A longtime favorite store in my UW vs. WSU household is REI, and one of our happiest days of living in the Tri-Cities came when the Seattle-based company opened a branch in Kennewick.

This week, the Seattle Mariners are expected to officially welcome young "catcher" Jesus Montero and bid adieu to young power pitcher Michael Pineda.

The world of professional sports is a business for the participants, and it is supposed to provide entertainment for the fans.

Ian Furness of KJR 950 AM in Seattle devoted two segments of his program Monday to a Tacoma News Tribune story published Sunday on the harm that negative online comments inflict on college recruiting.

The daily report from Ski Bluewood in Dayton shows the snow level in the mountains isn't abundant.

On Saturday, my dependable U.S. Postal Service carrier delivered a piece of mail to my all-time favorite Cougar — a donation request from Washington State University athletics.

On Tuesday, WSU football unofficially became a real player in the Pac-12 Conference.

Washington State University wonders if it needs a new football coach as it begins spending $80 million to remodel Martin Stadium.

One of the worst episodes in the 20 years of my mixed marriage came during the 2002 Apple Cup, a triple OT victory by the Huskies which ended in controversy and turned when Cougar quarterback Jason Gesser left the game with an injury.

RICHLAND — The combination of a roaring fire at home and an impressive quarterbacking job by Ferris grad Connor Halliday was enough to keep my lovely Cougar up late watching Wazzu upset Arizona State 37-27.

Leave it to the loquacious Bobby Valentine to point out something that I still haven’t heard or seen anywhere else regarding that historic Game 6 of the 2011 World Series.

Anyone who is a fan of Washington State University football — and even those who aren't — will want to spend 24 minutes to hear Ian Furness' interview Tuesday on KJR 950 AM with Jim Walden.

I wouldn't call it a curse having me cover your team while I worked on Jeff Morrow's staff at the Herald, but I certainly did not have the Midas touch when it came to wins.

There was no way to get my lovable WSU grad to watch Washington rout Colorado with me, but Saturday night we both were glued to the couch for Kasey Keller's regular-season home finale for the Seattle Sounders.

The Tri-City Americans will play on ROOT Sports five times this season.

The announcement of McClatchy hiring a publisher for the Tri-City Herald came out of the blue last Friday.

One of the big regrets during my decade of covering the Western Hockey League was missing the chance to see Mike Modano play in the Tri-Cities Coliseum.

While Hope Solo continues to generate headlines with her endorsements and her rising celebrity, the Richland High School girls soccer team will be in Portland on Thursday in hopes of watching the Bomber great on the pitch.

There’s no doubt Mike Noftle and radio broadcast partner Ryan Christensen are passionate about Royal High School football.

There’s new golf tournament in the Mid-Columbia scheduled for Monday, Sept. 19.

On Saturday morning, college football pundit Mel Kiper Jr., prompted me to push the “record” feature on my XM satellite radio.

As I’ve mentioned before, I try to carve out time everyday to give a listen to Ian Furness on KJR 950 AM in Seattle.

There are many holes and curiosities in the Seattle Mariners lineup, but the biggest mystery is left field.

Over the years, I've had a few folks wonder why I dubbed this blog "Rub of the Green."

RICHLAND -- Water Follies week has arrived, and qualifying for the Columbia Cup will begin Friday morning, but the unlimited hydroplane field will begin arriving in the Tri-Cities on Wednesday.

I admit that I didn't realize the extent of Washington State University's role in the game of baseball until my trip to the College World Series.

A quick follow-up to to the story that I wrote Wednesday about West Richland midfielder Payton Thompson, who bought and sent along a Three Rivers Soccer Club scarf to USA goalkeeper Hope Solo...

Talk about a sweet 16.

RICHLAND, Washington -- If it's not the Mariners or the Apple Cup -- a contentious occasion in our house -- my wife rarely cares about the outcome of a sporting event I'm watching on the boob tube.

KENNEWICK — There will be a public birthday party of sorts held Saturday night at Canyon Lakes Golf Course.

While Kamiakin earned the Class 3A all-sport title championship for the 2010-11 school in Washington state, Stanford won the NCAA version of the all-sports championshp for the 17th straight season.

OMAHA, Neb. -- South Carolina successfully defended its College World Series title last night, but part of me was hoping Florida would derail the Gamecocks.

LONGMIRE — Snowshoes continue to be required equipment on many of the trails at Mount Rainier National Park.

The resurgent Minnesota Twins are expected to activate superstar catcher Joe Mauer and second baseman Tsuyoshi Nishioka this week, which means two players must go.

A friend sent me this link to an insightful column written by Jay Paterno, quarterbacks coach at Penn State. He works for his famous father.

Here’s a poll that might help answer a burning question for me...

It’s been overdue, but Oregon State’s “Giant Killers” of 1967 will be represented in the College Football Hall of Fame.

KENNEWICK — Followers of Pacific-10 Conference athletics in this millennium likely will remember Jordan Kent as the University of Oregon's multi-sport student/athlete.

It appears 143 King County high school football officials will be disciplined for using pink whistles last October.

There's one autographed baseball that's stayed with me for most of life. And it became more cherished yesterday with the passing of Harmon Killebrew.

If The Seattle Times' final spring sports polls serve as a barometer to come, CBBN softball is the best bet to bring home a Class 4A or 3A state high school title back to the Mid-Columbia.

On June 2, the ESPN 'SportsCenter' anchor Neil Everett will be the keynote speaker at the Spokane Youth Sports Association fundraising breakfast.

This season, I find myself glued almost nightly to the MLB Network and its Emmy Award-winning coverage.

Looks as if I might be spending a long time tonight in front of my Sony Bravia, with it tuned into ROOT Sports.

Washington Huskies football posted its two-deep depth chart this morning, and it's official -- Prosser grad Cody Bruns will be backing Devin Aguilar at one of the wide receiver spots.

It wasn't a big surprise that Russell Wilson -- who played for Tri-City Dust Devils last summer -- won't be playing quarterback for North Carolina State this fall.

The silver lining to the Seattle Mariners' 101-loss season in 2010 is the right to draft one of the top two amateur players in the country on June 6, 2011.

Last Friday, ESPN.com posted a brief video clip showcasing Washington's Jake Locker at the 2010 Holiday Bowl.

Last month, ESPN The Magazine published with a quick “front of the book” item on colorful high school mascots.

There are almost always a few good nuggets from interviews that don’t make their way into the newspaper. Such was the case with my season-finale piece on Ski Bluewood for Friday’s print edition.