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hinasho · 4 years

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isle of the lost vs descendants 1 characterizations

the book ends literally when the movie starts so their personalities cant be that different right? lets see

(similarities posted at the bottom!)

DIFFERENCES:

book: when evil queen goes on about beauty related things, especially in regards to her daughter, usually evie would begrudgingly recite whatever “tip” eq taught her and just go along with what she says. not to say she hated those kinds of things, but whenever her mother brought it up, she never expressed similar excitement or engagement. more often than not she was indifferent to her mother’s beauty antics, and we only see her talk about them in regards to herself in the last few chapters (im not talking abt the mirror incident, but the one liners she’d drop about her appearance here and there) movie: when the parents first tell their kids about going to auradon, eq talks about sprucing her daughter up before she leaves and evie is visibly excited about the makeover. she also goes onto encourage it on others as seen when they’re all in the limo and she tries to put makeup on mal.

book: the villain parents are not friends and we almost never see them together. the one time we saw the parents/adults all together was in the prologue scene for evie’s 6th birthday party. after that they never interact and dont pay each other any mind. this is especially true regarding evil queen and maleficent, as they state in the book that they’ve been at odds ever since they fought over who’d rule the isle. eq has also just been welcomed back into society after being banned by the other, so time-wise, at worst, they are still enemies and, at best, barely tolerable acquaintances. movie: evil queen & maleficent have a significantly close relationship, so much so that eq knows her house like the back of her hand and where maleficent keeps things, specifically that her spellbook is in the fridge. they even have a laugh about how they use to run things before being forced to live on the isle. they seem to be genuinely close.

put the rest under the cut bc this post is too long lol

book: jafar and jay’s mantra is “whoever has the gold makes the rules” which was significant because it helped them while in the forbidden fortress movie: jafar and jay’s mantra is “there’s no team in I” (while this change was surprising, i also wasn’t that upset abt it bc both book and movie!jay struggle with teamwork)

book: carlos is not athletic at all and goes on about how he hates gym class. he is very focused on stem and doesn’t really care about any other kind’ve hobby. meanwhile jay is athletic and does casual parkour when going anywhere. movie: both of them do extreme parkour in the opening song. im not referring to the dancing ofc, but the extra flips and tricks they do. this is not unusual for jay, but is in regards to carlos.

book: jay isn’t the only one that goes around stealing things, mal very much does it to. at the end of the day they’d even compare how many things they’ve stolen to see who’s the best thief. jay usually wins, but still, both are thieves. movie: when they get to auradon, mal is very confused as to why jay would take the time to steal things and even needs for him to explain why he does it.

book: ben describes audrey as a classic fairy tale princess. she finds all things in auradon lovely and beautiful, and even has a bird land on her finger during their date. while she does think negatively of everyone on the isle, she acts mostly “lovely and sweet” before anything else, and it is not faked. think: giselle from enchanted. movie: idk how else to explain this difference besides “audrey just has a different vibe”. she is more regina george-esque than genuinely cheery, and puts on an obviously fake smile and attitude so often that queen belle expresses distaste for her

SIMILARITIES:

mal likes art and goes around the isle putting up tags --- (the romance storyline wasn’t bad, but it would’ve been nice to see mal maybe join an art club? or get into painting or smthg else related to her hobby)

carlos is afraid of dogs --- in the book he can’t even say or hear the word bc it’s a trigger for him. he can say “puppies”, but he cannot say the word dog. whereas in the movie, he says the word several times. this is an extremely minor difference to be fair

when they’re afraid/think they’re in danger, they all cling to jay

they’re not used to sunlight

the ben & mal tension on first meet (and continued infatuation before the cookie scene) --- in the book both characters have had a dream about the other. they didn’t know who the other was, but they remembered the dreams vividly enough that they were able to describe their faces in detail. in the movie when they first meet, both pause on each other several times. it’s likely because of the o’l Disney Romance™️, but it could also be because of curious recognition.

jay is a flirt/smoother charmer and girls fawn over him

carlos is good with and likes science & technology

mal wanting to prove herself to her mother & the others not being as set on it --- in the book, mal is constantly reminded of the times her mother has called her “not worthy of bearing her own name or of being her daughter” and it causes mal to lose her cool several times. the other VKs also have parental issues ofc, but ones that are not as focused on proving themselves like mal’s are. theirs lean more towards other problems. in the movie she is extremely insistent on reminding them what they’re at auradon for and that this is their “one chance to prove themselves”

the core four freeze in fear when confronted with the reality of their parents’ pasts

mal can touch maleficent’s scepter --- to be fair that dance number in the museum was most likely just mal daydreaming, but still

jay going off on his own/following his own plan --- in the book jay and jafar plan for him to go with mal to the forbidden fortress and then double cross her and steal the scepter for himself, taking it as their “big score”. in the movie when they first see the wand with their own eyes, he runs off in front of everyone and only opens the gate enough for himself to squeeze through. carlos has to open it wider so they can all get through it after him. and once theyre in the same room as the wand, he reaches for it first against mal’s wishes.

