Every Friday at Mustache Sports, we do our best to provide you with some advice for your fantasy football team. Hopefully, it's not the advice you see on every other fantasy site. Next week, we will let you know how we did.
This week's Fantasy Football Picks were done by Monster.
Who We Really Like
Nate Washington at Cleveland
Two mediocre/borderline bad teams going at it this Sunday and Tennessee’s #1 WR in Kenny Britt is out for the season. Washington has been solid this season despite being on the field at the same time as Britt. Look for him to be a solid WR the rest of the way. This is a big game for both teams, I would not be surprised to see unexpected high scoring in this game.
Vincent Jackson vs Miami
Miami is in complete disarray folks, and the Dolphins can’t stop anyone on defense. We haven’t seen much out of Vincent this season on a consistent basis, he’s either been feast or famine for fantasy owners, but this game should be a big one. San Diego will be looking to get up early in the first half to blow it out and control the clock in the second half. Miami’s Vonte Davis has underperformed to this point and I don’t see any improvement. Jackson should be targeted often and in the red zone.
Michael Turner at Seattle
I’m picking him again. Seattle sucks at football, but I can’t believe Atlanta has been this bad. They’re too talented on offense for that to continue. Look for Turner to bust some big runs. I see 100 yards, 2 TDs out of the back this week.
Jason Campbell vs New England
What did we see last time the Raiders faced a high powered offense from the AFC East? I fully expect the Pats to dominate the passing game, get up by a ton of points early, and that's great news for Campbell owners. It means, that unless DMAC can carry the team again, it will fall on Campbell to air it out to keep up with the Patriots. I think Campbell has the talent to do just that, especially with New England being extremely terrible in pass defense.
Who We Might Like
Michael Jenkins at Kansas City
Jenkins is seeing just as many targets as anyone else on the Vikings and he’s one of the few actually catching McNabb’s poor throws. He is especially valuable in PPR formats. Kansas City is banged up on defense and I don’t see them stopping the Vikings at all. Jenkins is a nice flex play this week.
Mario Manningham at Arizona
A weak pass defense in Arizona and Eli finally showing us a flashes of brilliance last week lead me to believe Manningham should have a big week. of last season. If Manningham recovers from his concussion this week (as all signs point to yes), then I see Manningham seeing the majority of the targets. I’m sure we’ll see some shots down the field as well….IF he plays.
Jahvid Best at Dallas
I don’t see this game being close. Detroit will be up big early and they’ll turn to Best to eat clock in the second half. Best had one decent run on the Vikings last week, but the Vikes defense is typically tough to run on. I don’t have as much faith in the Cowboys stopping the run. Jahvid Beast should have a solid game here in an offense that is on fire right now.
Andy Dalton vs Buffalo
I’m going out on a limb here, but it’s hard to pick sleeper QB’s without sounding like everyone else. Dalton, being a rookie, is a huge risk and I’d only suggest starting him if you can flex a QB. The Bengals are clearly rebuilding, they’ll be down early, and they’ll have to unleash Dalton in the pass game if they want any shot at staying competitive in this one game. If I’m Cincinnati, I’m thinking this is a game where we put the pressure on Dalton and see how he responds. The kid has shown talent already this season, I think he puts up some decent numbers this week, 325 yds passing, 3 TD’s
Who We Don't Like
Willis McGahee at Green Bay
Green Bay's number 1 run defense, at home, Denver’s offense struggling….it just doesn’t add up for McGahee this week. Knowshon Moreno is supposedly back to full practice this week and probably will split the few carries available in this game. Denver will most likely be getting blown out and passing to try and come from behind.
Matt Schaub vs Pittsburgh
I’m sure you’re starting him no matter what, unless you pick Ryan Fitzpatrick or Matt Stafford late in your draft, but I don’t see a huge game from Houston this week. Houston hasn’t faced that tough a defense yet this season and Schaub has folded under pressure before (see injury history). I think Pittsburgh brings the juice on defense all day long and Schaub gets frustrated being roughed up all afternoon. I would guess this would be a down week for Matt Schaub.
Tony Romo vs Detroit
Suh plays dirty and Romo is as fragile as your mom’s glass vase
you just glued back together. If he can make it through the whole game I’m sure Romo will put up the numbers, but I don’t think he makes it, I really don’t. Everyone and they’re sister knows Tony Romo has a collapsed lung and broken ribs. Unless he can show super human scrambling skills, this man is as good as dead.
Anquan Boldin/Lee Evans vs New York Jets
If Baltimore is going to win this game, (and I think they do) they’ll do it on the ground. The Jets pass defense is too good and I can’t see Bolding and Evans (coming back from injury) creating any kind of serious separation from Revis Island and company. I don’t see double digit targets for either of these guys.
Last week's pick results: Blue = hit, Green = ok, Red = bust
Who We Really Liked
Chris Johnson: 21 rush yds, 4 rec, 54 rec yds, no TD’s
Philadelphia Eagles Offense: 16 points
Vick: hurt mid game for 176 pass yds, 0 TD, 1 INT
McCoy: 128 rush Yds, 1 TD, 3 rec for 13 rec yds
Maclin: 5 rec for 69 yds
Jackson: 2 rec for 30 yds
Beanie Wells: Didn’t play due to last minute injury decision
Michael Turner: 20 rush yds, 0 TD’s
Who We Might Like
David Nelson: 6 rec for 84 rec yds, 0 TD’s
Maurice Jones-Drew: 122 rush yds, 3 rec for 45 rec yds, 0 TD
Nate Burleson: 2 rec for 12 rec yds
Dexter McCluster: 45 rush yds, 5 rec for 17 yds, 0 TD
Who We Didn't Like
Eli Manning: 16 for 23, 254 yds, 4 TD, 0 INT
Mark Ingram: 38 rush yds, 2 rec for -3 yds, 1 TD
GB Rushing: Grant: 92 rush yds, 1 TD
Mike Thomas: 4 rec for 55 yds, 1 TD
Friday, September 30, 2011
Week Four - NFL Picks
I’m going lazy on you this week Mustache Sports fans. I didn’t have time to do write ups on every game because I’m going out of town this weekend for my one year wedding anniversary and won’t have access to a computer for the next couple of days.
