Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

It’s a day-nighter (Game 1)

Posted: May 11, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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The San Diego Padres used a couple of Javier Baez errors and a 3-run home run by Brett Wallace to end the Cubs 8-game winning streak with a 7-4 victory in Game 1 of a day night doubleheader.

After extended use of their bullpens last night both teams where hoping to get some innings out of there starting pitcher this afternoon. Kyle Hendricks struggled early on for the Cubs, but settled down to pitch 6 2/3rd innings. Hendricks racked up 8 strikeouts with 1 walk while giving up 6 hits. 2 of the 3 runs Hendricks gave up where earned. Colin Rea lasted just 5 innings for San Diego. Rea gave up 7 hits while allowing 4 runs all of which where earned. He struck out 3 while walking 4. Neither starting pitcher figured in the decision. Former Cub Carlos Villanueva picked up the win in relief for the Padres and another former Cub Fernando Rodney picked up the save. It was Villanueva”s 1st win of the season and for Rodney it was his 9th save this season. Pedro Strop struggled for the Cubs out of the bullpen. He didn’t record an out while giving up 3 hits, 3 runs and walking 2. Strop also took the Game 1 loss.

Ben Zobrist and Addison Russell each had 2 hits for the Cubs. Zobrist and Russell along with Anthony Rizzo and  Tim Federowicz where credited with RBI’s. Russell Federowicz and Jorge Soler each had a double in the game. Derek Norris had 3 hits in the game for San Diego while Will Myers and Adam Rosales each had 2 hits. Since 2 of the Padres runs where unearned Brett Wallace drove in 3 runs with his 2nd home run of the season and Matt Kemp picked up the other 2 RBI’s for the Padres.

The Cubs will look to start a new winning streak behind John Lackey in the night cap. San Diego counters with Drew Pomeranz on the mound. Fist pitch is schedule for 7:10 p.m.

@burketime
The Podcast

Let’s Call it Wednesday

Posted: May 11, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, hockey, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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I have to say I was a little disappointed when the Pittsburgh Penguins series against the Washington Capitals ended last night. I know that sooner or later they all end, but I was really hoping for a Game 7 out of this one. At first there looked as though we’d have no shot at a Game 7. Phil Kessel gave the Penguins a 1-0 lead in the 1st period. Kessel also scored the next goal of the game on a power play to put the Penguins up 2-0. After Carl Hagelin added a power play goal to make it 3-0 Pittsburgh it seemed as though the game might be over. When Chris Kunitz took a tripping penalty late in the 2nd period it was pretty much a must score power play for the Capitals. T.J. Oshie was able to capitalize and get Washington on the board with a goal on that power play to make the game 3-1 and give the Capitals a lot of momentum heading into the 3rd period. Now 3 goals is still a lot to make up and Matt Murray has been one of the hottest goaltenders in the playoffs; so Washington had a big hill to climb. After Justin Williams cut the lead to 3-2 with a goal the Capitals where back in the game. The Penguins seemed to lose a little bit of their composure and actually ended up taking 3 straight delay of game penalties for flipping the puck over the glass and out of play. Now this could’ve cost the Penguins the game, but Washington only scored 1 power play goal in this time. It was John Carlson who evened up the game at 3-3 and at the least Washington was even. Believe it or not Pittsburgh actually took one more penalty in the 3rd period, but where able to kill it off and we where headed to overtime.The Penguins had a really good chance to win the when there was a bit of a scrum in front of the Capitals net, but some how Washington’s Jay Beagle was able to keep out a rebound attempt to keep the game going.  The about six and a half minutes intl the overtime period Hagelin had a good look at the goal, but Branden Holtby was able to make the save. Unfortunately Nick Bonino was right there on the door step of the goal and was able to put the puck into the net to win the game for Pittsburgh 4-3 and send the Capitals home. It was a huge loss for the Capitals as they won the President’s trophy with 120 points during the regular season and they appeared to be the favorite coming into the playoffs. The victory sends the Penguins into the Eastern Conference finals against the Tampa Bay Lighting.

Now I mentioned wanting a Game 7 and there are two in the Western Conference. First up the St, Louis Blues are at the Dallas Stars tonight in there Game 7 and then tomorrow night the Nashville Predators are at the San Jose Sharks as they face off in a Game 7. While the NHL seems to be 4th on the list of the 4 major sports their playoffs are as exciting if not more than the other 3 major sports.

So who’s been the best fantasy player so far this baseball season. Now we play in two larger category leagues and according to our rankings the best player so far has been the Houston Astros Jose Altuve. Altuve was ranked 14th at the time of our draft; so it’s not a huge jump for him to get to the top. Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs) has moved up from his 13th spot pre-draft to 2nd overall right now. Manny Machado (Baltimore Orioles) has moved up three spots since the draft going from 7th to 3rd. A couple of big draft movers round out the Top 5. Jean Segura (Arizona Diamondbacks) was ranked 205th when our draft came around and he’s moved up to the 4th best fantasy player right now. Rounding out the Top 5 is Daniel Murphy (Washington Nationals) who was ranked 158th as we where drafting and is now 5th.