carlos is bad at sports --- this is in both the differences & similarities section because, while in the book & movie he’s bad at sports, in the book he also doesnt like them and has no desire to do them as he is completely focused on science & tech. while after some practice in the movie, carlos joins the tourney team alongside jay. (i personally would’ve preferred for him to join a computer or engineering club)

mal can manipulate people with ease (book: evie / movie: jane & ben)

fairy godmother is mainly the one that enforces the “no magic” rule --- beast may have created it, but both in the book & the movie, people/creatures talk about fairy godmother being the one that restricts them

carlos climbs trees/searches for higher ground when afraid

evie knows how to use her looks, specifically her smile, to get the things she wants (book: persuading dr. facilier / movie: getting info out of chad)

audrey likes to dance

carlos is sarcastic & competitive

mal cheers up evie when she’s upset

evie is good with academics

ben wanting to be his own person rather than act like his father --- this was a good continuation from book to movie as ben only realizes he needs to be himself in the final chapters, which he just continues to encourage in the movie.

mal’s spur of the moment saving tactics

the villains aren’t good with computers/the internet --- the isle canonly doesn’t have wifi and in the movie the villains struggle with the laptop that was most likely given to them from an auradon representative

audrey’s family still being deeply traumatized by what maleficent did

belle not letting beast talk shit

mal pitying her mother for what she went through --- in the book: when she sees the past of what happened at aurora’s christening and sympathizes that her mother was nothing but a sad lonely girl. in the movie: the “and i really wish you hadn’t gotten there yourself” line during ben’s coronation

annddd yeah!

honestly there were a lot more similarities than i was expecting, and i am pleasantly surprised! book to movie things dont usually crossover well, but honestly, the first movie didnt do too bad of a job of it.

tbh i think the one that probably suffered the most was audrey’s character. she really seemed very different from her book counterpart. this isnt to say that book!audrey was a saint and would’ve treated the VKs kindly, but she also wasn’t a fake person and was genuinely that cheery and upbeat all the time. whereas in the movie, it seems like almost nobody likes her (except chad) bc of her “fakeness”.

i personally think if they were gonna go with the “bad girl and her minion” role, then audrey should’ve been the minion. in the book she was kind’ve an airhead (?? idk she just tended to have her head in the clouds a lot) and if one of the auradon girls told her to act a certain way towards the VKs for the “good of auradon”, i could see her listening to them. i dont know if she’d be the one to come up with the evil deed herself though.

overall, the continuity flowed pretty well. i wish they didn’t change audrey’s character like they did (they probably could’ve had jane play the role of ‘stuckup girl’ tbh since she was a new character and her mother had a higher position in the kingdom compared to audrey’s parents anyway, so smthg to boast abt), but other than that, the movie’s characterizations were kinda close to the books!

#descendants #babbles #long text post //#now i gotta read Return #isle of the lost spoilers obviously

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charanteleclerc · 5 years

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Hello! Can I please request a one shot of Lando comforting George in Baku after his car got wrecked during practice? Absolutely love your work!

‘Enjoy! ❤️

make a wish on the setting sun

All he wanted to do was sleep, he’d barely been in the car today but just having to deal with the fallout from this morning was enough to drain him. Just bad luck, can they come back from this? He’d had so much faux sympathy thrown at him, so many questions about the fate of his weekend. He wanted to scream and cry, he knew it was pure dumb luck that the drain cover had hit him rather than anyone else, but he didn’t know what was going to happen. He felt so guilty about the entire thing, he wished he didn’t have to look his mechanics in the eye without a proper explanation or apology. He wished he couldn’t feel the tension in the air, the feeling of desperation. Having the media hurl questions at him, questions he couldn’t answer, it felt like they were crashing down his foundations with a sledgehammer, trying to deliberately tear down what was left of his confidence in himself, in the car, in the team.

He said goodbye to the team left at the track, still trying to fix his mangled car. He was useless in this situation, just getting in the way. He tried to ignore the way that everyone was staring at him, whispering and pointing. The words struck him like a blade. Unlucky. Unlucky. Unlucky. It felt like that word was being branded into his skin, following him, taunting him. He couldn’t escape it.

“Hey George.” Lando appeared next to him, looking concerned. “How are you doing?”

“Fantastic, great, epic.” George sighed, glad that he’d put his sunglasses on, tears already threatening to spill. “Please don’t say I was unlucky, if I have to hear that word one more time -”

“I get it.” Lando interrupted, giving him a small smile. “Have you got any plans this evening?”

“I have ‘curl up in bed and pretend today never happened’ scheduled at eight, but I think I can move it around. Just for you.”

“Aww, I’m special.” Lando laughed, nudging George with his shoulder. “Knew you loved me really. New plan for your evening, go and get changed, and meet you back here?”

“Where are we going?” George asked, curiosity getting the better of him. He knew he really shouldn’t question Lando, who did things as they popped into his head, and never replied with a direct answer.

“That is for me to know, and you to find out, young padawan.” Lando waggled his eyebrows for full effect, grinning. “See you back here in an hour?”

“Only if I don’t get any better offers.” George teased. Lando gasped, clutching at his chest.

“I’m the best you’ll ever have, Russell!” He cried. “The best!”

“Oh god, help me.” George was grinning now, despite his mood. Lando just seemed to have that effect on people. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

“I’ll be waiting!”

