East West
Celtics Suns
Bulls Mavs
Wizards Spurs
Cavs Jazz
Pistons Nuggets
Raptors Rockets
Heat Clippers
Knicks Warriors
Nets Blazers
Magic Grizzlies
Bucks Hornets
Bobcats Kings
Hawks Lakers
Pacers Sonics
Sixers T-Wolves
Cavs over Celtics in 7
Suns over Spurs in 7
Suns over Cavs in 6
MVP: Lebron James, Cavs
ROY: Brandon Wright, Warriors
Coach: Mike Dunleavy, Clippers
Comeback Player: Grant Hill, Suns
(You got to love the sports editor's chutzpah: following a rant about the worthless speculative tendencies of the media with a worthless speculation of his own. Hey, man, Heisenberg told me that's just the way it works)
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
An A-bomb from A-Rod
Its my own fault for listening to clowns like Mike and Mike or Colin Cowherd or the PTI guys, but all the hand wringing over Alex Rodriguez's announcement during the World Series, called 'tasteless' or 'crude' or 'disrespectful' from various wags, is my latest peeve. If Mike and Mike thought it so wrong to interrupt the Red Sox victory parade with news of A-Rod, why didn't they just ignore it? 'Its news, we have to talk about it', but so what? It'll still be 'news' tomorrow and isn't the World Series bigger news? If the World Series truly is more important then treat it that way, set everything else aside and talk Red Sox all morning. And if its not, then quit complaining that A-Rod (and his evil mastermind Scott Boras) brought that truth to light.
The difference between the A-Rod story and the Red Sox is that A-Rod is ongoing, it is new, whereas the Red Sox story is completed, it is past. Pat the Red Sox on the back--they were by far the superior team this post-season--and move on. I just don't see how the announcement that could've waited til Monday can be called 'tasteless' or a 'travesty' because honestly it just doesn't matter. These guys seem so offended by something that will be completely forgotten 2 weeks from now.
The real story is that news radio (notice I didn't say 'sports' radio) is all about speculation, its about imaginary news, things that haven't happened and won't happen. Speculation is more fun than reality. I make my NFL picks every week (and have since I was a little kid) because I'm fascinated by predicting the future. I'm usually about 50/50 and that's really about as good as it gets, my best pick' em season ever was about 60%--a ratio that a real honest-to-God gambler would be happy to hit. In the next year or so we'll get 10 tons of political garbage heaped on us from all angles but remember this: we can't predict the future! We can't know in advance who will truly be best able to deal with this country's future because it hasn't happened yet. And we don't know where A-Rod will sign because it hasn't happened yet. But talking about what might happen to Hillary or Guiliani or Kobe Bryant or Britney Spears is more fun though rarely more enlightening than what actually will happen and that's where the media sucks us in: by giving us the fantasy and not the reality. And as Americans are painfully poor with history (and geography but that's a totally separate rant) they never seem to remember how often they themselves have been hoodwinked by empty speculation. Or that getting all huffy over something so insignificant does little more than raise blood pressure for no reason.
Yeah, I know, its time to turn off the radio. But just once I'd like for our cultural commentators to actually give us something useful instead of sucking up to our bad habits and our consumerist tendencies. We like to think as Americans that months and months of public debate will bring us back to what is really important to us but generally it just sets the parameters of the corruption we buy into. And A-Rod's future business arrangements will be as misunderstood in the media-sphere as missile defense or the mullahs of Iran.
The difference between the A-Rod story and the Red Sox is that A-Rod is ongoing, it is new, whereas the Red Sox story is completed, it is past. Pat the Red Sox on the back--they were by far the superior team this post-season--and move on. I just don't see how the announcement that could've waited til Monday can be called 'tasteless' or a 'travesty' because honestly it just doesn't matter. These guys seem so offended by something that will be completely forgotten 2 weeks from now.
