No worries, it's just Spring Training...right?

I know that I can't put a whole lot of stock in Spring Training performances, either good or bad. If you take ST stats too seriously, the Royals are all better batters than Ichiro. But how many sub-standard performances am I supposed to shrug off here? My handy countdown tells me the real actual season is coming very soon, and right now a lot of KC pitchers have some scarily big numbers in statistical categories where smaller is better.

I should point out that I haven't been able to actually listen to many games, so maybe I'm missing something. My mlb.com audio has been playing a funny game for the last two weeks, wherein I go to sign in to listen to a game, and they say "Nope! You aren't actually a subscriber," and I say "But I signed in just fine yesterday, what's the problem now" and the site says "Nope! You aren't actually a subscriber, I'm not listening to you lalalalalala!" so all I've had for reference so far are box scores. Maybe the broadcasts would be more informative than the box scores. Are Brett Tomko, Hideo Nomo, and a few others in whom I'm supposed to have faith just hiding their true skill until Opening Day?

I understand small sample sizes -- Tomko is the only Royals pitcher to have reached double-digits in innings so far -- and I understand that ERA is a flawed statistic and I understand that I'm not supposed to be too upset about ERAs in the tens and teens because the calendar tells me it's only mid-March.

But...it's mid-March. That's close to April, when for-real games start. Are pitchers supposed to be closer to their regular-season form yet? I honestly don't know, because I haven't always been a religious Spring Training follower as I am at the moment. Is it getting to the point where I should be worried about various parts of the KC pitching staff?

On an unrelated note (aren't they all that way with me?), I am spending my Spring Break in my hometown with my parents, little brother, and dogs. I guess most people go somewhere crazy during this week. I think the most exotic thing I have going on is a trip to the eye doctor, to get my glasses updated for the first time since 8th grade or so. My older dog (we call him The Perfect One) is napping at my feet, which I think is better than some overpriced trip to a place overcrowded with drunken frat boys and scantily clad sorostitutes. I may have mentioned this before, but my dorm building is nestled among about 60487 Greek houses, so I am surrounded by these types of "people" during every week of the year. This is my break from them.

Some links, for your reading pleasure:
-JoePo interviews Bill James. I like this: two of my favorite baseball minds talk about a bunch of random stuff.
-Clark Fosler takes a look at Royals pitching prospects. I think more are coming.
-The Minnesota/Illinois game (the Big 10 quarterfinals) ended in a CRAZY fashion. Definitely worth watching if you, like me, missed SportsCenter last night.
-A little late, but here's something "completely useless" but somewhat entertaining from Pizza Cutter at StatSpeak. It includes a Royal being first in the Majors in something. I'll let you read to find out who it is, and in what he led the league.

Lastly...
In Big XII tournament presented by Phillps 66 action,Nebraska lost to Kansas last night, which isn't much of a surprise. However, the first half was awesome. I wish I could have watched on TV, because I think I missed one of the only opportunities I'll ever have to see my Huskers frustrate and ultimately outplay the Jayhawks.