The boxing challenge continued in Las Vegas with a four bout card of WBO championships.
I added 8 points for the night to R.L.Malpica's 6 and extended my lead to 119-98...
In the main event,Manny Pacquiao decisioned Jessie Vargas to win the WBO welterweight title.
Pacquiao scored the bout's only knockdown in the second round and generally controlled a lopsided,but interesting fight.
I had Pacquiao a 117-110 winner..
Both Ramon and I scored two points for the win.
In the evening's biggest upset,Jessie Magdaleno won the WBO junior featherweight belt away from Nonito Donaire via a unanimous decision in a fight that was exciting and I thought could have went either way.
The downer on this fight was the two judges scoring Magdaleno a 118-100 (10-2) winner in a fight that I scored 115-113 for the winner,but I could have seen a 115-113 score for the former champion.
No one would have complained about the winner had the scores been closer to reality.
I picked Magdaleno and picked up two points for the win to Ramon's zero for picking Donaire..
In the evening's biggest mismatch,Oscar Valdez retained his WBO featherweight title with a seventh round knockout over overmatched mandatory contender Hiroshige Ogawa of Japan.
I had Valdez winning every round in a fight that did nothing other than fulfill the mandatory of the sanctioning body for Valdez.
Ramon and I each earned two points for the stoppage..
We each would add two points for Zou Shiming's unanimous decision over Prasitpak Papoem to win the vacant WBO flyweight title in a bout that I have yet to watch...
Listen to FightHeads Monday at 8 EST for Ramon and I's thoughts on the card from Las Vegas.
The offense returned for the Ohio State Buckeyes as the sixth ranked Buckeyes slaughtered the visiting Nebraska Cornhuskers 62-3 in Columbus.
J.T.Barrett threw for four touchdowns,Curtis Samuel caught two touchdowns with over 100 hundred yards receiving and two players (Damon Webb and Malik Hooker) returned interceptions for touchdowns.
Ohio State 8-1 (5-1 Big Ten) will travel to College Park to face Maryland next week...
Olentangy Offerings
1) This will be a little shorter than a usual recap because the game was such a blowout that I flipped back and forth to Alabama-LSU while at the road office..
2) Urban Meyer made a conscious effort to get Curtis Samuel and look what happened-the entire offense revved and purred like a smooth motor.
It's funny how when you make an effort to get your playmaker the ball how big plays happen.
Samuel caught a 75 yard touchdown pass from J.T. Barrett on the first play of the second half and the game was already decided at the half,but that play showed the dimensions that the offense can haev when Samuel was used properly.
3) I also liked the late first half jump pass from Barrett for a score.
Urban Meyer used the jump pass a lot with Tim Tebow at Florida and I liked that it was used here.
Anything that works in the playbook to give opponents things to plan for is fine with me...
4) Two pick six's in this game for the Buckeye defense and as fun to watch as the great return by Malik Hooker was-it was the first quarter version by Damon Webb that set the tone for the game.
Webb's score instantly gave the feeling that this was an Ohio State night...
5) Ohio State didn't punt one time in the win.
You won't lose many games when you don't punt..
6) As I said about last year's special uniforms-I like them and they look good,but Ohio State's colors aren't black...
7) Scary moment late in the first half when Nebraska quarterback Tommie Armstrong jammed his neck into the turf.
I was concerned that this could be a severe injury.but later in the game Armstrong returned to the stadium after a trip to the hospital to be examined.
8) Another fumble from Dontrae Wilson in the punt return game.
Urban Meyer needs to address this and remove Wilson from this slot before his issues cost the Buckeyes a game..
9) The looming showdown with Michigan looks to be for all the marbles.
Ohio State needs to win their games against bottom dwellers Maryland and Michigan State and Michigan needs to stop Iowa and Indiana for the battle to truly mean something.
Should Michigan lose one of their games,the Buckeyes will lose more than they gain-Ohio State needs a three way tie to win the East due to the loss to Penn State.
Win out and the Buckeyes will have their chance in the playoff.
