BRONX, NY – Hey there, sports fans! How’s December treating you so far? Is the pressure of the season starting to mount, or are you just cruising along in high holiday spirits, as sure as Santa’s sleigh? Whatever the case, I have faith you’ll find pockets of fun with friends and family in the coming weeks. For today, let’s talk some football and baseball.
Someone Tell Jaxson Dart He’s Not Josh Allen. Even though it’s still a very small sample size, I’d like to start by saying that I was a bit off base many months back when I said that there was no way a guy named Jaxon Dart was ever going to be a good NFL quarterback. So far, the young New York Giants QB has proved me pretty darn wrong. For a rookie, you really can’t ask for much more than what Dart has shown: competitiveness, calm, leadership, and mental and physical toughness. But let’s stick with that last one. Dart has already been checked for concussions twice this year and missed his last two games in concussion protocol, before returning to face the Patriots Monday night. In that game he got absolutely lit up with a huge hit as he scrambled out of the pocket to his right attempting to pick up a first down in the first quarter. Dart is a big guy, but he ain’t Buffalo’s Josh Allen big. And even Allen seems to at least be a little less reckless when running the ball. Dart needs to add self-preservation smarts to his already-impressive résumé if he wants his “body of work,” and his actual body, to last for more than just a couple of years. It’s fine to say “We’re not playing soccer,” “You’re going to get hit,” “Things happen,” “Part of the game,” and all those great old saws, but the NFL is a meat grinder, and right now this kid is looking like a side of beef.
Mets Sign Devin Williams. *sigh* Let me just get the obvious out of the way first, before all you number-crunchers come after me and tell me what a great move this is. Signing a reliever—almost any reliever—to a 3-year $51 million deal might seem like a bargain these days. But I don’t like this move for the Mets, especially if it means Williams is their new closer. And he just might be. Just to talk a little history, Williams is the guy who surrendered Pete Alonso’s mega-clutch home run in the 2024 Wild Card. Last year he joined the Yankees and proceeded to have a pretty awful year, posting a 4.79 ERA. Not exactly what you want from your new closer. So, is he one of those guys that can’t pitch in New York? Did Alonso break him back in 2024? Or is he poised to return to his old form? Whatever your opinion, this line from the ESPN article on the deal made an old-timey baseball grouch like me want to bean someone. To wit: Williams struggled to a career-worst 4.79 ERA over 67 appearances for New York. But underlying metrics — including a 2.68 FIP, a .195 expected batting average against, and elite strikeout, whiff and chase rates — suggest the bloated ERA is misleading. As my friend Sean said: “It’s the dismal tide of baseball analytics. Why watch a game when you can analyze a computer screen instead.” Well put. Finally, the Mets GM has a lot of work to do before I ever consider even tolerating him. He’s not off to the best start.
And this is where I finish up another Wednesday. Have a great rest of the week, everybody. Come back tomorrow for Buddy Diaz, whose MTM FIP is off the charts this year.
