Sunday, October 15, 2017
October-A Great Time for Sports Fans!!
Toronto
Blue
Jay fans are now recovering after a disappointing season.
Lockers
have been cleaned, meetings held, and next year's starting
lineup
will be a mystery for some time to come.
And
now, the
same applies to the Boston Red Sox. They lost their game
yesterday
against the Houston Astros. That ended the Divisional Series
with the
Astros winning three games to one. Dustin Pedroia grounded
out to
Jose Altuve for the final out to seal the deal.
Both
teams
relied on the ace starting pitchers to get the job done. The
Red Sox
called Chris Sele in from the bullpen, and the Astros gave
the nod to
Justin Verlander as the game wore on. Both pitched
effectively, but
Sale got touched up for a home run by Bregman to ruin his
day.
David Price, Pre Season.
It
was the
first post-season series win for the Astros since 2005, and
they now
proceed to the American league Championship Series, which
starts this
Friday. They will face the Yankees, or the Cleveland
Indians.
Altuve
continues to show that he is a cut above. Standing at 5
feet, 6
inches, he is dwarfted by most Major League Baseball
players. Over
the last few seasons, he has shown that he is one of the
best second
baseman in the game today, and he continues to pave his way
to
Cooperstown. In the past four seasons, he has had more than
200 hits,
a milestone. He is now a perennial all star. He has won Gold
Gloves,
and has been a Silver Slugger. He has won several batting
titles in
the last few years, while also leading the league in stolen
bases.
Signed
as a
free agent by the Astros in 2007, when he was 17, he made
his debut
in 2011. The Venezuelan native brings a magic to the game
that is
worth the price of admission.
The
Yankees
dropped their first two games against the Cleveland Indians,
but
caught a break in their first game. Edwin Encarnacion has
been unable
to play due to a sore ankle. The Tribe misses his bat in the
lineup.
They win be back at it on Wednesday night, with Sabathia on
the mound
for the Yankees, and Kluber for the Indians. Winner moves
on, loser
goes home.
All
of this
leads to the World Series which will start in a week or so.
There is
always talk that there is a lack of interest in baseball
today. I
investigated the purchase of a ticket for one of the games
at Yankee
Stadium. Almost $ 200 in American funds, (plus transaction
fees, of
course) to sit in the grandstand, so far away that even
Aaron Judge
could not hit one to me.
I
read this
morning that former NFL great Y. A. Tittle passed away. He
was a
popular name when we played sandlot football on the campus
at
Belleville Collegiate in the early sixties. He was a great
quarterback, especially for the New York Giants.
And
yes,
Leaf fans have unfurled their flags, with good reason. They
have a
strong young team, a fine coach, and should do well this
year. A step
at a time.
James
Hurst
October
10,
2017.
-- James Hurst 613.399.2278 sportslices.blogspot.com
# posted by James Hurst @ 10:07 AM 
