It’s time to be bold with your NCAA picks.  Everyone, and I mean everyone, is all in on Duke, and truth be told, assuming Zion Williamson stays healthy, you would assume that Duke rolls to the championship.  They have the best freshmen and several will be on NBA rosters next year.  But come on, what fun is that?

SU has studied the brackets and as always, uses the most sophisticated and high speed super computers to run hundreds of thousands of scenarios.  My take:

• SU does not like the ACC getting 3 of the 4 #1 seeds.  Not right and not accurate.  Michigan State deserved to be a #1 seed having won the Big Ten and the Big Ten Tournament.  SU has no love for them certainly but they belong there.  And then putting them in Duke’s region?  Wrong, wrong, wrong.
• Virginia always underachieves.  Could be the way they play, the coach in post-season games, who knows?
• North Carolina can play a great game but they don’t play great all the time.  Plus they lack the true star players.
• Gonzaga is always overrated.
• The Big Ten has a lot of teams in the tournament, and most of them will lose in the first round.

Was that helpful?  SU sees the Final Four this way: Duke; Michigan (hey, I am not going to root against them); Tennessee; and Kentucky.  Kentucky over Duke in the finals.  SU actually had mistakenly clicked on Kentucky to beat Tennessee in the semis but then I figured this must be a sign to do it, so I am sticking with them.  Kentucky in the end for no particular reason other than I made a mistake.

As always, SU invites the intergalactic subscriber base to weigh in with their picks so that others can admire them and praise their wisdom 3 weeks from now.

The Yankees are piling up the injuries now.  Seriously: Severino; Betances; Hicks; and CC.  But as always, no panic in Yankee Land.  They roll with the punches (although they did sign Gio Gonzalez to a minor league deal which was a slight sign of panic).  SU says roll out the young arms and give them a shot in April to prove themselves.  Clint Frazier has had a brutal spring – likely cost himself a roster slot at least for now.  Too bad.

Mike Trout contract?  Many say that $450 million is a bargain.  Is he the true “generational” player?  Could be.  Not my money.  Can the Angels build around him?  Time will tell.  Plus the Yankees will always take that contract if they decide to move him.

Finally, for true laugh-out-loud entertainment, you have to look up Bryan Hoch’s Twitter feed from yesterday where he posted a picture of Jacoby Ellsbury in the outfield at the Yankees’ spring training camp doing some side step exercises.  The stream of comments and associated pictures are hilarious.  SU is not technologically skilled enough to link you correctly here but it is so worth it.  This may work.

Full disclosure: SU is no great fan of Odell Beckham Jr. on the Giants.  He is too much of a showboat to me.  Reminds me of Terrell Owens, Michael Irvin, etc.  All about me, me, me.  Of course, he is what some in the intergalactic SU subscriber base would call a “generational talent.”  He is terrific and most teams would put up with all of the histrionics given his production.  The Giants’ ownership do not fall into that group – that’s for sure.

First reaction: the Giants got little in return – similar to what the Steelers received for Antonio Brown.  Is that the market in the NFL these days?  If you trade a big salaried player, you are not going to get equal value back.  Could be.  Second reaction: did something happen over the past couple of weeks that hasn’t been made public yet regarding OBJ?  You wonder if there was another off-the-field incident.  Third reaction: the Giants are embarking on a total rebuild.  Starting at the ground up – tear it all down and take a few years to retool.  If that’s the case, do you still need Eli Manning?  Nope.  Should you go out and get a young QB?  Yup.

SU is interested in your take: what is the strategy here?  Did they get value in return?

SU made its first ever spring training game appearance last night in Tampa to check out the Yankees.

To sit this close for $28 – well can’t beat the value.  Of course, the games are meaningless but a nice way to ease into the season.  Boone is now playing both Bird and Voit in the same games which makes sense: give them the maximum number of at bats to try and make the team.  Stanton got a single – SU helped a few fans off the ground back into their seats.  Sorry – SU is working to get into regular season mode for my man.

Finally, keep an eye on the men’s tennis ATP tour.  Lots of controversy off the court.  Novak Djokovic is now the President of the Players’ Council and he is pushing for greater prize money for the rank and file players.  The stars such as Federer, Nadal, Wawrinka are apparently not happy as they believe they are the draw and who the fans come out to see.  SU says the stars seem to make plenty at this point but you do need those next tier players who can’t afford to travel the world with coaches, trainers, etc.

