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I love a parade … and so did 24,999 others, apparently.
The Hartford Police estimated that 25,000 strong came to State Capitol Building in the downtown Hartford to celebrate the UConn women’s basketball team’s sixth NCAA title Sunday with a parade and at rally at the Capitol’s North steps.

People started gathering a good two hours before the start of the parade to get the best vantage points to see and hear the Huskies, led by Renee Montgomery, who spoke on behalf of the players.

“Nothting against Minnesota but this is exactly why I don’t want to leave Connecticut,” Montgomery said to the cheering crowd. Montgomery was recently selected by the Minnesota Lynx in the 2009 WNBA draft. “This is such a great feeling. The support you give us along with the fun we had, made this a great season.”

The players and coaching staff rode on a London-style double-decker bus around a shortened parade route before returning to the Capitol for closing statement.

In case you were wondering, that’s Geno Auriemma (below) in the sunglasses.

Gov. Jodi Rell led the dignitaries that lavished praise on the Huskies, saying: “This is the greatest fan base for any team in the U.S. We were with Geno and the team every step of the way. Six national titles, three undefeated seasons but this season topped them all. 39-0, that’s domination! You represent Connecticut in the best possible way.”

And if you couldn’t make it, here are a few more pictures to enjoy …

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The Brakettes live!

After spending the last six months looking under every rock, beating every bush and calling in just about every favor, general manager Bob Baird has apparently pulled together enough financing promises to allow the Stratford Brakettes to play fast-pitch softball in 2009.
It almost didn’t happen.
Last season was perhaps the most difficult season in the Brakettes 62-year history. Principal sponsor David Carpenter, who had backed the team since 1996, passed away in 2007 and the family announced that their partnership with the franchise would end after the season. That forced Baird to empty the piggybank and cut back on expenses to try and make ends meet in 2008.
He did get a major boost from the U.S. National team that played the Brakettes on a pre-Olympic tour at Frank DeLuca Hall of Fame field in August and generated over $35,000 toward the team’s expenditures. Thanks to Stratford Softball Tournaments Inc., which ran the National Team event, almost half of the profits from that game, nearly $18,000, went to help the Brakettes.
“That saved the day,” Baird said.
However, there is no National Team game this year to offset costs. And when Baird first juggled the piggybank to see about 2009, he didn’t hear any coins banging around inside. And with the economy currently in the tank, things didn’t look promising.
“It wasn’t until around the first of the year that we kind of decided to see what we could do,” Baird said Friday. “Coming back from the ASA’s (the 2008 ASA National Tournament that was held in Buffalo last August) John (Stratton) wasn’t sure if he was going to come back and manage. Last year was so hard. I didn’t want to think about softball for a while, but in October I started to get a little energized again.”

In an effort to try and keep costs to a minimum, the Brakettes only have two road trips scheduled all season – June 13-14 at Topton, Pa., and July 2-5 in Philadelphia and Topton. All other games, 52 in all, will be played at Frank DeLuca Hall of Fame Field. They are not planning to attend the ASA National Tournament in 2009.
“We’re trying to get by on a budget of around $75,000,” Baird said, who added that the Brakettes are a non-profit 501 (c) agency and that if anyone wishes to make a donation to the team, it is tax deductible.

Created in 1947 as the Raybestos Girls All-Stars by William Simpson, the Brakettes are the premier women’s fast-pitch team in the world. They have played 3,729 games, winning 3,357 – an incredible .9002 winning percentage. They have won 28 ASA National titles and finished as ASA runner-up 12 times. They have won three World Championships, including the 1974 crown that was held at Raybestos Field. Twenty Brakettes players have been inducted into the ASA Softball Hall of Fame and 11 played on for the United States Olympic Team.

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To celebrate Opening Day 2009 at the “new” Yankee Stadium Thursday afternoon, the Yankees brought back many of the former players that helped them capture their 26 World Series titles. A total of 44 players returned to take part in the opening ceremonies.

