Saturday’s 6-pack:
Major league leaders in batting average:
.358— Shohei Ohtani, LA
.353— Steven Kwan Clev/William Contreras, Milw
.343— Trea Turner, Phil
.341— Mookie Betts, LA
.335— Salvador Perez, KC
.331— Alec Bohm, Phil
Quote of the Day
“I just dinked and dunked, it’s high school football. You don’t have to create all these magical plays. You just get the ball to your guys. … That’s all you’ve got to do. That’s why I just try to remind my guys that it doesn’t take much.”
Former NFL QB Teddy Bridgewater, who is now a high school coach in Miami. He played briefly in his team’s scrimmage Thursday night.
Saturday’s quiz
The great basketball player David Thompson came out of NC State and played for the Denver Nuggets in the ABA, before they joined the NBA in 1976. Which NBA team drafted Thompson?
Friday’s quiz
In the TV show CSI, Ted Danson’s character becomes head of the Las Vegas crime lab, after moving from Seattle; the actress who played also Danson’s wife (Peri Gilpin) also played Frasier Crane’s producer in Frasier, which was set in Seattle.
Thursday’s quiz
In the classic TV show The Odd Couple, Felix Unger was a photographer (portraits a specialty)
************************************
He was an excellent role medal for his nerdy son; he loved the Mets/Knicks, he enjoyed playing golf, going to Saratoga racetrack. Above all things, he was honest.
When he would come home from work, I’d be watching re-runs of the Odd Couple or M*A*S*H or Mister Ed, and he’d come into the room and say, “How can you watch that stuff?” Five minutes later, he’d be laughing harder than I was.
I’m guessing he is up in heaven, wondering why the Mets don’t win more games.
It’s been nine years, and he is missed every day.
— Pirates 9, Cubs 3
Rookie P Skenes struck out the first seven batters he faced.
He didn’t allow a hit in his six IP (100 PT), in his second MLB start.
— Rays 4, Blue Jays 3
Tampa’s Tyler Alexander had a perfect game thru seven innings.
Rays are 10-4 in their last fourteen games.
— Guardians 3, Twins 2
Ramirez hit the game-winning homer in 8th inning.
Minnesota has lost four games in a row.
— Tigers 13, Arizona 0
Skubal tossed six shutout IP, allowing one hit.
Baez went 3-4 with 5 RBI.
— Giants’ OF Jung Hoo Lee (shoulder) had an operation, is out for the year.
— Pacers 116, Knicks 103
Indiana outscored Knicks 32-21 in second quarter.
Siakam scored 25 points, had 5 assists, 7 rebounds.
Game 7 is in New York Sunday afternoon.
Famous birthdays for May 18th:
Reggie Jackson, 78
Jim Sundberg, 73
Tina Fey, 54
Vince Young, 41
Robert Quinn, 34
Clint Capela, 30
NFL schedule notes:
— Only one of Detroit’s first 14 games is outdoors, Week 9 in Green Bay.
— 49ers are the only team playing four teams that are coming off a bye.
— Bears/Steelers don’t play their first divisional game until Week 11.
— There are nine games this season that are rematches of playoff games from last year.
— Eagles play four of last five games at home, for the first time since 1951; their only road game in that span is against Washington, so the Eagles won’t fly at all after Week 13.
— Chicago’s first three games are all against AFC South teams.
— Carolina Panthers are only team that doesn’t have a primetime game.
— Four teams have three consecutive road games:
Bills, Bears, Browns, Vikings.
— Chiefs have a game on every day of the week except Tuesday.
— Patriots/Panthers are an underdog in every game thru Week 17.
Jets are favored in 14 of their first 16 games.
Major league leaders in batting average:
.358— Shohei Ohtani, LA
.353— Steven Kwan Clev/William Contreras, Milw
.343— Trea Turner, Phil
.341— Mookie Betts, LA
.335— Salvador Perez, KC
.331— Alec Bohm, Phil
Quote of the Day
“I just dinked and dunked, it’s high school football. You don’t have to create all these magical plays. You just get the ball to your guys. … That’s all you’ve got to do. That’s why I just try to remind my guys that it doesn’t take much.”
Former NFL QB Teddy Bridgewater, who is now a high school coach in Miami. He played briefly in his team’s scrimmage Thursday night.
Saturday’s quiz
The great basketball player David Thompson came out of NC State and played for the Denver Nuggets in the ABA, before they joined the NBA in 1976. Which NBA team drafted Thompson?
Friday’s quiz
In the TV show CSI, Ted Danson’s character becomes head of the Las Vegas crime lab, after moving from Seattle; the actress who played also Danson’s wife (Peri Gilpin) also played Frasier Crane’s producer in Frasier, which was set in Seattle.
Thursday’s quiz
In the classic TV show The Odd Couple, Felix Unger was a photographer (portraits a specialty)
************************************
Saturday’s Den: Weekend thoughts…….
— Nine years ago this week, the world lost a great guy; my dad was the best person I’ve ever met, a nice man, a decent man, and boy, we do need more decency in the world.He was an excellent role medal for his nerdy son; he loved the Mets/Knicks, he enjoyed playing golf, going to Saratoga racetrack. Above all things, he was honest.
When he would come home from work, I’d be watching re-runs of the Odd Couple or M*A*S*H or Mister Ed, and he’d come into the room and say, “How can you watch that stuff?” Five minutes later, he’d be laughing harder than I was.
I’m guessing he is up in heaven, wondering why the Mets don’t win more games.
It’s been nine years, and he is missed every day.
— Pirates 9, Cubs 3
Rookie P Skenes struck out the first seven batters he faced.
He didn’t allow a hit in his six IP (100 PT), in his second MLB start.
— Rays 4, Blue Jays 3
Tampa’s Tyler Alexander had a perfect game thru seven innings.
Rays are 10-4 in their last fourteen games.
— Guardians 3, Twins 2
Ramirez hit the game-winning homer in 8th inning.
Minnesota has lost four games in a row.
— Tigers 13, Arizona 0
Skubal tossed six shutout IP, allowing one hit.
Baez went 3-4 with 5 RBI.
— Giants’ OF Jung Hoo Lee (shoulder) had an operation, is out for the year.
— Pacers 116, Knicks 103
Indiana outscored Knicks 32-21 in second quarter.
Siakam scored 25 points, had 5 assists, 7 rebounds.
Game 7 is in New York Sunday afternoon.
Famous birthdays for May 18th:
Reggie Jackson, 78
Jim Sundberg, 73
Tina Fey, 54
Vince Young, 41
Robert Quinn, 34
Clint Capela, 30
NFL schedule notes:
— Only one of Detroit’s first 14 games is outdoors, Week 9 in Green Bay.
— 49ers are the only team playing four teams that are coming off a bye.
— Bears/Steelers don’t play their first divisional game until Week 11.
— There are nine games this season that are rematches of playoff games from last year.
— Eagles play four of last five games at home, for the first time since 1951; their only road game in that span is against Washington, so the Eagles won’t fly at all after Week 13.
— Chicago’s first three games are all against AFC South teams.
— Carolina Panthers are only team that doesn’t have a primetime game.
— Four teams have three consecutive road games:
Bills, Bears, Browns, Vikings.
— Chiefs have a game on every day of the week except Tuesday.
— Patriots/Panthers are an underdog in every game thru Week 17.
Jets are favored in 14 of their first 16 games.
NHL
Saturday, May 18
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vancouver @ Edmonton
Vancouver
Vancouver is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Edmonton
Vancouver is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Edmonton's last 6 games at home
Edmonton is 14-5 SU in its last 19 games at home
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday, May 18
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vancouver @ Edmonton
Vancouver
Vancouver is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Edmonton
Vancouver is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Edmonton's last 6 games at home
Edmonton is 14-5 SU in its last 19 games at home
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday’s 6-pack:
NFL over/under win totals for this fall:
11.5— Chiefs, 49ers
11— Ravens
10.5— Bills, Browns, Cowboys, Lions, Eagles
10— Packers
9.5— Falcons, Texans, Dolphins, Jets
9— Bears, Chargers
Quote of the Day
“(Zach) Edey showed some real touch here this week which left scouts wondering if he had more long-term shooting potential than we saw at Purdue.”
