On the road again

Hey everyone. I am at Talladega today for the BIG Busch race.

UPDATE: Auburn beat Arkansas 11-9 on Saturday.

I talked earlier that coach Tommy Slater might be in trouble if his team flatlines during the second half of the season. If the Tigers can win on Sunday, that's a second consecutive series win. That's definitely not flatlining.

ON TO RACING.

I'm not a big race guy, so everything is new to me. A few thoughts:

*This place is massive. The grandstand holds 140k+. That doesn't include the infield population, which easily could top 40k. It's an amazing mass of humanity.

*The press center, where I am seated, is in the infield approximately 500 feet off the the track. Yet every time the cars come by the start/finish line, I can feel them. It's pretty neat.

*They brought driver Denny Hamlin in for interviews earlier without announcing him. I thought he was an intern or something. Seriously. He certainly looks the part.

*There are Cessna 172s flying around the track towing large promotional flags. A strong wind from the north really taxes these prop planes. They aim into the wind and I'll swear the planes aren't moving. It's weird to see. I can hear the engines giving it hell but ... nothing.

MORE TO COME.

Baseball update

Auburn released its pitching probables for this weekend's series against No. 3 Arkansas.

Paul Burnside wasn't on it.

Coach Tommy Slater said during the SEC Teleconference on Thursday that Burnside is out with a biceps strain. I talked with Paul's father, Sheldon, today and he said Paul had an MRI after his (excellent) start last weekend against Alabama. Paul first felt some shoulder discomfort during the LSU series, but attempted to pitch through it.

The situation didn't abate during the next few weeks. Burnside then had the MRI, which failed to show any structural damage. Still, Sheldon said it's possible Paul has a small rotator-cuff tear. He didn't seem very concerned about it, though.

Paul could be available as a reliever on Sunday. That's about it.

Evan Crawford will start on Friday.
Taylor Thompson will start on Saturday.
Sunday's starter is TBA.

Double-secret information

Another reason I like covering Auburn ...

So I'm at AUM tonight covering the Senators' SSAC tournament game against Reinhardt College. A couple of the Senators' regular starters are out of the lineup, so I roll into the press box and ask about it. This is standard stuff.

AUM's publicist, Darrell Orand, declines to give me the information. He cites HIPPA. Officially, that's the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It was signed in 1996 to help people avoid the scandalous dissemination of sensitive medical information.

Sports teams rarely, if ever, withhold information in the name of HIPPA.

I can't remember a single time Auburn withheld information like that about a player. It just doesn't happen very often anywhere. You HIPPA supporters probably will pass out if you read the official NFL Draft scouting reports at NFL.com, which list every major/minor injury suffered by every possible draftee.

All this because I wanted to know about AUM third baseman Bruce Alter's bum ankle.

You'd think AUM would appreciate the interest.

Jay update

Hey everyone. I know I promised a full blog from the Ala-Aub game on Sunday, but I didn't make the game. My grandfather, Joe Weixler of Louisville, Ky., died on Saturday night at 91. He was in outstanding shape until just before his 89th birthday. He certainly lived a full life and his death was painless.

I'm in Louisville right now for his visitation and funeral. Thanks to those who already have e-mailed me. It means a lot.

Anyway, I felt like I needed to explain my absence to you all.

I'll be back to work on Wednesday. Take care.