A GRIP ON SPORTS • It's April Fools' Day. Sometimes I feel if I am determined to be a saint after I pass on, this will be my day. Yep, I could be considered the patron saint of fools. Read on.

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• The fool idea has faded over the years, mainly because I finally wised up and quit trying to pick winners. You know, gambling. Though with me, it was rarely a gamble. Not when you lose as often as I did. I fooled myself into thinking I could win once in a while. No more. Oh sure, I still buy a Lotto ticket once in a while, not as a way to gamble but as a form of donation to the schools in our state. The drool-inducing multi-million dollar payouts? Those are just for dreams. Only a fool would think they could win that with the luck exhibited in my life. Nope, gambling is not for me. So I won't be booking the M's in the World Series this season. They seem to be the trendy pick, nationally, and I think they've improved incrementally, but it's foolish to think the next stop is Titletown, U.S.A. The Seahawks, sure. The Sounders possibly. Maybe even Gonzaga some time down the road. But the M's, baseball's poster children of management ineptitude? No way. Sure, they've spent some money – as if Robinson Cano's GDP-of-Palau contract is some money – but they always seem to cut corners somewhere, trying to win a pennant on the cheap when the franchise is worth more than Zanzibar. This season is no different. The lineup is better, but there is still a power hole in right field. The bullpen is solid but another through-the-wars left-handed arm might have been available. (Not like we are complaining in these parts, what with U-Hi and Gonzaga grad Tyler Olson slated to fill that spot.) A backup catcher with experience, and a left-handed bat, a true leadoff hitter, all would also help. But nope. The $10 million or so the M's are saving must look good on the bottom line. That being said, Seattle is not fooling around. The M's are trying to win. They've built a solid rotation, especially if J.A. Happ and Taijuan Walker come through. They have more power in the lineup. There is more depth. The American League West is not as strong as it has been. The entire American League, actually. So the door is open for the M's. Will they run through it? I'm not betting against it. Or on it, either. I'm no fool, not even on April 1.

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• WSU: The wind was blowing yesterday around these parts. Clouds gathered at times. The sun peaked through. Showers, warmth, cold all took turns on stage. Yep, it's spring football time. Washington State was on the field for the third time, the first with Jacob Thorpe in attendance. And he made up for lost time in his coverage. There is a story, of course, as well as a blog post and video of Mike Leach and Peyton Bender. There is also a morning post with links. ... Three players are leaving the basketball program, so Jacob has a blog post and a story on that. ... Former Cougar Mark Hendrickson has finally decided to retire from baseball at age 40. ... Stanford earned its way into the NIT finals last night despite blowing an early 21-point lead.

• Gonzaga: The Zags hosted the Cougars in baseball and held on for a 5-4 victory. ... Bud Withers, who will be joining the retired ranks soon, joins in the chorus concerning Gonzaga's bright basketball future.

• EWU: Jim Allen's blog post below this one has the news Tyler Harvey will enter the NBA draft, though not sign with an agent. That allows him to work out, test the waters and decide if he wants to move forward. If he decides to return, of course, that door would still be open. ... The Eagles are ready to kick off spring football tomorrow. Jim has a story today.

• Whitworth: Jacob has his baseball notebook and this week he concentrates on the Pirates, who stand atop the NWC standings.

• Chiefs: You think Everett and Spokane don't like each other much? You would be right. Chris Derrick has an advance of tonight's WHL playoff game at the Arena as well as a blog post, focusing on how physical the play has gotten in the first-round series. ... Everett coach Kevin Constantine doesn’t like the setup in Spokane, which is unlike anywhere else in the league. ... Portland is in trouble. The Winterhawks are down 2-1 in their first-round series with Seattle. ... Tri-City is not just in trouble, the Americans are basically done, down 3-0 to Kelowna.

• Shock: Once again Spokane is in the market for a quarterback. Injuries have decimated the position for the third time in four seasons. Jim Meehan has more in this notebook.

• Preps: Gonzaga Prep's Laura Stockton (pictured) was named the girls' player of the year at all levels when the Associated Press released its all-state basketball teams. Greg Lee has the story.

• Seahawks: Two questions. Who will the Hawks take with their first pick, No. 63 overall? And what will it cost them to re-sign Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson? Where is Wilson working out this offseason? Oops, that's three questions.

• Mariners: No, this is not an April Fools' joke. Felix Hernandez did get shelled yesterday and Lloyd McClendon blamed it on, get this, an overly tough leg workout earlier in the week. ... McClendon decided to get into shape for the regular season by picking an argument with the home plate umpire, who ejected him before he even got anywhere near home plate. It was quite entertaining, honestly. ... By the way, Seattle lost to Cleveland, 8-6. ... This year's Mariner roster should be better able to deal with left-handed starters. ... To bunt or not to bunt, that is the question. Whether it is nobler to try to hit through a shift, oh heck, that's enough faux-Shakespeare. ... After the roster moves Tuesday, there were some other, related, moves Wednesday. ... One of the moves was a late-in-the-day trade of Erasmos Ramirez.

• Sounders: The first month of the season supplied some clues about how good this Sounder team can be, but nothing definite. Part of that is due to injuries.

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• What was your go-to move on April Fools' Day as a child? Mine was putting salt instead of sugar in my dad's coffee. The subtlety of my chicanery was mind-boggling. Until later ...

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