GOOD
Justin Morneau
The Twins slugger returned to Canada last Monday, and made sure he brought his torrid start to the season with him. Leading the American League in both batting average and slugging, the British Columbia native boosted his stats at the Rogers Centre, going 3-for-4 with two home runs and four runs batted in as Minnesota halted Toronto's four-game win streak.
Oguchi Onyewu
Stories about athletes getting paid umpteen-trillion dollars for doing something with a ball or bat are a dime a dozen these days. A professional athlete offering to work for free? Now, that's news. The World Cup-bound United States defender had his first season with AC Milan cut short after just one game with a horrific knee injury last October. But, in a display of his commitment to the club, Onyewu asked to have his contract extended one further year on Monday, forfeiting his salary for those 12 extra months.
Angel Pagan
Nice to see the New York Mets do occasionally make the highlight reel despite another doom-and-gloom year at Citi Field. Mired in last place in the National League East division, centre fielder Angel Pagan gave the faithful something to hang their hats on Wednesday, hitting an inside-the-park home run and assisting on a triple play, the first player to do both since Phillies shortstop Ted Kazanski in 1955. Of course, the Mets are still the Mets, so even a moment of history couldn't prevent them from losing their ninth game in their past 11.
BAD
Rafa Benitez
Having seen Liverpool's season conclude with a seventh-place finish last Sunday - the club's worst placing this century - the need for a fresh injection of talent was obvious. Still, the Reds' first signing of the summer will do little to boost the manager's willingness to stay, as the cash-strapped team have been the subject of an American Idol-style reality show to audition new players. To make things worse, Vietnamese Soccer Prince sounds like the furthest thing from footballing royalty. Hands up anyone who can name a world-class player from Vietnam. Anyone? Anyone?
Hanley Ramirez
Admittedly there were only about five people in the stadium to see it - attendance in South Florida isn't what it used to be - but the Marlins shortstop angered more than just his teammates and manager when he gave up on a play during a loss to the Diamondbacks last Monday. He also got under the skin of Florida special assistant Andre Dawson, who put him in his place on Tuesday. "I'm not going to say a lot, because if you say the wrong thing to me, then you might wind up on the floor on your rear end," Dawson said, clearly using every ounce of wisdom gleaned from his Hall of Fame career.
Brett Favre
After more off-seasons than anyone cares to remember umming and ahhing over his decision to retire, the Vikings quarterback has finally tired of the ordeal and turned the decision over to someone else. While his poor wife and family would be the obvious choice, Favre has instead turned to his alma mater, the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles. The future Hall of Famer told the baseball team Thursday that if it can return to the College World Series, he will come back for another season in the NFL. No pressure then.