Game 7

First of all, not to toot my own horn, or pat myself on the back, or tie my own shoes, or make my own bed, or wipe my own @$$, a la Big Daddy, or alley my own oop, or march to the beat of my own drum, or anything, but I'd be a way better sportscaster than Tim McCarver or Joe Buck. I used to love Timmy Mac back when he was announcing for the Mets, and I went ballistic when he was replaced by Tom Seaver. That guy shouldn't quit his day job, whatever it is. Tim, however, is just a shell of his former self. Hell, I'd be down on myself too if I had to play second fiddle to Joe "I wish I were Jack Jr." Buck. Anway, the reason I say that I'm better than they are is that on at least three separate occasions during the game last night I pre-empted something that one or the other of them said. I predicted which relief pitchers they would bring in based on who was warming up and who was coming to bat. I predicted who would be intentionally walked and when they'd bring in the new pitcher. And the only tool I had was what was shown on the TV screen, and my challah-roll sized brain. I'm in the wrong business.

Anyway, tachlis. Tonight is game 7 of the NLCS. The term "Game 7" has taken on a life of its own. Game 7 is like the last day of finals when you're still in school. You haven't showered in 6 days, there's trash around because you're too busy to clean up, and you sorta lose track of the time and the date. The only difference is instead of the 17 empty beer bottles around the uh, recycling area, aka the general floor area between my desk and the couch, they would be empty coke bottles. With this in mind, I'd like to share my thoughts on what will happen tonight, IMHO.

As I was reminded earlier today, Oliver Perez, the Mets' starting pitcher, who had a 3-13 record this year, will have the worst record of any NL pitcher starting a game 7 ever. Here is how, I believe, events will unfold. Perez will pitch no more than 4 innings tonight. He will walk 3, strikeout 4 and give up one home run to Albert Pujols. Now, let's turn to Jeff Suppan, the Cardinals' pitcher tonight. He was lights out in game 3 in St. Louis, but let's look at the stats. He had a 3.18 ERA at home and a 5.36 ERA on the road. This one doesn't really make a difference to me, but it's something I noticed: In day games, he had a 3.36 ERA, and in night games he had a 4.62 ERA. Chances are he won't be nearly as dominant as he was on Saturday night. I think both pitchers will be on a very short leash, and the instant they get into trouble their respective nights will be over. Suppan will give up 3 runs in 5 innings. After 5 innings, the Mets will be leading 3-1. I'mma go ahead and predict that the final score will be the same as last night: 4-2 Mets. Reyes will be 2-4 with a stolen base and 2 runs scored. Lo Duca will be 1-3 with a sac bunt. Beltran, Delgado and Wright will each have at least one RBI. Of course, I could be totally off and it'll be a slugfest. Either way, I hope I make it out of this alive.