July 6th, 2009 Picks

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(skip to picks)1-4-0 yesterday as I continue to fail at ticking a box. If I'd been able to pick all 5 MLB games I'd have been 5-0. Went down with 3 sets for the Federer/Roddick match. Yea sure Federer started flicking shots wide in the first set and Roddick gave up a 5-1 lead in the second set tiebreak but that was an epic match that would never have gone straight sets without some ridiculous luck. Roddick represented his coach, his nation, and himself and I hope we get to see him in the finals of some more Slams in the near future. I thought Roddick played very well, not just using his power, but also softer shots, slices and the like, to work Federer around the court. He broke Federer more often than he was broken and I think if he had won we'd be talking about how much he deserved to win. Certainly nobody deserved to lose that match.

My next loss came with Gefle IF and from what I can gather from Swedish-language news they were inches away from victory as Jonatan Berg hit the crossbar on two separate occasions. Then got a win with Minnesota, followed by a loss with both WNBA home teams losing. Detroit was a tough overtime loss but the Sparks just failed at playing basketball, gave up over 100 points. Yikes. So then, on to the picks.

Recaps

Federer Makes History In Epic Fashion

R. Federer def. A. Roddic 5-7 7-6(6) 7-6(5) 3-6 16-14

Andy Roddick's disappointment was palpable and nobody could fault him for that. It was almost a shame Federer's record setting victory had to come at such a price, and yet it feels most fitting that such an amazing effort were required to become amazing.

``Federer's discomfort at being so brashly challenged on a court he has come to regard as his own was beginning to show as the second set moved into a tiebreak. As the Centre Court audience roared in disbelief, two errors by the Swiss left Roddick with four points for a two-set lead. Now was the time for Federer to unveil the genius that had stood him such good stead in previous Wimbledon finals - and he responded in brilliant fashion, winning the next six points in a row as, for the first time, Roddick's nerves betrayed him."

Read more....Match StatsFederer InterviewRoddick InterviewRoddick's Bitter MisstepPhotos

Jonatan Berg Is Twice Denied Victory By The Crossbar

Gefle IF 1 -1 BK Häcken

After BK Häcken scored they let off the gas and let Gefle dominate. Jonatan Berg scored on a free kick and had two other shots rebound off the crossbar and BK Häcken held on for the draw. BK Häcken have never lost to Gefle IF in something like 7 matches.

``Jonatan Berg var matchens klart bästa spelare i kvällens oavgjorda match mellan Gefle och Häcken. Geflespelaren svarade för lagets kvitteringsmål med en läcker frispark och var vid två tillfällen en hårsmån från att skjuta samtliga tre poäng i hamn, men båda gångerna var ribban i vägen."

Read more....Box Score

Blackburn Nearly Records Complete Game Shutout Of First Place Tigers

Minnesota Twins 6 - 2 Detroit Tigers

Rick Porcello was pretty solid but for one inning, and the defense didn't help him out there either.

``Nick Blackburn (7-4) took a shutout into the ninth inning before left fielder Denard Span dropped a line drive for an error and Brandon Inge followed with a two-run home run, his 19th. Blackburn won for only the second time in his last six turns, but he's been pitching plenty well. Establishing himself this season as Minnesota's best starter, Blackburn has yielded three earned runs or less in each of his last nine appearances and completed six innings or more each time. This was his third complete game in his last four starts. He gave up seven hits and struck out six. The Twins scored all of their runs in the fourth against rookie Rick Porcello (8-6), who threw seven shutout innings at them during a defeat in Detroit on May 5^th."

Read more....Box Score

Broxton, Smith Miss Chance To Eclipse Sun

Connecticut Sun 95 - 92 Detroit Shock (OT)

Kara Broxton missed a pair of free throws and Katie Smith missed a shot with 10 seconds to go. The Sun made their shots when they counted most and won the game.

``Mike Thibault never doubted his decision to leave a roster spot open for Sandrine Gruda. She immediately proved her coach right, scoring a career-high 23 points in her season debut and Erin Phillips scored six of her 19 points in overtime as the Connecticut Sun beat the Detroit Shock 95-92 on Sunday night."

Read more....Box Score

Phoenix Passes Century Mark In Second Half Blowout Of L.A.

Phoenix Mercury 104 - 89 Los Angeles Sparks

Wow, impressive effort by Phoenix or pathetic effort by L.A., either way 100 points in 40 minutes is pretty good.

``Los Angeles held a 53-45 lead with 38 seconds gone in the second half, but Bonner had 12 points and six rebounds in the third quarter. The Mercury led 81-70 at the end of the period. Phoenix began the fourth quarter with an 11-0 spurt. The Mercury also made 31 of 37 free throws in the game. Parker, who gave birth to a daughter on May 13, had six points and four rebounds in 20 minutes."