~*~

“George!” Lando greeted him, waving like an idiot. “Ready for your magical mystery tour?”

“Do you actually know Baku well enough to give a tour?” George asked, raising an eyebrow. “Or is this one of your usual tours of getting lost for a while?”

“Definitely the second, it’s patent pending.” Lando said, looking around. “I think we should go this way.”

“Do you have an actual destination in mind?” George asked, following. “I have no idea what is actually in this city, so you could tell me literally anything and I’d believe you.”

“Well, first we have this building to your left, sir.” Lando said, gesturing like a real tour guide. “This building is stylized in the Azerbaijan style, which is very common in this area of the world. The architect for this building became so famous, he was commissioned to do the whole city, that’s why it all looks similar. Very confusing, if you ask me. And along here -”

“Okay, okay, I get it.” George laughed, giving Lando a friendly shove. “You’re such a dick, you know that?”

“Ah, but a loveable one.” Lando batted his eyelids. “I’m the prettiest dick around.”

“I’m not even gonna answer that. There’s no way I’m gonna feed your ego.”

“No, feed it George, feed it!” Lando cried, ignoring the looks people were giving him. “It lives off compliments, otherwise it shrivels away!”

“Such a weirdo.” George said fondly. “How does Carlos put up with you all the time?”

“Same way you and Alex are still my friends. I was much more annoying as a kid, Carlos has the easy deal.” Lando shrugged. “I’m just adorable, no-one can resist.”

“I’m never going to be rid of you. You’ll be following me around even when we’re eighty.” George teased. “Racing around in wheelchairs.”

“And I’ll be winning, obviously.” Lando countered. “I’ll get one of those turbo wheelchairs, I’ll run rings around you.”

“That is just blatant cheating.”

“I call it loopholes in the rules.” Lando grinned, shoving his hands into his pockets. “So, are you ready to talk yet?”

“About what?” George tried to evade, but he knew Lando wasn’t buying it.

“Today.” Lando shrugged, purposely not watching George. They spent so much time under media scrutiny, there was no reason to add himself to the list. “I’m not going to say that you’re unlucky, but it also obviously wasn’t your fault either.”

“I dunno. It just feels like a curse, or something. The car is awful, it’s so fucking slow. With this as well, the team can’t afford this. You can just feel the desperation, it’s everywhere. This is the latest in a long line of ‘unlucky’ events. The media are waiting for a story, and I just feel… hopeless? Guilty? I can’t even take the blame for this, no-one can, but I want them to blame me. I wish they could.”

“You’re not at fault.” Lando said sharply, and there’s a hand on the inside of his wrist, warm and safe. “George, no-one should be making you feel guilty for this.”

“I’m making myself feel guilty.” George gave a shaky sigh. “If I can’t prove myself, then what? Do I want to be the guy whose career was done in by a drain?”

“That is not going to happen. You’re fast, and you’re talented, and you’ve worked too damn hard to give up now. Don’t you even dare.”

“But -”

“No but’s. I’d rather give you my own seat than let you give up.” Lando said fiercely, and George didn’t doubt that he meant it. “You’re going to get back in that car, and you’re going to show the world that you are George goddamn Russell, and you aren’t going anywhere. Got that?”

“Okay.”

“Repeat after me. I am George goddamn Russell, and I am not going anywhere.”

“I thought your name was Lando.” George teased. Lando gave him a look. “Okay, okay.” He took a deep breath. “I’m George goddamn Russell, and I’m not going anywhere.”

“Now shout it!”

“No way, there are people around!”

Lando looked unimpressed, but he slid his hand down to George’s, squeezing. “Shout it.”

“Fine.” George huffed, taking a deep breath. “I’M GEORGE GODDAMN RUSSELL AND I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE!”

“Ağzını yum!” Someone shouted from behind them, and they both broke down into giggles.

“I’m never doing that again.” George said, catching his breath.

“Yeah, but it was fun when you did it.”

“Someone shouted something at me Lando. I don’t even know what he said!”

“Pretend it was a compliment.”

“It probably wasn’t.”

“Shut up, pretend. Maybe he said you have a sexy butt, you don’t know.”

“You think I have a sexy butt? Aww, Lando, I never knew you cared.”

“Your butt is very sexy, that’s why that guy shouted it, obviously.” Lando laughed. “Ooh look, we’re at the sea!”

Lando ran down to the barrier, looking over to the horizon, watching the setting sun. When George caught up, Lando nudged him.

“Remember when we used to climb onto the top of our caravans and watch the sunset?” He asked softly. “It was the one little piece of quiet we used to get, and we just sat there.”

“Yeah.” George replied, a sad smile on his face. “Feels like forever since we did that.”

“Can you imagine doing it with our motorhomes now? They’d be screaming, ‘Lando, get down’ or ‘That’s dangerous!’”

“Pretty sure that’s what your mum used to say anyway.” George replied. “You were always getting us into trouble.”

“Like anyone believed you did those stupid things.” Lando snorted. “I do miss those days.”

“Everyone misses their childhood.” George shrugged. “Rose tinted glasses, and all that.”

Lando nodded, watching the sky turn to orange and bronze. “We should see more sunsets.”

