It’s become very apparent to SU that the Yankee hitters cannot hit Astro pitching – especially the starters. Come October, this will be a major problem and will threaten to derail what is becoming a record-breaking season for the Yankees. Regular season records are great but the goal is to be the last team standing in October (or November this year perhaps).

The Yankee pitching can handle the Astros – that is not the issue. But you roll out a right-handed dominant line up and there are issues. Your left-handed hitters are Rizzo (good and tries to hit around the shift), Hicks (mindless batting left-handed where it’s home run or bust) and Gallo (takes mindless in approach to new heights. One wonders what the thought process is there as he nears .160). For Gallo, the Mendoza line of .200 is aspirational. SU is sure that Cashman is well aware and will make some moves over the next few weeks. Bottom line: you cannot go into an ALCS series with the Astros with this roster and expect to win. They might but less than 50-50 in my opinion.

If you are a tennis fan, keep an eye on Nadal for winning the Grand Slam this year. The men’s draw at Wimbledon has thinned on his side of the draw with Berrettini testing positive for Covid. No Medvedev, no Zverev and really only Djokovic to threaten him in the finals. Then, the US Open is still requiring fully vaccinated players and assuming Djokovic cannot enter the country, Nadal may be going into the Open with 3 Grand Slams under his belt. At 36. Pretty amazing.

Let’s face it: the NBA off season is the best in pro sports for big-time players moving. Now, it’s for all of the wrong reasons with players demanding trades and wanting to play with their buddies. But rosters really change over dramatically. And the money for the top players? Jokic getting $270 million for 5 years. Whoa. Makes Aaron Judge look like a bargain. You can see some players getting these mega deals and justify it like Booker on Phoenix. But Beal on the Wizards? $251 million for 5 years? Hmmm.

The Knicks moved half their roster to sign Brunson to play the point. SU says he is a solid player but is he a game changer? His contract is reasonable by NBA standards but unclear if they are even a playoff team in 2022 – 2023.

USC and UCLA in the Big Ten? Let me check that map again. I guess it’s the Biiiiggggg Ten Conference now. Lots of long flights for the teams but it’s all about the money now and that is that. We are moving towards the SEC and the Big Ten and a bunch of satellite conferences. Maybe it doesn’t really matter as the same 5 – 6 teams contend for the football championship every year anyway, and in basketball, multiple teams get into the Tournament anyway. I guess the upside is that a fan can travel with the team for a game in LA for the weekend so there is that.

Finally, an interesting comment from Sweeny Murti on the Yankee broadcast last night. Once baseball moves to electronic umpiring in 2024 (possibly), the catchers who can’t hit but are great at “receiving” the ball and “framing pitches” will no longer be in demand. All of that will no longer matter. I guess defensive catchers will still be in demand but more for throwing out runners and blocking pitches.

The Yankees are wrapping up a tough stretch of games against the AL’s better teams. One more with Houston on Thursday and then Cleveland this weekend. What have we learned?

1. Aaron Judge is irreplaceable. He is the key guy on offense this year and for a home run hitter, has flirted with .300 all year. The issue with Judge in most of his career has been durability. There is always something that pops up and it has often involved his oblique.
2. Joey Gallo is replaceable. SU says playing him is an embarrassment. The telecasts do us a dis-service by not showing the full shifts against him. Late in the count it’s now 4 outfielders and absolutely no one on the left side of the infield. No-one there. He does know how to bunt as we saw last year. His latest slump is now around 3 for 40. The reality is that if he does not hit a home run, it will be an out. Puzzling that he is still here.
3. You cannot play both Hicks and Gallo. Cashman has always liked Hicks but when he bats left-handed, he is Gallo 2.0. Same logic. Somewhere Mark Teixeira is smiling as he also famously refused to change his approach and went from a .300 hitter to a .235 hitter. Chicks dig the long ball. Hicks should only play against left-handed pitchers.
4. The starters are coming back down to earth. No surprise there. Impossible to maintain the pace and you will have to go to something of a quasi- 6-man rotation in the 2nd half of the season to keep total innings down for several of these guys. The bullpen is still solid and Chapman, Loaisiga and German are all about ready to return. Chapman will be interesting regarding how Boone uses him. SU says check your ego at the door.
5. Watch out for the injuries. Gleyber twisted his ankle and has a sore shoulder. IKF has an issue now and Rizzo got nailed on the elbow.

