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      MLB Report: Heyward homers in first AB, Pujols, Lincecum dazzle

      April 6, 2010 /

      Braves 16, Cubs 5
      Rookie Jason Heyward had a picture-perfect start to his MLB career when he belted a three-run home run off Carlos Zambrano in his first at bat on Monday. Heyward finished the day with two hits, four RBI and two runs scored to lead Atlanta in the rout. Zambrano had a nightmarish debut, allowing eight runs on six hits in just 1.1 innings of work.

      Cardinals 11, Reds 6
      MLB might as well start the engraving process for the MVP award, because Albert Pujols is already making a claim that he deserves the honor. The best hitter in baseball went 4-for-5 with three RBI and two home runs in the Cards’ 11-6 victory over the Reds.

      Giants 5, Astros 2
      Concerns about Tim Lincecum after his so-so spring were put to rest on Monday in Houston after the two-time Cy Young winner blanked the Stros over seven innings. Lincecum held a weak Houston lineup to four hits and no runs, while also striking out seven. Outside of a small jam in the sixth inning, he was nearly flawless.

      Phillies 11, Nationals 1
      It didn’t take long for Roy Halladay to impress his new teammates. He pitched seven innings against the Nationals on Monday, allowing one run on just six hits while striking out nine. The lone run actually scored in the first inning, but Washington looked overmatched after that point.

      Rangers 5, Blue Jays 4
      Shaun Marcum had a no hitter through six innings on Monday before the Rangers finally got to him in the seventh. Texas erased a 3-0 and 4-3 deficit to win 5-4 with two runs in the ninth. Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia came through in the clutch, delivering a bases-loaded, walk-off single to win it for the Rangers.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      MLB

      Duke edges Butler, 61-59

      April 5, 2010 /

      It was a storybook finish for Brian Zoubek.

      Something of a punch line for most of his four-year career at Duke, the light suddenly went on midway through his senior season. The game slowed down for the 7’1″ center and he quickly became a force defensively and on the glass.

      And he needed every inch of that big frame tonight. With just seconds remaining and Duke nursing a one-point lead, Butler’s best player, Gordon Hayward, drove into the lane. Zoubek helped off his man and forced Hayward into a difficult fadeaway jumper along the baseline that was a few inches too long. Zoubek was in the right spot to collect the rebound, and after a quick Butler foul, he had to make the long walk to the other end of the court to shoot a pair of free throws.

      Having shot just 55% on the season, Zoubek nailed his first attempt to give Duke a two-point lead. He was then told by his coach to intentionally miss the second* so that Butler would have to gather the rebound and drive the length of the floor to attempt a game-winning shot from half court. Hayward did just that, and once again missed by a few inches. The shot hit the backboard and clanged off the front of the rim.

      Just like that, Brian Zoubek became a national champion.

      Duke’s “Big Three” — Kyle Singler (19 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks), Jon Scheyer (15 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists) and Nolan Smith (13 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds) — certainly deserve much of the credit, but the Blue Devils would not have won the title tonight without the play of their big men, and Zoubek led the way. His eight points and 11 boards were huge; his play was especially noticeable in the second half when Duke only yielded two offensive rebounds. (Butler had 10 offensive rebounds in the first half.)

      Butler’s man-to-man defense was outstanding. The Blue Devils committed 13 turnovers and shot just 29% from long range. But Duke’s defense was just as good, forcing the Bulldogs into 35% shooting.

      It was a back-and-forth, white knuckle affair. Just when it looked like Duke might pull away, the Bulldogs would make a couple of plays to cut the lead back to one. It was just a great, great game.

      * This is a decision that I don’t agree with when there is 3+ seconds remaining — I’d rather go up three and have the worst-case scenario be overtime.


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      College Basketball, March Madness

      A Duke hater chats with The Scores Report

      April 5, 2010 /

      As we get ready for the Duke/Butler matchup tonight, I thought it would be interesting to get my buddy (and Duke hater) LaRusso on the line to bash the Blue Devils.

