RetiredLawyerSportsOp: Shining Stars are Falling

RetiredLawyerSportsOp: Shining Stars are Falling: The idea that DeMarcus Cousins suffered an ACL tear this week in a pickup game in Las Vegas saddened me but did not surprise me. I am sad ...

Shining Stars are Falling

The idea that DeMarcus Cousins suffered an ACL tear this week in a pickup game in Las Vegas saddened me but did not surprise me. I am sad for all of the rehab work and effort he gave to come back from his Achilles tendon tear, just to have the opportunity to play in the regular season with the Golden State Warriors. Then in the playoffs, he went down in the first series with a left quadriceps injury but somehow made it back to play some meaningful minutes for the Warriors. Clearly, Cousins was not back to form, but his desire to play was strong.

Only to have a devastating non-contact injury to his knee. He is star-crossed. Cousins had another shot at redemption, with a Los Angeles Lakers team which some believe could win the NBA title. Now he sits on the sidelines, once more going through the drudgery of physical therapy. And not playing the game he loves and he was so good at.

Some players are injury-prone. Evidently Cousins is one of them. So skilled, yet with a body that cannot withstand the rigors of professional basketball which is now fast-paced and demands quickness and agility from big bodies like him. Except that his body could not adapt to that kind of game and has cost him money, fame and success along with happiness. 

I wish him well, like I do Kevin Durant, who is rehabbing from his Achilles tendon surgery earlier this year. I do send this word of caution to KD—see what happened to you when you came back too early in the NBA Finals and see what price Cousins has paid with the plethora of nasty injuries he has suffered. Take your time, KD. Get yourself to a place where you, your doctor, your physical therapist and the head trainer for the Nets all are in agreement that you can return to the court without causing a related injury to occur. Otherwise, you will become another disheartening story, like that of DeMarcus Cousins, who once was a star.

I have been bombarded by ticket reps from the New Jersey Devils over the summer. Phone calls, emails, over and over again. I emailed a response to one rep that I attend Devils away games and that I had his info. Only to now be harassed by a woman rep from the Devils. This blitz coincides with a marketing campaign of the youth of the Devils. 

I wish the Devils management good luck. Devils fans tend not to come to game until football season ends in New York/New Jersey. Which could be sooner than later, despite the promising prognostications emanating from East Rutherford and Florham Park.

The story in the media centered around the QB controversy fans and the media have created regarding Eli Manning and his drafted successor, Daniel Jones. Team owner John Mara tried to squelch the noise about playing Jones. He said this is Eli’s team and he expects that Manning will play all 16 games. Tell that to the Giants faithful who want to win now, or at least endure the newness of Jones enough to give them hope—which of course could easily be false hope. 

This story will not die unless Manning takes the team on an unexpected trip to the Super Bowl. Anything less, and the jackals will be howling for change. Be careful for what you ask for, Giants fans. Not all of the first year QB’s are successful—especially when they are surrounded by a teams with missing pieces. Be patient. Let management put together a better team for next season. 

In the meantime, savor what you have had with Eli Manning. He has been the best Giants QB I have seen in my lifetime. Eli deserves accolades, not boos. If he struggles, then accept that this will be the last he plays in Giants blue. It has been one heck of a run. A lot better than what has been for the co-tenants in Met Life Stadium.

Pressure is great for second year QB Sam Darnold to move way beyond his uneven rookie performance. Jets fans have been full of frustration for years. One trip to the Super Bowl in a season which was 50 years ago. Serviceable QB’s since then, none of which have come close to team icon, Joe Willie Namath. Those who bleed Green and White hate another season of losing, only partially salvaged by the Giants doing as bad, if not worse.

New York beat Atlanta on the road on Thursday night in their only travel-to road exhibition game. The 22-10 final score was the result of the second and third teams of the Jets performing better than the lower tier players of the Falcons. At the half, Atlanta was ahead 10-6. 

Again, the performances and outcomes of exhibition games are mostly meaningless unless there is a competition for a spot on the roster, a starting player suffers a season-ending injury or to decide who starts at a certain position. I don’t care how Darnold or the regulars did against the Falcons, nor will I particularly be concerned how the Jets and the core players do versus New Orleans and Philadelphia in the final two pre-season affairs. The best thing is that the team does not have to travel any further than from team headquarters in Florham Park to the Meadowlands. As long as no more essential players gets hurt, I want the team to be focused and ready when the bell rings on September 8 when AFC East rival Buffalo comes to Met Life Stadium. 

