Believe it or not, this space was updated yesterday. It was only late last night I realized my daily posting was not there. Instead, it was lost in cyberspace somewhere, never to be seen or heard from again. Yikes!

Over the coming weeks you are going to notice some slight changes in the blog. The purpose of this thing was to keep me in practice of the typical daily show prep I was doing when hosting the afternoon show at WMC. But I also found I like doing this because sometimes I find stories that may interest a couple of you out there that you might not necessarily find or read.

The good news for me is I start a new job next week with a local radio station & I am very excited. I will be able to share with you the details in the next couple of days. As I stated above, there will be slight changes here, but as of today I intend to keep this thing up-and-running.

Tell a friend about the blog. Traffic has slowed somewhat now that college basketball season is over. I expect it to surge when August rolls around & football is imminent. While the majority of readers are right here in Memphis, there are also regular visitors from Tulsa, L.A., Mobile & Chicago. That's pretty neat!

Next week it is back to work & I cannot wait. It's also less than three months from the start of the Memphis Tigers football season & the very first Coach Tommy West Radio Show.

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With a dozen or so other newspapers, I read the Dallas Morning News almost everyday. That town is psyched over the Mavericks shot at the NBA championship. The newspaper's coverage, as it should be, is excellent. Man, it just makes me wonder if Memphis would have the same electricity if the Grizzlies ever made it that far? After reading Geoff Calkins' column in Sunday's Commercial Appeal, I really wonder what the future holds for the Grizz.

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Sales of Danica Patrick merchandise are as strong as ever. The IRL driver's popularity remains strong, despite not winning a race yet. However, the media circus that follows is comparable to what some stars see in NASCAR.

Autographs, diecast cars & other memrobilia are for sale each race. No, they do not sell lifesize dolls of Danica.

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Here's what Major League Baseball needs: another steroid contraversy.

It seems in April federal agents busted Arizona reliever Jason Grimsley receiving a shipment of human growth hormones (HGH), agents claim his 12th shipment. This happened just months after he was a teammate of Rafael Palmeiro at Baltimore, who served a 10-day suspension for steroids. We all remember that story.

"There's definitely something that has been taken away (from the fans)," Grimsley told a Baltimore Sun reporter after the Palmeiro affair. "But there are steps being made and things being done to fix that. I hope the fans see that. I hope the public see that. And I think the people in Major League Baseball offices and the people in Capitol Hill see the efforts that are being made to change things."

An affidavit filed in Federal Court says Grimsley was at first cooperative with investigators after they busted him. He admitted using HGH & even said amphetamine use was running rampant in most dugouts. Also on Tuesday, special federal agents, including the IRS, search Grimsley's Phoeniz home in search of records & other information.

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Johnny Drennen has a story he can tell his grandkids one day: the night he belted a solo homerun against 'The Rocket.'

Drennen wasn't even born when Roger Clemens started his career 23 seasons ago. The 19-year old centerfielder for the Lake County Captains ripped one last night, as Clemens made a start for single 'A' Lexington as he prepares his return to the Majors.

"I threw him a split that didn't split, and he really hit it," Clemens said after the game.

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Congratulations to former Southaven High pitcher Brae Wright & former Houston High catcher Kelly Edmundson. They were the only local players taken in the first 18 rounds of yesterday's draft.

Wright is now a senior left-hander at Oklahoma State. He was selected in the sixth round by the Milwaukee Brewers. Edmundson is a senior catcher at Tennessee & was selected in the 11th round by the Cleveland Indians.

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Panthers Huddle weighs in on the addition of former Memphis running back DeAngelo Williams to the Carolina roster. On a post yesterday, 'Zod' wrote, All in all is it very clear that the Carolina Panthers landed a great bargain with their late first round pick. He should at least contribute immediately and spell Deshaun Foster, and at best he could win the starting job come September. Either way, the Panthers are better off.

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USA Today's Jon Saraceno offers this interesting commentary on Michelle Wie. He's dead-on when he writes, "If her ultimate goal is to become the world's finest female golfer, she must first learn how to win, how to compete, against the best of her gender."

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Baltimore Ravens coach Brian Billick says Kyle Boller is the team's starting quarterback, while the team continues its quest to aquire Steve McNair. "Kyle Boller is our starting quarterback. That’s the only approach you can take. You prepare yourself for that because that’s the way it is right now," Billick told reporters.

Notice he finished with the phrase 'right now.' Welcome to coach-speak 101... do you really think the Ravens are going to spend the money to get McNair & then sit him on the bench? But what the coach did was make a safe statement, in case something falls through & the Titans QB doesn't join their squad.

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Speaking of the Titans & McNair, the QB has not returned to offseason workouts yet, although an arbitrator ruled last week he's full within his rights to do so if he wishes.

Up next are Organized Team Activity, something Titans coach Jeff Fisher says "it doesn't make sense" to put McNair on the field if he's eventually going to leave the team. However, the NFL Player's association general counsel Richard Bethelsen warns that the Titans need to proceed carefully. "If they are not allowing him to participate with the team, they are breaching his contract. That was the (grievance) ruling. In that case, we would bring it back before the arbitrator and say, 'They are defying your order.' How is that any different than saying he can't be there?"

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The NBA Pre-Draft Camp is underway in Orlando. NBA.com has the Tigers' Darius Washington as a 'player to watch' this week. "Recent reports have Washington staying in the draft regardless of how he plays this week, despite not being viewed as a first-round pick. More of a scorer than a distributor, he’ll need to show more point guard skills to improve his stock. Teammates Rodney Carney and Shawne Williams are here as well, but will only take part in the physical testing."

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