Attention

The last man to take a horse to Belmont with a chance to snag the elusive final gem in the Triple Crown has some advice for Doug O'Neill. Stay true to the horse. "I think trainers going around asking other people what they should do, looking for how to handle it, that's stupid," Rick Dutrow, trainer of Big Brown in 2008, said in a phone interview Sunday. "It's got to be about your horse. Whatever anybody else did doesn't matter. You know your horse. " O'Neill, trainer of Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another, has already disregarded common wisdom over the past three weeks.

Joe Flacco took a couple of steps to his right, spotted Ed Dickson about 10 yards down the field and lofted a pass between two defenders that the young tight end hauled in. After Dickson was touched down and the Ravens' offense retreated back to the line of scrimmage, Flacco yelled out a play that ended with his other primary tight end, Dennis Pitta, making a catch along the left sideline. Flacco wore a red jersey, black gym shorts and no shoulder pads, and his notoriously calm demeanor, which earned him the nickname "Joe Cool," was even more casual than usual.

All along, they had been so relaxed. So when it came time for Team O'Neill's horse to make his charge -- a historic one -- the colt moved forward almost nonchalantly. I'll Have Another glided past Bodemeister to win the 137th running of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course, setting up a chance at the first Triple Crown since 1978. The California-based horse is the 12th to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown since Affirmed edged Alydar in all three races.

Saturday's editions of The Sun will include an article on Loyola junior long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff, who narrowly missed out on being named one of five finalists for the Tewaaraton Award after recording one of the finer seasons in recent memory. Ratliff hails from Marietta, Ga., and graduated from George Walton Comprehensive High School there. The success of Ratliff and fellow Georgia natives Darius Bowling and Rick Lewis - both at Ohio State - has garnered the interest of a younger generation of lacrosse players in the Peach State.

Deputed Testamony is 32-years-old. His dark brown coat is shaggy, and his biggest excitement is going into his paddock at Bonita Farm for three or four hours of grazing each day. He is a pensioner, an icon. The oldest living winner of a Triple Crown race. But when Billy Boniface looks at the horse in his paddock, he sees the striking colt that was born and trained at the family farm and raced to victory in the 1983 Preakness - the last horse bred or trained in Maryland to do so. "Oh my gosh, I still get goose bumps when I look at him and remember that day," said Boniface, who was 18 then and had just taken over the breeding operation at the farm.

The Sun ran a story on page 3 about the theft of two bikes from a garage ("Two bikes are stolen from Jenna Bush Hager's garage," June 20). Someone broke into my store, causing damage, and stole over $5,000 worth of cigarettes. I spent $7,000 upgrading security! We didn't even make page 4! jcggordan

With at least two cable television shows — VH1's "The OCD Project" and A&E's "Obsessed" — featuring people struggling with obsessive-compulsive disorder, awareness may be on the rise. And Dr. Charles Mansueto hopes to give attention to the disorder on a more local, grass-roots level. Mansueto, of the Behavior Therapy Center in Silver Spring, has been treating those with obsessive-compulsive disorder for more than 25 years, and he says that the illness can be effectively managed.

And you wonder why the rest of the country calls Baltimore bush league, no pun intended. Here is young lady, daughter of a two-term president and granddaughter of a president, vice president, head of the CIA, Congressman and World War II Navy pilot hero who could be living in tall cotton in Texas (vs. crime city Baltimore) and teaching in an exclusive community. But she is here teaching inner-city kids in this cesspool city, and some people get bent out of shape because she got a little "extra" attention because she was robbed ("Jenna Bush burglary commands attention," June 24)

Hansen does not need to try to be noticed. The nearly all-white colt always stands out among his peers. Yet on Thursday morning, the Breeders' Cup juvenile champion did all he could to draw the attention of a robust crowd on his first day this week at Churchill Downs. A 10-1 choice on the morning line for the 138th Kentucky Derby, Hansen's antics didn't leave trainer Mike Maker concerned. "Looks like he really had his eyeballs on Take Charge Indy out there," Maker said.

Would someone explain to me, why during the week, we have to have three hours of news on the local stations? All during these broadcasts, all the information given is the same, especially the weather. The weather is given every 10 minutes. Also, on Feb. 18 in Rome, Baltimore ArchbishopEdwin O'Brienwas elevated to cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI. On the following day, however, only a small picture of Cardinal O'Brien receiving his red biretta from the Holy Father. Yet, in the same edition, there's a lengthy article on whether goats can be kept as pets ("Do goats suffer from discrimination?"