Bottom line: the Yankees still have a huge lead and it’s all about playoff positioning now for October. SU will enjoy the ride and then we will see about the playoffs. Houston will be a very tough opponent for them. They were lucky to win 2 games that series. What is refreshing about this year’s team is that they continue to fight until the end. Last year’s team was content to “tip the cap” by the 3rd inning and pack it in. Also not having Gary Sanchez here seems to be an improvement as well. SU will not complain and expect Cashman to fill their needs around the trade deadline.

Wimbledon has a problem. No Covid protocols are in place and they just just had two top players test positive (Cilic, Berrettini). In a cramped locker room, this is not good. Keep an eye on this for the next few days.

Kyrie Irving: staying or going? This is not a good guy. Apparently, he used to run additional practice sessions last season after Steve Nash concluded the team practice. Kyrie would bring guys out for another session. He really deserves to be a Laker.

How do NBA players get paid $40 – 50 million a season? Is the League that profitable? Smaller rosters mean you can pay more? Stars make more than the MLB stars for half the games.

Full disclosure: SU roots for the Golden State Warriors based on the way they play the game, Steve Kerr and more recently, Jordan Poole who played 2 years at Michigan. I watched most of their games this season on the NBA Season Pass (a good value if you live in New York as who only wants to watch Knick games or the drama queen Nets dealing with Kyrie?). The Warriors play the game the right way. Fast pace, pushing the ball, constant movement and if the other team scores, you race them back down the court on offense.

Steve Kerr is unafraid to speak out on social issues and uses his platform well. Great coach who has navigated many years of Draymond Green. Draymond is annoying and a loud mouth but when his head is on right, he sees the whole court, makes the right passes and cares about defense. The Warriors are actually a very good defensive team. Even Curry has bulked up over the years and can’t be run over anymore in the post-ups down low. Klay Thompson is a great story although his shot selection could be questioned here and there. I guess he has earned it on that team.

The question now is whether they can keep the team together given the salary cap and how much ownership is willing to pay in luxury tax. There are rumors that they will have to trade Wiggins and even signing Poole to a longer term deal after next year might be a challenge. Poole is great to watch and you have to figure they will keep him. The Warriors have some great young guys on the roster and in theory, should be contending for years to come but as we all know, things change in sports. Enjoy them for the moment and appreciate their dynasty. They are a good look for the NBA.

The Yankees swept the Rays so all good in Yankee Land and SU will not complain. I do note that their offense really struggled in all 3 games and the team continues to be carried by the pitching. That really is their strength. Other than Judge and Stanton (and Rizzo’s RBIs), no other numbers jump off the page this year offensively. Rolling Judge out in center field day after day is a bit of a risk. If you are Brian Cashman, you are looking for a center fielder at the trade deadline. The combination of Hicks and Gallo is only workable if the pitching holds up and Judge stays healthy.

I see the run differential and the record and the 10-game lead over Toronto. As Mariano Duncan used to say back in 1996, “we play today, we win today.” That applies to this team. They are winning all of the close games, and they are winning all of the late, close games. While it feels like 1998 for Yankee fans, SU says that team had the circular line-up and the deep bench. I think one more consistent hitter in center field is all you need to solidify the roster and absorb any upcoming injuries. I mean IKF plays every day and while he is not a superstar, he is solid defensively and has had some big hits. He is not easily replaceable right now.

Tyreek Hill already complaining how he was under utilized on the Chiefs and that Tua is a better QB than Mahomes. I mean, why do guys do that? You got paid because of Mahomes. And Tua’s arm strength is not close to most NFL quarterbacks. SU says take the high road and just say thank you.

