My bud Karl and I would talk about sports constantly even in chat, and with Spring officially here, he’s pretty psyched about Major League Baseball 2009. He’s a bigger fan than I am, really, but me being the huge sports fan, too, who am I to resist the hype?

Now this may seem foolish but I believe one of the best ways to prepare for a major sport coming into the season is to buy this year’s game based on that sport. It’ll help me learn the rosters, understand new rules, compile game stats, and heck, even master player-facial recognition based on their profile photos. Also, it gives me an excuse to spend more time with the PlayStation 3 than my dog, my writing, even my girlfriend (but I’m sure she’d raise hell if I do).

So I have two options: MLB 09 The Show or MLB 2K9. With MLB 09 The Show, gameplay is better and it really utilizes the PS3 platform’s capabilities to the fullest, while I’ve seen a whole bunch of negative reviews for MLB 2K9. Pretty easy choice, right? Well, no. It’ll hurt financially, but I sure would like to buy both because of this:

Tim Lincecum

From last season: 2.62 ERA, 18-5 Win-Loss record, 265 Strikeouts. NL Cy Young Awardee.

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Practically everyone has worn a modern-day Nike baller ID band, from multi-color straps to those with labels like Respect or Player, and of course the sports bracelet that boosted ID band popularity - the yellow LiveStrong wristbands. These silicone bracelets became all the rage and was created for a very good cause, by him who fought testicular cancer and never flinched, but even went on to achieve cycling greatness.

Well, Lance Armstrong is back, and with him comes the sustained popularity of the sport of cycling, and more importantly, a serious and more vigorous undertaking to promote cancer awareness. Say what you will about the restless status of his relationships (with a side remark on BFF Matthew McConaughey), but we can never deny his awesome power to inspire and sway people to his side.

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I remember wishing two things many years ago: the first was for the Maroons to sport black unis, considering that black is more often the color of choice for activists (aside from plaid button-downs of course) and that in sports, it is sometimes associated with aggression. Aggression is good in basketball, you see, the players who drive to the paint get rewarded with free throws, those who hustle and dive on the floor wins the possession, and so on. So, imagine my delight when they debuted new uniforms against Ateneo! Albeit a bit bland in design, I like it for being unique and gutsy. I hope they keep the color scheme.

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Before Team USA got on their way to redeeming Olympic basketball glory, three of their stars took a breather from an exhibition game in Shanghai, enjoying themselves to a game of good ol’ billiards. I’ll take Bata, Django, and Alex over Kobe, LeBron, and Melo any day of the year, though.

Kobe and LeBron photos after the jump.

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Kobe Bryant says he will flee the US if their team, the “Redeem Team,” fails to bag the Olympic gold for basketball. Such big talk—in the guise of a joke, of course—for the first-time Olympian, but really, what’s on his mind?

Anjali Rao of CNN Talk Asia recently spoke with the LA Laker on playing in front of President George Bush, going up against Yao Ming, LeBron leading the team, and egos—and we were lucky enough to get a hold of excerpts of that interview.

This Sunday you’re going to be playing what will be the biggest basketball game in China’s history, how are you feeling about everything?
I’m feeling excited. I mean it’s a great opportunity and I think for us to draw the first game playing against the host team is a little tough. But we understand the enthusiasm here in the city and we’re proud to just [be part of it]. We really can’t wait to get going.

President Bush is making an appearance at your game on Sunday, ever played in front of him before?
No, never. And I think it just shows the support not only for us, but for all US athletes—how important this is, how special this Olympics is, and it really is a tremendous honor to be able to do that.

Doesn’t that add a little bit of pressure when you picture yourself on the court doing your thing and you turn around and there’s President Bush watching your every move?
I hadn’t really thought about it but now that you bring it up, it really is! (laughs)

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