I Love It, Brother

I think that it took most of the sports world by storm when Cliff Lee agreed to a contract with the Philadelphia Phillies over the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers. New York and Texas were widely thought to be the only two major players in the battle for Lee before last night. As a supporter of the "Anyone But The Yankees" cause, this is good news, in a sense. However, Philadelphia now has the best starting pitching core in the majors since Atlanta's trio of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz over a decade ago. Quite honestly, it may be one of the best pitching rotations in the past few decades. Obviously, that claim is up for debate, but let's take a look at the potential starting rotation for the Phillies next year. Of the five starters (Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt, Cole Hamels, and Joe Blanton), two (Halladay and Lee) are Cy Young winners. A third (Oswalt) has been a Cy Young finalist multiple times. Hamels was the 2008 World Series MVP, and not too long ago was the club's ace. Blanton, while having the least credentials in the group, still posted a 9-6 overall record last season.

The only way I can see Philadelphia not winning the National League is if they have the offensive firepower of a local coach pitch team. Yes, the Phils were sub-par offensively last season, and the departure of Jason Werth does not help matters. However, we saw what happened with San Francisco this past fall; it was almost impossible to earn runs on their spectacular starting rotation. San Francisco's offense only had to squeeze out a few runs a game, and the superior pitching more often than not preserved the small leads. The young core that San Francisco had doesn't even compare to what Philadelphia has now. Four elite pitchers, all in their prime. Unless injuries become an issue, someone better send a memo to all the National League General Managers: You better watch out for the "Philly Phour".

Does anyone else feel even a little bit bad for Brett Favre? Sure, for three years the Favre Chronicles has been a soap-opera worthy of a mid-afternoon TV slot, but it was really kind of sad to see Favre's Iron Man streak come to an end under the circumstances that it did. Not only was the game played in Detroit, where the number of Minnesota fans is about the same as that of residents of the city that still have a job, but to add insult to injury (no pun intended), Favre got to watch his team get crushed. You know it has to be painful to sit on the sidelines (again, no pun intended) as you watch your replacement trip his own running back on a simple handoff. No matter what you think of Favre's antics, you have to admire his desire to play the game. On Yahoo! Sports, Favre is listed as questionable for this weekend's game against Chicago, with chest, ankle, and right shoulder injuries. The man is practically falling apart, yet still will not admit defeat. However, due to many people's perception of him, his greatest assets may always be at least partly overshadowed by his recent behavior. It's unfortunate that Favre's career looks as if it will end more like the final scene of The Hulk, rather than a hero of the game riding off into the sunset as it should.

You heard it here first; in three years, the Miami Hurricanes will make the rivalry with the Florida Gators relevant again. I believe that the Hurricanes made a great move by making Al Golden their new head coach, and I think that Florida fans may be missing Urban Meyer sooner than they think, as the university signed current Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp to be their head coach starting next season. Golden completely turned around a Temple team that hadn't been to a bowl game since 1979 before going to the Eagle Bank Bowl last year. Like Muschamp, Golden is a former defensive coordinator, but has experience running the entire show, and was one of the most sought after young coaches in the game dating back to last year. I think that Golden is much like Meyer, in that he shows the ability to improve a team wherever he goes. Muschamp, while being an extremely talented defensive coordinator, announced that he will institute a pro-style offense at Florida. It is very difficult to successfully run a pro-style offense, and as a defensive coordinator with no prior head coaching experience, will likely be even more difficult for Muschamp. Also, Florida fans can complain about the spread, but one of the reasons Meyer implemented that style of offense is because, as of late, Florida has not been able to recruit the players to run the pro-style. I think we will find that Golden is a true head coach, while Muschamp is just a very talented defensive coordinator. While neither team may be an elite college football power for awhile, I think that Miami will rise and Florida will continue to fall, making this a much more balanced rivalry as long as both of these men are at the helm.



