Maddux Sports Blog

Very interesting result last night with Maryland beating Duke by a solid margin at home. The number one seed was Duke’s to lose, and a win in this game would have come close to clinching it for them. Now it is back in play – though the Blue Devils are still in decent position to grab it. More significant than the fact that Duke couldn’t clinch that, though, is the fact that they were unable to rise up in a game like this and come out on top. Maryland is a decent team, and the game was further proof of just how special Greivis Vasquez is, but the clear fact is that Duke is the better team, and should have been able to win this one. There have been some toughness issues raised around Duke this year, and this game did nothing to dispel those. They will have a bracket position soft enough t advance a few games, but this win does nothing to ease my questions about whether this is a team built to go deep.

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Last week, I considered where teams were in the American League when it came to making the 2009 playoffs. In this blog, with less than 60 games left in the season, I take a look at the National League. Here’s the way that things are shaking down on the senior circuit.

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The Bucks didn’t stop their wheeling and dealing, and they made a move I am a big fan of. They sent Fabricio Oberto and his serviceable contract to Detroit for Amir Johnson. The Pistons had no room for Johnson, but he’s a player I really like. When he did find a few minutes to play he made the most of them. He’s a good shot blocker and surprisingly good at stealing the ball, and he can score and rebound as well. He’ll take some of the pressure off of CharlieVillanueva, and he gives the Bucks some flexibility if they can’t or don’t want to afford Villanueva next year. This move makes the Jefferson deal look even better in my eyes than it did yesterday.

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Day one of the post-Manny world was rocky for his Dodgers. The good news was that they scored nine runs. The bad news was that that was only against the lowly Nationals, and it wasn’t enough runs to win. There’s not much in that game that can be blamed on the loss of Manny directly, and we didn’t learn that much, but losing to the Nats is never a good thing.

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Well, it is almost here. Right? So, what the heck is going to happen? The baseball season runs 162 games—the longest season in the professional sports. It is an unforgiving seven-month marathon that demands innumerable roster moves, amazing stamina and individual team play that can make or break an entire season in one game, swing or pitch. What can we expect? Here are ten things that I do believe will happen. Some are for sure and others may appear to be farfetched. Then again, futures are one of the toughest things to get right in sports. 

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Arizona Diamondbacks – 86.5 - I am all over the under here. A lot of people like this team this year, but I am not one of them. Beyond Brandon Webb I don’t trust their pitching, and there is a fair bit of the lineup that doesn’t excite me. They will be a solid team, but this is too many wins for them.

Cincinnati Reds – 78.5 – I wanted to be optimistic about this team. They have a lot of talent that is easy to like. I just think this number is too big, though. If it was 72.5 I would be all over the over, but this seems ambitious. I’d probably lay off entirely here, but if I had to take a side I would go under.

Colorado Rockies – 77.5 – This number is silly. They are going to have pitching problems, and they will seriously miss Jeff Francis. Todd Helton is getting old, and the rest of the starters have a lot to prove. I will be very surprised if they go anywhere close to this number, never mind going over.

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We’ll take a break from regular programming for one more day to celebrate the end of the baseball season. It seems only fitting that we should take a look at what we learned from the World Series before we forget that it ever happened. After all, it wasn’t the most memorable series ever, as the TV ratings – the lowest ever – attest to.

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The Philadelphia Phillies (92-70) enter the playoffs as the NL East Division champs, beating out the NY Mets for the title in the final days of the season. The Phillies plus-119 RS/RA differential is second only to the Chicago Cubs’. This is the second straight season that the team has taken their division. The Milwaukee Brewers (90-72) won the wild card by one game over the New York Mets. The club’s RS/RA differential stands at plus-61; it is almost half of that of the Phillies.

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There is a very interesting pitching match-up in Arizona tonight. Two hot teams – the Phillies and the Diamondbacks clash with two pitchers at opposite ends of their careers. Jamie Moyer is older than the dirt he’ll be standing on on the mound, while Max Scherzer is a young phenom making his second MLB appearance and first start. Scherzer is 23. When he was born Moyer was a Cubs prospect in the New York – Penn League.

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