Nobody even if they are great, (Joe Buck, at best is adequate) should have the power and opportunity this man was given, first being Jack’s son and then gaining even more, from his pushy mother. (If you think this “attack” is below the belt, maybe it is, but listening to Buck and others worse, have all kinds of “nuts” implications, not the least of which manifesting in a rising venom. Believe me, I could have written worse.)
I was faked out by the fact Buck, who gets to do his 23rd World Series starting Tuesday will be on the much hyped, yet not all that important even in a football sense, INTERDivision G.B. at T.B. this Sunday.
That means if somehow Atl/L.A. baseball goes 7, the Emperor (Buck) would miss a game 7. That can not happen, I thought and by a slim margin, still do. However, I was so wrong, as baseball got wins from its trailing LCS teams last night.
As bad as Buck is, John Smoltz is worse, even much worse. He can’t take the time to state things correctly as he never shuts up. Early on, but after an ELEVEN run, L.A. top of the first, Smoltz in full “whore mode,” not only told us it is not easy to pitch with such a lead and the usual “B.S.” to try and get us to stay tuned, he said L.A. was within one OUT of victory the night before.
No John, they were within one RUN and that is quite a difference!!
From the perhaps vitriol to the facts: As both Brooklyn, where they were but (1-8) in post-season series, all World Series–but were never swept or down (3-0), and L.A. the Dodgers have been in 33 best of 7 series (20 World Series with a (6-14) mark and this is their 14th LCS, (7-6 in those 13) and were swept or down (3-0) only once, that in the 1966 World Series, vs the Baltimore Orioles.
It still looks as though Fox will have the longer or at least, as long LCS as TBS, for the 13th time in 14 such possibilities, however, Houston/TBS stayed alive with a win vs Tampa Bay, in game 4.
The TBS broadcast is a slower version of hell. Brian Anderson called “dull as dishwater” here, years back, is no better. Ron Darling did his thing KOing the Yankees for at least the 5th time, so let him go back to ripping former teammates such as Len Dykstra, who unlike Darling, came through in big games. Someone named Jeff Francoeur, is a totally unnecessary third person.
Cosell/ Gifford or Jackson/ and Meredith worked, so did Enberg/Packer and Al McGuire, but no other such configuration did/does or likely ever will.
Joe Morgan, who could do it all on a baseball field and often elsewhere all the while, maintaining eloquent class, died far too young, at the age of 77, days back.
Having not seen the 1961 New York Yankees and arguably even if I had, Morgan was part of the best baseball team I ever saw, the so called “Big Red Machine,” especially the 1975 and 1976 “models.”
Those Cincinnati Reds teams did what similar, but not quite as great Reds’ teams failed to do, despite first place finishes in ’70 (before the man they called “Little Joe” arrived in Cincinnati along with Jack Billingham and Cesar Geronimo, as Bob Howsam engineered a great trade with Houston (Astros), ’72 and ’73 and a fine effort in ’74, namely win it all.
It was as a 2 time National League MVP and more important World Champion that Mr. Morgan (cue Ray and Bruno Sammartino) took the time to listen to me, via the phone in 1977. He hoped things would go well for me. That did not manifest, and now Joe is dead at age 77, a sixth great (saying Hall of Famer means so much less, as ‘they’ continue to keep one of Joe’s teammates on those great Reds’ teams, Pete Rose out of there, which is an utter disgrace) from better baseball and days, that died this year and fifth in a roughly (rough is the operative word) six (6) week period. (Al Kaline who wore #6 died months back, followed by Tom Seaver, Lou Brock, Bob Gibson, Edward “Whitey” Ford and Joe Morgan).
I will always remember Joe’s kindness, even as I sometimes move my elbow the way he did at bat.
The looping hit to win the classic ’75 World Series called by Curt Gowdy and one Joe said he would not have attained years earlier, was THE highlight of a great career.
So many others could be cited, I will mention B1, game 1, ’76 World Series and Joe homered off Doyle Alexander, to set the tone for a Reds’ sweep of the Yankees, a series in which Cincy trailed for at most 4 innings, probably less.
I repeat the obvious and what you have read, Joe could hit, even for power, walk, steal a base, field and think! What a great player and man.