- K. Becks

MLB Divisional Playoffs Predictions

Unfortunately, due to the copious amount of homework that I now have due to college, I don't have the time to produce a long, in-depth post for these predictions. However, I'll give a short explanation for my picks.

American League

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Texas Rangers

The Rays have home field advantage, as well as playoff experience. The Rangers have been the feel good story of the year, but this is probably the end of the road for Texas, barring terrific pitching performances by their top three starters.

Prediction: Rays in four

Minnesota Twins vs. New York Yankees

I want to root for the Twins, but something tells me that the end result will look the same as last year's Divisional Series between these two teams. Once again, pitching will probably be the story of this series, and New York holds the upper hand in that department. The Twins will put up a better fight than last year, but won't be moving on.

Prediction: Yankees in five


National League

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Cincinnati Reds

If this were a League Championship Series rather than a Divisional Series, my prediction would probably be different. Cincinnati is a tough, gritty team that I think could win a seven game series against Philadelphia. However, the Phillies trio of Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt, and Cole Hamels will be very difficult to beat, especially with home field advantage. Whoever wins this series has a great chance of making it to the World Series in my opinion.

Prediction: Phillies in five

San Francisco Giants vs. Atlanta Braves

Like the Phillies, San Francisco's top three in their pitching rotation are extremely difficult to beat. Tim Lincecum is playing very well right now, and the Braves weren't exactly lighting it up heading into this postseason. With that being said, San Francisco should be able to take care of an Atlanta team that limped into the playoffs. Literally.

Prediction: Giants in four


Again, sorry that this post is so short and uninformative. Hopefully I can do a more in-depth post when the League Championship Series are set. At any rate, on Friday I will be back with my weekly installment of the college football weekend preview. I should also have some baseball related polls to vote on by tomorrow. Any questions, comments, or thoughts can be sent to aroundthecornsportsblog@gmail.com or by posting in the comments section below. Thanks everyone.



- K. Becks

Hold On There, Partner

We were all about ready to say that the Big Ten might be as good as the SEC this year. Unfortunately for Jim Delany, everyone is holding their tongues to avoid a premature anointment of greatness. The top of the Big Ten, save Ohio State (who rolled to a 43-7 victory over in-state rival Ohio), did not look very good at all this past weekend. Although the Buckeyes won, they still showed a weakness that has proven to be, at least at this point in the season, their only vulnerability; special teams. Iowa got into the mess that they did in the first half thanks to a blocked punt (which resulted in a touchdown) and a kickoff return for a touchdown. Wisconsin didn't look solid on special teams either, other than their block of Arizona State's extra point attempt in the fourth quarter, which ultimately proved to be the difference in a 20-19 Badgers win. What does all this say so far about the Big Ten? Well, since one of their best went down this past weekend, another survived a scare at home, and a third didn't have much trouble against a walkover (but still didn't look great on special teams), they need to fix the special teams dilemma. The weakness was highlighted in Ohio State's game against Miami two weekends ago. If the Big Ten wants to have a realistic shot of dethroning the SEC, they need to be able to contain these speedy return men, of which are plenty in the SEC. Special teams can win or lose games, and if the Big Ten wants to be on the winning side, they need to tighten up the special teams.

Part of being an NFL fan is that you must proclaim your team the greatest with each win, and cover your head to avoid a piece of the sky falling with each loss. This is especially true considering a team which, on paper, has all the tools to hold up the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season. Yes, I am talking about the Dallas Cowboys. It is hard to pinpoint what the real problem is for the Cowboys. They have been in close games with teams who may be surprisingly difficult to beat this year (sure, Chicago was a controversial call away from losing in Detroit. They are 2-0, though. Washington followed up their win against Dallas with a valiant effort against the 2-0 Texans). Tony Romo hasn't played terribly, either. I think that Dallas themselves are a little confused, which is why it has been rather quiet from the Cowboys camp. No one is pointing fingers. Yet. However, the Cowboys get to face the Houston Texans this weekend for their first road test. A third loss to start the season and fingers will be flying in every direction. The only mystery will be at whom.

