WHO’LL MAKE THE MAJORS FIRST: TEBOW OR VLADIMIR GUERRERO, JR.?
Tim Tebow and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. both are playing in the Double-AS Eastern League for teams with peculiar names: the Binghamton Rumble Ponies and the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
That’s about all they have in common.
Tebow is a 30-year-old left fielder who bats and throws left and is a former college football hero.
Guerrero turned 19 in March, bats and throws righty and is all baseball player.
Tebow is hitting .242 (16-for-66), with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 8 walks and an alarming 33 strikeouts. He hit a home run in his first at-bat in Double-A and hasn’t done much but whiff since.
Guerrero (son of the Hall of Famer) is hitting .388 (31-for-80), with 9 doubles, 1 triple, 2 HRs, 12 walks, 10 strikeouts and a league-leading 26 RBI in 21 games.
Who’ll reach the majors first?
Mets general manager Sandy Alderson has all but guaranteed that Tebow will play in the majors. That’s the best thing Tebow has going for him.
My hunch is that Guerrero will be playing for the Toronto Blue by September at the latest.
KENTUCKY DERBY FAVORITES WILL BE TACKLING HISTORY
The 20-horse field for the 144th Kentucky Derby was drawn Tuesday. The three early-line favorites – Justify (3-to-1), Mendelssohn (5-to-1) and Magnum Moon (6-to-1) – will need to overcome the inevitable traffic problems in a bulky field plus two very high historical hurdles:
No horse ever has shipped in from overseas to win the Kentucky Derby.
Mendelssohn was bred in Kentucky but is based in Europe. Six of his seven career starts were in Europe or Dubai.
He won the Breeders Cup Juvenile at Del Mar in California last November, but he shipped back to England for his next two races. His latest start was a victory in the UAE Derby March 31 with a “golden rail trip.”
No horse has won the Kentucky Derby without racing as a two-year-old since Apollo in 1882. Since 2000, 14 horses started in the Derby without having run as two-year-olds. None won and the average finish was eighth. Justify and Magnum Moon on Saturday afternoon will try to end “Apollo’s Curse”.
Apollo was an interesting horse. He missed his two-year-old racing season due to injury. He was part of a three-horse entry at odds of 10-to-1 in the 1882 Kentucky Derby. It was his fifth career start and the Derby was his first career victory. In a field of 14, he won by one-half length over favorite Runnymede, on a perfectly-timed ride by black jockey Babe Hurd.
Apollo was a gelding and raced 55 times from 1882 through 1985. He had 24 wins, 15 places and 9 shows. His career purse earnings were $21,650. He later became a saddle horse and died of lockjaw in 1887.
The winner of the 2018 Kentucky Derby probably never will be gelded, won’t race 55 times and will never become a saddle horse.
You can learn all about the 2018 Kentucky Derby Friday, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., on my show on WHAM-1180. Todd Haight, Batavia Downs director of live racing and one of the best racing handicappers in America, and I will continue our annual tradition of running down the 20-horse field from worst-to-first.
JOSH ALLEN TOPS THE HOT-SHOT QBs IN THE WONDERLIC SCORES
It happens every spring – the Wonderlic scores for the five hot-shot quarterbacks in the 2018 college draft have leaked. The credit goes to former NFL scout John Middlekauff, who spilled the beans on Colin Cowherd’s radio show. No one had refuted them.
Wonderlic scores supposedly measure intelligence. They obviously is not a great device to measure the ability to play QB in the NFL. But it can’t hurt to have a bright player at any position.
The 2018 Wonderlic scores for the Fab Five QBs (50 is maximum): Josh Allen (Bills) 37...Josh Rosen (Arizona) 29...Sam Darnold (Jets) 28...Baker Mayfield (Browns) 25...Lamar Jackson (13).
