Charros Take Game 2 From Hermosillo 8-5

The Charros de Jalisco put themselves in an early 5-1 hole but clawed their way back to defeat the Naranjeros de Hermosillo 8-5 behind the excellent relief pitching of Carlos Vazquez, Mario Mendoza, Ivan Salas and closer Brian Broderick.

Marco Tovar picked up the win to go 4-0 on the year but a shakey 1st inning has forced his ERA up to 1.91 on the year. Vazquez, Mendoza and Salas were credited with holds and Broderick picked up his 9th save of the year.

The Charros scored a run in the top of the 1st on a single by Eduardo Arredondo, a walk to Manny Rodriguez, a single by Leo Heras to  load the bases and a double play ground ball by Japhet Amador that scored Arredondo. Jalisco had the early lead 1-0.

Hermosillo came right back in the bottom of the 1st. with 4 runs of their own. Jerry Owens led off with a double and went to third on a ground out by Carlos Gastelum. Yunesky Sanchez reached safely on an error by Japhet Amador at first. Luis Garcia singled to score Owens and Matt Padgett doubled to drive in Sanchez. Jonathan Aceves hit a sac fly to left to score Garcia and Sebastian Elizalde singled to plate Padgett for the Naranjeros 4-1 lead.

Luis Garcia hit a solo home run, his 3rd of the year, in the bottom of the 3rd to up the Naranjeros lead to 5-1.

Jalisco exploded for 5 runs in the top of the 7th. Jesus Cota led off with a walk. Gabriel Gutierrez singled to put runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Jesus Lopez walked to load the bases. Eduardo Arredondo singled to score Cota. Manny Rodriguez hit a sac fly to center to bring home Gutierrez and Leo Heras singled to plate Lopez. Japhet Amador singled to load the bases again for the Charros. Cory Vaughn was called out on strikes but Marquez Smith singled to score Arredondo and Heras and the Charros had taken the 6-5 lead.

The Charros scored the final two runs of the game in the top of the 8th. Gabriel Gutierrez was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. Jesus Lopez' sacrifice bunt attempt went awry when the Hermosillo pitcher, Marcos Rivas, threw to second to cut down Gutierrez. Eduardo Arredondo followed with a walk. Edson Garcia came in to pinch run for Arredondo. Manny Rodriguez singled to score Lopez. Leo Heras walked to load the bases. The Naranjeros replaced Rivas with Juan Menchaca, who threw a wild pitch that scored Garcia and the Charros had the 8-5 lead and the win.

Broderick faced four batters in the 9th to get the save and preserve the win for Tovar.

Ecuardo Arredondo was 3 for 4 with an RBI and 2 runs scored. Leo Heras went 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run scored. Marquez Smith was 1 for 5 with 2 RBIs while Manny Rodriguez was 1 for 3 with 2 RBIs.

With the win, the Charros improve to 17-11 on the year while Hermosillo falls to 11-17. The Charros are the leaders of the Liga de Mexicana del Pacifico.

Jalisco has one game to play in Hermosillo before returning home to face the 14-14 Tomateros de Culican for 3 games beginning on Friday the 14th of November.

MLB's Cy Young Award Winners Announced

As if there was ever a doubt about who would win the National League Cy Young Award, let the arguments rest. Clayton Kershaw of the LA Dodgers, is this years winner, his 3rd Cy Young Award. He had a 21-3 record with a 1.77 Era while striking out 239 batters in just 198 1/3 innings. Kershaw spent most of April on the DL. Kershaw was a unanimous choice for the Award.

The voting was quite close in the American League. Corey Kluber, of the Indians, won the award over Felix Hernandez, of the Mariners. Kluber had a very good year for the Tribe, going 18-9 with a 2.44 ERA. He struck out 269 batters in 235 2/3 innings while walking just 51 for a better than 5 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio.

Charros Overpower Hermosillo 11-2

The Naranjeros de Hermosillo hosted the Charros de Jalisco in the first game of a three game series on Tuesday night in Hermosillo, and came up on the losing end of an 11-2 ball game.

Jalisco scored first in the top of the 4th. Leo Heras hit a solo home run to give the Charros a 1-0 lead over Hermosillo. In the bottom of the 4th, with two outs, Matt Padgett singled and Yunesky Sanchez followed with a single to left. Sebastian Elisade singled to score Padgett and the score was tied at 1.

Marquez Smith hit a home run to lead off the 5th for Jalisco. With one out, Gabriel Gutierrez was hit by a pitch and went to third on a single by Jesus Lopez. Eduardo Arredondo then placed a perfect squeeze bunt between the pitcher and first that scored Gutierrez. The Charros led 3-1.

In the top of the 6th, with one out, Cory Vaughn singled and Marquez Smith walked. Jesus Cota singled to score Vaughn and Gabriel Gutierrez doubled to score Smith as the Charros upped their lead to 5-1.

The Naranjeros scored a run in the bottom of the 6th on a sac fly by Yunesky Sanchez to narrow the lead to 5-2 Charros.

The Charros scored three times in the top of the 7th on singles by Eduardo Arredondo and Manny Rodriguez and Leo Heras' three run home run to give jalisco an 8-2 lead.

Leo Heras hit a solo home run in the top of the 9th, his third of the game and the 7th of the season, to give Jalisco a 9-2 lead. Japhrt Amador followed the home run with a single and Cory Vaughn doubled to put runners at 2nd and 3rd with no outs. Jesus Cota singled to score Amador and Vaughn and the Charros lead was 11-2.

Hermosillo went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 9th and Graham Godfrey had posted his fourth win of the season for Jalisco. Roy Corcoran took the loss for the Maranjeros to fall to 2-2 on the year.

Leo Heras was 3 for 4 with 3 home runs, 5 RBIs and 3 runs scored. Japhet Amador, Cory Vaughn and Jesus Cota all went 2 for 5 on the night.

Graham Godfrey went 6 innings giving up 2 runs (1 earned) on 6 his, one walk and 2 strike outs. His ERA dropped to 1.55 on the year.

Two more games with Hermosillo before the weekend matchup with the Tomateras de Culiacan in Zapopan.

Showalter and Williams Named Managers of the Year in MLB

Buck Showalter won his third Manager of the Year award for the job he did with the Baltimore Orioles in 2014. Showalter polled 25 first place ballots  from the Basaball Writers Association to beat out Mike Sciosia of the LA Angels and Ned Yost of the Kansas City Royals for the award.

Matt Williams was named the National League Manager of the Yar on 18 ballots after he led the Nationals to a 96 win season in 2014. Williams, a rookie manager for the Nationals beat out Clint Hurdle of the Pirates for the Award.

Shakeup in CFP Rankings

Mississippi State held on to the #1 position in the CFP rankings for the NCAA college football playoffs this week.

Oregon jumped FSU for the second position and TCU Horned Frogged, I mean leap frogged Alabama for #4 in the rankings. I feel Mississippi State should have been punished more for scheduling UT-Martin this late in the season but facing Alabama may be their comeupance later this month. But I also feel FSU has played poorly against opponents they should have beaten handily and should not be in the top 4.

Oregon has dominated the Pac 12 this year and will face an Arizona team in the Championship game that will either solidify their position or remove them from contention. Florida State, with a close win over Notre Dame and a lackluster performance over Louisville, doesn't deserve a top four ranking but is one of two teams that remain undefeated this year. Alabama should be in the top 4 with FSU about 5 or 6.

TCU must win out to remain in the 4th spot. Alabama, with games against Auburn and Mississippi State and the SEC championship game could well be a top 4 team while Mississippi State could drop out of the top four.

Read the ESPN article here and let me know what you think.

Football Rankings Change After Saturday's Game

The football rankings have changed pretty dramatically following this week's games. Mississippi State took on UT-Martin in a gimme game and Florida State had no trouble in their game against Virginia as they beat the Cavaliers 34-20. FSU's biggest test may come against a resurgent Florida team on the 29th of Nvember.