I really hope that the Colorado Rockies make the playoffs. It seems that each year, the Rockies catch fire at precisely the right time in order to make a run for the playoffs, and add excitement to what can often be a rather bland National League picture. Now that Troy Tulowitzki is back, he has energized this Colorado team once again, and is playing like the best player in baseball. If the Rockies do manage to make the playoffs, I don't see why they can't make it all the way to the World Series, much like they did back in 2007. Statistically, the Rockies' pitching performance as a whole is not any better than the Phillies' pitching. However, thanks to the play of guys like Tulowitzski and Colorado's consistent raising of the bar deep into the season, I think it would be an extremely exciting series. If the Rockies don't make in the NLCS, then I think the league is the Phillies for the taking once again (that is, of course, assuming that they make the playoffs as well). I don't see enough from San Diego or San Francisco to suggest otherwise, and I think that Cincinnati's inexperience in the playoffs will ultimately be their demise.


Questions or comments about anything I've written or about anything in sports you'd like to discuss? Send me an email at aroundthecornsportsblog@gmail.com or post a comment in the comments section, and I'll get back to you as quickly as possible. Have a Facebook page? Then please check out the Around The Corn Sports Blog fan page, and become a fan if you enjoy the site. Also, remember that you can now type in www.aroundthecorn.com into your browser and be redirected to the blog. Thanks everyone!



- K. Becks

R.I.P Boss

Today, the sporting world lost arguably the greatest owner in all of sports. George Steinbrenner was eighty years old, celebrating his birthday just over a week ago on the Fourth of July. Not everyone liked Steinbrenner; there is no denying that he was a loud, no-nonsense guy at times, who exhibited very little patience with his managers and players. However, people who knew him well were exposed to his softer, more compassionate side that made him a very likable man. Regardless of which side you saw, you can agree that the man was always about winning. These days, it seems like owners that are only about turning a profit, even at the expense of their team's performance, are dime-a-dozen. However, Steinbrenner would readily dish out an obscene amount of money to pick up a player he felt he needed in order to win. The saying goes "you have to spend money to make money", and make money he did. When he bought the Yankees in 1973, Steinbrenner spent about 8.7 million dollars. Now, the Yankees are worth about 1.6 billion dollars. Some people called his tactics bad for the game, but the fact of the matter is, you knew every year when The Boss pulled out his checkbook that his chief motive was to try to put the best possible baseball team on the field. You can't really fault a guy for that, and that is why Steinbrenner will be missed tremendously in the entire baseball community. R.I.P., George.

Even more bad news has hit the city of Cleveland, and no, it's not that owner Dan Gilbert has to pay a 100,000 dollar fine for his remarks about Lebron James. No, it's that center Zydrunas Ilgauskas will leave Cleveland and sign with none other than the Miami Heat. Not only does this mean that Cleveland has no one worth mentioning on their roster, but now it almost assures that the Miami Heat will be the preseason favorites to win the NBA Championship in 2011. The reason that I heard being thrown around that the Heat may have trouble winning with only the Big Three was that they didn't have enough to deal with the tandem of Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol, and Andrew Bynum in Los Angeles. However, with Ilgauskas now in Miami, the tables have been turned. How is Los Angeles going to deal with those two monsters (Ilgauskas and Bosh) down low?

The Tour de France hasn't been getting too much attention on this blog, and here's why it probably won't be getting much more after this; Lance Armstrong, the only reason Americans have really had any interest in the Tour for the last eleven years, has announced that his chance of winning the Tour is pretty much gone. The sad part is that it wasn't really his fault, either. In Stage 8, he got caught up in three crashes, losing valuable time to the leaders during a stage in which he put time on the rest of the pack in previous Tours. Lance is still better than ninety percent of the riders in the race, but I think that this will be his last Tour de France. The great ones never accept defeat when they know they still have enough left in the tank, and Armstrong has accepted defeat.