Aaron Judge. Oh, Aaron Judge. Where have you gone? There is this guy wearing number 99 in Yankees pinstripes who looks a lot like you. He bats right-handed, has a great throwing arm, swings hard and faces some 3-2 counts. 

However, this guy in the Yankees uniform does not hit homers. He swings and misses or fouls off balls that he used to hit for monster shots. Or he takes strikes which are hittable and is fooled too many times by very average pitchers—pitchers which his teammates club repeatedly.

This guy in the uniform must be an imposter. He looks more like Chris Davis of the Baltimore Orioles. Davis hit a ton of home runs and was rewarded by Baltimore management with a mega contract. 

Davis then went into a tailspin, hitting some homers, striking out a lot, being benched or pinch hit for, with a batting average well below .200.This season he set a MLB record for most consecutive at bats without a hit. It got so bad that Davis and his first year manager, Brandon Hyde, had an altercation inside of the dugout during a game this week at Yankee Stadium, which the cameras covered. This has been as near to a total collapse of a player and the Orioles cannot do anything to unload Davis and be rid of this problem.

Which brings me back to this purported version of Aaron Judge patrolling right field and at times being the DH. His throwing arm is intact, but has become a bit erratic, which never was the case. He is no longer making catches to rob opponents. 

His at bats used to be a must see event. Now they are tragic, difficult to watch him go through the pitches and come up with nothing. 

Is it physical? Perhaps his eyesight is off and no one has checked that. With the speeds that the baseballs travel and the breaking balls which are tantalizing if they seem near the strike zone, he isn’t sharp enough to hold off from swinging or not swinging at the right pitches.

Is it mechanical? Probably the way he is holding his hands is slowing down his bat speed and creating an uppercut swing which results in foul balls straight back because he is underneath the pitch by a fraction.

Or is it mental, the result of too much frustration from trying to be another individual or a tinkering with his style which has thrown off his confidence just enough. He seems to be muttering to himself during at bats, getting harder on himself for miscues in the field and even arguing a slight bit with the ball and strike calls from the umpires, who can be maddeningly inconsistent. 

Whether it is mental, physical or mechanical, the fact is that Aaron Judge is not hitting and has dropped his average over 50 points during this very prolonged slump. With all of the injuries that New York has endured, it is problematic how the team will fare the rest of the way when the competition becomes steeper—like this weekend with Cleveland and then with the 9 game West Coast swing on the near horizon. 

What is certain is that the Aaron Judge of 2017-18 must return to the Yankees lineup if the team is to have any legitimate chance of making the playoffs and going far into them. The way things look like right now, I believe it would be adding a lot with a resurgence of his power and leadership on the field. Without the likes of Luke Voit, Giancarlo Stanton and Edwin Encarnacion in the vaunted Yankees lineup, the absence of powerful bats in the Bronx is glaring. As good as Gary Sanchez has been this season when not hurt, he is still batting only       .230. Didi Gregorius, D.J. LeMahieu and Gio Urshela cannot be the power hitters in the lineup without reinforcements.

The first and most critical reinforcement would be Aaron Judge.  A return to his prior self would end all the speculation and make this team a legitimate championship contender. 

However, if this is not a mirage and we are seeing the real Aaron Judge, it would be a shock to Yankees fans and a joy to fans around baseball who despise the New York Yankees. Certain future Hall of Fame status has been reduced to what if? 

How tragic, because the kid really seems to be likable. Should this free fall continue, his status with the Yankees would be more problematic and he would be another flash in the pan. So sad, and it is a horrible sidelight to a terrific season for the team, despite the injuries. 

Here’s rooting for you, Aaron Judge. Yankees fans are in your corner, at least for now.

Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox has become the fastest pitcher to attain 2,000 strikeouts for his career. Chris Sale has a 109-73 career record with a 3.03 E.R.A. He was 12-4 with the 2018 Boston Red Sox, sporting a 2.11 E.R.A. Only in 2013, when he was with a poor Chicago White Sox club, did Sale have a losing record. He was regarded as one of the best pitchers in the American League if not in all of baseball.

This season Chris Sale is 6-11 and has pitched to a 4.40 E.R.A. He is not pitching like Chris Sale. The 24 home runs Sale has allowed thus far equals his total in 2017 with Boston, having pitched 214.1 innings as opposed to his 147.1 innings pitched in 2019. He is only 3 homers away from his all-time high attained in 2016 while with the White Sox, with over 226 innings pitched that season.

