It may be time for me to start changing my opinion on the Arizona Cardinals’ chances to actually host the Super Bowl this season.
The Cards are (5-1) after covering a three plus point spread at the still winless Oakland Raiders, who are (0-6). They also gained ground on both the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC West.
The St.Louis Rams (2-5) won at home vs Seattle (3-3) while Denver quarterback Peyton Manning set more records as the Super Bowl favorite Denver Broncos (5-1) dismantled the 49ers (4-3).
Next week the Cards host the (5-1) Philadelphia Eagles, who had a week 7 bye. When Arizona made its lone Super Bowl appearance after the 2008 season, they “punched their ticket” (gained entry) to the game by winning vs the Eagles in Arizona.
Meanwhile the (6-1) Dallas Cowboys moved a half game ahead of the idle Eagles in the NFC East by beating the (3-4) New York Giants by ten points.
The Green Bay Packers eased vs the still NFC South leading (3-3-1) Carolina Panthers and the Detroit Lions came back to beat the disappointing NFC South (2-4) New Orleans Saints. The Packers and the Lions share the NFC North lead with (5-2) records.
In the weak NFC South, Carolina and New Orleans with their records cited above, are the top two teams in the current standings.
Click here to watch the Cardinals punching their ticket vs the Eagles (2008 season)
I fondly recall the years from 1963-1968 when the World Series would open with a Wednesday afternoon game. Those days are long gone.
The World Series began on Wednesday nights from 2007 through last year. This year it will begin on a Tuesday night (as was the case from 1977-1984).
Perhaps the reason for the return to the Tuesday start, is so that baseball’s World Series would not compete with regular season NFL games. Such ratings competition might have proved embarrassing for baseball.
Now, with the Tuesday start, the only scheduled “conflict” will be Sunday night if game 5 of the World Series is necessary.
For years now, the NFL, formerly a Sunday staple, has invaded not only Monday night but the Thursday and Saturday night television landscapes.
More series starting day details: begining with 1963, the Series was scheduled to start on Saturday night 22 times (1985-2006.) I believe only game 1 of the 1996 World Series among the 22, was postponed. There was no World series in 1994 due to a labor dispute. The World Series opened on a Saturday afternoon 8 times (1969-1976).
With Joe Buck and the never quiet Harold Reynolds on this years telecast, I subscribe to the late Beano Cook’s wish that whomever wins game 1 of the World Series, wins in 4 straight games.
Beano Cook
Recently I had a chance to see “Born for Broadway,” a benefit concert whose proceeds goes to “Unite 2 Fight Paralysis,” a non profit that supports education about and spinal cord injury research.
The performances by myriad artists were tremendous and the words of inspiration, not over done, added to the event. This, of course, put many of our “problems” in perspective.
Oh those “problems” are real, but it is hard not to be inspired by performers like Carole Lasser, Ali Stroker and Adrian Bailey, all of whom rise above their physical setbacks to not only perform magnificently, but also to live quality lives.
The host for the evening was the magnificent Richard Kind, whose humor and passion, always entertaining, was moving and just right for the benefit performance.
All the performers were outstanding and the constant in that high quality was musical director, Lawrence Yurman. The event was directed by Marcia Milgram Dodge, a Tony Award nominee for “Ragtime.”
Carole Lasser and Marcia Milgrom Dodge
Two League Championship Series played, and it produced an all wild card World Series between the Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants.
Some early thoughts and notes:
This will be the first ever Kansas City vs San Francisco post season meeting in any of the 4 major sports leagues. It is not a ratings dream: at this point, football is far more popular than baseball.
In that football regard: San Francisco QB Joe Montana led the 49ers to 4 Super Bowl wins, and later playing for Kansas City near the end of his great career, he led the Chiefs to the AFC Title tilt.
The Royals will have the home field advantage and the team with that advantage has won 23 of the last 28 World Series contested, starting in 1985, the first season in which the LCS was a best of seven series.
No team that won its LCS “at the plate” as the Giants did last night on Travis Ishikawa’s 3 run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, has beaten a team that did not win its LCS at the plate in the subsequent World Series.
Only the great 1976 Cincinnati Reds, who won game 3 “at the plate” won its subsequent World Series, sweeping the New York Yankees.
However the Yankees had won the pennant on Chris Chambliss’ home run leading off the bottom of the ninth inning of game 5 vs the Royals.
Altogether all 7 teams that won the LCS “at the plate” and faced a team that did not, lost in the subsequent World Series.
Today is the 45 year anniversary of the 100 to 1 underdog New York Mets, aka “The Miracle Mets,” winning the 1969 World Series.
They were a tremendous team, winners of 100 games in the National League regular season, who went on to sweep the Atlanta Braves in the NLCS, despite home runs by the great Henry Aaron, in each of the three games.
In the World Series, they dropped the opener to the 109 regular season wins Baltimore Orioles team. The Mets then went on to win the next four games and become the World Champions.
The Orioles were a great team, but the Mets with Jerry Koosman winning two games and series MVP Donn Clendenon smacking homers in three different games, won it all.
Those 1969 Mets, and for that matter, the year 1969 (Woodstock and a man named Neil Armstrong walking on the moon) provide great memories.
On the day of the last game, I was in school, games were in the glorious daylight then. Homers by pitcher Dave Mc Nally (he hit more World Series homers than Willie Mays) and Frank Robinson gave “The Birds” a (3-0) lead. Robinson is still one of my favorites and certainly one of the greatest players ever, but his bitterly, self righteous, total opposition and failure to forgive a disease and allow the great Pete Rose into the no longer so hallowed, Hall of Fame is a big turn off.