The All-Star game is currently being played, with the AL holding onto a slim 1-0 lead over the NL in the bottom of the 6th. If they can hold on for the win, it will be their fourteenth consecutive win over the NL in the All-Star game, which is quite a streak. However, is the streak really that great since it is technically still an exhibition game? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section, or email me at aroundthecornsportsblog@gmail.com. Thanks everyone.



- K. Becks

Viva Espana!

The 2010 FIFA World Cup has finally come to a close, with Spain finally getting the trophy that has eluded their fine football federation for so long. Although it wasn't as beautiful a game as many World Cup Finals are, the fact is, Spain got it done and they deserved it. Unlike most people in the U.S., I continued to pay attention to the tournament after the United States was eliminated, and I'm glad that I did. I feel that something like the World Cup, which only comes around every four years, is a special kind of event and can be interesting even when there isn't a specific team that I'm rooting for to win. Since there are many of you that probably didn't see anything beyond the Round of 16, this video will fill you in on all the great moments from this year's World Cup. I'm going to miss actually paying close attention to soccer, but there is a slight chance that I'll still be posting in four years time. I'm not that optimistic that the World Cup in 2014 will be as wide open as it was this year though; with Brazil on their home turf, and with a new coach that will likely lead them back to playing the "Beautiful Game", it will be their tournament to lose. My extremely early prediction is that they won't.

Since the World Cup is over, it is very likely that this will be my last post that mentions the World Cup for quite awhile. With that being said, I promised my buddy Neil that I would put his thoughts on the World Cup in a post. If you recall, Neil wrote a guest article about the Six Nations Rugby Cup back in March, so his work is well documented on this blog.

I believe that the World Cup is kind of like the Special Olympics of hockey, and here is why: While the object of both games is to put a ball/puck into a goal:
1. Everything is about 1/4 of the speed.
2. Everyone falls down at the slightest contact despite not being on ice
3. The ball is 10Xs the size (like a little kid's pencil)
4. The goal is 4Xs the size (Which would ensure more scoring, right? Wrong.)
5. (This one is bad, but...) opponents can't understand each other
6. Everyone cheers for both teams, win, lose, or draw, because it really doesn't make a difference as long as you showed up

Disclaimer: I believe that Special Olympians try much harder than most World Cup participants. No disrespect to them is meant.

Considering that I haven't added much humor in a long time, my thanks go out to Neil for his creative input.


Now that the World Cup has concluded, Major League Baseball is on their All-Star break, and football hasn't started yet, the sports media has nothing better to talk about than the Lebron saga. Quite frankly, I'm sick of hearing about it. There is only so much you can say, and saying the same thing eleven different ways doesn't make for particularly interesting TV or radio in my opinion. However, one new piece of news regarding the situation did surface; Dan Gilbert retracted his statement about the Cavs winning a title before Lebron James and the Heat win one. Can someone say "a little too late"? Gilbert has already come off looking like a child with his tirade, and now even Jesse Jackson is in on the roast of Gilbert. Of course, since Jesse Jackson is all about getting attention, you'll have to read somewhere else what he said about Gilbert, because I will not be a part of the vicious cycle that keeps Jesse Jackson in the news.

Tomorrow is the MLB All-Star game, and although I think that the Celebrity All-Star game (which is currently being played) is much more exciting to watch, I'll probably tune in because, unlike every other sports' All Star game, it actually means something. Also, since this is shaping up to be "The Year of the Pitcher", it could be a great game from a defensive standpoint, which for the most part has been the story in the last few All-Star games as well.



- K. Becks

Wow, Really?