The boxing challenge returns after a slow few months to start fall,but the final two months of 2016 looks strong,so the challenge will finish with lots of great fights.
A very good fight card with four WBO titles on the line this Saturday features the return of Manny Pacquiao in an attempt to regain the WBO title that he lost to the now-retired Floyd Mayweather.
The champion now is Jessie Vargas,who knocked Sadam Ali in an impressive effort to win the title that had been vacated by Timothy Bradley in order to fight Pacquiao.
The travels that these titles take can often leave your head spinning.....
The undercard is a very good one as well with the co-feature a top notch tilt between Nonito Donaire and Jessie Magdaleno for the junior featherweight title.
It's a bit overpriced with Top Rank running it themselves rather than usual partner HBO and might be unintentionally funny with non-boxing people Stephen A.Smith and Charissa Thompson on the broadcast,but it has some interesting bouts for sure.
The challenge is currently led by me over Ramon Malpica by 111-92
Time for the PPM.
I'm sure you noticed the surly gentleman to the left is not former "host" Molly McGrath,but due to an overly celebratory tweet on the Cubs win over the Indians,the TRS board of directors has decided to move Ms.McGrath from this position...
Legate Damar will finish this season as the face of the PPM-Enjoy....
Last Week:6-3
Overall: 58-18
College
Ohio State over Nebraska 28-17
Northern Illinois over Bowling Green 40-24 (Picked earlier in the week)
Boise State over San Jose State 45-14
Washington over Cal 35-17
Texas Tech over Texas 55-52
Middle Tennessee State over UTSA 38-28
Game of the Week
LSU over Alabama 24-22
Pro
Cowboys over Browns 35-14
Saints over 49ers 35-20
Bonnie Tyler once sung in 1978 "It's a Heartache" and Cleveland Indians fans are once again are singing that song after losing game seven in the World Series to the Chicago Cubs 8-7 in ten innings in Cleveland.
The gut crunching loss came after the Indians rallied from deficits of 5-1 and 6-3 paced by a three run eighth inning and a homer by Rajai Davis off the fearsome Aroldis Chapman.
Alas,the rain came,caused a delay and the Indians would allow two runs in the top of the tenth and would only score one in their half to end the series.
Bryan Shaw was the losing pitcher.
See you in April....
Smoke Signals
1) These might have more negatives than positives,but before I start,I want to acknowledge our team for a great run.
This was a team built around starting pitching that saw late season injury rob them of two of their top three starters and yet took a 103 win team to seven games plus extra innings.
There may be criticism written here,but there will be no shame...
2) This team battled through issues that would have sunk many and I keep reading things that say we'll be back-I'm not so sure.
The starting pitching will still rank with the best when healthy,but I see huge holes at catcher,first base and I believe two outfield bats are truly needed.
I referred to some as this series being like the 1992 NLCS between the Braves and the Pirates-one team looking to be a power for the next ten years and the other watching a narrow window for title contention close.
I don't think the window is closed,but unless the Dolan's are willing spend to add some bats,it might be a narrow crack to slide through...
3) The play that will haunt me most-the tailor made 3-6-3 double play ball to Mike Napoli,who threw high to Francisco Lindor and settled for just a force.
Had that fundamentally simple play been pulled over,the next out,an Addison Russell flyball would have ended the inning,instead it scored a run and the following hitter Willson Contreras doubled home another run.
Two runs handed to the Cubs in a game lost by one...
4) The Indians moxie showed when both Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis scored on one Jon Lester wild pitch.
Pure hustle on the part of Kipnis to score from second,it was that play that began to give me hope...
5) That went away quickly when David Ross,a journeyman catcher that is retiring after this season (a fact that Joe Buck drilled into my head repeatedly over the last few games) off Andrew Miller.
Miller,who seemed more human in this game, left in the next inning and down 6-3 now,that solo homer seemed to just be a score inflator-little did I know that homer would be the run that kept the Cubs in the series..
6) Rajai Davis was a hero in Cleveland for a while with his eighth inning two run homer off Aroldis Chapman that tied the game at 6-6.