Auburn dropped to 9th after their loss to Texas A&M. TCU climbed to #6 with their win over Kansas State, Arizona State moves up to 7th with their decisive victory over Notre Dame and Ohio State climbed to #8 with a convincing win over Michigan State.

Read the AP article here.

Packers Manhandle Bears 55-14

In seven years as the Green Bay Packers starter, Aaron Rogers has faced the Chicago Bears 13 times. The University of California, Berkely star with a Wonderlic score of 35 has owned the Bears. Rogers, drafted 24th behind #1 pick Alex Smith, has dominated the NFC North. On Sunday night the 2010 Super Bowl MVP had little trouble with the Bears.

The Chicago Bears should be familiar with the Packers schemes and the Packers players. Even the coach of the Packers, Mike McCarthy, has been there the entire 7 years. On Sunday night the Bears lost to the Packers 55-14. The Bears looked as if each formation they saw was from another team, in a different year. Aaron Rogers, the quarterback they have faced for 7 1/2 years, threw for 315 yards and 6 touchdowns - in the 1st half.

The Packers rushed for 132 yards on 32 carries against a team that prides itself on defense. Jordy Nelson caught 6 balls for 152 yards and 2 touchdowns. Randell Cobb, Eddie Lacy, Andrew Quarless and Brandon Bostick each caught a touchdown pass from Rogers.

The vaunted Bears defense recorded no sacks while the Packers got to Jay Cutler 4 times, had 8 tackles for losses and 6 QB hits.

The Pack are now 6-3 and in command of the NFC North while the Bears fall to 3-6 and look forward to the 2015 draft and rebuilding for the 2015 season.

Abreu and deGrom Named Rookies of the Year in MLB

American League rookie sensation Jose Abreu, Chicago White Sox, has been named, unanimously, as the American League Rookie of the Year. Abreu hit .317 with 36 home runs and 107 RBIs.

Jacob deGrom, pitcher for the NY Mets, was chosen as the National League Rookie of the Year. He was 9-6 for the Mets with a 2.69 ERA and 144 strikeouts with just 44 walks on the year.

Read the Dave Schoenfield article here.

Mexicali Overpowers Charros 8-1 to Take Series 3 Games to 2

The Aguilas de Mexicali overpowered the Charros 8-1 in the third game of the three game series behind the strong pitching of Javier Solano and four relievers. Solano gave up just 1 hit in six innings with 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Reliever Adrian Garza gave up the only Charros run in the top of the 9th. Ben Koslowski took the loss for Jalisco, giving up 5 runs on 8 hits in five innings.

The Aguilas scored a run in the bottom of the 3rd on a lead off double by Gil Velazquez and a single by Chris Roberson for the 1-0 Mexicali lead.

The Aguilas would score two more in the bottom of the 5th. Walter Ibarra singled and went to second on a walk to Dave Sappelt. Mike Jacobs singled to score Ibarra and Sappelt scored on a ground out to short by Luis Juarez. The Aguilas had a 3-0 lead.

Gil Velazquez led off the 6th for Mexicali by drawing a walk. Chris Roberson also waited out a walk and Mexicali had runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Ken Sigman replaced Kozlowski on the mound for Jalisco and walked Walter Ibarra to load the bases. Dave Sappelt singled to score Valezquez and Roberson. After Carlos Vazquez replaced Sigman, Luis Juarez hit a ground ball to third  that scored Ibarra. Xorge Carrillo doubled to score Juarez and the Aguilas led 7-0.

Mexicali scored again in the bottom of the 7th when Gil Velazquez doubled and scored on a ground out to second by Walter Ibarra for the 8th run in the game for Mexicali.

The Charros threatened in the top of the 9th. Leo Heras walked and after Japhet Amador popped up to the catcher, Cory Vaughn walked. Marquez Smith singled to load the bases with one out. Jose Felix singled to score Heras but Jesus Lopez struck out and Amadeo Zazueta grounded out to the pitcher to end the game

Jets Upset Steelers 20-13

The upset of the early games, and probably every game this weekend was the 1-8 NY Jets, behind the arm and legs of Michael Vick, winning handily over the 6-3 Pittsburgh Steelers 20-13. The Jets jumped out to a 17-0 lead after the 1st quarter and held on to win.

Following a Nick Folk field goal early in the quarter, Michael Vick threw a 67 yard TD strike to T.J. Graham with 3:20 to go and followed that up with a 5 yard TD toss to Jace Amaro with 19 seconds to go in the quarter.

Ben Roethlisberger, who threw for 12 TDs in his previous games, did not have a TD pass until he connected with Martavis Bryant on an 80 yard pass play with 1:16 to go in the game.

Roethlisberger was 30 of 43 passing for 343 yards and a touchdown but he threw 2 INTs. Michael Vick attempted only 18 passes but completed 10 of those for 132 yards and 2 touchdowns with no interceptions.

The Steelers ran 17 running plays but were held to just 36 yards on the ground while the Jets gained 150 yards on 30 carries.

T.J. Graham had the 1 catch for 67 yards and a touchdown fo the Jets and Jace Amaro caught 2 balls for 6 yards and a TD.

Antonio Brown fumbled the ball twice for the Steelers. The 1st Brown fumble was recovered by the Jets on the Steeler's 20 and led to the 5 yard touchdown by Vick that gave the Jets the 17-0 lead. Jaiquawn Jarrett picked off both of Roethlisberger's 2 interceptions

'Bama Tops LSU in OT 20-13

Alabama escaped "Death Valley" with a 20-13 overtime win over LSU on Saturday.

It looked like the Tigers would win the game in regulation when they recovered a fumble by Alabama's T.J. Yeldon on the Alabama 6 yard line with 1:13 on the clock. LSU should have had 4 plays to punch it in from 6 yards out but offensive guard Vadal Alexander was called for unsportsmanlike conduct that moved the ball to the 21. LSU used up only 23 seconds of time before settling for a field goal and the 13-10 lead.

The ensuing kickoff went out of bounds giving Alabama the ball on their 35 yard line with 50 seconds to play in regulation. The Tide drove 55 yards in 47 seconds where Adam Griffith nailed a 27 yard field goal to tie the game.

Alabama took the ball 1st in overtime and scored on a 6 yard pass from Blake Sims to DeAndrew White. LSU threw 4 incomplete passes with their possession and Alabama had the 20-13 victory.

LSU falls to 7-2 overall and 4-2 in the SEC West while Alabama is now 8-1 overall and 5-1 in the SEC West.

With the Auburn loss to Texas A&M, Alabama should take the fourth spot in the CFP playoff with Oregon moving up to #3. Alabama has a game with Mississippi State coming up.

How does LSU get called for unsportsmanlike conduct on the opposing team's 6 yard line, after recovering a fumble, with 1:13 to go? How can LSU use up just 23 seconds with four plays to run? How can a Tiger defense that had held the Tide in Check all game give up 55 yards in 47 seconds? Why would LSU attempt 4 straight passes in OT when their quarterback was not having a good game? How does an LSU kickoff go out of bounds with just 50 seconds on the clock putting Alabama just 35 yards from field goal range?

These are some of the questions Les Miles will have to answer and Nick Saban should be thanking his lucky stars for.

Charros Take Game 2 From Aguilas 4-3

The Charros de Jalisco took game two of the three game series with Mexicali by a 4-3 score. Hugo Castallenos got the win to improve to 1-1 on the year. Brian Broderick pitched the final 1 ⅓ innings to pick up his 8th save of the year and lower his ERA to 0.69.

In the top of the 1st, with one out, Manny Rodriguez singled and went to second on a single by Leo Heras. After Japhet Amador popped out to first, Cory Vaughn walked to load the bases. Marquez Smith drew a 5 pitch walk to force in Rodriguez for the 1-0 Jalisco lead.

