10% into the season, time to make some picks

Tampa wins the AL East, Minnesota in the Central, the Angels in the .500 West and the Yankees in the WC

Phillies in the East, Cardinals clinch a month early and the Rockies find enough pitchers to beat out the Giants.

World Series – repeat matchup of Tampa and Philadelphia, this time the Rays take home the hardware.

Denver entered the 2010 NFL Draft having missed the playoffs at 8-8 despite a 2-6 start.  This is largely due to a schedule front-loaded with easier games, a win vs. Cincy that should not have occurred and some teams that always start slow.  They closed the seasoning play good teams and also by losing to bad ones.

Denver entered the NFL draft needing help at defensive line and inside linebacker.

Rather than draft that, Denver traded malcontent Marshall to MIA and then drafted a WR with their first pick – and not the WR everyone else would have taken first.  Did Denver address their needs next? No, they took Tim Tebow, who may not even be a quarterback.  Did they take a linebacker then?  NO, while guys like Kindle and Dan Williams and Price slipped off the boards the Broncos took…offensive linemen.  Plural.  I can only assume Denver is using a 7 man front on offense next year.

Denver needed DTs and ILBs and took a total of none, despite making multiple draft day moves to go both up and down in the order.  Did the Broncos learn nothing from Mike Shanahan’s “I know nothing of defense and we’ll have 4 different coordinators in 4 years” strategy to realize that you cannot win this way?

Denver will not make the playoffs next year.  They finished 8-8, didn’t deserve it and are now worse on both offense and defense in the off-season.  This is the kind of team that can make the Chiefs look decent, the kind of team that gives the Raiders hope for a 2-win season – the two against Denver.

Give Denver’s 2010 NFL Draft a ‘D’ grade- and make it an ‘F’ if Tebow never reaches the Pro Bowl or starts as an NFL QB.

I know Denver started out 6-0, but am I the only one who thinks they might finish 10-6 or worse and not even make the postseason?

The Colts will almost surely be the #1 seed.

New England #2, either Pitt or Cincy as #3 and the other likely to get a wildcard. San Diego is right behind Denver with a game to play against the Broncos to try and catch up.  Denver still has games against the Giants, Colts and Philly, all of which they might easily lose, plus the annual road game at Kansas City (nicknamed the annual “How is it Denver is losing so badly to this terrible Chiefs team?”)  This does not include the fact that the Ravens are right behind Denver and won the head-to-head.

Denver has in no way locked up a playoff berth.

I think Chelsea will win out, with two dozen clean sheets.

Man U are behind, but I don’t think they will score as much up front as they do.

Arsenal,Liverpool and Everton follow.

Villa needed Barry and lost him, Man City overpaid for guys that can’t all get on the pitch at the same time.

Problem is – after that just about anyone can be sent down.  Hull and Man City will likely fire their coaches by Christmas, Stoke and West Ham don’t score enough, Spurs…I have no idea.  And this doesn’t even include the promoted teams either.  If I had to say…it’s be Portsmouth down with Burnley and Hull.

Luckily ESPN is covering 4 dozen EPL games this season.

I think Chelsea will win out, with two dozen clean sheets.

Man U are behind, but I don’t think they will score as much up front as they do.

Arsenal,Liverpool and Everton follow.

Villa needed Barry and lost him, Man City overpaid for guys that can’t all get on the pitch at the same time.

Problem is – after that just about anyone can be sent down.  Hull and Man City will likely fire their coaches by Christmas, Stoke and West Ham don’t score enough, Spurs…I have no idea.  And this doesn’t even include the promoted teams either.  If I had to say…it’s be Portsmouth down with Burnley and Hull.

Luckily ESPN is covering 4 dozen EPL games this season.

My pick to take the crown is Chelsea and I expect with the number of poor teams this season that they might force two dozen clean sheets before the season is out.

Man U is right behind them, but they have 3 strikers: one with a temper, one prima donna and one is can’t go all season without getting hurt.  I expect they’ll be running a 4-5-1 in short order.  Man U lucks out that van der Saar gets hurt during the start of the season where their easy games are front-loaded.

Liverpool I rate above Arsenal, while Liverpool seems more precarious in depth.

Everton is the same as last year so a similar finish of 5th could happen. Villa let Barry go which will hurt and they fell apart in the latter third.  Man City spent a fortune but all of it on strikers (not counting Barry) but unless this teams fields 3 defenders I don’t know how they will all play.

Sunderland may surprise and, given the lack of quality opposition, finish in the top half.  Bolton isn’t great and how good will Blackburn be now that Roque has gone?  Wigan… I’m not sure about them either. Fulham can finish top half if they show defense as can West Ham if they find any offense.

Almost everyone else can be relegated.  Hull didn’t deserve to stay up, Portsmouth seem to be following the Newcastle route, the newly promoted of Burnley, Wolverhampton and B City don’t dazzle me.

What is cool?  4 dozen EPL games on ESPN this year.  Maybe we can get more attention than FSC provides.

So the UK soccer season starts in 2 weeks.

I gotta say, I love that their sport pretty much runs year-round.

It will also be interesting to see if ManU are better or worse without the gaping salary in the middle.

Lots of people complain about the fact that every team in Major League Baseball has at least one representative in the game.  Some folks argue that doing so means good players get left off the roster.

My argument against that…

1. I like seeing every team represented, especially in the opening introductions.  The Intro for the All-Star game is one of the only intros to any event that is actually tolerable and enjoyable these days.

2. If every team wasn’t represented, the All-Star rosters would be nothing but Yankees and Red Sox and Dodgers and Angels and frankly we get plenty of that from ESPN and FOX as it is.  It’s inundating enough that every NYY-BOS game during the season will be thrust upon us but to have the AS game that way as well would be annoying.

3. As the line between the leagues dilutes with tv and free agency, showing players from every team matters more, not less. We need to be reminded that smaller market teams have great players just like the marquis teams cos goodness knows the networks aren’t going to give us that reminder.  Just ask ESPN how many games will be devoted to the Pirates or Orioles in the final month. 

4.  There will always be valid players that miss out due to ASG roster size, positions filled, et al.  It is not a case that removing the players from the Nats and Padres would suddenly cure this issue.  This has been true for 70 years.

Two days ago when the Rockies lost 4-3 I said they were a team that seemed to be looking for defeat out of the jaws of victory.  Last night was the reverse.  1-0 win at home. Nats had first and third 0 outs in 7th and didn’t score, then two on no outs and based loaded 2 outs in 8th and didn’t score.  Like the man said, ya win some, and ya lose some.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the US will never be a force in international soccer until they figure out how to win a road game.  Really.  I’m just saying.  When was the last time the US won a meaningful road game against a side tougher than Bouvet Island.