Tomorrow and Wednesday we’ll be taking a closer look at the brackets region-by-region, and one Thursday and Friday we’ll check in throughout the day with observations from the games. Today, though, we’ll just hit a few notes from around the sporting world before we forget that all other sports exist for a couple of days:
Cliff Lee became the latest big name pitcher to make his spring training debut with a new team yesterday. It was a mixed bag – mostly, but not entirely, positive. The good news is that he lasted the full three innings he was scheduled for, and he did it without obvious issues with the foot injury that he had been struggling with up to this point. It’s also pretty positive that he only allowed one run and one walk in those five innings. The problem is that he allowed five hits in the outing, and his control wasn’t exactly pinpoint throughout. It’s too early to panic, of course, and the Mariners just have to be relieved that their new toy isn’t broken, but we’ve been spoiled by so many good outings so far this spring that I guess I just hoped for more – especially considering how optimistic I am about the Mariners this year, and about their rotation in particular.
What the hell is going on with the Clippers? Just over a month after they relieved Mike Dunleavy of his coaching duties and mad him a full-time GM they have now removed him from that position as well. The reason they gave us that they are tired of losing as they have throughout the Dunleavy era, and that they want to win now. First, I don’t actually believe that the Clippers are determined to win because nothing they have done in the last decade has made us believe that that is the case. Second, how is getting rid of Dunleavy now going to do anything to help them win now? What will help them win is getting Blake Griffin healthy, adding another nice lottery pick this year to play with him, and starting to make some decisions that aren’t moronically driven by being incredibly cheap. That cheapness hasn’t been Dunleavy’s fault – it’s the fault of the ownership. I have no problem with the moving away from Dunleavy, but I don’t understand why they felt compelled to do it in such a dramatic, distracting way.
Another day, another high profile pitcher making his two-inning spring debut for his new team. Unlike Roy Halladay and Aroldis Chapman before him, though, Stephen Strasburg was only solid and not jaw-dropping. The Nationals’ future ace didn’t allow any runs, but he did allow consecutive hits with two outs in the second. He threw 27 pitches – 15 of them for strikes – and he topped out at 98 mph. Two things in particular stood out when I watched the game. First he ended the second inning – his last – with a stunning breaking ball. It was clocked at 81 mph, and it looked like it was bending around a corner. That’s a serious major league out pitch. Beyond that, though, Strasburg definitely looked like a guy who is in need of some time in the minors before he hits the big time. His talent is obvious and massive, but he struggled with his location throughout his outing, and he doesn’t quite look like he believes he belongs and can dominate the pitchers he faces. It’s not like Washington is going to do anything this year anyway, so I think it would be a real mistake to rush him along. Regardless of the rough edges, though, it was exciting to finally see him pitch in the pros, and it’s not hard to see why we have heard so much about him.
There is one good thing abut being a Michigan fan right now – there is absolutely no reason to be nervous about Championship Week. It would take a miracle – a really miraculous one – for the Wolverines to make the field. The discussion of the bubble is entirely irrelevant to me. Because of that, I can just sit back and watch – and hope for the worst for bubble teams for my sadistic pleasure. On that front tonight couldn’t have been any better. St. Mary’s, a bubble team on the outside looking in by most accounts, absolutely crushed Gonzaga to win the WCC Championship. That means that they get an automatic bid in the tournament instead of a trip to the NIT. Since Gonzaga was a tournament lock no matter what happened, this means that the 11 spots for at-large teams has been reduced to 10. Now if only Old Dominion had lost to William & Mary.
Very interesting result last night with Maryland beating Duke by a solid margin at home. The number one seed was Duke’s to lose, and a win in this game would have come close to clinching it for them. Now it is back in play – though the Blue Devils are still in decent position to grab it. More significant than the fact that Duke couldn’t clinch that, though, is the fact that they were unable to rise up in a game like this and come out on top. Maryland is a decent team, and the game was further proof of just how special Greivis Vasquez is, but the clear fact is that Duke is the better team, and should have been able to win this one. There have been some toughness issues raised around Duke this year, and this game did nothing to dispel those. They will have a bracket position soft enough t advance a few games, but this win does nothing to ease my questions about whether this is a team built to go deep.
As hard as it is to believe, baseball is back in action . There was one game on Tuesday, and nine more on Wednesday. From now until October there will scarcely be a day in which there isn’t at least one, and usually several, games. That’s what I love about baseball more than any other single thing – the endless consistency of it. It goes on and on and on, so there is no reason to panic about any particular game or series or anything else. It’s such a unique sport in that way, and I love it for it.
Great, great story out of Pittsburgh today – I love this one. Buffalo was in town to play the Penguins. Before the game began the returning Olympians were introduced to the crowd. Ryan Miller, the tournament MVP and star goalie of the American team was given a very loud standing ovation – even though he plays for the visiting team. Sidney Crosby, the biggest hockey hero in the league, and the biggest Pittsburgh has had since Mario, got an ovation that was clearly less rousing. It gets even better – when the replay of Sid’s goal was shown, the one that won the gold medal and made certain that Crosby will be a hero in Canada for eternity, he was booed. In his own house. Awesome. Just awesome.
Olympic Bet of the Day - Alright, enough fooling around – it’s time to do some winning. Like my fellow Canadians I am underperforming so far during these Olympics, but like my Canadians I plan to close strong. We’re going to start this road back to redemption with a nice, hopefully winning, five event parlay. It will include: Russia (+138) to win women’s biathlon relay, Sven Kramer (-510) to win the men’s 10,000m speedskating, Didier Cuche (-165) to beat Bode Miller in the giant slalom, Canada (-4.5 -114) over Germany in hockey, and Switzerland (-1 +110) over Belarus in hockey. That will pay $1702 if and when it wins.
Programming note – Each day of the Olympics I’ll be posting an Olympic bet of the day. There will be some hockey, of course, but we’ll also throw in everything from biathlon to bobsled. It should be good fun, and hopefully it’s not too terribly unprofitable. The first medals will be awarded tomorrow, so keep your eyes open.
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