The angels are moving their elbows in greeting you Joe, but it happened too soon.
The Tampa Bay Rays and Atlanta Braves are now a very likely, but far from certain, World Series pairing.
Tampa Bay has a seemingly commanding (3-0) series lead vs the Houston Astros. The Rays won in their only other ALCS appearance, that in 2008, when they won games (2-4) for a (3-1) series lead vs the defending champion Boston Red Sox. (Boston had garnered (James?) 2 crowns in 4 seasons after being sans such for 86).
However, due to their manager Joe Maddon, he who lucked out to guide the Chicago Cubs to a first crown in 108 years in 2016, not bringing in one of three left handed pitchers available to face the great hitter, David Ortiz, the Rays lost #5 and needed 7 games to win that ALCS.
At that point “Bye bye intangibles” and the Phillies 5’d them in the World Series, the great announcer Harry Kalas, who would die early in the next season, getting to call a Phils’ title clincher.
In the NLCS, with the never silent and so annoying John Smoltz there with the “Emperor,” Joe Buck ( Buck apparently made the Football Hall though I heard him at a tribute , to his father Jack, stating the famed “Ice Bowl”/1967 NFL Title Game was played in 1969—standards there are none!!!) his once team, recall the under achieving Atlanta Braves (8 straight NLCS appearances from ’91-’99, but one crown–though of the 3 so called star pitchers, Smoltz was best and great, not so Maddux and certainly not Glavine) have a (2-0) Freddie Freeman led series lead, vs the top ranked Dodgers, a team sans a title since 1988–despite 2 W.S. appearances and in this their 4th NLCS in 5 seasons and seventh in 13 seasons.
Atlanta, which before this “season,” lost 8 straight division series and 10 series entities, since last winning a “div” series to make the 2001 NLCS, a 5 game loss to eventual champion Arizona (Diamondbacks), has a (2-0) NLCS lead for the fourth time. (’92,’95, and ’99 are the other such occasions).
The Braves won the ’92 NLCS but needed Francisco Cabrera’s incredibly clutch hit, to do so in 7, swept Cincy (Reds) en route to the city of Atlanta’s lone title in ’95 and needed 6, up (3-0) vs the Mets in the ’99NLCS.
First of all, the Lakers and Lightning from Los Angeles and Tampa respectively, copped the NBA and NHL crowns.
Meanwhile the league top seeds, Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays, the latter after a Diego Castillo win in the decisive 5th vs the Yankees and a 5 out save in the ALCS opener vs the ‘Stros, are each over 2 to 1 favorites to advance to the World Series.
Really esoteric: The “L”akers and “L”ightning winning respective NBA and NHL crowns marks the 13th time in 73 possibilities (the NBA, then the B.A.A. began in 1947 and there was no NHL season in 2005), that teams with the same first letter in their nickname took the crown.
Nine times it was the Boston “C”eltics (they have just 1 title in the last 34 sesons, after accounting for an incredible 40 percent (16) of the loop’s first 40 titles (’47-’86) and Montreal “C”anadiens (they have but 2 titles in the last 40 completed NHL seasons, none in the last 26, after an also incredible 15 in 24 seasons (5 of every 8= 62 and a half percent) from 1956-1979) winning titles together.
The other 3 are the Miami “H”eat and Carolina “H”urricanes in 2006, the San Antonio “S”purs/ Dallas “S”tars in 1999 and the Houston “R”ockets/New York “R”angers in 1994. Of course the Lakers beat the Heat and Lightning took the Stars to win it all this year.
On Friday October 2nd, first the San Diego Padres won a decisive third game to eliminate the St. Louis Cardinals from this year’s 16 team field ‘offs, followed by news that a great Cards’ pitcher, Bob Gibson had died.
A week later on Friday October 9th, first news came that a great New York Yankees’ pitcher, Edward “Whitey” Ford had died and then the Rays won the aforementioned (2-1) tilt (Mike Brosseau’s decisive B8, home run and all it entails, including the fact the Yankees, still easily major North American professional sports league’s greatest record,— guess what the Lakers are now in the “mix” and I do not mean Steve Mix—, who played well in defeat the night the Lakers won the ’80 crown, now have just one more title (27) than failures to title, despite ‘offs appearances (26), that eliminated the Yankees from post-season play.
