Baseball Season Sleepers
Pick of the Day – Raptors @ Heat
Toronto Raptors @ Miami Heat
Raptors (+5)
Tuesday, April 2nd – 7:30 PM ET
The Miami Heat host the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday, trying to improve their playoff seed and stay ahead of Toronto in the East. Surely Shaq O’Neal will be at his best against a Toronto front line that doesn’t even have 1 guy that can pretend to muscle Shaq around. However, it will be interesting to see if the Heat can play the uptempo style against the Raptors.
Bottom Line: Honestly, I think this is a terrible match-up for the Heat. Toronto is full of young athletic kids always looking to make a name for themselves, something that’s tough up North in Canada. Against the Heat Chris Bosh, TJ Ford and company will be looking to drop the Heat and get the National Cred they deserve. Look for Bosh to use his superb all around game to beat a Heat team that is just waiting for Dwayne Wade to return. It’s always tough waiting on your star, you’re not sure about your minutes, where the ball will go, what you have to do now to continue getting the playing time you want when he returns. In a state of confusion, I wouldn’t be stunned if the Raptors make the Heat look silly in Miami.
Lucky’s Overall Record: 15-6-1
Baseball Season Sleepers: This is just going to be real quick, but I thought I’d document my crazy predictions so I can either refer to them at the end of this long baseball season, or just forget about them if they don’t work out. I prefer the first option, but we shall see. There are always obvious favorites to do the dirty and win the whole thing (Yankees, Cardinals, Tigers, Red Sox, etc.) but I’m looking through my skewed crystal ball to find my favorites of the not-so-favorite. Here they are; NL MVP You’ve got Albert Pujols, Ryan Howard, and Jose Reyes among others, but I’m looking to a guy some people are forgetting about because of his injury filled 2006. One Derek Lee. If you can remeber, this young smasher flurted with .400 and pounded homeruns out by the bushels a couple years back. If the Cubbies get to the playoffs, he’ll be the reason why, and that will win him the NL MVP. AL MVP We have the favorites; Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz, Justin Morneau, and even Grady Sizemore, but I have another name I want to throw out there, remember Vladamir Guerrero? Many people aren’t even listing him as a possibility for the MVP, and I think he’s the favorite. Not quite a sleeper, but just wait and see if the L.A. Angels go deep, he’ll be the leading vote getter. If you want a sleeper, look no farther than Travis Haffner. The young crusher has all the makeup of an MVP sleeper. He’s got a great young team surrounding him, and he might be the next guy to flurt with 60 HR’s, he’s got that kind of crush in his swing. As far as the NL Champion is concerned, don’t give me the Mets, Cardinals, Cubs, as favorites, try the Florida Marlins on as a sleeper. Despite their huge comeback last season, in which they nearly snuck into the playoffs after competing for the League’s Worst Team Award, they should only be better in 2007. What a great team of young pitchers and hitters who can run those bases. All the littel things could get them in. And last but not least, of course the Yankees, Bo Sox, White Sox, Tigers, and A’s, my AL Champion sleeper is the Seattle Mariners. Sure, laugh it up, get your pokes in now before I make you look silly. Felix Hernandez is the most talented pitcher in baseball (aside from maybe Johan Santana) and instead of going out and getting a bunch of guys who were One-Year Wonders last season, they picked up a handful of guys that struggled in ’06 for a great price. In a picher’s park, I think the M’s can be scary. Just wait and see.