Maureen Andary of The Sweater Set
@ Fort Reno
Q:What's your song for summer?
A:"Our song about summer love. The lyrics are 'Oh, you're just for fun, don't you know. I only want you for summer months.'"
A FRIEND asked me this weekend why I like sports. Fortunately, it's a short trip in the way-back machine to reach Sunday's U.S.-Brazil Confederations Cup final.
Anyone who has a passing interest in sports, even if he or she doesn't follow soccer, was surely riveted.
On one side was arguably the most successful team in the world, Brazil — full of a roster of internationally acclaimed players. Then there were the Americans, who needed a fantastical scenario just to advance in the South Africa.
The U.S. was almost as big an underdog in Sunday's match as it was when it shocked No. 1-ranked Spain last Wednesday. Nevertheless, for a thrilling 45 minutes, Landon Donovan, Tim Howard and company outplayed world-class Brazil. A 2-0 U.S. lead was almost unthinkable to even the most ardent of optimists.
It raised hope that we were watching a triumph of will and spirit over talent. Then the stars realigned in Brazil's favor with some of the best maneuvers you'll see in one half. It's a tribute to the U.S. that it brought out the best in one of the world's best teams.
One day, the U.S. will achieve such a victory to establish itself in the same class as Brazil. On Sunday, it just reminded us that the day is coming — and I hope my friend sits by my side when it happens.
Photo by Francois Xavier Marit/AFP/Getty Images
Here's how I know we're in a recession: Five years ago, trading the No. 5 pick in the draft brought the Wizards Antawn Jamison; this year it landed them Mike Miller. Talk about a depreciation in value.
Miller is a fine shooter and will probably help out Washington for the one year he is here. Randy Foye, also brought in, has some potential, but we don't know how good he'll be.
Jamison, on the other hand, is a certifiable cornerstone who has been steady as a team leader and superb as an All-Star. In fact, his addition paved the way for a new era of decency, which, in turn, is why team President Ernie Grunfeld is looking to win now rather than adding a top-five draft pick.
My doubts stem from a front line so thin it appears to have anorexia and the lack of evidence the Wizards will be any better on defense. Both seem like fatal flaws in making a run at the Eastern Conference championship.
Renting Miller's shooting may help for a year, yet the trade completed Wednesday screams to be a salary purge. Dead weight was dropped, but was it worth giving up a top prospect?
If the extra salary cap space lands LeBron James (yeah, right) or Chris Bosh next year, this was the right move. Otherwise, it just seems like the trade is meant to keep the Wizards above water.
Photo by Noah Graham/Getty images
I DON'T WANT to like Bud Selig.
Not that I know him personally, but he's the commissioner who oversaw the cancellation of a World Series. In general, he seems like a bit of a nebbish who's done everything in his power to stay in the big chair.
Then there is this tricky item when dealing with Selig's mostly unceremonious tenure: He added interleague play. Begun in 1996, the American League-National League battles are a bit passé now. It never became a bad idea, but most fans are used to it.
This week in Washington, though, interleague play will really show its worth.
The Nats can't seem to generate any positive attention, as has been well documented. The stadium is usually half-empty, and Washingtonians go about their lives as though there is no baseball team.
Nationals Park will be abuzz the next three days with the arrival of the Boston Red Sox. Sure, most fans will be cheering for the Bostonians, but at least people are going to be interested in the national pastime in the nation's capital.
That's what interleague play is for: unusual matchups that will add interest and fill seats. The Red Sox will provide both those elements. It's going to be a fun week at the park.
Here's to you, Bud (just this once).
Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images
WATCHING THE SCENES in Pittsburgh and Los Angeles this week, I was left wondering: "Where's our parade?"
It seems like other major pro sports cities get championships; we get Barack Obama's inauguration.
For the purposes of this column, D.C. United will be ignored, for while soccer's popularity has grown in this country, it is related to international competitions and not Major League Soccer. Sorry, but as they say, them's the facts.
