Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Unbalanced.
NFL Week 4 Recap: Swift, Yet Steady
The game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the New York Jets was originally highly anticipated. It was originally a battle between the GOAT himself, Aaron Rodgers, and the heir apparent to Rodgers' GOAT throne, Patrick Mahomes. Sadly, Rodgers' injury reduced the game's status big time--to the point where football fans wanted this game flexed off NBC's Sunday Night Football slot.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
A Look at the 1978 New York Yankees
Nowadays, there's a stigma among fans of the New York Yankees that we don't see to know a lot about hardship. We're entitled. The team's entitled. We've never known what it's like to really struggle. The team is currently in a pennant and championship drought that has now lasted 14 seasons, but the people making these comments forget that the Yankees have struggled like this before. The Bronx Bombers won back-to-back championships in 1961 and 1962, but after that came a lot of unsuccessful seasons--14 of them, to be exact. The drought ended in 1977 when the Yankees won over the Dodgers, and it looked like the Bronx Bombers were truly back.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
2023 Wild Card Series Preview
I do enjoy the MLB Postseason, especially that first day. The first day of every sport's playoffs has that different feel. The aura around it says, "It's big. It's more than just a game now." It's true, though. Every sport's playoffs has a lot more at stake, and it's not any different in baseball. I still remember when the Postseason started with the Division Series, though it's been the Wild Card round (in some form) since 2012. From 2012-2021, it was the single Wild Card Game, though the COVID-affected 2020 season gave us the Wild Card Series. It was supposed to be just for that year, but MLB decided to make the Wild Card Series permanent in 2022.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
2023 Postseason Field Complete
Entering the final day of September, and the penultimate day of the regular season, five postseason slots were open. The Miami Marlins got one of them; defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates to join the October party. Even so, four spots remained. However, a funny thing happened. All of the other remaining slots? All filled, bit by bit. I thought we would see one, maybe two slots still open entering the final day, but nope. The remaining postseason slots are all filled in, with some slight positioning still left to be decided. More on that later.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
Marlins Clinch on Penultimate Day
For so long, the National League's Wild Card race has been absolutely insane. It had been a logjam for the longest time, but eventually, numbers get thinned out--such is life in sports. For the most part, it had been the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Chicago Cubs, the Miami Marlins, and the Cincinnati Reds vying for those two vacant spots, though for the most part, the Marlins had been behind that magic playoff line. However, they started winning at the right time--during the Cubs' sudden inability to hold a lead.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
CFL Week 16 Recap: Kings of the Jungle
Detroit's Lions aren't the only ones making an impact. Week 16 featured a pair of clinching scenarios, with one of them involving the British Columbia Lions. They had the simplest of scenarios: win and in. Even better for BC, they were facing the Edmonton Elks on the road, which seems quite easy. After all, the Elks had severe problems winning at home, even though they did end their long home victory drought this season. The Elks didn't make it easy on their West Division foes, it was pretty close throughout, but in the end, the Leos emerged victorious. 37-29 was the final score.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
Phillies Look to Defend Their Pennant
Red October is back for another go-around! The Philadelphia Phillies entered their meeting with the Pittsburgh Pirates needing just one win to clinch their second straight postseason appearance. They would need extras in this game, but it was a quick finish for the Phils. A walk-off RBI single giving them a 3-2 win, as well as another trip to the postseason. The Phillies' mission, now that they will be playing October baseball, is a simple one: win two more games than they did last season.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
At Long Last, Brewers Clinch NL Central
I thought they'd never clinch that division! The Milwaukee Brewers' magic number had been at 2 or lower for the entire past weekend. It was down to one because the Cubs lost, but despite having two opportunities to lock up the National League Central with a win, they lost both times. The Brewers and Cubs returned to play on Tuesday, September 27, 2023, and regarding the former, they were at home against the lowly St. Louis Cardinals. As for the Cubs, they were on the road against the dangerous Atlanta Braves.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
0-3: The Kiss of Death
One of the many things I love about the NFL season is that it's a sprint. Also, because it's a sprint, this brings me to another of the things I love about football: every game matters. Football is the only sport where what a team does in the first game could either help or hurt big time by the final game. It is always important to get off to a good start, but even if a team drops the first game, it is not the end of the world. But they have to make up for it fast, because not doing so could be costly. 0-1 is not a big deal. 0-2 is surmountable, but it could take some doing.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
MLB Pennant Race 2023: Seven Days Left, and a Lot to Decide
Well, this is it. Down to the wire. The 2023 MLB season has just one week, seven short days, remaining. That is not a lot of time. Despite this, there is so much to be determined. So many teams are vying for a chance to participate in this year's Postseason. Unfortunately, there is one team that we all know will not be part of this postseason party, and that team is the New York Yankees.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
Twins Lock Up 1st Place in a Weak AL Central
The American League Central has been...interesting this season. In an earlier story I wrote about the division, there were no teams at .500 at that very time. It seemed like we would see an 81-81 or worse record actually finish first in the division, but that wouldn't be the case, as the wins picked up for the division's top teams. In all of the mess, I figured that the Cleveland Guardians would repeat as division champions because of their fantastic 2022 campaign. Not only did the Guardians win the division, they completely shut down the Tampa Bay Rays in the Wild Card Series, and went the maximum five games with a powerful New York Yankees team.
By Clyde E. Dawkinsabout a year ago in Unbalanced