Pitching wise things haven’t changed t much since we drafted. Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers) was #1 going into the draft and he’s still the top fantasy pitcher. Chris Sale (Chicago White Sox) was ranked #2 as we where headed into our draft and he’s still there. Now as hard as it might’ve been to believe Jake Arrieta (Chicago Cubs) was ranked 3rd heading into our draft and according to our league he’s still at #3. The last two spots are where some guys have moved up since the draft. Johnny Cueto (San Francisco Giants) was ranked 65th overall in our league at the draft, but has moved up to the 4th best fantasy pitcher. The other big mover in our league is Jose Quintana (Chicago White Sox) he was ranked 137th overall and has found his way into the Top 5. Now obviously “It’s just May” and these rankings will change quite a bit; especially the pitching, but it’s always fun to see which players are out performing there pre-season rankings.

The Washington Nationals signed pitcher Steven Strasburg to a 7 year $175 million dollar contract this week. This came as a bit of a surprise as Strasburg is a Scott Boras client and he normally takes his players out onto the free agent market. Strasburg’s contract does have a couple of opt out clauses and some deferred money breaks down something like this.Strasburg gets a $10 million signing bonus payable on July 1, 2019, and salaries of $15 million each in 2017 and 2018, $35 million in 2019, $25 million in 2020, $15 million apiece in 2021 and ’22, and $45 million in 2023. There are salary deferrals of $30 million in 2019, $10 million in 2020 and $30 million in 2023. If he stays for the full seven seasons, Strasburg would get $15 million each year from 2017-23, followed by seven $10 million payments each July 1 from 2024-30. The use of a deferral structure is similar to the $210 million, seven-year deal that the Nationals gave another Boras client, right-hander Max Scherzer, before last season. Strasburg would earn a $1 million performance bonus each year for pitching 180 innings. The new contract has an escape clause: Strasburg can opt out and become a free agent after the 2019 or 2020 seasons. If Strasburg opts out after three seasons, $30 million deferred from his 2019 salary would be paid out in three $10 million installments each July 1 from 2020-22. If he opts out after four seasons, $40 million deferred from 2019 and 2020 would be paid out in four $10 million installments every July 1 from 2021-24.

Listen to the Sports Time Radio podcast and you can find me on Twitter @Burketime

 

Baez makes it 7!

Posted: May 8, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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It took 13 innings, but the Chicago Cubs found a way to extend their winning streak to 7 with a 4-3 victory over the Washington Nationals. The win also gives the Cubs a sweep of the 4-game series.

After a Kris Bryant double tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the 7th both teams had opportunities to score, but couldn’t get that hit they needed. Finally with 2 outs in the bottom of the 13th inning Blake Treinen hung a 2-2 slider to Javier Baez and Baez sent the ball into the left center field bleachers for a walk off 4-3 win.

Jake Arrieta started for the Cubs while Tanner Roark was the starter for the Nationals. Both of them where long gone by the time this one ended. While it looked as though the Cubs had an advantage on the mound going into the game it didn’t start that way. Arrieta had one of his worst outing in who knows when. He lasted just 5 innings giving up 3 runs with 2 of then being earned. He also walked 4 while striking out 7 and it took him 100 pitches to get through those 5 innings. Roark lasted 1 inning longer than Arrieta and gave up just 1 unearned run while walking 2 and striking out 7. It was in the hands of the bullpens after that. The Cubs bullpen pitched 8 scoreless innings while the Nationals bullpen went 5 1/3rd scoreless innings before the Baez home run ended that streak and the game. Travis Wood picked up his 1st win of the year and Treinen (2-1) took the loss.

Kris Bryant had 3 hits and 2 RBI’s for the Cubs with 1 of his hits being a double. Jason Heyward, Anthony Rizzo and Addison Russell each had 2 hits for the Cubs. Wilson Ramos and Danny Espinosa each had 3 hits for the Nationals and Ramos also drove in a run while 1 of Espinosa’s hits was a double. Daniel Murphy also added 2 hits with 1 being a double for Washington. Bryce Harper tied a major league record by walking 6 times on a game. Harper had no official at bats in the game as he had the 6 walks and in his other plate appearance he was hit by a pitch.

Washington (19-12) gets t head home after a 10-game road trip. They face the Detroit Tigers tomorrow. The Cubs (24-6) get to stay at the friendly confines as the San Diego Padres come to town to start a 3-game series on Monday.

@Burketime
The Podcast

Making it 6 in a row.

