An Opening Day Scene

A Facebook friend, sportswriter Steve Eubanks, posted the picture below, and I couldn't help sharing it with you, my Loyal Readers. One cheery thought in seeing the repugnant Pete Rose sitting at a major league baseball game is knowing that he had to actually pay for a ticket to be there. Of course, Charlie Hustler no doubt scammed some toadie of his into buying the ticket for him.

I responded to the Facebook post by saying that "anyone with sympathy for Pete Rose surely has lost it when seeing this picture."

Eubanks' response to that was: "Anyone who has sympathy for Pete Rose has never met him."

Can't top that one.

Final Four - No Predictions!...and Movie Comment

After going 1-3 in the Elite Eight games, I said I was out of the prediction business, and indeed I am. So, instead, I will just say who I'm rooting for in the games this weekend.

Connecticut over Kentucky. Will cheer for UConn due to some sense of Big East loyalty. Also, hard to root for John Calipari (with apologies to Loyal Reader "John Bocabella") due to Cal's history of skating close to the ethical line in coaching his teams in the past. That said, it is Jim Calhoun who has crossed that line recently and is facing a suspension next season. Did I just talk about "ethics" in high level collegiate athletics? How foolish of me!

(As an aside here, I find the new trend of "suspending" coaches - Bruce Pearl, Jim Tressel, Calhoun - who have violated the rules in hopes of avoiding stiffer sanctions from the powers that be disingenuous at best, and repugnant at worst.)

Virginia Commonwealth over Butler. How can you not root for a guy with a name like Shaka Smart? Also, a win by VCU will drive the Billy Packers, Jay Bilas', and assorted ESPN "bracketologists" absolutely nuts!!! In the Championship game, I will be rooting for the winner of the Butler-VCU game over whatever team they happen to be playing.

*****

Changing subjects....

While channel surfing tonight, I happened upon the movie "Apollo 13" just as it came on the air, and was immediately hooked. What a great movie about one of the most amazing stories of the 20th century. No one could have made up a story better than the flight of Apollo 13 back in 1970. For any younger readers out there who may not know what I am talking about, please do a little research about Apollo 13. Then get a copy of the movie and watch it. Absolutely fabulous stuff.

The Infield Fly Rule

My Dad once told me that when he was confronted with some know-it-all blowhard, he would ask him to explain the infield fly rule, and that usually brought the bigmouth to his knees. I thought of this while watching the Pirates play the Yankees in a Grapefruit League game on TV this past Saturday.

The Yanks had runners on first and second with one out when the batter lifted a high pop-up (dare I call it a home run in an elevator shaft?) between home and third. The plate umpire immediately raised his hand signalling that the infield fly rule was in effect. Catcher Jason Jaramillo circled under the ball but the wind caught it, moved it out of Jaramillio's reach and it landed in fair territory, where Jaramillio routinely picked it up. The Yankee base runner on second, I forget who it was, seeing the ball land in fair territory then took off for third. So, a demerit for the Yank base runner on this one. Jaramillio then threw to Pedro Alvarez who had the presence of mind to tag the base runner for an inning ending double play. However, Pedro and several of his teammates apparently didn't realize that the inning was over as they returned to their positions. The TV camera only showed Alvarez and Ronny Cedeno retreat to their positions, so I don't know if any of the other Bucs stayed in place or began the trot to the dugout. Demerits to Alvarez and Cedeno. The umpires had to tell Alvarez and Cedeno that the inning was, indeed, over.

I am guessing that Joe Girardi and Clint Hurdle didn't spend a lot of time going over the infield fly rule during spring training. I am guessing that they just assumed that the players would know this rule by the time they got to a major league spring training camp.

Never assume, I suppose.

A Great Lenten Experience

Marilyn and I just returned from seeing a "Living Stations of the Cross" performed by the youth group at St. Ferdinand's in Cranberry. Talk about a moving experience! Those kids - cast and crew - really did a great job. We, of course, were especially proud of nephew Zach Stoner who appeared as three different characters throughout the performance.

