Sorry it has been awhile since I have been able to post a lot going on this week with me and not that much going on sports wise a few NBA games true but I figured I should for sure get something in since today is opening day, which didn't disapoint one bit. The Yankees played the first game of the day on ESPN and it was a decent game a lot more offense than I expected in the first few innings with both teams having their ace on the mound. The Yankees had C.C. up there and he did pretty good going 6 innings giving up 3 runs (2 earned runs) off 6 hits 2 walks and 7 K's he didn't get the W though obviously cause he left when the game was tied at 3-3. The Tigers ace on the other had looked really good except for one hit which was the 3 run homerun, Verlander went 6 innings gave up 3 runs off 3 hits 4 walks and 8 K's also got a N/D cause he left with the game tied. It looks like the Tigers may have a bull pen problem as the year goes on, obviously the Yankees have some big bats but so do the Tigers. The Reds picked up right where they left off last year with the comeback walk off HR win, like we saw so many times from them last year. Last years NL MVP went 1-2 with a HR and 2 RBI's. This game wasn't on TV but it really seemed like the Brewers might be who everyone is saying they are and they just might come out on top in that division. I know they lost today to the Reds but still their starting pitcher had a quality outting going 6 innings giving up only 2 runs off 7 hits with 3 walks and 4 K's. The Reds big bats came through when it matter most, Hernandez had a great day going 4-5 with the walk off to cap it all off. Stubbs also had a great day going 2-5, I think Stubbs is going to have break out season this year so keep your eye on him. The Brewers did take a hit with Greinke starting the year on the DL but I look for them to have a big year as I said early possibly win the division. As far as the second game on ESPN the Cardinals and the Padres it looked like the Cards had a great shot at winning this one with their 1 remaining ace on the hill for them (with their other ace out with Tommy John) and he gave them 7 quality innings leaving with the game tied at 2, but the Cards big bats just couldnt get going today, and by big bats I mean Pujols who is an abouve .500 hitter on opening day, not today he wasn't he went 0-5 thats right 0-5 in their season opener. The best game of the night though was for sure the Giants v. Dodgers I say that because of the great pitching match up that we were in store for and niether pitcher disapointed that is for sure. I will start with the losing pitcher Lincecum, that's right folks he started out with a L, but he pitched flawlessly the only run he gave up was unearned he went 7 innings gave up 1 unearned run off 5 hits with 3 walks and 5 K's. The Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw was really on his game and I look for him to make a legit run and the AL Cy Young this year remember that come the end of the season. But he went 7 innings gave up no runs off 4 hits with 1 walks 9 K's, I have him on 2 of my fantasy teams and I was reading about him and they were saying his strike outs have been there last year with 223 strike outs, the only thing they were worried about was his walks and he seems to have that under control in the start of the season lets hope he keeps it up.
That's all I got for todays games I will now give my picks for tomorrows games. The Astros v. the Phillies and when Docs on the mound for the Phillies it makes it really hard to pick against them, even with all the injuries they have to deal with I don't see Doc losing tomorrow. I know they are without their closer but with Doc and Lee in there for the first 2 games you might not even need a bull pen and thats the truth, Phillies win. The Pirates v. the Cubs and I know I have been big on the Cubs all spring and they have Dempster going for them I just am a little worried about their offense I think the Pirates aren't the gratest but will surprise a lot of people. That being said I think Ryan Dempster handles the start great and the Cubs win. The White Sox v. the Indians, and since this isn't the Indians of old I am going to have to go with the White Sox here. Also the White Sox should be just as good as they were last year I know that rest on Peavy's health but they should be fine with their offense, White Sox win. The Red Sox v. the Rangers and everyone knows that the Rangers are my team and I love picking my team to win every game. That being said the Sox have their ace Jon Lester on the mound for them who has been lights out the past 2 years, but the Rangers have such a great offense, but wait so do the Sox. Haha sorry about that I am going to just have to go with the Rangers here I know that Lester is more proven then Wilson but that doesn't mean Wilson can't get even better this year, plus look at the lineup he has behind him and the improved defense, RANGERS WIN!! The D-Backs v. the Rockies, now a lot of people I have been talking to have the Rockies sneaking away and winning that division and I could see it happening too if Jimenez can be consistant this year that could be a very scary thing for other teams, especially with that offense also so many people have been saying the D-Backs will be no good, I am taking the Rockies to win. Twins v. the Blue Jays and now that the Twins are healthy it is going to be tough for me to pick against them when going against a team like the Jays, now don't get me wrong the Blue Jays will have great offense this year but lets see how their pitching and bull pen fair, Twins win. The Mets v. the Marlins and while the Marlins are young they have soo much talent its hard to count them out in any game this year. They have a solid ace in Johnson and now they just need to get their young guys to mesh together and they could be a dangerous team, Marlins win. The Orioles v. the Rays, and I know the Rays gave up a lot last year but like I have said Manny is back to his old self which should scare a lot of people and they have the Talent to be great they just need their new Bull pen to show up and be consistant, Rays win. The Angels v. the Royals and Haren is on the mound for the Angels so I am going to take them to win their second straight on the way to what may be a season opening sweep. The Mariners v. the A's and while they both have ace's on the hill, the A's have Cahill an 18 game winner last year but the Mariners have who was it again...? O YEAH King Felix on the hill last years best pitcher and I don't see him falling off anytime soon, espeically with the little bit of offensive upgrade they got, not to mention I think this year Smoak will break out to what everyone thought he should be, M's win. The Giants and Dodgers face off again for game 2 of the series and I think that this should be a good pitching match up as well but I have the Giants taking this one, although I hope the Dodgers get a great outting from Billingsly cause he is on my fantasy team.
I know there is not basketball in this post I am saving that for tomorrow sorry.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Shame on me
I totally forgot to mention over the weekend Anthony Robles the one legged wrestler from ASU not only won the national title but didn't lose as single match all year. I have heard some people say that having one leg could be an advantage and let me tell you now as a wrestler there is only one small advantage he would have. That would be the fact that has one less leg which is a lot less weight and if you know wrestling you know how much weight can mean. But that being said only have one leg has MUCH more disadvantages, for one he can't sink both legs in while on top to easily flatten someone out to keep yourself on top. Also shooting in to get a take down would be much harder only being able to push off one leg and having to come pretty much from a crouching position I could go on and on but seriously this kid deserves all the attention he has gotten and probably a little more. I know that there was the no leg no arms kid which was great. But he never competed at this high of a level, college wrestling is pretty much as high as you can go as a wrestler aside from the Olympics.
Anyways on to tonights basketball games where so far I am a perfect 2-0 with the Lakers leading the Suns by 7 in the 4th quarter. I knew the Bulls were red hot coming into tonights game but I thought the Hawks would at least give them a game seeing as how they were rested and the Bulls just played last night. Obviously if you saw the game you know that wasn't the case with Rose dropping 30 points 4 rebounds and 10 dimes oh yeah and did I mention he only played 3 quarters! Thats cause the Bulls were up by 41 going into the 4th where they lead by as many as 47 with their back ups in and ended the game winning 114-81. With this run the Bulls have gone on over the past few weeks it seems to be clear that they are the team to beat in the East, no longer is it the Celtics. The other game tonight was the Blazers v. the Wizards and the Blazers have really gotten going after the all star break and I would have to say they are a team no one is going to want to face in the first round of the playoffs in the West.
Now on to tomorrows picks lets hope I can keep up the great picks. First up tomorrow we have the Nets v. the Cav's and since the Nets don't have D-Will I still have a hard time picking against them but the Cav's seem to have fallen back to their old ways as of late. I am going to have to say that even without Williams the Nets pull this one off, they are already 2-1 versus the Cav's this year and that only win coming from the start of the season when the Cav's were at full strength, Nets win but this one could go either way. The Hawks play their second game in just as many days this one is on the road in Philly against the Sixers. I really like what the Sixers have done the second half of the season but this one is tough the Hawks are coming off a horrible loss tonight to the Bulls I don't know how they will respond, also they could be tired I am going with the little upset here and taking the Sixers to win. The Grizzlies v. the Celtics in Boston where the C's will need to come away with a W to keep up with the Bulls in the East. They are facing a red hot Memphis team who is without their star players yes but not playing like it. However this is a big game for the Celtics and I think they will hold strong on their homecourt, Celtics win. The Heat are on the road to play the Pistons, I think that the further along the season goes the better off the Heat are and I say Wade and LeBron are going to have huge nights again, Heat win. The Kings travel to play the Bucks and while I know the Kings have young talent the Bucks actually have a decent amount of talent, Bucks win. The Magic are in the Big Apple to play the Knicks who are under a lot pressure right now to win right away, people keep saying well the Heat started to figure it out around this time. What you are forgetting is the Heat had a whole offseason also with eachother. I still have faith in the Knicks though I think they get a big game out of their big 3 and pull out a huge win against a good east team. I think Howard will have a great night cause I don't think anyone on the Knicks can stop him except maybe Amare but I think the Knicks have more talent all around then the Magic and I think it will show tomorrow, Knicks win. The Jazz are on the road again where we know they are not great, and on top of that they play the Thunder. You all know how much I had already liked the Thunder before they traded for Perk but now that they have him I like them even more, Thunder win and Durrant has a huge night I'll say 35+. The Warriors travel to Houston after getting crushed by the Mav's I have a feeling they are going to come out strong. Houston is a much better team then people think however I think the Warriors will pull off the upset, again this one is a toss up to me, Warriors win. The Raptors v. the Suns and while the Suns had the late game tonight they don't have to travel far to get back home for tomorrows game, and the way Nash is playing I don't see them losing to a team like the Raptors. Although when they want to the Raptors can surprise a lot of people, Suns win. The Spurs are without Duncan as they face the red hot Nuggets who are 10-2 without Melo I believe. That being said I think the Spurs will be to much for them, but I will go again with another upset here and take the Nuggets, you don't have to agree but I say Nuggets win. The Wizards are on the road again tomorrow where they face the Clippers who are great at home and have been good as of late, Clippers win.
Non on to my daily spring training updates and stats real quick. Lets start with the Phillies who had Cliff Lee on the mound today for the win over the Blue Jays. Lee went 6 innings gave up 2 runs off 4 hits with 2 walks and 2 K's another great outting by the Phillies rotation. King Felix was on the mound as well today for the Mariners he went 5 innings gave up 2 runs off 3 hits with 0 walks and 5 K's. Felix continues to be the best pitcher in baseball and I expect another great year out of him, the only thing he is lacking is a team behind him. If this guy was on a better team we could possibly see the first 25 game winner in years, maybe the Phillies will pick him up, HAHA could you imagine. Plenty of ace's on the mound today as the Rays ace David Price went up agains the Red Sox and went 6 1/3 innings giving up only 1 run on 5 hits with 2 walks 7 K's. Price who won 20 games last year is one of my favorite pitchers, I am sure he wasn't please when they moved all the Bull pen and all their talent in the off season but now that he sees how serious Manny and Damon are I think the realizes they could contend again this year. On the other side of that game the Red Sox had Lackey out there he went 5 1/3 innings giving up 5 runs off 6 hits on 2 walks and 4 K's also 2 home runs. Not the outting they wanted from him obviously, good thing its still spring, however this was his first loss of the spring.
Lakers win in OT bringing me to 3-0 on the day and 9-1 on the week, I hope my picks for tomorrows games are on track with the rest of my picks so far this week.
Anyways on to tonights basketball games where so far I am a perfect 2-0 with the Lakers leading the Suns by 7 in the 4th quarter. I knew the Bulls were red hot coming into tonights game but I thought the Hawks would at least give them a game seeing as how they were rested and the Bulls just played last night. Obviously if you saw the game you know that wasn't the case with Rose dropping 30 points 4 rebounds and 10 dimes oh yeah and did I mention he only played 3 quarters! Thats cause the Bulls were up by 41 going into the 4th where they lead by as many as 47 with their back ups in and ended the game winning 114-81. With this run the Bulls have gone on over the past few weeks it seems to be clear that they are the team to beat in the East, no longer is it the Celtics. The other game tonight was the Blazers v. the Wizards and the Blazers have really gotten going after the all star break and I would have to say they are a team no one is going to want to face in the first round of the playoffs in the West.
