The Weak Ender

You really have to feel for Danica Patrick. The world is starting to revolt against women competing in reality TV shows. First Kelly Monaco gets burned in a Dancing With the Stars rematch. Leggy Stacy Keibler can�t even break the top two the following year. Katharine McPhee loses out to George Clooney and Jay Leno�s love child in American Idol�though in fairness the AARP does vote in record numbers so it wasn�t that big of a shock. So expect Patrick�s entry in the IRL to end badly.

Patrick�s participation in the IRL is part of a reality show, right? Because there is no other explanation.

Actually, it seems like the IRL has chosen Patrick to become the Anna Kournikova of open wheel racing and she has. Patrick is still searching for her first win just like Kournikova. But that won�t stop the IRL from having her pose for "sexy" pictures where she looks about as comfortable as your average WNBA player in high heels. (The only headlights in those pictures is the vapid trance-like look in her eyes.) Patrick will be the top story of the Indy 500, despite ranking 12th in the standings (out of nine drivers) and finishing 10th in qualifying.

But hey, she people think she is hot, but others know better. Still, the IRL is going to beat this angle into the ground.

Just imagine if she ever wins a race.

• American Idol prediction: McPhee did a duet with Meatloaf and she will end up looking like the portly singer before her 30th birthday. She�ll be pushing into Kristie Allie territory. Make as much money as you can now, girl.

• Would really like to buy into the notion that the Ducks can rally from a 3-0 deficit to advance to the Stanley Cup finals. The question is, how come this hasn�t happened more times in the past? There have been plenty of teams that have lost the first two games of a series and still come back to win four consecutive games. It just seems like it should happen once in a while. The Ducks are going to win on Saturday night and then the pressure if going to be immense on Edmonton in Game 6. If this thing goes seven games, forget it.

AND FINALLY

Major League Baseball has suspended Michael Barrett for hitting Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski in last week�s brawl. Well, it was a brawl in the sense that Mike Tyson�s first 18 professional fights were brawls and not a savage beat down. The suspension shook the MLB hard, so much so that it reduced Washington manager Frank Robinson to tears when he heard the news.