By RAY McNULTY, Scripps Howard News Service

Mickey Mantle.Gale Sayers.Bobby Orr.Elgin Baylor.I've often wondered how much we missed because arthroscopic surgery wasn't available when they were at the top of their games, only to be felled by knee injuries that robbed them of their wondrous speed and agility.

There will be no excuses.Not this weekend.Not at this United States Open.Not for Tiger Woods."I'm good to go," the two-time champion said Tuesday during his pre-tournament media session at Torrey Pines in San Diego. "I'm here. I plan on playing competitive. Come game time Thursday, I'll be ready."

Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor, now 34 and nearing the end of a terrific NFL career, wants one last chance to chase the championship that has eluded him.That's not going to happen in Miami.Not next season.

Before everyone gets too caught up in all the horse-racing hype and people start losing their minds over Big Brown and his run at the Triple Crown, let's try to keep things in perspective.This isn't the second coming of Secretariat.Not even close.

FORT PIERCE, Fla. -- It doesn't hit you, really, until you look back at the names and numbers.Then it's obvious.Then it's easy to see why Florida State, which put together 14 consecutive seasons in which it was ranked among the nation's top five teams in the final Associated Press polls, hasn't been the same college football powerhouse in this millennium.

The best sports story last week didn't come out of New York, Chicago or Los Angeles, or any big city.It wasn't born in a big-league ballpark or NBA arena or NFL front office, or on a golf course or tennis court or racetrack.

Most of my workdays begin at home, in my office, where I'm researching topics or making phone calls or scouring the Internet for column ideas.And, usually, the TV is on.Tuned to ESPN2.First for "Mike & Mike in the Morning," then "First Take."And for a sizable chunk of the year, this is what I see, far more than anything else: The NBA.

It's OK to despise the Florida Marlins owner, who cares so little about the team's fans that he openly insults them with the smallest payroll in baseball.Not that being cheap is the only reason to dislike Jeffrey Loria.Just ask Joe Girardi.

Truth is, it's probably not going to happen.Not with new team vice president Bill Parcells running the show for the Miami Dolphins.Not with so many other glaring voids that need to be filled on a football team that mustered only one victory last season.

Tibet.Darfur.Muslim terrorists.Apparently, China's version of the Olympic spirit loses something in translation.Because unless something changes drastically -- and we're still four months from the Opening Ceremonies -- this summer's Beijing Olympics won't be the feel-good, global celebration they're supposed to be.