Now on to tomorrows picks lets hope I can keep up the great picks. First up tomorrow we have the Nets v. the Cav's and since the Nets don't have D-Will I still have a hard time picking against them but the Cav's seem to have fallen back to their old ways as of late. I am going to have to say that even without Williams the Nets pull this one off, they are already 2-1 versus the Cav's this year and that only win coming from the start of the season when the Cav's were at full strength, Nets win but this one could go either way. The Hawks play their second game in just as many days this one is on the road in Philly against the Sixers. I really like what the Sixers have done the second half of the season but this one is tough the Hawks are coming off a horrible loss tonight to the Bulls I don't know how they will respond, also they could be tired I am going with the little upset here and taking the Sixers to win. The Grizzlies v. the Celtics in Boston where the C's will need to come away with a W to keep up with the Bulls in the East. They are facing a red hot Memphis team who is without their star players yes but not playing like it. However this is a big game for the Celtics and I think they will hold strong on their homecourt, Celtics win. The Heat are on the road to play the Pistons, I think that the further along the season goes the better off the Heat are and I say Wade and LeBron are going to have huge nights again, Heat win. The Kings travel to play the Bucks and while I know the Kings have young talent the Bucks actually have a decent amount of talent, Bucks win. The Magic are in the Big Apple to play the Knicks who are under a lot pressure right now to win right away, people keep saying well the Heat started to figure it out around this time. What you are forgetting is the Heat had a whole offseason also with eachother. I still have faith in the Knicks though I think they get a big game out of their big 3 and pull out a huge win against a good east team. I think Howard will have a great night cause I don't think anyone on the Knicks can stop him except maybe Amare but I think the Knicks have more talent all around then the Magic and I think it will show tomorrow, Knicks win. The Jazz are on the road again where we know they are not great, and on top of that they play the Thunder. You all know how much I had already liked the Thunder before they traded for Perk but now that they have him I like them even more, Thunder win and Durrant has a huge night I'll say 35+. The Warriors travel to Houston after getting crushed by the Mav's I have a feeling they are going to come out strong. Houston is a much better team then people think however I think the Warriors will pull off the upset, again this one is a toss up to me, Warriors win. The Raptors v. the Suns and while the Suns had the late game tonight they don't have to travel far to get back home for tomorrows game, and the way Nash is playing I don't see them losing to a team like the Raptors. Although when they want to the Raptors can surprise a lot of people, Suns win. The Spurs are without Duncan as they face the red hot Nuggets who are 10-2 without Melo I believe. That being said I think the Spurs will be to much for them, but I will go again with another upset here and take the Nuggets, you don't have to agree but I say Nuggets win. The Wizards are on the road again tomorrow where they face the Clippers who are great at home and have been good as of late, Clippers win.
Non on to my daily spring training updates and stats real quick. Lets start with the Phillies who had Cliff Lee on the mound today for the win over the Blue Jays. Lee went 6 innings gave up 2 runs off 4 hits with 2 walks and 2 K's another great outting by the Phillies rotation. King Felix was on the mound as well today for the Mariners he went 5 innings gave up 2 runs off 3 hits with 0 walks and 5 K's. Felix continues to be the best pitcher in baseball and I expect another great year out of him, the only thing he is lacking is a team behind him. If this guy was on a better team we could possibly see the first 25 game winner in years, maybe the Phillies will pick him up, HAHA could you imagine. Plenty of ace's on the mound today as the Rays ace David Price went up agains the Red Sox and went 6 1/3 innings giving up only 1 run on 5 hits with 2 walks 7 K's. Price who won 20 games last year is one of my favorite pitchers, I am sure he wasn't please when they moved all the Bull pen and all their talent in the off season but now that he sees how serious Manny and Damon are I think the realizes they could contend again this year. On the other side of that game the Red Sox had Lackey out there he went 5 1/3 innings giving up 5 runs off 6 hits on 2 walks and 4 K's also 2 home runs. Not the outting they wanted from him obviously, good thing its still spring, however this was his first loss of the spring.
Lakers win in OT bringing me to 3-0 on the day and 9-1 on the week, I hope my picks for tomorrows games are on track with the rest of my picks so far this week.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Yeah buddy
So after a horrible end of the weekend with all the upsets in the NCAA tournament I bounced back great with my NBA picks for tonight. I only missed one game and that was the Knicks game, and they had the lead in the 4th quarter under like 8 minutes to go and they blew it. I know it doesn't look great for them right now but I still have to think that by the time the playoffs come around they will be ready to go. I am not sure if they will make it out of the first round but they will be a really really tough out, and I wouldn't be surprised if they did get out of the first round. The Magic beat the Cav's by 11 behind Howards 28-18 night, the way he has been playing this year will make it hard to give the MVP to anyone else. I know that Rose has been just as good and carried that Bulls team when they were hurt early on in the season. But a lot of people say that without Howard the Magic are a sub .500 club and I would have to agree. That to me makes him the MVP to his team there is no doubt, I think that without Rose the Bulls would be worse but still good cause they have Noah and Boozer as well as some good pieces around them. Anyways the real story of the second half has to be the Nuggets without Melo. Everyone expected them to collapse and I really didn't see that happening. First off the players they got were playing great for Knicks this year, and the players they had are also great players. They just like I have said many times are young and fast and are ready to improve no matter what it takes. With Melo on their team they ran the offense through him because he is one of the best scorers in the league and it'd be silly for them not to. But the players they have are great getting out and running and playing defense and now that Melo is gone they get their chance to show that, oh yeah and not to mention the great coach they have as well. These Nuggets will be a really tough out in the playoffs as well depending who they get in the first round.
Now there are only a few games tomorrow so I hope to get a perfect day going to keep up the good week. Lets see the first game up is the Bulls v. the Hawks and I know this will be the second game in just as many days for the Bulls and the Hawks are a good team but I still think that the Bulls are hot right now and it will take a perfect game from the Hawks or a really bad game from the Bulls for the Hawks to win. The way Rose has been playing and the lack of play coming from Joe Johnson of the Hawks really tells me all I need to know about this game. If Johnson steps it up the Hawks have a good shot at taking this one but that being said I still going with the red hot Bulls to win on the road. The Wizards travel to Portland to take on the Blazers who are also doing well as of late. We all know that the Wizards are not the best team and they are even worse on the road which is where they will be playing tomorrow. Like I mentioned before the Blazers are playing well as of late and I think that Wallace has just started to figure out how to fit in to that offense which only means trouble for other teams, Blazers win. Next up the Suns v. the Lakers in L.A. and even though the Suns have Nash back I don't think it will be enough to stop the Lakers. I know that the Lakers will be without one of my favorite player on their team Bynum, who will be surving the second game of his 2 game suspension for a flagerant 2 foul. I still think the Lakers are to big and to good for the Suns, Lakers win.
There was a possible World Series preview today when the Phillies played the Red Sox, with the Phillies coming out on top 4-1. Both squads had their ace's on the hill and neither one disapointed, Halladay went 7 2/3 innings gave up 1 run on 5 hits with 3 walks and 6 K's. While the Red Sox ace Lester who went hitless through 4 innings, pitched 5 1/3 innings giving up 4 runs only 3 of them earned on 5 hits with 4 walks and 6 K's. I know that doesn't sound that great but still he looked great through the first 4 as I said didn't give up a hit in those 4 but kinda lost it in the last inning giving up those 5 hits and 3 earned runs. Other games that were worth mentioning the Twins beat the Pirates 4-1 most other games were rained out so there wasn't much today but I am sure there will be plenty tomorrow as we are just 10 days away from opening day, I can't wait!
Now there are only a few games tomorrow so I hope to get a perfect day going to keep up the good week. Lets see the first game up is the Bulls v. the Hawks and I know this will be the second game in just as many days for the Bulls and the Hawks are a good team but I still think that the Bulls are hot right now and it will take a perfect game from the Hawks or a really bad game from the Bulls for the Hawks to win. The way Rose has been playing and the lack of play coming from Joe Johnson of the Hawks really tells me all I need to know about this game. If Johnson steps it up the Hawks have a good shot at taking this one but that being said I still going with the red hot Bulls to win on the road. The Wizards travel to Portland to take on the Blazers who are also doing well as of late. We all know that the Wizards are not the best team and they are even worse on the road which is where they will be playing tomorrow. Like I mentioned before the Blazers are playing well as of late and I think that Wallace has just started to figure out how to fit in to that offense which only means trouble for other teams, Blazers win. Next up the Suns v. the Lakers in L.A. and even though the Suns have Nash back I don't think it will be enough to stop the Lakers. I know that the Lakers will be without one of my favorite player on their team Bynum, who will be surving the second game of his 2 game suspension for a flagerant 2 foul. I still think the Lakers are to big and to good for the Suns, Lakers win.
There was a possible World Series preview today when the Phillies played the Red Sox, with the Phillies coming out on top 4-1. Both squads had their ace's on the hill and neither one disapointed, Halladay went 7 2/3 innings gave up 1 run on 5 hits with 3 walks and 6 K's. While the Red Sox ace Lester who went hitless through 4 innings, pitched 5 1/3 innings giving up 4 runs only 3 of them earned on 5 hits with 4 walks and 6 K's. I know that doesn't sound that great but still he looked great through the first 4 as I said didn't give up a hit in those 4 but kinda lost it in the last inning giving up those 5 hits and 3 earned runs. Other games that were worth mentioning the Twins beat the Pirates 4-1 most other games were rained out so there wasn't much today but I am sure there will be plenty tomorrow as we are just 10 days away from opening day, I can't wait!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
I knew it!
All last week I was sitting there telling myself not to let myself get to attatch to teams in this tourney because this one is as up in the air as any of them have been. I knew that there was not much difference between the top seeds and the bottom but of course I talk myself out of the upsets and into the safe play and what happens...the upsets I do go with get beat and the tops seeds I pick get beat. It was lose lose weekend for me, today being the worst. I was actually doing really well in all my brackets until today, and the killer is I was sitting there on ESPN.com in a contest where you pick the winners round by round instead of the whole bracket at once. As I sat there looking at my picks thinking I have no upsets today I should really change that, Notre Dame hasn't seen defense like FSU I think they might crumble under the pressure, and Marquetter already beat Syracuse once this year maybe I should swich 'em up... BUT of course not! I didn't go with my gut and it really cost me big time, that is all I am going to say on the tournament for now cause today was a bad bad day.
Now lets get to the NBA and my picks for tomorrow since I have been much better at that then NCAA. The first game up is the Magic v. the Cav's and I don't think this one will take much explaining I am going with D. Howard and the Magic for this one, I just think that Howard will be way to much inside for the Cav's and while the Magic are much worse without him they are still good with him, Magic win. Next the Pacers v. the Nets and without D-Will in the Nets lineup I can't really take them to beat anybody even the Pacers. Don't get me wrong I am not saying the Pacers aren't a good team cause they are getting much better I think they are a younger team and could be even better next year, Pacers win. The Cetlics travel to New York to take on the Knicks and while the Knicks have been struggling of late Melo always seems to play his best in big games like this one. I say the Knicks big 3 out play the Celtics big 4 and come away with a much needed win. Like I said before lets not forget how many games it took the Heat to get there stuff togethere and they had all off season and the first 20 games, the Knicks don't even have hardly any time, but they will get it together before the playoffs I still have faith, Knicks win. The Kings take on the Bulls who are coming off a tough OT loss to the Pacers in which Rose dropped 42 points, plus that one was on the road this one is at home where the Bulls have been great all year. I look for Rose to continue playing like the MVP he is going to be and lead the Bulls to a win at home, Bulls win. The Jazz go on the road to take on the Grizzlies and we know the Jazz aren't the best road team and the Grizzlies have been doing much better then I thought the would without Rudy Gay, all that being said Grizzlies win. The Warriors take on the Spurs after getting beat down by the Mav's now they have to play the Spurs the next night, it doesn't get any harder then that really, Spurs win. The Raptors v. the Nuggets and while the Raptors pulled off the upset tonight over the Thunder this will be their 2nd game of a back-to-back and they play the Nuggets who are red hot despite the loss this weekend, Nuggets win big.
Now on to some spring training as usual at this part of the post. I have said it plenty of times this spring if the Sox are going to get to the World Series they will need their pitching to step up and it seems Beckett and Matsuzaka have been better, not great but better towards the end of the spring. Matsuzaka especially the last 2 outtings he has had have been much better then the start of the spring. But this is still the spring and still much to early to tell who will be doing what come the end of the season. The biggest story of the spring as far as pitchers and dominating go for me would have to be the Tigers Justin Verlander, who said that coming into spring he was going to treat it like it was already April and it has worked out well for him. He threw again today and was dominant once again going 6 innings giving up 0 runs off 6 hits 1 walk and 7 K's. I am really glad I picked him up for one of my fantasy teams, I really tried to focus on making my teams as balanced as possible. I know that in roto leagues pitching can go along way but still you don't want only pitchers cause they only play once every 5 games. You still need talented position players in order to compete in any fantasy league Roto or heads up.
