thependulumswings

Summer’s in.  Three major U.S. sports (football. basketball, and hockey) are out.  But the pickings are never slim with our nuggets.  Whether you dine in or take out, enjoy the ten below.

1.  The ugly Americans scored 50 combined runs in the first two London MLB games ever.  The Yankees out scored the defending Word Series champion Boston Red Sox 17-13 on Saturday and 12-8 on Sunday.  If the Brits like scoring, they got scoring.  The teams combined for 65 hits, 16 doubles and 10 homers.  Only one starting pitcher made it out of the first inning.
2. BoSox manager Alex Cora was impressed with the 60k screaming fans, but not his team.  “It was eye opening, the last two days, from top to bottom,’’ Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “They’re a lot better than us right now.’’ The Yanks are rolling, even in Europe.
3. MLB took a bow.  They retrofitted a soccer stadium that was more than serviceable.  They saw 60k fans stand and cheer each of the two days.  All in all it was good to great publicity for a game that often struggles to market itself.  “All of the feedback was that it was fantastic,’’ MLB senior vice president Jim Small said. “So, from a U.S. standpoint, the pitching wasn’t very good, the game was too long, but it was such a great fresh start for baseball here.’’
4. The Yankees scorching 9-1 record in their last ten has pushed their lead over the Devil Rays to 7 games in the AL East.   Five of the six division leaders enjoy leads of 5.5, 6.5,7, 8 and 12 games.  Only the NL central is close where the Cubs and the Brewers are tied for first.   Half of the season is over.  Are five of the six division races over?   Probably not, but maybe so.  Say it ain’t so.  At least a bunch of teams are still very alive for a wild card spot.
5.  LPGA’s Michelle Wie announced late last week that she was shutting down her 2019 season due to a chronic wrist injury.  There was no word on whether the wrist was injured when she tweeted to express her dismay via Twitter of Hank Haney’s LPGA U.S. Open remarks.  Haney tweeted out Saturday “Know what last name rhymes with Wie?  Lee!”  No, he didn’t.
6.  How about a golf clap for first time PGA winner Nate Lashley?  On Sunday, the 36-year-old journeyman, ranked 353rd in the world and the last player to get into the Rocket Mortgage Classic, was a winner for the first time with an impressive six-stroke margin at Detroit Golf Club. He now has a job on the game’s biggest stage for the next two years. A spot in next month’s Open Championship awaits, as does an invitation to next year’s Masters among other perks. That is pretty sweet for a guy with just one previous top-10 on the PGA Tour in 32 starts.  Fifteen long and hard years ago his mother, father, and girlfriend crashed and perished in a small plane accident in Wyoming while attempting to return to Nebraska after watching the then 21 year old Nate play in a tournament for Arizona U. in Oregon.  The golf gods said, “enough already.”  Great story.
7. The NBA free agency period is off and some teams are playing above the rim.   In a whirlwind of conversations, salary dumps, more conversations, max salary offers, and strokes of genius, several franchises saw significant transformations.   No transformation is bigger than where the Brooklyn Nets are headed however.  After years of also ran status the Nets will land Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and DeAndre Jordan.  If (when really) GM Sean Marks completes these FA signings the Nets will have exactly one player left from the 2015-2016 roster Marks had when he started that won only 21 games.
8. Durant, baring a major medical miracle, will miss all of the 2019-2020 season with his torn achilles.  That didn’t stop the Nets from throwing max or near max money at him.  It did stop the Knicks who worried publicly about his total recovery.  One borough’s loss was another borough’s gain.  Durant at 90% is still an unselfish player who melds well with other stars and would still be an all star level player himself.
9. The Miami Heat are believed to be very close to completing a deal that would land Jimmy Butler from the Philadelphia 76ers.  Butler was rumored a week ago to be heading to the Houston Rockets to join Chis Paul and The Beard.  Butler was rumored eight months ago to be headed to those same Rockets.  Houston you may or not have a problem with team chemistry.  But, with exactly zero draft picks this past draft and a HUGE Paul four year deal only entering year two now, you clearly have some hurdles to clear to try to hurdle the Golden State Warriors in the West.  GM Daryl Morey can feel the heat coming from one of restaurant magnet and owner Tillman Fertitta’s kitchens.
10. However, Tillman Fertitta and 31 owners of NBA franchises may not be “owners” for much longer.   In the league office and in some team’s front offices a push is on to remove that term due to it’s “racial insensitivity” in a league whose players are 75% African American.   In Los Angeles, Steve Ballmer ,who was billed as the owner for the first couple of years after he took over the Clippers is now listed as Chairman on the team’s website.  That change occurred in early 2018.   The term “governor” is being used inside of the league office “for years now” per Commissioner Adam Silver.  “Governor,” really?  Hopefully everyone feels better.

We at least know that you’ll feel better having consumed the above.  It’s Monday, and this work week is at most four days long.  Enjoy.