Click below to view a recent post about great pitchers on a day in May, 1963, in which there were losses exponentially less significant for Gibson/Cards and Ford/Yankees.
So when what I knew and feared would happen, it did so in a devastating Lakers’ rout of the Miami Heat, who until the game 6 debacle, had played so well.
The Lakers, I believe would have titled no matter, but face it the Heat and Denver Nuggets paved the way for an easy L.A. crown, by beating the Bucks and Clippers respectively.
L.A. went (16-5) straight up and I will say (12-8-1) vs the spread. Miami was (14-7) st. up and 15-5-1 ATS.
The Lakers title in 6 for the 6th time (half of their 12 L.A. crowns, they won 5 Minneapolis “such”) as L.A. and clinch on a Sunday for the 5th time as L.A. (the glorious first with Wilt and Jerry West in ’72, ’85 a first ever title round win vs the Celtics, ’87 with Earvin “Magic” Johnson the MVP and ’09 with the late, great player, Kobe Bryant “copping” the honor are the others. The ” ” among much else, including this title, in my opinion, remind of what went wrong).
Surely Mr. James won the Final Round MVP, I think his 4th such honor.
Anthony Davis was tremendous and I cite Ra Rondo, who helped best L.A. in ’08, their last final round loss.
The Lakers have won 3 straight NBA final rounds and 6 of their last 8. They are (12-14) as L.A. in final round play, after starting (0-7).
He was 91, lived a good life and was a great pitcher, however, the wave of greats dying is a bit much–Whitey Ford at 91, the latest, he being one of the greatest.
His .690 win percentage (236-106) is the greatest for any pitcher during the twentieth century and he won a record 10 World Series games (so many reports left out the fact he also lost the most. Why?!!).
Certainly, it only slightly diminishes, if that, Ford’s greatness, as he was on 6 Yankees’ title teams and 10 pennant winners.
It is often written that 1961 was a bad year for the “Babe,” (the great Ruth) even though he had been dead for 13 years (13 is an unlucky #), as first Roger Maris, with a famed asterisk ruling, once explained by Dick Van Dyke as “Rob Petrie” on the Carl Reiner (another great we lost in 2020) created, “Dick Van Dyke Show,” broke his single season home run mark and then Whitey broke the Babe’s World Series consecutive scoreless innings mark.
I could “Chairman of the Board” it or cite his friendship with Mickey Mantle, with whom he went into the “Hall,” when that really meant something, back in 1974.
Instead I recall Joe Green, my friend, who praised me for helping my mother when she got (supposedly) very ill, telling me he and Jack Molinas marveled at the Sandy Koufax vs Whitey Game 1, ’63 W.S. matchup. They were in a horrible human creation, called jail, at the time. They had committed no violent acts, yet as with so many they were caged.
’63 #1 was also discussed in the great movie “One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest,” as Jack Nicholson’s McMurphy queried “who do you like in the opener?”
My best praise for Whitey is twofold. One is I had a nice interview with him at a golf event, I guess still promoted by Phil Rizzuto to benefit St. Joseph’s School For The Blind in New Jersey. Whitey was all class, friendly and forthright.
The aforementioned Green and the certainly unsavory, but brilliant Molinas were where they were for bribing players. Even with those bribes in, often the results did not go their way. Not great stuff and Joe warned me of the evils of gambling. Now baseball teams promote it, all the while excluding Pete Rose from the “Hall.”
That is as with jail, “cruel and unusual punishment.” An aside: Whitey gave Pete the nickname “Charlie Hustle,” as the latter played the game right and great.
My final praise and it applies to so many Whitey Ford games (25-4 in ’61, 24-7 in ’63–he did lose twice to Sandy in the World Series, allowing but 2 hits in the second loss) is #6 of the ’60 World Series.
Joe Green was not a big bettor but he put up 1300 to win a “thou” (cue that “animal” H.S. Gross) on Whitey Ford. He always told the story as ON Whitey Ford not the Yankees.
Whitey, I hope you and Joe have a muffin and share some stories up there. If it is heaven, there probably is no need for money, but it will be Joe’s treat, as you earned it, Whitey!