SU admires the continued discipline of Brian Cashman as he refuses to enter into panic mode and over-react to the Yankees’ pitching situation.  The news about Severino is not good.  He throws 99 mph into the 7th inning and has not had any real arm or shoulder issues to date.  Shoulder soreness is common in March but as we know, can lead to much more worse things.  He eats up a lot of innings.  Time will tell.  SU was not aware that CC would not be ready for Opening Day.  He is on his last legs but if you get 12 wins out of him, that is a good investment plus he is a leader in the clubhouse.  You just don’t want him pitching an elimination game this year in the playoffs – for a 3rd straight season.

Should the Yankees go out and overpay for an over-the-hill Keuchel?  SU says absolutely not.  Unnecessary.  They actually have some good young arms who can fill in and they showed some flashes last season.  Roll them out there and see if you can get 5 innings from them with 3 runs.  The line-up has more than enough pop – especially if Stanton can get some meaningful hits this year which you expect will be the case.  He needs to cross off “not familiar with the AL pitchers” from his excuse list for 2019.  This is the season where you will learn:

1. Can Stanton handle the NY spotlight?
2. Is he truly generational outside of Miami?
3. Is he, as SU has said from the beginning, overrated?

Aaron Boone is already talking about having some games where the Yankees will pitch only relievers.  Interesting.  You would think a $200 payroll avoids that situation.  The projected roster indicates only one of Bird/Voit makes the team (early money has Voit as something will surely happen to Bird related to his feet) and Clint Frazier likely does not make it either.  Packaging Bird and Frazier will return a good pitcher as necessary.

SU likes the Mets’ recent move of signing Jessica Mendoza as an advisor to the GM.  It shows imagination and forward thinking.  Good for them.  Also, Al Leiter will also be a special advisor but the hope here is that will take him off of all Yankee broadcasts in 2019 so we don’t have to see the circle change grip for the 500th time.

Michigan vs. Michigan State for the Big Ten Championship Saturday night (or at least a potential share of the title with Purdue).  Good stuff.  John Beilein retools after losing 3 key guys last year and has amassed a great record with a less than stellar roster.  For SU, this is my favorite sports viewing these days.  Following college basketball, like high school hoops, is a journey with many twists and turns over the course of the season.  Highly enjoyable.  In contrast, the NBA season feels like a long grind over many months.

Looks like LeBron will miss the playoffs.  It serves the Lakers right by bringing in malcontents like Rondo and Lance Stephenson this season.  Luke Walton will lose his job over this.  SU is looking forward to the playoffs.  Golden State is either bored or not quite as good this year and the East is wide open.

SU caught an ESPN interview with Antonio Brown.  Whoa.  He is playing the “respect” card with the Steelers a bit too much.  He has been handsomely rewarded in Pittsburgh and has been the focal point of the offense for years.  SU says take the high road and move on.

Finally, SU says there is no truth to the rumor that Robert Kraft is seeking to have his solicitation case moved to T.S. Ellis III’s court in Alexandria, VA for more favorable treatment.  No doubt Ellis would throw out the charges and compliment Kraft on his prowess at 77.

Several have emailed SU today about the Aaron Hicks, 7-year, $70 million extension.  Good deal?  Bad deal?  Not my money so why do I care?  Here is SU’s take:

• We know Hicks is a Cashman fave.  He has been given a long leash to develop and when healthy (which is not a given), he has produced and improved each year.
• He is a switch hitter, has a great arm, and his swing is made for Yankee Stadium.
• He has one of the best eyes in baseball.  Whatever that stat is, he does not swing at balls.
• He was going to be a free agent after this season.  He is 29 years old.
• SU believes that the Hicks’ deal is the second of several that you will now start to see as the Yankees try and lock in their young crop of future stars.  Severino was first and Judge will be next.  The idea is to sign them to an extension before they hit arbitration and before they become free agents.  The Angels did this with Mike Trout several years ago.  It will be interesting if they give Gary Sanchez this type of treatment as he is also in the pipeline.  SU is not sure on that one and believes this season will be key for him.  Also, what about Betances?

Bottom line: SU likes the deal.  You overpay a bit but as he gets older, you can also trade him more easily as his contract is reasonable.  And….. it’s not my money.

Greg Bird went 2 for 2 on Saturday, and Luke Voit went 2 for 3 with a home run and 4 rbis yesterday.  Advantage: Voit.

So, Bob Kraft visited that “spa” on back-to-back days including the morning of the NFC Championship Game so he had to boogie to Kansas City.  Delta must offer some type of frequent flyer package deal for extra service.  Supposedly there are videotapes.  Eek.  SU says he didn’t beat anyone up, he isn’t married and who cares?  Move on.  This story has one more day of shelf life.

