The Final Score

We forgot to update the Rieber/Baumbach predictions contest standings after the NBA Finals ended.

We both picked the Lakers to win in 5.

Ahem. No points awarded.

Rieber still leads, 30-29.

I thought I would get a celebrity to make my NBA Finals pick for me for the Rieber/Baumbach predictions contest, so I asked around in the Yankees clubhouse for someone who was really into the NBA.

Johnny Damon likes NASCAR, so I asked him. He told me Melky Cabrera loves the NBA. So I asked Melky who he liked in The Finals.

His face lit up. Unbeknownst to me, Melky is a huge Kobe Bryant fan. Even has an autographed jersey. One of LeBron, too.

Melky picked Lakers in 5 for me. That's my pick.

Then Melky went out and dropped a ball in centerfield, possibly costing the Yankees today's game.

All of this was unbekownst to Baumbach, who also picked the Lakers in 5 when I asked him.

Sigh.

Chicago Norm is right. This contest gets more pointless all the time.

By the way, I lead 30-29. Interesting how Baumbach didn't mention that I overtook him while he was in Italy when he came back. Denial ain't just a river in Egypt.

Jim is in Italy and is probably sneaking off to cafes late at night when Mrs. B is asleep to check the Internet and see what's going on here.

Or maybe he'll see this when he gets back.

What's going on here, Jim, is that you are now trailing in the Rieber/Baubach prediction contest.

Jim was leading 28-25 going into the resolution of the last two NBA conference semifinals.

In the West, Rieber correctly predicted the Spurs over the Hornets in seven. He gets five points.
Baumbach picked the Hornets in six. He gets zero.

In the East, Baumbach predicted the Celtics in five. He gets one point since the Celts won in seven.
Rieber picked the Cavs in six. He gets zero.

The new standings
Rieber 30
Baumbach 29

Since Baumbach is away and unable to pick, the contest will take a break for a while. We talked before he left about Chicago Norm filling in for him, but we felt that would ruin the integrity of the Rieber / Baumbach prediction contest.

We don't care if you don't like it. We like it. It's kind of like when Mike and the Mad Dog go over the weekend TV ratings.

Mike: "2.1 local, 4.8 national."
Mad Dog: "1.4 local, 3.4 national. You are good at this, Mikey!"

No one likes it. But they keep doing it.

Mike Rose is Newsday's deputy sports editor. For some reason, he's a big Laker fan. If he had a blog, he would fill it with love of all things Lakers and Penn State and would probably remind me often that I picked the Nuggets to upset the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.

But he doesn't have a blog.

The Lakers OUSTED the Jazz in six last night.

Ousted is one of those words we only use in sports and newspapers. No one ever says it.
SLATED is another. Pavano is slated to undergo an MRI.

In news, SLAIN is one of those newspaper-only words. Kinky Doc Found Slain. That's because slain is shorter than KILLED or MURDERED.

Anyway, all of this is to let you know I nailed the Lakers-Jazz series and Jim didn't. So I gained two points in the Rieber / Baumbach Prediction Contest That Will Never End.

Anthony: Lakers in 6 (5 points)
Jim: Lakers in 5 (3 points)

Current Standings:
Jim: 28
Anthony 25

Interesting how Baumbach, in his flurry of posts today, neglected to update the Baumbach / Rieber standings after the Pistons-Magic series ended.

If you're new to the game, Jim and Anthony are making sports predictions and keeping track of how they go -- FOREVER. This game will not die until one of us does or the Internet closes down for good.

We're using a 5-3-1 point system. Five points if you nail the winner and the series length. Three if you get the winner and fall one game short. One point if you get the winner and miss the series length by more than a game.

Jim went into the day with a 25-17 lead.

Detroit beat Orlando in five. Anthony had predicted Detroit in six (three poins). Jim went with Orlando in six (no points).

Baumbach leads, 25-20.

I swear we're still going to be doing this 10 years from now.

