It's about that time...here's my picks (I'm with the team in parentheses):

Braves over Cubs (Braves)
Marlins over Giants (Marlins)
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Braves over Marlins (Braves)


A's over Red Sox, though Walker is going to continue to kick ass for Boston (A's)
Yankees over Twins, which sucks as much as I want the Twins to win (Twins)
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A's over Yankees, finally (A's)

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Braves over A's in the dream match-up I've been wanting to see for 12 years. I still want the A's to win.

I've never been a big basketball fan.

Keep dreaming, Dawson. You know the Braves always choke in the post-season. And what a shame, since that's the only time of year they can sell out a game.

As a Cubs fan, I am ecstatic to have them in the playoffs for a change. I think they will beat the Braves in 5. The NLCS I don't feel as confidant about, especially if we have to play the Giants. Ultimately, i think the Giants go to the Series.

In the AL, of course I'm rooting for the Sox. How could you not? But I think they'll lose to Oakland, who will go on to beat the Twins (yep) and go to the Series.

World Series: Giants vs. A's. That's right, another battle of the bay. I'm predicting another major earthquake in the middle of the Series, too. Giants win in 6, Bonds gets the monkey off his back and secures his position with the pundits as the greatest player of all time.

Really, as long as the Yankees don't win, I'll be happy.

Y'know, I would have picked the Giants over the Marlins before today, but I just have a feeling about Florida. They looked really good as a team today and I have a hunch that they may shock some people. There's a team like them in the playoffs every year: very experienced coach, good balance of talented veterans and young up-and-comers, recently acquired veterans, excellent closer...I don't know, but I've got my eyes open for them to pull something off. They remind me a bit of their team that won it all in '97.

Any baseball fan would love to see Cubbies and BoSox in the World Series, but that would be too good to be true. Twins and Braves would be nice too, but not the same without Kirby Puckett and Morris.

As far as Atlanta residents go, they do suck. I hate how much they have taken their team's greatness for granted. I agree with you about them choking, especially considering Chicago's starting pitchers.

Overall, this is a good playoff year. You have your usual suspects like the A's, Giants, Braves, and Yankees, combined with teams like the Twins, Cubs and Marlins. I like any season when the Twins win the Central.

I like the Features, and that movie about baseball with Tom Hanks and Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell...what was it called?? Truth or Dare?

The only two teams I've ever liked are playing the first round, so I know I'll at least get to see one of them lose to the damn Yankees in the AL championship.

That would be a marvelous thing for baseball. So good that I demand this take place. It could potentially save the sport.

true that. baseball is such a fucked sport. it's hard to believe that they wanted to contract the twins a few years ago. a cubs red sox series would be lovely.

Y'know, at the time, I was all about them getting rid of a couple of teams. I didn't exactly want the Twins or Expos to lose their teams, but I was getting tired of a bunch of third-rate pitchers serving up homeruns to every Tom, Dick, and Bret Boone that came around. As a matter of fact, I'm still in favor of that. God damn expansion. Baseball would be a hell of a lot better if the talent pool wasn't so fucked up, because of expansion. I will say though, that since all of that, the Angels, Twins and Marlins have all proved you can do something with close to nothing in the span of about two - three years. I'm waiting for the Tigers to come around.

Cubs and Red Sox, yes, it seems to be unanimous.

I agree that expansion is the devil. The Devil Rays should be contracted before the Twins. I mean, when was the last time the Devil Rays won the series? Oh, wait, NEVER! And it's not the Expos fault that nobody goes to there games. Who's idea was it to take baseball to the French Canadians anyways? And for the record, there's nothing shady about Brett Boone and Mike Cameron getting pumped overnight...

The most common conversations that arise when I'm watching baseball with people are the following:

1)Do you think (ballplayer x) is on steroids?
2)Do you think (ballplayer x) is on Viagra?
3)I wonder if (ballplayer x) is gay.

Baseball teams that should be contracted:

-BOTH Florida teams. Florida is for spring training and that's it. The D-Rays play in a dome even though they're in the Sunshine State. Plus, they suck. The Marlins need to play in a real ballpark. Their attendance is even worse than the Braves'. Get rid of them.
-BOTH Canadian teams. They both have atrocious attendance problems. They both play in domes (Can you tell that I'm not a big fan of playing baseball indoors?). Plus, at Expos games, the game is announced in French and the distances are metric. Boo!
-The Twins. Yeah, I know, they're scrappy and they get it done on a shoestring budget...BUT THEY PLAY IN A DOME! Build a real ballpark or...see ya!
-The Angels. Anaheim does not deserve a major league baseball team.