Luis Juarez doubled to lead off the bottom of the 2nd for the Aguilas. Juarez moved to third on a ground out by Xorge Carrillo. Jon Del Camp doubled to score Juarez. With Gil Velazquez up, Del Camp moved to third on a wild pitch. Velazquez then singled to plate Del Camp and Mexicali had taken the 2-1 lead.

The Aguilas would score again in the 3rd. Walter Ibarra waited out a walk. Dave Sappelt drew a four pitch walk to put runners at 1st and 2nd with no outs. Mike Jacobs grounded out 1-3 to move the runners up. Luis Juarez then grounded out to third to score Ibarra for the 3-1 Aguilas lead.

Eduardo Arredondo led off the top of the 5th for the Charros with a single. With two outs, Japhet Amador doubled to drive in Arredondo. Cory Vaughn followed with a double to left that scored Amador and the game was tied at 3.

The Charros would score what would be the winning run in the top of the 7th. Manny Rodriguez singled to lead off the inning and stole second. After the Aguilas pitcher, Mario Meza, caught Leo Heras looking at strike three for out number 1 and Japhet Amador to fly out to center, Cory Vaughn hit the 8th pitch he saw from Meza for a single that scored Rodriguez with the game winning run.

Manny Rodriguez went 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored, raising his batting average to .371 on the year. Cory Vaughn was 2 for 3 with 2 RBIs. Japhet Amador was 1 for 4 with a double and an RBI and Marquez Smith was 0 for 3 but had an RBI.

The Jalisco manager, Juan Navarrete, used 7 pitchers in the win. Murphy Smith started the game and went 3 innings, giving up all three runs on 4 hits while walking 2 and striking out 2. His ERA on the year stands at 11.25. Luis Rodriguez pitched 2 innings giving up 1 hit. Hugo Castallenos got the win with 1 inning pitched, striking out 2 of the three batters he faced and holding the Aguillas scoreless. Ivan Salas, Adrian Ramirez and Antonio Garzon were all credited with holds and Brian Broderick got the save, setting down the 4 batters he faced, striking out 2.

The Charros improved to 15-10 on the year. The Yaquis de Obregon lost to drop to 14-10, one half game behind the league leading Charros. With the loss to Jalisco, the Aguilas record is 13-12, two full games behind Jalisco.

The team that was leading the league on Tuesday morning, the Venados de Mazatlan, have lost 6 in a row and fall to 12-12 and 5th place in the Liga de Mexicana del Pacifico.

Jalisco and Mexicali play the rubber match of the series on Sunday night before the Charros travel to Hermosillo for three games beginning Tuesday the 11th of November.

#3 Auburn Loses to Texas A&M 41-38

The Auburn Tigers hurt their chances for a CFP berth when they lost to an unranked Texas A&M team on Saturday, at home, 41-38. Auburn still muast play Alabama so thier season is not nescessarily over but this loss at home is not good.

Kyle Allen, the A&M quarterback who replace Kenny Hill, threw for 277 yards and 4 touchdowns with an interception.

Nick Marshall, for Auburn, was 15 for 21, good for 219 yards and 1 touchdown.

Auburn rushed for 363 yards behind Cameron Artis-Payne's 221 yards on 30 carries with 2 touchdowns. Auburn QB Nick Marshall ran for 69 yards on 11 carries and 2 TDs.

Josh Reynolds, A&M, caught 6 passes for 88 yards and 2 touchdowns. Malcome Kennedy had 118 yards receiving and a touchdown whiile Ricky Seals-Jones had a TD on 6 receptions for 46 yards.

Auburn had a Field Goal attempt blocked and returned for a touchdown early in the game and fumbled inside the Aggie 5 yard line with 2:45 to go. Texas A&M was forced to put from their 1 yard line after the Auburn fumble and the Tigers took over on the Aggie 42 yard line with just over 2 minutes to play. Auburn fumbled again and the Aggies were able to run out the clock to preserve the win.

Read the ESPN recap here.

#12 Baylor Bears Crush #15 Oklahoma 48-14

The #12 Baylor Bears, with a chance of making the CFP 4 team playoff, faced off with #15 Oklahoma in Norman on Saturday and came away with a 48-14 victory.

Behind 14-3 after the 1st quarter, the Bears came roaring back with 45 straight points to lead 48-14 with 7:37 to play in the game. The Baylor defense held the Sooners scoreless for three quarters while Baylor's quarterback, Bryce Petty was completing 32 of 42 passes for 387 yards and 1 touchdown with no interceptions.

Trevor Knight, pressured all day by a swarming Bears defense threw for 148 yards on 12 of 27 passing for 2 TDs and a crucial INT.

Five Baylor runners recorded 160 yards on the ground and scored 5 touchdowns. Shock Linwood ran for 88 yards and 2 touchdowns while Devin Chafin ran for 2 TDs carrying the ball 11 times for 35 yards. Corey Coleman ran for a touchdown for Baylor and caught the lone TD pass from Petty

Oklahoma got touchdown receptions from Michiah Quick and Durron Neal for the lone Sooner scores. Oklahoma rushed for 172 yards on 33 carries but failed to score on the ground.

Baylor plays unranked Oklahoma State at home and unranked Texas Tech in Lubbock to finish their season while #9 Kansas State plays #6 TCU today.

Read the ESPN recap article here.

Mexicali Tops Charros 6-5

The Charros de Jalisco traveled to Mexicali to take on the Aguilas for three games. The Charros entered the series 1/2 game behind the Yaquis de Obregon for the lead in the Liga de Mexicana del Pacifico. Jalisco lost to Mexicali 6-5 while Obregon was shutout by Hermosillo 3-0.

In the Charros game, Mexicali started the scoring in the 1st. Walter Ibarra led off with a triple and scored on a single by Dave Sappelt to take an early 1-0 lead.

Jalisco answered in the top of the 2nd. Japhet Amador led off the inning with his league leading 9th home run of the year to tie the score. Marquez Smith, who reached on a fielder's choice moved to second on a single by Gabriel Gutierrez. With two outs, Jose Felix walked to load the bases. Eduardo Arredondo walked to force in Smith and the Charros took the lead 2-1.

The Charros scored twice more in the 3rd on a Cory Vaughn home run that scored Leo Heras, who had led off the inning with a double, and Jalisco led 4-1.

The Aguilas struck back in the 4th. With two outs, Jon Del Campo singled to center and stole second. Ricardo Serrano doubled to score Del Campo. Ramon Urias followed with a single to score Serrano and the Mexicali team had pulled to within one at 4-3.

In the bottom of the 6th, the Aguilas lead off batter, Xorge Carrillo, doubled to left. Jon Del Campo reached on a ball hit back to the pitcher, Carlos Vazquez, who went to third in an attempt to get the lead runner but Carrillo made it back to second and the Aguilas had runners on first and second with no outs. Both runners moved up on a sacrifice bunt by Ricardo Serrano. Ken Sigman replaced Vazquez on the mound for Jalisco and got Ramon Urias to ground out to second. Jalisco manager, Juan Navarette, then brought in Antonio Garzon who gave up a 3 run home run to Chris Roberson and Mexicali had taken a 6-4 lead.

Jalisco threatened in the top of the 9th. Manny Rodriguez led off the inning with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch on a walk to Leo Heras by Aguilas' reliever, Francisco Rodriguez. Japhet Amador popped out to second and Cory Vaughn struck out swinging. Leo Heras stole second. With two outs, Marquez Smith hit a ground ball to third that scored Rodriguez. Heras, with the ball on the ground in front of him, decided to try and reach third. Heras was tagged out to end the game.

Manny Rodriguez was 2 for 5 with his league leading 12th double and a run scored while raising his batting average to .370, the best in the league. Japhet Amador went 1 for 4 with a home run while Cory Vaughn hit a home run with 2 RBIs, 2 walks and a run scored on a 1 for 3 night at the plate. Jesus Lopez went 1 for 3 and quietly raised his season's batting average to .329, 5th in the league.

