Domingo German has had an up and down career with the Yankees. He was a key member of the pitching staff a few years ago but then abused his significant other – at a team event I believe – and was suspended for a long time. Really hurt the team that year. More recently, he was suspended for having the stickiest hands known to mankind.

But today, all is forgiven! He is Mr. Perfect. Now, SU stayed up late Tuesday night to watch almost to the conclusion the first game of this series. After losing to the A’s 2 – 1, I vowed that was it for these West Coast games this year. Full transparency: I don’t like this year’s team. It’s unlikeable on so many levels:

1. The players: Josh Donaldson – such a bad fit, poorly thought out by Cashman. Stanton: nice guy but so tired of watching him struggle for weeks and weeks every season and then get hurt.
2. Style of play: they embrace the .215 hitter. At least, it seems that way as the team is built totally around guys who hit .215. How is this remotely interesting or exciting to watch?
3. Reliance on Judge: again, a total miss. Judge covers up for so many of the other players.

SU checked the phone in the middle of the night and I was pleased for German to get the perfect game. Very cool. I know it’s Oakland and yes, life can be worse if you are an A’s fan. I mean last night, Stanton hit a home run (amazing) and I saw Donaldson had 2 meaningless RBIs in the 9th inning after striking out 3 times which I saw. Oh, but he has to play every day. LeMahieu even knocked in a run – he is a shell of what he was. I guess he is just aging after a long and successful career.

Steve Cohen finally decided to meet the media and have his say on the Mets. It is hard to believe that they are 8 games out of the Wild Card. SU has watched the Mets of late and their offense is right up there with the Yankees. Lifeless.

Other Thursday morning observations:

1. SU does not understand the Chris Paul move by the Warriors. At this age, he cannot stay healthy through the playoffs. The Warriors need more size up front – that is where they are exposed. Paul is a Hall of Fame guard but unclear how this is a game changing move for them. I will follow Jordan Poole to the Wizards and look forward to Eastern time zone games. He is fun to watch. Golden State will miss him.
2. This guy Arraez on the Marlins is hitting .396. That is remarkable by itself but in a year when so few players are even above .300, it’s even more remarkable. I mean, that is baseball. It’s not just trying to hit home runs all the time. Have you watched the Yankees in extra inning games? Almost comical. Situational hitting? Say what? Have to hope teams look at this and start moving back towards contact hitting, running and building rallies.
3. Finally, the Cincinnati Reds are in 1st place. Great story for baseball. Now, they have sucked for probably 10 years so you pay the price to get there. The Marlins are also good this year. Both are built around the young players. NY teams please take notice.

SU finds it amazing how Isiah Thomas has at least 9 lives when it comes to sports team management and advice. He destroyed the Knicks for a good 10 years, shows up on the NBA Network all the time giving his opinion, and now the new owner of the Phoenix Suns is apparently reaching out to him for advice. Apparently, Thomas was behind the trade of Chris Paul to the Washington Wizards in the Bradley Beal transaction.

Now, I am not saying that they should not have traded Chris Paul. He is a great player but he is always hurt, and especially in the playoffs. He’s not getting any younger and if you have the chance to move him, makes sense. But Isiah does not have the track record that you look back on and say, “Whoa, that dude knows his basketball!” SU says proceed with caution on any of his advice.

The Yankees are fresh off their sweep up in Boston, and should be in last place in the AL East by next weekend. The lineups are just not good. Rizzo has stopped hitting – has some type of neck injury and is playing through it – and Stanton, of course, needs about 100 at bats to regain his form. He will then get hot for a week and reinjure something. The Yankees will keep waiting on Josh Donaldson to re-emerge, and DJ LeMahieu is a shell of his former self. He is under a big contract for another couple of years (isn’t everyone?). If Rodon ever comes back, that will be a boost for the pitching staff but Severino is really struggling.

The Yankees don’t have a lot of options come the trade deadline. They have some top prospects that they could deal but SU says don’t do that to the fans. Last year’s moves were all pretty bad (Joey Gallo, Frankie Montas) and at this point, I would be happy turning over the whole roster somehow and play the youngsters. Will never happen of course. If and when Judge returns (and Bader), that helps but it sure feels like this team can’t compete in the AL this year.

The NBA Draft is Thursday night and this off-season is going to see some big names on the move. SU is not sold on the “3 stars” strategy like the Suns are following. Everyone is saying that they are the favorites to win it all in the 2023-24 season but didn’t Brooklyn just go this route with Harden, Irving and Durant? The right strategy is to build a true “team” with pieces that fit. But no owner is asking for SU’s advice just yet!

SU, as the official representative of Yankee fans globally, is bored with the team this year. Full disclosure: losses no longer bother me. I mean baseball is much better with all of the rules changes – games are shorter, play actually moves along, more stolen bases, etc. But… unless I am missing something, why are batting averages still so low?

SU was thinking back to the Yankee teams of the 2000s, and especially 2009 where players hit over .300 and had over 100 rbis. Was that all PEDs? Slower rotating pitches? Today? It feels like hitting .300 is what hitting .350 was in the past, and 100 rbis is a huge achievement. As of this morning, there are 10 batters above .300 – in all of MLB!

