LEGENDARY BABE RUTH “CALLED SHOT”JERSEY SETS RECORD AT AUCTION

BY MARK HALPERN

In 1932 the biggest legend to ever step on a diamond George Herman “Babe” Ruth stood at home plate during game 3 of the World Series against the Chicago Cubs and pointed to the center field wall. The Babe was calling his shot to clear the center field wall. At this time during baseball, he and probably Lou Gehrig who could have done that. On the next pitch The Babe hit a towering home run over the center field wall. It’s a moment in history and nearly a century later that jersey he wore set another record the other night. The Jersey was put up for auction with Heritage auctions one of the best companies that deals with sports collectibles of this caliber. When the final second ended the jersey sold for and tremendous $24.14 million dollars topping the 1952 Mantle that sold for $12 million not too long ago. 

       This is one of the most important pieces of baseball memorabilia as it represents just how good the babe was. He had gifted the jersey to a golfing buddy of his around 1940. The family kept it for decades and then it sold for just under a million in 2005 to another collector. Now it’s in the hands of yet another and not where it belongs and that is Cooperstown. A jersey of this importance belongs to be seen/viewed by all who come to Cooperstown to see and understand the legendary game.

All Time Great or All Time Distraction

By Mike Rifkin

This past weekend the New York Yankees honored the 2009 World Series Championship team (the last one they won). One member of that team has yet to be honored with a plaque in monument park and thinks he deserves it. That is Alex Rodriguez, but let me ask this question is A-Rod an all time Yankee, or was he an all time me guy? When I think about all time Yankees I think of Mantle, Berra, Mattingly, Jeter, Rivera, etc… 

A-Rod definitely had the regular season stats to be considered an all time Yankee. In his 12 seasons as a Yankee Rodriguez hit 351 homers and drove in 1,096 RBI’S and scored 1,012 runs in 1,509 games played with a slash line of .283/.378/.523. Rodriguez won two of his three MVP’S with the Yankees as well. But to judge a Yankee, it doesn’t matter what they do in the regular season, it matters what they do in the playoffs. In the Playoffs Rodriguez had 10 homers and 33 RBI and a slash line of .240/.363/.431 in 61 games played. And if you take away that 09 team the numbers are just not there. 

Then there’s the other side to Rodriguez and that’s the distraction part or the selfish part as I call it. Remember during the 2007 World Series where he announced he was opting out of his contract only to become the highest paid player in the game. Now to Yankee fans they’re ok with that because it tried to overshadow the Red Sox winning their second World Series in four seasons, but to a baseball fan to overshadow the world series. Then prior to the 2009 season Rodriguez admitted to using steroids during his Texas seasons after repeatedly denying the allegations. While the Yankees did win the world series that season, this could have been a massive distraction ( it didn’t hurt that the Yankees that they signed CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and AJ Burnett). Then there was the biogenesis scandal that had Rodriguez suspended for 211 games. Was that a witch hunt on the part of MLB? Sure, but that was the final straw for an individual who has already lied for his usage of PED’S. 

Rodriguez can try to clean up his image, as an analyst and think that changes his story. It shouldn’t, the New York Yankees are supposed to be the biggest franchise not just in Baseball, but in sports as a whole. While the Yankee fan may embrace A-Rod, there’s something about putting him among the All time greats who wore the pinstripes and even just all time greats that bothers me. Even if he winds up in Monument Park, he shouldn’t sniff Cooperstown. Yes, the numbers are there but if we’re not embracing the steroid era at all (and we should) he lied about it. Rodriguez was one of the most gifted players to play the game, but at the end of the day he ruined it for himself.

STICK A FORK IN LAMB’S CONTRACT CAUSE IT IS DONE

BY MARK HALPERN
   

  Well, the wait is over and Cee Dee Lamb is coming back to camp after his contract holdout. Cee Dee and the Cowboys were able to come together on a 4-year deal worth $136 million dollars with a $38 million dollar signing bonus. 100 million dollars guaranteed. Since entering the league Lamb has 395 catches for 5,145 yards and 32 touchdowns. Last season Lamb led the league with 135 catches, second with 1,749 yards and third with 12 touchdowns. Lamb is now the second highest paid wide receiver next to Justin Jefferson. It looks like #88 is here to stay at least the next 4 years.

