Philadelphia Phillies vs. New York Yankees
I have not been this excited for a World Series in a long time! There isn’t a baseball fan in the world that shouldn’t be excited for this Series. As a matter of fact, only Mets fans are allowed to not care since they hate both teams. Finally, for the first time in a long time (probably 1999) the two best teams in baseball are facing each other in the World Series, and what a Series it should be.
Baseball is a game that hinges on so many unforeseen things, more than any other sport. For example, who is better Cliff Lee or C.C. Sabathia? An argument can be made either way. Which offense is more powerful? Which team is more clutch? The only discernible difference between these two teams as I see it is their bullpens, more specifically their closers. Mariano Riveria is Mariano Riveria. He is legendary, has proven his worth and there isn’t much else to say about him. Except for this: Mo has shown that he does not field and throw bunts out very well. Perhaps statistically he is as good as any other pitcher performing that task, byt Mo threw away the 2001 World Series against the Diamondbacks, and he almost cost the Yankees the other night against the Angels. Brad Lidge meanwhile should be spoken about in terms of his dominance but because of his shaky regular season performance the topic concerning Lidge is, which one will show up? In the post-season he has been the Lidge of 2008, which is great but in this calendar year he has been more shaky than sturdy.
These two teams played this year in the Bronx with the Phillies taking 2 of 3. In my honest opinion, I wouldn’t blame anyone for placing money on either team, I think they match up that well. The only thing I am highly certain of is that neither team will sweep, and every game will be a dramatic, nail-biting game that comes down to the last pitch. That being the case, an argument could be made for the Yankees based on their experience in playoff and World Series games. The Phillies however are the team with the more recent World Series experience, and they are the defending champs.
So for whatever it is worth, I placed my money on the Yankees in 6. And I have not been this excited for the World Series in a long time!
The New York Yankees and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team share many common traits; a storied past, the most championships than any other team, a national following, their own television deals (the Yankees actually have a whole channel), and maybe a few others.
Today they share another trait, and that is having a bit of ridicule hurled at them by those that cry about unfair systems. The Yankees are catching heat for the money they are spending, and Notre Dame is catching heat for accepting a bowl bid after completing a 6-6 season.
The Yankees spend a lot of money, everyone knows it. Spending all that money obviously doesn’t unlevel the playing field, the Yankees haven’t won a World Series since 2000. If this field was so tilted by the Yankees spending than why haven’t they won? In case you weren’t paying attention, they didn’t even make the playoffs this year. The Yankees also just received a $26.9 million tax bill from the commissioner’s office. Did you hear the Yankees crying about it? Some other teams complain about this ‘reckless’ spending, but the Yankees are spending with much more care than any other team when you consider the size of the New York market.
The Boston Red Sox made an offer to the newest Yankee, Mark Texiera that was only 5.5% smaller than the Yankees accepted offer, yet the Boston market is a fraction of the size and financial power of the New York market. Who was really being careless? If you want to tell yourself the Red Sox are so savvy that they made the Yankees pay more than they otherwise would have, you must also believe that the Red Sox wanted Bill Buckner to let that ball go through his legs, just to make the 2004 World Series win be that mush more special.
Notre Dame meanwhile is taking heat for being treated like they are Kings of College Football, but they couldn’t beat Queens College in a football game. Now the Irish are playing in a Christmas Eve bowl game and people say they shouldn’t go, because they didn’t earn it. The rule is to have a .500 record or better and win a minimum of 6 games in order to be bowl eligible. Notre Dame meets both of those minimums, even if barely. After that we all know it’s a money grab, so why is everyone bitching and moaning? If the bowl system were fair would there be the yearly outcry of hatred for the system? Notre Dame didn’t create this system.
But more importantly to Notre Dame and their obese fool of a head coach, going to a bowl game allows the Irish to get some extra weeks of practice. Practice that is most definitely needed. Another irony of the unfairness of the bowl system is that the worst teams, those that don’t qualify for a bowl, are at a disadvantage because they miss out on practice time that the better teams, those that do qualify for a bowl, get to have. But the problems with the bowl system are obvious and comprise a list ten miles long.
