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Qualified Picks – 6/24/2010

June 24, 2010 at 4:00 pm | MLB, Qualified Picks, Soccer
By: Player to be Named Later

Last week we weighed in on the NBA Finals and US vs Slovenia. I was really hoping for a better performance out of Kobe, but the Lakers still came away with the win. The United States were robbed of a winning strike due to some unknown call. However, that will all be forgotten due to yesterday’s heroics. This week we take a look at another soccer game as well as the 4th game of the Crosstown Classic.

Friday 6/25 – Group G: Game Portugal vs. Brazil – 9 am

StevieY19 (31-17) Brazil over Portugal: Portugal can pass Brazil to win the group and avoid the likely match-up with Spain in the first round of the knockout stage, but Brazil is just too good. Even without Kaka, Brazil have more setup men than Portugal and in Luis Fabiano they have a world class finisher. Brazil wins and delays its match-up with Spain until the final.
His Jesusness Shuttlesworth (16-12) Brazil over Portugal: I’ve been saying a South American country will win this cup. Brazil is a favorite and has too much firepower to fall flat against their Portuguese counterparts/rivals.
Player to be Named Later (12-10) Brazil over Portugal: Going into the World Cup, Brazil was ranked #1 by FIFA and Portugal was ranked #3. You don’t see a matchup like this very often in the group stage. Both these teams will be looking to avoid Spain, who have some work to do of their own. I predicted Brazil to win the whole Cup, so I am not going to pick against them here.
South Side Sheik (25-23) Portugal over Brazil: I’d actually prefer to give this a draw, but I’ll choose Portugal. They’ve been pretty good defensively and both teams will be playing hard since whomever loses or finishes second will likely have to face Spain in the next round. Since Kaka will be sitting this game out with his red card from the Ivory Coast match and Luis Fabiano won’t get away with any double handball goals this time around, I give the edge to Portugal.
Stormin Norman (24-24) Brazil over Portugal: I’m not sure how good Portugal is, but doesn’t Brazil have some of the greatest players in the world, including the greatly-named Kaka? If I’ve heard of a player on your team, I’m going to pick you. Brazil wins -3 to -5. They need to do something about the low scoring.

Friday 6/25 – Chicago Cubs (Zambrano) vs. Chicago White Sox (Peavy) – 3:05 pm

StevieY19 (31-17) Sox over Cubs: The Sox are on some kind of tear as of late and the Cubs, well they have been on another kind of tear for most of the season. You throw the records out, as they say, in these games and I’m sure the Cubs would like to.
His Jesusness Shuttlesworth (16-12) Sox over Cubs: Peavy is heating up and finally living up to the hype. I could see him blanking the offensively challenged Cubs. Plus, the Sox have garnered a lot of momentum from their hot bats this past month.
Player to be Named Later (12-10) Cubs over Sox: The Sox have been rolling and they are playing at home. I don’t really have a good reason to pick the Cubs. Oh well, baseball predictions are funny like that.
South Side Sheik (25-23) Sox over Cubs: The Sox have some major momentum right now, and they’ve been feasting on the National League. I do worry about Peavy’s shoulder since he was close to the disabled list and then labored through a complete game shutout. Who knows how he’ll bounce back?! I do know that Vizquel is crafty and Konerko and Quentin are starting to hit with men on base and that is dangerous for opponents.
Stormin Norman (24-24) Cubs over Sox: Peavy is good, and the Sox are hot, but something tells me the Cubs will pull this one off. Zambrano usually pitches well leading up to the break and melts down in August. This is such a homer pick it almost hurts me to make it.

Lolla Song of the Week – “Night by Night” by Chromeo. Two hip guys from Montreal. One of them is the brother of a fairly well known DJ named A-Trak, who is Kanye West’s personel touring DJ. Have at it.