A WEEKEND AT CITI : THE STARS ARE OUT

BY MIKE RIFKIN

Memorial Day weekend, the first sign of summer coming and that means Baseball will take over the hierarchy. And what better way to celebrate the weekend with an epic showdown in the greatest city in the world. The Mets will welcome the Dodgers to Citi Field this weekend in a rematch from last year’s NLCS, which saw the Dodgers win in six games. These two teams have two of the top four records in the National League so far this season. 

The two teams have won in different ways. The Dodgers possess one of the league’s best lineups. The Dodgers lead the league in batting average (.267), second in home runs (81), second in hits (454). The Mets pitching has led the way to start the season. The Mets lead the league in ERA (2.82) and are fourth in strikeouts (448).

The stars will be out at Citi Field this weekend. The top of the Dodgers lineup has been sensational, led by Shohei Ohtani. Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernandez and Will Smith are all off to fantastic starts. But the Dodgers are so deep that Tommy Edman, who won NLCS MVP just came off the IL has eight homers. 

To counter the Dodgers star power the Mets signed Juan Soto to a record contract. Now, while Soto isn’t off to the start most people expected, this might be the series that Soto turns it around. Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso have carried the Mets offense so far this season. 

Pitching matchups 

Friday Clayton Kershaw (0-0 11.25) vs Griffin Canning (5-1 2.47)

Saturday Tony Gonsolin (2-0 4.05) vs David Peterson (2-2 2.86)

Sunday Landon Knack (2-1 6.17) vs Kodai Senga ( 4-3 1.43)

DÉJÀ VU 

BY MARK HALPERN

     Last night we saw the tipoff of the Eastern Conference Finals between the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers and this will go down as one of the most unforgettable games for both team’s fanbases.

   The Knicks and the Pacers have a long-time standing rivalry that goes as far back as  the Patrick Ewing era. There is no love lost between these two teams as the Pacers knocked the Knicks out of the playoffs last year. IN my opinion it wasn’t because they were good, but because the Knicks had a ton of injuries, but still drove it to 7 games. So, there are high expectations that this series will go the same.

On May 7th 1995 I witnessed one of the most miraculous moments in basketball when Reggie Miller scored 8 points in under 9 seconds to beat the Knicks and Miller turned to the infamous Spike Lee and symbolized the Knicks choking in the final minutes by putting his hands around his throat saying the Knicks choked. Well, last night we as Knicks fans witnessed the second coming of the Miller episode watching Aaron Nesmith go 8-9 on 3pt in the game and he made at one point 5 straight to bring the Pacers back to within two after the Knicks squandered a double-digit lead and gave one of the most clutch players in the NBA in Tyrese Haliburton one last shot with just under 3 seconds. Haliburton got away from Josh Hart and to what he thought was a game winning 3 pointer as the ball hit the back of the rim and got a lucky bounce and it fell through the hoop in what at the time Haliburton thought it was a 3 pointer and he immediately celebrated in Reggie Miller style by doing the same choking symbol to the same fan in Spike Lee (who is arguably the biggest Knicks fan in the world.) Well Haliburton’s right foot was on the 3-point line so it only counted as a 2-point shot but still sent the game into overtime. In overtime the Pacers outscored the Knicks 13-10 to win the game by three and take home court advantage. 

   Several factors went into this collapse. The lackadaisical defense around the 3-point line while they were up double digits. Missing critical FREE THROWS at the end of the game, mainly by Karl Anthony Towns. If he would have made all 3 of his free throws in the last seconds of the fourth then the Haliburton shot wouldn’t have mattered. Finally foul trouble definitely played a factor at the end of the game for players like Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby, both of whom had five fouls, Josh Hart and Karl Anthony Towns had four each.

   Last night was a tragedy for all Knicks fans, now the team needs to have a short memory in getting ready for game two. They can’t go down 0-2 going back to Indiana. So game two is a must win.

It Happened Again

By Mike Rifkin

The Baltimore Orioles were swept this weekend by the Washington Nationals. For the Orioles, they’ve now dropped six in a row and are 2-8 in their last 10 games played. Furthermore a team that had such lofty expectations at the beginning of the season has the fourth worst record in all of baseball. On Saturday the team announced it was firing manager Brandon Hyde. Hyde became the third manager in about a week to get canned following Derek Shelton of the Pirates and Bud Black of the Rockies. 