So we remove those teams. Then we give the following cities major league teams: Washington DC, Louisville, New Orleans and Portland.

I'm not sure with the size of Louisville, and its proximity to Cincy, if a team there would bes particularly feasible.

A team in DC or northern Va, would probably cause a large legal battle with Peter Angelos.

I don't see a major league team In New Orleans without a dome.

Portland...Portland might not be bad.

(Edited by Ceeze at 4:37 pm on Oct. 2, 2003)

No love for Nashville?

Fuck Nashville. Us getting a new stadium and actually supporting the team will not happen. Don't get me wrong, I'd like to see it happen; but no, no love for Nashville.

Domes suck. Get rid of them or get out of the league. I agree with JC.

The Devil Rays are numero uno on my "get the hell outta here" list. The Tropicana Dome truly sucks, and so does the thought of baseball in that area.

5 teams in California? 5 teams?! Honestly, that's been a long time problem I've thought about.

Louisville, last time I checked, really supports their AAA team, and their stadium totally kicks ass. However, I doubt they could support a major league team any time in the near future. Cincinnati being the biggest reason.

Maybe Washington would support a team. I would love to see it happen. And, by God, they would be called the Senators.

Last time that contraction was a big deal, Carolina was set to get a team. At the time, it was going to be the Twins. I can't remember the other city that would have received the Expos.

Oh, and for those who care, the A's are two up on the Red Sox. They only have to win one more game out of three...nice knowin ya Boston. See ya next year.

Wasn't it NoVa?

I believe so.

I for one am against the contraction of the Expos and Twins. Even though the Twins beat Atlanta in the series (one of my many childhood sports let downs - being a Buffalo Bills and Notre Dame fan has been rough), I have a hard time imagining baseball without them. The same applies to the Expos, minus the World Series part. I kind of like having a scrappy team like them challenging in the east every now and then. Some great players have come out of that organization (Marquis Grissom being my favorite), and I'd hate to see them go.

Teams I wouldn't mind being contracted:

Tampa Bay, Anaheim (even though I'd feel bad when looking back at old Nolan Ryan cards), Arizona (even though they took the Yankees down, I don't like them), and either Florida or Colorado. Probably Florida, since they shipped everyone off after winning the series.

I believe you're right. That wouldn't be too bad. I wonder if any of those talks still exist.

I don't think so. I think that it required a stadium to be built, but Arlington County officials told the league that they wouldn't allow a stadium to be be built on county land, thus fucking the plans.

(Edited by damon at 1:39 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

The Twins should not go. They just need a new stadium. I would hate to see the Expos leave, but I would understand. Colorado won't go, neither will Arizona. I don't really mind them that much.

It's unanimous, Tampa Bay...you're FUCKED! The Marlins are iffy. I hated them for dismantling their team and I also hated them for having Mike Piazza, though it was only for a couple of days. However, they have redeemed themselves in my eyes for building another excellent team.

Ew, I just realized the Baltimore factor of having a team in DC. It won't happen for DC. Never. Baltimore is too close. They'd never let it happen.

The seafood alone is worth the trip. Too bad the Orioles suck. They're last year of decent ball may have been when Brady Anderson hit 50 homers. What a fluke.

I was just thinking about that the other day. It was a BIG deal too. You were a big, fucking deal back then if you could hit 50 homeruns and knock in 100 RBI. Unfortunately, his sideburns got the better of him and he was hitting in the .200's soon after that. I want to say that the Orioles went to the playoffs at least one or two times in the years immediately after that. They sucked though. They got the shit kicked out of them by the Yankees, en route to some NY World Championships. They had some excellent pitching, I do remember that. Mussina, Erickson, and old man Key. Too bad ugly-ass Ponson wasn't as money for them back then as he is now. Ahh...baseball.

