Weekend Roundup

In the words of Larry David: pretty, pretty good.

This weekend did not really disappoint the viewer.

Friday kicked off with a vintage playoff pitcher's duel as Pedro threw 7 scoreless innings that made you think it was the 90's again. Him and Vicente Padilla were painting corners, changing speeds and overall just throwing everything but the kitchen sink at guys to get them out - and it worked. Just a fun game to watch that the Phillies bullpen predictably lost. And that is the difference between this series being 3-0 Phils after last night's bloodbath.

Yanks took game 1 Friday behind the masterpiece CC turned in. Then came back Saturday in what will go down as one of the more epic ALCS games ever played. Fitting end to a game littered with errors that the second baseman throws one away to end the game, but am I the only one who found that to be a bit anti-climatic? Lots of questionable managerial decisions in my opinion, but pretty much all worked out. The only thing that didn't work out? Turns out 0-2 to A-Rod up a run isn't a great time to throw a belt high 91 MPH fastball down the middle.

Saturday gave us some good college football (before that classic Yanks/Angels game stole the show)...Texas knocked out Bradford early, looked like the lesser team for most of the game, but gutted out a 16-13 win in the Red River Rivalry. It wasn't the shootout we hoped for, but finally we had a hyped up college football game that was watchable.
USC/Notre Dame then gave us a more exciting game, though honestly I thought USC should have won by 20+. Props to Notre Dame for hanging tough but they looked much out-classed to me.

A young Bobby Petrino led Arkansas team went into Florida and gave them all they could handle. Ryan Mallett looked good and this Arkansas team is going to be a National force next year. Of course Tim Tebow and company found a way to win, but much like Ole Miss did last year, Arky stripped a bit of their invincibility from them.

The big teams to lose were: Ohio St to Purdue in a real shocker. The Ohio St offense continued to sputter and their defense looked terrible. I can't figure out the Big Ten. Iowa sucks, Ohio St sucks, Penn St sucks. The whole conference is terrible...but who will emerge? I still don't think it's Iowa when all is said and done. And Va Tech fell to Georgia Tech in a less shocking defeat.
A lot of arguing about "what if this team goes undefeated, what if these two go undefeated, who plays in the championship game?" I think I'll make a post about that later in the week with a little preview of next weekends games, but none of this matters if Florida and Alabama win out.

NFFFFL SUNNNDAY:

No 48, NYG 27: My GGGGGGGGGGGG-Men got destroyed. They looked completely over-matched and it turns out the defense can't just turn it on when they need to. This was a game I fully expected to lose but the way which the Giants did so was very alarming. They couldn't get to Brees and even when they did he would just throw it up to receivers that were bigger and way too physical for our d-backs. Even when guys were covered they would come down with the catch. Defensively, the Saints are very much smoke and mirrors. The Giants could have run it all over them if they didn't fall behind early...and Eli missed a couple receivers (including once Steve Smith who had about 5 steps on the entire Saints defense) and this could have turned into a closer, complete shootout.

Houston 28, Cincy 17: So the Bengals aren't that good? Shocking.

Green Bay 26, Detroit 0: Drew Stanton and Daunte Culpepper got shut out? I don't believe it!

Jax 23, St. Louis 20, OT: Alright guys, I admit it, you were right, my prediction of 12-4 for the Rams was off the mark.

Minnesota 33, Baltimore 31: Told you Baltimore's defense is no more. Can't say I saw this type of shootout coming.

Pitt 27, Cleveland 14: Yahoo's spotlight player for Cleveland? Lawrence Vickers (I believe about a 5th year FB out of LA Tech or Colorado, how do I confuse those two schools? I don't know..but I recall wanting the Giants to draft him in the 6th round or something one year, pewch). Vickers stats: 1 catch, 1 yard, 1 TD. At least Derek Anderson raised his completion percentage to 37.5% this week.

Lina 28, Tampa 21: I don't even believe this game was played, I think they just did a Madden simulation.

KC 14, Wash 6: So Washington isn't winning the NFC East?

