BASEBALL: “Game On”---the Standings; Colorado Rockies ; NBA Playoffs.
(For more analysis, go to Mile High Sports Radio AM1510 or FM93.7, and to Denver
BASEBALL --- ONLY four of the 30 MLB teams have double-digit wins as of Thursday, the National League East's 12-2 Atlanta Braves ahead of all, the American League’s Oakland Athletics at their heels, 12-4, and the NL’s Colorado Rockies and the AL’s Boston Celtics tied at 10-4.
Not that the St. Louis Cardinals leading the NL’s Central Division at 8-4, and the Detroit Tigers atop the AL’s Central Division at 8-5 are bad raps, even if three other clubs that are second and third place holders within their respective divisions have scored better, the NL West’s San Francisco Giants at 9-6, the NL East’s Washington Nationals also at 9-6, the AL West’s Texas Rangers, 9-5.
Commendable is that 18 MLB clubs are at .500 and above, 12 of the 18 belonging to the NL. Not so commendable are the three currently worst MLB clubs, the NL East’s Miami Marlins, at 3-12/.200, the NL West’s San Diego Padres, 4-10/.286, the AL West’s Houston Astros, 4-11/.267.
Sadly, of the five teams that finished the 2012 MLB season at the bottom of the heap, four are still at the bottom, the Astros, Marlins, the NL’s Chicago Cubs, now 4-9/.308, and the AL Central’s Cleveland Indians, 5-8/.386.
The current big turnabout belongs to NL West’s first place team, the Colorado Rockies, which finished sixth from the bottom last year, 64-98.
Surprises in the other direction are the AL West’s fourth place Los Angeles Angels, at 7-7/.500, when expected to be a division and league leading club straight out of the gate. Add the Red Sox, a below .500 team in 2012, now leading the AL East. And there's good news for the AL Central’s Minnesota Twins; having finished fourth from the bottom in 2012, the Twins are at 6-7, close to .500.
Colorado Rockies Winning six competitions right after losing three is a story with a happy ending but a story that exists within a 162 game spectrum, and so no-one can be certain about what’s next for that which Colorado fans hope will continue into late September, the skills and power of a caliber that brought the Rockies to the World Series in 2007.
Right now that which was missing in 2012 for the Rockies has reappeared, e.g., a defense more capable for construction of opposing team “outs” than was seen in 2012, when the Rockies finished the regular season two losses shy of 100; it’s a defense that includes a pitching staff that seems better than last year at sacrificing speed of the throw for precision, their primary objective the pressure from two strikes pasted on to the man at the plate.
Since April 1, observers have witnessed a rehabbed/improved LH Jorge De La Rosa, a more confident RH Juan Nicasio, an improved and more cunning LH Jeff Francis, plus RH Rafael Betancourt and LH Rex Brothers closing efficiently, all this with Rockies hitters suddenly matching expectations born of their best stats of previous seasons, OF's Carlos Gonzalez and Michael Cuddyer, IF’s Troy Tulowitzki, Todd Helton, Josh Rutledge, catcher Yorbit Torrealba, catcher Wilin Rosario, lead-off hitter and OF, Dexter Fowler.
Of course, consistency of wins is what the Rockies are now aiming for, and the team’s mettle for this will certainly be tested during April’s remaining games, which will include a series vs. the NL West’s 8-6 Arizona Diamondbacks (2 games behind the 10-4 Rockies). Next will be a series versus the NL’s number one ballclub, the East’s 12-2 Atlanta Braves, another series vs. the DB’s, followed by three vs. the now 7-7 Los Angeles Dodgers.
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NBA --- The 2012/13 NBA playoffs will begin on Saturday, April 20, eight teams per conference, each hoping to reach the finals and beyond. The West’s been predictable for quite awhile, posting for the playoffs the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets, the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers and the Memphis Grizzlies, with the Houston Rockets and L.A. Lakers less predictable until late March and April. The East’s Miami Heat, the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers seemed slated for the playoffs, mid-season. The East’s surprises since mid-March have been the Atlanta Hawks and the Milwaukee Bucks reaching the playoffs as they had---winners in the stretch.
As to that unexpected downside, last year the Phoenix Suns and the Orlando Magic were third place teams within their divisions. This year, the 24-56 Suns dropped to last place within the West, and the Magic are bottom-feeding alongside the Charlotte Bobcats, each finishing the season with only 20 wins.
How does the playoff line-up compare with 2011/12? As expected, there have been changes, namely the Nets being seeded number four for this year’s playoffs when the former New Jersey, now Brooklyn team finished the 2011/12 season in last place of the East’s Atlantic Division (22 wins, 44 losses). Last season, the Rockets finished second from the bottom of the West’s Southeast division, 34 wins, 32 losses, and the Bucks were 31-35 last season.
Here’s this year’s playoff schedule, ROUND ONE---
Saturday:
East: Knicks vs. Celtics // Nets vs. the Bulls
West: Nuggets vs. Warriors // Clippers vs. Grizzlies
Sunday:
East: Heat vs. Bucks // Pacers vs. Hawks
West: Thunder vs. Rockets // Spurs vs. Lakers
END, ml /// Reminder: Sports Notebook will be away from this site until May 6, 2013.
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