Should college basketball players get paid?  A lot of talk now after Zion Williamson destroyed his sneaker and sprained his knee.  SU understands both sides of the argument here.  But I also say that Zion’s marketability and draft positioning were greatly enhanced by playing at Duke.  He isn’t paid but he is on a scholarship, and Duke needs to make money on its college basketball program to give out the scholarships.  The reality is that a handful of #1 picks have long and productive careers in the NBA.  Many bounce around for a few years and then are gone.  What would be best is that players stay in school through their junior years, get an education that will benefit them the rest of their lives and also develop their basketball skills so that they are that much better positioned to succeed once they enter the NBA.  Take Mo Wagner on Michigan.  He left after his junior year.  He has sat on the Lakers’ bench all year.  Barely played at all.  Literally.  Is he developing his basketball skills better in the NBA in their practices?  Maybe.  Or do you develop your skills by staying in college and actually getting to play?  Sure, he got paid and you risk injury in college.  But this is not football.  The odds of a major injury are slight.  Nik Stauskus left after his sophomore year as did Glenn Robinson III.  It’s likely both will be out of the NBA in another year.

Can’t you have a duel goal of getting an education and also improving your skills in college?  Look, if you are a hardship case, SU gets it – take the money sooner as you desperately need it for your family.  But if you don’t, stay in school.

Much being made of Michigan State’s win over Michigan yesterday down 2 of their best players.  Well done.  Kudos to Tom Izzo.  But… SU says beware of peaking too soon.  We will see if they can sustain it through the Big Ten Tournament and then the NCAAs.  But they played well yesterday.

And how is Gonzaga #1?  No way.  Tennessee loses in OT on the road.  Duke loses without Williamson.  Gonzaga always underachieves in the NCAAs.

OK, enough of my evening rant.  Let’s hear from you and how about some new subscribers weighing in??

SU says thank goodness!  Even though the Yankees were supposedly not interested, SU was worried that if the price got low enough, Hal Steinbrenner might have jumped in.  The good news is that there is no way Bryce Harper signs for anything lower than 10 years, $300 million now, and that will be too rich for the Yankees.  You have to figure he will end up in Philadelphia or Washington now.  This deal with San Diego feels like the Cano signing with Seattle a few years ago.  Big contract for a middle market team that will hamstring them from signing anyone else.  They supposedly have a great farm system.  SU hopes it works out for them.

So, Giancarlo Stanton threw out a few nuggets today:

• He was hampered by that hamstring injury for a good portion of the season
• The Yankees think he will be oh so much better this year as he now knows the AL pitchers better.
• Their confidence in Stanton is one of the major reasons that they stayed out of the Machado/Harper sweepstakes.

SU asks this: how do you explain Andujar having such a strong season when he didn’t know any of the pitchers?  I get the reasoning that when you switch leagues, it takes time to learn the new pitchers but when you are making $30 million a year, you need to be better than that.  SU will be surprised if Stanton hits better than .266 this year and 100 rbis.

Andujar is changing his throwing motion in spring training and the coaches have him using a new ready position.  The question is how much patience will they have with him?  SU says don’t be stupid – show some patience for a guy that is a legit hitter with power.

SU is all in with the Yankees’ roster.  This team is good enough to win the division.  The pitchers will need to stay healthy, of course, and you know they will make moves along the way.

Finally, there is activity down south and we can look forward to the start of baseball season.  SU knows that baseball is not in vogue with the younger generation but for oldsters like me, it’s the best season.  Checked out the Yankees a bit.  Here are my spring training thoughts:

• Joel Sherman has clearly been reading SU.  He totally agrees that the Yankees don’t need either Machado or Harper.

https://nypost.com/2019/02/12/destroying-the-myth-yankees-needed-machado-or-harper/

As always, SU represents the cutting edge thinking out there.  I still think the Yankees would jump on Harper if the years and price came down low enough.