Baumbach gets 5 points for picking the Rangers losing in five. Rieber gets nothing for picking the Rangers winning in seven. (Seriously, what were you thinking?)

Rieber gets three points for the Celtics winning in seven - he had them in six. Baumbach gets one point because he had the Celtics sweeping.

So total for the day: Baumbach 6, Rieber 3.

And the updated totals are........ Baumbach 25, Rieber 17.

(BTW, we're using a 5-3-1 point system. Five points if you nail the winner and the games. Three if you get the winner and fall one game short. One point if you get the winner and miss the games by more than a game. Get it? Got it. Good.)

Man, these NBA series come at you fast.

Now it's Jazz-Lakers starting Sunday?

Anywho, Jim and I are duty-bound to give you picks for these series as part of the Baumbach / Rieber predictions contest.

Jim is leading 19-14.

Predictions
Anthony: Lakers in 6

Jim's pick: Lakers in 5

Our Derby picks both crapped out. No reason to go over those. No points were awarded.

BTW: This is the 500th post in Final Score history.

Jim and Anthony are keeping track of our predictions for how ever long we do The Final Score. Jim went into yesterday with an 11-7 lead.

We're using a 5-3-1 scoring system. Five points if you get it exactly right, three if you get the team right but miss the series length by one game either way, one if you get the team right but miss the series length by more than one game.

Here's what ended last night and how we did (and how many points we earned):

Pistons over Sixers in 6
Jim: Pistons in 5 (3 points)
Anthony: Pistons in 4 (1 point)

Cavs over Wizards in 6
Jim: Cavs in 6 (5 points)
Anthony: Cavs in 5 (3 points)

Jazz over Rockets in 6
Jim: Rockets in 6 (0)
Anthony: Jazz in 7 (3)

Total for the day:
Jim: 8
Anthony: 7

So the current score on the Final Score is:
Jim: 19
Anthony: 14

On to new business:

Anthony's derby pick: Pyro (5 points for win, 3 for show, 1 for place)

Anthony's Magic-Pistons pick: Pistons in 6

Anthony's Spurs-Hornets pick: Spurs in 7

Jim's picks to come when he wakes up.

UPDATE FROM BAUMBACH, 2:16 p.m.:

Jim's Derby pick: Colonel John

Jim's Magic-Pistons pick: Magic in 6.

Jim's Spurs-Hornets pick: Hornets in 6.

And, no, I didn't just wake up.

Jim and Anthony are keeping track of our predictions for how ever long we do The Final Score. Then, in 30 or 40 years or whenever we move on to other assignments, we'll tally up the results and the loser will have to buy the winner a steak dinner or a ticket to a Yankees game. Whichever is cheaper.

We'll update whenever some sporting event ends that we made predictions on. For example, three NBA series ended last night.

We're using a 5-3-1 scoring system. Five points if you get it exactly right, three if you get the team right but miss the series length by one game either way, one if you get the team right but miss the series length by more than one game.

Here's what ended last night

Lakers over Nuggets in 4
Jim's prediction: Lakers in 5 (3 points)
Anthony's prediction: Nuggets in 7 (squat)

Hornets over Mavs in 5
Jim: Hornets in 5 (nailed it! five points)
Anthony: Mavs in 6 (blew it! zip)

Spurs over Suns in 5
Jim: Suns in 7 (zero)
Anthony: Spurs in 7 (one charity point)

So that's an 8-point night for Jim vs. 1 for Anthony.
Making the standings

Jim 11
Anthony 7

In case you missed it, Jim and Anthony are going to keep track of our predictions for how ever long we do The Final Score. Then, in 20 or 30 years or whenever we move on to other assignments, we'll tally up the results and the loser will have to buy the winner a steak dinner or a tank of gas. Whichever is cheaper.

We'll update whenever some sporting event ends that we made predictions on. For example, Orlando ousted Toronto in the NBA playoffs last night in five games.

