Kinsler, Phillips get contracts that fit their position

By Tony Gutierrez, AP


Ian Kinsler and Brandon Phillips were similar enough to begin with. With both second basemen getting contract extensions barely a day apart this week -- part of a spring rush to lock up key players across the game -- they can look foward to comparisons for at least another five years.
Phillips' six-year, $72.5 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds starts now and takes him through 2017. Kinsler is locked up throught he same season, thanks to a five-year, $82 million extension that takes effect next season. The Texas Rangers also have a option year on Kinsler for 2018.
Kinsler gets the edge in annual value but is that a measure of ability or market? The Rangers are feeling flush with a new television deal and could explore deals with free-agents-to-be Josh Hamilton, Mike Napoli and Colby Lewis. Kinsler fingered catcher Napoli as next in line, though that could be a close race with outfielder Hamilton.
The Reds might not have the same cash flow but have been just as eager to commit what they have -- locking up first baseman Joey Votto through 2023 with a 10-year, $225 million contract a week ago. Former MVP or not, Votto getting a deal past his 40th birthday raised some eyebrows.
The contracts for Phillips and Kinsler fall into a more comfortable age range --Phillips will be 36 when the '17 season ends, Kinsler 35. And both are athletic with body types likely to hold up. The only concern would be how much wear and tear the acrobatic Phillips and all-out Kinsler inflict on themselves. Then again, and here's the ever-present rub for all these deals, we would have said the same thing about Chase Utley four years ago when he was a similar age.
Neither Kinsler nor Phillips is the best player on his team but each is a pivotal peformer in a good lineup and important parts of their clubhouse cultures. They've spent six seasons as regulars with their current teams and Kinsler has a .276-.272 edge in batting average. Their home run and stolen base totals are nearly identical but Phillips' nearly 1,000 extra at-bats skew that comparison.
It's what they've done for their teams lately that drives the contract extensions anyway, and both are Top 5 second basemen in the majors over the previous two seasons.
Kinsler ranks third and Phillips fifth for 2010-11 in Fangraphs.com's Wins Above Replacement measurement. Robinson Cano of the Yankees and Dustin Pedroia are 1-2, with Tampa Bay's Ben Zobrist sliding in between Kinsler's 11.1 WAR and Phillips' 10.3.
These new deals are good news for Cano and Pedroia, who figure to move up into similar financial territory once it's their turn again. The Yankees picked up Cano's $14 million option for this season, turning his current deal into five years and $44 million. The team has another option for next season at $15 million.
Pedroia will have to exercise a bit more patience. His current contract is six years and $40.5 million through 2014, plus an $11 million club option for 2015 that figures to be a bargain.
For now, though, Kinsler has them all beat for annual dollar value and that could remain the case for awhile. Milwaukee's Rickie Weeks, 29 like Kinsler, signed an extension last spring that includes an option for 2015 that vests at $11.5 million pretty much if he stays healthy and in the lineup. And Zobrist also is locked up through 2015 assuming the Rays pick up a couple of option years that don't go above $7.5 million.
As for value on the field, Fangraphs gives him the advantage over Phillips in hitting and baserunning the past two years. Phillips has been the better defender over that period.
Overall in 2010-11, according to Fangraphs, Kinsler trails Cano, Weeks, Pedroia and Atlanta's Dan Uggla on offense but leads all second baseman running the bases and trails only Pedroia, Zobrist and Phillips on defense. Phillips is eighth on offense, fourth on the basepaths.
In other words -- or in words rather than numnbers -- Phillips and especially Kinsler find themselves in a comfortable economic league for themselves -- and really not so far-fetched for their teams.

USA Today

Seal Files Own Papers in Heidi Klum Divorce

Seal and Heidi Klum

Charley Gallay/Getty

Just days after Heidi Klum filed for divorce, Seal answered with court papers seeking joint physical custody of their four children.

The singer's filing Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court differs from the model's papers that sought joint legal custody with visitation for Seal of Leni, 7½, Henry, 6½, Johan, 5, and Lou, 2.

But a source tells PEOPLE this is merely a legal technicality and no custody fight is expected. As with Klum's petition, Seal's papers cite the standard "irreconcilable differences" for the end of the nearly seven-year marriage.

Rumors first swirled that Klum, 38, and Seal, 49, were planning to divorce the day before they made the announcement.

For the couple who married in Mexico in 2005, the split played out in headlines as the end of a fairy tale as both Seal and Klum gradually stopped wearing their wedding rings. 

 People

'American Idol' Recap: DeAndre Brackensick Bites the Dust

Jennifer Lopez called the 17-year-old "an amazing performer," but on 80s night, the Top 8 finalist failed to impress Jimmy Iovine.

