The Most Wonderful (Sports) Time of the Year

April 1 - Final Four
April 2 - Opening Night
April 3 - Opening Day; NCAA National Championship
April 3-9 - The Masters

Can it get any better over a 9 day stretch?

The Misery of Being a Cubs Fan

The thing I love about so many Cubs fans is that they have moved way beyond the embarassment and disappointment to a well-developed and mature sense of resignation that actually allows them to poke fun at themselves. This is charming. And because so many Cubs fans have reached this point, it makes me almost desirious of wishing them well (heavy emPHASis on almost). The reality is that no matter how much I try to have compassion on the devoted followers of the Cubs, I end up returning to my higher perch by which I look down at the Cubs and know that as long as the Cardinals keep being contenders and the Cubs keep being los...well, I'll be nice...non-contenders, then the universe is functioning properly and life is good.

Mature, seasoned Cubs fans do not enter the season with high hopes. To multitudes of Cubs fans, Opening Day is simply an opportunity to reflect on the reality that the best one can ever hope for is that the Cubs might possibly still be in contention after the All-Star break. And once the Cubs have thrown another season away, their fans can then focus on the positive: "We do have a great, old ballpark."

Ballparks (updated 3/30)

Here are the MLB ballparks I've seen a game at in chronological order:

1. Busch Stadium (now a parking lot)
2. Tiger Stadium (now vacant)
3. Anaheim Stadium (now remodeled)
4. Arlington Stadium (now a parking lot)
5. The Ballpark at Arlington
6. Turner Field

Here are the minor league ballparks I've been to in chronological order (I'm going by the team names because I don't know the names of all the stadiums):

1. Columbus, GA Astros (AA)- has since been rebuilt
2. Midland Angels (AA) - has since been replaced
3. Johnson City, TN Cardinals (A)
4. Kingsport, TN Mets (A)
5. Jacksonville, FL Suns (AA) - Wolfson Stadium, now a parking lot
6. Jacksonville, FL Suns (AA) - The Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville
7. Vero Beach (FL) Dogders (A) - Holman Stadium (for a Spring Training game)

Ballparks (major and minor) I hope to someday visit:
1. The New Busch Stadium - Have tickets for August 1st against the Phillies
2. Knoxville Smokies - Smokies Park in Sevierville, TN; Cardinals AA affiliate
3. Memphis Redbirds - AutoZone Park; Cardinals AAA affiliate; many say that this is the best minor league park around.
4. Wrigley Field - OK, the truth be known, this is probably very near the top of the list, but let's just say we won't rank these in order of importance!
5. Fenway Park - Dad's already been there and I'm pretty ticked that he didn't take me! He didn't even get me a t-shirt.
6. Roger Dean Stadium - Spring training ballpark for the Cards.
7. Dodger Stadium
8. Camden Yards
9. Jacobs Field
10. Any and every minor league stadium I can get near. MLB is great; but nothing can beat the experience, ambience, atmosphere, price, proximity to the action, purity of the game, of the minor leagues. OK, spring training is close.

Summarize Numbers

If you could summarize the book of Numbers in one sentence, what would you say?

Spring Training, pt. 1 - "Pimp My Ride"

Thursday, March 23, 2006 - Left my house in NE Florida and headed south to pick up my good friend, David Wooten, who is executive pastor at Riverbend Community Church in Ormond Beach. Our destination: Dodgertown in Vero Beach to see a spring training game between the two most storied baseball franchises in the National League. I was excited to see a game in what is reportedly the best spring training complex in baseball.

I met David at his church. I was planning on driving, but David insisted that he drive. So I parked my car in the church parking lot, got all my game gear out, and walked with him over to his "new" car (new meaning new to him). Now when someone says, "I got a new set of wheels" I usually assume that they are now driving a different vehicle than before. But when David says that he got a new set of wheels, he is speaking a different kind of language...he's using street talk...he's being fly or dope or cool or whatever the latest word is for that.



Now you need to understand something, while David and I have a lot in common, we also have some distinct differences. First, I am from rural Southern Illinois. David is from Memphis. There just aren't as many cool cats in Franklin County, IL as there are in Memphis. Second, David has teenagers. I have preschoolers. David is all about being cool around the kids. I'm all about being climbed on by the kids.

