News & notes

In the Arena Football League of today, teams are determined for ArenaBowl by winning a 2-game playoff series via aggregate score. Not the same traditional playoff system as other leagues, nor when the AFL began play more than 30 years ago.

The Albany Empire collected another receipt on Saturday night, blowing out the Baltimore Brigade, 61-26, at Times Union Center. The teams will meet again in Baltimore next Saturday, and whomever has the most points between the two after that game advances to ArenaBowl on August 11.

And they wonder why the league was dormant for a while.....
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An unusual situation came up on Saturday in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League.

The Albany Dutchmen, having already won the first game of a double-header against Oneonta, 7-2, played to a 3-3 stalemate in the nightcap. It's the last meeting between the two teams in the regular season, which ends on July 31. Game 2 was called likely due to darkness, since Connors Field at Siena College doesn't have lights.

Right now, the Dutchmen would be a 3 seed in the Eastern division, as playoff action begins on Thursday.
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Speaking of receipts, the Connecticut Tigers collected one on the Tri-City Valleycats Saturday night, beating the 'Cats, 9-2. The teams meet again today to wrap up the series at 5 pm.

The Valleycats' last three losses have seen them give up 9 runs in each game (twice against Brooklyn). With so many of Houston's draft picks on the roster this year, it appears the 'Cats won't make the playoffs for the third time in four years.
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Let me take a moment to talk about some of the Valleycats' between innings entertainment.

The Hot Dog Race, which is run after the top of the 8th inning, is not only the closest to a WWE angle they have, but also the longest running storyline, which also speaks as a commentary on the public's preference in condiments.

You see, Relish never wins. Historically, the product has always been a poor third choice behind Mustard & Ketchup. However, the way the races are presented, there are WWE-style contrivances to make sure Relish never crosses the finish line first. Like, there are similar comedy elements to the Mayors' Race after the top of the 6th, but the results are a little more evenly distributed.

Thus, the Hot Dog Race is bordering on stale boredom because the fans already know who isn't winning. That has to change.