Category: Uncategorized

NCAAF

• Florida State 24 LSU 23
  • Mike Norvell’s first two seasons in Tallahassee weren’t anything special, but his fortunes have taken a turn in 2022. After eking out this victory, the Seminoles are now 2-0, and have a decent chance of remaining unbeaten heading into Raleigh on October 8th. Jordan Travis has made nice strides this year as the team’s signal-caller.
  • Before things get good for Brian Kelly at LSU, they may have to get ugly. The talent in Baton Rouge is fine, although it could be better. The issue will be implementing a culture of winning again, and it’ll take time for Kelly to form a roster full of his type of players. For now, Jayden Daniels should be the guy at quarterback, as he played well in this contest. One area of improvement for Daniels: he needs to find a way to get the ball to star receiver Kayshon Boutte more. LSU must rebound from this defeat and gather a few victories, because the back nine of the Tigers’ schedule is brutal.

MLB

• Cardinals 2 Cubs 0
  • As I’ve said before, this may shape up to be a special season in St. Louis. Albert Pujols homered yet again in this game — career bomb No. 695, and Ryan Helsley lowered his ERA to 0.99.
• Blue Jays 4 Pirates 3
  • There are just five closers in all baseball with at least 30 saves, and out of all of them, Jordan Romano is easily the most slept on. This season, Romano carries a 2.06 ERA, and while good relievers can’t match the value of good position players and starting pitchers, Romano is one of Toronto’s best players.
• Rockies 8 Reds 4
  • The Reds need to figure out what to do with former No. 2 overall pick Nick Senzel. Senzel has never really gotten going as a pro, and holds an OPS of just .620 this season. Maybe Cincinnati should just get what they can for the outfielder and cut bait.
• Braves 7 Marlins 1
  • Nobody, and I mean nobody, can accuse Michael Harris of mailing it in after receiving a hefty contract extension. Harris has been phenomenal as a rookie all year for Atlanta, and is now slashing .309/.352/.538.
• Athletics 5 Orioles 0
  • Baseball is an unpredictable game, so it’s understandable to lose, but the Orioles can hardly afford to drop games to teams like the Athletics. Baltimore is now 2.5 games back in the wild card race to three teams better than it. Thankfully, the O’s have seven games remaining against the Blue Jays, creating plentiful opportunities to make up ground against one of those teams.
• Red Sox 5 Rangers 2
  • It may be too late for the Red Sox to make a playoff push, but it’s never too late for a player to heat up. Trevor Story may be doing exactly that. The second baseman went 3-4 with a home run in this game.
• Royals 3 Tigers 2
  • Detroit needs to fix its offense, but it also must fix Gregory Soto. The reliever has appeared in the last two Midsummer Classics, but he’s been struggling of late.
• Nationals 7 Mets 1
  • One — that’s the Mets’ lead over the Braves in the NL East. The reality of the situation is that it’s only a matter of time until Atlanta seizes the division lead.
• Mariners 6 Guardians 3
  • One long winning streak could be an aberration, but two of them is no joke. Winners of seven in a row, Seattle is legit, and will be a nightmare for any AL team in a playoff series.
• Dodgers 9 Padres 4
  • The Dodgers are pretty set with talented position players in each spot, but Trayce Thompson may be giving Dave Roberts a dilemma. Thompson isn’t a set in stone every day guy for the club, but his .890 OPS is hard to ignore. If Joey Gallo or Cody Bellinger go cold in a playoff series, Roberts can easily go to Thompson for help.