I would like to say for the record, fuck Sammy Sosa and fuck Barry Bonds, who I only like for getting people to watch baseball and for not being money-chasers and team-swapping bitches. Outside of that, fuck them. Barry Bonds is a dick, and Sammy Sosa is a putz. There, I said it. Long live Jose Canseco, the original (yes, he was a money-chaser, a team-swapper, and a slut, but come on, the man was a badass and he didn't fake it. OK, well, he wasn't a badass either, cause a fucking ball bounced off his head and went over the fence, but that's what he got for leaving my beloved Oakland A's in their hey-day. Aside from all of that, he was awesome. And, yes, I am a hypocrite.)

I agree about Bonds and Sosa. I'm not a big fan of these players with forearms as big as my head. I remember when both of those guys were skinny (Sosa with the ChiSox, and Bonds in the Andy Van Slyke days of Pittsburgh). I give McGuire props, though, because I think he could have broken the record without getting pumped like he did. he was a beast in Oakland when he was healthy. For the record, my favorite players have rarely been the huge stars. Fred McGriff, Mark Lemke, and Jeff Blauser are up there on my list.

And, a guy from my high school named Nick Swisher is in their system at some level. I think it was triple A with a dozen or so HRs last time I checked. I refuse to check againm though, as I'm morally against being a fan of anyone I knew in high school. Fuck them.

(Edited by damon at 2:07 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

I thought about putting Arizona on the list, but they don't (really) play in a dome, and the folks down there really support the team (at least so far, and at least when they're winning).

Colorado I have no problem with. They have a great ballpark. And major league baseball needs a couple of total band boxes like Coors Field to make things interesting.

I used to wear an Expos cap all the time, because I've always thought they have one of the coolest logos (even though I have no idea what it means - elb???). And I agree about them producing great players (personally I'm a big Moises Alou fan). But the bottom line is, when you see a Montreal game on TV, it's just so fucking sad. There are like 2,000 people there - on a good day, and even if they're having a good year. That's not good for major league baseball. Give that team to a city that would appreciate them.

The Twins I would be open to keeping, if they get a new park. I would say that I don't think that's going to happen, but I've heard that the Vikings are talking about building a new retractable roof stadium, so maybe it could. If the Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee, Boston and Cleveland can play outside, then anyone can.

I think Washington DC could support a team, in spite of Baltimore. They both have NFL teams, right? I see ya'lls point on Louisville. But I still think New Orleans could be a great baseball city. Maybe.

For some reason I can't see New Orleans being a good place for a pro team. It might be because the Saints have a tendency to suck, and that I figure people are too wasted to go to games. That is to say, I have no reasons to speak of.

I was all about pre-muscle-fab McGwire, as well as Terry Steinbach, back in my day. I also liked Bob Welch, Don Mattingly, Dave Henderson, Jose Canseco, Benito Santiago, Tony Gwynn, Walt Weiss, Rick Honeycutt (really, any A's players, I shouldn't list them all), Nolan Ryan, Pete Rose, and any shortstop that wasn't a homerun hitter (oh wait, that was all of them...).

I hated Chuck Knoblauch, Cecil Fielder, Mark Grace, Ryne Sandberg, Griffey Jr. (whatever happened...), Rob Dibble (still do) and that other Nasty Boy pitcher, Chris Sabo, and the entire Braves teams of the early 90's. I have since grown to like them and yearn for the days of the blue-collar Braves.

I'm that way about older teams in general.

1) What the hell ever happened to Cecil Fielder? Didn't he hit an ass load of homeruns and then go to Japan to play?

2) Pete Rose was a great player, but I can't respect a guy who keeps himself in the lineup as an old player/manager. Shady stuff.

Isn't it a giant "M" in three different colors. I completely agree about that logo. I love it and I wish that I still had my mesh Expos hat. I still have my old-school Cardinals hat, cause I gotta represent. The old Astros and Padres uniforms are cool too, in their silliness. Hell, just about any uniform from the 80's is cool.

Please don't get me started on "alternate" day uniforms. How I loathe those...I can't possibly count the reasons why. The 70's/80's pull-over alternate jerseys were fucking spectacular, the A's in particular. I also hate how baggy the uniforms are, as of late. They can't possibly be comfortable, much less cool-looking. I will give Sosa props on that. He was the first one that I saw wearing a tight jersey in years.

1. Yes

2. Exactly why I like him. What a shady character. Now, that's old-school. Everything's too clean-cut these days. They've done the same thing to NASCAR and it really pisses me off. It takes a lot of character out of the sport to have shifty business removed. Though, I will say that boxing is the prime example of how shadiness can go too far.