Long-time subscriber, E. Steele, sent these interesting stats regarding the Yankees’ and Mets’ records and schedules to date:

Strength of Schedule thus far: NY Yankees: 23rd NY Mets: 5th Games vs >.500 teams: Yankees: 22 Games (15 Wins) Mets: 37 Games (23 Wins) Games vs <.500 teams: Yankees: 38 (29 Wins) Mets: 25 (17 Wins) Context goes a long way! #LGM pic.twitter.com/kNrLTUtqGp

SU has noted that the Mets have played the NL West a bunch of times – both at home and on the road. That is the NL’s strongest division. The Yankees have feasted on the Orioles and some of the other bad teams. As long-time subscriber, B. Rosano, points out, the goal is always to beat up on the bad teams and then go .500 vs. the top teams. For the Yankees, the test comes now with series upcoming against the Rays, Blue Jays and Astros. SU has enjoyed the ride so far, of course. The Yankees are carried by their pitching and Judge/Stanton. I will be very, very interested to see how they fare against the better teams. The big concern is still that Judge cannot stay healthy for an entire season, and he has carried the team this year. I mean the dude is hitting over .300 and in baseball this year, that feels like hitting over .350 in a normal season as batting averages are so depressed.

The Mets’ pitching is still down Scherzer and deGrom, but their offense is much more balanced from top to bottom in terms of guys who put the ball in play and get on base. SU would pick the Mets over the Yankees in a World Series if the teams played today assuming deGrom and Scherzer were both healthy.

What is up with the PGA Tour and the break-away Saudi LIV Tour? A number of stars have signed up for the money from the Saudis (and the large appearance fees) while risking suspension from the PGA TOUR. The question will be if the suspensions are permanent. The Major Tournaments, e.g., US Open, can determine on their own who can play, and the upcoming Open this week is allowing everyone to compete. No doubt there will be some awkward moments in the clubhouse, and SU says expect some booing on the course from the fans. Bottom line is that it’s a money grab by some of the top players. I guess the question is whether the PGA Tour will start to offer up appearance fees for top players going forward. SU is not an expert on this but I have read that some of the criticism of the PGA Tour is that they are not looking to give some extra money to the top players vs. those who are ranked 100 or higher. I guess the thinking is that the fans come to see the stars and they should get some up front money for being there. Thoughts? The ATP Tour does not do this in tennis although the top seeds get a bye into the 2nd round of the non-Grand Slam tournaments.

The Boston – Golden State series has been interesting. It feels like we will go to a game 7, and anything can happen this year. The games feature major runs by each team; not like the games are close throughout. Steve Kerr is the master of making game-to-game adjustments with his line ups and playing time. Last night, he went with Gary Payton II for major minutes to emphasize defense over offense. Paid off for him.

Josh Donaldson may not know it yet but his days as a Yankees are counting down to zero. Look, what he said about Tim Anderson was overblown and was not so terrible. SU gives him a pass on that. Donaldson is a career instigator and has rubbed people the wrong way on many MLB Clubs. No doubt Hal Steinbrenner and Cashman were not happy but he apologized and we move on. SU says the problem now is that he went public with a complaint that his Yankee teammates did not have his back. That shows he is tone deaf to the whole incident, and that he put his Black teammates in an awkward position. Rumor has it that Judge spoke to him directly about it and that should have been the end of it. By speaking to the media now, that will be a bridge too far for the Steinbrenners. Unless he returns to the field and starts hitting home runs galore, SU says he will be gone by early July. The Yankees run a corporate operation and do not like controversy, tattoos, long hair, facial hair, etc. LeMaihieu can play 3rd base just fine. Let’s watch how this plays out in the weeks ahead.