Adam Finkelstein, CBSSports.com
Sunday’s quiz
Which pitcher has the most wins in Arizona Diamondbacks’ history?
Saturday’s quiz
The great basketball player David Thompson came out of NC State and played for the Denver Nuggets in the ABA, before they joined the NBA in 1976. Atlanta Hawks drafted Thompson, but he chose the Nuggets instead.
Friday’s quiz
In the TV show CSI, Ted Danson’s character becomes head of the Las Vegas crime lab, after moving from Seattle; the actress who played also Danson’s wife (Peri Gilpin) also played Frasier Crane’s producer in Frasier, which was set in Seattle.
***********************************************
Shota Imanaga threw 7 scoreless innings; thru his first nine MLB starts, he is 5-0, 0.84, the lowest ERA in the last 100 years for ANYONE in their first nine MLB starts.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is 4-1, 3.21 in his first nine starts for the Dodgers, so he’s done well too, but he was expected to be good. NO ONE thought Imanaga would do well; all these geniuses who get paid to analyze fantasy baseball, they all dismissed Imanaga, which was a mistake.
— Pirates are weird; April 16, they took out rookie P Jared Jones after five IP/59 pitches because they wanted to limit his workload, but since then, he’s thrown at least 83 pitches in his five starts. Friday, they let highly-touted rookie Paul Skenes throw 100 pitches in his six innings.
If Pittsburgh can keep its starting rotation intact, they should become a good team fairly soon.
— Saturday was the 45th anniversary of the 1979 game where the Phillies beat the Cubs 23-22 in 10 innings, with the wind blowing out at Wrigley Field.
Phillies scored 23 runs despite light-hitting Larry Bowa batting 2nd in the order, ahead of Pete Rose, Mike Schmidt. Bowa was 5-8 with four runs scored in that game, which the Phillies led 15-6 in the third inning.
Dave Kingman hit three homers for the Cubs, Bill Buckner knocked in seven runs in a losing cause.
— Aaron Nola had a 3-pitch inning against the Mets this week, with the third batter hitting into a double play on the first pitch he saw. It was the third 3-pitch inning in the majors this season.
You pretty much would never see three batters all retired in a 3-pitch inning, since the third batter would almost always get the take sign on the first pitch he saw.
— New York 6, White Sox 1
Juan Soto hit two more home runs, was 4-4 with a walk; he turned down a 15-year, $440M contract offer from Washington before they traded him to San Diego. Soto is only 25; how much $$$ is he going to make this winter?
— Giants 14, Rockies 4- Giants are last team this season to win three games in a row.
— In case you were wondering, there are 72 players who have played for both the Miami Marlins and Detroit Tigers, with Miguel Cabrera the best of those players.
Famous birthdays for May 19th:
Archie Manning, 75
Luis Salazar, 68
Eric Show, 68
Jack Thompson, 68
Bill Laimbeer, 67
Paul Justin, 56
London Fletcher, 49
Kevin Garnett, 48
Brandon Inge, 47
— Good day/night of baseball Saturday; there were eight games where the winning run scored from the 7th inning on.
— Rangers 3, Angels 2 (13)
This game tied for longest game in the majors this season.
Angels were 0-18 with runners in scoring position; Texas was 2-12.
Game-winning run scored when Lowe got hit by a pitch with bases loaded.
— Rays 5, Blue Jays 4
Toronto led 4-0 after five innings.
Tampa Bay is 11-4 in its last 15 games.
— Marlins 10, Mets 9
Mets led 7-2 in the 7th inning.
Josh Bell’s 3-run homer tied the game in 9th inning.
Mets lost seven of their last nine games.
— Guardians 11, Twins 4
Minnesota has lost five games in a row, outscored 28-7.
— Phillies 4, Nationals 3
Kody Clemens tied game with a 9th inning home run.
Bryce Harper hit a walk-off sac fly in 10th inning.
— Was kind of sad to see that the Mirage hotel/casino in Las Vegas is closing July 17; they’re going to re-model/re-brand as Hard Rock Las Vegas- it won’t re-open until 2027.
I stayed at the Mirage once, think it was 2012; they had the best food choices, with Carnegie Deli having the best sandwiches I’ve ever eaten- they were so big, I’d ask for extra bread and make two sandwiches, bringing the second one up to my room to put in the refrigerator. They also had Dr Brown’s cream soda, my all-time favorite soda.
— HBO’s Hard Knocks is going to feature the New Jersey Giants in their off-season process, with the shows airing in July. Giants have never been on Hard Knocks; this year is the 100th anniversary of their franchise.
HBO hasn’t said which team will be on Hard Knocks during training camp; the show is really well done, if you like the NFL, it is a must-watch.
NFL over/under win totals for this fall:
11.5— Chiefs, 49ers
11— Ravens
10.5— Bills, Browns, Cowboys, Lions, Eagles
10— Packers
9.5— Falcons, Texans, Dolphins, Jets
9— Bears, Chargers
Quote of the Day
“(Zach) Edey showed some real touch here this week which left scouts wondering if he had more long-term shooting potential than we saw at Purdue.”
Adam Finkelstein, CBSSports.com
Sunday’s quiz
Which pitcher has the most wins in Arizona Diamondbacks’ history?
Saturday’s quiz
The great basketball player David Thompson came out of NC State and played for the Denver Nuggets in the ABA, before they joined the NBA in 1976. Atlanta Hawks drafted Thompson, but he chose the Nuggets instead.
Friday’s quiz
In the TV show CSI, Ted Danson’s character becomes head of the Las Vegas crime lab, after moving from Seattle; the actress who played also Danson’s wife (Peri Gilpin) also played Frasier Crane’s producer in Frasier, which was set in Seattle.
***********************************************
Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday
— Cubs 1, Pirates 0Shota Imanaga threw 7 scoreless innings; thru his first nine MLB starts, he is 5-0, 0.84, the lowest ERA in the last 100 years for ANYONE in their first nine MLB starts.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is 4-1, 3.21 in his first nine starts for the Dodgers, so he’s done well too, but he was expected to be good. NO ONE thought Imanaga would do well; all these geniuses who get paid to analyze fantasy baseball, they all dismissed Imanaga, which was a mistake.
— Pirates are weird; April 16, they took out rookie P Jared Jones after five IP/59 pitches because they wanted to limit his workload, but since then, he’s thrown at least 83 pitches in his five starts. Friday, they let highly-touted rookie Paul Skenes throw 100 pitches in his six innings.
If Pittsburgh can keep its starting rotation intact, they should become a good team fairly soon.
— Saturday was the 45th anniversary of the 1979 game where the Phillies beat the Cubs 23-22 in 10 innings, with the wind blowing out at Wrigley Field.
Phillies scored 23 runs despite light-hitting Larry Bowa batting 2nd in the order, ahead of Pete Rose, Mike Schmidt. Bowa was 5-8 with four runs scored in that game, which the Phillies led 15-6 in the third inning.
Dave Kingman hit three homers for the Cubs, Bill Buckner knocked in seven runs in a losing cause.
— Aaron Nola had a 3-pitch inning against the Mets this week, with the third batter hitting into a double play on the first pitch he saw. It was the third 3-pitch inning in the majors this season.
You pretty much would never see three batters all retired in a 3-pitch inning, since the third batter would almost always get the take sign on the first pitch he saw.
