For those of you out there that are surfing on a Mac right now - I would highly recommend the Camino Web-browser. It is made by the folks at Mozilla (who make Firefox) but it is specifically designed for a Mac. It is really a simple browser, takes up less space than Firefox or Safari and has most of the functionality of Firefox.

Ok, that was my random thought for the day because I just downloaded it and I love it. Back to sports…

I want to start out by saying how it speaks volumes to me that Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada are all sitting with Andy through this press conference. The group goes way back and it is especially good to see that after Jorge essentially  sided with Clemens - he put his feelings aside and stick with a long-time teammate and friend through a time when Andy will probably never admit how much he needed them there. Just one more instance where we can see how the bond of teammates goes far beyond the playing field.

In watching this - I don’t know if it is because of my penitent to like Andy or not - but I honestly feel a little bit bad for Andy. I definitely forgive him and somewhat understand why he has made the choices that he has. Either way though - he seems to be sincere, honest and willing to answer anything that his lawyers will allow him to. Bottom line is that Andy is a good guy and he knows that he messed up. Like anyone else who has messed up, he wants to move past it and get on with the season.

The part the especially is hard to hear is how he had to tell his kids and how he felt bad for them that this choice was going to  effect them. We all know kids can be cruel and I can only imagine what they had to go through as 13 and 9 year olds.

I was hesitant to forgive him prior to this. But he is really doing a good job showing that he is remorseful for his choice. I will say it is sad to see a guy who many of us including myself saw as somewhat of a hero growing up - one of the “real Yankees” fall to this point. Hopefully Andy can have a good season or two here and finish his career on the right note.

I have been out of town for a few days planning my wedding for this summer. We are in the final stages of planning and I can definitely say that it was one of the best moments in my life when I realized that most of the details have been taken care of to this point and it looks like it will essentially smooth sailing from here until July 5. Big credit goes out to the future wifey for her tireless work and getting us to this point. It is even better to say that the days of watching her exhausting herself day after day to get everything done are basically behind us.

Now back to the topic. It looks like I should take more days off from blogging because the Rangers are coming off two great wins and it seems that we are beginning to see the resurgence of Ryan Callahan. 4 big points in two days is a great way to start a surge, hopefully it can continue Tuesday in Montreal. 

The Yankees are in the midst of the only time a year where a nothing story can turn into the back page. I have to say it is refreshing though. I miss baseball and am anxious to get the season started - I just wish we could skip over all of the “drama” of Spring Training. When it comes down to it, baseball is about green grass, some dirt, a stitched-up ball, some pieces of wood and some leather. Thats is what we all love and want to see. The sooner we get past the syringes, the lawsuits, the rat ex-trainers and the completely benign “pre-season predictions” - the better.

 I think I speak for all of us when I say - Play Ball already! 

The Committee said they do not know what to believe or what is the truth. I have the same sentiment.

In the end, it was a bad day for everyone involved. Andy Pettite looks bad because he essentially lied in his public apology. McNamee looks bad because it was proven that he is a liar with zero credibility. Roger Clemens looks bad because the other 2 men that McNamee named have come forward and said McNamee was right. Most importantly - Baseball looks bad because well, it is the driving force behind all this.

The story is far from over unfortunately. This is not going to go away. I have a gut instinct that there was a reason that all those FBI agents just happened to be in attendance. Hopefully the start of the season will put it on the back burner as far as the media is concerned though. 

Let me know what you all think… 

Roger does not look good. He seems nervous, his answers are shaky and unconvincing. He is being grilled and there is something to be said for nerves that are different from anything he has every faced on the mound.

But he is being questioned about Pettite’s  statements and it really seems like it is getting to Roger on a personal level.

It keeps going from bad to worse. Every time Roger claims Andy might have misheard - Rep. Cummings comes up with another instance that Andy insisted on what he head. Now they are talking about Andy telling his wife that Roger was on HGH. Laura Pettite swore that Andy told her about the conversation in which Roger “admitted to using HGH”.

All Roger can say is “I think Andy misheard”. It is getting sad. 

UPDATE: 11:10am - If we are judging by body language - Clemens would be getting crushed. McNamee looks poised, confident and comfortable. Roger looks nervous, fumbling and as if he is searching for answers for every question. Fortunately for Roger - we are not judging by body language.

McNamee is being asked about the Canseco BBQ which Brian says Roger attended but there is mounting evidence that Roger was not there. McNamee says he vividly recalls seeing Roger’s child, his Nanny and Mrs./Mrs. Clemens at the party but it is looking good from what Roger is saying that he has a good alibi for the time of the party.

 UPDATE - John Tierney from Mass. is having his turn. He is bringing up every shady thing from McNamee’s past as his first issue. “Mr. McNamee has admitted to credibility problems in the past and we need to keep this in mind in these proceedings.”

Now Mr. Tierney is addressing possible credibility problems from the Rocket.

  UPDATE: 11:35 - Rep. Dan Burton finally made a breakthrough on McNamee. He just proved McNamee lied during this investigation and got him to admit it. It was a lie regarding whether or not he had physical evidence which at the beginning of all this he claimed he did not. Now that Brian has come through with the gauze/syringes - he admits that he lied when originally questioned. To go back to the score board from before - score a big one for the Rocket.

What I really want to know is - with McNmee essentially admitting to lying to Federal authorities - is something going to happen to him as far as further punishment than the probation he received a few days ago? Burton has rattled off 7-8 under-oath McNamee lies in the last minute.

“Roger Clemens is a baseball titan. If it is proven that he used steroids than he should be held accountable, but so far I have not seen that. So I ask you - how is he to get his reputation back.” - Dan Burton 2/13/2008

That is paraphrasing of what was a very powerful monologue. At this point Burton was essentially yelling at McNamee and chastising him as a liar. Big moment of the day so far - one more point for the Rocket.