So I slid into the passenger seat of this pimped ride of David's to find myself in the cockpit of ultra-modern jet fighter, at least that is the decor I think the designer's were going for. Everything was silver and black. As we roared away from the church and jumped on I-95 South we immediately passed the Daytona Int'l. Speedway on our left and as David worked the stick shift in this pimped ride we were in, I thought for a second we were in the 500.



I am not making this up. After we had been on the road for a little over an hour a very strange phenomena occurred: someone actually passed us. And then, no joke, as this other sports car passed us, the lady in the passenger side (probably in her mid to late 40s) turned her head as far as her neck would let her so that she could look at David's wheels. She never looked at us and never looked at the rest of David's car. She was totally fixated on the wheels. Too bad it wasn't night, I'm sure she would have loved seeing David's blue neon lights under the car.

We arrived in Vero Beach about 70 minutes before the first pitch, easily found our way to Dodgertown, parked and entered the left field gates.



What immediately struck me was how many Cardinals fans were there. Once we got into the ballpark, I estimated that there were more Cardinal fans present than Dodger fans. My suspicions were confirmed by the noise level after plays once the game got started. Of course, to be fair to the Dodger fans out there, the Dodgers didn't have a whole lot to cheer about.

We got to see Jose Oquendothrow a little batting practice, although they finished their warm ups just a few minutes after we arrived. It was great to see a healthy looking Scott Rolen doing some running with Jim Edmonds.



Just ten minutes after we got to Holman Stadium, we hooked up with my old buddy Tim Ellsworth. Tim was fresh off interviews that morning with Bill Mueller and J. D. Drew. Tim does an excellent job in his weekly column for Baptist Press Sports. Look for the fruit of his spring training trip in future editions. My buddy David, an aspiring blogger himself, was deeply moved and honored to finally meet the blogging legend in person. Here are the three of us at the game:



The last time I had seen Tim was last summer when we had been at a wedding in Atlanta while he was there to see the Braves. We connected for lunch at the world-famous Varsity, just across from the campus of Georgia Tech.

Tim was able to sit right behind us for a few minutes, but by game time he was bumped by the folks who purchased the seats. So, it was nice to visit with him before the game, but unfortunately a packed out ballpark prohibited him from sitting with us during the game.

Next post: the game

Coming Soon - Spring Training (Cards vs. Dodgers)

When I get some time, real soon, I'll tell of my trip today, with my good friend David Wooten, to Vero Beach to see the Cards and Dodgers. You can read a little about the experience now at timellsworth.com. Here's a little preview of what I'll share:

Chapter 1 - Pimp My Ride (pre-game)
Chapter 2 - Go Salukis! (game)
Chapter 3 - Blessed at Applebys (post-game)

By the way, the Cards won 4-2. I took a few pics which I'll share also.

Summarize Leviticus

If you could summarize the book of Leviticus in one sentence, what would you say?

2 Valley Teams in Sweet Sixteen

Yesterday Bradley secured its second tournament upset by defeating Pittsburgh 72-66 in second round action from Auburn Hills, MI. 7-foot center Patrick O'Bryant poured in 28 points in what proved to be his national coming out party. Bradley joins fellow Missouri Valley member Wichita State in the Sweet Sixteen.

MVC Commmissioner Doug Elgin has to be giddy and the NCAA's Craig Littlepage has to be smiling as both are enjoying the sweet taste of validation, if not a tinge of revenge. Littlepage was raked over the coals by Billy Packer and Jim Nantz on Selection Sunday for allowing the Valley the same number of bids as a few of the power conferences. Digger Phelps went on record saying that all four Valley teams would lose in the first round, a not-so-unreasonable prophecy considering that 3 out of the 4 of them had low seeds, with only Wichita State being seeded in the upper half of the brackets, and then just a #7.

You cannot expect computers to always be right. First, the computers overestimated the power of the Big Ten conference. The computers had the Big Ten as the toughest conference this year. The Big Ten has no teams left after the first two rounds. Zero. Nada. Zip.

Not only did the computers overestimate the Big Ten, but they also underestimated the strength of the Valley. The computers had the Missouri Valley as the sixth best conference in the country. The Big East has surely shown themselves to be the strongest conference, with 4 teams among the final sixteen. But after them, the Misssouri Valley is right there with the ACC, SEC, and Pac-10 with two teams still in the hunt. That's ahead of the Big Ten (0) and the Big Twelve (1).

Even if WSU and BU both get blown out by Memphis and George Mason next weekend and have no teams in the Elite Eight, the case is officially closed. The Valley has lived up to all the hype.

