It Happened.

Well, I Got That One Wrong

Congrats to the Phillies.

Man, that's gonna stick in the craw of the Mets all winter. LOL!

You know, after Game 5 of the ALCS, the Rays kinda reverted to the Devil Rays, you know? They really sucked in this series. What the hell happened?

I wouldn't be surprised if the Rays don't repeat as a playoff team. They have the stink of "one and done" to me, like the Rockies and the Tigers.


Caption:

Fans gesture to Philadelphia Phillies' Shane Victorino as the Phillies head down Broad Street during a victory parade in downtown Philadelphia Friday Oct. 31, 2008. Thousands of spectators packed downtown for Friday's parade celebrating the Phillies World Series victory against the Tampa Bay Rays.

World Series Predictions

I say Rays in 6. Their pitching is stronger. Also, the Phillies' ballpark works against them against a team like the Rays that hits a lot of home runs. I expect at least one game in Philly will have a football score like 14-10, or something like that.

Playoff Predictions: Round 2

Well, I got three of the four division series winners right. But I did say that the Cubs were the Cubs. What the hell is the matter with that team? They played tight. And the Angels? They played like $#!@. How come they never played so poorly vs. the Yankees?

ACLS:
Boston Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays: The only thing standing between the hated BoSox and back-to-back World Series championships are the Rays. I pray that the Rays beat them. I’m sick of Red Sox and their front runner “fans.” Rays in 6. But they REALLY need to win the first two games at home.

NLCS:
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Philadelphia Phillies: Don’t look now, but the Dodgers look like they’re gonna pull an ’06 Cardinals on everybody. My head says the Phillies are a better team, but my gut says the Dodgers are going to pull this off. Dodgers in 7.

Playoff Predictions: First Round

Brewers vs. Phillies: I like both these teams. There are nice young stars on both squads. I feel that the Phillies have the edge since they were in the playoffs last years and they have an idea what went wrong. Also, Sabathia can’t start game 1, and Sheets is done for the year, so those are big minuses for the Brewers. I’d say Phillies in 4, but I wouldn’t be sad if the Brewers managed to pull this off.

Dodgers vs. Cubs: The Cubs have much better pitching and the home field advantage, but they are the Cubs. This is essentially the same squad that got swept last year by the Diamondbacks, and that shouldn’t have happened. Manny is motivated, and that’s dangerous. But Joe Torre hasn’t gotten out of the first round of the playoffs since 2004. It would be interesting if he did so now, eh? But I say Cubs in 5.

Red Sox vs. Angels: I hate the Red Sox, but the Angels will probably find a way to lose this series. The Angels haven’t played a meaningful game all year, and I think some of their guys are hurt, but not as bad as last year with Garret Anderson getting pink eye, of all things. I’d like the Angels to win this one, but I’ll reluctantly say Red Sox in 5.

White Sox vs. Rays: The White Sox suck. The way they played down the stretch was pitiful. I was sad that the Twins lost yesterday, but either team is inferior to the Rays. The Rays have better pitching and younger, more athletic players. The only thing that could stop them would be if they get psyched out, or their manager, who has never managed an important game, drops the ball. Rays in 4.

My baseball wishes for today

My baseball wishes for today, the final day of the season.

Since my Yankees are out of it, I wish the most pain on everyone:

• I hope the Mets lose today and the Brewers also lose, forcing a one-game playoff on Monday, which Pedro will start. And I hope he gets shelled.

• I hope the Twins and the White Sox both lose today, forcing the White Sox to play a makeup game on Monday vs. the Tigers. I want the Sox to win that game, which will force a one-game playoff on Tuesday, which I want the Twins to win.

• I want the Angels to sweep the Red Sox.

• I want the Rays to defeat the Twins.

• I want the Rays to defeat the Angels in seven games and Kazmir to throw his arm out, requiring Tommy John surgery, killing his 2009 season.

• In the NL, I want the Dodgers to defeat the Cubs, extending their misery to 101 years. I want Manny to blow out his ACL, requiring surgery in the off-season.

• I want the Brewers to sweep the Phillies as a reminder that this 100 year-old team has only one championship under its belt.

• I want the Brewers to defeat the Dodgers in five games. I want the Brewers to come in to the World Series rested while the Rays come in banged up. I want the Brewers to take the Rays in seven sloppy, horribly pitched games that generate an all-time low in ratings for Fox. Questions will be raised about the ability of both Sheets and Sabathia to come through in post season play.