The down year Sale is having at age 30 is attributable to his innings pitched and his velocity. He has spent time on the IL for shoulder inflammation and back problems related to the stress he puts on himself when throwing at 97-98 m.p.h. Consequently, his velocity dipped below 90 m.p.h., making Sale very hittable.

Sale’s decline along with the below par seasons experienced by Rick Porcello, a Cy Young Award winner, David Price and the absence of Nathan Eovaldi in the rotation is a key factor as to why the Red Sox, who have a powerful hitting lineup, have faltered in 2019, making it more unlikely that they might even make the playoffs as a Wild Card. While Sale has pitched better of late, the question remains—how effective will he be this year and into the future?

Boston can go only so far with its superior hitting. Without significant contributions from the starting staff, the Red Sox are not going to contend. A lot of money has been committed to those starters and the expectations are for them to be the pitchers they were in prior years.

Thus the question remains—has Sale seen better days at age 30, and will he have to accept a different role as he continues what was a promising career? Or can he recapture the magic and pitch in dominating fashion as he had been doing up to this season?

Two other big names are showing major signs that the grind that placed them at the top is now taking its toll. Those two are Serena Williams and Tiger Woods. Two of the greatest, who are in the twilight of their careers.

Serena is dealing with nagging back injuries which have forced her to retire from two tournaments. Always gutsy, she is determined to get better in two weeks, in time for the U.S. Open. 

Williams is nearing 38 year of age, and she has amassed one of the greatest if not the greatest career that women’s tennis has seen. The chase to catch one more elusive Grand Slam title drives her through the injuries, a return from a near-fatal episode in child birth and has made it a Holy Grail for her. 

Tiger Woods has had surgeries for neck and back problems. He has had substance abuse and infidelity issues. Tiger Woods is 43 years old, and his ability to chase down the relative youngsters playing the pro tour is nearly impossible.

Which is why his win in April at The Masters defied logic. Because since then, Tiger Woods can hardly play golf, leaving a tournament or not making the cuts in the remaining majors this year. His tie for 31st after three rounds in this week’s tour event is extraordinary for someone with his handicaps. Unfortunately, it is merely average now. For Tiger Woods, who captivated the golfing world and beyond with his play from years ago, it portends reality that age and injuries have denied him the chance to become the greatest golfer, exceeding the legendary Jack Nicklaus in Slam wins.

What we are seeing from Tiger and Serena are mirages, ghosts of the past, struggling to find the groove one more time, to make one more signature statement as they near the end of incredible careers. With DeMarcus Cousins, Aaron Judge and Chris Sale, we are seeing careers falling apart due to injuries and durability. The latter three have had noteworthy careers, just not at the sustained levels of Williams and Woods.

It is the dimming of some shining stars which we are witnessing. This is the truth about sports—the unpredictability of success and the unpredictability of decline except when it is related to age. As with the Perseid Meteor Shower which has thrilled many this week, objects streak through the sky and, like that, they are gone. We root for the successes of those who shine, but we are saddened when the inevitable deterioration begins.

Such is the fragility of sports.

August Tidings

It goes to show you the length that a diehard Yankees fan like myself must go to try to convince my mind not to be negative about a team which is exceeding expectations and breaking home run records in the process. Why is that? Because I am having trouble believing that the players we have never heard of or who have gone somewhat under the radar can maintain this maddening pace. Nor can I believe that the pitching can withstand the rigors of the full season then continue to shine in the post-season. 

No, this is not a typical Yankees team, even if some of the earmarks of such a squad are present in the 2019 edition. At the start of Spring Training, this team was destined to be blessed with a corps of super stars and reliable players, a runner-up in the Rookie of the Year balloting, a starting staff featuring a stud at the head of the rotation bolstered by a couple of good left handers and a reliable old pro. The bullpen was supposed to be the best in baseball, with relievers who could take a game from the sixth inning and shut down the opposition to end the contest. 

Obviously, injuries to key players who the Yankees counted on has derailed that kind of team. Seemingly every player has suffered some kind of injury, many of them landing on the IL for long stints, if not for most of the season. The starting pitching has been inconsistent—the best decision has been to use the opener move started by the Rays last season, which has worked thus far like a charm. Is this something the Yankees will be forced to implement in the post-season? 

