Friday October 17, 2003

NFL EXPERT PICKS

MAILBAG
THAT WAS AWESOME!!

How big was last night’s Game 7? Well, let me tell you. While I was at home watching Days of our Lives on my lunch break, NBC announced early, on a crawl at the bottom of the screen, that due to Game 7 of the ALCS, they would not be airing their new episodes of their Must-See-TV Lineup, but instead re-runs. And, equally telling, was the fact that it really didn’t even bother me, and I was totally looking forward to the new episodes!

So many people hate the Yankees. Many hate the Red Sox too. But, pure baseball fans who just love baseball, had to just love this series (well, the NLCS was great too! The World Series would have to be pretty impressive to come near the Championship Series!) 

I don’t know if I could put enough exclamation points on that title though. That Game 7 of the American League Championship Series was a great game. It had a little bit of everything. So, here is the quick rundown:

It was not a good start for Roger Clemens, and when he left the mound in the top of the 4^th, he left to an appreciative Yankees crowd, a crowd that probably assumed that it would be the final start of his career, as the Yankees were already behind 4-0 and there were runners on 1^st and 3^rd. Trot Nixon hit a 2-run second inning homer off him. The third run scored in the 2^nd on an Enrique Wilson error. In that 4^th inning, Kevin Millar led off with a home run which was followed by 2 singles leaving runners on 2^nd and 3^rd. Joe Torre went to Game 4 starter, Mike Mussina, who coaxed a strike out and a double play grounder to keep the score at 4-0 Red Sox. That may have been a turning point in the game. The Yankees got on the board in the 5^th inning with a solo homer by Jason Giambi. In the bottom of the 7^th inning, Giambi hit another solo home run which cut the lead to 4-2. But in the top of the 8^th, David Ortiz answered with a solo home run off Game 5 starter, David Wells. At that point, you had to be thinking “Game Off!”

But then came the fateful bottom half of the 8^th inning. Bernie Williams singled in Derek Jeter. Then, after Grady Little chose to stick with Pedro Martinez, even though Alan Embree had been warming for too long already. Hideki Matsui doubled, with Williams going to third. Then, a bloop single to centerfield scored both runs and tied the game at 5 a piece!

At that point, Mariano Rivera came in and shut the door on the Red Sox hitters. He pitched 3 innings, and gave up just 2 hits.

Then, in the bottom of the 11^th inning, on the first pitch, with his brother Bret sitting up in the press box, Aaron Boone uncoiled on a knuckleball from Tim Wakefield and hit it well into the left field bleachers. The home run sent Boone and the Yankees back to the World Series.

So there are the details, here are some other thoughts:

·         Pedro Martinez actually pitched pretty well. Aside from the 2 solo homers to Giambi, Martinez was pretty solid. He had to work out of a couple of jams as well. The 8^th, well, he was just shaky.

·         Dusty Baker and Grady Little both will be criticized for sticking with their aces in crucial situations for too long. Baker left both Mark Prior and Kerry Wood in too long. Little left Martinez in too long. But, it’s hard to argue that leaving in Pedro is not a bad chance.

·         Like Prior, Martinez made some good pitches to get out of the inning. Prior got a potential double-play ball that was booted. Martinez got in on Posada and jammed him bad! Posada just happened to bloop it right into the perfect spot. If that ball lands in a Red Sox glove, no one is questioning anything, and the Red Sox are probably in the World Series!

·         Alfonso Soriano is a terrible leadoff hitter.

·         In a game that you know that the pitchers will keep the score low, why was Enrique Wilson starting at 3B. Yeah, he had a good year against Pedro, but he was 0-4 in Game 3 off Pedro, and defensively, there is no comparison between Aaron Boone and Enrique Wilson. Wilson’s defense again cost the Yankees a run.

·         Jason Giambi was moved to the 7^th spot, and Giambi responded with the 2 home runs. Some analysts thought that it would take the pressure off of him. Maybe that was the case, but I think a ‘demotion’ like that just adds even more pressure to the man. That said, the move needed to be made, probably sooner in the postseason.

·         Former Twins Todd Walker and David Ortiz both had very strong post-seasons. And former St. Paul Saint, Kevin Millar was a great addition to the Red Sox club!

·         Have I mentioned that I didn’t really care who won this game, because I will be a fan of the Florida Marlins? However, I’m very glad that Pedro Martinez and Manny Ramirez will not be in the World Series. I feel bad for the likes of Ortiz and Millar, Bill Mueller and Trot Nixon. Nomar and Johnny Damon.

·         Mike Mussina deserves a lot of credit for his 3 inning performance! First, for getting the team out of a huge hole by somehow getting out of the 4^th inning without additional damage. Mussina went 3 scoreless innings, giving up two hits while striking out 3.

·         Mariano Rivera is amazing!  3 innings. 2 hits. No runs.  3 strikeouts. 1-0 for the series, with 2 saves.

·         I love how Joe Torre isn’t afraid to show his emotions. If I ever played major league baseball, Joe Torre is the one manager I know I would want to play for.