SU did not watch the entire NBA playoff game last night but I did follow along in the 1st quarter. It looked like Steph Curry was red hot and determined to get his points. I believe 21 at the end of the 1st quarter. The problem is that your teammates are unable to get into the flow – especially coming off a week layoff. SU says a better approach is to get everyone going early as that will pay dividends the rest of the game for the team. Boston went nuts in the 4th quarter and credit to them for making shots and stealing game 1. I saw some of the physical defense from the Celtics that I thought they would do. It’s basically we are going to grab and hold on every play and dare the refs to call all of the fouls. It makes it harder to run and cut for Golden State, and of course, for the viewer, it mucks up the game a la the 1990s version of the Knicks. We will see how this plays out. The refs end up not calling the fouls. But it’s the playoffs and Golden State will need to adjust in game 2.

Great match between Nadal and Djokovic the other night in Paris. Nadal was locked in and hit an amazing number of lines. Djokovic had his shot serving for the 4th set but fell short. Amazing stat at the French Open: when Nadal is receiving and wins the first point of the game, he breaks serve 66% of the time. Not too shabby and a lot of pressure on the server. Zverev is up as the next victim in today’s semi-finals. He beat Alcaraz in the quarters which was a huge win for him as Zverev tends to choke in the major tournaments. SU says keep an eye on the score today as he is playing with house money and no one thinks he can beat Nadal. Unlikely but he has a puncher’s’ chance to pull the upset.

Finally, can we please pull the plug on Joey Gallo? Surely, there is some outfielder out there who can play better than this. He’s not a bad guy and goes about his business. But he has said that he will not change his hitting style so it is what it is. And that is a sub-.200 average with home runs (occasionally), a lot of strike outs and some walks. The shifts against him are ridiculous but he won’t adjust. If you are going to keep and play Aaron Hicks, you don’t have the luxury of keeping and playing Gallo too.

There is the old adage in sports of “next man up” when a team is faced with injuries to key players. We have seen this play out for the past couple of weeks with the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat and of course, your NY Yankees. Guys get hurt – it’s part of sports – and you hopefully have a deep bench to step in. The Celtics have been without Marcus Smart and Al Horford for key playoff games but have persevered into the NBA finals. They are a dangerous team and SU says a good match-up with the Golden State Warriors. This will be a fun series.

SU was rooting for the Miami Heat and found it interesting how Erik Spoelstra managed his roster and bench in the last two games. The rotation is certainly shortened in the playoffs vs. the regular season and you wonder if coaches ever have 2nd thoughts about who they played once the series or season is over. SU was disappointed that Duncan Robinson was almost completely taken out of the rotation for the playoffs over concerns that he was a liability on defense. You wonder what his prospects are going forward and the loss of confidence? I guess getting paid $18 million a year softens the blow.

And then we have the Yankees. SU has been warning for weeks that the offense is tenuous at best given how Judge and Stanton have carried the team. Stanton is now on the IL with a strained calf and who knows if that becomes a season long concern? Will they no longer even put him in the outfield? Donaldson is on the IL with a shoulder issue but truth be told, he has done little on offense this season. SU says the big concern is the outfield as you are doing to see Hicks and Gallo playing A LOT. Hicks is in an awful slump with RISP and look, we all see it. He has zero chance of getting a hit from the left side. He should no longer bat left-handed – you have to platoon him. Teams do the extreme shift and that just causes him to swing even harder into the shift. Yesterday, with 2 strikes, they put an infielder in the outfield and left the entire left side of the infield open. Hicks is at best a .230 hitter and should only bat right-handed from now on. Let him platoon with Andujar who has shown signs of life.

Gallo just needs to be designated for assignment. Cashman has made some good pick-ups in the bullpen and with the starting pitchers but Gallo was a mistake. Not a NY guy. He is now batting 9th and that is even too high in the order. SU notes that the Yankees do not seem to have any minor league outfielders who are ready for prime time. Florial got a shot but went hitless. Matt Carpenter is the DH fill-in and has looked OK. If Greg Bird was not the king of missed opportunities, he would have been a candidate but he has not shined as of yet in Scranton.

Loaisiga is hurt yet again and Chapman is also on the IL which is a relief. Cashman will go with a closer by committee when Chapman returns. Holmes is better this year but if a team keeps winning, you really need more than one closer. The Yankees are being carried by the starting pitchers but that won’t last. Someone will get hurt – they always do on the Yankees.