NCAAF

• Michigan 51 Colorado State 7
  • I know it’s Colorado State, but after losing a significant amount of talent to the NFL, Michigan appears to still have a good defense. The big question for the Wolverines is at the quarterback position. The team can win with Cade McNamara, but J.J. McCarthy is clearly more dynamic. It’ll be interesting to see who Jim Harbaugh starts against UConn.
• NC State 21 East Carolina 20
  • NC State needs to play MUCH better than it did in this game if it wants to take down the likes of Clemson in the ACC. Devin Leary is good, but his offense was a bit underwhelming yesterday. Luckily, the Wolfpack held on due to some East Carolina missed kicks.
  • East Carolina looked solid enough to show that the program may be able to go on a nice run. The Pirates have a bunch of winnable games up until a three game gauntlet of BYU, Cincinnati, and Houston.
• Iowa 7 South Dakota State 3
  • Iowa has some dudes on defense with Riley Moss and Jack Campbell, but the offense is going to be ugly all year. I find it hard to believe that the Hawkeyes don’t have an option at quarterback better than Spencer Petras.
• Maryland 31 Buffalo 10
  • 31 points isn’t exactly an incredible output, but the Terrapins shouldn’t have to worry too much about their offense this season. There aren’t many better air combinations in the country than Taulia Tagovailoa and Rakim Jarrett. The Big Ten East is no joke, but perhaps Maryland can finish in the middle of the pack.
• Rutgers 22 Boston College 21
  • Say what you want about Greg Schiano, but the coach knows how to get the most out of his players at Rutgers. Isiah Pacheco and Bo Melton were certainly big losses, but maybe this game proves it won’t melt down the program.
  • What a disappointing defeat for the Eagles. Next Saturday should be interesting — both Boston College and Virginia Tech should have sour tastes in their mouths, making for what could be a conference matchup full of bad blood.
• North Carolina 63 Appalachian State 61
  • I need oxygen. North Carolina’s defense may be tissue paper, but Drake Maye is unquestionably the answer at quarterback for the Tar Heels. North Carolina should be able to get past Georgia State next week, leading to a showdown against Notre Dame to follow.
  • Appalachian State fans should be sick. Chase Brice is a solid quarterback and played well, but boy, did he miss a few key throws. Despite this outcome, I’m still intrigued by the Mountaineers’ next game — a trip to College Station to take on Texas A&M.
• Delaware 14 Navy 7
  • Navy football needs to take a look in the mirror. After a special 11-2 finish in 2019, the program has struggled in it’s past two campaigns, and now … this. The Midshipmen will probably get rolled next week by Memphis.
• Air Force 48 Northern Iowa 17
  • It should be an up year for Air Force, and the team proved it as best it could in this contest. Northern Iowa is a strong FCS opponent, but Brad Roberts and company ran the ball down their throats to the tune of 582 yards. The Falcons should dismantle Colorado quite easily next week.
• Iowa State 42 SE Missouri State 10
  • Iowa State should be fine this year — not good, not bad. Xavier Hutchinson, however, will not be just fine. The wide receiver exploded for three scores in this game, and should be in store for a big 2022.
• Texas A&M 31 Sam Houston State 0
  • The Aggies got off to a bit of a slow start in this contest, so that may be cause for concern. Also, electric running back Devon Achane averaged just 2.3 yards per carry. Still, Texas A&M has loads of (young) talent, and should be fine overall, but must improve in order to contend for a national championship.
• UCLA 45 Bowling Green 17
  • UCLA made some progress under Chip Kelly in 2021, and we’ll see if that continues this season. A game against a bottom dweller like Bowling Green won’t show much, but at least the Bruins took care of business. After all, Dorian Thompson-Robinson is in his fifth year with the program, so steadiness should be expected. Speaking of expectations, UCLA should be 5-0 going into the game versus Utah on October 8th.
• Georgia 49 Oregon 3
  • It seems fair to say any doubt about whether or not Georgia could contend in 2022 should be put to rest. Even though guys like James Cook and George Pickens were lost to the NFL, the Bulldogs’ weapons may be better than last year. Stetson Bennett was awesome in this game, and if he can play at an elite level, Georgia will yet again be a nightmare to play.
  • Oregon has some issues. Bo Nix is very blah as a signal-caller, and the ‘stop’ unit allowed seven touchdowns on Georgia’s first seven possessions. Without even considering the league’s other teams, it’s hard to imagine the Ducks competing with Utah or USC in the Pac-12.
• Oklahoma 45 UTEP 13
  • I didn’t catch a ton of this game, but it looked like the Sooners’ were much more physical than they were in previous seasons. Thank Brent Venables for that. Even with the losses suffered by the team via coaching changes and the transfer portal, Oklahoma’s offense is still strong. The Sooners are the Big 12’s best team.
• Arizona 38 San Diego State 20
  • Whoa. I wasn’t expecting this, especially following plenty of dreadful seasons in Tucson. The Wildcats’ imposing wide receiver duo of Jacob Cowing and Tetairoa McMillan is no joke, though. Can the Wildcats pull off another upset next week against Mississippi State? I doubt it, but it wouldn’t shock me, either.
• Miami 70 Bethune-Cookman 13
  • The Hurricanes couldn’t have possibly scheduled an easier game, but the Mario Cristobal era is off on the right foot. Tyler Van Dyke will be a problem for ACC defenses all season.