The real story is that news radio (notice I didn't say 'sports' radio) is all about speculation, its about imaginary news, things that haven't happened and won't happen. Speculation is more fun than reality. I make my NFL picks every week (and have since I was a little kid) because I'm fascinated by predicting the future. I'm usually about 50/50 and that's really about as good as it gets, my best pick' em season ever was about 60%--a ratio that a real honest-to-God gambler would be happy to hit. In the next year or so we'll get 10 tons of political garbage heaped on us from all angles but remember this: we can't predict the future! We can't know in advance who will truly be best able to deal with this country's future because it hasn't happened yet. And we don't know where A-Rod will sign because it hasn't happened yet. But talking about what might happen to Hillary or Guiliani or Kobe Bryant or Britney Spears is more fun though rarely more enlightening than what actually will happen and that's where the media sucks us in: by giving us the fantasy and not the reality. And as Americans are painfully poor with history (and geography but that's a totally separate rant) they never seem to remember how often they themselves have been hoodwinked by empty speculation. Or that getting all huffy over something so insignificant does little more than raise blood pressure for no reason.
Yeah, I know, its time to turn off the radio. But just once I'd like for our cultural commentators to actually give us something useful instead of sucking up to our bad habits and our consumerist tendencies. We like to think as Americans that months and months of public debate will bring us back to what is really important to us but generally it just sets the parameters of the corruption we buy into. And A-Rod's future business arrangements will be as misunderstood in the media-sphere as missile defense or the mullahs of Iran.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
NFL Week 8
CHICAGO 5.0 Detroit
Pittsburgh 3.5 CINCINNATI
Indianapolis 6.5 CAROLINA
TENNESSEE 7.5 Oakland
Cleveland 3.0 ST. LOUIS
NYG 9.5 MIAMI
Philadelphia 1.0 MINNESOTA
NYJ 3.0 Buffalo
SAN DIEGO (Pick 'em) Houston
TAMPA BAY 4.0 Jacksonville
New Orleans 3.0 SAN FRANCISCO
NEW ENGLAND 16.5 Washington
DENVER 3.0 Green Bay
Chicago's back, right? Well, I'm skeptical and I like the Lions to keep it close.
The Steelers did not impress last week against the Broncos but I like them to pull it together against a division foe.
The Colts will roll.
The Raiders are a little better than people give them credit for and I suspect the Titans are not quite as good as others say. I like the Raiders to keep it close.
The Rams have been poor all year long but the visiting Browns offer them a shot at a victory, I think this is their week to pull it off.
The Giants have both sides of the ball in good working order and the Dolphins absolutely do not. Look for NYG to roll. (Playing a regular season game across the ocean is a travesty, incidentally. I understand the NFL's desire to go global but as a sports fan I see the NFL as uniquely American. And though I am fascinated by international competition curiously I have no interest in watching other countries play this game. Furthermore, if the NFL is interested in going global, screw Europe, go to Latin America)
The Eagles were my pre-season pick to win the NFC while the Vikings were my pre-season pick to be the out-of-nowhere meteor of the NFC. Both have disappointed but I think the Vikings a little less so--unless they continue to fail to give Peterson more than 12 touches!--so I'll take the home dog.
The Jets are coming apart, the Bills suck but at least they're fully intact. I like the Bills to win outright.
How will the wildfires affect the Chargers? I think they're clearly the better team so how can I hesitate on a pick 'em? I guess I won't.
Jax without their QB seems like ripe picking for the underappreciated Bucs at home.
The Niners and Saints have both flailed something awful this year. The Saints certainly have more explosive talent but I'm inclined to take the Niners at home. I like the home dog to win straight up.
I know the Patriots are better than anyone else around but I cannot stand these massive spreads they're getting. This week it catches up to them. The Pats win but the Skins keep it close (enough).
The Broncos looked pretty good against the Steelers with two banged up corners. But I think the Steelers were itching to lose whereas the Packers have already gotten that giveaway game out of their system (much to Chicago's delight). I'll take the Packers to get the W.
Pittsburgh 3.5 CINCINNATI
Indianapolis 6.5 CAROLINA
TENNESSEE 7.5 Oakland
Cleveland 3.0 ST. LOUIS
NYG 9.5 MIAMI
Philadelphia 1.0 MINNESOTA
NYJ 3.0 Buffalo
SAN DIEGO (Pick 'em) Houston
TAMPA BAY 4.0 Jacksonville
New Orleans 3.0 SAN FRANCISCO
NEW ENGLAND 16.5 Washington
DENVER 3.0 Green Bay
Chicago's back, right? Well, I'm skeptical and I like the Lions to keep it close.
