20 Games In - 2019 NBA All Stars

They're doing the draft again for this year's NBA All-Star game; at least for purposes of this post, I won't worry about that.  Here are the players currently having the best seasons in the NBA.  I'll do this again at the halfway mark.

East

C J.Embiid Phi
F G.Antetokounmpo Mil
F K.Middleton Mil
G K.Walker Charl
G K.Lowry Tor

C N.Vukevic Orl
F P.Siakam Tor
F K.Leonard Tor
G J.Butler Phi
G K.Irving Bos
G E.Bledsoe Mil
G B.Simmons Phi


West
C A.Davis NO
F L.James LAL  - MVP
F K.Durant GSW
G D.Lillard Por
G. J.Harden Hou

C R.Gobert Utah
C N.Jokic Den
C M.Gasol Mem
C S.Adams OKC
F P.George OKC
F M.Harrell LAC
G D.DeRozan SA

Athlete of the Month, November, 2018

October was here.

Drew Brees.  Runners-up: Patrick Mahomes, Jared Goff, Philip Rivers

We are right down to it, folks.  One month left.


     January: Nick Foles
     February: Yuzuru Hanyu
     March: Azura Stevens
     April: Arike Ogunbowale
     May: LeBron James
     June: Kevin Durant
     July: Kylian Mbappe
     August: Brooks Koepka
     September: Breanna Stewart
     October: Steve Pearce

     November: Drew Brees

The Greatest MLB Tournament Ever Created (NL, Round One, Group 4)

Last group was here.

4. 1944 Cardinals (Won WS) 
v.
125. 1898 Braves (Beaneaters) (1st)

-the '43 Cards have already advanced, none of the 19th century teams have made it to the next round. 23 year old Stan Musial leads St Louis; the future Braves have a 28 year old Kid Nichols.

C Cards-Cooper
1B Cards-Sanders
2B Braves-Lowe
SS Cards-Marion
3B Braves-Collins
LF Braves-Duffy
CF Cards-Hopp
RF Cards-Musial
SP1 Braves-Nichols
SP2 Braves-Lewis
SP3 Braves-Willis
Cl Push
Double: Bat WAR Cards
Double: Pit WAR Cards

Cards 9 Braves 6 -By virtue of that starting pitching sweep, the Braves won the matchups, but lost both of the overall totals and wound up getting knocked from the tournament.

61. 1929 Cubs (Lost WS)
v. 
68. 1903 Giants (2nd in NL)

-Two turn of the century Cubs teams have moved to the next round; two turn of the century Giants teams have joined them.  This should be competitive.  The Cubs team has a 33 year old Rogers Hornsby, a 29 year old Hack Wilson, a 28 year old Gabby Hartnett.  For the Giants, it's a 22 year old Mathewson and a 32 year old Joe McGinnity. 

C Giants-Warner

1B Giants-McGann

2B Cubs-Hornsby

SS Cubs-English

3B Cubs-McMillan

LF Cubs-Stephenson

CF Cubs-Wilson

RF Cubs-Cuyler

SP1 Giants-McGinnity

SP2 Giants-Mathewson

SP3 Cubs-Malone

Cl Giants-Miller

Double: Bat WAR Cubs

Double: Pit WAR Giants

Cubs 9 Giants 7 - That enormous Cubs run right through the heart of the lineup really put the game out of reach.  

29. 1993 Braves (lost NLCS)
v.
100. 1908 Pirates (2nd in NL)

-two Braves teams from the 90s are already in the Field of 64; two of those 19-aughts Pirates teams have joined them - that makes for a nice matchup here.  You know the Braves - Maddux (27) Smoltz (26) Glavine (27).  The Pirates have a 34 year old Honus Wagner and a 35 year old Fred Clarke.

C Pirates-Gibson

1B Braves-Bream

2B Pirates-Abbaticchio

SS Pirates-Wagner

3B Pirates-Leach

LF Push

CF Push

RF Braves-Justice

SP1 Braves-Maddux

SP2 Braves-Smoltz

SP3 Braves-Glavine

Cl Pirates-Young

Double: Bat WAR Braves

Double: Pit WAR Braves

Braves 9 Pirates 5 - Dead even until we got the overall totals, despite Pittsburgh's position player advantage during the matchups, the Braves still added the overall hitting to their clear pitching win to advance. 

36. 1949 Dodgers (lost WS)
v.
93. 1910 Giants (2nd in NL)

-5 Dodger squads have already advanced into the Field of 64, their longtime rivals haven't been as fortunate, only 2 Giants clubs have thusfar moved forward.  Jackie and Pee Wee are both 30, Duke Snider is 22, Campanella and Furillo are both 27.  For the Giants - it's Mathewson again, now at age 29. 