Katy McCabe spent six years in the Marines, including a 13-month tour in Iraq and two shorter stints in Afghanistan. So when she signed up for last year's Spartan Death Race, McCabe didn't think it would be more difficult than being in the military. "I really did think it would be a lot easier [than the Marines]," said McCabe, 32, who grew up in Aberdeen and lives in Ellicott City, where she works as a consultant. "I look at it differently now. It was brutal. " That is exactly what Andy Weinberg and Joe DeSena want to hear.

By now, many folks in the lacrosse community have already written off Stony Brook as a major player in the NCAA tournament after the Seawolves won the America East tournament crown despite a sub-.500 overall record (7-9). Plus, they must take on No. 2 seed Johns Hopkins at Homewood Field in Baltimore Sunday afternoon. That's not the approach Blue Jays coach Dave Pietramala is taking, especially with Stony Brook's first midfield. Junior Jeff Tundo and seniors Robbie Campbell and Russ Bonnano rank 2-3-4 on that offense in points with 42, 38 and 32, respectively.

As Kentucky Derby winner I'll Have Another vanned out of Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport with a police escort Monday afternoon, he was greeted by local horse fans trying to make him feel instantly at home. "People were lined up and chanting, 'I'd love another,'" said assistant trainer Jack Sisterson, who accompanied the horse on a flight from Louisville, Ky. "His ears are pricked and he's bobbing his head, 'Yeah, that's me!'" At Pimlico Race Course , cameras from local television stations were lined up along print media to record the arrival of the gorgeous, Doug O'Neill-trained chestnut as he came off the trailer and pranced to his stall.

No. 7 Maryland's defensive approach to Saturday's road contest against No. 12 Colgate sounds like a simple task: pay a lot of attention to Peter Baum. That's easier said than done. The junior attackman leads Division I in points per game (5.7) and goals per game (3.9) and was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year last week. The Terps are still debating whether to assign sophomore Michael Ehrhardt or freshman Goran Murray to Baum, but Ehrhardt - who has shadowed Johns Hopkins senior atatckman Chris Boland and Navy sophomore attackman Tucker Hull this season - said Baum is unlike any other player the defense and defensive coordinator Kevin Warne has faced thus far. “He can do everything,” Ehrhardt said.

Hansen does not need to try to be noticed. The nearly all-white colt always stands out among his peers. Yet on Thursday morning, the Breeders' Cup juvenile champion did all he could to draw the attention of a robust crowd on his first day this week at Churchill Downs. A 10-1 choice on the morning line for the 138th Kentucky Derby, Hansen's antics didn't leave trainer Mike Maker concerned. "Looks like he really had his eyeballs on Take Charge Indy out there," Maker said.

For Jana Hunter, the multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter of rising Baltimore band Lower Dens, album release dates typically mean anxiety and, once they're over, relief. But on the morning her group's second album, "Nootropics," hit stores, she said this day felt different. "I'm very excited about it," Hunter said earlier this week. "I feel like a little kid celebrating a birthday or something. " It's a feeling the members of Lower Dens have earned. After the band released its critically acclaimed debut album, "Twin-Hand Movement," in 2010, the group toured beyond the point of exhaustion, leading to member departures and panic attacks.

Where is the outrage for the 200-plus violent murders that take place in Baltimore City year in and year out? Where is the national discourse on this crisis? Why don't we have a national moment of silence for each and every victim of these endless, senseless murders? Why doesn't the president of United States give nationally televised speeches for each one of these individuals and their families? Are the victims in Baltimore City and their families not as important as those that were struck down in Tucson, Ariz.

After four years of negotiating in and with North Korea, I cannot say that I have all of the answers to deal with a regime that defies the expectations of rational thinking, but I do have at least one of them: The Democratic People's Republic of Korea leadership, whoever happens to be the leader of the moment, whether Great, Dear, or Supreme, can only be dissuaded from chronically irresponsible behavior and from crossing a so-called red line (i.e.,...

Johns Hopkins has dominated its Charles Street rival, winning 46 of 49 meetings and the last 12 contests in this series. But the No. 13 Blue Jays (9-3) have dropped three of their last four contests, scoring just three goals in their last six quarters. Loyola (12-0) can set a school record for best start with its 13th consecutive win. And the Greyhounds have lost just once at home in the last two years. Here are a few factors that could play a role in the outcome at Ridley Athletic Complex in Baltimore Saturday.