Gary Cohen has harsh critique of Mets’ Joe Musgrove check: ‘Smacked of desperation’

[Halldan1]

Gary Cohen has harsh critique of Mets’ Joe Musgrove check: ‘Smacked of desperation’

Gary Cohen didn’t mince words when giving his thoughts about Buck Showalter opting to check Joe Musgrove’s ears for a banned substance.

nypost.com

Gary Cohen didn’t mince words when giving his thoughts about Buck Showalter opting to check Joe Musgrove’s ears for a banned substance.

The Mets manager asked the umpires to do just that in the bottom of the sixth inning as Musgrove had allowed just one hit with the Padres leading 4-0 at the time. Musgrove’s spin rates were way up from their norm and chatter started on social media about his ears appearing shinier than normal. The check did not go far as Musgrove was cleared and allowed to stay in the game, an eventual 6-0 win in Game 3 of the wild-card series that ended the Mets’ season at Citi Field on Sunday.





Cohen, who was not calling the game with it being on ESPN, did not agree one bit with Showalter asking for Musgrove to be checked in that situation.

“Let me phrase this the right way,” Cohen, the Mets television voice, said on the SNY postgame show. “Buck Showalter is completely in his rights to ask the umpires to check a pitcher for foreign substances. It’s up to umpires then to decide whether it’s an appropriate thing to do.

Gary Cohen wasn’t a fan of the Mets’ decision.Charles Wenzelberg/
N.Y. Post (2), SNY

“I thought that considering the circumstances, 4-0, sixth inning, season on the line, it smacked of desperation and it was fairly embarrassing I thought for Buck to do that in that spot. It was not necessary. As it turned out, Musgrove was not cheating. If you’re going to pull a stunt like that, you better be right and Buck wasn’t right.”

Whether Showalter truly believed Musgrove was cheating or if it was some gamesmanship to get him out of sync, the move didn’t work and the Mets are headed into the offseason.

 

[silkcitypirate]

Bush league by Showalter

 

[Halldan1]

Padres fume over Mets’ ‘bush league’ move to check Joe Musgrove for substances

The Padres were not thrilled by the Mets’ request to inspect pitcher Joe Musgrove for foreign substances during San Diego’s series-clinching, 6-0 victory over New York on Sunday night.

nypost.com

​

Padres fume over Mets’ ‘bush league’ move to check Joe Musgrove for substances​

By Jeremy Layton

The Padres were not thrilled by the Mets’ request to inspect pitcher Joe Musgrove for foreign substances during San Diego’s series-clinching, 6-0 victory in New York on Sunday night.

In the sixth inning, with Musgrove twirling a gem for the Padres, Mets manager Buck Showalter instructed the umpires to investigate the pitcher for sticky substances, with the umpires going as far to inspect the righty’s ears. Whether it was gamesmanship or desperation, the gambit did not work, as Musgrove stayed in the game for seven shutout innings and allowed one hit.

“I think it (ticked) all of us off,” Padres outfielder Trent Grisham told the San Diego Union-Tribune after the game. “That seemed bush league to us, but it kind of got him where he needed to be.”

“I get it, dude,” Musgrove added. “They’re on their last leg. They’re desperate.”

Mets fans at Citi Field chanted, “Cheater! Cheater!” as the umpires inspected Musgrove’s glove and face for sticky substances. They found nothing, and Musgrove continued to dominate. After he struck out Tomas Nido soon after the check, he gestured toward the Mets dugout, pretending to wipe a fake substance off his nose.





The Padres now move on to face the Dodgers in the National League Division Series starting Tuesday night. The 101-win Mets, meanwhile, are headed home, a worst-case scenario for a team that held the NL East lead for almost the entire season before blowing it in the final week to the Braves, getting swept in Atlanta in the second-to-last series of the season.

 

[ivyhillparkk1963]

in my opinion Showalter needs some accountability as manager.
This disaster was under his watch..

 

[Section112]

Showalter turned this franchise around but his knock on the Yanks years ago was his management in the playoffs. It showed through here but I think Buck is a good manager. With that said what Cohen said was ballsy (for a guy employed as the Mets announcer) and 100% on point. Bush league move by Buck.

 

[Seton75]

Bush league by Showalter

And counterproductive. Put more wind in the pitchers sails.

They underacheived this year, but the padres are damned good. 3 serious starters, good hitters, good pen, star power, field and play smart. Not happy my Dodgers face them even though we handled tgem in reg season

 

[SHUSource]

in my opinion Showalter needs some accountability as manager.
This disaster was under his watch..