Orlando Lara started the game for Jalisco and went 5 innings allowing 7 hits and 3 runs while striking out 3. His ERA increased to 2.50 on the year. Carlos Vazquez took the loss giving up 2 runs in 1/3 of an inning in the 6th. Antonio Garzon had a blown hold in the 6th allowing a home run to Chris Roberson. Manuel Flores pitched the 7th and 8th innings givng up just 1 hit to keep the Charros in the game.

The Charros record is now 14-10. With the loss to Hermosillo, Obregon falls to 14-9, 1/2 game in front of Jalisco for the league lead. Mexicali climbs to 13-11, a full game behind Jalisco and in third place in the league. The series between Jalisco and Mexicali continues tonight and Sunday before the Charros travel to Hermosillo to take on the Naranjeros for 3 games.

NFL Picks This Week

Here are my NFL picks for this week. I did fine last week until the last three games where I totally screwed up.

Browns @ Bengals  -  Browns 24-3     Just Kidding!!
Chiefs @ Bills  -  Chiefs 27-17     Alex Smith controls the game. Bills have no RBs
Cowboys v Jaguar  -  Cowboys 35-13     A shame Londoners have to see the Jaguars
49ers @ Saints  -  Saints 28-27     Saints don't lose in the dome
Titans @ Ravens  -  Ravens 30-13     Raven's defense is too much for Titans offense
Steelers @ Jets  -  Steelers 28-6     Big Ben held to just 4 TD passes this week
Falcons @ Buccaneers  -  Falcons 24-14     Buc's say wait'll next year
Broncos @ Raiders  -  Broncos 28-10      Oakland's defense is better but Manning is Manning
Rams @ Cardinals  -  Cardinals 24-10     No trick plays here and no Ram offense
Giants @ Seahawks  -  Seahawks 27-13     After all Eli is Eli
Bears @ Packers  -  Packers 30-20     Rogers is still saying "relax"
Panthers @ Eagles  -  Eagles 17-14     Cowboys win so Eagles must, please no butt fumbles

If you don't believe me, read what Phil Sheridan and David Newton of ESPN.com have to say and see if my picks aren't better.

Silver Slugger Awards Announced

The Silver Slugger award is given annually to the best offensive player in each league. Baseball's coaches and managers determine who receives the award. Batting average, slugging percentage and on-base percentage are some of the categories used to determine a winner of the award.

Coaches and managers are prohibited from voting for a member of their team. The National League gives an award to the best hitting pitcher while the American League rewards the best DH in the league.

Barry Bonds has won the Silver Slugger award 12 times. Mike Piazza and Alex Rodrigues have won the award 10 times each. Rodriguez won 7 awards at SS and 3 times as a 3rd baseman. Barry Larkin won the award 9 times as a shortstop.

Here are the league award winners for 2014:

AMERICAN LEAGUE
1B: Jose Abreu, Chicago White Sox, (.317, 36 HR, 107 RBI)
2B: Jose Altuve, Houston Astros (.341, 7 HR, 59 RBI, 56 SB)
3B: Adrian Beltre, Texas Rangers (.324, 19 HR, 77 RBI)
SS: Alexei Ramirez, Chicago White Sox (.273, 15 HR, 74 RBI, 21 SB)
OF: Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays (.286, 35 HR, 103 RBI, 104 BB)
OF: Michael Brantley, Cleveland Indians (.327, 20 HR, 97 RBI, 23 SB)
OF: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels (.287, 36 HR, 111 RBI, 83 BB)
C: Yan Gomes, Indians (.278, 21 HR, 74 RBI)
DH: Victor Martinez, Detroit Tigers (.335, 32, HR, 103 RBI, 70 BB)

NATIONAL LEAGUE
1B: Adrian Gonzalez, Los Angeles Dodgers (.276, 27 HR, 116 RBI)
2B: Neil Walker, Pittsburgh Pirates (.271, 23 HR, 76 RBI)
3B: Anthony Rendon, Washington Nationals (.287, 21 HR, 83 RBI)
SS: Ian Desmond, Nationals (.255, 24 HR, 91 RBI, 24 SB)
OF: Andrew McCutchen, Pirates (.314, 25 HR, 83 RBI, 84 BB)
OF: Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins (.288, 37 HR, 105 RBI, 94 BB)
OF: Justin Upton, Atlanta Braves (.270, 29 HR, 102 RBI)
C: Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants (.311, 22 HR, 89 RBI)
P: Madison Bumgarner, Giants (.258, 4 HR, 15 RBI, .286 OBP)

Browns Smother Bengals in 24-3 Win

The Cleveland Browns are tied for 1st in the AFC North with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Both have a 6-3 record. Only the Arizona Cardinals (7-1) and the New England Patriots (7-2) have a better record than the Browns at this point in the season.

Last night in Cincinnati, the Browns used great defense and a good ground game to beat the Bengals 24-3.

The wind played havoc with both quarterbacks but Andy Dalton, when not under pressure, seemed unsure of his throws. Dalton completed just 10 of 33 pass attempts for 86 yards while throwing 3 INTs. His 33% completion rate was outdone only by his QBR of 2.0.

Brian Hoyer, facing the same gusty winds as Dalton, went 15 of 23 for 198 yards. Although he didn't have a touchdown pass, he didn't have an interception either. The Browns used the pass to set up their run game. Cleveland's three running backs ran for 169 yards and 3 touchdowns on the night. Ben Tate got the Browns on the board early in the 1st quarter with a 4 yard TD run after the Browns had intercepted Dalton and returned the ball to the Bengal's 18 yard line. Isiah Crowell scored on a 2 yard run on the Browns first possession of the 2nd half and Terrance West ran in from the one for the last touchdown with 4:46 left in the 4th quarter to seal the win for Cleveland.

The Bengals were held to 86 yards rushing on 27 carries by a defense that sacked Dalton twice and kept the Bengals off balance all night.

After rushing for 154 yards on 24 carries against the Jaguars last week, Jeremy Hill of the Bengals was held to just 55 yards on 12 carries last night.

Although his team had just been beaten 24-3 and manhandled by the Browns' defense, Hill had these comments about the Browns following the game. These quotes come courtesy of Coley Harvey at ESPN.com.

Asked whether the Browns were better than he previously thought, Hill said, "Oh no, not at all. They're probably worse than I thought, to be honest with you."

"They didn't do anything special to me," Hill continued. "I mean, respect to them, they won the game. But that's all I'll give them."

"Those guys, they're not that good," he said. "It was on us [Thursday]. We gave them the game, in my opinion. They didn't do anything special. We just gave them the game. They just sat back with coverage the whole day."

Read the ESPN article here and decide for yourself if the Browns are "good enough" to lead the AFC North,

Charros Sweep Mazatlan with 16-0 Win

The Charros de Jalisco welcomed the Venados de Mazatlan to Zapopan on Tuesday for a three game series and "swept" them out of town on Thursday with a 16-0 victory. The shutout was the third win in a row and they held Mazatlan scoreless for 22 consecutive innings in the series.

Marco Tovar won the game for his third victory of the season. Tovar tossed 7 innings of 3 hit ball, walking 1 and striking out 3 and lowered his ERA to 1.67. Mario Mendoza  pitched a perfect 8th inning in relief and Luis Rodriguez worked the 9th, giving up a single before getting Olmo Rosario to strike out swinging to end the game. Alejandro Martinez took the loss for Mazatlan and dropped to 0-3 on the year.

The Charros scored 27 runs on 38 hits during the series. It was the second series sweep of the year for Jalisco and the 2nd time in 3 games that the Charros hit 4 home runs.

The game was a scoreless pitcher's duel until the bottom of the 3rd when Gabriel Gutierrez led off with a single. Jesus Lopez followed with a single and both runners scored on a home run by Manny Rodriguez. The next batter, Leo Heras, homered to right for the 4-0 lead and the rout was on.

Marquez Smith led off the 4th with a double and moved to third on a ground out to second by Jesus Cota. Smith would score on a Gabriel Gutierrez sac fly to increase the lead to 5-0.