Michael Becker / FOX


When DeAndre Brackensick sang DeBarge's "I Like It," Jennifer Lopez couldn't help but say, "I Like It!"
Randy Jackson liked it too. So did Steven Tyler.
Sadly for Brackensick, he of the flowing locks and the high falsetto, Interscope Geffen A&M head Jimmy Iovine did not.
When it was time for Brackensick to sing for his life, the one Tyler deemed "the male Naima" reprised his reggae-flavored version of Stevie Wonder's "Master Blaster." Despite Lopez's pleas, the save was once again not utilized.

Undeterred, Lopez offered words of praise to the 17-year old performer. "You're an amazing performer. I stand by that," she said.
Which brings us to our original theory that perhaps the judges are holding out to save Elise Testone, who came perilously close to elimination after a performance Iovine described as a "classic choke."
Ouch. Iovine was particularly brutal on an evening that featured the premiere of Lopez's new video "Dance Again," (pairing her up once more with Pitbull and some steamy moves with backup dancer/boyfriend Casper Smart-that dance with Marc Anthony in last season's finale seems sooooo long ago, doesn't it?) and  the sunshine of the ever so positive Kellie Pickler, who performed "Where's Tammy Wynette?" off her latest album, 100 Proof.
Pickler offered words of hope early on, noting "I think everyone this season is going to get a record deal."
If Iovine's comments are any indication, a shoo-in for a deal is his new favorite "powerhouse" singer Skylar Laine, who Iovine combined vocals and performance showmanship that shows that she's "got to have it" (Ok, that's Jackson's new catch phrase, but at least he's resting his oft-repeated "in it to win it").
STORY: 'American Idol's' Kris Allen Guests on Next Episode of THR's 'Idol Hangover'
The evening also featured The Wanted, singing their hit, "Glad You Came," showing they got 'the right stuff" and riding the boy band wave spearheaded by Big Time Rush and One Direction. However, it was '80s night. Perhaps New Kids on the Block should have gotten a nod (THR Music Editor Shirley Halperin was jonesing for some Duran Duran last night, and we agree-that snippet of Tears for Fears' "Shout" just wasn't enough).
In a new twist, host Ryan Seacrest said that the bottom three would be broken down by duet partners. Iovine hinted that Brackensick would be sent home early in the show, correctly predicting that Brackensick and partner Hollie Cavanagh on The Pointer Sisters' "I'm So Excited" had nothing to be excited about. He said both singers would be fighting it out in the bottom three.
"She might be fighting with DeAndre for who is packing," he hinted after his lackluster review of Cavanah's rendition of Irene Cara's "Flashdance (What a Feeling)."
However, the bottom three weren't the only ones who faced the wrath of Iovine. Phillip Phillips nonchalant "I gotta be me" routine is wearing thin on Iovine, who made a scathing comment directed at both Phillips and perhaps the judges, who praised Phillips' version of Genesis' "That's All."


"It's so hard to push yourself when everybody is telling you you're great," Iovine said.
In other Idol drama, poor Joshua Ledet was under the bright lights at a time when he was not feeling so hot. Ledet was suffering from a mysterious illness that made the singer feel faint, prompting Seacrest to attempt to land another job as the Idol medical assistant. He just seemed so doctor like, doing his best Marcus Welby, M.D. impression with the whole "if you need anything, let me know" routine.
 Ledet did get something to cheer him up: a tweet from a teacher and his students in Vietnam wishing him good luck on his Idol journey. According to Seacrest, the show is encouraging more video tweets, and it's a savvy move. More audience involvement is a good thing-it's something former judge Ellen DeGeneres has done on Ellen for years with great success.
Left standing were: Colton Dixon, Phillip Phillips, Skylar Laine, Hollie Cavanagh, Joshua Ledet, Jessica Sanchez, and Elise Testone.
As for the rest of Iovine's comments, here is how it went down:
Joshua Ledet: Iovine said his version of Simply Red's "If You Don't Know Me By Now" put him "in his sweet spot right now," and that Ledet looked "very comfortable and looked like a pro. He declared "10s all around" for Ledet.
Jessica Sanchez:  Iovine felt she sang Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" "beautifully with emotion," but warned that  "she needs bigger songs and more powerful songs." He added that Joshua won this week because "he picked a better song."
Skylar Laine:  "I am so happy we talked her out of "9 to 5" he said of Laine's swith to Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings," declaring that she is just as much a powerhouse as Cavanagh and Sanchez. "Last night she proved it to me," he said. "She went from the bottom to the top. If she continues this, she can win the whole thing."
Colton Dixon: Iovine disagreed with the judges once more on Dixon's take of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time." Iovine said Dixon was "good, not great. Just like sports, you don't have to be the best team, you just have to be the better team. Last night, he wasn't."
Hollie Cavanagh: On the aforementioned "Flashdance (What A Feeling)" Iovine said, "Hollie's problem is she is approaching this like a high school performance. He called the performance "stiff," and asked "where's the feeling?"
DeAndre Brackensick: In his most direct hit of the night, Iovine took the judges to task on their praise of Brackensick's DeBarge selection, saying "No Jennifer, No Randy, No Steven. DeAndre was not great." He called Brackensick the "weakest of the boys," and said barring a save from Lopez, he "could be going."
Phillip Phillips: Again, Iovine let it rip, this time saying that Phillips' latest Phil Collins cover was his "worst performance of the season."
Elise Testone: Iovine stood by Testone's original peformance's of Foreigner's "I Want to Know What Love Is," saying: "I assure you, Steven, this was the right song." He put the blame on Testone, not the stune. "She hit the stage and did not sing it incredible," calling it, "an old-fashioned choke."
Maybe next week's guest performers -- Jennifer Hudson with Ne-yo and Rick Ross and season 10 alum James Durbin -- can school the top 7.
So what do you think, Worshippers? Did America get it right? Who are they going to save this season?