What disaster? They won 101 games. It's not Buck's fault that MLB adopted a wild-card format short enough where anything could happen. They just ran into a Padres team that finally played to its proper level.

That said, this was a bush move by Showalter, a guy a I have a lot of respect for.

 

[shu2x79]

If the Mets would have won one game out of three with the Braves or not be beaten up by lower level teams in September they wouldn't have been a wild card team. That was under Buck's watch as well as the loss to the Padres. And, for the record, I am a Yankee fan but like and respect Buck a great deal/

 

[lloyde dobler]

They never were as good as a lot of fans made them out to be. They were a very good, but not great team. Certainly one where nothing was going to be a sure thing in the playoffs. Thinking otherwise was kind of foolish.

 

[JRSlim2284]

Offense was dormant in 2 of the 3 games, San Diego played up to par and Scherzer had a rare terrible outing. No excuses. Mets got their asses handed to them. Hope Cohen's checkbook is full and ready to pay for DeGrom, among others

 

[HallLine69]

in my opinion Showalter needs some accountability as manager.
This disaster was under his watch..

So were the 101 victories.

 

[HallLine69]

Offense was dormant in 2 of the 3 games, San Diego played up to par and Scherzer had a rare terrible outing. No excuses. Mets got their asses handed to them. Hope Cohen's checkbook is full and ready to pay for DeGrom, among others

I would take a pass on DeGrom, as great as he's been. He misses way too much time with injuries and after lengthy rehabs he comes back superhuman for the first four innings and then starts to fade. When he's on, he is all-world. I'd rather spend on a lesser guy who can give us 30 solid starts.

 

[SHUSA]

i hate the mets, but his ears looked extremely suspect (never seen anyone with wet ears) and his spin rate was noticeably higher too

 

[hallgrad80]

And Buck would be praised if they found an illegal substance on Musgrove. Listening to a couple of sports talk shows today the reasons why the Mets wanted the check were reasonable based on what they saw and observed.

 

[Burnsly]

I have no issue with Buck. He had every right to ask the umps to check Musgrove. Back when Torre was managing the Yankees he let Kenny Rogers doctor the hell out of the ball without complaining & the Yankees wound up losing. Plus, he sat in the dugout drinking coffee while the midges attacked Joba.

The Mets had 1 hit & 2 base runners all game. Tough to blame the manager for that.

 

[hallstorm]

They never were as good as a lot of fans made them out to be. They were a very good, but not great team. Certainly one where nothing was going to be a sure thing in the playoffs. Thinking otherwise was kind of foolish.

Hard to be “never as good as a lot of fans made them out to be” when winning 101 games—tied for 3rd most in majors.

The overwhelming best teams are the Astros and Dodgers by a good distance. Braves are pretty damned close. Outside of the those 3 teams, any other team that wins the World Series will be a huge surprise.

I think Father Time and injury issues with deGrom and Scherzer showed themselves at the end of the year. Scherzer and deGrom both got away with a lot of middle of the plate pitches the last couple weeks of the season — even when the ball didn’t leave the yard.

But you can’t diminish 101 wins. Calling them not as good as fans thought is trying to sum up a whole season in 3 days: uninformed.

 

[TheHall87]

I'll preface this by saying I'm a Met fan and thus am biased. I have no issue with this whether it's gamesmanship or Buck truly thought Musgrove was doing something to the ball. Desperate? Sure. The problem is even if he's proven right, you're still down 4-0 with 12 outs to go.

The umps didn't find anything and I'm ok with that. One suspicious thing to me is reportedly the spin rate on every one of Musgrove's 86 pitches was above his season average. This on a fairly cool night that should have made it harder, not easier to grip a baseball. Maybe that's nothing but it seems highly unusual. The appearance of Musgrove's ears was odd as well. Very wet (sweat) and very red (cool night, adrenaline, exertion?)

As mentioned on the broadcast, this is not the first time this kind of thing has happened. In 1988, Davey Johnson had the Dodgers Jay Howell checked for having pine tar on his glove in a NLCS game at Shea Stadium. The umpires did find pine tar and ejected Howell from the game.

In the end 101 wins didn't mean anything. The offense which was suspect at time throughout the season came up small at important times down the stretch and in this series. They scored seven runs in the three games in Atlanta and one in the two losses against the Padres.

Likewise the starting pitching wasn't as effective as it needed to be in those games as well but having almost no margin for error didn't help.