C Dodgers-Campanella

1B Dodgers-Hodges

2B Dodgers-Robinson

SS Dodgers-Reese

3B Giants-Devlin

LF Dodgers-Hermanski

CF Dodgers-Snider

RF Dodgers-Furillo

SP1 Giants-Mathewson

SP2 Dodgers-Roe

SP3 Giants-Drucke

Cl Giants-Crandall

Double: Bat WAR Dodgers

Double: Pit WAR Giants

Dodgers 10 Giants 6 - the bats were just too much, both in the position player matchups and then overall, and the Dodgers move on.  

13. 1942 Dodgers (2nd in NL)
v.
116. 1888 Browns (Cardinals) (Lost WS)

-The Dodgers just pushed their 7th team through to the next round, zero 19th century teams have advanced - this sure looks like a mismatch.  Pee Wee is 23 and he's with the pre-Jackie Dodgers (Dolph Camilli's 35, Billy Herman's 32). The future Cardinals have a 28 year old Charlie Comiskey and a 20 year old Silver King.

C Dodgers-Owen

1B Dodgers-Camilli

2B Browns-Robinson

SS Dodgers-Reese

3B Browns-Latham

LF Browns-O'Neill

CF Dodgers-Reiser

RF Browns-McCarthy

SP1 Browns-King

SP2 Browns-Hudson

SP3 Dodgers-Davis

Cl Dodgers-Casey

Double: Bat WAR Dodgers

Double: Pit WAR Browns

Dodgers 9 Browns 8 - well, it took a tiebreak, but the Dodgers bat advantage was greater than their mound deficit and an 8th Dodgers squad makes the field of 64.

52. 1921 Giants (won WS)
v.
77. 1999 Braves (lost WS)

-The '93, '97, '98 Braves have already advanced, can they make it a quartet against a Giants franchise really struggling to move teams into the next round. Frankie Frisch is 23, Dave Bancroft is 30 for the Giants. For the Braves - Andruw Jones is 22, Chipper 27, and then the arms - Smoltz 32, Glavine and Maddux 33.

C Giants-Snyder

1B Giants-Kelly

2B Braves-Boone

SS Giants-Bancroft

3B Giants-Frisch

LF Giants-Burns

CF Braves-Jones

RF Giants-Youngs

SP1 Braves-Glavine

SP2 Braves-Millwood

SP3 Braves-Maddux

Cl Braves-Rocker

Double: Bat WAR Giants

Double: Pit WAR Braves

Braves 9 Giants 8 - another tiebreak, the Braves substantial pitching edge was the slightest bit more substantial than the Giants substantial pitching edge.

20. 1953 Dodgers (lost WS)
v.
109. 1882 Cubs (White Stockings) (1st)

The Dodgers have 8 teams in the field of 64; no 19th century teams have advanced.  This should follow suit.  Jackie and Pee Wee are 34, Campy 31 and the Duke is 26.  King Kelly (24) and Cap Anson (30) for the future Cubs.

C Dodgers-Campanella

1B Push

2B Dodgers-Gilliam

SS Dodgers-Reese

3B Cubs-Williamson

LF Dodgers-Robinson

CF Dodgers-Snider

RF Dodgers-Furillo

SP1 Push

SP2 Cubs-Corcoran

SP3 Cubs-Williamson

Cl Dodgers-Hughes

Double: Bat WAR Dodgers

Double: Pit WAR Dodgers

Dodgers 11 Cubs 3 - sure, had I to do it again, I'd leave the 19th century teams at home, live and learn.  

45. 1913 Giants (lost WS)
v.
84. 1972 Reds (lost WS)

-the Giants have struggled to get through to the next round, two of the Reds teams from the 70s have already advanced.  It's Matthewson for the Giants, he's 32.  For the Reds - Morgan (28) Bench (24) Rose (31) Perez (30)

C Reds-Bench

1B Reds-Bench

2B Reds-Morgan

SS Giants-Fletcher

3B Reds-Menke

LF Reds-Rose

CF Reds-Tolan

RF Giants-Murray

SP1 Giants-Mathewson

SP2 Giants-Marquard

SP3 Giants-Tesreau

Cl Reds-Carroll

Double: Bat WAR Reds

Double: Pit WAR Giants

Reds 9 Giants 7 - if Clay Carroll doesn't win that closers matchup then it is deadlocked and, without fully doing the math, that tiebreak would have been very, very close - but we didn't get there, the Reds bats carry the day and they advance.

Here's the next round:

1944 Cards

v.

1929 Cubs

1993 Braves

v.

1949 Dodgers

1942 Dodgers

v.

1999 Braves

1953 Dodgers

v.

1972 Reds

That's half of the first round down.  When we come back it's with the AL, Group 5 - led by the 2018 Houston Astros.  

The Greatest MLB Tournament Ever Created (AL, Round One, Group 4)

Last group is here.

4. 1910 A's (won WS)
v.
125. 2003 Mariners (2nd in West)

-Something's got to give here, each of the top seeds in all groups, both leagues, have advanced so far - but modern teams have really had great success against 19th C/early 20th squads.  23 year old Eddie Collins, 24 year old Home Run Baker, 26 year old Chief Bender, 34 year old Eddie Plank - all Hall of Famers leading the A's.  The Mariners have a 29 year old Ichiro Suzuki, a 40 year old Edgar Martinez and a 34 year old John Olerud.  Let's see if we get the biggest upset in the tournament thusfar.

C A's-Lapp
1B Mariners-Olerud
2B A's-Collins
SS A's-Barry
3B A's-Baker
LF Mariners-Winn
CF Mariners-Cameron
RF Mariners-Suzuki
DH Mariners-Martinez
SP1 A's-Coombs
SP2 A's-Franklin
SP3 Mariners-Pineiro
Cl Mariners-Hasegawa
Double: Bat WAR A's
Double: Pit WAR Mariners

Mariners 9 A's 8 - and it happened; the Mariners pitching advantage is as slight as it could possibly have been to not be called a push - it is the thinnest possible margin of victory for the modern club.

61. 2002 Angels (Won WS)
v.
68. 1952 Yankees (Won WS)

-10 Yankee teams are already in the Field of '64, but none from the 50s (the '54 and '55 teams got bounced)  I believe this is the only Angels representative in the tournament. The Angels have a 28 year old Darin Erstad and a 30 year old Garret Anderson. The Yankees have a 20 year old Mickey Mantle and a 27 year old Yogi Berra. 

C Yankees-Berra

1B Yankees-Collins

2B Angels-Kennedy

SS Angels-Eckstein

3B Angels-Glaus

LF Angels-Anderson

CF Yankees-Mantle

RF Yankees-Bauer

DH Angels-Fullmer

SP1 Yankees-Reynolds

SP2 Angels-Washburn

SP3 Push

Cl Angels-Percival

Double: Bat WAR Yankees

Double: Pit WAR Angels

Angels 9 Yankees 7 - the Angels really won with the pitching, they got the matchup win and the overall win, getting them the victory.

29. 1935 Tigers (Won WS)
v.
100. 1905 A's (Lost WS)

-The '10 A's team just got knocked off in the biggest upset seed wise we're likely to see in the entire tournament; we've seen a couple of Tigers teams already make the Field of 64. The A's have 21 year old Chief Bender, 29 year old Eddie Plank and 28 year old Rube Waddell.  The Tigers have 24 year old Hank Greenberg, 32 year old Mickey Cochrane, 32 year old Charlie Gehringer.

C Tigers-Cochrane

1B Tigers-Greenberg

2B Tigers-Gehringer

SS Tigers-Rogell

3B A's-Cross

LF A's-Hartsel

CF A's-Hoffman

RF A's-Seybold

SP1 A's-Plank

SP2 A's-Waddell

SP3 A's-Coakley

Cl Tigers-Hogsett

Double: Bat WAR Tigers

Double: Pit WAR A's

A's 9 Tigers 7 - The A's ran swept the outfield and dominated the pitching to pull the big upset.  

36. 1956 Yankees (Won WS)
v.
93. 2017 Astros (Won WS)

-The 50s Yankees still don't have a representative in the Field of 64 - and they take on a very recent Houston Astros club.  Mantle's 24, Yogi's 31, Whitey's 27.  For the Astros Jose Altuve is 27, Alex Bregman's 23, Carlos Correa is 22.

C Yankees-Berra

1B Yankees-Skowron

2B Astros-Altuve

SS Astros-Correa

3B Astros-Bregman

LF Astros-Aoki

CF Yankees-Mantle

RF Astros-Reddick

DH Yankees-Collins

SP1 Yankees-Ford

SP2 Astros-Morton

SP3 Astros-Keuchel

Cl Astros -Giles

Double: Bat WAR Astros

Double: Pit WAR Astros

Astros 10 Yankees 7 - Houston wins those infield matchups and then sweeps the overall categories

13. 1953 Yankees (Won WS)
v.
116. 1963 White Sox (2nd in AL)

-The Yankees 50s clubs still can't find a spot in the next round; the White Sox don't have any representatives at all who have advanced.  Let's see what gives.  Mantle's 21, Yogi's 28, Whitey's 24. The Sox have a 40 year old Hoyt Wilhelm and a 26 year old Gary Peters. 

C Yankees-Berra

1B Yankees-Collins

2B Yankees-Martin

SS White Sox-Hansen

3B White Sox-Ward

LF Yankees-Woodling

CF Yankees-Mantle

RF Yankees-Bauer

SP1 White Sox-Peters

SP2 White Sox-Herbert

SP3 White Sox-Pizarro

Cl White Sox-Wilhelm

Double: Bat WAR Yankees

Double: Pit WAR White Sox

White Sox 9 Yankees 8 - the 50s Yankees teams continue to be snakebit, here, they had a heavy advantage with the bats and just got clean swept on the mound.  

52. 1913 A's (won WS)
v.
77. 1949 Yankees (won WS)

-we just saw one of these A's teams advance, while the Yankees have struggled recently - let's see what happens here. We've seen this A's quartet of Hall of Famers multiple times - Baker is 27, Collins 26, Bender 29 and Plank is 37.  This Yankee team has a 34 year old DiMaggio and a 24 year old Yogi.

C Yankees-Berra

1B A's-McInnish

2B A's-Collins

SS A's-Barry

3B A's-Baker

LF A's-Oldring

CF Yankees-DiMaggio

RF Yankees-Henrich

SP1 Yankees-Raschi

SP2 Yankees-Lopat

SP3 Yankees-Reynolds

Cl Yankees-Page

Double: Bat WAR A's

Double: Pit WAR Yankees

Yankees 9 A's 7 - The A's dominated offensively, sweeping through the IF, but New York won every pitching matchup and then easily took the overall pitching.  The Yankees advance. 


20. 1917 White Sox (won WS)
v.
109. 1951 Yankees (won WS)

We just had a White Sox/Yankees matchup; here, it's the ChiSox who are the solid favorites.  Shoeless Joe is 29 and Eddie Collins is 30. The two years prior Yankees just advanced in the previous game - it's a 26 year old Yogi and a 36 year old DiMaggio joined by a 19 year old Mickey Mantle

C Yankees-Berra

1B White Sox-Gandil

2B White Sox-Collins

SS Yankees-Rizutto

3B White Sox-Weaver

LF White Sox-Jackson

CF White Sox-Felsch

RF Push

SP1 White Sox-Cicotte

SP2 Yankees-Lopat

SP3 Yankees-Reynolds

Cl White Sox-Danforth

Double: Bat WAR Yankees

Double: Pit WAR White Sox

White Sox 9 Yankees 6 - the Yankees had better overall bats, but the White Sox won the lineup matchups and the total pitching to advance.  

45. 1909 Tigers (lost WS)
v.
84. 1930 A's  (Won WS)

-we finish up the first half of Round 1 in the American League with Tigers/A's - we've seen one of these Ty Cobb Tigers teams advance already; and the 1929 A's, just a year before this club, have already moved forward.  Cobb is 22 here, Sam Crawford's 29. Mickey Cochrane isn't a Tiger - that doesn't happen until '34.  He's a 27 year old A - and so is a 43 year old Eddie Collins, a 22 year old Jimmie Foxx, a 30 year old Lefty Grove.

C A's-Cochrane

1B A's-Foxx

2B A's-Bishop

SS Tigers-Bush

3B Tigers-Moriarity

LF A's-Simmons

CF Tigers-Crawford

RF Tigers-Cobb

SP1 Tigers-Mullin

SP2 A's-Grove

SP3 Tigers-Summers

Cl Push

Double: Bat WAR Tigers

Double: Pit WAR A's

Tigers 8 A's 7 - Just super close a dead even matchup with Detroit's bats just...barely squeezing them by the A's to end Group 4.  The next time we see this group:

125. 2003 Mariners
v.
61. 2002 Angels

100. 1905 A's
v.
93. 2017 Astros

116. 1963 White Sox
v.
77. 1949 Yankees

20. 1917 White Sox
v.

45. 1909 Tigers

Half the bracket for the AL is done.  When we return to the NL for Group 4, it's with the 4th seed in the NL, the 1944 Cardinals.

My 2019 MLB Hall of Fame Ballot

You can select up to 10 and I'll be doing that.  Here's my 2019 Hall of Fame Ballot


1. Barry Bonds
2. Roger Clemens
3. Mariano Rivera
4. Manny Ramirez
5. Lance Berkman
6. Mike Mussina
7. Curt Schilling
8. Roy Halladay
9. Larry Walker
10. Edgar Martinez

Guys I'd Likely Vote For When/If the Ballot Permits:
11. Gary Sheffield
12. Jeff Kent
13. Todd Helton
14. Scott Rolen
15. Andruw Jones
16. Andy Pettitte
17. Billy Wagner