LKS AL First Round Picks

This is my first post on the site about baseball. I chose to refrain from writnig anything up until this point since the Cubs were eliminated from the playoff race on aproximately April 17th. I watched the "Catching Hell" ESPN movie about Steve Bartman last night however, so what better way to get ready for playoff baseball than reopening old playoff war wounds and in the process sleeping 13 hours to combat depression thinking about that shit again. At least there are other teams that actually have a chance to win it all, so without further ado, here's my unscientific, non-sabermetric breakdown as to how I think the first round will play out.

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Texas- Tampa Bay:

Starting Pitching: I thought Joe Maddon would take a page out of the 2008 Rays playbook and use Matt Moore the same way he used David Price, pitching him multiple innings out of the bullpen. Instead he's starting him IN GAME 1. Everything the aging hipster has done this last month has worked, so I wouldn't be shocked if Moore came out and dominated like he did in his only start of the year against the Yankees. The Rays will go with Moore (1-0, 2.89 ERA), James Shields (16-12, 2.82), David Price (12-13, 3.49) and Jeremy Hellickson (13-10, 2.95). Texas counters with C.J.Wilson (16-7, 2.94), Derek Holland (16-5, 3.95), Colby Lewis (14-10, 4.40), and Matt Harrison (14-9, 3.39). Shields has been the best pitcher out of all of the above this year, with Price being the X-factor. If he pitches like he's capable of, and Moore gives them a quality start in game 1, the Rays have a great chance. Holland pitched extremely well out of the bullpen in last season's World Series appearance, but i don't like Colby Lewis. He gave up a whopping 35 HR's on the season, and is the clear weak link. Advantage: Tampa Bay

Bullpen: Texas made themselves considerably better at the trade deadline when they went out and got Mike Adams and Koji Uehara. They've combined for a 2.89 ERA and a 0.85 WHIP with an 8 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio since coming over from San Diego and Baltimore respectively. In terms of closers, I'd be more comfortable with Kyle Farnsworth than Neftali Feliz right now however. Tampa's other relief pitchers are largely unproven outside of J.P. Howell, who had a horrible year coming off of an injury. Advantage: Texas

Lineups: Breaking it down position by position, I'd give Texas the edge in every spot other than DH (Damon over Torrealba), 2B (Zobrist barely over Kinsler), and LF (Jennings over Gentry). Mike Napoli hit 30 HR's, Josh Hamilton is Josh Hamilton, and then they also have Michael Young (213 hits, 106 RBI's), Adrian Beltre, Elvis Andrus, and Nellie Cruz. The only potential problem is being a little bit overly right-handed. Tampa has to hope that B.J.Upton hits like he did in 2008, and that they can manufacture runs in the running game. Advantage: Texas

Managers: Joe Maddon is the best manager in baseball. That being said, Ron Washington doesn't exactly suck either. He handled the problems with Michael Young in spring training, and put the foot on the gas pedal as they took the Angels out of contention with a 19-6 September. Both teams will run, but Wash does it more judiciously. I'd give the slight edge to Maddon, but I don't see Washington exactly ruining anything.
Advantage: Tampa Bay

I'm rooting for the Rays here, as they've become my favorite AL team with Boston becoming more and more like the Yankees with each passing day. They can win if their starters can dominate like San Fran did last year, and if Maddon continues to push every single right button. I just think Texas has the better lineup, and just enough pitching to get by. Pick: Texas in 4

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Detroit-Yankees

Starting Pitching: Virginia's own Justin Verlander gets all of the pub, and rightly so with borderline MVP season, but getting Doug Fister from the Mariners was the clear-cut steal of the deadline. Fister went 8-1 with a 1.79 ERA, a sub 1 WHIP, and a Cliff Leeesque 10.4 K to walk ratio since coming over from Seattle. This lets questionable at best starters Max Scherzer and Rick Porcello pitch in the 3 and 4 spots, where against the Yankees, enables the Tigers to have a clear advantage. The Yankees have basically one sure thing in C.C.Sabathia (19-8, 3.00), a promising rookie that could be a question mark (Ivan Nova, 16-4, 3.70), and an old guy who arguably pitched over his head in Freddy Garcia (12-8, 3.62). I think Detroit has a clear advantage. Advantage: Detroit

Bullpen: Jose Valverde hasn't blown a save all season, but even with his cute little dance moves that have probably infuriated many a batter throughout the season, he's still not Mariano Rivera in the postseason. David Robertson might be the best 8th inning guy in the league, and I actually like A.J.Burnett as a reliever. I think his sometimes unhittable stuff plays a lot better in that role than as a 6 inning starter. Joaquin Benoit has pitched better as of late, but I don't trust anyone else. Advantage: Yankees

Lineups: Outside of Boston, the Yankees have maybe the best offense in all the land. They work pitchers into deep counts, can hit for power, and also have the Brett Gardner's of the world to steal bases. Detroit too has a potent 1-9, but have some holes with Brandon Inge, Magglio Ordonez and Austin Jackson all having the potential to combine to go 4-30 in a series. The Yankees also have rookie Jesus Montero lurking on the bench if Posada struggles. Advantage: Yankees