Oh, and one more thing you probably don’t care about, as of Friday (when we are making these picks), lines weren’t for 4 games. So yeah, only 12 picks this week and no write ups, sorry to ruin your weekend.
Lions +1 at Cowboys
Burt Kolson – Lions
Sef Sam Holy - Lions
Saints -7.5 at Jags
Burt Kolson – Saints
Sef Sam Holy – Saints
Titans (Pk) at Browns
Burt Kolson – Titans
Sef Sam Holy - Browns
Bills -3 at Bengals
Burt Kolson – Bills
Sef Sam Holy – Bengals
Vikings -2 at Chiefs
Burt Kolson – Vikings
Sef Sam Holy - Vikings
Panthers +7 at Bears
Burt Kolson – Bears
Sef Sam Holy - Panthers
Steelers +4 at Texans
Burt Kolson – Texans
Sef Sam Holy - Texans
Falcons -5.5 at Seahawks
Burt Kolson – Falcons
Sef Sam Holy - Seahawks
Dolphins +7 at Chargers
Burt Kolson – Chargers
Sef Sam Holy - Chargers
Broncos +13 at Packers
Burt Kolson – Packers
Sef Sam Holy - Packers
Patriots -4.5 at Raiders
Burt Kolson – Raiders
Sef Sam Holy - Patriots
Jets +4 at Ravens
Burt Kolson – Ravens
Sef Sam Holy - Jets
MLB October Madness
I don’t know where to start after one of the craziest nights ever in the game of baseball. There isn’t even much time to think about it because the playoffs start tonight! The cliché is that, in the MLB playoffs, anything can happen if you just get there. And since it’s not 2009 when everyone and their mother knew the Yankees would win it, this year anything can happen. Rather than tell you who takes home a ring, I will tell you why EVERY team COULD win the World Series.
The American League
The Yankees
Experience. The Yankees are here every year, these dudes are all as comfortable as you can be in a postseason. This year their pitching wasn’t supposed to be good enough to get to the post, well, scoring 10 runs a game takes a lot of pressure off pitchers. They have one of the dirtiest lineups in baseball (it might even be the all time dirtiest). I feel like they can score 9 runs on any given night, even against good pitching. Cano, A-Rod, Texiera, Granderson, Jeter, and the rest of ‘em can bang! I know pitching wins championships, but if they win, it won’t be because Ivan Nova becomes Tim Lincecum, it will be because they do what they do and score runs at will. They do still have C.C. Sabathia, whose high expectations often cause him to get overlooked (kind of like Albert Pujols not being mentioned in this year’s N.L. MVP race). Mariano Rivera is kind of good too, you might have heard of him.
The Tigers
Justin Verlander…. Enough said. No, really, he has been RIDICULOUS! He was practically unbeatable this year, and I just don’t see him losing, and he’s definitely not losing twice in one series. Verlander is followed by Doug Fister, who has killed this past month, and Max Scherzer, who sucks balls on the road, but definitely can win against another number three starter at home. The Tigers have the ability to bang almost as much as Yankees. Detroit also has that fat piece of crap Jose Valverde to shut down the 9th.
The Rangers
Redemption. The thing that sticks out to me the most about Texas is that even thought they lost Cliff Lee in the offseason, they look just as good. The Rangers lost the World Series last year and believe this is their year for redemption. They hit like all the other AL teams, but they can pitch too. No real nasty number 1, but they still have C.J. Wilson, Derrick Holland, and a great bullpen. I also heard that Ron Washington is in a drug program now so they don’t have that to worry about anymore. Fear the Deer!!!!
The Rays
Momentum. They didn’t just win 2 nights ago being down 7 to nothing in the 8th, they have been doing crap like that all month. They came back from being down 9 games in the month of September (even though it seems like Boston gave it away) and really did earn their ticket to October. The Rays are coming in hot. They are the team that doesn’t score a lot of runs, but just enough to win. With a filthy 1-2 punch like James Shields and D-Price (I know he has sucked lately but forgot about all that when they play Friday), look out for Daddy Warbucks!
The Boston Red Sox
Woops I forgot haahaahahahaa
The National League
The Diamondbacks
Underdogs. The D-Backs are too young and too stupid to know they aren’t supposed to win. They just have that team that has somebody new, do something big, every night. Arizona has a straight staff with Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson. Don’t forget Justin Upton is cold blooded (I know he has struggled lately, but like I said, they have someone busting out of a slump every day). It’s not like the Diamondbacks haven’t beat good pitching this year playing in the NL West, they are used to what they will be facing come Saturday.
The Brewers
Ron Roenicke. Totally Joking!
