Magic Number: 108

Well the Cubs have done it! I was rooting for the Indians, but I guess I could care less who won it all so long as it wasn't the Dodgers or Giants. But let us look at this long-term. Could this be the beginning of a new dynasty? I sure hope not. I don't want this to be like the dominant Yankee teams of the turn of the century. That team won the world series in 1998, 1999, 2000 and lost to the Diamondbacks in 2001. Four straight seasons of going to the world series is quite amazing. Will this Cubs team be like that? It very well may be, since the only loss that will be of concern is that of Aroldis Chapman. The rental received from the Yankees in a July trade will get a nice paycheck sometime this off-season. Speaking of the off-season, free agency has begun and teams can now sign players or trade without the need of a waiver. The Padres and AJ Preller are looking to start rebuilding for next season, and even though Vegas gives the Padres the longest odds to win the world series next year (along with the Reds, Braves, Phillies, Diamondbacks and Twins), my hope is that we are competitive enough to turn some heads. It is going to start with starting pitching and a relief corps that can hold a small lead throughout the late stages of any game. That is what got the Indians so far this year and helped the Royals win it all last year. It is our offense and defense that I do not have to worry about. Renfroe has a cannon in right, Jankowski and Margot can cover more ground than most center fielders in the game, Dickerson is solid in left, Solarte is consistent at third, Sardinas might have the best glove in the majors, Spangenberg has range (Schimpf struggles with that at times), Myers had maybe three errors all season, Hedges is a wall behind the plate and will gun down runners attempting to steal second more than the best catcher in the league and the pitchers just need to be familiar with signs and situations. Hopefully we have all of our players back, especially those who are on the 60-day DL.

In the NBA, tonight brings an intense match-up when Kevin Durant goes back to Oklahoma City for the first time since signing with Golden State over the summer. I expect him to be greeted with mostly boos mixed in with claps and cheers. Of course the fans there are upset. They lost perhaps their best player and now will take a miracle to make it to the finals past the Warriors. Let's see how Russell Westbrook responds to facing his ex-teammate and the league's best team.

College football this weekend presents us with some intriguing games. LSU hosts Alabama, perhaps the last team that has a remote shot of beating the Crimson Tide. I am confident, in fact, that LSU has the best chance at beating this juggernaut. Perhaps Alabama could even beat the Browns or some other lowly team in the NFL. I am confident that they could because of their dominant defense, prolific defense and potent offense led by freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts. But that will not happen, unfortunately. LSU has to deal with them somehow. Let's just be glad Les Miles isn't leading this team against the tide this week. Here are your games:

- #1 Alabama at #13 LSU, 8 ET, CBS
- #10 Nebraska at #6 Ohio State, 8 ET, ABC