Gut Punch

By Mike Rifkin

The New York Mets kicked off what is a massive 10 game road trip, just a mere two games back in the NL Wild Card race. They started this massive trip in San Diego, a team the Mets are chasing in the Wild Card race. Now if you asked any Met fan if how’d they feel about splitting four games with the Padres, I’m sure they’d be ok with that. But it’s the way the split was secured that’s frustrating to Met fans. 

Met fans got the result they wanted on Sunday as the Nationals beat the Braves, meaning a Mets win would move them to 1.5 games behind Atlanta for that last wild card spot. The Mets got an absolute gem from Jose Quintana, who had struggled over his last several starts. Quintana gave the Mets 6.1 shutout innings giving up four hits and two walks. The Mets also played some splendid defense behind Quintana. (Just watch Jose Iglesias play over and over) But this is the Mets and nothing comes easy. Jose Butto entered the game and struggled a bit but a caught stealing got him through the seventh. Entering the eighth, Butto walked the ninth place hitter Mason McCoy, after getting ahead 0-2, and then promptly gave up a two run homer to Jurickson Profar to tie the game. After giving up another hit, the Mets went to Phil Maton who got his only out on two pitches. Then to enter the ninth inning in a tied game the Mets went to Edwin Diaz, who had not pitched since Wednesday. Diaz gave up a walkoff homer to Jackson Merrill to gain a split of the series for San Diego, and kept the Mets 2.5 games behind the Braves for the last wild card. 

Look I get the fact that Carlos Mendoza wanted to get Diaz into the game because he hadn’t pitched since Wednesday, but this is twofold. One if Diaz throws an abundance of pitches, even with the off day Monday would he be available Tuesday? Also Phil Maton retired one hitter with two pitches, why take him out and save Diaz for a potential save opportunity in the 10th inning? The Mets offense was held in check by San Diego’s bullpen, the Mets left eight runners on base and were 0-3 with runners in scoring position. The Mets scored their two runs with solo homers by JD Martinez and Mark Vientos. 

The Mets had all the momentum and had they won this game could have jump started this important trip. Now they need to recover quickly because they now go play another team in the wild card chase, the Arizona Diamondbacks, who just happen to have the best record in baseball since the All Star break. This is a Mets team that has always responded when something bad has occurred, let’s see how they handle this latest gut punch.

SCOTT BORAS DISSED BY MONTGOMERY

BY MARK HALPERN

   When you think of Sports Agents in the world today a few rank as high as Scott Boras. Boras is  known to get his clients lucrative contracts. Sometimes these contracts are so unreal that even some of the best baseball analysts today don’t have clear answers. Jordan Montgomery, a Boras client, was a highly sought after free agent after winning the World Series with the Rangers. When you have a player under contract, yes you do your best to get him what his value is on the market and Boras really embellished what Montgomery was worth and wanted so much that turned multiple teams away including the Mets, Red Sox and Yankees. It wasn’t till the end of spring training that Boras finally landed a deal for Montgomery with the Arizona Diamondbacks on a one year $25 million dollars. Here’s the problem and it isn’t the money it’s the fact that he was signed so late and didn’t ever really get going. After 19 starts this season, he has a ballooned ERA to 6.44 and has now been regulated to the bullpen.

     Scott Boras represented four of the biggest free agents on the Market this season. Boras got deals for Matt Chapman, Cody Bellinger and Blake Snell who all of late have started to turn it around. Now all of these guys can hit the free agent market again after the season.  Jordan Montgomery said “My Agent Scott Boras really butchered my offseason.” I clearly can read between the lines and Jordan Montgomery might be looking for a new team next year but with new representation as well. We’ll have to see if Montgomery can land the multi year deal he was unable to last winter.

Yaroslav Askarov Landing Spots

By Mike Rifkin

The Nashville Predators have been one of the most aggressive teams in free agency. Bringing in Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei. The best move in my opinion was extending goaltender Juuse Saros to an eight year 61 million dollar contract. Saros last season was 35-24-5 with a 2.86 GAA  and a .906 save percentage with three shutouts. 

With Saros locked up what happens to prospect Yaroslav Askarov?

Askarov, the 11th overall pick in 2020 by the Preds is one of the top goalie prospects in the league. Askarov, earlier this week requested a trade from the organization. Askarov, who has played the last two seasons for the Milwaukee Admirals in the AHL was 30-13-1 with a 2.39 GAA and .911 save percentage with six shutouts. So who should make the call to Barry Trotz to acquire the young Russian goalie. 