While the Yankees forced their 9th decisive 5th game, in this their 21st division series (10th in 22 if you count strike marred 1981) with a game 4 win vs the Tampa Bay Rays, the other 3 “div” series concluded.
Both the Dodgers (now 2 to 1, person to person NLCS “faves” vs Atlanta) and the Atlanta Braves completed sweeps while the Astros advanced to their 4th straight LCS, something only the Braves, who yesterday ended a “div” series loss streak at 8, with double that (8) (“Hockey Bob would say “8, get it 8”) and the Oakland A’s, the team Houston just (3-1’d), have topped.
The A’s won 3 titles and five straight one fourth A.L. West crowns (’71-’75) to make those 5 straight ALCS appearances.
The Yankees of (1998-2001) made 4 and won all 4 ALCS and 3 subsequent World Series.
Atlanta swept the Florida Marlins, a first ever post-season series loss for them and only the second time (2012 ALCS vs the Detroit Tigers) that a Marlins “exec” and once Yankees star, Derek Jeter team was swept in a post-season series.
The Dodgers, the top betting choice to title by a fairly significant margin, swept the San Diego Padres to advance to their third NLCS in 4 seasons and 7th in 13 seasons, bidding for a 7th title and first since 1988.
The Lakers in both Minneapolis and L.A. are an astounding (24-8) in prelims/rounds before the “quarters.” They are (36-12) in quarters, (26-9) in L.A. based best of 7 quarterfinal series.
As cited before they are an incredible (26-5) in semi-final play as the Los Angeles Lakers and (32-9) overall.
Only in the final round is their record not great, (16-15) almost certain to be (17-15) having gone (5-1) as Minneapolis and to this point (11-14) as L.A. However, they were once (0-7) as L.A, losing 6 times to the great Boston Celtics, during their major North American sports league’s greatest 11 titles in 13 seasons.
Boston was once (7-0) vs the Lakers in final round play, they are now (8-3).
The L.A. no cover win in #4 (a Herro shot at the buzzer cut the margin to 6, in a game L.A. was minus 7 plus) marked the 9th time they have gone up (3-1) in the final round with a game 4 win. They won all nine of those series and also six of the final rounds, when they lost game 4, having gone into that contest with a (2-1) series lead.
Frank Vogel’s Lakers are 7 point favorites to make game 5 another very meaningful final round game in Lakers’ annals. If Miami prevails, I am afraid it would only help ABC, as (I usually would never say this) I really see almost no way Miami could win 2 more after that.
Starting with final rounds 50 years ago, the New York Knicks won 2 of 3 Friday night tilts, including the decisive 7th, handing the L.A. team an aforementioned 7th loss in as many final rounds as the Los Angeles Lakers.
I can recall Jerry West still making 2 free throws late in the hopeless (for he and L.A.) contest and how much I wanted him to get a title. He did (more on that still meaningful title in the next paragraph) but I also recall him at the other end of the Forum parking lot and I wondered why I cared so much about him. The Jerry of today, who clamored for “his” Clippers to face the Lakers, a bargain his team failed to live up to and his appearances with one such as Dan Patrick, surely makes me wonder.
Yet Jerry will always be a favorite to me and when on a Friday night in game 4 of the ’72 Final, Jim McMillian led an “O.T.” triumph that put “my” ‘Lakes” up (3-1) with a title 2 nights later (Wilt wore that padding and even Bill Russell, who yes was a good friend but one who mutually did not speak with Wilt for many years after criticizing him for not playing at the end of Bill’s Celtics #7/final triumph at L.A. in Bill and Sam Jones’ last game that gave the Celtics that incredible 11th crown in 13 seasons, praised Wilt to the hilt (it rhymes, but was not such great praise).
In ’80 Earvin “Magic” Johnson had 42 points, unsung Jamaal Wilkes 37 as L.A. barked as an 8 point road dog at Philly with its over rated Julius Erving now owing the Philly fans 4. The Friday night tilt was on delayed tape.
1984 had its similarities to Mr. Orwell’s book for L.A. as Machiavellian Arnold “Red” Auerbach and the no air conditioning Boston Garden keyed the Celts #5 home Friday night win which was followed by a game 7 win, led by the great Larry Bird.