Swagger. The Milwaukee Brewers have swag and are some straight up bullies. This is the team that can’t be beat at home, especially with the “2 G’s” pitching (Yovani Gallardo and Zack Greinke). The Brewers fricken hit like an AL team with Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks, and Corey Hart. There hasn’t been a better front man than T-Plush since Flavor Flav. Their nickname is “The Crew,” those dudes are tough.
The Cardinals
Momentum…….and Albert Pujols. This is the team that isn’t supposed to be here. The Cards lost their number 1, Adam Wainwright, in spring training and were supposed to be horrible. Albert Pujols started “slow” when he broke his hand and still put up monster numbers. But don’t sleep on the rest of their lineup, Holliday and Berkman are beasts. I am a little worried about their closer situation, but doesn’t one team every year have some young kid come up huge as the new closer and then be lights out for the next 5 years? St Louis is coming in just as hot as the Rays.
The Phillies
Pitching. Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, and Roy Oswalt. The first 3 could have been the first 3 starters for the NL All-Star team this year. This is by far the best staff I have ever seen in my life (yeah better than the 05 Sox and all those Yankee teams in the late 90’s and early 2000’s). Pitching wins championships and theirs is by far the best. Philly also has a good pen with Ryan Madson, if they even have to use him. The lineup isn’t great, but a lot of lineups will look worse than theirs facing the Phil’s pitching. In baseball, you win 60 and lose 60; it’s what you do with the other 40. Well, they won all 40, plus two more.
Conclusion
I know it seems like I have said everything you already know, but after 162 games it’s not like there are a lot of secrets. If you were looking for me to tell you that Mitch Moreland would hit a homerun in game 5 against Joel Peralta, guess what, nobody knows that crap.
I hope the Crew wins it all. If they don’t, I would at least love to see the Cardinals and Brewers in the NLCS. I would also love to see the Cardinals vs Tigers World Series and have the Cardinals beat Detroit again.
If I had to put $100 down on a team, I’d pick the Fightins. However, they did win 102 games and everyone knows if you win 100 games, you don’t win the World Series.
All this baseball playoff stuff is fun, but really who cares? There is a lockout in basketball…………….. What are we gonna do with ourselves?????
I’m kidding, go baseball!
Playoff Bracket Prediction
Detroit over the Yankees
Rays over the Rangers
Detroit over the Rays
Phillies over the Cardinals
Brewers over the Diamondbacks
Phillies over the Brewers
Phillies over Detroit
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Week Four - Panthers at Bears
Panthers +7 at Bears
After opening the season by facing three of the top NFC teams from 2010, the Bears are who we thought they were, sitting at 1-2. Going into the season, many assumed week 4 against the Panthers would be a cruise control win, but that was before the emergence of the number one overall pick, Cam Newton.
There seemed to be little doubt that Cam Newton had a bright future, but through three weeks, he has been busy showing of an arm, swagger, and and a level of “it” factor confidence that few could say they expected during his rookie year. Newton has thrown for 400 yards in every game not played in a monsoon and grinded his way to his first win last week.
There has been a lot of talk about Ron Rivera and Greg Olsen making their return to Chicago, but make no mistake about it, this game is all about Newton and how he performs against what should turn out to be one of the better defensive teams in the NFC.
6 Things to Watch
Bears out of balance
Will the return of Lance Louis and Marion Barber help a run game that averaged an embarrassing 8 inches per carry last week against the Packers?
No more Craig Steltz
The Bears defense should get a nice boost with the return of both opening day starting safeties Chris Harris and Major Wright.
See Cam throw...short?
The Bears do a great job at taking away the deep pass, which is precisely what Cam and Steve Smith (21.8 yards a catch) have been doing best. If the Bears do what they intend to do and stop the big play, will Cam have the patience to adapt and capitalize with sustained drives and shorter passes?
Chasing Cam
The Bears linebackers (specifically Urlacher) historically have had good success dealing with mobile quarterbacks. Then again, Urlacher (as good as he has played) has never been this old, and the opposing mobile quarterback has never been so young.
Big play Bears - it's gotta happen at some point.....right?
The Panthers have one of the youngest defenses in the league and have had a tendency to give up the big play. In their two losses, they have surrendered touchdown passes of 49, 55, 70, and 84 yards. They did fare better in the rain last week against the Jaguars, but still managed to give up a long (36 yard) “hail mary” touchdown to end the 1st half. Will the Bears and their JV offensive line and "worst receiving core in the NFL" (there I said it) be able to capitalize and continue this trend?
New Julius in Carolina
Jon Beason (121 tackle pro-bowl linebacker) is out for the season, but keep an eye out for Julius Peppers’ replacement, Charles Johnson, who had 11.5 sacks in 2010 and 3 more already this season.
The Prediction
This is an early season must-win home game for a reeling 1-2 Bears team trying to keep up with the Packers and a revitalized Detroit Lions. They should see the returns of Lance Louis, Marion Barber, Chris Harris, Major Wright, and Roy Williams (who apparently wasn’t healthy last week) Sunday. Despite how difficult it is for me to pick a Bears team with such a horrible offensive line and very few playmakers (few being Matt Forte), I am still convinced the Bears have the better team, specifically on defense. Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher will show up at home and bring Cam Newton back to reality.
Bears 24 Panthers 14
Week Five - College Football Picks
I am still bitter about last week’s lock of the week. For those of you that didn’t watch the high profile, showcased game up in Syracuse last Saturday (yes that is sarcasm), the Orangemen beat Toledo in overtime, but not without the help of the bungling referees calling a late extra point of Syracuse’s good without it ever going through the up rights. To make matters worse, the play was reviewed, and they still got it wrong! The Big East went as far as issuing a statement saying as such.