— New York 6, White Sox 1
Juan Soto hit two more home runs, was 4-4 with a walk; he turned down a 15-year, $440M contract offer from Washington before they traded him to San Diego. Soto is only 25; how much $$$ is he going to make this winter?
— Giants 14, Rockies 4- Giants are last team this season to win three games in a row.
— In case you were wondering, there are 72 players who have played for both the Miami Marlins and Detroit Tigers, with Miguel Cabrera the best of those players.
Famous birthdays for May 19th:
Archie Manning, 75
Luis Salazar, 68
Eric Show, 68
Jack Thompson, 68
Bill Laimbeer, 67
Paul Justin, 56
London Fletcher, 49
Kevin Garnett, 48
Brandon Inge, 47
— Good day/night of baseball Saturday; there were eight games where the winning run scored from the 7th inning on.
— Rangers 3, Angels 2 (13)
This game tied for longest game in the majors this season.
Angels were 0-18 with runners in scoring position; Texas was 2-12.
Game-winning run scored when Lowe got hit by a pitch with bases loaded.
— Rays 5, Blue Jays 4
Toronto led 4-0 after five innings.
Tampa Bay is 11-4 in its last 15 games.
— Marlins 10, Mets 9
Mets led 7-2 in the 7th inning.
Josh Bell’s 3-run homer tied the game in 9th inning.
Mets lost seven of their last nine games.
— Guardians 11, Twins 4
Minnesota has lost five games in a row, outscored 28-7.
— Phillies 4, Nationals 3
Kody Clemens tied game with a 9th inning home run.
Bryce Harper hit a walk-off sac fly in 10th inning.
— Was kind of sad to see that the Mirage hotel/casino in Las Vegas is closing July 17; they’re going to re-model/re-brand as Hard Rock Las Vegas- it won’t re-open until 2027.
I stayed at the Mirage once, think it was 2012; they had the best food choices, with Carnegie Deli having the best sandwiches I’ve ever eaten- they were so big, I’d ask for extra bread and make two sandwiches, bringing the second one up to my room to put in the refrigerator. They also had Dr Brown’s cream soda, my all-time favorite soda.
— HBO’s Hard Knocks is going to feature the New Jersey Giants in their off-season process, with the shows airing in July. Giants have never been on Hard Knocks; this year is the 100th anniversary of their franchise.
HBO hasn’t said which team will be on Hard Knocks during training camp; the show is really well done, if you like the NFL, it is a must-watch.
Armadillo Sports
Monday’s 6-pack:
NFL over/under win totals for this fall:
7.5— Saints, Seahawks
7— Vikings
6.5— Cardinals, Raiders, Giants, Titans, Commanders
6— Broncos
5— Patriots
4.5— Panthers
Quote of the Day
“It is not who you play, it is when you play them.”
Former Vikings coach Bud Grant, talking about the NFL schedule
Monday’s quiz
When is the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup?
Sunday’s quiz
Randy Johnson has the most pitching wins in Arizona Diamondbacks’ history.
Saturday’s quiz
The great basketball player David Thompson came out of NC State and played for the Denver Nuggets in the ABA, before they joined the NBA in 1976. Atlanta Hawks drafted Thompson, but he chose the Nuggets instead.
**********************************
Monday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Sunday…….
— Pacers 130, Knicks 109
Indiana shot 67.1% from the floor, made 13-24 on the arc.
Pacers play Boston in the Eastern Conference final.
— Timberwolves 98, Nuggets 90
Denver led 53-38 at halftime.
Minnesota plays Dallas in the Western Conference final.
— Road team is now 8-4 in last 12 Game 7’s in NBA playoff series.
— Oklahoma City Thunder went 57-25 this year, lost in the second round of the playoffs- they’re already a good team, but they also have seven (7!!!) First round draft picks the next two years.
Will be fascinating to see how they package those draft picks to enhance their roster, while also maintaining their team chemistry.
— Florida Atlantic’s run to the college basketball Final Four in 2023 raised the school’s visibility; this year, they had 46,933 applicants, over 10,000 more than they had last year. 70% of the applicants are from Florida kids, 30% from out of state.
— Over the last 20 years, NFC South division titles:
7- Saints
5- Buccaneers
4- Falcons, Panthers.
— Wisconsin-Green Bay hiring Doug Gottlieb as its new basketball coach was the 66th coaching change at the D-I level this spring. 18% of teams changed coaches since the season ended.
Famous birthdays for May 20th:
Leroy Kelly, 82
Cher, 78
Wendell Tyler, 69
David Wells, 61
Timothy Olyphant, 56
Terrell Brandon, 54
Jayson Werth, 45
— Braves’ 1B Matt Olson played in his 500th consecutive game Sunday night; in this century, the longest consecutive games played streak is Miguel Tejada’s 1,152 games.
— In 1968, Cardinals’ P Bob Gibson was 22-9, with a 1.12 ERA; not sure how he lost nine games with a 1.12 ERA, but 28 of his 34 starts were complete games- they pinch-hit for him in the other six games, so in an entire season, the manager never took him out during an inning.
— Something has cropped up a little more in games recently; middle infielders are crowding the area behind 2nd base, prompting couple of teams to complain that they’re illegally on the wrong side of the diamond.
Teams have to have two infielders on each side of the infield; eventually they may have to put a line out there so infielders will stay where they’re supposed to be.
— Red Sox 11, Cardinals 3
Rafael Devers has homered in five consecutive games.
Red Sox are 7-0 on Sundays this season.
— Dodgers 3, Reds 2 (10)
Shohei Ohtani had his first walk-off hit as a Dodger.
Dodgers are 20-6 in their last 26 games.
— Angels 4, Rangers 1
Jose Soriano tossed a career-high 7.2 IP for the win.
Kevin Pillar had a 2-run single, his 1,000th career hit.
— Astros 9, Brewers 4
Kyle Tucker hit two homers, has 15 for the season.
Houston has won nine of its last 11 games.
— In interleague play, American League leads the NL, 96-86.
— Braves’ utility guy Zach Short is having an interesting season:
November 6, 2023- Mets claimed him off waivers from Detroit
2024- He went 2-12 in 10 games for the Mets.
May 1, 2024- Red Sox purchased him from the Mets
He went 0-7 in two games for Boston.
May 9, 2024- Braves purchased him from the Red Sox.
He is 4-16 in his first six games for Atlanta.
— If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
NL- Phillies, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards: Braves, Cubs, Padres
AL- New York, Guardians, Mariners. Wild Cards: Orioles, Royals, Twins
Monday’s 6-pack:
NFL over/under win totals for this fall:
7.5— Saints, Seahawks
7— Vikings
6.5— Cardinals, Raiders, Giants, Titans, Commanders
6— Broncos
5— Patriots
4.5— Panthers
Quote of the Day
“It is not who you play, it is when you play them.”
Former Vikings coach Bud Grant, talking about the NFL schedule
Monday’s quiz
When is the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup?
Sunday’s quiz
Randy Johnson has the most pitching wins in Arizona Diamondbacks’ history.
Saturday’s quiz
The great basketball player David Thompson came out of NC State and played for the Denver Nuggets in the ABA, before they joined the NBA in 1976. Atlanta Hawks drafted Thompson, but he chose the Nuggets instead.
**********************************
Monday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Sunday…….
— Pacers 130, Knicks 109
Indiana shot 67.1% from the floor, made 13-24 on the arc.
Pacers play Boston in the Eastern Conference final.
— Timberwolves 98, Nuggets 90
Denver led 53-38 at halftime.
Minnesota plays Dallas in the Western Conference final.
— Road team is now 8-4 in last 12 Game 7’s in NBA playoff series.
— Oklahoma City Thunder went 57-25 this year, lost in the second round of the playoffs- they’re already a good team, but they also have seven (7!!!) First round draft picks the next two years.
Will be fascinating to see how they package those draft picks to enhance their roster, while also maintaining their team chemistry.