Bottom line: great to have a cushion and to be in 1st place obviously. But Cashman needs to look for mid-year talent for the offense if they are going to make a deep playoff run in 2022.

Finally, you may want to check out the French Open quarterfinals this week. Djokovic vs. Nadal, and this kid Alcaraz is the real deal. Interestingly, for the Nadal-Djokovic match, it may come down to when the match is played. A day time match favors Nadal and a higher bouncing ball in warm conditions. A night match favors Djokovic in slower conditions. Alcaraz has played more night matches than the others and wants a day time match. Amazon Prime is broadcasting the night matches apparently and they will surely want Nadal – Djokovic. Apparently, in the majors, the players submit their requests for when they want to play their matches in the late rounds. Interesting. SU says they will give the nod to Nadal for day-time given his career record.

And finally, finally, SU is not a fan of the MLB games being played on Apple TV and Amazon Prime. I mean how are you supposed to flip around to the different channels? Btw, if you follow along on mlb.com, there is about a 45-second to 1 -minute delay on Amazon for the game action. You may or may not want to try that.

In case you missed it yesterday, Josh Donaldson on the Yankees continued his recent issues with Tim Anderson on the White Sox by calling him “Jackie” yesterday when their paths crossed near 2nd base. In their last series about a week or so ago, Donaldson put a hard tag on Anderson at 3rd base and the two of them had words then.

Anderson is one of the most out-spoken Black players in MLB, and does want to be viewed as a leader within Baseball as he expressed in a Sports Illustrated article back in 2019. He always has a lot to say, reacts strongly to a lot of things, and is clearly the team leader of the White Sox. Donaldson has played for many teams and brings along his own baggage. Certainly not the type of player the Yankees look to put on their roster going back about 15 years under Cashman.

SU’s take: he was trying to engage with Anderson near 2nd base and smooth things over from what had happened last series. Apparently, he has jokingly called him “Jackie” since that article came out over the past few years. Anderson was having none of that yesterday and reacted. Things escalated from there. I don’t know if Donaldson is a racist or not. But to me, this is an easily resolved matter. Today, before the game, Donaldson and Anderson should get together – either under the stands or even on the field – and talk it out man to man. Donaldson said he would apologize yesterday – just put it to rest. The problem is that the Yankee Bleacher Creatures are going to start chanting “Jackie, Jackie” today when Anderson comes to bat or makes a play in the field, and that will not be a good look for the Yankees or baseball. You also wonder if the Yankees will try and hit Anderson or if the White Sox will hit Donaldson.

Communication is supposed to be Aaron Boone’s strength. Well, this is his moment to get with Donaldson and LaRussa and calm things down. Whatever Donaldson’s intentions, he has a chance to set things right and turn a bad moment into a teachable moment. As always, interested to hear others’ thoughts. And please keep it civil.

The French Open starts today and in the same half of the men’s draw you have Alcaraz, Nadal and Djokovic. Djokovic and Nadal would play each other in the quarterfinals. It’s likely that for either Djokovic or Nadal to win, they would have to beat the other plus Alcaraz and then likely Tsitsipas in the other half of the draw in the finals. A lot to do. Tennis should find another way to do the draws. This seems very lopsided.

This year, we have been treated to several game 7s in the early rounds of both the NHL and NBA playoffs. It’s interesting to see how teams respond – especially the favored teams in their respective series. Phoenix had the NBA’s best record this year and was oh, so close to winning it all last season. But they had a historically awful performance Sunday night – trailing by 45 points at one point in the 2nd half. SU says they will not recover from this with the current roster. Now it’s true that Devin Booker had a hamstring injury that no doubt hampered him in the series. My take is that teams that barely fall short the previous season have a hard time winning it all the next season. For some reason, it does not usually work out. No doubt they were feeling the pressure as the Pelicans extended them in the first round more than expected.