Whether you love or hate either of these teams, and that is where most people fall, take the time to look at the full scope of each environment. Neither organization should apologize for anything.
The Twins, Rays, and Brewers have been treating me well. I am pausing the Twins today since they are coming off of a win, and then they have a series with the Yankees that is touch and go from my perspective. The Twins may be started up after the Yankee series.
Chance favors the prepared mind. -Pasteur
Despite my earlier proclamation of sticking with the Cubs through the Marlins series, I am closing the Cubs today prior to their game. I still believe the Cubs will make the playoffs, and they very well may get hot again. However, they have some key things working against them. One is that they don’t have a closer, as Kerry Wood was placed on the DL a few days ago. Additionally, the Cubs are and will continue to be big favorites in most of their games thus making each win not very profitable and each loss very costly. My thinking when opening this fund was that the Cubs would be so many games over .500 that the large MLs wouldn’t matter.
With the remaining money in the Cubs stock, I am opening a Colorado Rockies stock beginning today. The Rockies are defending NL Champs yet are 12 games under .500. Last year it was a second half run that propelled the Rockies into the playoffs and they are poised to make a similar run this year. They play in the weakest division in baseball and they are rarely large favorites. Additionally, many of their key players are having years well below their career averages. Things even out in baseball so it is expected that the dudes that are struggling will get it turned around in the second half.
All 4 stocks don’t play until this evening, so come back to the site then to see how many Money Bags are on each stock.
The Cubs trail 2-1 to the D’backs as I write this and my plan for them is to ride them tomorrow and then for the 4 home games they have against the Marlins. I will then pause the Cubs for their 4 games in Milwaukee; restarting them for their 9 game homestand against the Pirates, Astros and Cardinals. At that time I will evaluate the scenario before deciding what to do for the Cubs 6 road games in Atlanta and then Florida. The Cubs then have 6 home games against the Reds and Nationals. That decision can wait.
To say the Cubs bats have been disappointing over the past two games is an understatement. The team that led MLB in offensive productions has mustered just 2 runs in their 2 games since the break, and yesterday’s run was the work of the pitcher Carlos Zambrano hitting a HR. Let’s not panic. The Cubs are the best team in the NL, there really isn’t a question about that. Houston is somewhat hot, and has proven to be a second half team the past couple of years. It is important to remember why the Cubs are in the portfolio. Their record over the second half will be enough games over .500 that they will earn money. For now, until the bats warm up, I am going to lay off aggressive plays and be in position to strike once the Cubs get it going.
The Mets and Tigers are in the same boat. They were hot and may face a little cool down time. Overall, these teams will be in their respective pennant races and there are no plans to inactivate these stocks.
The Brewers are performing to expectation, as they are slightly ahead of the Anticipated Bank after two games. A rare occurrence today with the Brewers, clearly a better team than the Giants, being an underdog. Granted it is because the Giants ace, Tim Lincecum, is throwing; but with the Brewers stock performing well this will be an aggressive play today.
To view the key to what the Money Bags represent. CLICK HERE
Off to a nice start of the second half with the Tigers and Mets getting wins last night. Tonight there is a full slate of action with all 4 active funds in play. After the A’s traded yet another pitcher I dropped them from the portfolio. That makes two pitchers in the past few weeks and GM Billy Beane commented that he is thinking about being a good team for years to come, not just this year. That doesn’t instill confidence.
The Tigers and Mets are being played due to my belief that each team will be at least 12 games over .500 over the remainder of the year. The Cubs are the best team in the NL and have not lost more than 4 games in a row in the first half. The Brewers adding CC Sabathia gives them two aces and a low likelihood of a long losing streak. Additionally, the Brewers were 2 games from the playoffs last year and will challenge for at least a Wild Card spot.