Regardless, I am over now (somewhat), however it still forces me to put an asterisk next to my 4-2* record last week. So for those of you counting, I am now 6-4 on the season and here’s what the slate looks like coming up this weekend:
14Texas A&M -2 ½ at 18Arkansas
Both squads are coming off of disappointing showings last week. The Aggies, however, had their game in hand with a 20-3 lead at the half with the 12th man at their back until Oklahoma St. exploded in the third quarter scoring 27 unanswered points and never looking back. Turnovers killed A&M in that game as four times they handed the ball over to the Cowboys. Arkansas was never really close with Bama and managed just 17 yards on the ground as they got trounced in Tuscaloosa.
So the future conference mates are both trying to avoid losing 2 in a row and they’ll be doing it at the 90,000 plus capacity Cowboy stadium in Arlington. If the Razorbacks hope to win, they need to get Ronnie Wingo going again, which means not getting down early and having to depend on first year starter Tyler Wilson to throw it all over the field. Big play guys like Cobi Hamiliton should also be more involved as he only managed 1 catch for 19 yards last week; they won’t beat A&M if their leading receiver is Wingo coming out of the backfield again.
As for the Aggies, stop turning the ball over! It looked like a circus in the third quarter last week and Ryan Tannehill seemed panicked as he threw the ball into coverage……over and over and over. He’s not poised in the pocket and already is two-thirds of the way to his interception total from last season. Additionally, A&M’s secondary was exposed for the sieve that it is and the safe bet hear is to take Arkansas with the points. They just simply have more talent.
Scott – Arkansas
Sef Sam Holy – Texas A&M
13Clemson +7 at 11VaTech
Wow! Where did Clemson come from? Seemingly out of nowhere, they have started 4-0, coming back to beat Auburn two weeks ago and dominating Florida State last week. They had more yards on FSU in the first half than Oklahoma had all game the previous week. Tajh Boyd lit up the sky for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns and no one was a more coveted target than Sammy Watkins who hauled in 7 catches for 141 and 2 scores. When we sprinkle in a little bit of Andre Ellington, it is easy to see why head coach Dabo Swinney can’t think of a better place to be than Death Valley, SC.
The Hokies, on the other hand, come into this game at an undefeated 4-0, but they aren’t battle tested. They have taken care of the likes of Appalachian St. and Arkansas St. and couple other who care’s as their current record is more a reflection of well…. Nothing. The Va Tech quarterback Logan Thomas is another one of those intimidating figures standing at 6 feet 6 inches tall and tipping the scales at 254, but he’s also an inexperienced first year starter who has as many touchdown passes as interceptions this year. He looked down right atrocious in his first two games against App St. and East Carolina throwing for a combined 240 yards and completing just 43.7% of his passes. Yes, he can get out and run on you a little bit, but he will be nursing a sprained shoulder this week and if he goes down, the Hokies will have to depend on red shirt freshman Mark Leal to get the job done. At just 6 feet tall, he’s built a little bit more like a Rex Grossman.
I like the dynamic athletes of Clemson in this one, and I think it’s a really safe bet to take the underdog here as well getting the 7 points in Blacksburg. Clemson is legit.
Scott – Clemson
Sef Sam Holy – Clemson
3Alabama -3 ½ at 12Florida
The Crimson Tide, once again, dominated a formidable opponent last week. The win was led by Trent Richardson having a monster game. The Bama junior had 126 yards on just 17 carries while adding 3 catches for 85 yards, one of which went for 61 and a touchdown. The long score came on the drive immediately following Marquis Maze’s 83 yard punt return as this game was about big plays and was no contest for the tide early in the third quarter.
Florida took care of business against Kentucky last week. The Charlie Weiss offense is doing everything that was expected of it as John Brantley continues to spread the ball around magnificently. But the storyline of this game is on the sideline. Nick Saban of Alabama will be facing off for the first time against his friend and former colleague, Will Muschamp. Muschamp was on Saban’s staff at LSU when he hired him away from Valdosta St. in 2000 and followed him briefly into the NFL during his short stint with the Miami Dolphins 2005. The two are quick to dismiss any familiarity advantage on either side, but the similarities in the styles of defenses between Florida and Alabama is hard to deny.
The coaching staff in Gainesville is the reason Florida will be hosting the Tide with an undefeated record. But the Gators lack the big play guys and just don’t have the talent at the skill positions that Alabama has. Although “The Swamp” is a difficult place to go into and win, I like the Tide to roll once again and cover the 3 ½ points this Saturday night.
Scott – Alabama
Sef Sam Holy - Florida
GAME OF THE WEEK
8Nebraska +9 at 7Wisconsin
This is the inaugural conference game for the Big Ten newcomers from Lincoln and what a way to start conference play. The Cornhuskers and Badgers both come into this game undefeated (which seems to be the theme this week) but it is Nebraska who has something to prove as they are nearly a 9 point underdog headed into Madison. Led by true sophomore Taylor Martinez, Bo Pelini’s team will have their work cut out for them against a Badger squad averaging over 48 points a game. But if we have learned anything by watching Nebraska this year, it is that Martinez has proven that he can both keep the ball on the ground as a dynamic runner as well as chuck the tater proficiently around the field. So despite the Husker QB being the leading rusher on the team, it is only by one yard as Martinez and tailback, Rex Burkhead, have virtually the same stat line. (Martinez has 63 carries for 421 yards and 7 td’s to Burkhead’s 63/421/7.) When you add Martinez’s 647 yards through the air, he has already amassed nearly 1000 yards of total offense through just 4 games.