— Florida Atlantic’s run to the college basketball Final Four in 2023 raised the school’s visibility; this year, they had 46,933 applicants, over 10,000 more than they had last year. 70% of the applicants are from Florida kids, 30% from out of state.
— Over the last 20 years, NFC South division titles:
7- Saints
5- Buccaneers
4- Falcons, Panthers.
— Wisconsin-Green Bay hiring Doug Gottlieb as its new basketball coach was the 66th coaching change at the D-I level this spring. 18% of teams changed coaches since the season ended.
Famous birthdays for May 20th:
Leroy Kelly, 82
Cher, 78
Wendell Tyler, 69
David Wells, 61
Timothy Olyphant, 56
Terrell Brandon, 54
Jayson Werth, 45
— Braves’ 1B Matt Olson played in his 500th consecutive game Sunday night; in this century, the longest consecutive games played streak is Miguel Tejada’s 1,152 games.
— In 1968, Cardinals’ P Bob Gibson was 22-9, with a 1.12 ERA; not sure how he lost nine games with a 1.12 ERA, but 28 of his 34 starts were complete games- they pinch-hit for him in the other six games, so in an entire season, the manager never took him out during an inning.
— Something has cropped up a little more in games recently; middle infielders are crowding the area behind 2nd base, prompting couple of teams to complain that they’re illegally on the wrong side of the diamond.
Teams have to have two infielders on each side of the infield; eventually they may have to put a line out there so infielders will stay where they’re supposed to be.
— Red Sox 11, Cardinals 3
Rafael Devers has homered in five consecutive games.
Red Sox are 7-0 on Sundays this season.
— Dodgers 3, Reds 2 (10)
Shohei Ohtani had his first walk-off hit as a Dodger.
Dodgers are 20-6 in their last 26 games.
— Angels 4, Rangers 1
Jose Soriano tossed a career-high 7.2 IP for the win.
Kevin Pillar had a 2-run single, his 1,000th career hit.
— Astros 9, Brewers 4
Kyle Tucker hit two homers, has 15 for the season.
Houston has won nine of its last 11 games.
— In interleague play, American League leads the NL, 96-86.
— Braves’ utility guy Zach Short is having an interesting season:
November 6, 2023- Mets claimed him off waivers from Detroit
2024- He went 2-12 in 10 games for the Mets.
May 1, 2024- Red Sox purchased him from the Mets
He went 0-7 in two games for Boston.
May 9, 2024- Braves purchased him from the Red Sox.
He is 4-16 in his first six games for Atlanta.
— If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
NL- Phillies, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards: Braves, Cubs, Padres
AL- New York, Guardians, Mariners. Wild Cards: Orioles, Royals, Twins
NHL
Monday, May 20
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmonton @ Vancouver
Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Edmonton's last 5 games when playing on the road against Vancouver
Edmonton is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games
Vancouver
Vancouver is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Edmonton
Vancouver is 9-1 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Edmonton
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, May 20
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmonton @ Vancouver
Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Edmonton's last 5 games when playing on the road against Vancouver
Edmonton is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games
Vancouver
Vancouver is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Edmonton
Vancouver is 9-1 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Edmonton
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday’s 6-pack:
Major league leaders in OPS:
1.077— Shohei Ohtani, LA
1.047— Marcell Ozuna, Atl
1.039— Kyle Tucker, Hst
.988— Aaron Judge, NYY
.978— Mookie Betts, Bos
.969— Salvador Perez, KC
Quote of the Day
“I get asked all the time: ‘Who are some of the tough guys, some of the bad guys? And when I tell them that Chris Paul, in my 32 years in the league, was one of the biggest assholes I ever dealt with, they say, ‘Not Rasheed Wallace … or da-da-da?’ Nope. Nothing like (Paul).”
former NBA referee Bill Spooner
Tuesday’s quiz
Who was coach of the Indiana Pacers, last time they were in the Eastern Conference finals?
(Hint: He coached in the NBA this season)
Monday’s quiz
1993 was the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup, when Montreal won.
Sunday’s quiz
Randy Johnson has the most pitching wins in Arizona Diamondbacks’ history.
**********************************************
Oilers led 3-0 after two periods, hung on for the Game 7 win.
Edmonton faces Dallas in the Western Conference final.
— Padres 6-0, Braves 5-3
Braves led opener 4-0 in 5th inning, but Padres rallied for the win.
Chris Sale threw seven shutout IP in the nightcap.
Atlanta’s win snaps a 4-game losing skid.
— Red Sox 5, Rays 0
Tanner Houck allowed 3 baserunners in 7 shutout IP.
Rafael Devers homered in his sixth consecutive game, the first Red Sox hitter to do that.
— Angels 9, Astros 7
Houston led 6-1 after the fourth inning.
Schanuel, O’Hoppe both hit 3-run homers for the Halos.
— Mariners 5, New York 4
Seattle scored four runs in the top of the ninth.
Mariners SS JP Crawford was activated off the IL; he missed 23 games.
— Nationals 12, Twins 3
Washington snaps a 5-game losing skid.
Minnesota has now lost seven games in a row.
— Dodgers 6, Diamondbacks 4
LA scored six runs in 3rd inning, hitting three homers; it appeared as if P Slade Cecconi was tipping his pitches. After the inning, Arizona coaches got him on an iPad in the dugout to watch something, and he retired all nine batters he faced after that.
Famous birthdays for May 21st:
Ed O’Bradovich, 84
Bobby Cox, 83
Pete Banaszak, 80
Al Franken, 73
Mark Landsberger, 69
Judge Reinhold, 67
Kent Hrbek, 64
Lisa Edelstein, 58
Josh Allen, 28
— Golf majors are usually played on tough golf courses, but this week, the golfers did really well at Valhalla, shooting a combined 214 under par at the PGA Championship.
The previous best scoring in PGA Championship history was +40 at Riviera in 1995; that’s a 254 shot difference. Wow.
— Mississippi State gave basketball coach Chris Jans a contract extension through 2028, worth $4.2M a year.
— RIP to Jim Otto, 86, Hall of Fame center for the Oakland Raiders, who was easily noticeable because he wore 00, unique for an offensive lineman. Otto played 15 years for the Raiders, after playing college ball at Miami.
RIP, sir.
— NFC West titles over last 20 years:
9- Seattle
5- San Francisco
3- Rams (all in the last seven years)
3- Arizona (last one in 2015)
— Oakland A’s had three catchers in the lineup Sunday; one at DH, one catching, the third guy at first base. Reminds me of 1979, when the A’s were also terrible; they had Jeff Newman, Mike Heath and Jim Essian in the same lineup some days.
Heath was playing LF; he ran into the side wall down the line, trying to catch a foul ball, damn near knocked himself out. A’s went 58-104 that year; hopefully they’ll do better this year.
— Pat Sajak’s last show hosting Wheel of Fortune is scheduled to air June 7th; his last shows have already been recorded. Sajak has been hosting the gameshow for 41 years. What a great run, 41 years in the same job.
Major league leaders in OPS:
1.077— Shohei Ohtani, LA
1.047— Marcell Ozuna, Atl
1.039— Kyle Tucker, Hst
.988— Aaron Judge, NYY
.978— Mookie Betts, Bos
.969— Salvador Perez, KC
Quote of the Day
“I get asked all the time: ‘Who are some of the tough guys, some of the bad guys? And when I tell them that Chris Paul, in my 32 years in the league, was one of the biggest assholes I ever dealt with, they say, ‘Not Rasheed Wallace … or da-da-da?’ Nope. Nothing like (Paul).”
former NBA referee Bill Spooner
Tuesday’s quiz
Who was coach of the Indiana Pacers, last time they were in the Eastern Conference finals?
(Hint: He coached in the NBA this season)
Monday’s quiz
1993 was the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup, when Montreal won.
