Oh The Irony

Why can't sportscasters use the word irony correctly? This is an endemic problem across sportscasting. I've been waiting for a really egregious mistake to blog on it and today I got it. I was watching a little bit of the College World Series game between Tennessee and Georgia Tech. The leadoff hitter for Tennessee is known for his speed. The announcer, whose name I did not catch, says this and then goes on to say, "Ironically, in his first college plate appearance, he walked and then stole second base."

Too bad that's the exact opposite of irony since stealing a base would be just what you would expect a speedy baseball player to do. Thus, a stolen base is an expected consequence while something ironic would be an unexpected consequence.

Do we need to have a required class in sports journalism programs on the proper use of irony?

UPDATE, 6/11/05--My wife places all the blame for this on Alanis Morrisette. And if you can blame her for anything, you might as well.