UPDATE: 12:20 - with each round of questioning it is looking better and better for Roger. He is looking more like Roger the baseball player now, becoming  more and more confident as the game goes on.

My previous statements about Roger looking bad are being erased the longer this goes on. Only time will tell. I mentioned is a post a while back that the truth would eventually come out as it always does.

It seems like this hearing has been a sample space of the times that will play out. In the beginning, the accuser looked better. Towards the middle there has been doubt on both sides and in the end, it really looks better for Roger. Whether or not that is how things end up remains to be seen, but  to me, this is representative of how things have started to play out since December 2007.

UPDATE: 12:45 - Chairman Waxman might just be biased against Clemens. Honestly, the guy basically came out and accused Clemens of interfering with the questioning of his Nanny this passed Sunday.  As Clemens’ attorneys pointed out, these accusations are nothing but innuendo and  have no legal basis of any kind. Then the guy, after basically attacking Clemens, used his power to essentially stop Clemens’ lawyers from speaking.

Well Mr. Waxman - here is a tip from me. If you are going to throw out legal jargon and accusations at Roger Clemens, you should at least let his legal team speak on his behalf instead of hiding behind the “rules of the process” and saying that their comments are not going to be recognized. 

For me. Not Roger.

 Baltimore is a finicky county, and they saw fit to cancel school due to weather today. In turn, I get to watch the Clemens proceedings. I mentioned before that I am sick of this case. I loved Roger as a Yankee and a player and his ferocity as a player is something I grew up admiring. That being said, the evidence is scattered at best, but seems to lean against Roger. It should be an interesting day.

For those who do not know - Andy Pettite claims in an affidavit that he and Clemens spoke about Roger using HGH but then later states that he misunderstood and that Roger said he was talking about his wife. Score on for McNamee.

Roger has Jose Canseco on his side. Score one for McNamee. 

McNamee has the Mitchell Report and everything that comes with it on his side. Score on for McNamee. 

As I said, it is definitely going to be an interesting day. Comment away folks, I would love to hear from you…

It is being reported that the Rangers have signed Henrik Lundqvist to a 6 year deal worth more than $6.5-million a year. No matter how you slice it, the King is the King and he may be struggling a bit right now but as I already have addressed, I think his slump is more due to his father’s health issues than anything else. 

 In my opinion, this is a great signing. The Blueshirts have not seen this kind of stability in goal since the day’s of Mike Richter and we all know how that worked out. Here’s to 6 more great seasons of the King.

So the Rangers lost and I was in a bad mood because it was a game they could have and should have won.

Then when I got home from a quick shopping trip, I turned on the TV and saw what happened in the Florida/Buffalo game.For those of you who do not know, Richard Zednik had his throat slit by the skate of a teammate in tonight’s game. It was a scary moment that involved a lot of blood and reminded many of a similar incident involving the Sabres Clint Malarchuck a few years back.Thankfully, he was able to skate off the ice and get the attention he needed and is now in stable condition.

We are all fans of our own teams, but when it comes down to it, we are fans of the game and more importantly the people involved in it, first. This was especially on display in Buffalo as the arena went silent and both benches gave serious consideration to stopping the game. The fans were pretty much silent until it was announced that Zednik was in stable condition.It was a scary moment, but thankfully it looks like Richard will be okay. It is moments like tonight though, where we should all look back and see that for all the tough times our team may go through, and as mad as we might get depending on how they do,  certain things always have and always will transcend sports. 

The Rangers once again looked good yesterday in a 2-0 and the 2nd consecutive shutout for Steve Valliquette. For now though, I am done with this “Hey, they turned a corner, this is where the season takes off” nonsense as it has burned me too many times this year. Instead, they just have to take it a game at a time, forget whatever happened in their last game and come out firing every night.

The Rangers play their last game until next weekend today against the Capitals, a team that has been scorching lately, but is in a weak division so their playoff status is weird. I do not think that I have expressed just how much I love watching Alex Ovechkin play. He is the only reason other than the Rangers that I bought NHL Center Ice. The guy is simply phenomenal and plays hockey like it is supposed to be played. No diving, whining or having other guys stick up for him (cough, cough, Sydney, cough). He is just a hard-nosed guy that can skate, score, hit, pass and play D. Not much more you can ask for in a hockey player.

Needless to say, I am looking forward to this game. The Rangers need to go into a long break on a good note, I get to see AO and to make it even better, the Rangers might have a little edge today thanks to a tough Philly game yesterday. I will be back later with some thoughts from the game…

Since there is not much (nothing) on the NY sports beats today, I am going to take this opportunity to write a little more about nothing. My very own version of a Seinfeld episode.

I am going to Lexington Market tomorrow. I am told that it is one of Baltimore’s most popular attractions and I am really looking forward to just walking around and seeing what the place has to offer. I am really looking forward to a weekend in which I have essentially no plans at all - just to relax after what turned out to be an unexpectedly eventful week at work. For those that do not know, I am a teacher - so I can never quite know what to expect from any given week.

On a great note, I got the tickets I ordered for the Yankee’s first trip to Baltimore this year in the mail yesterday. I don’t want to knock the Orioles, but it is pretty easy to spot a struggling team when they are shelling out tickets to yankee games for $8 a pop. They are Upper Reserved, but I will be firmly planted above the Yankees bullpen for the majority of the game. Last time I went to Camden, the game was called for rain and Mo threw my fiance’  a ball. Needless to say it was a highlight of my year - she just figures that it is a baseball.

If there are any readers in here from Baltimore, I am open for suggestions this weekend. Let me know if there is something especially fun to do around here. Hope to hear from some of you soon.