·         With the Yankees using their Game 4 and Game 5 starting pitchers in this game, what will their rotation look like in the World Series?  I assume Andy Pettitte will go in Game 2. Maybe Mussina goes in Game 1? Maybe David Wells gets the call Saturday night? Roger Clemens only went three innings, maybe he’ll get the call? Could they decide to give Jose Contreras the Game 1 nod? How about Jeff Weav… never mind.

·         I want to feel bad for the people of Chicago and Boston, but I just can’t make myself. I will say this though, for the fans that are real, true baseball fans (not just those that show up when things are good, or during the playoffs), I do feel sorry for them. Call it a “Curse” or whatever you want, if you believe there really is a curse, well, then I don’t feel sorry for you.

·         What a series between the Yankees and Red Sox, and not just this 7 game series. Coming into the series, the Yankees had won 10 games, the Red Sox had won 9.  That’s pretty even! Of course, now, the overall record would be Yankees 14, Red Sox 12.

·         I am going to have another Special Saturday SethSpeaks tomorrow that you’ll want to check out. That is when I will make my predictions for the World Series. The Florida Marlins versus the New York Yankees. So, be sure to stop by and tell all your friends to too!

·         Be sure to check out the Yankees and Red Sox blogs, because I am sure there will be some great reads on them today!!! Actually, be sure to visit all of the websites linked to below and on the left side of this screen. Last night’s game was an instant classic and I’m thinking many will chose to write thoughts on it!

·         Yankees Sites -

·         MLB.com Site

·         Bronx Banter

·         Pride of the Yankees

·         Futility Infielder

·         Some Calzone for Derek

·         Red Sox Sites -

·         MLB.com Site

·         Universal Baseball Blog

·         Curse of the Bambino

·         Out of Left Field

NFL “EXPERTS” PICKS

Well, here are this weeks’ NFL picks by our panel. After three good weeks picking, I have had three terrible picking weeks. I need to come back! Be sure to check out this week’s Ben Jacobs’ Fantasy Football article in the Rochester (NY) Democrat & Chronicle (along with his thoughts, as a Red Sox fan, on his baseball site, Universal Baseball Blog.

Summary:

New Orleans @ Atlanta - Saints 6-3

Washington @ Buffalo - Bills 5-4

Baltimore @ Cincinnati - Ravens 7-2

San Diego @ Cleveland - Browns 7-2

Dallas @ Detroit - Cowboys 7-2

Green Bay @ St. Louis - Rams 6-3

New England @ Miami - Dolphins 9-0

Denver @ Minnesota - Vikings 8-1

Philadelphia @ NY Giants - Eagles 5-4

Tennessee @ Carolina - Panthers 5-4

NY Jets @ Houston - Texans 5-4

Tampa Bay @ San Francisco - Buccaneers 8-1

Chicago @ Seattle - Seahawks 9-0

Kansas City @ Oakland - Chiefs 8-1

(From the looks of our picks, there could be some great games this weekend!)

QB - Matt Hasselbeck (2)

RB - Priest Holmes (3)

WR - Randy Moss (2)

(in other words, we just can’t reach a consensus on which position players will bust out this week. Lots of names. Who will be right?
 

MAILBAG

And finally, I got the following e-mail from Corey regarding yesterday’s entry “Your Thoughts on the 2004 Twins”. Be sure also to check out my posting from the previous week regarding what I thought the Twins should do in 2004.

To Corey’s Thoughts:

I WOULD SAY DUMP KOSKIE (TOO LATE) WE NEED A POWER THREAT AT THIRD HIS D- GOOD BUT NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO KEEP AT UNDER 30 HR’S

KEEP STEWART IN LEFT, HUNTER CENTER AND JONES RIGHT. TEACH HUNTER HOW TO GET THE BAT ON THE BALL MORE CONSISTENTLY AT LEAST WITH 2 STRIKES. HE IS PATHETIC. JONES LOOKED GOOD WHILE HE WAS HEALTHY SO I FEEL WE GIVE HIM ONE MORE SHOT. CAN’T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT STEWART. THOUGHT HE WAS A AWFUL TRADE BUT HE WAS THE SPARK WE NEEDED.

GUZMAN IS PROBABLY THE BEST OPTION FOR THE COST? HE NEEDS TO USE THE WHEELS MORE ON THE BASE PATHS (JUAN PIERRE).

RIVAS MAY NEED A WAKE UP CALL. HE STARTS SO SLOWLY IN THE YEAR AND LOOKED LIKE CRAP IN THE PLAYOFFS.

AJ - BEST CATCHER FOR THE $$. YOU PUT HIM ON THE YANKEES OR THE RED SOX HE IS A PERRENIAL ALL STAR, JUST ON THE MEDIA ATTENTION ALONE. I DO NOT BELIEVE HE IS GOING TO BE NEEDED FOR THE 2005 SEASON, SO MAYBE WE SHOULD TRADE WHILE WE CAN?

LOOSE REED, MAYS KEEP RADKE, LOHSE, MILTON, ROGERS, SANTANA, HAWKINS, AND GUARDADO POSSIBLY ROMERO.

Well, that’s it for today. Remember to check back tomorrow for my World Series predictions and some other sports knowledge. If you have any questions or comments on anything you read today, send me an e-mail and I’ll get back to you!  Have a great weekend!

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