Read more....Box Score

Picks
1) Kalmar FF @ Malmö FF - Kalmar FF win or draw
2) How Many Home Runs Will Be Hit (Blue Jays @ Yankees): 3 or fewer vs. 4 or more - 4 or more
3) Atlanta Braves @ Chicago Cubs - Atlanta
4) Cincinnati Reds @ Philadelphia Phillies - Cincinnati
5) Pittsburgh Pirates @ Houston Astros - Houston
6) San Diego Padres @ Arizona Diamondbacks - Arizona
7) Texas Rangers @ Los Angeles Angels - Los Angeles
8) Baltimore Orioles @ Seattle Mariners - Baltimore
9) How Many Runs Will Be Scored Before The 5^th Inning (Marlins @ Giants): 3 or fewer vs. 4 or more - 3 or fewer

Previews

1) Kalmar FF visit the Swedbank Stadion to take on Malmö FF with a win for either side elevating them in the tables. Kalmar FF are currently two points ahead of Malmö FF, in 8^th and 9^th place, respectively. Though Malmö have traditionally been one of the best teams in the Allsvenskan it has been Kalmar which has seen the most recent success finishing 1^st in the Allsvenskan last season. They will be playing in the Champions League qualification round next week while Malmö will simply focus on righting ship domestically.

Kalmar FF had gotten off to a terrible start after their breakthrough season last year picking up only two points from their first five matches. They've managed to turn things around since then and are currently one of the better teams in the Allsvenskan on the road with a 1-3-2 (W-D-L) record and +1 goal differential (10 GS:9 GA). Malmö FF were expected to be a strong side this season but have defied those experts' predictions and are yet waiting to break into the upper half of the table. At home they have yet to lose a game outright, but have also failed to win all three points more often than not. Malmö FF have a 2-4-0 (W-D-L) record with a +4 differential (8 GS:4 GA) at Swedbank Stadion this season.

Recent Form
Malmö FF	Kalmar FF
GAIS Göteborg (2:2)	GAIS Göteborg (2:2)
Örebro SK (0:0)	IFK Göteborg (1:2)
Helsingborgs IF (0:1)	Hammarby IF (4:1)
Malmö FF (home); Kalmar FF (away)

Looking at the table to the left one can see that neither side has been terribly successful lately with Kalmar FF doing well to pick up draws on the road and Malmö FF continuing to struggle to win at home. As far as injury concerns go both teams will face some significant players from their midfield. For Malmö FF Miljan Mutavdzic(M) and Jimmy Durmaz(M) are still injured while Robert Åhman-Persson(M) is doubtful. Kalmar FF will have to do without Mikael Eklund(D), Marcus Lindberg(D), Tobias Carlsson(D), Erik Israelsson(M) and winter acquisition Lourival Assis(M) who all remain injured except for Carlsson who is ill.

(potential) Malmö FF Starting XI (4-4-1-1): Jonas Sandqvist; Ulrich Vinzents, Jimmy Dixon, Gabriel, Ricardinho; Guillermo Molins, Robert Åhman-Persson, Daniel Andersson, Jiloan Hamad; Wilton Figueiredo; Agon Mehmeti
(potential) Kalmar FF Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Petter Wastå; Emin Nouri, Joachim Lantz, Stefan Larsson, Petter Lennartsson; Tobias Eriksson, Henrik Rydström; Daniel Sobralense, Rasmus Elm, Abiola Dauda; David Elm

I feel Kalmar FF are the stronger side this season and with so many injuries to the midfield of each team I expect the offenses to generate few goals.

Prediction: Malmö FF 1 - 1 Kalmar FF

Graph showing total home runs at Yankee Stadium when Pettitte started. Table showing home run production for NYY and TOR over the past week, and general stats for the season. Click for larger view.

2) Essentially it would be an exceptional game for Andy Pettitte and Ricky Romero to start, pitch 6 or 7 innings apiece, and combine for 4 home runs conceded, even at Yankee Stadium. Pettitte is giving up a home run every 42 pitches swung at on average and Romero is conceding a home run every 30 pitches swung at. Batters are swinging at less than half of their pitches this season, however. Romero has given up 9 home runs in 12 starts this season, and five of those were in two games where he was returning from a right adductor strain. Pettitte has given up 12 home runs in 16 starts, though 10 of those have been in 9 starts at Yankee Stadium. Overall, I think 3 home runs are most likely but have a gut feeling Toronto will be able to belt off an extra one.

Mike Hampton pitches against San Diego on June 30th after returning from a minor groin injury. He'll look to continue that success against Pittsburgh tonight (0.90 career ERA, 3-0 record against this season).

5) The Houston Astros will host the last place Pittsburgh Pirates tonight at Minute Maid Park after finally managing to score some runs against the Giants in their last series. Facing Sadowski, Lincecum, and Randy Johnson the Astros managed to bat only .175 with a .309 slugging average. That slugging average is fairly impressive considering but was due mainly to the three home runs they hit off of Johnson in the final game. They'll hope that was not simply a poor performance on Johnson's part and I'm inclined to agree. They may have just broken out of a slump, but it's tough to avoid slumping when going up against Lincecum and, apparently, against Sadowski who's debuted in the Majors with 13 scoreless innings pitched.

Houston will be starting Mike Hampton tonight and they have to be pleased he's recovered from a groin injury in time to face his personal whipping boys. Houston is 6-3 against Pittsburgh this season with three of those wins coming with Hampton pitching. Hampton has a 4-5 record along with a 4.44 ERA and 1.40 WHIP this season, but against the Pirates he has a 3-0 record, a 0.90 ERA, and a 0.75 WHIP. It's not just this season either. Over his career he is 13-3 (.813) with and a 2.44 ERA.

