Baltimore Orioles Soundoff

The boys are back in town--some of them. And by boys I mean Bruce Chen and Erik Bedard--not Adam Loewen, he was cut. And by town I mean Fort Lauderdale.

Chen is like a walking billboard for the World Baseball Classic. But, he also pitched very well, and if he continues to pitch like he did in the WBC the Orioles will be very happy this season.

Bedard pitched great as well. And Rodrigo Lopez and Daniel Cabrera are still pitching well for their respective teams.

The Orioles are going to have a fun team this year. There is no doubt about it. With Kevin Millar and Jeff Conine, even if they aren't winning, they will be lovable losers. Last year they were dejected and couldn't stand to play with each other because of certain cancers in the clubhouse--named Sosa and Palmeiro and Mazzilli.

Bye bye. This year will be fun. Cowboy up and Gibby and B-Rob. Miggy and Niner. A young pitching staff. The Orioles are something I am looking forward to. I can't wait for the season to start.

One season that I am glad is finally over: Maryland Terrapins men' s basketball.

Yes, Maryland is my team. My father went there. I have had season tickets since I was 11 years old and a guy named Joe Smith was ACC Freshman of the Year.

I have always loved Maryland basketball. Always passionate. They always played with heart. Win or lose, they were great to watch.

Nick Caner-Medley, I am sorry to say that I will not miss you or the misfits that you call your recruiting class. John Gilchrist, who? Chris McCray, way to fail when your team needed you most. Travis Garrison, body like an NBA power forward and game like a middle-school point guard.

These guys stunk it up for four years. OK they won the ACC Tournament in 2002. Big deal. Gilchrist played amazing in those games and never played that way in a Maryland uniform again.

They played devoid of heart and emotion. They played unlike their coach. Caner-Medley has the talent, but when he tried to take the team on his shoulders he just forced shots. Maryland played no defense. They couldn't shoot or score for minutes at a time.

I am just sick of it. Ready to move on from four years of futility since the National Championship. This team missed the NCAA Tournament for two years running. That is unheard of for Maryland. What happened? They went from being a top team in the ACC every single year to being an afterthought.

I am glad to see all this year's seniors go, and can't wait until the next few years because of one man named Eric Hayes. 6'3", white guy, coaches son, fundamental, sound a lot like Steve Blake? Yes. I am giddy.


Washington Redskins went from having a sickly Wide Receiving corps to having a sick one.

They became the new "greatest show on turf," the new "posse" and the new "smurfs" in one expensive weekend.

Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle-El, Brandon Lloyd and David Patten. All speedsters, all could take it to the house on a bubble screen and all are highlight reel receivers. If they all play hard and adopt the Joe Gibbs attitude, AND if they have a healthy arm to get them the ball, the 2006 Redskins offense could be special.

Again, I am excited.

The Skins are going to rock next year, Maryland won't piss me off anymore (hopefully) and the O's are going to be fun to follow.

I am optimistic.

Oh, and there is a World Baseball Classic still going on...