      John Paulsen: You’re a proud Duke hater, correct?

      LaRusso: I am.

      JP: What’s the biggest reason you hate Duke?

      LR: It seems like, I don’t know if they have a sense of entitlement, but columnists, I guess ESPN, Dick Vitale, just seem to put them up on a pedestal a lot. They’re on TV all the time. They’re a good program — a top of the line program — so they’re going to draw attention. Like me, people hate them or people love them. One way or another they’re going to move the needle. So I think it’s a perceived elitist mentality of how they are so much better than everybody. They seem to get calls, they get more publicity than other schools. So I think that’s the driving factor.

      JP: So one article I read listed like five reasons why people hate Duke and a commenter added a few more, so want to list them off and see what you think. So you think that they’re media darlings?

      LR: Yes.

      JP: They’re often compared to the Yankees, Cowboys and Patriots, and I guess the Lakers in terms of how much attention they get. I don’t like the Yankees comparison because it’s not like Duke can go out and outspend everybody. If anything, Coach K is at a disadvantage when compared with, say, North Carolina, in terms of recruiting because of Duke’s high academic standards.

      LR: They do have tougher standards for academics. Some schools make concessions for athletes, I don’t know if Duke does that, it doesn’t seem like it. They always have smart kids. I don’t know if they’re on the same level as the Yankees and Red Sox. That’s all the media talks about. And in football, I’d probably say it’s more Cowboys — I don’t think the Patriots get much love. They’re probably more hated now than loved like they were when Brady first came up and they started winning. It seems to have flipped 180 on them.

      JP: Well, we don’t have a local football team in Southern California, and if the Chargers aren’t on. We’re going to get the Cowboys because people either love them or they hate them. But it’s funny to me, because those teams that Duke is compared to — I hate them all. I don’t like the Yankees, or the Patriots or the Cowboys, so the fact that I’ve been a Duke fan since the days of Johnny Dawkins strikes some people as funny. I just gravitated towards the way that Coach K gets his kids to play night in and night out. We’ve talked about this in the past — I really take offense to this whole Yankees argument —

      LR: I guess a better way to put it is that Duke is force-fed to us a little too much.

      Continue reading »

      College Basketball, March Madness

      McNabb trade makes fantasy QB ranks even deeper

      April 5, 2010 /

      From a fantasy standpoint, the Eagles’ decision to trade Donovan McNabb to Washington throws another good quarterback into the fantasy mix. It’s too early to anoint Kevin Kolb the next Matt Schaub or Tony Romo, but in two starts last season, Kolb threw for 718 yards and four TD against the Saints and the Chiefs. Granted, that’s not the stiffest of competition in terms of pass defense, but Kolb proved that he could move the Eagles’ QB-friendly offense and gave the franchise enough confidence to not only trade McNabb away, but to trade him to division rival. That speaks volumes.

      Once again, it looks like Quarterback By Committee (QBBC) will be a viable option for fantasy owners who would rather load up on running backs and wide receivers in the first few rounds, and use two or three mid-round picks to form a quarterback committee. With Ben Roethlisberger’s situation still up in the air, I think you can draw a pretty thick line below the top seven guys: Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Philip Rivers, Tony Romo and Matt Schaub. After that, it’s a crap shoot in terms of who is a good bet to finish #8-#12. Kolb’s emergence as a fantasy option somewhat offsets the loss of Kurt Warner to retirement. And if Brett Favre unretires as expected, it will give QBBC advocates another strong fantasy option in the middle rounds.

      So don’t be surprised in a few months when I’m suggesting you draft Kolb, McNabb, Eli Manning, Matt Ryan, David Garrard, Jay Cutler, Carson Palmer, Joe Flacco, Matt Cassel, Matt Stafford, Alex Smith, Vince Young, Matt Moore, Chad Henne, Matt Hasselbeck and/or Mark Sanchez as part of a QBBC. It all depends on how the schedules line up and where these guys are going in early mock drafts.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      Fantasy Football, NFL

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