It appears that I am not the only one just giving the American League East title to the team that won it last year, the Toronto Blue Jays.
In fact the consensus is that the Boston Red Sox and the Blue Jays are co favorites to win the division with the New York Yankees the third choice.
Both the Baltimore Orioles, such an enriching story until the 2014 ALCS when the Kansas City Royals swept them in 4 straight games, and the Tampa Rays, an unfortunate victim of baseball payroll manifestations are considered long shots for the title.
Last night’s play in the NCAA Basketball Tournament produced easy victories by the two top seeds in both the Midwest and West Regionals.
Both of my predictions were wrong as it was a night all four favorites, Kansas, Villanova, Oregon and Oklahoma all easily won and covered their games.
This sets up two fine matchups in Saturday’s regional finals with Kansas facing Villanova in the Midwest Regional Final and Oregon meeting Oklahoma, in the West Regional Final.
The winners of those games move on to the national semi-finals/Final Four next week in Houston Texas.
What follows are two predictions in tonight’s NCAA Basketball Tournament regional semi-final games. Each game is in the South Region with the two winning teams meeting Saturday for a berth in the national semi-finals/final four.
In the earlier game, Villanova is a 4 plus point favorite vs Miami of Florida.
Prediction: Villanova 57 Miami of Florida 54
Later powerful Kansas is a 6 plus point favorite vs Maryland.
I think I am forcing this one in, but I predict Maryland will keep the game close “enough.”
Kansas 76 Maryland 71.
I never met the great baseball figure, Joe Garagiola, who passed away yesterday at the age of 90, but so many of my baseball memories were described by Mr. Garagiola, some without my knowledge at a young age.
He was one of the radio play by play men along with Ernie Harwell (1963), Phil Rizzuto (1964) (Curt Gowdy and Harry Caray working together also did radio play by play in 1964) and By Saam (1965), on three incredibly meaningful World Series to me, (1963-1965), though I was not aware of the names.
Mr. Garagiola known for his baseball humor gained great fame in other fields including a stint as the host of the famed, still going NBC Today Show.
My reflections on Garagiola remember him as the founder of B.A.T. (Baseball Assistance Team) which helps so many baseball players and even more so for his battle vs chewing tobacco.
The bravery and passion both Mr. Garagiola and former player Bill Tuttle, the latter a victim of oral cancer almost certainly caused by chewing tobacco, exhibited in battling and pointing out the negative involving chewing tobacco was truly remarkable.
Joe Garagiola pictured above.
Click below to hear and view Garagiola’s excellent television play by play call of Dwight Evans’ great catch in game 6 of the 1975 World Series. Dick Stockton is heard doing commentary.
1975 WS Gm6: Evans makes spectacular catch in right field
The NHL Los Angeles Kings hope to match the baseball San Francisco Giants with their third straight “even year” title.
They will enter the playoffs as one of the top choices and quite possibly with the Pacific Division regular season crown.
L.A. made an incredible run to the Stanley Cup title, doing what has not been done before or since, winning it all from the 8th and lowest seed in their conference (The NHL West) and more incredibly, winning the first two games on the road, in each of their 4 series en route to the Stanley Cup win.
What follows are two predictions for Friday night’s round of sixteen games.
I got them all last week and two of my predictions were wins by Syracuse and Notre Dame.
Friday I am predicting each team will win, in the case of Syracuse, at least cover the spread.
First in a game against a lower seeded opponent than expected, namely Wisconsin, (Stephen F. Austin took out West Virginia and then Wisconsin did the same to Xavier) I say Notre Dame 72 Wisconsin 65.
Later on Friday, Gonzaga is a four plus point favorite vs Syracuse.
Prediction: Syracuse 65 Gonzaga 64.
My “what did I tell you” regarding the ridiculously hyped REGULAR SEASON tilt between the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs is not because I predicted an 8 point Spurs win that manifested.
It refers to the point I made that the game meant next to nothing as the Warriors win or lose were going to get the best record in the NBA.