Virgil Vasquez will be making his third start for the Pittsburgh Pirates tonight in the spot vacated by the disgruntled Ian Snell. Vasquez has been fairly good in his first two starts this season, giving up two earned runs to Kansas City in his first start and three earned runs, including two homers, to the Chicago Cubs in his second. Those numbers are similar to the ones he put up at AAA Indianapolis, except that he is walking more batters and giving up more home runs, just limiting the runs as he did in AAA. I imagine at some point, and soon, he will be unable to keep his opponent from having a huge inning. Judging by Hampton's success against the Pirates over the years Houston may not need that to happen to earn victory tonight, but it sure wouldn't hurt. As long as Hampton can do his thing the Astros should be fine tonight.

9)	It looks like the real wildcard here is Sean West who can be either rock solid or solid shit. Click for larger version.

Ouch, Cueto failed me big time and the Phillies are hitting as if they just made a deal with the devil. Good luck with the evening picks. Bergesen is something like 5-2 and I don't expect the Mariners to keep hitting as well as they have been, but who knows eh?

July 5th, 2009 Picks

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(skip to picks)2-4-0 yesterday as my picks were almost 100% shyte yesterday. There were no previews and that reflected a lack of looking into the matchups on my part. There will be some previews today but still fairly sparse as I'm trying to get a radar forecast map up you can use to check out the local conditions around each MLB ballpark. Followed by a gadget that will allow you to generate graphs on the fly, like `compare Reds and Cardinals' batting average over the past week'. I had a good weekend but the celebrations are coming to an end. Lost my six game streak with Venus Williams to start the day. The Williamses both say Venus played well and tried hard but I'll maintain she looked hampered by her knee and did not try and force the issue. Went on to lose with Rocco Mediate, then got a fine come from behind victor with the Nationals, then back on the losing track with Detroit and Oakland only to end up back on top with the Galaxy. So on to the more mystifying picks.

Recaps

Venus Knocked Out Of Orbit As Serena Captures Third Wimbledon

S. Williams def. V. Williams 7-6(3) 6-2

I only saw the tiebreak and the second set but I saw Venus Williams stumble twice trying to get to a ball and look generally defeated, as if she did not believe in her own game, for most of that time. Kind of a disappointing final overall.

``[T]his contest between the current oligarchs of the women's game was conducted for much of the first set at a comparatively sedate pace and in front of a muted audience as both finalists held serve comfortably, with the occasional explosion coming from a Serena ace. Not until the eighth game did the excitement build, when Serena went two break points down. Here was the opportunity for Venus to impose her authority. But the first break point escaped her when she got a bad bounce and the second got away, too, when, faced with a gaping court, she overhit her forehand. Having been reprieved, Serena pressed the power switch and came up with successive aces. She was off the hook and was never subsequently in the slightest danger." Read more... HighlightsMatch Stats

``Venus could hardly take a point from Serena’s serve, and it became increasingly clear that if the set went as far as the tiebreak Serena would be in good shape. But when Venus had her chance to prevent the set running its full course – with two break points at 4-3 – she failed to convert. The tiebreak came and Serena bludgeoned her way through it, finishing off with a beautifully judged lob to take it 7-3. They watched a second set where it soon became clear that Venus – so dominant throughout these Championships – was rapidly losing confidence. Her key weapon, her serve, was losing speed, while Serena was continuing to amass aces without double faults. At 2-3 a Venus mis-hit off the frame of her racket brought up Serena’s first chance to break in the entire match. In the event she did not need to do anything to convert it, because Venus delivered a double fault. Invulnerable to mental pressure in any other match throughout the fortnight, she could not hold it together at the crucial moment against her sister." Venus CracksVenus InterviewSerena Interview

Fred Couples Moves Into Top 25 While Rocco Languishes Near 50^th

Front 9 scores: Fred Couples 34, Rocco Mediate 36

Rocco Mediate and Fred Couples were close, within one stroke, for most of the round, until the 7^th hole. Couples was more consistent carding par on 5 of the first 6 holes with only one bogey while Mediate had more birdies and bogeys combined than pars. On the seventh hole Couples birdied to take a two stroke lead, but Mediate came back with a birdie of his own on the eighth to get back to within a stroke. Both players played the ninth hole nicely, staying in the fairway off of the elevated tee and leaving themselves short putts for birdie. Couples made his and Mediate missed from just under 7 feet and Couples had the lower front 9 score by two strokes.
LeaderboardCouples' ScorecardMediate's Scorecard

Nationals Rally With Four Run 8^th

Washington Nationals 5 - 3 Atlanta Braves

Tommy Hanson had a terrific game but the Braves' bullpen couldn't hold on.

``Hanson departed with a 3-1 lead after seven innings and was in line for his fifth straight victory before the Braves bullpen blew up, halting Atlanta's winning streak at a season-high five. "It was remarkable," said Nationals manager Manny Acta. Mike Gonzalez (3-1) loaded the bases with one down in the eighth on a pinch-hit single by Ronnie Belliard and a pair of walks before Peter Moylan relieved and yielded a two-run, game-tying single to Ryan Zimmerman. O'Flaherty replaced Moylan and was greeted by Dunn's decisive single up the middle on the first pitch he threw. Josh Willingham followed with an RBI single to left."

Read more....Box Score

Ordonez Gives Tigs The Lead But Mauer, Morneau Snatch It Right Back

Minnesota Twins 4 - 3 Detroit Tigers

Ordonez's home run was the only real offense the Tigers had all game long. It was nearly enough.