New York lost on Friday night because the bats were unable to produce and partly by a journeyman umpire who had a random strike zone and rabbit ears while tossing the wrong party from the game. The fact that J.A. Happ pitched another bad game didn’t help. 

Every loss worries me. Is this the start of that fatal losing streak which is bound to happen? Will it lead to an extended period of .500 or less play? Will more injuries occur—is Luke Voit shelved for the season with his sports hernia? Is Gleyber Torres core problem going to hinder him the remainder of the year?

Gary Sanchez is back to assume the bulk of the catching duties. Will he withstand the rigors of the job? Will his batting be as good as that of the catchers who replaced him while on the IL, or will he be swinging at pitches that are outside of the strike zone?

There appears to be good news about starter Luis Severino, who threw a bullpen session without discomfort. Can he step into the rotation down the stretch and become the dominant pitcher he was last season?

Is C.C. Sabathia going to create one last gasp pitching miracle in his last, injury-riddled season of a possible Hall of Fame career? And what, if anything will his role be when the post-season comes—will C.C. even be on the roster?

Can the bullpen receive reinforcements to lessen the load? Dellin Betances looms out there, but his timetable to pitch is uncertain.

What about the return of Giancarlo Stanton? Problematic at best. Besides, the replacements in the outfield—Cameron Maybin and Mike Tauchman have played way above what anybody expected from them. 

Unlike Aaron Judge, who is lost at the plate. He takes good pitches, is guessing, and his swing is off, as evidenced by how many fly balls he is hitting—when he is right, those balls are laser shots over any outfield fence. For this last portion of the slate, will the real Aaron Judge return to form and carry the team?

Will the batting leaders—D.J. LeMahieu and Gio Urshela remain on their torrid paces? While LeMahieu had the pedigree as a NL batting champ, Urshela was nowhere near the hitter he has become and with the power he has evidenced. I hope that no one is using banned substances. 

Not every game is against the woeful Baltimore Orioles, who the Yankees have absolutely dominated, especially at Camden Yards, where New York set an MLB record for homers away from home in one ballpark, as well as the most homers ever against one opponent in a season. 

Moreover, the reigning World Champion Boston Red Sox seemingly have disintegrated  before our eyes, to the great fortune of the Yankees. While Tampa Bay has played well, they are trailing New York by nearly double digits for supremacy in the AL East. 

Is this Yankees’ team that good—good enough to win the World Series? Do they match up with behemoths Houston and the LA Dodgers, who have great front end pitching? Same with Cleveland and Minnesota, who are vying for the AL Central title and a Wild Card berth. Can the Yankees play well against the resurgent Oakland A’s?

Many questions could be answered when the team goes on a Western swing. They meet the Dodgers and A’s, along with a stop in Seattle. If they have a decent road trip, then the AL East is theirs. But if the Yankees swoon out West, then their ability to win and even survive the rest of the season comes into play. 

As the team left Spring Training, New York, with its pitching intact and the feared sluggers in place, was considered to be one of the favorites to reach the World Series and possibly dethrone Boston. They are still considered to be one of the three best teams in MLB, along with the Astros and Dodgers, who they are presently battling for home field in the AL as well as over all for the World Series.

But this is a far different team than the one the experts anointed as a contender after leaving Florida. A far different cast of characters has made this team go. Are these players for real or will they fall back into more likely roles as we finish August and head into September? 

Will all of the slugging records they set be for naught? Will LeMahieu become the first batter to win the batting titles in both leagues and possibly outshine the Angels’ Mike Trout for AL M.V.P.? Could Aaron Boone become AL Manager of the Year by leading this unlikely group to the playoffs? 

Such is the life of a serious Yankees fan, dissecting the mistakes and worrying that the good times are a mirage, leading to another playoff disappointment for the franchise which has the most World Series titles and is synonymous with winning? 

Speaking of winning, those New York Mets still are on a roll, having forced their way into the Wild Card race. Trailing the Washington Nationals by 3 on Friday night, the Mets came back with 4 in the bottom of the ninth to win once more. Their play has been surreal. But the Mets still haven’t convinced Fan X that they aren’t pretenders.

Anybody who thinks they aren’t legit better think this through. The starting pitching—all 5 pitchers—is the best rotation in the majors. Better than the vaunted 4 in Houston or the Dodgers cadre of starters. 

Yes, the bullpen is weaker than is warranted. But the timely hitting by their sluggers is carrying the day, placing less pressure on the relievers. Full houses at Citi Field are going to become the norm if this continues, which will give the team an even greater jolt, as the players love their fan base. 

