GOOD
Sidney Crosby
Who needs the Say Hey Kid when there's Two-sport Sid in town? The Penguins captain is never going to be mistaken for Willie Mays, but in driving a baseball into the right-field seats of Pittsburgh's PNC Park on Wednesday during batting practice - the only one of his NHL teammates to do so - he showed he could maybe have chased Mays's 660 career home runs in a different life. Failing that, Crosby could still beef up the middle of the Pirates order - but with the lowest payroll in the majors they probably couldn't afford him.
Tom Brady
Not that he's ever been short of a bob or two - certainly not since winning the Super Bowl in his first year as a starter - but the New England Patriots quarterback enters the new NFL season as the league's highest-paid player after agreeing a new four-year, $72-million (U.S.) extension on Thursday. The extra cash will certainly come in handy though - Brady has to fix his car after being involved in an accident on his way to practice earlier that day.
Ray Lewis
Not one to kowtow to anybody, the Baltimore Ravens linebacker finally took issue with the steady stream of hot air spewing forth from the New York Jets - the self-proclaimed "Miami Heat of football" - this off-season. "If y'all are the Miami Heat, we got to be the [Los Angles]Lakers because we're looking for multiple rings," the former Super Bowl most valuable player said this week ahead of the teams' Monday night matchup. "You listen to all of this yap, yap, yap. The bottom line is you've got to buckle up your chin strap." Lewis better hope he can walk the walk after talking the talk.
Bill Lee
So what if 44-year-old Tim Wakefield became the oldest pitcher to win a game for the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday? He's a wee nipper compared to his predecessor on the Fenway mound, who, at 63, became the oldest pitcher to win a professional game, coming out of retirement to earn the W for the minor-league Broxton Rox. "This game was for all the guys who sent me letters saying they didn't want me on their ballclub," the Spaceman said after giving up just two runs off five hits in 5 1/3 innings of a 7-3 victory.
BAD
Diego Maradona
If it wasn't bad enough seeing Argentina ride roughshod over world champion Spain in just its second game since Maradona was relieved of his national soccer team coaching duties, his plans for his 50th birthday bash have come under threat from those party poopers at Italy's tax collection agency. Stemming from unpaid taxes during his playing days in Naples, Maradona may not be able to enjoy a birthday kickabout at his old stadium for fear the tax police - who already confiscated two Rolex watches and a diamond earring on a previous visit to Italy - take all his birthday prezzies, too.
Stephanie Rice
Though it seems to do more harm than good as far as athletes are concerned, the Twitter.com phenomenon shows no signs of fading - despite it assisting another fall from grace. Rice, a three-time Olympic champion swimmer, had previously enjoyed the free use of a $90,000 Jaguar sports car until her native Australia beat South Africa at rugby union last weekend. Then, it took her all of two seconds to tweet a disparaging remark about homosexuals. Not surprisingly, the luxury car manufacturer chose not to follow her lead, instead revoking its endorsement deal from the gold medalist.