Posted: May 7, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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It was about 25 degrees cooler than yesterday and the wind was blowing straight in at Wrigley Field, but the Cubs and the Nationals still combines to score 13 runs in the Cubs 8-5 victory. It was the 6th win in a row for the Cubs and there 3rd straight over the nationals. The Cubs will go for the sweep of the 4 game series tomorrow afternoon. Lefty Gio Gonzalez got the start for the Nationals and through 5 innings he was able to keep the Cubs in check and the Nationals had a 4-3 lead. Jason Hammel struggled through 5 innings for the Cubs. It took Hammel 97 pitches to get trough those 5 innings and he walked more batters (4) then he struck out (3). Spencer Patton was the first Cubs reliever out of the bullpen, but he couldn’t get anyone out. It was Patton’s first appearance since being called up from Triple-A Iowa. Patton gave up 1 run while walking a batter and not recording an out before Clayton Richard came in to finish off the top of the 6th inning. With the way Gonzalez was pitching it looked like the 2-run lead might be enough for him. After a line out a single and a sacrifice bunt there where 2 outs and a man on 2nd for the Cubs. Jorge Soler singled to right, but 3rd base coach Gary Jones choose not to test the arm of Bryce Harper and the Cubs had runners on 1st and 3rd. Addison Russell singled to make the score 4-3 and end Gonzalez’s day. Blake Treinen walked the only hitter he faced; pinch hitter Tommy LaStella to load the bases. Lefty Sammy Solis was brought in to face left handed pinch hitter Ryan Kalish. Kalish managed a chip shot into short left field that Nationals shortstop Danny Espinosa just missed. How ever you want to describe Kalish’s hit it drove in 2 runs and gave the Cubs a short lived 5-4 lead. Travis Wood started the Top of the 7th on the mound for the Cubs, but after giving up a lead off triple t Ben Revere he was removed for Adam Warren. After a strikeout for the 1st out of the inning Harper was intentionally walked and it looked like when Ryan Zimmerman hit a ground ball that Warren would get the Cubs out of the inning. Zimmerman beat the double play throw to first base as Revere scored and the game was tied at 5. In the Bottom of the 7th with 1 out Anthoy Rizzo hit a ground rule double. After and intentional walk to Ben Zobrist Solis was replaced by Shawn Kelley. It was Russell again who came through big for the Cubs. He hit a fly ball down the right field line that looked like it might go foul. Harper moved over to the foul line to try and catch the ball and it went off his glove barely in fair territory for a double. Two runs scored on the play and the Cubs had a 7-5. “Russell’s hit could be described as a Wrigley Field double as it looked as through Harper pulled up a little to not hit the wall. In any other ballpark he would’ve had the room t make the catch and end the inning.   Now the game was in the hands of bullpen combo Pedro Strop and Hector Rondon. Strop pitched the 8th and struck out all 3 Nationals hitters he faced. A Zobrist RBI single in the bottom of the 8th gave Rondon a 3 run cushion for the 9th inning. A Daniel Murphy fly out to left. a strikeout of Revere looking and an Espinosa ground out 3rd to 1st ended the Nationals 9th inning and gave the Cubs their 6th win in a row.

Warren (3 -0) got the win for the Cubs. Strop picked up a hold (7th) and Rondon recorded his 6th save of the season. Solis (0-1) took the loss for the Nationals. Tomorrow it’s Jake Arrieta against Tanner Roark in the series finale.

@Burketime

The Podcast 

How was your week

Posted: May 7, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in Auto Racing, baseball, golf, NASCAR, sports, Uncategorized
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MLB

The Chicago Cubs have won the first two games in their four game series against the Washington Nationals to improve their record to a Major League best 22-6. When the season was getting under way most if not all of the media expected the Cubs to be good and they haven’t disappointed. At first the Cubs winning was viewed as nothing but positive since it’s the Cubs and everyone knows the story. No World Series win since 1908. Then as odd as it might seem as the Cubs continued to win these early season games the media started to question if the Cubs where that good or if it was there schedule that has been allowing them to put up this type of record; so this four game series against the Nationals was seen as a big test for the Cubs.

The Cubs opened the 2016 season with an odd 2-game series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Behind the starting pitching of Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester the Angels didn’t score in either game and the Cubs started off the season 2-0. The Angels are currently 13-16 and weren’t the challenge the media thought they’d be for the Cubs. The Cubs stayed out West for a 4-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks looked to have won the off season, but that didn’t translate into this series as the Cubs took 3 of 4. Arizona is currently 13-18 and in last place in the National League West; so they apparently weren’t the match up the experts where looking for the Cubs to face either. After their  trip out West, the Cubs came home for their home opener and a 3-game series against the Cincinnati Reds, which the Cubs swept. While it’s difficult to sweep a team this wasn’t much of a surprise to anyone. The Reds did get of to a good start to the season, but are now 13-17. After the Reds, the Colorado Rockies came to Chicago for a 3-game series and the Cubs hit their first speed bump of the season as the Rockies took 2 of 3 in this series. Colorado is one game under .500 at 14-15, but the N.L. West is so close that they’re just one game of of 1st place. After losing there first series of the year the Cubs went back on the road to face there rivals the St. Louis Cardinals in a 3-game series. This was looked at as the Cubs first test of the season and they appeared to pass as they took 2 of 3 games in St. Louis. The Cardinals have struggled a little bit and since they’re just .500 at 15-15 this series win wasn’t good enough for the Cubs. The Cubs then went to Cincinnati for a 4-game series against the Reds; which they where expected to win and they took 3 of the 4 games. It was back to Chicago for the Cubs and another N.L. Central match up; this time against the Milwaukee Brewers. Because of rain the series ended up being just 2 games and the Cubs won both. This was another expected outcome as the Brewers are in rebuild mode. Milwaukee is 11-18 and currently in last place in the N.L. Central. The Atlanta Braves where the next team on the schedule as they came to Chicago for a 3-game series, but more rain allowed just 2 games to be played and the teams split the shortened series. Was this the chink in the Cubs armor experts where looking for? The Braves are also rebuilding and have the worst record in baseball right now at 7-21, but look out they won a game in Chicago. The Cubs headed back out on the road and jumped back into N.L. Central play as they faced the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 3-game series. This was suppose to be another test for the Cubs as the Pirates where and still are in 2nd place in the N.L. Central. This appears to be another test the Cubs passed as they swept the Pirates. Pittsburgh is 16-13 on the season. This brings us to where we are now with the Cubs facing the Nationals.

