The Knicks are now on a 7-game winning streak in the playoffs. The series with the Sixers was a walk in the park except for game 2 which is where, interestingly, Embid did not play. It was clear to SU that Maxey is way too deferential to Embid on offense when he is in the lineup. For Philadelphia to compete, Maxey needs to be the focal point of the offense as he is almost unguardable with his quickness, long range shooting and creativity. Paul George had a couple of decent games but he is 36 now and no longer a consistent threat on offense.

For the Knicks, they will now rest at least a week which for SU, is typically not a good thing. Yes, players with injuries like OG Anunoby get to heal but the shooters who sit that long always have a hard time adjusting in game 1 of the next series. If the Knicks play Detroit, that may actually be OK as they will be on the road for that one and better to get your cold shooting out of the way on the road and not lose home court advantage.

Assuming Detroit advances to the next round, that would be an entirely different series from the Sixers. Detroit grabs and holds – Pat Riley in the 1990s would love this team. They dare you to call fouls on every possession. And once they get away with it in the first few minutes, the games become rock fights. Borderline unwatchable unless you like the wrestling matches. Brunson will get bumped all over the court. For NBA fans, they like the free flowing games and higher scoring. But we won’t see that in this series. Playing Cleveland would be a more open affair.

SU watched an WNBA game on Saturday – Fever vs. the Wings. Looks like the WNBA has changed its foul calling rules this year to eliminate the grabbing and holding from last season and allow talents like Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers to move a bit more freely. Bravo. Basketball is a game meant to see players cut, move, run and pass. When players cannot even run without being grabbed and held, well, that is unwatchable.

The Yankees got swept in Milwaukee over the weekend and you can see the flaws in this year’s team. SU is not complaining about the record of course but they are not beating anyone over .500. The American League is really bad. The bullpen is still lacking, and other than Bednar, hard to trust anyone. It’s a long season and SU will not worry for now. Surely Cashman will restock the bullpen (which, of course, he should have done in the off season). Anything short of getting to the World Series this year is a failure given how bad the AL is in 2026.

The Mets are a quarter way through the season now and firmly in last place at 15 – 25. SU says it is still early but to be honest, their roster is unimpressive. That does not mean that they can’t get hot but unfortunately, the National League features most of the decent teams this year so it may take a while – or not at all and they become sellers in July. Wonder if Juan Soto ever has 2nd thoughts about playing for a winning team? But as long as his family is happy in their luxury suite for home games, guess all is good in Soto-land.

Anthony Volpe is a Brian Cashman favorite – going back many years now. He was very good in his rookie year but has taken a step back – at least in 2025 when he was dealing with a sore shoulder. Caballero has been very good in his place and the team is winning.

Can a player lose his starting position due to injury? Many say no. Keep in mind that Volpe is very good friends Aaron Judge. SU says it makes sense to give him more at bats in AAA to be able to hit the ground running when he does come back. The complicating factor is that the Yankees’ top prospect, Lomabard, is a shortstop and was just promoted to AAA. He is being moved around the infield to get experience.

Stanton is on the IL but won’t be there forever. They already cut Grichuk. Goldschmidt could be expendable but he is the back up first baseman – can anyone else play there? Maybe Rosario? Caballero can play multiple positions. Dominguez is now up and he is playing well.

There are no obvious solutions here. They could trade Volpe but he is young and on a low salary. SU says not going to happen. A good problem to have for sure. Maybe someone is traded for a top reliever? That is the major need for this team.

The one interesting observation here is that Stanton is an afterthought now. They will need him in October but he is not critical during the regular season.

RIP John Sterling. A true Yankee legend. SU always enjoyed his calls and it did not bother me that he was a “homer” announcer. Towards the end of his announcing career, he had trouble seeing the ball and that was a bit annoying to be honest (“it is high, it is far, it is caught in front of the warning track”). But hey, we all get old and it was fair that he had the chance to decide when to stop calling his games. Dave Sims is a far cry as a replacement. Sterling had a good run. Good man and we will miss him greatly.

The Knicks are looking good! Really pushing the ball up the court and playing at a fast pace. Smart. Embid is a load but he is not going to be sprinting up and down the court. The Sixers have no bench: that is a huge advantage for the Knicks in this series. More players who can come in and influence the game. Brunson was great last night but they don’t need him to be great to win. He needs to watch his shots volume. SU notes that Embid is hardly jumping on his shots. Defenders should not go for the fakes. Just play straight up. They need KAT and Robinson to avoid the silly fouls.

