SU has officially activated the NBA Season Pass which gives me access to every NBA game each night. Now, the reality is that 2/3 of the teams are unwatchable and SU does not go there but I do enjoy following the ex-Michigan players to see how their careers are progressing… or not.

But last night, SU watched most of the Knick game to see if the hype was for real. My first reaction is that team is much deeper than last year, and it looks like Thibodeau will be playing more guys this year. Fournier and Kemba Walker have been added to the backcourt and that is a definite upgrade. And there were stretches where the 2nd unit was really running and gunning led by Derek Rose and Toppin who is ready to take that next step – very athletic dude.

But SU says that what you need to watch for is whether Julius Randle will embrace having a better cast of characters around him. To me, the team played better when they pushed the pace and scored in transition. That helps the youngsters like Toppin and RJ Barrett who looked much improved I thought over last year. However, when it came to the 4th quarter, the movement stopped and grinded to a halt with every possession going through Randle. For SU, it brought back memories of the Carmelo offense who was another guy that didn’t like to run. If you watched the post-game, on-court interview, Randle said that he was looking for Fournier once in a while as he knew he was hot and wanted him to get his shots. I thought that was an odd comment. Better to say “we need to move the ball and find the open man.” If you run the offense through Randle too much, it will be easy for opposing teams to defense that.

It’s one game and there is talent on this roster. Kemba was way too passive and looked a step slow but he’s a good guy and if he’s healthy, is worth the price of admission. SU will be watching this year and is ready to return to the fold.

Speaking of watching, SU did check out the Red Sox – Cheating Astros games the last 2 nights. I have landed on rooting for Houston as I just cannot root for Boston. Can’t do it – ever. I do not understand the use of starting pitchers in relief on their “throw” days. You put a guy like Eovaldi in there in the 9th inning in a high stress situation. Make a note to see how his arm and shoulder are in 2022. It’s an injury waiting to happen. Neither team has great pitching at this point

So, Boone gets the new 3-year deal. SU says fine – he wasn’t the major issue this year although his in-game managing of the relievers probably cost about 5 wins along the way. But… if this is the Yankees’ major upgrade for 2022, don’t bother. There was no obvious replacement out there so that’s fine. But if the strategy is to roll out the same all right-handed line-up in 2022 and expect guys to have rebound years, well let’s not go there. Trade Gary Sanchez, Clint Frazier, and decide what you will do with Gleyber Torres. No-one will take Gallo so he is here for another season under contract. SU would trade Hicks as well. This will be an interesting off-season and SU expects Cashman to be bold as his contract is up soon as well.

Jared Diamond who covers baseball for the Wall Street Journal wrote an interesting article this week on how the teams that are in the Final Four now in the playoffs all emphasize hitting fly balls over ground balls. All are in the bottom handful of teams that hit the ball on the ground. The theory is that with the shifts, you need to try for home runs and extra base hits as hard hit ground balls into the shift are sure outs. SU says great but can’t you train hitters to hit to the opposite field where there is literally no-one standing? Apparently not. For the fan, this means games with lots of strikeouts and no action. It’s like watching Joey Gallo hit 27 times in a row. This cannot be the long-term answer. MLB may outlaw the shifts which rewards the fly ball hitters. Better to learn to bunt and hit to the opposite field and figure out a better way.

It’s bad enough that the Yankees lost to the Red Sox in the wild card game after a long and generally uninspiring season. I mean the ending was certainly fitting as the team was man-handled by a pitcher that had started against them about 17 times this season. But then the Red Sox beat Tampa Bay including back-to-back walk-off wins in dramatic fashion. Meanwhile, the Astros blow out the White Sox and here we are: the hated Red Sox vs. the cheating Astros.

SU will move to Netflix mode and try and avoid watching any of these games. But the reality is that one of these teams will be in the World Series. And did you see that Houston has made it to the ALCS 5 years in a row? That is pretty impressive whether they have been cheating in the playoffs all those years or not.

The Yankees have started with their off-season moves. Yesterday, they fired the 2 hitting coaches and Phil Nevin, 3rd base coach and best friend of Aaron Boone’s. Now, we have certainly seen this before. SU recalls that Cashman has done this to Joe Torre on occasion and also to Joe Girardi. The goal is always to make them more uncomfortable and attempt to inject some new voices into the leadership positions. There are lots of rumors swirling around Boone with the San Diego Padres supposedly very interested in his situation.