All these stocks will remain open for the foreseeable future
There has been no action since July 9th as I am evaluating which teams to play in the second half. I believe that we got all we are gonna get out of Tampa. If you believe that Tampa is in it until the end, then you also have to believe that they will push to win 95 games. I believe 95 games are necessary to win the AL East. If Tampa does win 95 games, that puts them at 40-29 from here on out. Do you believe that the team that was the worst in MLB last year is going to keep pace with the defending World Champion Boston Red Sox as well as the underachieving New York Yankees? I am not sure. Understand that Baltimore is also improved and the Blue Jays also underperformed in the first half. That makes the Rays remaining schedule fairly difficult.
I do like the Brewers, Mets, Tigers, and A’s in the second half and am also considering the Blue Jays and Twins. The key is to identify who you think will finish over .500 and to also identify those teams Value Index. The higher the Value Index the lower the risk. We will talk more about this later.
I closed the Oakland A’s fund with their trade of Dan Haren to the Cubs. This is due to lack of confidence in the A’s ability to withstand a losing streak. This fund could open in the future. Here is how the fund closed: OAK +15.05%
Yesterday began the Milwaukee Brewer fund. I believe the Brewers will win the majority of their games from here on out as well as having a low likelihood of a losing streak over 5 with the addition of CC Sabathia to a staff that already has Ben Sheets. The Brewers only missed winning the NL Central by 2 games last year. They are legit.
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Tonight’s Action: The NBA Finals will tip-off tonight at 9:00pm in Boston in an old-school matchup of Lakers vs. Celtics. The Celtics are 2.5 point favorites and the Total is set at 191.5. There will be a ton of emotion early before both teams settle into their groove, that seems to make the Under a good wager, and the downward movement of the Total since it opened at 194 tells you how the rest of gamblers are viewing this game. But The Dean is not a Total player, so you do what you need to with that. With the game, the Celtics have no starters that were in the Finals before but they have veterans on their bench that have been. That calming influence and experience will be felt in Game 1. The Celtics were the best team in the regular season when it came to Ws and Ls and their home-court dominance is what carried them in the playoffs.
There are many matchups that are intriguing, some that are scary and others that are yet determined. With it all out there, I will be laying 3-stars on the Celtics minus the points tonight while paying special attention to the methodologies implemented by both coaches.
For the series, The Dean says Celtics in 7. If you don’t like that prediction, perhaps you would rather side with Tmac by the Bay who likes the Lakers in 6.
American League: The Detroit Tigers are now 11-games under .500 after losing to the A’s 10-2 . . . The Angles took a 5-4 decision from the Mariners . . . Boston has taken the first two of a 3-game set from the Rays, 5-1 . . . The Yankees defeated the Blue Jays by the same 5-1 score . . . The Indians and the Rangers keep scoring a ton of runs, last night it was the Indians that scored more 15-9 . . . The Twins slowly move up in the standings, winning last night 7-5 over the Orioles . . . In 15 innings the White Sox defeated the Royals 6-4.
National League: The Marlins put up 4 in the 9th to beat the BRaves 6-4 . . . Milwaukee stays hot and Arizona does not as the Brewers win 10-1 . . . The Rockies won another, 2-1 over the Dodgers . . . The New York Mets take advantage of the SF Giants 5-3 . . . The Reds win a 2-0 decision over the Phillies . . . The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Houston Astros 5-2 . . . The Cubs had their 9-game winning streak snapped as the Padres won 2-1 . . . The Nationals got a win of sorts as they and the Cardinals were rained out.
Who’s Hot? / Who’s Not?: The Brewers have won 6 in a row . . . The Angles have won 5 in a row and the A’s have won 4 straight . . . The Mariners have dropped 4-straight and have the worst record in MLB.
Nothing worth your valuable time in football.
The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 to capture the Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Big Brown got the #1 post for Saturday’s running of the Belmont Stakes. Not the best position to start in, but neither was his position at the Kentucky Derby where he started at the furthest out position and still won.
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