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Finally. After 2,430 regular games, one ‘play-in’ game and 24 play-off games, the 2009 major league baseball season is down to two teams to see who is the best team in baseball. Wednesday night was the start of the World Series, with the New York Yankees facing last year’s winners, the Philadelphia Phillies.
Now we’re two games in, and the seven game series is tied one-apiece, and is now heading to Philadelphia after the first two games at Yankee Stadium.
The Phillies looked very strong in game one, winning 6-1. Cliff Lee pitched a dream and Chase Utley hit two home runs. It was quite the statement of intent. As much as many (including me sometimes!) would love to count out the Yankees, you just can’t. And last night proved that, with them getting a 3-1 win, and this time AJ Burnett was the pitching star of the evening.
The memorable moments of the post-season, prior to the World Series, had been mistakes, from fielding and running errors to pitching meltdowns and questionable umpiring. What has been so good about the World Series, so far, is that the games have been all about great performances, not players (or umpires) having a nightmare. In particular, every starting pitcher has put on a great show.
For any major sporting final this is ideal, this is how it should be. Probably the two best teams in the sport, finding out who is really the best, not the least worst. If that makes sense? Long may the series continue!
Apologies to all my avid readers for the lack of new posts this week – I had a brief holiday, with no access to the internet. But here I am, back with a vengeance, with another one of those annoying filler posts!
This week, following Liverpool’s big win against Manchester United last Sunday, here’s a classic goal from that fixture in 1985, this week’s Man Crush – Jan Molby…look at him move!
And while we’re raiding YouTube for clips, here’s regular commenter Steven Harris‘ crush from last week, King Kenny himself…
I’ll be back into the swing of proper posts sooner rather than later, but hopefully this should keep you all going for now!
While perusing my stats, like every blogger secretly does, hour by hour, day by day, I realised that despite my insightful analysis and witty asides on the state of sport, one of the most popular posts was all about having a man crush on a particular sportsman.
And so, much like Lazarus from the flames, here comes another Man Crush Friday, where we look at the sportsmen we idolise, adore, or just think are all-round swell guys.
My Man Crushes this week are Jenson Button and Tom Brady (see above for dreamy pics). Button has done a fantastic job winning the Formula 1 championship with a rookie team, while Tom Brady, one of the best quarterbacks ever, is in London this week, for the annual NFL game at Wembley.
So, who are your sporting Man Crushes this week?
Being a responsible citizen and employee, I didn’t stay up for last night’s Angels/Yankees game, and frustratingly, the condensed game wasn’t ready on mlb.com as I wolfed down my breakfast this morning. So, I’ll keep this post cheap and cheerful, and rely on the couple of clips I did see.
The Angels managed to stay alive in the series with a 7-6 win. The series is now 3-2 in the Yankees favour, as it returns to New York. So, I’m not so sure the Angels will be staying in this for long, as they need to win twice in New York to make the World Series.
It looks to have been quite a game, with a particular flurry of runs in the seventh inning, in a real seesaw outing. The Angels got the perfect start, scoring four runs in the first. The Yankees came back with a vengeance in the aforementioned seventh, scoring six. The Angels’ seventh inning was a pretty good fightback in itself, with three runs putting them back in the lead. They then held on, despite the Yankees loading the bases in the ninth.
So…the series isn’t dead yet. And the Yankees are looking just a tiny bit more human and fallible. At least until the next game, tomorrow night, that is.
Last night the Philadelphia Phillies reached baseball’s World Series for the second year in a row, and are on course to retain their title.
The Phillies beat the Dodgers 10-4 on the night, and 4-1 in the series, to become National League champions, and will now face one of the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, still going at it in the American League series.
As the score betrays, this was a night for the hitters, not the pitchers. The highlights made it look more like a home run derby than a play-off game. There were sixteen hits in all, including seven home runs. Padilla for the Dodgers saw his post-season form grind to a halt, giving up six runs in three innings. His counterpart, Cole Hamels, wasn’t a whole lot better, giving up three runs, before being pulled from the game in the fourth.
The Dodgers had their chance to mount a memorable late comeback, but failed to make the most of loading the bases late on. And so the Phillies go through, and in all probability to face the Yankees.
Neither side is the most likable, so in the meantime I’ll be rooting for the Angels to turn around their series against the Yankees. As that looks like a losing battle, I’ll perhaps take this advice from Fear and Faith in Flushing, and reluctantly support the Phillies…
Two months into the football season and there have already been several managerial casualties.
Perhaps the strangest, and least expected, is the most recent, Gareth Southgate. Southgate has been Middlesbrough boss since 2006, and took them to two mid-table Premiership finishes before last year’s relegation into the Championship. If he was going to get the sack, you would have thought it would have happened this summer. But instead, Chairman Steve Gibson took the advice of Tammy Wynette to heart and stood my his man.
Until now, that is. It is well-documented that many clubs have struggled in the Championship after dropping down. Middlesbrough, however, have held their own. They currently lie fourth, only one point off the top, and last night beat Derby County 2-0. So, Southgate was dismissed after a win, and with Middlesbrough in a very strong position to build on.
There have certainly been bad results this season, including a 5-0 home defeat to West Bromwich Albion, but the league table doesn’t lie. Middlesbrough could easily push on for promotion.
So why remove Southgate now? Has Gibson got someone lined up who he thinks will give Middlesbrough an extra edge? Has Southgate lost the confidence of players? Or has there been a grand falling-out behind the scenes? It will be interesting to see how this story develops.
Meanwhile, Liverpool lost their fourth consecutive game last night, with Lyon snatching a last-minute goal in a 2-1 at Anfield. To add insult to injury, Steven Gerrard left the pitch barely a quarter of the way into the game, injured. Liverpool are now on their worst run of results for 22 years. And the ever-patient Liverpool supporters are getting increasingly restless with manager Rafa Benitez.
