While sitting in my shared cubicle all summer and wondering if the Connecticut Sun can stave off the Charlotte Sting for the Eastern Conference title, I've been thinking these thoughts about summer 2004: * I bet you didn't know that was a WNBA reference above. Heck, I didn't know until I became the first visitor to wnba.com not to go directly to Lauren Jackson's player profile (she of the posing nude for an Australian magazine fame).
* How great was the All-Star game? Arch-enemy to everyone (except Houstonians) Roger Clemens got hit so hard in the first inning that he didn't even come back for a second! It's impossible to say whether disgruntled catcher Mike Piazza tipped hitters to his pitches (a la Bull Durham), but it's safe to say Piazza enjoyed the evening.
* I watched the game at a BBQ restaurant in New York whose slogan is "Put Some South in Yo' Mouth." Classic.
* My company for the event primarily was an Astros fan (heartbroken over Clemens), a Phillies fan (heartbroken over Jim Thome and Bobby Abreu going 0-3 with two Ks) and someone who, upon arriving, asked what an All-Star game even was (and I was left heartbroken).
* Let me just say that I thoroughly enjoy the new All-Star game perk whereby the winning league hosts an extra game in the World Series. Simply giving home-field advantage to the team with the better record is a flawed system since there's very little overlap in scheduling and thus no common basis for comparison. Interleague play is too short to be an appropriate gauge, and the disproportionate number of division games can greatly skew one's record.
* Aren't you impressed that I haven't even mentioned the Red Sox yet?
* OK, stop being impressed
Read More
Wrestling gets blown out 34-9 on long road trip to Stanford
By Ryan Weiner | 8 hours agoSolid performances from its most reliable trio were not enough for Virginia.
Freshman excellence powers No. 5 men’s tennis past Boise State, No. 19 Alabama
By Thomas Baxter | 17 hours agoVirginia, unlike many other regional hosts, held serve as its quartet's top seed.
No. 1 women’s swimming and diving destroys No. 2 Texas
By Xander Tilock | 19 hours agoOnce again, Virginia has proven to be head and shoulders above other top programs.