• Jacoby Ellsbury, who has been out for 13 years, will not report until March as he already has issues with his feet.  Unreal.
• Greg Bird is healthy and motivated.  Clint Frazier is on record that he wants to win the starting left-field position over Gardner.  SU loves the competition.  The team is better when you don’t just assume you own the position.  Of course, it would be nice if Stanton also had to earn it but hey, I will take the small things for now.
• Severino has a new 4-year, $48 million deal.  He is worth it.  More importantly, he has a new diet and hopes to retain his strength over the full year.
• Jordan Montgomery is aiming to return after the All-Star break.  He could be a huge factor in the second half.  You have to assume Cashman is counting on him as well as Didi to be ready after 2-3 months.  Still no love out there for Andujar but it feels like they will at least let him show his defensive prowess in Tampa.
• SU liked the off-season moves by the Mets.  The NL East is winnable.  They may not be done dealing just yet.

A few other random thoughts:

• Big Ten officiating continues to be pretty awful.  How does John Beilein, who does not curse, get ejected?  SU watches a lot of Big Ten hoops and the officiating is really bad for a major conference.  Needs to be addressed.
• If Duke wins the NCAAs this year, what do we think about that?  SU says for Coach K, anything short of a championship is a failure with this roster.  It’s not good for college basketball – whether it’s Kentucky or Duke.
• Since Djokovic won the Australian Open, he has been off.  His next tournament is not until mid-March at Indian Wells.  The reality of professional tennis is that the top men don’t play that many tournaments.  The players complain that there is no off-season (first part of December) but these guys are not on the road all the time.
• The Knicks are unwatchable but SU says if this pans out as they hope, i.e., they draft Zion Williamson and sign Durant and Kyrie, it was a move for the ages.  If no one wants to sign and play here, well you just go with rebuild 19.0.

Is it bad for baseball to have Harper and Machado unsigned as of mid-February?  Or is this what it takes to change the model from the awful Robinson Cano 10-year, $240 million contracts, to something that makes more sense?  Hey, the NBA has its share right now – $40 million for Chris Paul for one season?  Dude cannot even stay healthy.  It’s not pretty right now and looks like collusion but if we can get to richer, shorter contracts, it’s better for everyone.

First things first.  Several SU subscribers came very close to the point spread from last night’s Super Bowl.  Note everyone who picked the Pats was way off on total points but several were right there on the differential:

• Jeff: Pats 31 – 20
• Seth: Pats 33 – 20
• Pete: Pats 38 – 29
• Mark: Pats 34 – 26
• Steve: Pats 37 – 28

But… one person nailed the 10-point differential: long-time subscriber Jeff B. who had the score Pats 34 – 24.  He is this year’s winner and, of course, has earned a year’s free subscription to SU along with the SU-logoed windbreaker, gym bag and coffee cup holder.  Congrats to Jeff!

Please remind me to never, ever again complain that the NFL games have become too high scoring and are like video games.  Watching the Kansas City Chiefs is the most fun and I would much prefer a 52 – 45 game vs. a 13 – 3 puntfest.  There is no comparison.  Especially when you are playing indoors with no wind, no cold, no rain and on turf.  It is just not compelling.  As Tony Romo correctly pointed out, the Rams are a run first team and if you take away the run and force them to throw, they are not nearly as effective.  You have to figure that Todd Gurley has been playing about 70% for several weeks now and just can’t go full speed for a full game.  Belichick is Belichick but the reality is that his defense did not exactly soar against the Chiefs in the last round.  But he came up with a great scheme to throttle the run and then put tremendous pressure on Goff who took a lot of hits.

The good news is that the refs did not influence the outcome – thank goodness.  SU is not a fan of the Patriots but you have to tip your hat this year to Brady who did not have a truly All-Pro wide receiver to throw to all year.  Boston is now Championship City and the Celtics have a legit shot to make it the hat trick if they can get their act together going into this year’s playoffs.  As a NY fan, it brings me no joy to say that.

SU has noted that I am the only one picking the Rams to win tonight.    Either you are all oh so smart or you haven’t been watching all the games this year.  No doubt there is some of the “the Rams shouldn’t even be playing in the Super Bowl” out there.  On the other hand, the Rams may feel like they are playing with house money and have nothing to lose.  SU will go with that theory.

I am sticking with my 35-31 Rams score.  If you haven’t weighed in, there is still time.  Remember, this your chance for fame and fortune given the reach of the intergalactic SU subscriber base.

Accolades will be doled out Monday morning to the winner.

Well, say good bye to the Porzingis Era in New York.  It looks like management did not like his negative comments about team culture and with the direction of the team.  Phil Jackson drafted him and he’s no longer here to protect him and soothe his ego.  New regime, new game plan, wants their own players.  SU must admit that since the Isiah Thomas era as Team President, I just don’t care that much about the Knicks.  Personal note: SU was on a flight this week with Isiah but as he was sitting in 1st class, I didn’t have time to share my perspective with him (or sign him up for SU).  Several people did shake his hand and pose for pictures with him.  He’s a likeable guy; bad team executive; doesn’t age.