The Husker issues come on the defensive side of the ball where the black shirts have given up lots of points to mediocre opponents. Fresno St and Washington put up 29 and 38 points respectively and that type of defense play simply won’t get the job done against Wisconsin. Russell Wilson, on the other hand, has already eclipsed the 1000 yard mark, albeit exclusively through the air with 1,136 yards passing and 11 touchdowns. Wilson’s success since transferring from NC State has been largely due to his poise inside the pocket along with his elusiveness when things break down. It doesn’t hurt to have the massive 6 foot 3 inch 220 lbs Nick Toon (son of legendary Badger Al Toon) on the other end of 21 of those passes and 5 of those touchdowns. But Wisconsin can run the ball too. Montee Ball and James White have amassed 663 yards on the ground combined which is very representative of a serviceable ground game.
This is a tough game to call, and not necessarily who is going to win, because it is obvious that Wisconsin is the better team. Russell Wilson is creeping up on Heisman lists, but Taylor Martinez, with which the entire Husker offense runs through, seems to get better every week. I believe Nebraska makes it a game in a losing effort and covers the spread. Badgers take it by one score.
Scott – Nebraska
Sef Sam Holy - Wisconsin
ITRIGUE OF THE WEEK
15Baylor -3 ½ at Kansas St.
Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III had that fantastic coming out party on the opening night of the college season against TCU, and since then, we really haven’t heard that much about him. This is mainly because Baylor has played the likes of Stephen F. Austin and Rice in the last two weeks and up until Kansas St. took it to Miami last week, this game looked to be much of the same. But the Wildcats looked good against Miami and no one looked better than low to the ground sophomore running back John Hubert who carried the ball 18 times for 166 yards and a score. If Kansas St. hopes to have a shot in this game, they will have to keep the ball on the ground and mix in some of that lead option they used against Miami with Quarterback Collin Klein.
The Bears will go through Griffin early and often, and expect them to try and do so through the air first. If they get a big lead it will be difficult for Kansas St. to come back. Klein is not that great of a passer and forcing him into passing situations is how Miami was able to get back in the game last week. Neither defense is anything to be excited about and I fully expect Baylor to cover the 3 ½ points at Bill Snyder Stadium in Manhattan, but this game will be a lot more interesting than pundits thought just one week ago.
Scott – Baylor
Sef Sam Holy - Baylor
LOCK OF THE WEEK
West Virginia -19 ½ at Bowling Green
The Mountaineers look to bounce back from laying an egg in front of their home crowd and I fully expect them to score first, and score often. Take W. Virgina as the lock of the week to cover the 19 ½ point spread.
Scott – West Virginia
Sef Sam Holy – West Virginia
A Great Night for Baseball
A night like this could not have been scripted. In fact, if Hollywood made a movie about the final day of the 2011 MLB baseball season, it would be stranger than fiction. But yet here we are. The St. Louis Cardinals were 8.5 games out of the Wild Card as the month of September began. The Tampa Bay Rays were 9 games back in the American League, and last night, the impossible became possible, as both teams will be playing playoff baseball later this week.
Unbelievable.
I honestly do not think I am overvaluing this in the slightest, but last night, the evening of September 28th, 2011 is the most incredible night of baseball games I have ever seen in my entire life. Aside from the fact that 2 of the largest late season collapses occurred side by side, this night produced excitement and intrigue that is sure to never be duplicated in my lifetime. The scene was set with four games controlling the destinies of 4 teams with just two playoff spots on the line.
Tensions swirled over Houston, Atlanta, St. Petersburg, and Baltimore while collective fans dramatically inhaled at around 7:05 eastern time and couldn’t have possibly let the air out of their lungs until just after midnight. The stage was set, with clubs at a deadlock atop the wild card standings in both leagues, MLB history could be made or at the very least we were all in for a wild ride. And for two cities and two fan bases, that exhale represented more than a tensionless sigh of relief, it represented an opportunity to continue to play baseball, if not for just a couple of more days. But for Boston and Atlanta, it was more like the wind had been knocked of them, and those two ball clubs will be spending the long offseason answering gut wrenching questions about how they could let this happen.
And what happened was a 13 inning marathon in Atlanta where the National League rookie of the year, who set a record with 46 saves his first season in the bigs, blew the one that really counted. What happened was a questionable call by Atlanta Manager Freddy Gonzalez in the top of the 13th to hold a runner on first with two outs and men at the corners. What eventually happened was representative of the scene inside the Brave’s dugout throughout what seemed the entire game, if not the entire month of September. The dejected and complacent faces of that team were not only omnipresent during tonight’s game, but it seemed to take the place of the young and scrappy mantra that was bestowed on Atlanta all year long. The fight went out of the Braves a long time ago, and even though they saw that the opportunity was in no one’s hands but their own as the scoreboard flashed a Cardinals 7-0 win over the Astros in about the 8th inning, the Braves couldn’t do anything about it. What’s worse was that there were no rally cries, no terms of endearment or encouragement towards each other, just simply a sigh and a realization that they would actually have to win to get into the playoffs. But nonetheless, the game was exciting. Once it ended, and right as the Cardinals began to celebrate in Houston with champagne and Budweiser baths, I glanced at the ticker across my television and noticed that the Rays had come back and tied the Yankees at 7.
