Happy Easter and Passover!
MARLBORO, NY – My annual March malaise has come to its end as we flip the page to April. On this Easter Sunday and April Fool’s Day, I’m here to talk of resurrection in sports.
Basketball. The NCAA Championship game is tomorrow and hell-if-I-care-about-who’s-playing but I’ll tune in anyway. If we’re talking about rebirth, than this is where divine intervention is necessary as it looks like there’s no immediate relief in sight for the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets. Pro hoops are lying on a slab at the city morgue and the basketball gods and a LeBron James-like player are the two main components to any resuscitation.
Baseball. It’s finally here as the regular games started on Thursday to get us all out of the winter doldrums with thoughts of warmer weather and trips to ball fields of any kind. You know that I love my jaunts to see the Hudson Valley Renegades, local Little League parks, and even some local High School baseball and softball games. All of these require little to zero money to take in as opposed to $9 bottles of water and $13 beers at your major league stadium of choice. Annie Savoy had her thoughts about the Church of Baseball in Bull Durham and she wasn’t far off in her estimation.
Football. Just kidding. Football is getting to be like an ex-wife; they just don’t ever go away. Take it from a guy who has two exes (one for each, ahem, (base)ball which they have a stranglehold on).
Hockey:
Ah, my first love. Playoff hockey is at the fore of my rebirth but what about the hockey traditionalist north of the border? Only two Canadian-based teams, Toronto and Winnipeg, are in the fold for the Stanley Cup, while four Original Six teams (Chicago, Detroit, Montreal and the Rangers) have been bounced from qualification for the tournament. There’s always a resurrection of sorts for hockey as a sport when the playoffs roll around, as numerous hoards who ignore hockey from October through March saddle up to the television for the best stuff on earth. Next week I’ll be making predictions on the upcoming post season match-ups.
Thoroughbred Horse Racing. The last of the prep races for the Kentucky Derby will be run these coming few weeks as the Sport of Kings renews its place in the hearts of otherwise casual observers and gamblers for the first leg of the Triple Crown. The Run for the Roses is always run on the first Saturday in May and coincides with Cinco de Mayo for even more drinking besides all those Mint Juleps. What’s not to like about that? Am I right?
BBQ, Beaches, and Bikinis. The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue always turns a man’s thoughts to cocking cooking grills, sand, ocean water… and skin. The weather will finally be turning and so is my men-tal approach to what’s in front of us on the sports and leisure scene. Hope does spring eternal.
Come back tomorrow for Mr. Hope Springs Eternal, DJ Eberle.
