Thinking Out Loud

Lots been going on lately and I've done very little writing about it, so here is a bunch of the stuff that I've been thinking lately....

....Tim Lincecum is easier to root for now that he cut his hair. He's definitely one of the good young pitchers in the game, and he has an early 3-0 lead tonight in Arizona. For every strikeout the young righthander records in the game tonight, you can get a dollar off a bleacher seat at the Giants game on June 1st. Right now, that's a $2 discount.

.....There is no way the Orioles and Yankees should have been playing in the ninth inning tonight. And finally after the Orioles recorded the third out in the top of the ninth, the umpires decided the same. I understand that a rain delay was going to interfere with Dana Demuth (and the rest of his crew's) dinner reservation, but such is life. The conditions were unplayable.

......The Mount plays Friday night in Cary, NC versus North Carolina. It's the second time this year that the Mount will face the Tar Heels in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The basketball Mountaineers played UNC in the first round, after beating Coppin State in the opener. The Mounties will be guaranteed another game Saturday and will play either Elon or UNC-Wilmington in the double elimination regional.

.......I'm excited to watch the US National Team at Wembley Stadium tomorrow. The US is fresh off a 3-0 win in Poland last month. That was a nice win, but winning in Wembley is entirely different. Even though the English didn't qualify for the Euro Championship which begins next weekend, this is a big game for the Red, White and Blue. It's one, I expect the US to play well in, and I'm calling for a US win.

........Speaking of the Mount. Some of the matchups for the Mounties are starting to slip out. The Mounties coming off the NEC Championship will get a home game with Boston University, and road contests at George Mason and Penn State. The Mount will also return to Philly to complete a three-game series with Lasalle.

.........I've heard Pitt football coach Dave Wannstedt talk twice in the last week. A week ago at a Pitt booster golf outing, and then tonight at the Gettysburg Times sports banquet. Great speaker. Easy to see why he's doing a great job recruiting for the Panthers. But not sure he really understands the game of football. He tried to convince me that we (Syracuse) have a great program. Ok, maybe we did. But not anymore. I asked him, how far behind the Panthers we were and even game him multiple choice answers. 1 year, 1 1/2 years or light years. He just told me what a great job David Walker was doing for him. I like David a lot, and remember him from my days on the hill. He is a great guy and I wish him the best, even if he is with Pitt now. Actually, Wannstedt impressed me twice in the last week, and I wish him an 11-1 season. But realistically, I think the Panthers are more like a 7-5 or 8-4 at best football team.

..........What a crazy finish in Kansas City. The Royals couldn't touch Nick Blackburn all game, but when he gave up back-to-back baserunners with one out in the ninth, Ron Gardenhire went to the closer Joe Nathan with a 3-0 lead. Mark Teahen promptly lifted an opposite field flyball down the line in left and Delmon Young tried to make a diving grab for it. He didn't get it and it bounded away from him. Teahen never stopped running and tied the game on a 3-run opposite field inside the park homer. A far cry from the days of Willie Wilson and him hitting in on the Royals Stadium turf and letting it roll around down in the corner as he ran around the bases in about 12 seconds. But I'm guessing that Wilson never hit a more dramatic inside-the-parker.

...........Congratulations to John Desko and the Syracuse Orange. The turnaround that the team made in one season is dramatic. To go from out of the tournament last year, to national champs this season is fantastic. A great effort from all of the lacrosse folks at Syracuse and a record tenth title for the program.