Some other Wonderlic scores from assorted sources: Eli Manning (39)...Colin Kaepernick (38)...Tony Romo (37)...Andrew Luck (37)...Aaron Rodgers (35)...Tom Brady (33)...Peyton Manning (28)...Drew Brees (28)...Jay Cutler (26)...Ben Roethlisberger (25)...AJ McCarron (22)...Tim Tebow (22)...Brett Favre (22)...Dan Marino (16)...Jim Kelly (15)...Marshawn Lynch (14)...Jeff George (10)...Vince Young (6).
Jack Locker, the QB Josh Allen is most compared to for size and arm strength, had a Wonderlic score of 20.
The all-time highest NFL Wonderlic scores: Pat McInally 50...Mike Mamula 49...Ryan Fitzpatrick (48).
JOSH ALLEN: GREAT CHANCE TO BE THE BEST #17 FOR THE BILLS
Josh Allen wore jersey No. 17 at Wyoming and he’ll wear No. 17 with the Buffalo Bills.
We don’t know if Allen will become Buffalo’s long-waited “franchise quarterback”, but I Iike his chances to be the most productive player ever to wear No. 17 for the Bills.
The alphabetical list of Buffalo’s No. 17s (all were quarterbacks unless otherwise noted): Bob Broadhead, Matt Flynn, place kicker Shayne Graham, wide receiver Paul Hubbard, wide receiver Justin Hunter, wide receiver Justin Jenkins, Gary Marangi, wide receiver Danarius Moore, Warren Rabb, Matt Robinson, wide receiver Greg Salas, Mike Taliaferro and Willie Totten.
Broadhead shared time at quarterback at Duke with Sonny Jorgensen and played in the 1958 Orange Bowl. He was drafted by the NFL Cleveland Browns in 1958 but his pro football career was delayed by active duty in the Air Force. After he was discharged, he signed with the AFC Bills. He was the team’s original No. 17.
Broadhead appeared in four games, including one start, in the team’s inaugural 1960 season. He completed 7 of 25 passes for 75 yards, with 0 TD passes and 3 interceptions. He was sacked 6 times for 59 yards. He had 21 carries for 45 yards. He scored a 2-point conversion.
From 1961 through 1966, Broadhead starred in minor league pro football, with teams in Canton, Cleveland and Philadelphia. He was elected to the Minor League Football Hall of Fame. Did you know there is one? Or was one?
Broadhead became athletic director at LSU from 1982 through 1987. He fired popular football coach Jerry Stovall and hired Bill Arnsparger, who went 26-8-3 in three seasons. Broadhead died Feb. 11, 1996, in Baton Rouge. He was 59 years old.
Rabb probably was the best QB to wear No. 17 for the Bills so far. In the 1961-62 seasons, he started 10 games at QB and completed 101 of 251 passes (.402) for 1,782 yards, with 15 TD passes and 16 INTs. He completed his pro career with CHL Montreal in 1963.
Marangi became Buffalo’s starting QB during the 1976 season after Joe Ferguson suffered a season-ending back injury at midseason. Things did not go well. The Bills under Marangi were 0-7 and he completed only 82 of 232 passes (.367) for 998 yards, with 7 TD passes and 16 INTs.
Totten, a record-setting QB at Mississippi Valley State University (Jerry Rice was his favorite target), played for the “counterfeit Bills” during the strike portion of the 1987 NFL season. He was 13-of-33 for 155 yards, with 2 TD passes and 2 INTs. He went on to become a star in the Arena Football League.
LOOKING MORE-AND-MORE LIKE WARRIORS VS. CAVALIERS PART IV
The results of Tuesday night’s NBA playoffs doubleheader could be a strong clue that we’re headed for a fourth straight Golden State Warriors versus Cleveland Cavaliers championship showdown.
Golden State took a 2-0 lead over New Orleans with a 121-116 home victory. It wasn’t that close. The big news was Stephen Curry’s return after missing 15 games and almost six weeks with a sprained knee. He came off the bench to score 28 points in 27 minutes.
Golden State, with Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, probably has too much firepower for any team to beat in a best-of-seven series – including the Houston Rockets.
Cleveland won 113-112 in overtime as the host Toronto Raptors played true to form and came up short in the clutch. The Raptors led by 10 points in the fourth quarter but missed their last 11 shots in regulation. They were 5-for-24 for the quarter and (according to ESPN research) became the first team in the last 20 years to lose a playoff game after never trailing in regulation time.
