MUving on

Okay, so Mizzou blew it... hands down.  UConn played bad enough to be beaten, and MU couldn't hit their shots... I'm sorry but 39% shooting is just not showing up, no matter how close the game was.

That said, I'm over it.  UConn will go on to get smoked by Louisville (after they beat Mich. St. today) and justice will be served.  My brackets are busted so I am almost disinterested in the rest of this tourney (Kristen sitting at #1 in the standings keeps me watching).  Personally, I am looking onto the remainder of the Blues regular season and the impending baseball season-opener.  In case anyone has missed it, the Blues are still in the hunt for a playoff spot with 7 games left on the schedule... they've done all of this with barely anyone noticing (until now).  Down the stretch, they have been on such a great run with their record and have played some great  and physical hockey.  It will be exciting to see how they can overcome adversity and make a run for that 8th seed playoff spot... or better!

Enter the Cardinals' season.  I love baseball with a passion... it is easily my favorite sport, both to watch (live and TV) and to play (softball counts, right?).  I am excited to see some changes to this ball club.  With the exception of the staple at 1st base that is Albert Pujols, we are looking at a completely overhauled infield - until Troy Glaus returns to the hot corner.  The outfield will look almost the same, but it was a decent looking (and young!) outfield, so wasn't in need of much improvement.  The hitting will once again be the highlight of the team as we have a majority of power and contact hitters.  But the pitching staff has seen some minor tweaking.  Izzy is gone, so we hopefully no longer have to hold our collective breath when defending a lead in the ninth.  Chris Perez is getting lit up this spring, so the closer-by-committee will have to suffice.  We'll see who rises above to assume the role that Duncan and LaRussa invented.   Not a lot of changes in the starting rotation, except Carp is back and looks sharp.  I don't want to leave out Molina -  Yadi is Yadi.  This year's mission: beat the Cubs.  I don't want to see those clowns win another division title just to blow it in a first-round sweep.

All in all this is an exciting time to be a sports fan with hockey and basketball closing at the same time that baseball is starting.  The flowers are ablooom and the birds are chirping... oh and we had snow last night (wtf?!).  But nevermind that, I am excited still for the change in "season".  Also, I got on my bicycle yesterday for the first time this year - granted it was inside my house on the trainer because it was pouring rain, but nonetheless I rode.  I just got some new pedals and shoes so I was super excited to use them.  I love this time of year.