Now lets get to the NBA and my picks for tomorrow since I have been much better at that then NCAA. The first game up is the Magic v. the Cav's and I don't think this one will take much explaining I am going with D. Howard and the Magic for this one, I just think that Howard will be way to much inside for the Cav's and while the Magic are much worse without him they are still good with him, Magic win. Next the Pacers v. the Nets and without D-Will in the Nets lineup I can't really take them to beat anybody even the Pacers. Don't get me wrong I am not saying the Pacers aren't a good team cause they are getting much better I think they are a younger team and could be even better next year, Pacers win. The Cetlics travel to New York to take on the Knicks and while the Knicks have been struggling of late Melo always seems to play his best in big games like this one. I say the Knicks big 3 out play the Celtics big 4 and come away with a much needed win. Like I said before lets not forget how many games it took the Heat to get there stuff togethere and they had all off season and the first 20 games, the Knicks don't even have hardly any time, but they will get it together before the playoffs I still have faith, Knicks win. The Kings take on the Bulls who are coming off a tough OT loss to the Pacers in which Rose dropped 42 points, plus that one was on the road this one is at home where the Bulls have been great all year. I look for Rose to continue playing like the MVP he is going to be and lead the Bulls to a win at home, Bulls win. The Jazz go on the road to take on the Grizzlies and we know the Jazz aren't the best road team and the Grizzlies have been doing much better then I thought the would without Rudy Gay, all that being said Grizzlies win. The Warriors take on the Spurs after getting beat down by the Mav's now they have to play the Spurs the next night, it doesn't get any harder then that really, Spurs win. The Raptors v. the Nuggets and while the Raptors pulled off the upset tonight over the Thunder this will be their 2nd game of a back-to-back and they play the Nuggets who are red hot despite the loss this weekend, Nuggets win big.
Now on to some spring training as usual at this part of the post. I have said it plenty of times this spring if the Sox are going to get to the World Series they will need their pitching to step up and it seems Beckett and Matsuzaka have been better, not great but better towards the end of the spring. Matsuzaka especially the last 2 outtings he has had have been much better then the start of the spring. But this is still the spring and still much to early to tell who will be doing what come the end of the season. The biggest story of the spring as far as pitchers and dominating go for me would have to be the Tigers Justin Verlander, who said that coming into spring he was going to treat it like it was already April and it has worked out well for him. He threw again today and was dominant once again going 6 innings giving up 0 runs off 6 hits 1 walk and 7 K's. I am really glad I picked him up for one of my fantasy teams, I really tried to focus on making my teams as balanced as possible. I know that in roto leagues pitching can go along way but still you don't want only pitchers cause they only play once every 5 games. You still need talented position players in order to compete in any fantasy league Roto or heads up.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
What a start to the week
Man I had a great start to my week picks wise for the NBA tonight with a 10-1 start. I watched both games on ESPN first with the Thunder v. Heat and I knew that everyone was ready to jump on the Heat bandwagon after their 3 game win streak, but like I said it wasn't enough for me to be ready to trust them just yet. I know that with Perk now in the line up for OKC they are so much more dangerous, not just Perk but also Muhammad and Ibaka down low now they clog up the paint very well. I really like the way the Thunder played tonight on the defensive end of the basketball. Westbrook struggled for most of the game but he always seems to find a way to get his. To me this is the most exciting team in the NBA they are my second favorite team behind my Mav's obviously. These guys are so young and so talented that it is ridiculous the Thunder really have a great core going into the future and I see them dominating the West here in the near future. As far as the Heat go it was the same old thing for them again tonight failing to close out the game in the fourth quarter. I mean it was a close game at the half only cause the Thunder got cold shooting in the last 5 minutes of the first half I believe they only made one shot. Which should have gave Miami momentum going into the half and you'd expect them to come out strong. But that isn't what happened they looked like the old Heat losing it in the second half and to me a huge part of this is cause Bosh got out of the low post, which is where he has been asking for the ball lately and it has obvioulsy been working. Like I had stated awhile back in order for Miami to be any good into the playoffs or against teams like this they need Bosh to be a 20-10 guy at least. Now on to the Mav's game which was the second game in the double header, where the Mav's let themselves get into a hole early. The Warriors started out on fire hitting something like 12 of their first 13 shots and jumping out to an 18 point lead. That didn't worry the Mavericks one bit they were patient and fixed their mistakes buckeled down on defense and got the stops needed to pull out the win. Since this game was on ESPN now everyone got a chance to see what I have been talking about with Roddy B. and what he brings to this Mav's team. He had 18 points 4 dimes 2 boards and 4 steals as well. If they are really getting Butler back for the playoffs then this team really could be headed deep. Dirk started off rough missing 3 out of his first 4 shots, but once he heated up there was no stopping him as he went for 34 points 13 boards 2 dimes and 1 block. The Mav's just have so many weapons I can't even talk about them all but it was a great to see them keep their cool and make that come back.
Now I'll cover my picks for tomorrows three games real quick here. First up we have the Bulls v. the Nets both teams are hot coming into this game the Nets winners of 5 staight where as the Bulls are winners of 14 of their last 16 games. Also the Bulls playing behind who I think is the sure fire MVP in Rose, I think they come away with the win on the road here over the Nets. Williams has been playing great since the trade there is no doubt about that and we see now how good he really is, lifting this Nets team to places it hasn't been in 4 years, still Bulls win. Next up for tomorrow is The Grizzlies v. the Knicks in New York and the Knicks are coming off another loss to the Pacers so I am looking for them to bounce back strong here and get a win against a quality team. Lets not forget how long it took the Heat to mesh together and they even got to go throught training camp together these guys are doing it in the back half of the season with hardly and practice time together. I know that they have my man Billups and that should be enough for them to get it together just in time for the playoffs, but tomorrow Knicks win. The Cav's are on the road against the Blazers who I am liking more and more as the season goes on. I know they just beat my Mav's but that just makes me respect them that much more. As you all know I am an Aldrige fan especially when he went on that run after he got shafted for the all star game. But now with Roy back and with the addition of Wallace these guys can really make some noise in the playoffs, Blazers win.
Now for some spring training as I usually do at the end of this post. The Rangers spring stuggles continue, well more their close out pitching is stuggling. C.J. Wilson started the game for the Rangers and went 5 innings giving up 7 hits but only 2 runs on 1 walk and 5 K's, if you ask me he did his job leaving the Rangers up 9-2 before the other 4 pitchers choked the game away and they ended up losing 10-11 to the Rockies. The Rangers big name bats did their jobs as well going 6-15 to go along with 5 RBI's, the loss doesn't worry me as long as the starters play well in the spring thats all you can ask for. The Red Sox had their ace on the mound today Lester agains the Braves ace Hanson. They both started out strong but Hanson finished a bit stronger then Lester did which helped the Braves edge the Sox 5-4. Lester went 4 2/3 innings gave up 8 hits and 3 runs off 2 walks and 4 K's. Hanson on the other hand pitched a gem going 5 innings giving up 2 hits and 1 run off 0 walks and 5 K's that one run was off a home run though. Prado, Jones, and McCann the Braves 3 big bats in this game were dialed in and went 5-10. Carpenter was back on the mound today for the Cardinals, this showing wasn't as good as his first but still good enough for the win. He went 4 innings gave up 6 hits and 3 runs off 1 walk and 0 K's, but that brings him to a perfect 2-0 record for the spring. Pujols who seems to have struggled a little this spring went 1-3 with a grand slam and 5 RBI's. As far as the defending world champs go they too rack up another win, this one over the White Sox. To me it was no surprise they got the W today behind their ace Lincecum who is 3-0 this spring after today where he went 5 1/3 innings gave up 3 hits 1 run off 3 walks and 7 K's I know the walks a tad high but its spring and 7 K's in 5 innings thats pretty good striking out pretty much half the batters you face. That should do it for today I will get back on tomorrow after some of the first tourney games are over and let you know what I think so far. O yeah and GO LOBOS IN THE NIT!!!!
Now I'll cover my picks for tomorrows three games real quick here. First up we have the Bulls v. the Nets both teams are hot coming into this game the Nets winners of 5 staight where as the Bulls are winners of 14 of their last 16 games. Also the Bulls playing behind who I think is the sure fire MVP in Rose, I think they come away with the win on the road here over the Nets. Williams has been playing great since the trade there is no doubt about that and we see now how good he really is, lifting this Nets team to places it hasn't been in 4 years, still Bulls win. Next up for tomorrow is The Grizzlies v. the Knicks in New York and the Knicks are coming off another loss to the Pacers so I am looking for them to bounce back strong here and get a win against a quality team. Lets not forget how long it took the Heat to mesh together and they even got to go throught training camp together these guys are doing it in the back half of the season with hardly and practice time together. I know that they have my man Billups and that should be enough for them to get it together just in time for the playoffs, but tomorrow Knicks win. The Cav's are on the road against the Blazers who I am liking more and more as the season goes on. I know they just beat my Mav's but that just makes me respect them that much more. As you all know I am an Aldrige fan especially when he went on that run after he got shafted for the all star game. But now with Roy back and with the addition of Wallace these guys can really make some noise in the playoffs, Blazers win.
Now for some spring training as I usually do at the end of this post. The Rangers spring stuggles continue, well more their close out pitching is stuggling. C.J. Wilson started the game for the Rangers and went 5 innings giving up 7 hits but only 2 runs on 1 walk and 5 K's, if you ask me he did his job leaving the Rangers up 9-2 before the other 4 pitchers choked the game away and they ended up losing 10-11 to the Rockies. The Rangers big name bats did their jobs as well going 6-15 to go along with 5 RBI's, the loss doesn't worry me as long as the starters play well in the spring thats all you can ask for. The Red Sox had their ace on the mound today Lester agains the Braves ace Hanson. They both started out strong but Hanson finished a bit stronger then Lester did which helped the Braves edge the Sox 5-4. Lester went 4 2/3 innings gave up 8 hits and 3 runs off 2 walks and 4 K's. Hanson on the other hand pitched a gem going 5 innings giving up 2 hits and 1 run off 0 walks and 5 K's that one run was off a home run though. Prado, Jones, and McCann the Braves 3 big bats in this game were dialed in and went 5-10. Carpenter was back on the mound today for the Cardinals, this showing wasn't as good as his first but still good enough for the win. He went 4 innings gave up 6 hits and 3 runs off 1 walk and 0 K's, but that brings him to a perfect 2-0 record for the spring. Pujols who seems to have struggled a little this spring went 1-3 with a grand slam and 5 RBI's. As far as the defending world champs go they too rack up another win, this one over the White Sox. To me it was no surprise they got the W today behind their ace Lincecum who is 3-0 this spring after today where he went 5 1/3 innings gave up 3 hits 1 run off 3 walks and 7 K's I know the walks a tad high but its spring and 7 K's in 5 innings thats pretty good striking out pretty much half the batters you face. That should do it for today I will get back on tomorrow after some of the first tourney games are over and let you know what I think so far. O yeah and GO LOBOS IN THE NIT!!!!
Back and Forth
College basketball this year has been crazy to say the least. I know that everyone has been saying the one and done rule has drained all the talend in the NCAA, which might be true but at least we get one year of them instead of none. This also makes for closer games and what will make for probably the most exciting tournament we have seen in a long time. I am just saying I know that the one seeds look strong but really no one has been THAT great of a team. You could make a case for OSU but I really can't buy them there are split with both Wisconson and Purdue and the only other top 25 teams they beat were Minnesota twice but we now know that Minnesota isn't who we thought they were. Also they beat Florida but at the very start of the year where Florida didn't know exactly who they were if you ask me they are a totally different team now. I thinkg that in a tournament setting they might not be able to do as well as people think. I mean don't get me wrong I have them going to the final 4 heck I even have them beating Purdue in the finals by 2 in one of my brackets. Which is one of my best one I think so I will go ahead and let you know who I picked from that one.
For the REAL first round I got OSU, G. Mason, WVU, Kentucky, Marquette, Syracuse, Washington, and UNC coming out of the East. For the Wests first round winners I have Duke, Tennessee, Arizona, Texas, Cincy, Uconn, Temple, and SDSU. As far as the South East goes well I have Pitt, ODU, Kansas St, Belmount, St. Johns, BYU, MSU, and Florida. Now over to the South West portion where I am taking Kansas, Illinois, Vandy, Louisville, Georgetown, Purdue, Texas A&M, and Norte Dame. Ok now we are in the second round where I am taking OSU, Kentucky, Syracuse, and UNC to advance, Washington is good and I know they are older then UNC but I think UNC's talent level is so high and they got their tournament jitters out in the ACC tourney, now they are ready to go (knock on wood!). The West second round I have Duke, Texas, Uconn, and SDSU no need to explain myself there I would hope. On to the next one which is the South East where I have Pitt, Kansas St, BYU, and Florida now I know ODU has been a trendy pick here seeing as how they crash the boards hard just like Pitt only ODU leads the country in rebounding deferential and scoring defense. Also Pitt has been known to choke in the tourney in the past so if you want to go with ODU here you could get rewarded with a win. Anyways back to the picks and the South West region where I have Kansas, Louisville, Purdue, and Notre Dame the Georgetown game might be tough if Wright is playing at his highest level but still Purdue has two star players who to me are the college version of Westbrook and Durrant, I am talking of course about E twuan Moore and Jujuan Johnson. If they aren't college basketballs Westbrook and Durrant then nobody is.