You’ve seen the schedule the Cubs have played and are they just a creation of the teams they faced or are they a serious contender. I hope you’re leaning towards contender and you’re not looking to make excuses for the tams success. I’ve also been trying to figure out how the schedule is the Cubs fault. I believe the schedule was set by Major League Baseball  and the Cubs or any other team don’t have anything to do with the scheduling of games. Will the Cubs continue to win games at a clip of .786 like they are now; probably not. While the Cubs are on a 5-game winning streak right now and they haven’t lost back to back games there will probably be some times when they lose multiple games in a row. Will that be the test the media needs, to see how they bounce back from a losing streak or is it something else. While it’s still too early in the season to hand the Cubs the World Series trophy they look like a team that might be in the mix for it at the end of the season.

NASCAR

The Sprint Cup series is going racing tonight in the GoBowling 400 at Kansas Speedway. Chris Olmstead usually joins the Sports Time Radio podcast on Sunday mornings to preview the race and give his Top 3 drives he thinks has h the best chance to end up in victory lane. Well with the race being on Saturday night Chris has sent us his picks for tonight’s race. Chris is going with Kevin Harvick; who’s starting 26th, Chase Elliott who’s starting 13th and Kyle Busch who’s starting 6th. Martin Truex Jr. took the pole with an average speed of 190.921 miles per hour. Matt Kenseth starts 2nd with his teammate Denny Hamlin starting 3rd. Kurt Busch will start the race 4th and last weeks winner Brad Keslowski rounds out the Top 5 starting 5th. Hopefully Chris will be able to join The Big Jack and Mr. Fantasy on Sports Time Radio tomorrow (Sunday) to review the race.

PGA

Zac Blair is a professional golfer and yesterday he was disqualified from the Wells Fargo Championship on Friday for using a bent putter. Now how did Blair’s putter get bent? Well Blair missed a putt on the 5th hole of his round on Friday and proceeded to hit himself in the head with his putter and bent it. Everything would’ve been fine if Blair hadn’t use the putter, but Rule 4-3b states that you can’t use a non-conforming club and by bending his club in anger Blair had a non-conforming club. Blair could have tapped in with a wedge and played the rest of the round without a putter. The Rules of Golf allow you to replace a damaged club during a round but not if the damage was done in anger. Blair  approached a rules official on the sixth tee and explained the situation, which resulted in disqualification. Blair was 4 over par at the time and in danger of missing the 36-hole cut. In case you’re wondering Andrew Loupe is leading the tournament at -8 going into Saturday’s round.

Listen to The Podcast on BlogTalkRadio.com and you can find me on Twitter @Burketime

Jake the Great!

Posted: April 28, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, fantasy, post season, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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Soooo last nights matchup pitting Mr. “No one will under cut my work,” Jake Arrieta takes on Milwaukee Brewers 0-3 Taylor Jungmann.  It would appear that the extra day of rest would through The Great One off.  He would give up a single to lead off man Jonathan Villar who would steal second, with #3 in the lineup Ryan Braun.  With one man on and one out, Braun would reach on a walk.  Catcher Jonathan Lucroy would walk but not before the double steal would go into effect.  He wouldn’t let it get to him by striking out the next two batters to prevent the Brew Crew from scoring.  

Dexter Fowler would spark the Cubs with a leadoff single to center.  Heyward would pop out. Chris Bryant would reach after getting hit.  Rizzo would walk to load the bases.  Ben Zobrist with bases loaded would send a ground ball to right scoring Fowler and Bryant!  Cubs up 2-0 after 1 inning.  David Ross would lead off the second with his second home run of the season.   3-0 Cubs after 2.  Kris Bryant would lead off the third with a single and score on Anthony Rizzo’s double to right.  Tommy La Stella would send a line drive to right to right scoring Rizzo.  

Taylor Jungmann would only last 3 2/3 innings with 5 earned runs but the Brew Crea would get out of the fourth with giving up any runs.  After his scuffle in the first, Jake would cruise through the first half of the game but would give up a single to Jonathan Villar who would steal second and score thier first run of the game on Alex Presley’s double to right breaking The Great One’s scoreless streak at the Freindly Confines.  

Chris Capuano would come into the fifth and load the bases with walks.  Fowler would ground into a force out getting the run back, putting the Cubs up 6-1.  Madden would pull Arrieta after 5 for Justin Grimm.  Sam Freeman would come into the sixth for Milwaukee.  He would give up a leadoff hit to Javier Baez and then would walk the bases loaded for Addison Russell who would ground into a force out scoring Baez but would get out of the inning. 

Trevor Cahill would start the seventh with a strike out, give up a hit, then a strike out, walk and pop out to end the inning.  He would get two batters out but after a fielding error and a walk would be replaced by Pedro Strop who would end the inning on a strike out.  