Everything embattled Manager Mickey Callaway does seems to go right. A far cry from a few weeks ago, when fans and the media were counting the days until Callaway was fired and replaced. 

Maybe the most audacious thing that GM and possible mystic Brodie Van Wagenen did was to fire his pitching coach and bring in 82 year old Phil Regan to retrain his pitchers. Whatever “The Vulture” did in imparting his wisdom from the Dodgers teams of Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, has worked. Perhaps this was the biggest move that the Mets made besides not trading any of their starting pitches and actually adding a youngster with a lot of promise to their staff. 

The Mets are accumulating talent let go by other teams to bolster their depth in the bullpen and on the field. Local kids, too, who get the opportunity to play meaningful games before family and friends. 

I know the Mets fans are holding their breath, pinching themselves to believe what is happening is real. For the franchise, this is normal—to come from nowhere and be relevant.

It is rare when both New York baseball teams are successful and making concerted playoff pushes. Unlike 2001, the likelihood of another Subway Series seems remote. 

The on the field heroics of the teams has made New York once more into a baseball town. Even if the pundits want to make hay of Daniel Jones’ effort against a lackluster Jets secondary and call for the Giants’ management to bench the aging incumbent, Eli Manning. 

The Giants and Jets can wait until the start of their seasons in September to share the spotlight with baseball. This is the right way to have it happen—having local baseball play into October if warranted. There will be plenty of NFL season left to bemoan or cheer the teams as they push into December. 

Unless, of course, the Yankees and Mets make a deep run into October. We’ll see.

I hardly followed the career of Antonio Brown in terms of his on the field exploits, which I knew were good. But I also knew that his antics in Pittsburgh detracted from his greatness and made his departure to Oakland inevitable. 

What I have seen is this guy is self-serving, almost clownish, making mistakes in judgment regularly. His frostbitten feet after going to France for cryotherapy is so stupid because he chose to wear the wrong footwear during the procedure, is an example of his inane judgment. Brown’s demand to wear a dangerous and outdated helmet defies logic and is something neither the Raiders nor the NFL can support.

Antonio Brown is a one man circus. A high wire act every second, but also providing silliness that is ridiculous. The 24/7 coverage of the NFL plus social media makes Brown into a rock star. One with enough rocks in his head already. I am tired of his foolishness, and this is just the beginning of pre-season.  Good luck, Raider nation. He’s yours.

I am glad that we Jets fans only have to worry about the health of another disgruntled Pittsburgh Steeler—Le’Veon Brown. He may not see much, if any pre-season action. Not good for a running back who missed an entire season and has to be rusty.

What do I know? After all, Jets head man Adam Gase went to the smelling salts to start Thursday night’s contest with the Giants to get those crazy eyes he has working in his signature madman gaze. He is perfect for the Jets—a psychotic-looking individual who happens to be their head coach, and whose track record in Miami was not very distinguishable. Hey, Raider Nation—we have our problems, too.

Let us not be distracted by the distractions. Right now it is baseball season in New York, until otherwise noted. Which, for both Yankees and Mets fans, is a good thing as we enter mid-August. Where baseball fans will be in a week, two weeks, or a month remains to be seen. Hopefully not all in on football.

Enjoy the euphoria now. And hope it lasts. As we know, success in baseball can be so fleeting, especially when it comes from unexpected places.

Short Bursts

This has been a week of some interesting sporting events and outcomes but nothing trendy or truly earth shattering. Nothing so bad or so remarkable that I can expound on. This will be a burst of comments which I think reflect what has happened and how I feel about them.

First a melancholy thought. Nick Buoniconti, the Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker for the Miami Dolphins when they won 2 Super Bowls and the Boston Patriots earlier in his career, has died. A member of the American Football League All-Time team, enshrined in the New England Patriots Hall of Fame and a member of the Miami Dolphins Honor Roll, this second team All-American out of Notre Dame and a 13th round pick in the AFL Draft exceeded expectations in so many ways. Considered to be “too small” to play successfully in pro football, he showed his doubters how wrong they were. Quietly, he earned his law degree while he was with the Patriots and represented 30 professional athletes as an agent. He was in a “Miller Lite” commercial which mocked who he was. Buoniconti also was the host of “Inside the NFL” on HBO.

