Grip on Sports: The hazy, crazy days of August better not get too much hazier, or they will affect football

A GRIP ON SPORTS • So how many songs can you name with the word “smoke” in the title? Might as well begin to think of them. They are appropriate right now. Read on.

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• The air quality is bad in Spokane right now. Not Seattle bad – I did an interview with Michael Preston of CougCenter yesterday and he filled me in – but it’s not good around here either. I blame Canada. Hey, that’s another song.

Anyway, my favorite song with smoke in the title is probably “Smoke on the Water.” Deep Purple? From the ‘70s, man? Hello, anyone out there?

Yes, I know my musical tastes run a bit ancient, but in my defense there hasn’t been much recorded after 1979 that’s worth listening to. Just saying.

And why are we on this thread? That’s simple. The smoke around is supposed to clear up. It better. If it gets any worse, it will affect football practices.

When the air becomes this unhealthy, those in charge have to weigh the benefits of practice against the problems the smoke may cause to their players’ health.

The worse the air gets, the tougher it is to practice.

So far, the unhealthy air hasn’t been bad enough to cause the colleges to delay or cancel their workouts. But high school football is just around the corner and the younger the players are, the more cautious a coach has to be.

And to think. The wildfire season is probably not even close to peaking yet. It’s a sad fact of life that wet winters and dry summers are a bad combination when it comes to fires in the Northwest.

We had a wet winter. It hasn’t rained around here in more than a month. Be careful out there.

• It’s time for our annual reminder. When checking the baseball standings this time of year, don’t just look at the games behind a team is. Also check the loss column. Because that’s what matters.

After last night’s 5-2 win over the Royals – James Paxton’s seventh consecutive victory – the Mariners pulled within 1.5 games of Kansas City for the second wild-card spot. And Paxton survived a play at the plate without getting hurt, which is a victory within the victory.

That’s all well and good. But the M’s are 56-55. The Royals are 56-52. That means, by my math, Seattle has played three more games than K.C. They have lost them all. The Royals have three games to play while Seattle is sitting. They would have to lose them all for the Mariners to pull even. That’s an advantage for Kansas City.

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WSU: Mike Leach likes to do the unexpected. On the field, sure. Always. Off the field too. This season he decided to make a change in the offensive coaching staff, switching the roles of his receiver coaches. Theo Lawson has the story. … Theo also has four observations from practice, including a Drew Bledsoe sighting. … An in-state kid has been kicked off the team. … The Times’ Stefanie Loh explains a change of emphasis in summer workouts designed to help the incoming Cougars. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12, Colorado’s strength on the offensive line is its depth. … Utah also has depth, but at the running back position. … Arizona’s pass rush is going to be modeled on another school’s. … A new defensive line coach means a change in emphasis at Arizona State. … Right now, the defense is winning at USC, especially at the linebacker position. … UCLA’s offense improved over the summer. … With practice fighting in the Seattle news, the Times Adam Jude looked at how Washington handles it. How would the Huskies handle it if anything happened to Jake Browning? … Oregon State scrimmaged yesterday. … Oregon has a freshman quarterback who was tutored by former Cougar Alex Brink. The Ducks are also counting on a freshman defensive lineman. … In basketball, Colorado lost an assistant coach to San Jose State.

EWU: Like all college football teams, the Eagles redshirt as many young players as they can. The year of maturity can pay dividends down the road. Jim Allen looks at those who have traveled through their redshirt year and where they might fit in with Eastern now. … Around the Big Sky, Montana State welcomes home a transfer. … Southern Utah’s defense has improved. … Cal Poly is ready to start. … Northern Colorado will rely on a tough running back.

Indians: Eugene came to town and smoked the Indians with a seven-run fourth in an 8-5 victory. Whitney Ogden has the game story. … Around the Northwest League, Everett committed six errors in a loss to Salem-Keizer and Vancouver got past Hillsboro.

Preps: Coeur d’Alene’s “A” Legion team is still alive at the Regional in Eugene despite a loss yesterday.

Mariners: The M’s are back over .500, with no help from Mike Zunino. The catcher is back in his hitting slump, and the woes at the plate are extending to his defense again. He had a passed ball last night and two wild pitches that should have been blocked weren’t, leading to two Royals’ runs. Dave Nichols has more on the game in his Mariners Log, which includes all the links.

Seahawks: Yes, the Hawks held their fifth preseason practice. And yes, things happened on the field, from Frank Clark being punished for his bush league fight at practice Thursday and his victim, Germain Ifedi, also watching from the sidelines. But the biggest story from Friday was Kenny Easley receiving his gold jacket from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The best safety the Seahawks have ever had – for now – has reached the pinnacle of his profession and will be formally inducted into the Hall today. … Jimmy Graham may make it there someday, if the Hawks use him more.

Sounders: Seattle believes its best offensive players are being targeted in a way not condoned by the rules.

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• Is there anything worse than coming home from vacation and finding a major appliance in your house needs to be replaced? Sure there is. But it’s still bad news. Our water heater began leaking while we were gone, though, thankfully, it didn’t accelerate to near flood stage until we returned. We’ve been bailing the utility room ever since. This morning the plumbers are coming in with the replacement. Other than the big check I will have to write, this makes me so happy. Until later …