• Arkansas 31 Cincinnati
  • Arkansas looked FAST in this contest. It’s going to be difficult for SEC teams to stop KJ Jefferson this year, as he’s a capable passer and fierce power runner. Plus, the Razorbacks roster two of the SEC’s best defenders in Bumper Pool and Jalen Catalon. Arkansas should take care of business next week at home with South Carolina.
  • The Bearcats had every opportunity to win this game. The prevailing question at this point: is Ben Bryant the answer at quarterback? The senior signal-caller posted nice numbers yesterday, but he had some critical overthrows. Cincinnati won’t make the playoff again in 2022, but 10-2 seems reasonable.
• Houston 37 UTSA 35
  • If someone called Houston the best team in the AAC, I would take no issue. Clayton Tune and Nathaniel Dell is about as good of an air combination you can have as a Group of Five squad.
  • What a tough defeat for UTSA. Unfortunately, it won’t get any easier for the Roadrunners. The program will visit Army and Texas in the next two weeks. While daunting, I bet UTSA is 1-2 when they take on Texas Southern the week after.
• Nebraska 38 North Dakota 17
  • A good portion of this contest was ugly for Nebraska. It feels inevitable that the tenure of Scott Frost will come to a close soon, especially if the Cornhuskers continue to disappoint. Casey Thompson is a solid quarterback, but he’s giving the team the same maddeningly inconsistent play that Adrian Martinez did.
• Wyoming 40 Tulsa 37
  • Tulsa was pretty frisky in 2021, so this is a discouraging defeat. It’s hard to believe the team lost this game — Tulsa easily outgained Wyoming, and had three receivers go over 100 yards. Despite this loss, the Golden Hurricane will have several opportunities this season to be frisky against ranked opponents, as Tulsa will take on Ole Miss, Cincinnati, and Houston.
• Ole Miss 28 Troy 10
  • The Rebels nearly covered yesterday, but I was expecting a lot more than this. It’ll be hard to compete in the brutal SEC West if this play continues. Thankfully for Ole Miss, the team has a laughably easy non-conference slate, allowing time for Jaxson Dart to get settled in at quarterback.
• BYU 50 South Florida 21
  • BYU is a very consistent program. It seems year after year, no matter the personnel, the Cougars win at a solid rate. Alabama versus Texas may be the sexy pick for next weekend’s game of the week, but Baylor versus BYU should be the better football game. I can’t wait.
• USC 66 Rice 14
  • Not bad. Not bad at all for the beginning of the Lincoln Riley era in Los Angeles. Caleb Williams was a bit overrated as a freshman at Oklahoma, but that doesn’t mean USC’s offense can’t be special this year. Of course, the defense needs to show up week after week, but Trojan fans should have no complaints after this one. Next week’s trip to Stanford should feature some big boy football. We’ll see how well USC handles it.
• Ohio 41 Florida Atlantic 38
  • Very impressive win for Ohio. In this contest, Kurtis Rourke had perhaps his best start as a Bobcat, cementing this upset over an okay Florida Atlantic team.
  • Following an easy game next week, the Owls take on UCF and then Purdue. At risk of sounding too black and white, those two games should dictate how Florida Atlantic’s season goes.
• James Madison 44 Middle Tennessee 7
  • James Madison isn’t messing around. In it’s inaugural game as an FBS member, the former FCS power showed it’s a program that Group of Five teams should take seriously. It wouldn’t shock me if James Madison went 8-4 this year.
• Florida 29 Utah 26
  • Florida probably isn’t a playoff team this year, but that doesn’t mean the Gators won’t be dangerous. Anthony Richardson is amazing as a dual-threat quarterback and the Gators showed they can win a physical football game. Ventrell Miller, Brenton Cox, and Amari Burney is a nice core to build around on defense.
  • The Pac-12 … yikes. Oregon’s loss to Georgia was understandable, but the Utes needed to seize this victory. It’s going to be nearly impossible for Utah to make the playoff, especially if Florida only finishes something like 7-5. Utah is a program that prides itself on toughness and winning in the trenches, but Florida ran all over them. Following the developments in this game, it’s hard to take the Pac-12 seriously.
• Baylor 69 Albany 10
  • This game tells us nothing, so we’ll see how the Bears look moving forward. The media, as evidenced by preseason polls and picks, loves the Bears. Much of Baylor’s season rests on the arm of sophomore signal-caller Blake Shapen.
• Wisconsin 38 Illinois State
  • Yes, it’s Illinois State, but the Badgers should have a vaunted defense yet again in 2022, not to mention an elite run game. Nick Herbig is returning as a defender, and it appears he’ll, as expected, have some help this season.
• Kentucky 37 Miami (OH) 13
  • Miami (OH) is one of the MAC’s better teams, so this is a great win for the Wildcats. Kentucky may be in for the one of the program’s best seasons ever, and the talented Will Levis gave us every reason to believe that’s possible in this game. While Levis is excellent, Kentucky will make its bones on defense with Deandre Square and company. So far, so good, for the defense. Holding Brett Gabbert to 5.9 yards per attempt and zero touchdowns is a great start.
  • Miami (OH) lost tons of a talent on the defensive side of the ball this offseason due to departures by Dominique Robinson, Sterling Weatherford, and Ivan Pace, and it certainly showed last night. The RedHawks may need the offense to do the heavy lifting in 2022.