Ok now we get into the more paid attention to rounds starting with the sweet 16. So coming out of the east advancing to the elite 8 I have OSU, and UNC I am not sure that OSU will get past Kentucky they have shown signs of greatness this year but also shown signs of their young age and also lack of depth seeing as how Calipari only plays 6 guys unless he is forced to do otherwise. OSU also isn't that deep as far as big men go either I guess you could say this one is a toss up I just like the age of OSU here. Now on to the West where I have Duke, and SDSU this one is really tough for me I know they say Irving will be back and in a limited roll but you have to figure by this point he and the team are used to eachother again and are looking like the Duke of the start of the year. That being said I have a really tough time taking Duke to beat Texas I have it in this bracket but not in any of my others, I'll tell you what I think and let you pick for yourself. I have loved Duke all year and if you read my college hoops stuff you would know that. However they lack consistant inside presence to say the least. I know that with Irving back they won't have to rely on the big men as much but still I think Texas' big men are outstanding especially Tristan Thompson also they have Richard Hamilton and Balbay who is a great defender. To me Texas is the perfect match up to take Duke out, but for some reason I took Duke maybe their age is why but if your lookin for another upset pick I would for SURE go with Texas over Duke here. Now the South East region I have Kansas State, and Florida advancing. I know that is a shocker probably for everyone reading Kansas state over Pitt your saying to yourself whats this guy thinking? Well the fact is that guard play and experience can go a very long way in this tournament and Kansas state has outstanding guard play with Pullen out there and they were in the elite 8 last year so I am going with a huge upset pick here and taking them over Pitt. Plus like I said you may even have ODU here if you do take Kansas state still. Like I said Pitt just has a way of falling apart when ther pressures on, if your saying well that was then this is now look at the big east tourney. Everyone knew Kemba was getting that shot and they choked and switched up off the screen just like Uconn wanted. Even before that Uconn missed the shot at first and Pitt the best rebounding team couldn't even pull down the board. Now we are finally getting somewhere the elite 8 where I have OSU v. UNC and while I really love UNC and I think that if they did face OSU they would give them a lot of trouble I am just having a tough time taking such young guys who we aren't really 100% about I mean they all have to play at their highest level all 6 games and I just don't know if they can....wait a minute what am I saying this is the perfect match up for UNC if you ask me and I am taking them to advance to the final four over the overall number one seed in OSU. Next up we have Duke v. SDSU where I have the upset pick again winning this one thats right Steve Fishers Aztecs are making it to the final four. I just think that their inside presence and defense will be to much for Duke, SDSU has been playing some of the best team basketball all year and just cause they are in the MWC people don't take notice. Which brings me to my next point the Mountain West was so much stronger this year then in years past there is no way anyone can say different. We had the Lobo's, CSU, UNLV, BYU, and of course SDSU all are good teams and all are great competition for the other. Plus I have faith in Steve Fisher and his coaching, I mean look what he has done with the program already. Next up is Florida v. Kansas State where I have Kansas state advancing and being last years Butler in likes of getting this far. The reason I am going this way is cause I don't think Florida is a true 2 seed I know they are a much better team now then at the start of the year. I know they have experience and age on their side and also have 3 great player. Still the fact remains that so does Kansas State and I like Pullen better, especially on the big stage. Next is Purdue v. Kansas and I know that with this pick I am taking no #1 seeds to the final four and blah blah blah, but I am taking Purdu over Kansas here. I know that at the start of this I said I have OSU winning but as you know I just changed that pick cause I took UNC to beat them in the elite 8, sorry I just really started to think of the match up and I think it favors UNC a little more.
All that being said here is one of my final fours, the one I think that is most likely to happen. Well actually it depends on Kyrie Irving and how well he mixes in with the team. Anyways here my final four I have UNC v. SDSU and Purdue v. Kansas State. For the first match up I know that the Aztecs match up great with the Tarheels and so do the coaches but for some reason I just think that this Tarheels team is only going to get better every game the play. They have learned from every loss and I expect them to bounce back strong after the way they performed in the ACC tourney. I know its a risky pick I would even take SDSU here if you aren't so sure about the Tarheels cause the Aztecs will match up well and it will be a very close game this one is a toss up but I am taking the Heels. Then in the other match up we have Purdue v. Kansas State where I am of course taking Purdue to take that one home on the back of Jujuan Johnson, E twuan will have a great game but JuJuan will be the difference maker. that brings up to the National championship game of UNC v. Purdue and with that being said I think the UNC's talent takes them all the way to the top of that ladder to cut down those nets. I know that is kinda a crazy bracket I just think there really hasn't been a clear cut #1 team all year and I know OSU has looked great but they haven't really played the toughtest of games and I just think that the talent is so even that its hard to go with anyone as a sure thing.
I will have more NBA stuff tonight as well as baseball stuff of course. Well I am off to finish watching the Red Sox v. Braves game.
For the REAL first round I got OSU, G. Mason, WVU, Kentucky, Marquette, Syracuse, Washington, and UNC coming out of the East. For the Wests first round winners I have Duke, Tennessee, Arizona, Texas, Cincy, Uconn, Temple, and SDSU. As far as the South East goes well I have Pitt, ODU, Kansas St, Belmount, St. Johns, BYU, MSU, and Florida. Now over to the South West portion where I am taking Kansas, Illinois, Vandy, Louisville, Georgetown, Purdue, Texas A&M, and Norte Dame. Ok now we are in the second round where I am taking OSU, Kentucky, Syracuse, and UNC to advance, Washington is good and I know they are older then UNC but I think UNC's talent level is so high and they got their tournament jitters out in the ACC tourney, now they are ready to go (knock on wood!). The West second round I have Duke, Texas, Uconn, and SDSU no need to explain myself there I would hope. On to the next one which is the South East where I have Pitt, Kansas St, BYU, and Florida now I know ODU has been a trendy pick here seeing as how they crash the boards hard just like Pitt only ODU leads the country in rebounding deferential and scoring defense. Also Pitt has been known to choke in the tourney in the past so if you want to go with ODU here you could get rewarded with a win. Anyways back to the picks and the South West region where I have Kansas, Louisville, Purdue, and Notre Dame the Georgetown game might be tough if Wright is playing at his highest level but still Purdue has two star players who to me are the college version of Westbrook and Durrant, I am talking of course about E twuan Moore and Jujuan Johnson. If they aren't college basketballs Westbrook and Durrant then nobody is.
Ok now we get into the more paid attention to rounds starting with the sweet 16. So coming out of the east advancing to the elite 8 I have OSU, and UNC I am not sure that OSU will get past Kentucky they have shown signs of greatness this year but also shown signs of their young age and also lack of depth seeing as how Calipari only plays 6 guys unless he is forced to do otherwise. OSU also isn't that deep as far as big men go either I guess you could say this one is a toss up I just like the age of OSU here. Now on to the West where I have Duke, and SDSU this one is really tough for me I know they say Irving will be back and in a limited roll but you have to figure by this point he and the team are used to eachother again and are looking like the Duke of the start of the year. That being said I have a really tough time taking Duke to beat Texas I have it in this bracket but not in any of my others, I'll tell you what I think and let you pick for yourself. I have loved Duke all year and if you read my college hoops stuff you would know that. However they lack consistant inside presence to say the least. I know that with Irving back they won't have to rely on the big men as much but still I think Texas' big men are outstanding especially Tristan Thompson also they have Richard Hamilton and Balbay who is a great defender. To me Texas is the perfect match up to take Duke out, but for some reason I took Duke maybe their age is why but if your lookin for another upset pick I would for SURE go with Texas over Duke here. Now the South East region I have Kansas State, and Florida advancing. I know that is a shocker probably for everyone reading Kansas state over Pitt your saying to yourself whats this guy thinking? Well the fact is that guard play and experience can go a very long way in this tournament and Kansas state has outstanding guard play with Pullen out there and they were in the elite 8 last year so I am going with a huge upset pick here and taking them over Pitt. Plus like I said you may even have ODU here if you do take Kansas state still. Like I said Pitt just has a way of falling apart when ther pressures on, if your saying well that was then this is now look at the big east tourney. Everyone knew Kemba was getting that shot and they choked and switched up off the screen just like Uconn wanted. Even before that Uconn missed the shot at first and Pitt the best rebounding team couldn't even pull down the board. Now we are finally getting somewhere the elite 8 where I have OSU v. UNC and while I really love UNC and I think that if they did face OSU they would give them a lot of trouble I am just having a tough time taking such young guys who we aren't really 100% about I mean they all have to play at their highest level all 6 games and I just don't know if they can....wait a minute what am I saying this is the perfect match up for UNC if you ask me and I am taking them to advance to the final four over the overall number one seed in OSU. Next up we have Duke v. SDSU where I have the upset pick again winning this one thats right Steve Fishers Aztecs are making it to the final four. I just think that their inside presence and defense will be to much for Duke, SDSU has been playing some of the best team basketball all year and just cause they are in the MWC people don't take notice. Which brings me to my next point the Mountain West was so much stronger this year then in years past there is no way anyone can say different. We had the Lobo's, CSU, UNLV, BYU, and of course SDSU all are good teams and all are great competition for the other. Plus I have faith in Steve Fisher and his coaching, I mean look what he has done with the program already. Next up is Florida v. Kansas State where I have Kansas state advancing and being last years Butler in likes of getting this far. The reason I am going this way is cause I don't think Florida is a true 2 seed I know they are a much better team now then at the start of the year. I know they have experience and age on their side and also have 3 great player. Still the fact remains that so does Kansas State and I like Pullen better, especially on the big stage. Next is Purdue v. Kansas and I know that with this pick I am taking no #1 seeds to the final four and blah blah blah, but I am taking Purdu over Kansas here. I know that at the start of this I said I have OSU winning but as you know I just changed that pick cause I took UNC to beat them in the elite 8, sorry I just really started to think of the match up and I think it favors UNC a little more.
All that being said here is one of my final fours, the one I think that is most likely to happen. Well actually it depends on Kyrie Irving and how well he mixes in with the team. Anyways here my final four I have UNC v. SDSU and Purdue v. Kansas State. For the first match up I know that the Aztecs match up great with the Tarheels and so do the coaches but for some reason I just think that this Tarheels team is only going to get better every game the play. They have learned from every loss and I expect them to bounce back strong after the way they performed in the ACC tourney. I know its a risky pick I would even take SDSU here if you aren't so sure about the Tarheels cause the Aztecs will match up well and it will be a very close game this one is a toss up but I am taking the Heels. Then in the other match up we have Purdue v. Kansas State where I am of course taking Purdue to take that one home on the back of Jujuan Johnson, E twuan will have a great game but JuJuan will be the difference maker. that brings up to the National championship game of UNC v. Purdue and with that being said I think the UNC's talent takes them all the way to the top of that ladder to cut down those nets. I know that is kinda a crazy bracket I just think there really hasn't been a clear cut #1 team all year and I know OSU has looked great but they haven't really played the toughtest of games and I just think that the talent is so even that its hard to go with anyone as a sure thing.
I will have more NBA stuff tonight as well as baseball stuff of course. Well I am off to finish watching the Red Sox v. Braves game.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Ready for another great week
Sorry I haven't been posting on the weekends, I mean I do but I can only post through text messages so they are short, sweet, and to the point. Also the Mav's have been kinda on a skid lately but I am not worried about them at all. I know they have lost 3 games in their last 5 I believe it is, but all 3 of these losses are to good teams. The Celtics on the other hand have lost 3 of their last 4 and all to teams with sub .500 records, if I was going to get worried about anyone it would be them. If they don't get BOTH O'Neals back for the playoffs then I think they made a huge mistake getting rid of Perk, well it was a huge mistake no matter what. I just don't see them riding a 39 year old Shaq through all the playoffs, I know they have big baby Davis as well but he isn't that low post defender these other guys are especially Perk. With their win tonight the Bulls took control of first place in the east by half a game over the Celtics, and they did it with out Boozer. I think that we really need to start looking at the Bulls as the favorite to come out of the east. I know I missed my picks for tonights games but there wasn't many.
