The World Series is two games in, football is obviously in full swing and...the Association is back in action as they had their opening night last night. That said, time for another blog entry.
On the World Series: We're two games in, and there is a long way to go and certainly the Mets have the players to get back in this series when it shifts to Citi Field, but there are a lot of things working against them right now.
A big factor against them right now is that, for all of the Mets young pitching talent (and they have it in bunches), the Royals approach is working against them. Mainly what's happening is that those swings and misses that Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom are used to aren't happening so far.
To wit: in the National League playoffs Jacob deGrom's swing and miss ratio was 36.5%. Last night, just 6 percent of his pitches were swung and missed at and the Royals didn't strike out swinging once. Matt Harvey, the game 1 starter, had a swing and miss ratio of 37.5% in the NL playoffs, but Tuesday night it was just 17%.
Another factor working against the Mets is that Yoenis Cespedes is struggling...badly. He hit .286 the first two rounds of the playoffs and was a huge reason the Mets won the NL East this year, but he is just 1 for 10 in this series. If he isn't doing what they need him to do, they're in trouble because then they're basically what they were before they traded for him in July...an average team with an impotent offense.
Maybe the biggest thing though is experience; KC learned a lot from their first run in the postseason last year and the Mets act like a team that hasn't been here. They could get it going at Citi Field, but they almost certainly have to win all three games to have a chance to come back.
On the National Football League, this particular thing I'm about to speak of just burns me up. DeAngelo Williams of the Steelers lost his mother to breast cancer a year ago. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month in the NFL. So, for putting "we will find a cure" and the breast cancer ribbon put on his eye black...get this...Williams was fined over $5,000 Wednesday. I still can't believe it just thinking about it. That to me is totally absurd.
Meanwhile, the NBA and the sport of basketball lost a great coach last weekend, Flip Saunders, who passed away at 60 due to lymphoma. The NBA agreed to let the Minnesota Timberwolves, who Saunders spent two tenures with, to wear a commemorative patch to honor the late coach. On this one, the NBA beat the pants off the NFL...and I'm a football guy.
Speaking of Minnesota and coaches with health issues, from college football, Jerry Kill has stepped away as the head coach of the Golden Gophers football team due to health issues. Health issues aren't a novelty for Kill, who has dealt with kidney cancer, seizures, and dehydration spells. I'm glad he is deciding to step away because his health has been a hindrance for him at doing his job at times in the past, and I would hate to see something like that again in the future. He was and is a very respectable coach.
The NBA had its real opening night last night (yeah there were three games Tuesday but IMHO Wednesday with just about everyone playing is the real opening night); long season but a few takeaways...
1. Southwest Division had themselves a bad night except for the Mavericks who won at Phoenix, but New Orleans dropped its second in a row to begin the year at Portland, the Spurs were beaten by OKC, the Memphis Grizzlies lost by 30 at home to Cleveland and maybe the most embarrassing one of all, the Rockets lost by 20 at home to Denver on their opening night.
2. That Rockets game was so bad that Rockets GM Daryl Morey was on the Jim Rome show today and he was not happy. Very easy for someone to say, it's just one game, but that's not what he said. He was legitimately concerned and after that effort, I share his opinion. They need to play MUCH better than that.
3. The Milwaukee Bucks, coming off a playoff season, got embarrassed at home by 25 points by the Knicks on opening night, WOW.
4. Very early, but the Chicago Bulls look stout to open the season. Beat the Cavs at home, then went on the road to the Barclays Center and won by 15 over the Nets. I still wonder if Hoiberg should have stayed at Iowa State, but if the Bulls win I'm sure any regrets will disappear.
5. Lakers got beat on opening night by the Timberwolves, but the big talk after that game is that Kobe Bryant didn't get the last shot. It makes me laugh. He can still produce but people have to remember he's well above 35 years old and can't do what he used to do anymore.
Until next time....
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
10/21/15: Football and the MLB Playoffs
Busy sports time of the year, with football in full swing, Major League Baseball down to its final four and the NBA season preparing to start. As I've said before, this is a football blog so that's where I'll keep the focus, with a few thoughts on the League Championship baseball series as well.
We have to start with the question on everybody's mind who watched that trick play that was attempted by the Colts Sunday night: What in the world were they thinking running that play?
In case you missed it, here is the play; the Colts were down 27-21 at the time, with fourth and three on their own 37 Colts fake punt fail
I'm like I think a lot of people out there; that was absolutely the worst fake punt call I think I've ever seen. I didn't think anything could replace Bill Callahan trying a fake punt on fourth and short inside his own 30 yardline in the Cotton Bowl several years ago, but this one did it I think. There was absolutely no reason for the Colts to go for that play, mainly for two reasons: 1. the ball was on their 37 yard line and 2. there was a little less than a half of football to be played.
In any event, the Patriots left Indianapolis undefeated. But beware the Jets...that's a very physical team on both sides of the ball and that's how they'll attempt to beat New England, by manhandling them physically. I don't trust Fitzpatrick and that is well known, but their team is good and I am surprised New England is favored by nine points or whatever they are favored by.
