Last Monday was a great day. It was also a horrible day.
How can that be? You ask.
Well, the Major League Baseball season kicked into high gear on Monday.
It was great to see the St. Louis Cardinals take the field for real and begin their pursuit of another National League Central Division title.
Albert Pujols, the 2009 NL most valuable player, did his part, smacking two home runs in the Cardinals victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
Yadier Molina also did a little damage, hitting an opposite field grand slam late in the game to blow it open.
Chris Carpenter was as good as ever, though he did have a little hiccup when he gave up a pair of solo homers. Other than that, though, he was fantastic.
The bullpen didn't perform that well, though. And I fear that could be the one part of the team that could really hurt the Cardinals this year.
Ryan Franklin is not really a closer. Kyle McClellan is a pretty good setup guy, but Jason Motte scares the heck out of me every time he steps on the mound.
One pitcher on the St. Louis staff that does not cause me any distress is Adam Wainwright.
Wainwright was every bit as good on Tuesday as Carpenter was on opening day. In fact, he may have been better in the Cardinals' 6-3 victory over the Reds.
Two of the brightest spots in the first two games were Colby Rasmus and David Freese.
I look for Rasmus to have a big year and really show Cardinal fans just how good of a player he is. The guy is a stud, and I suspect that his stats will confirm that at the end of the season.
Freese, who the Cardinals got from the San Diego Padres a couple of years ago, showed that he is capable of helping the team at the plate.
The third baseman drove in a few runs in the first two games while hitting eighth in the batting order. Having a viable run producer in that spot is a big plus. But, I still need to see Freese be consistent at doing that before I'm sold on him being the long-term answer at the hot corner.
Now, on to the horrible part of Monday, which came at about 10:30 p.m.
That's when Duke, yes Duke, won the NCAA Tournament by edging a gritty Butler team.
As most of you know, I cannot stand Duke. And I never will be able to.
Any other NCAA Division basketball team could have won the championship on Monday and it wouldn't have been that big of a deal.
But no, that couldn't happen. Duke had to win it, which ruined the last 90 minutes of my otherwise great Monday.
Had Butler's last-second shot from half court gone in, which it came very close to doing, it would have my Monday that much better.
But the shot hit the backboard, bounced off the front of the rim, and fell to the floor. Butler's dream season was over, and my pain began.
Speaking of pain...
Everyone knows my favorite college basketball team is the Kentucky Wildcats. Yet I have no idea what the team will look like next season.
The Wildcats lose three seniors who have run out of eligibility. Then on Wednesday, junior Patrick Patterson and four freshmen announced that they would be entering the NBA draft.
Sigh!
It came as no surprise that Patterson, John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins opted for the NBA. Wall and Cousins are sure-fire top-five picks, and Patterson is probably a top-15 pick.
The two players that surprised me with an announcement were Eric Bledsoe and Daniel Orton.
Bledsoe is really good, but I'm not sure he'll go in the first round. Orton is definitely a project, but could be a real stud in the NBA a few years down the road.
Luckily, both could come back as long as they do not hire an agent. They have a couple of weeks to work out for NBA scouts. If things don't go well they can always come back to UK.
Regardless of whether that happens or not, Kentucky coach John Calipari will have plenty of roster spots to fill. He already has two commitments for next season, and I'd bet that he'll land a couple of the top players that have yet to verbally commit.
We'll find out soon enough, as the signing period is almost upon us.
|
|
|
Last Monday was a great day. It was also a horrible day.
How can that be? You ask.
Well, the Major League Baseball season kicked into high gear on Monday.
It was great to see the St. Louis Cardinals take the field for real and begin their pursuit of another National League Central Division title.
Albert Pujols, the 2009 NL most valuable player, did his part, smacking two home runs in the Cardinals victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
Yadier Molina also did a little damage, hitting an opposite field grand slam late in the game to blow it open.
Chris Carpenter was as good as ever, though he did have a little hiccup when he gave up a pair of solo homers. Other than that, though, he was fantastic.
The bullpen didn't perform that well, though. And I fear that could be the one part of the team that could really hurt the Cardinals this year.
Ryan Franklin is not really a closer. Kyle McClellan is a pretty good setup guy, but Jason Motte scares the heck out of me every time he steps on the mound.
One pitcher on the St. Louis staff that does not cause me any distress is Adam Wainwright.
Wainwright was every bit as good on Tuesday as Carpenter was on opening day. In fact, he may have been better in the Cardinals' 6-3 victory over the Reds.
Two of the brightest spots in the first two games were Colby Rasmus and David Freese.
I look for Rasmus to have a big year and really show Cardinal fans just how good of a player he is. The guy is a stud, and I suspect that his stats will confirm that at the end of the season.
Freese, who the Cardinals got from the San Diego Padres a couple of years ago, showed that he is capable of helping the team at the plate.
The third baseman drove in a few runs in the first two games while hitting eighth in the batting order. Having a viable run producer in that spot is a big plus. But, I still need to see Freese be consistent at doing that before I'm sold on him being the long-term answer at the hot corner.
Now, on to the horrible part of Monday, which came at about 10:30 p.m.
That's when Duke, yes Duke, won the NCAA Tournament by edging a gritty Butler team.
As most of you know, I cannot stand Duke. And I never will be able to.
Any other NCAA Division basketball team could have won the championship on Monday and it wouldn't have been that big of a deal.
But no, that couldn't happen. Duke had to win it, which ruined the last 90 minutes of my otherwise great Monday.
Had Butler's last-second shot from half court gone in, which it came very close to doing, it would have my Monday that much better.
But the shot hit the backboard, bounced off the front of the rim, and fell to the floor. Butler's dream season was over, and my pain began.
Speaking of pain...
Everyone knows my favorite college basketball team is the Kentucky Wildcats. Yet I have no idea what the team will look like next season.
The Wildcats lose three seniors who have run out of eligibility. Then on Wednesday, junior Patrick Patterson and four freshmen announced that they would be entering the NBA draft.
Sigh!
It came as no surprise that Patterson, John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins opted for the NBA. Wall and Cousins are sure-fire top-five picks, and Patterson is probably a top-15 pick.
The two players that surprised me with an announcement were Eric Bledsoe and Daniel Orton.
Bledsoe is really good, but I'm not sure he'll go in the first round. Orton is definitely a project, but could be a real stud in the NBA a few years down the road.
Luckily, both could come back as long as they do not hire an agent. They have a couple of weeks to work out for NBA scouts. If things don't go well they can always come back to UK.
Regardless of whether that happens or not, Kentucky coach John Calipari will have plenty of roster spots to fill. He already has two commitments for next season, and I'd bet that he'll land a couple of the top players that have yet to verbally commit.
We'll find out soon enough, as the signing period is almost upon us.