LeBron James had a poor shooting game (12-for-30) but still willed his team to victory. He had 11 rebounds and 13 assists in 47 minutes.
I still believe Toronto has more overall talent than Cleveland, but the Cavs know how to win big games and the Raptors know how to lose big games. Can Toronto beat LeBron four times in the next six games? Doubtful. Could the Cavaliers beat Boston(minus injured stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward) or the talented but inexperienced Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference Finals? Why not?
SHORT SHOTS
I’m wondering if departed Buffalo Bills executive Russ Brandon will be honored with a spot on the Wall of Fame at New Era Field. I’d vote for him for the many good things he did for the organization but I’m not on the committee. By the way, now we know why Brandon was the invisible man in the build-up to the 2018 NFL draft.
How long can the Los Angeles Dodgers put off making a trade with the Baltimore Orioles for soon-to-be free agent Manny Machado as the replacement for shortstop Corey Seager (out for the year for Tommy John surgery)? The Arizona Diamondbacks are for real and the Dodgers can’t spot them much more of a lead in the National League West.
The clutch victory in Buffalo last Saturday night before 19,000-plus fans earned the Rochester Knighthawks the right to host Friday night’s National Lacrosse League playoff game against the New England Black Wolves. That could be significant. In their post-season history, the K-hawks are 9-14 on the road and 15-3 at home.
The Major League Lacrosse home opener for the Dallas (formerly Rochester) Rattlers didn’t go smoothly last Sunday. They won the game 15-14 over the Denver Outlaws but the game was marred clock problems and inexperienced game officials. Management apologized to the fans and promised improvements in the future.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY...
Wednesday, May 2
Paul George (28)...Past McAfee (31)...Thabo Sefolosha (31)...Kyle Busch (33)...Sarah Hughes (33)...Jarrod Saltalamacchia (33)...Troy Murphy (38)...Brad Richards (38)...David Beckham (43)...Roy Hinson (57)...Russ Grimm (59)...Dee Hardison (62)...Keith Wilkes (65). Dwayne “Rock” Johnson (46) is invited to the birthday party.
Thursday, May 3
Domantas Sabonis (22)...Brooks Koepka (28)...Ben Revere (30)...Tyronn Lue (41)...Ryan Dempster (41)...Ted Crowley (48)...Ron Hextall (54)...Jeff Honrnacek (55)...Mark Brammer (60)...Rod Langway (61)...Greg Gumbel (72)...Davey Lopes (73). Frankie Valli (84) is invited to the birthday party.
ON THIS DATE IN SPORTS...
May 2
79 years ago (1939), Lou Gehrig’s consecutive game streak ended at 2,130 games in a 22-2 Yankees win over Detroit...64 years ago (1954), Stan Musial hit 5 home runs in a doubleheader...54 years ago (1964), Bill Hartack road Northern Dancer to victory in the 90th Kentucky Derby...51 years ago (1967), the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-2 in the Stanley Cup Finals...48 years ago (1970), Diane Crump became the first woman jockey in the Kentucky Derby...3 years ago (2015), Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated Manny Pacquiao for the welterweight boxing title.
May 3
82 years ago (1936), New York Yankee Joe DiMaggio had three hits in his MLB debut...77 years ago (1941), Whirlaway, ridden by Eddie Arcaro, won the 67th Kentucky Derby...48 years ago (1970), the New York Knicks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 4-3 for the 24th NBA Championship...39 years ago (1979), Ohio State’s Tom Cousineau was selected No. 1 overall in the NFL college draft by the Buffalo Bills...35 years ago (1983), the Edmonton Oilers beat the Chicago Black Hawks 4-0 in the Stanley Cup Finals...32 years ago (1986), Ferdinand, ridden by Bill Shoemaker, won the 112th Kentucky Derby...15 years ago (2003), Funny Cide, ridden by Jose Santos, won the 129th Kentucky Derby.