“We really should.” George smiled. “Thank you.”

“What for?”

“Being idiotic enough to cheer me up. I’m pretty sure no-one else wants to go near me right now.”

“Since when was I most people?” Lando gave a cheeky grin. “Okay, make a wish.”

“On what?”

“On the sunset.” Lando said, like it was obvious. He turned to look at the fading sun, exhaling deeply. “Ready?”

“Uh, sure.” George turned to look across the sea, shutting his eyes. He exhaled, his mind forming his wish. Let him see me, really see me.

“Come one, we’ll do one more thing before we go back.” Lando clapped him on the shoulder. “I’d better give you back on time, don’t want your team to hate me.”

“Yeah, my mechanics giving you the death glare would obviously be the worst thing in your life.” George rolled his eyes. “Where else are we going?”

“To the scene of the crime!” Lando cried, heading off towards the track. George groaned, trailing after him. What crime?

~*~

He wasn’t going to lie, going back to that drain cover and kicking it, jumping up and down on it? Totally worth it. He’d never felt so energised, so carefree. His feet probably had a different opinion though.

~*~

“See, back in time. Didn’t want you to turn into a pumpkin or anything.”

“I’m not cinderella, I’m the carriage?” George replied indignantly. “Cheers mate.”

“‘There’s no way I’m going to feed your ego.’” Lando mimicked. “I’m obviously cinderella.”

“Aah, I see it now. Helpless damsel, curly hair…” George teased, laughing as Lando swatted him. “You said it!”

“Never helping you again.” Lando grumbled, but he was smiling. “I’d better go before the team kill me. See you tomorrow?”

“Course.” George said, pulling Lando into a tight hug. “Thanks. Again.”

“Don’t mention it.” Lando murmured, tilting his head up. “Remember what to shout out if you need to.”

“Never shouting that out again.” George reminded him, letting him go. Lando grabbed his hand, squeezing tightly.

“You really should.” He smiled, before letting go. He started to walk away, before turning back quickly. “What did you wish for?”

“If I tell you, it won’t come true.” George said, shaking his head. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Lando nodded, turning once again and heading off down the street. George watched him go, a soft smile on his face. He’d hold onto that wish, maybe it would come true. If not, he always had that sunset. He’d have to be content with that.

~*~

‘Ağzını yum’ means ‘Shut your mouth’ in Azerbaijani. Not ‘you have a sexy butt’, as Lando thinks.

As usual, crossposted to my AO3 (Charante_Leclerc) and prompts are always open. Enjoy! ❤️

#lando norris #Anonymous #george russell #f1 fanfic

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brido · 6 years

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Your Opening Week Baseball Guide

Well, March Madness is over. Your bracket probably sucked anyway. So you probably need to get caught up on the first week of baseball. I’m here to help you. And while it’s probably way too early to draw any real conclusions from the first week, I don’t want you wandering around looking as clueless as Gabe Kapler. EARLY SEASON BURN. It’s okay if you don’t get that joke yet. You will. Let’s start...

AL East

Current Playoff Team: Red Sox

Projected Playoff Teams: Yankees, Red Sox

See, what did I tell you last week? Winky smile. After the Red Sox blew a comfortable lead on Opening Day, I’m guessing that every psychotic Boston fan wanted Alex Cora run out of town. Now they’ve rattled off 5 wins in a row and we’re contemplating whether or not the Red Sox might have the best rotation in baseball. I mean, probz not. But a week in they sure do.

You think Giancarlo Stanton is under a microscope in New York? Dude already got booed. It’s all fun and games in New York when you’re crushing two home runs on Opening Day, and it’s a lot harder four games later when you’re 0-for-5 with 5 K’s in football weather in the Bronx. I think he’ll be fine. Maybe Yankees fans should worry more about Dellin Betances.

AL Cy Young: Dylan Bundy, Orioles.

For all the deserved accolades of Boston’s starting pitching, the best in the AL so far as been Bundy, whose WAR leads the league, accompanied with a 1.35 FIP and a 0.69 ERA. That being said, the rest of the conversations surrounding division are a guessing game about where the Blue Jays will be before the trade deadline and whether or not they should trade Josh Donaldson. Right now, FanGraphs has them a game off the second wild card spot and FiveThirtyEight has them at 26% to make the playoffs. That’s a tough call if that happens. It’ll probably be a much easier decision for the Orioles, so we’ll see who gets to slobber all over the chance to land Manny Machado for the postseason.

AL Central

Current Playoff Teams: White Sox, Twins

Projected Playoff Teams: Indians, Twins (FiveThirtyEight only)

If you’re a Twins fan, you’ve got to be loving this early start from Brian Dozier. And Jose Berrios. And Eduardo Escobar. Right now I’m feeling confident in their chances. I’m probably even more excited if I’m a White Sox fan, since projections have them around 68-73 wins and they’re currently on pace to crush that. Yeah, they’re only 5 games in. I don’t want to get too excited. But the Sox have homered in every game. Matt Davidson’s 3 home runs on Opening Day were just a blip on the radar compared to the attention Stanton got. And this is a young team already headed in the right direction. The national sports media is still waiting around for the Indians to get hot before they care about any of this.

