There are many reasons to feel hollow on a Monday morning, one is to have lost “dinero” on football outcomes the day before.
Another reason to feel bad is to be on a (10-1-1) streak on one’s predictions and “suggestions” and have little to show for it.
I predicted the Bills to cover as a home underdog and they “outrighted” the Arizona Cardinals.
Lines move and for years now, outcomes are falling between that movement, (someone is getting rich, not I) and that was the case as the Baltimore Ravens went to (3-0), (bet from a 1 to a two plus point favorite), in a 2 point win at Jacksonville, vs the (0-3) Jaguars.
For our purposes, I stated the Jaguars were 2 point underdogs, making the prediction a tie.
One suggestion was the underdog Washington Redskins, who won at the now (2-1) East Rutherford/Jersey Giants.
Another suggestion was to take the Indianapolis Colts minus one plus points, vs the San Diego Chargers. The Colts won by four points making my record (10-1-1), after an (0-2) start.
The situations that manifest from football outcomes especially regarding point spread implications, combined with the often, actual IGNORANT (Rabbi Joseph Wise, years ago professed “do not confuse ignorance with stupidity” some of what I hear borders on the latter, but in nice fashion I will call it the former) comments by those assigned to broadcast the games, makes one a veritable tree trunk (hollow), even when on, what amounts to a virtually meaningless “hot streak.”
The picture of the tree hollow above may be small, but I feel it to be a good choice and a much more appealing sight than some of the other such “things hollow.”
It also symbolizes that I must and will perk up, acknowledge not so much my skill at predicting sports outcomes, (with the God/force provided proviso, that if I wager, then I will not be even close to as accurate), but my great knowledge of sports.
Yes, it truly hurts to hear some or even most of the comments by almost all television announcers, especially so called “analysts,” but I take solace and should even revel in the fact, that I can shut the sound and/or not watch at all. Largely, that is what I do. If someone like me, once a 9 hour/ Sunday football watching “fool” can do it, so can you!
Two predictions and a few suggestions regarding NFL games today.
I believe the (0-2) Buffalo Bills will play well at home vs a very good (1-1) Arizona Cardinals team. Teasers are not quite the “sucker bets” they once were, minimum take the 5 point underdog Bills in a 7 point teaser bet (plus 12).
Oh what the hay, Arizona Cardinals 20 Buffalo Bills 17.
The 2 point underdog (0-2) Jacksonville Jaguars will win at home vs the (2-0) Baltimore Ravens.
Suggestions, Colts (minus one and a half) vs the S.D. Chargers and the Redskins plus three and a half vs the New York Giants.
After a rather shady “no cover” victory in their CBS tilt at Mississippi, the week before, top ranked and defending champion, Alabama, a 44 point favorite, won (48-0) vs Kent State to raise their record to (4-0) and (3-1).
There is a comparison I could make involving Kent State and one sided outcomes, but one was tragic and unnecessary, this was greedy and surely unnecessary.
Elsewhere in college football, it was a surprise but not a big shock to me, that 3 touchdown underdog, Duke, won outright at now (1-3) Notre Dame.
Once the Notre Dame team is out of contention for the national title, those such as Beano Cook, who always took the “over” in Notre Dame season wins (he had his reasons), truly have worries. This year that is especially so, as the “over 9 wins investor” regarding Notre Dame needs the team to win all 8 remaining games. That will not happen!
Meanwhile, credit to Duke, of course known for its basketball prowess, (hopefully people realize that academics is what is really important and Duke excels in that department for sure) for a telling football victory.
If Beano were alive, he would be citing the fact that as with say a Northwestern, a school that won vs Duke earlier this season, it is hard for a great academic school like Duke to get “the material,” to win in big time college football. (Somehow under 5 time NCAA championship coach Mike Krzyzewski–I actually spelled his name without looking it up–they manage to do so in basketball).
One other thing, as Beano often told me, once dead he did not have to worry about Notre Dame or for that matter Penn State winning.
As it happens, big favorite Michigan ripped Penn State yesterday.
One result yesterday would have “bugged” Beano (pun intended), as North Carolina player, Bug Howard’s touchdown catch and the team’s subsequent extra point kick with 2 seconds left defeated Beano’s team, Pittsburgh University.
However since “anti emotions” often run stronger in sports (sad) and life (often horrible) it is too bad Beano did not see yesterday’s college football or maybe he did. Surely, at this point, he realizes the games are not that important!