The Steelers did not impress last week against the Broncos but I like them to pull it together against a division foe.
The Colts will roll.
The Raiders are a little better than people give them credit for and I suspect the Titans are not quite as good as others say. I like the Raiders to keep it close.
The Rams have been poor all year long but the visiting Browns offer them a shot at a victory, I think this is their week to pull it off.
The Giants have both sides of the ball in good working order and the Dolphins absolutely do not. Look for NYG to roll. (Playing a regular season game across the ocean is a travesty, incidentally. I understand the NFL's desire to go global but as a sports fan I see the NFL as uniquely American. And though I am fascinated by international competition curiously I have no interest in watching other countries play this game. Furthermore, if the NFL is interested in going global, screw Europe, go to Latin America)
The Eagles were my pre-season pick to win the NFC while the Vikings were my pre-season pick to be the out-of-nowhere meteor of the NFC. Both have disappointed but I think the Vikings a little less so--unless they continue to fail to give Peterson more than 12 touches!--so I'll take the home dog.
The Jets are coming apart, the Bills suck but at least they're fully intact. I like the Bills to win outright.
How will the wildfires affect the Chargers? I think they're clearly the better team so how can I hesitate on a pick 'em? I guess I won't.
Jax without their QB seems like ripe picking for the underappreciated Bucs at home.
The Niners and Saints have both flailed something awful this year. The Saints certainly have more explosive talent but I'm inclined to take the Niners at home. I like the home dog to win straight up.
I know the Patriots are better than anyone else around but I cannot stand these massive spreads they're getting. This week it catches up to them. The Pats win but the Skins keep it close (enough).
The Broncos looked pretty good against the Steelers with two banged up corners. But I think the Steelers were itching to lose whereas the Packers have already gotten that giveaway game out of their system (much to Chicago's delight). I'll take the Packers to get the W.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Red Sox move on
As a lifelong Indians fan I can't say I was too surprised. Even up 3-1 I felt queasy. Hafner never got going, Sizemore just wasn't effective at the top of the order, Lofton was snake bit and Sabathia and Carmona just weren't gonna mow down that lineup with fastballs. Game 7 was all about the micro-climates, as it were, the little pushes of momentum back and forth. Garko's marathon at-bat against Dice-K and Westbrook knocking down 8 straight batters in the middle there gave the Indians some room. But Lofton getting held up at 3rd was crucial, then Blake misplays Ellsworth's grounder and the floodgates opened wide.
What happens to Travis Hafner from here? I say he rests up in the off-season (he was hampered by nagging injuries all season) and comes back strong next year. I think Carmona and Cabrera pick up steam, Sizemore and Martinez and Blake anchor that line-up, the bullpen returns to top form and the Indians kick some ass next year. (I have the strange feeling Peralta doesn't return) I'd like that to be true as a fan, but as a disinterested sports watcher (hard to do both at the same time), I can see it happen. That doesn't necessarily push them through the playoffs but they are my pre-pre-season pick to take the Central again next year.
As for this year, I'll take the Red Sox (the new Yankees) in 6.
What happens to Travis Hafner from here? I say he rests up in the off-season (he was hampered by nagging injuries all season) and comes back strong next year. I think Carmona and Cabrera pick up steam, Sizemore and Martinez and Blake anchor that line-up, the bullpen returns to top form and the Indians kick some ass next year. (I have the strange feeling Peralta doesn't return) I'd like that to be true as a fan, but as a disinterested sports watcher (hard to do both at the same time), I can see it happen. That doesn't necessarily push them through the playoffs but they are my pre-pre-season pick to take the Central again next year.
As for this year, I'll take the Red Sox (the new Yankees) in 6.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
NFL Week 7
Tennessee 1.5 HOUSTON
DETROIT 2.0 Tampa Bay
New England 16.5 MIAMI
NEW ORLEANS 9.0 Atlanta
NEW YORK (NYG) 9.0 San Francisco
Baltimore 3.0 BUFFALO
WASHINGTON 8.5 Arizona
OAKLAND 2.5 Kansas City
CINCINNATI 6.5 New York (NYJ)
PHILADELPHIA 5.5 Chicago
SEATTLE 8.5 St. Louis
DALLAS 9.5 Minnesota
Pittsburgh 3.5 DENVER
Indianapolis 3.0 JACKSONVILLE
I see Houston and Tennessee (sans Vince Young) as relatively equal, so I'll take the home dog.
