There was a sports smorgasbord in Baltimore this week with the Ravens, Terps and O’s making headlines. But in the Ravens’ case, the attention wasn’t necessarily welcome.

[1] The Maryland men’s basketball team tips off the 2009-10 season Friday night against Charleston Southern. Expectations are high for the Terps after last season’s late charge to the NCAA tournament. Greivis Vasquez smartly returned to College Park, and Gary Williams is still drawing up the plays. But the team’s tourney hopes could come down to how quickly freshmen big men James Padgett and Jordan Williams adjust to the college game. Still, I’m glad Maryland stuck with Coach Williams. The excitement is clearly back.

[2] O’s stud center fielder Adam Jones won his first Gold Glove, becoming the first Oriole to win the award in a decade. Though he played only 119 games, he was certainly deserving. Jones brought flair to the Camden Yards outfield, shagging flies and robbing hitters while blowing bubble-gum bubbles. But even when he wasn’t flashy, he was still oh-so effective because his range is ridiculous. And he’s only going to get better out there.

[3] Ravens kicker Steve Hauschka is in the hot seat after missing another critical field goal Sunday. The Ravens tried out Mike Nugent and Billy Cundiff this week, but say Hauschka is still the guy for now. Many fans want to see him get the boot, but I’m pulling for the kid. One more big miss, though, and he’s outta here.

[4] Ravens safety Ed Reed says the pain from his injured neck and shoulder is at its worst right now, but insists it’s not affecting his play. His subpar play (by his standards) suggests otherwise. But there’s no questioning his toughness. Just reading the words “nerve impingement” makes me cringe. Let’s just hope this isn’t the future Hall-of-Famer’s last season.

[5] John Harbaugh is facing his toughest test as Ravens coach after his team sleepwalked through another bad loss to the Bengals. “I need to find a way to do my job better,” he said. One thing is for sure: He needs to start instilling some discipline in this team again.

[6] Western Maryland logger Darvin Moon finished second in the World Series of Poker on Tuesday when he didn’t connect on a straight draw against the new champ, Joe Cada. Moon walked away with more than $5 million in winnings. I want a piece of that action, so if you want to bankroll me for the 2010 WSOP, shoot me an e-mail.

[7] Michael Phelps floundered in the pool all week in Stockholm, failing to qualify in three out of his four events through Wednesday. In his defense, he’s not wearing one of those Bionic Man swimsuits and he says he’s out of shape, too. God, if this guy’s out of shape, what does that say about me?

Matt Vensel is a content creator for b. E-mail him at matt@bthesite.com.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.