Notes from the Coast:

Spring training finally opens this week! Pitchers and Catchers all report by the weekend and the rest of the team a few days later. Let's hope the sight Johnny Pesky signing autographs and the sounds of wooden bats and Japanese reporters will alleviate the pain of a bad Super bowl loss.

• On that note, good thing I didn't watch the NFL Pro Bowl game last Sunday. Asante Sammuel dropped a game saving pass in the Super bowl but had a great hit in the Pro Bowl. Also, Logan Mankins, Matt Light, and Dan Koppen played terrible in Arizona but I heard they played great in Hawaii. That said, had I been watching the Pro Bowl I probably would have put my fist through the TV.
• Hard to believe that everyone from the Nanny to the Clemens' dog was using HGH, except Roger. Clemens may never come back to pitch again but he does have a chain of sports bars called "Rocket's" in development. Even though jell-o shots out of a syringe could still work nicely within the bar's theme, this may be another reason why Clemens is holding so tight to his lies.
• Senator Arlen Specter is not content with NFL Commisioner Roger Goodell's answers on Spygate and now wants the Senate Judiciary committee to investigate further. My first thought is doesn't Congress have better things to worry about like the war, terrorism, and the recession than spygate and HGH? My second thought is bring it on. Now we will find out how trivial this practice of 'taping' truly is, how many teams also do it, and how reputable Matt Walsh is as a witness.
• How bad are the Knicks? The Celtics were up by 27 points on Wednesday night with only one big man left on the roster...and Leon Powe is only 6' 8"!
• Must see TV: After the All-Star break this weekend, it will be a mad scramble for the NBA crown. KG, Perk, and Pollard come back for the Celts; Jason Kidd will soon be wearing a Dallas uniform; Andre Bynum joins a new Laker line-up with Pau Gasol in March; and Shaq's first game in a Phoenix Suns uniform will be against Phil Jackson, Kobe Bryant, and the Lakers.