Oakland 13, Philly 9: Still not convinced this actually happened either. I'm waiting for the NFL to release a statement: "Sorry fans, we were just kidding. Come on, you didn't really believe the Raiders beat the Eagles, did you?"

Arizona 27, Seattle 3: Nothing to say.

New England 59, Tennessee 0: That damn Madden simulation again? I guess we can stop hearing about how Tennessee is a "good" 0-5 team (and not just because they're 0-6)?

Buffalo 16, Jets 13: After I sent out an en masse text message to most people from school including a bunch of Bills fans and a few others proclaiming "Wide Right Bitches" after Lindell missed the would-be game-winner at the end of regulation my responses varied from "lol" to "im glad, we want a better draft pick" to "die" (the last of which being a female respondent - welcome to ruff buff)...of course, more responses were added after the conclusion in which the Bills won in OT after Sanchez threw his 6th int of the game. It took until about 8:30 for a Bills fan to be wise enough to rip into my Giants, but hey, congrats Bills fans, you just missed out on a franchise QB! But Ryan Fitzpatrick looked great!

Atlanta 21, Chicago 14: I actually found this to be a compelling game. Just a good battle between evenly matched teams. I thought Ryan and Cutler were better than their numbers and though they each threw some picks on balls they let fly, both can really sling it when they get in a groove.

ALCS

The ALCS will be the nightcap to follow a NLCS game which pits a guy some people once compared to his opponent (that is Vicente Padilla to Pedro Martinez)..what we get today is a watered down version, though Padilla comes in throwing well, he never turned into the pitcher many envisioned early in his career. Pedro meanwhile, has been pretty good for the Phillies, until of course, they over-worked him. Now he is much rested and there is just no guessing what type of performance to expect out of either of these guys. One thing is for sure however, the Dodgers have to win this game or the series is over. Especially with Cliff Lee set to pitch game 3 back in Philly.

I'm not going to get too in-depth on the Yankees-Angels series. Everyone knows how much trouble the Yanks have had in recent history with the Angels. Everyone also knows that the Yankees are the best team in baseball and the favorite to win both this series and the World Series. The weather in NY is terrible. It hasn't rained or snowed here like the weather called for, and honestly, I don't think it will rain a ton tonight. But it is going to be extremely cold and likely pretty windy. Tomorrow's game is almost undoubtedly going to get canceled with rain forecasted all day. The decision will then be whether Fox wants to pit the baseball at 4 o'clock against a weak slate of 4 o'clock NFL games. Otherwise both the Yanks/Angels and Phils/Dodgers will be playing at 8 Sunday night. My guess is Yanks/Angels game 2, 4 o'clock Sunday afternoon.

Obviously potential rain-outs would figure to be advantage Yankees. One of the few chinks in the team's armor is a lack of depth in the starting rotation. They will probably be using CC on 3 days rest in game 4 anyway, but clearly if he gets any more rest it makes the decision that much easier. Meanwhile, a strength of the Angels team is depth in the starting rotation. They don't have a true ace, but there isn't a ton of difference between Lackey, Weaver, Kazmir, Saunders.

I definitely think we will see the Angels take a couple games here. Burnett can be very shaky and did not exactly pitch well against Minnesota. A repeat performance of that against this Angels team could be a disaster. The Angels are always tough at home and the Yanks do not like traveling to the West. Clearly, the Yankees should be able to get it done this series, but their margin of error is probably smaller than people think. Say CC Sabathia loses tonight, will anyone be shocked if Burnett then drops a game and the Yanks find themselves in a hole before heading out west? CC has proven he is a horse and can pitch on short rest, but this is just one year after his arm was completely abused in a pennant race. The question of whether he can repeat that type of performance on short rest seems underrated to me.

Ultimately, the Yankees lineup is just too good and the bullpen is certainly much stronger than the Angels....LAA would have to play near flawlessly hitting with runners on, getting quality starts and managing not to blow games with a less than stellar bullpen (not the norm for this team recently).

Prediction: Yankees in 7.

College Football Saturday

We should finally have some excitement back in College Football.

