Maddux Sports Blog

The Blue Jays seem determined to rip every shred of decency out of this season. It seems impossible to believe, but they were actually competitive back in April, and people thought for a while that they may be able to keep their act together. Instead, they have been the pathetic laughing stock of the league. Last night they found a way to sink to a whole new low. They couldn’t just accept that they were beating up on the Yankees in New York behind their ace, Roy Halladay . Instead, they had to mar the win with an ugly brawl. The benches cleared twice, and the second time it got ugly – punches were thrown, players wrestled on the ground, and there was general chaos. A fittingly ugly chapter in one of the uglier seasons baseball has seen in a while. Never has a team needed a total, top-to-bottom house cleaning more than this one.

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I’m deeply impressed by the Giants. They needed to come through in a big way this weekend to avoid letting the Rockies run away and hide in the wild card race, and they did that in a big way. They were three games back in the wild card race heading into this series, and now thanks to a sweep of Colorado at home they are tied. The Giants showed what kind of grit they have as well – they were down 4-1 to the Rockies on Sunday, but they fought back to win 9-5. There are still 31 games to play so anything could happen, but this race starts from scratch today, and I would certainly bet on the Giants to be the ones to go to the playoffs in the end. The Rockies have been flying higher than they should be lately, so I fully expect them to fall back to earth – they peaked too soon.

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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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Jonathan Sanchez is a perfect example of how hard sports betting can be. The Giants pitcher was not in a good place heading into last night’s start. He had been dumped into the bullpen after losing his last four starts, and eight of ten decisions on the year. His career record was just 15-26, and he was allowing more than five runs per game this year – just as he had in each of the previous two seasons. His ratio of strikeouts to walks was far worse than it was the last couple of years. He had managed to claw his way back into the starting rotation for just one reason – Randy Johnson was hurt and the Giants had no other better option. In short, Sanchez was a hard pitcher to love – especially when he was favored at -135.

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Los Angeles Lakers Thrashing of Orlando Magic

The Magic were certainly not very magical in the first game of the NBA Finals. Losing by 25, Orlando simply could not get the job done in Los Angeles. Of course, if they have any shot at the league crown, they must steal one at the Coliseum in LA. They have a chance on Sunday. If they can’t do it on Sunday, then this is a five-game series. There is no way that Orlando will be able to dig themselves out of a 2-0 hole versus the Lakers. The Lakers are not the Celtics or the Cavaliers. The Lakers are one of the most talented, skilled, deep team in the NBA. This entire series comes down to game two. The Lakers will take it.

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MLB is in high gear as is NASCAR and the PGA. Plus, the NBA and NHL playoffs are entering their final rounds. And sooner than later NFL and NCAA football will be prepping for another season. Here’s a look at what’s going on in the world of 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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