 

[lloyde dobler]

Hard to be “never as good as a lot of fans made them out to be” when winning 101 games—tied for 3rd most in majors.

The overwhelming best teams are the Astros and Dodgers by a good distance. Braves are pretty damned close. Outside of the those 3 teams, any other team that wins the World Series will be a huge surprise.

I think Father Time and injury issues with deGrom and Scherzer showed themselves at the end of the year. Scherzer and deGrom both got away with a lot of middle of the plate pitches the last couple weeks of the season — even when the ball didn’t leave the yard.

But you can’t diminish 101 wins. Calling them not as good as fans thought is trying to sum up a whole season in 3 days: uninformed.

Not at all … I said they were very good. But were they the best team in the division? No (it was pretty clear Atlanta was doing better at the end, which is why they made up 10.5 games). Were they better than the Dodgers? No. So they were the third best team in the league. The 101 wins are great, but were they prohibitive favorites over the Padres entering the series? No.

Anyone Met fan under 35 wasn’t around for ‘86, and they really have nothing else to go by in their lifetimes. This team was the one for them. Many had them going all the way. But they were only the third-best team in the league.

 

[TheHall87]

While the Mets did enough things to not get out of their own way, the fact that the Braves went 78-34 from June 1 is pretty astounding. Not a lot of MLB team win 70% of their games for an extended stretch.

 

[hallgrad80]

In the 2021 season the Mets won 77 games while in Bucks first season as manager this year they won 100 games and yet people are questioning his decision to have the umps check to see if an opposing pitcher was doctoring the ball. That decision wasn’t done in a vacuum but based on what they saw which raised questions in their mind.

 

[hallstorm]

Not at all … I said they were very good. But were they the best team in the division? No (it was pretty clear Atlanta was doing better at the end, which is why they made up 10.5 games). Were they better than the Dodgers? No. So they were the third best team in the league. The 101 wins are great, but were they prohibitive favorites over the Padres entering the series? No.

Anyone Met fan under 35 wasn’t around for ‘86, and they really have nothing else to go by in their lifetimes. This team was the one for them. Many had them going all the way. But they were only the third-best team in the league.

Why do you assume fans base their opinions on past teams though? That’s a very strong assumption.

The 2015 team was pretty good. The 2000 team was pretty good. The 1988 team was very, very good and they ran into a buzzsaw in the playoffs (and the f-r Mile Scioscia) . The 2006 team was also the best in the NL but didn’t make the Series (thank you Carlos Beltran).

But the best team during the season doesn’t always win. The 1986 team almost didn’t get there and even when they did they won by the skin of the their teeth. (And by the way: I still think the 1985 team doesn’t get enough love. That team was so good and it came down to the last weekend of the year and the Cards just had more experience. But I remember that series like it was yesterday).

And even though I wasn’t born yet I know the the 69 team wasn the best but still won it all and the 73 team upset a much more dominant Reds team to reach the Series.

 

[NYShoreGuy]

They never were as good as a lot of fans made them out to be. They were a very good, but not great team. Certainly one where nothing was going to be a sure thing in the playoffs. Thinking otherwise was kind of foolish.

They won 100 games out of 162 when degrom missed 4 months and scherzer missed time too

 

[lloyde dobler]

Why do you assume fans base their opinions on past teams though? That’s a very strong assumption.

The 2015 team was pretty good. The 2000 team was pretty good. The 1988 team was very, very good and they ran into a buzzsaw in the playoffs (and the f-r Mile Scioscia) . The 2006 team was also the best in the NL but didn’t make the Series (thank you Carlos Beltran).

But the best team during the season doesn’t always win. The 1986 team almost didn’t get there and even when they did they won by the skin of the their teeth. (And by the way: I still think the 1985 team doesn’t get enough love. That team was so good and it came down to the last weekend of the year and the Cards just had more experience. But I remember that series like it was yesterday).

And even though I wasn’t born yet I know the the 69 team wasn the best but still won it all and the 73 team upset a much more dominant Reds team to reach the Series.

Why? Read their comments on social media and listen to what they say on the radio. You make sense as a fan, but there’s a very large, vocal segment of others who don’t feel that way. I‘d be a fool if I thought I was speaking for everyone, but there are many, many Mets fans who’ve never had a championship in their lifetimes and seemed to be borderline to outright expecting it from this team.

 

[hallgrad80]

While I’m a Yankee fan , I can understand why the expectations of the Mets fans is high and winning the World Series is their goal not just making the playoffs. Those expectations come from the simple fact that the organization‘s new ownership have very deep pockets, has proven he’s willing to spend on the top free agents and will do whatever it takes to win . What the Mets do with respect to resigning their own free agents and who they target in free agency will be interesting to follow especially if they target Judge as their top priority .