(Edited by richarddawson at 3:28 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

Bonds seems like a total asshole. I can't deny his talent, though.

How can you hate Sammy, dude? He's an affable enough guy. He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I like watching him play, and I like listening to him talk. And I like how I can tell when he's hit a homer by how he hops.

I liked Oakland McGuire a lot better than St. Louis McGuire.

Those late 80s/early 90s Pirates teams were great - Bonds, Bonilla, Van Slyke, a young Moises Alou, Sid Bream, Jose Lind, and Doug Drabek, man. Doug Drabek. Not to mention John Smiley. They won the NL East like 3 or 4 years in a row, but never could make it to the Series. And they slowly but surely lost all of those great players. And they've been terrrrrrrible ever since.

THANK YOU!!! I was racking my brain for 10 minutes trying to think of his name earlier in my list of cool players. I loved that guy! He had a resurgence a few years ago, and it was pure bliss. I'm sure if he came back and played for Atlanta that he would win 20 games or something like that. Fucking genius, that Mazzone. As far as the Pirates go, they had some good pitching prospects about 4 years ago, and kicked complete ass in Spring Training, but they floundered like fish bitches in the regular season. Giles was the greatest thing they had going, but alas, he was traded. At least they have a nice stadium.

Sorry JC, there's just something about me that doesn't allow me to like Sosa as much as I want. I think that it has to do with the fact that I was so into McGwire hitting 62 homeruns, that any contender other than him was an enemy of mine. Enter my hatred for Barry Bonds, who I didn't like anyway because he's an asshole. I think I don't like Sosa because he swings at a lot of bullshit pitches. I know that's a lame reason, but that's all I've got.

1000th post came in a baseball thread...my grandmother would have been so proud.

(Edited by richarddawson at 3:41 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

So that's what it is! A giant, multi-colored "M". Thank you.

Those late 70s/early 80s Astros and Padres uniforms looked like fast food uniforms. Their coolness has not since been equaled, except maybe by the Denver Nuggets uniforms at some point, but that's a whole different sport.

The ugliest uniforms that I have seen in a long time are Oregon football's home uniforms. I'm not a big fan of the new Falcons jerseys either. In the last 5 years, NBA teams have successfully ruined any cool logo or uniform that they ever had in an effort to become more "street."

(Edited by jamiecarroll at 3:49 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

(In response to Oregon) I love those! They're so strangely sleek looking that I like them. Don't get me wrong, they're tacky as all get-out, but would you want to play against that? Why else do they kick so much ass at home?

I kind of like the new Falcons stuff, except for the logo. If they had left the logo alone and modified the jerseys alone, that would have been cool by me. Have you noticed the new Arkansas football uniforms? I like them a lot, though the changes are suddle.

And yes, the NBA sucks for selling out over cheap looking, cartoonish logos. In a completely hetero way, I really wish that they still wore the short-shorts. Honestly, do their shorts need to be that baggy these days? It would add pizz-azz to the whole game, and it would make everybody look much taller. Then, maybe everyone would decide to go extra old-school and shoot from the perimeter. Now, there's a thought.

(Edited by richarddawson at 3:57 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

Don't even get me started. The worst thing that ever happened to college basketball was the introduction of Michael Jordan's line of uniforms. Now thug teams like Cincy can look the part.

Man, I just miss Larry Bird.

On that note, I'm going to bed.

(Edited by jamiecarroll at 4:04 am on Oct. 3, 2003)

The Yankees and A's won today. *Doin the dance, feelin the flow* If you happen to like me now, you won't like me if my predictions come true. Oh, but that would be so tight.

One of the greatest achievements of my life to this point was correctly guessing the winner of every single round of the 2001 TSSAA Boys Basketball AAA Playoffs, prior to the start of the tournament. Every...single...game. I'll also take credit for calling every Braves and Bills post-season choke of the 1990's, but after a while, who couldn't.

workin it. workin it.

Yeah, but can you predict earthquakes?

I leave that to my pal JC. I'm really pulling for you on that one JC.

Damn. Jose Cruz just blew the game for the Giants (and for me). How do you DROP a routine pop fly with the game on the line in the playoffs? Unacceptable.

