General: April Craziness

If March is a month of madness, then April is just crazy. With the start of baseball, the first round of NHL playoffs, the Masters and the battle for playoff spots in the NBA, the first week of April sets the tone for an exciting spring in the world of sports.

Take me out to the ballgame...

I found another reason to love late classes. Not only I get the extra sleep, but I am able to watch the televised Yankee games in the morning due to the time difference.

Thursday, I woke up to the Bronx Bombers' home opener against the White Sox. Hearing the bleacher creatures shout their usual roll call made me miss the excitement of Yankee Stadium.

Javier Vazquez felt right at home in New York, pitching a three-hitter for eight innings, while Jorge Posada hit his third home run of the season and the Yanks won 3-1.

At his first at-bat as a Yankee, Alex Rodriguez received a standing ovation from the crowd, which he stated as "pretty emotional." Although I was sad to see Alfonso Soriano leave NY, I like any other baseball fan would love to have A-Rod on my team.

I missed the whole Yankee trial on ESPN tonight, but I think that the Yankees are good for baseball. Sure, George Steinbrenner likes to spend money on the best players for his team, but at least he isn't a selfish owner and keeping the money for himself. He is constantly seeking the best talent for the Yankees and investing his money back into his team.

Also look at the ticket sales for other clubs. When the Yankees are in town this season, the tickets for the home teams increased, if not selling out. Hate the Yankees because of the "Evil Empire" or whatever, but you can't deny the memorable experience during a game at Yankee Stadium.

Since I can't enjoy going to a Yankee game, I'm going to watch the San Diego Padres at their new Petco Park Saturday night. Hopefully, I'll get to see Barry Bonds hit his 660th home run, but if not, I am looking forward to seeing the new ballpark that has become a central focus in the city of San Diego. Not only has the construction of the new park brought life back into the Padres, but also the addition of some new key players. Look for Brian Giles to be the team's MVP this season, as well as a trimmer David Wells to become the anchor of the pitching staff.

Meet the new Jiggy...

In his first playoff game, Boston Bruins rookie goalie Andrew Raycroft made 31 saves as he and the Bruins shutout the Montreal Canadians 3-0. Raycroft, who finished the regular season with 2.05 goals-against average, did not show any rookie rust; however, he stated that, "You're going to have some butterflies. You can only get so nervous, and I was pretty close to where I like to be. It keeps you focused."

The two teams play Game 2 Friday night, where the Canadians promise to play with more effort than they did Wednesday night.

Aside to Devils fan: Remember that it is best-of-seven, and that Saturday is one day away. We just need to get one in Philly. Also the Devs were flat on the power play, 0-for-4 on the night. Although Robert Esche played well in his first postseason start, making 37 saves and leading the Flyers to a 3-2 victory, don't underestimate Marty Brodeur bouncing back on Saturday. Many times after a so-so game has Brodeur been able to perform brilliantly the next night.

The journey for the Green Jacket...

Like every other Easter, I will spend mine watching the Masters. Like CBS states, the tournament has become as "tradition like no other" in my household.

However, like every other tournament, the focus this weekend is on Tiger Woods and his "slump." As I am writing this, he is 4-over after 14 holes and in 55th place; yet, his score and his highlights are all over the news and even on my ESPN bottom-line.

What about the terrific play by Justin Rose or better yet Jay Haas who is 50 and near the top of the leader board? How about Chris DiMarco's hole-in-one on No. 6?

Personally, I don't think Tiger will win this year's green jacket. I think Phil Mickelson is playing well, he's at even-par after the first round, but I think he might choke at this major. Ernie Els is always a threat and after 17 holes, he stands three shots behind Justin Rose, the leader at 5-under.

Unfortunately, from today's round, Mike Weir doesn't seem like he is setting up for a repeat. He is one of my favorites since he's a lefty and Canadian which automatically means a fan of hockey, so I hope he can get things going tomorrow and over the weekend.

The people's choice is of course John Daly, who had a bad first round of 79. Hopefully, Big John will search in his 12 lives for some magic to let him stay for the weekend.

Props to Jack Nicklaus, who is still showing that he has some skills at his last Masters, shooting a 70 for +2 after 17.

Among my other favorites are Davis Love III (2-over after 16) and Fred Couples (+1); we will see if either those two make a run for it.

It'll be interesting to see how things pan out in the rest of the tournament at Augusta and who makes and misses the cut.

Kings not more...

The Timberwolves took over first place in the West after their 94-86 victory over the Kings.

Since the return of Chris Webber, the Kings are playing nothing like the first half of the season where they dominated both on the court and in the standings. Look at the difference: The Kings are 44-15 in games without Webber and 10-8 with him.

The team's chemistry seems to be off and I feel that Peja Stojakovic deserves to be the team's top scorer and the go-to guy. But with Webber back in the lineup, Peja's stats, like the team's record, has suffered. His shots decreased from 17.4 a game to 15.3 since Webber's return. He averaged 25.1 points in the 59 games he played without Webber in the lineup and 21.6 in the 18 games in which Webber played.

I don't really think of the Kings as Webber's team actually. I think of Mike Bibby for some reason. His constant presence on the court and solid performances game in and game out make, for me, the King's leader.

Like Bibby, I think that Peja is stepping into the role as another leader for the Kings. However, Peja feels that the Kings need Webber if they plan to challenge for the NBA title, "Chris is our best player. He's the main guy. I really believe we have a great team as long as we stay healthy as a group. This is the best team we've ever had."

Hopefully, the Kings can return to their earlier season form for the playoffs, otherwise, I won't hear the end of it from bandwagon Lakers fans.

Skills man...

Bruce Edwards was more than just a caddie to golfer Tom Watson. He was a friend, a brother, and most importantly, a symbol of strength and courage. Unfortunately, after 15 months of being diagnosed with ALS, Edwards died Thursday morning at the age of 49. To Watson and everyone who was lucky to have met Edwards, he will not be forgotten.

"He's not with us in body anymore, but I can tell you he's with us in spirit," Watson said. "The spirit of Bruce Edwards -- if you ever ran across him, you knew what a genuine person he was and what a wonderful way he had with his words."

Any random thoughts: email, devilgirl30365@yahoo.com. No, I am not a Satan worshipper, but a New Jersey Devils fan. Go Brodeur!