NCAAF

• Michigan State 35 Western Michigan 13
  • Each of these programs lost a fair amount of production from 2021, so I was curious to see how this contest would turn out. It’s still hard for me to have complete faith in Payton Thorne. Despite tossing four touchdowns yesterday, he completed just half of his passes. Also, we’ll find out fairly quickly whether or not Kenneth Walker was just the product of the system and a great offensive line. In this game, the Spartans didn’t have much difficulty running the ball, but Western Michigan isn’t exactly the stiffest of competition.
• Old Dominion 20 Virginia Tech 17
  • The Hokies have a lot of work to do in order to bring the program back to the heights it used to reach. A good start would be to stop losing non-conference affairs to lesser regional foes. 2014 East Carolina, 2018 Old Dominion, and 2022 Old Dominion — all losses for Virginia Tech. The Hokies also dropped a game to Liberty two years ago, but at least the Flames were ranked. I figured Grant Wells would come in and do at least a decent job at quarterback for Virginia Tech, but his declining play continued last night, throwing four interceptions. ACC play begins next week for the Hokies, and I have them losing at home to Boston College.
• William & Mary 41 Charlotte 24
  • This season has … not gotten off to a great start for Charlotte. Now 0-2 with one loss coming to an FCS opponent, the 49ers are probably heading towards a miserable season. Expect Maryland to beat them by four or more touchdowns next weekend.
• Duke 30 Temple 0
  • This was a really nice way for Mike Elko to kick off his career with Duke. Remember when D’Wan Mathis started at quarterback for Georgia? That was a bad decision at the time and looks even worse now. Mathis was dreadful last night for Temple, averaging less than four yards per attempt.
• Indiana 23 Illinois 20
  • I highly doubt this game will have an impact on the Big Ten title race, but it’s always nice to begin conference play with a victory. It’s now in play for the Hoosiers to start 3-0, as the program’s next two games are against Idaho and Western Kentucky.
• TCU 38 Colorado 13
  • Colorado may very well bring up the rear in the Pac-12 in 2022, but TCU may end up being stealthy good. If the Horned Frogs can squeeze past SMU on September 24th, a showdown with Oklahoma will await. In that game, Sonny Dykes will need to get better play out of the quarterback position, regardless of who’s playing it.

NBA

• Celtics PF Danilo Gallinari out indefinitely with torn ACL
  • This is a blow, but not a crushing one, to the Celtics. Gallinari was set to gobble up around maybe half of Boston’s minutes at power forward, but the team will need to pivot. That’s not a huge issue, though. Jayson Tatum can play the position, and the team can go a bit bigger with lineups containing both Al Horford and Robert Williams. Overall, Boston is still a strong contender, but may need to add a solid veteran at some point.

NFL

• Broncos sign QB Russell Wilson to five-year, $245M extension
  • Wilson is still one of the game’s better quarterbacks, but he wasn’t exactly great last season, and this deal will pay him $49M in 2028 — Wilson’s age 39 season. That’s certainly not a good thing for the Broncos’ future cap sheet, but Denver is in win-now mode, so locking up Wilson and making him happy is logical.
• Titans EDGE Harold Landry will miss rest of season due to torn ACL
  • The AFC South is a weak division — perhaps the weakest in the NFL, but following this injury, Tennessee will have a tough time winning it. A ton of pressure will now be on fourth-round rookie Rashad Weaver to make an immediate impact, but he probably won’t be ready. For the Titans to surprise this year, the run game will need to be elite. I’m not sure that’s likely, as Tennessee’s offensive line is less than spectacular.

NCAAF

• Toledo 37 Long Island 0
  • Toledo did it’s job in this game, but Dequan Finn and the offense will need to play better in order to challenge Ohio State and beat San Diego State later this month.
• Tennessee 59 Ball State 10
  • Ball State is bad, and probably won’t compete for much of anything in the MAC this season, but Tennessee’s offense displayed just how impressive it can be in this contest. Hendon Hooker should be in store for a big year, and that’ll benefit his top receiver, Cedric Tillman, as well.
• Oklahoma State 58 Central Michigan 44
  • This game was wild. I stopped paying attention when the Cowboys led, 37-7, but Oklahoma State’s defense fell apart afterward. Spencer Sanders and the offense made it look easy in this game, but it’s fair to wonder if the departure of former defensive coordinator Jim Knowles will lead to the defense cratering. It’s incredibly worrisome that the Cowboys were outgained by the Chippewas last night, 546-531.
• Wake Forest 44 VMI 10
  • I thought Wake Forest would’ve won by a larger margin than this, and perhaps they would’ve if Sam Hartman played. The Demon Deacons’ next game, a visit to Vanderbilt, should be interesting.
• Pittsburgh 38 West Virginia 31
  • This matchup needs to be played annually. The Panthers’ offense, of course, isn’t quite what it was in 2021 when it featured Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison, but it was good enough in this game. Bryce Ford-Wheaton and Dante Stills stood out for the Mountaineers, a team that thankfully has two snoozers coming up — Kansas and Towson. Back to the Panthers — their game against Tennessee next week should be excellent, at least on paper. Pittsburgh holds an edge because it’s at home, but the Volunteers should be favored.
• Northern Illinois 34 Eastern Illinois 27
  • I figured Northern Illinois would fare better than this. If the Huskies play like this in their next three contests, the results probably won’t look good against Tulsa, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky.
• Missouri 52 Louisiana Tech 24
  • After a 6-7 finish in 2021 and little hype coming into this season, it’s hard to feel good about Missouri, even after this demolition. With that said, for the Tigers, freshman wide receiver Luther Burden scored two touchdowns in this game, and he’s a huge reason for hope regarding Missouri’s future.
• Penn State 35 Purdue 31
  • Winning conference road games, especially in the Big Ten, is a difficult task. That task becomes a bit easier when you have a quarterback in his sixth year like Sean Clifford. Clifford was just good enough in this game to hold off Drew Allar from breathing down his neck for the starting job, but the Nittany Lions still have other issues. The running game, similar to last season, was fairly nonexistent.
  • This was a major missed opportunity by Purdue. Whether it was due to poor tackling or bad play calling, the Boilermakers had plenty of chances to win last night. What worsens the blow even further is that Purdue has a string of winnable games ahead leading up to a visit to Madison on October 22nd.
• Minnesota 38 New Mexico State 0
  • New Mexico State is horrible, and Minnesota has a very solid defense, so this result comes as no surprise. It feels as if Tanner Morgan and Mohamed Ibrahim have been with the Golden Gophers since the BCS era, giving Minnesota loads of experience on offense. Minnesota has a laughably easy non-conference schedule, so the first real test will be at Michigan State in a few weeks.
• Fresno State 35 Cal Poly 7
  • Fresno State should be a contender in the Mountain West, so it would’ve been nice to see the team win by a larger margin than this. Regardless, Jake Haener was good, and gives the Bulldogs a realistic chance to take down Oregon State next weekend.

