Free Republic

The Dutch Cabinet will look into supplying F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine if the Kyiv government asks for it. During a parliamentary debate on Thursday, Minister Wopke Hoekstra of Foreign Affairs said the Cabinet would look at such a request with an “open mind.” In Davos, Minister Kajsa Ollongren of Defense also said that the Netherlands is willing to help pay for modern Leopard 2 tanks that other countries send to Ukraine. “That is certainly something we are willing to do,” she told Bloomberg. Hoekstra said there are “no taboos” for the delivery of regular equipment. Sjoerd Sjoerdsma (D66) asked...

So Conor Gillaspie in 2016 is Marco Scutaro from 2012 or Travis Ishikawa from 2014 or Cody Ross from 2010, at least for one enormous Wild-Card game and that means it could go on and on again… And Madison Bumgarner in 2016 is… Madison Bumgarner, the perpetual postseason legend. That’s a two-paragraph summary of the Giants’ scintillating 3-0 Wild-Card victory over the Mets tonight, and yes, obviously, the patterns and connections from the previous three Giants postseason trips are impossible to ignore. You know who probably understands this better than anybody? That’d be the Cubs, who now face the Giants...

Major League Baseball is exploring the possibility of making the designated hitter a staple of the National League as soon as 2017, according to Newsday's David Lennon.Commissioner Rob Manfred reportedly said the idea is "gaining momentum," per Lennon. Although the potential change could ruffle the feathers of baseball purists, Lennon cited several reasons MLB is seeking to implement the DH in the NL:

Major League Baseball has expanded its pool of postseason teams to 10 -- up from four just 19 years ago -- and next year will re-align into 15-team leagues that make for at least one interleague series all season long. But the biggest change of all may be around the next corner: the end of baseball as it was originally designed. "I would be shocked if 10 years from now there's not a DH in both leagues," said one influential baseball source.

As Major League Baseball continues to discuss possible realignment, one idea that has come up is going to a league with 15 teams per league, reports ESPN's Buster Olney. Currently, the National League has 16 teams and the AL 14 for scheduling purposes. Should baseball go to two 15-team leagues, that would likely require interleague play every day of the season. Given baseball likes to treat interleague play as an event, that could dilute the appeal of interleague play to the point it would no longer be a moneymaker. However, there is still real resistance to the idea which has...

NLCS Game 2 on now from Philadelphia. Phillies are now at bat, bottom of the 4th. Phillies lead 8-5, after a 3-run homer from Manny Rameriez.

Phillies lead 3-2 at the top of the 8th. What do people think of the Air National Guardsman singing "God Bless America"? How did she do?

51 minutes ago MILWAUKEE - Barry Bonds hit his 734th career home run Saturday night, breaking Hank Aaron's NL record in the same city where the Hall of Fame slugger started and ended his major league career. The San Francisco Giants star hit a 1-0 pitch from Milwaukee's Chris Capuano over the right-center fence in the third inning, just out of the reach of outfielders Brady Clark and Corey Hart. Bonds, who hit No. 733 and drove in a season-high six runs Friday night, is 21 homers shy of Aaron's career mark of 755. It was Bonds' 26th home run...

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Conceding that it might take "a miracle" for him to play again, Houston Astros slugger Jeff Bagwell went on the disabled list today in a move that could signal the end of his major-league career. The franchise's all-time leader in home runs and RBIs is considering surgery to remove the bone spurs in his shoulder in a last-ditch effort to salvage his career, and the Astros will start a season without him on the roster for the first time in 16 years. "I said I wasn't going to embarrass myself," said Bagwell, 37. "I felt like this...

NEW YORK (AP) -- Albert Pujols won his first National League MVP award, beating Andruw Jones in a close vote Tuesday. The St. Louis Cardinals first baseman ended Barry Bonds' four-year winning streak, receiving 18 first-place votes and 14 seconds for 378 points in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Jones, the Atlanta Braves center fielder, got 13 first-place votes, 17 seconds and two thirds for 351 points.

Good Sunday evening to you, fellow Freeper baseball fanatics. Great week just past, and an unreal last week to the season upon us..I wanted to get the thread up now, since I may not have a chance to do so tomorrow..The races are wilder, and tighter, than ever..

Mixed in with all the beatdowns and battles that dominated sports this past week was this little action by the NFL - Indianapolis Colts tight ends Marcus Pollard and Dallas Clark were each fined $5,000 for the "jump-and-bump" routine the two had taken to performing after scoring a touchdown.