The Loss Column — Baltimore Sports Blog and Community

Two losses in Texas last night and suddenly the Orioles are “just” 6-3. No longer a juggernaut, now simply a team playing good baseball on average.

While I think last night was a big test, I think tonight (and the whole Devil Rays series) is an even bigger one. It’s imperative for the O’s to shake off the doubleheader loss, attack James Shields, and run the Rays out of the building. A rainout and a doubleheader will kill any team’s momentum, so the only thing to do is head out there and get it right back.

I’m gonna go out on a limb here: if the Orioles get swept this weekend in Tampa, we’d better forget the past week ever happened. Fast.

Meanwhile, there’s another big game tonight as the surging Capitals open up their quest for the Stanley Cup against the hated Phlyers. It’s not going to be an easy matchup by any means, but they do enjoy both significant confidence (gained from a blazing hot finish) and home-ice advantage. If you’re not already a hockey fan, the playoffs are the best time to become one. Give ‘em a shot this year.

Congratulations to Friend-of-The Loss Column Sara, who has claimed the coveted prize of bragging rights in our Bracket Bonanza. Nobody had Kansas — surprise — but her pick of Memphis was close enough.

Yours truly finished near the bottom, which will happen when you buy into misguided Big East hype and subsequently lose two of your Final Four teams in the second round.

But what a finish last night, no? How Memphis forgets to foul in that situation is beyond me, but it certainly made for great drama. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a title game quite like that before — in any sport.

– Speaking of prizes, some of you may be wondering what became of the Featured Comments Feature. It’ll be back either later today or tomorrow, but with different rules. I really like the idea of featuring comments because it highlights the strength of our growing community. I thought a small, token prize would be a nice gesture from me to you. I was sort of surprised when I got negative feedback on that notion, and then I was downright bothered when the prize started showing up as an object of ridicule in the comments themselves.

So, I ditched it.

From now on I’ll feature comments on a quasi-weekly basis for no reason other than to bring the best aspects of the discussions up to the front. That, I believe, is still very much worth doing.

– Lost in all of the Opening Day/5-game winning streak hype is the fact that our area has no fewer than three teams currently gearing up for a playoff push.

The Baltimore Blast open up their playoff series on Thursday at 1st Mariner Arena against the hated New Jersey Ironmen. The Washington Captials open up against the doubly hated Philadelphia Phlyers at home on Friday night. And, eventually, the Washington Wizards will themselves embark on a title quest.

All in all it’s a pretty exciting time, especially if your scope isn’t limited to just the Orioles and Ravens. And, really, it shouldn’t be.

– Finally, have you all heard about Muxtape yet? It’s so rad, especially for anyone who grew up actually making mix tapes. The only problem is it’ll probably get shut down in about ten minutes. In the meantime, though, head on over and have a listen to a few of my selections. Feel free to make your own and post links in the comments.

It’s a good Friday night to relax, sip a bit of this, and consider some weekend discussion topics.

The Loss Column is — justifiably — known as primarily an Orioles site, but in fact this is a clearinghouse for all things Baltimore Sports. The O’s are a primary focus but I don’t want to entirely lose sight of the bigger picture. So, here we go.

– The NFL free agent signing period is open. I don’t have a read on whether or not the Ravens will be active — any thoughts?

They did jettison both Mike Anderson and Mike Flynn this week. Neither move surprises me (maybe Flynn a little), and I take it as a sign that they’re looking to get a little younger and more versatile. Both of which are good things.

With any luck, Chris will have a full NFL post coming soon.

– You might not be paying attention (it’s hard to keep up), but college basketball in Baltimore right now is as healthy as it’s ever been.

UMBC (my beloved alma mater): they’ve won nine straight games and currently sit at 21-7 overall, 13-2 in the America East. They have a very realistic shot at winning their conference tournament and making it into the NCAA field of 65.

Loyola: winners of 11 of 13, they’re at first place in the MAAC and likewise have a real shot at the NCAAs.

Towson: not doing nearly as well at 11-17 overall, 6-11 in the CAA. But they’ve shown signs of improvement, and let’s not forget that the CAA is a very tough mid-major conference.

Maryland: on the bubble but still looking OK. At 8-6 in the ACC they have to beat either Clemson (home) or Virginia (away), ideally both. One loss and a conference tournament win or two will get them in.

– Down in DC, the Capitals are putting together a nice playoff run. I don’t know if you can call them serious contenders but they’re certainly a team to watch.

– There’s a fascinating and terribly long article in the New York Times about the new leadership of the Yankees. This isn’t something you can really skim, but it’s worth a read. Check it out here.

I can’t help but look at that fat bastard on the right and think that the Yankees might be headed for a 1980s redux. Probably just wishful thinking.

So there’s all that and anything else you want to talk about. Floor is all kinds of open.

