Many Happy Returns

     This writer return from a vacation interspersed with sports and a little education thrown in. I have seen 3 MLB games in 11 days--May 22 in Houston; May 30 at Yankee Stadium; and June 2 in the rain in Baltimore. I have seen 2 college campuses in Texas. We visited 1 Presidential Library. We were in the sports betting capital of the U.S. (at least for now)---Las Vegas---which is a big hockey town now that the Golden Knights have reached the Stanley Cup Finals. And yes, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors are meeting for the unprecedented 4th time in a row to establish who is the N.B.A.'s best.

     So let's start out with baseball. On May 22, we made our way to Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros. With a retractable roof facility--which the roof was thankfully closed due to thunderstorms nearby--it was a spacious stadium. Although the ballpark was not filled, the Astros faithful and the scoreboard, music and interactive entertainment made it into a fun-filled, enjoyable night.

     Of course, the Astros dominated the visiting San Francisco Giants behind the pitching of Gerrit Cole, formerly the mainstay of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Cole, alongside Justin Verlander and undefeated Charlie Morton form a very formidable trio of top-flight pitchers. Besides Morton being unbeaten this season, Verlander has a minuscule  E.R.A. and Cole leads the American League in strikeouts.

     Then there is Jose Altuve, the fireplug second baseman who energizes the team. He is just so much fun to watch if you are a baseball fan. You just hope that he does not do too much damage against your team. With a loaded lineup and good pitching, the Astros will be there when the playoffs begin to defend their World Series crown.

     An aside to the Giants-Astros contest was the matchup between Cole and Brandon Crawford. Crawford is Cole's brother-in-law, having met Cole's sister at UCLA where she was on the Bruins' softball team. Cole went into this meeting ahead in the rivalry, allowing just 4 hits in 18 at bats by Crawford. While Cole did not have his top game, he was in good form except against Crawford, who had a single and a home run against his wife's brother. I wonder how that went over in the family?


     Eight days later, we were in New York to see the Astros take on the Yankees. It was a one-sided affair, as New York's top pitcher, Luis Severino out-dueled former Cy Young Award winner, Dallas Keuchel. Severino was dominant against Houston, striking out Astro after Astro. Despite the four strikeouts endured by first baseman Tyler Austin, New York asserted its dominance over Houston in this game and by winning the season series 5-1.

     For the Yankees, all everything rookie Gleyber Torres has become a potent force, capping last month with awards for Player of the Week and A.L Rookie of the Month for May. Aaron Judge is still among the strikeout leaders, but he is getting on base, clubbing homers and scoring or driving in runs. Brett Gardner is coming alive, coming out of a month and a half funk. Even though he has not hit his stride yet, Giancarlo Stanton is still clubbing homers while batting just below .250. First baseman Greg Byrd has rejoined the team after ankle surgery and he is a strong addition to an already potent lineup.

     While in rain-soaked Baltimore on Saturday, I saw the Yankees close up. I was impressed with the hitting of rookie third baseman, Miguel Andujar. Didi Gregorious appears to be regaining his form after a horrible May. Aaron Hicks played very well against the Orioles, collecting three hits.

     Only catcher Gary Sanchez is playing way below expectations.  Hitting just above .200, Sanchez looked awkward and lunging at the pitches. He failed to hustle down the line on a grounder, which the Orioles' second baseman threw the ball away trying to complete a double play. Sanchez's catching is getting more solid; his offense needs to take off.

     The difference between the Astros and Yankees comes down got pitching. Houston has exceptional starting pitching. New York has Severino; Mashairo Tanaka, who threw 5 1/3 inning versus the Orioles giving up 3 homers; and C.C. Sabathia who is pitching in some hard luck. Sonny Gray pitched well against the woeful Orioles on Friday night, but Gray has been inconsistent. The Yankees need for a 5th starter is there, but that is a minor concern.

     But what continues to separate the teams is the bullpen. New York can throw 7 capable relief pitchers in some form, capped by flame throwing lefty Aroldis Chapman. Houston's closer has been a bit inconsistent and their relief corps has cost Verlander 3 more wins. The edge remains with the Yankees until the Astros shore up their pen. Both may meet again in the post-season, which will produce riveting battles like the six games which concluded on Wednesday.

     Just a small postscript. The Orioles are horrible. I feel they are a bit better than the Miami Marlins, but not by much. Outside of shortstop Manny Machado, who has mashed 17 home runs, no one else can distinguish themselves in a real positive way. Kevin Gausman, who pitched on Saturday may have struck out 9 Yankees, but he left the game trailing 6-3. Adam Jones may have hit a homer on Saturday, but he looked to be a step slower in the outfield. Jonathan School is hitting .245 and he is not fielding too well. Why Chris Davis is still with the team bothers me--he is batting around .150, hitting for a little power while leading the A.L. in strikeouts by a wide margin. Someone in the farm system or via trade can do better. No wonder attendance is way down in Baltimore--it seemed like over 75% of the crowd on Saturday were rooting for New York. It is sad to see a proud franchise--the home of Frank and Brooks Robinson, Jim Palmer, Eddie Murray among other Orioles' greats--play this badly.