As we all know, the manager in baseball is just not as important as in other sports. Boone is a players’ manager and supposedly a great communicator. His in-game moves have always been lacking but in the end, if the players perform better on the field, you can overcome these moves. SU does not feel strongly about Boone. There is no obvious replacement out there who is a difference maker, and you have to figure that the new analytics way of thinking would mean they want a younger, numbers type person to step in if they make a move. So, for example, you would not bring in Buck Showalter here. But would you consider David Cone who has Yankee pedigree, is not afraid to get in players’ faces and is an analytics guy? He definitely wants the job.

SU believes the Yankees will stay the course with Boone and give him an extension through 2023. But the real need is to do something with the roster. It is not enough to say that most players had down years and will bounce back in 2022. Get more athletic, get faster and be sound defensively at all positions. You don’t need an All-Star at every position.

SU applauds the Nets for trying to move beyond Kyrie Irving although paying him for road games that he will not play is not necessary. And there is no way they offer him the 4-year, $185 million contract now – right? SU says he has been a disruptive influence on every team he has been on in his NBA career. He may be the best one-on-player in the League but it’s not worth all of the drama. Missing games for various personal reasons, the conspiracy theory beliefs, etc. The Nets have enough talent to win a championship and need to focus and move forward.

Who will manage the Mets? That is a great landing spot for someone with a wealthy owner willing to invest in his team. Sure, there will be expectations and tweets galore but embrace the challenge. Who do you want Met fans?

Great game 5 between the Giants and Dodgers last night. So many low scoring, tense games. Of course, awful that the Giants had to play LA in the NLDS. Something to change for future years in baseball. Need to reseed after the wild card games.

SU must admit it: in a way, I am relieved for this season to be over and no longer feeling the need to watch this under-achieving team. Let’s get right to it:

1. If nothing else, 2021 proved that an all right-handed line-up at Yankee Stadium does not work and is just a bad idea. SU was on record on this going back to March. It won’t happen again.
2. Cole is a competitor and he cares. SU is convinced that his hamstring has been an issue going back to early September and I don’t fault him for last night. He tried but was not himself. I don’t think it’s a make-up thing, can’t handle the pressure thing, a can’t pitch in NY thing. Move on.
3. However, the problem is this. Boone went with basically an opener mindset on Sunday to get that one last win thinking he would receive a normal start from Cole. Instead, you get 2+ innings and had to roll out the same pitchers who were in high pressure situations on Sunday. It showed last night. A lot of walks, missed targets. The Sunday game had a direct bearing on the Wild Card game.
4. SU believes that LeMahieu was suffering from the sports hernia all year. He hit with no power this season and so many ground ball double plays. Something has been off all year and I am confident he will bounce back in 2022. He’s not that old and he’s a gamer.
5. SU is done, done, done with the following players:

• Gary Sanchez: he will not hit to right field and is not getting better defensively. Stop telling me that a .210 batting average is “above average” for catchers in 2021. Low baseball IQ. He will do well with a fresh start somewhere else.

• Joey Gallo: SU does not care about the stats. It was stupid to bat him behind Stanton for a half season. A-Rod went off on him all night in the game last night as the weak link, and he did not disappoint. Not a bad guy, great outfielder. Must be a taker for him somewhere in MLB.

• Luke Voit, Aaron Hicks, Odor, Clint Frazier: find a home for them somewhere else. All or nothing players. Odor was the poster child for this year’s team. A .200 hitter who swings for the home run on every pitch and has a mindless approach at the plate.

SU had no favorite players on this year’s team. No Didi type player. I think that sums it up for me. This team played many, many low scoring, close games and won a surprisingly high percentage of them. But the wins were agonizing and Boone’s handling of the relievers made it even more torturous. Chapman was great and then terrible and finally just struggled each time out. The relievers were solid and Cortes was an eye opener. Montgomery improved. Taillon was a great pick-up and Kluber should be brought back for another season. Really, the pitching is fine. The offense is not and SU says the all or nothing approach is not enjoyable or a winning formula. No .300 hitters and few who can hit with RISP.

It will an interesting off-season for Cashman who must figure out shortstop and first base. Rizzo is a free agent and signing him creates the problem with LeMahieu and Gleyber. They need a shortstop but SU is not in favor of overpaying for one of the free agents. Hey, you can probably get back Didi as a rental for a year as he hit about .210 for the Phillies and must have more left in the tank than that. Bring in guys who are likeable and who care. Greg Allen who was banished to Scranton because he was out of options is a nice bench player. Gardner had a long Yankee run but time to move on.