That little bit about recent NBA stuff now lets get to the picks for tomorrow nights games. First up is the Nuggets v. the Hawks the Nuggets are now 8-2 without Melo, to me the reason for that is that with him there they had to play a slower more offensive type ball which is great for them when you got a guy like Melo. But they have some talented young fast guys that can get out and run and also are egar to learn and improve which means they are willing to buy into what the coach is selling, which in this case was better defense. I think that in the long run the Knicks will come out on top in this deal but the Nuggets will still be a good team and will still make the playoffs for years to come. That being said I think the Hawks have been playing good as of late and are 12-6 in the second game of a back to back and 20-12 at home so as good as the Nuggets have been I am taking the Hawks, especially after Joe Johnson seems to have got his stroke back. The Pacers travel to Boston to take on the Celtics, and I know I just wrote about how the Celtics have been struggling especially against teams under .500 but I think that with the Pacers coming off a game tonight and having to travel and with the comments Doc Rivers made, this one is going to the Celtics even if their big 4 have to play all game and score all the points, Celtics win. The Raptors v. the Pistons and while both teams are coming off rest I still like the Pistons in this one. I know they have been having a lot of drama this year with the players v. the coach but I think that they are still better then the Raptors on a night in night out basis, especially at home, Pistons win. The Suns v. the Hornets now that Okafor is back I think that the Hornets are back to where they should be. Granted this isn't the same CP3 we are used to seeing he seems slower and seems to have been in the shadows of some of the other top PG's this year instead of him being the clear number one like in years past. That being said I still think they get the W agains the Suns, plus the Suns could be without Frye and Nash and they have to have both in there to really be the team we have seen them be this year. Well they possibly could deal without Nash now that they have Brooks but still they need one of them in there, Hornets win. This next one is tough OKC v. Miami now I know that the Heat really impressed a lot of people with that win over the Spurs and they think that the Heat have finally figured out how to play together and now everyone knows their rolls. I am not too sure about this I still need a few more games for me to really believe that. With that being said I think that OKC will shock them tomorrow in a 4th quarter win. I don't think people understand how much better Perk makes the Thunder, to me they were only lacking in the paint especially on defense. Also we have seen what a low post defender coming to a team that isn't known for defense can do. Look at Chandler and the Mav's they aren't just better on defense because he is the only person playing good defense. They are better on defense cause he comes in makes everyone around him better on that end of the court as well, Thunder win. The Magic v. the Bucks the way Howard is playing to me you have to throw his name in there for the MVP race in fact I would say he is a close second to Rose at this point, I mean if it isn't a 25-12-2 Blocks night it is at least a 20-10-2 night which is outstanding. Plus now that he is working on that 15-18 ft shot as well as his free throw shooting everyone better watch out, Magic win Howard has a 30-15-5 night at least. The Bobcats v. the Rockets I have been hearing that the Bobcats coach isn't happy with Boris Diaw's play lately and he is losing playing time for it, that is great news for the Rockets especially if Scola is out again tomorrow night, even if he is I still think the Rockets grab the W. The T-Wolves v. the Jazz I know that Love's double double streak ended last game but I am sure he starts a new one tomorrow night in their loss to the Jazz. I will say his streak was impressive but still 200 games behind the real double double leader in Wilt Chamberlain, sorry but its true. Don't get me wrong I love what he is doing and I hope he keeps it up I am a huge Kevin Love fan I just think he needs more around him for them to win, as I said before Jazz win. The Cav's are on the road to face the Kings, and while both are nothing even close to good, and I know the Cav's are not great on the road I am still going to go with them in this one for some reason, Cav's win. The Mav's v. the Warriors and I know its the Mav's second game in 2 days but I know they want to get back on the winning track I know they will do so against the Warriors. The Warriors have some great players just I think only on one side of the ball, with the Mav's improved defense I look for them to get hot and close out the rest of the season hot. The Sixers travel to L.A. to face the Clippers I know I have been high on the Sixers in the second half I really think they have turned it around. That being said now that the Clippers got Gordon back I think they are a much better team believe it or not, and they are at home tomorrow I have to take the Clippers in an upset win.
Now for my favorite part of the night thats right spring training updates. When Feliz had said he wanted to remain a close I thought it was cause that day he had a bad outting and wasn't sure of him self, and I believe I said give him one strong outing and he will change his mind. I am not trying to pat myself on the back or anything but man was I right on the money with that one. Feliz had a great outting his last time out and now wants to be a starter for the Rangers, the way they are talking about his cutter its like its just as good as his fastball, not to mention his change up is working great too. I think that if thats the case they have to stretch this kid out and at least see what he has got in the starter roll. This is a potential ace were talking about here, why deny him of that. Sure they might not have a for sure closer with him out of the bull pen but they have Davis who wants a trade and has been great this spring they could get something there, or get someone from the bull pen now such as Ogando to close em out. Last time I was talking about the Red Sox I was saying that they have the line up to win it all I am just suspect on their pitching. They really need Beckett and either Lackey or Matsuzaka to step up and not be 20 game winners but eat up inning and give them at least 13-15 wins. There were rumors of them wanting to trade Matsuzaka with his poor showings last year and so far this spring, well I think he heard that and finally turned it around today. He went 5 innings with 2 hits 1 walk and 5 K's and 0 runs. Granted this was only one outting but the Red Sox need him to be what he was in his home town in order for them to have shot. The pitcher he was facing was also on his game but when is he not, they played the Tigers so I am of course talking about Justin Verlander who went 5 1/3 gave up 2 hits no walks also had 5 K's but one of those hits was a home run. I guess the Rays knew what they were doing signing Manny and Damon, I knew that Manny when healthy was a great add to any team reguardless of what happened last year. I will say I wasn't sold on all the players they let go, they got some good bats in return but their pitching staff took such blow that I think that is where they will struggle this year. Obviously they didn't struggle today in there 11-2 win over the Marlins, in which Manny went 2-2 with a 2 run HR and 3 rbi's, Damon also went 2-2, and Longoria went 2-3 also with 3 rbi's. If they can keep that up all year the Rays will be better then I thought but I still think will be worse then last year. The Giants edged out a win over the D-Backs today, the started Bumgarner who went 4 innings gave up 4 hits walked 2 but struck out 6 but 2 of those hits were home runs both solo shots so he only gave up 2 runs in his outting. I really like the Giants pitching staff I have said this before I think it is the best behind the Phillies but I guess that obvious.
Tomorrow morning I will talk about the tourney and college basketballs talent drain with this one and done rule.
That little bit about recent NBA stuff now lets get to the picks for tomorrow nights games. First up is the Nuggets v. the Hawks the Nuggets are now 8-2 without Melo, to me the reason for that is that with him there they had to play a slower more offensive type ball which is great for them when you got a guy like Melo. But they have some talented young fast guys that can get out and run and also are egar to learn and improve which means they are willing to buy into what the coach is selling, which in this case was better defense. I think that in the long run the Knicks will come out on top in this deal but the Nuggets will still be a good team and will still make the playoffs for years to come. That being said I think the Hawks have been playing good as of late and are 12-6 in the second game of a back to back and 20-12 at home so as good as the Nuggets have been I am taking the Hawks, especially after Joe Johnson seems to have got his stroke back. The Pacers travel to Boston to take on the Celtics, and I know I just wrote about how the Celtics have been struggling especially against teams under .500 but I think that with the Pacers coming off a game tonight and having to travel and with the comments Doc Rivers made, this one is going to the Celtics even if their big 4 have to play all game and score all the points, Celtics win. The Raptors v. the Pistons and while both teams are coming off rest I still like the Pistons in this one. I know they have been having a lot of drama this year with the players v. the coach but I think that they are still better then the Raptors on a night in night out basis, especially at home, Pistons win. The Suns v. the Hornets now that Okafor is back I think that the Hornets are back to where they should be. Granted this isn't the same CP3 we are used to seeing he seems slower and seems to have been in the shadows of some of the other top PG's this year instead of him being the clear number one like in years past. That being said I still think they get the W agains the Suns, plus the Suns could be without Frye and Nash and they have to have both in there to really be the team we have seen them be this year. Well they possibly could deal without Nash now that they have Brooks but still they need one of them in there, Hornets win. This next one is tough OKC v. Miami now I know that the Heat really impressed a lot of people with that win over the Spurs and they think that the Heat have finally figured out how to play together and now everyone knows their rolls. I am not too sure about this I still need a few more games for me to really believe that. With that being said I think that OKC will shock them tomorrow in a 4th quarter win. I don't think people understand how much better Perk makes the Thunder, to me they were only lacking in the paint especially on defense. Also we have seen what a low post defender coming to a team that isn't known for defense can do. Look at Chandler and the Mav's they aren't just better on defense because he is the only person playing good defense. They are better on defense cause he comes in makes everyone around him better on that end of the court as well, Thunder win. The Magic v. the Bucks the way Howard is playing to me you have to throw his name in there for the MVP race in fact I would say he is a close second to Rose at this point, I mean if it isn't a 25-12-2 Blocks night it is at least a 20-10-2 night which is outstanding. Plus now that he is working on that 15-18 ft shot as well as his free throw shooting everyone better watch out, Magic win Howard has a 30-15-5 night at least. The Bobcats v. the Rockets I have been hearing that the Bobcats coach isn't happy with Boris Diaw's play lately and he is losing playing time for it, that is great news for the Rockets especially if Scola is out again tomorrow night, even if he is I still think the Rockets grab the W. The T-Wolves v. the Jazz I know that Love's double double streak ended last game but I am sure he starts a new one tomorrow night in their loss to the Jazz. I will say his streak was impressive but still 200 games behind the real double double leader in Wilt Chamberlain, sorry but its true. Don't get me wrong I love what he is doing and I hope he keeps it up I am a huge Kevin Love fan I just think he needs more around him for them to win, as I said before Jazz win. The Cav's are on the road to face the Kings, and while both are nothing even close to good, and I know the Cav's are not great on the road I am still going to go with them in this one for some reason, Cav's win. The Mav's v. the Warriors and I know its the Mav's second game in 2 days but I know they want to get back on the winning track I know they will do so against the Warriors. The Warriors have some great players just I think only on one side of the ball, with the Mav's improved defense I look for them to get hot and close out the rest of the season hot. The Sixers travel to L.A. to face the Clippers I know I have been high on the Sixers in the second half I really think they have turned it around. That being said now that the Clippers got Gordon back I think they are a much better team believe it or not, and they are at home tomorrow I have to take the Clippers in an upset win.
Now for my favorite part of the night thats right spring training updates. When Feliz had said he wanted to remain a close I thought it was cause that day he had a bad outting and wasn't sure of him self, and I believe I said give him one strong outing and he will change his mind. I am not trying to pat myself on the back or anything but man was I right on the money with that one. Feliz had a great outting his last time out and now wants to be a starter for the Rangers, the way they are talking about his cutter its like its just as good as his fastball, not to mention his change up is working great too. I think that if thats the case they have to stretch this kid out and at least see what he has got in the starter roll. This is a potential ace were talking about here, why deny him of that. Sure they might not have a for sure closer with him out of the bull pen but they have Davis who wants a trade and has been great this spring they could get something there, or get someone from the bull pen now such as Ogando to close em out. Last time I was talking about the Red Sox I was saying that they have the line up to win it all I am just suspect on their pitching. They really need Beckett and either Lackey or Matsuzaka to step up and not be 20 game winners but eat up inning and give them at least 13-15 wins. There were rumors of them wanting to trade Matsuzaka with his poor showings last year and so far this spring, well I think he heard that and finally turned it around today. He went 5 innings with 2 hits 1 walk and 5 K's and 0 runs. Granted this was only one outting but the Red Sox need him to be what he was in his home town in order for them to have shot. The pitcher he was facing was also on his game but when is he not, they played the Tigers so I am of course talking about Justin Verlander who went 5 1/3 gave up 2 hits no walks also had 5 K's but one of those hits was a home run. I guess the Rays knew what they were doing signing Manny and Damon, I knew that Manny when healthy was a great add to any team reguardless of what happened last year. I will say I wasn't sold on all the players they let go, they got some good bats in return but their pitching staff took such blow that I think that is where they will struggle this year. Obviously they didn't struggle today in there 11-2 win over the Marlins, in which Manny went 2-2 with a 2 run HR and 3 rbi's, Damon also went 2-2, and Longoria went 2-3 also with 3 rbi's. If they can keep that up all year the Rays will be better then I thought but I still think will be worse then last year. The Giants edged out a win over the D-Backs today, the started Bumgarner who went 4 innings gave up 4 hits walked 2 but struck out 6 but 2 of those hits were home runs both solo shots so he only gave up 2 runs in his outting. I really like the Giants pitching staff I have said this before I think it is the best behind the Phillies but I guess that obvious.