What made the comeback even more improbable and exciting was the fact that Bronx Bombers jumped out on top of Tampa 7-0 led by two Mark Teixeira home runs, one of which being a grand slam in the second inning. David Price, the Rays’ ace, had to exit stage left after only 4 innings of work and sat and watched as the Rays went into the bottom of the 8th still down 7. At that point, Baltimore and Boston were in a rain delay at Camden yards where the Red Sox were nursing a one run lead. Baltimore had runners on base in every inning up to that point, but couldn’t manage to achieve that timely hit.
Let’s get back to St. Petersburg, the 8th began with a simple Johnny Damon single that was quickly followed by a Ben Zobrist double and all of sudden the Rays had a little something going with runners at the corners and no outs. Casey Kotchman was hit by a pitch and Sam Fuld managed a pinch hit walk with the bases loaded that plated Damon and the Rays were finally on the board. Next up, Sean Rodriguez, he gets plunked, and all of sudden the wheels began turning in my head about the fact that the Yankees were already on their 10th pitcher –yes I said 10—and this game could be within reach with one swing of the bat. The fact that New York had absolutely run the well dry with limited pitching options left if this actually became a game, represented how bad a manager Joe Girardi is and is a big reason for what transpired next. After a Desomnd Jennings strikeout and a BJ Upton sac fly, Evan Longoria hit a 3 run bomb! Seemingly out of nowhere the Rays are only down one run headed into the 9th.
Flash back to Baltimore where a few minutes later, the Red Sox and Orioles get back under way and the next couple of innings are virtually the same as before the delay. Both teams continue to strand base runners as the score remains Boston 3, Baltimore 2.
Fast forward to the bottom of the 9th in the Rays Yankees contest and manager Joe Maddon decides to send Dan Johnson to the plate to pinch hit for Sam Fuld with 2 outs. Johnson sends a laser over the right field wall and the Rays have done the unthinkable and tied the game at 7. We now head to extras in St. Petersburg…
An hour later, the Red Sox have taken their one run lead into the bottom of the ninth where Jonathan Papelbon is now on the mound in pursuit of his 32nd save of the season. After striking out Adam Jones and Mark Reynolds (big surprise) to start the inning, the game looks all but over, and the Red sox only angst now will come while scoreboard watching the Rays whose game against the Yankees has reached the 12th inning. The next batter however, Chris Davis, doubles to deep right and that’s followed up by a Reimold ground rule double and suddenly, the game is tied and the Orioles have a man in scoring position. The comeback was capped by Robert Andino’s single that scored Reimold from second and Boston’s scoreboard watching, as well as their season, took a turn for the worse… but they didn’t even really get a chance to look up and check the score of “the other game”…
Because 3 minutes later, as Boston was still gathering their belongings from the visitor’s dugout at Camden Yards and spitting in disgust, down in St. Petersburg Evan Longoria was doing it again and just barely poked the game winning walk-off homerun over the left field wall at Tropicana. It all happened so quickly, that the Rays bench caught wind of the BoSox loss as Longo was hitting, but he didn’t know until he crossed the plate. It was the perfect cap to an amazing night.
ESPN.com was quick to dub the evening 89 Minutes to History as that was the time that elapsed from 10:26 p.m. ET when the Cardinals cemented their victory in Houston to 12:05 a.m. ET when the never say die Rays completed their 12th inning miracle against the Yankees. History is exactly what it was as I am quite certain I will be telling this story to my grand kids. It was one of those epic baseball nights that will beckon feelings of nostalgia when my hair has gone gray and I am longing for the good old days. But most importantly, this Wednesday night represented what makes sports a love and passion to the athletes that play it. You play to win the game (thanks Herm), and if winning isn’t everything, if it isn’t the only thing, than perhaps you might be better off selling insurance. It is my strong belief that the teams that won tonight, the teams that made the playoffs, are the ones that wanted it the most. They are the ones that needed it the most, and the reason we will see the Rays in Texas, and the Cardinals in Philadelphia is because those teams are winners. Atlanta and Boston have no one to blame but themselves, but because I do not have an emotional dog in this fight, I was just happy to see the night live up to the hype and having me up and out of my chair at every turn. I went to bed dreaming about baseball tonight and Sef Sam Holy sent me a text earlier, after all the games had just ended that I think really sums it up and all it said was, “I’m so pumped for the playoffs now.”
What a great night for baseball…
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Ozzietown
Back in August, Bert Kolson and I debated, whether or not, Chicago was now a White Sox town. With Ozzie getting dealt to the Marlins Monday, the conversation and debate was once again discussed.
Here is the email conversation that led to this post, enjoy.
Bert Kolson
How much does that hurt the sox losing their most known entity?
Do you think that hurts their fan base?
Do you think that hurts their fan base?
Have they mentioned any names for replacement?
Do you still think they’re Chicago’s team even though the Cubs had 3 million in attendance this year and had a terrible team?
Sef Sam Holy
Do you think Ozzie Guillen going to the Marlins hurts the White Sox fan base? I think that’s a dumb question. Who was a White Sox fan because of their manager? Girls in other cities? White Sox fans care about winning, they show up to the Cell when the Sox are good. So no, I don’t think losing a character like Ozzie will affect attendance next season.
The names they have mentioned have been Buddy Bell, Sandy Alomar Jr, and Dave Martinez.
And I think today is a great example of why today is a White Sox town, look at the coverage this is getting in Chicago, and nationally. In the middle of a playoff race where two teams are choking away leads with two days left in the season, and baseball playoffs 4 days away, the baseball world’s biggest story is what the White Sox are going to do for their manager job. I don’t even think the Pinella situation with the Cubs that occurred last year even got ESPNChicago.com coverage, let alone, Good Morning America coverage the way Guillen was.
