MLB Predictions – 2014

It’s that time of year again and I obviously waited until the last possible moment to do my predictions. Some people would even say I’m a little late.. 2 games late.. if you count the 2 game series between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers which was played in Australia last weekend. Those two games won’t affect my predictions so I think I’m okay there. The Boston Red Sox won the World Series last year and the good thing there is a new season is on the brink and everyone has a chance. Lets get to it!

AL East

1) Tampa Bay Rays
2) Boston Red Sox
3) Baltimore Orioles
4) New York Yankees
5) Toronto Blue Jays
Analysis: For years this division has been the toughest in baseball, but not this season. I picked Tampa last year to get to the World Series, but they battled a lot of injuries and didn’t have such a great offensive season. I think they will be a little different this year and they are always surrounded by young stars in the pitching rotation. Boston still has a strong team, but will their bullpen be as sharp as last year? Will they stay away from injuries and will their young stars be consistent all season? Baltimore may make a run for the wild card, but it’s their pitching that concerns me more than their hitting.

AL Central
1) Detroit Tigers
2) Kansas City Royals
3) Minnesota Twins
4) Cleveland Indians
5) Chicago White Sox
Analysis: I still believe the Tigers will finish in first in their division even without Jim Leyland and first year manager, Brad Ausmus. They still have the best team, hitting wise and pitching wise in their division and maybe possibly the whole American League. The teams that follow them are still wide open to me and I think two surprises will be the Royals and the Twins. The Indians can still put together a good year and compete for 2nd place but I think the Royals and Twins have more depth to last through the season.

AL West
1) Oakland Athletics
2) Seattle Mariners
3) Texas Rangers
4) Los Angeles Angels
5) Houston Astros
Analysis: This is a tough division to predict, but my gut tells me that Oakland will be the team to break out so that’s what I’m going with. I hate to also buy onto all the offseason moves that Seattle made, but aside from their young offensive players and the signing of Robinson Cano, their pitching staff doesn’t look too bad and they have a reliable closer to string together wins. The Rangers always have the ability to finish in first, but I have them in third since they got off to a rough start with injuries. With the Angels, this may be the year where Scioscia gets canned and I still don’t think it’s all his fault. They are offensively stacked, but also aging with Josh Hamilton and Albert Pujols if they ever return to form. They don’t have the depth in pitching to hang on all season and Mike Trout won’t be able to carry them 162 games this year.

AL Playoffs
1) Detroit Tigers
2) Oakland Athletics
3) Tampa Bay Rays
Wild Card
4) Boston Red Sox
5) Baltimore Orioles

AL Champions
Oakland Athletics

NL East
1) Washington Nationals
2) Atlanta Braves
3) Philadelphia Phillies
4) Miami Marlins
5) New York Mets
Analysis: This was a competitive division a few years ago and it’s getting less and less. I liked Atlanta in the offseason and even last season, but they have taken big hits with injuries in their starting rotation. They also have a lot of inconsistencies in hitting with Uggla and BJ Upton who never really came around last season. The Nationals are really building a beast for Matt Williams and I think they have the ability to win well over 100 games this year if they stay healthy for the most part. The Phillies will be competitive and may be just on the outside of the Wild Card race. I think they’ll have a better year than most “experts” expect. I also took the Marlins out of the cellar. I think they have pieces to grow and to be… eh, decent?

NL Central
1) Pittsburgh Pirates
2) St. Louis Cardinals
3) Cincinnati Reds
4) Milwaukee Brewers
5) Chicago Cubs
Analysis: This is undoubtedly one of the best divisions in all of baseball. The race of the top 3 will be an exciting one once again and maybe add a fourth with the Brewers who have a, not-so-bad starting rotation and the return of their MVP, Ryan Braun. The Pirates and Cardinals will fight it out for most of the year, but I think the potential is that the top 3 (as I have it) will all be playing at least a game in the post-season. It’s hard to pick the Cubs to break the mold with the lack of offensive firepower. They will have to make some moves to show they can compete with these teams.

NL West
1) Los Angeles Dodgers
2) San Francisco Giants
3) San Diego Padres
4) Colorado Rockies
5) Arizona Diamondbacks
Analysis: Are the Dodgers the team to beat in the National League? Living in LA I would say most people would think so, but I’m not too sure. They are starting the season with attitude issues with Puig, Kershaw and Kemp on the DL. I think the Giants can give them fits for first place, at least for the first half of the season. The Giants went through injuries last year that caused a down year, but they have a good core offensively and they always have their strong pitching to lean on (watch for Lincecum to have a bounce back season).