AL West

Current Playoff Teams: Astros, Angels

Projected Playoff Teams: Astros, Angels (FanGraphs only)

Did you see all the fancy Astros ring and banner celebrations? It’s looking like that’s gonna happen a lot down in Houston. George Springer led off the season with a home run for the second year in a row. They’re widely considered to have the best staff in the Majors (sorry Boston... and I guess everyone else). They’ve got four guys playing the outfield. And if the Division wasn’t looking so tough, we might be able to project the Astros at a billion wins this year. Speaking of which...

AL MVP: Carlos Correa, Astros.

This Opening Week shit can probably get eye rolls for most things, but Correa wouldn’t be a bad pick to be MVP, anyway. Right now, Correa leads the League in WAR and he’s been the second-best hitter, so I’m giving him the early lead over Mitch Haniger of the Mariners and Didi Gregorius of the Yankees.

AL Rookie of the Year: Shohei Ohtani, Angels.

Remember when this guy fucking sucked in Spring Training? That was kind of fun. Now the Babe Ruth comparisons aren’t actually that insane. Ohtani might be the hardest-throwing starter in baseball. His hitting is starting to resemble the power exhibition he puts on in batting practice. And maybe we don’t need BREAKING NEWS every time this guy gets a hit, but this is one of the only over-hyped stories of the young season that actually has my full attention. Oh yeah, and he’s only 22.

NL East

Current Playoff Teams: Mets, Braves, Nationals

Projected Playoff Teams: Nationals, Mets (FanGraphs only)

I think there might be an East Coast bias when Derek Jeter sitting in the stands in Miami gets more attention than actual games in the Midwest. But a lot of the attention is actually warranted so far. The Mets are going to be interesting this year. They only won 70 games last year, which made me skeptical of picking them for a Wild Card. Right now, they’re projected anywhere from 81-88 wins. Maybe Mickey Callaway is changing the culture there. I don’t know. But after the first week, I’m actually going to say...

NL Cy Young: Matt Harvey, Mets.

He’s back, baby! Or not. Like I said, nobody knows. But I’ll take that 0.00 ERA and 1.56 FIP as a good sign. Plus, it’s not like he has to be ‘the man’ in Queens anymore.

NL MVP: Freddie Freeman, Braves.

He’s been the best hitter in the League so far. And he’s probably the best player in baseball that America and your girlfriend have never heard of. The Braves have had the best offense in baseball early on. Freeman is a big reason why. Because he always is.

The Nationals always seem to have fifteen different compelling storylines over the course of a season. There’s the lingering fact that they’ve never advanced in the playoffs. They have the impending free agency of Bryce Harper to talk about over and over and over again. I’m sure Nats fans love that shit. And since Harper always seems to be amazing in April, it’s not going to slow anything of those talks down. How anticlimactic will it be when he re-signs with Washington? Anyway, Adam Eaton has also made a big splash in his return from injury. So there hasn’t even really been much attention on their non-Dusty-Baker manager just yet. It’s just a matter of time to see who they’re gonna lose to in the first round. HUGE BURN to their zero fans that I know of.

You know which new manager is getting scrutiny? Gabe Kapler of the Phillies. It seems like every team has a new manager, but only one pulled their starter when he was dealing on Opening Day and then blew a 5-run lead. And only one called to the pen with nobody warming up. And only one looks like he’s not gonna be done reigning down destruction on Philadelphia until every one of their relievers have Tommy John surgery. That’s probably harsh. But it’s also probably funnier to me because he also looks incompetent anywhere outside of a cross fit box or a gym that only plays butt rock. I’m guessing he figures it out eventually.

Hey, look! Derek Jeter is sitting in the stands with Papi and Posada!

NL Central

Current Playoff Teams: Pirates, Brewers

Projected Playoff Teams: Cubs, Cardinals.

Is it ever too early to start freaking out about the Cubs? I mean, Ian Happ was great in Spring Training. Then he homered on the first pitch of the season and after that, it’s basically been suck city. The Cubs offense is setting all-time records for striking out. They’re 2-3 after playing the Marlins and Reds, who are projected to win a combined ZERO games this year. Maybe we can blame the 17-inning game against the Marlins on Day 2. Maybe it’s way too early to be worried about anything. Maybe I should take solace in the fact that their bullpen has looked dope AF and that was a huge problem last year. They’re fine, right?

As far as the rest of the division goes, you’ve got a fast start from the Pirates, who have only played in frigid weather. The Cardinals picked up Greg Holland, which could be huge for their chances at the Wild Card... or the Division, I guess. The Cardinals and Brewers played in a game that started and ended with back-to-back home runs. And Paul DeJong has probably been the most interesting story for STL. He’d be my second pick for MVP, after Freeman. He also hit .257 last year so whatever.

NL West

Current Playoff Team: Diamondbacks

Projected Playoff Teams: Dodgers, Diamondbacks (FiveThirtyEight only)

If you’re a Dodgers fan, what’s freaking you out more; bad outings and decreased velocity from Clayton Kershaw or bad outings and decreased velocity from Kenley Jansen? Because both things are happening. Kershaw is 0-2 and you can hear the whispers about whether or not he’s past his prime, even though everyone was blowing him in Spring Training. Jansen has an 18.00 ERA. Is this the dreaded World Series hangover that is obviously not happening in Houston? I’m looking at the rest of that staff and thinking they’re probably going to be fine. The moral of this post is that everything is fine. Probably because as a Cubs fan, I’m trying to convince myself that everything is fine.

