As the year draws to a close, there are many interesting stories throughout the world of sports. Let’s break out the trusty ‘bullet points’ for the last column of 2013:
-I wrote about the Penguins last week, but they continue to amaze…Thursday night’s demolition of the Minnesota Wild marked Pittsburgh’s sixth consecutive victory, and their 11th win in their last 12 games. (Editor’s note –Penguins won seventh consecutive on Saturday)
They had played Wednesday night in New York…a game that started at 8:00 for national TV and went to overtime. They had to catch a late-night plane home and face a Minnesota team that was well-rested and waiting for them, and is no slouch (20-11-5 entering the game). The Penguins were missing their top FIVE defenseman plus Evgeni Malkin and three other bottom-six forwards, and their rookie backup goalie was starting the game. There was every reason to believe that the Wild would win the game, and as a Pens fan I was fully prepared to give Pittsburgh a pass for this one. Instead, they thoroughly outworked and outplayed Minnesota, jumping to a 4-0 lead and cruising to a 5-2 final.
There’s plenty of credit to go around…GM Ray Shero has compiled outstanding depth, especially on defense, but I want to highlight the work of coach Dan Bylsma. There were many calling for his ouster after the disappointing playoff exit last spring, but one bad series does not tarnish the consistently excellent work Bylsma has done since his arrival. One again, he has made this team into a cohesive unit, they are playing extremely well together and there seems to be no discernible drop-off in play even with LITERALLY half the team injured. Rather than complain about the occasional hiccup, Pens fans should be thrilled that they have such a good coach/GM tandem in place – one that virtually assures a playoff berth and Cup contention annually.
-Across the river, the Pirates’ management is off to a bit of a slow start this winter. They’ve made a few minor moves – SP Edinson Volquez is a low-risk, high-upside move, and signing Charlie Morton to a 3-year extension was smart…but the simple facts are these: #1 the Cardinals have made decisive moves to strengthen themselves, while the rest of the division has not, and #2 the Pirates won due to great pitching and defense in 2013 – but they will need to score more runs to return to the playoffs in 2014, and they have not made any moves in that area yet.
One of the classic mistakes teams make after a great season is to assume that the same roster will yield the same results. The Pirates were very good last year, but some of that is simply unsustainable. The odds of Francisco Liriano repeating his magical year are probably less than 10%, the bullpen (especially Grilli and Melancon) will likely slip a notch, and it’s looking more and more like AJ Burnett will not re-sign this winter. Therefore, I conclude that the Bucs will almost certainly allow more runs in 2014.
The team is set at 3B, 2B, C, LF, and CF. If Hurdle actually lets Mercer play at SS, that should be set, especially with Barmes back to sub for defense. 1B and RF are potential trouble spots, and the team could use a power LH bat at one or both of those positions.
There’s money to spend – baseball is awash in cash. MLB took in a record $8.5 BILLION in revenues last year; and a lot of that is from league-wide TV contracts – so the Pirates have the resources to improve. GM Neal Huntingdon earned fans’ trust with the improvement over the last three years – to keep it, he will have to make more bold, winning moves this offseason.
-Everyone talks about Penn State football, and rightly so – it’s always popular, especially around here. Did you know that PSU has two other programs that are among the most dominant in NCAA history? The womens’ volleyball team won their semifinal Thursday night, and will face Wisconsin Saturday, a team they’ve swept twice this season already. If they beat them again, it will be the Lady Lions’ fifth national championship in the last seven years! (Editor’s note: PSU won in four sets on Saturday night)
Meanwhile, the PSU wrestling team is once again ranked #1 again, and is seeking to match the ladies by winning four consecutive national titles this season. All ten PSU starters are ranked, and they face Iowa this Saturday in perhaps the biggest dual meet of the season in college wrestling. (Editor’s note: A PSU victory again)
-The Eye will return in two weeks to preview the NFL playoffs, but I can tell already that the AFC in particular is going to be a complete crapshoot. Every team has significant flaws, and you could make a compelling case for any of at least five teams in that conference to make the Super Bowl – and a case for each of those five to lose their first game. Given their record-setting offensive season Denver is obviously the favorite, but their late-season struggles on offense, plus their season-long problems on defense, make them a shaky favorite at best. If the Chiefs manage to wrest home-field advantage from the Broncos these past two weeks, they would have a decisive advantage…but there’s still so much to be determined.
In the NFC, the Seahawks are CLEARLY favorites, for one simple reason…they appear all but invincible at home, and they will likely clinch home-field advantage this week. The NFC has more teams capable of challenging them than the AFC does, but I’ll be hard-pressed to pick against the Seahawks unless something drastic changes by January 1.
I’d like to take a moment and wish everyone happy holidays, Merry Christmas, and a very Happy New Year. May 2014 be the best year yet for all of you!
Dave Glass can be reached at buggyracer@verizon.net.