North Carolina receiver, Bug Howard pictured above.
My emotions run deep today as the great broadcaster, Vin Scully, will work from Dodger Stadium, for the last time.
Ceremonies were held Friday night honoring Scully at Dodger Stadium.
That same night I happened across a tape of “Salute to Baseball,” hosted by the eloquent Jonathan Schwartz, which included Scully’s broadcast, I believe authentic, (i.e. not recreated), of the ninth inning of a perfect game, pitched by Sandy Koufax. (Sandy spoke about Vin, his friend of over 60 years during the Friday ceremonies).
Schwartz, himself brilliant, and the host of a Sunday music show which includes his great tidbits on National Public Radio, marveled on “Salute to Baseball” (this one likely from the 1990’s) at Scully’s narrative.
Scully cited the time of day at least three times, in all subsequent years, saying the time was noted for Sandy and “future Sandys,” (those never manifested, either in the form of Sandy having children or any pitcher quite as great).
This was my team, my pitcher and my announcer. A few years later my excitement was so great when a package from Danny Goodman, long affiliated with the Dodgers and related merchandise, arrived by mail.
This wonderful package included a little record (45?) of the ninth inning of Koufax’s perfect game and a bigger record, with highlights of Don Drysdale’s record scoreless innings streak in 1968.
THE broadcaster was Vin Scully! Sandy Koufax struck out the last 6 Cubs’ batters to achieve the perfect game. It was a big Dodgers’ win as they battled for the N.L. title, in which they managed but one hit that was not in the same inning as the game’s lone run, vs Cubs’ pitcher, Bob Hendley.
In recapping the game just after Scully allowed the applause to subside, another Vin trademark, he stated that “Sandy Koufax, whose name will always remind you of strikeouts did so with a flourish and that when his performance/name was to be written into the record books, the K (a scoring symbol for a strikeout) would stand out more than the “oufax.”
The greatness and essence of Vin Scully is evident in that broadcast!
Vin Scully, pictured above.
Recently I was fortunate to attend a taping of a new television show, “Harry,” named such because it stars the talented Harry Connick Jr.
The show I attended featured Whoopi Goldberg as a guest. She presented Harry with a special gift.
Other guests were Jessica McClard, whose “Free Little Pantry,” as fed so many people in her home city of Fayettville, Arkansas. The sports historian in me wonders if she is related to Bill McClard, who once “toed” a 60 yard field for The University of Arkansas.
Isaiah Cooper, 16 years old and so polite and dignified that the show’s star, Connick, a father of three girls, stated he was the kind of a guy he hoped one of his daughters would “bring home” some day, was the final guest.
He recently overcame a dangerous situation, safely landing the plane he was flying solo, and continued and completed his cross country flight.
It was quite a show with the personable, smooth Connick hosting accompanied by his tremendous band.
The show airs this Monday, September 26th, 4 p.m. on channel 5 in the New York market. Elsewhere check your local listings. There are many stations as we in the audience found out, as we stayed watching Harry, in very entertaining fashion, read a host of station promos.
Right now the Boston area baseball and football teams have combined to win 12 straight games.
Respectively, the baseball Red Sox and football Patriots have all but won their one eighth division and started the season (3-0) despite but also perhaps because their great quarterback, Tom Brady was suspended for 4 games by the power hungry, Bronxville, New York resident, NFL czar, Roger Goodell.
Thrice in their history, the Red Sox, who last “titled” in 2013, have won the World Series three years apart, 1912/1915, 1915 1918 and 2004/2007, the latter with a pair of Joe Buck presided sweeps.
On a far happier and better broadcasting plane, the ’04 and ’07 sweeps provided a chance for the fine veteran Red Sox broadcaster, Joe Castiglione, who as a professional endured game 6 of the 1986 World Series when the Red Sox were denied, one out from the title, to call the clinching last outs.
Last night, the Texas Rangers, a franchise that began play in 1961 as the expansion Washington Senators, (the old Senators having moved to Minnesota, becoming the Twins), with a new U.S. President, John F. Kennedy, just 3 months into a term that would end in tragedy, not far from where the Rangers play in Arlington Texas, and manifest in Kennedy going far too soon to a national cemetery, with the same name, clinched their 7th “one eighth,” division crown.
In their 33 years of legitimate baseball from (1961-1993), before the wild card presence and a strike that denied the 1994 season a conclusion, the Senators/Rangers essentially never even came close to finishing first.
