Northwest Sports: In the Morning

Legal maneuvers in the dark...
The Sonics asked Judge Marsha Pechman to figure out how much the team should pay the city if they leave--heretofore, compensatory damages haven't been part of the trial. But the city's like--whoa, hold on! If that's going to be part of the trial, we need a delay to prepare to argue that aspect of it! Completely unqualified opinion: Looks like the Sonics' lawyers have blundered again.

Youth movement confuses Jarrod Washburn...
Jarrod Washburn, confused by having someone under the age of 30 in his outfield, forgot that it wasn't little league and that the game is nine innings long, instead of six. Washburn thought getting through 4.1 innings was a decent start, his teammates had a talk with him afterwards, then showed him that shaving cream now comes in cans. If Carlos Silva is an "innings-eater," Jarrod Washburn is an anorexic French fashion model with her jaw wired shut.

It took WLAD three at bats to homer, something Brad Wilkerson couldn't do in a month of starts. Here's how McLaren described Wilkerson when the M's signed him: "He's such a gamer. He plays the game the way it's supposed to be played." Vomit. Vomit, vomit, vomit. Hooray for the young guys!

Wlad's (opposite-field!) homer tripled Cliff Lee's ERA, but was the only good thing about this stinker, writes David Andriesen.

After the game, John McLaren told Kenji Johjima he'll ride the pine for the next two days so he can get his head on straight, writes Geoff Baker. Johjima was not particularly moved by this bit of managerial psychology: "He told me to relax, but it's not easy to relax. Because even if I do relax, I don't know how good of a performance I can come up with. I can't be happy. Just because I'm taking two days off, that's not to say I'm going to do better on the third day. I can't allow myself to think that way."

Other stuff...
Tony Bennett's salary has been upped to $1 million. When I searched the Pullman MLS, the most expensive home I could find was going for $623K. Tony Bennett is making twice as much as the most expensive house on the market is worth. Think about that.

The Seattle Times runs a special golf section today. Golf and wine are a good mix, writes Blaine Newnham. I don't think he means at the same time. And here are the Times' top nine golf bargains. Free golf on your birthday? Score!

The Storm, playing with a roster that bears almost no resemblance to the one they'll use in the regular season, lost their first exhibition game. UW star Kristen O'Neill was 1-3 in 11 minutes. O'Neill used to room with my roommate's sister, and when I met her (O'Neill) at a party, I joked that we were "roommates-in-law." I can't remember if she laughed at that or not...I wouldn't.

Apropos of nothing, Diamondbacks pitcher Micah Owings hit a game-tying, opposite-field, pinch-hit home run yesterday. That's so awesome. Owings is now hitting .421 this year.