To quote Ira Kaplan, Georgia Hubley and James McNew...

"Today is the day."

I'm pretty excited for the Sox to start 2005. While Minnesota has to be considered the clear favorite, Detroit and Cleveland both are good teams. The Sox are close to the Twins, but every non-KC team in the Central looks to have a good shot at winning the division. All the Sox need is for someone to pull a Jeff Gillooly on Justin Morneau, who I think will hit 40 HR this year.

In other news, I still hate Phil Rogers.

Retiring

With both Karl Malone and Reggie Miller retiring, I'm reminded of last year's NBA Finals. I can't feel sentimental about either Miller or Malone, as both were chumps and got slapped around by MJ and the Bulls during the '90s (just like the Pistons and Lakers are teams I was raised to despise). I mean, come on. Malone's redneck ass and Miller's goofy alien thing both got on my nerves, big-time during the glory years.

Some notes...

• First off, Phil Rogers is an idiot, but not for the reason you're probably thinking. I've hated these dopey ESPN.com Hot Stover Heaters this year, but when Rogers — a HOF voter, no less— compares BTO to Bach, I'm way off the bus. What a moron.
• I'm going to get started on a preseason picks post, going division-by-division. I'll spoil it for you now: the Sox aren't going to the World Series. Sorry.
• I'd write more about the Bulls, but, I don't have much access to the games. Unlike baseball, I don't have the basketball cable package, so I can't see any of the Bulls games. I have seen exactly two Bulls games this season and one of them was in a bar with the sound down. I've been relying on newspaper reports and Internet radio for updates.
• I've plugged him before, but my friend Kelly is writing for SI.com now, and he's one of the best guys they've got. I used to be a four-letter network fan, but increasingly, I'm getting really tired of their crap. If I have to read another Chad Ford story about some dopey European giant who can't play NBA ball, I think I'm going to puke (or even worse, an 800-word column about a medicore team and Ford's 20 different trade scenarios).
° Speaking of the four-letter network, Marc Stein has a coumn/story up about the Baby Bulls. It's pretty laudatory, but he's skeptical. I know the Bulls has an especially easy January, but I think, if they can go .500 for the rest of the way, hello playoffs. Keep your fingers crossed.

I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again...

Dan Le Batard is the best columnist in the country. And whoever is second (Wilbon, maybe?)isn't really close.