Neil Ramirez would come into the ninth inning, leading off with a K but would give up a double to Villar who would move to third on a wild pitch.  Alex Presley would score him on a sac fly.  Ryan Braun would ground out to end the game.  7-2. 

Jake would get his fifth win of the season but not a quality start striking out 6, walking 4 and giving up just three hits with a run.   The Cubs bullpen would continue to protect thier starting pitcher as they have all month long giving up only 3 hits and 1 run but striking out 7.   

Another W in the books! 

@danzeeeman
The Podcast

Let’s call it Wednesday

Posted: April 27, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in basketball, hockey, post season, sports, Uncategorized
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Out of the big four sports I’d have to say that basketball is my least favorite. It always seem to me that the games are just dunks and 3-point shots. I always try to catch a little bit of the game just to keep up with the score and see what’s going on. Now last night was the first time in a long time that I was sorry I missed a game. I noticed that there was a very early start time for the Indiana Pacers/Toronto Raptors game yesterday. I guess it was because they had two Eastern Conference games on the television schedule. The series was tied at 2-2 with Game 5 being played at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre. By the time I actually got to the game it was coming to the end of the 3rd quarter and the Pacers had a 13 point lead 90-77. I had pretty much given Indiana the game which would’ve also given then a 4 games to 3 games lead in the series. Little did I know that the Pacers would score just 9 points in the 4th quarter. Toronto was able to even the score at 92-92 and then after back to back 3-pointers by DeMar DeRozan and Corey Joseph sandwiched around a missed 3-point shot by Indiana’s Monta Ellis the Raptors found themselves with a 98-92 lead. Solomon Hill hit a big 3-pointer for the Pacers to cut Toronto’s lead to 100-99. DeRozen made two free throws to make the score Toronto 102, Indiana 99. The Pacers had the basketball under Toronto’s basket with 2.7 seconds left. Ellis inbounded the basketball to Paul George who you’d expect to take the last shot, but he was double teamed and passed the ball to Solomon Hill who appeared to hit a game winning 3-pointer for the Pacers. After the referees reviewed the play it was ruled that the ball left Hill’s hand after the game clock had expired. With those 3 points taken off the board the Raptors get the win 102-99 and they take a 3 games to 3 lead in the series. You have t wonder if this is the kind of loss that might stick with the Pacers. Not only did they give away a 13 point lead in the 4th quarter they appeared to have saved the game for themselves only to have the referees change that on a review. Will this impact Indiana’s play in Game 6 which isn’t until Friday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indiana.

DeRozen had what many are saying was his “best playoff performance” leading Toronto with 34 points. Kyle Lowry scored 14 points and had a team high 5 assists while  Jonas Valanciunas added 11 points. Off the Raptors bench Norman Powell and Bismack Biyombo each scored 10 points and Biyombo grabbed a team high 16 rebounds. Paul George had a game high 39 points for the Pacers and also led Indiana in rebounds and assists with 8 of each. George Hill had 15 points while Myles Turner scored 14 points; Turner also grabbed 8 rebounds to tie George for the team lead.  Solomon Hill was the only Indiana player to score double digits points off the bench and he ad 11 points.

The other NBA playoff game last night saw the Atlanta Hawks take a 3 games to 2 lead in their series with the Boston Celtics by winning Game 5 110-83. After the 1st quarter Atlanta found themselves down by 5 points at 20-15, but a 32 point 2nd quarter gave the Hawks a 47-39 lead at halftime. Atlanta continued to put up the point as they had a 42 point 4th quarter to pretty much put the game away. At the end of that 3rd quarter Atlanta led 89-62 and the Celtics never got any closer. Both teams scored 21 points in the 4th quarter to get to the final of 110-83. Atlanta was led by Mike Scott who came off the bench to score 17 points. Jeff Teague and Kent Bazemore each scored 16 points while Kyle Korver scored 13 points and Paul Milsap added 10 points. Milsap and Al Horford led the Hawks with 8 rebounds apiece while Milsap tied with Thabo Sefolosha for the team lead in assists with 6. The Celtics where led by Evan Turner with 15 points. Jae Crowder, Marcus Smart and Jared Sullinger each had 10 points for Boston. Terry Rozier led Boston with 4 assists and Jonas Jerebko grabbed a team high 8 rebounds for Boston. The series heads back to TD Garden in Boston for Game 6 on Thursday night. The home team has won each of the 5 games played in this series; so will Boston be able to hold serve on Thursday night or can Atlanta close them out and move on to the 2nd round.

So besides the two games last night injuries seem to be the story of the NBA playoffs right now. First Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors goes down with a sprained knee in Game 4 against the Houston Rockets. Golden State still won the game (121-94) and have a 3 games to 1 lead in the series. Curry is scheduled to be out at least 2 weeks; so with another win Golden State will go into Round 2 of the playoffs without Curry. Golden State will meet the winner of the Los Angeles Clippers/Portland Trail Blazers series which is tied at 2 games apiece right now. The Clippers where another team that suffered from the injury bug in their Game 4, but they not only lost one player they lost two. First Chris Paul suffered a broken hand in the game. He had surgery on that hand yesterday and has been ruled out indefinitely. Then the Clippers announced that Blake Griffin would miss the rest of the playoffs with a left quadriceps injury. Now it looks as though the Warriors will be able to advance without their best player, but how are the Clippers going to do in a series that’s even and missing their two best players. All four teams are on the court tonight; so we’ll see if the Warriors can close out that series and we’ll see how the Clippers play without Paul and Griffin.

