View From the Stands-Jan. 20th, 2009

On this historic day in which President Barack Obama has been inaugurated, the sports world doesn't stand still.

There is still plenty to talk about today, and these are the things that are on my mind:

• The World Baseball Classic Provisional Rosters have been released. All last night, just as fast as those at ESPN could send them out, I got message after message about what major league stars will be playing for which country potentially. Among those who will be playing for a country other than the United States are Alex Rodriguez (Dominican Republic), Albert Pujols (Dominican Republic), Johan Santana (Venezuela), Daisuke Matsuzaka (Japan), Ichiro Suzuki (Japan), and Carlos Beltran (Puerto Rico). Each player had the chance to play with the USA team, but chose to play for either their home country or country of their parents. Some people may view this as selfish, but I view it as something that makes the World Baseball Classic something worth continuing.


• The Steelers and Cardinals will square off in Super Bowl XLIII. To see the Steelers in this position is nothing surprising. The Steel Curtain made a comeback this season as the Pittsburgh defense was the best in the NFL, holding almost every opponent under 300 yards of offense. The Cardinals, however, are a totally different story. Arizona finished the season 9-7, including a terrible showing in New England in a 47-7 beatdown. However, the Cardinals offense has found itself in the playoffs, averaging about 31 points per game behind the stellar play of Larry Fitzgerald. This is Arizona's first trip to the Super Bowl, while the Steelers are making their seventh trip, the second under Ben Roethlisberger.


• That basketball game at Auburn still ails me. There are way too many things wrong with Bama Basketball right now. If any list were made, the problems would easily go into the double letters and probably well past MM. Nonetheless, that is no excuse for a team who has seemingly completely given up on the season and its coach. There have been numerous people questioning Mark Gottfried's job status after Auburn 85, Alabama 71. Some feel that Mal Moore should have met Mark at the bus Saturday night to end this debacle. Mark still has his job, but some people are beginning to wonder how long before he is removed.

Even with that horrid game, I still managed to have a good time. Not to mention, I got the best Facebook profile picture possible. Hope you enjoy.