As far as the rest of the Division goes, Nick Ahmed has had a hot start in Arizona. Joe Panik’s solo home runs in the first two games led to two 1-0 games for the Giants, which was super fucking weird. And Charlie Blackmon actually hit on the road for the Rockies... where he’s staying put. And just for fun...

NL Rookie of the Year: Christian Villanueva, Padres.

Maybe the Phillies should call up Hunter Greene to make anyone give a shit about NL rookies this year. But Villanueva is tied for the NL rookie lead in WAR and he’s mashing for the shitty Padres. The Cubs actually got Villanueva with Kyle Hendricks in the Ryan Dempster trade. But they decided they probably didn’t have room for him in the infield, since he doesn't strike out every time at bat. Oh man. SELF BURN.

So this is a good place to start. Everything will look completely different in a week. But that’s part of the fun. Baseball is fucking awesome.

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clubsocial-india · 4 years

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New on Sports Illustrated: Betts homers, Dodgers beat Astros 8-1; LA fans still sore

LOS ANGELES (AP) The Dodgers gave the Astros a lot of different looks. They used eight pitchers in all, with the bullpen redeeming itself a night after a tough finish.

Mookie Betts' two-run homer highlighted a four-run fifth inning, Chris Taylor added a three-run shot, and the Dodgers defeated Houston 8-1 on Sunday night with angry Los Angeles fans letting the Astros have it again.

The Dodgers took three of four in this shortened season from the team that beat them in the 2017 World Series, after which the Astros' cheating scandal was revealed. Even with fans banned because of the coronavrius pandemic, they made their feelings known.

For the second straight day, the Astros were bombarded with messages towed by planes over Dodger Stadium. ''Steal This Sign Astros'' read one. ''Astros Cheated! Never Forget! Go Dodgers'' and ''Hey Astros Try Stealing This Sign!'' read others.

Surely, Los Angeles fans were even more piqued after the Dodgers blew a three-run lead and closer Kenley Jansen was charged with five runs in the ninth without recording an out in a 7-5 loss on Saturday.

The bullpen redeemed itself Sunday, helping the Dodgers avoid their first three-game skid of the season.

Brusdar Graterol and seven relievers combined on a four-hitter. Graterol opened with an inning of one-hit ball, striking out three. Jansen retired the side in the ninth, setting down Carlos Correa, Josh Reddick and Martin Maldonado - each of whom burned him in the same inning a night earlier.

''I asked him how he felt and he was ready to go,'' manager Dave Roberts said, adding that Jansen's ''conviction, the execution was plus-plus across the board.''

Victor Gonzalez (3-0) got the win with two scoreless innings. He allowed one hit and struck out two.

''This is the deepest, most talented 'pen by a full grade that we've ever had. Guys are having tremendous years and it's a close group there,'' Roberts said.

Taylor slugged a three-run homer into left field - his second in as many games - with two outs in the eighth, extending the lead to 8-1.

''They got all kinds of hits - bloopers, check swings, bunts, homers,'' Astros manager Dusty Baker said. ''They had it going in all departments.''

Kike Hernandez had a two-run single and Betts followed with his team-high 15th homer. Betts' blast hit off the top of the wall in right, narrowly eluding the outstretched glove of George Springer, who punched the air with his right arm in frustration.

Springer responded with a leadoff homer in the sixth. The Astros didn't have more than one runner on until the seventh. Alex Wood allowed a single to Maldonado and hit Abraham Toro before getting the final two outs.

Seeing so many pitchers affected the Astros' timing at the plate.

''It's hard to see what the tendencies are of the pitcher, what they're doing, what they're not, which pitch he's throwing for a strike, which pitch he's not, especially when you're facing a really good bullpen,'' Maldonado said.

The Dodgers led 1-0 on AJ Pollock's 10th homer with two outs in the first.

Zack Greinke (3-2) gave up five runs and eight hits - both season highs - in five innings of his second straight loss. He struck out three and walked none against his former team.

''You start to wonder if you're actually doing good and what are you doing wrong,'' Greinke said. ''Had some soft hits, so maybe a little unlucky, but you've got to take some of the blame somewhere.''

Houston finished 2-9 on its 11-game road trip, and dropped to 23-24 overall and 7-18 on the road.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Astros: 1B Yuri Gurriel got the day off after hurting his hand while attempting to steal second on Saturday. 2B Aledmys Diaz also had the day off after tweaking his quad when he scored in the ninth on Saturday. Both Gurriel and Diaz are expected back on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Dodgers: RHP Dustin May tossed a 20-pitch bullpen using his entire mix. He could start Wednesday in San Diego. He took a line drive off his left foot at Arizona. ... RHP Joe Kelly (right shoulder inflammation) will throw a bullpen on the off day Monday and could be activated later in the week. ... 3B Justin Turner (strained left hamstring) did some work on the field, running bases and taking grounders at third.