``In the eighth against Brandon Lyon (3-4), Nick Punto poked a soft single over the outstretched glove of shortstop Adam Everett to allow pinch-runner Matt Tolbert to score on a head-first slide just ahead of the relay throw. Matt Guerrier (4-0) pitched one inning for the win, and Joe Nathan wrapped it up with his 22nd save to pull the Twins within three games of the first-place Tigers. His slider zipping and diving in the zone, Liriano recorded 13 straight outs during the middle innings he's had so much trouble with this year and took a 2-0 advantage into the seventh. After two quick singles to start the frame, though, he lost the lead."

Read more....Box Score

Francisco, Valbuena Make Life Hard For Mazzaro And A's As Tribe Win Two Straight

Cleveland Indians 5 - 2 Oakland Athletics

Vin Mazzaro did a fine job, except when it came to the bottom of Cleveland's batting order.

``Oakland took a 1-0 lead on a first-inning sacrifice fly by Matt Holliday. The Athletics left the bases loaded when third baseman Jhonny Peralta made a leaping catch of a line drive by Ryan Sweeney that would have scored more. Both teams turned in good defensive plays. The Athletics stopped a Cleveland threat in the fifth when Valbuena singled with one out and tried to score from first on a double by Francisco off the left-field wall. But shortstop Orlando Cabrera took the throw from center fielder Ryan Sweeney and relayed the ball home, where catcher Kurt Suzuki blocked the plate and tagged out Valbuena. No. 8 and 9 hitters Luis Valbuena and Ben Francisco went a combined 6 for 6 to help Cleveland defeat the Oakland Athletics 5-2 on Saturday night."

Read more....Box Score

New Addition Eskandarian Makes Big Impact As Galaxy Defeat Revolution For The First Time

Los Angeles Galaxy 1 - 0 New England Revolution

Nice move by the Galaxy to pick up Eskandarian, now if Beckham and Donovan can every get along and on the pitch together they're suddenly a dangerous side.

``LA heavily controlled the opening minutes of the match, establishing the tone of the match right from the start. It didn't take the Galaxy long to get on the board, either. In the eighth minute Todd Dunivant sent a high ball into the box from about 30 yards out on the left flank, and Eskandarian timed the long cross perfectly. He barely stayed onside to receive the pass, then volleyed the ball in mid-air from 8 yards away past Revolution goalkeeper Matt Reis to give LA the score it needed. LA attacked aggressively, even to the point that defender Omar Gonzalez had a chance at a rare scoring opportunity in the 30th minute, when Jovan Kirovski sent a cross into the box from the right side. Gonzalez was all alone in space, but his header went directly at Reis."

Read more....Box ScoreRevolution Point of View

Picks
1) How Many Sets Will Be Played Between Roger Federer And Andy Roddick: 3 sets vs. 4 or 5 sets - 3 sets
2) Mike Weir vs. Joe Ogilvie - Weir cards a lower front 9 score
3) BK Häcken @ Gefle IF - Gefle IF win
4) St. Louis Cardinals @ Cincinnati Reds - St. Louis
5) New York Mets @ Philadelphia Phillies - Philadelphia
6) Who Will Win The AT&T National - Tiger Woods vs. Rest Of Field - Rest of Field
7) Detroit Tigers @ Minnesota Twins - Minnesota
8) Drogheda United @ Sligo - Drogheda United win or draw
9) Houston Astros @ San Francisco Giants - Houston
10) Connecticut Sun @ Detroit Shock - Detroit
11) Tampa Bay Rays @ Texas Rangers - Texas
12) Phoenix Mercury @ Los Angeles Sparks - Los Angeles

Previews

Roger Federer (top) will try to remain as confident as ever as he faces a newly resurgent Andy Roddick.

1) Today is the final day at Wimbledon and the gentleman's singles champion will be decided. Roger Federer will be facing off against Andy Roddick whose presence in the final is not entirely astonishing but not entirely expected either after he bowed out in the second round last year. Wimbledon's preview points out some of the history going against Roddick here, most notably his 2-18 record against Federer. Three of those losses have been at Wimbledon, two in the finals and one semifinal match, with Federer dropping a single set (4-6). Federer has been playing strong in this tournament as well having dropped only one set en route to the final. Roddick has been a bit more beatable as he has dropped six sets total with his only straight sets victory being over Tomas Berdych in the fourth round. Federer is a huge favorite to win this match at -900 to +550 for Roddick with a straight sets victory being the single most favored result.

3) BK Häcken visit Strömvallen in Gävle to take on Gefle IF in the 13^th week of competition in the Allsvenskan. A look at the tables shows Gefle IF are in 6^th place with a 5-4-3 (W-D-L) record while BK Häcken have relegation concerns as they sit 3 meager points off of danger in 13^th place with a 4-2-6 record. In terms of home form Gefle IF are only a middle-of-the-pack team at this point in the season with a 3-2-1 (W-D-L) record and a +3 goal differential, scoring just over a goal per match and allowing just under a goal. BK Häcken are one of the worst in the league when it comes to away matches, sporting a 1-0-5 record and have scored only 2 goals while giving up 10.

