BRONX, NY – Good day, to any and all stopping by! You don’t need me to give you the day, date, and time, so let’s just skip to the sports stuff. This time of year, as baseball regular season winds down and pro and college football seasons ramp up, there’s no shortage of things to talk about. So, let’s get to it.
Mets & Yanks Going in Opposite Directions. As much as it pains me to say this, the New York Yankees are playing better baseball than the New York Mets right now. (Ugh, I gotta take a shower after that.) It’s just a simple truth. While the Yankees have suddenly found the ability to hang with and beat some of the better teams that kinda beat them up this year, the Mets are doing their yearly usual, by scuffling against doormats when the games count the most. It’s pretty simple for the Mets. They are no longer going to catch the Phillies, but they really need to take two of the next three from them after losing 1-0 on Monday night and wasting another very good Nolan McLean start. After that it’s 9 straight at home against the Rangers, Padres, and Nationals, before finishing with 6 on the road at Chicago and Miami, against the dreaded Marlins. That’s 18 total games. Is 12-6 too much to ask? Probably. As for the Yanks, they simply can’t have a more cushy finishing schedule, with their final 13 games against the Twins, White Sox, and Orioles (!!!). With those cupcakes waiting, I’d say there’s a fair chance they win the AL East. I need to go barf now. Excuse me.
The New York Football Giants Stink… Again. We are only one game into the 2025 season, so I am getting wayyy ahead of myself with this comment but, yeah, the Giants looked lousy on Sunday. I don’t blame Malik Nabers for already being ticked off. He’s a great receiver on a not-so-great team. Some guys—Steve Smith comes to mind—were able to thrive despite the talent around them, but not sure about Nabers and the Giants. This is a team that thought Saquon Barkley wasn’t worth keeping. That should tell you plenty. And now the Giants are selling a minority stake in the team to the Koch family. The worst. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for the Giants (my Dad’s team), but there’s very little reason to believe they are going to turn it around anytime soon.
Vikings Win? Look, I went to bed after J.J. McCarthy threw a pick-6 in the third quarter of the Vikings/Bears game Monday night. I just didn’t think my team and new QB could dig themselves out… but they did. So, I got a great night’s sleep and woke up to the surprise that my Vikes somehow came back. As my friend Susan said: “that’s what’s known as a win-win.” I’ll take sports happiness where I can find it because…
As I put this column to bed, the Mets are getting whipped by the Phillies. Maybe if I go to bed myself, another miracle comeback can happen, but probably not. Either way, I’m done. [SPOILER ALERT: The Mets had no miracle]
Buddy Diaz is back tomorrow with maybe a preview of the Eagles/Commanders Thursday night tilt. That, or a way-too-early puff piece on the Knicks.
