NEW YORK, NY – Holy underwear, it’s Wednesday and we’re already well into July! Trust me, after the Fourth you’re well into July, no matter the date. This is no time to be pensive or picky. If someone offers up some sort of half-a$$ed plan for something to do, just say “yes.” If some low-level casual acquaintance suggests grabbing a drink on a random Tuesday night, go ahead and roll the dice with that idea too. And if you’re charged with writing your weekly sports column, just sit down at that damn keyboard and start pecking away. Something will come to you… maybe.
Mad Max Returns. As I write this, Max Scherzer is supposed to take to the bump tonight for the Mets as they take on the lowly Reds in Cincinnati. We shouldn’t put too much emphasis on a random non-division game featuring a guy who hasn’t pitched in almost two months, but I’m going to anyway. If the Mets don’t win this game, they aren’t going to make the playoffs. Even without Scherzer, the Mets cannot be losing to a team like the Reds, a team they have almost twice as many wins as, and still think they are a legit playoff contender. In baseball, as in life, ya gotta take out the trash. SPOILER ALERT: Scherzer was great but the Mets lost 1-0.
Yanks Keep Rolling But… Speaking of playing doormats, the steamrolling Yankees are in Pittsburgh for a quick two-game set. It seems like every time you look up, the Bombers are playing some crappy club. That’s probably because there are a LOT of mediocre and sub-mediocre teams this year. Still, it bears repeating, it’s against these teams that good teams make their livings and build their leads. The Yankees are certainly doing that this year, but I find it interesting that when they do have that rare “off game,” they’re wayyy off. In the past couple of weeks alone, they got no-hit by the Astros in the Bronx and one-hit by the Guardians in Cleveland. Their monster lead in the AL East is plenty safe, but these offensive blackouts bear watching.
Wimbledon. Admit it, you guys have been waiting for me to get down with some serious lawn tennis discourse. I see Novak Jokovic made it into the semis yesterday with a 5-set win. I was hoping that his possible opponent would be annoying Aussie Nick Kyrgios, but I see he’s on the other side of the draw. An all a-hole semifinal between those two would have been great. Some other time, perhaps. In the meantime, I’m hoping Rafael Nadal can make it one step closer to another Finals by winning his quarterfinal match this morning.
NBA Free Agency. The Hawaii Rainbow Warriors Golden State Warriors just won another NBA title, so I find the current basketball free agency frenzy nothing more than wildly amusing. If Utah high-rise Rudy Gobert is worth four First Round draft picks, what on Earth is Kevin Durant gonna fetch? Even if it often accomplishes nothing, it’s great theater watching NBA execs, and especially players, try to game the system to form “the next Warriors.” Forget hard work, a great coach, and a solid bench, who needs those things? “We got James Harden! Championship here we come!” Keep it coming. I’ll take all of this stuff I can get.
OK, I’m done for today. Come on back tomorrow for Buddy Diaz, who can maybe explain how Matt Carpenter is back from two-plus years in baseball’s boneyard and playing like an All Star for the Yankees.
