At a baseball dinner some years back, I spoke with Ed Kranepool about the 1969 World Champion New York Mets.
Kranepool shared first base duties with Donn Clendenon on that team.
Each man’s father died before they could know him. Both men homered in the World Series (Clendenon 3 times and was the Series MVP).
We talked of how that team, though a 100 to 1 shot at the beginning of the year, was a 100 win team that does not get enough credit for its greatness.
They get credit as a miracle team and a great story but not enough praise for the superb platoon team that performed so well in the season.
Miracle team, great story, but also a great team. All that applies (as time goes by) in remembering the 1969 New York Mets.
Yesterday Belgium advanced to the quarterfinals with a (2-1) victory vs the United States.
The match was scoreless until extra time, the fourth match to go into extra time in the last five. Belgium scored two goals before the U.S. team answered with one.
The match ended (2-1) with Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois making a great stop. Tim Howard, the United States team goalkeeper, was fantastic in defeat.
Belgium moves on to face Argentina in a quarterfinal game on Saturday. Argentina also won in extra time yesterday defeating Switzerland.
Three World Cup quarterfinal match-ups are set.
On Friday, Brazil is the favorite facing Columbia. I think Brazil will struggle, but win in regulation time, say (1-0).
On Saturday, I will pick upstart Costa Rica, a 3 to 1 underdog in its match vs The Netherlands. Costa Rica will win after regulation time. Thus, I am predicting a Brazil vs Costa Rica semi-final.
In another game on Friday, Germany is a slight favorite vs France. Two very good teams. France to win after regulation time.
The baseball season is just past the halfway mark and the Los Angeles Dodgers have moved within percentage points of the San Francisco Giants in the N.L. West Division.
L.A. was a big favorite to win the division before the season. Now they are considered overwhelming favorites to win the division.
While I think and have thought all along that the Dodgers would win the division, do not write off the Giants.
One other thing for all their rating and paid for stars, the Dodgers have notNational League West Update made the World Series since 1988.
The Giants won it all in both 2010 and 2012. Also the chance to be one of two NL wild card teams makes the divisional race so much less important.
The national game tonight is that most over rated of rivalries: the New York Yankees vs the Boston Red Sox.
That rivalry never compared to the one between the Giants and the Dodgers, both when it was New York (Giants) vs Brooklyn (Dodgers) or even with more distance between the teams, San Francisco (Giants) and Los Angeles(Dodgers).
The Yankees won the pennant over the Red Sox by winning the last two games of the regular season vs them in 1949. That was stirring.
In 1978 the Yankees won their entity and the Red Sox were eliminated when the Yankees won a one game playoff for the A.L. East title at Boston.
The rest of it, including the Red Sox’ great comeback in the 2004 ALCS was wild card induced.
I love the game of baseball but with a wild card, ESPN coverage, and “force fed” Yankees/Red Sox telecasts I will go along with the many who do not watch baseball.
They cite boredom for not watching. I choose not to watch because with a wild card and other factors, the powers that be have significantly hurt a game I love.
Here are some predictions in World Cup soccer as the round of 16 has begun.
On Sunday, Mexico which had as many points as favorite Brazil in the “group” round, will upset Netherlands, a team that got the maximum 9 points in the group round.
Also on Sunday, upstart Costa Rica will continue to win, this time as a favorite, vs Greece.
Argentina and Germany each will score impressive victories in this round.
Germany faces Algeria on Monday while Argentina takes on Switzerland on Tuesday.
My first comment regarding LeBron James and player movement, is to consider Michael Jordan and others, who did not get to choose where to play and with whom to play.
James has already moved once and is threatening to do it again. It is his right but it is not right.
Obviously in basketball, more than in any other major team sport, one player can make a huge difference. A player changing teams without compensation affects the balance of the sport.
With his choosing Miami and colluding with others to help build a team, James and company did very well but were very lucky.
Is there a need to rehash that San Antonio’s win vs Miami was decisive while the Heat’s vs the Spurs the year before was anything but that?
Bottom line, James, who wants to be considered among the all time greats, is not even close at this point. He should stop being “the kid in the schoolyard who has to be on the best team,” and stay put in Miami, in the far weaker Eastern Conference, and play basketball.
The hype led by ESPN is unbearable.
Rico Carty was one of the best hitters I ever saw. What a pleasure it was to see him hit.
In 1969 he played in the outfield for the NL West Division champion Atlanta Braves even though he hurt his shoulder and that hampered his throwing ability.
He was in there for his bat. I recall the great Mets’ broadcaster Lindsey Nelson’s play by play on a hit to the outfield by one of the eventual world champion New York Mets’ players during the NLCS vs the Braves. “Carty can’t throw” as the run scored.
Another legendary New York broadcaster, Phil Rizzuto, after a Carty home run cut the Yankees’ lead to one run in the bottom of the 9th in Cleveland intoned, “that Carty, oh can he hit.”
High praise indeed from a man who watched fellow Yankees Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio plus rival Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox.
It seems biting in sports is a June thing.
Luis Suarez, a player for Uruguay in World Cup soccer bit his opponent (Giorgio Chiellini) just before the match between Uruguay and Italy.
Uruguay won and can “bite on” while Italy was eliminated as though bitten by Dracula.
The most famous biting sports incident took place on June 28th, 1997 in a boxing ring. Mike Tyson bit the ear of Evander Holyfield, leading to Holyfield being declared the winner and Tyson losing his boxing license, though it was later reinstated.
There have been some good stories thus far in World Cup soccer.
Argentina got a late goal from Lionel Messi, their great player, to break the hearts of the team from Iran. Likely Argentina would have qualified for the round of 16 without that win.
Mexico, with two wins and a draw, has qualified for the round of 16.
The United States, not expected to go far, have one win and one draw, putting them in a very good position to qualify for the round of 16.
Upstart Costa Rica has also qualified for the round of 16.
Two match ups in that round have been set.
In one, the host country Brazil, will meet Chile. In the other, The Netherlands face Mexico.
Argentina