NL Playoffs
1) Washington Nationals
2) Los Angeles Dodgers
3) Pittsburgh Pirates
Wild Card
4) St. Louis Cardinals
5) San Francisco Giants

NL Champions
Los Angeles Dodgers

World Series Champions
Los Angeles Dodgers over Oakland Athletics

If all goes into my predictions this team will become victorious. It won’t be an easy season for them and I know they are the favorites going into this season (based on Vegas odds), the favorites are the Dodgers and the Tigers to go to the World Series in their respective Leagues. The Dodgers will have to fight through the pressure and the expectations of a huge salary cap, lots of star players, and lots of egos and competing with the National League which is stronger than the American League (in my opinion). If they get there, they will have to be solid in the bullpen, fight through injuries, possibly make some trades mid year, to figure out the outfield situation of having Kemp, Ethier, Crawford, and Puig and also fight through stability in their rotation. Let the season begin!

American League Grade Book: May

The baseball regular season is in full stride as the 2nd month of the season comes to a close. It’s funny how the standings can change drastically from one month to another. Usually by the time June rolls around, there is a strong sense of what type of teams you have that will be contenders in October. Out of all honesty, I was disappointed with some of the performances by teams across the league in April. The month of May was a new beginning for many teams and the saying for baseball is, “its not a sprint, it’s a marathon” is as true as it gets when there is such a long season in front of these teams.

I’ll continue to rank these teams by the way I predicted it to go during spring training. Lets jump right in!

American League

AL East
1) Tampa Bay Rays    (B)
2) Toronto Blue Jays  (D)
3) Boston Red Sox     (C)
4) New York Yankees (C)
5) Baltimore Orioles   (B)

Analysis: I give Tampa Bay a B and that’s even saying that Tampa is currently in 2nd to last place in their division. I still have confidence that it won’t end that way. It just shows how bad the first month of the season was for the Rays. They’ve been streaking in the win department over the last week of the month. Their pitching has been great, lead by Matt Moore (not David Price). Price landed himself on the DL and you look at a Rays team who found their offense and is finding a way to win games. They were 18-10 in the month of May, which is the best in the AL East. Continue to watch this team climb up the standings.

Toronto still disappoints me and truthfully, I’m disappointed in myself for picking a team to finish so high in the standings when they haven’t proved anything quite yet. They are team plagued with injuries and their pitching staff has been a massive disappointment thus far. They were 13-14 in the month of May, which was worst in the division. Lets just say they need to do everything a little better to climb the standings, which is tough to do when you have such a competitive division.

The Red Sox get a C, which is not bad, nor is it good. They are right in the middle or just average to me right now. They also went through a string of injuries with David Ortiz, Middlebrooks, Bailey, Hanrahan, and most recently Clay Bucholtz (which may not be too serious). They finish the month in first place, which is obviously better than I was hoping to see or expecting. This month was a decline for them as they finished the month going 15-15. Average right? If they get healthy, I still see this team hanging around for a little longer.

The Yankees got swept by the Mets. That may be the first time that I can remember that happening for quite some time. The Yankees have also been average to me and their record in May shows that as they went 15-13. The offense for the Yankees is not what you expect to see, especially in recent years, yet they still seem to be hanging in there. I’m not sure how long they’ll stick on the top of the division if injuries keep piling up. That’s the number one priority for this team if they plan to make the playoffs and that’s getting their lineup healthy.

Baltimore has still impressed me. I picked them to finish last after having such a great season last year. I thought the youth in their team would shine through, but Buck is doing a great job coaching the Orioles. Their offense is stacked and on paper they look like an excellent team and they are getting great pitching from a rotation that do not have any house hold names. I’m convinced this team isn’t going to disappear.

AL Central
1) Detroit Tigers            (C)
2) Cleveland Indians     (A)
3) Chicago White Sox   (C)
4) Kansas City Royals   (F)
5) Minnesota Twins       (D)

Analysis: So this is starting to sort the way I imagined, however, I still don’t see the Tigers doing what they SHOULD be doing. Maybe I’m being too critical of Detroit, but I feel like they should have a much better record with the type of offense they have and most definitely the pitching they have. I feel like every time the pitching staff delivers a gem, they get no offense to support it. I think eventually they’ll hit the gas and keep their foot on the pedal, but right now they haven’t reached that point for me.