Last night highlighted his managerial failings, certainly. The faults were manifold. There is clearly no quality replacement for Torres when he is injured. The substitutions were baffling. Gerrard goes off and is replaced by Auerlio, a defender. Benayoun, the most creative presence for Liverpool, is taken off with five minutes to go. Liverpool were set up to defend a 1-0 lead, rather than push for a bigger win, and almost inevitably came unstuck.
It’s a good job I was suitably satiated in a prime pub spot with a plate of scampi and chips, a pint of good beer, and my ever-understanding Significant Other (that is not my order of preference, by the way). Otherwise, my blood pressure would have been going through the roof at such a frustrating performance. Or maybe I’m just getting worringly used to Liverpool losing?
So, should Rafa go? I’m extremely wary of managers being sacked mid-season. While there then might be an initial surge with a new manager, does it really help in the long-term? And how many top-class managers are available right now?
Liverpool face Manchester United on Sunday, and things don’t get any easier for Rafa. A win would certainly be a reprieve. But if they lose in the manner of the past few games, or worse, more and more questions will be asked.
Last night I made the following comment on the Dodgers/Phillies series:
“So, we’re 1-1 in that series and if this game is anything to go by, we’re in for some very close-run games.”
I wake up this morning to find the Phillies have tonked the Dodgers, 11-0. Cliff Lee put in a superb pitching performance, striking out 10 and allowing just three hits.
Some pundit am I!
Both championship series continue tonight, with a rare early start for the Angels/Yankees game. I might actually catch the first few innings as it starts at a reasonable time for British fans. Otherwise, I’ll be catching the condensed game on mlb.tv, over my muesli tomorrow morning.
If you’re interested in catching some of the baseball, but don’t have TV access, or an online subscription, Matt at BaseballGB has the lowdown on the variety of ways you can catch some of the action for free. Well worth a read if you feel like dipping your toes in the baseballing waters…
I managed to watch all of Friday’s Dodgers/Phillies game, and certainly picked a good one. A really absorbing contest, a very much the proverbial pitchers duel. Pedro Martinez, for the Phillies, and Vicente Padilla, for the Dodgers, were outstanding. A real masterclass. Martinez gave nothing away, while Padilla had just the one bad pitch. Unfortunately for him Ryan Howard got on it for a solo home run. I caught Padilla pitching for Texas earlier this season, and while not brilliant, I thought he looked reasonable enough. However, I would never have guessed at the time that he’d be pitching so well, in the play-offs, and for the Dodgers too.
The Dodgers managed to fight back, and eventually won 2-1. So, we’re 1-1 in that series and if this game is anything to go by, we’re in for some very close-run games.
The Dodgers won essentially on Phillies mistakes, following misfields, and a walk with the bases full. Meanwhile, in an absolute epic last night the Yankees beat the Angels in the thirteenth inning, again after a fielding error.
There have been hour upon hour of top-draw play in the play-offs, but still the recurring theme is teams losing games after errors. I guess when things are that close, and teams so well matched, it is more likely that one terrible mistake will change a game, rather than one moment of genius. It really feels like in each game it is a case of who is going to blink first. And the Yankees, in particular, don’t look like blinking.
A beachball. A bloody beachball. In October.
Liverpool’s loss to a freak goal – in off a beachball – is pretty hard to take. Obviously, teams have spells of good and bad luck over the course of a season, but how do you legislate for something like that? To add insult to injury, the goal should not have stood. Rafa Benítez suggesting, “these things happen”, is admirable. It also seems a little unlikely, unless there are far more beachball-assisted goals in Spain.
However, Liverpool did have another 85 minutes, plus a whopping seven minutes injury time, to score a goal and right the wrong. Yet, they failed to score. As easy as it would be to blame inflatable balls and poor officiating for derailing the season, Liverpool need to look a little closer to home. And I’m sure they will.
With Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City dropping points this weekend, it’s becoming more and more likely that Manchester United are going to win the Premiership. Again. And essentially by default. They are not playing particularly well, look shaky in defence, yet their rivals are unable to capitalise.
This is shaping up to be a livelier season, though. It has to be good for the league that every side is capable of dropping points. Let’s hope it stays that competitive until May.
And so, after a little break, the play-offs resume. Last night the Phillies beat the Dodgers 8-6 in the first game of a seven-game series. The Dodgers can’t be happy, at not only losing, but failing to make the most of home advantage. However, there is clearly still a long way to go.
I do fear, though, that the small wager I placed on the Dodgers winning the World Series prior to the game hasn’t helped matters. The Dodgers were listed as the outsiders of the four teams left, which I wasn’t so sure about, so a flutter was in order. They are now duly cursed by my anti-tipping skills.
For the World Series I think I’d like to see a ‘Freeway Series’ between the Angels and Dodgers. As a Mets fan this seems the most satisfactory solution, considering the alternatives, and some sort of Southern Californian ‘derby’ sounds like it could be a lot of fun. But I won’t be betting the house on it just yet.
I caught some of last night’s game this morning, listening to the archived audio. I think listening to baseball on the radio can really accentuate the poetry of the sport. There is also the rich stream of facts, figures and anecdotes provided throughout. I often feel I’m learning a lot more about the game when I listen to the radio, than when I watch the television (this is the case for most sports, cricket comes to mind right away).
And I doubt many are better than one of the legendary broadcasters in baseball, Vin Scully. He’s been commentating on games for over 50 years, yet he doesn’t miss a step. He set the scene so well, with talk of the ‘gloaming’ and ‘leaden grey sky’, while also calling the game to perfection.
The television coverage of the play-offs has been far from perfect. Radio offers a worthy alternative. Particularly with Vin Scully in the seat.
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