Lanny McDonald was on the Fan morning show this am, which I could listen to because I can no longer talk/text or email on my wireless device (i would recommend shorting stock in Telus and buying Rogers stock from my use alone) and he was talking about, amongst other things, his time with the Colorado Rockies. McDonald was talking about having to play from slumps and how respected Don Cherry was as a coach/motivator (not the most technically savvy coach but a great motivator). So of course the fellas asked about the current state of the Toronto Maple Leafs and McDonald made a very analogy, however I don’t think he intended to do so,he said that with with the team in Colorado they simply didn’t have enough guys who could really play the game. He also said how difficult it was to play the game come November 1st when you are already in essence eliminated from the playoff race.

It got me thinking, in lieu of my post late last night about the reasons this team is failing. Brian Burke is quoted in numerous papers today as saying that all 8 of their offseason player acquisitions have gone south. To which I say that he is in fact correct. Not one is playing with any degree of competency. You know your team is in trouble when Ian White is your best player night in and night out. That’s no knock on Ian White by the way. The result by the way is that the entire franchise, save for those named Vesa and Joey are hanging their hopes on a guy named Jonas and no, not the guy from 640 Toronto! How scary that we are at October 26th and the only prayer we have right now is a rookie goalie who has, for all intents and purposes not accomplished anything in the NHL. What pres tell happens if he gets shelled tonight?

Lanny has reinforced my belief that this team just doesn’t have the horses. They will win some games, but man the building of this team has a LONG way to go….

@yyzsportsmedia

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

It’s day two of the Hunt for October and there is still one more series to get underway. The Boston Red Sox easily took the AL Wild Card and open up postseason play on the road taking on the AL West champs, the Los Angeles Angels. On paper this series looks totally lopsided leaning towards the team from Beantown. This isn’t the first time these two teams have met in the ALDS and Boston owns a 9-1 record over LA. In fact this will be the third straight year the Sox and Halos have met in the first round of the playoffs and both times Boston jumped out to a 2-0 series lead. To take it a step further tonight’s starter for the Angels, John Lackey (11-8) has lost game one both times and he’s hoping the third time is a charm. Boston sends lefty John Lester (15-8) to the mound for this one.

There are also a couple of game twos going down today.

In the first game of their series the Cliff Lee went the distance as the Philadephia Phillies topped the Colorado Rockies 5-1. Lee was dominant as he struck out five, giving up only six hits and the one earned run. He becomes only the eighth Philly in history to go the distance in the postseason. Things don’t get much easier for the Rockies, they face Cole Hammels (10-11) in game two. Aaron Cook starts for Colorado (11-6).

In the other National League series the Los Angeles Dodgers took the St Louis Cardinals 5-3 in a game that featured a playoff record thirty runner left on base. Matt Kemp and Rafael Furcal led the offensive charge for LA. Furcal had three hits, a run and RBI. Kemp hit a two run bomb off Cards starter Chris Carpenter in the first inning.  It was the first home run Carpenter had given up in ten starts. For the Cards they’ll need better production from their superstar first baseman Albert Pujols. Pujols was 0-3 with two intentional walks. With a 1-0 series lead the Dodgers turn to Clayton Kershaw (8-8). St Louis counters with Adam Wainwright (19-8).

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

If last night is any indication of what to expect out of this season’s playoffs we are in for one hell of a ride. The Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers needed more time in the season to determine the winner of the AL Central division. They also needed extra innings, 12 to be exact, as the Twins won the game and the division. So the final spot in the playoffs is filled and things are all set for today’s first round action.

The day kicks off with a National League battle as the wild card winning Colorado Rockies open up on the road against the defending World Series Champs, the Philadelphia Phillies. Bad news coming out of the Mile High State. Team ace Jorge De La Rosa (16-7) will not be available for their series against the Phillies. He’s dealing with a groin injury. Also Jason Marquis (15-3) will not get a start in any of the first three games, but will be in the bullpen if needed. Marquis could off to a great start in the season, but has struggled in the last three weeks.  The other Rox pitchers will have to pick up the slack as they’ll be in tough against the big bats of Philadelphia. First baseman Ryan Howard put up some MVP likes numbers this year hitting 45 home runs and driving in 141 runs. He’s joined by Chase Utley (31/93), Jason Werth (36/99) and off season acquisition Raul Ibanez (34/93). Oh yeah the Phillies have some pretty decent pitchers, starting with last season World Series MVP Cole Hammels. Add to that the reigning AL Cy Young Winner Cliff Lee and veteran Pedro Martinez.  Lee (14-13) gets the call for game one and Colorado counters with Ubaldo Jiminez (15-12).

Next up the New York Yankees welcome the Minnesota ‘We’re Running On Fumes’ Twins to the Bronx for game one of their series. The Yanks are by far the most explosive team in the postseason. They led the league in home runs (244), RBIs (881) and tied the L A Angels for most hits. The only kink in the Yanks armour could be there pitching. CC Sabathia (19-8) started slowly, but ended strong and has to be a strong consideration for the AL Cy Young. The same can’t be said for the rest of the staff. Coming into the end of the season AJ Burnett, Andy Pettitte, Joba Chamberlain and Sergio Mitre struggled. The Twins have not had a lot of success in the Bronx this season. They have yet to win at New Yankee Stadium. Minnesota comes into this one riding some crazy momentum and they’ll need it to compete. The Twins send Brian Duensing (5-2) to the mound and Sabathia goes for the Yankees.

