Looking at the sports world this Kentucky Derby weekend, there is a lot going on. Much of it I have not seen, except in little bits.
The NBA Playoffs are in the second round. Golden State is ahead of Houston 2-0 with Games 3 and 4 in Houston. The Rockets complained bitterly about the officiating in Game 1, with star point guard Chris Paul getting ejected with 4.4 seconds left. Kevin Durant again led the Warriors, but the revived and controlled mayhem created by Draymond Green has baffled Houston.
In Game 2, Houston worried about getting hosed again by the refs—which they didn’t. Instead, in a bizarre first quarter, Steph Curry dislocated his middle finger on his left hand, while Houston’s star, James Harden, was accidentally raked across the face by Green when going for a rebound. Both returned to the action, with a squinting Harden ending up with 29 points while Curry contribute 20 points to the Warriors’ win.
From what I have observed, the Rockets rely, perhaps too much, on Harden’s excellence in scoring off of the dribble and getting to the foul line. Not getting the calls for him in Game 1 threw him slightly off of his game. In Game 2, Harden did make it to the line, but he was plagued by the lacerated eyelid and the glare of the Oracle Arena lights. Plus the Warriors defensive effort has improved greatly from the series against the Clippers.
Houston needs superior games from Paul and the supporting cast to augment the ailing Harden, who may not be able to score 40+ points. Coach Mike D’Antoni must find a way to throw Durant and the “Hampton Five” off their game. Otherwise Houston could go down quickly in this series.
A side note here—the moniker “Hampton Five” does not refer to accommodations within the Hilton chain. It is a name given by a reporter from the Bay Area to the four people plus Kevin Durant who flew East a couple of years ago to recruit Durant to play for the Warriors. That would be Curry, Green, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala, all inside the door of the place the group was to meet. So whenever they are together on the court, announcers and scribes refer to them as the “Hampton Five.”
Denver and Portland played the second 4 OT playoff game in NBA history on Friday night. The Trail Blazers won at home by 3, putting them up 2-1 with Game 4 upcoming on Sunday. I picked Portland to win this series and if the Warriors survive their test with Houston, this will be an even tougher series if Portland advances as the Blazers are excelling on offense.
Boston and Milwaukee have battled, with the two teams splitting the contests in Wisconsin. On Friday night, Giannis Antetokounmpo delivered again to lead the Bucks over the Celtics in Boston, as he did in Game 2. If the Celtics can control “The Greek Freak” as they did with Al Horford in Game 1, then they have a chance—albeit a slim one.
The final series is between Philadelphia and Toronto. The Raptors easily own Game 1. In Game 2, Jimmy Butler’s strong all-around game crushed Toronto. His encouragement of the oft-injured enigmatic Joel Embiid has led to a resurrection of the Sixers. Despite the outstanding play of Kawhi Leonard, Philadelphia has dominated the remainder of Toronto’s players, especially the Raptors’ second best player, Kyle Lowry. If the Raptors do not win Game 4, it will be another abysmal playoff failure for the franchise, and could lead to Leonard opting not to re-sign up north when free agency occurs.
The so strong looking New York Islanders are now on the sidelines, courtesy of the upstart Carolina Hurricanes, despite their garish Hurricane flag uniforms. I should have known better than to believe in the Islanders. They weren’t playing on Long Island as they had in the previous series, and goalie Robin Lehner had never beaten Carolina, while Thomas Greiss, the Islanders’ other goalie, had a 3-1 record against the Hurricanes. Head Coach Barry Trotz fatefully stuck with Lehner, who set Islanders goaltending records this season and is a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the best goaltender in the National Hockey League.
Boston is tied 2-2 with Columbus, and they look strong. I think that the CBJ magic is starting to wear off. This series can still go seven games to decide who meets Carolina.
In the West, Dallas shocked St. Louis on Friday night to take a 3-2 lead into the next game in Texas. Colorado and San Jose are also tied 2-2 and they play a pivotal Game 5. I may have seen a total of 5 minutes of the Western Conference playoffs—only switching away when the Warriors and Rockets went to commercial.
I was happy to see Noah Syndergaard pitch a four hitter against the Reds, striking out 10 in a complete game victory while becoming the first pitcher in 23 years to hit a home run and win a 1-0 game. The Mets returned to form on Friday night losing 3-1 in Milwaukee.
With teams hitting home runs at a record pace, Baltimore outdid itself. The team set a record for March/April, allowing 72 homers, smashing the old record of 50. If you have a chance to go see our favorite team at home and you like the long ball, go see the Orioles play. You should get your money’s worth.
The Dodgers are among the elite home run hitting teams, as is Milwaukee, Minnesota Texas and the MLB-leading Seattle Mariners. Which is why those teams are among the better squads in their respective divisions. Tampa Bay leads the AL East by 1.5 over the Yankees;Minnesota leads the Central; Houston has a 1.0 lead over the Mariners in the West. Despite starting to draw the wrath of the Phillies faithful, the Bryce Harper-led Phillies are atop the NL East with good pitching and the hitting of Ryan Hoskins; St. Louis and The Cubs are in another struggle for NL Central supremacy; and the Dodgers have a slim lead over the surprising Diamondbacks, who recently took two games from the Yankees.
Which leads me to this week’s topic—the New York Yankees. How are they doing it? Somehow, with all of the injuries mounting, they have managed to amass a 17-13 record heading into Saturday’s game, placing then in second behind Tampa Bay. The Yankees have been hot of late. Before entering Chase Field to lose two to Arizona, New York was on a 9-1 tear. After the win against the Central Division-leading Twins, New York is keeping pace with the Rays, as both teams have been 7-3 in their last 10 games.