Charlie Weis may have his job on the line when USC comes to town tomorrow. Very interesting that a college football team can get fired for losing to USC. Isn't that essentially the same as if the Raiders came to town and beat Notre Dame and they gave him the axe? Is it maybe not as bad? Either way, last time this game was played they gave us an absolute classic and the teams, talent-wise, are a lot closer this time around. But something tells me this one is going to get ugly. Clausen might be in for a rough day and the Notre Dame defense seemingly doesn't have a prayer in trying to stop USC. You would think the only chance of a win they have is to put up 40+ and while the USC defense this year is not as good as those of the recent past - it is probably still talented enough to keep Clausen somewhat in check. Thinking Notre Dame is going to need the friend to lean on after this week.

The other big match is, of course, the Red River Rivalry, Oklahoma-Texas. Last year, Texas avenged the loss in 2007 with a 45-35 win. At the time, Oklahoma was ranked #1 in the nation, with Texas #5. This season Oklahoma is ranked #21 and Texas is #3. I have a feeling this will be the best game of the early college football season. Neither team appears to have played its best game to date. Texas has gotten away with playing some cupcakes and even struggled early on in those games at times.

Oklahoma lost a pair of games by a single point, in their opener against BYU after Bradford went down with an injury and at Miami, two weeks ago. The question is, can they beat a good team? So far, they have not. But Bradford is back and healthy and this is the team's best chance to salvage an already disappointing season. Certainly, Bradford didn't get what he wanted out of this season (an injury, and no chance at a National Title, after passing up being the likely first pick in the draft...though he still may be this year, that is another story though)...you have to figure he is going to be fully motivated to try and get this done...if they win out they could still land a BCS bowl.

A friend who is a big Longhorns fan, had this note, which I felt was insightful, through text message, regarding the Texas defense this year vs last year, "It's ten times better the 2nd year under Muschamp. Texas is always good against the run but a lot better against the pass this year." If Texas can go out and prove that against the strong Oklahoma passing game, then that should be the difference...if not, the Big 12 might once again look wide open. He also noted that excitement is much higher than confidence...Personally, I think this one comes down to the wire with a good chance to see who has it in them tomorrow - Colt McCoy or Sam Bradford? Could say a lot about the BCS this year and could say just as much about the NFL Draft (I prefer Colt for the record).

Buffalo Billboards

Ryan Abshagen is the new hero of Buffalo NY. Yes fans are unhapy with the team. God knows you have seen enough of this blog to know that I am unhappy with the team. Mr. Abshagen, an unemployed 18 year old, has taken matters into his own hands. By the way, I like how websites are making it known this guy is unemployed....he is only 18 years old folks, not a huge deal. Regardless, this saint raised about $1,500 through the Internet to rent a billboard.
The Billboard will read:

"It's time to clean house, RALPH"

Then a checklist of three names:

Jauron (head coach)

Tom Modrak (College scout)

John Guy ( VP of Pro personnel)

This may not be the most creative idea, but nothing like driving on 190 and seeing this flash over 3,000 times a day. Its a disgrace and the fact that nothing has been done is just pitiful. I would actually consider dropping $500 dollars with 3 friends to get a billboard hung in Buffalo for a week and publicity. Mine would be much more brutal though.

Potential Ideas:

*A puppet Master controlling Ralph Wilson's limp, slumped over body.

*Five fat pigs in Bills Uniforms with the phrase, "These fat little pigs can block better then the Buffalo Bills line."

*Picture of me and my qualifications pining for the next head coaching job

*A picture of Fred Jackson with a thought bubble next to him saying, "I wish I could go back to DIII Coe College, Arena league, or the USFL and play with a real team again."

*A picture of Marshawn Lynch as a werewolf with the entire 53 man roster slained beneath him screaming, "Beast Mode"

*A picture of Terrell Owens crying in his dark sunglasses crying next to a picture of Trent Edwards saying, "That is NOT my quarterback man"

*A skeleton body next to the phrase, "Dick, the human cadaveour, Jauron."