Cory Vaughn reached on a fielder's choice in the 5th and scored in front of Marquez Smith's 5th home run of the year to increase the Charros lead to 7-0.

The Venados brought in Miguel Aguilar to pitch the 6th but he found the going just as rough as the first two hurlers. With one out, Jesus Lopez drew a walk and went to second on a single by Eduardo Arredondo. Manny Rodriguez singled to score Lopez. Aguilar then threw a wild pitch to advance the runners to 2nd and 3rd. Leo Heras followed with a single to score Arredondo and Rodriguez. Japhet Amador followed with a 2 run home run to bring the lead to 12-0 Charros.

The 7th inning saw Jalisco score four more times. With two outs, Eduardo Arredondo drew a walk. Edson Garcia, pinch hitting for Manny Rodriguez, tripled to center to score Arredondo. Amadeo Zazueta, hitting for Leo Heras, walked to put runners at 1st and 3rd with two outs. Japhet Amador hit his second home run of the night, and 8th of the year, and his 3rd, 4th and 5th RBIs of the game for the 16-0 lead and the final score.

Marquez Smith was 3 for 4 with a home run, 2 doubles, 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored. Jesus Lopez also went 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored. Japhet Amador was 3 for 5 with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs. Leo Heras was 2 for 4 with a home run, 3 RBIs and 2 runs scored. Manny Rodriguez, the leading hitter in the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico was 2 for 4 with a home run and 4 RBIs. His average stands at .368 on the season. Eduardo Arredondo, the lead off hitter for the Charros, went 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored.

Tonight was a special offensive show for the Charros and the series was a display of power the league has not seen from Jalisco thus far. The offense was backed up by excellent pitching for three games with the effort by Tovar tonight the best by a Jalisco starting pitcher this season.

The win moves the Charros to 14-9 on the year while the Venados de Mazatlan fell to 12-10, a full game behind the Charros.

Raul Ibanez to Manage the Rays?

The Tampa Bay Rays have 8 potential managerial candidates, so far, to take over for Joe Maddon in 2015. Raul Ibanez is one of them.

Other possible managers include Dave Martinez, Rays bench coach for the last eight years, Manny Acta, former Indians and Nationals manager, Craig Counsell, Charlie Montoyo, currently a minor league manager, Ron Wotus, former Seattle Mariner manager Don Wakamatsu and Kevin Cash.

Rays President of Baseball Operations, Matt Silverman, has said the list will grow as the process continues.

When one looks at the experience possessed by most of the candidates, it is hard to imagine Raul Ibanez being picked to lead a major league team when he has no prior managerial experience and has only been out of baseball for a little over a month.

But as the saying goes, stranger things have happened!

Alabama/LSU Preview with my Prediction

The Crimson Tide of Alabama take on the LSU Tigers this weekend in a game with playoff implications for Alabama.

Alabama comes into the game at 7-1, their only loss to a very good Ole Miss team, 23-17, on October 4th. Since then the Tide narrowly beat Arkansas 14-13, pummeled Texas A&M 59-0 and beat a resurgent Tennessee team 34-20.

LSU on the other hand is 7-2 with losses to #1 Mississippi State 34-29 and two weeks later to then #5 Auburn 41-7. Last week LSU beat then #3 Ole Miss 10-7 that took a goal line interception to preserve the win.

Currently, Alabama sits at #5 with LSU at #16. Alabama is just outside the CFP (College Football Poll) ranking of the top 4 teams that will compete for the National Championship in the first ever college football playoffs.

Mississippi State and FSU are the only undefeated teams in the CFP rankings and are #1 and #2 respectfully. Auburn is #3 at 7-1 and Oregon is 8-1 and #4 in the rankings.

A solid win by Alabama in this game would go far toward cracking the top four in the CFP rankings just as a loss could seriously damage Alabama from consideration. Mississippi State plays UT-Martin this week but travels to Alabama on November 15th for a crucial game. FSU plays the University of Miami this week but could face a challange on the 29th of November when they face a tough test against Florida. Oregon plays #17 Utah on Saturday but shouldn't have a tough test until playing Arizona for the Pac-12 title.

In the Alabama/LSU game, Alabama enters the contest second in the nation allowing just 14 points per game while they are 19th in scoring at 36.5 points a game. They average 219 yards rushing and 291 yards passing every game.

LSU is 4th in the land allowing just 15.9 points per game but they are 101st against the pass, giving up an average of 189 yards through the air per game. LSU does score 33 points per game. These two teams are pretty evenly matched.

An intangible for the Tigers may be "Death Valley" where, Coach Les Miles says "...team's dreams come to die".

Nick Saban wants more than anything to be a part of the 1st College Football Playoff. His defense is strong and he has a resurgent offense under Offensive Coordinator, Lane Kiffen.

Against good teams, Les Miles is 2-2. He opened the season with a 28-24 win in Wisconsin, lost to Mississippi State by 5, Lost to Auburn 41-7 and beat Ole Miss by 3, 10-7.

My prediction is this, Alabama will win the game 20-10 and with some good luck over the next three weeks the Tide will roll into the playoffs with a very good chance of winning it all.

Phillies Trying to Dump Big Salaries?

Craig Calcaterra, writing for hardballtalk.com, has posted a tweet by Howard Eskin, Sports Director for WTFX in Philadelphia, in which Eskin calls Marlon Byrd, Jonathan papalbin and Cliff Lee bad locker room guys. Eskin opines that for this reason, the Phillies want to get rid of these, and other players. Calcaterra's contention is that the Phillies are really about setting low expectations for the fans when Philly gets low return on any deals.

I agree with Craig. the Phillies are old, overpaid and under performing. Ruben Amaro Jr. has not used a forward thinking mindset when signing players to long term deals or trading for older players. The result is that Philadelphia has given up young talent for a projected short term gain that has not materialized.

Read Calcaterra's short article here.

Separation Weekend in College Football

Heather Dinich has a real good article on this week in College Football and how different outcomes in games will effect the entire playoff picture.

Read Heather's article here.

Although the games this week will go far in determining the playoff picture, the SEC appears to have a lock on at least two positions. If the SEC can avoid a 2nd and 3rd place finish, we could wind up with an SEC final.

It's hard for me to think that Oregon can hold on to the 4th spot with no big games remaining as it is unlikely that a Big 12 team could vault enough teams to reach the top 4. What might prove fatal to the SEC is if the Playoff Committee deems it unfair to put a 2 loss SEC team, albeit a good team, ahead of a 1 loss Pac 12 or Big 12 team.

Jazz Top Cavs 102-100 on Buzzerbeater by Hayward

Gordon Hayward, of the Utah Jazz, hit a game winning jump shot at the buzzer that sent the Cleveland Cavaliers to their second consecutive loss, 102-100.

LeBron James had 31 points in the losing effort as Cleveland falls to 1-3 on the year.

The Jazz out rebounded the Cavs 41-30 and had 26 assists to the Cavalier's 6.

Kyle Irving had 34 points for Cleveland but the point guard had no assists. Kevin Love added 14 for Cleveland.

Hayward and Derrick Favors each had 21 points to lead the Jazz while Favors added 10 boards.

LeBron had this to say about the Cavaliers early season troubles.

''Rome wasn't built in a day and we understand that,'' James said. ''You have to continue to work the process. You hate to lose as competitors, but we felt like tonight we improved. We improved and proved in the second half we're capable of playing some good basketball.''

Read the Yahoo Sports article by Matthew Coles of the AP here.

Cleveland travels to Denver to face the Nuggets on Friday while the Jazz will host the Dallas Mavericks on the same day.

Jerry Jones Insists Romo Must Play on Sunday

The Dallas Cowboys meet the Jacksonville Jaguars in London's Wembley Stadium on Sunday. The Cowboys are 6-3 and in the hunt for a playoff spot this year. The Jaguars are 1-8 and going nowhere this season. In the end this is a meaningless game for the Cowboys. Dallas is a 6 1/2 point favorite and should beat the Jaguars handily.

