And then there were two days left. The end of the season is always wistful for me. I love the daily grind of the game. I love that there are games every day. The post season is fun, but it's erratic. Sometimes there are games and sometimes not. I love the seasonal compilation of statistics and seeing the surprises and the new faces that excel for the first time. I love when new teams surge to the limelight. I'm going to miss it after tomorrow. The post season is great, don't get me wrong. But there is nothing to me like the regular season.
September has been really good to me. My correct percentage is over 60% for the month and that almost never happens. And yesterday's 12-4 certainly helped. Even though one of those four incorrect picks (the Mets because Jon Niese had to leave early) was the Game of the Day, that still cannot dampen so much that was positive.
The only other three games that were incorrect were the Twins kicking some Tiger booty. Rick Porcello has really lost it late in the season. The Red Sox game against the Yankees featured a lineup that was unrecognizable. It was like a Spring Training game. So that wrong pick is no surprise. And for some stupid reason, I picked the Rangers to win. Anyway, it was a great day.
Saturday's picks:
- The Red Sox over the Yankees: There will be more of the regular lineups on the field for this game I think. Derek Jeter will be at DH to say goodbye. The pitching line is a good one of Masahiro Tanaka against Joe Kelly, two pitchers these teams will be counting on next season. Tanaka will not go deep into the game, giving the Red Sox the edge.
- The Pirates over the Reds: I can see Francisco Liriano having a bit of a harder time today. The Reds best remaining players are right-handed batters. But the Pirates' only chance is to win, so they must. Alfredo Simon will try to prevent it.
- The Nationals over the Marlins: I called these two teams' double-header perfectly yesterday. I am not sure why Stephen Strasburg is starting today. I figured he would frontline the playoff series. But maybe he will only go a couple of innings as a tuneup. Nathan Eovaldi goes for the Marlins.
- The Giants over the Padres: Eric Stults was put on this earth to teach me humility. I am sure of that. I haven't picked more than a handful of his starts correctly. I think he will be beaten today by Jake Peavy. But that means the Padres will probably win.
- The Blue Jays over the Orioles: The playoff seeding has been established. So the Orioles will probably rest people. Wei-Yin Chen won't go deep in the game. The Blue Jays just want to go up there and bash the baseball. J.A. Happ is the happy beneficiary.
- The Indians over the Rays: Did you know that Colome was the real name of Columbus? Anyway, Alex Colome will probably not beat Carlos Carrasco or the Indians at home today.
- The Phillies over the Braves: Pretend September was a sinkhole. Pretend the Braves were a corvette being swallowed by a sinkhole. A lovely pitching line of A.J. Burnett against Aaron Harang in this one just livens things up all the more.
- The Brewers over the Cubs: Tsuyoshi Wada is not a bad pitcher for the Cubs. He knows what he is doing. But I think this game belongs to Wily Peralta at home. Peralta has had one of the most overlooked seasons of the year.
- The Mets over the Astros: Rafael Montero has been bouncing back and forth between the rotation and the bullpen. But every time he starts he does well. Sam Deduno is a Twins castoff, so what does that tell you?
- The Royals over the White Sox: The Royals will probably be eliminated from the division today because the Tigers are going to win. But the Royals will win today anyway behind Danny Duffy. John Danks gets the start for the White Sox. I do hope that Paul Konerko has some nice moments though. He deserves them.
- The Rangers over the Athletics: I know I chided myself for this pick yesterday, but Derek Holland has been spectacular since he returned. I think he will out-perform Jeff Samardzija.
- The Cardinals over the Diamondbacks: There is no let up for the Cardinals as the Pirates are keeping them honest. Lance Lynn has had a terrific season and should win the game over Wade Miley.
- The Dodgers over the Rockies: Eddie Butler allows the batters to put the ball in play and when that happens, things can happen. The Dodgers should have a good day despite whatever Dan Haren does.
- The Mariners over the Angels: The Mariners' only chance is to win. But I don't think it will make much difference. They will fall short. James Paxton over C.J. Wilson who should not go deep in this one.
And the Game of the Day:
- The Tigers over the Twins: Ricky Nolasco has been about as bad for the Twins as any move made by a team this season. He has easily been the worst starter in baseball. It's brutal. Kyle Lobstein should win.
Yesterday: 12-4, Sept.: 217-143, Games of the Day: 103-66 (-1), Season: 1347-1077
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