Torre Getting Ripped

Apparently, the LA media is predictably all over Joe Torre for his decision to leave in 21-year old Clayton Kershaw for "too long" in last night's NLCS opener in what would become a loss to the defending champion Phillies.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-plaschke16-2009oct16,0,1346275.column

There is Bill Plaschke's (of Around the Horn fame) article.

There was wildness, whiffling, waffling, a proud kid being whittled into an absolute wreck.

Clayton Kershaw walked the pitcher on four pitches. He walked the third baseman on four pitches. He put one on a tee for the catcher to crush into dark blue oblivion.

Did I say he walked the pitcher on four pitches?

With a 21-year-old sophomore bumping and staggering through a roomful of boos, the fifth inning Thursday contained every element of a textbook youthful playoff meltdown except for one.

An adult to stop it.

My problem with Plaschke here is that a) his writing is divisive - the first thing he says is that he walked the pitcher. Well, first off that was after the three-run homer. b) While I understand that he felt he should have taken him out before Rollins - HE GOT ROLLINS OUT. AND THEN STRUCK OUT VICTORINO. He was sstill flashing bits of wildness, but no manager actually wants to pull his pitcher in the 5th inning. On top of that, from what I understand, Jeff Weaver was suffering flu-like symptoms and wasn't available. I can't believe I'm admitting it, but Jeff Weaver is the only type of pitcher you want to go to in the 5th inning of game 1, no matter how good your bullpen is. Yeah, you want to have a quick hook with your starters in the playoffs, but you also don't want to use up your entire bullpen. With the way Cole Hamels was pitching there was no way to predict if the Dodgers would even score again. Could you imagine if he pulled Kershaw after apparently settling, getting Rollins out and then striking out Victorino - and then the Phillies won anyway? The same writers (cough * Plaschke * cough) would be killing Torre for "using up the bullpen." The fact that he looked un-hittable for the first 4 innings, and possibly settled back in before facing the heart of the order is just the icing on the cake..nothing Joe could do here but sit back and hope.

Look, I'm not opposed to questioning a managerial decision. And believe me, I used to kill Torre on some of his moves when he was with the Yanks. But this is your classic second-guess. Were there signs Kershaw was in trouble? Certainly. Did they have a better option to face Utley and Howard, with the added bonus of not having to use up their bullpen in game 1 (a game they were already trailing)? No, probably not.

It was an exciting game 1. The Dodgers got 3 of the 5 runs back in the bottom half of the inning and still had every chance to get to a questionable Phillies bullpen. Bottom line is this - the Phils wheeled out Chad Durbin to help work out of a jam (he kisses men, on the lips!! come on! that was him right? I thought so, but didn't re-check). They used JA "never thrown a strike in my life" Happ.
They brought out Chan Ho Park who worked a perfect scoreless 7th right through the heart of the Dodgers lineup. But I suppose we should also kill Joe Torre for that?

And I do find it funny how much Plaschke pushes the whole kid thing. After four innings he probably had written his lede sentence as "Clayton Kershaw is still a kid by major league standards, but last night he was a man among men." Oh wait, that's probably not poetic enough for baseball writing's own poet laureate, Billy P.

A cup of Brew

Well...in case any of you out there are still struggling to figure out what exactly Pewch is (and there really is no way at this point that you could not know) here is a conversation between two guys stuggling at life..

Mulldog: have to run out and get some fire for a big weekend of capping
Millman: haha alright

Mulldog: by that i mean pure columbian

Millman: typical
Millman: where you going to load up
Mulldog: already all over my bluff of coffee?
Mulldog: monkey joe's coffee shop
Mulldog: best beans in town
Millman: monkey joes wow
Millman: nothing better then a local place that can brew a mean cup
Mulldog: oh yeah, they have their signature blend, jazzy joe, a maple cinnamon blend, delectable

Mulldog: or i could go with the morning howler, named after the loudest monkey in the world and essentially gives you a caffeine rush like you just downed a liter of jolt cola
Millman: that is risky
Mulldog: or i may just go for the pure columbian
Millman: wouldn't mind a quick jazzy joe
Mulldog: they have some certified rainforest beans there too, more expensive, never tried, can they really be fire just because theyre from the rain forest?
Millman: tough to spring for the extra dime with such uncertainty
Mulldog: definitely

Nice Lives.