A long way to go of course and we all know about game 2 at home.

The New York sports talk radio listeners must surely be experiencing whiplash this morning. After the game 3 loss to the Atlanta Hawks, everyone was calling for Mike Brown to be fired and envisioning a first round playoff exit and a rebuild in the off-season. What a difference a week makes!

SU is not a Mike Brown fan but one thing he accomplished during the regular season was establishing a core of 10 players that he can mix and match depending on the opponent. And he has shown that he is not averse to banishing a player to the bench, e.g., Landry Shamet, if he feels they are not right for that series. Even starter Mikal Bridges saw his minutes reduced for a few games before breaking out last night. SU says competition for playing time is always a good thing in any sport. Brown pulled it off – at least for this series against the Hawks. He was smart enough to run the offense through KAT and have someone other than Brunson bring up the ball to reduce his burden. The Knicks are so, so much better when the ball does not stick in Brunson’s hands and really moves. However, every playoff series it seems to take Brunson a couple of games to realize that.

Did you see that Mitchell Robinson had a +29 points plus/minus last night in only 9 minutes of court time? That has to be some type of record.

The Sixers and Celtics will wrap up a brusing series tomorrow and the Knicks get a few days off to rest up for the next opponent. They would have home court vs. Philadelphia but they have some tough players, i.e., Maxey, Embid, Geroge and Embid is a load in the playoffs drawing fouls. SU believes the Knicks may actually match up better vs. Boston but they have that championship pedigree. This will be another tough series.

For Knick fans, you have to make the finals this year. You don’t have to win it all but really do need to get there. OKC and San Antonio would be tough opponents in the finals but it sure would be fun to see how that went.

The Yankees are managing through the annual Giancarlo Stanton injury but it has opened the door for Jasson Dominguez to get a shot to play regularly. Of course, he was hit on the elbow this week so hoping he can get back in there and avoid any IL time. The reality is that the Yankees really don’t need Stanton until October as he is a proven post-season performer. They have plenty of offense assuming guys can hit according to the back of their baseball cards. Only 3 teams above .500 in the AL. Parity at its finest. Note to Aaron Boone: Ben Rice is the man. Don’t forget that.

The Yankees have back end of the bullpen issues but they will resolve themselves assuming Cole and Rodon can return and stay healthy. You move Weathers to the bullpen where he has pitched before and then one other starter (Warren?). Volpe will return and SU says he should have to earn his playing time as Caballero has played well. Caballero is versatile though and can also be put in the outfield. For the Yankees, it’s just a matter of tweaking.

For the Mets, man, we are beyond tweaking. David Stearns came to the Mets with a reputation for putting together high performing rosters with low cost budgets in Milwaukee. So, how does he do with big budgets? Not so much. Team can’t hit or pitch and did you really want to build your bullpen around ex-Yankee relievers? Weaver and Williams may be effective playing for middle market teams but hey, this is New York and they both showed cracks in 2025. The Braves have the best record in baseball but it’s still early. Do you fire Mendoza? SU says he is a good guy and a solid manager, and the issue here is not him but a crappy roster. What is the over/under date where Juan Soto starts to leak complaints to the media that he is not happy?

SU watched the Knicks’ game last night and clearly, Mike Brown screwed up with the lineups in the 4th quarter. He has the analytics to know that the Knicks are better with either KAT or Brunson on the court. Sitting both of them at the same time was not ideal and the lead that they had built after 3 quarters quickly evaporated.

Contrary to the NBC broadcast, they did not have a timeout at the end of the game and Bridges did well to advance the ball up the court but should have driven to the basket to get the foul call. But SU says you never blame a player for the game if he misses the last shot. Should not have come down to that – do not hate on Bridges.

But here is the issue for SU. In both game 1 and this game, they built a nice lead playing more or less a team style offense. However, in both games, they resorted to the hero ball, slow down offense with Brunson dribbling, dribbling, dribbling and then forcing up some high degree of difficulty shot as the 24-second clock ran down. They blew a big lead on Saturday doing that and same thing this game. Atlanta, to their credit, started to double him late in the shot clock and forced up difficult shots.