 

[hallstorm]

Why? Read their comments on social media and listen to what they say on the radio. You make sense as a fan, but there’s a very large, vocal segment of others who don’t feel that way. I‘d be a fool if I thought I was speaking for everyone, but there are many, many Mets fans who’ve never had a championship in their lifetimes and seemed to be borderline to outright expecting it from this team.

Ok I have not read many fans’ expectations on social media or the radio/tv. And while those expectations of a World Series or bust may or may not be hyperbole by those fans (new or old), it’s fair to say that the very few experts that had the Mets losing in the first round to a team with 12 less wins was the in the vast minority.

And given the success of the team without Scherzer and deGrom and then their dominance when they initially came back (August and the first half of September) a sense of false expectations was apparently the result.

But with two aces, a dominant closer and very solid lineup the Mets had a classic recipe for great success in the playoffs. Especially in a 3 game series at home. It’s a huge underachievement

 

[SHUHoopsFan]

Ok I have not read many fans’ expectations on social media or the radio/tv. And while those expectations of a World Series or bust may or may not be hyperbole by those fans (new or old), it’s fair to say that the very few experts that had the Mets losing in the first round to a team with 12 less wins was the in the vast minority.

And given the success of the team without Scherzer and deGrom and then their dominance when they initially came back (August and the first half of September) a sense of false expectations was apparently the result.

But with two aces, a dominant closer and very solid lineup the Mets had a classic recipe for great success in the playoffs. Especially in a 3 game series at home. It’s a huge underachievement

Experts??? You can't predict baseball Suzyn. No expert had the Orioles over .500. Not sure any experts had the braves winning it all last year without Acuna. A lot of experts thought Judge was nuts betting on himself. This is baseball, anything can happen. The worst teams win one third of their games. Not sure that happens in any other sport. All it takes is a couple good efforts on the mound, timely hits, or the better team ripping the ball right at people. MLB playsoff are a complete crapshoot. The mets went into the playoffs not playing good baseball. Anyone making a prediction in August or early September should know a lot is going to change over the rest of the season.

 

[dehere23]

I’ve flipped my initial view on what Buck did after hearing more perspectives. At first, I thought it was a bit ridiculous. Now, I think he was right. Whatever was going on with the guy’s ear, it was noticeable. You take that and combine it with how good the stuff was, I think it would have been wrong for him not to have him checked in a game of that magnitude. As I think another posted pointed out - perhaps Burnsly - the Yanks went through this way back when with Kenny Rodgers dominating them in the Detroit playoff series. He didn’t do anything and in retrospect he should have been checking the balls or the player a-la Mike Scott in 86 with the Mets.

Was Buck desperate? Of course. But being desperate doesn’t make it wrong. That’s acknowledging reality. I think he would have been criticized more if he didn’t have Musgrove checked. And I think he was in the right doing so.

 

[shu09]

I thought it was a desperate move but there was enough probable cause to ask. Looks like a stunt since nothing was found, but he would be considered smart and attentive if something was found.

 

[TheHall87]

Why do you assume fans base their opinions on past teams though? That’s a very strong assumption.

The 2015 team was pretty good. The 2000 team was pretty good. The 1988 team was very, very good and they ran into a buzzsaw in the playoffs (and the f-r Mile Scioscia) . The 2006 team was also the best in the NL but didn’t make the Series (thank you Carlos Beltran).

But the best team during the season doesn’t always win. The 1986 team almost didn’t get there and even when they did they won by the skin of the their teeth. (And by the way: I still think the 1985 team doesn’t get enough love. That team was so good and it came down to the last weekend of the year and the Cards just had more experience. But I remember that series like it was yesterday).

And even though I wasn’t born yet I know the the 69 team wasn the best but still won it all and the 73 team upset a much more dominant Reds team to reach the Series.

This team is actually very reminiscent of the 1985 team. A very good team that needed one more win against its main rival (the Cardinals) on the road in the next-to-last series of the season and couldn't get it done.

They won 98 games -- third best in MLB behind St. Louis and Toronto -- but in a world where only four teams, the respective division winners made the playoffs, they went home after the regular season.