Sunday’s quiz
Randy Johnson has the most pitching wins in Arizona Diamondbacks’ history.
**********************************************
Tuesday’s Den: Nobody asked me, but…….
— Edmonton 3, Vancouver 2Oilers led 3-0 after two periods, hung on for the Game 7 win.
Edmonton faces Dallas in the Western Conference final.
— Padres 6-0, Braves 5-3
Braves led opener 4-0 in 5th inning, but Padres rallied for the win.
Chris Sale threw seven shutout IP in the nightcap.
Atlanta’s win snaps a 4-game losing skid.
— Red Sox 5, Rays 0
Tanner Houck allowed 3 baserunners in 7 shutout IP.
Rafael Devers homered in his sixth consecutive game, the first Red Sox hitter to do that.
— Angels 9, Astros 7
Houston led 6-1 after the fourth inning.
Schanuel, O’Hoppe both hit 3-run homers for the Halos.
— Mariners 5, New York 4
Seattle scored four runs in the top of the ninth.
Mariners SS JP Crawford was activated off the IL; he missed 23 games.
— Nationals 12, Twins 3
Washington snaps a 5-game losing skid.
Minnesota has now lost seven games in a row.
— Dodgers 6, Diamondbacks 4
LA scored six runs in 3rd inning, hitting three homers; it appeared as if P Slade Cecconi was tipping his pitches. After the inning, Arizona coaches got him on an iPad in the dugout to watch something, and he retired all nine batters he faced after that.
Famous birthdays for May 21st:
Ed O’Bradovich, 84
Bobby Cox, 83
Pete Banaszak, 80
Al Franken, 73
Mark Landsberger, 69
Judge Reinhold, 67
Kent Hrbek, 64
Lisa Edelstein, 58
Josh Allen, 28
— Golf majors are usually played on tough golf courses, but this week, the golfers did really well at Valhalla, shooting a combined 214 under par at the PGA Championship.
The previous best scoring in PGA Championship history was +40 at Riviera in 1995; that’s a 254 shot difference. Wow.
— Mississippi State gave basketball coach Chris Jans a contract extension through 2028, worth $4.2M a year.
— RIP to Jim Otto, 86, Hall of Fame center for the Oakland Raiders, who was easily noticeable because he wore 00, unique for an offensive lineman. Otto played 15 years for the Raiders, after playing college ball at Miami.
RIP, sir.
— NFC West titles over last 20 years:
9- Seattle
5- San Francisco
3- Rams (all in the last seven years)
3- Arizona (last one in 2015)
— Oakland A’s had three catchers in the lineup Sunday; one at DH, one catching, the third guy at first base. Reminds me of 1979, when the A’s were also terrible; they had Jeff Newman, Mike Heath and Jim Essian in the same lineup some days.
Heath was playing LF; he ran into the side wall down the line, trying to catch a foul ball, damn near knocked himself out. A’s went 58-104 that year; hopefully they’ll do better this year.
— Pat Sajak’s last show hosting Wheel of Fortune is scheduled to air June 7th; his last shows have already been recorded. Sajak has been hosting the gameshow for 41 years. What a great run, 41 years in the same job.
Armadillo Sports
Wednesday’s 6-pack:
Major League leaders in ERA (starting pitchers)
0.84— Shota Imanaga, Cubs
1.36— Ranger Suarez, Phil
1.54— Reynaldo Lopez, Atl
1.70— Javier Assad, Cubs
1.79— Seth Lugo, KC
1.80— Tarik Skubal, Det
Quote of the Day
“And yall still wanna know why I would foul up 3 EVERY SINGLE TIME??”
Lebron James, after the Celtics tied the game with a 3-pointer Tuesday nite.
Wednesday’s quiz
Who was manager of the New York Mets, last time they were in the World Series?
Tuesday’s quiz
Frank Vogel was coach of the Indiana Pacers, last time they were in the Eastern Conference finals, ten years ago.
Monday’s quiz
1993 was the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup, when Montreal won.
*********************************************
Wednesday’s Den: In a perfect world, where I make all the decisions…….
Baseball:
— I’d eliminate the American/National Leagues and go to geographic realignment, which would reduce travel costs and invigorate regional rivalries. Going to 32 teams (which will happen soon) will make scheduling a lot easier.
— Baseball managers/coaches shouldn’t wear uniforms, there is no need for it. Players wear uniforms, coaches wear pullovers or sweatshirts or whatever products their corporate sponsors are trying to sell.
— Baseball’s All-Star Game should be US against the World; that would make the game a lot more competitive, maybe too much so, but doing it once would at least spice things up a little bit.
— Baseball needs to market the game better. How?
a) Create an NFL Films-type group that produces a Hard Knocks show where we can see some of the inner workings of baseball. It would be great.
b) Imagine last cuts in spring training? Would be good television.
c) Trade negotiations at the deadline? It would be like watching Moneyball all over again.
Show Winter League games from Central America.
Get rid of all TV blackouts; you WANT people to watch baseball.
Football:
— NFL would have an 18-game regular season, only two preseason games; Super Bowl would be Sunday night of Presidents’ Day weekend. This will probably happen in the league’s next TV contract.
— Add the old AAF’s onside kick rule, when instead of an onside kick, the kicking team gets the ball on their own 35-yard line, 4th-and-15. They get the first down the keep the ball; the onside kick rule they use now isn’t good. Too hard for a recovery by the kicking team.
These days, NFL teams almost never recover onside kicks; with this rule, it would add a little more excitement to the game.
— I’d scrap Thursday night NFL games, except for Week 1 and Thanksgiving; I’d replace them with Monday night doubleheaders. Football wasn’t meant to be played on three days’ rest.
Famous birthdays for May 22nd:
Frank Converse, 86
Tommy John, 81
Walt Hriniak, 81
Dre Bly, 47
Eric Sogard, 38
Lauri Markkanen, 27
Isaiah Stewart, 23
Anthony Richardson, 22
NBA
— Long time ago, the early 70’s, the NBA held a 1-on-1 contest, and aired the games at halftime of regular season NBA telecasts. This was in the early 70’s; I think they had two tournaments, then some of the better players refused to play, and the idea died.
They need to bring back a 1-on-1 tournament; it would be wildly popular.
This should happen in the summer, with each player designating a charity he is playing for. They would make lot of money for various good causes.
64 players; games would be up to 20, have to win by 3 points.
Lot of wagering opportunities, bracket pools, it would be fun.
Each NBA team would have to be represented by one player; the other spots would be determined by fan voting on the Interweb.
— Would definitely move the NBA Draft Lottery back to a half hour before the actual draft; imagine the drama then? Lot of executives would have to think on their feet.
— Kids should be able to go straight from high school to the NBA, the way Lebron James, Kevin Garnett did; players going to college for one year is a farce.
— NBA playoff series should be best-of-5; fewer games, more drama. More drama, more TV $$$, and that is what team owners care about.
The fact that no team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win an NBA playoff series tells us that the series are too long.
— Higher seed in playoffs chooses their opponent in playoffs; they do this in the G-League and it is a good idea. Would make for a good TV show when they choose their opponents.
— One weekend a year, the NBA uses red, white and blue basketballs to honor the old ABA; the four ABA teams that still exist (Nets, Pacers, Spurs, Nuggets) would play against each other that weekend, alternating arenas every year.
College sports
— ESPN has gone way downhill the last few years; one thing they can do to improve would be to bring back their college basketball marathon, where games aired for 28-30 straight hours.
Apparently this marathon didn’t bring in as much $$$ as their stupid early morning talk shows, but promoting college basketball would help recoup the $$$ lost there.
— Might be too late to correct this, but could college leagues go back to being remotely made up of teams from the same area?
Cal/Stanford/SMU in the ACC? Seriously?