Have a great day, everyone!

2008 Baseball Predictions

Here are my predictions for the 2008 season:

AL East: Yankees (Everyone is picking Boston, but outside of Beckett, you have Dice-K who is hittable and two rookies, one of whom had cancer. You can’t tell me Boston fans feel confident about that. As for the Yanks, I expect Wang to win 17-20 games, Andy to win 15 and Mussina to win 11 and we’ll get at least ten each from Hughes and Kennedy. The bats are enough to win the rest. And remember – the Yankees won 94 games last year after a historically shitty start. The Red Sox only won two more games. I’m picking the Yankees to go 95-67.)

AL Central: Indians (The Tigers lineup is awesome, but it was awesome last year – and Cleveland handled their candy asses with a team that’s inferior on paper. I don’t expect Dontrelle to do shit against AL hitters, so the Tigers’ rotation is suspect after Verlander.)

AL West: Angels (Everyone is picking Seattle, but Seattle was streaky as hell last year – win 8, lose 5 in a row, etc.)

Wild Card: Tigers (Yes, I’m once again picking Boston not to make the playoffs.)

ALCS: Yankees over Tigers

AL Surprise Team: KC Royals. They’re tough on the Tigers, of all teams, which is a great boon for the Indians.

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NL East: Phillies (Like the Yankees and Tigers, I think the Phillies can slug their way through the season. Their pitching is nothing after Hamels, though and they have bullpen concerns, like most teams.)

NL Central: Cubs (It’s hard not to pick the Cubs, but they should’ve won going away last year and the Brewers were in the mix until the end. The Cubs seriously underwhelm me, but the NL Central is piss poor in talent. Houston, Pittsburgh and St. Louis are going nowhere. I feel the Brewers will take a step back, and the Reds? Where’s the pitching? They have Harang and... I guess that all.)

NL West: Diamondbacks (I would like to pick the Rockies, but I think their shot was last year. How can they repeat that magic? And they lost one of their starters. I do think this a race that will go down to the wire, however. The Giants will come in dead last with the Padres slightly better. I feel the Dodgers will improve under Torre, but will not contend this year.)

NL Wild Card: Mets (With Santana they will improve, but there are so many people on that team that you KNOW will spend significant time on the DL – Pedro, El Duque, Alou, Beltran, Delgado. Willie will be fired this year, I’m sure.)

NL Surprise Team: The Nationals. I see them winning 80+ games and becoming like the Blue Jays are in the AL East – tough, but in an unforgiving division with superior teams.

NLCS: Cubs over Mets

World Series: Yankees over Cubs

AL MVP: A-Rod (with Robinson Cano, Manny Ramirez and Alex Rios in the mix)

AL Cy Young: Roy Halladay

NL MVP: Prince Fielder (with Hanley Ramirez in the mix)

NL Cy Young: Johan Santana

Signs of Judgment Day, Part 1

From Gizmodo:

UK robotics professor Noel Sharkey is raising a fuss over the US Defense Department's intention to put $4 billion into "unmanned systems" in the next year or two. One fear is that spillover from all that R&D will give terrorists new ways to build effective GPS-guided suicide bombers for $500 or less.

"How long is it going to be before the terrorists get in on the act? With the current prices of robot construction falling dramatically and the availability of ready-made components for the amateur market, it wouldn't require a lot of skill to make autonomous robot weapons."

But Sharkey has other more philosophical issues, ones that echo Isaac Asimov's own concerns of more than a half century ago.

Says the New Scientist:

Sharkey is most concerned about the prospect of having robots decide for themselves when to "pull the trigger." Currently, a human is always involved in decisions of this nature. But the Pentagon is nearly two years into a research program aimed at having robots identify potential threats without human help.

But Ronald Arkin of Georgia Tech, the Siskel to Sharkey's Ebert, says that because a robot has no emotional baggage, it could be a much more "ethical" killer:

Arkin suggests trying to design ethical control systems that make military robots respect the Geneva Convention and other rules of engagement on the battlefield... "With a robot I can be sure that a robot will never harbour the intention to hurt a non-combatant," he says. "Ultimately they will be able to perform better than humans."

Hello!

Terminator? Battlestar Galactica? ED-209?

Read more...

Microblogging

I'm going to try microblogging -- just writing little snippets at a time. It's better than nothing, which is what I've been doing.

19 and... Oh Shit, They Lost!

LOL!

Too funny! I wonder how many pre-orders they had to cancel on Amazon.com?