Northwest Sports: In the Morning

Bavasi on the Bedard trade: "It's time to go out and try to win." HUZZAH! (Maybe drop the "try to" for the movie version)

Are the M's better than the Angels on paper? Maybe not--but baseball seasons take unexpected turns. Turn 1: The Angels' Kelvim Escobar has the same shoulder inflammation that caused him to miss a start in September, and he won't be ready by opening day.

David Andriesen talked to Adam Jones and George Sherrill about the trade. Said Sherrill: "I've been through rebuilding with the Mariners. I was called up halfway through '04, and we lost 99 games. The next year we lost 93 games. It's tough, but at the same time, we've got a lot of young guys (in Baltimore), and all of us are going to take pride in pulling on the same side of the rope and building something that's ours."

The US (golf) Open is coming to Tacoma.

Brandon Roy, who missed yesterday's loss to Detroit, will also miss today's game at Indiana. He's had a death in his family, reports the Oregonian. Says Nate McMillan: "He's pretty down. He knew about this before the game (against Chicago) and he was able to play through it. Brandon is a strong young man. Right now we want to give him the time he needs to be with his family."

Neither Nate McMillan nor Martell Webster would to buy the excuse that the Blazers lost yesterday because Brandon Roy was out. Said McMillan: "Brandon is an important piece to this team but he's not the entire team. And regardless of who's out on that floor, the effort, the execution, and all of that must remain the same." And Webster: "We seemed a little sluggish and we got outscrapped and outworked tonight. We've played without Brandon before and won games. This was more of a team thing."

Roy did make an appearance at last night's Garfield/Franklin game, though, according to the P-I's Michael McLaughlin, along with Will Conroy.

I tried to go to see Garfield/Franklin last night, but, at 7:30, 30 minutes before scheduled tip-off, the line to get in was about 100 yards long. When I walked past again at 9, there were still about 75 people outside, pressed against the gym doors. "This is bullshit" was the most common utterance. After missing one last year, I promised myself I'd never miss Garfield/Franklin again, and then I, of course, missed Garfield/Franklin again. From now on, I'm getting there for the JV Girls' game at 2pm. Tom Wyrwich of the Times reports that those stuck outside were flashing $100 bills trying to get people to sneak them in. Oh, Franklin dominated the game, starting on an 18-4 run and never looking back.

The Huskies officially hired Brian White as an assistant football coach, though his role is TBD; from the official release: "White is expected to be in charge of tight ends and special teams. However, his specific assignment could be adjusted depending on Willingham's final decision on the open running backs coaching position."

Lorenzo Romar blames himself for the Huskies' disappointing season, writes Bob Condotta. He told reporters: "I have not done a good enough job of getting us at a place where we need to be right now...There are some things how we maybe have managed the players individually to where maybe I would have done it differently...I think there are some that probably should have gotten more of an opportunity, some who were given too much of an opportunity. And in trying to find that mix, that process of lineup changes and all of that, maybe that has our guys confused a little bit. Maybe they are not playing with as much confidence. That's why I put it on me not being able to have figured that out and pushed the right buttons earlier.

Will Conroy tells Bob Condotta the Huskies are too passive. "We need some toughness. We're young, but some guys have got to step up and be like 'this is our place. We are not losing.'"

Bill Lazor, a former quarterback at Cornell, is the Hawks' new QB coach. He was QB coach for the Redskins last year.

Qwest Field is getting a new playing surface, reports the Times Danny O'Neil.

The Oregonian got a look at the agreement between Phil Knight and UO, whereby he'll give them $100 million if Legislature passes bonds to fund a new basketball arena. In other arena news, some faculty members say the athletic department tried to bury a consultant's report that said arena revenues weren't going to be as great as originally thought.

Justynn Hammond, who played high school ball at Garfield, Seattle Prep, and Mountlake Terrace, and might have gotten offers from major schools had his grades not been so bad, has ended up at Portland St., where he's earning major PT as a 20-year-old freshman. Hammond got his life back on track while living with his uncle, Drew Gooden Sr. (yep, Drew Gooden's dad).

Former Coug cornerback Randal Simmons, who'd spent 27 years with the LAPD, was shot to death during a hostage rescue Thursday. Simmons, who was active in youth ministry, was married with two teenage children.