Cleveland is exactly where I thought. Again, not to toot my own horn, but I had a feeling they would be competing. They were a division best going 18-12 in the month of May and scoring over 140 runs. That’s approximately 4.6 runs a game, which will always give you a chance to win ballgames. Their pitching has dropped off since the opening month, but when you’re offense is hot, it makes things easier for sure. They’ve struggled the last week of the month, but so has the rest of the division.

The White Sox are a little tricky still I feel. I don’t think they’ve found their identity yet and if they haven’t found it, then I have no clue. They were about .500 for the month of May, they are under .500 on the season record, but they are hanging in 3rd place. That may have a little to do with the bottom feeders of the division, but as long as they hang in there, they can always make a few moves to improve the team. Specifically on the offensive side as they scored less than 100 runs this month.

Oh boy, here’s my analysis on the Royals. They were bad….very, very, very bad. I gave them a B last month, but they get an F this month and it wasn’t even a hard decision. They went a whopping 8-20 this last month scoring just above 100 runs. Not much to say about them other than they have such young hitters and none of them have amounted to anything. It’s definitely a struggle to watch, but maybe they can get some talent for James Shields if they look to trade him at the deadline, because I know any contender would love to have him.

Minnesota has not been much better. They got a B+ from me last month and they moved down to a D. I knew last month may have just been a fluke of the opening month to a season. They went 12-17 in May and even though they scored 130 runs this month, their pitching has been atrocious by giving up around 150. Continue to see this team decline, they need a lot of help.

AL West
1) LA Angels             (A)
2) Oakland Athletics  (B+)
3) Seattle Mariners    (C-)
4) Texas Rangers      (A+)
5) Houston Astros      (F)

Analysis: Look who finally decided to show up…Yeah, I’m talking about the Angels. I gave them a full swing by giving them an F last month and an A this month. Needless to say, the offense woke up. They score over 130 runs and their offense has pulled a lot of games together and has looked impressive. Josh Hamilton and Albert Pujols is finally getting in the flow of things, while their pitching has been solid as well. What’s even better than that? They get Jared Weaver back from the DL. They are still under .500 for the season, but in the month of May they  went 16-12. You can continue to watch the Angels climb up.

The Athletics are continuing to stay consistent. I’m not really surprised as I thought they’d finish 2nd, but the question is, can the offense continue to step it up. They got Coco Crisp and Cespedes back from the DL, but they are getting massive offensive production from Donaldson and Seth Smith that needs to continue.  I fully expect the A’s to make a move at the trade deadline, especially in the pitching rotation. They have Colon and a bunch of young arms that haven’t done too well, but are keeping them in games.

The Mariners are getting frustrating. Morse has been injury prone for most of this month and they are just average once again this month. The only constant successful point on their team is King Felix and that isn’t a surprise to anybody. I thought the young offensive talent they had would start to light it up, but I haven’t seen that yet. Maybe a coaching change in the near future?

I didn’t expect this at all from Texas, and that’s obvious from where I put them in my predictions. It just proves how great of a manager Ron Washington has been for them. As I said last month about the Rangers is that they always seem to lose their talent to other teams, but they hang around and they just know how to groom talent in their farm and that’s always respectable. They were a division best 17-11 in the month of May with no sights of slowing down.

From one team in Texas to the next are on two opposite ends of the spectrum. Houston made the move into the American League this year and unfortunately for them, they got placed into a division that has teams like Texas, Los Angeles, and Oakland who are all capable of finishing in 1st place. Houston went 9-18 in the month of May and that came as expected. They now only have 17 wins for the season, which is worst in the American League. The only good thing is they seem to have the Angels’ number so far in the young season.

Stay tuned for my grade book for the National League for the month of May!

NBA 2nd Round Predictions

The first round was as good as I was hoping for. The NBA is one of those sports that you don’t see many upsets when it comes to the first round. To that note, there weren’t many upsets, but the series’ we were handed turned out to be pretty exciting. Each series had at least one game that was thrilling to watch (aside from Indiana/Atlanta). Not to continue to knock on that series, but I did say in my 1st round predictions post that it was going to be a fairly boring series to watch.

