Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jack

 March 26, 2021

Baseball’s opening day is less than a week away. I have never been more excited about a White Sox season. My optimism was tempered by the season ending injury to Eloy Jimenez. After appearing in 177 games, he was looking to become one of the game’s most prolific sluggers. I have always made predictions that have been wrong due to injuries, which are a part of the game. This is far worse than Kyle Schwarber missing the 2016 season. He came back and was a big contributor to the Cubs' post-season success.

Last year the White Sox led the league in home runs, slugging percentage and were second to the Yankees in runs scored. This will be hard to top without Jimenez in the middle of the
line-up. However, the Sox have many other hitters to score enough runs for their pitchers. Tim Anderson is the catalyst of this team.  Anderson, who missed time on the DL, finished second in batting average and led the league in runs scored. He is capable of showing more power. The Sox also have MVP Jose Abreu. There are two players to watch who can pick up the void left by Jimenez. Yoan Moncado was plagued with the virus last year. Sox fans hope he returns to 2019 form when he was the team’s best hitter, including 26 home runs. Phenom Luis Robert is just scratching the surface. He should get better and better as the season progresses and has massive power.

The White Sox traded for starting pitcher Lance Lynn, solidifying their starting rotation. He joins Lucas Giolito and Dallas Keuchel, all of whom received votes for the Cy Young award. Fourth starter Dylan Cease has the stuff and just needs more command to become really good. Carlos Rodon is healthy and has had a nice camp. Projected future starters Michael Kopech and Garrett Crochet have been added to one of baseball’s best bullpens. The Sox acquired the top closer, Liam Hendricks, who will be set up by Aaron Bummer, one of the best left-handed relievers around.

The White Sox’ new manager is Hall-of Famer Tony LaRussa. Some people were not happy with this choice.  However, I guarantee he will be much more strategically sound than previous manager Ricky Renteria. You can see this in exhibitions with Abreu batting third instead of fourth.  All they need to do is hire a personal chauffeur.

The best thing going for the Cubs is that they play in baseball’s worst division. The winner of this division will have a season where everything goes right. This being the case, the Cubs may wind up in the playoffs.

For the Cubs to be successful, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez and Kris Bryant have to hit much better than last year. The rest of the team looks more solid than at the start of last year. Centerfielder Ian Happ had a breakout season. He will give the Cubs the lead-off hitter they’ve been looking for since Dexter Fowler. Justin Heyward, although not the player the Cubs were envisioning, has put together his best seasons as a Cub. Catcher Wilson Contreras had an up and down year. The Cubs will need more consistency, especially now that they have lost back-up Victor Caratini. Free agent, Joc Pederson may have a little less power but will strike out less than Schwarber. Just like Schwarber, he hasn’t proven he can hit left-handed pitching, but he’ll get  a chance. Make no mistake about it, if the three core players don’t rebound, the Cubs won’t make it to the post-season.

The Cubs’ pitching staff always was the best in the division, now it is just mediocre. Number one starter Kyle Hendricks continues to be an elite pitcher. There is nothing flashy, he just gets outs. The Cubs traded for Zach Davies, who has been pretty good but not in the same category as Yu Darvish. After that it’s a crapshoot. Jake Arrieta will try to resurrect his career. Trevor Williams is a big question mark, as is Adbert Alzolay. If any of these falter, Alec Mills will step in. The Cubs once again will turn to Craig Kimbrel as their closer. He seemed to regain his fastball and was good in the second half of last year. Getting to him may be a problem. Brandon Workman, Rowan Wick are possible set-up men. They also brought back Pedro Strop.

Tom Ricketts believes he has a free pass with Cub fans after winning the 2016 World Series. Now it’s just about the money. He has a plethora of players on one year contracts. The Cubs traded away their best pitcher to cut costs. Ricketts talks about “biblical losses” and it’s been said that even if Rizzo, Baez and Bryant have career years, they would not be able to afford to resign all three. This is laughable as the Cubs are worth $3.2 BILLION. Even if the Cubs incur a luxury tax fine, this is pocket change for the Ricketts.

March Madness

 

March 15, 2021 

After being canceled last year the NCAA tournament is back with a whole different look than in previous years. There is no Duke, Kentucky or Louisville in the field. For me, this is the most exciting event in the world of sports. The buzzer beaters, drama and upsets; I can’t wait for this to start.  