I wrote in this blog on March 4th:

"Of course the big question is how many teams should the MVC get into the Dance? 4? 5? Some say they deserve even 6! This from a league that has only sent 3 twice (1999 and 2005)... I personally would love to see them get as many in as possible. That would increase the percentages for one of them to get hot and maybe make the Sweet Sixteen, or, dream of dreams, the Elite Eight (there are no Final Four teams in this conference).

As for how many they probably deserve, I'd say four. Which four? Wichita State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, and the surging Bradley. Creighton and Missouri State should get high NIT bids."

Turned out I was in agreement with the selection committee in giving WSU, UNI, and Bradley bids, but denying Creighton and Missouri State. Now I have come to believe that Missouri State was truly robbed and Creighton arguably slighted.

I also wrote:

"If two of them can advance past the first round, then this year will be considered a true success."

And:

"OK, MVC...go get them. Give us 2 teams standing among the final 32 and you are truly shedding the mid-major image. Give us another Sweet Sixteen team and you've lived up to the hype!"

Mission accomplished...and then some!!

MVC's Bradley Stuns Kansas and Valley Naysayers

The Bradley Braves took out the Kansas Jayhawks tonight. The Braves played a masterful game, hitting the big shots, playing excellent, hard-nosed defense, and keeping cool during the Jayhawks' late run. Coach Jim Les has this team peaking at the right time and had his team prepared and confident.

For the second year in a row, Coach Bill Self finds himself going home without a win. But he has a very talented young team and you can expect them to be back next year to make some noise.

2-2 for the Valley in the first round. Unfortunately, my Salukis had the weakest showing. Northern Iowa looked good against Georgetown but just couldn't pull it out. Bradley and Wichita will carry the Valley banner well this weekend.

Salukis Flat in Final Game

The SIU men's basketball team failed to show up today...figuratively. They lost to West Virginia by 18 in first round NCAA action.

West Virginia had the hot hand and Southern had no answer. SIU's defense was strong but not stifling. The offense never got going. They shot 42% from the field, but only went to the free throw line twice in the entire game. The Dawgs looked like they had never seen a 1-3-1 defense in their lives. It was pretty sad.

Congrats to West Virginia. When the Saluki defense caused some turnovers early, they never got rattled nor lost their composure. They stuck to their game plan and executed well. They barely shot better than the Salukis, hitting 44% from the field, but made 11 3-pointers. They played well, they hustled, and they were well coached. They made good adjustments. And the scoreboard showed it. Plainly put: they whipped us. Hats off to the Mountaineers. May they go far.

To Chris Lowery, his staff, and the team, congratulations on a good year. This club exceeded everyone's expectations, accomplishing more than expected in a "rebuilding" year. We will be expecting even greater things next year with only 2 non-starting seniors.

WSU Takes Care of Business Against Seton Hall

The MVC's Wichita State spanked Seton Hall today, 86-66, in a game that was never even close. The Shockers outhustled, outrebounded, outcoached, and flat out outplayed the Big East squad. Big Congrats to Coach Turgeon, the Shockers, and their fans. Now go Shockers and make the Sweet 16!

Top 10 Reasons CJ Mahaney Should Love the Missouri Valley Conference

Missouri...
10. The good people of St. Louis gave up the Browns for Baltimore (now known as the Orioles).
9. Kansas City has great BBQ, and I'll bet CJ likes BBQ.
8. All old people love Branson!

Valley...
7. The good folks from Hidden Valley Ranch have helped untold millions eat their vegetables.
6. Bunyan's Valley of Humiliation reminds me of the best modern book on humility...by none other than CJ Mahaney.
5. I'd almost become a gambling man to bet that CJ owns a leather-bound copy of The Valley of Vision.

Conference...
4. Together for the Gospel Conference
3. Sovereign Grace Leadership Conference
2. Sovereign Grace Small Group Leaders Conference

...and the #1 reason why CJ Mahaney should love the Missouri Valley Conference...
1. Matthew 5:44

CJ Mahaney Inspires Me as a Father

If you ignore one small detail (CJ disses the MVC!!) his post regarding fatherhood and sports is fantastic.

Gary Williams Should Back Up His Big Talk

Gary Williams is stuck with the poor, lowly NIT this year. His team did not win enough games and play impressively enough to get a bid to this year's NCAA tournament. Instead of taking it like a man and making the most of it, he had to whine and complain and take aim at a rising conference that is having a great year: the Missouri Valley.

