Baseball needs change, but MLB is changing the wrong parts

Posted on October 20, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

Right before the World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Los Angeles Dodgers got started this evening from Arlington, Texas, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred met with the media and talked about possibly making permanent some of the changes he made for the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Specifically, he mentioned the expanded postseason field and playing extra innings with a runner starting on second base.

“I like the idea of, and I’m choosing my words carefully here, an expanded playoff format,” Manfred said. “I don’t think we would do 16 like we did this year. I think we do have to be cognizant of making sure that we preserve the importance of our regular season. But I think something beyond the 10 that we were at would be a good change.”

With the added runner rule, the longest of 68 games of 10 innings or longer were a pair of 13-inning contests, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

“I think the players like it,” Manfred said. “I think it’s really good from a safety and health perspective that keeps us from putting players in situations where they’re out there too long or in positions they’re not used to playing.”

I can’t imagine that changes like these would be tough to get approved by the Players Association because players like collecting postseason checks and also like not playing baseball until one o’clock in the morning. As far as what’s best for the game, though, I’m not so sure.

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Dodgers win National League pennant to set up rags vs. riches World Series

Posted on October 19, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

If you were busy being disappointing at Jared Goff and the Los Angeles Rams last night while they lost to the San Francisco 49ers despite being gifted many opportunities in the second half to get back into the game, you might have missed an exciting Game 7 of the National League Championship Series.

Don’t worry, I didn’t. I tuned in for the best parts of the baseball game, which was better than the football game that had zero good parts. The Atlanta Braves, who at one point led the series 3-1 before the Los Angeles Dodgers stormed back and forced a winner-take-all finale, got up early 2-0 thanks to an RBI single by Marcell Ozuna and a solo home run from Dansby Swanson.

The 2017 and 2018 NL pennant winners wouldn’t stay down for long, though. Los Angeles evened things up on on two-RBI single by Will Smith in the third, but Atlanta went back ahead when Austin Riley drove in Ozzie Albies in the fourth. The Braves were in control again, but baseball fans everywhere could feel the momentum shift when Mookie Betts made the catch of his life in the fifth.

https://twitter.com/jgroc/status/1318013573570957313
https://twitter.com/jgroc/status/1318013976391913472

Kike Hernandez made the score 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth with a solo shot, and the Dodgers came inches away from taking the lead in the same inning. However, Chris Taylor was cut down at the plate on a ground ball by Albies.

Great job by my guy Travis d’Arnaud to legally block the plate and leave no doubt that Taylor was meat. For a moment, it looked like the Braves were back in the driver’s seat, but we’re not in the 1990s anymore with Atlanta winning the pennant every other year. This is Los Angeles’s era and Cody Bellinger made sure everyone knew it.

I don’t think anyone minds Bellinger pimping a home run if it wins the freaking pennant, and that’s exactly what that blast did. The Dodgers’ bullpen held up with Julio Urias retiring the final nine Braves in a row to secure the team’s third trip to the World Series in the last four seasons.

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The Jets give up on Le’Veon Bell before he’s even halfway through his four-year deal

Posted on October 14, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

That sound you just heard was the shrugging of the shoulders from thousands of Jets fans across the country as their hapless team announced that it was releasing starting tailback Le’Veon Bell. This is the same Le’Veon Bell that the Jets signed to a four-year, $52.5 million contract before the 2019 season. In Bell’s one full season with New York, he averaged 3.2 yards per carry and the Jets won seven games.

Yeesh. They probably could have ended that statement after “both parties” because Douglas knows he will look like a fool if Bell goes on to rush for 1,200 yards for some other team.

This was the guy who was supposed to help out quarterback Sam Darnold and be a multi-faceted offensive weapon. We knew Bell’s days of averaging five yards per tote and catching 70 passes were behind him, but not THIS far behind him. It’s not as though other NFL teams are chomping at the bit waiting for him to officially hit free agency. In fact, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk thinks that the Jets are still trying to find a trade partner even though they already announced Bell’s release.

His release won’t become official until Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. ET. Before then, a team that hopes to secure dibs on Bell can try to work out a deal pursuant to which the Jets would get something/anything and the Jets would pay the difference between the amount the new team is willing to pay Bell and the balance of his 2020 compensation.

I don’t know if there’s a contending team that’s desperate enough at tailback to give the Jets a deal. Maybe the 2-3 Miami Dolphins fit into that category considering how little they’ve gotten out of Jordan Howard and Matt Breida, but they seen content enough with Myles Gaskin at the moment.

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Dak Prescott’s injury is worse than a cramp, but he can still get that contract he’s after

Posted on October 12, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

Something terrible happened on Sunday, and it may have even been worse than the Los Angeles Lakers winning their 17th NBA title while LeBron James got to be the hero again. Dak Prescott suffered a gruesome compound fracture of his right ankle during the Dallas Cowboys’ dramatic 37-34 win over my New York Football Giants.

