Good Thursday everyone. Let’s go straight to it.
Good morning to everyone, but especially to…
THE NEW YORK METS…
For the first time, the Subway Series between the Mets and the Yankees featured both teams leading their respective divisions outright, giving both teams a chance to make a statement. The Mets were the ones to take advantage.
Behind a great outing by ace Max Scherzer on his 38th birthday and a walk-off hit by Starling Marte, the Mets won 3-2 to sweep the Bronx Bombers in Queens.
- Scherzer threw seven scoreless innings to lower his career ERA on his birthday to 0.82, the best in MLB history (min. five starts). He left with his team for 2-0.
- The Yankees took an immediate lead when the Mets went to their bullpen, with Anthony Rizzo walking and Gleyber Torres following a two-run home run in the eighth inning.
- The Yankees’ momentum was short-lived. Eduardo Escobar led off the bottom of the ninth with a double, and Marte singled him home shortly after. It is Marte’s 11th career hit. Since Marte entered the league in 2012, only Josh Donaldson has more.
The top of the Mets’ lineup powered the sweep, notes our MLB writer Mike Axisa.
- Axisa: “The Citi Field crowd brought the postseason intensity and also brought out the best in Pete Alonso, who went 3-for-3 with a double and a walk Tuesday, then led off the scoring with a solo homer Wednesday… The Mets’ No. 1 -2-3-4 hitters — Brandon Nimmo, Marte, Francisco Lindor and Alonso — went 12-for-28 (.429) with three doubles and two homers in the two games. The rest of the Mets were 7 for 38 (.184) with two doubles and a homer.”
… AND ALSO A GOOD DAY TO ANDREW BENINTENDI
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The upside for the Yankees is that they wasted no time improving their team after the sweep. Andrew Benintendi is headed to the Bronx to give what is already the league’s highest scoring offense a boost. This season, Benintendi has…
- 111 hits (second in AL)
- A .320 batting average (third in AL)
- A .387 OBP (sixth in AL)
- He appeared in his first All-Star Game
The Yankees send minor league pitchers Beck Way, Chandler Champlain and TJ Sikkema to the Royals in exchange for Benintendi.
Despite their league-leading 66 wins, the Yankees had to make a move like this. His left-handed batters are hitting just .214 — 26th in the majors. Benintendi is hitting a scorching .340 against righties and a very respectable .274 against lefties, making him a guy you won’t need to take out of games for the matchup. He’s also a great defender, having won a Gold Glove last year.
One more thing: The Yankees had reconsidered their pursuit of Benintendi a few weeks ago when it was revealed that he had not been vaccinated against COVID-19 and therefore could not play in Toronto. Benintendi has since indicated that he will be vaccinated, according to reports. The Yankees only have one more series on the Blue Jays in the regular season, but they could face them in the postseason.
Honorable Mentions
And it’s not a good day to…
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MIKE TROUT AND THE LOS ANGELES
Mike Trout has been out of baseball for over two weeks, and it may be a while before we see him again. The Angels superstar, initially diagnosed with back spasms and then placed on IL on July 18 due to rib cage inflammation, has been diagnosed with a rare condition called “costovertebral dysfunction at T5” .
- Trout received a cortisone shot last week and the Angels are evaluating how he responds. Angels head coach Mike Frostad said it’s a condition that will likely have to be monitored for the rest of his career.
- Trout downplayed the diagnosis, saying his career is not in doubt and that he even plans to return this season.
- The Angels have not shut down Trout for the season.
Trout, who turns 31 next month, has played in just 79 contests this season after making just 36 appearances last year because of a calf injury. Factor in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, and he hasn’t reached 100 games since 2019, the year he signed a record 12-year, $430 million contract extension.
It’s just a tougher blow for the Angels, who are enduring another go-nowhere season despite the presence of Trout and Shohei Ohtani having another potential MVP season. After a strong start, the Angels are just 15-33 since June 1, the worst in MLB, and have fallen well out of playoff contention. They have made the postseason just once during Trout’s career.
Not so honorable mention
The US government is offering a prisoner exchange for Brittney Griner 🏀
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The United States has reportedly offered to trade Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms dealer, with Russia for Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner and corporate security director Paul Whelan.
- Griner has been detained since February 17 on drug charges after Russia’s Federal Customs Service claimed to have found vape cartridges containing hashish oil in Griner’s luggage. He pleaded guilty in early July despite saying he had “no intention” to break the law. His guilty plea was seen simply as a key step toward a possible prisoner exchange.
- Griner gave his first testimony yesterday.
- Whelan was convicted and sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison for espionage in 2020.
- Bout is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States for conspiring to kill Americans, acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles and provide material support to a terrorist organization.
While the Justice Department is generally against prisoner swaps, President Joe Biden reportedly supports it in this case. While the WNBA has come out in support of Griner, this represents the most significant development to end her arrest.
You can read all the details of Griner’s situation here.
Mayfield, Darnold to split first-team reps for Panthers; Mariota named Falcons starter 🏈
SATISFACTION
We entered training camp with five true starting quarterback battles. One already has a winner after the first day of training, while another looks set to last a while.
Marcus Mariota was named the Falcons’ starter yesterday, “beating out” second-round pick Desmond Ridder. The second overall pick in 2015, Mariota spent the last two seasons with the Raiders without recording a start. He has thrown 30 passes over the past two seasons combined. Expectations in Atlanta aren’t particularly high — Caesars Sportsbook pegs his over/under this season at 5.0, just ahead of the Texans — but it’s a nice development for Mariota to get another chance.
The other quarterback battle in the NFC South won’t be so simple. Sam Darnold got first-team reps yesterday when the Panthers opened training camp, but he and Baker Mayfield will alternate days with the starting unit.
- Head coach Matt Rhule hinted that the battle won’t be decided soon, saying the team’s players will ultimately decide who wins it.
- Darnold, the No. 3 pick in 2018, arrived in Carolina in the offseason but struggled last year, posting the league’s worst touchdown-to-interception ratio.
- Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, arrived in Carolina earlier this month and is still learning the playbook. He is coming off a difficult season with the Browns in which he played through a shoulder injury.
I’ve often subscribed to the belief that if you have two quarterbacks, you don’t have one; without a clear starter, it’s hard to rally behind the man at the game’s most important position. But both Darnold and Mayfield need a confidence boost. Maybe winning the starting job will provide that.
What we are seeing on Thursday 📺
🏀 Storm at Sun, 7 p.m. on NBA TV🏀 Mystics at Wings, 8 p.m. on CBS Sports Network🏀 Sparks at Mercury, 10 p.m. on CBS Sports Network