Another Trip To Baltimore

  So little time. So little space. Let’s get to it.

Aaron Judge did not break his great toe. He will be out for weeks. The Yankees are back to being dreadful. Anthony Rizzo, after he hurt his neck, has joined the bunch of non-hitters who permeate the lineup. Things are so bad that I was glad when the second game of the series with the White Sox was postponed due to the unhealthy air conditions in the New York area. Watching the first game of the make up doubleheader at a bar on Thursday while waiting for my pick up order to be ready exposed me to another loss. With the Mets equally dreadful having been swept in Atlanta after dropping three at home to Toronto, the team has lost slugger Pete Alonso to injury and has no reliable pitching; thus the upcoming Yankees-Mets series starting on Tuesday has the makings of a snooze fest. 

Staying with baseball, the Minnesota Twins went to St. Petersburg to play the Rays. A series involving division leaders. Minnesota was the only AL Central team with a record above .500. They left Florida below with a 31-32 record, while the Rays are 12-1 versus the AL Central, were 29-6 at home and sported an overall record of 46-19 after the Minnesota series.

Not so fast on the Oakland A’s moving to Las Vegas. A special session of the State Legislature provided Nevada lawmakers with more unresolved questions than answers. 

How about Luis Arraez? The star, acquired from those same Twins after leading the American League in hitting, is batting over .400. This is something to watch as the months go by.

For those who cannot wait for the updates on Division III baseball, I can report that the University of Lynchburg is the National Champion. Lynchburg took 2 of 3 from top-seeded Johns Hopkins. 

While not quite baseball, kudos goes out to the Oklahoma Sooners softball team. The Sooners downed Florida State to win their third straight title. Oklahoma’s 2023 record is 61-1. Perhaps something which may never be duplicated. 

My take on the LIV-PGA merger is simple. Money, from whatever sources, triumphs over morality. All the posturing by the golfers who grabbed the money  the first time around or who defended the PGA, meant nothing. How this plays out will directly determine the way golf proceeds in the years to come.

Speaking of Saudi money, Lionel Messi, one of soccer’s greatest, turned away from the Saudi league, where many contemporaries are headed, and instead joined the MLS team in Miami. Whether it was his conscience directing him or other reasons, this gives American soccer a legitimate international star, akin to the days of Pele and Chinaglia playing in the NASL, or Beckham in LA. 

Time for a little football. Aaron Rodgers finished OTA practices in Florham Park. He said he hadn’t had as much fun playing in a long time. His calf injury is healed and he goes off to recharge for the long haul in a good mood, which has to make Jets fans happy and aggravate Packers fans. Memo to Jets fans about how the team is being compared favorably to its peers in the AFC East and in the conference—don’t get your hopes up too high right now—it’s only June.

In a cost cutting measure, Minnesota cut Dalvin Cook, a 27 year old running back who routinely runs for over 1,000 yards. Where Cook lands, which might be Miami, could certainly change the landscape of a division and conference. 

The Big Ten came out with a Flex Protect Plus schedule for 2024 and 2025. The conference kept a number of rivalry games intact, while integrating new members USC and UCLA into the rotation. There will be no divisions, and the top two teams will meet in the championship. Advocates say that this is the wave of the future—9 conference games with a clear rotation and primary rivalries. The SEC, for now, is keeping 8 conference games. Those same advocates will certainly push for Oklahoma-Texas and Texas-Texas A&M along with other more traditional Southern rivalries like Florida-Georgia, Kentucky-Tennessee, LSU-Arkansas, LSU-Mississippi for starters.

Some TV-related news. Neil Everett, he of the sardonic wit on ESPN Sports Center, is leaving after 23 years. He will be missed. 

At Notre Dame, long-time Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick is retiring, He will be succeeded by NBC Sports mogul Pete Bevaqqua, a Notre Dame grad. Since NBC has the rights to Notre Dame football, this is the only logical course to protect those rights, no matter how the college football landscape shifts. 

It looks like the Denver Nuggets responded to their coach’s criticism for playing with a lack of intensity in a 2 point loss at home in Game 2. Michael Malone’s team (he’s a Jersey guy) went to South Florida and took care of business, putting the franchise on the precipice of winning its first NBA title at home in Denver on Monday night. While it is fair to say that Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray are the stars on this team, regularly hitting key shots en route to triple doubles, there are others who shine in the moment. Aaron Gordon scored 26 points on Friday; rookie Christian Braun came off the bench to give the team a lift in the Game 3 win. 

Miami has gone further than it should, having won a play in game to make the playoffs. Erik Spoelstra is a great coach, but he has not been able to aptly counter the offensive surges and the smothering defenses which the Nuggets have. Denver has the size and players who know how to play the game. 

The Vegas Golden Knights are one game away from garnering the young franchise’s first Stanley Cup after holding on to win 3-2 at Florida despite a furious attempt to score by the Panthers as the clock wound down. Florida had won Game 3 by tying the score in regulation then winning with an overtime goal. As the teams return to Las Vegas for Game 5, I am sure both teams are remembering that Florida came back from a 3-1 deficit to stun the record-breaking Boston Bruins to win its opening round series. 

At the French Open, #1 Iga Swiatek survived a second set meltdown to win the Ladies Championship. She appears to be the one to beat now that Serena Williams no longer is in the picture.

On the men’s side, Novak Djokovich benefitted from top-seeded Carlos Alvarez suffering leg cramps and rolled into the finals. Where he would be facing #4 seed Casper Ruud and chasing history. While Ruud is a top flight player in his own right, Djokovic is now the male with the most Grand Slam victories with 23 after dispatching the Norwegian in straight sets.

Love him or hate him, there is no disputing that he is a great tennis player. He has accumulated these Grand Slam victories in the era of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, two of the more likable champions. With the young pups like Ruud and Alvarez nipping at his heels, the 36 year old may still have more titles in his future, beginning with Wimbledon. Time will tell how historic his career will have been when it ends.

Finally, Fan X and I traveled to Baltimore for our annual excursion to Oriole Park at Camden Yards. This is the earliest in the year we have gone, and the weather was spectacular, especially in light of how bad the Air Quality Index was just a few days before Saturday. Traffic was relative light heading down.

Our seats were close to the Orioles dugout and in fairly good position to call balls and strikes—although the home plate umpire and I disagreed on a few calls as did the hometown crowd. We also were a section away from where the legendary Cal Ripken, Jr. sat. It is difficult to believe that he is 62 years old, although he has put on a few pounds. When his picture was flashed on the scoreboard, the crowd united in loud applause for the greatest player in franchise history.

As for the game, it became the lop-sided affair I expected. The Orioles, with the second-best record in MLB, were playing Kansas City, owners of the second-worst record. On the strength of two home runs and two sterling catches, the Orioles pitching held KC to one run and six hits while punishing Royals pitching for 10 hits. 

Looking at the Baltimore lineup, the team is young and formidable. And they played without starting first baseman Ryan Mountcastle, who was out of the lineup with an illness.  Outside of one relief pitcher not having a good outing, the Orioles pitching staff is quite good. It is no surprise that they are contending this season. 

It was Marvel Super Heroes Day at the ballpark. The characters were on the field and in the stands. Upon entering the stadium grounds, we were handed an Adley Rutschman Action Hero Bobblehead figure. While the young star catcher went 0-4, he did throw out a runner at second base trying to steal, showing off his rifle arm. Almost like a Super Hero. 

This was the way to spice up the sports week—with another trip to Baltimore.