You emailing me about this also proves this is a White Sox town. Considering you haven’t sent one email out about the Cubs this year, you, and everyone else in Chicago pays more attention to the White Sox nowadays, more than they do with the Cubs. We already conceded that the Cubs will outdraw the White Sox when we had this discussion earlier this season. People go to Wrigley Field for an experience, it has nothing to do with more people being Cubs fans than Sox fans in the Chicagoland area. That’s like me saying, “Even with this horrible Sox team, they still finished 8-10 games ahead of the Cubs this year proving that this is a White Sox town.”
The debate is based on more than just attendance.
Scott Yasko
Even with the fear of being called a "stupid woman" for not having the same opinion as someone, I have to disagree with everyone in this case entirely.
Chicago is not a Sox or a Cubs town, it's a winning town. The team that is ALWAYS most popular is the one that has the best reputation of "what have you done for me lately." I saw this phenomenon when the Sox won the series in 05 and even again when the Hawks won the cup last year. People gravitate to where the fun and excitement is and nowhere is that more true than in Chicago.
When the Cubs were inches away in 03, they dominated the city; when the Sox won in 05, Konerko jerseys were everywhere; and last year, there were Hawk fans, who didn't even know what a blue line was 2 months before, hoisting Lord Stanley's cup.
Winning is a fad that the casual fan (the overwhelming majority) leaches on to. The die hard's bleed our team's colors and we wouldn't be designated as such if we didn't see the situation through blinders. The bottom line comes down to human nature: and everybody gravitates towards "the cool kid." And when a newer, cooler kid comes along, well, he takes all that love and attention away.
And as far as media coverage goes, Seth, I'm sorry man, but you're looking through blinders there too. Zambrano's final breakdown got just as much pub as Ozzie's exit this year, and Pinella stepping down last year was everywhere as well. And again, it's the “what have you done for me lately mentality” that blurs your vision as to the amount of media coverage given. This whole Guillen situation came out of nowhere and was a shock to Sox fans' systems, and perhaps that's why you see it as getting more coverage; but I humbly disagree.
As far as the effect on the team's outcome: minimal. A manager is only responsible for a handful of victories/losses a year and really are grossly overvalued in the American League.
Personally, I love Ozzie, and I'm going to miss him as a presence and voice around the organization. He wasn't always right and didn't always show tact, but he was passionate and fun, and more MLB personalities should be as approachable. So Monster, don't call him a clown or I'll send Seth with a bat over to your house.
Chicago is not a Sox or a Cubs town, it's a winning town. The team that is ALWAYS most popular is the one that has the best reputation of "what have you done for me lately." I saw this phenomenon when the Sox won the series in 05 and even again when the Hawks won the cup last year. People gravitate to where the fun and excitement is and nowhere is that more true than in Chicago.
When the Cubs were inches away in 03, they dominated the city; when the Sox won in 05, Konerko jerseys were everywhere; and last year, there were Hawk fans, who didn't even know what a blue line was 2 months before, hoisting Lord Stanley's cup.
Winning is a fad that the casual fan (the overwhelming majority) leaches on to. The die hard's bleed our team's colors and we wouldn't be designated as such if we didn't see the situation through blinders. The bottom line comes down to human nature: and everybody gravitates towards "the cool kid." And when a newer, cooler kid comes along, well, he takes all that love and attention away.
And as far as media coverage goes, Seth, I'm sorry man, but you're looking through blinders there too. Zambrano's final breakdown got just as much pub as Ozzie's exit this year, and Pinella stepping down last year was everywhere as well. And again, it's the “what have you done for me lately mentality” that blurs your vision as to the amount of media coverage given. This whole Guillen situation came out of nowhere and was a shock to Sox fans' systems, and perhaps that's why you see it as getting more coverage; but I humbly disagree.
As far as the effect on the team's outcome: minimal. A manager is only responsible for a handful of victories/losses a year and really are grossly overvalued in the American League.
Personally, I love Ozzie, and I'm going to miss him as a presence and voice around the organization. He wasn't always right and didn't always show tact, but he was passionate and fun, and more MLB personalities should be as approachable. So Monster, don't call him a clown or I'll send Seth with a bat over to your house.
C-Murder
The White Sox are not just a sports team, they are a brand. Over time, and especially In the years after the 05 world series, Ozzie became the brand.
He is one of those rare polarizing figures that can do that, similar to Ditka in a way, but with Twitter. 15% of why the Marlins hired him was for his managing ability (as good as he may be) and 85% was for his aura; his ability to build a new Marlins/Ozzie brand. It has very little to do with baseball.
The Sox were much more relevant in losing seasons because of Ozzie and his personality. When you are relevant, when you are getting attention, it's good for a brand. Losing him forces the Sox to rely much more on winning and on its players to stay relevant. Ozzie was just a nice distraction when things were not going well. It looks like the Sox new brand ambassador is going to have to be a player.
The Bulls brand is D-Rose, the Cubs are Wrigley Field, and the Sox (more recently) were built around Ozzie. You won't be able to easily quantify what losing Ozzie really means, but it will be interesting to see if the Sox upward arrow of general interest (locally and nationally) will continue without him.
Week in Review - How Did We Do?
Every week at Mustache Sports, we take a look at the previous weekend to see how we did in giving you our prognostication.