Not only does it feel like an eternity since a Washington team won the championship in a top-tier sport, but it has been. How long ago was it? I was in middle school when the Redskins beat the Bills in the 1992 Super Bowl.
Not only don't we win titles; we rarely play for them. The last team to do so was the Capitals, who were swept by the Red Wings in the 1998 Stanley Cup finals.
Not only is this bad, but the closest comparison in the top 15 U.S. markets is Minnesota, which hasn't seen a team in a finals series since 1991.
Dallas, Houston and San Francisco also are 0-for championships this century, but at least the Stars reached the Stanley Cup in 2000 and the Astros and Giants made the World Series this decade.
Back to our original question: The Caps seem like our best hope, but can they ever get past the Penguins? Dan Snyder is the constant problem with the Redskins, while we know the curse that hangs over the Wizards. Oh, and then there's the Nationals, who are at least the best at being the worst.
Photo by John McDonnell/The Washington Post
IT'S EASY TO point to the Yankees when discussing the absurd money spent in the sports world.
With the legends of Babe Ruth, Joe Dimaggio and Mickey Mantle looming, the Bronx Bombers outspend the competition to land any free agent they want. Or so it seems.
But the New Yorkers have nothing on Real Madrid.
The soccer club that's arguably the world's most famous wants to take "arguably" out of this sentence.
Just this week, Madrid paid $92 million for Brazilian star Kaka to come to Spain. That sum seems like chump change now.
FIFA's 2008 player of the year, Cristiano Ronaldo, is on his way to join Kaka, courtesy of a $131 million deal that Manchester United accepted on Thursday.
And you thought the amount of money tied to sports was out of whack in this country.
The payouts look shocking. Remember, though, that this is the same organization that tossed millions at Ronaldo, David Beckham, Luis Figo and Zinedine Zidane in the past decade.
Big names, big bucks and big splashes — sounds like the Yankees (and the Redskins, for that matter.)
And just like its American counterparts, Madrid is chasing its past glory, but its archrival, Barcelona, won the Champions League by developing its own stars, such as Lionel Messi and Xavi Hernandez.
Luckily for us, Real Madrid will here soon for a match against D.C. United in August. All will be right with the world — as long as you can afford a ticket to the star-studded event.
Photo by Francois Guillot/AFP/Getty Images
SOAK IT UP, Washington.
For one day, the Nationals are going to be the envy of every major league team.
Stephen Strasburg is going to be hailed as the next great fireballer — and he'll be wearing a curly "W" on his hat.
That is, after a problematic negotiating round. The San Diego State pitcher wisely hired Scott Boras as his agent. Boras will get him a record deal — and the Nationals have to pay.
Having let Aaron Crow come and go unsigned last year, Washington could ill afford to fail to sign Strasburg if he was the 10th pick, let alone the top pick. Speaking of 10th, the Nats are also choosing from that position as compensation for the Crow incompetence.
Surely, the Lerner family must be asking, "How much is too much for this kid?" Is it $20 million or $50 million, a preposterous sum Boras floated months back?
There's little chance Strasburg will be worth the cash. Pitchers rarely work out; just ask the Orioles, who took the coveted Ben McDonald in 1989.
Yet the Lerners have no equity in D.C. or Major League Baseball. They've built the worst team money can buy. It's their time to step up to the plate and show they're ready for the big leagues.
They'll overpay to do it, but what choice do they have?
Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images
DOES KOBE BRYANT need another NBA championship to validate his on-the-court legacy?
That's the question that has been thrown around all week while the Los Angeles Lakers face the Orlando Magic in the NBA Finals.
Without LeBron James present to snub handshake rituals, Bryant is the one through which all storylines go.
"What about Dwight Howard?" you say. To most, just reaching the finals is a strong step toward a potentially great career.
Bryant has a different standard — and not just compared to Howard or any of the other players in this series.