NHL

While the 2nd round of the NHL playoffs gets started tonight with the New York Islanders at the Tampa Bay Lighting there’s still one 1st round series left to be decided. The Anaheim Ducks are hosting the Nashville Predators tonight at 10:00 p.m. on the NBC Sports Network. The winner goes on to face the San Jose Sharks in the 2nd round of the playoffs while the loser heads home. Frederik Andersen has picked up all 3 of the Ducks wins this series and has a Goal Against Average (GAA) of 1.26. You have to think that Anaheim will go with Andersen in net over John Gibson who’s 0-2 with a GAA of 3.08. For Nashville it will be Pekka Rinne in goal since he’s played all 6 games of this series and has a GAA of 2.68. Who do you have winning this Game 7? If it helps you at all Dan the Man had Anaheim winning this series when he made his picks at the start of the 1st round.

Listen to the Sports Time Radio podcast on BlogTalkRadio.com and you can find me on Twitter @Burketime

 

 

Best record in the MLB; 15-5

Posted: April 26, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, Minor League Baseball, post season, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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The first place Cubs are back in the friendly confines to begin a six game home series starting with the last place Milwaukee Brewers.  However, with tonight’s starting pitcher’s records, you’d think they were on their respective teams opponents.  1-2 Kyle Hendricks faces 3-1, Jimmy Nelson.  Should be interesting for Cubs hitters with Jimmy in, either they’ll strike out several times or knock bombs off him.  The wind should be blowing out for another W.  

I was wrong by game time, the wind was actually blowing in from right.  Well here we go.  Hendricks would start off with a 1-2-3 inning but would walk the first batter of the second, Chris Carter.  He would end up at third on Kirk Nieuwenhuusdouvle to center.  Aaron Hill would send a fly ball to left scoring Carter on a sac fly.  That would be the only run Kyle would give up. He’d strike out four walk one and only give up one more hit through five.  

Nelson would cruise through four innings with out much damage but it would be the fifth, where he’d lead off Soler with a walk, Russell would single and David Ross would move them over with a sac bunt.  Madden would pinch hit for Hendricks. Tommy La Stella would walk, loading the bases.  Fowler would send Soler across the plate with a sac fly to center.  Heyward would ground out to end the inning.  

Adam Warren would cruise through the sixth and seventh inning retire all six batters he faced.  In the bottom of the sixth, Bryant would reach on an error and would move over to second on a Ben Zobrist walk. Carlos Torres would come into the game getting Soler to fly out but would give up a triple to center field scoring both Bryant and Zobrist.  Cubs up 3-1.  

Javier Baez would lead off the bottom of the seventh with a single to center and would be called out trying to steal second.  The Cubs would challenge and it would be over turned.  Bryant would walk, then Rizzo would double scoring Baez, putting the Cubs up 4-1, giving Adam Warren a chance at the W.  

A bunch of changes would happen but basically Pedro Strop would come into the eighth with not his best stuff.  He’d walk Aaron Hill and on the next batter throw a wild pitch advancing Hill, who would end up at third on a ground out.  He would walk Colin Walsh, setting up pinch hitter Ryan Braun, who would double to right.  Strop would make it interesting but would get a strike out before Travis Wood would come in to finish the inning.  

Michael Blazek would make it an exciting bottom of the eighth by loading the bases but would ultimately end the inning with out any more runs.  Hector Rondon would come into close out the game searching for his fourth save of the season. He would get through the first two batters no problem but would give up a single to Nieuwenhuis but would end the game with a deep pop out to Kris Bryant who was transitioned to left field.  

I predicted that Jimmy Nelson would get strikeouts or throw home runs.  With the wind blowing in, home runs weren’t in abundance but he did get six K’s in 5 1/3 innings.  Hendricks would only go 5 innings with a no decision.  Aside from Strops trouble, the Cubs bullpen would finish the Brewers off taking the first game of the series.  Tommorow/today, whenever you read this, MLB player of the week and Mr Two-NoHitter Arrieta takes to the rubber, can he make it three???

@DanZeeeMan

STR 2016 NFL 1st round mock draft

Posted: April 26, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in football, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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#1 Los Angeles Rams Jared Goff, Quarterback (California). The Rams gave up quite a bit to get the 1st pick in the draft. Goff can be the face of the franchise with their move back to Los Angeles.

#2 Philadelphia Eagles Carson Wentz, Quarterback (North Dakota State). The Eagles also gave up quite a bit to move up and they’re looking for a future starting quarterback. I said future; so someone tell Sam Bradford to shut up.

#3 San Diego Chargers Jalen Ramsey, Cornerback (Florida State). I doubt the Chargers thought they’d be this position. Ramsey may be the the best player in this draft and while he listed as a Cornerback he has the skills to replace Eric Weddle at Safety.

