LOVE ME TENDER…LOVE ME SWEET…NEVER LET ME GO ~ Apparently the Ravens have no interest in letting restricted free agent offensive tackle Tony Pashos go.  Word is that Pashos will be awarded the mid tender offer (approx. $1.2 million) and that means the only way that Pashos leaves is if another team is willing to offer a No. 1 pick to sign him.  Pashos has a better chance of making the Pro Bowl than another team offering a No. 1 for the former fifth round pick out of Illinois.

Pashos might not be worth the middle or first round tender but this certainly eliminates the possibility of Ozzie being duped by Phil Savage again.  You may recall last year that the Ravens only offered Chester Taylor the low tender.  The Browns seized the opportunity, offering Taylor $3 million and the Ravens were forced to match it, costing them about $1.8 million.

I WANT YOU TO WANT ME…I NEED YOU TO NEED ME ~ A few seasons ago the Ravens let Adalius Thomas explore his worth in the free agent market only to have him return and sign a three year deal with the club.  Since then the Ravens have enjoyed the luxuries of the resulting bargain basement contract given Thomas’ performance.  Might the Ravens be inspired by such fortune and allow Bart Scott and Tony Weaver to do the same as AD?  Will they risk these two productive players and let them gauge their worth on the open market?

The Ravens might not be as fortunate this time around if they allow these players to dangle.  In 2004 when AD was a free agent, Phil Savage was not the Browns’ GM.

GO DUANE, GO DUANE, GO DUANE….YEAH BABY!  Those were the words of Brian Billick after Duane Starks picked off a Kerry Collins pass in Super Bowl XXXV and returned it for a touchdown.  Might Starks, a personal favorite of Ozzie Newsome’s, make a return appearance to the Land of Pleasant Living?

He could.

The Ravens may give Starks consideration as a nickel back but given his propensity for injury at this stage in his career, is he really worthy?  That aside it probably would be in the Ravens best interests to develop a younger nickel that could some day supplant Chris McAlister or Samari Rolle.  Starks’ speed even when healthy isn’t what it was and it was Starks’ legs that made him effective, certainly not his physicality.  Physical nickel backs that lack top shelf speed can redirect drags and digs run by slot receivers with jams at the line.  Perhaps the Ravens should just remember Starks as he once was and leave the talk of his return alone.

I CALL THAT A BARGAIN, THE BEST I EVER HAD ~ Jerry Jones has had a heavy hand of late in moving the CBA discussions along.  The Cowboys’ owner is said to be one of the large market teams that has difficulty distributing locally earned revenues to the players and other league owners.  However, Jones sees an end and peaceful resolution to the discussions which resume tomorrow and Thursday in New York.  “I feel we'll likely have a deal within . . . we've got a pretty tight time frame here with the [league] year [starting Friday]. It will be firmed into a situation that will reasonably address the beginning of the league year.''

In other words, Jerry meant “soon.”

If an agreement is reached it should extend the CBA through 2013 and it could impact the projected cap.  As we suggested in the February 20 edition of The Grapevine, don’t be surprised if the cap exceeds the projected $92 to $95 million range.  Gene Upshaw is now indicating that the cap could climb to $104 million.

WE’RE TALKIN’ BASEBALL…BASEBALL AND THE O’S ~ While vacationing in South Florida recently, I made my way up to Ft. Lauderdale to take in a day of Spring Training.  I was fresh off a night on the town in South Beach and for those that have been, you know how that goes.

So there I was sitting behind the O’s dugout amongst fans who jockeyed for position to get signatures on baseballs and hats from Oriole-wannabes wearing numbers in the mid 60’s to upper 70’s hoping that someday, those signatures might be worth something.  As I sat there in mid-80’s temperatures with sweat oozing down my back, I must admit to being intrigued by a few happenings.

First there was Nick Markakis, the Orioles protégé outfielder.  He looked much bigger and stronger to me than during his days in Aberdeen.  He also flaunted some pop in his bat as fly balls regularly traveled the right field fence with ease.

I was also surprised by off season acquisition Kevin Millar.  Millar was jovial and completely comfortable and if first impressions count, he will be an influential force in the Orioles locker room provided of course he can produce.  If last Thursday is any indication, Millar still possesses some damaging bat speed.  Speaking of which, newcomer Corey Patterson also stung the ball regularly.  Hold the enthusiasm of Patterson for a bit though.  Looks to me like the guy is a free swinger who might be too quick with the trigger finger.

Other than that, the morning inspired nothing more than a scintillating nap a few hours later on the white sands of South Beach.

WHAT’S YOUR NAME, LITTLE GIRL, WHAT’S YOUR NAME?  I don’t know if like me, you were confused by the references to the 2006 Winter Olympics host city as both Turin and Torino.  Look in the newspaper and you’d see both names yet NBC was consistent (at least during the limited moments I spent watching the hum-drum event) in referring to the town as Torino (which reminds me of the cheap Ford) and not Turin which reminds me of a college paper that I submitted on the Shroud of Turin.

But none of this settled my confusion so I dug into it.  As it turns out (and I’m a bit embarrassed by this given my heritage), Turin is the name commonly used by English speaking people while the hometown choice is Torino.  So most media outlets took the hometown choice.

I suppose I’m ok with that but what if Olympic Games were held in Rome or Venice.  Would they then call those cities Roma or Venezia?

YOU CAN DO MAGIC…YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU DESIRE…AND YOU KNOW YOU’RE THE ONE WHO CAN PUT OUT THE FIRE ~ But no one could put out the fire known at Greece Athena High School as Jason McElwain.

In a story made for Hollywood and cut from the cloth of other inspiring sports stories such as Rudy and Radio, Jason McElwain chose not to allow his own shortcomings interfere with the pursuit of a dream.

Jason is a senior at Athena and for three seasons he has served as the high school’s basketball trainer, never missing a game or practice. 

Last Wednesday the Greece, NY school celebrated Senior Night and as a way of acknowledging Jason’s dedication, Athena’s head coach Jim Johnson allowed Jason to suit up.  Jason proudly wore his school colors and the number 52 jersey.

As the game unfolded, Athena comfortably had the game under control.  What was to follow should have Disney executives immediately flying to upstate New York.

Similar to the chants of Roo-dee, Roo-dee from the movie Rudy, chants for Jason’s entrance into the game grew in momentum and in decibels.  Coach Johnson finally relented.  Excitedly, Jason took the floor and later said, “I just wanted to score a basket.”

So his teammates set Jason up to take his best shot and when he did, the shot missed – by more than six feet!

The team tried again and Jason fired up a shot from beyond the three point arc.  SWISH! 

Nothing but net!

The gym erupted but much to their surprise, Jason was just getting warmed up.  During the waning moments of the game, he fired up five more three point shots.  He made each one!

Teammates, friends and family charged the court after the final buzzer in awe of what they had just witnessed.  It wasn’t just that Jason had tied a school record for three point shots; it wasn’t that it was his first ever game; it wasn’t just about his dedication to the team. 

No, it was all of these things and then some.  You see, Jason suffers from autism. 

His Mom Deb McElwain is hopeful that Jason’s accomplishments will inspire others who suffer from the affliction:  "Once the severe autistic child can break through, they can live in this world. Just like anyone else."

Certainly Jason is an inspiration to all autistics.  But even more so, he is an inspiration to anyone with a pulse.

Coach Johnson called Jason’s feat, “the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my life."

Perhaps you too will see it and feel it someday as well at a cinema near you!

You go Jason!