Since a young age I have been a regular follower of sports. They are simple, enjoyable, and often unpredictable. But in recent weeks something has happened that has made that sports world I once knew so well a total stranger. Here is a look at some of the headlines I just cannot understand. Danica Patrick Races Into Record Books With Historic Win (ABC News) Danica Patrick is a professional driver in the Indy Racing League. On April 20th, she captured her first professional victory at the Japan 300 in Motegi. This made her the first woman to win a race in the IndyCar series, thus a “historic win.” What I don’t understand is what obstacle she had to overcome to win. If a woman were to win a professional golf tournament or tennis match against a man, it would be historic. In these situations, men would be expected to win because of an edge in strength or quickness over their female competitor. In 1973, female tennis star Billy Jean King defeated former Wimbledon champion Bobby Riggs. In straight sets. With 50 million watching worldwide. And did I mention Riggs was the one that challenged her? King’s victory was historic, Patrick’s win in a minor event in the IndyCar Series is not. Favre is latest Madden cover boy (Associated Press) Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre will become the first retired player to grace the cover of the popular Madden video game, which was announced at a press conference April 25th. This will end a long line of disappointing seasons by other cover boys the season of their cover appearance, known as the “Madden Curse.” What I don’t understand is why Favre would accept this inevitable dose of bad luck. Favre has had enough misfortune as it is: since 2003, he has dealt with death of his father, brother, and father-in-law, as well as his wife’s diagnosis with cancer and the destruction of his hometown due to Hurricane Katrina. As a Minnesota Vikings fan, I have never really cared for Favre to much, but I really wish he would have rejected the Madden offer. Cover appearances by active players puts their careers at risk. I don’t want to imagine what could befall Favre now that he is cover boy. Vincent Padilla’s 3rd shutout leads Rangers past Twins 10-0 (Associated Press) This is the headline from a Major League Baseball game on April 27th. The first thing I don’t understand is why the winning pitcher’s name is spelled Vincent in the headline, but Vicente in the article (it’s actually Vicente). Good one, AP. The thing I really don’t understand is why anyone would possibly care about this particular story. MLB’s season consists of 162 regular season games. 162! Of the thirty teams in the league, only eight will make the playoffs with a shot at the championship. And just twenty-some games into the season, it’s pretty obvious neither the Twins nor the Rangers will be anywhere near playoff contention come September. So why would anyone care about this game? Why would someone take the time to do a write-up for this game? If the press completely ignored this game, would anyone care? No. So why they bothered is what I don’t understand.