However, in 1985, game 5 after another heartbreaking L.A. game 4 final round loss to the Celts (the great Denis Johnson hit at the buzzer, “tied” to win that tilt and what a sham that Denis, who far sadder died far too young, was not named as one of the NBA’s 50 greatest players upon that league’s same # anniversary in 1997), was in L.A. on a Friday night, the first of the four cited here to have been and L.A. won the tilt and subsequently #6 in Boston, despite Mr. Auerbach (face it, most, as in Johnny Most their broadcaster, times Red won) protestations that L.A. could not win another at Boston Garden. (I am pretty sure he said “no way.”)
The only time I have ever or very likely will ever meet the great player, Michael Jordan I recalled to him, one of the biggest of many big shots, he “hit” in his great career.
It occurred in #3 of the ’91 final series on a Friday night in L.A. The clutch shot near, if not the end of regulation time got Mr. Jordan’s Bulls into overtime, in which they prevailed for the second of 4 straight wins and the first of 6 titles.
Finally, in ’01, in circumstances similar to tomorrow’s Friday game 5, the Lakers wrapped a series in which they were heavy favorites with a 4th straight win. It was on a Friday night.
There is/was a “0” year death link involving U.S. Presidents and in song or not, one wonders if “Jimmy Mac,” or for that matter, anyone dead is coming back?!
On a night the L.A. Lakers all but wrapped up an NBA record tying 17th crown, the Seattle Storm, in a game started 2 hours earlier, won their 4th WNBA title led by Brianna Stewart’s 26 points.
The Storm were indeed “PERFECT,” in the 2020 weird ‘offs going (6-0) straight up and (5-1) against the spread.
It was Seattle’s 4th crown, tying them with the Minneapolis Lynx and the defunct Houston Comets for the most in the W.N.B.A.
Sue Bird played on her 4th title team with “Sea,” whose NFL Seahawks are (4-0) (4-0), albeit the latter, by just one point in the last 3 tilts.
The Las Vegas Aces, routed (92-59) in the third and final game which manifests in the Las Vegas Teams losing 7 straight final round games after the first year NHL Golden Knights won their final round opener vs the Washington Capitals in 2018.
Some notes following opening game wins by the New York Yankees and the Dusty Baker, managed Houston Astros, as play commenced yesterday in both American League best of five, Division Series.
The Yankees are somewhat remarkably, in a “div” series for the 21st time in 26 possibilities, under the still irksome format, that began in 1995.
They now have either won the series opener or said series 19 of 21 times. (The only exceptions were vs Cleveland in ’07 and Boston in 2018).
Going into this, the Yankees’ 21st such series, they and the game 1 loser (the Yankees in ’96 and ’00 en route to titles 23 and 26 respectively and also in ’01, ’03,’04 and ’17 and their opponent the Angels and Tigers twice each as well as Seattle and Cleveland–the years being ’02, ’05 (Angels), ’06 and ’11 (Tigers) and ’95 (“Sea”) and ’97 (Cleveland)– were both (12-8) in those “div” series. The Yankees, of course now (13-8) in “div” series openers were also in a strike affected, similar series in ’81, in which they won the first 2 and all 3 at home to “5” the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Houston Astros, bidding for a 4th straight ALCS appearance (the record is 5 by their current opponent, the Oakland A’s, (’71-’75)– I add the Yankees made 4 straight ALCS (’98-’01–both the A’s and Yankees won 3 straight titles at one point during that span) and they are facing A.L. top seed, Tampa Bay (Rays) in a bid to make a third ALCS in four seasons) are managed by Dusty Baker.
The number twenty is also applicable in Mr. Baker’s “previous,” as he managed (12) or played in (8) post-season series, in which at one point or sometimes twice, his team played as many as 2 straight road games.
In 15 of those series, 7 of 8 as a player, one team or another won 2 straight in “Baker road games.”
Surely, ” ” apply, but Baker’s Astros are considered the road team in games 1 and 2, being played at Dodger Stadium, the home of the top ranked Dodgers, in this weird baseball ‘offs “season.”
Andy B Sports 