UCLA/USC in the Big 10? It is nonsensical.
— College football teams wouldn’t play I-AA opponents; SEC teams do this a lot. Last year, Alabama played The Citadel, Ole Miss played Southern Illinois, South Carolina played Tenn-Chattanooga. Seriously? Go play a MAC team or a Sun Belt team, at least.
— College players/teams need to sign contracts, the way pro teams do, then players couldn’t just transfer every 10 minutes. Contracts could have no-trade clauses, but there needs to be some continuity from year-to-year.
General stuff
— Daytime TV needs more game shows/televised poker and way fewer talk shows, which are wastes of time. Watching people make decisions/play games is way more interesting than listening to overpaid nitwits in contrived arguments.
— I’d get rid of the Electoral College in our presidential election; whoever gets the most votes wins, just like in all the other elections.
— Would like to people to be happier; nowadays, there is so much anger in the world. There is a lot less tolerance of others than there used to be. You be you, and let others do what they do. Cheer the bleep up!!!!
Wednesday’s 6-pack:
Major League leaders in ERA (starting pitchers)
0.84— Shota Imanaga, Cubs
1.36— Ranger Suarez, Phil
1.54— Reynaldo Lopez, Atl
1.70— Javier Assad, Cubs
1.79— Seth Lugo, KC
1.80— Tarik Skubal, Det
Quote of the Day
“And yall still wanna know why I would foul up 3 EVERY SINGLE TIME??”
Lebron James, after the Celtics tied the game with a 3-pointer Tuesday nite.
Wednesday’s quiz
Who was manager of the New York Mets, last time they were in the World Series?
Tuesday’s quiz
Frank Vogel was coach of the Indiana Pacers, last time they were in the Eastern Conference finals, ten years ago.
Monday’s quiz
1993 was the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup, when Montreal won.
*********************************************
Wednesday’s Den: In a perfect world, where I make all the decisions…….
Baseball:
— I’d eliminate the American/National Leagues and go to geographic realignment, which would reduce travel costs and invigorate regional rivalries. Going to 32 teams (which will happen soon) will make scheduling a lot easier.
— Baseball managers/coaches shouldn’t wear uniforms, there is no need for it. Players wear uniforms, coaches wear pullovers or sweatshirts or whatever products their corporate sponsors are trying to sell.
— Baseball’s All-Star Game should be US against the World; that would make the game a lot more competitive, maybe too much so, but doing it once would at least spice things up a little bit.
— Baseball needs to market the game better. How?
a) Create an NFL Films-type group that produces a Hard Knocks show where we can see some of the inner workings of baseball. It would be great.
b) Imagine last cuts in spring training? Would be good television.
c) Trade negotiations at the deadline? It would be like watching Moneyball all over again.
Show Winter League games from Central America.
Get rid of all TV blackouts; you WANT people to watch baseball.
Football:
— NFL would have an 18-game regular season, only two preseason games; Super Bowl would be Sunday night of Presidents’ Day weekend. This will probably happen in the league’s next TV contract.
— Add the old AAF’s onside kick rule, when instead of an onside kick, the kicking team gets the ball on their own 35-yard line, 4th-and-15. They get the first down the keep the ball; the onside kick rule they use now isn’t good. Too hard for a recovery by the kicking team.
These days, NFL teams almost never recover onside kicks; with this rule, it would add a little more excitement to the game.
— I’d scrap Thursday night NFL games, except for Week 1 and Thanksgiving; I’d replace them with Monday night doubleheaders. Football wasn’t meant to be played on three days’ rest.
Famous birthdays for May 22nd:
Frank Converse, 86
Tommy John, 81
Walt Hriniak, 81
Dre Bly, 47
Eric Sogard, 38
Lauri Markkanen, 27
Isaiah Stewart, 23
Anthony Richardson, 22
NBA
— Long time ago, the early 70’s, the NBA held a 1-on-1 contest, and aired the games at halftime of regular season NBA telecasts. This was in the early 70’s; I think they had two tournaments, then some of the better players refused to play, and the idea died.
They need to bring back a 1-on-1 tournament; it would be wildly popular.
This should happen in the summer, with each player designating a charity he is playing for. They would make lot of money for various good causes.
64 players; games would be up to 20, have to win by 3 points.
Lot of wagering opportunities, bracket pools, it would be fun.
Each NBA team would have to be represented by one player; the other spots would be determined by fan voting on the Interweb.
— Would definitely move the NBA Draft Lottery back to a half hour before the actual draft; imagine the drama then? Lot of executives would have to think on their feet.
— Kids should be able to go straight from high school to the NBA, the way Lebron James, Kevin Garnett did; players going to college for one year is a farce.
— NBA playoff series should be best-of-5; fewer games, more drama. More drama, more TV $$$, and that is what team owners care about.
The fact that no team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit to win an NBA playoff series tells us that the series are too long.
— Higher seed in playoffs chooses their opponent in playoffs; they do this in the G-League and it is a good idea. Would make for a good TV show when they choose their opponents.
— One weekend a year, the NBA uses red, white and blue basketballs to honor the old ABA; the four ABA teams that still exist (Nets, Pacers, Spurs, Nuggets) would play against each other that weekend, alternating arenas every year.
College sports
— ESPN has gone way downhill the last few years; one thing they can do to improve would be to bring back their college basketball marathon, where games aired for 28-30 straight hours.
Apparently this marathon didn’t bring in as much $$$ as their stupid early morning talk shows, but promoting college basketball would help recoup the $$$ lost there.
— Might be too late to correct this, but could college leagues go back to being remotely made up of teams from the same area?
Cal/Stanford/SMU in the ACC? Seriously?
UCLA/USC in the Big 10? It is nonsensical.
— College football teams wouldn’t play I-AA opponents; SEC teams do this a lot. Last year, Alabama played The Citadel, Ole Miss played Southern Illinois, South Carolina played Tenn-Chattanooga. Seriously? Go play a MAC team or a Sun Belt team, at least.
— College players/teams need to sign contracts, the way pro teams do, then players couldn’t just transfer every 10 minutes. Contracts could have no-trade clauses, but there needs to be some continuity from year-to-year.
General stuff
— Daytime TV needs more game shows/televised poker and way fewer talk shows, which are wastes of time. Watching people make decisions/play games is way more interesting than listening to overpaid nitwits in contrived arguments.
— I’d get rid of the Electoral College in our presidential election; whoever gets the most votes wins, just like in all the other elections.
— Would like to people to be happier; nowadays, there is so much anger in the world. There is a lot less tolerance of others than there used to be. You be you, and let others do what they do. Cheer the bleep up!!!!
NHL
Dunkel
Wednesday, May 22
NHL
Wednesday, May 22
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Florida @ NY Rangers
Florida
The total has gone OVER in 18 of Florida's last 19 games when playing NY Rangers
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Florida's last 10 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers
NY Rangers
The total has gone OVER in 18 of NY Rangers's last 19 games when playing Florida
The total has gone OVER in 9 of NY Rangers's last 10 games when playing at home against Florida
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dunkel
Wednesday, May 22
NHL
Wednesday, May 22
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Florida @ NY Rangers
Florida
The total has gone OVER in 18 of Florida's last 19 games when playing NY Rangers
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Florida's last 10 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers
NY Rangers
The total has gone OVER in 18 of NY Rangers's last 19 games when playing Florida
The total has gone OVER in 9 of NY Rangers's last 10 games when playing at home against Florida
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday’s 6-pack:
Since 2010, NFL teams that scored the most touchdowns:
718— Saints
697— Packers, Patriots
653— Eagles, Cowboys
638— Chiefs
620— Seahawks
613— Chargers
Quote of the Day
“People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”
Mark Twain
Thursday’s quiz
Where did Charles Barkley play his college basketball?
Wednesday’s quiz
Terry Collins was manager of the New York Mets, last time they were in the World Series.