They were, in alphabetical order: Luis Arroyo, Jesse Barfield, Yogi Berra, Ron Bloomberg, Bobby Brown, Horace Clarke, Jerry Coleman, David Cone, Chili Davis, Bucky Dent, Al Downing, Ed Figueroa, John Flaherty, Whitey Ford, Goose Gossage, Ken Griffey Sr., Ron Guidry, Charlie Hayes, Rickey Henderson, Reggie Jackson, Tommy John, Jim Kaat, Don Larsen, Hector Lopez, Tino Martinez, Lee Mazzilli, Gene Michael, Jeff Nelson.

Graig Nettles, Paul O’Neill, Joe Pepitone, Willie Randolph, Bobby Richardson, Mickey Rivers, Buck Showalter, Moose Skowron, Luis Sojo, Mel Stottlemyre, Ralph Terry, Bob Turley, David Wells, Roy White, Bernie Williams and Dave Winfield.

They opened in Baltimore. They opened in Kansas City. The opened in Tampa. And finally, on Monday, they opened in the Bronx.
The Yankees celebrated Opening Day No. 107 in their long history and the first in the House that the Boss Built as the Yanks christened the “new” Yankee Stadium against the Cleveland Indians.
“This is our fourth opening day this year. We’ve run out to the line a lot already but this is the first time we get to do it at our park, in front of our fans,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “It’ll be good to get this over with. It’s a day that everyone has looked forward to and will relive over and over in their minds. But we want to continue to get the season going in the right direction.”

Opening Week 2009 logo.

Fans in the stands with the opening day bunting.

The American Flag being unveiled.

Kelly Clarkson singing the National Anthem.

Yogi Berra throwing out the first pitch.

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Finally.

After taking the Uconn women’s basketball team from literally nothing and making it into the premier women’s team in the country, Geno Auriemma is getting the opportunity to take the next step — win a gold medal. Auriemma, with 696 wins, an 85.1 winning percentage and six NCAA championships to his credit, was named Wednesday as the head coach of USA Basketball’s Women’s National Team through the 2012 Olympics in London.

Posing with Carol Callan, right, women’s national team director, and Jim Tooley, left, executive director, USA Basketball

For the longest time Auriemma wasn’t eligible to be a candidate. USA Basketball’s rules stated that a candidate had to have either “three years of WNBA or professional experience” which Auriemma didn’t have. But in March, the women’s basketball committee voted to change the rules and once they did, Auriemma’s name quickly jumped to the short list of candidates. On Wednesday, the candidate became the coach.

“I never thought I’d get this opportunity. I never … once the rules were changed where you had to be a WNBA coach, I kind of gave up on it,” Auriemma said Wednesday at the press conference to formally announce his hiring as the 2012 Olympic coach. “It wasn’t until recently that I began to think and it might be a possibility again.”

In the spring of 2006, when USA Basketball named Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski as the head coach of the 2008 men’s Olympic team, Auriemma – for a moment, anyway – felt that he might have a shot … if, and only if, however, the rules on the women’s side were changed.

“I think when Coach K got the job on the men’s side, I think that’s probably the first time I allowed myself to kind of contemplate and say, ‘You know, if that ever became the situation (on the women’s side), I would really like to be considered,’ “ he said. “And then I didn’t think about it after that because I didn’t sense that there was any move to change. But after the Olympics were over last year, I happened to be in Colorado Springs to watch some recruiting thing and I remember saying to (USA Basketball National Team Director) Carol (Callan), ‘If this ever changes, I hope I’m in the mix’ and she said, ‘Time will tell.’ And it did.”

Here are a few more photos

The Team USA Jersey on the podium.

Members of Geno’s team taking in the press conference.

Geno smiling during a meeting with the local media.

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Meet the Mets, Meet the Mets … Step right up and greet the Mets. Hot dogs, green grass, all out at Shea …HOLD IT! I mean at the new CitiField. Guaranteed to have a heck of a day! (Continue singing if you know the rest of the words).