Recent Form/Results
#8 Gefle IF	#14 BK Häcken
#1 AIK Solna (1:0)	#10 Djurgårdens IF (0:1)
#4 IF Brommapojkarna (3:2)	#16 Örgryte IS (1:0)
#12 Örebro SK (2:0)	#10 AIK Solna (0:2)
Gefle home results; Häcken away results

The table to the right shows each sides recent form, at home for Gefle IF and away for BK Häcken. The rankings are based on home results for BK Häcken's opponents and away results for Gefle IF's opponents. One can see that Gefle IF have won their last three at home and against some of the best away teams in the Allsvenskan while BK Häcken have struggled on the road against teams with comparable road records to Gefle IF. As far as injury concerns for either side, Mattias Östberg, Muhammad Ali Kahn, and Daniel Forsell will all be missing from BK Häcken's backfield while Gefle IF will be dealing with the absences of Yannick Bapupa at midfield and Jonathan Hellström on defense. Considering how few goals BK Häcken have scored on the road (two) they may have a difficult time keeping up with Gefle facing a weakened defense.

7) The AL Central leading Detroit Tigers look to steal a series at the Metrodome in Minnesota after taking the 16 inning marathon and losing to a rehabilitated Francisco Liriano. Today's game will pit 20 year old rookie Rick Porcello against Nick Blackburn who has been very good this year with a 3.10 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. Looking at those links will show the batter vs. pitcher stats for this game and they seem to favor Detroit in a major way. One has to keep in mind Blackburn is pitching his best season in his young career, hoewever, while Porcello's numbers are based on a single game. One of the main reasons I favor the Twins in this matchup is that Porcello has been struggling a bit lately. Looking at the pitchFx data for Porcello one can see that his changeup and 2-seam fastball were on the inside half of the plate for left-handed batters in his stellar performance against the Twins on May 5^th but that he was leaving those same pitches up in the middle of the plate against Oakland in his last start where he was lit up for 5 runs in 4¹/₃ innings. This should be a concern for Porcello and the Detroit pitching coaches, but it remains a problem to be fixed in his game.

If Porcello has figured out what's been off lately the Twins could be in trouble.

I think Detroit could be dangerous in this game as they are slumping at the moment with a .226 batting average and .379 slugging average and could be on the rise starting today. Blackburn is hit for a number of fly balls and Detroit certainly has the power to take them the distance. I expect Porcello to continue to struggle with his location, however, and for Morneau, Mauer, and Span to continue hitting well. With the addition of Anthony Swarzak to the bullpen I think Minnesota will be strong enough to defend any lead they may take into the latter innings.

July 4th, 2009 Picks (U.S.A. - 233 Years Strong)

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(skip to picks)3-0-0 today and .750 on my picks in this here blog. Started out with Federer continuing his domination of the men's draw with a straight sets victory over Tommy Haas, then Anthony Kim who completely lost the accuracy on his drive but was just good enough, and finished with the Atlanta Dream even after they killed my W4 the other day. This is my eighth 5 game streak or better this round and I'll just keep going with my strategy of picking games without considering the loss. If I'm lucky, I'm lucky, and recently I've been pretty lucky. So on to a bit more o'da luck and a few more o'da picks.

Recaps

Federer Keeps Date With History

R. Federer def. T. Haas 7-6(3) 7-5 6-3

I think the photos tell the story of the match. Federer was calm and in control while Haas was pushed to the limit just to stay mildly competitive.

``Federer, the five-time champion, can never have served better than he did today. He never permitted Haas even a peek at a break point, landed 75% of his first serves on target and won 89% of his first serve points. Even his second serve was lethal, gathering him an astonishing 81%. After being turfed out of the quarter-finals by Haas, Novak Djokovic forecast that the 31-year-old was capable of surprising Federer. It did not happen, well though Haas himself served throughout. But he was embarking on mission impossible against a genius who permitted him a mere 10 points in three sets of perfection. Trailing 4-3, Haas was foot-faulted on his first serve at 15-all. Clearly disturbed by this, the first such call of the match, his concentration wavered. Four break points were saved but a fifth chance for Federer proved too much as Haas followed a double fault by netting a backhand approach. It was a tame way to drop serve after all that had gone before. So Federer stepped up to serve out for the match. He did it to love, the 10th time this had happened on a day that was just about perfect for him."

Read more....Match StatsFederer InterviewHaas InterviewRecord Setting Roger

Kim A Stroke Better Than Furyk For Nine Holes, And Through Round Two

Front 9 Scores: A. Kim 34, J. Furyk 35

Anthony Kim played a solid drive on the first hole to take a one stroke lead, then hit up and down from the rough for most of the front nine, still claiming a couple of birdies. His bogey on #9 along with Furyk's birdie there nearly drew the two players even.

``Defending champion Anthony Kim couldn't build on his course-record 62 from the opening round. He played in the afternoon, after Woods set the target, and caught him briefly before missing too many fairways and having to settle for a 70 that put him two behind. Jim Furyk, adding more star power to the leaderboard, had a 67 and was alone in fourth. Most eyes were behind Pampling, however, with the prospects of a Woods-Kim shootout at Congressional. Kim is regarded as the most promising young American to challenge Woods, and despite a swing that deserted him midway through the round, he's only two behind."

Read more....LeaderboardKim InterviewFuryk InterviewPhotos

Dream Realized As Atlanta Surpass Inaugural Season Win Total With Five

Atlanta Dream 72 - 65 Washington Mystics

Against a less talented opponent than Minnesota the Dream were good enough to get their fifth win of the season.

``Alana Beard had 16 points for Washington, which has dropped three of four and missed its first nine 3-point attempts before Matee Ajavon hit two straight in the final 2 minutes. The Mystics began the game with the WNBA's third-best percentage beyond the arc at 39.4. The Dream, who had lost four of five, forced Washington into 28 turnovers, a season high for the Mystics that resulted in 23 points. After winning just four games as an expansion team last year, Atlanta improved to 5-6 this season."