What you get, therefore, is more strikeouts (but faster!), players continuing to try and hit home runs and fewer runs. You follow players and wait, wait, wait for them to finally “get comfortable.” Giancarlo Stanton is that guy every season and of course, just as he finally gets there, he gets hurt and it’s rinse/repeat. Josh Donaldson? He is hitting home runs (of course, with no one on base) and will probably get to 55 rbis this year for $25 million. And people will say he had a solid year.

SU has come to the conclusion that Aaron Judge is likely underpaid at $40 million a year. For the Yankees, he allows all of the overpaid and underperforming players (read: entire roster) to not stress too much about their underwhelming numbers. But when he is hurt, well, they are so exposed.

I still care and will watch out of habit but it’s a struggle to stay awake. SU says play the youngsters and eat some more salaries please. At least they are really trying.

Am I an outlier?

Props to Novak Djokovic for winning the French Open and finally getting his due from the media. Winning at least 3 of each of the Grand Slams is a major achievement in this era of great players. While he is still on pace for a calendar year Grand Slam, you have to figure the motivation will take a dip now. But who knows?

SU was happy to see the Nuggets win it all this year. Any time a true team that passes the ball crisply and with purpose wins an NBA championship, that is a good thing as you know other teams will look to follow suit. The NBA is trending in the right direction and the days of the stand around offense are likely behind us now. We next need to see this style of play at the college level. It is painful to watch teams walk the ball up the court and have the coach call out the play each possession. Please. Push the ball and just have a pass first mentality. I mean is there anything more stupid than rolling the ball up the court to save time and then once you pick it up, you slow walk the offense anyway?

Enough ranting for today. The floor is open for your thoughts.

Some interesting MLB stats for you this morning:

Gary Sanchez, San Diego Padres: .294, 5 home runs and 11 rbis in 34 at bats.

Aaron Hicks, Baltimore Orioles: .364, .481 on base percentage

Gio Urshela, LA Angels: .304; 24 rbis

Mike Tauchman, Chicago Cubs: .260; .397 on base percentage

SU is not saying that Brian Cashman should not have made these moves and deals. Clearly, any Yankee fan wanted Gary Sanchez out of NY. I wish all of these guys well this season. Urshela was an inexpensive 3rd baseman who was a gold glove quality fielder. Maybe you keep him and save a few dollars on Donaldson? Hicks needed a new home and SU is happy to see him get to play (and batting 5th for the 2nd place Orioles!).

If you are a Yankee fan, the 2023 version, aside from Aaron Judge, is unwatchable. No other way to say it. Offensively, their games are a snoozefest. They are lucky that they have the best bullpen in the MLB plus Judge when he is healthy. The problem is that when he is out (2nd time on the IL now), the players who get paid the big bucks like LeMahieu and Stanton, really come up short. As in really, really short. Volpe is struggling but he hits 9th and anything you get from him is a plus. Oswald Peraza is batting .311 with 10 home runs and 21 rbis in 119 at bats in the minors this year. The thinking is that there is nowhere to play him in the infield with Donaldson back and Volpe playing everyday but SU says give him a shot and plug him in at 3rd, 2nd and shortstop. The team is desperate for offense, speed, some level of excitement. The Yankees are really in need of outfielders as Bader can’t stay healthy, Stanton can never stay healthy and they are afraid to play him in the outfield, and Judge is hurt.

Right now, a wild card is all the team can hope for in 2023 and there is a lot of competition there.

Over in Flushing, the Mets with baseball’s highest payroll are really floundering. Yes, they have had their share of injuries, and now Alonso is out for a month. Might they be sellers in July?? Actually, might the Yankees be sellers? (Nah). The next month is key for both teams.

For tennis fans, the first 2 sets of the Alcaraz – Djokovic match yesterday were some of the best tennis you will ever see. Interesting contrast between 36-year old Djokovic and 20-year old Alcaraz. You have to give Djokovic credit for still competing at such a high level at 36. Interesting stat for him: 45 Grand Slam semi-final appearances in his career, and 34 finals – including winning 20 of his last 21 semi-finals, and 14 of his last 17 finals in these events. He’s not for everyone, and some of his views are off but you have to acknowledge the sustained greatness in his career during the era of Federer and Nadal.

SU is still trying to fully understand the new arrangement in golf between the PGA TOUR and LIV. It’s not a great look for the sport and maybe you can look the other way when it comes to the Saudis (SU cannot). It will be interesting to see if the players approve the new deal.

The Denver Nuggets are the real deal. Jokic is so refreshing to watch. It was amusing to read some of the experts criticizing his flopping for foul calls as if literally every other NBA player does not do that. How do you not give credit to a big man who is a triple-double threat every game? He’s not the most athletic person on the court but is a joy to watch given his team orientation. He makes everyone around him better – a lot better. SU says appreciate that and recognize how few players do that in the NBA right now.