Tomorrow morning I will talk about the tourney and college basketballs talent drain with this one and done rule.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Buzzer beat down
I know that the Heat pulled off the late W over the red hot Lakers today. But still that doesn't mean I take back what I said on Facebook about them drafting Kemba Walker from UConn. If you weren't watching the game live like me I am sure you have seen the highlight by now. He missed the shot with like 40 seconds left they got the rebound called time out. Then off the in bound set a high screen for Kemba who got the mismatch and broke the big mans ankles. This wasn't the first time this year he has hit a buzzer beater. He has hit a hand full of them versus I think maybe 2 misses. I was surprised that UConn got past Pitt I didn't think they could hang with Pitt especially with how hot Gibbs was. After he hit that 3 to tie it with 40 seconds left or whatever it was, I thought it was going to OT for sure. But now we get a rematch of the famous 6 OT game, when UConn meets Syracuse in the semi finals match. The Lobos will meet BYU for a 3rd time this season this time it is in the MWC semi final game. The Cougars were down one at half to TCU today but they rallied in the second half for the win. The Lobos should be stoked they get to face the Cougars in the semi finals, hopefully we can complete the season sweep and get to the finals.
Now back to the Laker game, I think that the first half is what killed the Lakers not being able to get the rebounds that they wanted to. Bynum only had 1 board in the whole first half, he had a great second half though but it wasn't enough to stop the Heat. Ron Artest took 3 horrible 3 point shots in the second half of the game. I know he thinks he is an offensive weapon but really he needs to stick to defense and be cool with maybe 8 shots a game. I think they need to look more inside to Bynum instead of Artest shooting airball 3's. Bynum is red hot lately and the Lakers should ride that going into the playoffs. I know they don't wanna over work him and risk injury but he seems to be fine to me. If you watch when he is really trying and jumping to get the rebound hardly anyone can get higher then him with his arms in the air he looks about 12 feet tall. Tough loss for the Lakers great win for the Heat. They finally realized they need to go the Wade late in the game and let him get into the paint and let LBJ play more of a passers roll. The Mavericks bounced back just how I thought they would after the tough loss they suffered last night. Everyone seemed to have a great night except maybe Dirk who still scored 23 points but missed 12 shots which isn't like him. I am still convinced that Roddy B. will be a huge part of their playoff run. He had another double figure scoring night with 14 and added 6 dimes and a steal. People keep saying to me that this is the same old Mav's they will be out in the first round. But the way this team plays defense not just Chandler although it starts with him, everyones defensive numbers are up including Dirks, who hasn't been known for his defense, but this has been his best defensive year. That and they have so much depth they can get their Vets rest if they need it and not worry about their replacement getting out scored because the guy off then bench might just drop 20 on them. Now there is 6 minutes left in the Nuggets v. Suns game but I think it might be safe to say that I went 3-0 tonight seeing as how the Nuggets are up by 20. This week has been a great week for me picks wise except monday of course wherer I went 3-3 but still every other day has been great.
Now lets hope I keep up the good work with my picks for tomorrow. The first game of the night is the Clippers v. the Nets in New Jersey. Both teams are coming off wins and a nights rest, but I think that the Clippers have more talents then the Nets do and I think since Blake didn't have a great night last game he is looking to come out big tomorrow. I know the Clippers are not a great road team but still I look for them to get a rare road win tomorrow, especially if Williams is still out. Next game up is the Celtics v. the Sixers in Philly, while the Celtics are coming off a tough loss to the Clippers the Sixers are red hot in the second half. The Sixers don't lose 2 in a row often last time they did was in mid January but the Celtics have beat them both times they have faced eachother this year. That being said both times it was by single digits, this is a tough one here but I am going to go with the upset pick and take the Sixers to beat the Celtics. The Pacers travel out of country to face the Raptors, and while the Pacers may have slipped a little recently I think they will be able to get the W on the road tomorrow, I think Granger will have a big game he hasn't been a factor lately I see that changing tomorrow in their win. Next up is the Blazers vs. the Bobcats and while everytime I picked against the Bobcats in the first half they would prove me wrong I don't see it happening tomorrow. The Blazers are so much better then the average fan gives them credit for, especially with the addition of Gerald Wallace. I know Aldrige has calmed down as of late but I see another big game from him tomorrow on the road I am going to go out on a limb here and say he drops 30-35 in their win tomorrow. The Hawks travel to Chicago to face the Bulls who have been hot in the second half but their most recent loss was to the Hawks. Since the Hawks have been kinda struggling as of late I think this will be a great game, I just don't know if the Hawks can pull it off. If Joe Johnson has a great game then the Hawks win, but I am taking the Bulls and my leading MVP candidate Rose to get the W, I think Rose will have a great night with a 20-10 (dimes not rebounds) night. The Jazz are on the road again this time to play the T-Wolves, I know the Jazz are not a great road team and the lost Williams but they have been playing pretty good since then. This one is tough for me with Beasley back along side Love its tough but I am going with the Jazz. Although I say Love has another 20-20 night in the loss. The Pistons travel to OKC to face the Thunder, who haven't been playing great as of late, just pulling off a come from behind win over the Sixers. I think Durrant found his shot again in that game though which only means trouble for the Pistons. I think the Thunder are going to go on a little win streak here that started last game. I look for Durrant to drop 30 again in the Thunder win over the Pistons. The Kings travel to San Antonio to play the league leading Spurs, the Spurs are a team that wins games its supposed to. Now that Tony Parker is back sooner that expected it only means good things for the Spurs. I don't care what you say but without him in their lineup they really struggle, I know Neal is great but the just need Parker in there, what he does is unmatchable by any backup, Spurs win. The Magic travel to play the Warriors, who I don't think will be able to stop Howard which will be their biggest problem tomorrow night. If the Magic don't get someone else to have a good night besides Howard then they will lose, do I think they will lose no. But I wouldn't be surprised if the Warriors got hot and stole one from the Magic, I am still taking the Magic though.
Now to spring training and of course I will start out with the Rangers. C.J. Wilson started on the mound for the Rangers today against the White Sox. He threw 4 innings with 3 hits 1 run 1 walk and 3 K's in the Rangers 7-6 loss. He left the game in the 4th behind 1-0 after he left the next pitcher gave up 3 runs off 6 hits. The Rangers bats were really to blame for the loss, even though they were leading going into the 9th by 1 run. The Rangers were only 8-35 at the plate today, granted if whoever was in the last inning closed it out they woulda been off the hook, but that wasn't the case. Of couse it is spring training so it is not that big of a deal, yet. The Phillies played the Yankees again today, only today the 2 ace's of each staff was on the mound. Thats right Halladay v. Sabathia, neither of the two gave up a run, Halladay went 6 gave up 4 hits and struck out 2. While Sabathia only went 5 gave 3 hits and also struck out 2, Sabthia had the ND. Halladay on the other had obviously got the W for his second of the srping putting him at 2-0. The Phillies didn't get a lot of offense but they had two big innings and one of them was while Halladay was still in there. The Giants had a good outting today from Bumgarner for his first win of the spring against the Reds. Today wasn't the Reds day, the had Arroyo on the mound which is usually a good thing but not today. He went 4 innings with 5 hits gave up 4 runs and 3 of them from home runs, this for his second loss of the spring. Again I am not too worried about Arroyo he will figure it out when the season starts he always does. Bumgarner on the other hand had a great day going 4 innings only allowing 1 hit and striking out 6. This is a great sign for the Giants who have a rotation that is as good as any in the league, except for the Phillies, but not that far behind. The Red Sox lost to the Rays today with Matsuzaka on the mound, which usually is a good thing when he is healthy. But he just didn't seem to have it working today, he pitched 3 and 2/3 innings giving up 5 hits and 5 runs with 2 walks 2 K's and a home run. This is what I was talking about with the Red Sox, we know the offense is there, but will Beckett be the good Beckett or the off Beckett. Same with Matsuzaka and Lackey. If the Red Sox are going to do what they set out to do by spending all this money in the offseason, they are going to have to hope their pitching holds up.
Now back to the Laker game, I think that the first half is what killed the Lakers not being able to get the rebounds that they wanted to. Bynum only had 1 board in the whole first half, he had a great second half though but it wasn't enough to stop the Heat. Ron Artest took 3 horrible 3 point shots in the second half of the game. I know he thinks he is an offensive weapon but really he needs to stick to defense and be cool with maybe 8 shots a game. I think they need to look more inside to Bynum instead of Artest shooting airball 3's. Bynum is red hot lately and the Lakers should ride that going into the playoffs. I know they don't wanna over work him and risk injury but he seems to be fine to me. If you watch when he is really trying and jumping to get the rebound hardly anyone can get higher then him with his arms in the air he looks about 12 feet tall. Tough loss for the Lakers great win for the Heat. They finally realized they need to go the Wade late in the game and let him get into the paint and let LBJ play more of a passers roll. The Mavericks bounced back just how I thought they would after the tough loss they suffered last night. Everyone seemed to have a great night except maybe Dirk who still scored 23 points but missed 12 shots which isn't like him. I am still convinced that Roddy B. will be a huge part of their playoff run. He had another double figure scoring night with 14 and added 6 dimes and a steal. People keep saying to me that this is the same old Mav's they will be out in the first round. But the way this team plays defense not just Chandler although it starts with him, everyones defensive numbers are up including Dirks, who hasn't been known for his defense, but this has been his best defensive year. That and they have so much depth they can get their Vets rest if they need it and not worry about their replacement getting out scored because the guy off then bench might just drop 20 on them. Now there is 6 minutes left in the Nuggets v. Suns game but I think it might be safe to say that I went 3-0 tonight seeing as how the Nuggets are up by 20. This week has been a great week for me picks wise except monday of course wherer I went 3-3 but still every other day has been great.
Now lets hope I keep up the good work with my picks for tomorrow. The first game of the night is the Clippers v. the Nets in New Jersey. Both teams are coming off wins and a nights rest, but I think that the Clippers have more talents then the Nets do and I think since Blake didn't have a great night last game he is looking to come out big tomorrow. I know the Clippers are not a great road team but still I look for them to get a rare road win tomorrow, especially if Williams is still out. Next game up is the Celtics v. the Sixers in Philly, while the Celtics are coming off a tough loss to the Clippers the Sixers are red hot in the second half. The Sixers don't lose 2 in a row often last time they did was in mid January but the Celtics have beat them both times they have faced eachother this year. That being said both times it was by single digits, this is a tough one here but I am going to go with the upset pick and take the Sixers to beat the Celtics. The Pacers travel out of country to face the Raptors, and while the Pacers may have slipped a little recently I think they will be able to get the W on the road tomorrow, I think Granger will have a big game he hasn't been a factor lately I see that changing tomorrow in their win. Next up is the Blazers vs. the Bobcats and while everytime I picked against the Bobcats in the first half they would prove me wrong I don't see it happening tomorrow. The Blazers are so much better then the average fan gives them credit for, especially with the addition of Gerald Wallace. I know Aldrige has calmed down as of late but I see another big game from him tomorrow on the road I am going to go out on a limb here and say he drops 30-35 in their win tomorrow. The Hawks travel to Chicago to face the Bulls who have been hot in the second half but their most recent loss was to the Hawks. Since the Hawks have been kinda struggling as of late I think this will be a great game, I just don't know if the Hawks can pull it off. If Joe Johnson has a great game then the Hawks win, but I am taking the Bulls and my leading MVP candidate Rose to get the W, I think Rose will have a great night with a 20-10 (dimes not rebounds) night. The Jazz are on the road again this time to play the T-Wolves, I know the Jazz are not a great road team and the lost Williams but they have been playing pretty good since then. This one is tough for me with Beasley back along side Love its tough but I am going with the Jazz. Although I say Love has another 20-20 night in the loss. The Pistons travel to OKC to face the Thunder, who haven't been playing great as of late, just pulling off a come from behind win over the Sixers. I think Durrant found his shot again in that game though which only means trouble for the Pistons. I think the Thunder are going to go on a little win streak here that started last game. I look for Durrant to drop 30 again in the Thunder win over the Pistons. The Kings travel to San Antonio to play the league leading Spurs, the Spurs are a team that wins games its supposed to. Now that Tony Parker is back sooner that expected it only means good things for the Spurs. I don't care what you say but without him in their lineup they really struggle, I know Neal is great but the just need Parker in there, what he does is unmatchable by any backup, Spurs win. The Magic travel to play the Warriors, who I don't think will be able to stop Howard which will be their biggest problem tomorrow night. If the Magic don't get someone else to have a good night besides Howard then they will lose, do I think they will lose no. But I wouldn't be surprised if the Warriors got hot and stole one from the Magic, I am still taking the Magic though.