Cowboy quarterback, Tony Romo, suffered two transverse process fractures in his back during the game against the Redskins in late October. Romo left the game but returned in the 4th quarter to try and win the game. He didn't look very good and the Cowboys lost. Head coach Jason Garrett said following the game that owner Jerry Jones did not insist that Garrett put Romo back in the game. Read the rest of this article and extrapolate the data backwards to that game.

Romo made the long flight with little pain he said and he is walking, throwing passes and even participated in team walk through drills this week.

What is a transverse process fracture you ask?

A fracture of a bone is the same as a break in the bone. A fracture of a transverse process is a break of a part of one of the bones in the spine. This part extends out from the side of the main body of the bone (called the vertebral body). A transverse process is shaped like a wing. They extend from both the left and right sides of the vertebral body.

If the injury is limited to a break of a transverse process with no other bone or organ injury, hospital care may not be necessary. Medication for pain control, special back bracing, and limitations in activity are done first followed by physical therapy later.

Romo says if he keeps improving he'll have a good chance of playing. Coach Jason Garrett would not comment on whether or not Romo would play. The only person who speaks of Romo definitely starting is Cowboy owner Jerry Jones.

Remember that Romo had back surgery last off season and these fractures are to the bones on the edges of the spine. Could the consequences of sitting Romo for one more game be that dire? The Cowboys are 6-3 on the season. Yes, they have lost their last 2 games and are in a fight with the Eagles for a playoff spot but the Jaguars are 1-8, their only victory over the Cleveland Browns by a point, and going nowhere. The Cowboys should win this game.

I'm using quotes from Jerry Jones here in an ESPN.com article by Todd Archer to show just how little Jones looks at the future, a player's or the team's, in insisting Romo will play.

"I'm anticipating him playing, have no reason to think that he won't, and this will be a nice little practice session for him out there today," Jones said. "But my expectations are for him to play."

"Any time he can play, we want him to play," Jones said. "We're a better team, to be trite, with him playing. And so as far as the meaningful games, I'm talking about -- we didn't play him in the preseason obviously but felt we could have had we needed him to win the game -- but these games, we don't play many of them. You know that. And every one of them counts so much.

"Invariably any time you do lose one of these games in the regular season, our experience with us, especially these last several years, is we needed every win we could get. There's no such thing as holding him out and forgoing the potential chance that we win.

Romo may well have the best game of his career on Sunday. The Cowboys may make the playoffs by virtue of this win, but is it in the best interest of the team, Tony Romo and the Cowboys fans to take a chance with your 100 million dollar franchise quarterback?

Jalisco Takes Game 2 Of Mazatlan Series 5-0

Adrian Ramirez struck out the side in the top of the 9th to preserve the Charros' win for Graham Godfrey, a 5-0 shutout of the Venados de Mazatlan.

Jalisco started the scoring in the 1st when Leo Heras drew a walk, stole second and came around to score when the Venados catcher, Hector Peaz threw wildly to second. One batter, one run and the Charros led 1-0.

Jesus Lopez doubled to lead off the bottom of the 3rd for the Charros. Cory Vaughn popped up to the catcher but Japhet Amador drew a four pitch walk. Marquez Smith was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. Gabriel Gutierrez hit a sac fly to left to score Lopez. Jose Felix then singled to score Amador and the score was 3-0 Jalisco.

In the bottom of the 4th, Amadeo Zazueta singled to start the inning. Edson Garcia followed with a single and Zazueta stopped at second. Leo Heras singled to load the bases with no outs. Jesus Lopez hit into a 6-4-3 double play that scored Zazueta and got Garcia to third. Cory Vaughn walked. The Mazatlan pitcher, Fredy Quintero unleashed a wild pitch that scored Garcia for the 5-0 Jalisco lead and the final margin of victory.

Graham Godfrey picked up his third win of the season, pitching 7 strong innings giving up 6 hits and walking 1, while striking 5. Godfrey lowered his ERA to 1.57. Carlos Vazguez, Hugo Castellanos and Adrian Ramirez held the Venados hitless over the final two innings of the ballgame.

Jose Felix, Amadeo Zazueta and Edson Garcia, the 7, 8 and 9 hitters in the lineup for Jalisco all went 2 for 4 on the night. Marquez Smith was 1 for 3 with a double while Jesus Lopez was 1 for 3 with a double and a run scored.

The Charros improve to 13-9 on the year while Mazatlan falls 1/2 game behind Jalisco at 12-9. The Yaquiz de Obregon lost the 1st game of a double header to the Tomateros de Culiacn to fall to 12-8, statistically tied with the Charros for first place in the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico

Charros Top League Leading Mazatlan 6-4

The Venados de Mazatlan, leading the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico, lost to the Charros de Jalisco on Tuesday, 6-4, to drop the first game of a crucial three game series in Zapopan.

Mazatlan broke out on top early, scoring two runs in the top of the 1st. With two outs, Heber Gomez walked and back-to-back doubles by Ryan Schimpf and Olmo Rosario had the Venados up 2-0.

The Charros got those runs back quickly in their half of the 1st on a double by Manny Rodriguez and a 2 run home run by Japhet Amador. The Charros had tied the game at 2 all.

Jalisco scored a run in the bottom of the 4th. Japhet Amador reached safely on an error by the Venados third baseman and took second on the throw. Jesus Cota singled to move Amador to third. Fernando Valenzuela singled to score Amador and the Charros had a 3-2 lead.

Mazatlan retook the lead in the top of the 5th. Charros starter, Ben Kozlowski walked the lead off man, Derrick Robinson who moved to second on a wild pitch. Albert Carreon walked. Kozlowski threw wildly on a sacrifice bunt by Heber Gomez and Robinson scored. Olmo Rosario grounded out to second to score Carreon and the Venados were on top 4-3.

Manny Rodriguez hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 5th to tie the game again, this time at 4 apiece.

Japhet Amador hit his second home run of the night, and 6th of the year, to giive the Charros the 5-4 lead in the bottom of the 7th.

Gabriel Gutierrez led off the bottom of the 8th with his first home run of the year and the Charros  went on to defeat Mazatlan 6-4.

Manuel Flores picked up the win in relief of Kozlowski and lowered his ERA to 1.17. Brian Broderick got the save, his 7th of the year, by shutting out the Venados in the top of the 9th. Felipe Gonzalez took the loss for Mazatlan and his record dropped to 1-2 on the year.

Japhet Amador was 2 for 3 with 2 home runs, 3 RBIs and 3 runs scored. Manny Rodriguez went 2 for 4 with a double, a home run, an RBI and 2 runs scored to raise his league leading batting average to .363. Rodriguez also leads the league in doubles with 11. Jesus Lopez was 2 for 4 to get his average back above .300. Gabriel Gutierrez went 1 for 4 with the solo home run.

Jalisco is now 12-9 on the year, 1/2 game behind the 12-8 Venados. The Yaquis de Obregon were rained out last night and lead the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico with a 12-7 record that leads the Charros by a full game.

Baseball Free Agency 2015

There are 165 official free agents following the 2014 major league baseball year.

Yahoo Sports writer, Jeff Passan has them ranked from #1 Max Scherzer, the Tigers ace, who reportedly wants a long term contract worth 200 Million Dollars to #165 Hiroyuki Nakajimi, of the A's, who hit .266 last year in Double A ball.

Some interesting players entering free agancy on Passan's list are, #134, Dan Uggla who will get $13 million from the Braves this year and possibly a World Series ring from the Giants. #120 Daisuke Matsuzaka...how fast does a shooting star fade? Ichiro Suzuki, in at #80. With two or so more good hitting years, Ichiro could reach 3,000 hits. Some team will need a 4th outfielder who can hit and still steal bases.

Read Jeff Passan's article here.

MLB Players Choose Their Best

The players of major league baseball have chosen their top players in several categories. The voting was done on the 16th of September, according to the MLB Players Union.

