Sports blahs

Idle thought. Why is it we call them a "pair" of pants. By that very statement I've fallen into the same trap by using "them", a plural word. After all, it's a singular item. Pairs of socks, shoes, eyes, make sense. But not pants. Nor trousers for that matter. Who came up with this nonsense?

OK, enough of that. Onward.

This is the slow time of year in American sports.

Major League baseball teams are just getting ready to report to spring training, so nothing's going on there.

The college football bowl games and the Super Bowl are recent memories. No action in store for a few more months.

The NBA and NHL are slogging through the dog days of the middle of another season. They won't heat up until the playoffs start in a couple months.

Same with college basketball. What the rankings are now, and how they've changed in the last couple months, have never been of any consequence. That won't get interesting until the NCAA tourney starts. And even then, rankings won't matter, other than seeding the tournament. Win six games and a school is champs. Anything less, and you lose. Period. The Final Four is definitely overrated, a media creation. Where else in sports are the semi-finalists hyped to this insane degree? Put another way -- does anybody really care who finishes tied for third, or even runner-up for that matter? Good grief, a few months after it's over, many have a hard time remembering who the champs were.

Yep, the roundy round folks are practicing at Dayton getting ready for the 500.

Idle thought II. Why is it NASCAR is the only sport that plays their version of the Super Bowl as the first race of the year? Seems bass-ackwards. Wouldn't it make a lot more sense that, instead of Homestead, the Daytona 500 was the LAST race of the year before their version of the playoffs? Better yet, the FINAL race to determine the champion at the END of those playoffs?

Golf is puttering along, but few pay much attention until the Masters tournament, which happens in early April.

The Indy cars are probably racing somewhere every week, but does anybody care until the Indy 500 rolls around in late May? Further, how many people pay attention to their other races once the granddaddy is over?

Pro tennis just saw the Australian Open end. "Old man" Roger Federer is still amazing. They'll play every week too, but not counting tennis groupies, most divergent sports fans only tune into the majors anyway. Wake them up when Wimbledon starts in a few months. Or is it the French Open next?

Ah yes, the Olympics. Is it just me or have they seemed to get more boring every four years as time goes on?





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