     Another thing worth watching are the increasingly frequent injuries for the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw. Could the once-dominant ace of the LA staff be a mere mortal? Will all of his wins, accolades and awards be enough to overcome his rough post-season experiences and his failure in directing the Dodgers back to a World Series championship?

     Let's proceed to basketball. The N.B.A. Finals has a repeat performance--Cavaliers-Warriors IV. This matchup has already produced great theater just from Game 1. Game 2, while a blowout in favor of Golden State, produced more chippiness and some clutch performances by the Warriors. Lebron James has established himself as the greatest player now--and maybe forever if the Cavs can win it all. Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green are back at it, being forces in the overtime win on Thursday.

     However, I am looking at this as a contest between two teams that are fortunate to be where they are. Cleveland benefitted from James' almost inhuman performances against Indiana, Toronto and Boston, winning each in 7 games. I think that a healthier Boston team, one with Kyrie Irving, not withstanding a healthy Gord Hayward, would have easily handled Cleveland.

     Whereas Golden State beat Houston largely because Rockets' point guard Chris Paul, who had been eating up the Warriors defense, thus lessening the burden on James Harden, suffered a leg injury which sidelined him for Games 6 and 7. Otherwise, we might be seeing Cleveland versus Houston.

     Do I see Cleveland winning this version of the Finals? No. But Lebron will take his band of misfits to higher levels and winning the championship will not be very easy for the Warriors.

     The Golden Knights and Capitals are awaiting Game 4 in D.C. Washington, apparently the stronger team, is ahead by a 2 games to 1 margin. I look at the upcoming game as a do-or-die one for Vegas. Down 3-1, even at home, will be daunting for the N.H.L's expansion darlings.

     At least the T-Mobile Arena pre-game theatrics are far superior to D.C. bringing out season ticket holder Pat Sajak to announce the starting lineup. That's the best they can do inside the Beltway? He's not quite Michael Buffer, the famous ring announcer for so many championship fights with his signature call of: "Let's get ready to RUMBLE!!' If the Caps' management wanted a subdued approach, they could have brought in Mitch Mc Connell or Mike Pence. You want to have the house rock? How about Samantha Bee or Stormy Daniels? Even PTI's Washington homer, Tony Kornheiser would have brought the Caps' faithful to a big decibel fever pitch. But then again, Vegas knows much better how to present itself to the world than Washington.

     The biggest thing to happen recently is the Supreme Court's ruling in favor of New Jersey about legalizing sports betting throughout the country. I was in the Sports Book of the Mirage twice to see N.B.A. games on the big screens. That Sports Book was alive--abetted by the noise of the nearby slot machines. Celtics, Cavaliers, Rockets and Warriors fans overpopulated the room. Sorts betting was very much in vogue while we were in Las Vegas.

     On Monday, Delaware, a state who has been chomping at the bit to have sports betting and was one of four states to have previously enacted sports betting legislation (Nevada, Oregon & Montana are the others), will open doors at their racinos to take bets on games not played in Delaware. Which means almost every game.

     New Jersey is ready at Monmouth Park race track to open their Sports Book. But the New Jersey legislators have put the brakes on this, wanting to develop rules and regulations for oversight of this venture. Which I applaud.

     Moreover, the major sports leagues want a piece of the potentially huge sports betting action. I think that asking for 1% of the take is outrageous. Then again, it is not surprising when you think about the arrogance and chutzpah of the N.F.L., the biggest and baddest of all of the leagues. Who knows what the omnipotent N.C.A.A. will want--if they seek to profit from the Supreme Court's ruling and want part of he profits as an "integrity fee"---will they pay the athletes whose games are bet on? I hardly think so.

     The states want the tax windfall. New Jersey has legislation pending to devote up to almost 10% of the sports winnings to the state coffers. Certainly the states will want to impose similar taxes. Nobody should want to share the pot with the N.F.L. or MLB or the N.B.A. and the N.H.L. Do you think they will stop the sports if they cannot attach themselves to the state money derived from gambling taxes? Of course not. They play now and Vegas gleefully sets odds on the action without the worry of a tariff from the major leagues.

     I expect that some state will capitulate to the sports powers and give them a share of the profits. Other states will not have to do that, but once the barn door is open, I foresee litigation to make the rich richer. And the illegal bookies will always be there to rig games or provide a tax free alternative in sports betting. Such is the nature of the beast the Supreme Court unlocked.

     I am happy to be back writing. There is a lot of happiness in New York (at least for A.L. fans), Houston, Washington, Las Vegas, Cleveland and the Bay Area. And in the states who want to promote sports betting.

     In all, this sounds like a significant amount of happy returns.