Contenders 

Colorado Avalanche : Alexandar Georgiev is entering the final season of his contract and didn’t have a tremendous season last season. Yes he won 38 games, but his save percentage was under .900 and his goals against were over three, the Avs have a win now roster, adding a 22 year old goalie could lengthen their window of contention. 

LA Kings : The Kings are entering a new phase of their organization. The Anze Kopitar/Drew Doughty era has a few seasons left, the Kings did get out of the Pierre Luc Dubois contract and got Darcy Kuemper. But using that fantastic farm system they can add Askarov to pair with Kuemper until Askarov takes over. 

Rebuilding

Columbus Blue Jackets : The Blue Jackets have had a few shocking moments over the last few summers, from signing Johnny Gaudreau to hiring Mike Babcock to this summer bringing in Don Waddell. The Blue Jackets have a need in goal. Daniil Tarasov had a decent season in a backup role and Elvis Merzlikins is someone they can move. 

San Jose Sharks : Mike Grier has discussed this being a long term rebuild in the Bay area. Well they did land the number one pick in the draft in Macklin Celebrini, and they brought in some veterans in Tyler Toffoli and Barclay Goodrow. The cherry on top would be adding a franchise altering goalie. 

Chicago Blackhawks : The Blackhawks as well have had a tremendous summer, adding Tyler Bertuzzi, Teuvo Teravainen among others. The Blackhawks like the Sharks have had their rebuild accelerated because of a number one pick. Petr Mrazek had a solid season, but adding Askarov can put the Blackhawks on a different timeline to win. The one difficult thing is trading within their division. 

Wild Card : 

Anaheim Ducks : There’s only one way this works and that’s if the Ducks part ways with longtime goalie John Gibson. If they do they should be a player here. The Ducks have a young crop of forwards including Trevor Zegras, Mason Mctavish,  Cutter Gauthier, etc… And like the Sharks and Blackhawks adding Askarov can accelerate their rebuild. 

The Predators hold the cards here and can get a lofty price for the 22 year old goalie, we’ll have to wait to see what happens next.

I AM CASTING MY WNBA ROY

BY MARK HALPERN

       When you talk about a sport that has had a major impact over the last year. The WNBA is definitely on the right path for success. This has been a very exciting season because of the emergence of two certain rookies. One had an insane amount of pressure on her and has lived up to the insane hype and the other has gone about her business and become a double-double machine. Both have become faces of the league and hopefully can take the league to the next level. 

    Caitilin Clark and Angel Reese have brought fight and the will to win. Both have their teams fighting for a chance at the playoffs. Caitilin Clark has taken this league by storm (even though she plays for the fever) and is averaging an impressive 17.8 points a game, 5.8 rebounds a game, an impressive 8.3 assists and 1.4 steals a game. Despite this being her rookie season, she has quickly shown how she has grown her game. Every night she goes out with a singular thought and that’s how to win this game. Her teammates are not taking a down step behind her actually their entire team productivity is over 125% better than last year according to a fever official. 

    Now the other outstanding rookie is Angel Reese. Reese in her rookie season is averaging 13.6 points per game, an outstanding 12.3 rebounds a game, and 1.7 assists. One thing that she can work on is shot selection, she doesn’t have the range of Clark, but she is a force in the paint. Reese has made some comments regarding Clark, and while I may not agree with them rivalry is great for the game. 

    When we look at a ROY candidate the nominee is usually based on what they have achieved on the court and what their overall impact has been. I have Clark as the current rookie of the year, both the Fever and the Sky are battling for playoff positioning. But the voting might come down to what do the voters prefer, but one thing is for sure these two entered the league with a ton of hype and at least in there rookie seasons they’re living up to it.

WELL DARN IT’S SAM TO LEAD THE VIKINGS

By Mark Halpern

      Well, here we are again with a Quarterback who doesn’t need that much of an introduction as he has moved around this league and that’s Sam Darnold. Darnold was selected third overall in 2018 by the New York Jets.  I actually liked Darnold  but he was never given the talent for him to succeed. His best season in my opinion was his season in 2021 with the Carolina Panthers. Darnold played in 12 games that season throwing for 2,527 yards, nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions and he was sacked 35 times. Sacks and turnovers have been the story of Darnold’s career. Darnold was the backup Quarterback in San Francisco last year and what’s better than being a part of a Super Bowl team you learn and gain experience and confidence. 