Who are these Yankees? What makes them so special despite missing many of their starters and some key relievers? Is Aaron Boone that good a manager?
Right now, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, two of the big boppers on the Yankees are sidelined with no return in sight. Set up man Dellin Betances has had some improvement with his right shoulder impingement after a cortisone injection; he is tracked to return in June. Greg Byrd’s plantar fascia tear put him in a protective boot; he may return in June. Jacoby Ellsbury, the forgotten outfielder, may not play this season. Clint Frazier, so scintillating before tearing a ligament in his left ankle on a slide in Anaheim, is expected back on May 6. Will he be able to resume his torrid pace? Shortstop Didi Gregorius is still recovering from his right ulnar collateral ligament tear suffered in last season’s playoffs and which required Tommy John surgery; best case scenario is a return in June. Relief pitcher Ben Heller is starting to face batters in Florida extended spring training; he is a June return. Starting centerfielder Aaron Hicks is starting a rehab assignment with Class A Tampa on Monday, so if there is no more back pain, Hicks will make his season debut in May. Lefty starter Jordan Montgomery is recovering nicely form Tommy John surgery nearly a year ago and is expected back in July. Another left-handed starter, James Paxton hurt his knee while pitching on Friday night; manger Boone thinks it is not too serious and a return after 10 days may be possible. Star starter Luis Severino won’t begin throwing for awhile; while he is showing signs of improvement from his Grade 2 latissimus strain, don’t expect to see Seve until July. Didi’s replacement, Troy Tulowitzki suffered a calf strain in the fifth game of he season; he re-injured his calf this week, so his timetable is now looking like late May or June. 3B Miguel Andujar finally returned this weekend.
That is some M.A.S.H. unit. A lot of money tied up in those players. Along with a lot of homers and R.B.I., strikeouts and wins.
Look at the lineup now—three starters are playing regularly—Brett Gardner, Gleybar Torres and more recently, Gary Sanchez, who had been on the IL. Torres has been playing shortstop instead of second base and Gardner has been patrolling center field instead of being in left field. Luke Voit became the de facto starter at first base. DJ LeMahieu has battled some injuries but has avoided the IL thus far. Call up Gio Urshela has manned third. Mike Tauchman, Tyler Wade, Austin Romine, newly acquired Cameron Maybin, Mike Ford, Thairo Estrada and Kyle Higashioka have all played this season.
The pitching has not been outstanding. Of the current starters and Paxton, only Paxton and Domingo German sport above .500 records, with German at 5-1 and averaging 9.1 strikeouts per 9 innings, while sporting a 2.56 E.R.A. The bullpen has held up, with Aroldis Chapman, Adam Ottavino and Zach Britton, augmented by Jonathan Holder, Tommy Kahnle, Luis Cessa and recluse from the minors like Joe Harvey and Stephen Tarpley have also contributed. The team E.R.A. is 5th and the pitchers are 4th in strikeouts in the A.L. Only Chad Green has disappointed, warranting a stint at Triple A to regain his dominant form.
Luke Voit has twice been AL Player of the Week. He sported a 42 game consecutive on base streak which ended on Saturday, with a .278 BA and 9 home runs and 27 R.B.I. Sanchez has atoned for a miserable start before hitting the iL by hitting mammoth homers—10 in 18 games while cutting down his strikeouts. Torres has been solid offensively, batting .300. LeMahieu is Gold Glove fielder and hits for a .310 mark. Gardner’s .212 average does not project his timely walks and hits. Frazier left hitting .324 while bashing 6 home runs and driving in 17 runners. Tauchman, Wade, Romine all sport low averages but contribute was needed. It is the surprising rookies Urshela and Estrada who have hit well over .300 with their chances with the big club.
So what happens when Andujar, Hicks, Frazier, Didi, Tulo, Judge, Stanton, Byrd come back? Who sits, who goes to the minors? Does proven major leaguer Maybin get a chance to stay? What about Urshela and Estrada—will they remain on the varsity? What should GM Brian Cashman do with the good fielding, poor hitting and injury-prone Greg Byrd? Same with the pitchers. Paxton is assured of returning soon. Betances should resume his spot if all goes well. Montgomery will be a nice addition. Who knows if Severino will return to form or require surgery? German should remain in the rotation; if not, he is a strong arm out of the bullpen. J.A. Happ and Masahiro Tanaka will be steady as the season progresses. C.C. Sabathia nabbed his 3000th strikeout and is cementing his potential Hall of Fame legacy in his final season.
It is either going to be a heck of a story if the Yankees survive the plethora of injuries suffered thus far and do not drop if more occur. Aaron Boone, tossed twice already by the umps early this season, will merit strong Manager of the Year consideration—even if he has been darn lucky about the bevy of replacements.
Or will the returnees fail to hit and pitch as needed? What if the team suffers more injuries or does not get everyone back as anticipated? Will the wheels fall off of the bus causing the Yankees, who do not sport a sterling record against clubs with above .500 records, plummet into the AL East abyss?
Repeatedly, it is said that this season is a marathon. Well, I don’t see too many elite runners get hurt while running the 26 mile endurance race. Perhaps they train better than this era’s ballplayers. Who knows why so many injuries are happening, especially to the Yankees? And while the pennant races are likened to horse racing, ask Bob Baffert, trainer of the now injured Derby favorite Omaha Beach, if injuries aren’t a part of his sport at the most untimely moments?
Right now the team has my attention even in the midst of NBA-NHL mayhem. I hope that as spring evolves into summer, the Yankees still have my attention. Otherwise I will be watching much more Netflix than I want.
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