I say I fared pretty well with my predictions. I was even almost dead on with the amount of games a team would close out the series in. I don’t want to get on my high horse yet as there are plenty of games left to play. The only games I really was off base on were the LA games. Can’t win ’em all right? Lets start with the East!

Eastern Conference

#1 Miami Heat
vs.
#4 Brooklyn Nets/#5 Chicago Bulls
1st Round Outcome: Miami over Milwaukee in 4. Chicago/Brooklyn playing Game 7 tonight.
1st Round Prediction: Miami in 4. Brooklyn in 6.
Analysis: So I was dead on with Miami in the first round. Though, not a shocker. Brooklyn and Chicago go into a game 7 that is played tonight. The 2nd round games start tomorrow, so I’m getting a head start. Brooklyn has struggled in this series and that’s even including a heartbreaking loss to Chicago in 3OT. They blew the lead late in the 4th and I thought that may shatter their chances after going down 3-1. They have the momentum going into game 7, but they are struggling to finish off Chicago who are ailing. If Brooklyn gets by Chicago tonight, I don’t think they’ll win one against Miami either. Although Chicago is hurting, I still think they would at least rough up LeBron and the rest of the Heat team where they MIGHT manage to squeeze out one win at home.

Prediction: Miami over Brooklyn in 4/Miami over Chicago in 5

#2 New York Knicks
vs.
#3 Indiana Pacers
1st Round Outcome: New York over Boston in 6. Indiana over Atlanta in 6.
1st Round Prediction: New York in 6. Indiana in 7.
Analysis: I was pretty dead on with my first round predictions with both of these teams winning out. I didn’t see NY going up 3-0 and then squander 2 games and almost 3 games. But NY looked vulnerable. If Carmelo and JR Smith struggle from the field, they are beatable. Not that I ever though they were unbeatable. However, getting Amar’e back in what the experts are expecting for game 3, that would help their chances with just adding another scorer. For Indiana, they need to slow the pace down and make the game as boring as possible. That’s the only way they will win this series. If they can knock NY on their heels, by forcing fouls and driving the ball inside they will give them fits. I wouldn’t be surprised if Indiana came out with the series, but I’m not ballsy enough to pick it.

Prediction: New York over Indiana in 7.

Western Conference

#1 Oklahoma City Thunder
vs.
#5 Memphis Grizzlies
1st Round Outcome: Oklahoma City over Houston in 6. Memphis over LA Clippers in 6.
1st Round Prediction: Oklahoma City in 6. LA Clippers in 7.
Analysis: Alright, so I was right on the money for OkC. I didn’t think Westbrook would be lost for the season, but hey, that was a brilliant series to watch, was it not? Houston could have won that series if they didn’t squander late leads. They played to the point of how young that team was and they have a bright future. Kevin Durant showed what he is made of once Westbrook went down, but there is no trust on the other guys on that team. Memphis avenged last year’s series loss to the Clippers and reeled of 4 straight wins after being down by 2 games. Impressive? More than you know. They have great guard play and even better they exposed the Clippers defensively in the paint with guys like Gasol and Randolph. They will continue to that this series against OkC who is a lot weaker in the paint. Should be a fun one, but I’m looking for an upset here.

Prediction: Memphis over Oklahoma City in 5.

#2 San Antonio Spurs
vs.
#6 Golden State Warriors
1st Round Outcome: San Antonio over LA Lakers in 4. Golden State over Denver in 6.
1st Round Prediction: LA Lakers in 6. Golden State in 7.
Analysis: I know exactly what you’re thinking. Ouch? That doesn’t even cover it. The Lakers couldn’t even string off a victory. They put a D-League team out on the floor with the amount of injuries they had and could not overcome. Dwight Howard wasn’t even a bright spot, but that’s a whole different story. Spurs looked dominating, but will they continue it with this long lay off? I called for the upset over Denver and boy was I right. People are falling in love with this Warriors team led by Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. Andrew Bogut had an incredible series and they need him to continue that strong play. David Lee was injured and was lost for the season. He came back in game 6 to play 1 minute and shoot one shot. Was that a novelty or will he come back for more minutes in round 2? The only way the Warriors win this series is if Steph Curry is amazing at all times. Wouldn’t you like to see it? Me too. But that’s not where I’m predicting it.