Hollywood Reporter

Shannen Doherty Sympathizes with Jennie Garth over Spilt

Shannen Doherty (left) and Jennie Garth

Lionel Hahn/Abaca; Jen Lowery/Splash News Online

Shannen Doherty knows what it's like to have her personal life on display – so she can relate to what former 90210 costar Jennie Garth is going through with her very public split from husband Peter Facinelli.

"I think that for somebody like Jennie who values family so much, this is incredibly hard for her," Doherty told PEOPLE Thursday on a conference call for reporters to promote her new reality show, Shannen Says.

"I feel for her and, more importantly, I feel for her kids," she continued. "There are children involved [and] children have access to the Internet and everything that somebody may write."

On a happier note, Doherty, 40, says that she's also supportive of Garth's reality TV venture; she's a fan of fellow 90210 alum Tori Spelling's show, too.

"I happen to watch Tori's show and I think it's incredibly charming and endearing and I can't wait to see Jennie's show," Doherty told reporters. "I think [it's] gonna be great."

"I did the new 90210 with Jennie and there was something very different about our friendship," she said. "We were able to look at each other as grown women and really acknowledge that we like who the other person was now, as adults."

As for her other former castmates, "I speak to Brian [Austin Green] all the time and I saw Ian [Ziering] a week ago and it was awesome," she said.

"He's a sweetheart and he stays so young looking, it's ridiculous," she added with a laugh. "I'm incredibly jealous."

Doherty's new reality show – which chronicles her road to the altar with now-husband Kurt Iswarienko – premieres on WEtv April 10 at 10 p.m. ET.

People

Report: Apple investigating Wi-Fi issues with new iPad

(Mashable) -- Apple is investigating several issues with its new iPad's Wi-Fi connectivity, according to an internal AppleCare document unearthed by MacRumors.

According to the document, symptoms include "intermittent connectivity, slow Wi-Fi speeds" and "Wi-Fi network not seen" -- all of which sound quite serious.

A thread on Apple's online support forums discussing the issues currently has 712 replies, indicating that the problem is very real. For comparison, a thread about the iPad overheating issue, which was widely discusses in the media, currently has 876 replies.

Most of the replies on the thread indicate that the problem affects only the Wi-Fi version of the new iPad and not the 3G model.

If the AppleCare document is real, Apple is currently trying to "capture" and replace iPads which have problems with Wi-Fi connectivity. However, there's currently no official word from Apple about the issue.

CNN

Swiss Franc Showdown Looms as Jordan Defends SNB Ceiling

Swiss National Bank (SNBN) interim Chairman Thomas Jordan is facing a showdown with investors as his currency policy endures the biggest credibility test to date.
Within minutes of the franc breaching the 1.20 ceiling versus the euro yesterday for the first time since the measure was introduced on Sept. 6, the central bank declared its determination to fight any further attacks. Jordan, 49, is now in a face-off with investors probing just how far he will go to enforce that threat.


“It’s a wake-up call for the SNB,” said Peter Rosenstreich, chief foreign-exchange strategist at Swissquote Bank SA in Geneva. “They’ve been very successful with their verbal intervention and this is a classic street fight between central banks and markets. Their credibility is going to be questioned and they’ll have to respond in some way.”
The franc, which is considered a haven in times of turmoil, strengthened for a second day after Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said that his nation is confronting “extreme difficulty.” The euro region’s fourth-largest economy sold 2.59 billion euros ($3.4 billion) of bonds this week, just covering the minimum amount targeted.
The Swiss currency traded at 1.20186 versus the euro at 6:01 p.m. yesterday in London after surging as high as 1.19995. It has stayed at an average of 1.2069 versus the single currency since Jordan took over as interim chairman on Jan. 9.

