Year S Team

It would be easy to be cynical right now. The Orioles opened a pivotal offseason by acquiring a five-inning pitcher and a two-out reliever, which isn't likely to send disgruntled fans scurrying to get back on the team's season-ticket mailing list. Jaret Wright is no impact starter and Jamie Walker is no bullpen savior, so it would be natural to wonder whether the front office is throwing deck chairs off the Titanic or actually embarking on a legitimate winter rebuilding program that could turn the Orioles into a competitive team in 2007.

On Orioles optimism The front office made some smart moves to shore up the pitching, and good pitching will always allow a team to have a chance to win. For the first time in many years, I feel very positive about this team. This year's team looks and feels different, primarily because of the pitching. Three starters who inspire confidence, a closer who, with one exception, has just been lights out and a bullpen that appears, so far, to have justified its costs. If the season ended today, we'd get the wild card.

Two-a-days have ended and yesterday was the final scrimmage for Maryland players to audition for any remaining starting spots. It seemed like a good time to ask coach Ralph Friedgen if he has a sense of where his team is. "I don't," he said. "I really don't. I'm a little concerned where we are. There's moments in every practice when I think we're pretty good. Then there's other moments when I don't think we're very good. ... I'm really encouraging our leadership to come forward and kind of push us through this.

GREENSBORO, N.C. - -After dropping their final two Atlantic Coast Conference games, Maryland football players and coaches tried valiantly to put the best spin on what had once been a promising 2008 season. It was December and the Terrapins were headed to Boise, Idaho, for the Humanitarian Bowl, which had the eighth pick of ACC teams. Protocol demanded that the Terps not be rude to their bowl hosts, so the players talked politely about being pleased to play a game in an exotic location.

After their 23-0 preseason win over the Redskins, do you think the Ravens are better, worse or about the same as last year's team? Better 54% Worse 8% The same 38% (1,332 votes, results not scientific) Next poll: : After the recent shooting at Harborplace, the Baltimore police committed to stepped up enforcement downtown. Are you confident in the city's ability to keep the harbor safe? Vote at baltimoresun.com/vote

COLLEGE PARK - - Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen slumped in a chair at the University of Virginia's Scott Stadium. It was October 2008 and the Terrapins had just lost, 31-0, to an underdog Virginia team that had previously been outscored 128-36. Friedgen's red face was a mixture of fatigue, puzzlement and anger. "Some guys have got to drive it or park it," the coach said. As the Terrapins prepared for a new season beginning against No. 12 California on Saturday night, many coaches and players said the Virginia defeat serves as a reminder - a cautionary tale - of what can't be allowed to happen if this year's team is to succeed.

For Broadneck, yesterday's final day of the Anne Arundel Tennis Championship proved to be well worth the wait. Led by a dominating performance in the doubles competition, the Bruins were able to wrest the team championship from Severna Park, which had won the past three years . Blake Foster and Doug Ammon won the boys doubles; Shannon Spengler and Kathleen Jawish teamed to win the girls doubles and the Bruins' mixed pair of Brian Murray and Maria Depont...

Milford Mill will soon put the finishing touch on its first girls basketball state title, hanging a green and white banner on the gym wall proclaiming the Millers 2004-05 Class 3A champs. What a thrilling finish it was. In the state semifinal, the Millers rallied from a 15-point, third-quarter deficit to upset top-ranked and unbeaten River Hill, 68-59. Then, they came from nine points down to beat three-time state champ Paint Branch of Montgomery County, 57-48, in the final. After that, the Millers (23-3)

Mike Bossom, the third-year Centennial volleyball coach, got his message across at the first team meeting this season."He brought in the 'Centennial State Champions' shirt and told us we were not allowed to wear it until we proved ourselves," said junior Briana Zolak.The Eagles had won four straight Class 3A state championships before last year. They appeared headed for a fifth as they met in the East regional final Mount Hebron, a team they had beaten twice in the regular season.Centennial won two of the first three games.

It's not surprising that the Wilde Lake and Centennial girls basketball teams, which shared the Howard County title a year ago, are unbeaten after four county games.What is a little surprising is that River Hill, which won just four county games in its inaugural season last year, is right with them."Their maturity and confidence have really increased [from last year] and that's made a big difference," said River Hill coach Karen Saunderson, whose 10-player squad has seven members back from last year.