The title is directed at both Dan Gilbert and the Miami Heat organization. For Gilbert, did you really have to make a fool of yourself by writing a letter to the fans, bashing Lebron James in the process? I always say that when you're too passionate about something, you lose your reason, and that is exactly what Gilbert did in the letter. Guaranteeing an NBA championship for Cleveland before Lebron and Company get theirs is preposterous, not only because Cleveland has nowhere near the talent to do such a thing, but because that sort of promise is something you'd hear from someone who is around the age of twelve. As for the Heat organization, was it really necessary to squirt lemon juice into the eyes of Cleveland fans the day after they had just been sucker-punched below the belt? No one but fans of the Heat really cared about the introduction celebration, so why was it necessary to broadcast it on ESPN2? Lebron did not look happy to be there, and if you were him, would you be either? The last thing he wanted to do was pour salt into the city of Cleveland's wound that, by the way, he created. Once again, I'm not saying that he should have stayed; I'm just saying that his departure created the somber mood felt in his hometown.

Now that "The Decision" is over, at least we can get back to focusing on sports that are actually in season. Today one of the bigger trade deals took place in baseball, with Seattle pitcher Cliff Lee being traded to the Texas Rangers. Early in the day, it looked as if Lee was going to be traded to the Yankees, which would have made it almost worthless to watch the MLB come September with the pitching that they would have had. However, this trade makes the American League much more intriguing. With Lee in Texas, the Rangers have a very decent shot at making the playoffs for the first time since 1999, while the Yankees cannot assume the role as overwhelming favorites to win the World Series. Had Lee gone to New York, it would have been extremely hard to contend with the pitching combination of Lee, C.C. Sabathia, Phil Hughes, and Mariano Rivera. Granted, they are probably still the team to beat, but with Lee they could have been runaway favorites. No matter how much New York fans disagree, that would not have been good for baseball.

On Sunday, the World Cup will culminate in Johannesburg when either Spain or the Netherlands will hoist the famed goblet for the first time ever. Unlike Spain, the Netherlands have been to the Finals twice before but have not yet broken through to win the Cup. I predicted that Spain would win it from the beginning, but I think that either way it should be a tremendous game. Both of these teams are well deserving of being called World Cup champions, and it should be an absolute party for whichever country comes away with the win. Something that is worth noting is that the top goal scorers in the tournament (Netherland's Wesley Sneijder and Spain's David Villa) will be playing, and the Golden Boot award winner could very well be the man who wins the World Cup for his respective nation. As long as the game doesn't come down to penalty kicks, because quite frankly it's a tossup at that point, then it should be a wonderful game to watch.

I'm thinking about making shirts to promote the blog, but mostly because I want to wear one myself. I'll be posting some more information about it on the Around The Corn Sports Blog Facebook fan page, so check that out in the next few weeks if you're interested in getting one. Also, if you have any questions or comments about anything sports, always feel free to email me at aroundthecornsportsblog@gmail.com. Thanks everyone.



- K. Becks

Now Things Will Heat Up

Today marks the first day that baseball becomes relevant to those who aren't passionate fans of the game. We are about to enter into the crucial part of the season where the teams that have it are going to try to extend their leads or make their runs, and the teams that don't have it are going to look at that trade deadline and hope that they can pull some strings to get a head start on next year. As "The Boys of Summer" begin to take center stage in the sports world, here's a look at what happened during the first two months of the season.

American League

Best Team
Tampa Bay Rays

After the Yankees won the World Series in 2009, not very many people predicted that anyone but New York would be leading the AL East this late into the season. However, the Rays rediscovered their 2008 form, in which they surprised everyone by making it to the World Series. Tampa Bay is finally reaping the fruits of their labor from prior years' drafts, as Evan Longoria and David Price have blossomed into complete players that are capable of leading their team. Obviously, it would be foolish to count New York, and even Boston to some extent, out of the AL East pennant race, but Tampa Bay has certainly put themselves into a good position. If they keep up their stellar pitching, the Rays may be sitting pretty come playoff time.