Tuesday’s quiz
Frank Vogel was coach of the Indiana Pacers, last time they were in the Eastern Conference finals, ten years ago.
*********************************************
Luka Doncic scored 15 points in 4th quarter.
Dallas was +19 in 27:00 that Lively played off bench.
Mavericks lead series, 1-0
— Cardinals 3-5, Orioles 1-4
Orioles hadn’t been swept in their last 106 series, over two years.
St Louis swept a series for first time this season.
— Arizona 6, Dodgers 0
Ryne Nelson threw 5 shutout IP as a bulk reliever.
Dodgers were 0-8 with runners in scoring position.
— Guardians 6, Mets 3
Johnathan Rodriguez knocked in go-ahead run with his first MLB hit.
Mets led 3-0 in sixth inning.
New York is 3-10 in its last thirteen games.
— Giants 9, Pirates 5 (10)
Pirates led 5-0 after four innings.
Lamonte Wade was 3-3, with three walks.
— Royals 8, Tigers 3
Ragans allowed only one hit in 6 IP, striking out 12 Tigers.
Kansas City has won six games in a row.
— Twins 3, Nationals 2
Twins P Woods-Richardson was leading 1-0 in 5th inning, with two outs and no one on, but Minnesota took him out, despite him throwing only 77 pitches. He had faced 18 batters and in today’s game, some teams don’t want a pitcher facing hitters three times. Oy.
— Marlins 1, Brewers 0
Jazz Chisholm led off the bottom of the first with a home run, the game’s only run.
Jesus Luzardo allowed three hits in 8 scoreless IP.
Famous birthdays for May 23rd:
Joan Collins, 91
Rod Thorn, 83
Drew Carey, 66
Rich Karlis, 65
Jay Feely, 48
Kirk Saarloos, 45
Aaron Donald, 33
— NFL teams favored in most games this coming season:
17- 49ers
15- Chiefs
14- Falcons, Ravens, Cowboys, Jets
12- Bengals, Lions, Eagles
— Thats the most games the Jets have ever been favored in in one season.
— Patriots/Panthers are only two teams that aren’t favored in any games right now. This is first time in their history that New England hasn’t been favored in a game; they were favored once in four seasons (1970-72, 1990).
— Longest active playoff droughts:
2010- Jets
2015- Broncos
2017- Falcons, Panthers
2020- Bears, Colts, Saints, Commanders
— Denver Broncos are favored in only two games, against Raiders/Panthers.
— Minnesota Vikings are favored in only three games, the fewest games they’ve been favored in since 1984.
— Toughest part of the Ravens’ schedule is September; they’re underdog in three of their first five games, then are favored in their last 12 games.
— Teams traveling the most miles this season:
26,803- Chargers
25,869- Dolphins
25,797- Seahawks
25,071- Patriots
24,575- 49ers
— Teams traveling the fewest miles this season:
10,550- Commanders
10,611- Bengals
11,497- Colts
12,047- Steelers
12,416- Falcons
Since 2010, NFL teams that scored the most touchdowns:
718— Saints
697— Packers, Patriots
653— Eagles, Cowboys
638— Chiefs
620— Seahawks
613— Chargers
Quote of the Day
“People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”
Mark Twain
Thursday’s quiz
Where did Charles Barkley play his college basketball?
Wednesday’s quiz
Terry Collins was manager of the New York Mets, last time they were in the World Series.
Tuesday’s quiz
Frank Vogel was coach of the Indiana Pacers, last time they were in the Eastern Conference finals, ten years ago.
*********************************************
Thursday’s Den: Doing some thinking out loud…….
— Dallas 108, Minnesota 105Luka Doncic scored 15 points in 4th quarter.
Dallas was +19 in 27:00 that Lively played off bench.
Mavericks lead series, 1-0
— Cardinals 3-5, Orioles 1-4
Orioles hadn’t been swept in their last 106 series, over two years.
St Louis swept a series for first time this season.
— Arizona 6, Dodgers 0
Ryne Nelson threw 5 shutout IP as a bulk reliever.
Dodgers were 0-8 with runners in scoring position.
— Guardians 6, Mets 3
Johnathan Rodriguez knocked in go-ahead run with his first MLB hit.
Mets led 3-0 in sixth inning.
New York is 3-10 in its last thirteen games.
— Giants 9, Pirates 5 (10)
Pirates led 5-0 after four innings.
Lamonte Wade was 3-3, with three walks.
— Royals 8, Tigers 3
Ragans allowed only one hit in 6 IP, striking out 12 Tigers.
Kansas City has won six games in a row.
— Twins 3, Nationals 2
Twins P Woods-Richardson was leading 1-0 in 5th inning, with two outs and no one on, but Minnesota took him out, despite him throwing only 77 pitches. He had faced 18 batters and in today’s game, some teams don’t want a pitcher facing hitters three times. Oy.
— Marlins 1, Brewers 0
Jazz Chisholm led off the bottom of the first with a home run, the game’s only run.
Jesus Luzardo allowed three hits in 8 scoreless IP.
Famous birthdays for May 23rd:
Joan Collins, 91
Rod Thorn, 83
Drew Carey, 66
Rich Karlis, 65
Jay Feely, 48
Kirk Saarloos, 45
Aaron Donald, 33
— NFL teams favored in most games this coming season:
17- 49ers
15- Chiefs
14- Falcons, Ravens, Cowboys, Jets
12- Bengals, Lions, Eagles
— Thats the most games the Jets have ever been favored in in one season.
— Patriots/Panthers are only two teams that aren’t favored in any games right now. This is first time in their history that New England hasn’t been favored in a game; they were favored once in four seasons (1970-72, 1990).
— Longest active playoff droughts:
2010- Jets
2015- Broncos
2017- Falcons, Panthers
2020- Bears, Colts, Saints, Commanders
— Denver Broncos are favored in only two games, against Raiders/Panthers.
— Minnesota Vikings are favored in only three games, the fewest games they’ve been favored in since 1984.
— Toughest part of the Ravens’ schedule is September; they’re underdog in three of their first five games, then are favored in their last 12 games.
— Teams traveling the most miles this season:
26,803- Chargers
25,869- Dolphins
25,797- Seahawks
25,071- Patriots
24,575- 49ers
— Teams traveling the fewest miles this season:
10,550- Commanders
10,611- Bengals
11,497- Colts
12,047- Steelers
12,416- Falcons
NHL
Dunkel
Thursday, May 23
NHL
Thursday, May 23
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmonton @ Dallas
Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Edmonton's last 8 games when playing Dallas
Edmonton is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
Dallas
Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Dallas is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dunkel
Thursday, May 23
NHL
Thursday, May 23
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmonton @ Dallas
Edmonton
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Edmonton's last 8 games when playing Dallas
Edmonton is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
Dallas
Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Dallas is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday’s 6-pack:
Over/under win totals for Mountain West football:
8.5— Boise State
7.5— UNLV, Fresno State
6.5— Colorado State, Wyoming
5.5— Air Force, San Jose State, Utah State
4.5— San Diego State, Hawai’i
2.5— Nevada
1.5— New Mexico
Quote of the Day
“There’s a growing consensus in large part based on what we’re hearing from players that the challenge form should be the form of ABS, if and when we bring it to the big leagues, at least as a starting point.”
Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred, talking about an automated ball/strike system
Friday’s quiz
When David Cone threw his perfect game in 1999, what future major league manager was his catcher that day?
Thursday’s quiz
Charles Barkley played his college basketball at Auburn.
Wednesday’s quiz
Terry Collins was manager of the New York Mets, last time they were in the World Series.
**************************************************************
— Arizona is 7-3 in its last ten road games.
Over is 9-5 in their last 14 games.
— Braves are 5-7 in their last 12 road games.
Under is 23-4 in their last 27 games.
