Last night, all four results in the biggest games made the two remaining National League Division races closer, in fact, only a half game apart with 5 scheduled baseball days remaining.
In the N.L. Central, the Cubs still lead the Brewers by a half game, (it is in the loss column and a tiebreaker game between the two teams would be in “Chi”) but two Milwaukee wins at St. Louis coupled with two Pirates wins at Wrigley Field, manifest in the half game margin.
The race in the N.L. West is even closer as the Dodgers lead over the Colorado Rockies is also only a half game, but the two teams are even in the loss column. A tiebreaker game between the two teams would be played in Los Angeles.
Meanwhile the wild card race where very likely the N.L. Central second place team, either the Brewers or Cubs will be the “4” seed, has 3 other teams within one game, as the Cardinals trail the Rockies by a half game and L.A. by a full game, both in the loss column.
The American League, clearly superior (that does not mean their representative will win the World Series, though any of its teams save Cleveland, who might in some pairings, will have the home advantage) and exponentially more boring/settled, has three official “div” winners, in order the Red Sox, defending World champion Astros and Indians. Almost certainly the Yankees/A’s 10 teams to 8 round game will be in New York a week hence, exactly (save the fact it will be at night) 67 years after a game for World Series entry went to the New York Giants over the Brooklyn Dodgers, largely due to Bobby Thomson’s game ending 3RHR.
What were the odds that with 5 days left, only the “division fourth choice,” Atlanta Braves would have clinched a post-season berth in the N.L. when the season began?!
Tommy McDonald, a great player on both college and pro football championship teams, died yesterday at the age of 84.
The last player not to wear a face mask, Tommy played on and caught a touchdown pass in the Philadelphia Eagles’ last NFL title win (1960) before last year’s Super Bowl win.
Philadelphia handed the great coach Vince Lombardi his only post-season loss (9-1), winning (17-13) on a Monday, the day after Christmas, in 1960, Tommy catching a touchdown pass from Norm Van Brocklin before being pushed into some remaining snow at venerable Franklin Field.
In college McDonald was an integral part of coach Bud Wilkinson’s Oklahoma teams that won 47 straight games, 31 without defeat for McDonald’s (1954-1956) teams that claimed 2 national titles.
Tommy was a great player and a good, vibrant man.
Tommy McDonald, pictured above.
There were two shocking, all time type upsets, one in college and one in pro football, the last two days.
On Saturday, unheralded Old Dominion, an underdog of over 40 points, defeated 13th ranked Virginia Tech.
Yesterday the Buffalo Bills, a 17 point underdog, not only beat the Minnesota Vikings in Minne, but did so easily, building a (27-0) lead, en route to a (27-6) win.
Again, a special category, these regarding upsets.
Twenty seven years later, the Atlanta Braves have again stunned the baseball world, with a division title.
This one is not as shocking nor as great as the One quarter” N.L. East title Atlanta won in 1991.
That year they went from last place in a six team N.L. East the season before.
However, this “one eighth” title for the “fourth choice,” Braves is truly a fine feat.
Even though on Thursday night, Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer, having pitched 7 innings and leaving the game trailing vs the New York Mets, did not get the loss, he did not win.
Additionally, the Mets won the game in 12 innings.
Last night Jacob deGrom was the winning pitcher as the Mets “doubled” the Nationals (4-2).
Thus over this weekend, deGrom has gained in his presumed battle with Scherzer for the Cy Young Award.
The great pitcher, “Cy” Young pictured above.
It is almost certain that the top seeds in baseball 2018 will be the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs.
Perhaps these venerable, historic franchises with their iconic playing venues, Boston’s Fenway Park and Chicago’s Wrigley Field, will clash in a World Series 100 years after they last met in one, that in 1918.
It is noteworthy that all 5 American League playoffs qualifiers will have a better record than any National League team and hence will have the home advantage in the World Series.
Additionally I note the ’18 World Series, a Red Sox win, their last such win for 86 years (it was the tenth of what would be 108 seasons sans a World Series title for the Cubs) ended on September 11th, due to World War 1.
It is tragic that the Armistice two months later, supposedly signaling the end of the last war, was dwarfed in length by the title droughts of two baseball teams.
This week, the L.A. football teams clash as the (1-1) Chargers visit the (2-0) Rams.
Los Angeles has the N.L. West leader in the Dodgers and the Lakers annexed the triple moving teams man, LeBron James, an obviously gifted basketball player.
The city’s last two titles were won by the NHL Kings, not that long ago in 2014 and 2012.
This season as was the case in 1973, the Minnesota Vikings opened their season with a (24-16) victory.
In 1973 the win was against the Oakland Raiders while this year Minne (24-16)’d, another Bay area team, the S.F. 49ers.
In that 1973 season, a great Miami Dolphins team also opened its season with an 8 point win vs the 49ers, that one (21-13). I still recall and until recently had Brad Weiner’s letter to me at college, “talking” about “his” Dolphins.
This season Miami won its first game, a greatly interrupted marathon with Sam Rosen there, by 7 points, before winning its second straight, that one by 8 points.
Meanwhile Minnesota trailed by 8 in the waning seconds but tied Green Bay, the eventual outcome after a 10 minute overtime and field goal attempts gone awry.
In ’73, the Dolphins and Vikings met in the Supe, Miami easing to a (24-7) victory.
While looking over notes from the 1975 baseball season, the fact Billy Williams finally made post-season play came back to mind.
He came to the Oakland A’s in 1975 after they had won 3 straight World Series titles.
In ’75 they won a 5th straight division title but lost in 3 straight games to the Boston Red Sox in the American League Championship Series.
A 108 win Cincinnati Reds team won a great W.S. from the Red Sox.
Williams was best known as a Chicago Cubs outfielder and hit 426 home runs.
Billy is a Hall of Fame player and I remember his/my great “2 column” in Strat-O- Matic Baseball.
As with Mark Twain, Billy Williams’ death has been greatly exaggerated as he is alive and certainly did not die in 1973.
Billy Williams
Billy Leo Williams is a retired American baseball left fielder who played sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball for the Chicago Cubs and two seasons for the Oakland Athletics. Williams was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987. In 1999…
- Born: Jun 15, 1938 · Whistler, AL
- Died: Nov 04, 1973 · Manchester, England——–A MISTAKE Billy Is Alive and certainly did not die in 1973!!!
- Height: 6′ 1″
- Nationality: American
- Awards: National League Rookie of the Year
- Team: Chicago Cubs
All three NFL Florida based teams (Jacksonville, Miami and Tampa Bay) are among the seven (2-0) NFL teams (Cincinnati, Kansas City, Denver and the Rams are the others).
There was another tie game in the NFL yesterday, a (29-29) one involving Minnesota and Green Bay.
That score evokes memories of “Harvard beats Yale (29-29),” now nearly 50 years ago, when the Crimson made an incredible comeback to earn the tie/win.
Below a link to something written two years ago, when there were ties in back to back weeks.
The Last Time There Were 2 Ties In An NFL Season, The …
Of course the Cubs went on to hand the Indians another heartbreaking game 7/World Series loss.
Andy B Sports 