I know Brunson is “Captain Clutch” and all of that. He is a great crunch time player but mix it up please. Others are open and can play. There are stretches with the 2nd unit where the ball really moves and they are running. Atlanta certainly wants the fast pace.

This is the Knicks year to get to the finals. It won’t be easy as Boston in the 2nd round will be tough. Atlanta clearly has confidence now and they have some athletic, young talent. CJ McCollum has been good but SU says he can also put up a 5 for 24 game in game 3 – he has done that his whole career. Runs hot and cold. He has been killing Brunson and the Knicks have some good defenders – make the change there.

A long way to go but Knick fans still have PTSD from the Pacers loss in game 1 last year. Buckle up.

And speaking of bad, how about those Mets? Losing 11 in a row is pretty uncommon these days for any team. SU is sure they will right the ship and of course, we are still in April. Mendoza is a good manager and they should not think he is the reason they are losing here.

Finally, Ben Rice is the man. Surely Aaron Boone will see that and keep him in the lineup every game instead of overthinking the matchups with lefties. Of course, SU is not so sure. Yankees’ bullpen is not good but you have to figure Cashman was planning to move some starters into the pen once Cole and Rodon came back. Or maybe he just screwed up. The good news is that it’s always easy to pick up relievers at the trade deadline. The Yankees are not world beaters but the AL is medicore and no excuses this year.

SU is basking in the glow from Michigan’s NCAA Tournament championship last night over UConn. Danny Hurley put a very good game plan together to muck up the game, slow it down and play physically. This was not one for the time capsule but Michigan prevailed. SU has a lot of thoughts about this season:

1. Basketball seasons are a journey. Michigan played 40 games and SU watched about 35 of them and followed the others on the internet. At the start of the season, there were a ton of turnovers and a couple of close games (see Wake Forest on a neutral court). But Dusty May has a process and he sticks with the process. We saw the same thing last season with the early season turnovers (even the late season turnovers last season). The turnovers started to decrease (although believe me, there are plenty of dumb ones every game) and the scoring went up. They lost LJ Cason to injury and the offense went backwards for several games. However, May retooled things for the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAAs, and then had to overcome the injury to Yaxel. Credit to May for still blowing teams out until the finals in every round. Impressive.
2. This team played the right way. SU was raised on the late 1960s/early 1970s NY Knicks. Frazier, Bill Bradley, Willis Reed, Red Holzman: “see the ball.” That team, like this Michigan team, played so unselfishly. It was all about winning – not “getting mine.” I hate to see players revel in their 40- or 50-point games in the NBA. There is no glory in taking 30 or 40 shots. There is glory in 30-assists for a team. Move without the ball, make plays for others. That is what real teams do.
3. The transfer portal and NIL money have created a free agent world in college hoops. SU is not a fan as I have always enjoyed watching freshmen improve each year and contribute more. That was the John Beilein years at Michigan, and those were fun teams to watch. So enjoyable. Dusty May takes a similar approach but he lets his players freelance. They don’t have many plays and yes, some games there are some awful passes and turnovers. But May always talks about the process and preparation, and he is convinced what he does in October will pay off in April. He is a student of the game – a rare coach. And, by the way, his style does not translate to the NBA. At all. He would be smart to remain in college as the level of selfishness in the pros is well above what you see in college.
4. Much is made of the transfers on this Michigan team. But other than Yaxel, none of the other players were stars with their prior teams. Mara was underutilized at UCLA playing for a screamer type coach, Johnson is just a sophomore, Cadeau was a turnover machine at North Carolina who couldn’t shoot. Burnett transferred years ago from Alabama and is a role player at best. Now, Mara and Johnson would be well served to stay one more year, get paid nice NIL money and then hone their games for a higher draft position next season. Johnson, in particular, can get a lot better offensively. But history says guys take the NBA money and will go. Of the starters, SU only sees Yaxel as being a real NBA player. Mara may hang around a couple of years but he will be Europe bound at some point. Johnson, if he goes too early, will be in the G-League. Yaxel can play and is a fun personality. He is a guy SU will follow on the NBA Season Pass on television.
5. Duke gets the best players every year. Look at this NBA season: Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel are neck and neck for NBA Rookie of the Year honors. And Duke still did not win it all last season. Yes, Dusty May had a good nucleus of players, but to be able to meld them to play together from the start (see Las Vegas blowouts early in the year) is impressive. Great coach, knows how to motivate players and help them see the value of sharing the ball.
6. Yaxel Lendeborg gets it. Believe me, not many star players with an NBA future would have come back into the game on Saturday or played last night. He took a risk. The reality is that this will likely be his most enjoyable season playing basketball in his career. If he is a role player in the NBA, it will be very different, and he will have to adjust. It just won’t be as much fun. Credit to him for battling through the pain last night. He was a bit of a liability on the boards but SU was glad he was on the court for that many minutes.