Tampa Bay has been better than anticipated and Detroit perhaps less so, but they're not that far apart and I'll take the home fave here.
Yeah, yeah, Miami has New England's number and this is the classic trap game and all that, but I'll take the Pats to pummel the Dolphins even on a very bad day.
So are the Saints ready to play again? I guess I'm thinking they are at least ready enough to run it up on a crippled Falcons squad.
I'm not exactly sold on NYG just yet but the Niners on the road are nothing special, so I'll stick with the Eli-Plaxico tandem to be big enough.
I haven't been impressed with the Ravens so far while the Bills remind me of the pre-Vince Titans: they not very talented but they play hard. Frankly, I think this has push written all over it, the Ravens with a late FG to win it.
I'm not sold on the Redskins minus a Felini (8.5--get it?) but the Cards on the road with a 3rd string QB just isn't giving me much reason to take the dog.
Raiders and Chiefs are probably pretty even these days, but I'll take the Raiders D to hold LJ reasonably in check. (And thanks to the bookmakers for avoiding the push by throwing in that extra half point because I can definitely see a last minute FG winning this game either way!)
Bengals-NYJ is a puzzle: both of these teams are collapsing badly. I'm not convinced the Bengals are a TD better even at home, but I do think NYJ is falling apart faster--is that a good reason to give points?
The Eagles at home against a wobbling Bears team should be an easy pick. So why am I going with the Bears? Not sure but the Eagles can throw up 40 or just throw up.
The Rams are not looking good these days, they may not get a W til December. I think the Seahawks are ready to break out and a struggling division opponent might be just what they need.
I like the Cowboys, they're solid and they'll win. But they've farted around much too much the last coupla weeks and I like the Vikings to keep it close.
The Steelers are clearly a much better team than the Broncos. So why only 3.5? I don't get it, this one's too easy.
This is exactly where everyone wants to count out the Colts but I think that's when they're at their best. I like the Colts not to run it up but to jump out early and hold on.
DETROIT 2.0 Tampa Bay
New England 16.5 MIAMI
NEW ORLEANS 9.0 Atlanta
NEW YORK (NYG) 9.0 San Francisco
Baltimore 3.0 BUFFALO
WASHINGTON 8.5 Arizona
OAKLAND 2.5 Kansas City
CINCINNATI 6.5 New York (NYJ)
PHILADELPHIA 5.5 Chicago
SEATTLE 8.5 St. Louis
DALLAS 9.5 Minnesota
Pittsburgh 3.5 DENVER
Indianapolis 3.0 JACKSONVILLE
I see Houston and Tennessee (sans Vince Young) as relatively equal, so I'll take the home dog.
Tampa Bay has been better than anticipated and Detroit perhaps less so, but they're not that far apart and I'll take the home fave here.
Yeah, yeah, Miami has New England's number and this is the classic trap game and all that, but I'll take the Pats to pummel the Dolphins even on a very bad day.
So are the Saints ready to play again? I guess I'm thinking they are at least ready enough to run it up on a crippled Falcons squad.
I'm not exactly sold on NYG just yet but the Niners on the road are nothing special, so I'll stick with the Eli-Plaxico tandem to be big enough.
I haven't been impressed with the Ravens so far while the Bills remind me of the pre-Vince Titans: they not very talented but they play hard. Frankly, I think this has push written all over it, the Ravens with a late FG to win it.
I'm not sold on the Redskins minus a Felini (8.5--get it?) but the Cards on the road with a 3rd string QB just isn't giving me much reason to take the dog.
Raiders and Chiefs are probably pretty even these days, but I'll take the Raiders D to hold LJ reasonably in check. (And thanks to the bookmakers for avoiding the push by throwing in that extra half point because I can definitely see a last minute FG winning this game either way!)