Most importantly, he made the biggest impact as a person and as a father when his son Marc suffered a spinal cord injury while making a tackle for The Citadel football team. Nick Buoniconti became the public face for the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, which has done wonderful things for those so severely injured. 

A remarkable man with a heart of gold. He has donated his brain for study in CTE research. His death at age 78 in Bridgehampton, New York was too soon. 

After looking like a team on the ropes, the Yankees have come alive in their last five games, going 4-1. Domingo German is 14-2. He is a good pitcher. I believe he will be the starter for New York when the playoffs occur.

D.J. LeMahieu is back in the New York lineup. He picked up where he left off with multiple hits and now has a career high 17 home runs. D.J. is easily the Yankees M.V.P.

Aaron Judge is going through a horrific slump. He is still guess hitting and his hands are too low, trying to make up for pitches down in the strike zone. I don’t think his confidence is shattered, but he is shaking his head more and more when he walks back to the dugout after another strikeout. The Yankees need Judge to awaken from his slumber and start hitting the ball like he is capable of and laying off the pitches below his knees, over his shoulders and outside of the strike zone. 

I have watched Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox in his last two starts against the Yankees. His velocity is down and sometimes his breaking ball is flat. Something is definitely wrong for this formerly dominant pitcher to be 5-11 at this juncture, which is a great part of Boston’s malaise this year. 

When I watch J.D. Martinez tattoo the ball, I think: professional hitter. He knows the strike zone and he attacks the baseball with exceptional confidence. It is amazing that the Detroit Tigers, struggling so much right now, and the Arizona Diamondbacks couldn’t do more to keep this talented player.

Right after I saw Gleyber Torres hit his grand slam homer on Friday night, it struck me how young this kid is and how the Cubs must be kicking themselves for renting Aroldis Chapman for one year and a long hoped-for World Series win. The Cubs got what they wanted but are not in a place where they can reach the World Series this season, let alone necessarily win the NL Central or make the Wild Card game. Instead, New York has a super star with potential Hall of Fame credentials. And he isn’t 23 yet.

Edwin Encanacion joined the ranks of the Yankees who are injured when he suffered  a broken right wrist on Saturday. Didi Gregorius and C.C. Sabathia are also down. Yet this team keeps on winning. How can they do it? Is Aaron Boone the Manager of the Year?

Bob Costas, Michael Kay’s fill in broadcaster on YES said that the home runs hit this year are reportedly 800 more than last year at this time. Hard to fathom if true. Still, no individual home run records are seriously in jeopardy. Amazing. Costas also reported than singles are down the past couple of years; I would guess especially this year…

The Yankees are 9-0 when they go with an opener to pitch the first one to two innings. Could this happen in the playoffs?

With the trading deadline history, all of the experts agree that the Houston Astros positioned themselves for a long run into the World Series with the acquisition of Zack Greinke form Arizona, along with pitchers Aaron Sanchez, a starter, and Joe Biagini, a reliever. Houston also reacquired catcher Martin Maldonado, sending outfielder Tony Kemp to Toronto, and moved catcher Max Stassi to the Angels. 

The playoff rotation of Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole (battling each other for the AL Cy Young Award) and now Greinke, himself a former Cy Young Award winner, seems to be unbeatable. These situations repeatedly do not always break in favor of the team with the great starting staff. Houston may have the arms to dominate, but in the end, who will triumph in October will be the team which has more stamina at the end of a long season and then the playoffs. 

What the New York Mets did by obtaining young Marcus Stroman has made the team better and sent a clear message to the players that this season isn’t over yet. In retaining closer Edwin Diaz, the bullpen can still pick up the starters and win games. I really like the rotation of Jacob deGrom, last years’s NL Cy Young Award winner, Noah Sydergaard, Zack Wheeler and the enigmatic Steven Matz. Should the forgotten Yoenis Cespedes return to form next season after his surgeries or the Mets make some trades, they will be a solid team able to compete even in a division with the likes of the Atlanta Braves, the underachieving Philadelphia Phillies and overachieving Washington Nationals.

A Friday night loss in Pittsburgh ended a 7 game winning streak. Although below.500 at 53-56, New York remains only 5 games out of the second Wild Card spot. Does anyone recall the Miracle Mets or “Ya gotta believe?”

I was slightly shocked that the Cincinnati Reds sent second baseman Scooter Gennette to San Francisco for a player to be named later. The 7 year veteran has a lifetime batting average of .287. He was way below that stat this season, suffering from a groin injury. Maybe the fact that Scooter is a free agent in 2020 factored into the Reds decision and that he was being paid nearly $10 million in 2019 and he would have demanded more money. I doubt that Derek Dietrich was envisioned as the savior at second for Cincinnati. 