Clayton Kershaw, of the Dodgers, was picked in 3 categories.
  Player of the Year
  Marvin Miller Man of the Year
  NL Outstanding Pitcher
Giancarlo Stanton, Miami, was chosen as the NL Outstanding Player
Mike Trout, LA Angels, AL Outstanding Player
Seattle's Felix Hernandez was picked as the AL Outstanding Pitcher
Jose Abreu, White Sox, AL Outstanding Rookie
Jacob deGrom, Mets, NL Outstanding Rookie
Miami's Casey Magehee (NL) and Seattle's Chris Young (AL) were chosen as their league's Comeback Players.

Worst Fielders In MLB for 2014 Season

Ryan Fagan, writing for The Sporting News online has a list of the worst fielders for this past season in major league baseball. He uses sabermetric terms such as UZR/150 and even DRS as a tie breaker. To be honest I don't have a clue as to what they really mean, nor do most of my readers I presume, but his article/slideshow is good.

Only three of the 10 fielders came from playoff teams with two of those from the Tigers. Torii Hunter made the list. Some of us remember Torii as the best fielding outfielder not too long ago.

Here's the list:

1B - Ike Davis, Pirates
2B - Jose Altuve, Astros
SS - Yunel Escobar, Rays
3B - Nick Castellanos, Tigers
LF - Domonic Brown Phillies
CF - Dexter Fowler, Astros
RF - Torii Hunter, Tigers
C - Travis d'Arnaud, Mets
SP - Phil Hughes, Twins
RP - Sam Dyson, Marlins

Be sure to check out Fagan's article/slideshow here.

Giants "Luck" Runs Out Against Colts With 40-24 Loss

Andrew Luck completed 25 of 46 passes for 354 yards and 4 TDs against the Giants as the Colts beat the Giants 40-24. Eli Manning was 27 of 52 for 359 yards and 2 TDs in the losing cause.

This was the 1st game in Monday Night Football history when both quarterbacks threw for over 350 yards with no interceptions. The difference in this game may have been that Eli Manning overthrew his receivers, who appeared to have beaten the coverage in several instances, 11 times. The receivers can't help you when you are unable to get the ball close to them.

The Colt's Luck threw for 354 yards, his 5th consecutive road game with at least 350 yards, an NFL record. The NFL record book is at least as thick as the IRS instruction manual. The things they keep track of are amazing. Luck has also thrown for 300+ yards in seven straight games tying him for third place in NFL history with Peyton Manning. It was also Luck's 17th NFL game with over 300 yards in just 2 1/2 years of play.

The run game for both teams was average at best, just enough runs to keep the defense honest. Ahmad Bradshaw, ex Giants running back, led the Colt's with 50 yards on just 7 carries while the Giants could muster only 89 yards on the ground on 20 carries by 5 different backs, including Manning's 18 yards on 1 carry.

Tight End Coby Fleener caught a 32 yard TD from Luck. WR T.Y. Hilton (31 yards), WR Reggie Wayne (40 yards) and TE Dwayne Allen also caught TD passes from Luck. Corey Washington and Larry Donnell were on the receiving end of Manning's 2 TD passes.

Manning and Luck both fumbled twice but Eli lost one. Jonathan Newsome sacked Manning, causing a fumble that Sergio Brown returned to the Giants 4 yard line. Luck then threw his 4th TD pass, a 2 yard toss to TE Dwayne Allen.

The Colts sit atop the AFC South Division at 6-3, two games ahead of the much improved Houston Texans while the Giants fall to 3-5 in the NFC East, three games behind the Eagles and just 1/2 game in front of the hapless Redskins.

Dolphins Shutout Chargers 37-0

The Dolphin's Ryan Tannehill was 24 of 34 passing for 288 yards and 3 TDs in the Dolphins shutout win over the Chargers.

This was the most lopsided loss for the Chargers since 1996 and they were shutout for the 1st time since 1996.

The Chargers have not won in South Florida since 1982.

Pjilip Rivers was held to 138 yards passing on the day with a QB Rating of 31...his lowest since 2007.

Read the Yahoo Sports article here.

Arizona Cardinals Defeat Cowboys 28-17

DeMarco Murray had his record 8 game streak of 100+ yard rushing games halted by the Arizona Cardinals who held hin to 79 yards on 19 carries as Arizona won 28-17.

Carson Palmer was 22 of 34 for 249 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT for the Cardinals who improved to 7-1 on the year while the Cowboys lost their second game in a row to fall to 6-3, 1/2 game behind the Philadelphia Eagles who beat the Houston Texans 31-21.

Brandon Weeden, starting for the Cowboys in place of the injured Tony Romo, was 18 of 37 for 183 yards and a late 4th quarter touchdown pass to Dez Bryant but threw 2 INTs.

"You can't turn the ball over, and that is on me," Weeden said.

Read the ESPN recap here.

St. Louis Rams Beat 49ers 13-10

The St. Louis Rams sacked 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick 8 times, 6 times in the 1st half, and caused him to fumble at the Rams 1 yard line with 2 seconds left in the game as the Rams beat the 49ers 13-10

Read the ESPN recap here.

Brady Outduels Manning in 43-21 New England Win

Tom Brady threw for 333 yards with 4 TDs and 1 INT as the Patriots downed the Broncos and Peyton Manning 43-21. Manning was 34 of 57 for 438 yards and 2 TDs but he had 2 INTs.

Manning was forced to attempt so many passes because the Denver rushing game was held to 43 yards on 17 carries and the Broncos were down 27-7 at the half.

"Well, I don't usually stink, but I stunk today," said Manning, 38, who broke into the NFL in 1998, two years before Brady. "I don't make any excuses. "

Julian delman retned a put for a touchdown in the New England win. Brandon Browner and Rob Ninkovich had the interceptions of Manning passes for the Patriots.

Read the ESPN recap here.

Peyton Manning added these comments about the game in a post game press conference. Read it here.

Caneros Take Third Game With Charros 6-3

The Caneros de los Mochis took the series against the Charros 2 games to 1 with a 6-3 win on Sunday behind starter Tomas Solis and 5 relievers.

Murphy Smith took the loss for Jalisco lasting just 1 2/3 innings and giving up 4 runs on 5 hits. Luis Rodriguez relieved Smith and gave up the other two runs on 3 hits, walking 2 and striking out 3. He gave up a solo home run to Rodolfo Amador.

Los Mochis scored four runs in the bottom of the 2nd. Saul Soto and Sandy Madera singled to lead off the inning. Brian Burgamy doubled to score Soto with Madera stopping at third. Madera scored on an Ernesto Molinet ground ball out to third. Roldolfo Amador doubled to drive in Burgamy and Justin Christian doubled to score Amador to give the Caneros the early 4-0 lead.

Antonio Lamas reached safely on a throwing error by the Charros third baseman to lead off the bottom of the 3rd. Charros reliever Luis Rodriguez uncorked a wild pitch that moved Lamas to third. With two outs, Brian Burgamy singled to plate Lamas and the Caneros led 5-0.

Jalisco scored in the top of the 4th. Marquez Smith led off with a double and went to third on a single by Gabriel Gutierrez. With one out, Jose Felix hit a sac fly to right to score Smith and the score was 5-1 Caneros.

Rodolfo Amador homered for los Mochis in the bottom of the 4th to give the Caneros the 6-1 lead.

Edwin Salas replaced Caneros starter, Tomas Solis, in the top of the 6th  and gave up a lead off solo home run to Japhet Amador, his fourth of the year, and the Charros had narrowed the lead to 6-2.

Jesus Lopez led off the top of the 7th with a single. Eduardo Arredondo singled to send Lopez to third and Arredondo took second on the throw. After Manny Rodriguez grounded out 1-3 and Oscar Verdugo was replaced by Fabian Cota for the Caneros, Jesus Cota hit a sac fly to left to score Lopez and Jalisco had pulled to within 3 runs, 6-3.

