Here's your wakeup call -- a combination of newsworthy andor interesting tidbits -- for Friday, October 26:
BASEBALL
Ray Ratto says the details the separated victory from defeat for the Giants in their Game 2 win over the Tigers last night "were subtle to the point of undetectable". (CSN Bay Area)
It helps that Bruce Bochy is having a near-perfect postseason. (NBC's Hardball Talk)
And speaking of perfect, it was a perfect relay . . . helped by the fact that Prince Fielder was the runner. (CSN Bay Area)
Or maybe it was just perfectly bad baserunning. (Hardball Talk)
The line drive Doug Fister took off the head conjured frightening memories of Brandon McCarthy being hit above the right ear in a game across the bay last month. But not only was Fister okay, he stayed in the game . . . and was dominant. (CSN Bay Area)
Sometimes you just have to give credit to the other guy. (CSN Bay Area)
Remember Bryan Stow, the Giants fan who was brutally beaten at Dodger Stadium on Opening Day 2011? He and his family attended Game 2 last night as guests of the Giants. (AP)
Mike Matheny still can't help looking at the Giants and thinking, "That could be us." (AP)
Mariano Rivera -- after vowing "I ain't going down like this" when he suffered his knee injury last spring -- is apparently now pondering retirement. Who can blame him, after watching the Yankees in the postseason? (Hardball Talk)
Ichiro, though, wants to come back to the Bronx. (Hardball Talk)
When CC Sabathia returns next year, it'll be without that bone spur in his left elbow. (AP)
Looking for a 16-game winner? It appears Kyle Loshe will be available. (AP)
Our own Sean McAdam reported that the Orioles' director of pitching development, Rick Peterson, is considered a "longshot" to be named John Farrell's pitching coach. And sure enough, Peterson says the Red Sox haven't contacted him. (CSN Baltimore)
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Well, here's good news: The NCAA says graduation rates are improving. (AP)
Except at UConn. (AP)
Geno Auriemma's suggestion that they lower the rims in the women's game has folks talking, that's for sure. (AP)
If you think Kentucky is the team to beat this year, John Calipari thinks you need "to be drug-tested". (AP)
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
If Manti Te'o really wants to win the Heisman Trophy, he'd better play well Saturday at Oklahoma. (CSN Chicago)
It was a record-breaking night for Clemson's Tajh Boyd and Sammy Watkins. (AP)
Tyrann Mathieu's troubles continue -- actually, they mount -- with an arrest for possession of marijuana. (AP)
HOCKEY
At last, the owners are beginning to see the cracks they've been waiting for: Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle isn't absolving the NHLPA from blame for the current stalemate, saying, "It's supposed to be a negotiation, and I think right now both sides feel like it's their way or the highway." (CSN Bay Area)
In the meantime, the owners are expected to take their offer off the table today. (NBC's Pro Hockey Talk)
Since no games mean no pay for them, too, some NHL linesmen are sending out resumes. (Pro Hockey Talk)
PRO BASKETBALL
The sad saga of Delonte West continues, and this latest episode is shrouded in secrecy. (AP)
Relax, says Kurt Helin. An 0-8 exhibition record isn't any reason to freak out. (NBC's Pro Basketball Talk)
Dwight Howard sure isn't. He still thinks going to the Lakers instead of the Nets was "a blessing in disguise", "an unbelievable experience", "a dream come true". (Pro Basketball Talk)
But if you want something to freak out about, Lakers Nation, here it is. (AP)
PRO FOOTBALL
Anyone see this coming? (AP)
Be proud, Jets fans: Your two quarterbacks are Nos. 1 and 2 in the NFL players' "most overrated" poll. (NBC's Pro Football Talk)
Nothing overrated about Jets-Dolphins trash talk, though. (AP)
London Fletcher's 231-consecutive-game streak is in doubt, as he visits a doctor about a possible head injury. (CSN Washington)
Another streak in jeopardy: Bart Scott's 119 straight games, because of a hyperextended big toe. (AP)
Tracy Porter -- who suffered seizure-like symptoms like week - is also seeing a doctor, hoping to get clearance to play in the Broncos' game Sunday night against the Saints. (AP)
Saying he's got "nothing but love for ya'all," Asante Samuel jokingly -- we think -- tells Eagles fans that they "better cheer for me" when the Falcons come to Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday "or we're going to have a problem . . . " (CSN Philly)