Biggest Disappointment
Seattle Mariners

So far the 2010 campaign has been a huge disappointment for Seattle, who was supposed to be a contender in the weak AL West. Instead, they are last in their division, and don't look to be making a move out of the cellar any time soon. Of the nine teams they play in June, six of them are in first or second in their respective division. One of the biggest surprises is that their ace, Felix Hernandez, is just 2-4 on the season. However, possibly the bigger problem is that Hernandez is not getting very much support from his offense; Seattle ranks 27th in team batting average and runs scored. If the Mariners don't want this season to be a lost cause by July, then they need to bring the bats out soon.

Biggest Surprise
The Competitiveness of the AL East

It was expected that at least two teams, maybe three, would contend for the AL East lead, but four? New York, Toronto, and Boston are all within five games of Tampa Bay, who has the best record in all of baseball. The biggest surprise has been Toronto, which has been led by Vernon Wells and Jose Bautista, who are both experiencing "comebacks" of sorts. If all four teams can keep up the intensity, then they will make the end of the summer very interesting. Chances are one of the three that doesn't win the division will claim the Wildcard.

Best Performance
Dallas Braden's Perfect Game

I've already commented on Braden in a previous post, but his name must be mentioned again when talking about the best performances in baseball this season. Relatively unknown before the season began, he first made a name for himself with his public discontent for Alex Rodriguez. However, after his perfect performance on Mother's Day, he etched his name in history, becoming only the 19th pitcher in Major League Baseball to toss a perfect game.


National League

Best Team
St. Louis Cardinals

Currently, they are tied for the NL Central division lead with Cincinnati, but as of late have been playing better baseball than the Reds. The scary thing is that so far the Cardinals have not been as good on offense as they have been in prior years. Assuming that they will regain their offensive prowess as the season wears on, the Cardinals have nowhere to go but up. That should send chills down the spines of all the other NL managers. Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, and Jaime Garcia are the core of a pretty solid pitching staff that has shown the capability of carrying this team even as the offense struggles. The bottom line is, if things come together for this team, they will be a force in September.

Biggest Disappointment
Arizona Diamondbacks

Considering that no one in the NL is that much ahead of anyone else, this was a hard one to pick. However, in the NL West, everyone is supposed to have a chance, and at 11.5 games back, Arizona doesn't have much of a chance left. Granted, San Diego has been a surprise, but if you're 11.5 games back in the NL West at the beginning of June, then you are probably pretty bad. Nothing has been going Arizona's way this season, and last night's loss on a balk in the bottom of the ninth is just a taste of the Diamondback's woes. With the worst team ERA in baseball, the first thing that the Diamondback's need to address is their pitching. However, it's going to take a lot more than that before they can find any silver lining in this disappointing season.

Biggest Surprise
San Diego Padres

Many people thought that the Padres were going to be the worst team in the NL West, not the team with the best record in the entire National League. The Padres have had great pitching so far (which isn't a huge surprise considering that Petco Park is a pitcher's paradise), which is what has helped them get out to such a great start. If they are still in the hunt in August, then the Padres should be extremely pleased and could be looking at a possible playoff bid; that month, they play the Diamondbacks eight times and a three game series against the Pirates.

Best Performance
Tie Between the Play of Ubaldo Jimenez and Roy Halladay

These guys have been seemingly trying to one up each other all year. Jimenez has a no-hitter, Halladay has a perfect game. Halladay is 7-3 with a 1.99 ERA, Jimenez is 10-1 with a freakishly low 0.78 ERA. So far, it has been the Year of the Pitcher, and these two men are the class of the field. Jimenez's teammate and catcher Miguel Olivo predicted earlier this year that Jimenez would win the Cy Young award, and if he keeps pitching like he is now, then that prediction will become a reality.


Tomorrow I will give my opinion on MMA-style fighting in high school, as well as who I think is the worst franchise in pro sports. In a few days, I will begin to give my breakdown and predictions for the 2010 World Cup, and then sometime after that I will post the article about the juggernaut fencing team I mentioned a few posts ago. If you haven't subscribed yet, please do by clicking "Follow" on the left hand side of the page and doing whatever it asks of you, as I would really appreciate it. Thanks everyone.