Bengals-NYJ is a puzzle: both of these teams are collapsing badly. I'm not convinced the Bengals are a TD better even at home, but I do think NYJ is falling apart faster--is that a good reason to give points?
The Eagles at home against a wobbling Bears team should be an easy pick. So why am I going with the Bears? Not sure but the Eagles can throw up 40 or just throw up.
The Rams are not looking good these days, they may not get a W til December. I think the Seahawks are ready to break out and a struggling division opponent might be just what they need.
I like the Cowboys, they're solid and they'll win. But they've farted around much too much the last coupla weeks and I like the Vikings to keep it close.
The Steelers are clearly a much better team than the Broncos. So why only 3.5? I don't get it, this one's too easy.
This is exactly where everyone wants to count out the Colts but I think that's when they're at their best. I like the Colts not to run it up but to jump out early and hold on.
MLB Playoffs update
Damn, Josh Beckett is money! The fact that he's got his breaking ball moving in the zone should be enough but his fastball still had major zip well into the 8th. His 2 games against the Indians in this series--the Red Sox only wins so far--have both been very impressive performances. I was disappointed Perez didn't convert that double play in the 7th the other night that would've at least cut down on the Red Sox offensive outburst but it didn't really matter at the time, Beckett was untouchable and the Indians just didn't have it. But it does give guys like Pedroia and Lugo chances to see some action and frankly I preferred those 2 being cold. (Coco Crisp neglected to get in on the action which is fine with me. Man, Shoppach and Marte for him is looking like a good trade for the Indians, no?) Much was made of Manny's comments ('If we lose its not the end of the world') but I thought that made him play too hard: thrown out at home in the 1st, ran into Lugo on Sizemore's bloop, arguing rather than running on his 'home run' (it looked out to me). The Red Sox prevailed so all's well in Manny-land but I thought he got in his own head for a while there.
Game 4 was all about Paul Byrd's kooky style-y and the inability of the role players in that Red Sox line-up to get anything going. Early on Tim Wakefield looked like he had it going on, which is always possible with that guy, but once he wobbled the Indians jumped on him. I thought the home plate ump let the strike zone get away from him at times but in the long run that favored the Indians. Though the frigid Travis Hafner got a coupla K's he didn't deserve and Victor Martinez had at least 1 at-bat go to waste because of the shifting strike zone, Manny grounded into a DP instead of getting the 4 pitch walk I thought he earned, making it all worthwhile in the end.
Game 3 was all about Jake Westbrook bringing the good stuff and Kenny Lofton's veteran (re: lucky as shit) hitting. Many malign Dice-K's performance and while he did get behind a lot of hitters (didn't it seem like he was 3-1 on just about everybody?), he didn't do that bad. I thought his biggest problem was the utter lack of offensive help. I cringed when Varitek hit that 2-run dinger, he's too good to stay that cold for long (that's true of Hafner too, right?). All in all, the Indians rallied behind Westbrook and did what they needed to do.
For the record as an Indians fan I prefer to be up 3-1 but by no means did I think it was over. I knew Beckett would be tough and its hard to imagine Schilling losing twice at home in the same series and I'm not looking forward to Dice-K in game 7. And the Red Sox are notorious for doing this kind of thing anyway. The Indians still seem like the underdog, don't they? They had the same number of regular season wins and they've got a game in hand heading back to Boston but they just don't seem equal. I still think its all about Hafner, the Indians will only finish it when he gets hot.
Oh yeah, and the Rockies swept the Diamondbacks. The Rockies are hot--or they were until they were forced to stop playing for a week and watch the AL work itself out. Hate to go against destiny, especially the fun, telegenic, plucky variety, but I'll take the AL winner over the Rockies in the end.
Game 4 was all about Paul Byrd's kooky style-y and the inability of the role players in that Red Sox line-up to get anything going. Early on Tim Wakefield looked like he had it going on, which is always possible with that guy, but once he wobbled the Indians jumped on him. I thought the home plate ump let the strike zone get away from him at times but in the long run that favored the Indians. Though the frigid Travis Hafner got a coupla K's he didn't deserve and Victor Martinez had at least 1 at-bat go to waste because of the shifting strike zone, Manny grounded into a DP instead of getting the 4 pitch walk I thought he earned, making it all worthwhile in the end.