There’s a major difference between the Orioles and the other two franchises mentioned above, and that is the Orioles had high hopes to make the playoffs for a third consecutive season. So why are the Orioles so bad in 2025? The answer is simple: the Orioles starting pitching has been dreadful. If you look at stats the Orioles are at the bottom of most pitching metrics including ERA, Opponent’s Average and OPS, etc… So what separates good teams from great ones? An ace at the top of the rotation. The Orioles last season had that in Corbin Burnes, but they let him walk in free agency. But the Orioles have this farm system that is supposed to be the envy of everyone else in baseball and yet their front office continues to hold onto their prospects and they create a dilemma with players who are already trying to establish themselves in the big leagues. So there is no reason why Corbin Burnes isn’t in Baltimore or Garrett Crochet or Dylan Cease. But the other thing is now there’s new ownership in Baltimore so money shouldn’t be an issue either. 

The Orioles were banking on Grayson Rodriguez taking a step forward in development, but he hasn’t thrown a pitch this season. Zach Eflin has also missed time due to a lat injury. The starting pitcher the Orioles did sign Charlie Morton is 0-7 with an ERA of 7.68 and has been  moved to the bullpen.

The Rockies and Pirates will cry about being poor ( they shouldn’t) The Orioles don’t have that luxury with a new owner. The Orioles have this young and extremely talented nucleus and yet sit in last place in the AL East and MLB and that’s unacceptable. 

UNSTOPPABLE VS UNFORGETTABLE

BY MARK HALPERN

     Throughout my 40 years of being a Knick fan I can recall memorable moments from  Knick legends like Carmelo Anthony, Ewing, Starks, LJ, Stoudamire, Camby and Houston. Of course I can also recall fond memories from opponents such as  Jordan, Kobe, Shaq, LeBron and Steph Curry. However, what I witnessed Monday night will go down as one of the most memorable games I have ever watched.

    For those of you who don’t know, let me explain. The rivalry between the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics runs deep. The fanbases are two of the most passionate in the game. The Celtics have won 17 championships in their career and have had some HOF players such as Bird, Russell, Cousy, McHale and Robert Parish so the fans there are used to winning and come to expect it from their team. The New York Knicks well it’s New York they love you when you’re winning and hate you when you’re losing but, in the case of the Knicks, the Garden usually sells out when they take the floor even in an off year but the Knicks have two NBA Championships in 1970 and 1973 and since then there have been teams that have made it there but, with no such luck. Last year the Knicks went to the second round of the playoffs, and this year fans are hoping to see their team advance.

   Game 4 took place at MSG Monday night and through out the entire game the Celtics as a team shot close to 40% from the 3pt mark and Jayson Tatum had 7 of them. Tatum is one of the top ten players I have had the pleasure to watch him play a game. He is deadly accurate, very competitive and is the face of the organization. From the moment the ball was tipped he was everywhere and anywhere finding ways to weave in and out of the Knick defense and find ways to score. He also had a game high 8 rebounds and 4 assists and 4 steals. Late in the fourth quarter Tatum was going for a lose ball (that was scooped up by OG Annouby and dunked) but, in the process hurt his lower right part of his leg and was in considerable pain. Once the Garden saw what was going on after the dunk, fans witnessed something that was very scary. Jayson Tatum was down on the court in a lot of pain.

 Tatum left the Garden in an Ambulance to go and have an MRI on the lower leg to see what the Celtics are dealing with. The Celtics worst fears came true as Tatum tore his right Achilles. Our best wishes go out to Tatum but, clearly, he was UNSTOPPABLE.

    On the other side of the ball, we have Jalen Brunson. Burnson and Tatum attended camp together as kids. They are very close  but, the fierce rivals. Brunson was brought in a few years ago to lead this team to greatness and with what has he has been given talent around him to help support him and this team is in sync. Brunson tried to match Tatum bucket for bucket. It was kind of watching a game of 1 on 1 at times as they pushed each other to higher limits. Brunson didn’t hit as many 3’s as Tatum (as he only hit 4) but, the 4 he hit were in clutch times to take the lead and to further the lead. Brunson himself had 5 rebounds, 12 assists and no steals. This is why Brunson is so valuable. He finds ways not only to score himself but to create opportunities to help keep pace with opposing teams. Brunson’s night will go down as one of the most UNFORGETTABLE moments in New York Knicks History.

