This weekend doesn’t feature as many high profiles events as some have recently, but there is still more than enough to keep us entertained. Here are eight things that will keep my remote control busy today:
This has not been a good preseason for pitchers. Johan Santana is behind schedule, Justin Duchscherer is out for a month or more, and we’re hearing even more today. Cole Hamels’ elbow isn’t recovering as quickly as they hoped it would, and he officially isn’t in contention to be the opening day starter anymore. His fastball is still only in the 85-88 miles per hour range so he has some work to do, but that’s much better than what it was earlier in the spring. The Angels also got some bad news – John Lackey is out until late April or May. The good news, if there is some, is that the MRI showed that the damage wasn’t as bad as it could have been. The Angels have a lack of depth in their rotation at the best of times, so the sooner they can get their ace back the better.
Justine Henin retired suddenly yesterday despite the fact that she was number one in the world rankings. A couple of things arise from that. First, it’s sad where we have gotten to as a society of sports watchers – an athletes leaves suddenly and I can’t help but wonder what she was about to be caught doing. That’s probably not the case here, but we can’t help but wonder. Second, there goes one of the easiest bets in tennis. She had won three straight French Opens. The tournament starts in a couple of weeks. She hasn’t been playing well lately, but she still would have been an automatic bet for a few rounds.