Game 3 was all about Jake Westbrook bringing the good stuff and Kenny Lofton's veteran (re: lucky as shit) hitting. Many malign Dice-K's performance and while he did get behind a lot of hitters (didn't it seem like he was 3-1 on just about everybody?), he didn't do that bad. I thought his biggest problem was the utter lack of offensive help. I cringed when Varitek hit that 2-run dinger, he's too good to stay that cold for long (that's true of Hafner too, right?). All in all, the Indians rallied behind Westbrook and did what they needed to do.
For the record as an Indians fan I prefer to be up 3-1 but by no means did I think it was over. I knew Beckett would be tough and its hard to imagine Schilling losing twice at home in the same series and I'm not looking forward to Dice-K in game 7. And the Red Sox are notorious for doing this kind of thing anyway. The Indians still seem like the underdog, don't they? They had the same number of regular season wins and they've got a game in hand heading back to Boston but they just don't seem equal. I still think its all about Hafner, the Indians will only finish it when he gets hot.
Oh yeah, and the Rockies swept the Diamondbacks. The Rockies are hot--or they were until they were forced to stop playing for a week and watch the AL work itself out. Hate to go against destiny, especially the fun, telegenic, plucky variety, but I'll take the AL winner over the Rockies in the end.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
MLB Playoffs Update
I did get 3 out of 4 of my playoff predictions (Phillies, you're dead to me now), although curiously enough the only sweep I predicted was the only series that didn't end in a sweep. Okay, now for the next round.
You might recall that I had the D-Backs v. the Rockies in my pre-season picks. Just kidding, I wasn't even close and neither were you. This is one of the outcomes that only a freaked out junkie could've possibly picked at the beginning of the year for a number of reasons: there was no reason to think either of them would be any good in general, there were no stars or experienced managers to point to and, of course, the east coast bias of the media culture. Even now the talk is of Pinella's questionable pitching maneuvers (though that was surely not their only problem), and the disppointing Phillies bats. (Bias aside, the story of the year is still the monumental collapse of the Mets, man, up 7 games with 15 to play and couldn't close it…that's pathetic) Both of these teams are hot and as division foes they're used to each other. I don't know, I'll say Rockies in 6. (D-Backs take 1 & 4; Rockies take 2, 3, 5, 6)
I'm a lifelong Indians fan so this is bound to be disappointing to me. The Red Sox lineup is stacked from top to bottom and they've got killer pitching and a veteran coach. The Indians are getting hot at the right time but I just don't think it'll be enough. The Indians do have their rotation ready to go but I almost feel like performances of Sabathia and Carmona may be wasted in Boston. I feel like it'll take a series of crises for the Red Sox to not win this thing--and they're over their crises now, right? Red Sox in 6. (Indians take 3 & 5; Red Sox take 1, 2, 4, 6)
You might recall that I had the D-Backs v. the Rockies in my pre-season picks. Just kidding, I wasn't even close and neither were you. This is one of the outcomes that only a freaked out junkie could've possibly picked at the beginning of the year for a number of reasons: there was no reason to think either of them would be any good in general, there were no stars or experienced managers to point to and, of course, the east coast bias of the media culture. Even now the talk is of Pinella's questionable pitching maneuvers (though that was surely not their only problem), and the disppointing Phillies bats. (Bias aside, the story of the year is still the monumental collapse of the Mets, man, up 7 games with 15 to play and couldn't close it…that's pathetic) Both of these teams are hot and as division foes they're used to each other. I don't know, I'll say Rockies in 6. (D-Backs take 1 & 4; Rockies take 2, 3, 5, 6)
I'm a lifelong Indians fan so this is bound to be disappointing to me. The Red Sox lineup is stacked from top to bottom and they've got killer pitching and a veteran coach. The Indians are getting hot at the right time but I just don't think it'll be enough. The Indians do have their rotation ready to go but I almost feel like performances of Sabathia and Carmona may be wasted in Boston. I feel like it'll take a series of crises for the Red Sox to not win this thing--and they're over their crises now, right? Red Sox in 6. (Indians take 3 & 5; Red Sox take 1, 2, 4, 6)
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