Read more....Box Score

Picks
1) Serena Williams vs. Venus Williams - Venus Williams
2) Trelleborgs FF @ Hammarsby - Trelleborgs FF win or draw
3) Fred Couples vs. Rocco Mediate - Mediate cards a lower front 9 score
4) Milwaukee Brewers @ Chicago Cubs - Milwaukee
5) Atlanta Braves @ Washington Nationals - Washington
6) Toronto Blue Jays @ New York Yankees - Toronto
7) Anthony Kim vs. Jim Furyk - Furyk cards a lower third round score
8) New York Mets @ Philadelphia Phillies - New York
9) Detroit Tigers @ Minnesota Twins - Detroit
10) DC United @ Columbus Crew - DC United win or draw
11) Oakland Athletics @ Cleveland Indians - Oakland
12) Jeff Gordon vs. Jimmie Johnson - Gordon has a better finishing position
13) Tampa Bay Rays @ Texas Rangers - Tampa Bay
14) New England Revolution @ Los Angeles Galaxy - Los Angeles win

July 3rd, 2009 Picks

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(skip to picks)4-1-0 today as my picks rebounded very well.. now to break .750... hah. Started out well with Serena and Dementieva playing an epic match that lasted over 150 minutes and took 39 games to complete. I guess I got psyched out from that, convincing myself Venus might actually drop a set. It wasn't even close and I ended up picking a loser with FK Sutjeska who drew against MTZ-RIPO. Got back on the winning track with Zestafoni, then continued with the New York Liberty, and finished off the day with the Angels hitting the first home run of the game. And so it's on to the picks.

Recaps

Serena Down Early Wills Herself To Final Round Match Against Sister Venus

S. Williams def. E. Dementieva 6-7(4) 7-5 8-6 (39 games played)

This was an epic match where Dementieva was perhaps a millimeter away from winning.

``Serena Williams battled through to the women's singles final by defeating Russia's Elena Dementieva 6-7 7-5 8-6. At two hours 49 minutes it was the longest women's semi-final at Wimbledon in the era of Open tennis. Dementieva, the Olympic champion, went into the match a clear underdog, despite a superior recent record against the American. But her beefed-up serve, her relentlessly accurate groundstrokes and her fighting spirit extended Williams to the very limit. The Russian applied pressure that Serena has certainly not seen in this tournament, or indeed for a long while. But, champion that she is, the response was there in the end, four games after she had fought off that match point with one of her more outrageous slices of good fortune, a forehand volley winner off the top of the net."

Read more....Match StatsSerena InterviewDementieva InterviewDementieva Looks At The Positives

FC MTZ-RIPO Minsk 1 - 1 FK Sutjeska

There's not a lot that can be said here as these teams aren't the most popular even in their home nations. It was 0:0 at the half, Sutjeska scored early in the second half and MTZ-RIPO equalized with about 15 minutes remaining. I was fortunate to find highlights of the goals being scored. MTZ-RIPO's goal looked better I think.

Match MinutesHighlights

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Banged Up Distillery Gets Knocked About By Georgian Outfit Zestafoni

FC Zestafoni 5 - 1 Lisburn Distillery

I guess Lisburn Distillery never really had a chance in this match.

``Things looked distinctly ominous and although Andy Kilmartin forced Zurab Mamaladze into a save on 29 minutes — before he also stopped Stephen Shaw's follow up — worse was to come for the Whites. Irakli slipped a superb ball over the defence on 34 minutes and Gelashvili turned back inside to fire home from 12-yards out. Four minutes later the nightmare continued, the Distillery defence failed to clear and Grigalashvili cracked a 20-yard drive into the bottom corner. Two minutes before the break, Mamaladze made a good stop, springing to his left to keep out Philip Simpson's header before the shell-shocked Whites trooped off at the break."

Read more...Match Minutes

New York Liberty Halt Three Game Slide WIth Defensive Domination

New York Liberty 80 - 64 Detroit Shock

For the Liberty this game was all about the second and fourth quarters. Check the box score.

``Shameka Christon scored 25 points to help the Liberty snap a three-game losing streak with an 80-64 victory over the Detroit Shock on Thursday night. The Liberty had season highs with 12 3-pointers and 12 steals, and took advantage of the Shock's season high-tying 22 turnovers. New York took control in the second quarter, building a 15-point lead while outscoring Detroit 22-8 for the period and holding the Shock scoreless for more than 7 minutes."

Read more...Box ScoreDetroit Free Press Recap

Abreu's Two Home Runs More Than Enough To Soar Past Orioles

Los Angeles Angels 5 - 2 Baltimore Orioles (First HR: L.A., Bobby Abreu, bottom of 4^th)

``Bobby Abreu hit two home runs, John Lackey pitched eight solid innings and the Los Angeles Angels beat the lowly Baltimore Orioles 5-2 on Thursday night. The multihomer game was the 14th of Abreu's career, his first as an Angel. Both his shots to right field came off Baltimore starter Jeremy Guthrie, who gave up nine hits in seven innings. Luke Scott homered in the seventh to shave the lead to three for the Orioles, who are a dismal 11-24 on the road."

