"Sometimes sports become a backdrop to the real issues of the day, and today is one of those times.  It is hard to think about sports when senseless tragedies occur, such as the murderous consequences brought on by a madman in Aurora, California early Friday morning.  Our collective heart at YouGabSports goes out to all the victims, families, and friends whose lives were permanently altered by this villainous individual."

With the Olympic Games scheduled to open in London in just a week, it makes one wonder if any event can be made safe for contestants and spectators in today’s world of terrorism.  Let us pray that these Games are completed with on-field achievement for the athletes and safety for all in attendance. This fact alone will make the London Games a success.

The Administrative Heads of Penn State will decide in the next 72 hours if the statue of Joe Paterno will be removed from the campus.  To me this is a no brainer.  To leave the statue standing would be a slap in the face of all the victims that are the result of Jerry Sandusky and the cover-up that occurred for more than a decade at Penn State.   It is imperative for the school to move on from this tragedy and to tear the statue down.

As all 30 Major Baseball teams brace for the July 31 trade deadline, it is a matter of windows of opportunity.  Is it time for the individual teams to be optimistic and be buyers of premium talent or to be pessimistic and to sell their valuable players at a premium?  The next 10 days will tell the fans how their favorite teams view their fortunes and their individual windows of opportunity.

At this time of year there is no pessimism and only pure optimism in a couple of related sports who will be beginning their seasons in just a matter of days.  College and professional football will be beginning their training camps, and every NCAA team or NFL team will be brewing with optimism and expectations for the upcoming year.  It’s a great time to be a sports fan, and let’s be realistic and give a nod to America’s new school National Pastime.  Our old school National Pastime will always be baseball.