The Mets fought back; I recall the superb Baltimore announcer Bill O’Donnell, intoning Clendenon’s drive with a man aboard, is “in and up for a home run.” The Mets were within one run.
Mentioning Bill O’Donnell reminds me of our mutual friend Lenny Nadel, whom you may not know, but was a fine man who received a moving tribute at his recent funeral by both his family and the Navy.
Back to Baseball: Next, I was walking through the school halls when I heard “the Mighty Mite,” Al Weis, had tied the game with a home run.
On the bus home, the Mets had men on and I made it home in time to see Ron Swoboda hit a ball that landed fair to drive in the go ahead run and most of all, to see Cleon Jones go down on one knee, as he caught Dave Johnson’s drive to end it.
Johnson would later manage the only other Mets’ World title team.
My late father Norman’s call from work after the ’69 win and Joseph Durso’s remarkable lead in the New York Times will always be remembered. It read: “After years of wandering in the baseball wilderness the New York Mets reached the promised land today.”
Another really good man, Jesse Krawitz, still laments missing the game, although as with most of life, has it in perspective.
Playing “God,” which he loved , actor George Burns answered John Denver’s character’s question about which was the last miracle, in the movie, “Oh God.” It was “The ’69 Mets,” he replied.
Three predictions for Week 7, including one Thursday night game.
In that Thursday night tilt, while I think the New England Patriots will win, their opponent, the New York Jets, will keep the game fairly close. Patriots 20 Jets 14 is my prediction.
On Sunday, I predict the Oakland Raiders, a 4 point home underdog, will win their first game. I think they will win by a field goal vs the Arizona Cardinals.
Finally on Sunday night while the experts setting the line with the Denver Broncos as a seemingly high nearly one touchdown favorite vs the San Francisco 49ers, makes me think. What do they know that I do not? I say Denver is lucky to win by a field goal. One step further, a field goal game either way, as “SF” may well win outright.
Predictions are the Jets, Raiders and 49ers.
The current ALCS between the Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals, which “K.C.” leads (2-0), is the first time in 20 Orioles’ post season series, that they trail two games to none.
This is the third time in four Giants/Cardinals NLCS that the series is tied at one game apiece. “SF” may well rue its failed opportunities in game two, which ended on Kolten Wong’s solo homer in the bottom of the ninth inning in St. Louis.
Only in 2000 vs the New York Mets and 2002 vs the Giants have the Cardinals trailed two games to none in any series that opened in St. Louis.
That includes World Series in 1931, 1942, 1944 (that one was an all St. Louis one with the Cardinals facing the St. Louis Browns, who are now the Baltimore Orioles) 1946, 1964, 1968, 1982, and 2011.
Kolten Wong
Both the (5-1) Dallas Cowboys and the (5-1) Philadelphia Eagles scored impressive victories in week six of the NFL season.
Dallas outplayed and beat the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, who were 8 point favorites.
At night, the Eagles won easily vs the now (3-3) New York Giants. This week in the NFC East, Dallas is a 6 point favorite at home vs the Giants.
The Arizona Cardinals at (4-1) lead the NFC West and are really a surprise. They won and covered the spread vs the (1-5) Washington Redskins, the latter “feat” accomplished on a late interception return for a touchdown.
The Super Bowl will be played on the Cards’ home field in Glendale, Arizona and will be the third “Supe” telecast by NBC as a neutral network (ie one without a conference affiliation). Arizona played in the first one, losing, but covering the spread (point spread, not the various food spreads seen in such great abundance on Super Bowl Sunday) vs the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2008 season game.
No team has ever played a Super Bowl game on its home field. I do not think the Cards will, but who thought they would be slightly ahead of (4-2) San Francisco (49ers) and (3-2) Seattle (Seahawks) in the very tough NFC West?!
Both of the top two AFC West teams, the (5-1) San Diego Chargers and (4-1) Denver Broncos won, and now have the top two records in the conference.
They won in different manners. The Chargers struggled to hold off the touchdown underdog, now (0-5) Oakland Raiders. While the Broncos win was not in doubt, but their bettors needed an interception touchdown return in the last seconds to exceed the spread vs the now (1-5) New York Jets.
By the way, the Jets and Raiders met for the penultimate AFL title in late December 1968 (not ’63 as The Four Seasons intoned). The Jets won that game and two weeks later shocked the football world by beating the NFL, Colts.
The Jets have not even been to a Super Bowl since that season, with 2014 exceedingly likely to be the 46th consecutive season without such an occurrence.
I will try one more time and predict the Jets to play well (they played fairly well yesterday), and lose by less than the 10 point margin by which the New England Patriots will be favored in the “Jim Nantz,” I mean Thursday night CBS tilt, a few days ahead.
The amazing Kansas City Royals, who have won all 6 of their post-season games, have taken a (2-0) lead in the ALCS by winning each of the first two games in Baltimore vs the favored Orioles.
All but one of the post season victories was in the 9th inning or later, four in extra innings. They are (4-0) on the road and are now 5 to 1 favorites to win their third pennant, their first since 1985.
Some of the heroes for Ned Yost’s team have been Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain and Mike “Moose” Moustakas.
In 9 previous ALCS involving the Orioles, the game two winner has won the series 8 times and very likely, but nowhere near definitely, will do so this time.
Andy B Sports 