Week 4 – College Football Picks
See, we told you so
Scott and I were each 4-2 this weekend against the spread. We both agree, and correctly picked, Bama, LSU, and Oklahoma State.
In my opinion, LSU should be ranked number one right now. Led by Tyrann Mathieu, the best defensive playmaker in the country (and by far the guy I would least want to fight in all of college sports), the LSU defense is fast and relentless. Through 4 games, the Tigers have only given up 213 yards rushing and they’ve had to go against guys like LaMichael James, Darron Thomas, Chris Relf, and Vick Ballard. Their offensive domination is done in a way that most people won’t find sexy; not turning the ball over (only 3 in 4 games) and punting on 4th down. Jarrett Lee has only thrown 1 pick in 87 drop backs and is doing everything Les Miles has asked him. The Tigers still have games to play against Florida, at Tennessee, Auburn, at Alabama, Arkansas, and possibly South Carolina, or Florida again, so I don’t think they run the table. But I’m starting to see why a one loss SEC team deserves to be in the National Championship Game more than an undefeated Boise State, Pac-12, or ACC team.
Please don’t hear me say Alabama sucks because I think they are ridiculously good. And I’m not saying Bama doesn’t have a chance when they play LSU in a month, they absolutely do and will probably be favored in that game. I just believe, after watching LSU three times and Alabama twice, LSU is better.
It’s like me saying Jordan is better than Kobe. I’m not saying Kobe sucks, I’m just saying, the best player of all time, is better than him.
I hope both squads get past Florida these next two weeks and we go into November 5th with all eyes on what happens in Tuscaloosa. The winner that night, most likely, punches their ticket to New Orleans and the BCS National Championship Game.
Ok, so we are idiots
Florida State has killed both of us these past two weeks. I don’t really want to talk about another FSU loss at Clemson, especially when FSU is clearly a more talented team, so I won’t. It’s my blog, if you want to read about Clemson football, go somewhere else.
Scott Yasko – 4-2 (6-4)
Sef Sam Holy – 4-2 (6-4)
Week 3 – NFL Picks
See, we told you so
Monster and I were both right about the Vikings +4 and Ravens -4 and that’s it. It’s worth it to note that we only agreed on 6 games all together.
I said before this season began that the Vikings are a 5 win team. They have started 0-3 and I’m starting to think I’m actually wrong about them. I watched the Lions Vikings on Sunday and Minnesota should have won that game. I know Vikings fans will say that about the Bucs (didn’t see the game so I won’t give an opinion) and Chargers (I did watch that and never thought, even when the Vikings were up 10 at halftime, the Vikings were going to win), but last Sunday, it was absolutely the case. If AP gets the rock 10 times in the second half, including the 4th and 1 play, Detroit doesn’t have enough time to ever catch up.
Now, as a Bears fan, am I going to sit around and feel sorry for Vikings fans? No, I’m enjoying this second half collapse thing they have going on. My point is, the Vikings are better than 0-3, and I think, better than 5-11. I can find at least 6 wins on their schedule (at KC, Arizona, at Carolina, Denver, at Washington, and Chicago) and I’d be willing to bet someone $20 that they win one of the following games; Green Bay, at Green Bay, Oakland, at Detroit, New Orleans, at Chicago. Now, if they do all that, they finish 7-9, good for 3rd in the NFC North.
Ok, so we are idiots
Monster are I both incorrectly picked the Eagles -7.5, Falcons +1, Cardinals -3.5, and Steelers -11. Vegas, once again, shows up Mustache Sports.
I really hate NFL Power Rankings. There are dumb for a variety of reasons, but my biggest beef with them is the inaccuracy they spew and the way Power Rankers mercilessly defend their points even after they are wrong. If I’m ever wrong about something, I’ll admit it and do so right away. I mean, everything we talk about on this site is in one way or another related to giving you our predictions and then letting you know how those predictions went. Nothing makes someone look more like a jerk than when they won’t admit when they are wrong.
The Steelers are one of those teams that Power Rankers will have in their top 10 even though they have looked really horrible through two weeks. And do you know why they will have them in their top 10? Because they are the Steelers and they ranked them in their top 10 before the season started. That’s it. That’s all that team has going for them through three weeks. Their offensive line is horrible, their defense is old and not as deep as it normally is, Rashard Mendenhall can’t find a hole to run through, and Big Ben looks Eli Manningish.
So let’s be bold and do what we did with the Vikings, only this time, I’m going to assume the Steelers do, what most teams that lose the Super Bowl do, suck the next year. I see 9-7 for this team, missing the playoffs, and finishing outside of Peter King’s Fine Fifteen. They have 3 really obvious losses on their schedule (at Houston, New England, Baltimore) and I think they split with the Browns putting them at 5 losses. Is it possible for a team that was a 4th quarter defensive touchdown away from losing to the Colts to lose 2 of the following games? They play Tennessee, Jacksonville, at Arizona, at Cincinnati, at Kansas City, Cincinnati, at 49ers, and Rams. Yes, and I say those loses come to the Titans and 49ers with maybe losses at Cincy and at Arizona.
What the hell is a maybe loss? Don’t be a jerk, I meant they are losable games. Like, the Bears playing the Panthers this week is a losable game. It’s a game they should win, but if they lost, it wouldn’t surprise me. That’s what a maybe loss is ya nerd.
C-Murder – 10-5 (18-12-1)
Sef Sam Holy – 8-8 (24-22-2)
Monster – 6-10 (12-19-1)
Bert Kolson – 0-0 (16-14-2)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)