NBA

• Cavaliers receive: Donovan Mitchell
• Jazz receive: Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen, Ochai Agbaji, three unprotected first-round picks, and two first-round pick swaps
  • The Cavaliers had a fun and mostly unexpectedly successful season last year, and as a result, are clearly pushing their chips to the center of the table. Three first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps sounds like a lot, but if Cleveland is as good as it should be, it won’t end up mattering too much. Darius Garland, Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen is a fantastic core four that should propel the Cavs to the top, or near the top, of the East for a long time. For Utah, obviously the team is rebuilding. Getting Agbaji is a nice get, but the draft capital acquired may not end up amounting to much. Regardless, it’s not a bad idea for the Jazz to empty the tank and hit the reset button.

Bills 14-3
Dolphins 7-10
Jets 6-11
Patriots 5-12

Bengals 12-5
Ravens 11-6
Steelers 9-8
Browns 9-8

Colts 11-6
Titans 8-9
Jaguars 4-13
Texans 2-15

Chiefs 12-5
Broncos 11-6
Chargers 11-6
Raiders 8-9

Cowboys 11-6
Eagles 10-7
Commanders 6-11
Giants 5-12

Packers 12-5
Vikings 9-8
Lions 8-9
Bears 4-13

Buccaneers 14-3
Saints 7-10
Panthers 7-10
Falcons 2-15

Rams 13-4
Cardinals 11-6
49ers 9-8
Seahawks 4-13

AFC
1. Bills 14-3
2. Bengals 12-5
3. Chiefs 12-5
4. Colts 11-6
5. Ravens 11-6
6. Broncos 11-6
7. Chargers 11-6

NFC
1. Buccaneers 14-3
2. Rams 13-4
3. Packers 12-5
4. Cowboys 11-6
5. Cardinals 11-6
6. Eagles 10-7
7. Vikings 9-8

5 Ravens at 4 Colts
6 Broncos at 3 Chiefs
7 Chargers at 2 Bengals

5 Cardinals at 4 Cowboys
6 Eagles at 3 Packers
7 Vikings at 2 Rams

5 Ravens at 3 Chiefs
7 Chargers at 1 Bills

3 Packers at 2 Rams
5 Cardinals at 1 Buccaneers

3 Chiefs at 1 Bills
3 Packers at 1 Buccaneers

1 Bills vs 3 Packers

MVP: Josh Allen
Offensive Player of the Year: Ja’Maar Chase
Defensive Player of the Year: T.J. Watt
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Chris Olave
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Aidan Hutchinson
Comeback Player of the Year: Khalil Mack
Coach of the Year: Todd Bowles

MLB

• Orioles promote Gunnar Henderson to MLB
  • Henderson, the No. 2 prospect in all of baseball, should give a nice boost to the Orioles, and I’m impressed the organization promoted him so soon. At just barely 21-years-old, most clubs would be more cautious, but with just a 5.8% chance to make the playoffs, this makes a ton of sense.
• Brewers 6 Pirates 1
  • Going back to his rookie season in 2019, we’ve always known Keston Hiura was capable of raking at the major league level. In the past two seasons, that wasn’t exactly on display, but things have taken a positive turn in 2022. Suddenly, with Hiura getting himself going, the Brewers have somewhat of a deep lineup with Christian Yelich, Willy Adames, Rowdy Tellez, Andrew McCutchen, Hunter Renfroe, and Kolten Wong joining Hiura.
• Padres 5 Giants 4
  • The talent of the Padres may be starting to show. Winners of three consecutive, the Friars got a monster month out of Manny Machado — not to mention a few blockbuster trades as well. The pitching is questionable, but it wouldn’t be if yesterday’s starter Joe Musgrove was capable of pitching every day.
• Mets 2 Dodgers 1
  • Winning in the postseason can, at times, be as simple as lining of your pitching the perfect way for each particular game. For instance, in this potential playoff matchup, New York went with Jacob deGrom, Adam Ottavino, and Edwin Diaz. That’s tough to beat.
• Mariners 5 Tigers 3
  • In a game of baseball in which starting pitchers are throwing less and less innings, thus leading to fewer decisions, I respect the regularity in which Marco Gonzales registers a win or loss. At 10-12 this year, Gonzales has 22 decisions, but that still falls well short of his total of 29 in 2019. Throughout baseball, no hurler has more decisions this season than Gonzales, and just Kyle Wright and Patrick Corbin match Gonzales’ tally.
• Red Sox 6 Twins 5
  • At 10-1 with a 2.56 ERA, Michael Wacha is having a great redemption year for the Red Sox. The righty will be a free agent at the end of the year, and it’ll be interesting to see what type of contract he receives. The 31-year-old’s career started off nicely, but up until this season, he hadn’t been good since 2018.

