As I Get Older, Life Gets Better

It was April 5, 1978. I may have been a particularly tough day at school, or not. That I do not remember.

What I do remember was being tired of reading. I just wanted to rest my mind a bit, but I was not sleepy. I decided to grab my headphones and fire up my stereo. But not music. This time, I would work the dial and find WCCO-AM.

There I was, plopped in my bed, basking in the blue light coming from my stereo tuner. I was listening live to the last game of baseball's Opening Day, Minnesota Twins at Seattle Mariners. I, a 16-year-old on a Wednesday night in small-town Colorado, had nothing better to do than pull in a night game from the Kingdome. (Go ahead, click on the link and then click on "VIEW GAME" on the top right corner of your screen.)

It was not quite a transistor radio experience that many now talk fondly of. And with headphones, it is pretty tough to do anything but stay flat on your back and stare at the ceiling.

That was then. Now, I can take my phone and watch a late hockey game from the coast.

Last night, it was the Edmonton Oilers at the Los Angeles Kings. In full color and sound.

A much better experience, even though the Kings could have bothered to bring their offense to the Staples Center on Thursday night.

The screen of my iPhone is not the same as the roaring HD big screen in the Lounge, or even the medium HD screen, but it gets the job done when you want to just drop out of sight for a while and watch your game from the comforts of a big bed, big pillows and big blankets (you forgot to mention blankets, Mr. Gabriel).

The NHL's GameCenter Live package allows subscribers to watch games on desktops, laptops, smartphones, iPads and, I assume, other tablets. For those with one TV set dedicated to the locals, the GameCenter Live option allows for more screens for today's modern household, which I assume contains a smartphone and tablet as well as a desktop or laptop, or both. GameCenter Live also serves as a DVR and archive service for games.

On a second note, certain cable providers allow you to turn use your smartphones and tablets to watch all the channels you can get on TV, so long as you are within your house.

Either way, the smartphone as a hockey TV allows you to one up on those who could only get the audio when they sneaked a transistor radio into bed with them to catch the late game. You get video, and in the big picture, that just made life that much better. Much better than the "VIEW GAME" baseball experience, which can be fun, but is not anywhere near the same.

Victor Martinez, Catch of the Day

I'm working on my third barrel of Joe, just trying to keep up with all the things I have to do in the office. I should be outside, enjoying the day, perhaps seeing if any of the softball leagues have begun the regular season in Central Park.

Instead, and in addition to my regular work duties, I am wading through hockey playoff previews, hockey draft previews, college hockey Frozen Four previews and last night's hockey and baseball boxes.

Victor Martinez had a standout night for the Boston Red Sox, going 2 for 3 with 3 runs batted in on a home run and a double. No runners too liberties on the bases. No passed balls. A night of solid work.

The New York Yankees still won the game, 6-4. So you cannot have everything. Just 160 games to go.

Yadier Molina, the Catch of the Day

A grand slam and four RBI can help erase the memory of allowing a stolen base. And it will make some people overlook a strikeout.

Taking all that into consideration, the Cardinals' Yadier Molina is the catch of the day for his performance in an 11-6 victory over the Reds.

Special mention goes out to the Nationals' Ivan Rodriquez, the Mets' Rod Barajas, the Pirates' Ryan Doumit, the Braves' Brian McCann and the Indians' Lou Marson.

Wait. Hold up there. That last one requires some verification, if you please.

Jake Westbrook. Four wild pitches. That's enough of a workout for any catcher. But Marson, who was 0 for 3 (like I said, Marson was getting a workout behind the plate), threw out a runner as well. Marson wasn't going to be the catch of the day, but he did earn a nod for doing his best on a rough opening day.

A Hockey-Baseball Double Dip

Yes, we at the Lounge will be happy to put the game between the Washington Capitals and Boston Bruins (7 pm Eastern start on Versus) on the big screen. Cannot pass up the opportunity to see what the Bruins will do to hold on to their playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Columbus Blue Jackets-St. Louis Blues game (8 pm Eastern start) appears to be radio only, so the Lounge will go to the Web for the radio feed. Lounge patrons may get a peek at the Minnesota Wild-Edmonton Oilers game (9:30 pm Eastern start) only because it's hockey and something just might happen.

After all the Wild was a complete dog most of Sunday night against the Vancouver Canucks, but Minnesota suddenly came alive late to expose Roberto Luongo's weakness (stopping the puck against a dog team) and make things interesting.

The Wild eventually lost, but still, it made the Lounge management remember that no game is without merit if you stick around long enough.

After 10:05 pm (Eastern), we'll put the Los Angeles Angels-Minnesota Twins opener on the big screen and listen while following the Blues-Blue Jackets game to its conclusion on the radio. After that, the Wild-Oilers game gets Web radio treatment.

It's spring and the Lounge is stocked with sports. Is this a great country or what?