    There series heads back to Boston for Game five and a potential game seven All analysts are waiting for the word on Jayson Tatum because he makes the Celtics better and without him, they need a new game plan. Our best wishes go out to Jayson Tatum as no one ever likes to see a player get injured ever.

REINSTATED

BY MIKE RIFKIN

On Tuesday MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred released a statement reinstating several players including Pete Rose and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson. Manfred said in a statement “In my view, once an individual has passed away, the purposes of rule 21 have been served. Obviously, a person no longer with us cannot represent a threat to the integrity of the game. Moreover, it is hard to conceive of a penalty that has more deterrent effect than one that lasts a lifetime with no reprieve. Therefore, I have concluded that permanent eligibility ends upon the passing of the disciplined individual, and Mr. Rose will be removed from the permanently ineligible list. I want to emphasize that it is not part of my authority or responsibility to express any view concerning Mr. Rose’s consideration by or possible election to the Hall Of Fame. I agree with Commissioner Giamatti that responsibility for that decision lies with the Hall Of Fame.”

First, I have to give Manfred credit for something here, he immediately shifted the blame game to others when he could have just accepted what he did. But, he’s right it’s up to the Hall Of Fame to put Rose in the Hall. Now, when Rose retired he was the all time hit king, and some still view him as that. But, that’s not Rose’s only accolade, he was an accomplished baseball player. Rose won three World Series Championships, a World Series MVP, 1963 Rookie of the Year, 1973 MVP, three batting titles, two gold gloves and was a 17 time All-Star. 

Rose’s accomplishments speak for themselves, but Rose was suspended for gambling on his own team when he was a manager. Now, when you watch a ballgame every commercial is about gambling, now that’s not condoning what Rose did but times have changed so much. 

But, like I said earlier the one thing Manfred said that was right was this is now in the hands of the Hall Of Fame, but I hope they realize that they can’t tell the story of baseball without Rose. But I also wish Manfred had reinstated Rose sooner, so he could eventually get his day in the sun in Cooperstown. Now, to the other thing: Does Rose getting in open the door for guys who used PEDS?  The answer to that is simple: no the two don’t go hand in hand and we can talk about PEDS another day, but now we have to see what happens next with the Rose situation.

I’VE SEEN THIS STORY BEFORE: SKENES FEELING LIKE DEGROM DID AS A MET

BY MARK HALPERN

     Mets fans love and remember their ace Jacob DeGrom through the good and bad. DeGrom was a bulldog, who can forget game five of the 2015 NLDS where he gave the Mets a chance to win. From that moment Degrom eventually became the best pitcher in baseball. But while DeGrom might have been the best pitcher in the sport, the results weren’t always there. Whether it be the Mets bullpen that let him down or the offense not coming through, you knew every five days Jake was going to give it his all and give the Mets a chance to win. Well, another pitcher is starting to feel like DeGrom and I can say in my own opinion it’s like saying I’m going through déjà vu.

   Pual Skenes is arguably the best pitcher in baseball came on the scene last year, after being the first overall pick and took the league by storm.  Skenes has a seven pitch mix including an upper 90s Fastball and a Splinker (combo of a Splitter and Sinker). Skenes blew through the minors to make his major league debut. The Pirates have one of the best Pitchers in baseball but, with no lineup to strike fear into any opponent and are usually playing from behind. The Pirates are last in the league in runs per game, averaging just over three per game.

    Last night Skenes had the Mets frustrated through six innings. He left the game not because of injury or anything but his pitch count was getting too high and with they way the Mets looked Pittsburgh turned it over to the bullpen only for the Mets to take the lead. Baseball considers a quality start at least six innings giving up three runs or less. Well, by that definition Paul Skenes has made nine starts, he has seven quality starts, and it’d be eight if they let him go deeper in the game on opening day.