As we get older, we know these moments may not happen again. The Yankees had the glory years from 1996 – 2000, but boy it’s very hard to get another championship. And Michigan may not win another one for many years. It is really hard to thread the needle. For SU, even if Michigan had lost last night, I would have been fine with this season. So much fun, so many great moments and periods of games where the ball is zipping around and shots are going in. Remember: the Big Ten was the best conference this year and Michigan was undefeated on the road in that conference. We may never see that again.

SU will enjoy the moment and now wait to see who stays, who goes and who is coming in the portal. It is officially open and Dusty May and his staff do not get any time off. So it goes.

I can’t say that I was a fan of MLB starting its season in late March, but the weather has cooperated enough that it looks like it was the right move. For those fans who are already pissed off at their teams (looking at you Met fans booing Bo Bichette in his first series at home), remember it’s a long season and SU’s maxim applies here: “You are never as good as you look when you are winning, and you are never as bad as you look when you are losing.”

Many players take a while to adapt to the colder weather up north and often struggle the first few weeks of April. And you can be hitting .130, go 3 for 4, and all of a sudden you are close to .300. One has to be patient.

Having said that, SU is excited about the Yankees 5 – 1 start to the season. And I noted the speech that Judge, Stanton and Goldschmidt gave to the players at the start of the season to bring the focus and energy each and every game. What a concept! The Yankees have played long stretches of mediocre ball the last few seasons that hurts them for seeding in the playoffs in October. Who knows if this works but SU likes the leadership for this year’s team. Remember, there is likely going to be a lockout after this season and who knows if we have baseball in 2027?

So, do we like the ABS system to challenge umpires on pitch calls? SU says yes! It’s done quickly and finally incorporates technology into baseball. Does it embarrass the umpire? I would say only on the calls where they were way off. If it’s a millimeter here or there, come on – no big deal. It’s really the obvious calls where it is such a help. You have to be impressed at how well hitters know the strike zone and know when a pitch just missed. SU is a fan.

Ben Rice is the man. Favorite player on the Yankees, and Aaron Boone needs to make sure he is in the lineup most games. Stanton is batting .500 and is red hot. Of course, Boone opted to rest him on Wednesday with a travel day Thursday as a DH. I don’t know: maybe you play guys every game while they are red hot? Now, true, Goldschmidt hit a home run in that game and we know Stanton only plays 40% of regular season games due to injury. But I did not follow that one.

A few random thoughts this Good Friday:

1. Great men’s Final Four tomororw night. You can make the case for any of these four teams winning it all. Illinois only wants international players on the roster – and they have to be big. Arizona dares the refs to calls the fouls and lives at the foul line. Michigan plays big and may have some karma at play this year. And UConn is here on a prayer and courtesy of another Duke meltdown late in the game. Of course, SU is all in on Michigan. Go Blue! A great season for them no matter the outcome. They play the game the right way – very unselfish with a deep rotation. SU watched a lot of Big Ten games this year and that is the deepest and best conference. Glad to see they showed out in the NCAAs this year.
2. Lots of talk of the top coaches lining up to be considered for the vacant North Carolina job but SU says the ACC is a far cry from what it used to be. Sure, there is Duke but this is no longer a powerhouse conference.
3. Keep an eye on the women’s Final Four starting tonight. UConn is going for a repeat but similar to the men, Texas, South Carolina and UCLA are all even bets to win it all. SU notes that the NCAA has royally screwed up the women’s NCAA tournament by having 2 regionals play in one site. That limits practice time for the teams. They also brought in backboards and rims that were way too tight and overinflated basketballs. Come on – do better here.
4. Sad to see the demise of Tiger Woods in yet another car accident. Given the number of prescription drugs he has to take, and his wealth, can we get him a driver before he kills himself or someone else? He is only 50 but looks so much older now.
5. Men’s tennis is going through a very odd period now as pretty much every tournament is won by Alcaraz or Sinner. Not good for the sport but it’s hard to see who is going to join them as a threat to win a tournament. They are both generational talents but you need more contenders to make things interesting.
6. Finally, hoping the Knicks can show some interest and energy and make a serious run for the NBA championship this year. Detroit and Boston will both be hard to overcome for sure in the East. You have to assume this is the last year that ownership will keep this unit together if they fall short. Need to at least make the finals to call the season a success.