NLCS: The Other Series

Baseball is back today as the Phillies head to LA with a battle of talented southpaws in Cole Hamels and Clayton Kershaw. Hamels hasn't been the same MVP-caliber pitcher he was last year as he led the Phillies to a championship but it's interesting that Vegas has lined him +127 even on the road against the young Kershaw. The Phils are a very good road team and with the more experienced arm. Game two will be tomorrow and is scheduled with a sickening matchup of Pedro Martinez and Vicente Padilla. Padilla is fresh off a complete gem but is Vicente Padilla...and Pedro has been magical down the stretch, until they decided he was '08 CC Sabathia and threw him 115 pitches and then came back with a 130+ pitch outing down the stretch. Now, I believe his arm is actually detached from his right shoulder and they have to glue it into place before games.

Game 3 will be Sunday night as both teams will travel eastward to Philly and it will be Hikori Kuroda vs. Cliff Lee. Kuroda is a very underrated pitcher but this is clearly a game you have to expect the Phils to win at home.

Game 4 is Tuesday. The man originally projected to toss game 1 for LAD, Randy Wolf is scheduled to face Joe Blanton. Obviously, these things can sometimes change depending on what the series is at. This would be a good battle of crafty pitchers, or possibly a good battle of mashing lineups.

Game 5 Wednesday 9/21. Back to Hamels/Kershaw except this one would be played in Philly.

Game 6 - Friday back in LA, Pedro/Padilla.

Game 7 - Saturday. Lee/Kuroda.

Not a terrible job by MLB in spacing out the games too much. This is about as tight as it is going to get. Kind of strange to schedule a game 7 on Saturday I feel? That is one you'd almost rather they skip a day and play Sunday night as everyone would be watching (Yanks/Angels possible game 7 is scheduled for that Sunday).

So beside that, what actually matters here - what is going to happen? Well, while most everyone is rooting for Joe Torre to bring his team to the World Series for a possibly electric rematch his the team that made him, the Yankees...no one seems to want to give the defending champs their due. This is essentially the same Phillies team that won the whole thing last year, the difference?
Last year their bullpen was a huge strength and this year they can't get anyone out. There is no question the bullpen could end up costing them, but it seems as if it has quietly settled in a touch. On the other side Joe Torre knows his biggest (and arguably only) advantage is the strength of his bullpen. What he will need is big outings from Kershaw and Wolf and will be asking Padilla and Kuroda to give him something like 6 innings, 3 runs...then he can turn it over to a dominant bullpen and see if his lineup can get to 4.

The problem is this Phillies lineup is getting hot at the wrong time for LAD. People for some reason still don't realize that if Rollins or Victorino get on ahead of Utley and Howard it's almost a lock they're going to score. And when they both get on, it is huge trouble. Not to mention a guy like Jayson Werth who gets absolutely red-hot at times. The Phillies lineup might not be the absolute best in the MLB, but it is the most dangerous (certainly in the NL at least). Throw in Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels and suddenly you have a team which I think should be the favorite to win this series (they are not) and ultimately the most dangerous team remaining in the playoffs for the Yankees (unless the Angels continue to be their kryptonite).

Prediction: Phillies in 5 (originally said in 6 but it's so pewch to predict a team in 6 games, everyone always predicts - this team in 6, that team in 6...show some creativity).


I would like to mention that USA tied Costa Rica in a thriller yesterday. I caught the tail end...they were trailing 2-1 in extra time, must have been the 94th minute (scheduled for 5 extra minutes), USA gets a corner kick and despite being a man down, somehow some cat is left completely unguarded and drills a perfect header past the goalie and a defender sitting in net. Of course, therein lies the problem with soccer, they just got a tie and you would have thought they just won the World Cup. No game that ends in a tie can really be considered a classic either... It's just a problem with soccer in my opinion.

Another exciting finish to any of us who bet Argentina +175 yesterday when they broke a 0-0 tie in the 86th minute for the 1-0 win.