The Rangers will play in their 7th Division Series which is scheduled to begin on Thursday October 6th. Texas currently has a slight lead over fellow A.L. (to be) division winners, the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox, in the race for seeding in the American League. If they are the one or two seed, the Rangers would open the Division Series at home.
An iconic photo above of President John F. Kennedy throwing the ceremonial first pitch/ball at the first Senators’ game in April 1961.
Vice President Lyndon Johnson is to Kennedy’s right, while I believe the uniformed baseball Senator, to be Mickey Vernon, the Senators’ manager.
After taking on such issues as Vin Scully’s greatness and though in a minimum, fairly objective way, the horror concerning police shootings and resulting protests, I do not have the “strength” to fully argue vs the presence of the bogus wild card(s) in baseball.
Suffice to say, and I know what wild card presence supporters will say and I will leave my answer to it for another post, all six (that is two more than needed) division winners are known in baseball 2016.
A number thing, perhaps annoying, but at least not an opinion (I respect all points of view and know the rage a column/post can cause. Discussion in a reasonable manner is suggested and “blogger heal thyself” applies here, as often I go too far, or at the very least cite mistakes in not relevant circumstances) involving the two most recent division winning “claims,” the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.
The two franchises have met only once in World Series play and that was 100 years ago in 1916. Boston prevailed in 5 games,vs the then Brooklyn based team.
Someone still 4 years away from helping save baseball after the damage caused to it by the alleged “fixing” of the 1919 World Series (side note: nobody is suggesting, as might be inferred in my last post, such actions by the Cubs vs St. Louis or any other game. However, please consider that the presence of wild card teams has put an onus on division winners to play, say regulars in games after they clinched titles), with his incredible home run prowess, starred as a pitcher in the Boston win in 1916.
His name: the great, George Herman “Babe” Ruth.
Even he could not save baseball from the greedy, unnecessary implementation of the bogus wild card, which took away the excitement of a true pennant race, a great happening which made following the long, often boring, day to day action/ non action of a once great, but usually slow paced game, truly worthwhile.
Only in the 1916 baseball final, aka the World Series, have the Red Sox and Dodgers met in post-season play.
On Friday October 7th, weather permitting of course, the Chicago Cubs will open a best of five post season series at home for the third time. They lost the previous two, a 2008 division series vs the Dodgers and the 1984 NLCS.
In that famed and last best of 5, National League Championship Series in 1984, the San Diego Padres lost the first two games in Chicago, but won the final three at S.D. denying the Cubs their first pennant in 39 years.
Now the number of years has grown to at least 71 and while the Cubs are the top choice and barely over even money, to finally win the N.L. crown, I see many intangibles working against them, not the least of which, the fact they have won too many games, especially vs contenders.
Maybe the Cubs will “lay down” (“Sally”) a bit, when hosting the contending Cardinals for 3 games this weekend. Of course “St. Loo” must face Jake Arrieta today, continuing a big contrast concerning facing “on paper” top pitching opponents, with one of their fellow bogus wild card(s) contenders, the New York Mets.
That team (the Mets), which recently lost all three home games to the lowly Atlanta Braves, twice avoided Washington ace Max Scherzer thanks to Dusty Baker’s questionable “good graces” and will not face Miami Marlins’ ace Jose Fernandez, when the teams begin a three game series in Miami next week.
Imagine the person who took 8 to 1 odds that the Patriots would win their first four games, the games to be played without their great quarterback, Tom Brady.
That person will be a reasonably big (how big, will depend on manifestations from New England’s next opponent, the Buffalo Bills,’ tilt vs the Arizona Cardinals, this Sunday), favorite to cash the bet, as I will say “N.E.” will be at least a six point, home favorite vs the Bills next week.
Of course, based on what were the odds in New England’s wins in the first three games and my projected odds for the upcoming home game vs Buffalo, the person taking the Pats to win in effect a 4 team parlay, by letting the previous week’s winnings “ride,” would secure at least a 13 to 1 payout, should “N.E.” prevail next week.
Thus far, and people can read into it what they want, (my obvious take is that both Belichick and Brady are true football greats and that would be the case, no matter the result in these 4 games), but other than the truly out of whack opening night line of N.E. as a near 10 point underdog, winning as respective 6 plus and 1 point, home favorites, while nice, is not all that great.
As far as great, I did not need seeing Mr. Belichick winning 3 games sans Brady, to acknowledge his greatness. That was determined long before these past 3 games.
Andy B Sports 