Back when I was a kid, there was one blimp--The Goodyear Blimp. You would see it at all sorts of sporting events and other major gatherings. Today, blimps are more commonplace as billboards that hover over the sky delivering a message. Here’s a blimp, with no commercial marketing, that drifting across the sky in San Diego this past weekend.

I admit I was skeptical about making a “Muvee.” I recently spoke to the CEO of the company as well as some others in the Web 2.0 world who are creating editing tools to allow consumers to take pictures and video clips and create something snazzy without any basic editing skills. I scoffed at the idea, but after using it, I have to admit it’s fun and allows some level of art without much pain.

The Muvee below is just some loosely assembled pictures from last week’s World Baseball Classic. It also allows you to import video (not MPEG4, however). I was surprised that Muvee let me output to .mov which is perfect for uploading to a social video site or for allowing easy downloads by others. My one issue with the software is that it did not allow me to import mp3 files; I had to convert the music from mp3 to .wma.

At yesterday’s International Sportsman’s Expo in Phoenix, Hank, a golden retriever, seems reluctant (to say the least) to continue his snake training. Hank is already smart enough to avoid what he fears! Yes, that is a live rattlesnake.

Two years ago, my producer and I fell in love with those wonderful dock-diving dogs when we saw them at Westworld. I shot video of them last fall, again at Westworld, and when we heard the Splash Dogs would be at the International Sportsman Expo at the Arizona State Fairgrounds, we marked the event in red on our calendars.

The weather for the past few days has been lousy: it actually rained on March 11^th and it was cold and nasty for the Splash Dogs event, but those who came to the fairgrounds got a thrill. In among the exhibits for bow hunting contraptions and fly fishing gear was this portable Splash Dogs dock. As with our other times seeing the dogs, it was fun to see the varied breeds fly through the air. Greg Abner, the announcer, does a great job getting the crowd in the mood and he was in prime form. Tony Reed, president of Splash Dogs, does a great job organizing and you can see the respect the handlers have for Tony and his hard work.

For reasons that aren’t worth explaining, there actually was a competing dock diving dog event in the area, so some of the regulars didn’t make it to the Splash Dogs event and a few--such as the amazing Sisko--came late and performed as opposed to being part of the competition. Watchjing Sisko, handled by Rob Barnhill of Folsom, Calif., is like watching a well-trained athlete who gets better with each passing jump.

Today’s winner was Chief, handled by Pete Meyer of Grizzly Flatts, Calif.

There’s a Splash Dogs event in Anaheim at the end of April--not sure what’s going to stop us from attending.

Another Hall of Famer caught on video: the Say-Hey Kid, Willie Mays.

Mays threw out the first pitch at the USA-South Africa game. Willie came into Scottsdale Stadium with his godson, Barry Bonds. The least said about Barry at this moment, the better. I am reeling from the SI story. I worked for the newspaper company that employs the reporters who wrote the story; I assure you, the story must be true.

Here’s a look at the players on the South Africa team. They lost all three games, but were competitive and came close to upsetting Canada. I head that 11 of the players were high schoolers which makes their achievement that much more impressive. Sitting near a number of major league scouts, I wouldn’t be surprised if at least a few wind up in some major league camps at some point.

All told, they were good sports and always played hard with their heads held high; they were a credit to their country.

Because the USA blowout of South Africa lasted only five innings, many of the US pitchers didn’t get in the game, leaving them to work out after the dust had settled after the 17-0 victory.

Of course we had to capture Huston Street loosening up in the bullpen after the game. As we have chronicled on this blog, he is a favorite since his days in the Arizona Fall League all the way through his Rookie of the Year season with the Oakland A’s.

After seeing the USA slaughter South Africa, we made our way along the 101 Freeway to the Peoria Sports Complex (Spring Training home of the Padres and Mariners) to see Korea, the winner of the Asia Pool, take on the Padres in an exhibition game.

It was cold and windy, and after eight games in six days, we lasted six innings. It was 4-0 Padres when we left and the final was 7-1.

Korea is a very fundamentally solid team, but not quite at the level of teams such as the US and Mexico, but on any given day, anything can happen. Just ask the US team after they were defeated by Canada.

It’s too soon to predict the outcome of the Korea-Japan-US-Mexico pool but it’s not going to be a caekwalk of any sort for the USA team.

This was one David vs. Goliath battle that ended with Goliath on top: The USA Team crushed South Africa 17-0, allowing the USA to move on to the next round of the World Baseball Classic in Anaheim. The game lasted only five full innings before the league invoked the “mercy rule.”

USA pounded out 18 hits an Roger Clemens sailed through 4 1/3 innings before Mike Timlin and Chad Cordero came in to close the game out..