SU never endorses firing managers or coaches. But this team needs a new mindset at the plate. Other than Judge and Stanton, no one had a better year than the year before. Other than Michael King, none of the other young pitchers emerged. Devi Garcia took a step back. But there are some strong arms ready to emerge in 2022 I think.

Much work to do. SU will move on – and easily this year.

Yankee fans: are you disappointed? Ready to move on? Ready to fire the manager? Feel free to weigh in.

They say in sports that it doesn’t matter how you get there, as long as you ultimately get there. You don’t get credit for style points. SU would have to agree. The Yankees had a good run through Boston and Toronto, and then limped through the weekend series against the Rays. They avoided the extra “play-in” game with the dramatic 1-0 win yesterday.

In the end, SU says it’s better that they play Boston vs. Toronto which is a hot team and can put runs on the board throughout their line-up. They lost the ability to play at home but I honestly don’t think that will make a huge difference. This season, playing at Yankee Stadium and watching the team not hit and puzzling over Boone’s in-game decisions only creates stress in the stadium among the fan base. The one issue is having to watch Chapman potentially try and save a game in the bottom of the 9th with the Boston fans cheering. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Here is what’s important:

1. DJ LeMahieu is out through the wild card and Divisional rounds. While unfortunate, SU says he has not been good – all year. And we have to guess that the sports hernia has bothered him all year. The problem is that Urshela was injured making that incredible catch yesterday in the Rays’ dugout and had to be pulled late in the game. At best, hard to believe he can play at all much less at shortstop. SU would play either Wade or Velazquez at shortstop then and put Odor at 3rd base. I think Wade deserves a shot but Boone seems to like him as a pinch runner late in games. Odor got a big hit yesterday but he is basically an automatic out.
2. Which Cole will you get on Tuesday night on an extra day’s rest? He won’t be a secret to the Red Sox who have seen him 4 times this year (at least). Eovaldi is even more familiar to the Yankees. It’s one game and hard to know or anticipate what you will get. What is more important, says SU, is how Boone manages the bullpen. He got away with it yesterday but the analytics have to say that not every reliever will be good in the game. So, maybe you extend the relievers that are throwing well for an extra inning? The “scripting” of the bullpen is not ideal if you remove the hot hand too early for the next guy because that’s what it says on your paper. SU does not trust Boone in these situations.
3. The Yankees hit 1 home run over the weekend. And they had a lot of trouble scoring. The Rays were playing for nothing and must be chomping at the bit to play the Yankees in the Divisional round. SU says that Cash actually faced Judge in the 9th inning rather than walk him to see how things unfolded. I think he was experimenting for the playoffs and what happened here will influence his decision-making. Same with Stanton and whether you walk him to face Gallo. Cash did not do that. It’s so interesting to see how Gallo factors into the post-season if he still hits after Stanton. He finished with over 200 strikeouts and 100 walks. Pretty incredible. He is a very good outfielder and the bunt will be there with the shift. He absolutely has to bunt a lot on Tuesday night if the situation presents itself.
4. The Yankees have played the Red Sox something like 14 times in the last 3 months. It’s fitting that they play each other in the wild card to advance. MLB has done the right thing penalizing the wild card teams to have to play 1 game and rewarding the division winners.

Normally I would say advantage Boston in a game like this. But Cora has not managed well against the Yankees this season and there is no advantage there. The key will be when you take Cole out. His pattern the last few starts is to start badly and then find a groove after giving up some runs. You don’t have the luxury in a 1-game elimination game for that. On the other hand, he makes $30 million a year for these games and he is your best bet. The Yankee bullpen is much better than Boston’s but Houck is good and he can strike out a lot of hitters in a row out of the pen.

At the start of the season, SU said that a successful season for the Yankees would be getting to the World Series. I will stick with that. Losing in the wild card or to the Rays is not a successful season. I am cautiously optimistic that they can win this game. I see a 6-5 win with Chapman given a 6-3 lead going into the bottom of the 9th inning. The only silver lining is that the Yankees can also put its fans out of their misery by losing, and allow us all to catch up on Netflix. The season has been a slog.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers after a 100+ win season have to beat the hot, hot Cardinals just to advance and play the Giants in the Divisional series. MLB should consider reseeding based on wins after the wild card round. A Giants-Dodgers series for 5 games should really happen in the next round.

The floor is open. Any predictions for tomorrow night?