Midway through the third quarter with Dallas ahead 24-23, Prescott took the ball on a quarterback draw and was dragged down by Logan Ryan after a nine-yard gain. We knew something was wrong with Prescott right away when he grabbed for his leg, but we didn’t know how wrong it was until the CBS broadcast showed the zoomed-in angle of his foot pointing in the wrong direction.

Tony Romo got roasted on Twitter for his “Gee, Jim, I hope it’s just a cramp” from the broadcast booth, but it really was hard to see how serious the situation was at first glance. Prescott grabbed at his calf like he had just tweaked something. It was until a moment later that everyone realized how badly he was injured.

It took some time for the official diagnosis to be released, but everyone already knew that Prescott’s season was over and that the Cowboys would have to go forward with Andy Dalton under center. Dalton, as experienced as he is, might not be much of an obstacle when it comes to Dallas making the playoffs. For one, he has plenty of experience leading teams to the playoffs (although none actually winning playoff games). More importantly, the NFC East is the worst division in football and Dalton is still good enough to lead the Cowboys to the top of the scrap heap.

The Red Rifle got off to a rough start following his unexpected appearance. His first two full series consisted of a three-and-out and a botched snap, but after the Giants took advantage of the fumble and went ahead 34-31, Dalton led Dallas on consecutive field goal drives to win the game. He was particularly impressive on the final possession, hitting Michael Gallup twice in a row down the field to set up the game-winning kick.

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The Lakers win the NBA Finals, LeBron James campaigns against love

Posted on October 12, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

The Miami Heat had a great run in the NBA bubble as a plucky underdog that made it all the way to the NBA Finals. Erik Spoelstra is clearly one of the top coaches in the world, and Jimmy Butler is having his superstar status reevaluated. However, on Sunday night, the Heat’s story came to an end with a thud as they were bopped on the head by the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 6 of the Finals. The win clinched the series as the championship for the Lakers, who now have 17 world titles in their glorious history.

I haven’t looked it up officially, but I can tell you that LeBron James won the Finals MVP award. He racked up a triple-double in the final game and got a lot of help from Rajon Rondo, who scored 19 points with four assists off the bench. Los Angeles won 106-93, but the game wasn’t even that close. This one was settled by the second quarter.

James now has four NBA titles to go with 10 Finals appearances and somehow only four MVP awards. It’s hard to argue that he’s not one of the two finest basketball players of all time. Off the court, he’s more than a little obnoxious, but he can do what he wants; he’s the champ. My issue with the James discussion is that sometimes people let James’s actions off the court influence their opinion of him as a player on the court. That’s only going to get more convoluted after his controversial comments on Sunday night.

Push FOR social injustice? For police brutality? For voter suppression? Against love and all that is good in this world? What happened to the LeBron James that I used to know. He used to love kindness, virtue and being a beacon of hope for all mankind (and womankind). Now he’s just another puppet on China’s strings. Very sad!

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The ALCS will begin without the New York Yankees on Sunday

Posted on October 11, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

The ALCS will begin on Sunday night in San Diego, but the preseason American League favorite will not be taking part. That’s right, the New York Yankees were eliminated from World Series contention on Friday night in Game 5 of the ALDS. The Tampa Bay Rays play a perfect foil for the Yankees because they’re a small-market team with a limited budget and few die-hard fans. Yet, thanks to their brilliant management, they compete, and in this case defeat, the super popular and star-studded pinstripe brigade.

The deciding game figured to be tight with aces Gerrit Cole and Tyler Glasnow going head to head. However, Glasnow gave way to Nick Anderson with one out in the third inning as part of Tampa Bay’s unorthodox pitching strategy. The Rays split nine innings between their top four pitchers with Glasnow and Anderson covering the first five before Peter Fairbanks and Diego Castillo took over for the final four. The idea was to make sure no Yankees hitter saw a Rays pitcher more than once, and it worked with New York scoring just one run on an Aaron Judge home run off of Anderson in the fourth.

Tampa Bay threatened in the first inning when Cole walked two batters and hit another, but they didn’t score until the fifth when Austin Meadows came through with a solo home run to tie the game. There weren’t many opportunities for either side after that. In fact, the entire game featured a total of just six hits and seven walks with all the runs coming on three solo shots.

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Smitty is the Barstool champion of Verdansk, White Sox Dave gets Utz to bend the knee

Posted on October 8, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

When you call yourself “General,” you’ve got to prove that you can lead men, and Smitty of Barstool Sports did that last night when he led Robbie Fox and Rudy Junda to victory in the Battle of Barstool two-hour Call of Duty Warzone kill race.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for General Smitty, as there were distractions to deal with. Fox, for example, kept getting comms interference from San Diego, where his precious New York Yankees were getting pounded by a team with less than half its payroll.