SPRINGER HAS SPRUNG

Springer has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games. During that span, he's batting .340 with two doubles, four homers and six RBIs.

HONORING TURNER

Turner was recognized on the field by Roberts as the Dodgers' nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award. It honors the major leaguer who best represents the game through character, community involvement and philanthropy and is decided through fan voting.

UP NEXT

Astros: RHP Jose Urquidy (0-1, 3.72 ERA) makes his third start Tuesday at Texas after missing most of the season following a bout with COVID-19.

Dodgers: Begin a three-game series at San Diego on Monday in a showdown between the NL West's top teams.

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More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

September 15, 2020 at 05:29AM Betts homers, Dodgers beat Astros 8-1; LA fans still sore from Blogger https://ift.tt/2ZCF6MS

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junker-town · 6 years

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12 stats that tell us everything that happened in NFL Week 9

We promise, there’s no real math involved.

Not many words are needed to tell the story of Week 9 in the NFL — it can be summed up with some fists and a few numbers. Fiiiiiights were the big theme this week, but there was more than that. We got to see explosive offenses, apathetic defenses, and career days from a couple veterans.

Now that we’re past the halfway point of the 2017 season, we’re starting to get an idea — albeit, still a fuzzy one — of which teams will be playing in January. The Eagles and Rams won big with 51-point showings and look like contenders. The 49ers are the first team this year to 0-9, but probably because the Browns had a bye.

If you’re starting to get Algebra II-type of anxiety, don’t worry: There’s no real math involved. Here are the most interesting stats and numbers from Week 9.

Mike Evans was the only player suspended after there were three fights on Sunday that resulted in five ejections.

Here was Evans, drilling the Saints’ Marshon Lattimore after Jameis Winston instigated him by poking him in the head.

Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Green sparked the first fight of the afternoon, which resulted in both players getting ejected. Later, 49ers running back Carlos Hyde, and Cardinals defenders Haason Reddick and Frostee Rucker were ejected for their own fight.

Everyone else probably faces a fine, at most. Evans, who somehow wasn’t ejected against the Saints, will now have to sit out next week.

1-2

Just over 18 months ago, Jared Goff and Carson Wentz heard their names called first, then second, in the 2016 NFL draft.

On Sunday, they made history:

Today is the 1st time QBs selected 1 & 2 overall in the same @NFL Draft each threw 4+ TD passes on the same day: @JaredGoff16 & @cj_wentz http://pic.twitter.com/DAg1RCApnm

— Randall Liu (@RLiuNFL) November 5, 2017

For Goff, the Rams’ 51-17 win over the Giants was a career day. He had never thrown four touchdowns in a game before then.

On the other hand, it’s a little old hat for MVP candidate Wentz. Sunday’s 51-23 win for the Eagles was the third time he’s tossed four touchdowns in a game this season, all within the last five weeks. He’s coming for you, Dan Marino.

No team is hotter than the Eagles right now. They’re an NFL-best 8-1 and have averaged 36 points over the last five weeks.

So it shouldn’t be shocking that they blew out an opponent. But the Broncos? 51 points against THAT defense?

The Eagles’ production in the first half alone was something we hadn’t seen in seven years against this D:

PHI 31, DEN 9 The @Eagles are the first team to score 30+ points in the 1st half vs the Broncos since the Raiders (38) in Week 7, 2010

— NFL Research (@NFLResearch) November 5, 2017

The Broncos gave up 59 points to the Raiders in that 2010 loss, so at least it didn’t get THAT bad for them Sunday. But it was the defense’s ugliest game so far in a season that keeps getting worse:

It's not just a 4-game losing streak. Broncos have been outscored 41-3 in first quarter during skid. #9sports

— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) November 6, 2017

We don’t blame you if you think the Broncos have already thrown in the towel.

There’s good news and bad news for the Denver defense in the coming weeks. First the bad: Tom Brady and the league’s No. 1 offense come to town next Sunday. Now the good: the Bengals’ last-place offense visits the following week.

Has any free agent signing made a bigger impact than Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth? Jared Goff, who already had to endure several months with Jeff Fisher as his coach, also had to weather through a tragic offensive line that let him get sacked 26 times as a rookie — and that was only in SEVEN games. This offseason, the Rams made it a priority to protect Goff. Their biggest signing was 35-year-old Whitworth, who the Bengals let walk in free agency.

On Sunday, he made sure Goff didn’t even need to wash his jersey after the game (I mean, he SHOULD, but he didn’t HAVE to):

LT Andrew Whitworth allowed 0 pressures on 22 pass blocks.

— Patricia Traina (@Patricia_Traina) November 6, 2017

Whitworth (No. 77) also laid this huge block on third-and-33 to let Robert Woods take it 52 yards to the house:

What a difference a year makes: the 6-2 Rams have scored more points in 2017 than they did in 2016, and they still have eight more games remaining. And Goff? He’s has been sacked just 10 times.

33.3

Look, we all miss Deshaun Watson. Not only was he having a historic rookie season before his ACL injury, but he was arguably the most fun player to watch this season.