Other NFL notes:
- Is it possible for the Chiefs to try someone OTHER than Alex Smith? Jamaal Charles is out, so that puts the onus on the quarterback even more and Alex Smith just is never going to do it, even with weapons like Maclin. Maybe it's time for KC to put Chase Daniel in and see what he can do, or maybe even go with Aaron Murray. In any event, KC's Alex Smith experiment isn't working.
- Detroit gets its first win of the year, with a tough OT win against the Bears. I'm happy for the Lions; I saw 0-16 once in 2008, and I don't need to see the sequel.
- Texans messed around for three quarters before deciding to finally wake up and win against Jacksonville. Amazing to think that Houston is 2-4 and is still just one full game out of first place. That's how awful the AFC South is.
- Seattle is now 2-4 after losing a double digit lead for the second week in a row against an undefeated team, this time against Cam Newton and Carolina. Jon Gruden was on the Mike and Mike show Wednesday morning and I agree with two things he pointed out; first, Seattle's back four isn't quite the same, they lost a couple of players and their secondary leader Kam Chancellor held out in training camp which disrupted things from the start. Also, if their pass rush was what we've seen the last few years they wouldn't be blowing double digits leads in the fourth quarter two straight weeks.
- The Eagles ended up beating the Giants Monday night but that game was awful (so many turnovers and bad plays) and that division is atrocious; I don't know what to expect there anymore. Philly obviously is tied for first but can't be trusted, the Giants have the talent to get on a winning streak but haven't found near the consistency necessary yet, the Cowboys are very much short-handed and the Redskins are the Redskins.
Moving on to the college game now; the only thing to say about that finish in the Michigan State-Michigan game is...wow. For those who haven't seen the play, you can see the situation and the unbelievable finish that ensues, complete with the MSU radio call of the play: MSU-UM wild finish
- The thing is, all the punter needed to do was fall on the football. He didn't even have to get the punt off; just fall on the ball and Michigan probably still wins the football game. That said, whether MSU won that game or not, they proved just in that game that they are not going anywhere any time soon and Mark D'Antonio will continue to be able to hold his own against the likes of Michigan and Ohio State. You could see the improvement in Michigan under Harbaugh though; it will be interesting to see what happens when he gets his players.
- If we were having a poll on who is the best team in the country right now, I'm saying it's LSU. For a lot of years with the exception of the year and a half they had Mettenberger, LSU's weakness has been QB. This year, they have the QB in Brandon Harris that can complement Les Miles' defense and running game. Still a lot of season left, but LSU looks very, very good. Ohio State may well be the best team in the country eventually but they have basically been playing and will be playing preseason games until the Michigan State and Michigan showdowns in November.
- Very nice bounce back win for the Huskers against Minnesota. I think for many Husker fans, it's obvious that Pierson-El is an enormous difference maker offensively. Tommy Armstrong will never be the world's greatest quarterback, but he looks a lot better when he's actually got guys who can make plays on the outside.
I don't like to give Bitter Beer Face Bo Pelini much credit but he pulled a gem in Pierson-El. With that win, the Huskers should be able to reach a bowl game if they take care of business against Northwestern, Purdue and Rutgers. Iowa and Michigan State will be much tougher games although I think they'll have a better shot against Iowa.
Finally, on the baseball playoffs, the Mets are on their way to the World Series as they sweep away the Cubs. Joe Maddon did one heck of a job with the Cubs' youth movement this year, but the Mets have played about .650 baseball since the end of July, arguably the best team in baseball since that point. We'll have to see what they do against KC (or Toronto for that matter) but they are deep in pitching and since the pickup of Yoenis Cespedes at the trade deadline, they have acquired the offense to complement that pitching. They would have to like their chances against whomever they play.
In the AL, the Royals might have the series lead 3-2, but I think I'd be really nervous if I'm a Royals fan right now. It goes back to KC for Game 6 and KC's got two shots to win a game, but the Blue Jays have David Price on full rest (granted, he has been less than stellar in playoff competition but Toronto got him for just that sort of game).
And if it goes to 7, the Royals will send the ever-unpredictable Johnny Cueto to the hill while the Blue Jays will have Marcus Stroman, who is a solid option for a decisive game. Cueto got the job done in game 5 against Houston, but it remains to be seen if he will do the same in game 7 if that series gets that far. And the Royals best hope it not get that far. They had better jump all over David Price Friday night and end it there.
Until next time....
We have to start with the question on everybody's mind who watched that trick play that was attempted by the Colts Sunday night: What in the world were they thinking running that play?
In case you missed it, here is the play; the Colts were down 27-21 at the time, with fourth and three on their own 37 Colts fake punt fail
I'm like I think a lot of people out there; that was absolutely the worst fake punt call I think I've ever seen. I didn't think anything could replace Bill Callahan trying a fake punt on fourth and short inside his own 30 yardline in the Cotton Bowl several years ago, but this one did it I think. There was absolutely no reason for the Colts to go for that play, mainly for two reasons: 1. the ball was on their 37 yard line and 2. there was a little less than a half of football to be played.
