Observed and Soon to Be
Wednesday, March 14th, 2007Observed:
– All signs point to the Orioles going with Jay Payton in left, Aubrey Huff at first, and a left/right DH tandem of Jay Gibbons and Kevin Millar. This is obviously the most sensible scenario, and seeing it come to frution is a very good sign. It says that Sam Perlozzo and club officials are committed to winning, and if that means bruising an ego or two along the way then so be it. On top of that, neither Gibbons nor Millar are grumbling, even though they can’t be happy. We might have a bona-fide team on our hands for the first time in years.
– A lot of folks have been suggesting that the play-in “first round” game of the NCAA tournament is unfair and a joke. Those folks are right. And as it happens, I know how to handle it.
Instead of one game, have four. But rather than taking those eight spots and doling them out to small conference tournament winners and mid-majors, give those spots to the large conference bubble teams. Make Syracuse play Florida State or NC State play Syracuse to get in, and reward the winners with 13 seeds. This would immediately solve two problems: the fact that nobody really respects the play-in “first round” game, and the yearly arguments about “bubble” teams.
Can anyone give me a good reason not to do this?
– The UMBC women made the NCAA tournament, the first Retrievers basketball team to ever do it. Mad respect to my alma mater.
– It got lost in the shuffle with the Madness, but Roger Federer lost to a guy named Guillermo Canas, ending his consecutive wins streak at 41, just five wins short of the record. Consider how crazy this is: Federer is so good that the simple fact that he lost a match makes headlines.
Soon to Be:
– Maryland will reach the Sweet Sixteen and fall to Florida. But, since there is a higher power, the Gators will not repeat.
– Federer will promptly begin a new streak, and win the Grand Slam this year, becoming the first player to do it since Rod Laver in 1969.