But no one misses him as much as DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller. With Tom Savage at quarterback, the Texans receiving duo went from putting up 349 yards against the Legion of Boom last week to just 118 this week against the NFL’s second-worst passing defense.

After 6.5 games with Watson under center, Hopkins and Fuller were the NFL’s co-leaders in receiving touchdowns with seven apiece. This is what happened without him:

DeAndre Hopkins & Will Fuller V combined for 8 receptions on 24 targets. Their combined 33.3 reception pct was their lowest ever as a duo

— NFL Research (@NFLResearch) November 6, 2017

The Texans also came into Week 9 with the NFL’s best scoring offense, averaging 30.7 points per game. The Watson-less offense scored a grand total of one touchdown against a Colts defense that was allowing 30.8 points per game. Unsurprisingly, Houston lost. If only there was a better quarterback out there for the team to sign ...

Adrian Peterson, who keeps fluctuating from “he’s back!” to “he’s washed!” on a weekly basis, was definitely BACK Sunday against the 49ers.

With Drew Stanton at quarterback, the Cardinals decided their best chance of winning was by giving their 32-year-old running back more carries than he’s ever had in his MVP-winning career.

And it worked. Peterson ran the ball a career-high 37 times for 159 yards, his best rushing total in two years. The Cardinals got back to .500 with a 20-10 win.

After the game, Peterson said that he felt “fresh,” despite having more carries in a game than any other running back over 30 has ever had:

No player over the age of 30 in @NFL history has had more carries in a game than @AdrianPeterson had today. How'd he feel? "Fresh." http://pic.twitter.com/KTjm8NAdKB

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) November 6, 2017

One stat noticeably missing from his line, however: a touchdown. Peterson, who is sitting at 99 career rushing yards, is still waiting to get that elusive 100 emoji.

+53

That’s Seattle’s net point differential for the second half of games this season. Most of that comes in the fourth quarter where they’ve outscored opponents 79-30. The hurry-up offense Russell Wilson and Co. used to such dramatic effect in last week’s win over the Texans works. Sometimes it’s not enough, like this week’s last-minute loss to Washington.

Here’s my question: if it works so well in the second half, why not give it a try in the first half and stay out of the dicey situations all together. Just a thought!

The 1-7 Giants are setting records, but not in a good way:

Giants have now allowed a TD to a TE in 9 consecutive games, an @NFL record.

— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) November 5, 2017

They let tight end Tyler Higbee in the end zone for an 8-yard score in Sunday’s demoralizing loss to the Rams. It was Seattle’s Jimmy Graham in Week 7, and the Broncos’ Jeff Heuerman in Week 6. The only week in recent memory that the Giants haven’t allowed a touchdown pass to a tight end was in Week 8, which was the team’s bye.

The Giants take on the winless 49ers next week, and they’ll have George Kittle, Garrett Celek, and Cole Hikutini to contend with. Kittle and Celek have one score each this season. It’s a chance for the Giants to snap this streak — or an opportunity for the 49ers to take advantage of one of the Giants’ weaknesses and maybe finally get a win.

The Sean Payton and Drew Brees era of Saints football has been known for high-flying offense. An offense so good that it’s largely been able to overcome a defense that’s been, at best for the majority of the tenure, mediocre.

That’s starting to turn in 2017. First, there’s the rapidly improving secondary, boosted by a couple of rookies. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore, drafted No. 11 overall out of Ohio State, and second-round safety Marcus Williams have helped turned the pass defense from the worst in the league last season to No. 12 this season.

It would be irresponsible to mention any type of success on the Saints defense without bringing up Cam Jordan, who has been their best player on that side of the ball. The defensive end is on pace for a career year, with seven sacks, 14 QB hits, two forced fumbles, and a pick-six so far.

These improvements have paid off on the scoreboard too:

The Saints scored 3 total non-offensive touchdowns from 2013-16. They just returned a blocked punt for their 4th non-offensive TD of 2017.

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 5, 2017

If the Saints can keep this up while the offense continues to cook, they’e going to be a tough out for anybody the rest of the season.

Jay Cutler, in his first game back from cracking a few ribs, had his best game by far this season on Sunday against the Raiders. Cutler completed 34 of 42 passes — or a smokin’ 81 percent completion rate, the highest number in any complete game of his career.

Cutler, who threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns, couldn’t lead the Dolphins to a win. They lost, 27-24, on Sunday night. But it wasn’t because of their 34-year-old quarterback, sore ribs and all.

For all the talk about how bad the Seahawks’ offensive line is, they can’t stop committing penalties.

They lead the NFL with 82, with the second-most in the NFL not even all that close to them:

Seattle now has 82 penalties, 9 more than anyone else in NFL. That's on pace for 164 which would shatter team record of 138 in 2011.

— Bob Condotta (@bcondotta) November 6, 2017

The worst part? They’re on pace to set a new record for most penalties in a season.

The Lions traveled to Lambeau Field and got a 30-17 victory over the Packers. It probably could’ve/should’ve been worse, but the 13-point win was the first victory for the Lions at Lambeau Field of more than 10 points in 35 years.

It was also just the second time Detroit has beat the Packers on the road since 1991. Even though Green Bay was without Aaron Rodgers, the Lions will take it.

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