I always make my picks in reverse. There are about eight teams that are far superior to the remaining teams. Therefore, a majority of my final eight picks are 1 and two seeds.  This is low risk prognostications. 1-4 seeds usually win their first round games. In previous years, there have been many upsets of 12 seeds beating number 5 seeds. In 2018 this happened 3 times. Here are some upsets you may want to consider in the first round:

UCSB (12) vs. Creighton (5)

Oregon St. (12) vs. Tennessee (5)

Georgetown (12) vs. Colorado (5)

Maryland (11) vs. UConn (7)

Rutgers (10) vs. Clemson (7)

There is a local flavor in this area with number one seed Illinois and Loyola. Loyola was the Cinderella team in 2018 making it to the final four. Loyola may have a tough time getting by Georgia Tech, winners of eight straight. If they do win, they’ll have the unenviable task of facing Illinois. Illinois and Gonzaga are the hottest teams. Illinois first big test will be their third opponent, Oklahoma St. The Cowboys have NBA’s number one pick Cade Cunningham and the team deserved better than a number 4 seed. Next up would be number 2 seed Houston, who was 24-3. Should Illinois survive they will probably get Baylor in the semi-finals.  

I haven’t seen much of Gonzaga and going 26-0 is nothing to sneeze at. However, they won’t be playing teams like St. Mary’s Pacific or Dixie State. The Western Conference they play in could be the worst in the NCAA. However, they have the easiest path to the final four. Iowa, whom they beat 99-88, is the number 2 seed and may get another chance if they get past Oregon.

In recent memory, all number 1 seeds don’t reach the final four.  Michigan has not been playing well as of late. They have lost three of their last four. They will also be without senior leader Isiah Livers. I predict they miss the final four, losing to Florida State or Alabama.

With easier paths, number one seed Baylor should face off against number 2 seed Ohio State for a birth in the final four. Ohio State has played pretty well in the rough and tough Big Ten Conference. Baylor is an excellent team and probably too much for the Buckeyes to handle.

 These predictions will probably go haywire. There are always teams that bust your bracket. That’s the fun of this tournament.

Hawks, Bulls Trending Upwards While Bears are a Mess

 

March 8. 2021

The Bears are still looking for a quarterback. I have been saying this for over 50 years. Reports have them all in on Seattle QB Russell Wilson. Problem is Seattle is not about to trade him. They are also reported to be all in on Houston’s Deshaun Watson. This would probably take three first round draft picks. The Bears have so many other needs this may not be prudent.  So what is the plan? Knowing Pace and Nagy, I don’t think they have one. The Jets’ Sam Darnold may be available. That doesn’t thrill me much. Alex Smith is available. Working with Nagy in Kansas City, he knows the system. How did Chase Daniel and Nick Foles? Having the 20^th pick in the draft, the General Manager would have to be very creative to move up to draft one of the top quarterbacks left in the draft. Don’t look now because they may bring back Mitch Trubisky.

The Blackhawks just finished a three game series against the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning.  The first two games were both extremely entertaining with each team winning in overtime. The hawks coughed up a three goal lead losing the last game 6-3. This is not the same team that lost 5-1 and 5-2 against the Lightning to start the season. The Hawks may be the biggest surprises in the league. Patrick Kane is still one of the top players and Alex DeBrincat is scoring goals in bunches. I like the development I’m seeing in the young players. I’m wondering how much better they would be with Kirby Dach and Jonathon Toews. Dach is out with an injury and there have been no updates on Toews’ mysterious ailment.

At the all-star break, the Bulls are 16-18. While this may not seem like much, this a major improvement from the past 5 years. They haven’t plated this well since Tom Thibodeau was their coach (2010-2015). The new regime led by Arturas Karnisovas hired Billy Donovan, a proven winner, to coach. He has the task of teaching this team how to win. Since stumbling out of the gate with two lopsided losses they have played .500 ball. They have been in most games but have had trouble in the closing moments. This is the sign of a very young team, and eventually they will get better.  The other problem is with Lauri Markkanen injured; they are looking for a third scoring option. Coby White and Wendell Carter Jr. have to become more consistent. They still need one star to join Zach LaVine to be more competitive. The Bulls have gotten a big lift from Thadeus Young off the bench. This should improve his trade value and maybe provide a combination of draft picks to move up to get an elite college player in the next draft