Wiedmer: Buzz now turns to the Braves

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Buzzzzzzz.

Sorry. Just didn't want any Red, White and Blue soccer fans trying to kick the World Cup cold turkey.

Hey, I'm as bummed about the Cup as anybody, even if I don't rise at 6 a.m. in non-World Cup years like a few of my younger colleagues to watch Arsenal battle Chelsea in the English Premier League.

But the Cup is different. It's the rest of mankind's Super Bowl, only it's bigger -- not better necessarily, but bigger -- because it comes around once every four years instead of every 12 months.

Perhaps that's also its biggest problem here in the States. We get excited about most Olympic sports in Olympic years only. Same with soccer.

Beyond that, it could be argued that the greatest single World Cup memory in this country was on the women's side, when Brandi Chastain stripped down to her sports bra after kicking the World Cup-clinching goal against China in 1999.

Maybe if the Chippendales played soccer the sport the rest of the world knows as football would take off over here more than once every four years.

But that doesn't mean there's no sports buzz left in the South until college football returns, even if the SEC has already banned South Africa's buzz-producing vuvuzelas.

Maybe Georgia Tech could get away with it in the ACC, since they are the Yellow Jackets, after all.

But however it's produced, there will be plenty of buzz tonight in the Big Peach when Washington Nationals rookie pitcher Stephen Strasburg takes the mound at Turner Field against the Atlanta Braves.

Strasburg has taken all of major league baseball by a storm the past three weeks, racing out to a 2-1 record, 1.73 earned run average and 41 strikeouts, which broke former Cleveland great Herb Score's major-league record of 40 Ks through the first four starts of his career.

Heck, even Strasburg's first loss was impressive last week. He fell 1-0 to Kansas City.

Until the NBA's Washington Wizards chose point guard John Wall with the top pick in last week's draft, it's safe to say that Strasburg was easily the most popular male in our nation's capital. Now he's merely the most popular by a smaller margin.

"Now I realize why everyone is talking about him," said KC's Jose Guillen after driving in the lone run against the rookie, who hasn't allowed a single walk in three of his four starts. "He's like a Hall of Famer."

Of course, Guillen also told the Washington Post, "That kid has pretty good stuff, (but) he still has a little to learn about how to pitch in certain counts."

Judging from Sunday, so does Atlanta ace Tommy Hanson, who lasted less than four innings for a second straight start in the Braves' 10-4 loss to Detroit.

But the bigger concern for Atlanta as it continues its quest to win retiring manager Bobby Cox a 15th pennant may be the sore left thumb of rookie hitting sensation Jason Heyward, who leads all major league rookies in RBIs and walks and is second in home runs with 11.

Heyward has missed the last two games and is expected to have an MRI of the thumb today.

"It would be fun, it would be awesome," Heyward told MLB.com on Sunday concerning the opportunity to face Strasburg. "But I look at it like I'm sitting out to take care of it now, so that I don't have to worry about it later."

And that, of course, is the problem with the World Cup. Because if you can't take care of business now, later is four years down the road, which is more than enough time to turn a steady buzz to sleepy zzzzs.

Continue reading by following these links to related stories:

Column: Wiedmer: World Cup big here, too

Article: World Cup gives U.S. soccer a chance to build respect at home

Article: CFC's loyalties are divided

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