As stated in yesterday’s post, the Minnesota Vikings gained a small piece of revenge by winning their Supe 4 redux vs the Kansas City Chiefs at “Minne,” in the 1970 season opener.
Last night, the defending Supe champions and 3 point underdog Denver Broncos, denied the Carolina Panthers even that bit of solace, winning (21-20) in a “bah-bah bah” game, in which the over/under total winner is questionable.
After losing to the Vikings in their 1970 season opener, the Chiefs annihilated the Baltimore Colts, in just the second game of the ABC Monday Night Football package, which enters its 47th season, with a rarity, a fine network announcer, Sean McDonough, in 3 days.
The Colts under “Easy Rider,” low key coach, (not an uptight, power hungry one, as are so many), Don McCafferty went on to win the 5th Supe.
Neither of the Supe 4 participants has even led in a Super Bowl game since that fourth one.
The Chiefs victorious in that one have not made one since that January, 1970 game, while the Vikings lost three subsequent Supes and have never led in any of their 4 Super Bowl appearances.
The Rams are back in Los Angeles and the two cities from the NFC West with corresponding baseball tournament contenders are the Dodgers and Giants.
It is a return, save the fact that another Dodgers/Giants race (there have been many including classic ones, on each United States coast as once both teams played in Brooklyn and Manhattan, New York respectively) is marred by the fact that the presence of the bogus wild card could save the team that does not win the N.L. West.
The Rams’ counterpart Dodgers have a decent N.L. West lead and probably will win the division.
San Francisco’s 49ers’ corresponding Giants are in an all out battle with the St. Louis Cardinals, whom they host for 4 likely big games next week, and the New York Mets for the two wild card berths.
Arizona (Cardinals) will have no local baseball tournament action as the Diamondbacks, whose 2001 World Series win denied a Joe (Torre) a chance to match another (McCarthy), with a 4th straight managed W.S. win, are out of contention.
The NFC West Seahawks’ corresponding Mariners are still alive for tournament qualification but are considerable long shots.
Among the “Bay Area sports questions,” will the Giants cross the bridge into the baseball playoffs?
The NFL with I believe “Alfalfa” (Al Michaels) and the “gang” presiding opens another season with a Supe redux between the champion Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers.
This game is of no interest to me, betting or otherwise.
The NFL had a Super Bowl redux in its first possible week of scheduling in 1970. The losing team in the previous year’s Supe, the Minnesota Vikings eased vs the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Tomorrow more notes on that game, and I guess the result of this year’s “Alfalfa” opener.
Carl Switzer, there is a football name as in Barry Switzer, pictured above as “Alfalfa” from “Our Gang.”
The other AFC East teams/cities with their corresponding baseball teams.
The New York Jets’ corresponding team, the New York Mets surely are now favored to make the baseball tournament after a (14-4) stretch that has them virtually ahead, in a race with two other teams for two tournament spots.
Meanwhile the Miami Dolphins’ season almost always a bigger deal than the baseball Marlins will be again this year.
A sad refrain, as I was about to cite the Don Mattingly always finding the losing dugout” quote from a man who knew, last week after three Marlins’ losses at New York vs the Mets.
Since then, a “salvage” win there, but 5 consecutive losses and a likely, meaningless win yesterday. It is not to be, for the Mattingly managed Marlins.
Baseball in Buffalo, the home of the Bills, is most famous for the fact the movie, “The Natural” based on but not truly faithful to Bernard Malamud’s book, was filmed at the old War Memorial Stadium there.
Throughout the weekend posts on 1966 shows beginning. The same calendar as 50 years later, and the first day of 1967 at War Memorial Stadium, the first Super Bowl entrant manifested.
A look at the AFC East and its corresponding baseball teams.
The New England Patriots probably should have been rewarded with more than the four Supe titles they have won during an incredible period of sustained excellence from (2001-2015).
It also was a period of time that saw Boston (Red Sox), the corresponding baseball team, first end an 86 year title drought by winning the World Series in 2004 and then add titles in 2007 and 2013.
The Red Sox are a very probable baseball tournament team this season, currently leading at least a three if not four team race in the A.L. East by a game, two games and four and a half games, the last figure their lead for tournament qualification.
The New York Mets owe the Cincinnati Reds and yes Washington Nationals’ manager Dusty Baker, some big thanks, as they are right in the thick of tournament qualification contention.
They also might add a thanks to those responsible for getting Jose Reyes, a key contributor, in the current Mets’ (14-4) run, back in baseball and to the Mets.
