June 23, 2008
Each week I write about the world of sports…
• Have you noticed the Yankees have been warming up? It is pretty impressive considering the injuries to the pitching staff. Joe Girardi has done a solid job since the Yankees are without Chien-Ming Wang, Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy. That's 3/5 of the starting rotation from the start of the season. Andy Pettitte and Mike Mussina are the veteran stars, while guys like Darrell Rasner and Dan Giese have to step up now. Joba Chamberlain has moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation and he threw well against the Padres last week. He still throws too many pitches and that could have an effect later in the season.
• The Tampa Bay Rays remain a legitimate contender in the AL East despite dropping two of three games to the Astros. Remember, the Rays swept the Cubs earlier in the week, and took two of three from the Marlins before that. At 44-31, this is one of the best stories in baseball so far this season.
• Congratulations again to the Boston Celtics. Doc Rivers did a super job of getting his team to buy into the team concept, and the result was championship banner #17 going up to the rafters in Beantown. Wow, the Red Sox, Patriots and Celtics have won in recent times, so now Boston could be Titletown, baby!
• Think about what Tiger Woods did last week in winning another major championship. He walked 91 holes with a broken leg. You could see the pain etched on his face when he hit several shots, yet he showed the heart and guts of a champion to pull it off against a determined Rocco Mediate. My friends, Mediate gave it everything he had and it was so, so dramatic. Now Tiger will be sidelined for a while. I believe he will come back stronger, though it will be a challenge through rehab. Amazing to see him play through that pain. Imagine Tiger at 100 percent! Wow!
• It looks like Curt Schilling will have to call it a career. He was Mr. Clutch, wanting the ball in the money situations come playoff time, and he came through big time on so many occasions. It is sad to see injuries putting an end to his days on the mound.
• North Carolina fans had to be jumping with joy when Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green decided to return to Chapel Hill. There had to be a celebration down on Franklin Street. My friends, the Tar Heels will be numero uno in all of the preseason polls. Hall of Famer Roy Williams also has an excellent recruiting class coming in. Teams like Louisville, Connecticut, Texas, Notre Dame, UCLA and Pittsburgh will be contenders for spots in the top 10.
• Wimbledon gets underway on Monday, and I am a big tennis fan. It is time to make my predictions, and I feel big names will walk away with the gold trophies. I like Roger Federer to keep on rolling, though guys like Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will be tough. On the women's side, my pick is Serena Williams. Yes, big sister Venus won a year ago, and it will stay in the Williams family.
