the bronze medal in Marlborough, Massachusetts. The eight participating nations will include the U.S., Canada, Russia, Czech Republic, Norway, Italy, Germany, and Japan. “Buffalo has such a rich history in sled hockey and it will be terrific to have the world championship in the brand new HARBORCENTER,” said Dan Brennan, general manager of the 2015 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. “Fans will see amazing athletes in an extremely competitive environment.” Full details surrounding both world championships, including schedules and ticket information, will be released at a later date. NOTES: Two members of the gold medal-winning 2014 U.S. Paralympic sled hockey team are from the Buffalo, New York, area, including Lancaster native and two-time Paralympian Adam Page, as well as Buffalo's Paul Schaus ... The U.S. became the first nation to capture back-to-back gold medals in sled hockey at the Paralympic Winter Games when it beat host Russia in the 2014 Paralympic title game. NBC televised the contest live to mark the first-ever live broadcast of a Paralympic sled hockey gold medal game in the United States. History of the IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship Year Location U.S. Finish 2014 Budapest, Hungary Silver Medal 2013 Heinola/Vierumaki, Finland Silver Medal 2012 Zlin/Prerov, Czech Republic Silver Medal 2011 Stockholm, Sweden Gold Medal 2010 Woodridge, Ill. Silver Medal 2009 Fussen, Germany Gold Medal 2008 Calgary, Alberta Gold Medal History of the IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship Year Location U.S. Finish 2013 Goyang, South Korea Silver Medal 2012 Hamar, Norway Gold Medal 2009 Ostrava, Czech Republic Gold Medal 2008 Marlborough, Mass. Bronze Medal 2004 Ornskoldsvik, Sweden Silver Medal 2000 Salt Lake City, Utah Sixth Place 1996 Nynashamn, Sweden Fifth Place

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Patrick Henry denounced the Stamp Act before Virginia's House of Burgesses on this date in 1765.

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Riders lock up six from 2014 Draft haul.

BC Lions sign entire 2014 draft class, add Canadians.

Please visit the league's official website, cfl.ca.

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On this date in 1790, Rhode Island became the last of the original thirteen colonies to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

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Tampa, FL. — Buccaneers and Manchester United owner Malcolm Glazer died Wednesday, the NFL team announced. He was 85.

Read the rest here.

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The Olympics are having trouble finding cities interested in hosting the 2022 Games. [This could be the big comeback Detroit's been waiting for.]

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Toronto, ON. -- Wednesday's series finale between the Rays and Blue Jays came down to the bottom of the ninth, and ended under unfortunate circumstances for Tampa Bay.

Read the rest here.

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Love running? Are you out there 4 to 5 days a week? Amateur! Jon Sutherland's been running every day since May 26, 1969. That's around 16,440 days. It helps that he lives in sunny California. And that he has running buddy -- his dog Puck, though Puck's just 6 and hasn't been running as long. Rain or shine, healthy or sick, strong or weak, Sutherland has stayed with a similar routine - he has run - every day for 45 consecutive years, covering more than 190,000 miles. He's passed the old record of 16,437 days.

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San Francisco, CA. -- Wednesday couldn't have gone much better for the Giants.

Read the rest here.

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The National Spelling Bee semi-finals and finals are today (Thursday). ESPN 2 will carry the semis this morning (10 AM ET) and ESPN will have the finals tonight (8 PM ET)..

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Jimmy checks out his Star Wars plate.

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You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as breaking your tablet, isn't it?

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Today in Elvis History

1967 - Elvis and Priscilla Presley held a second wedding reception at Graceland for family and friends that could not attend their wedding in Las Vegas. 

1976 - Elvis Presley's single "Hurt" hit #28 in the U.S. 

1976 - The Elvis Presley compilation album "The Sun Sessions" hit #76 in the U.S. 

1977 - In Baltimore, MD, Elvis Presley left the stage in the middle of a concert and did not return. It was the first time he terminated a show in this manner. 

1989 - Lisa Marie Presley gave birth to a baby girl. Danielle Riley was the daughter of Danny Keough.

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GoPro cameras seem to have captured every activity known to man, but for the first time we've now seen a dog fly. The footage is part of a National Geographic feature on adrenaline junkie Dean Potter, who brings his dog Whisper along for every crazy ride. An Australian Cattle Dog, Whisper and her owner go on daring adventures together, trekking through the mountains and hopping off rock formations. Video

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Today in Beatles History:

1963 - Del Shannon's cover of the Beatles' "From Me to You" became the first song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney to appear on the American charts. 

1972 - Paul McCartney released his version of the nursery rhyme, "Mary Had A Little Lamb." 

1982 - Paul McCartney's album "Tug Of War" hit #1 in the U.S. 

1995 - The 13-part radio series "Oobu Joobu" premiered in the U.S. The series, directed by Paul McCartney, included never-before heard McCartney recordings and rehearsal, Beatles soundchecks and rehearsals.  

  

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A cyclist in New South Wales, Australia, is calling the country's mandatory bike helmet law "sexist". She was recently issued a $153 fine for riding without a helmet. Sue Abbott says compulsory helmet laws are turning people - especially women - off cycling. Abbott says, "It is a very sexist law because a lot of women have maintained hairstyles and would end up with helmet hair - and women have told me that's one of the factors (for not riding bikes)''. She's been fined a dozen times in her fight against the laws and had her bikes seized and sold by police to pay her fines.

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Today in Sports History:

1911 - The first running of the Indianapolis 500 took place. Ray Harroun won the race. 

1916 - The New York Giants won their 17th consecutive road game. 

1922 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that organized baseball was a sport, not subject to antitrust laws. 

1962 - Buck (John) O'Neil became the first black coach in major league baseball when he accepted the job with the Chicago Cubs. 

1965 - Ralph Boston set a world record in the broad jump at 27-feet, 4-3/4 inches, at a meet held in Modesto, CA. 

1965 - Dick Allen (Philadelphia Phillies) hit a 529' home run out of Connie Mack Stadium. 

1977 - A.J. Foyt won the Indianapolis 500 for the fourth time. 

1977 - Sue Press became the first woman golfer to hit consecutive holes-in-one. 

1984 - The Boston Red Sox retired #9 (Ted Williams) and #4 (Joe Cronin). 

1985 - In Brussels, Belgium, at Heysel Stadium a concrete retaining wall collapsed and 39 people were crushed or trampled to death. More than 400 people were injured. The soccer event was the European Champion's Cup final. 

1990 - Rickey Henderson stole his 893rd base. He broke Ty Cobb's record. 

1992 - Tim Raines (Chicago White Sox) stole his 700th career base. 

2001 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that disabled golfer Casey Martin could use a cart to ride in tournaments. 

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Wisconsin became the 30th state to join the United States on this date in 1848.

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Coming Up:

Tonight --

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 8:15pm EDT

Friday --

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox 7:10pm EDT

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 8:15pm EDT

Saturday --

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 2:15pm EDT

Nascar Nationwide Series -- Buckle Up 200 Presented By Click It Or Ticket at Dover International Speedway 2:30pm EDT

Verizon Indy Car Series -- Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit Race 1 3:30pm EDT

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox 7:15pm EDT

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Fedex 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway 1:00pm EDT

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox 1:35pm EDT

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals 2:15pm EDT

Verizon Indy Car Series -- Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit Race 2 3:30pm EDT

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by, see you tomorrow!