MLB

• Guardians 5 Orioles 1
  • For awhile, it felt as if the performances of a few Guardians were somewhat fluky. Steven Kwan, Amed Rosario, Oscar Gonzalez, and Andres Gimenez all got off to starts that seemed unsustainable, yet here we are, at the end of August, and all four hitters are still integral pieces to Cleveland’s success. The Guardians are awesome at player development.
• Reds 5 Cardinals 1
  • Dakota Hudson has been a major hindrance for the Cardinals lately. Posting a 5.76 ERA in August, the starter surely shouldn’t be a part of a likely St. Louis playoff rotation. Thankfully, it appears as if Jack Flaherty will return in time for the postseason.
• Rays 7 Marlins 2
  • Everything has been going right for the Rays lately, but now, ace Shane McClanhan may be injured. If the injury is substantial, this would be a death blow to Tampa Bay, as I don’t think the team would be able to cobble together enough quality pitching to survive in a playoff series against one of the AL’s big guns.
• Dodgers 4 Mets 3
  • 90 wins now for Los Angeles. I spoke about the Guardians’ player development, and the Dodgers certainly match it. The difference, though, is that Los Angeles is a high-budget organization, giving it a huge advantage over Cleveland, and thus leading to a 90-38 mark.
• Rockies 3 Braves 2
  • The front office probably won’t, but if Colorado opts to blow it up this offseason, Daniel Bard would be a nice trade chip. Recording his 28th save in this contest, the reliever is under team control through 2024, and despite his age, should be able to fetch a nice return for the Rockies. With that said, the team will likely decide to give 2023 a chance, especially considering that the hope will be Kris Bryant will be available the whole season.
• Astros 4 Rangers 2
  • I’ve talked about something along the lines of this before, but Framber Valdez is a rock. Eight innings in this game for the lefty, giving him his 14th win of 2022. With a guy like Valdez on the mound, it’s difficult to lose, especially when your lineup has players like Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Kyle Tucker in it.
• Diamondbacks 12 Phillies 3
  • Arizona obviously won’t be playing deep into October, but the club actually has some things going for it. The team has won five straight, the uber-talented Corbin Carroll has debuted, and Zac Gallen is still a stud.

NBA

• Knicks sign SG RJ Barrett to four-year, $120M extension
  • This is … a lot, even with a rising salary cap, for an inefficient wing like Barrett, but I wouldn’t expect anything else of the Knicks. Posting a career BPM in the negatives, Barrett’s main driving force is his scoring, but he shot just 41% from the floor last season. Now, New York is stuck with Barrett, Julius Randle, and Jalen Brunson on long-term deals that are all above market value.

MLB

• Blue Jays 5 Cubs 4
  • The Blue Jays are so dangerous because they roster so many guys that can beat you. Enter Danny Jansen, who drove in four runs yesterday. All that is great, but it won’t matter for Toronto if Jose Berrios doesn’t start pitching better.
• Cardinals 13 Reds 4
  • The Cardinals have been a machine lately. At 31-14 over its last 45, St. Louis continues to get contributions out of guys like Brendan Donovan and Corey Dickerson. The NL is stacked with several good teams, but it wouldn’t shock me if the Cardinals won the pennant — the pitching just needs to be a bit better.
• Brewers 7 Pirates 5
  • Ever since the Brewers acquired Willy Adames from the Rays, it’s felt as if the shortstop has been key to countless Milwaukee victories. This game was another instance, as Adames tallied three hits and two runs in a much needed comeback win.
• Angels 4 Yankees 3
  • It’s hard to trust the Yankees at this point. After seemingly righting the ship, New York has lost three straight. Also, moving Anthony Rizzo down to sixth in the order isn’t the answer. Rizzo homered in this game, his 29th of 2022. If things continue to spiral, the Yankees will end up wasting an epic Aaron Judge season, and perhaps lose him via free agency in the process.

