Afternoon Baseball

Seriously. He's that good. Last year at the U.S. Open final, when Agassi was thisclose to taking a 2-1 sets lead, it was as if a light clicked on in Roger Federer, and he basically didn't lose anything after that. Before that moment, he was moving slowly, showing less energy, hitting lazy shots wide, long and low. After, it was as if he decided Agassi had had enough fun, and he dominated.

Sub in Andy Roddick's name, and you have the exact story of this year's U.S. Open. Four missed break points in one game for Andy, and you knew Federer had the match. He even let Andy think he had a shot until it was 5-all, and then Federer won 8 of 9 to end it. He's just way too good. 69 winners, 19 unforced errors. You won't see that much in a silly season tournament against a guy ranked in the 200s.

For Roddick, though, the Mandy Moore curse continues.