Jalisco threatened in the top of the 9th. With two outs, Manny Rodriguez doubled. Jesus Cota singled with Rodriguez stopping at third. Japhet Amador walked to load the bases but Marquez Smith struck out swinging to end the game.

Juan Noriega picked up the save, his first of the year, and Tomas Solis improved to 2-1 on the season while lowering his ERA to 2.05.

Gabriel Gutierrez went 3 for 4 for Jalisco and raised his batting average to .304. Japhet Amador was 2 for 4 with the home run. Eduardo Arredondo is starting to hit and went 2 for 4 with a double to raise his average to .207. Manny Rodriguez was 2 for 4 with his 10th double of the year to increase his season's batting average to .356.

Lakers Fall to 0-4 With Loss to Golden State 127-104

The Los Angeles Lakers are in for a rough season if the first 4 games are any indication. Klay Thompson scored 41 points for the Warriors and Stephen Curry added 31 with 10 assists as Golden State easily defeated the Lakers. The Lakers begin the season at 0-4.

Kobe had 28 points to lead the Lakers with Jordan Hill adding 23. Jeremy Lin had 6 points with 6 assists. Ed davis came off the bench to score 13 points with 6 rebounds for the Lakers.

Check out the ESPN recap here.

Kansas City Declines 2015 Option on Billy Butler

The Kansas City Royals have decided to pay Billy Butler a 1 Million dollar buyout of his contract rather than pay him 12.5 million dollars for the 2015 season.

"Obviously when you're on a team that won the American League, it would be tough to leave that team," Butler said. "It's the only organization I've ever been in. That plays a factor."

Read the ESPN article to see the business side of baseball. Butler had an off year but was an All-Star two years ago.

College Football Saturday

#1 Mississippi State struggled to defeat an unranked Arkansas team 17-10. Dak Prescott threw for 331 yards with a TD but threw 2 INTs. Arkansas' Alex Collins carried the ball 16 times for 93 yards and a touchdown.
Recap here.

#2 Florida State recovered from a 21 point deficit to beat #25 Louisville 42-31. Jameis Winston threw for 401 yards and 3 touchdowns but also threw 3 INTs to keep Louisville in the game. Will Gardner was 20 of 38 for 330 yards and a touchdown for Louisville.
Recap here.

#3 Auburn solidified it's hold on the 3rd spot in the playoff race by defeating #4 Ole Miss 35-31. Nick Marshall, Auburn, rushed for 50 yards and 2 TDs and Cameron Artis-Payne added 143 yards rushing with 2 TDs. Bo Wallace, for Ole Miss, threw for 341 yards and 2 TDs
Recap here.

#5 Oregon had an easy time with Stanford with the 45-16 victory. Marcus Mariota of Oregon was 19 of 30 passing for 258 yards and 2 TDs. The Ducks rushed for 264 yards on the day. Mariota also had 9 carries for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Recap here.

#7 TCU needed a Field Goal with no time on the clock to beat West Virginia in Morgan town 31-30.
Recap here.

Caneros Even Series With Charros with 5-4 Win

Orlando Lara started well for the Carros, giving up just one hit over the first two innings. In the bottom of the third though, it was a different story.

Emmanuel Avila led off the inning being hit by a pitch. Avila moved to third when Rodolfo Amador reached safely, and went to second, on throwing error by Lara on a sacrifice bunt. Antonio Lamas, tonight a Charros killer with 4 RBIs, then cleared the bases with a 3 run home run to left for the 3-0 Caneros lead. The Caneros then loaded the bases before Lara got Yancarlo Angulo to fly out to center to end the inning and avoid further damage.

The Charros got a run back in the top of the 4th. Gabriel Gutierrez reached second safely on a throwing error by the Caneros' shortstop. A ground ball to short moved Gutierrez to third who then scored on a single by Jose Felix to cut the Caneros lead to 3-1.

Jalisco took the lead in the top of the 5th, scoring three runs. Eduardo Arredondo and Manny Rodriguez singled and came around to score on Cory Vaughn's third home run of the year, a three run shot that put the Charros ahead 4-3.

The score remained 4-3 Charros until the bottom of the 7th. Rodolfo Amador singled to right to lead off the inning for los Mochis. Justin Christian sacrificed Amador to second. Ken Sigman came on in relief for the Charros and gave up a single to the first batter he faced, Antonio Lamas, that scored Amador to tie the game at 4.

The Caneros took the lead for good in the bottom of the 8th. With one out, Sandy Madera reached, and moved to second on a throwing error by Jesus Lopez. Brian Burgamy was intentionally walked. After a pitching change for the Charros, Ernesto Molinet doubled to score Madera and the Caneros had the 5-4 lead and the final margin of victory.

Manuel Flores took the loss for the Charros to fall to 0-1 on the year. Orlando Lara saw his ERA climb from 0.57 to 1.31 with the 2 earned runs he allowed. Andres Avila got the win for los Mochis.

The Caneros are now 9-10 on the season, still 3 1/2 games behind Mazatlan while the Charros fall to 11-8, a game and a half game out of the lead.

These two teams play the rubber match of the series today in los Mochis before the Charros return home to take on the league leading Venados de Mazatlan in a crucial three game set beginning on Tuesday the 4th of November.

Charros Shutout los Mochis 1-0 to Take Game 1

Jalisco won their 2nd game in a row by defeating the Caneros de los Mochis 1-0 last night behind the superb pitching of Marco Tovar and three relievers. Tovar picked up the win, to go 2-0 on the year, while Adrian Ramirez and Ivan Salas recorded holds and Brian Broderick pitched the last 1 1/3 innings for his 6th save of the year.

The Charros bats were held in check all night by Caneros' starter Luis Niebla. Reliever Oscar Verdugo took the loss to drop to 2-1 on the season.

The Charros were held to just 4 hits for the game but the made the most of two of them. Oscar Verdugo started the 6th in relief of Niebla for the Caneros and gave up a lead off double to Gabriel Gutierrez. Jesus Lopez then beat out a sacrifice bunt to the catcher and the Charros had runners on first and third with no outs. Eduardo Arredondo hit a sac fly to right to score Gutierrez for the only run of the game and the 1-0 Charros victory.

Marco Tovar gave up all 6 Caneros hits but didn't allow a run and dropped his ERA to 2.25 on the year. Tovar walked one and struck out 6. The Charros' relievers did not allow a hit over their 3 innings of work.

Luis Niebla, for los Mochis, allowed just one hit over 5 innings and no runs while walking 1 and striking out 4. Niebla faced just 1 batter over the minimum during his time on the mound.

Back in the lead off spot for the Charros, Eduardo Arredondo went 2 for 3 with the game winning sac fly RBI, his 13th on the year. Both Gabriel Gutierrez and Jesus Lopez were 1 for 3 on the night.

Manny Rodriguez, though 0 for 4 in the game, is 2nd in batting in the Liga Mexicana del Pacifico with a .351 average and Jesus Lopez is 9th at .317. Rodriguez is tied for 2nd with 27 hits and tied for the league lead with 9 doubles. Japhet Amador is 9th with 20 hits and Leo Heras is tied for 2nd in doubles with 6. Cory Vaughn is 2nd in the league with 2 triples while Marquez is tied for 2nd with 4 home runs. Eduardo Arredondo has 13 RBIs, good for 4th and Japhet Amador has 12 RBIs.

Marco Tovar's 2.25 ERA is good for 9th overall in the league and Ben Kozlowski is at 4.26. Brian Broderick's 6 saves place him 2nd in that category while Tovar's 18 Ks rank him in a tie for 3rd in the league.

The Charros de Jalisco have two games remaining with los Mochis before returning home to face the Venados de Mazatlan for three games beginning on Tuesday the 4th of November at 7PM at Panamerican Park in Zapopan.

Jalisco is 1/2 game behind Mazatlan with an 11-7 record while the Caneros fall to 8-10, 3 1/2 games off the lead.