MLB

• Dodgers 8 Marlins 1
  • The talent in which the Dodgers can throw out on the diamond each day is incredible. Mookie Betts has had an amazing last few days. Trea Turner is one of the sport’s top shortstops. Freddie Freeman is an established star. Max Muncy, Justin Turner, and Julio Urias, Los Angeles’ starter in this game, are all capable of playing at a very high level. The list goes on and on.
• Diamondbacks 3 White Sox 2
  • Well, apparently not even Dylan Cease can save the sinking ship that is the White Sox. According to FanGraphs, Chicago has a 13.4% chance to make the playoffs. If they miss out, Tony La Russa probably won’t be with the team in 2023.
• Royals 15 Padres 7
  • I’ve never quite seen a trade blowup in the faces of the teams involved like the Josh Hader trade has. The acquisition shook the Brewers, as the club struggled in the aftermath of the move. For the Padres, it’s been worse. The team is starting to play better, but Hader’s ERA as a Padre is now 23.14. Small sample size? Sure. But even if you account for all of 2022, the four-time All-Star’s mark is still an ugly 6.52.
• Tigers 9 Rangers 8
  • 26 runs in three games for Detroit. A strong September for the Tigers won’t lead many into believing the team can contend in 2023, but any sort of momentum is good news for Detroit.
• Mariners 4 Guardians 0
  • The unit lacks of superstar, but the Mariners’ starting pitching staff is deep and could potentially aid the team in a playoff run. Robbie Ray, Seattle’s starter in this contest, is underrated. It obviously doesn’t stop there. The recently-acquired Luis Castillo is really good, and Logan Gilbert, Marco Gonzales, Chris Flexen, and George Kirby are all capable, as well.

NFL

• Saints OT Trevor Penning suffers torn foot ligament and will miss an extended period of time
  • The Saints offensive line will be fine — it was one of the league’s best protection units before this injury, but Penning’s development will be hurt. The No. 19 pick in this past draft could’ve served as protection on Jameis Winston’s blind side at some point early in the season, but that’ll have to wait.

NCAAF

• Western Kentucky 38 Austin Peay 27
  • This game certainly taught us that Western Kentucky will, as expected, miss Bailey Zappe and Jerreth Sterns this season. The duo set some records last year, so we’ll see what Austin Reed and company can do this season to try to match. Despite scoring 38 points yesterday, the early indications aren’t promising.
• Northwestern 31 Nebraska 28
  • Nebraska looked impressive early on, but really collapsed as the game went on — Casey Thompson in particular. To reverse the disaster of last year’s 3-9 mark, the Cornhuskers had to win this game. Northwestern entered the day No. 89 in SP+, and Nebraska failed to take advantage of that. However, per usual, Northwestern appears to have a gritty and mature team, traits that should allow the program to perhaps steal a few more Big Ten victories in 2022.
• Utah State 31 UConn 20
  • This wasn’t exactly an impressive performance by the Aggies, a bad omen considering the program travels to Tuscaloosa next weekend. Although that sounds bad, winning 11 games a season ago is no joke, so perhaps Utah State can keep it within 30 or so. I have my doubts. On the UConn side of things, it’s sad what the program has become. The administration simply doesn’t take football seriously. The Huskies had four players selected on Day 1 on the 2009 NFL Draft. Four! A lot has changed.
• Illinois 38 Wyoming 6
  • This was a nice start for Illinois. The Illini aren’t going to be much competition for the majority of the Big Ten, but the team showed yesterday that the defense should be fine. Additionally, Bret Bielema loves to run the football, and this team may be equipped to do that at a decent level. 41 carries for 260 yards isn’t too shabby, even versus Wyoming.
• Florida State 47 Duquesne 7
  • This wasn’t much of a test for the Seminoles, so there’s not a lot to take from this contest. We’ll find out more next Sunday night against LSU, but at least Florida State took care of business in this one. Last year, Florida State dropped an early season game to Jacksonville State of the FCS.
• North Carolina 56 Florida A&M 24
  • Maybe there’s a reason Gene Chizik hasn’t coached since 2016. The new North Carolina defensive signal-caller saw his unit struggle mightily in this tilt. Losing Tony Grimes early didn’t help, but the Tar Heels let Florida A&M move the ball through the air with ease at times. On the other side of the ball, new quarterback starter Drake Maye was fine, and he’ll need to play well next week when the Tar Heels travel to Boone. North Carolina versus Appalachian State should be a good game — certainly good enough to be one of the top 12:00 PM ET contests next Saturday.
• Nevada 23 New Mexico State 12
  • It’s going to be a rough year for each of these teams. Nevada returns, by far, the least amount of production in all of college football from a season ago. Most of all, replacing Carson Strong will be a tall task. New Mexico State could very well be the worst FBS team in 2022, so Nevada edging the Aggies by just 11 isn’t a great sign.
• Vanderbilt 63 Hawaii 10
  • I took Hawaii +9 in this game. Yikes. The Rainbow Warriors had some serious offseason turmoil, and it appears that definitely carried over into this game. After this demolition, maybe Vanderbilt will be able to win an SEC game this season. Mike Wright made a solid impact last night with both his arms and legs, so perhaps the Commodores now have more juice than they had in previous years.
• College Football Playoff Rankings
  • 1. Alabama (0-0)
  • 2. Ohio State (0-0)
  • 3. Georgia (0-0)
  • 4. Clemson (0-0)
  • 5. Oklahoma (0-0)
  • 6. Utah (0-0)

