Friday, May 27, 2011

Heat Comeback Again, Red Sox Stay Hot and Plenty of Upsets at Roland Garros


                The NBA Finals is set, and it is a rematch of the 2006 series between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks that starts Tuesday at 9pm in Miami. The Heat defeated the Mavericks in 6 games in 2006 when they had Shaquille O’Neal patrolling the paint. This time around it certainly will be a different ball game with different rosters and a much more determined and seasoned Mavericks team to compete vs. LeBron, Wade and Bosh. This is a great match-up for the casual fan as well since it does feature those big names in big markets. So far my predictions haven’t been too close so I am slightly afraid to say who would win but I did not think this would be the match-up as I had Thunder-Bulls as my pick before the playoffs started. Yet if I have to venture a guess I will say Dallas wins in 6 in a greatly competitive series that features a handful of 30 point games from Dirk and LeBron.
                Bruins-Lightning face-off tonight to meet the Canucks for the Stanley Cup and the buzz around the game is huge. Tampa Bay is 3-0 lifetime in game 7s including winning one of those this postseason, while Boston is 10-10 lifetime and also have won a game 7 this postseason. Could be a great game and I am really looking forward to watching it tonight at 8pm on Versus. Since I jinxed the Bruins by picking them to close it out in 6 I will not predict this game!
                Yesterday was a slow baseball day with only 8 games going on but of those 8 one really stood out. Another 14 run explosion by the Boston Red Sox highlighted the day as Carl Crawford has lifted his average 32 points in two days while leading the Sox into first place after a miserable start. Elsewhere across the league Anibal Sanchez led the Marlins to a 1-0 win in San Francisco the day after Posey’s injury that will cost him at least 6-8 weeks if not the season for a broken bone in his lower left leg suffered in the collision with OF Scott Cousins at the plate. A tough blow for the Giants who are already offensively challenged even with Posey their cleanup hitter in the lineup. Will the Giants now really make a play for New York Mets SS Jose Reyes? As a Mets fan I would support the trade of Reyes as long as we get a starting pitcher now, and 2 prospects for him.
                I have somewhat ignored the big tennis news but since the French Open is starting to really heat up I guess it’s time to give the stars their due. Yesterday gave us Kim Clijsters’ early exit and today number 1 seed Caroline Wozniacki lost in straight sets 1-6, 3-6 to 28th seed Daniela Hantuchova. Now both top seeds are out and the race is wide open for players like Maria Sharapova or Vera Zvonareva to take the title in France. On the men’s side the last American hope Mardy Fish advanced to the 3rd round quickly with a 7-6, 6-2, 6-1 win over Robin Hasse. Today Roger Federer, David Ferrer and Gael Monfils all advanced to the 4th round with easy 3 set victories.
                Last night’s biggest winner was a tough choice between LeBron James’ clinching win and Anibal Sanchez’s complete game shutout of the Giants. But I decided LeBron gets the edge since the Giants really don’t pose much of a threat offensively especially without Posey. So LeBron’s 28 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks and 4 turnovers while shooting 8 for 19 from the field (3 of 6 from 3) and 9 of 11 from the free throw line win the honor once again.
                Last night’s biggest loser was easy. Detroit Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer (Who is on my fantasy team as well) had a day to forget against the red hot Red Sox going 2 plus innings giving up 7 hits and 7 earned runs while walking 2 and striking out 1. The loss dropped Scherzer to 6-2 on the season while raising his ERA from 2.98 to 3.86.

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