   Obviously, you don’t want to take chance in leaving your Star pitcher risking injury but, he should have finished the sixth at 92 pitches. The Pirates have been in the news too much as of late, with the latest story dropping last week was the letting go of their manager only 2 months into the season. There is so much controversy between ownership, players, coaching staff and anyone who has a say there is no wonder no one wants to play there. Funny enough this is exactly what Jacob DeGrom went through with the Mets and the Wilpons. If the Pirates want to win then get a true bat and stop waiting for Oneil Cruz and Ke’Brayn Hayes to become type of supermen and give them some protection. Go out and get 3 Bullpen pitchers who can actually pitch even if that means moving Hayes or Cruz. Build now prove you want to win and Skenes will stay and be loyal. If you don’t it’s just as good as cutting your own nose off to despite your face. Just look at what happened when you had Gerrit Cole on your team.

WHAT THE BUCK: Giannis Antetokounmpo considering future

BY MARK HALPERN

      Word has spread all through out the NBA the Giannis would consider leaving the Milwaukee Bucks if it were to better his future. Giannis as you may or may not know has played his entire career for the Bucks averaging better than 22 points a game, an average of just under 10 rebounds a game and averaged 5 assists as well. Yes there are much more stats I could go through but, for now the key ones make sense. Any team in the NBA would dream of having Giannis on their team.

    It will truly be up to Giannis if he wants to move on from the Bucks to a team that has a true shot at going to win the title next year. All eyes will be open around the NBA lottery draft to see if any team can put a package together to entice the perennial All-Star to come to them next year?

Dream places for Giannis : Whenever a star is available they will always be linked to teams like the Heat, Celtics, Knicks, etc… but here are a few dream places for the Greek Freak to go

HOUSTON ROCKETS : The Rockets shocked the world by blasting off into the playoffs and giving the Warriors all they can handle. With a plethora of young talent and draft capital the Rockets have what it takes to land Giannis.

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER : Yeah, OKC is still alive in the playoffs and have a superstar in SGA. But OKC is the envy of everyone else in the league as they have an abundance of draft picks as well and young  talent, but they have lacked the face of the league since KD left for Golden State. 

SAN ANTONIO SPURS : Ok, just imagine Wemby and Giannis in the same front court. The Spurs also have a lot of young talent and picks, but this might be too good to pass up. Knicks : Hand up, yeah this is biased and I know what I said earlier but the Knicks never pass up a superstar. They did move a ton of picks for Mikail Bridges, but they could move more plus maybe a Mitchell Robinson in this deal.

PICKED UP

BY MARK HALPERN

     The Jerry Jones era as the  owner of the Cowboys started great in the Jimmie Johnson era. Now the Cowboys haven’t returned to the top of the NFL or the NFC since, a lot of that has to do with limited cap space. Every year  it seems either the Offense has been exceptional and the defense stinks or vice versa. As Cowboy fans we want more balance, and after this offseason maybe it changed?

    Last week Jerry Jones kept his promise this year that he was prepared to got get a top receiver that could BE the #2 wide receiver for this team. Now in the beginning the names Metcalf, Diggs (which made the most sense), Adams and Kupp all hit the market and Dallas fans were licking their chops to only to be left salivating as they all signed elsewhere. Cowboy fans hopes were down to only a few names that are still available today such as Amari Cooper, Tyler Lockett (who has since signed with the Titans) and Keenan Allen were still there but, Jerry wanted more youth and finally struck a deal.

   The Cowboys traded for Pittsburgh Steeler WR George Pickens. The Steelers get a third round pick in 2026 and a fifth round pick in 2027, while the Cowboys get a sixth round pick in 2027. This is a HUGE acquisition for Dallas who needs the playmaking ability he has. Pickens during his first few years has had 174 receptions for over 2500 yards and 12 touchdowns. At glance view that’s meager for a star in the NFL but, he has never had anyone to be able to throw to him like Dak Prescott can. Pickens has the height, speed and agility to far more that double his entire career in two years playing like he can with a top Quarterback. Pickens is entering the final season of his contract, so we have to wait to see if Jerry signs him now or does he have to prove it throughout the season? We will see what he can do for Dallas on the main stage, as it’s been widely reported that the Cowboys will open the season  against the defending Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles.