Prediction: San Antonio over Golden State in 6

There you have it.. Those are my predictions for round 2 of the NBA Playoffs. Lets hope for as much excitement this round as we had for the last round!

American League Grade Book: April

The first month of the baseball season has come and gone and there are some teams that made some strong impressions for both good and the bad. I will list the teams below as I picked them to finish and put a grade letter next to them (“A+” being the best and “F” being the worst). I’ll had some critiques as well, as usual.

American League

AL East
1) Tampa Bay Rays      (D)
2) Toronto Blue Jays     (F)
3) Boston Red Sox       (B)
4) New York Yankees   (C)
5) Baltimore Orioles     (B+)

Analysis: Tampa Bay has been lackluster to start this season, especially their offense which is non-existent. If they expect to win the division, they have to score runs when runners are in position. Of course its only the first month of the season, but they’ve shown struggles scoring runs and also getting victories on the road.

Toronto has been the most disappointing. It seems to happen every year with higher hopes that the team will break through and get into the playoffs. They made a lot of acquisitions in the off-season which has panned out for them yet. Their pitching has been atrocious and of course it doesn’t help that Jose Reyes is already on the DL.

Boston as a city as been through a lot in April, but their baseball team is better than most expected them to be. Hanrahan got dinged up early and thought maybe it’s another long year for the Boston bullpen. Andrew Bailey stepped in great and their offense has looked good. Just in time for Ortiz that returned from the DL towards the end of the month, but Clay Bucholtz has been unbelievable for the first month.

New York is right where I expected them to be. Their pitching has been average, but mostly keeping them in games with a not-so-great offense. A lot of their offensive players are older players that may not amount to anything when the season ends. But the Yankees need them to hang on until they get their star power back in the lineup.

Baltimore has the best grade in this division from me for the month of April. Mainly because I had them finishing dead last. They have almost the same team as they did last year with a lot of young talent. Their offense has looked sharp, especially Adam Jones. I’d be interested to see where they are at the end of May.

AL Central
1) Detroit Tigers             (C)
2) Cleveland Indians      (C)
3) Chicago White Sox    (D)
4) Kansas City Royals    (B)
5) Minnesota Twins        (B+)

Analysis: Detroit gets an average grade from me only because one would expect so much from a team of that caliber. They will be fine by the end of the season, but the first month of the season they got off to a slow start. Verlander hasn’t looked to be the top pitcher you would expect, but again, not worried, it’s still very early in the year.

Cleveland also gets an average grade from me. Their offense has had the spurts I knew they had the potential for. Other than Masterson, their pitching has been somewhat forgettable. I still feel confident that they have the opportunity to squeak in the playoffs and finish in 2nd in this division. It’s very wide open after the first month.

Chicago gets a D. Plain and simple. They were a good team last year, but so far this year they haven’t put anything together and on top of that, they are boring to watch. Not a lot of run support to help out their pitching which has been fairly decent so far.

Kansas City has been a surprise to me. I think their pitching has really kept them in it so far. The additions of James Shields and Ervin Santana has helped them out big time. Their offense hasn’t even clicked yet. If Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas can heat up at some point, they may have a dangerous team with the addition to Billy Butler.

Minnesota is the bigger surprise, hence the better grade…just by a smidge. I thought Minnesota would be one of the worst teams this season and of course there is still time for that to unfold. I think they have benefited from a somewhat weak schedule to start the season and also they seem to get postponed a lot. By the end of May they have a good chance to be where I figured they would be.

AL West
1) LA Angels     (F)
2) Oakland Athletics     (A-)
3) Seattle Mariners       (D)
4) Texas Rangers         (A)
5) Houston Astros         (C)

Analysis: LA Angels have been awful. With a lineup like that they should not be struggling for yet the second season in a row. They can’t score runs AND their pitching has been bad. It doesn’t help that Jared Weaver is on the DL, but the rest of the starters haven’t helped out either. Their bullpen has been shaky as well. For a team that can’t score any runs and then you look at their lineup and you see names like Pujols, Hamilton, Trout, and Trumbo you should question why they haven’t been winning games. Maybe it’s just a slow start and they’ll pick it up, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a hitting coach or Manager to be fired if they don’t pick it up soon.