Anthony's prediction: Orlando in 6
Jim's prediction: Orlando in 4

We're using a 5-3-1 scoring system. Five points if you get it exactly right, three if you get the team right but miss the series length by one game either way, one if you get the team right but miss the series length by more than one game.

So that's three points for each of us!

The current standings:
Rieber 6
Baumbach 3

Here are links to our current predictions so you can keep score at home:

-- Jim, NBA playoffs
-- Anthony, NBA playoffs
-- Rangers-Penguins playoffs
-- MLB picks

That was my prediction for this series, and I like the odds right now. But how about those Rangers blowing a three-goal lead in the first game? This was their series to take control of right there, and what did they do? They let it slip right through hands. Whoops! Oh well. I'm not celebrating the impending doom of the Rangers. I'm celebrating the impending success of my prediction. That's all.

BTW, Anthony wants me to point out to everyone that he predicted the Rangers would win the series in seven games ... after losing the first two games. So he's not worried. Yet.

JIM: PENGUINS IN FIVE

I have two reasons for this prediction:

A) Sidney Crosby. Always go with the team with the best player. In basketball and hockey, this theory will prove true more often than not.

B) I was burned on the Rangers last year. I was at the game when they eliminated the Thrashers last year, and they did so in such dominating fashion that I jumped on the bandwagon. Hockey is all about momentum in the postseason, and the Rangers had it.

Or so I thought.

The Rangers, as mentioned before, can be so inconsistent, and I just can't trust them. Yes, they have talent. And I wouldn't be all that surprised if they pushed this series and, who knows, won it. But I just can't go with them. And by no means is this pandering to Islanders fans – I think you guys know by now I don't care what you think of me.

No disrespect, of course.

I'm just going with my gut on this, and that the Rangers will be a quick exit from the second round. And something will happen involving Sean Avery, as well. No surprises there. So, anyway, there it is. Penguins in five. Book it.

ANTHONY: RANGERS IN 7

Unlike you, Jim, I covered the Rangers a little this season. You’re more of an Islanders guy, what with your Al Arbour bashing and your blog box blogging.

I had a feeling that the Rangers were going to be more of a postseason team. It took them the better part of the season to mesh after Scott Gomez and Chris Drury were signed. But what they have now is a) a top-notch goaltender and b) playoff-tested forwards. It wouldn’t surprise me if Gomez and/or Drury both have really big series. This, and not the mid-January games against Columbus, is why they got the big money.

I’m a little concerned about the defense, but I think Lundqvist will make up for any short-comings. Sid the Kid and Malkin present all sorts of problems. It won’t be easy to win this series, and the Rangers may even lose the first two games for three reasons: a) they’re in Pittsburgh b) the seven-day layoff may make them a bit rusty and c) it could take them a game or so to adjust to the Pens’ speed.

Once the Rangers truly get in the series, though, I see them winning in seven. Everyone always predicts the seventh game will be an overtime thriller, but I think the Rangers will win in regulation. Let’s say, 4-2, in Game 7.

I correctly predicted that the Rangers would beat the Devils, although I said six games and it was five. Jim said the Devils would win in seven.

Jim, I propose we keep track of our predictions over the 10 or 20 years or however long it will be that we will be doing The Final Score. My proposal is we do a 5-3-1 scoring system. Five points if you get it exactly right, three if you get the team right but miss the series length by one game either way, one if you get the team right but miss the series length by more than one game.

What do you think, Jim? (For the third straight post, I am speaking directly to Jim and assuming he will answer below on this post. It is part of an experiment to see if we ever need to speak again since we have the blog now.)

We both made NBA playoff predictions for every first-round series. I think we should do a weekly update on how our predictions are doing for the 10 or 20 years we will be doing this blog together. Maybe Fridays? So here's the first update on the Jim-Anthony The Final Score Sports Prediction Standings:

Rieber 3
Baumbach 0

(Special Final Score bonus points if you can ID the dude in the drawing.)

UPDATE FROM JIM: I am fine with that. Enjoy your lead now.

