It was bound to come crashing down eventually. Me winning things? That just isn't the way the Streak gods operate. Both my Beat the Streak and Streak for the Cash entries lost double digit winning streaks last night. Both of those losses came because of previously very reliable selections. Add that to another run of the mill performance by Zach Randolph on Drive to the Finals (hey at least it was better than 7), and May 13th, 2015 is a day that will go down in Streaking In Public infamy.
It was eventually going to stop. Adrian Gonzalez was not going to break Joe Dimaggio's 56 game hitting streak this season. It just stinks to see both his hitting streak and my Beat the Streak fall to the hands of the friggin' Marlins. So it is back to square one on BTS, and I'll be giving Mr. Gonzalez a break for probably a week or so. Today I go with a Yankee duo, one former and one current. Robinson Cano takes on Joe Kelly and the Red Sox while Jacoby Ellsbury will face off with Erasmo Ramirez and the Rays at Yankee Stadium. Both men have limited track records against their opposing pitchers (just two at-bats each) but the two hurlers have been terrible enough in 2015 for me to bet against them rather than on the hitters themselves.
For the first time in May I'll actually be doubling down on Streak For The Cash as well. That is because the New York Mets flushed a W12 down the old toilet last night in a 2-1 defeat to the Cubs. I guess 100 pitches is a no-no touchy zone for Matt Harvey in Terry Collins' eyes. The Mets bullpen, which had been stellar until last night, blew it in the eighth and ninth as the offense once again stagnated. That's the thing that kills me though. You aren't scoring any runs. Your ace is cruising and is at just 99 pitches going into the eighth. You can't give him one more inning? Is a fresh Carlos Torres ever the better option than even a 50% Matt Harvey? The answer should always be no. Nevertheless, I'll be staying on the diamond for both of my picks today. I am taking the "on-the-brink-of The I Hate You Entirely Because Of Streak For The Cash Hall of Fame" Kansas City Royals in the day game tilt. They just can't lose to Ross Detwiler. In the night cap, I'm taking the Yankees to pound Erasmo Ramirez and Tampa Bay. His ERA is nearly 9.00 and if you see any highlights of him, he's lucky it isn't higher. UPDATE: Because the town of Wakefield, RI seems to go into signal comas (internet, phone, etc.) from time to time, I was unable to get my pick of the Yankees in for 7:10. I should have just done it as soon as the Royals game ended. Silly me though, didn't anticipate the internet being out for an hour and a half and then it conveniently working again five minutes after first pitch. Nevertheless, I am taking the Nationals over the Padres at 10:10 because, why the fuck not? Ugh.
On the basketball court, I am reneging on my previous statement that my pick tonight on Drive To The Finals would be LeBron James. The Cavs looked to crush the Bulls' spirit in Game 5 therefore I am hedging my bets tonight with Jimmy Butler. If the Bulls somehow force a Game 7, I'll still have James and a litany of Bulls to choose from in that game and in the next round. I am hoping at the least Butler can break my dubious streak of three days without a 30+ PRA. Leave the memories alone and HAPPY STREAKING EVERYBODY!!!!
Image Credits: Ellsbury/Cano BTS (mlb.com), Streak picks (espn.com), Butler DTTF (nba.com)
Video Credit: Leave The Memories Alone (Youtube.com/dec4samantha)