This is a Reds team which forwarded brawling Yasiel Puig to the Cleveland Indians and received Trevor Bauer, the frustrated long-tossing hurler with much promise and an incendiary mind. The Reds also sent starter Tanner Roark to Oakland. In such a tight division as the NL Central is, with the Reds only 7 games behind the St. Louis Cardinals with a 51-57 record, was management looking to contend next season?

Meanwhile, no mutiny occurred in San Francisco as Madison Bumgarner was not traded. Will Smith also stayed. The Giants sent relievers Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black to struggling Milwaukee, receiving infielder Mauricio Dubon, the Brewers’ no. 3 prospect. Mark Melancon, owed a ton of money, was traded to Atlanta, who took his entire $18 million salary. San Francisco received prospect Tristan Beck, a former Stanford University pitcher, along with Dan Winkler, who could bolster the Giants bullpen down the stretch. Management has made some bold moves for the present and the future, as the Giants remain only 3.5 games from a Wild Card berth and are a better team entering 2020.

In NBA news, Klay Thompson and Steph Curry have both stated that the experts who are counting out the Warriors as a playoff team let along a championship team, are flat out wrong. I defer to the Splash Brothers on this. Just like the Mets beat everyone to Marcus Stroman, perhaps the Dubs obtaining D’Angelo Russell as collateral for the loss of Kevin Durant to Brooklyn is much more than a stop gap measure until Thompson returns from off season ACL surgery. The signing of Draymond Green to a 4 year, $100 million extension guarantees that he won’t be moody about free agency and can provide this energy on the court when the team moves into the state-of-the-art Chase Center in San Francisco this fall. I still will watch Golden State as much as I can—that’s the Curry factor.

Durant was spotted walking without crutches in Los Angeles the other night. Slowly, but without any assistance. Don’t get your hopes up, Nets fans. Wait until 2021-22. 

The NBA has released its Christmas Day schedule. Headlining the day’s games will be the Clippers and Lakers. Of course. Kawhi versus LeBron. Houston, with James Harden and Russell Westbrook, play at Golden State. Boston and Toronto, two of the better teams in the East despite the changes in personnel, meet in Canada. Milwaukee and Philadelphia get together in the City of Brotherly Love (don’t expect any on Broad Street in South Philly on this Christmas), and the New Orleans Pelicans, with the number 1 pick, Zion Williamson, journey to Denver to meet the Nuggets, who had the second best record in the West last season. Good job, Adam Silver. 

Bad job, NBA, by not flying the WNBA All Stars in first class to the recent All Star Game in Las Vegas. Another instance of gender inequality? And the move by soccer officials to show that the USNWT actually made more money than their male counterparts this year was designed to keep the women’s salaries still below that of the men. 

Nobody in the NBA  who is a star really wants to play on the men’s team in the FIBA World Cup. Why would they?

The Cleveland Browns have a gem in quarterback Baker Mayfield. If he and Odell Beckham, Jr. are on the same page, look for regular highlight package materials from their hook ups. Reportedly, Mayfield has taken to calling out veterans when they make mistakes. This speaks of leadership and maturity. Am I surprised? Not in the least bit.

The Jets had to talk a veteran Pro Bowl center out of retirement to come play one more year with New York. Ryan Kalil may have been good. He is 34 and received more money from New York, with incentives, then he got his last year in Carolina. I don’t know if this is a good or bad move. What is ironic is that this comes just as former Jets center Kevin Mawae entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

Michael Thomas of New Orleans was made the highest-paid receiver in the league this week. Dallas is nowhere near reaching an extension with Eziekiel Elliott (do I hear Le’Veon Bell chortling over in Florham Park? Bell did apologize to fantasy football people for his absence last season but vows to make it to to them this year…)

Chris “Cyborg” Justino is no longer going to be associated with the UFC after Dana White released her. Rhonda Rousey is long gone, affiliated with the WWE and making big bucks. You kinda knew this would happen after a Colombian wins the Tour de France, a first for a South American and the Oakland A’s sign a 23 year old who threw routinely in the mid 90’s on a pitching machine in Colorado—and they had ben tracking the kid!!

I wonder if the heat is affecting me with all this to process? I need to cool off until next week…