MLB

• Angels 2 Blue Jays 0
  • Back-to-back shutouts for Toronto’s lineup. Not great. If this occurred in a playoff series, the Jays would be toast, especially considering that the Blue Jays’ pitching isn’t as effective as that of most AL contenders.
• Marlins 2 Dodgers 1
  • One of the only reasons Miami has a halfway okay record (55-71) is due to the pitching Sandy Alcantara. After throwing a strong complete game yesterday, the 26-year-old is 12-6 with a 2.13 ERA.
• Reds 6 Nationals 2
  • The Reds have an abundance of quality prospects throughout their system, but Alexis Diaz is one that’s already arrived. The 25-year-old should be Cincinnati’s closer of the present and future.
• Tigers 11 Rangers 2
  • I think it’s about time for clubs to realize that Dallas Keuchel simply doesn’t have it anymore. Now with his third team of 2022, Keuchel has bombed with each of them, perhaps pointing to the end of a good career.
• Cardinals 6 Braves 5
  • He’s a fantastic player, so this isn’t shocking, but few, if any, players have performed better than Nolan Arenado this month. Slashing .341/.394/1.088 along with playing terrific defense on the hot corner in August, Arenado has given the Cardinals even more hope that the swan songs of Albert Pujols’ and Yadier Molina’s careers can end in a special way.

NFL

• Seahawks name Geno Smith starting QB
  • This isn’t exactly surprising. After the Russell Wilson trade, I figured Drew Lock would be the guy, but right out of the gate, Pete Carroll seemed to have different plans. Smith possess less upside than Lock, but maybe it’s true that he gives the franchise a better chance to win in 2022. The Seahawks don’t have a very talented roster, but at least Smith will have DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett to throw to. In a difficult NFC West and with a schedule that also features the AFC West, it’s hard to envision more than six or seven victories for Seattle.

MLB

• Mariners sign CF Julio Rodriguez to 14-year, $210M extension
  • This is what smart organizations do. This deal can potentially rise to over $400M with incentives, but Rodriguez is a phenom and will surely be worth it. With that said, agents and players have obviously taken note of past deals similar to this one being bargains, so the Mariners are paying a bit more than what they would’ve in the past.
• Dodgers 10 Marlins 6
  • For as great a player he is, Mookie Betts has flown a bit under the radar this season. With Los Angeles holding baseball’s best record and Betts homering twice yesterday, that may soon change.
• Phillies 7 Pirates 4
  • Philadelphia received some flak for building a position player unit with some heavy bats, but poor defenders. To this point, it’s mostly worked, with the club sitting at 71-55 and holding a wild card spot. Now, Bryce Harper is back and Nick Castellanos is hitting better, making for a dangerous team down the stretch.
• Diamondbacks 7 White Sox 2
  • I can’t believe, after their latest set of struggles, the White Sox are just four games behind in the AL Central. Cleveland simply hasn’t seized control of the division — at least not yet. I spoke positively about Johnny Cueto recently, and his ERA is still rock-solid, but his peripherals have been poor all season, so he regressed to the mean a bit with his start in this game. Cueto surrendered seven earned runs over five innings.
• Orioles 2 Astros 0
  • What were the odds of Kyle Bradish locking down a good Astros lineup? The rookie has struggled a bit this season, but he tossed eight scoreless frames in this contest. The Orioles continue to have a magical season, and I wonder if and when it’s going to end.
• Yankees 3 Athletics 2
  • Yesterday, I put together a FanDuel DFS lineup featuring Gerrit Cole as my pitcher. I was WAY behind early, but Cole’s 11 punch outs in this game saved me, allowing me to get into the money.

MLB

• Rays 8 Angels 3
  • I can’t get over how good Drew Rasmussen has been this month. I know Kevin Cash loves deploying at least several relievers per game, but it’d be nice to also see the righty pitch deeper into games. He deserves it with his 1.59 ERA in August.
• Cardinals 8 Cubs 3
  • Yeah, let’s go ahead and give Paul Goldschmidt the NL MVP. His .339/.420/.637 slash line does all the talking, but the first baseman also leads the NL in WAR with 7.1.
• Phillies 4 Reds 0
  • Aaron Nola is a very good pitcher, so a run output of zero is understandable in this game, but the Reds have been downtrodden since the decent run they had midseason. Kyle Farmer is a decent player, but he should never be batting third for an MLB team.
• Mets 3 Rockies
  • The Mets were -480 to win this contest — one of the biggest single-game MLB favorites I can remember. It’s quite easy for a team like the Mets to beat a team like the Rockies, especially at Citi Field, when Jacob deGrom is on the bump.
• Blue Jays 6 Red Sox 5
  • Any hope Boston had of playing baseball extending deep into the month of October has pretty much vanished after this four-game losing streak. For the Red Sox, a big winter awaits. Contract talks between the club and Rafael Devers, Xander Bogaerts, and possibly even J.D. Martinez loom.
• Astros 6 Twins 3
  • The Orioles are doing just fine, but I’m still a bit perplexed as to why the organization shipped Trey Mancini off to Houston. The 30-year-old sports an OPS of .821 since changing postal codes.
• Yankees 13 Athletics 4
  • Maybe getting talented slugger Giancarlo Stanton back into the lineup will be all the Yankees need. Stanton drove in three runs yesterday, and should be able to take some pressure off a somewhat slumping Anthony Rizzo.