And then we have the NY Rangers. Long-time subscriber, M. Levine, has offered his services to provide commentary on the Rangers this post-season and he weighs in here:

Hockey people I trust thought the Rangers were 50-50 to make the playoffs, so finishing where they did was a real accomplishment, and coming back from 3-1 down against a really good team took it to another level. They are probably the weakest of the 4 teams remaining in their conference, and may even be the weakest of all 8 remaining. That being said, this is the NHL, where upsets can happen, and this team has three things on their side that all NHL teams need, and that should make them a tough out – tremendous team chemistry and character, as shown in the last series (down 3-1 in the series, down 2 goals in game 5, 2 goals in game 6, and down a goal with 6 minutes left in game 7); a big-time goalie, despite some shaky moments last series; and a great power play.

SU must admit that I watched more hockey the last 2 weeks than I have in the last 3 years. The Ranger games have been very exciting – good stuff. We will see if momentum carries over to the next series. Certainly belief will carry over if they fall behind on the road at the start of the series with Carolina.

The Yankees continue to thrive. Shades of 1998 for sure. SU continues to worry that either Judge or Stanton will get injured, as that will hurt. Joey Gallo has hit .300 the last few weeks – it’s hard to believe as I have watched my share of games and just cannot recall that many hits. He is either a walk, strikeout or a home run. Nothing in between. They are beating up on the lesser teams as they need to, and will have built a nice cushion once their schedule becomes more challenging in the Summer. SU says enjoy the ride while it lasts. Btw, Aroldis Chapman may not be the official closer the rest of the season. He is no longer a sure thing as he cannot locate his fastball for a strike anymore.

Interesting note (but only to a few people): Michigan will have a player on the NBA championship team this season. Jordan Poole may be the only one who actually steps on the court (vs. Stauskus on the Celtics, Duncan Robinson on the Heat, and Trey Burke on Dallas), but it is still a nice achievement for a college team.

29 games in, the Yankees are 21 – 8. SU cannot recall the last time they started a season that way and I am too lazy to look it up. But it feels like a long, long time. The question is whether they can sustain this pace of play and if they are a legit good team. My thoughts:

1. The pitching is solid. The starters are not world beaters – except for Cole in theory – but they are consistently good 1 through 5. They do need to provide more length. The bullpen has been outstanding but they have to cover a lot of innings every game and SU says that will catch up to them soon enough. When you have to throw multiple relievers every game, the odds of them all being good every game are not great. There will be blown saves along the way.
2. Judge, Stanton and Rizzo have carried the team. And to date, they have each done it at a time when the others were not hot. This has translated into an excellent record. Note to readers: neither Stanton or Judge usually play a full season. The Yankees are one oblique or calf injury away from being a .500 team.
3. The team has gotten little from Hicks, Gallo, catcher and Donaldson. And I mean little. Donaldson had his 10-game hitting streak broken which got him all the way to .217 as he had 1 hit each game. He seems to be a good clubhouse guy and a good fielder but SU is waiting to see what he has left in the tank. Gallo is what we thought he was. I do think he has been better of late – takes a few walks and has hit in some tough luck – but he will settle in at .201 soon enough. SU is not a Hicks fan. Both catchers are good defensively and tell the truth: good to not have Gary Sanchez here anymore. Just catch the ball and we are happy. LeMahieu has bounced back nicely and IKF is a very good shortstop.

Bottom line: the answer is TBD. Great start to the season but a long way to go and the offense needs to show us what it is.

Tom Brady FOX deal: $375 million for 10 years. Really? Is he that compelling? Obviously a GOAT at QB but how do they know this will translate into the booth? Have you every listened to Grant Hill on TNT doing the NBA games? Super nice guy but says literally nothing any of you would say watching a game with your buddies. Troy Aikman makes about half this amount and his favorite line is, “that was a heck of a throw” or “that was a heck of a play.” Seriously, listen to him come the Fall. Tony Romo is the new standard but he talks too much for SU.