 

[hallstorm]

Experts??? You can't predict baseball Suzyn. No expert had the Orioles over .500. Not sure any experts had the braves winning it all last year without Acuna. A lot of experts thought Judge was nuts betting on himself. This is baseball, anything can happen. The worst teams win one third of their games. Not sure that happens in any other sport. All it takes is a couple good efforts on the mound, timely hits, or the better team ripping the ball right at people. MLB playsoff are a complete crapshoot. The mets went into the playoffs not playing good baseball. Anyone making a prediction in August or early September should know a lot is going to change over the rest of the season.

Suzyn? I’m assuming that’s a dig against me in comparison to your team’s award winning radio duo.

And you’re just confirming what I already wrote genius. I’m saying the playoffs are a crapshoot if your read my previous post before this.

There are a myriad of examples with all of the wild cards who’ve made a World Series appearance over the years. The most notable example of an inferior team is the 2001 Yankees who beat the superior A’s and Mariners in the playoffs before limping to the end of the season. The 2015 Mets are another example of a team who didn’t play well going into the end of the season.

There are tons of examples. Your point is not a good one.

The only thing that makes readership on sports sites is making predictions. And you make them based on the stats on paper and what a team did during the year. That’s all you can do. And the Mets losing to the Padres at home is an upset.

Try again.

 

[ponyfoot19]

Was this any more bush league then a coach calling a timeout when the opposing team is lined up to a kick a field goal or when a guy is on the foul line? What I would question is why wait so long to ask?

 

[Piratz]

As a NYY fan I’ve seen my fair share of average guys who pitch ungodly well and look like Bob Gibson in the playoffs. It happens. Maybe that’s all it was.

I don’t fault Buck though. The guy was oddly shiny and his stuff was insane. If you’re not going to ask in that situation, are you every?

The clever ways pitchers do this are also pretty wild.

 

[SHUHoopsFan]

Suzyn? I’m assuming that’s a dig against me in comparison to your team’s award winning radio duo.

And you’re just confirming what I already wrote genius. I’m saying the playoffs are a crapshoot if your read my previous post before this.

There are a myriad of examples with all of the wild cards who’ve made a World Series appearance over the years. The most notable example of an inferior team is the 2001 Yankees who beat the superior A’s and Mariners in the playoffs before limping to the end of the season. The 2015 Mets are another example of a team who didn’t play well going into the end of the season.

There are tons of examples. Your point is not a good one.

The only thing that makes readership on sports sites is making predictions. And you make them based on the stats on paper and what a team did during the year. That’s all you can do. And the Mets losing to the Padres at home is an upset.

Try again.

No dig at all. John Sterling always says you can't predict baseball Suzyn. That's the full quote. I wasn't shortening it for you. My team? I'm an orioles fan. I've met Brooks Robinson when I was young and followed the Orioles for many years. But as a baseball fan, I do hope the yankees are good, because baseball isn't as good when the yankees are bad. Every sport needs a villain.

I listened to WFAN all day Friday and there was talk about this possibly being Nimmo's and deGrom's last weekend as a Met. The Padres are real contenders. The only reason this was an upset because people thought this was the deGrom and Scherzer of 2019. Scherzer's arm died in the postseason last year. He wasn't the same his last few outtings. It seems that arm may not go 30 starts a year anymore. deGrom isn't the same. This was a 50/50 series, mets just had home field advantage mainly because of what they did from April through July. They have legit players on the Padres and they have legit pitching.

All these teams that had byes, may take a couple games to get back in the groove, while the wild card winners are playing good baseball. I can see all 4 teams with byes going down. All 4 of these wildcard teams are very capable of beating their opponents. Who's hot now is all that matters.

 

[SHUHoopsFan]

I thought it was a desperate move but there was enough probable cause to ask. Looks like a stunt since nothing was found, but he would be considered smart and attentive if something was found.

He would've looked smart if it just took Musgrove off his game.

 

[SHUTAPS76]

He would've looked smart if it just took Musgrove off his game.

Exactly right
All credit to Musgrove for turning it into an incentive. It could have gone the other way, bu he was tough. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I give Buck credit for trying desperate measures on a night when nothing else was working It also could have. Inspired his troops, but it didn’t. His message to his own team was that he was not giving up and even trying “stunts” to change the momentum. Never give up.

 

[Seton75]

No dig at all. John Sterling always says you can't predict baseball Suzyn. That's the full quote. I wasn't shortening it for you. My team? I'm an orioles fan. I've met Brooks Robinson when I was young and followed the Orioles for many years. But as a baseball fan, I do hope the yankees are good, because baseball isn't as good when the yankees are bad. Every sport needs a villain.