     During the off-season Kirk Cousins left for Atlanta on a massive 4-year deal (only to get dissed by the Falcons drafting Michael Penix) and at that point the Vikings grabbed Darnold to be the starting Quarterback, with the intentions of drafting a Quarterback in the first round and they did just that by moving up in the draft to get J.J MCCarthy. Despite the Vikings continuing to say it’d be a competition during training camp, Darnold began to believe he would be the backup yet again. However, an unfortunate accident at practice confirmed that rookie Quarterback J.J Mcarthy would miss the season due to a torn MCL. Not what any team wants is their number one pick down before he even gets started. Sam Darnold now knows he is the starting Quarterback for the Vikings.

     There are a lot of skeptics out there that Darnold won’t do any better than before due to his age. I tend to disagree with anyone who says he will fail. For the first time he has a above average offensive line, Darnold has an experienced Running back in Aaron Jones who will have a good season with over a thousand yards and 12 total TD’s. Darnold also has been handed the keys to one of the they most Deadly offenses in the NFL today. I have mentioned Jones and what he will accomplish but you have the best wide receiver in football in Justin Jefferson. Darnold has never had a Wide Receiver with Jefferson’s talent and I trust Jefferson will shine with a massive 1400-yard season and 13 Touchdowns. Now if being given the gift of the number one wide receiver in the game Darnold now has one of the best #2 wide receivers in the game with Jordan Addison who had an impressive rookie season (911 yards and 10 TD’s) and is poised for an even better sophomore year and I truly believe we will see both Addison and Jefferson surpass 1000 yards but also possible both attaining double digit Touchdown’s on this season. If that weren’t enough the Vikings also have T.J. Hockenson who is clearly a top five Tight End in the league. Darnold has been given a near perfect offense to work with. The Offensive line is more than capable in making holes but now it comes down to making time and if they can give Darnold that 3 seconds the Vikings will be the talk of the league. This is the best group of weapons that Darnold has ever had and with Kevin O’Connell coming from the Sean McVay/Kyle Shannahan coaching tree Darnold can succeed. 

    I really hope Darnold gets to prove all the nay sayers (yes including myself over the years) wrong and has a “Pro Bowl” season and finally shows why he was worthy of being a first round pick. Who knows if Darnold plays well, maybe he’s played himself into starting somewhere else in 2025.

HOUSTON TEXANS 2025 OUTLOOK

BY MARK HALPERN

    When you are looking at the NFL as a whole no team has improved itself more over the last two seasons than the Houston Texans. The Texans made the right move by getting C.J. Stroud. Stroud excelled as a rookie and led the Texans to the AFC South Division. The Houston Texans have a young team, but they made moves to improve themselves on both sides of the ball. I expect Houston will battle the Jacksonville Jaguars for the top spot for the AFC South.

Stroud threw for 4100 yards 23 TD’s to and only 5 interceptions and ran for 167 yards and three touchdowns in his rookie season. Stroud is an absolute stud of a Quarterback and will be a top 10 Quarterback for years to come. Stroud and the Texans were an unknown going into last season and wound up 10-7 and winning the AFC South. One of the biggest problems for Houston was the lack of a running game (they averaged 96.9 yards per game) They took a chance on former Bills Running Back Devin Singletary and that didn’t work. Singletary wound up leaving to reunite with Brian Daboll and the New York Giants. With Singletary gone, the Texans needed to improve the running back position. They did that with the signing of Joe Mixon. Mixon, an accomplished running back for the Cincinnati Bengals the last few years is a true power lead back that the Texans are missing. Two of the last three seasons Mixon has gone for over 1,000 yards. Mixon is also a threat to catch the ball out of the backfield, he had 52 receptions last season. This should change the Texans offense dramatically, as they should be less one dimensional with the mixing in of Mixon.  The Texans needed another receiver to complement the emergence of Tank Dell and Nico Collins last year. Collins had his best year amassing 1297 yards and 8 TD’s and Dell 700 yards and 7 TD’s but, still even though Collins lead the team in a huge way the lack of experience in this part of the depth chart and they got the one of the best receivers in football by getting Stefon Diggs from Buffalo. Diggs has gone over  1,000-yard receiving the last six seasons. Two of the last three seasons he has scored 10 touchdowns. If that wasn’t scary enough Dalton Schultz is a very accomplished tight end and in this high-powered offense could see numbers like he saw during his Dallas years. The key to this Offense working is the protection and the Houston Line is more than up to the challenge. The key for the offensive line is growth from last year and working out the kinks to get Stroud that extra second if they can. Protecting Stroud will be a priority (just like protecting the QB for any team is) but they will be up to the challenge.