...and on the High School Front...

....Congratulations go out to the Mt. Lebanon High School girls for taking down their third consecutive PIAA State Championship last night. Well done to the Young Lady Cake-Eaters.

My big question, however, is this:

Was the Famed Blue Devil Drum Line on hand at State College last night to help the team bring home the bacon?

Someone - and you know who you are - please answer me that question!!!!

Elite Eight Predictions

Not that my prognostication skills are worth a damn, but, just for sh*ts and giggles, here's how I call 'em:

North Carolina over Kentucky. The Tar Heels are the only one of my predicted Final Four still alive, and I did pick them to win it all, so why go against them now? Although it would be interesting to see Kentucky win and then see if Coach Cal will then be forced to vacate yet another Final Four appearance, and with a third different school to boot.

Arizona over UConn. After that total undressing of Duke on Thursday, how can you NOT pick Sean Miller's Wildcats?

Kansas over Virginia Commonwealth. VCU has been a great story, but the glass slipper breaks tomorrow. As an aside, Kansas is a school for which I have absolutely zero affinity. It's not that I dislike them, more than I just have no feeling at all. Not sure why that is.

Butler over Florida. Logic tells me to pick Florida here, but Butler has been denying logic for two years now in this tournament.

I will then go with UNC over Kansas in the final, thus giving Jayhawk fans even more reason to hate Roy Williams.

As always, watch...but don't bet.

Fish Fry Fridays Are Back!!

A little of this and a little of that....

• It's Lent. It's Friday. That means it's time to visit a local Fish Fry. Tonight we take a break from visiting a local Catholic Church and are instead heading to the Serbian Club on the South Side (or, to be more locally precise, the Sahsside). One of our neighbors are involved withe Serbian Club (through their Orthodox Church) and have been touting the Club's Fish Fry, so that's where we're headed tonight!
• I went on Facebook between games of the NCAA double-headers last night and confidently stated that it would be the Duke Blue Devils cutting down the nets in Houston next Monday night. Shows you how smart I am. That beatdown that Arizona put on the Dookies was not something you often see to one of Coach K's squads.
• Is it good to score 30+ points in a game while maintaining a shooting percentage in the low 30% range? Ask Jimmer Fredette and the BYU Cougars.
• My NCAA bracket entry was utterly smashed after the first weekend, so I an watching the games now purely for entertainment purposes. I had called for a final four consisting of Pitt, Notre Dame, North Carolina, and Duke, with UNC beating ND for the Championship. This can mean only one thing - bet heavily against the Tar Heels this weekend.
• If you are looking for a local rooting interest in the NCAA games at this point, how about cheering for Arizona and their young head coach, Blackhawk and Pitt alum Sean Miller.
• To tie up one more loose basketball end, I am sorry to report that the Shaler Lady Titans fell to Mt. Lebanon in the PIAA State semi-finals last week. So ends a great season for these young ladies.
• Kevin Correia gets the nod as Opening Day starter for the Pirates. Doesn't exactly fill you with optimism, does it?
• It is also noted that Charlie Morton has earned spot in the Pirates starting rotation. Who would have seen that coming after that train wreck of a season he had last year? Be sure, though, that Morton earned this spot. He has easily been the Bucs best starter in Spring Training. Good for him for overcoming last season's travails. Maybe THAT cold be a feel-good story for 2011.
• The NFL owners who profess to have the interests of "the fans" first and foremost in their hearts are the same group of businessmen who are now asking their season ticket holders to pony up their money for there 2011 tickets. This after they, the owners, have shut down the game putting into question if there will even be NFL games in 2011. And, yes, this includes the altruistic, Sainted Rooney family of Your Pittsburgh Steelers. I guess this is just another example of the "Steelers Way" of doing business.
• That said, I do not believe that there will be a single NFL game lost in 2011 due to a lockout/strike. This could mean that replacement players will once again make their appearance in NFL uniforms as they did back in 1987. At the same ticket prices, of course.