-K. Becks

Someone Teach Me How To Play The Piano...

...So that I could play that little piece that they play when they're about to go to a commercial break during the Masters. I personally prefer the CBS Sports College Basketball theme song, but I'm not really up for learning about four different instruments.

Big week in sports so far, and I haven't posted very many entries to talk about all the events that have taken place. Why? Honestly, because all the events bundled into one post looks a lot longer and therefore a lot more professional. Also, I feel that people like to play the percentages game when deciding whether or not to read something. For example, if the piece of writing is long, people may say "I can probably skim this and find something that I think is interesting". But if the piece of writing looks a lot like an article in People Magazine, they are probably more inclined to say "I'll look at the pictures....Oh, there are no pictures? Well then this isn't really worth my time". I learned this from Mark Titus, who feels it is necessary to write a book every time he posts a new entry. Also, yes, to answer the question you're probably asking yourself right now, I am promoting his blog in hopes that maybe he'll read mine and send some of his readers my way. Did you read that Mark? Something like that is what Axe would've preferred you write.

Speaking of college basketball players, how about the National Championship? I know it's been a few days, but that game was probably one of the better ones that I have ever seen. I heard a lot of people complaining that the tournament wasn't as interesting once the big boys like Kansas and Kentucky went down, but as far as I'm concerned, these people were still bitter about losing five dollars in bracket pools. The national championship came down to the last shot, which is fitting considering the way the entire tournament played out. Butler making it to the championship game was not a fluke, either. It really comes down to two things: Butler was a terrific team all year, and was overlooked largely because of the conference they play in. When was the last time that a preseason Top 10 team was considered an underdog if they reached the National Championship? Never, as far as I know. Secondly, no team was that much better than any other team this season. In past years, we've had the North Carolina's and Florida's who have seemingly dominated from November until April. Coming into this year's tournament however, there were probably eight to ten teams who had a legitimate shot of cutting down the nets in Indianapolis.


With everything else going on in sports this week, Major League Baseball beginning play has kind of taken a back seat in importance. Those who did pay attention to Opening Day however, likely saw one of the better plays that will be made all season. Add in a budding star hitting a home run in his first at-bat, and it looks like this season will be full of action. At least to some, apparently. Umpire Joe West thinks it's "pathetic and embarrasing" that the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox games take so long. Most baseball insiders are shrugging this off as a comment made by a loudmouth (basically, West is the T.O. of umpiring), but he does bring up a valid point. Causal fans often use the "baseball is so boring to watch on TV" excuse as to why they are not avid fans of the game. It's not hard to stay interested in a three hour game if you're at the stadium, but it's a whole different matter if you're watching the game on TV. West may not just be blowing hot air here.


Finally, the Masters. Even if you're not a golf fan, you've undoubtedly heard about the tournament in Augusta, or more specifically, how Tiger is doing. After a strong first and second round, Tiger looks like he is in contention for the win at this point. This is probably the best thing that the PGA could have asked for. Casual fans were drawn in because of the Tiger saga, and now that he's doing well, they'll probably tune in to the final two days as well to see if he can win. Eat your own words, Billy Payne, because contrary to what you say, if Tiger wins this weekend, he hasn't disappointed me at all. To us, Tiger Woods is a golfer. Mickey Mantle wasn't exactly a role model, and neither is Kobe Bryant. Hell, even Tiki Barber just left his wife for some hot intern. The point in naming all those athletes is that even though they have had their darker moments on display for the public, we still love them because of their contributions to their respective sport. Besides, Mr. Payne, who are you to talk? You don't even let women join your country club.


Notice to the left of the writing I have replaced the NCAA Tournament tracker with a Masters leaderboard. That way you can spend your whole afternoon on the blog!


- K. Becks