I saw college baseball's shadow yesterday: that means only six more weeks 'til Opening Day. Made my way up to Knoxville yesterday afternoon with my buddy Tommy for a little University of Tennessee baseball.

I like the college game, but I'm not a huge fan of it. Never been able to put my finger on a real reason for that. Probably comes down to the aluminum bats. I hate 'em. Makes me think of Little League, high school, and the softball leagues I sometimes play in. It just doesn't feel "real" to me. Add to that the fact I absolutely hate the *DOINK* sound of a baseball making contact with one of those metal jobs and you may actually have a reason for it. (Ironically enough, I think the sound of a wood bat meeting a baseball is one of the best sounds in the world. Go figure.)

Anyhoo, we met up with the Joebo on campus,who met up with some of his friends at the game. The first game was pretty good; neither team was hitting particularly well and UT's pitcher had a no-hitter going into the sixth inning. I mention this because Joebo- now known as Scurvy Joe, by the way- blew said no-hitter by mentioning it. Bad Scurvy Joe. Bad, BAD Scurvy Joe.

Eastern Michigan made it interesting in the ninth, but Tennessee managed to hold on for a 3-2 win. Not sure what happened in the second half of the double-header; we only made it through the first inning, due to some wicked cold weather and near-fatal hungriness on my part. Both of these problems were remedied at the Half Barrel Pub, where some good food and excellent beers kept the three of us (and Joe's friend, Sergei) entertained for hours.