Oakland gets a very good grade from me, partly because I figured they would be near the top for most of the season, but their offense has been outstanding. I believe they have the most runs scored in the AL so far this season and they are always a team that lacks star players, yet they always seem to be good. They are led by Coco Crisp and Jed Lowrie. The question is will they keep it up, get help, or will their pitching remain at a constant high to help out their offense when they go cold.

Seattle has been disappointing to me so far this year. I thought they would be much better, but they are yet another team that is struggling with the bat. On top of that, their pitching hasn’t been great either other than King Felix. There is still a potential for them, but I’d like to see them bring up some of their prospects earlier rather than later.

Texas is getting an A from me because I didn’t see them competing at the top. Every year they seem to lose some of their best players in recent years, which all seem to flurry to the Angels (CJ Wilson and Josh Hamilton), yet its the Rangers that remain a team to beat in the West. The best thing is, I don’t think we’ve seen the best of Texas either with some of the young prospects not in the Majors yet. Darvish is also looking like the Ace they want and need.

Houston gets an average grade from me because I thought they would be much worse. Their offense has been better than Seattle and they are close in runs scored with Texas. They’ve shown they can score runs and show a little future potential. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think they have potential this season, but refreshing that they may not lose 120 games this season like many predicted.

Check back tomorrow for the National League grades from the month of April!

MLB Review: Dodger Stadium

My second post on reviewing MLB ballparks is for the new hometown team, the Los Angeles Dodgers. This may be the best time to do a review on the 3rd oldest MLB ballpark (behind Fenway and Wrigley) in the country. As of May 28, 2012, the Dodgers are sporting the best record and the largest divisional lead in the majors. The picture above was taken on May 26, 2012 when the Dodgers played the Houston Astros. 

Exterior
From the outside, Dodger Stadium looks its age. Not that there is anything wrong with that at all. Dodger Stadium opened up in 1962 and the exterior of the stadium looks exactly like it did from the 60’s. There is nothing special about the outside of the stadium, much like Tropicana Field (posted on May 16, 2012). For the old timers, this may not bother them, but to the new fan, it lacks the excitement that a newer stadium may bring. 

Interior
The interior of Dodger Stadium also looks exactly what you would think a stadium would look like if it were built in the 1960’s. The seating and view to the field are top of the line. I have sat in every region of the stadium and never had a bad viewing experience. In right field, the Dodgers have promotional bleacher seating for, all you can eat. The lower level on the first and third base lines have separated seats with a table in front of you for all the food and drinks you may buy throughout the night. The second level is so low to the first level, it feels as though you are just as close. If you sit behind home plate, you have a perfect view of the entire field with no obstructive views and also a nice scenic view of the San Gabriel mountains beyond the outfield. If you are high enough behind home plate, you can look behind you and will see a great scenic view of Downtown LA. 

Fan Experience
The fan experience has some work to do. It has gotten better from the time I went this past weekend over the last few years of going. I’m mainly talking about the giant elephant in the room that has been well known in the news that Dodger Stadium is unsafe place to go. I’m a believer that “it takes two to tango”, but it is rare that something of a brutal fight would happen, but it DOES happen at sporting events, regardless of the location. On top of Dodger Stadium being unsafe, the parking lot is very large and after night games (pictured below), it tends to be very low lit and not a lot of security. This past weekend, I drove to the stadium with a couple of friends and we were looking for a numbered sign as to what area we parked in. There was no number anywhere near where we parked. To the right, about 300-400 yards away was a #5. To the left, about 300-400 yards away was a #4. So my guess was we were parking in 4.5. The Dodgers could do a much better job in the parking lot. As for the fan experience within the stadium, its mediocre. The Dodgers do not have a mascot for the kids to enjoy, but do play games on the videotron in between half innings like most other parks. Also, when you go to Dodger Stadium, make sure you grab a Dodger Dog which is one of the best “speciality” foods by ballpark. 

Surrounding Location
There are plenty of things to do around Dodger Stadium for the tourists. However, it is LA and that means a lot of traffic. The great thing about the location of Dodger Stadium is that it has access to the 5 Freeway, 110 Freeway, and the 101 Freeway. Places of close proximity to the stadium is Hollywood, Burbank, and Downtown LA depending on what freeway you decide to take. The “great” thing about LA fans are is that they are notorious for leaving Dodger games early, because of the heavy freeway traffic. If you’re a fan that enjoys staying until the end of the game, traffic leaving the stadium isn’t horrendous unless you are attending a big interleague game against the Yankees or a playoff game.

