Strasburg
vs. Atlanta
Last Monday June 28, was a great baseball game to
watch. It was a real pitchers dual until the top of the seventh when the rookie came undone and the veteran came through.
It was my first real chance to get to watch Stephan Strasburg in action. I kept hearing how great he had been doing in his
four previous starts and was waiting to see what he could do against the Braves.
It was a great game between pitchers thru a great six innings
with Strasburg and Tim Hudson. When the seventh came around it was a whole new story. Throughout the game Strasburg had been
relaying on his changeup and when the batting order came around the third time the Braves had an idea of what he was going
to do. Chipper started off the seventh with a walk and then things seemed to change with Strasburg. After Chipper got on base
it seemed as though Chipper was getting in Strasburg’s head and messing with him. Things started
unraveling after Chipper got on first, McCann singled; Glaus reached on by an error which got the bases loaded. When Hinske
did a sac fly which got Chipper in, then Escobar singled and got McCann home which was Strasburg’s end. Starasburg gave
three earned runs in 6.1 innings pitched. He threw 92 pitches, two walks, 4 runs, 6 hits and 7 k’s with a 2.27 ERA.
This also marked his second loss in a row, but showed a lot of talent and promise up to the seventh. In his interview after
the game he had talked about how he was frustrated with himself and how he had struggled.
I think this game was a true
test to see what he could do and how well he could face a great team and he had shown that for most of the game I just believe
our veteran is better. It was a great learning experience for Strasburg, give him more time and hard teams that he will face
he will do just fine. We just had the upper hand and great playing by Chipper who seemed to be able show he still has a few
tricks in his age.
As a side note a team that has been proving to me great compared to last season
since we’re now close to halfway would be the Reds. When we played them and when I’ve caught Sportscenter I keep
hearing good things. They are leading the NL Central right now and have improved well from last year where they finished below
.500 overall. I will predict they will get a playoff spot this year.
NASCAR
Thoughts
6/3/10-
When it comes to the chase in NASCAR I see three drivers fighting head-to- head, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Kevin Harvick.
Harvick has been a great surprise this year compared to last year with finishing 19th in the standings. I could
see him giving Jimmie a great run for his money. Then you have teammates Jeff and Jimmie. They had a great battle last year
and Gordon is still hungry for another championship. Right now Jimmie seems to be having a bad streak of luck, but what driver
doesn’t have that.
Some
other drivers I can see making the chase would be Jamie McMurray, Tony Stewart, and Ryan Newman. I think that Greg Biffle,
Clint Bowyer, and David Reutimann are going to fall just short of the chase.
Drivers/teams that have surprised me this
year have been Jamie McMurray, RCR and MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing). You have Harvick leading the points with Burton eight,
and Bowyer in thirteenth for RCR. MWR has been doing great this year. Truex Jr. and Reutimann seem to be having some very
fast cars and pulling off some great finishes the past few weeks. Then there is Jamie McMurray, last year I don’t think
he was sure where he was going to go but Chip Ganassi sure did want him back. I think Chip made a very smart move getting
him back and it’s paying off.
There are a few teams that seem to be hot then cold like
Richard Petty Motorsports, and Juan Montoya. Kasey and AJ seem to be fast then something brakes. Things need to be figured
out; they will be fast one week and suck the next. With Juan he can be fast but then he seems to get annoyed with the car
or other drivers and looses focus. He needs to figure out what he really wants and what works.