#4 Dallas Cowboys Joey Bosa, Defensive End (Ohio State). The Cowboys let Greg Hardy go and they have a need for an edge rusher. While Bosa’s combine numbers weren’t what people thought they’d be he can get to the quarterback.

#5 Jacksonville Jaquars Laremy Tunsil, Offensive Tackle (Mississippi). There is lot of talk that the Jaquars would like to deal this pick, but I’m not going to try and factor in trades. If they keep this pick why not protect Blake Bortles.

#6 Baltimore Ravens Myles Jack, Linebacker (UCLA). There are a couple of ways the Ravens could go with this pick, but they know defense; so they might as well pick the best defensive player on the board.

#7 San Francisco 49ers Laquon Treadwell, Wide Receiver (Mississippi). Quick; name a 49ers wide receiver. Chip Kelly needs a weapon for his up tempo offense and receiver is a huge need in San Francisco.

#8 Cleveland Browns DeForest Buckner, Defensive Tackle (Oregon). This is another spot in the draft that might be dealt as there where some reports that Cleveland would be willing to make another deal. If they hang on to the pick Buckner is a good player to build a defensive line around.

#9 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vernon Hargreaves, Cornerback (Florida). This is a position of need for Tampa Bay; so it makes sense for them to take Hargreaves; he’s the best defensive back on the board.

#10 New York Giants Ronnie Stanley, Offensive Tackle Notre Dame. Eli Manning isn’t getting any younger and the Giants need to keep him upright and healthy. Stanley has slipped down the board and he’s a good value for the Giants here.

#11 Chicago Bears Reggie Ragland, Linebacker (Alabama). The Bears wasted their 1st round pick last season; so let’s hope they’re smart enough to not do that again. Ragland is a classic Bears type of linebacker.

#12 New Orleans Saints Shaq Lawson, Linebacker (Clemson). Lawson can be the good pass rusher for the Saints and it seems as though ever season New Orleans needs defensive help. One of these years they’ll help the defense.

#13 Miami Dolphins Ezekiel Elliott, Running Back (Ohio State). Lamar Miler is gone and they weren’t able to sign the running back they wanted in free agency; so Elliott can fill that void. He’s a 3-down back and those are rare in today’s NFL.

#14 Oakland Raiders Mackensie Alexander, Cornerback (Clemson). It wouldn’t be a surprise if they Raiders try to move this pick, but if they stay here at #14 it’s a solid choice to strengthen the defensive backfield. Alexander will be the best Cornerback on the board.

#15 Tennessee Titans Noah Spence, Defensive End (Eastern Kentucky). The Titans can use another pass rusher and while Spence might not be a 3-down guy he’ll be good in pass rushing situations.

#16 Detroit Lions Corey Coleman, Wide Receiver (Baylor) Calvin Johnson retired and there’s a big hole to be filled  there. While Coleman probably isn’t the next Johnson he’ll be able to help out filling those shoes.

#17 Atlanta Falcons Josh Doctson, Wide Receiver  (TCU). It’s back to back at the wide receiver spot as the Falcons add one to help out Julio Jones. With Jones there it’s a good landing spot for a rookie to step right in and help out.

#18 Indianapolis Colts Leonard Floyd, Linebacker (Georgia). Floyd was a little light when he weighed in at the Combine, but he can still get to the quarterback. Floyd might not be a big help against the run, but pass rushers are important.

#19 Buffalo Bills Robert Nkemdiche, Defensive Tackle (Mississippi). This pick has Rex Ryan written all over it. Nkemdiche has fallen down the draft board after his incident at Mississippi’s bowl game, but before that he was in the Top 10 of a lot of mock drafts.

#20 New York Jets A’Shawn Robinson, Defensive Tackle (Alabama). There are some issues with Muhammed Wilkerson’s contract and if he ends up getting dealt the Robinson will be able to help fill that spot.

#21 Washington Redskins Jack Conklin, Offensive Tackle (Michigan State). Conklin’s stock has been on the rise as of late and the Redskins could always use another line man to help protect quarterback Kirk Cousins.

#22 Houston Texans Will Fuller, Wide Receiver (Notre Dame). Fuller had the fastest 40-yard dash at the combine. Fuller can help the Texans stretch the field for DeAndre Hopkins to get his catches.

#23 Minnesota Vikings Braxton Miller, Wide Receiver (Ohio State) Miller only played 1 season at wide receiver for Ohio State, but as a former quarterback he’ll be able to make the adjustments quickly at the NFL level.

#24 Cincinnati Bengals Darron Lee, Linebacker (Ohio State). Cincinnati has a need at wide receiver, but with 2 of them coming off the board right before their pick I think they’d try to shore up the defense by adding a linebacker here. Lee looks like the best one left.

#25 Pittsburgh Steelers Eli Apple, Cornerback (Ohio State). This is pretty much a need pick for the Steelers. They need to get younger in the defensive backfield and Apple will be the best players on the board here.

#26 Seattle Seahawks Kevin Dodd, Defensive End (Clemson). There may be another need here for the Seahawks, but they like to take pass rushers early in the draft; so that’s where I have them going with this pick. Offensive line wouldn’t surprise me here.

