Day 364 Part Two

• March 11th has become an ominous day on the calendar.  Not only is today the anniversary of Rudy Gobert's crashing positive which basically felled American sports for over two months...
• It is also the 10th anniversary of the 9.0 earthquake in Japan which took out the Fukushima power plant and literally rewrote the coastline of Japan.
• Latest word on Broadway is the end of May for New York shows -- with touring productions, for now, planned to restart in the Fall.
• And now the first major casualty due to COVID-19 -- Duke University has ended their basketball season, positive COVID test after a second ACC Tournament win in a year that they probably needed FIVE to actually make the NCAA tournament.  It will be the first time since 1996-97 that the Duke program is not in the tournament.
• Miami Heat:  Myles Leonard:  Suspended 1 week, fined $50,000, and the dreaded "sensitivity training".  Not Enough. -- But, on later edit, my anonymous friend points out that was the maximum the league could do under such an offense.  Flame the CBA.
• Sounds like I might be getting a chance to get an appointment for my vaccine somewhere around late April or early May -- President Biden is calling on all states to get full adult eligibility together by May 1.
• The signing of the third stimulus check, etc., was moved up to today, so the clock starts on that.  And there's word the first checks could start hitting as early as TOMORROW.  (MSN and White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki)
• But a reason that I think it will take a form of military force to get it done.  Half of Republican men polled by PBS will not get the vaccine.
• North Carolina A&T was the favorite to win the MEAC automatic berth.  They're done for the same reason Duke is.  Positive test in the program.
• Patrick Ewing is the latest Knick legend to be accosted by the idiot owning MSG and their security.  Ewing now coaches Georgetown, who upset top-seeded Villanova in the Big East tournament.  Though, to be fair, said "idiot" and Ewing have had a productive conversation on the subject.
  
• Sexual assault allegations against Yasiel Puig.  MLB is investigating and has interviewed the woman involved, and Puig will not be playing, apparently, in Major League Baseball until the allegations are resolved.
• Rule experiments will be in what is left of the minor leagues this year.  In AA, all four infielders must be on the dirt (to reduce The Shift).  A pitch clock is being enforced.  The bases will be larger to prevent some injuries, not unlike high school did at one time.  And some robot umpiring will be experimented with as well.