{"id":141644,"date":"2021-04-05T03:50:36","date_gmt":"2021-04-05T08:50:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=141644"},"modified":"2021-04-05T03:50:39","modified_gmt":"2021-04-05T08:50:39","slug":"monday-mailbag-eggerss-hardball-hoops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2021\/04\/05\/monday-mailbag-eggerss-hardball-hoops\/","title":{"rendered":"Monday Mailbag: Eggerss, hardball, hoops"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

SCOTT TRUXELL\/<\/strong>independent sports editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This week\u2019s Monday Mailbag features questions about Van Wert\u2019s stadium situation, the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians, game cancelations, and tonight\u2019s NCAA men\u2019s national championship game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Does the generous donation by Mel and Arlene Hurless for play clocks mean there\u2019s no chance a new stadium will be built in Van Wert? Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: No doubt the donation was a generous one and it means Eggerss Stadium will finally have play clocks, just like all other Western Buckeye League schools. Mel and Arlene Hurless are to be commended for their kind act.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Personally, I don\u2019t see a new stadium going up anytime soon. As it stands right now, there\u2019s simply no money for a new stadium and as a hired consultant told the school board last fall, there\u2019s really not enough money for major renovations at Eggerss Stadium, which kind of makes the whole thing a moot point.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At some point, the powers-that-be are going to have to figure out which path to pursue and figure out a way to fund it. Neither will be easy as there are plenty of Eggerss Stadium supporters as well as those who prefer a new stadium and of course, finding the funds will be a challenge, but not impossible.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Who\u2019s in for a longer season \u2013 the Cincinnati Reds or the Cleveland Indians? Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: Yikes. Obviously it\u2019s very early, but the two teams could be running neck-and-neck for that distinction.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the Reds can stay healthy and even somewhat consistent, and if the pitchers they have can deliver, they could finish around .500. I know that\u2019s somewhat of a clich\u00e9 and a generalization, but that probably what it will come down to.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plus, the National League Central as a whole isn\u2019t exactly a powerhouse, so that could help.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

As far as the Indians, the pitching staff is considered by many to be above average and I agree with that.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, like many others, I\u2019m not sure where runs are going to come from this season. The outfield is a huge question mark and the trade of Francisco Lindor certainly doesn\u2019t help.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just like the NL Central, the American League Central isn\u2019t the strongest division around, so that could help a little.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honestly, if either one of these teams wins 82 games I\u2019d be happy.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: I find it hard to believe all of the area\u2019s high school athletic events were canceled because of cold weather on Thursday. It\u2019s time to toughen up. Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: Sorry, but I can\u2019t agree on this one. I actually prefer cold temperatures, but the conditions (high winds, temperatures around freezing and even snow whizzing by) on Thursday would have made it miserable for athletes, coaches, officials and fans in attendance. It was the right call.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: Who wins Monday night\u2019s game \u2013 Gonzaga or Baylor? Name withheld upon request<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: I\u2019ve said all along it\u2019s tough for a team to run the table. As we all know, no one has done it since Indiana in 1976.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve also said the best team doesn\u2019t always win the championship. Just look at previous national champions and you\u2019ll see what I mean. Having said that, Gonzaga is the better team and I now think they\u2019ll win the title.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A couple of other things \u2013 Saturday night\u2019s national semifinal game should go down as one of the very best ever, and I wish tonight\u2019s national championship game started before 9:20. Yes, I’m an early riser (4:15 a.m.) and I understand it\u2019s all about television but still, there\u2019s no reason the game couldn\u2019t start at 8 or 8:30 p.m. at the latest.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have a question or comment for the next Monday Mailbag, feel free to email it to sports@thevwindependent.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCOTT TRUXELL\/independent sports editor This week\u2019s Monday Mailbag features questions about Van Wert\u2019s stadium situation, the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians, game cancelations, and tonight\u2019s NCAA men\u2019s national championship game. Q: Does the generous donation by Mel and Arlene Hurless for play clocks mean there\u2019s no chance a new stadium will be built in Van […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-141644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sports"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-24 04:00:44","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141644"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141644\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}