From practically day one, he's been saddled with expectations that he could be the next Michael Jordan.
Bryant's three rings aren't enough for his detractors, who are quick to point out Shaquille O'Neal was in his dominant prime when the Lakers made their run. Bryant needs to show the critics he can do it.
Never mind that Charles Barkley and Patrick Ewing never won a title, or that the great Clyde Drexler reached the top only when paired with Hakeem Olajuwon, the Shaq of his era.
Bryant brought a lot of this on himself with a smug attitude and his off-the-court transgressions. He doesn't seem all that likeable.
Yet he's the best player in the NBA now. Another title would be a great accomplishment. If not, though, Bryant hasn't done too shabby in becoming one of the league's greatest of all time.
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
AS MUCH AS I hate to admit it, part of me smiled when Rafael Nadal lost at the French Open on Sunday.
This wasn't a typical root-for-the-underdog type of reaction, though. Nadal is, by far, the greatest clay court player of this generation. His 31-match winning streak and four-straight Open championships are awe-inspiring.
Better yet, Nadal has such a flair that his dominance never became boring. The thing is, he has stood in the way of Roger Federer's quest for a career Grand Slam.
Federer was boring, back when he was practically untouchable. Nadal changed that, not only at the French but also at Wimbledon — the site of two consecutive epic finals. Titles don't come easily to Federer anymore. To his credit, his work ethic has never wavered.
Many great players — notably Pete Sampras and Ivan Lendl — could never conquer Roland Garros. Federer improved dramatically on clay, only to run into Nadal.
The door almost shut as quickly as it opened on Monday for Federer, who came from two sets down to win in five sets over Tommy Haas. It underscored how hard this tournament is for the former greatest player in the world. Yet now stands just three wins away from the elusive French Open title.
There's some real drama in Paris. Can Federer win it? It's now or never.
Photo by Getty Images
IF THE NATIONALS really are taking steroids, they should get some better ones.
There is no evidence — neither from the Florida drug dealer arrested Wednesday nor from the team's performance on the field — that indicates any players are using performing-enhancing drugs.
In the next 10 days, the Nationals are going to probably select Stephen Strasburg with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. At the rate the team is going this season, it will likely be in the same position next year.
Given that lowly standing, any doping accusations seem as crazy as when lanky John McEnroe was accused of using steroids.
With just two wins since May 15, Washington's record has fallen to 13-33. Its .283 winning percentage is more than 100 points lower than the next worst team's.
The Manny Acta firing watch has officially begun.
It's not that he's a bad manager, for how could we tell given the talent he's had to work with? At some point, though, the Lerner family has to make a public statement that it can't stand this absurd amount of losing.
From Acta's perspective, a dismissal would be a reprieve. Imagine having to watch the bullpen blow game after game each night.
Steroids? We only wish such a charge wasn't so laughable.
Photo by Getty Images
CONSIDER THIS: The Washington Nationals will not play a game on national television this season if the schedule holds true to form.
It makes sense. Who wants to watch the worst team in baseball play? Not even Washingtonians, who continue to leave a beautiful new ballpark pristine by not filling its seats.
None of this is news, of course. What's becoming apparent, though is that on one of the sport's biggest stages, at least a few Nationals could be front and center.
If fairness wins out — a big stretch, I know — Washington should send at least two, if not three, representatives to the All-Star Game. Better yet, the Nats could take up the entire left side of the infield for a stretch during the Midsummer Classic.
Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, owner of the season's longest hitting streak (30 games) and a .355 average, is a shoo-in for his first trip. Shortstop Cristian Guzman is hitting an NL-best .377 entering Thursday. Last, there is outfielder Adam Dunn, whose 12 homers are tied for fifth in all of baseball.
With a lack of national TV coverage, none of these deserving players will likely be voted on.
But when the game starts, you'd hope baseball's worst would show it still has some pieces it can show off.
Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Addison Road