Cashing In

Your "Bad Beat" for Wednesday is on:

Indians (minus 120) vs. Toronto.

Now this is bad. Bad as in good! The Indians led 4-2 in the top of the 9th inning with two outs and nobody on. One more out and the fans at the Jake are going home happy. Then it came down to one more strike as Fred Lewis has an 0-2 count. But he prolonged the game with a double. Then on the 0-2 pitch Aaron Hill grounded one into the hole at short and Luis Valbuena whiffed at it for an error allowing Lewis to score.

So the game was now 4-3 and wouldn't you know it on the 1-2 pitch Adam Lind went deep for the 5-4 lead and win.

Now that is dreadful for all of the Tribe backers, dreadful!



Your winner for Thursday is on:

3* Magic (minus 9 1/2) vs. Atlanta.

One play on Wednesday, a 3* loser on the Spurs.



One play again on Thursday as that's all the board merits. I can't say that I am in love with Orlando tonight because this is a lot of points and I can't see another blowout as the Hawks are too talented to be so pathetic again but Atlanta is lacking heart and the way they play on the road makes me fine with the home squad.

I expect Mike Woodson's team to come out and play hard after the game one embarassment but these Hawks have been dreaqdful on the road for the last three seasons with this same corps and I'm not so sure they truly have what it takes to stay in this thing for 48 minutes.

Dwight Howard is just too good for anybody down low and that includes Al Horford and Nelson, Lewis and the rest of Stan Van Gundy's squad is as rolling as a team can be rolling right now.

The Hawks have talented players with Horford, Smith, Johnson and Crawford and have enough potential to compete but I'm just not sure psychologically they have what it takes to regroup after that game one woodshed beating.

We're not looking at a repeat of game one but we are looking at the same end result!