A Letter To The San Francisco Giants, And Soccer Picks

Dear San Francisco Giants,

When you play the Washington Nationals tonight, please start hitting. Or at least scoring runs by any means possible, including getting hit by pitches.

Thanks,

Me.

****

Back to South Africa. Doesn't that sound like it should be a play by some hip playwright?

DAY 14, JUNE 24TH 2010 (HAPPY 24TH BIRTHDAY TO ROSELYN HALLETT!)

GROUP E

CAMEROON VERSUS HOLLAND

I would love to pick an upset here. Really I would, because that would be a great story. Cameroon has a history of pulling upsets, since way back in 1990 in Italy. But I don't think they have the depth to stop Holland.

Holland, but not by as much as you might think. 1-0.

DENMARK VERSUS JAPAN

Danishes versus sushi? That's a tough call. But Japan is a whaling nation, which limits my sympathy for them, even if I didn't think Denmark a better team. Denmark gets the solid 2-0 win.

GROUP F

SLOVAKIA VERSUS ITALY

I wouldn't mind seeing the Slovaks pull off an upset here, despite my Italian roots.

So to heck with it. Slovakia plays a tight match and steals a late winner against the run of play to shock everyone. Except for me, obviously, because I remember that there is always a shock or two in the group stage.

Slovakia 2-1.

PARAGUAY VERSUS NEW ZEALAND

Since the upset of the day just happened, have to follow my head and predict Paraguay to get a 2-1 victory. New Zealand just isn't strong enough against such a well-organized South American side.

STANDINGS, FINAL

GROUP E

HOLLAND 3 WINS 0 LOSSES 0 DRAWS 9 POINTS

DENMARK 2 WINS 1 LOSS 0 DRAWS 6 POINTS

CAMEROON 1 WIN 2 LOSSES 0 DRAWS 3 POINTS

JAPAN 0 WINS 3 LOSSES 0 DRAWS 0 POINTS



GROUP F


PARAGUAY 2 WINS 0 LOSSES 1 DRAW 7 POINTS

SLOVAKIA 2 WINS 1 LOSS 0 DRAWS 6 POINTS

ITALY 1 WIN 1 LOSS 1 DRAW 4 POINT

NEW ZEALAND 0 WINS 3 LOSSES 0 DRAWS 0 POINTS