‘Risk Aversion’

“Risk aversion has increased, people want to avoid the euro,” said Claude Maurer, an economist at Credit Suisse Group AG in Zurich. “The SNB was probably hoping for a more relaxed Easter break. Jordan’s job won’t get any easier.”
The breach of the ceiling follows an interregnum at the helm of the central bank that is approaching the end of its third month. Jordan was appointed interim chairman after Philipp Hildebrand was forced to quit in January over a currency transaction by his wife, leaving the SNB board with only two members.
The SNB’s supervisory board will discuss the selection of a successor to Philipp Hildebrand on April 13, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting’s agenda. The Bank Council will consider candidates and then propose one to the Swiss government, which has the final say, said the person, who declined to be identified because the matter is private.

‘Very Strong’

Jordan, the frontrunner for the post, described the franc as still “very, very strong” in his latest public remarks on March 15, and reiterated that policy makers are ready to take further measures “if there’s a worsening of the situation.” The Zurich-based central bank on that day kept the ceiling at 1.20 and maintained its benchmark interest rate at zero, saying it still sees deflation threats.
SNB board member Jean-Pierre Danthine said this week that the franc remains “overvalued,” according to the Tribune de Geneve newspaper. While the franc cap helped exporters “avoid the worst,” annual rates in consumer prices will continue to decline this year, he said.
The SNB applies a “zero-tolerance principle” on its cap, Danthine said as recently as March 22. It “ensures day and night that the minimum exchange rate is maintained -- from Sunday night when the markets open in Sydney until Friday night when markets close in New York.”

Inflation Forecasts

The SNB last month lowered its inflation projections throughout the entire forecast horizon, partly as the franc’s ascent pushed down costs of imports. It forecast that consumer prices will fall 0.6 percent this year, before inflation returns in 2013 with a rate of 0.3 percent, accelerating to 0.6 percent in 2014. The economy may expand around 1 percent this year, it said.
Michael Derks, chief strategist at FXPro Financial Services Ltd., said data yesterday showing that Swiss consumer prices rose 0.6 percent in March from February may also have “emboldened traders” by throwing “into question the SNB’s projection that the economy would experience deflation this year.”
“The SNB is being put to the test, with euro-franc now very close to the 1.20 ceiling that it has vowed to defend,” Derks wrote in an e-mailed note from London. “Suddenly, the old safe-haven favorites are back on the big stage.”
The central bank introduced the franc ceiling after the euro area’s fiscal crisis prompted investors to pile into the currency, pushing it to near parity with the euro. It has weakened about 7.7 percent against the euro since the cap’s creation after surging as much as 37 percent in the previous 12 months.

‘Brief Breach’

While the SNB doesn’t disclose whether it’s intervening in markets to defend the ceiling, its foreign currency reserves were at 237.5 billion francs ($258 billion) at the end of March, up from 227.2 billion francs the previous month, according to a statement published yesterday. The central bank spent 17.8 billion francs in 2011 to stem what it called the currency’s “massive overvaluation.”
Melinda Burgess, a currency analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc in London, said ongoing euro-region tensions may keep the franc close to the 1.20 ceiling.
“We’ve seen a brief breach and markets may very well want to test the SNB,” she said in a telephone interview. “The euro has its own issues at the moment in terms of periphery stress starting to come back to the fore. But the SNB stance will be to stand tightly behind the floor.”

Bloomberg.com

Emma Stone Compares Kissing Ryan Gosling to Andrew Garfield

Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield

Sara De Boer/Startraks; Steve Granitz/WireImage; PictureGroup

In last year's Crazy Stupid Love, Emma Stone's character prepped for a kissing scene with Ryan Gosling with the memorable line, "It's like you're Photoshopped!"

So how did making out with Gosling, 31, measure up to Stone's love scenes with Andrew Garfield, 28, her real-life boyfriend and costar in the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man?

"Apples and oranges, you know," Stone, 23, coyly told Ellen DeGeneres on Wednesday's The Ellen DeGeneres Show, when asked which one was the better kisser.

"So, is that an apple or an orange?" DeGeneres prodded.

"I love all fruit," Stone responded diplomatically.

The actress will certainly have more opportunities to compare the two – and not just due to her off-screen relationship with Garfield.

In addition to costarring in the upcoming romance The Gangster Squad, Stone and Gosling are two of the names that have been bandied about for the leading roles of Christian and Anastasia in the film adaptation of the steamy erotic novel Fifty Shades of Grey.

People