Read more...Box ScorePlay-By-Play

Picks
1) How Many Sets Will Be Played Between Roger Federer And Tommy Haas: 3 sets vs. 4 or 5 sets - 3 sets
2) Tiger Woods' Second Round Score: 67 or lower vs. 68 or higher - 67 or lower
3) ODI Cricket: West Indies vs. India - India
4) How Many Sets Will Be Played Between Andy Roddick And Andy Murray: 3 sets vs. 4 or 5 sets - 3 sets
5) Anthony Kim vs. Jim Furyk - Kim cards a lower front 9 score
6) Milwaukee Brewers @ Chicago Cubs - Milwaukee
7) Oakland Athletics @ Cleveland Indians - Cleveland
8) Seattle Mariners @ Boston Red Sox - Seattle
9) Washington Mystics @ Atlanta Dream - Atlanta
10) Chicago Sky @ San Antonio Silver Stars - San Antonio
11) Kyle Busch vs. Carl Edwards - Busch has a better finishing position
12) San Jose Earthquakes @ Real Salt Lake - Real Salt Lake win
13) Los Angeles Dodgers (v. Padres) vs. Baltimore Orioles (v. Angels) - Orioles score more runs

Previews

Roger Federer (left) and Tommy Haas (right) are each playing some of their best tennis here at the end of the tournament. Can Haas duplicate his Roland Garros effort where he took a 2-0 lead on Federer?

1) Tommy Haas will face Roger Federer once again in a major tournament. Their last meeting was at this years Roland Garros, in the fourth round, a match where Haas took a 2-0 lead before Federer came storming back to win three sets in dominating fashion (6-4 6-0 6-2).

It's no surprise to see [Haas] here. He played great in Paris and he will be even tougher here as he prefers grass and hard courts to clay. I’ve trained with him a lot recently and we often go out to get something to eat together.
---Roger Federer

Overall Federer is 9-2 against Haas over his career and has won 22 of 32 sets (68.8%) played between them. Federer has won 18 of 23 sets (78.2%) since the Australian Open in 2002, however, which was near the peak of Haas' success. A look at each man's run through the tournament shows that Federer has been absolutely dominant against all challengers, dropping only one set, in a tiebreak, to #32 Philipp Kohlschreiber. Haas has managed to kick his play up a few notches entering into the second week with his only straight sets victory coming against #26 Igor Andreev and a handy 4 set victory over Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. Both men are playing in top form right now and Haas took Federer to five sets only a month ago. I think Federer will have that on his mind and will work to make sure he does not fall behind again. Federer is on a mission and he has the skill and ability to match and overwhelm Haas' serve and volley game. It may not be easy but I think Federer can and will take three sets as he bears down on history and his 15^th Grand Slam title.

Andy Roddick is 2-6 against Andy Murray with all but one of their matches being decided in straights sets, including a 3 set victory for Murray here at Wimbledon in 2006.

4) Andy Murray is only 22 years old and yet even in his short professional career he's managed to amass a 6-2 record against Andy Roddick. Murray was 20 years old when he recorded his first victory over Roddick, a straight sets win on the hard courts in San Jose. In fact, all but one of their eight matches have been decided in straight sets, including a 2006 victory for Murray at Wimbledon in 2006 (7-6(4) 6-4 6-4), though one of those matches ended early with a retirement by Roddick.

I'm just going to pretend when they say, ‘C'mon, Andy’, that they mean me.
---Andy Roddick

Obviously Roddick, along with Karlovic, is one of the best servers in the game. So against Roddick I'll obviously need to return very well.
---Andy Murray

Wimbledon has put together a decent preview of the match. They point out specifically that Roddick has served up over 130 aces and has been winning 81% of his first serve points. Those are fairly overwhelming numbers and suggest Murray will have a difficult time breaking Roddick's serve, which he would surely need to do at least once to win in straight sets; three straight tiebreak set wins is incredibly rare. Roddick is playing very well but has not really put together a complete match up to this point, aside from his straight sets victory over Tomas Berdych in the fourth round. Murray has had some difficult matches, against Stanislas Wawrinka and Robert Kendrick, but other than that has won each of his matches in straight sets. I think Murray has a difficult time against some of the big serve players, and Roddick is certainly that. I also think a break point here and there could hand the match to one player or the other, in straight sets. My recommendation would be to go for 4 or 5 sets, but as for myself I would pick 3 sets in continuing the tradition of one Andy or the other taking the match in that fashion.

Anthony Kim hoists the trophy at the AT&T National last year. He was three strokes in the lead after the first round. Jim Furyk has finished tied for third the past two years.

5) Defending AT&T National champion Anthony Kim has been billed as the next great American golfer after Tiger Woods. He shot a course record 8-under par 62 yesterday to take a three stroke lead so it's easy to believe he is exactly that. The round one recap details some of the other more impressive aspects of Kim's game. One that jumped out at me was that he's played 40 holes on the Blue Course at Colonial without carding a bogey. Kim's threesome includes Davis Love III and Jim Furyk. Furyk has finished tied for 3^rd in both of the two years of this events existence so he's no stranger to success on the Blue Course. Furyk has also been more successful than Kim on the Tour this year earning nearly twice as much money thus far. Kim currently holds a four stroke lead on Furyk at this particular event, however, and his 6-under par 29 on the front 9 literally blew away all other competition, including Jim Furyk who carded a 2-under 33.