Even such a distinguished gentleman as C. J. Mahaney has fallen under Gary's spell. Recently at the Together for the Gospel blog he took a cheap shot at the Missouri Valley Conference. I'm sure that the great Terp fan CJ is requires him to like Gary Williams. But that doesn't mean I expect him to stoop to Gary's level in taking a swipe at the Valley.

Word is, out in the blogosphere, that following Williams' attacks on the MVC in the press, every MVC school called the University of Maryland offering to schedule games in future seasons. All received negatives. Why? Because Williams is scared his team will become another piece of evidence of the Valley's ascending stature.

Summarize Exodus

If you could summarize the message of Exodus in one sentence, what would you say?

Summarize Genesis

If you could summarize the message of Genesis (the Bible book, not the pop group!) in one sentence, what would you say?

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Watch What You Say Around a 3-Year Old!

I said to my wife after supper tonight, "Do you remember that saying in school: 'I've got a booger on my finger and I can't get it off...'?" Before she could get her "Yes" out, our 3-yr. old son said with the seriousness of a world diplomat, "Well, I know how to get one off. I take my hand, like this, and I go like this!" as he shook his hand in the air.

Too much info, son.

Turkey Family Proof of Evolution?

As a casual observer of the evolution vs. intelligent design debate, it amazes me how much inflammatory language is used by the evloutionists. Admittedly, I haven't been a intense follower of these debates, but it seems to me that many proponents of evolution spend more time mocking and ridiculing their opponents, be they intelligent design or creationists, than actually presenting a compelling argument for their side.

Every once in while, though, in the news, we see evolutionists staking a claim for new evidence to support their theory. A family in Turkey is now the subject of a story suggesting that they are evidence supporting man's evolutionary journey to walk upright: "An extraordinary family who walk on all fours are being hailed as the breakthrough discovery which could shed light on the moment Man first stood upright. Scientists believe that the five brothers and sisters found in Turkey could hold unique insights into human evolution." So writes Ben Farmer in the Daily Herald. Here is the whole story.

Kirby Puckett Dead at 45

Kirby Puckett, perennial all-star whose career was cut short by glaucoma, died today in Arizona, after suffering a major stroke.

Salukis Pull It Together for Title

Just when I thought the Salukis were about to self-implode, they overcame their problems and pulled together for strong tournament showing, surprising more than a few pundits in their march to the MVC title and automatic bid for the Dance.

As I watched on CBS, what really impressed me with this year's Saluki club is their depth at guard. If they can play with that kind of intensity in the NCAAs and not get paired up with a team that has a really strong interior game, expect the Salukis to at least win one.

Go Dawgs!

Missouri Valley Hype

The year of the Valley. With many of the traditional BCS conferences considerably weaker this year, the MVC has sought to make a statement this year...and has. A list of quality wins over larger programs in non-conference play, as well as a cut-throat year within conference play produced one of the greatest seasons in the history of the Valley. So now, the weekend of the conference tournament in St. Louis, the Valley is the darling of the media.

Of course the big question is how many teams should the MVC get into the Dance? 4? 5? Some say they deserve even 6! This from a league that has only sent 3 twice (1999 and 2005). In 2002, my Southern Illinois Salukis were the Cinderella team that made the Sweet Sixteen before bowing out to UConn.

I personally would love to see them get as many in as possible. That would increase the percentages for one of them to get hot and maybe make the Sweet Sixteen, or, dream of dreams, the Elite Eight (there are no Final Four teams in this conference).

As for how many they probably deserve, I'd say four. Which four? Wichita State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, and the surging Bradley. Creighton and Missouri State should get high NIT bids.

If two of them can advance past the first round, then this year will be considered a true success. As conference commissioner Elgin has repeatedly said, there are no great teams in this conference, but there are six very good teams.

OK, MVC...go get them. Give us 2 teams standing among the final 32 and you are truly shedding the mid-major image. Give us another Sweet Sixteen team and you've lived up to the hype!

Strep Throat Stinks

I have been wiped out this week by a tiny enemy. But a very potent one indeed. I hadn't had strep throat since I was in middle school, but old nemesis wiped out any hope of a productive week.

The worst was the first night...103.4 temp...achy all over...constant headache...stoumach upset by Augmentin...throat sore...no comfort, no escape!!!

Currently on the mend...