#27 Green Bay Packers Willie Beavers, Offensive Tackle (Western Michigan). Green Bay’s offensive lineman went down right and left lat season; so they need people at almost any spot there. Beavers should be on the radar at this pick.

#28 Kansas City Chiefs Michael Thomas, Wide Receiver (Ohio State). Kansas City seems t be in a good spot here and wide receiver has always been an issue. Thomas has started to move up some draft boards; so there’s a chance he’s not here when the Chiefs pick.

The actual 29th pick was suppose to belong t the New England Patriots, but it was taken away from them as part of the Deflategate penalty

#29 Arizona Cardinals Hunter Henry, Tight End (Arkansas). Henry would plug right in as the best tight end on the Cardinals and will add to the passing game right away. Henry is the only tight end with a 1st round grade and he’d be an upgrade for the Cardinals.

#30 Carolina Panthers Cyrus Jones, Cornerback (Alabama). Josh Norman was allowed to leave as a free agent; so there’s a need for a defensive back. While Norman is going to be tough to replace Jones can help Carolina do that.

#31 Denver Broncos Paxton Lynch, Quarterback (Memphis). There’s is just Mark Sanchez and Trevor Siemian on the Broncos roster at the quarterback position. Lynch could be the future quarterback of this team. If the defense is still good Lynch could end up being the starter.

Listen to Sports Time Radio on BlogTalkRadio.com

You can find me on Twitter @Burketime

 

 

 

Arrieta vs Lincecum

Posted: April 24, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, post season, sports, Sports Time Radio, Uncategorized
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Hey there, Chicago

While your own Cubs continue to demonstrate why they are the number-one ranked team in Major League Baseball, the San Francisco Giants have struggled mightily, losing five straight before finally managing to break out against Barry Bonds and the Miami Marlins, 8-1 Friday night, on Orange Friday, at AT&T Park.

For those of us keeping the spotlight focused on on Jeff Samardzija, who made his first start Friday night in his own home park, it was a gratifying performance. He went seven-and-two-thirds innings against the fish, limiting them to a single run, and lowering his ERA to 3.00 and his WHIP to 1.26.
After three road games to begin his stint with San Francisco, Samardzija took advantage of the friendly confines of AT&T, not to mention the clutch defense backing him up. The Shark’s strong early season prowess is taking the pressure off of Madison Bumgarner, especially in light of the team’s sluggish start to the year.
Speaking of strong starts, big ups to Jake Arieta for hurling his second no-hitter over his last eleven starts, proving once again that he is the reigning king of all National League starting pitchers. It was not that long ago (June 26, 2014) that Tim Lincecum tossed his second no-hitter, both against the San Diego Padres, and there is no getting around the surge of electricity one of these gems sends through the organization.
Astonishingly, this was Arieta’s 24th straight regular season quality start, going back to last June 21st. Having surrendered a total of only seventeen runs over those 178 innings, has helped him forge a 20-1 mark during this stretch.
The presence of such a master within the clubhouse, is a key component to any serious playoff contender. The staff must have a guy whose stuff is good enough on any given day, to completely stifle an opponent and pick up a sagging rotation.
Jake Arieta is that guy for the Cubs, just as Madison Bumgarner is that go-to guy for the Giants. Prior to Arieta’s meteoric rise to the top, Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers, called the shots from the top. On paper every team has a top dog.
How much the team relies on that staff leader, becomes amplified when the stress of playoff ball creates a pressure cooker so volatile that the ace cannot hold up under all that hype. Should he stagger in that capacity, so would his team.
You can probably guess where I am going to with this line of reasoning. If you glance quickly at Bumgarner’s stats right now, (1-2, 3.91 ERA, 1.39 WHIP), you would see numbers that belie his elevated status on the team.
In fact you would see that MadBum’s career statistics do not come close to say, Kershaw’s numbers during the regular season, but then again, Kershaw’s regular season numbers shine compared to his postseason efforts.
Jake Arieta also experienced technical difficulties in this area last October.
For him to have had back-to-back starts in the playoffs, in which he gave up four runs, shows that even the best of them are challenged under the microscope of the playoffs. Nothing dictates he will ever have a similar problem again, but the uncertainty must linger in the back of the collective Cubs consciousness.
The Giants have no such impediments in their thinking process. They know what to expect from Bumgarner when October arrives, so they do not worry when things do not go as well during the grind of the regular season.
When it comes right down to it, San Francisco has suffered from inconsistency during the regular season in all three of their recent world series runs. They had four extended losing stretches in 2010, five in 2012 and seven in 2014.
Seven times during this most recent title run, the Giants lost four or more consecutive games, or experienced periods in which they won only once during prolonged stretches, baffling their fans and resurrecting the term “torture” for Giants followers.
But not surprisingly, these nosedives seem to better prepare the Giants for adversity, which makes sense when you think about it. If a team never struggles, it does not learn how to address hard times when they arrive.
Timing is everything.
For now the Cubs are on top of their division, and the Giants are near the bottom. Until that changes, my words are only so much hot air being blown about, like the mighty wind whipped up, when LA’s Yasiel Puig takes one of his mighty cuts, and whiffs.
That’s it for my at-bat today. See you next week.
@bellspringsmark

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