— Cubs lost seven of their last ten games.
Cubs are 23-18 vs righty starting pitchers, 4-6 vs lefties.
— Cincinnati is 5-18 in its last 23 games.
Since April 26, Reds are 0-10 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Rockies lost five of their last six games.
Over is 6-2 in Colorado’s last eight games.
— Dodgers are 7-6 in their last 13 games.
Under is 8-3 in their last eleven road games.
— Marlins are 1-17 against lefty starting pitchers, 16-17 vs righties.
Over is 12-3 in their last 15 home games.
— Brewers lost eight of their last 11 road games.
Milwaukee is 10-4 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Mets are 3-10 in their last 13 games.
Last year, Mets had a $346M payroll, they went 75-87.
This year, Mets have a $323M payroll, they’re 21-28.
— Phillies won 22 of their last 26 games.
Phillies are 10-0 when Ranger Suarez pitches.
— Pirates lost six of their last eight home games.
Rookie P Skenes is 1-0, 2.25 in his first three MLB starts.
— Cardinals are 8-14 in day games, 15-12 in night games.
St Louis hasn’t scored in first inning in its last 13 games.
— Padres are 10-4 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
San Diego is 10-16 at home, 17-10 on road.
— Giants won six of last seven games, scoring 54 runs.
San Francisco is 14-7 in day games, 11-19 in night games.
— Nationals lost eight of their last ten games.
Washington is 14-20 vs righty starters, 7-7 vs lefties.
— Famous birthdays for May 24h:
Bob Dylan, 83
Gary Burghoff, 81
Mitch Kupchak, 70
Kristin Scott Thomas, 64
Pete Metzelaars, 64
Joe Dumars, 61
John C Reilly, 59
Bartolo Colon, 51
Tracy McGrady, 45
— Orioles are 9-3 in their last 12 games.
C Adley Rutschman is hitting .299, with an .809 OPS.
— Red Sox won their last four games, scoring 29 runs.
Boston is 1-6 in home series openers.
— White Sox started season 3-22; they’re 12-14 since then.
Chicago lost seven of its last nine road games.
— Guardians are 16-3 in their last 19 home games.
Cleveland is 8-2 vs lefty starting pitchers, 25-15 vs righties.
— Tigers lost 14 of their last 19 games.
Detroit is 10-9 in divisional games, 14-18 vs everyone else.
— Astros are 10-4 in their last 14 games.
Houston is 6-11 against lefty starting pitchers, 16-17 vs righty starters.
— Royals are off to a 32-19 start; their last winning season was 2015, when they won the World Series.
Over is 6-2 in their last eight home games.
— Angels lost 14 of their last 18 home games.
Over is 11-4 in their last 15 home games.
— Twins lost seven of their last nine games.
Max Kepler is hitting .311, with a .912 OPS
— New York won 15 of its last 19 games.
Under is 12-4 in their series openers.
— A’s lost their last eight road games.
Over is 7-2 in their last nine home games.
— Mariners are 7-1 in home series openers, 3-5 in road series openers.
Seattle is 11-4 in its last 15 home games, overall.
— Rays are 1-6 in their last seven home games.
Under is 10-4 in their last fourteen games.
— Texas lost 10 of its last 12 games.
Under is 16-5 in Rangers’ last 21 home games.
— Blue Jays are 3-7 in their last ten road games.
Toronto is 3-7 vs lefty starting pitchers, 20-19 vs righty starters.
Over/under win totals for Mountain West football:
8.5— Boise State
7.5— UNLV, Fresno State
6.5— Colorado State, Wyoming
5.5— Air Force, San Jose State, Utah State
4.5— San Diego State, Hawai’i
2.5— Nevada
1.5— New Mexico
Quote of the Day
“There’s a growing consensus in large part based on what we’re hearing from players that the challenge form should be the form of ABS, if and when we bring it to the big leagues, at least as a starting point.”
Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred, talking about an automated ball/strike system
Friday’s quiz
When David Cone threw his perfect game in 1999, what future major league manager was his catcher that day?
Thursday’s quiz
Charles Barkley played his college basketball at Auburn.
Wednesday’s quiz
Terry Collins was manager of the New York Mets, last time they were in the World Series.
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Friday’s Den: Trends for every MLB team……..
Trends for all 30 MLB teams…….— Arizona is 7-3 in its last ten road games.
Over is 9-5 in their last 14 games.
— Braves are 5-7 in their last 12 road games.
Under is 23-4 in their last 27 games.
— Cubs lost seven of their last ten games.
Cubs are 23-18 vs righty starting pitchers, 4-6 vs lefties.
— Cincinnati is 5-18 in its last 23 games.
Since April 26, Reds are 0-10 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Rockies lost five of their last six games.
Over is 6-2 in Colorado’s last eight games.
— Dodgers are 7-6 in their last 13 games.
Under is 8-3 in their last eleven road games.
— Marlins are 1-17 against lefty starting pitchers, 16-17 vs righties.
Over is 12-3 in their last 15 home games.
— Brewers lost eight of their last 11 road games.
Milwaukee is 10-4 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Mets are 3-10 in their last 13 games.
Last year, Mets had a $346M payroll, they went 75-87.
This year, Mets have a $323M payroll, they’re 21-28.
— Phillies won 22 of their last 26 games.
Phillies are 10-0 when Ranger Suarez pitches.
— Pirates lost six of their last eight home games.
Rookie P Skenes is 1-0, 2.25 in his first three MLB starts.
— Cardinals are 8-14 in day games, 15-12 in night games.
St Louis hasn’t scored in first inning in its last 13 games.
— Padres are 10-4 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
San Diego is 10-16 at home, 17-10 on road.
— Giants won six of last seven games, scoring 54 runs.
San Francisco is 14-7 in day games, 11-19 in night games.
— Nationals lost eight of their last ten games.
Washington is 14-20 vs righty starters, 7-7 vs lefties.
— Famous birthdays for May 24h:
Bob Dylan, 83
Gary Burghoff, 81
Mitch Kupchak, 70
Kristin Scott Thomas, 64
Pete Metzelaars, 64
Joe Dumars, 61
John C Reilly, 59
Bartolo Colon, 51
Tracy McGrady, 45
— Orioles are 9-3 in their last 12 games.
C Adley Rutschman is hitting .299, with an .809 OPS.
— Red Sox won their last four games, scoring 29 runs.
Boston is 1-6 in home series openers.
— White Sox started season 3-22; they’re 12-14 since then.
Chicago lost seven of its last nine road games.
— Guardians are 16-3 in their last 19 home games.
Cleveland is 8-2 vs lefty starting pitchers, 25-15 vs righties.
— Tigers lost 14 of their last 19 games.
Detroit is 10-9 in divisional games, 14-18 vs everyone else.
— Astros are 10-4 in their last 14 games.
Houston is 6-11 against lefty starting pitchers, 16-17 vs righty starters.
— Royals are off to a 32-19 start; their last winning season was 2015, when they won the World Series.
Over is 6-2 in their last eight home games.
— Angels lost 14 of their last 18 home games.
Over is 11-4 in their last 15 home games.
— Twins lost seven of their last nine games.
Max Kepler is hitting .311, with a .912 OPS
— New York won 15 of its last 19 games.
Under is 12-4 in their series openers.
— A’s lost their last eight road games.
Over is 7-2 in their last nine home games.
— Mariners are 7-1 in home series openers, 3-5 in road series openers.
Seattle is 11-4 in its last 15 home games, overall.
— Rays are 1-6 in their last seven home games.
Under is 10-4 in their last fourteen games.
— Texas lost 10 of its last 12 games.
Under is 16-5 in Rangers’ last 21 home games.
— Blue Jays are 3-7 in their last ten road games.
Toronto is 3-7 vs lefty starting pitchers, 20-19 vs righty starters.
