While I am not a car racing fan, I am probably more in tune with the Indy 500 than I am with anything else in that particular sport…you can’t really avoid it when you live in Indy…and yes, NASCAR fans, I just referred to the generic sport of “Auto Racing”, lumping in the rednecks with the euro-trash…deal with it.

I am not going out on a limb with my prediction, because I think this is one of the cases where all the talking heads are correct. There are basically only 6 drivers (all on the 3 best teams) that have a legitimate chance to win on Sunday. Granted, it is the Indy 500, and anything can happen, and if someone outside of Target Chip Ganassi, Andretti Green, and Team Penske happened to win, he would not be the first dark horse to do so…but the smart money is not there.

So, here are the 6 drivers that collectively have an 80% chance of winning the race:

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Popularity: 8% [?]

Jason Varitek just tied Ray Schalk for the most no-hitters caught all-time, and most folks will be talking about Jon Lester, just like they should be. The fact that he is even pitching in the big leagues is remarkable after his battle with cancer less than 2 years ago…but, I am the one guy that is going to start talking about Varitek first…and foremost.

I do not know anything about the 4 pitchers that threw the no-hitters that Ray Schalk caught, since his feats were accomplished from 1914 to 1922. I do, however, know quite a bit about the 4 guys that threw the no-nos that Varitek caught.  Hideo Nomo, Derek Lowe, Clay Buckholz, and Jon Lester…that is quite a mix of drastically different pitching styles.  And how about the last two coming from the two young phenoms of the organization.

Hell, when you look at Jason Varitek’s place in the pantheon of great catchers, you only need to read this one statement:

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Popularity: 6% [?]

Well, it took a while, but the Boston Red Sox have once again resumed their place as the team to beat…the team with the best record in baseball. And when I say that, I mean…they have the best record in the American League…which means that they have the best record in baseball. Settle down, D-Backs fans…you could win 120 games this year…and no Boston fan, Cleveland fan, or Angels fan will ever be worried about your team, or should ever be worried about your team…hell, I don’t think there are any Royals fans that are worried about the D-Backs.

Let’s just get it out in the open, as it will make life easier on all of us over the next several months…I love the Red Sox. I am 39 years old and I suffered just as much (and just as loudly, I am ashamed to admit) as my Sox Nation bretheren for the first 34 years of my fandom. Quite frankly, I have earned the way I feel right now…a proud fan of the best team in baseball. Sure, there are lots of folks who love to impugn the Sox as Evil Empire II, since all they do is spend money, but that is how to build a winning professional baseball organization in this country.

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Popularity: 4% [?]