     Now a team is complete without a Defense and this is where the Texans need to build on in areas. First of all, hats off to Jonathan Greenard on his excellent season that included 12.5 sacks. Greenard had a phenomenal season, but he left for the Vikings in free agency. So the Texans needed to get some pass rush help so they signed Danielle Hunter. Hunter had 16.5 sacks last season, and has double digit sacks in four of the last five seasons. Turnovers and pressure on the quarterback is usually how we define how good a defense is. The Texans last year were a +10 in turnover differential, which was the same as the 49ers and Cowboys. They had 46 sacks on the season, once again the same as the Cowboys. With young players like Will Anderson, Derrick Stingley and Jalen Pitre the defense is bright in Houston, and with Demeco Ryans leading the way I expect the Texans defense to be better in 2024.

   If the Texans can improve in certain areas such as penalties and protecting CJ Stroud they can be a real dangerous threat in the AFC. The biggest question is how will they handle expectations? I think they will and I can see them winning 11 games.

DETROIT 2025 OUTLOOK

By MARK HALPERN

       At the end of last season, the Lions were eliminated in the NFC title game by the 49ers. The Lions had the 49ers on the ropes, and a few mistakes cost them a trip to the Super Bowl. The Detroit Lions last year were arguably one of the best teams on the field offensively  and defensively through the first 13 weeks. The offense never lost a beat but the Defense started to not just falter but simply break down. Even though the Lions won their division for the first time since 1993 (NFC Central) you could see the concern in the coaches about the defense ability to keep up with the elite of the elite. The Lions put up one of the best seasons in the franchise last year and should continue into the future.

     The offense is in the top ten in the NFL and could even be ranked higher but the end of the season. Led by Jared Goff and his 4600 yards and 30 touchdowns to only 12 interceptions. Goff was one of the best trades the Lions have made and it has certainly paid off. Goff is true leader not only on but off the field as well. They rewarded Goff for his play with a massive extension. When you look at the weapons the Lions have it’s as good as if not better than 80% of the teams in the league. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs had an impressive rookie season totaling 945 yards and 11 td’s  (1 receiving) and his counterpart David Montgomery had just over 1000 yards and 13 TD’s making them one of the best running back duos in the league and should be more lethal than last year. Now I trust that many coaches know this and will try and slow this down but, it is kind of hard to do when you have a receiving core with St. Brown (1500 yards 10td’s) second year tight end Sam Laporta (889 yards 10 TD’s) these were just the team leaders. Players such as Josh Reynolds and Jameson Williams also played decisive roles in helping getting this team to stardom. The one name that we are waiting to break free is Jameson Williams. He has been hampered by an injury first year and a slow start last year due to suspension.  He has the size and ability to become the #2 on this team and I expect to see a lot from him.

   On the defensive side this defense came out strong and both sides offensive and defensive lead the team to its best start in over a decade. However, once the second half approached the defense faltered to some big teams and I guess you can say their pride was hurt. This doesn’t mean the team didn’t have some big contributors. Adian Hutchinson leading the team with 11.5 sacks and is the voice of this defense. In the secondary Kerby Joseph lead with 4 interceptions and 69 tackles. When it came to big plays on defense Joseph was always around or even making the play so having him back is going to be a big help. You can’t not mention Alex Anzalone who had a monster year totaling 129 combines tackles and assists. The Defensive line will be under heavy pressure in the beginning of this long season as that was one of the biggest collapses in the second half. So, I am sure that the coaches will be working harder on that as well.

     I am going to make a bold statement and say that Gibbs not only takes over the #1 rule duties but will have 1300 yards and 12 touchdowns. I truly think that this offense is built as strong as any other in the league and can match point for point but, if the defense can’t last a full season (let’s face it is hard for any other team) and lose games late in the season and get knocked down a spot or two in the standings the Lions might be watching from home yet again. There are expectations in Detroit this season for the first time in a long time, can they live up to the hype.