My first poker post/Sunday Sports update

I play on Pokerstars quite often, and last night was my first big cash in a tournament, taking 5th place in a 333 man tournament. I usually just play sit-n-go's, so there's a more limited amount I can win per tournament. I blew a nice chip lead, though. I guess it happens when you get pocket kings. The 2nd biggest chip stack raised, I re-raised him, he went all-in, I called him, you know he's got aces. It's such a despondent feeling because there's really nothing you can do about it, the poker gods just played a cruel trick on you. Either way, hey, I'll take it. Sure would have been nice to take down first, though, since that was three times the amount I won. Oh well, maybe I could have folded, but it takes someone with more discipline than I have to do that.

Anyway, if you just skipped that paragraph, I really can't blame you. You read this blog for the sports. Well, last night the Yankees played game two of their series against the hated Red Sox. With Mike Mussina on the mound against Josh Beckett, Yankees fans really couldn't have expected a win, but the Yankees played a good game. Unfortunately, Mike Mussina melted down a little in the 6th inning, and the Red Sox held onto the lead, despite a long rain delay as Jonathan Papelbon was about to face Alex Rodriguez with 2 on and 2 out in the 8th inning. It was amazing timing, but Papelbon was able to strike out ARod on 3 pitches once the game restarted, and then he mowed down the Yankees in the 9th to secure the victory.

Tonight, Daisuke Matsuzaka faces Philip Hughes in the most even pitching matchup of the series. Dice-K has been great so far this season, with a 1.47 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP in his first three starts. 22 strikeouts in 18.1 innings have also been a key for his early success, but he can be prone to walking batters, so look for the Yankees to take some pitches. His walk totals this year have been 4, 0, and 5, so hitters who live for walks like Bobby Abreu and Jason Giambi will likely look to get on base via the base on balls.

Phil Hughes will be making his first ever start against Boston. He is coming off a 3 IP, 3 ER, 6 H, 4 BB, 2 K performance against Kansas City, so he will look to bounce back against a Boston lineup which has been underachieving just like the Yankees' offense so far this year. David Ortiz, in particular, is 3-43 this season from the plate and is hitless in his last 17 at bats. Both teams are 6-6 in the early going, and neither team wants to slip behind in the season series. The Orioles still lead the division at 7-4, but every team in the division is within 2 games.

Devils-Rangers tonight. Must win for New Jersey if they want to have any chance.

Masters is on right now, Snedeker has fallen off the pace a little, 4 back through 9, but he's still in it. Scoring conditions are awful right now, no one in the later groups can get a score under par. Immelman leads at 10 under, but he's vulnerable. Steve Flesch is a solid player, but he's not going to be getting many birdies. If Immelman collapses, Flesch could win, but Immelman has to be the favorite. Nobody is making a positive move up the leaderboard.