Lobel: A Weak Week for Boston Sports

By Bob Lobel (@boblobel)

There are such things as strong weeks and such things as weak weeks. 

We are in a weak week. 

A year ago it was a strong week; a Boston Strong week. 

Here we are, one year later, and obviously our world and what we think about it has changed. There is, of course, the Boston Marathon and its 36,000 runners.  Medical types are concerned this year, not so much for a repeat of the bombs, but for the novice runners.

Lobel: The Marathon Takes Center Stage this Spring

By Bob Lobel (@boblobel)

Up until last year, April was the month that brought baseball back to Boston and the Bruins back to the National Hockey League playoffs.  

The latter is thought by many to be the greatest competitive sporting event of this, or any other time of the year. The NHL playoffs are pure drama and pure effort. I am one of those who would agree with that. The NHL playoffs are simply the best. No stupid shootouts, and for some reason the NHL seems to roll out different rules for these approximately six weeks of sport bliss. 

Bob Lobel: Replay Isn't Solving All of Baseball's Problems

By Bob Lobel  @boblobel

Despite the weather issues, daylight saving time offers real hope that better days are ahead.   

What I cannot understand, for the life of me, is the logic that Major League Baseball exhibits when putting its schedule together. By my count, they have scheduled 15 games at Fenway in April after last year's 19. They may be unaware, but global warming has not penetrated the outdoor arenas just yet.

Fenway Park in April is still cold. Fenway Park in other months is not. 

Bob Lobel: Staying Boston Strong in 2014

By Bob Lobel  @boblobel

Is Brody really dead? 

That is the compelling question for those of us who follow Homeland with the passion we showed for The Sopranos. 

We saw him hanging from a crane in a city of the bad guys. I hope he is not, but only the future will tell. It's kinda like moving into a new year. Good or bad, only the future will tell. 

If the past is anything to judge it by, this will be a bad year.

Really? Really!

Bob Lobel: Mediocrity Rules in the NFL and Boston Stays Strong

By Bob Lobel  @boblobel

Seems pretty obvious that the NFL has moved in two opposing directions at once, to the delight of the game makers. 

The good teams are getting worse, the bad teams are getting better, and both are headed for a collision in the wonderful and long sought after world of average. Not much worse these days than being average, yet, it seems, one and all are arriving at almost the same time.  Parity, mediocrity, average… 

The game makers, like in “The Hunger Games,” are saying any tribute can survive. The NFL is joyous that anyone, almost, can win it all going into these last few weeks. Oh what fun it is to ride a team with a chance to shock the world.  

Even our guys… Maybe especially our guys.

Bob Lobel: The Surreal Week that Was

By Bob Lobel

Did last week actually happen? 

Was it a bad dream, a bad movie, or some demonstration of our imagination? I can't be the only one saying this… But it was a blurr. 

I have no recollection of who won the 117th Boston Marathon. Actually, to be honest, I covered it for 3 decades and never could remember who won. But this was different.