Attempting to keep my columns coming on a weekly basis, for better or worse, I was really racking my brain to think of a topic today. Sure, watching ESPN during the day makes my blood pressure rise, and trying to think of a topic that could burn long enough for a column was impossible. But then it came to me. I was struggling to think of something to write about, because simply, there’s nothing going on. I found it difficult to find a worthwhile story to write about after a week’s worth of news, but somehow the 24-hour news cycle has a much easier time of finding “stories.” And it’s not hard when they’re covering stories that aren’t actually there. On my way into town Wednesday night, I had ESPN Radio on, and was greeted with host Freddie Coleman complaining about how today’s MLB trade deadline won’t have “sizzle.” I didn’t realize a trade deadline required sizzle, but he had theories on how the league could help get more interest in the day. Boston ace Jon Lester will likely be dealt today, but to him, that’s not enough. There needs to be a bigger name, like Tampa Bay’s David Price. My question is, when did the trade deadline become such a big day? It seems like it began when reporters began telling teams that it was. Now, if a team isn’t in the running for a World Series and its best player’s contract is coming up, well then, he must be traded. If he’s not traded, then what’s up with that? How could the team keep him? You HAVE to rebuild. Oh, and speaking of rebuilding, the Iowa Cubs are tied for first in the Pacific Coast League American North, the Tennessee Smokies are second in the Southern League North and the Kane County Cougars are tied for first in Midwest League North. But back to Major League teams with Major League players. Other forced stories in the nation right now are centered on Johnny Manziel at Cleveland Browns training camp, Derrick Rose’s performance at USA Basketball’s training camp, the fallout of LeBron James’ jersey number and where in the world Minnesota’s Kevin Love will land. Notice, none of these stories have anything to do with on-field performances. It’s just preseason stuff, which seems to have more drama than the actual season. I mean, did you see the Twitter beef between Seattle’s Richard Sherman and Arizona’s Patrick Peterson after Peterson was recently awarded a new contract? If you didn’t, that’s alright. It’s not really newsworthy, but you’ll be told about it. This time of year, baseball’s just past the midway point, but talking about playoff races is premature. And why do that, when trade rumors can be flung all over the place? So, with baseball being a boring storyline until late September and October – when it will be overshadowed by football – we turn our attention to NFL training camp. Football is probably the sport I look forward to the most, and I get excited when training camp begins, but in the end – it’s training camp. You have on-site reports from training camp, letting us know who’s doing what, but again – who cares? Just stay healthy and I’ll be happy with how the Bears performed in Bourbonnais, Ill. Like the big media outlets, the smaller newspapers will soon be picking up again in the coming weeks with actual stories. The high school athletic season will begin for the Times-Union Monday, when the Warsaw girls golf team hosts Rochester and Triton at Stonehenge Golf Club. Oddly, the season begins three days after the first practice, but whatever. From there, the year only picks up, culminating with the boys golf state finals in June of 2015, but it will be nice to have something to cover. Summer is nice for walks with the family, drive-in theaters and visits to the lake, but for sports fans – especially Cubs fans – it’s a real snoozer for athletics. Let’s play some ball.