The Mets made their 2009 home debut Monday night against the San Diego Padres in their new ballpark, CitiField. Among the famous baseball faces that were seen wandering around the new place were former Met Tom Seaver, along with Dave Winfield Orel Hershiser and Frank Robinson, who stopped by the batting cage and spoke to outfielder Daniel Murphy, who dropped a fly ball and allowed a run to score in Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Florida Marlins.

“That was awesome,” Murphy said of his conversation with Robinson, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1982. “That guy, what did he hit? 600 bombs (close, he hit 586), I think. Unbeliveable. One of the greatest hitters of all time and I got five minutes of his time. He came over just talked to me, told me to keep my head up and get ready for tonight.”

Meanwhile, Mets manager Jerry Manuel said that Gary Sheffield will likely get his first start of the season Wednesday.

“Yeah, I am (excited about starting),” Sheffield said. “I’m looking forward to that. I just want to get back out onto the field and play and when I get that opportunity on Wednesday I want to take advantage of it. I’m hoping to get some rhythm in those four at-bats.”

As for the ballpark itself? Well, let’s just say it’s a little bit better than the Mets old home.
Check these photos out…

The Jackie Robinson rotunda …

And of course … the Apple!

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Fresh off a NCAA national championship, UConn’s Renee Montgomery began a new chapter in her basketball career Thursday afternoon when she was selected with the fourth pick in the 2009 WNBA draft by the Minnesota Lynx. Montgomery will join fellow UConn teammate Charde Houston in Minneapolis with the hopes of pushing the Lynx into the WNBA playoffs for the first time in five seasons.

Here’s some of Renee’s day at the NBA Entertainment Offices in Secaucus, N.J.

WNBA president Donna Orender delivers some opening comments before the beginning of the draft.

The ESPN draft day crew of Nancy Liberman (left), Carolyn Peck (center) and Pam Ward (right), watch to see who’s going to be taken next.

“With the fourth pick in the 2009 WNBA draft, the Minnesota Lynx select … Reene Montgomery, the University of Connecticut.”

Orender and Montgomery holding up the Lynx jersey.

Answering questions from Rebecca Lobo.

Meeting the media …

Here’s some of what Renee had to say:

“I was anxious and nervous, I don’t know why. I guess to see where my future was going to begin. Where you’re going to be, where you’re going to live, who your new teammates are going to be.”

“I really didn’t know (where I was going). I mean, pretty much everything was a question mark because this (senior) class is so strong, we have a lot of great players. It was definitely a question mark going in. I think when you have such good players that you never know who’s going to pick who and it all comes down to what a team needs.”

“I hope it (my game) translates well. I know the WNBA is looking for more fast-paced style game so I’m hoping I can help there. I want to establish consistency, whether you’re a freshman in college or a rookie in the league, consistency is the most important thing and having your teammates trust you and your abilities. I’m just going in there and be part of the team and let everything else come. This is going to be a learning experience.”

And here’s this from Geno Auriemma:

“This is a great time in her life. She’s been able to enjoy a full-time, old-time career, you know? You go to college, you grow and you become better and four years later, you’re an All-American and you win a national championship and everyone in the pros wants you. It’s a storybook ending for her. And she deserves it.”

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Here are some pictures from the Welcome Home rally at Gampel. Taken by yours truly.

The NCAA championship trophy (left) and the WBCA/USA Today championship trophy.

Senior guard Renee Montgomery handing the NCAA trophy to athletic director Jeff Hathaway. That’s UConn president Michael Hogan, right.

Geno Auriemma talking to the fans.

The team posing with the trophies.

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The six-time NCAA national champion (boy, that sounds nice to say, doesn’t it?) UConn Huskies have arrived at Bradley International Airport, said a few words to the fans and are now getting on the buses that will police escorted to campus for a rally scheduled to start in about an hour.

There are about 1,000 people here watching a replay of last night’s 76-54 victory over Louisville.
Here are some pictures. More to come.