A few quick, non-Super Bowl items (scroll down one post for the football fun):

First, congratulations to Darrell Green and (finally) Art Monk on getting elected to the football Hall of Fame. The Redskins are a team in terrible, terrible turmoil. Daniel Snyder has systematically dismantled all of the Joe Gibbs goodwill by botching the search for his replacement, and there is a growing fear of Dark Times in Landover. Green and Monk represent a link to some truly great teams, and a truly great brand of football. You couldn’t find two more deserving guys.

Second, the Terps are on a hell of a roll right now and are slowly but surely crafting an unlikely case for NCAA Tournament inclusion. Today’s road win over Georgia Tech puts them at 4-3 in the ACC with games against Boston College and NC State coming up before a rematch against Duke.

If they go 8-8 in conference play — a very realistic scenario — they’ll end up at 18-13 overall. That’s got bubble written all over it, but a 9-7, 19-12 finish should stamp their ticket. Notwithstanding their performance in the ACC tournament, of course, which might very well be make-or-break.

Third, I know there’s not a lot of interest in the Wizards or Capitals around here, but both teams are playing extremely well right now. I see no reason at the moment why they can’t both make the playoffs. You have to admit that’d be fun.

The latest in a periodic, enigmatic series…

– First it was Nick Saban and his franchise-sinking stint in Miami. Now, Falcons coach Bobby Petrino has pulled a similar vanishing act.

Petrino now has zero credibility as a teacher and leader. Say you’re an Arkansas player and your team is down 34-10 in the fourth quarter. Are you really going to listen when Petrino starts talking about commitment and respect and showing up to play? Are you really going to play hurt, or constantly give 100%, for a man who didn’t even have the stones to finish out his first season in Atlanta?

What a weak move.

– I suppose something like this was inevitable: this blogger wants to fight Tom Brady.

I link that mostly for the comments, some of which are choice:

America doesn’t hate Tom Brady… just you and a small percentage of jealous low lifes. Tom Brady is the greatest quaterback ever.. you sir are a piece of shit with a internet access.

– The much-anticipated Mitchell Report is coming any day now, possibly even later this week.

I’ve got a hunch that this thing will flop. I’ll be real surprised if there’s a bombshell in there. No reason in particular for feeling that way, it’s just gut instinct.

– The Nationals have been all kinds of busy, adding Lastings Milledge, Elijah Dukes, and Paul LoDuca. They’ve got all the makings down there of a team set to make a run. Maybe not this year, but probably before the Orioles get there.

– This is old news, but I neglected to mention it back in September: the Penguins and Sabres will play a game outdoors in Buffalo on January 1st. So awesome.

– The Ravens will beat the Dolphins on Sunday. Everybody relax and enjoy it.

The Red Sox are world champions, and I’ve made my peace with it. As much as I dislike that team and their fans it’s both difficult and pointless to keep up the Hate now that it’s over. And besides, as of now the Sox and the Orioles are tied for first place in the 2008 AL East. We may as well enjoy it all winter because it probably won’t last too far into April.

The difficulty here is that The Loss Column, for a variety of reasons, has become known primarily as an Orioles/baseball site. We’ve started to make the transition to covering other sports, and I think it’s going well, but I want to hammer the point home now that baseball is on hiatus.

For starters, we’re going to have regular Wizards coverage courtesy of a new contributor whose name you’ll all immediately recognize. I’ll ramp up my coverage of both the Capitals and hockey in general, mostly because I like it. We’ll talk plenty of Terps basketball and we’ll talk plenty (even more than we have been) of NFL football. And, of course, we’ll stay on top of the Hot Stove season and we’ll have plenty of room to discuss the Tejada and Bedard trades.

We will continue to be, in other words, a “Baltimore Sports Community”. With any luck we can not only hold onto what we’ve got but continue to grow it leading up to Spring Training.

I’m also open, as always, to suggestions. Email me or post in the comments. Mi Loss Column es su Loss Column.

Thanks as always.

Today feels like a good day for some kind of Baltimore sports news to break. It’s a Friday, it’s a Ravens bye week, we’re on a three-day run of rain and chill. If you wanted some news to slip out, this afternoon wouldn’t be a bad time to do it.

So just in case, here’s a place to talk about it if it happens.

In other news, DC United fell at Chicago last night, 1-0. The way MLS playoffs work is that the two-game series is decided on the total number of goals scored, so when Chicago comes to town on Thursday the United are basically starting out at -1. Not insurmountable.

The Capitals impressed me last Saturday in their loss against the Penguins. This team is very tough — much more so, it seems, than other Caps teams of recent vintage. They’re sitting at 4-4 — not a bad start. They’ll look to improve that tonight as the Vancouver Canucks and their rad new jerseys come to town.

Anything else on your mind, let ‘er rip.

It’s a rematch of Game Two tonight as Curt Schilling takes on Fausto the Great at Fenway.

I’ll be keeping an eye on the score as I take in the Capitals-Penguins match down in DC. On my way out the door in five minutes as a matter of fact…

Take the floor and run with it, folks. I’ll check back in later tonight or tomorrow morning.