I listened to WFAN all day Friday and there was talk about this possibly being Nimmo's and deGrom's last weekend as a Met. The Padres are real contenders. The only reason this was an upset because people thought this was the deGrom and Scherzer of 2019. Scherzer's arm died in the postseason last year. He wasn't the same his last few outtings. It seems that arm may not go 30 starts a year anymore. deGrom isn't the same. This was a 50/50 series, mets just had home field advantage mainly because of what they did from April through July. They have legit players on the Padres and they have legit pitching.

All these teams that had byes, may take a couple games to get back in the groove, while the wild card winners are playing good baseball. I can see all 4 teams with byes going down. All 4 of these wildcard teams are very capable of beating their opponents. Who's hot now is all that matters.

The Dodger team that beat the As - the Gibson HR yr - had the worst lineup possibly ever put in a WS field. We had two major hitters, Guerrero and Marshall. Guerrero was hurt and DNP and I think Marshall got hurt midway thru the WS. But the Mickey Hatchers of the world got the job done. Karma and Orel can get you there. Phil up 7-3, Seatle scores 4 off verlander in the first 2 innings. No teams I would like to see lose more than those two. But last yr I wanted to play Atlanta...

 

[SHUHoopsFan]

The Dodger team that beat the As - the Gibson HR yr - had the worst lineup possibly ever put in a WS field. We had two major hitters, Guerrero and Marshall. Guerrero was hurt and DNP and I think Marshall got hurt midway thru the WS. But the Mickey Hatchers of the world got the job done. Karma and Orel can get you there. Phil up 7-3, Seatle scores 4 off verlander in the first 2 innings. No teams I would like to see lose more than those two. But last yr I wanted to play Atlanta...

I'm not surprised. Both Phil's and M's did damage early. There's nothing good about 5 full days off in baseball. I absolutely hate this format.

 

[Seton75]

Seatle 5-2 in the 4th. Phillies hang on and take game one.

 

[hallstorm]

No dig at all. John Sterling always says you can't predict baseball Suzyn. That's the full quote. I wasn't shortening it for you. My team? I'm an orioles fan. I've met Brooks Robinson when I was young and followed the Orioles for many years. But as a baseball fan, I do hope the yankees are good, because baseball isn't as good when the yankees are bad. Every sport needs a villain.

I listened to WFAN all day Friday and there was talk about this possibly being Nimmo's and deGrom's last weekend as a Met. The Padres are real contenders. The only reason this was an upset because people thought this was the deGrom and Scherzer of 2019. Scherzer's arm died in the postseason last year. He wasn't the same his last few outtings. It seems that arm may not go 30 starts a year anymore. deGrom isn't the same. This was a 50/50 series, mets just had home field advantage mainly because of what they did from April through July. They have legit players on the Padres and they have legit pitching.

All these teams that had byes, may take a couple games to get back in the groove, while the wild card winners are playing good baseball. I can see all 4 teams with byes going down. All 4 of these wildcard teams are very capable of beating their opponents. Who's hot now is all that matters.

I can get on board with this.

And even today the Phillies won and Verlander got smoked at home.

Ya just can’t figure anything sometimes. Baseball is just so different from anything else.

 

[TheHall87]

No dig at all. John Sterling always says you can't predict baseball Suzyn. That's the full quote. I wasn't shortening it for you. My team? I'm an orioles fan. I've met Brooks Robinson when I was young and followed the Orioles for many years. But as a baseball fan, I do hope the yankees are good, because baseball isn't as good when the yankees are bad. Every sport needs a villain.

I listened to WFAN all day Friday and there was talk about this possibly being Nimmo's and deGrom's last weekend as a Met. The Padres are real contenders. The only reason this was an upset because people thought this was the deGrom and Scherzer of 2019. Scherzer's arm died in the postseason last year. He wasn't the same his last few outtings. It seems that arm may not go 30 starts a year anymore. deGrom isn't the same. This was a 50/50 series, mets just had home field advantage mainly because of what they did from April through July. They have legit players on the Padres and they have legit pitching.

All these teams that had byes, may take a couple games to get back in the groove, while the wild card winners are playing good baseball. I can see all 4 teams with byes going down. All 4 of these wildcard teams are very capable of beating their opponents. Who's hot now is all that matters.

I don't think Scherzer's arm was his problem. The oblique was a problem much of the year and I don't think he was 100%.

Even with deGrom, he was more hittable towards the end of the season but his velocity was every bit as good as it has been. He said after Saturday's game, he's been fighting with his mechanics and thought he found something in his last inning