After yesterday's round both Furyk and Kim have nine rounds completed at the Blue Course in this event. Furyk has carded front 9 scores under par in 6 of his rounds with his best score being a 32 which he has achieved twice. Kim has carded front 9 scores under par in 7 of his rounds with his best score obviously being the 29 he shot yesterday. Kim also has carded 32 and on four separate occasions. Although Furyk has been better on the Tour overall this year Kim has proven to be on his game this weekend. The danger with picking Anthony Kim in this matchup is that he has been erratic within tournaments, both this year and in years past. For example, in 2007 Anthony Kim shot a pair of 32's on the front 9 on Thursday and Friday and then proceeded to card scores of 37 and 41 on Saturday and Sunday. That was an outstanding turn of events, however, and I would not even bet on Kim reverting back to even par. Instead, I'm thinking this is a close matchup where Kim wins with a 33 to Furyk's 34.

==--~~Follow The Round With ShotTracker~~--==

Felix Hernandez goes for his eighth straight quality start against Tim Wakefield and the Red Sox.

8) The Seattle Mariners are moving along in their East coast trip. After taking 1 of 3 games against the Yankees they'll move on to Fenway Park to match skills against the Boston Red Sox. The Mariners have been playing better baseball lately with Ryan Lagerhans taking the place of Wladimir Balentien. Balentien has struggled lately and is also a right-handed batter while Lagerhans is a left-handed batter. Wakamatsu should be choosing Lagerhans to bat against right-handed knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. The Mariners are batting .294 in their past three games, compared to the Red Sox who are batting .303 who are also getting more total bases with a bit better baserunning. With Wakefield and Felix Hernandez on the mounds for their respective teams it should be a bit of a pitchers' duel.

Both pitchers give up a home run every 60 or so pitches swung at and the wind is will be blowing in from right field. If it has any effect on the flight path of pitches it will be to put the ball on the outside of the plate for left-handed batters, making this a lefty friendly environment. For the Mariners their best batters, Ichiro Suzuki and Russel Branyan are both left-handed batters, while the Red Sox will be relying on Ellsbury, Kotsay, and David Ortiz for their offense as they have a generally righty heavy lineup. This right here leads me to favor the Mariners in this game. Hernandez has pitched seven quality or gem starts in a row so one might expect him to have a poor outing. I would as well, except that for last season he put together a string of eight quality and gem starts, beginning at the end of May and finishing in the middle of July.

I think Tim Wakefield's knuckleball will thrive in an environment with constantly shifting wind and so he should do well tonight. Hernandez has the more favorable platoon split, however, so I would give the Mariners a better chance of hitting the home run. Both bullpens are quite good and so this will probably come down to who can take a lead into the seventh inning. If left-handed Mike Carp happens to get the start tonight I would certainly favor Seattle. Even if he does not I think Seattle has a good chance of winning this first game.

Recent Results
Real Salt Lake	San Jose
Toronto FC (3:0)	Los Angeles (2:1)
Houston (1:1)	Seattle Sounders FC (2:1)
Los Angeles (0:2)	Dallas (2:2)
Colorado (1:1)	Real Salt Lake (2:1)
San Jose (2:1)	Columbus (2:1)
Scores reported as (home:away)

12) The San Jose Earthquake are in last place in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer but have been in decent form lately with a 2-1-2 (W-D-L) record. Looking at the table to the right one sees neither of those wins came away from home and indeed San Jose is 0-1-6 on the road this season having conceded 17 goals while scoring only 6 of their own. Their defense has been a major concern, especially considering San Jose was one of the better defensive sides last season. They have already conceded 7 goals from set pieces which suggests it's not just the keeper who needs to step up their game.

Real Salt Lake lead the league with a +11 goal differential at home but will be playing without their starting midfield. Will they still have enough to put away basement-dwelling San Jose?

They will be facing a very strong home side in Real Salt Lake (RSL). Real Salt Lake are 4-2-1 at home and lead the league with 18 goals scored there and with 7 goals conceded at Rio Tinto Stadium are one of the top half defensive home sides. Unfortunately RSL will be missing their top three midfield starters for this match as Kyle Beckerman, Will Johnson and Jean Alexandre are all with their national teams for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Real Salt Lake feel they have the depth to cope with that problem and they know they won't be able to take a win for granted as San Jose already defeated RSL in San Jose 2-1 this season. The only goal scorer for Real Salt Lake in that match was Robbie Findlay, who has been out of action since June 6^th. Findlay has been in full training the past week but is still unlikely to figure in the Starting XI. Clearly, RSL have their work cut out for them and it will be just as difficult for them to come away with the full three points as for San Jose. If their reserve midfielders are not up to the task RSL will have difficulty scoring goals. It will be their defense that will have to step up so look to see if Javier Morales is in the Starting XI for Real.

13) There's essentially two ways the Dodgers can win this prop. One, Manny Ramirez has a terrific return, belts out a multi-run homer, and gets at least one other extra base hit. The other way is for Ervin Santana (7.47 ERA and 1.85 WHIP) finally has a decent start and gives up three or four runs. Other than that I think the Dodgers are facing the more formidable pitching staff and the Orioles have a comparable offense which surprised me as well. One thing, Baltimore is scoring nearly a full run less on the road than at home while the Dodgers actually score nearly 0.3 more runs on the road this season. They're scoring less than 2 runs per game in their last five games, but there's a good chance they will snap out of it if 'score fast and early' Gaudin shows up. Good luck with this one.