KNICKS UP 2-1 AGAINST CELTICS

BY MARK HALPERN

     There are many good rivalries  in the game of Basketball but, none more electric than the Knicks vs the Celtics. In reality any sport that has a playoff involving New York and Boston its going to be a good series.

    The Knicks won game one on the back of Jalen Brunson but, with great play from OG, KAT, Bridges all participated but when it came to the big shots it was Brunson and a shocker the Knicks won game one. Stealing the first game knowing that games 3,4 and potentially 6 are in NY. So if they leave with just a split then hey now.

  In the second game at TD Garden the Knicks were down and down by over 15+ at time but with great plays from Bridges, OG and KAT and last minute heroics by Brunson and then Bridges stealing the ball again and once again a turn out no one saw coming the Knicks were heading back to the Madison Square Garden up two games. Anyone would tell you if you are the away team and are coming back home where you just have to win 2/3 games to move on to the Conference Championship. Boston isn’t gonna go quietly into the night and neither are the Knicks fans as they took control of TD Garden after the second game win.

  Game three happened Saturday at MSG and it wasn’t the turnout Knicks fans would have hoped for as the Knicks got annihilated by the Celtics and their 3pt game. The Celtics proved they have fight and came into the Knicks home and took game 3 but, still have to come back to hostel MSG for game 4. The Knicks still have the chance of putting this away so they don’t have to go back to Boston but, one more loss and it they will have to win one of the final two if it goes to a potential game 7. But one thing is through the first three games is the Knicks may have won the first two games, but they need to take their game up to another level.

DRAFTING WITH SUCCESS

BY MARK HALPERN

The NFL draft is a spectacle to not only watch on T.V but, even when you are there (Been twice to Radio City when it was held in NY.) Lights and cameras are on, multiple reporters from various networks and platform media are hoping not only either leave with a photo or a statement. Draftees know they are under the spotlight and it’s time to represent the team that drafts you whether you like it or not.

       Going into this years draft the Dallas Cowboys had numerous needs. Like many others I thought the Cowboys would be drafting a Receiver but, once Tet McMillan was off the board the Cowboys switched and grabbed a very talented young Offensive Lineman in Tyler Booker from Alabama. With the retirements of Tyron Smith and Zack Martin the Cowboys needed to draft someone to protect Dak Prescott’s blind side and I loved this pick, protecting Dak is an important job, so they could wait on other needs. 

     While other teams were rearranging their boards after players get taken, the Cowboys took that time to key on an important defensive pick they hoped would be there in the second round. For once luck was on the Cowboys side as they Drafted DE Donovan Ezeiruaku from Boston College.With the defensive line losing several key pieces including Demarcus Lawrence edge rusher was a need. speaking of edge rushers,  MicahParsons was one of the Cowboys who was commenting on the pick and you could tell he was pleased that he was going to a player that plays like he does. 

 The Cowboy’s secondary was absolutely putrid last season with missing not only Trevon Diggs for the whole season but Daron Bland was out the first 8 games with an injury. There has been rumor of Stephon Gilmore returning. Instead of waiting on that Cowboys bolstered the position with Shavon Revel Jr from East Carolina. Revel will definitely give this secondary speed and good vision on the field. Revel is a first round talent but injury made him slide, a great addition in the third round

 Now the Cowboys addressed a major concern in their depth chart in the offseason with acquiring Javonte Williams in a trade with the Denver Broncos and picked up Miles Sanders two years removed from a promising career in Philly. Drafting a running back I knew would be on the board but Dallas was lucky to be able to draft Jaydon Blue in the fifth round. With two NFL experienced running backs in front of him will give him an experienced backfield to learn from.

Dallas went on to complete their draft with Shemar James LB Florida, Ajani Cornellius OT Oregon, Jay Toia LB UCLA, Phil Mafah RB from Clemson (This was the one pick I didn’t agree with) giving the Cowboys four running backs going into OTA’s and preseason I would be very surprised if they have 4 going into the season and with the last pick in their draft the Cowboys grabbed Tommy Akingbesote DT from Maryland.

   Dallas had a good draft all around but, lacking was a WR and they had their shot at Matthew Golden at 12 but, changed and went another way and gave the Cowboys a very solid Draft for the first time in years.