Things to See in LA if on vacation:
– Rodeo Drive
– Hollywood Blvd.. Kodak Theatre, Chinese Theatre, a concert at the Hollywood Bowl, Runyon Canyon
– Burbank (Movie studios)… Take some tours of the lots or see a taping of a TV show/late night show
– Staples Center/LA Live
– Santa Monica 3rd Street Promenade/Pier
– Griffith Observatory 

Rating of Dodger Stadium – 6 out of 10

Buzzer Beaters and Comebacks…

Kevin Durant pictured above

I didn’t have a post yesterday because I was so overwhelmed with the events that happened yesterday (like my Orlando Magic proving me wrong and winning game 1 in Indiana), so I’ll cover some of the major happenings of the weekend. As expected, the weekend was filled with great games to watch. The Bulls won (but lost Derrick Rose), the Knicks got creamed, the Magic stole game 1 on the road, and the Thunder trailed the whole game until the 4th quarter when Durant hit the game winner (as pictured). 

As for today, the Spurs broke their bad luck of losing game 1’s by defeating the Jazz, the Lakers had no problem with the Nuggets, the Hawks held on to beat the Celtics (with possibly losing Rondo to a suspension), and the game to end the weekend was probably the best game out of all of them. The Clippers made a remarkable comeback to beat the Grizzlies on the road.

I want to touch up on two particular things that happened today during the NBA playoffs. I watched the Boston-Atlanta game live and saw what happened with Rondo toward the end of the game. He was clearly upset that the call on the floor was a foul when it was clear that it should have been a jump ball during a crucial part of the game. Rondo picked up a quick technical foul and then “bumped” the ref which gave him the second technical foul to eject him. The rules of the NBA is that if a player intentionally bumps or touches an official, the player will get suspended. I don’t think it was intentional to bump the referee, but I find it hilarious listening to the analysts on the TNT post game show: Shaq, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith all said that, “Rondo tripped”. I don’t think I agree that he tripped, but I also don’t think it was intentional and hopes he doesn’t get suspended for a game in the playoffs. Within the playoffs, emotions get stirred and actions flow and when the official turned his back on Rondo, he went to speak to him and his momentum carried him into the ref. And not to the point of receiving the technical fouls to begin with, I thought it was a horrible call on the floor to call it a foul (Brandon Bass’ last foul) instead of a jump ball.

As to next topic, the Clippers were all but down and out in game 1 of the series with Memphis. Memphis dominated the game from the first quarter until the third quarter. In the 4th quarter, I think the score was 95-71 or something around that, the Clippers started to make their come back. They started that comeback with playing defense and making every shot more difficult for Memphis. However, I think Memphis also took their foot off the gas because they were up by so much. Give much deserved credit to the Clippers after losing Caron Butler to a fractured hand, the play of Reggie Evans, Eric Bledsoe, and Nick Young were outstanding. Chris Paul and Blake Griffin were in foul trouble for most of the game and they still fought on and never gave up. Nick Young hit three 3 point shots in one minute and brought the Clippers back to a 3 point game with about 3 minutes left. At this point in the game, I feel that the Grizzlies completely gave up hope and gave up their strategy they had the whole game. The Clippers went on a 28-3 point run within the last 8 and a half minutes in the game and the most impressive part of this was it all happened on the road. It interests me on how Memphis responds in game 2, because other than the 4th quarter, they played a great game; however, the momentum the Clippers got from that victory can carry them through game 2 if they remain focused. All the pressure is on Memphis. Welcome to the playoffs!

Feel free to give thoughts about this past weekend!

NBA Predictions: First Round!

 

This is my first post about the NBA and there isn’t a better time to do it with the playoffs starting on Saturday. By the picture posted above, you can probably figure out that the Oklahoma City Thunder are my favorites to win it all this year. I will try and not let my basketball bias be affected in making my first round picks. I’m an Orlando Magic fan, I enjoy cheering for the LA Clippers, while living in LA and I placed money on the Memphis Grizzlies before the season started to take the championship.. Here goes nothing!