Davis would single in the 10th to bring the game to 8-7 before Michael Martinez made the final out of the series.
Had Davis homered a second time,I would wager that Rajai Davis would have never had to buy anything in Northeast Ohio ever again...
7) Davis wasn't perfect in this game as in the earlier note on the double by Willson Contreras,Davis took an awful route on the ball.
I'm not certain that Davis would caught the ball,but a better route might have made it a 50/50 chance..
That cost the Indians another run.Sometimes a play doesn't have to be an actual fielding error to be one in deciding the game...
8) Terry Francona's use of his bullpen was excellent and you can't blame him for the struggles of Andrew Miller in this game,but the move that I disagreed with before it happened was putting Bryan Shaw back into the game after the rain delay.
Considering Shaw would be facing the Cubs 2,3,and 4 hitters (Schwarber,Bryant and Rizzo) off sitting during the Indians ninth and then the delay,I was concerned that Shaw would not be loose enough.
Whether that was the case or not-the result was what I feared-two Cubs runs,but I don't blame Bryan Shaw,I blame the man that put him in that situation.
I realize the Indian bullpen had used their best men,it needed to use its freshest..
9) A play that looked big at the time was the awful throw by Yan Gomes on a stealing attempt in the 9th.The run didn't score,but Yan Gomes showed the issues the Indians have behind the plate.
You have a player getting paid well for three more years (and two option years) to be a defensive liability and hit less than .200.
I doubt the Indians could give Gomes away at this point,but catcher will need to be upgraded if possible,,,,,
10) Same at first base,where Mike Napoli hit 34 homers,but struggled in the waning months and in the playoffs.
Replacing Napoli's power won't be easy,but the rest of his game could be an easy fix.
Napoli outperformed my expectations early,but he too needs to be replaced.
11) An extra outfield bat or even two could be helpful too.
A Michael Brantley return would take care of one bat,but I'm not thrilled with some of the others even though they were passable at times.
Lonnie Chisenhall does enough to give you hope and pull the rug out,I've always seen Tyler Naquin as more of a 4th outfielder than an everyday starter and the others are veteran stopgaps at best.
A few bats could go a long way....
12) The Indians being behind and scrambling all game meant that with the series tying run on base (Rajai Davis) that it all came down to the light hitting Michael Martinez.
The former Hagerstown Sun softly tapped a grounder to end the series and Martinez was the final player on the bench,so Terry Francona had no choice but to let Martinez hit.
When minor moves go on and you read people saying it's just the 25th man etc-you never know when the 25th man could have the season on the line...
13) I noted earlier about Terry Francona's use of the pitching staff throughout the playoffs,but he was forced to use them in such a manner-he had little choice.
Corey Kluber was forced to start and he wasn't at peak level,but he had to start this game.
The one thing I might have done differently came in game six,I might have saved Danny Salazar for game seven since the Cubs were so far ahead. Salazar might have come in handy in this one..
14) Wrapping up,as much as this hurts and as much as I wanted it-the Cubs are the better team and the Indians fought hard.
The thing I keep seeing is the comparisons to the Cavaliers winning being down 3-1 and the Indians losing the same lead.
The two are apples and oranges-the Warriors were the best team in the history of the NBA and lost.
The Indians were playing the team with the best record in baseball and watched them come to life-two different situations...
A fielding mistake combined with a first inning homer by Kris Bryant put the Cleveland Indians behind the eight ball.
Addison Russell's grand slam off Dan Otero turned the game into a scratch as the Chicago Cubs won game six of the World Series 7-2 and we move to the final game of the season tomorrow night in Cleveland.
Josh Tomlin was the losing pitcher for the Indians in game six while Corey Kluber will to try to win the elusive championship for Cleveland against the Cubs Kyle Hendricks.
Smoke Signals
1) This game seemed cooked and I'll take some psychic blame.
As the flyball hit by Addison Russell off Josh Tomlin floated to the outfield,I thought "Wow,all that and we are going to get out of this with only one run allowed".