You have to hand it to those South Africans; they played hard and never hung their heads in shame. They have much to be proud of on their return trip home despite losing all three of their games.

So, USA and Mexico move on to play Japan and Korea. It would be great to witness the rematch between the US and Mexico; I think Vinny Castilla and company want revenge!

The night belonged to Mexico as they routed Canada 9-1. Canada’s’ starter Jeff Francis was a deer in the headlights as a parade of Mexican batters pummeled him into submission, scoring 4 runs in the first, more than enough to allow Mexico to cruise to a victory and on to the next round of the World Baseball Classic. The night belonged to Esteban Loiaza who pitched like he was in mid-season form.

SO, with Mexico in, it’s all up to the USA. If Roger Clemens and Company win against winless South Africa, they move on to Anaheim. Canada must hope for a miracle to make the trip West.

More troubling news on the Sanyo HD-1, this from Gizmodo, calling the video from the camera “Disastrous.” Makes me that much happier with my JVC Everio. Still, the Sanyo intrigues me but for $800, it seems too much to risk to determine whether it’s a good videoblogging tool or a cool-looking paperweight.

Game two of our doubleheader at Scottsdale Stadium had shades of the movie “Cool Runnings” to it. South Africa a team compromised of club players plus one player in the KC Royals organization, nearly pulled off a major upset against Canada. Cold and tired, we left in the 8^th with Canada up 7-5, but South Africa staged a later rally only to fall short 11-8.

Canada had a huge fan contingent in attendance--it’s all those winter visitors to Arizona! Anyway, the Canada faithful were a little uneasy as their start-studded team (Jason Bay, Justin Moreneau, Corey Koskie, etc..) never really got things going. Let’s put it simply: Canada either ups its game today or Team USA will put them away early.

A celebrity sighting: former Dodger skipper and Hall of Fame member Tommy Lasorda came in about the 4^th inning and sat in the box next to ours. Needless to say, he caused a major commotion!

The day seems like a blur: a World Baseball Classic doubleheader. In game one, the USA beat Mexico 2-0 in a wonderfully played game. Jake Peavy and a host of relievers shut down a very good Mexican team on just a handful of hits. As expected, the crowd went wild over Vinny Castilla, arguably the best player to ever come out of Mexico. (More on Vinny later).

Derrek Lee and Chipper Jones hit home runs for USA’s lone runs.

After seeing Canada in game two, my bet is that Mexico and the US squad make it to the next round, but it’s still early.

It’s a little overwhelming to walk into a small ballpark--one in which you are used to seeing Cactus League and Arizona Fall League games--and see a group of the greatest American ballplayers. Today was the final pre-World Baseball Classic exhibition with the Giants hosting Team USA with a who’s who of stars: Derek Jeter, A-Rod, Chipper Jones, Chase Utley, Roger Clements…and the list goes on.

I did have a battery issue with my JVC camera, so the coverage is split into two. This segment includes most of the pre-game excitement; the ext clip (shot in MPEG-4) will have more of the in-game activity.

Here I thought I had this great coup for my Hall of Fame Series. Standing two feet in front of me was Lee Smith, former relief pitcher for the Cubs, Red Sox, Yankees and 15 other teams. He has 478 lifetime saves and was a multiple “Fireman of the Year” award winner, but is not in the Hall of Fame despite impressive credentials.

I thought he was enshrined in Cooperstown, but Smith informed me he is not. Believe me, one look at Smith’s imposing presence, and you are not about to argue. Smith still looks like he could take the mound and blow hitters away. BTW, how he became pitching coach for the South Africa team is still a bit of a mystery, but the story has something to do with Smith meeting a British man in a bar and….

Sure, the World Baseball Classic warm-up, between the Oakland A’s and South Africa was one-sided--what would you expect? Even though the South Africa team lost 14-1, the team was spirited and played their hearts out..

South Africa’s second baseman Paul Bell led the game off with a double and scored , but that would be the visit team’s lone run for the game. Oakland, playing with a split squad, featured Bobby Crosby, Nick Swisher (he hit a long bomb) and Daric Barton, Oakland’s top minor league prospect.

We talked with Byrne Donaldson (he’s the one wearing a really cool shirt) who gave a resounding rendition of the National Anthem on the sax. Later, we spotted Mr. Moneyball, Billy Beane, in the stands and even had a chance to talk to South Africa’s pitching coach Lee Smith. Yes, the Lee Smith with 478 lifetime saves. He’s not in the Hall of Fame, but that’s a story for another clip. We even spoke to a number of parents of players on the South Africa team, including the mom and dad of Ashley Scott, an outfielder who had one of the team’s eight hits.

All in all, it was a blast. Wait until the real games start next Tuesday. One more exhibition for us… and it’s a big one: USA vs. San Francisco Giants. It’s tomorrow! Stay tuned.