(Edited by jamiecarroll at 1:21 am on Oct. 4, 2003)

Mwah ha ha

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think that all of the wind went out of the Giants' sails when Cruz dropped that ball in game 3. They were not the same after that.

I still think that I'm going to be right about the Cubs, the Twins, and the A's, though. All bets are off on the earthquake, though. And how about this: since the Giants are elminated, I'm picking the Cubs to go to the World Series now. You can book it.

Go BoSox!!

F*ck the Pats!

Yep.

Did anyone else notice that the camera guys were showing David Wells' wife at evey possible opportunity during today's game? Man, she is hot.

Yep. Go Cubs.

Very good and admirable prediction JC. This has, however, almost completely fucked my predictions. I'll have to see if I can at least go 3 for 4 in the Red Sox/A's Game. Unfortunately, I really think that Boston will win. I'm really feeling like the Yankees will go all the way after today's game, meaning they'll beat the Marlins in the Series. Yep, count it. Marlins and Yankees in the World Series - the antithesis of what everybody really wants to see.

Yankees vs. Cubs in the series. Highest TV ratings in baseball history.

It would be a series for the ages... but as a TV/Broadcasting geek it probably wouldn't surpass the highest rated World Series.

Since Nielson started tracking TV ratings in 1968, the highest rated Series were the 1978 Yankees-Dodgers and the 1980 Phillies-Royals at a 32.8 share. That means that nearly one in every three televisions that were in use were tuned to the WS. The most amazing part of that number is that both Series featured two day games, not in prime time like they are now. Of course, that was in a day before massive cable line-ups and most of the country had 3-4 channels to choose from.

I would bet a Cubs-Yankees tilt would garner massive ratings by today's standards... maybe even a 20 share.

I'd like to see a BoSox-Cubs series go 7 games and get called indefinitely due to inclimate weather...

If the Sox and Cubs meet in the World Series you can expect this to happen....

During the sixth inning of the sixth game, the sixth batter (Sammy Sosa) will reveal himself to be the Anti-Christ.

While we're going with arbitrary prophecies, if the Cubs win the World Series, I will stay in Chicago after graduation and rather than move back to Nashville and try to fake Titans fever.

So the Red Sox won. So I guess only one out of my four predictions came true. But it was the most important one.

Well, I went 2 for 4 in my first round predictions. The Marlins won tonight. They must know that RD has money on them. Go Yankees. (shouldnt...say...that)

The Cubs will win Game 2. Gotta go with Prior. He's awesome.

(Edited by richarddawson at 2:51 am on Oct. 8, 2003)

I'm beginning to really despise Pudge Rodriguez. Also, I can't stand that smartass Cabrera. And I HATE that stupid low-five that all of the Marlins give each other when they're celebrating. This team is going right up there with the Yankees in the I-Can't-Fucking-Stand-Them category.

"Brad Penny sucks tonight." That is all I had typed while I got on here during the second inning. As I am typing, he gives up another run and a two-run homer to Sosa. Yeah, he sucks tonight. He walked two in the first in what I believe was a 28 pitch opening inning. That's ridiculous. I hate to speak prematurely, but with Prior pitching tonight and a five run lead for him to work with, the Cubs will win.

AND, the Yankees/Red Sox game is on FX. What the fuck?! It's bad enough already that any baseball is on Fox, but now the ALCS is on fucking FX. That's bullshit. They have to own everything, even if they don't have a viable outlet for normal people to watch the biggest part of the season. Luckily, I have it; otherwise, I would be more pissed.

(Edited by richarddawson at 8:19 pm on Oct. 8, 2003)

How about this night?! The Cubs and the Sox won. I didn't give the Sox a chance in hell in this series, but they took care of business in Yankee Stadium.

I know man, I know. And tomorrow night, Lowe is pitching. Aw, shit.

He shoots, he scores!

It's not looking so hot for the Yankees though...

(Edited by richarddawson at 8:47 pm on Oct. 16, 2003)

Boo-yeah!

The Marlins look really good and I think that they have an excellent chance of beating the Yankees, but I'm going to stick with the Yankees prediction I already made.

Fuck the Marlins. Fuck the Yankees. I'm offically boycotting the World Series this year. It's a lose-lose situation.

It is fairly boring.

i still have to go for the yankees since the marlins' uniforms are so ugly.

my sentiments exactly.

Whoops, should have changed it. Marlins won, the World Series sucked this year.