That was before Tyler Naquin and Lonnie Chisenhall decided to play "You take it" and the ball hit the ground for a 3-0 Cubs lead.
Inexcusable at the big league level and although I blame Naquin more than Chisenhall for not taking control,both players should be blamed....
2) Tyler Naquin had a chance to redeem himself,but continued his poor hitting when he struck out in the fourth inning with the bases loading.
The whiff ended a possible run for the Indians to get back into the game.
Terry Francona has pushed most of the right buttons in the series,but starting Naquin over Rajai Davis was not one of them...
3) Jason Kipnis was the only Indians hitter to play well with a single,double and homer in game six.
Only Kipnis and Francisco Lindor are hitting over .300 in the series-someone is going to need to snap a slump in game seven..
4) Danny Salazar looked good in his two innings of relief replacing Josh Tomlin.
Salazar whiffed four in two innings and was very strong.
Hindsight is always easy,but perhaps an attempt to get three or four innings from a starting Salazar might avoided the early mess.
I've always been a Josh Tomlin fan,but his stuff is fringy on a good day and a team seeing him for a second time in a series would tend to do better...
5) I was surprised to see the Cubs use Aroldis Chapman in a game they were leading by five runs (at the time) for an inning and a third and 20 pitches.
After Chapman's use in game five,maybe this takes a little but out of him for game seven?
6) So,it is game seven for all the chips in the bowl.
I know some will worry about Corey Kluber again on short rest,but I'll look at the old days of the four man rotation and say this isn't out of the ordinary.
Mickey Lolich won three games in the 1968 World Series,I think Kluber can get this done.
I'm old school anyway with pitchers,I feel Ok...
7) I know many are saying this is a collapse from a 3-1 lead,but did anyone really feel great about Trevor Bauer and Josh Tomlin in clinching games?
I didn't and that played out that way.
This is the matchup I wanted-Corey Kluber against the one Cubs starter that is best suited for the Indians lineup-Kyle Hendricks.
Let's get em-Go Tribe...
The non-sports version starts with two favorites from the past.
I've noted before my long time fandom of Late Night with David Letterman.
Letterman has been basically quiet since his retirement,but he did emerge with an interview with the New York Times on Donald Trump.
Letterman had Trump on the show several times during his CBS version and he discusses Trump,his role in the election,how he would handle Trump,if he was hosting a show with a Trump appearance and his take on how Trump will eventually do in the voting process.
Letterman has always leaned to the left,so you can guess some of his opinions,but still an interesting read.
One of Letterman's favorite guests on the NBC program was his fellow Hoosier Jane Pauley.
Pauley appeared on the show often,most notably when they both talked during a segment while sitting in dentist's chairs and talking with helium
Pauley has been given the CBS Sunday Morning hosting role with the retirement of Charles Osgood.
The 65 year old Pauley was always a favorite of mine during those Letterman years,mainly because she seemed to have such a good time on Dave's show.
The New York Times talked to Pauley about her return to the spotlight,her NBC years and her time after the Today show....
Joe Plum sends me a note about this article on Jennifer Frey,a blazing comet through sportswriting in the late 80's and early 90's that died of liver cancer brought on by a hard living lifestyle.
Deadspin is noted for a harder edge with a far more sardonic style,this is an unusual article for them and I recommend the read....
I've been quite effusive in my praise of CNN"s Brianna Keilar during this election cycle.
Her name comes up first when I talk about television news people that are going to be future stars-her verbal destruction of Donald Trump surrogate Michael Cohen (shown below) ranks as my favorite television election moment of the campaign.
Keilar is straight ahead,no nonsense and isn't in awe of her audience,which is sometimes a hard thing to balance.
Her substitute shows for Wolf Blitzer showed she can anchor a program and in my opinion,she deserves a show of her own.
However,Keilar has dealt with the loss of her mother during the election that has brought her to the attention of many.
She writes about her mom with the same type of talent that she has on air.
Sometimes,I wish I had better things to write about than sports,but poignant articles like this just make me glad for what I still have...