In any event, the Patriots left Indianapolis undefeated. But beware the Jets...that's a very physical team on both sides of the ball and that's how they'll attempt to beat New England, by manhandling them physically. I don't trust Fitzpatrick and that is well known, but their team is good and I am surprised New England is favored by nine points or whatever they are favored by.
Other NFL notes:
- Is it possible for the Chiefs to try someone OTHER than Alex Smith? Jamaal Charles is out, so that puts the onus on the quarterback even more and Alex Smith just is never going to do it, even with weapons like Maclin. Maybe it's time for KC to put Chase Daniel in and see what he can do, or maybe even go with Aaron Murray. In any event, KC's Alex Smith experiment isn't working.
- Detroit gets its first win of the year, with a tough OT win against the Bears. I'm happy for the Lions; I saw 0-16 once in 2008, and I don't need to see the sequel.
- Texans messed around for three quarters before deciding to finally wake up and win against Jacksonville. Amazing to think that Houston is 2-4 and is still just one full game out of first place. That's how awful the AFC South is.
- Seattle is now 2-4 after losing a double digit lead for the second week in a row against an undefeated team, this time against Cam Newton and Carolina. Jon Gruden was on the Mike and Mike show Wednesday morning and I agree with two things he pointed out; first, Seattle's back four isn't quite the same, they lost a couple of players and their secondary leader Kam Chancellor held out in training camp which disrupted things from the start. Also, if their pass rush was what we've seen the last few years they wouldn't be blowing double digits leads in the fourth quarter two straight weeks.
- The Eagles ended up beating the Giants Monday night but that game was awful (so many turnovers and bad plays) and that division is atrocious; I don't know what to expect there anymore. Philly obviously is tied for first but can't be trusted, the Giants have the talent to get on a winning streak but haven't found near the consistency necessary yet, the Cowboys are very much short-handed and the Redskins are the Redskins.
Moving on to the college game now; the only thing to say about that finish in the Michigan State-Michigan game is...wow. For those who haven't seen the play, you can see the situation and the unbelievable finish that ensues, complete with the MSU radio call of the play: MSU-UM wild finish
- The thing is, all the punter needed to do was fall on the football. He didn't even have to get the punt off; just fall on the ball and Michigan probably still wins the football game. That said, whether MSU won that game or not, they proved just in that game that they are not going anywhere any time soon and Mark D'Antonio will continue to be able to hold his own against the likes of Michigan and Ohio State. You could see the improvement in Michigan under Harbaugh though; it will be interesting to see what happens when he gets his players.
- If we were having a poll on who is the best team in the country right now, I'm saying it's LSU. For a lot of years with the exception of the year and a half they had Mettenberger, LSU's weakness has been QB. This year, they have the QB in Brandon Harris that can complement Les Miles' defense and running game. Still a lot of season left, but LSU looks very, very good. Ohio State may well be the best team in the country eventually but they have basically been playing and will be playing preseason games until the Michigan State and Michigan showdowns in November.
- Very nice bounce back win for the Huskers against Minnesota. I think for many Husker fans, it's obvious that Pierson-El is an enormous difference maker offensively. Tommy Armstrong will never be the world's greatest quarterback, but he looks a lot better when he's actually got guys who can make plays on the outside.
I don't like to give Bitter Beer Face Bo Pelini much credit but he pulled a gem in Pierson-El. With that win, the Huskers should be able to reach a bowl game if they take care of business against Northwestern, Purdue and Rutgers. Iowa and Michigan State will be much tougher games although I think they'll have a better shot against Iowa.
Finally, on the baseball playoffs, the Mets are on their way to the World Series as they sweep away the Cubs. Joe Maddon did one heck of a job with the Cubs' youth movement this year, but the Mets have played about .650 baseball since the end of July, arguably the best team in baseball since that point. We'll have to see what they do against KC (or Toronto for that matter) but they are deep in pitching and since the pickup of Yoenis Cespedes at the trade deadline, they have acquired the offense to complement that pitching. They would have to like their chances against whomever they play.
In the AL, the Royals might have the series lead 3-2, but I think I'd be really nervous if I'm a Royals fan right now. It goes back to KC for Game 6 and KC's got two shots to win a game, but the Blue Jays have David Price on full rest (granted, he has been less than stellar in playoff competition but Toronto got him for just that sort of game).
And if it goes to 7, the Royals will send the ever-unpredictable Johnny Cueto to the hill while the Blue Jays will have Marcus Stroman, who is a solid option for a decisive game. Cueto got the job done in game 5 against Houston, but it remains to be seen if he will do the same in game 7 if that series gets that far. And the Royals best hope it not get that far. They had better jump all over David Price Friday night and end it there.
Until next time....
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