Managers: As a former athlete, I tend to base coaching/managerial comparisons on "who would I want to play for." Do I want to play for a mans man who chain smokes Marlboro Reds and seemingly doesn't take any shit from anyone, or a guy who looks like he weighs 143 pounds, and whines like a little girl when the Orioles don't reschedule rainouts to his liking. Girardi used to play for the Cubs, so one would think I'd like him, but despite winning it all in 2009, I still would prefer to have Leyland in a pinch. Advantage: Tigers

  In this case, instead of hitting trumping pitching, I like Detroit's advantage in the starting pitching department more than the advantage the Yankees have hitting Fister is the key, if he and Verlander can shut the Yanks down and at least gain a split in New York, the Tigers will take it. I don't see Verlander getting beat twice. The Pick: Tigers in 5

College Football Quick Picks: Week 3

If using these as a guide in terms of real gambling, it would probably be wise to take what I say and run in the other direction. Especially with my track record on this site (see Fighting Irish, Notre Dame). Regardless, here's a look at an intriging slate of games this third week of the season.

Auburn at Clemson (-3.5): In the battle of two teams with the same nickname, I'd have to go with Auburn here. Even with the losses from last year, getting that win against a good Miss St. team  last week shows that they have enough left to still have a solid season. The ACC is down, and Clemson barely beat Wofford last week. (Auburn 35, Clemson 28)

West Virginia at Maryland (E): I was able to taunt my boy who's a WVU alum last week after the first half score read Norfolk St.12, West Virginia 10. The 'Neers then went on a 45-0 run in the second half. Two good QB's in this one with Geno Smith and Danny O'Brien more than likely putting up huge numbers. WVU struggles as they look past the Terps and whatever god-awful unis they bust out, but right the ship in the second half once again. (WVU 45, Maryland 35)


Tennessee at Florida (-9.5): Tennessee has the best QB they've had since this dude named Peyton Manning was around. Tyler Bray put up 400 yards last week against a decent Cincy team, and I'm not sold on Florida, or Florida's defense still trying to replace the booted Janoris Jenkins, and the graduated Ahmad Black out of the secondary. If this game was in Knoxville, I'd have the balls to go with UT here. It's in The Swamp however, so Florida will squeak by after Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps save the day with a combined 3 TD's. (Florida 27, Tennessee 24)

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Michigan State at Notre Dame (-5): It's unbelieveable that this spread is where it is. To quote my little brother: "God Bless all these Midwest Catholics going to Vegas and moving the line." I spoke at length about Notre Dame already on this site. I still believe in them. Michigan State is impressive with WR B.J. Cunningham off to a great start, and a D lead by DT Jerel Worthy. They won't win in South Bend however as Notre Dame finally puts everything together. (Notre Dame 27, Mich St. 17)

Ohio St at Miami (Fla) (-2.5): I'm sure there are plenty of cute little nicknames one could come up with for this one, but I'm barely awake right now. So we'll go with "The Scholarship Reduction Bowl". The NCAA's two favorite teams right now battle it out in Coral Gables, with Miami getting the majority of their suspended playmakers back. Ohio State is still missing their best RB and WR, plus DE Nathan Williams is out with an injury. I look for the U to take advantage of having everybody back. (Miami 24, Ohio St. 14)

Oklahoma at Florida St. (+3): The game of the week and the 2nd top 5 battle in three weeks is the biggest game of Jimbo Fisher's tenure in Tallahassee. After Oklahoma kicked the living shit out of the Noles last year in Norman, I expect things to be different this year. E.J. Manuel has gotten off to a great start throwing the ball to a multitude of dfferent receivers. This one is going to be a track meet even though both squads have decent defenses. I can see it being a very high scoring first half, followed by the D's settling down a little in the 2nd, causing some turnovers. I give Oklahoma the nod because of the combo of Landry Jones and Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma 38. FSU 31)


                                                  Player Rankings:
    I started doing this last year on the LCB website, as I brilliantly dubbed my "Stonebreaker Award" the Defensive Heisman. I didn't think there was an award for Defensive Player of the Year, even though there is. It was informative however tracking the stats each week, as it led me to see the impact players like Nick Fairley on and week to week basis. This year, I'm also looking at Offensive stats, so here's how the rankings play out after the first two weeks of the season.

QB's

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1. Taylor Martinez, Nebraska           
2. Brandon Weedon, Oklahoma St.
3. Geno Smith, WVU
4. Chris Relf, Miss. St.
5. Landry Jones, Oklahoma

RB's
1. Joseph Randle, Oklahoma St.
2. Vic Ballard, Miss St.
3. David Wilson, VT
4. Marcus Lattimore, South Carolina
5. Chris Rainey, Florida

WR's
1. Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma St.
2. Jairus Wright, Arkansas
3. Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma
4. B.J. Cunningham, Michigan St.
5. Robert Woods, USC

Defense

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1. Antonio Allen, South Carolina
2. Tyron Mathieu, LSU
2. Cameron Meredith, Nebraska
4. Andrew Sweat, Ohio St.
4. Chase Thomas, Stanford
6. Markelle Martin, Oklahoma St.
7. Frank Alexander, Oklahoma
8. Michael Clay, Oregon
8. Tony Jerod-Eddie, Texas A&M
10. Shea McClellin, Boise St.