Poor Masahiro Tanaka wasn’t the only victim of Tampa Bay’s tater assault. Smitty was losing soldiers left and right, but he still clutched his way to victory thanks to his heart, nerves, and sheer gumption. Plus, the team of Hank Lockwood, Glenny Balls, and Billy Football could literally not get out of its own way.

That is a one-way tunnel, Balls! This is just one example of how the General’s leadership is often underrated and rarely appreciated. He’s always in Verdansk with the Balls! When Glenny is in a solo game like Fall Guys, he’s composed and poised for victory. In team games like COD? We get a big dose of chaos, smothered in dysfunction sauce. He’s still such a young Balls, so there’s a chance that Glenny learns to play well with others in the future.

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Lakers take 3-1 lead in NBA Finals as Tyler Herro hits the backdoor cover shot of the year

Posted on October 7, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

Betting on sports isn’t always the most fun time in the world. It can get frustrating, aggravating, and downright sad. However, there are some communal moments that can make it all worth it. Whether you’re on the winning side or the losing side, having just a few friends or thousands of internet strangers to celebrate or commiserate with enhances the experience. We had one of those moments last night in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

With the Heat trailing the Lakers two games to one and making a push to even the series, the game was competitive throughout. Late in the fourth quarter, the Lakers finally pulled away with two clutch baskets by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and a dagger three by Anthony Davis to go ahead by nine. That shot by Davis was especially big for gamblers because of the 7.5-point spread on the game.

What happened next had to be one of the most thrilling back-and-forth sequences in wagering history. First, Jimmy Butler dunked the ball to pull Miami back within seven. With 25 seconds left, the Lakers threw the ball away to give the Heat a chance to get even closer, but Davis made another huge play by cleanly blocking Butler’s layup attempt. The Lakers then appeared set to dribble out the clock, but Duncan Robinson ran over and fouled LeBron James to give the Heat one more chance to cover the spread.

James hit both free throws to put the game away, but Miami wasn’t done yet. The Heat ran a little double screen hand-off for Tyler Herro and he fired a three-point shot over Anthony Davis with three seconds to play.

The only thing missing for one of the most pivotal shots in NBA history was the signature Mike Breen “BANG!” Give us a little something, Mike! Even though you couldn’t tell the significance of Herro’s shot from the television coverage, Twitter was a different story, with bettors exploding with either glee or devastation.

https://twitter.com/StuartFeiner/status/1313686611889213440?s=20

Felt like Stu was asking for that one, but he’ll be okay. Gambling is weird sometimes because many people like Stu would just go about their business if the actual basketball game was close (hey, that’s what moneyline bets are for), but in a nine-point game that was essentially over, people were losing their minds.

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Nintendo will show off Pikmin 3 Deluxe and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity at Treehouse event

Posted on October 7, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

Nintendo announced today that they will be playing upcoming releases Pikmin 3 Deluxe and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity in Nintendo Treehouse: Live on Wednesday afternoon. Both games, as well as the Pokemon DLC known as The Crown Tundra are expected to anchor the gaming giant’s holiday sales. I blogged the other day about how excited I am about The Crown Tundra. I wish I could match that enthusiasm for the two full titles.

The original Pikmin 3 was released seven years ago and this version will have extra content, but really it’s just another Wii U relic that Nintendo is reintroducing because not many people bought a Wii U. Age of Calamity is a brand new game that promises to build on the story from Breath of the Wild, but it’s also not a true Zelda game with lots of hack-and-slash button mashing instead of exploration and puzzle solving.

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NFL Week 4 Sunday roundup starring Justin Herbert and Stefon Diggs

Posted on October 5, 2020 by Aaron Yorke

The one thing I learned about the NFL on Sunday is that I know nothing about the NFL. I knew that the Cardinals laying three points to the lowly Panthers was too good to be true, but I laid the points anyway because there was no way that Kyler Murray was going to turn the ball over like he did against Detroit for the second straight week and the Panthers may have defeated the Chargers, but Arizona’s offense was a whole different animal.

To be fair, Murray didn’t throw any interceptions, but he did lose a fumble while only averaging 4.3 yards per pass attempt. Meanwhile, Teddy Bridgewater continued to look like a bona-fide starter, leading a balanced attack while pushing the ball downfield with Jets castoff Robbie Anderson.

I also thought the Texans were an easy pick because they were desperate for a win and had played one of the league’s toughest schedules so far. Surely the terrible Vikings would provide an opportunity for Bill O’Brien’s team to get back on track. Nope, and they aren’t O’Brien’s team anymore, either. Deshaun Watson played a pretty good game, but it was Kirk Cousins and Minnesota who got back on track. Houston’s defense isn’t what it used to be, and Cousins torched it for 260 yards on only 22 throws. Adam Thielen and rookie Justin Jefferson both gained more than 100 receiving yards, and Dalvin Cook was a bell cow on the ground.

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