EAST

(1) Chicago Bulls vs. (8) Philadelphia 76ers
Analysis: The Bulls won the season series 2 to 1. The big question in this series rests on Derrick Rose’s health. Is he 100%? Probably not. But does he need to be 100% to get past Philly? I don’t think so. Chicago has proved all year that even without Rose in the lineup that they can win games. Philly started the season off well, but I think the condensed schedule really hurt their team. In order for Philly to come up with a huge upset, they need Evan Turner to break out of his shell, which I don’t think will happen against a very good defensive team.
Pick: Bulls in 5 

(2) Miami Heat vs. (7) New York Knicks
Analysis: Oh this will be a fun series to watch. Miami had a chance to rest their big 3 for the most part of the last week of the season. The Knicks turned it up and have played much better since Coach Woodson took over. The Heat won the season series 3-0, but this Knicks team is different from the start of the year. Jeremy Lin might be available in the first round and I think the Knicks can make this series interesting. If they lose both games in Miami, they might be in trouble, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they came up with an upset.
Pick: Heat in 6 

(3) Indiana Pacers vs. (6) Orlando Magic
Analysis: The Magic won the season series 3 to 1, but that included Dwight Howard in the mix. Without Dwight the Magic are a 1 skill team. Live and die by the 3 and they have no center presence. Indiana is one of the hottest teams in the East entering the playoffs. I’m sad to say it, but this looks like a clear shot series for Indiana.
Pick: Pacers in 5 

(4) Boston Celtics vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks
Analysis: The Celtics won the season series 2 to 1. I think this series can go either way. Are the Atlanta Hawks considered overrated or underrated? They’ve been in the top 8 east teams all year, but they are also the most inconsistent team. I think Boston has a lot left in the tank and whenever you have Rondo running your point, I think you’re in great shape. If Boston can stay healthy throughout this series, they may win this one easy, but I think this will be the longest East series in the first round.
Pick: Celtics in 7 

WEST

(1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (8) Utah Jazz
Analysis: The Spurs won the season series 3 to 1. Well, last year everyone thought the Spurs would have no problem in the first round and that was proven incorrect. I think this Spurs team has more bench production than what they had last year and their veterans who were said to be out of shape and too old, do not look that way at all. The Jazz do not match up well with the Spurs and I don’t like their chances unless the Spurs run into injury issues.
Pick: Spurs in 4

 (2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (7) Dallas Mavericks
Analysis: OKC won the season series 3 to 1. Obviously, based on the picture above, I feel that OKC is the team to beat in not just the first round, but in the playoffs. They play the defending champions in the first round, so its fitting that if they want to make the next level, they have to beat the team that won it all last year. OKC has loads of talent on their team including scoring champion, Kevin Durant. The key to a successful run to the finals is the guy in the picture, Russell Westbrook. Last year he had his struggles and got media bashed by being a ball hog and turning the ball over late in the game. In order for the Thunder to win it all, it rests squarely on how he performs.
Pick: Thunder in 6

(3) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (6) Denver Nuggets
Analysis: The Lakers won the season series 3 to 1. Whenever you have a guy named Kobe Bryant, you’re always going to have a great chance to win playoff games. Not only do they have that, but they have two big guys in the paint and Andrew Bynum is having an outrageous season. Its amazing that the injury-plaqued Nuggets made it to the playoffs. They always seem to give the Lakers a fit when they meet in the playoffs, but I just don’t see it happening this year. The Lakers bench is sore spot for them this season and without Metta World Peace for probably the whole first round, it might put them in a hole for a few games. Not enough to lose the series though.
Pick: Lakers in 5 

(4) Memphis Grizzlies vs. (5) Los Angeles Clippers
Analysis: Clippers won the season series 2 to 1. Lob City was fun to watch this year for sure, but their seeding is about what I expected in the beginning of the season. With the strike shortened season and the switch of players and not a lot of practice time between games during the condensed season, I didn’t expect a high seeding from the Clippers this season and they ended the season on a little skid to lose home court. On the other side, Memphis took 11 of their last 13 games and they are one of the hottest teams in the West. The Grizz made a splash in the playoffs last year by beating the Spurs and they are a team that NO ONE wants to play right now. This series can go either way, but I still think the Clippers are a year away to advancing.
Pick: Grizzlies in 6 

Those are my first round predictions for the NBA playoffs. This first games start on Saturday and definitely looking forward to it and hoping for some intense battles and maybe even a few upsets. Feel free to leave comments if you think the first round will go in a different direction!