We're getting a little baseball heavy on this blog, which is fine by me. It is far and away the most popular sport in New York. But, anyway, for some balance, here's my NBA playoff predictions. Yes, games have already been played. Oh well.

EASTERN CONFERENCE
First round
Celtics over Hawks in four
Pistons over 76ers in five
Magic over Raptors in four
Cavs over Bullets, er, Wizards in six

Second round
Celtics over Cavs in five
Magic over Pistons in six

Conference finals
Celtics over Magic in six

WESTERN CONFERENCE
First round
Lakers over Nuggets in five
Hornets over Mavericks in five
Suns over Spurs in seven
Rockets over Jazz in six

Second round
Suns over Lakers in six
Hornets over Rockets in five

Conference finals
Hornets over Suns in seven

NBA FINALS
Celtics over Hornets in six

Eastern conference
Washington-Cleveland: Cavs in 5
Philly-Detroit: Pistons in 4
Toronto-Orlando: Magic in 6
Atlanta-Boston: Celtics in 6

Western conference
Utah-Houston: Utah in 7
Denver-Lakers: UPSET SPECIAL!!! Nuggets in 7
Dallas-New Orleans: Mavs in 6
San Antonio-Phoenix: Spurs in 7

Baumbach's not around this weekend to give his picks. Maybe Monday after a few games have been played.
But his Devils in seven selection didn't work out too well. My Rangers in six looks pretty good even though I gave the Devils too much credit.
Is there anyone out there who even cares what happens to the Devils Their "new arena attendance bounce" lasted about a week.
I actually heard one of the announcers on MSG saying the Devils shouldn't have to listen to Rangers fans celebrating in their building. Uh, if the Devils had more fans the Rock wouldn't have been filled with Rangers fans. That's just the way it is.
At least Marty Brennaman isn't calling Devils fans obnoxious. Thanks for sharkspage.com for the photo.

Anthony went with Rangers in six. I guess it doesn't really count if I make my prediction now, after Game 1. Oh well.

I say Devils in 7.

I was leaning toward making this prediction prior to the series, but never got around to it. Even though the Rangers won the first game in Jersey, I'm sticking to it. The Devils are the playoff proven team, and the Rangers have been prone to ups and downs this season. They're too inconsistent.

The Rangers beating the Devils, 4-1, while the Islanders are sitting home has to hurt the Islanders faithful. Obviously, all Islanders fans are rooting for the Devils, right? I picked the Rangers in six. The Devils will have their day, but I stand by that prediction.
But at least there was some good news for Islanders fans in last night's first night of Stanley Cup playoff action. Colorado's Ryan Smyth was stopped on a penalty shot by Minnesota's Niklas Backstrom.
Here's something else that might make Islanders fans feel good. Smyth getting cruched on the boards in a March game. Enjoy.
Does the Smyth trade still sting? Or was it a good gamble that Islanders fans feel OK about?

OK, baseball picks. First, Jim’s repeated from last Friday, then Anthony’s.

AL EAST
Jim: Yankees
This is more a vote against the Red Sox as it is for the Yankees. I think the Red Sox pitching staff will suffer a letdown from last year and I also think it will take them time to recover from the Japan trip. Meanwhile, I'll say the Yankees win 94 and the Red Sox win 91.
Anthony: Red Sox
I agree, Jim, that the Red Sox’s staff will suffer a letdown, but the Yankees staff is more likely to suffer a meltdown. It’s hard to win with young pitchers, even young pitchers who all seem like they have a chance to be very good. It just doesn’t happen overnight. The Yankees will be better in ’09, but the best they’ll do this season is a wild card.

AL Central
Jim: Tigers
Yes, their pitching has problems, but how about that lineup! Their offense will win them 96 games.
Anthony: Yup.
I agree. I also agree with Jim that the Tigers’ pitching problems, especially in the bullpen, will stop them from making the World Series (he picks the Yankees to win the AL below. They won’t).