For those Tennis Channel viewers out there (approaching double digits now globally), the next star showed his stuff this past weekend in Madrid. Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, just turned 19, beat Nadal, Djokovic and Zverev in succession to win the tournament. One week after winning in Barcelona. Up to #6 in the world. And SU says his best surface is not clay – he can play on all courts. And can even volley effectively. A guy to watch. Good for the sport as the Big Three approach the finish line.

Credit to the NBA for suspending Dillon Brooks of Memphis for game 3 of the playoff series with Golden State after injuring Gary Payton Jr. on a breakaway layup. Payton broke his elbow. SU says the issue is not the one play but that Brooks has been that type of player going back to his days at Oregon in college. Basketball, when played correctly, is a free flowing game with cutting, passing, moving without the ball and getting shots up way sooner than 24 seconds. The NBA game does not need that style of physical play. Draymond Green was ejected in game 1 but at least he tried to catch the player after his foul. The game has really evolved and the 7-foot post player is a thing of the past. Crazy. You only keep a 7-footer around if he can shoot 3s.

Comment on the NCAA transfer portal. Not a fan. Players opt out so quickly to move to another school rather than compete for playing time. There is no guarantee that you will get the playing time at the next school. There are certainly circumstances where it makes sense but SU sees many where it was just poor judgment.

All I got for today. As always, welcome your comments.

OK, it’s still only April, but when you check the MLB standings this morning, you find that the Yankees and Mets have the best records in their respective Leagues. One assessment is to say, “it’s early but hey, better than the alternative.” Another is to say, “hell yes, these are the top 2 teams in baseball!”

SU says the answer is found in who they have played so far. For the Yankees, other than a couple of series at home against the Red Sox and the Blue Jays, they have played the worst teams in the AL. Beating up on Baltimore, Detroit and Cleveland is what good teams are supposed to do, and truth be told, the offense is finally coming alive. The pitching has been consistently solid and the offense is showing signs of life the last week or so beating up on the Guardians and the O’s. SU says good progress but we really need to see how they perform against the better teams. But much more entertaining the last week. The answer is TBD.

Now, the Mets, aside from getting hit by pitches almost every game, are a legitimate top tier team in the NL. Their line up is balanced and they put the ball in play. They played the SF Giants tough last week which was a great sign, and got the better of the Cardinals. The Mets are contenders this year. They need their star pitchers to be around in September but they are the better team in NY.

Have you noticed how much trouble pitchers have had lately controlling pitches? A combination of dry weather, cold temperatures and even wind seems to make it hard to grip the ball for breaking pitches. SU read an article that pitchers are highly critical of MLB for not finding a solution to the gripping issue now that Spider Tac has been outlawed. The hitters are nervous as the pitchers don’t know where the ball is going. SU says you should not need a rocket scientist to figure this out. Talk to the pitchers and figure out a solution (for a suitable solution to rub on your hands). Get it done.

The Nets are history. Thank goodness. Kyrie has already said that he will be working with ownership and the GM to rework the roster. Really? That is what you want? He’s a great player but toxic. Like last off-season, the Nets will have to find veteran players who want to take less money to play with Durant. Not sure they want to play with Kyrie. The problem is that these guys can’t stay healthy and that is why they are available.

There will be some really good 2nd round NBA playoff series. Bucks and Celtics is likely the best one. But a Golden State – Memphis series would be must see TV.

SU dozed off for most of the NFL draft but seemed to be a lot of trading action after the first 10 picks. Early signs that both the Jets and Giants did well but SU would like to hear from the experts on that front. It’s interesting to see how the NFL embraces Las Vegas now when just a few years ago, that was not a destination due to sports betting concerns. Different day now and Vegas is a hub. It’s probably just a matter of time before there are MLB and NBA teams there as well.

Finally, SU does not like the Wimbledon ban on Russian and Belarussian players. I get it that a Russian team in the Olympics or some other world championship, e.g., World Cup, should not be allowed to compete. But banning individual players in tennis or golf is not right. I would not be surprised to see that decision reversed before the tournament.