Sharapova's Making Noise Again

Maria Sharapova has always made noise on and off the court.

At this year's French Open, the Russian star made a splash debuting an Eiffel-Tour inspired dress. Designed by Nike, the outfit features side stitching that mirrors the iron lattice design of the pinnacle Parisian landmark.

Then as the tennis has played out at Roland Garros, the door has seemingly opened for Sharapova to complete her career Slam. For the first time in the Open era, all three top seeds lost before the quarters.

Sharapova hasn't made it easy.

She was on the brink in the second round, down a set and two breaks to 17-year-old wild card Caroline Garcia, before rattling off 11 straight games. The seventh seed also scratched out a fourth-round victory, battling through five set points.

It certainly appears Sharapova is finding her groove after dealing with nagging injuries to her right shoulder and elbow. But one thing that needs no recovery is the Sharapova scream.

It's real, it's loud and it grabbed my attention when I attended the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells in March.

Tennis Just Isn't the Same

The French Open is starting to enter the thick of the tournament.

Great tennis has already been played at Roland Garros, with five-time champion Rafael Nadal surviving his first match that lasted 4 hours, 1 minute against American John Isner.

And Kim Clijsters, who seemed to have everything under control, unraveled in a three-set 2nd round loss.

But it's tough to watch this tournament the way I used to. That's because I learned how great it is to watch a tennis tournament in person at Indian Wells.

The desert oasis is home to one of the most well attended tournaments outside the majors the BNP Paribas Open. And fans get up close and personal with the players.

It really is an amazing experience, with the best players in the world sweating it out feet in front of you. Now, I'm spoiled.

This year at Indian Wells, Novak Djokovic served notice he's doing something special. His three set win over Nadal, improved his record to 18-0 at the time.

I'll be watching to see if his streak continues, but it just won't be the same.

And There Was One ...

As a Pittsburgh Pirates fan, it is nauseating to think about the amount of talent that's been traded away from the Three Rivers over the past two decades.

But there's a reason why the team hasn't turned in a winning season in 18 years.

As it stands, since the start of general manager Neal Huntington's reign over the club, catcher Ryan Doumit is the only 2008 Opening Day starter left on the roster, and pitchers Paul Maholm and Evan Meek are the only other 25-man-roster holdovers.

It's truly an epic roster makeover.

That makeover started in 2008 with two trade deadline deals, one of which shipped All-Star Jason Bay off to Boston for four prospects.

Right now, it appears the Pirates have nothing to show for the Bay deal.

With Brandon Moss and Andy LaRoche already gone, Pittsburgh released pitcher Craig Hansen last month, who appeared in 21 games for the Bucs.

Hansen posted a 6.95 ERA with twice as many walks (24) as strikeouts (12) and was hampered by a rare nerve ailment over two seasons.

For the Buccos to salvage anything from the Bay trade, Bryan Morris probably has to win a Cy Young award. But Morris is still in the minors.

The Jason Bay trade probably won't go down as the worst deal, but it could come in a close second to the highway robbery that sent Aramis Ramirez to the Cubs.

That's just life in Pittsburgh.

Friar's Latos Flummoxed So Far

San Diego Padres ace Mat Latos looks like the hard-luck pitcher for 2011.

Most analysts did not think Latos could repeat his rookie year success which saw him earn 14 wins, strike out 189 and post a sub-3.00 ERA (2.92).

But one month into the new season it looks like Latos is going to be that pitcher who just can't buy a win.

Through his first five starts he's 0-4 with a 4.55 ERA. If you toss out Latos' worst start his ERA is sub-4.00, so he's not pitching horribly.

Last night against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Latos did everything in his power to notch a "W." He allowed two runs on five hits over six innings and led off the third inning with a homer into the second deck in left field.

It was the first ever home run for Latos, a career .088 hitter, and the first homer by a Padres pitcher in Petco Park which opened in 2004.

What happened, the bullpen promptly blew the lead taking Latos off the hook for the win.

The six runs San Diego managed scored in the comeback win is rare. When Latos takes the mound the Padres are averaging a paltry 2.2 runs per game. Such is life these days in San Diego, so far the Friars have been blanked eight times this season.

Looks like if Latos wants a win this year, he might just have to be perfect.