AL West
Jim: Mariners
I like the Angels on paper better, but the injuries to Escobar and Lackey scare me.
Anthony: Ditto.
This is how you know we’re not just planning to disagree all the time like some idiot radio talk show hosts who make a lot more money than we do. Of all my AL picks, this is the one I’m least sure of, though, just because Mike Scioscia is such a good and underrated manager and Seattle’s John McLaren is an unknown. But pitching rules the day and the Mariners have more of it.

AL Wild Card
Jim: Red Sox
Anthony: Yankees
Well, I didn’t say the Yankees were going to be gosh-awful. They still have a terrific lineup and Mariano Rivera and one of the kid pitchers will probably break out this season. That’s enough for the wild card. But not enough to make it out of the first round. Again.

AL pennant
Jim: Yankees
Let's say they beat the Red Sox in the ALCS in another classic.
Anthony: Let’s not
Sorry, Jim, you’re going to have to live with Red Sox-Tigers in an exhausting ALCS. And the Boston mojo will work in seven games and The Nation will brace for back-to-back crowns. But Red Sox fans will be disappointed by an old nemesis who now toils in the NL.

NL East
Jim: Mets
Santana is the best pitcher in the league, and will dominate. He'll win 22. I also believe the 2-3-4 of Pedro, Maine and Perez is better than anyone else's 2-3-4. Good enough for 42 more wins right there. Injuries are a concern, offensively, but I like their pitching a lot.
Anthony: Mets
Interesting. All six of Newsday’s baseball experts picked the Mets to win the East. Ken Davidoff and David Lennon picked them to win the World Series. I don’t think that’s going to happen, but the Mets will get to the NLCS – one round better than the Yankees.

NL Central
Jim: Cubs
I wanted to go with the Brewers, but at the last second decided to go with the Cubs. I'm already regretting it. This race goes down to the last few days, for sure.
Anthony: Cubs
All six of Newsday’s baseball experts picked the Cubs, too. I picked them to win the World Series last season. I won’t get fooled again! But they win the division. The Brewers don’t have enough arms.

NL West
Jim: Diamondbacks
How can you argue with Webb and Haren at the top of their rotation. They could both win 20, without question.
Anthony: Snakes it is
Wouldn’t shock me if the D-Backs had the NL’s best record, setting up Snakes-Mets in the first round because the NL wild card is also going to come from the West. Mets win in four to make the NLCS.

NL Wild Card
Jim: Padres
What fun is making predictions if you don't go out on a limb? I know this isn't too crazy a pick, but it means the Phillies, Braves and Brewers don't make the playoffs. Whatever. I like the Padres, and maybe the midseason acquisition of Bonds puts them over the top. :)
Anthony: Dodgers
No smiley faces, please, Jim. Not on my watch.
Joe Torre has been in the playoffs 12 straight seasons! You think he can’t get this underachieving but talented bunch a berth in the ridiculously weak NL? Yes he can! And more! And exclamation points trump smiley faces!

NL pennant
Jim: Diamondbacks
They beat the Mets in the NLCS. Haren and Webb combine for the four Arizona wins.
Anthony: Dodgers
Torre returns to New York to beat the Mets in six while the Yankees are sitting at home and Hank Steinbrenner fumes. But that’s not Joe’s last laugh . . .

World Series
Jim: Diamondbacks
In a repeat of the '01 World Series, the Diamondbacks beat the Yankees. And Randy Johnson refuses to make the trip to New York for Games 3, 4 and 5 to avoid the NY media.
Anthony: Dodgers
The Red Sox are the heavy favorite, but the Dodgers ride that Torre magic to a surprisingly easy World Series win in five games. Hank Steinbrenner begs Torre to come back. Torre says he is insulted by the offer until Hank doubles his Dodgers salary. Torre accepts because he loves green even more than Dodger blue.

Feel free to add your two cents below. Next week we'll debate something else. Thanks to this site for the photo.