So after “Tonio” wins to cut the Warriors’ lead to a still safe 3 games, the Charlotte Hornets come from the proverbial dead and hand the Spurs their 11th loss two days ago.
Meanwhile the Warriors had a no cover, struggle win vs the Minnesota Timberwolves, to raise their record to (63-7), a truly impressive and nice looking .900 win percentage.
The Spurs record of (59-11) is also great but again I fear that the East winner, very likely the (50-20) Cleveland Cavaliers will have the intangibles vs whomever comes out of the far superior NBA Western Conference.
| Golden State Warriors | 63 | 7 | .900 | – | |||||||||
| 2y –San Antonio Spurs | 59 | 11 | .843 | ||||||||||
| 3y –Oklahoma City Thunder | 49 | 22 | .690 | ||||||||||
| 4Los Angeles Clippers | 43 | 26 | .623 | ||||||||||
| 5Memphis Grizzlies | 41 | 31 | .569 | ||||||||||
| 6Portland Trail Blazers | 36 | 35 | .507 | ||||||||||
| 7Dallas Mavericks | 35 | 35 | .500 | ||||||||||
The current top 7, NBA West standings, showing two great records and three good ones in the far superior conference.
Of course with the presence of the Chicago Cubs in the N.L. Central its division members have the combined total number of years sans a World Series win.
Chicago’s North Side Cubs last won it all in 1908, the year William Howard Taft, later the first U.S. President to throw out a ceremonial first pitch and oh yes a Supreme Court Justice, was elected to the United States’ highest office.
Other N.L. Central teams, most notably the Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Brewers add to the years sans a World Series win.
Sister Sledge’s “We Are Family” was their team song and Willie “Pops” Stargell was their leader when Pittsburgh last won the W.S. back in 1979.
Meanwhile the Milwaukee Brewers formed as the Seattle Pilots in 1969 and moving to Milwaukee as the Brewers a year later, have never won a World Series.
The Cincinnati Reds last won it all in 1990, sweeping the Oakland Athletics. St.Louis last “titled” in 2011.
Oh the memories involving the great Willie Stargell! Alas I had the above baseball card, but as kids we did not sell them, we flipped them even “endangering” the cards by doing so, where my mother kept water under the radiator.
Suddenly after 7 non split squad wins at their winter home in Lakeland, Florida the Detroit Tigers have lost two consecutive Lakeland games in as many days.
The teams that won were the opponents in the last real baseball season’s (no wild card teams) World Series in 1993.
They are the Philadelphia Phillies and Toronto Blue Jays.
Toronto won that World Series in six games, the ending coming on Joe Carter’s three run home run.
1993 WS Game 6: Joe Carter wins Series with homer
Click above to view Joe Carter’s World Series ending home run in 1993. Only one other player has ever accomplished that feat, Bill Mazeroski in 1960.
Today is the great sportscaster Bob Costas’ birthday. Three nights hence North Carolina University meets Indiana University in a round of 16 tilt, dare I say “sweet” with history, between two of the three teams/universities tied for third place, with 5 NCAA basketball titles.
I have an association between Costas and North Carolina/Indiana tournament history. As the brilliant actor Robert Shaw’s character in the great film “The Sting” said (see if you can) “Folla,” meaning follow.
On a Bob Costas, 2001, HBO show, best remembered for his interview segment with “wrestling” mogul, Vince McMahon, the by comparison calm, relaxed basketball coach Bob Knight also appeared.
I happened to be at the show and among the topics that night was the return to the NBA of Michael Jordan. Sadly (not all that so) Mr. Jordan did return, thus his game and sixth Chicago Bulls’ title winning shot, called so deftly by Costas on the 1998 NBC telecast, was not his final moment as an NBA player.
Coach Knight was walking out of the studio when I recalled to him that his Indiana coached team denied Jordan and North Carolina in Mr. Jordan’s last college game, also a round of 16 clash between Indiana and North Carolina, now 32 years ago in 1984.
From left to right, Robert Shaw, Robert Redford and Paul Newman, pictured above as characters in “The Sting.”
Andy B Sports 