The final game has the St Louis Cardinals making the trip to the Golden State to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers. Since acquiring Matt Holliday from the Oakland A’s the Cards have been the hottest team in the National League. In 63 games Holliday hits 13 home runs and drove in 55. What Holliday has done most is provide a legitimate big bat behind Albert Pujols and Pujols has delivered. He leads the NL in long balls (47), drove in 135 and had a .327 batting average. The Cards is led by the NL comeback player of the year, Chris Carpenter. he finished the season 17-4 and had the lowest ERA (2.24) in the NL. LA game out of the gates on fire, built a huge lead in the NL West and rode it to playoffs. The Dodgers are hoping Manny Ramirez can bounce back to last seasons form or their postseason run may be cut short. Andre Either and Matt Kemp carried the load for LA in Man Rams absence combining for 57 homers and 207 RBIs. Randy Wolf (11-7) starts for the Dodgers and Carpenter throws for the Cards.

Here are the lineups for the shows at noon:

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

Two teams are in must win positions tonight and for one of them a win may not be enough. The Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves have battled valiantly for a chance at a playoff spot, but it may be all for not. The Twins dropped game three of their four game series last night with the Detroit Tigers. That puts Detroit three games up on Minnesota with four to play. If Detroit wins they claim the AL Central title and the remaining AL playoff spot. So the Twins need to win just to keep a float. Minnesota hopes tonight’s starter Scott Baker (14-9) can channel his inner John Travolta so the Twins season keeps ‘Staying Alive’. Detroit counters with Nate Robinson (2-2).

For the Braves they not only need to win tonight, but they also need a Colorado Rockies lose. Colorado has a four game lead over Atlanta in the NL wild card race with four to play. The Rockies play the Milwaukee Brewers this afternoon, so Atlanta may be out of it before they even start their game with the Washington Nationals. Tommy Hanson (11-4) starts for the Braves. Garrett Mock (3-10) goes for the Nats.

TSM NOTE: Of course it’s also opening night in the NHL and our Toronto Maple Leafs take on the rival HABS. The time for talk is over. Let’s see how good Burke’s boys really are.

Here are the lineups for the shows at noon:

All Mats Sundin hall of fame talk!

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

Including today there are five days left in the 2008-09 Major League Baseball season and there are still four vying for two playoff spots. In the American League the New York Yankees locked up the East, the Angels took the West and not surprisingly the Boston Red Sox clinched the wild card. The only question mark is in the Central division where the Detroit Tigers hold a two game edge over the Minnesota Twins. With weather wreaking havoc on game one of their four game series, the Tigers and Twins played a double-header yesterday which they ended up splitting. So with two games left in their series the Tiger’s still hold a two game lead. Tonight Carl Pavano (13-11) goes for the Twins and Eddie Bonine (0-1) starts for the Tigers. Both teams end their season at home. Detroit plays three games against the Chicago White Sox while Minnesota battles the Kansas City Royals in a three gamer.

In the National League both the St Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers have punched their tickets into the playoffs. The Philadelphia Philles’ magic number is one to clinch the East. The Phillies have a five game lead over the Atlanta Braves. So it’s just a matter of time before their in. What is in doubt is the wild card. The Colorado Rockies went into last night holding a two game edge over the Braves. The Rox won. The Braves lost. The lead is now three. The Rockies play two more games against the Milwaukee Brewers and then finish up on the road battling the Dodgers. While the Braves play finish up their series with the Florida Marlins tonight and end their hosting four games against the Washington Nationals.

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

Yesterday’s game between the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers was rained out so to make things even more dramatic tonight they’ll play a double header. The Tigers have a two game lead over the Twins in the AL Central and a sweep of this evening’s games would mean they would clinch the division crown. If the Twins sweep they pull into a tie with the Tigers and things become even more interesting. Starting game one will be the two pitchers that were to go last night, Rick Porcello (14-9) for D-town and Nick Blackburn (11-11) for Minny. In game two the Tigers hand the ball to Justin Verlander (17-9). The Twins counter with Brain Duensing (5-1).

In the National League, the wild card race is heating up. The Colorado Rockies are still first in line for the postseason’s extra invitation, but the Atlanta Braves are only two games back and looking to bud in front. Last night the Braves blanked the Florida Marlins 4-0 in the first game of a three game series. The Rockies didn’t play so the Braves gained a half game on them. For game two tonight, Atlanta turns to veteran pitcher Tim Hudson (2-1). Florida goes with their ace Josh Johnson (15-5). Colorado is in action tonight. They play the first of three against the Milwaukee Brewers. Jason Marquis (15-12) starts for the Rox, while Chris Narveson (2-0) gets the call for the Brew Crew.