Now to spring training and of course I will start out with the Rangers. C.J. Wilson started on the mound for the Rangers today against the White Sox. He threw 4 innings with 3 hits 1 run 1 walk and 3 K's in the Rangers 7-6 loss. He left the game in the 4th behind 1-0 after he left the next pitcher gave up 3 runs off 6 hits. The Rangers bats were really to blame for the loss, even though they were leading going into the 9th by 1 run. The Rangers were only 8-35 at the plate today, granted if whoever was in the last inning closed it out they woulda been off the hook, but that wasn't the case. Of couse it is spring training so it is not that big of a deal, yet. The Phillies played the Yankees again today, only today the 2 ace's of each staff was on the mound. Thats right Halladay v. Sabathia, neither of the two gave up a run, Halladay went 6 gave up 4 hits and struck out 2. While Sabathia only went 5 gave 3 hits and also struck out 2, Sabthia had the ND. Halladay on the other had obviously got the W for his second of the srping putting him at 2-0. The Phillies didn't get a lot of offense but they had two big innings and one of them was while Halladay was still in there. The Giants had a good outting today from Bumgarner for his first win of the spring against the Reds. Today wasn't the Reds day, the had Arroyo on the mound which is usually a good thing but not today. He went 4 innings with 5 hits gave up 4 runs and 3 of them from home runs, this for his second loss of the spring. Again I am not too worried about Arroyo he will figure it out when the season starts he always does. Bumgarner on the other hand had a great day going 4 innings only allowing 1 hit and striking out 6. This is a great sign for the Giants who have a rotation that is as good as any in the league, except for the Phillies, but not that far behind. The Red Sox lost to the Rays today with Matsuzaka on the mound, which usually is a good thing when he is healthy. But he just didn't seem to have it working today, he pitched 3 and 2/3 innings giving up 5 hits and 5 runs with 2 walks 2 K's and a home run. This is what I was talking about with the Red Sox, we know the offense is there, but will Beckett be the good Beckett or the off Beckett. Same with Matsuzaka and Lackey. If the Red Sox are going to do what they set out to do by spending all this money in the offseason, they are going to have to hope their pitching holds up.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Are you serious?
That was the worst end to a Mavericks game all season! Not only did my team lose a way no pro team should ever lose. I had 11 straight correct picks on ESPN.coms streak for the cash and this would have been my 12th which is only 6 behind the leader. But J-Kidd fouled Jerrett Jack on a 3 point shot to pretty much hand the Hornets the win. Yeah Dirk did miss the game winner but he is 3-5 on game winners so I give him a break. Plus it should have never came down to that. Let them get the bucket take it to OT, if you have to, anything but foul a 3 point shot, and J-Kidd is a vet. I am still really hurt at this whole situtation. Anyways so far today I am 7-3 which is better but I should be 10-0 seriously! The Clippers beat the Celtics which I didn't see coming, and the Mav's loss I don't think anyone saw coming unless your a Hornets fan, reguardless the Mav's should have won. Melo had another 31 point night in a big win over the Grizzlies, Amare had 26 points 6 rebounds and 3dimes 2 steals. They have been really showing up the last 2 games without Billups in the lineup. Speaking of Billups I keep reading he is doing good in practice but then I check his status out before the game and he is out. He is likely to not play tomorrow either. I want Billups in there especially cause he is on my fantasy team but mainly cause I want him Amare and Melo to get used to playing together in time for the playoffs. Tomorrow the Knicks play Dallas though at Dallas and the way the Mav's lost tonight I don't see them losing tomorrow. It looked like the Sixers were going to pull out the W over the Thunder until Kevin Durrant said no sir, and willed his team to a victory, I knew he would bust out of his slump.
Tomorrow there are not that many games on but the games that are on are good ones. The first one as I already mentioned was New York v. Dallas, and after the way the Mav's lost tonight I don't see them losing again, especially since they have lost 2 time recently. I don't see this as a sign to worry I think that tonight they just lost focus I expect them to be back to their winning ways tomorrow. It would be a great win for them to beat the new look Knicks, especially if Billups is in the lineup, Mav's win. Next is the game I am really looking forward to. The Lakers v. the Heat in Miami, the Heat have not needed a win so badly all year. Now does that mean I think they will get it, not really. The Lakers lost the only time these 2 teams have met this year, but that was when they weren't doing so hot around Christmas time. I fully expect the Lakers to want to make a statement in this game. I know they have won 8 straight and thats a pretty big statement as is, but I know Kobe wants this one really bad. Plus the way the Lakers have been playing lately its going to be tough for anyone in the league to stop them, Lakers win. The new look Nuggets play the Suns for the last game tomorrow. I really like the new Nuggets, they are young fast and can play great team defense as we have seen since the departer of Melo. I know the Suns have been playing great as of late but so have the Nuggets, Nuggets win.
In the Rangers 9-2 win over the A's today Feliz pitched the last 3 innings of the game, gave up 1 hit walked 2 and struck out 4. I know that since he was pitching the last 3 innings of the game that might be a hint that they will keep him as a closer. But he still pitched 3 innings which is a lot for a close, they are still trying to stretch him into a starter maybe he is just more comfortable for now coming in and not starting. I hope he sees how great he can be as a starter, and really gives it his all to try and make the rotation. Mean while the Phillies number 5 guy made the start today and went 5 innings gave up 2 earned runs on 5 hits, walked 2 and struck out 3 in the Phillies 5-3 win over the Tigers. Buchholz threw for the Red Sox today 4 innings gave up 4 hits no earned runs 3 strike outs and 0 walks in a 2-1 win over the Orioles. One team I am going to keep my eye on this year that is a young team that can be good in the future if they stick together and focus on defense. That team is the Marlins, they did trade Uggla away which gave up some offense but they got Omar Infante in return which is a defensive upgrade. With Josh Johnson leading the rotation and Nunez closing games out for them they need their newest pitching addition Jazy Vazquez to pan out. Like I said they are a young team that has a lot of potential to be great in the future.
Tomorrow there are not that many games on but the games that are on are good ones. The first one as I already mentioned was New York v. Dallas, and after the way the Mav's lost tonight I don't see them losing again, especially since they have lost 2 time recently. I don't see this as a sign to worry I think that tonight they just lost focus I expect them to be back to their winning ways tomorrow. It would be a great win for them to beat the new look Knicks, especially if Billups is in the lineup, Mav's win. Next is the game I am really looking forward to. The Lakers v. the Heat in Miami, the Heat have not needed a win so badly all year. Now does that mean I think they will get it, not really. The Lakers lost the only time these 2 teams have met this year, but that was when they weren't doing so hot around Christmas time. I fully expect the Lakers to want to make a statement in this game. I know they have won 8 straight and thats a pretty big statement as is, but I know Kobe wants this one really bad. Plus the way the Lakers have been playing lately its going to be tough for anyone in the league to stop them, Lakers win. The new look Nuggets play the Suns for the last game tomorrow. I really like the new Nuggets, they are young fast and can play great team defense as we have seen since the departer of Melo. I know the Suns have been playing great as of late but so have the Nuggets, Nuggets win.
In the Rangers 9-2 win over the A's today Feliz pitched the last 3 innings of the game, gave up 1 hit walked 2 and struck out 4. I know that since he was pitching the last 3 innings of the game that might be a hint that they will keep him as a closer. But he still pitched 3 innings which is a lot for a close, they are still trying to stretch him into a starter maybe he is just more comfortable for now coming in and not starting. I hope he sees how great he can be as a starter, and really gives it his all to try and make the rotation. Mean while the Phillies number 5 guy made the start today and went 5 innings gave up 2 earned runs on 5 hits, walked 2 and struck out 3 in the Phillies 5-3 win over the Tigers. Buchholz threw for the Red Sox today 4 innings gave up 4 hits no earned runs 3 strike outs and 0 walks in a 2-1 win over the Orioles. One team I am going to keep my eye on this year that is a young team that can be good in the future if they stick together and focus on defense. That team is the Marlins, they did trade Uggla away which gave up some offense but they got Omar Infante in return which is a defensive upgrade. With Josh Johnson leading the rotation and Nunez closing games out for them they need their newest pitching addition Jazy Vazquez to pan out. Like I said they are a young team that has a lot of potential to be great in the future.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
2 player v. the world
It would seem that after the Heat drop their 5th straight that they are relying way to much and LBJ and Flash. I know they are two of the best players in the NBA but they can't go out there and score 50 each every night, which is apparently what their bench thinks they should do. In the this 5 game skid the Heat bench has been outscored by 102 points, tonight getting out scored 41-8! Can you believe that, I mean isn't that why they went out and got Miller and House and guys like that, so they could come in and knock down open looks. I know the Heat won't win the East and I never thought they would but they will be lucky to get out of the first round if their bench keeps playing like this. I mean LBJ almost has a triple double with 31 points 11 boards 8 dimes and Flash has 38 and 6 boards and their bench has 8 points and their big men have 9 combind points, that is just not going to cut it. Tonight wasn't my best night going 3-3 but really the Heat game doesn't surprise me like I said last night with the addition of Wallace to the Blazers that makes them really dangerous in my eyes and I could see them being a spoiler in the playoffs. I didn't know Scola was out tonight for the Rockets or else I would have gone the other way with that pick, without Brooks Scole is key to that offense they need his 15-20 points a night. That being said the Lakers are looking better then ever, I can't say enough how happy I am Bynum is healthy (knock on wood) this is why the Lakers are so high on him, maybe he is hurt a lot but he is only 23 and hasn't played a lot of games. Say maybe he gets healthy for a few season him and Pau can carry that team for years to come. As long as Pau, Bynum, and Kobe can play like this for the rest of the year I don't see anyone stopping the Lakers from their 3-peat. Especially with all the health concerns in Boston.
Lets get to tomorrows picks cause there are a lot of them, as tomorrow is a full day in the NBA. First up is the Warriors v. the Nets, now that the Nets have Deron Williams you can't ever count them out but the Warriors can score with the best of them, I know this is the second game for them in 2 days and this one is on the road but I think they might be able to pull off the win, I will be taking them to win but I won't be surprised if the Nets win with the way Williams has been playing since he got traded. The Thunder travel to Philly to play the Sixers who are hot right now, this would be a great road win for the Thunder who have been struggling as of late. The Sixers also played tonight and the Thunder have the fresh legs, plus Kevin Durrant has been in a little bit of a slump lately I think that is due to the departure of Green, but I think he will find his groove tomorrow and watch out Sixers, I got the Thunder winning big on the road. The Jazz on the road to play the Raptors and the Jazz are not usually a good road team but I think they will be able to come away with the win over the Raptors. The Bulls travel to play the Bobcats and the Bulls are playing great right now they are looking to get hot now and carry it into the playoffs. I think the Bulls are just getting used to having Noah back, and he is getting used to being back. I say that is nothing but bad news for anyone in their way which tomorrow night happens to be the Bobcats, Bulls win, Rose has another huge night, I say 25+ with 10 dimes. Just when the Clippers get Gordon back he is out again with another hurt wrist, which is not good for them they face the Celtics tomorrow in Boston. I think that while the Clippers are getting better they still won't be able to get past the Celtics. Even though the Celtics are little banged up right now, their new guys are finally finding their place in the offense and it seems like it will work out nicely for them, I will take the home team. The Mav's take on the Hornets tomorrow and will most likely get Tyson Chandler back into the line up. I think that is all I need to say as to who I will be picking, the Hornets have been less than impressive to me this year, and the Mav's are my team and only will be better with Chandler in the lineup. I will take the Mav's to come away with a big road win here, I am really glad to see the way Roddy B. has stepped up and I look for him to be their secert weapon in the playoffs. The Cav's travel to play the Bucks tomorrow and the Bucks are coming off a game tonight so I think the Cav's have a shot at the W, even though it's on the road and the Buck's aren't that bad they have Jennings and a few others. It depends on which Baron Davis shows up and if the Cav's show up. I am going to go out on a limb here and say the Cav's will pull off the road win tomorrow night against the Bucks...No wait I changed my mind Bucks win. The Pacers travel to take on the T-Wolves, and the Pacers are coming off a loss tonight to the Sixers so its hard for me to take them especially when going against my man Kevin Love...I hope that he continues his streak only this time his double double will lead them to a win over the Pacers who are a good team. The Knicks v. the Grizzlies, and the Grizzlies are hot right now but if Billups is in the lineup I will take the Knicks, even without him I am taking the Knicks. I look for the Knicks to really start clicking in the next week or so which only means trouble for the teams they face. The Piston v. the Spurs, and after the Spurs just got beat down by the Lakers at home I think they will be looking to show their fans that it was a one time thing with a big win over the Pistons. The Magic v. the Kings and now that Howard is back in the lineup their should be no problem with them getting this win over the locally owned Kings. I look for Howard to have another 30-15 game in a big win.
