The Theodore Newsletter

May 1, 2024

It’s transition time, i.e., time to leave basketball and move on to baseball. Both are important to many of us since sportsbooks have now become front and center for the betting public. For me, it’s DraftKings. For others, it’s FanDuel. In any event, here’s how basketball came down for me and what’s coming up with baseball.

BASKETBALL: Another good year. You might remember that I had the University of Connecticut (UCONN) last year at 40-1. My key bet this year was Illinois, basically because I felt their guard Shannon was the best player in college basketball. However, they got knocked off the elite 8 by UCONN. However, my second bet was on UCONN. In my recent book Winning at Casinos: The Definitive Edge (Amazon, 9$) book, I warned against betting on repeaters. Sorry, but this UCONN group was a different team; I loved the way the team played and performed. I also had a host of other bets including Yale at 1,000-1 to make the final four, North Carolina State at 50-1 to win it all, etc., etc.

BASEBALL: I got hurt last year. My key bet at the start of the season was with the BALTIMORE ORIOLES, and believe it or not, I wound up losing money on them. Don’t ask me how, but I just screwed up with all the betting options now available (See end of article).

But that was then and now is now…and it’s now that counts. I spread this year, with five key bets.

1. METS (World Series). Ugh!!!
2. PIRATES (WS and National League)
3. TORONTO (WS and American League)
4. CLEVELAND (AL and over)
5. BOSTON(AL)

I also went partners with the dearest of old friends in Clearwater Beach, FL on the Yankees (WS) and (AL). I’m not happy about his bet, but it looks good so far.

You will note that I stayed away from the DODGERS, BRAVES and the repeater TEXAS. I’m giving some thoughts to four other bets.

1. KANSAS CITY
2. SAN DIEGO
3. ANGELS
4. PHILADELPHIA

I’ll probably wind-up betting two of them – probably the first two – between now and the All-Star break. You will also note that all of the bets are long shots.

Keep in mind that there are primarily two types of bets made  in sports betting. One is the point spread, the other the money line. Each has its place not only in baseball but also football, basketball soccer, and hockey. And, sports bets can be made on either a Smartphone or Internet. I’m sure you have seen all the advertisements on television regarding offers such as those provided by DraftKings, FanDuel, etc. It really has become wild.

I’d recommend future bets (I refer to them as seasonal bets). These are bets on a team winning a championship or a league or a division, etc. I find this a particularly attractive bet since it involves only one bet that will (hopefully) apply over the entire season. The odds here are a very, strong function of time since the performance of your team almost always varies during the season.

Good luck this season.

P.S. This is the month for voting on school taxes and school board members for many of the readers who reside in Nassau County. I suggest getting involved and vote AGAINST the proposed school taxes.

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www.theodorenewsletter.com

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NEXT POSTINGS

JUNE 1:                      On Boxes

JULY 1:                      On Purely Random, Pristine Thoughts XXXVII

AUGUST 1:                On Sleep Apnea II

SEPTEMBER 1:         On Vertigo

OCTOBER:                 On the Ultimate Questionnaire

NOVEMBER 1:         On Hello Basketball, Goodbye Baseball

The family celebrated my 90^th birthday this past April 19^th. It’s hard to believe that I’ve been around nearly a century. The remnants of the Killeen’s Tavern legendary basketball team of the 1950s and 60s in Astoria, Queens, are pictured below. The gala event was hosted by Mary and our daughters, Georgeen and Molleen, along with our son, Patrick, and was attended by 83 friends, former students, neighbors and relatives. The menu featured a charcuterie board, colossal shrimp, lollipop rib lamb chops, Caesar salad, along with a traditional Greek menu of spanakopita, lemon potatoes, grilled veggies, moussaka, and pastitsio. Dessert was homemade by our daughters and included baklava, rivani, and brownies.  Birthday wishes were sung, and candles were blow out over a Carvel ice cream cake.

Left to right: Dan (The Dan) Corenza, Jim (JR) Raffetery- 1964 Haggerty Award for the Most Outstanding College Basketball Player in the Metropolitan area, Frankie Quarto – 4-year starting guard at Manhattan College, and Danny (Big Dan) Doyle – Detroit Pistons, 1961-3. Included in the picture are your favorite basketball coach alongside Bonnie Parente, East Williston mayor and Jennifer DeSena, Town of North Hempstead Supervisor.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 1st, 2024 at 1:00 am and is filed under Basketball, East Williston, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.