New York finished the season (6-0) vs the Reds and somewhat incredibly swept them in each of the past two seasons in winning 14 straight games head to head, dating back to 2014.
Meanwhile Cincy helped the Mets by recently taking 2 of 3 games from the St. Louis Cardinals.
Mr. Baker, certainly deserving of praise for a very likely one eighth division title with a fourth different team, gave the Mets an “on paper’ break, that already has manifested in a “standings” break by not pitching Max Scherzer in the recent series finale.
In pitching Scherzer a day later vs “powerful’ Atlanta (Braves), Baker, it now appears has made it so the Mets will also not face Scherzer, when the teams meet again next week in “Wash.”
Complaint department fielding calls from St. Louis and San Francisco.
After Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles led the slight, road underdog, Minnesota Lynx to a 3 point win at L.A. vs the Sparks last night, it is very likely the defending WNBA champion Lynx will be the WNBA top seed.
Minnesota, where the Lakers once played and won 5 NBA titles before moving to Los Angeles which among many other things, is devoid of lakes, now has a one and a half game lead over the Sparks with each team having 4 remaining games.
During the regular season, the Lynx won both “at L.A.” tilts, while the Sparks won the one game played at Minnesota.
Despite those road wins by both teams, the Lynx, now the team likely to gain home advantage, should the two teams meet in the WNBA finals, all things being equal, are glad to have that advantage, should they maintain it.
Sylvia Fowles, last year’s WNBA Finals MVP, pictured above.
The NFC North has one definite “corresponding” baseball tournament and one with a possible tournament entry.
Chicago with the NFL Bears has two baseball teams and while the White Sox will not be in the tournament, the Cubs have baseball’s best record, will almost certainly be the N.L. “one seed” as they enter the tournament in the quarterfinal round.
Detroit with the NFL Lions, has a corresponding baseball team, the Tigers, 32 years removed from their last title, that sits 4 and a half games behind the Cleveland Indians in their division, but only one game behind, in what is now a scramble for tournament entry in the American League.
Neither the Green Bay Packers nor the Minnesota Vikings, will have corresponding baseball teams in the tournament.
Both the Milwaukee Brewers (linked with the Packers who played many games in Milwaukee en route to NFL titles under Vince Lombardi including a divisional playoff game in 1967, but no longer make the travel “leap” from Lambeau Field, to play in Milwaukee) and Minnesota Twins will not be in the baseball tournament.
Those two teams are linked to and by the great player, but current last place manager with the Twins, Paul Molitor, once, a star player with the Brewers.
Today as “Decades” airs/aired “Family Affair,” which as was the case with the more action oriented “Star Trek,” “Mission Impossible” and “hey hey,” even “The Monkees” began around, or exactly this day, 50 years ago, (it is the same calendar as 1966), I thought of my father.
Some years after my father died, my mother told me he had worked with or at least knew, “Family Affair” star, Brian Keith.
My father was never as rugged as Keith seemed to be, nor was he ever as gentle as Keith was in a changed role for him, as “Uncle Bill” on “Family Affair.”
Yet he was my father and my mood brightened even amidst the darkening skies when he appeared on a 1975 audio tape, that included Manuel Orantes’ upset win vs Jimmy Connors, in the U.S. (Tennis) Open Finals.
My dad was talking however briefly, (if only there was more recording done. If you are lucky enough to still have your parents, cherish that fact and begin recording them. That is can’t miss advice!) about the need for a team to have speed in baseball.
Also it seems he paid 20 dollars of a 25 dollar bill I owed, or maybe it was to put gas in the car,( knowing the two of us I am surprised it was not all 25).
Someone else was there, still on this earth, and one who never paid what he owed. Maybe worse, that person did not show up for the funeral of either of my parents.
Yet hearing both of them at a point in time, put me in better spirits, hoping and knowing to go on.
Brian Keith, pictured above.
There is quite a clash in the WNBA tonight as the two highest ranked teams, the defending champion Minnesota Lynx and the Los Angeles Sparks play in Los Angeles.
The teams enter the game with identical (24-5) records and essentially are battling for the one seed with the other likely to be the two seed which correctly carries more weight in the WNBA this season.
Despite being in the same (Western) conference, if the season ended today the Lynx and Sparks would each have a bye until the semi-finals and would enjoy home court advantage, even as the second place team vs any team, even the probable league three seed, and Eastern Conference regular season winning, New York Liberty.
Andy B Sports 