I know that with the additions made to the Red Sox lineup in the offseason they are a lot of peoples favorite to make the world series this year. I can see that happening IF their pitching staff can have a good year. I know that with their new power the pitching won't have to be perfect but it will have to be better then good. I think that everyone needs to be as close to their best as possible. I mean we know they have an ace in Lester but they will need Beckett to be his old self as well as Lackey. They have to power and the team to beat on paper, but we shall see how it all works out on the field. I know that Beckett was great in his last start this spring which is good news for Sox fans. Lets get to the other power house that is everyones pick to come out of the NL, thats right the Phillies. I was watching baseball tonight and Curt Schilling said that this could be the first rotation since the '71 Orioles to have four 20 game winners, and I am all for pitching taking back baseball. I mean think about this for a second...in the past 2 season there have only been three 20 game winners, there were 3 last year and 0 the year before that. It is totally possible if you ask me, I mean they have what would be an ace number one starter on any other team pitching in the top 4 spots for them. So think about that, they will be sending out an ace a usually number one starter against the other teams number 3 or 4 guy. I wouldn't be surprised if some of them even are in the low 20's I am hoping for one of them to break out with a 25 win season. I really with baseball was like it was back in the 90's with the Hershiser's and the Ripkens and Hendersons I think that is what we are in for these next few years only better quality. I can't say enough how excited I am for the steroid era to finally be over with and for baseball to finally be back to what I know and love!
Lets get to tomorrows picks cause there are a lot of them, as tomorrow is a full day in the NBA. First up is the Warriors v. the Nets, now that the Nets have Deron Williams you can't ever count them out but the Warriors can score with the best of them, I know this is the second game for them in 2 days and this one is on the road but I think they might be able to pull off the win, I will be taking them to win but I won't be surprised if the Nets win with the way Williams has been playing since he got traded. The Thunder travel to Philly to play the Sixers who are hot right now, this would be a great road win for the Thunder who have been struggling as of late. The Sixers also played tonight and the Thunder have the fresh legs, plus Kevin Durrant has been in a little bit of a slump lately I think that is due to the departure of Green, but I think he will find his groove tomorrow and watch out Sixers, I got the Thunder winning big on the road. The Jazz on the road to play the Raptors and the Jazz are not usually a good road team but I think they will be able to come away with the win over the Raptors. The Bulls travel to play the Bobcats and the Bulls are playing great right now they are looking to get hot now and carry it into the playoffs. I think the Bulls are just getting used to having Noah back, and he is getting used to being back. I say that is nothing but bad news for anyone in their way which tomorrow night happens to be the Bobcats, Bulls win, Rose has another huge night, I say 25+ with 10 dimes. Just when the Clippers get Gordon back he is out again with another hurt wrist, which is not good for them they face the Celtics tomorrow in Boston. I think that while the Clippers are getting better they still won't be able to get past the Celtics. Even though the Celtics are little banged up right now, their new guys are finally finding their place in the offense and it seems like it will work out nicely for them, I will take the home team. The Mav's take on the Hornets tomorrow and will most likely get Tyson Chandler back into the line up. I think that is all I need to say as to who I will be picking, the Hornets have been less than impressive to me this year, and the Mav's are my team and only will be better with Chandler in the lineup. I will take the Mav's to come away with a big road win here, I am really glad to see the way Roddy B. has stepped up and I look for him to be their secert weapon in the playoffs. The Cav's travel to play the Bucks tomorrow and the Bucks are coming off a game tonight so I think the Cav's have a shot at the W, even though it's on the road and the Buck's aren't that bad they have Jennings and a few others. It depends on which Baron Davis shows up and if the Cav's show up. I am going to go out on a limb here and say the Cav's will pull off the road win tomorrow night against the Bucks...No wait I changed my mind Bucks win. The Pacers travel to take on the T-Wolves, and the Pacers are coming off a loss tonight to the Sixers so its hard for me to take them especially when going against my man Kevin Love...I hope that he continues his streak only this time his double double will lead them to a win over the Pacers who are a good team. The Knicks v. the Grizzlies, and the Grizzlies are hot right now but if Billups is in the lineup I will take the Knicks, even without him I am taking the Knicks. I look for the Knicks to really start clicking in the next week or so which only means trouble for the teams they face. The Piston v. the Spurs, and after the Spurs just got beat down by the Lakers at home I think they will be looking to show their fans that it was a one time thing with a big win over the Pistons. The Magic v. the Kings and now that Howard is back in the lineup their should be no problem with them getting this win over the locally owned Kings. I look for Howard to have another 30-15 game in a big win.
I know that with the additions made to the Red Sox lineup in the offseason they are a lot of peoples favorite to make the world series this year. I can see that happening IF their pitching staff can have a good year. I know that with their new power the pitching won't have to be perfect but it will have to be better then good. I think that everyone needs to be as close to their best as possible. I mean we know they have an ace in Lester but they will need Beckett to be his old self as well as Lackey. They have to power and the team to beat on paper, but we shall see how it all works out on the field. I know that Beckett was great in his last start this spring which is good news for Sox fans. Lets get to the other power house that is everyones pick to come out of the NL, thats right the Phillies. I was watching baseball tonight and Curt Schilling said that this could be the first rotation since the '71 Orioles to have four 20 game winners, and I am all for pitching taking back baseball. I mean think about this for a second...in the past 2 season there have only been three 20 game winners, there were 3 last year and 0 the year before that. It is totally possible if you ask me, I mean they have what would be an ace number one starter on any other team pitching in the top 4 spots for them. So think about that, they will be sending out an ace a usually number one starter against the other teams number 3 or 4 guy. I wouldn't be surprised if some of them even are in the low 20's I am hoping for one of them to break out with a 25 win season. I really with baseball was like it was back in the 90's with the Hershiser's and the Ripkens and Hendersons I think that is what we are in for these next few years only better quality. I can't say enough how excited I am for the steroid era to finally be over with and for baseball to finally be back to what I know and love!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Championship Week
Its championship week in college basketball and selection sunday is this sunday, I can't wait for the brackets to come out. I like the loser Lobo fan that I am still have my fingers crossed for the Lobos to pull the upset of the year in the MWC tournament and get our automatic bid into the tourny. I know that is a huge long shot, who knows if we can even make it past CSU who we play first on thursday. We are coming off a huge win against BYU, the second time we have beat them this year. This should show the Lobos that they can play with anyone in the Mountain West and that maybe they have been underachieving all year, but it didn't do the job last time why should it this time.
The Lakers are finally the team I thought they were all year. I know it has only been what 7 games since the all star break, but guys are finally filling their rolls to the fullest instead of trying to maybe do to much or not trying at all. I am glad Ron Artest finally figured out he doesn't wanna be traded he has the best chance at winning where he is at, which is what it should be about at this point in his career. He knows he isn't that go to guy and he shoulda known before he asked that no other team really wants him. I think the bigger factor here is the way the Bynum is playing, this is why the Lakers love this guy so much, he brings so much to the table and doesn't even have to score to do it. In their last game he had 4 points ( on 2-2 shooting) but 17 rebounds and 3 blocks. With all the offense they have he doens't have to go for 20 every night. He obviously can go for 20 if they give him the shots instead of Pau but Pau has a better outside game and brings more of t he offensive end. Don't get me wrong I think they could flip flop Pau and Bynum and still be the same but the way they have it now is perfect. To me the Lakers are like a puzzle, and when all the pieces are put together in the right place the picture they make is them winning a 3rd straight title. I don't care if Kobe lost a step he is still one of the best players in the game. Sure the Laker started off cold and had some hot spots, but now that its the second half I see nothing but great basketball coming from them.
Speaking of the Lakers they are tomorros first game, they play the Hawks and the way the Lakers have been playing after the break I don't see anyone stopping them. The Hawks might be able to score with them IF Joe Johnson has a good night but he has been cold of late. The Lakers take this one in what will be their 8th straight since the break. The Warriors travel to Cleveland to take on the Cav's who at least are putting up a fight in their games now. I still think however that the Warriors can score with the best of them and since the Cav's aren't the best defensive team in the league I think this will be a high scoring game in which the Warriors pull off the win. The Sixers take on the Pacers in what should be a great game, Iguodala is having a great stretch here since the break coming off back to back triple doubles I look for him to continue to have a great stretch and I look for the Sixers to come away with a big road win over the Pacers. The Bucks travel to Washington to play the Wizards and the Wizards are good at home and have a great rookie in John Wall who is not disapointing and if not for Blake Griffin might just be the Rookie of the year. I don't ever count the Wizards out when they are at home and facing a team that is not elite so I will take the Wizards over the Bucks. The Blazers travel to Miami to take on the Heat who are in desperate need of a win. That being said this will be tough one for them to get. The Heat will have a hard time stopping Aldrige if you ask me and he might just drop 30 on them. I still think there is no way the Heat lose 5 in a row, I will take the Heat tomorrow only for the simple fact that they are due, I won't be surprised if the Blazers win though. The Rockets travel to play the Suns and usually I would pick the Rockets but they had a game tonight and are traveling too, so I will take the Suns, who are turning a lot of heads as of late with their 4th quarter heroics.
I know that Feliz has said that if would like to close but if the team thinks he can do more damage as a starter then he would start. I think he is only saying this cause he is a little down on himself with his last outting. I think he expected to shut people down right away like he did as a closer. We all know that wouldn't be the case, we just need to get him comfortable with his off speed stuff to have him be confident when he throws it. I say watch his next outting where he will throw 3 innings and see how he does there then we can get a LITTLE better idea of what we are dealing with here. Like I have been saying this kid has so much talent why not try and stretch him out and get 200 innings out of him, he could be a potential number 1 guy in the rotation. Also another guy I have been mentioning was Eric Hurley, he made his first spring training start and turned a lot of heads just as I thought he would, he threw 2 scroeless innings, the Rangers pitching staff may be without Lee but that doesn't mean it won't compete this year.
The Lakers are finally the team I thought they were all year. I know it has only been what 7 games since the all star break, but guys are finally filling their rolls to the fullest instead of trying to maybe do to much or not trying at all. I am glad Ron Artest finally figured out he doesn't wanna be traded he has the best chance at winning where he is at, which is what it should be about at this point in his career. He knows he isn't that go to guy and he shoulda known before he asked that no other team really wants him. I think the bigger factor here is the way the Bynum is playing, this is why the Lakers love this guy so much, he brings so much to the table and doesn't even have to score to do it. In their last game he had 4 points ( on 2-2 shooting) but 17 rebounds and 3 blocks. With all the offense they have he doens't have to go for 20 every night. He obviously can go for 20 if they give him the shots instead of Pau but Pau has a better outside game and brings more of t he offensive end. Don't get me wrong I think they could flip flop Pau and Bynum and still be the same but the way they have it now is perfect. To me the Lakers are like a puzzle, and when all the pieces are put together in the right place the picture they make is them winning a 3rd straight title. I don't care if Kobe lost a step he is still one of the best players in the game. Sure the Laker started off cold and had some hot spots, but now that its the second half I see nothing but great basketball coming from them.
Speaking of the Lakers they are tomorros first game, they play the Hawks and the way the Lakers have been playing after the break I don't see anyone stopping them. The Hawks might be able to score with them IF Joe Johnson has a good night but he has been cold of late. The Lakers take this one in what will be their 8th straight since the break. The Warriors travel to Cleveland to take on the Cav's who at least are putting up a fight in their games now. I still think however that the Warriors can score with the best of them and since the Cav's aren't the best defensive team in the league I think this will be a high scoring game in which the Warriors pull off the win. The Sixers take on the Pacers in what should be a great game, Iguodala is having a great stretch here since the break coming off back to back triple doubles I look for him to continue to have a great stretch and I look for the Sixers to come away with a big road win over the Pacers. The Bucks travel to Washington to play the Wizards and the Wizards are good at home and have a great rookie in John Wall who is not disapointing and if not for Blake Griffin might just be the Rookie of the year. I don't ever count the Wizards out when they are at home and facing a team that is not elite so I will take the Wizards over the Bucks. The Blazers travel to Miami to take on the Heat who are in desperate need of a win. That being said this will be tough one for them to get. The Heat will have a hard time stopping Aldrige if you ask me and he might just drop 30 on them. I still think there is no way the Heat lose 5 in a row, I will take the Heat tomorrow only for the simple fact that they are due, I won't be surprised if the Blazers win though. The Rockets travel to play the Suns and usually I would pick the Rockets but they had a game tonight and are traveling too, so I will take the Suns, who are turning a lot of heads as of late with their 4th quarter heroics.
I know that Feliz has said that if would like to close but if the team thinks he can do more damage as a starter then he would start. I think he is only saying this cause he is a little down on himself with his last outting. I think he expected to shut people down right away like he did as a closer. We all know that wouldn't be the case, we just need to get him comfortable with his off speed stuff to have him be confident when he throws it. I say watch his next outting where he will throw 3 innings and see how he does there then we can get a LITTLE better idea of what we are dealing with here. Like I have been saying this kid has so much talent why not try and stretch him out and get 200 innings out of him, he could be a potential number 1 guy in the rotation. Also another guy I have been mentioning was Eric Hurley, he made his first spring training start and turned a lot of heads just as I thought he would, he threw 2 scroeless innings, the Rangers pitching staff may be without Lee but that doesn't mean it won't compete this year.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
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