Here are the lineups for the shows at noon:

On Hockey Central At Noon:
12-1 Darren Millard Nick Kypreos
1225 brad park
1245 john ferguson jr

1-2 Darren Milllard Doug MacLean

125 Rick Nash

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

For the last couple of weeks the NL wild card has been considered a two horse race and the eventual winner would be either the Colorado Rockies or the San Francisco Giants. Well the Atlanta Braves and the Florida Marlins are now in the mix and have decided to crash the party. In fact the Braves, winners of their last three are now trailing the Rockies by three and a half games while the Marlins are tied with the Giants four games back. Three of the teams open up three game sets tonight, while the Giants hos the Chicago Cubs in game two of a four game set.

Colorado is in tough in their match up this evening as they welcome the St Louis Cardinal to the Mile High State. The Card have been the hottest team in the National League since the all star break and are one game away from punching their ticket to the postseason. Aaron Cook (10-9) gets the call for the Rox. St. Louis give the ball to the ace of their staff, Chris Carpenter (16-4).

Atlanta has the easiest match up. They are in Washington to play arguably the worst team in all of the baseball, the Nationals. The only danger in playing this type of an opponent is the potential of overlooking them and focusing on the their crucial series against Florida. Javier Vazquez (14-9) starts for the Braves. The Nationals counter with lefty John Lannan (9-12).

The Marlins welcome the disappointing New York Mets to Florida tonight. The Mets were supposed to be World Series contenders, but injuries to Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran and David Wright put an early end to any play off aspirations. Ricky Nolasco (12-9) goes for Florida and Tim Redding (3-6) starts for the Mets.

Last night San Fran was one out away from the win, when disaster struck. Closer Brian Wilson gave up a two run bomb to Jeff Baker and the Cubs won 3-2. Ouch. Tonight the Giants send reigning CY Young winner Tim Lincecum (14-6) to the mound. The Cubbies counter with Carlos Zambrano (8-6).

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

If you’re paying attention to baseball’s standings you will notice that pretty much every division in the league is locked up. The New York Yankees were the first team to punch their postseason pass and for the St Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Angels and Dodgers it’s just a matter of time. Even the wild card race is pretty much done. The Boston Red Sox have a seven game lead over the Texas Rangers while the Colorado Rockies have opened up a five game lead over the San Francisco Giants. Well the same cannot be said about the Detroit Tigers. They’ve been atop the AL Central for pretty much the entire season, but with a dozen games left they only have a two and a half game lead over the Minnesota Twins. Their schedule doesn’t do them any favours either. Yes they still have two more games against the Cleveland Indians (nine straight loses and counting), but then the play a three game series in Chicago against the White Sox (who would love to spoil the party) and finish up at home against – yes you guessed it – the Twins. The only way to make the playoffs is to win of course and the Tigers did last night. Edwin Jackson pitched a strong game and Detroit edged Cleveland 3-1. Tonight rookie Rick Porcello (13-9) gets the call for the Tigers. Justin Masterson (4-8) goes for the Tribe.

Minnesota used the long ball last night to keep pace with the Tigers. The Twins hit four home runs en route to a 8-6 over the White Sox. Brian Duensing (4-1) toes the rubber for the Twins. Mark Buehrle (12-9) starts for the White Sox.

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

The San Francisco Giants took two crucial games from the wild card leading Colorado Rockies out of three in their last series and now they move to LA to face the division leading Dodgers. The Giants are eight and a half games back of the Dodgers in the NL West so the chances of catching them with less then 20 games to play is pretty slim. San Fran’s only chance at a playoff spot is through the wild card and they trail the Rockies by three and a half. So the task is easy keep winning and hope the Rox drop some games. Tonight, in the first of three, the Giant send Jonathan ‘Don’t Call Me Dirty’ Sanchez (6-12). Sanchez struggles against LA. In seven career starts he’s 0-4 with a 5.86 ERA. In his last start Sanchez lasted four and a third, gave up five runs and the Giants lost 9-1. Getting the ball for the Dodgers will be Vincente Padilla (11-6).

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

They rumbled last night in the Bronx as the Toronto Blue Jays took on the New York Yankees. Tempers flared in the eighth inning. Earlier in the game Blue Jays Edwin Encarnacion and Aaron Hill were plunked by Yankees pitchers. Jesse Carlson sent a message of his own when he threw behind New York catcher Jorge Posada. The benches empty, but nothing happened. Then a couple of batters later Posada scored on a Brett Gardiner single and nudged Carlson while crossing home. That set things off and the two players went at it and this time the both teams spilled on the field for good reason. Posada was ejected and Carlson had a welt on his head. The fight may have been a draw, but the Jays put the bats to the Yanks, blasting them 10-4. Toronto tied a season high with five  home runs, two of which were launched by Travis Snider.

Round two, I mean game two goes tonight. Chad Gaudin (5-10) starts for New York, while Brain Tallet (7-9) gets the call for Toronto.

If you want to watch a game with playoff intentions you may want to check out Colorado Rockies in San Francisco to take on the Giants. San Fran took game one and two in convincing fashion and now only trail the Rockies by two and a half in the NL wild card race. Jorge De La Rosa (14-7) toes the mound for the Rox and San Fran counters with one of their aces Matt Cain (13-5).