This is the Beat The Streak I remember. After a half a month of perceived invincibility on my part, the one day on, one day off nature of Beat the Streak has shown its true face. As the red loss marks stack up in my notebook, I need to pull a Mighty Ducks and yell "Change It Up!" Alas, it is 8 AM and I am pretty sure my neighbors hate me already so I'll just settle for changing my strategy in a more composed manner.
As you can see from above, there will be no Double Down on Beat the Streak today. There won't be any Adrian Gonzalez either. Instead, I am using my second in command, Dee Gordon, to get me off my current slide. Gordon squares off in a battle of former Dodgers with Arizona's Rubby De La Rosa this evening. Flash is still hitting over .400, even with Shelby Miller almost no-noing the Marlins yesterday afternoon. De La Rosa has potential to someday be a frontline starter. Until then, he's a very hittable kid who throws very straight heat.
With Drive To The Finals on a day's hiatus, Streak for the Cash will pick up my pick slack. I didn't like any of the baseball matchups on a light schedule today so I traveled across the pond for two European soccer picks. First, I am taking their to be scoring from both sides in the Serie A contest between Parma and Fiorentina. Parma is getting relegated. With the financial woes they are in, this could be the first of several consecutive years of demotion akin to what happened to Portsmouth in England. That isn't to say Parma hasn't been a feisty squad in the dying embers of the Italian season. Mixed in with a couple thumpings, Parma have defeated Juventus and Udinese in the last month and a half as well as having earned hard fought draws with both Inter and Napoli. Fiorentina, once seen as contenders for a Champions League spot, are fighting hard to keep a Europa League place in the table following their exit from that very competition. Parma is the ultimate spoiler right now and Fiorentina cannot afford to drop any more points. This should lead to an open game.
My other pick this afternoon will be new EPL Champions Chelsea traveling to the Hawthorns to take on West Bromwich Albion. Chelsea have the title in hand but should handle a Baggies side that is no longer in the relegation scrap. I may change my mind if I see Jose Mourinho put out a B-side before kickoff, but either way I am pretty sure that this will be my second pick of today and a red star for myself at day's end. HAPPY STREAKING EVERYBODY!!!
Image Credits: Gordon BTS (mlb.com), Streak picks (espn.com)