Nats pitcher seeks date via Twitter

Pro athletes seldom have trouble finding dates, but Washington Nationals pitcher Gio Gonzalez is concerned about having to go stag to a team party Saturday.

He took to Twitter to look for a date.

"Hey I need a date for the gala on Saturday night, (any) sexy single ladies interested....." Gonzalez tweeted.

Not surprisingly, he received some responses, including one from a Philadelphia Phillies fan who said his wife could accompany Gonzalez.

No word on whether the 26-year-old Gonzalez made a love connection, but he stipulated the woman had to be at least 21.

So he shouldn't look to 19-year-old teammate - and, as it's mandatory to point out, Las Vegan - Bryce Harper for help.

■ SEATTLE'S FAVORITE TEAM - Forty-eight states are cheering for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who opened the NBA Finals on Tuesday against the Miami Heat.

Florida and Washington are the exceptions, with those in Seattle still stewing about losing the SuperSonics to Oklahoma City.

An apparently fake photo circulated on the Internet of a Heat flag flying atop the Space Needle in Seattle.

But that city's animosity toward the Thunder is real.

"The exit was due to arena economics, not fan apathy, and it's impossible for me to watch the Thunder play in Oklahoma City without thinking, 'That could/should/would be happening here,' " wrote Danny O'Neil in The Seattle Times. "And because it's not, I don't want it happening there."

Get in line.

■ DRUMMED OUT - The crowd at Ohio State's Jerome Schottenstein Center loved the show the Red Hot Chili Peppers put on June 4, screaming its approval at the end of the concert.

That is until drummer and Michigan fan Chad Smith began to belt out "The Victors," drawing an immediate backlash of boos for the Wolverines' fight song.

It would be like a band from Reno rolling a blue-painted Fremont Cannon into the Thomas & Mack Center. Like that ever would happen - a band from Reno worth watching.

■ KEEPING THE POWER - Stony Brook provides the latest example of what can happen when a fair and open playoff system is in place.

The little-known Seawolves will compete in the College World Series, which begins Friday, following in the line of Butler's consecutive men's basketball championship appearances in 2010 and 2011.

College football finally appears on the verge of a playoff system, but will it be fair and open?

Probably not.

The powers that rule the sport still will make sure their conferences are taken care of, and the chances of a Stony Brook or Butler making the postseason tournament probably will be remote.

"Football could find a way," wrote Pat Forde of Yahoo! Sports. "All it would take is for the Haves to become more flexible and generous - which is precisely why it never will happen."

So Boise State can leave for the Big East Conference, and it won't get the Broncos much closer to a title.

COMPILED BY MARK ANDERSON
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL