Tuesday’s 5-pack:
NBA teams that won a title after trailing the finals 2-0:
1969— Celtics
1977— Trailblazers
2006— Heat
2016— Cavaliers
2021— Bucks
Quote of the Day
“Chuck Daly and Rudy Tomjanovich have many of the same amazing accomplishments and traits — both won back to back NBA titles, both coached the United States to Olympic gold and both are absolutely beloved in the coaching community because of their great way with people.”
Rick Carlisle
Tuesday’s quiz
Before he went to UConn, what two D-I basketball teams did Danny Hurley coach?
Monday’s quiz
When NFL Hall of Famer Kurt Warner played Arena Football, he played for the Iowa Barnstormers.
Sunday’s quiz
Larry Bird coached the Indiana Pacers for three years, going 179-87 (32-20 in playoff games).
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Danny Hurley turned down the Lakers Monday; apparently they offered him a $70M, six-year contract, but he is staying at UConn. His accountant might not be happy, but staying at a place where he is the king is probably a good thing.
Here is how college coaches have fared in the NBA:
— Rick Pitino was the first coach to lead three different schools — Providence, Kentucky, and Louisville — to the Final Four- he is 854-306 as a college coach.
He was 94-74 coaching the Knicks, but his tenure with the Celtics (98-144) wasn’t good.
— Larry Brown was 262-100 as a college coach, winning the 1988 national title with Kansas.
He was 1,098-904 as an NBA coach, winning the 2004 title with the Pistons. He is the only coach to win a title in college and in the NBA.
— Brad Stevens was 166-49 as a college coach; he got Butler to a Final Four, when they were in the freakin’ Horizon League.
He was 354-282 in the NBA, then stopped coaching and started running the Celtics’ franchise; they’re two wins away from the NBA title.
— Billy Donovan was 502-206 as a college coach, winning consecutive national titles at Florida.
He is 399-319 as an NBA head coach, with Thunder/Bulls.
— Quin Snyder went 128-96 in seven years at Missouri.
He is 418-321 as an NBA coach, mostly with the Utah Jazz.
— John Calipari is 855-262 as a college coach.
He was 72-112 in 2+ years coaching the Nets.
— Fred Hoiberg is 178-150 as a college coach.
In between his Iowa State/Nebraska gigs, he was 115-155 with Chicago.
— Mike Montgomery was 676-318 in college, getting Stanford to a Final Four.
He was 68-96 in two years coaching the Warriors.
— John Beilein was 571-325 as a college coach.
He went 14-40 in one unfortunate season with Cleveland.
— Tim Floyd was 465-280 as a college coach.
He replaced Phil Jackson with the Bulls; it didn’t go well (93-235)
— Jerry Tarkanian was one of the best college hoop coaches ever, but he lasted only 20 games with the San Antonio Spurs, going 9-11 before he walked away from it.
Winning is more fun than losing; besides, the NBA is a player-run thing; college basketball was always a coach-driven thing,
— Famous birthdays for June 11th:
Adrienne Barbeau, 79
Gary Fencik, 70
Joe Montana, 68
Hugh Laurie, 65
Jose Reyes, 41
Brock Holt, 36
— If you’re scoring at home, so far this season, American League leads National League 138-128 in interleague games.
— Orioles 5, Rays 2
Baltimore is 15-0-6 in their last 21 series against divisional rivals.
Gunnar Henderson was 3-5 with three runs scored.
— Mariners 8, White Sox 4
Cal Raleigh hit a walk-off grand slam.
White Sox are 17-50, a terrible team, but if you bet them in the first five innings every game, the White Sox are 28-30-9, which is respectable- they’ve been awful in the late innings.
— Baseball injuries:
Seattle 1B Ty France has a hairline fracture in his right heel.
Royals OF Hunter Renfroe had a 12-pitch at bat Monday, fouling two balls off his left foot. Turns over he broke the big toe on his left foot, is headed to the IL.
— Pittsburgh Steelers signed coach Mike Tomlin to a 3-year contract extension that will keep him in the Steel City thru 2027.
Tomlin is 181-110 as Steelers’ coach, winning a Super Bowl in his 2nd year; he’s never had a losing season in 17 years, but the last seven years, Pittsburgh is 0-4 in playoff games.
— Former Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa, younger brother of Dolphins’ QB Tua Tagovailoa, signed with the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats practice squad.
Hamilton lost their opener 32-24 to Calgary last week; Tagovailoa wasn’t drafted by the NFL, despite being tied for Maryland’s single-season touchdown mark with current Hamilton head coach Scott Milanovich.
— Back in 1991, Washington Redskins started the season 5-0, shutting out three of their first five opponents- they went on to win the Super Bowl. Since then, Washington doesn’t have a shutout; they’re the only NFL team without a shutout in the last 30 years.
NBA teams that won a title after trailing the finals 2-0:
1969— Celtics
1977— Trailblazers
2006— Heat
2016— Cavaliers
2021— Bucks
Quote of the Day
“Chuck Daly and Rudy Tomjanovich have many of the same amazing accomplishments and traits — both won back to back NBA titles, both coached the United States to Olympic gold and both are absolutely beloved in the coaching community because of their great way with people.”
Rick Carlisle
Tuesday’s quiz
Before he went to UConn, what two D-I basketball teams did Danny Hurley coach?
Monday’s quiz
When NFL Hall of Famer Kurt Warner played Arena Football, he played for the Iowa Barnstormers.
Sunday’s quiz
Larry Bird coached the Indiana Pacers for three years, going 179-87 (32-20 in playoff games).
******************************************
Tuesday’s Den: How college hoop coaches have fared in the NBA…….
Much ado about nothing.Danny Hurley turned down the Lakers Monday; apparently they offered him a $70M, six-year contract, but he is staying at UConn. His accountant might not be happy, but staying at a place where he is the king is probably a good thing.
Here is how college coaches have fared in the NBA:
— Rick Pitino was the first coach to lead three different schools — Providence, Kentucky, and Louisville — to the Final Four- he is 854-306 as a college coach.
He was 94-74 coaching the Knicks, but his tenure with the Celtics (98-144) wasn’t good.
— Larry Brown was 262-100 as a college coach, winning the 1988 national title with Kansas.
He was 1,098-904 as an NBA coach, winning the 2004 title with the Pistons. He is the only coach to win a title in college and in the NBA.
— Brad Stevens was 166-49 as a college coach; he got Butler to a Final Four, when they were in the freakin’ Horizon League.
He was 354-282 in the NBA, then stopped coaching and started running the Celtics’ franchise; they’re two wins away from the NBA title.
— Billy Donovan was 502-206 as a college coach, winning consecutive national titles at Florida.
He is 399-319 as an NBA head coach, with Thunder/Bulls.
— Quin Snyder went 128-96 in seven years at Missouri.
He is 418-321 as an NBA coach, mostly with the Utah Jazz.
— John Calipari is 855-262 as a college coach.
He was 72-112 in 2+ years coaching the Nets.
— Fred Hoiberg is 178-150 as a college coach.
In between his Iowa State/Nebraska gigs, he was 115-155 with Chicago.
— Mike Montgomery was 676-318 in college, getting Stanford to a Final Four.
He was 68-96 in two years coaching the Warriors.
— John Beilein was 571-325 as a college coach.
He went 14-40 in one unfortunate season with Cleveland.
— Tim Floyd was 465-280 as a college coach.
He replaced Phil Jackson with the Bulls; it didn’t go well (93-235)
— Jerry Tarkanian was one of the best college hoop coaches ever, but he lasted only 20 games with the San Antonio Spurs, going 9-11 before he walked away from it.
Winning is more fun than losing; besides, the NBA is a player-run thing; college basketball was always a coach-driven thing,
— Famous birthdays for June 11th:
Adrienne Barbeau, 79
Gary Fencik, 70
Joe Montana, 68
Hugh Laurie, 65
Jose Reyes, 41
Brock Holt, 36
— If you’re scoring at home, so far this season, American League leads National League 138-128 in interleague games.
— Orioles 5, Rays 2
Baltimore is 15-0-6 in their last 21 series against divisional rivals.
Gunnar Henderson was 3-5 with three runs scored.
— Mariners 8, White Sox 4
Cal Raleigh hit a walk-off grand slam.
White Sox are 17-50, a terrible team, but if you bet them in the first five innings every game, the White Sox are 28-30-9, which is respectable- they’ve been awful in the late innings.
— Baseball injuries:
Seattle 1B Ty France has a hairline fracture in his right heel.
Royals OF Hunter Renfroe had a 12-pitch at bat Monday, fouling two balls off his left foot. Turns over he broke the big toe on his left foot, is headed to the IL.
— Pittsburgh Steelers signed coach Mike Tomlin to a 3-year contract extension that will keep him in the Steel City thru 2027.
Tomlin is 181-110 as Steelers’ coach, winning a Super Bowl in his 2nd year; he’s never had a losing season in 17 years, but the last seven years, Pittsburgh is 0-4 in playoff games.
— Former Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa, younger brother of Dolphins’ QB Tua Tagovailoa, signed with the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats practice squad.
Hamilton lost their opener 32-24 to Calgary last week; Tagovailoa wasn’t drafted by the NFL, despite being tied for Maryland’s single-season touchdown mark with current Hamilton head coach Scott Milanovich.
— Back in 1991, Washington Redskins started the season 5-0, shutting out three of their first five opponents- they went on to win the Super Bowl. Since then, Washington doesn’t have a shutout; they’re the only NFL team without a shutout in the last 30 years.
Wednesday’s 6-pack:
Major League leaders in total bases:
173— Aaron Judge, NYY
153— Bobby Witt Jr, KC
151— Shohei Ohtani LA/Gunnar Henderson, Balt
145— Juan Soto, NYY
143— Marcell Ozuna, Atl
139— Jose Ramirez, Clev
Quote of the Day
“Whenever the injuries start to stack up, your football mortality kind of comes into the back of your mind. So, that’s definitely something I’ve thought about and something I have had to fight through.”
Bengals’ QB Joe Burrow
Wednesday’s quiz
On the old TV show The West Wing, what state was President Bartlet from?
Tuesday’s quiz
Before he went to UConn, Danny Hurley coached Wagner and Rhode Island.
Monday’s quiz
When NFL Hall of Famer Kurt Warner played Arena Football, he played for the Iowa Barnstormers.
**********************************************
Apparently there is very little chance of the two sides settling their beef.
The hot dog eating contest is every July 4th on Coney Island (Brooklyn); I relish watching it, but if I miss it, I can always ketchup by watching a replay.
— I’m thinking that baseball is heading to an era where teams will use 6-man starting pitching rotations, with the very best pitchers staying on their normal schedules but other starters getting pushed back some.
Teams are pushing back starters now if they throw 100+ pitches in a game, giving them more time to regroup. Teams in Asian baseball routinely use 6-man rotations.
— Pirates 2, Cardinals 1
Game was scoreless after eight innings.
Pirates are 5-1 when rookie P Skenes is the starter.
— Rays 5, Cubs 2
Brandon Lowe hit a 3-run homer to walk it off.
Cubs are 5-13 in their last 18 games.
— Rockies 5, Twins 4
Cal Quantrill tossed six scoreless IP.
Ezequiel Tovar broke up a scoreless tie with a 3-run homer.
— Padres 4, A’s 3
Kyle Higashioka hit a walk-off homer to make my night a little less pleasant.
Padres lost LF Jurickson Profar to a knee injury.
— Phillies 4, Red Sox 1
Kyle Schwarber hit two homers in his return to Fenway Park.
Phillies lead the NL East by a whopping 10 games.
— Famous birthdays for June 12th:
Timothy Busfield, 67
Rick Hoffman, 54
Ryan Klesko, 53
Antawn Jamison, 48
Dallas Clark, 45
Andre Davis, 45
Earl Watson, 45
Jrue Holliday, 34
Aaron Civale, 29
— 11 of the 15 MLB matchups during the week this week are interleague matchups. Lot of games where the teams rarely play each other.
— College World Series has four ACC teams, four SEC teams; this is the only time since 1950 that only two leagues have been represented in the 8-team event.
— Phillies C JT Realmuto is having knee surgery, is expected to miss a month or so.
— Detroit P Reese Olson has started five games at home this season; Tigers have been shut out in four of the five games, scored two runs in the other one.
— Baseball’s trade deadline this year is July 30, which is a Tuesday.
— UFL championship game is Sunday in St Louis; Birmingham Stallions against the San Antonio Brahmas.
Stallions lost 18-9 in the Alamo Dome three weeks ago; San Antonio’s first TD came on a pick-6 in the first quarter.
— Good news on the network TV front: CBS is bringing back Hollywood Squares back to a Wednesday 10pm time slot. It will be hosted by former NFL WR Nate Burleson.
I’d rather gameshows would be on during the day, like they used to be, but Hollywood Squares will also air on Paramount +, so we can watch it whenever we like.
Major League leaders in total bases:
173— Aaron Judge, NYY
153— Bobby Witt Jr, KC
151— Shohei Ohtani LA/Gunnar Henderson, Balt
145— Juan Soto, NYY
143— Marcell Ozuna, Atl
139— Jose Ramirez, Clev
Quote of the Day
“Whenever the injuries start to stack up, your football mortality kind of comes into the back of your mind. So, that’s definitely something I’ve thought about and something I have had to fight through.”
Bengals’ QB Joe Burrow
Wednesday’s quiz
On the old TV show The West Wing, what state was President Bartlet from?
Tuesday’s quiz
Before he went to UConn, Danny Hurley coached Wagner and Rhode Island.
Monday’s quiz
When NFL Hall of Famer Kurt Warner played Arena Football, he played for the Iowa Barnstormers.
**********************************************
Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings………
— Professional eater Joey Chestnut is out of this year’s Nathan’s hot dog eating contest, an event he has won every year since 2016, because he signed a deal to represent a different weiner brand that is in direct competition to Nathan’s.Apparently there is very little chance of the two sides settling their beef.
The hot dog eating contest is every July 4th on Coney Island (Brooklyn); I relish watching it, but if I miss it, I can always ketchup by watching a replay.
— I’m thinking that baseball is heading to an era where teams will use 6-man starting pitching rotations, with the very best pitchers staying on their normal schedules but other starters getting pushed back some.
Teams are pushing back starters now if they throw 100+ pitches in a game, giving them more time to regroup. Teams in Asian baseball routinely use 6-man rotations.
— Pirates 2, Cardinals 1
Game was scoreless after eight innings.
Pirates are 5-1 when rookie P Skenes is the starter.
— Rays 5, Cubs 2
Brandon Lowe hit a 3-run homer to walk it off.
Cubs are 5-13 in their last 18 games.
— Rockies 5, Twins 4
Cal Quantrill tossed six scoreless IP.
Ezequiel Tovar broke up a scoreless tie with a 3-run homer.
— Padres 4, A’s 3
Kyle Higashioka hit a walk-off homer to make my night a little less pleasant.
Padres lost LF Jurickson Profar to a knee injury.
— Phillies 4, Red Sox 1
Kyle Schwarber hit two homers in his return to Fenway Park.
Phillies lead the NL East by a whopping 10 games.
— Famous birthdays for June 12th:
Timothy Busfield, 67
Rick Hoffman, 54
Ryan Klesko, 53
Antawn Jamison, 48
Dallas Clark, 45
Andre Davis, 45
Earl Watson, 45
Jrue Holliday, 34
Aaron Civale, 29
— 11 of the 15 MLB matchups during the week this week are interleague matchups. Lot of games where the teams rarely play each other.
— College World Series has four ACC teams, four SEC teams; this is the only time since 1950 that only two leagues have been represented in the 8-team event.
— Phillies C JT Realmuto is having knee surgery, is expected to miss a month or so.
— Detroit P Reese Olson has started five games at home this season; Tigers have been shut out in four of the five games, scored two runs in the other one.
— Baseball’s trade deadline this year is July 30, which is a Tuesday.
— UFL championship game is Sunday in St Louis; Birmingham Stallions against the San Antonio Brahmas.
Stallions lost 18-9 in the Alamo Dome three weeks ago; San Antonio’s first TD came on a pick-6 in the first quarter.
— Good news on the network TV front: CBS is bringing back Hollywood Squares back to a Wednesday 10pm time slot. It will be hosted by former NFL WR Nate Burleson.
I’d rather gameshows would be on during the day, like they used to be, but Hollywood Squares will also air on Paramount +, so we can watch it whenever we like.
Thursday’s 6-pack:
NFL over/under win totals:
11.5— Chiefs, 49ers, Ravens
10.5— Bills, Bengals, Eagles, Cowboys, Lions
9.5— Falcons, Packers, Texans, Dolphins, Jets
8.5— Rams, Jets, Browns, Colts, Jaguars, Chargers
7.5— Saints, Steelers, Seahawks, Buccaneers
6.5— Cardinals, Raiders, Vikings, Giants, Titans, Commanders
Quote of the Day
“The reason Jerry West is the logo for the NBA is because he embodied the qualities we admire in our best athletes: skills as a player, dedication as a teammate, and integrity as a person. He was my coach, and my advisor, but mostly he was my friend.”
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Thursday’s quiz
Where did Jerry West play his college basketball?
Wednesday’s quiz
On the old TV show The West Wing, President Bartlet was from New Hampshire.
Tuesday’s quiz
Before he went to UConn, Danny Hurley coached Wagner and Rhode Island.
**************************************
He was a 14-time All-Star, scoring 25,192 regular season points.
He won nine NBA championship rings, as a player/executive.
He was the Most Outstanding Player of the 1959 Final Four.
He was on the first team All-Defensive team four times.
He led the NBA scoring in 1970.
Two years later, he led the NBA in assists.
He was on the Olympic team that won the 1960 gold medal.
He was voted one of the top 75 players in NBA history.
His silhouette is the NBA’s logo.
RIP, sir.
— Celtics 106, Mavericks 99
Celtics outscored Dallas 35-19 in third quarter.
Boston has won 10 games in a row, and 14 of last 15.
In the history of NBA, teams that trail 3-0 in a playoff series are 0-156 in those series.
— Celtics were an underdog in Game 3, just the 4th time in 99 games this season (2-2) they’ve been an underdog.
— Was looking thru some stuff yesterday, was surprised to see that the LA Clippers have had 13 consecutive winning seasons, though 2021 was only year during that stretch where they made the Western Conference finals.
In those 13 winning seasons, Clippers were 46-60 in playoff games.
— I’m told that Hulu has a series about the Clippers in the Donald Sterling era; my friend said that it is very entertaining.
It is called Clipped, with Ed O’Neill as Sterling, Laurence Fishburne as Doc Rivers; when I get a chance to see it, I’ll weigh in with my opinion.
— Famous birthdays for June 13th:
Marcel Lachemann, 83
Malcolm McDowell, 79
Happy Feller, 75 (seriously, he kicked for Eagles/Saints)
Richard Thomas, 73
Ally Sheedy, 62
Šarūnas Marčiulionis, 60
Steve Novak, 41
Jonathan Lucroy, 38
James McCann, 34
— Rangers 3, Dodgers 1
Corey Seager hit a 3-run homer against his old team.
Rangers threw tying run out at the plate to end the game, after a double to right-center.
— Dodgers acquired utility guy Cavan Biggio from Toronto; the son of Hall of Famer Craig Biggio, Cavan Biggio hit .227 in 5+ seasons with the Blue Jays.
He went 1-3 in his Dodger debut, playing third base.
— Reds 4, Guardians 2
Jeimer Candelario homered twice for Cincinnati.
There was a sellout crowd of 42,427 on Elly De La Cruz bobblehead night.
— Orioles 4, Braves 2
Baltimore has won six games in a row.
Braves have lost five in a row, for first time since 2017.
— Brewers 5, Blue Jays 4
Milwaukee scored all of its runs in the sixth inning.
Total was 8.5; Toronto scored three runs in top of the 9th.
— Mariners 2, White Sox 1 (10)
Luis Robert tied game with a 9th inning homer.
White Sox are 4-22 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Angels 8, Diamondbacks 3
Jose Soriano pitched eight strong innings for the win.
Jo Adell hit a 3-run homer for the Halos.
— Cubs 4, Rays 3
Cody Bellinger hit a 3-run homer in 7th inning.
Cubs won for only 6th time in their last 19 games.
— If the baseball playoffs started today (they do not):
NL: Phillies, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards: Braves, Padres, Giants.
AL: New York, Guardians, Mariners. Wild Cards: Orioles, Royals, Twins.
NFL over/under win totals:
11.5— Chiefs, 49ers, Ravens
10.5— Bills, Bengals, Eagles, Cowboys, Lions
9.5— Falcons, Packers, Texans, Dolphins, Jets
8.5— Rams, Jets, Browns, Colts, Jaguars, Chargers
7.5— Saints, Steelers, Seahawks, Buccaneers
6.5— Cardinals, Raiders, Vikings, Giants, Titans, Commanders
Quote of the Day
“The reason Jerry West is the logo for the NBA is because he embodied the qualities we admire in our best athletes: skills as a player, dedication as a teammate, and integrity as a person. He was my coach, and my advisor, but mostly he was my friend.”
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Thursday’s quiz
Where did Jerry West play his college basketball?
Wednesday’s quiz
On the old TV show The West Wing, President Bartlet was from New Hampshire.
Tuesday’s quiz
Before he went to UConn, Danny Hurley coached Wagner and Rhode Island.
**************************************
Thursday’s Den: Doing some thinking out loud……..
— RIP to basketball icon Jerry West, who passed away at age 86.He was a 14-time All-Star, scoring 25,192 regular season points.
He won nine NBA championship rings, as a player/executive.
He was the Most Outstanding Player of the 1959 Final Four.
He was on the first team All-Defensive team four times.
He led the NBA scoring in 1970.
Two years later, he led the NBA in assists.
He was on the Olympic team that won the 1960 gold medal.
He was voted one of the top 75 players in NBA history.
His silhouette is the NBA’s logo.
RIP, sir.
— Celtics 106, Mavericks 99
Celtics outscored Dallas 35-19 in third quarter.
Boston has won 10 games in a row, and 14 of last 15.
In the history of NBA, teams that trail 3-0 in a playoff series are 0-156 in those series.
— Celtics were an underdog in Game 3, just the 4th time in 99 games this season (2-2) they’ve been an underdog.
— Was looking thru some stuff yesterday, was surprised to see that the LA Clippers have had 13 consecutive winning seasons, though 2021 was only year during that stretch where they made the Western Conference finals.
In those 13 winning seasons, Clippers were 46-60 in playoff games.
— I’m told that Hulu has a series about the Clippers in the Donald Sterling era; my friend said that it is very entertaining.
It is called Clipped, with Ed O’Neill as Sterling, Laurence Fishburne as Doc Rivers; when I get a chance to see it, I’ll weigh in with my opinion.
— Famous birthdays for June 13th:
Marcel Lachemann, 83
Malcolm McDowell, 79
Happy Feller, 75 (seriously, he kicked for Eagles/Saints)
Richard Thomas, 73
Ally Sheedy, 62
Šarūnas Marčiulionis, 60
Steve Novak, 41
Jonathan Lucroy, 38
James McCann, 34
— Rangers 3, Dodgers 1
Corey Seager hit a 3-run homer against his old team.
Rangers threw tying run out at the plate to end the game, after a double to right-center.
— Dodgers acquired utility guy Cavan Biggio from Toronto; the son of Hall of Famer Craig Biggio, Cavan Biggio hit .227 in 5+ seasons with the Blue Jays.
He went 1-3 in his Dodger debut, playing third base.
— Reds 4, Guardians 2
Jeimer Candelario homered twice for Cincinnati.
There was a sellout crowd of 42,427 on Elly De La Cruz bobblehead night.
— Orioles 4, Braves 2
Baltimore has won six games in a row.
Braves have lost five in a row, for first time since 2017.
— Brewers 5, Blue Jays 4
Milwaukee scored all of its runs in the sixth inning.
Total was 8.5; Toronto scored three runs in top of the 9th.
— Mariners 2, White Sox 1 (10)
Luis Robert tied game with a 9th inning homer.
White Sox are 4-22 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Angels 8, Diamondbacks 3
Jose Soriano pitched eight strong innings for the win.
Jo Adell hit a 3-run homer for the Halos.
— Cubs 4, Rays 3
Cody Bellinger hit a 3-run homer in 7th inning.
Cubs won for only 6th time in their last 19 games.
— If the baseball playoffs started today (they do not):
NL: Phillies, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards: Braves, Padres, Giants.
AL: New York, Guardians, Mariners. Wild Cards: Orioles, Royals, Twins.
Friday’s 6-pack:
— Florida 4, Edmonton 3- Panthers lead Stanley Cup finals, 3-0.
— Mets 3, Marlins 2- JD Martinez had a walk-off home run.
— Rays 3, Cubs 2- Cubs are 13-15 in one-run games, most in majors.
— Royals 4, New York 3- Maikel Garcia had a walk-off 2-run double.
— Red Sox 9, Phillies 3- Aaron Nola gave up 8 runs in 3.2 IP.
— Jaguars signed QB Trevor Lawrence to a 5-year, $275M contract.
Quote of the Day
“I’m 95 (bleep)ing years old with one foot in the grave and I can barely move. I know I’m in overtime. So everything in your life becomes more meaningful. And one of the last things I want to be able to see is for the Celtics to hang up banner #18.”
Bob Cousy
Friday’s quiz
Teams from which NFL division have won the most Super Bowls?
Thursday’s quiz
Jerry West played his college basketball at West Virginia
Wednesday’s quiz
On the old TV show The West Wing, President Bartlet was from New Hampshire.
**********************************
— Arizona was 28-21 LY vs lefty starting pitchers; they’re 11-14 this year, but they won their last five games vs lefties.
Diamondbacks are 2-9 in road series openers.
— Braves are 10-17 in their last 27 games.
Reynaldo Lopez is 2-1, 1.83 in his last seven starts.
— Cubs are 8-15 vs NL Central rivals, 25-21 vs everyone else.
Cubs’ last six games stayed under the total.
— Cincinnati won eight of its last ten games.
Reds are 24-22 vs righty starters, 9-13 vs lefties.
— Rockies are 3-9 in their last 12 games.
Colorado is 5-4 in home series openers.
— Over is 5-2 in Dodgers’ last seven road games.
In his last eight starts, Gavin Stone is 6-1, 2.17.
— Marlins are 3-20 against lefty starting pitchers, 20-25 vs righties.
Over is 16-7 in their last 23 home games.
Under is 9-2 in their last eleven road tilts.
— Brewers lost five of last seven road games, scoring 20 runs.
Milwaukee is 15-4 in its last 19 home games.
— Mets are 6-2 in their last eight games.
Mets are 14-9 in one-run games; last year, they were 25-28.
— Phillies won 23 of their last 26 home games.
Phillies are 18-3 in their last 21 series openers.
— Rookie P Skenes is 3-0, 2.43 in six starts, with 46 strikeouts in 33.1 IP.
Over is 13-4 in Pirates’ last 17 home games.
— St Louis is 9-3 in its last 12 home games.
Under is 13-4 in their last 17 games.
— Padres won five of their last six games.
San Diego is 11-13 vs lefty starters; last year, they were 28-13.
— Giants are 4-9 in their last 13 games.
San Francisco is 19-11 in day games, 15-24 in night games.
— Nationals won five of their last six games.
Washington won World Series in 2019; since then, they’re 249-364 (40.6%)
— Famous birthdays for June 14th:
Vince Evans, 69
Sam Perkins, 63
Eric Murdock, 56
Steffi Graf, 55
Bruce Bowen, 53
David Gamble, 43
Sammy Watkins, 31
Bobby Witt Jr, 24
— Orioles are 16-6 in series openers.
Baltimore is 14-5 vs lefty starters.
— Red Sox are 7-12 vs lefty starters; last two years, they were 47-31.
Boston is 1-10 in home series openers.
— White Sox are 3-18 in their last 21 games.
Chicago is 5-22 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Guardians are 19-5 in their last 24 home games.
Cleveland is 14-6 vs lefty starting pitchers; LY, they were 24-35.
— Tigers are 2-5 in their last seven games.
Over is 10-3 in their last 13 road games.
— Under is 14-4 in Astros’ last 18 games.
Last 2 years, Houston was 70-33 vs lefty starters; this year, they’re 7-14
— Royals are 5-11 in their last 16 games.
Kansas City is 25-14 at home, 15-16 on road.
— Angels are 1-5 in their last six road games.
Under is 7-2 in their last nine home games.
— Minnesota won four of its last five games.
Under is 10-4 in their last 14 home games.
— New York won 13 of its last 15 games.
NY scored in first inning in 15 of its last 28 games.
— A’s lost 12 of their last 15 games.
Under is 9-2 in their last 11 games.
— Mariners are 10-1 in home series openers, 4-7 in road series openers.
Seattle is 20-6 in its last 26 home games, overall.
— Rays are 12-6 vs lefty starters, 21-30 vs righty starters.
Tampa Bay is 4-9 in home series openers.
— Texas is 2-10 in its last 12 series openers.
Under is 20-6 in Rangers’ last 26 home games.
— Toronto is 7-11 in one-run games, but 3-1 in extra inning tilts.
Under is 5-2 in their last seven road games.
— Florida 4, Edmonton 3- Panthers lead Stanley Cup finals, 3-0.
— Mets 3, Marlins 2- JD Martinez had a walk-off home run.
— Rays 3, Cubs 2- Cubs are 13-15 in one-run games, most in majors.
— Royals 4, New York 3- Maikel Garcia had a walk-off 2-run double.
— Red Sox 9, Phillies 3- Aaron Nola gave up 8 runs in 3.2 IP.
— Jaguars signed QB Trevor Lawrence to a 5-year, $275M contract.
Quote of the Day
“I’m 95 (bleep)ing years old with one foot in the grave and I can barely move. I know I’m in overtime. So everything in your life becomes more meaningful. And one of the last things I want to be able to see is for the Celtics to hang up banner #18.”
Bob Cousy
Friday’s quiz
Teams from which NFL division have won the most Super Bowls?
Thursday’s quiz
Jerry West played his college basketball at West Virginia
Wednesday’s quiz
On the old TV show The West Wing, President Bartlet was from New Hampshire.
**********************************
Friday’s Den: Trends for all 30 major league teams……
Trends for all 30 MLB teams…….— Arizona was 28-21 LY vs lefty starting pitchers; they’re 11-14 this year, but they won their last five games vs lefties.
Diamondbacks are 2-9 in road series openers.
— Braves are 10-17 in their last 27 games.
Reynaldo Lopez is 2-1, 1.83 in his last seven starts.
— Cubs are 8-15 vs NL Central rivals, 25-21 vs everyone else.
Cubs’ last six games stayed under the total.
— Cincinnati won eight of its last ten games.
Reds are 24-22 vs righty starters, 9-13 vs lefties.
— Rockies are 3-9 in their last 12 games.
Colorado is 5-4 in home series openers.
— Over is 5-2 in Dodgers’ last seven road games.
In his last eight starts, Gavin Stone is 6-1, 2.17.
— Marlins are 3-20 against lefty starting pitchers, 20-25 vs righties.
Over is 16-7 in their last 23 home games.
Under is 9-2 in their last eleven road tilts.
— Brewers lost five of last seven road games, scoring 20 runs.
Milwaukee is 15-4 in its last 19 home games.
— Mets are 6-2 in their last eight games.
Mets are 14-9 in one-run games; last year, they were 25-28.
— Phillies won 23 of their last 26 home games.
Phillies are 18-3 in their last 21 series openers.
— Rookie P Skenes is 3-0, 2.43 in six starts, with 46 strikeouts in 33.1 IP.
Over is 13-4 in Pirates’ last 17 home games.
— St Louis is 9-3 in its last 12 home games.
Under is 13-4 in their last 17 games.
— Padres won five of their last six games.
San Diego is 11-13 vs lefty starters; last year, they were 28-13.
— Giants are 4-9 in their last 13 games.
San Francisco is 19-11 in day games, 15-24 in night games.
— Nationals won five of their last six games.
Washington won World Series in 2019; since then, they’re 249-364 (40.6%)
— Famous birthdays for June 14th:
Vince Evans, 69
Sam Perkins, 63
Eric Murdock, 56
Steffi Graf, 55
Bruce Bowen, 53
David Gamble, 43
Sammy Watkins, 31
Bobby Witt Jr, 24
— Orioles are 16-6 in series openers.
Baltimore is 14-5 vs lefty starters.
— Red Sox are 7-12 vs lefty starters; last two years, they were 47-31.
Boston is 1-10 in home series openers.
— White Sox are 3-18 in their last 21 games.
Chicago is 5-22 in games where winning run scored from 7th inning on.
— Guardians are 19-5 in their last 24 home games.
Cleveland is 14-6 vs lefty starting pitchers; LY, they were 24-35.
— Tigers are 2-5 in their last seven games.
Over is 10-3 in their last 13 road games.
— Under is 14-4 in Astros’ last 18 games.
Last 2 years, Houston was 70-33 vs lefty starters; this year, they’re 7-14
— Royals are 5-11 in their last 16 games.
Kansas City is 25-14 at home, 15-16 on road.
— Angels are 1-5 in their last six road games.
Under is 7-2 in their last nine home games.
— Minnesota won four of its last five games.
Under is 10-4 in their last 14 home games.
— New York won 13 of its last 15 games.
NY scored in first inning in 15 of its last 28 games.
— A’s lost 12 of their last 15 games.
Under is 9-2 in their last 11 games.
— Mariners are 10-1 in home series openers, 4-7 in road series openers.
Seattle is 20-6 in its last 26 home games, overall.
— Rays are 12-6 vs lefty starters, 21-30 vs righty starters.
Tampa Bay is 4-9 in home series openers.
— Texas is 2-10 in its last 12 series openers.
Under is 20-6 in Rangers’ last 26 home games.
— Toronto is 7-11 in one-run games, but 3-1 in extra inning tilts.
Under is 5-2 in their last seven road games.
Armadillo Sports
Saturday’s 6-pack:
Major League teams who have scored the most runs:
367— Bronx
353— Dodgers
350— Orioles
344— Phillies
336— Diamondbacks/Brewers
335— Guardians
Quote of the Day
“I’ve been thinking guys. I want to say this because you guys are my family. I really love TNT, all of the people who work here, NBA television, you guys have been great to me for 24 years, and I just want to say thank you to my entire NBA family. I love you guys.
There’s been a lot of noise around our network the last few months. I just wanna say, I’ve talked to all of the other networks, but I ain’t going nowhere other than TNT. But, I have made the decision myself, no matter what happens, next year is gonna be my last year on television.”
Charles Barkley
Saturday’s quiz
Teams from which division have won the fewest Super Bowls?
Friday’s quiz
Teams from the NFC East have won the most Super Bowls (13).
Thursday’s quiz
Jerry West played his college basketball at West Virginia
************************************************
Saturday’s Den: Random stuff with the weekend here…….
— Mavericks 122, Celtics 84
Luka Doncic scored 25 in first half, when Dallas led 61-35.
Loss snaps the Celtics’ 10-game winning streak.
Game 5 is Monday in Boston.
— When Luka Doncic fouled out in Game 3 of that series, it was the first time in his 448 NBA games that he fouled out in regulation time; he has also fouled out of two overtime games.
— Jacksonville Jaguars paid QB Trevor Lawrence this week; he gets $275M for five years, making him (at least for now) the highest-paid player in NFL history.
Lawrence is 21-31 as an NFL starter, 1-1 in playoff games.
— Atlanta Falcons forfeited a 5th round pick in the 2025 Draft, were fined $250,000 because they tampered with three free agents, including QB Kirk Cousins.
— I’m guessing that these “mandatory mini-camps” that NFL teams have are kind of a big deal for teams, as they prepare for the upcoming season. When your starting QB has “an unexcused absence” from the mini-camp, that isn’t a good thing.
Aaron Rodgers signed a 4-year contract with the Jets last year, paying him $33,500,000 a year; he lasted four plays in the season opener before he tore his achilles tendon. Now he is an “unexcused absentee” from mini-camp. I’m sure that’s going over well.
— Since 2010, no Super Bowl has had a pointspread of more than 5 points.
— Kudos to pro golfer Sam Bairstow, who shot an 84 Thursday in the first round of the US Open, but then rallied on Friday to shoot a 67.
The 17-shot improvement matches the biggest turnaround in U.S. Open history over the last 40 years; Scott Gregory shot 92-75 six years ago.
— Famous birthdays for June 15th:
Billy Williams, 86
Dusty Baker, 75
Jim Belushi, 70
Wade Boggs, 66
Helen Hunt, 61
Courteney Cox, 60
Tim Lincecum, 40
Cooper Kupp, 31
Dominic Smith, 29
Happy birthday to the Big Dawg, who also celebrates a birthday today!!!
— They change the bases during major league games, in some stadiums, the old bases go to a store in the stadium, where you can buy them, as well as game-used baseballs and broken bats.
— Houston Astros released 1B Jose Abreu halfway thru his 3-year contract; Astros are eating around $30M in salary. 37-year old Abreu is hitting .124 this season.
— Miami Marlins are 23-47, they’re a bad team, and they also have have the lowest walk rate of any major league team since the 1966 St Louis Cardinals.
— Phillies 5, Orioles 3 (11)
Alec Bohm had the game-winning double after a rain delay in extra innings.
Ranger Suarez lowered his ERA to 1.77.
— Astros 4, Tigers 0
Game was scoreless after five innings.
Mauricio Dubon homered in this third game this year playing first base.
— Reds 6, Brewers 5
Cincinnati wins despite making five errors, three by SS De La Cruz.
Milwaukee was 1-16 with runners in scoring position.
— Cardinals 3, Cubs 0
Kyle Gibson allowed two hits in 7 IP.
Backup C Pages broke up a scoreless tie with an 8th inning home run.
Saturday’s 6-pack:
Major League teams who have scored the most runs:
367— Bronx
353— Dodgers
350— Orioles
344— Phillies
336— Diamondbacks/Brewers
335— Guardians
Quote of the Day
“I’ve been thinking guys. I want to say this because you guys are my family. I really love TNT, all of the people who work here, NBA television, you guys have been great to me for 24 years, and I just want to say thank you to my entire NBA family. I love you guys.
There’s been a lot of noise around our network the last few months. I just wanna say, I’ve talked to all of the other networks, but I ain’t going nowhere other than TNT. But, I have made the decision myself, no matter what happens, next year is gonna be my last year on television.”
Charles Barkley
Saturday’s quiz
Teams from which division have won the fewest Super Bowls?
Friday’s quiz
Teams from the NFC East have won the most Super Bowls (13).
Thursday’s quiz
Jerry West played his college basketball at West Virginia
************************************************
Saturday’s Den: Random stuff with the weekend here…….
— Mavericks 122, Celtics 84
Luka Doncic scored 25 in first half, when Dallas led 61-35.
Loss snaps the Celtics’ 10-game winning streak.
Game 5 is Monday in Boston.
— When Luka Doncic fouled out in Game 3 of that series, it was the first time in his 448 NBA games that he fouled out in regulation time; he has also fouled out of two overtime games.
— Jacksonville Jaguars paid QB Trevor Lawrence this week; he gets $275M for five years, making him (at least for now) the highest-paid player in NFL history.
Lawrence is 21-31 as an NFL starter, 1-1 in playoff games.
— Atlanta Falcons forfeited a 5th round pick in the 2025 Draft, were fined $250,000 because they tampered with three free agents, including QB Kirk Cousins.
— I’m guessing that these “mandatory mini-camps” that NFL teams have are kind of a big deal for teams, as they prepare for the upcoming season. When your starting QB has “an unexcused absence” from the mini-camp, that isn’t a good thing.
Aaron Rodgers signed a 4-year contract with the Jets last year, paying him $33,500,000 a year; he lasted four plays in the season opener before he tore his achilles tendon. Now he is an “unexcused absentee” from mini-camp. I’m sure that’s going over well.
— Since 2010, no Super Bowl has had a pointspread of more than 5 points.
— Kudos to pro golfer Sam Bairstow, who shot an 84 Thursday in the first round of the US Open, but then rallied on Friday to shoot a 67.
The 17-shot improvement matches the biggest turnaround in U.S. Open history over the last 40 years; Scott Gregory shot 92-75 six years ago.
— Famous birthdays for June 15th:
Billy Williams, 86
Dusty Baker, 75
Jim Belushi, 70
Wade Boggs, 66
Helen Hunt, 61
Courteney Cox, 60
Tim Lincecum, 40
Cooper Kupp, 31
Dominic Smith, 29
Happy birthday to the Big Dawg, who also celebrates a birthday today!!!
— They change the bases during major league games, in some stadiums, the old bases go to a store in the stadium, where you can buy them, as well as game-used baseballs and broken bats.
— Houston Astros released 1B Jose Abreu halfway thru his 3-year contract; Astros are eating around $30M in salary. 37-year old Abreu is hitting .124 this season.
— Miami Marlins are 23-47, they’re a bad team, and they also have have the lowest walk rate of any major league team since the 1966 St Louis Cardinals.
— Phillies 5, Orioles 3 (11)
Alec Bohm had the game-winning double after a rain delay in extra innings.
Ranger Suarez lowered his ERA to 1.77.
— Astros 4, Tigers 0
Game was scoreless after five innings.
Mauricio Dubon homered in this third game this year playing first base.
— Reds 6, Brewers 5
Cincinnati wins despite making five errors, three by SS De La Cruz.
Milwaukee was 1-16 with runners in scoring position.
— Cardinals 3, Cubs 0
Kyle Gibson allowed two hits in 7 IP.
Backup C Pages broke up a scoreless tie with an 8th inning home run.
