OUR JIM SEZ MID-WEEK UPDATE FEATURES MLB & NFL NEWS/NOTES PLUS WE CHECK OUT THE BIG 10 IN OUR LATEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL FIVE-YEAR POINTSPREAD BREAKDOWN CHART

By Jim Hurley:

The Major-League Baseball Trade Deadline is just now only a week away (July 31st) and there's a growing sense that any/all of the big deals involving pitchers have happened already - and that's too bad if that is true!
    
No doubt the deals that moved CC Sabathia from Cleveland to Milwaukee (he's 3-and-oh already for the Brewers, you know), Rich Harden from Oakland to the Chicago Cubs and Joe Blanton from Oakland to Philadelphia were solid in-season swaps for the clubs both dealing away those hurlers and the clubs that brought back young/minor-league talent in return but could some of the potential big-time buyers - and we mean you, New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals - be getting cold feet these days because of the prohibitive costs for the likes of Pittsburgh lefthander Zach Duke, Seattle's ...

(Volume X - Number 35)
Tuesday, July 22

SARATOGA OPENS WEDNESDAY... FULL FIELD SCHUYLERVILLE PREVIEW... HOT SIRES AND HORSES TO WATCH, PLUS A LOOK AT TURF SPRINTS AND MORE!

I like to think that when the compressors and the air-conditioning went on Saturday, and with things remaining the same on Sunday, which caused the final day of the Belmont spring/summer meet to be cancelled, it might have been a spiritually mechanical homage to The Spa on the part of the Elmont, Long Island plant...but whatever the reason, the downstate meet is finished and the anticipation is over. That 2008 meet is archived and those owners and trainers stabled there that haven't already done so will soon be on their way up the thruway to exit 24 at Albany, the I-87 Northway and Exit 14 or 13N depending on which way you want to approach the Historic Spa. 

All I know is I'm on my way as well and if opening day is any indication, this could be one heck of a value-driven race meet.
There are 10 Races with 116 entrants, including a hefty 11 two year old fillies for the featured Grade III Schuylerville (see brief preview below), which will ...

HANDICAPPING NOTEBOOK

COMPETITIVE BALANCE THE BIG STORY
IN 2008 MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

By Mathew Hurley, Managing Editor:

As you handicap the rest of the 2008 Major League Baseball season, it's important that you remember how evenly matched the teams are this year.

We've prepared an exercise that will help drive home that point.

Imagine there's a league where everyone plays 20 games. Upon completion, EVERYBODY is either 9-11, 10-10, or 11-9. That would be about as evenly matched as one could imagine. Nobody's bad. Nobody's good. It would be an amazing set of coin flips to have all 30 teams at 10-10. Frankly, it's a pretty amazing set of coin flips to get everyone from 9-11 to 11-9.

An 11-9 record is a winning percentage of .550.
A 9-11 record is a winning percentage of .450. ...