But I digress.  The Knicks have officially started a new rebuild. SU liked Porzingis and they packaged him with Tim Hardaway, Jr. and Trey Burke (other SU faves) so I really have no reason to watch any of their games now.  Zip, zero, nada.  In return from Dallas, they get all of the “expiring contracts” (which all NBA trades include) and a possible #1 pick.  It appears that the Knicks are going all in to get Durant this off-season, Zion Williamson as a #1 pick and then pick up a few free agents (how about Manny Machado?).  If they pull it off, you are a contender in 2019 – 2020 – especially in the NBA Eastern Conference.  I can’t say I love the moves but I do give management credit for being bold and maybe, just maybe as Melania Trump says, “Be Best” (one wonders what else she says but that’s not why you are here).

Meanwhile, there is a big game on tap for this Sunday.  SU is always asked to make those bold predictions and I am happy to oblige:

• This will be a high scoring game.  Indoors, strong QBs, not so strong defenses, and hey, we all like scoring.
• You have to give Brady a lot of credit this year.  He has the Pats back in the Super Bowl without any top notch receivers.  Edelman is still there but he has dropped a ton of passes this season – many more than in past years.  He does have good running backs and no doubt that will be their strategy to keep the Rams’ offense off the field.
• Let’s go with the Rams: 35 – 31.  Another close Super Bowl that is entertaining.

As always, SU asks the intergalactic subscriber base for its predictions and the chance to receive major notoriety come Monday as we post the score that comes closest to the actual result.  This is your chance for fame and fortune (well, certainly fame although maybe we can get you that SU logoed windbreaker as a prize).  Have at it.  What’s your prediction?  You may even want to embellish your prediction with a key play that will happen.

And while you’re at it, thoughts on the blockbuster Knicks’ trade?

SU must admit that I was very surprised that Mike Mussina made the Hall of Fame this week.  What is up with that?  He was a solid pitcher over a long career.  Very smart guy from Stanford who was always prickly with the media – especially with Michael Kay.  He won 20 games one time and for much of his career, pitched in Baltimore’s Camden Yards which yields a ton of home runs.  Same with Yankee Stadium so you have to give him credit there.

SU would compare him to Don Sutton who had a long, consistent career and was always among the top 10-15 pitchers.  I think now that Harold Baines has been admitted, we are going to see many others with very good but not top cut stats get in.  Edgar Martinez was a great DH – killed the Yankees for many years.  I don’t see him as being in this category either.  Mariano, of course, is a no-brainer and it was good to see him on every ballot.

SU has received a few comments from subscribers via email and wanted to share this excerpt here.  From long-time subscriber and major baseball fan, P. Bok:

• “You know my stance on Mussina and I think that he deserves it.  Lots of wins and he won 20 in his last season.  He was the quiet leader on those very successful Orioles teams and gave everything to the O’s and Yankees year in and year out.  He could have hung around for 300 and he decided to not stick around (which I thought he should have continued to pitch as he was effective… and 300 is 300 (ask Glavine)).  I guess he had enough money and was happy to move on.  It is not his fault Jeffrey Meier brought his glove to the game nor was it his fault those Yankees teams did not win a World Series.  I think he could have won a championship with the ball bouncing his way, but it didn’t… Martinez – my vote is a “no”.  Great hitter, but in my opinion not great enough.  I guess there was one clutch moment, but that is all I remember in a very long career. I think Ortiz deserves it when eligible – and I feel his situation is different, but call me hypocritical regarding a DH in Cooperstown.  Martinez does not have a “This is our f***ing city moment”, and after Ortiz appeared done, he bounced back for two more solid years and led that team.”

I don’t know how many of you are following the tennis at the Australian Open – it’s hard to watch matches that start at 3:30 am.  But in this tournament, some of the “Generation Next” players have broken through to make it to the later rounds only to be squashed by Nadal and Djokovic.  It’s great for tennis that the 20-year olds are making some in-roads.  It’s also interesting to see how Nadal and the Djoker have sustained their dominance and will be meeting in the finals on Sunday (at 3:30 am of course).  Djokovic leads that match-up 27-25.  When you consider that most of their match-ups come in semis and finals, it’s a terrific rivalry.  I don’t think Nadal has a losing career mark against anyone else.

Thoughts on the Hall of Fame entries?