QB's: Martinez and Relf lead the cause of the dual threat signal callers, although Relf will probably fall out of the top 5 after his dealings with LSU on Thursday night. Landry Jones cracks the top 5 even though the Sooners did not play last week.

RB's: I'd never heard of Randle or Ballard until the sesaon started. David Wilson is averaging 150 yards for a Tech team that has struggled to throw the ball so far. Ditto for Rainey as he leads the Gators in both rushing and receiving, with 4 TD's as well.

WR's: Blackmon and Broyles are both early season Heisman candidates who've gotten off to excellent starts, while Wright spearheads a Razorback offense that hasn't missed a beat despite losing Ryan Mallett and Knile Davis.

Defense: There are bigger names on the Gamecocks D, and freshman Jadevon Clowney has been every bit as good as advertised (#14 in my rankings). Allen however has 22 tackles, and Int, 2 Forced fumbles, and 1.5 Tackles for Loss, combined with 2 touchdowns. Mathieu leads an incredible secondary for the Bayou Bengals, while DL's Tony Jerod-Eddie and Frank Alexander make the cut despite only playing one game.

Why Notre Dame Will Still Make a BCS Bowl

     This is some seriously optimistic propaganda from someone who repeatedly gets kicked in the testicles by his favorite sports teams, and by life in general (hence the name of the site). However, after watching the DVR replay late Saturday night after work of the ND-USF game, then continuing on to http://www.nbcsports.com/ because mother nature wanted to make it a 6 hour game to fuck with my head a little further, I came to some conclusions. Namely, I don't think a team could have played any worse, still having a chance to win against a quality opponent than the Irish on Saturday. Notre Dame didn't open up against Missouri St, Florida Atlantic, or Chattanooga like some of their brethren in the top 25 did. Against some of those teams, they would have had the luxury of losing the turnover battle 5-0, committing 8 penalities, and missing a chip shot field goal. They played scared, basically having what amounts to a collective panic attack in front of 80.795 people and countless more watching on tv. Here's my take on why they'll come back from this stinkbomb of a performance and come back stronger.

     The Irish literally moved the ball at will for the majority of the game. They outgained South Florida 508-254. Michael Floyd proved to be virtually unstoppable, and as teams key on stopping him, they have two more WR's (T.J. Jones and Theo Riddick), and a quality TE in Tyler Eifert to take the pressure off. In addition, Cierre Wood ran more over 100 yards, basically in the first half as ND had to take to the air for most of the 2nd half. Eliminate the turnovers and this can be an unstoppable offense, whether its Tommy Rees or Dayne Crist running the show.

     Defensively, Man'ti Teo and the boys really only gave up 13 points to a team with a skilled dual-threat QB, and some speedy receivers. If they only give up 13 a game all year, and can sprinkle in a couple of turnovers, continuing to play some true freshmen from Coach Brian Kelly's top 10 recruiting class, they'll win pretty much every game this year from here on out.

     The majority of College Football had their responses ready post defeat, with all the "Notre Dame is overrated again" and "please stop talking about an irrelevant team"  bullshit the haters all across the country like to spew upon the Yankees of college football. I'd simply combat that by saying it's a long season. It's far better to play your worst game early, then get on a roll. If the Irish can win against Michigan, Michigan St. and Pitt, they'll be right back in the top 15, with a chance to knock off USC and Stanford . WHEN all of this happens, you can look back fondly at this post, as Notre Dame will be sitting in that BCS bowl game, where if they play like they're capable of, they'll deserve to be.

Leading Off

I've been wanting to create my own blog for quite some time now, and with football starting, the baseball pennant races heating up (or being boring as hell, you decide), and college basketball on the horizon, it's time for me to have a forum for all the craziness and delirium cluttered inside my brain, most of which is sports-related.

I used to blog a decent amount for http://lawnchairboys.blogspot.com/. I did most of my work writing about college basketball, but I generally cover basketball, football and baseball. I felt like it was time for me to try and start something on my own, hence the new site. The site will hopefully change and evolve over time, and I can provide some sort of entertainment for people who are bored at work, think I'm the coolest person ever, or somewhere in between.

The name comes from the fact that I'm probably the most unlucky person in the history of mankind. Hyperbole aside, I struggled to come up with a name, but for the time being this one works. Not only do I have terrible luck, but I'm blessed with the fact that I'm from Chicago, Illinois and I like arguably the most unlucky and cursed team in all of organized sports, that being my beloved Chicago Cubs. I'll spend a lot of time writing about my favorite teams, so get used to hearing a lot about the Bears, Bulls, Cubs, Notre Dame football, and UNC basketball. I'll diversify however and write about a multitude of other sports topics and teams, and who knows, maybe I'll even through in some random pop culture commentary as well. I know it's a work in progess right now, but I hope everyone enjoys the site. Feel free to comment/critique at will.