First things first: long-time subscriber, J. Rosen, avid Islanders, Mets and Jets fan, and one of the more frequent SU commenters, nailed it on the score prediction front for the Super Bowl. He bested hundreds of predictions received from around the world (OK inflating the number just a tad) with his prediction of Seattle winning 28 – 13. Of course, the final score was 29 – 13! Very impressive. Hopefully, he went on Kalshi before the game or some other betting/predictive market site and can cash in! We will place his order for the SU water bottle (there may be a delay!).

If you like defense, well, that was a great game – really by both teams but especially the Seahawks. SU thought New England should have run Drake Maye a lot more on some planned scrambles but apparently he had a sore shoulder and it’s possible Josh McDaniel did not want to risk more injury. Seattle is the deserving champion – a no doubter.

Lots of talk about adding another regular season game to the NFL season. Honestly, given how violent football is and the injury rate, how is that a good idea for the players – and even the fans? Watching games with so many players on the IL is not ideal. SU says pass on that one.

Spring training is starting but for SU, time to turn your eyes to NCAA basketball and the run up to March Madness. Lots of interesting games on tap. Michigan, Kansas, Arizona, Duke, Illinois and Houston are leading the charge but the Big Ten is bunched up at the top and lots of meaningful games to be played. Michigan has been an enjoyable watch this year with a totally unselfish team that comes along once every 10 – 15 years. Yes, would love to see them in the Final Four but like the UConn women’s team, this has been an enjoyable season and as always, SU values the journey vs. the absolute final result.

SU has historically ignored all of the Super Bowl hype and the lead-up to the game. Just not that interested. SU is impressed by the defensive squads of both teams – they are clearly elite and will likely keep the score down a bit. Drake Maye had a huge regular season but has been bailed out by his defense in all of the playoff games for the Patriots. Now, there was some weather involved there and playing in the Bay Area should help him on Sunday. In contrast, Sam Darnold has been better in the playoffs than in the regular seaon for Seattle but he is definitely prone to the bad turnover at any moment. I think it’s in his DNA (could be the Jets’ upbringing – not sure).

Seattle is favored but they are a bit thin at running back with Charbonnet out for the season. If anything happens to Kenneth Walker III injury-wise, that will be a big drop-off for the Seahawks. SU sees a close game this year – a bit on the lower scoring side. My fearless prediction is New England in an upset 24 – 21 as TreyVeon Henderson breaks out of a quiet last few games and is the MVP. Seattle will be hurt by a late game interception by Darnold.

Feel free to comment with your Super Bowl picks as the closest score can win you the SU logo’d water bottle this year.

Some other random thoughts this chilly morning:

1. Keep an eye on Tom Izzo at Michigan State. He just turned 71 and seems to be totally unraveling. Now, watching him on the sideline would not be the tell as he is always screaming at the refs and somehow avoiding a technical but earning a lot of minutes on every broadcast from the cameras. But his star player, Jeremiah Fears, is a flopper and more importantly, an incredibly dirty player tripping opponents, kicking them in the nuts and throwing elbows under the basket. Izzo has basically ignored it all year but in the last week, it’s gotten a lot of attention in nationally broadcast games and Dusty May at Michigan actually called him out on it. SU has always respected Izzo as I think he gets a lot out of less than stellar talent (role players for the most part). But Fears is a bad, bad dude and it will be interesting to see how Izzo deals with this.
2. SU caught the latter part of the Novak Djokovic match vs. Sinner at the Australian Open. At 38 years old, it was a master class performance. True, he was fortunate to even get to the semis with the walkover and then having Musetti retire. While he lost to Alcaraz in the finals (no shame in that and he played well until he tired a bit and had some hip issues surface), SU believes his win over Sinner felt like a finals for him. I also think it will accelerate his retirement plans, and he may look to call it a day at the end of this year or perhaps at next year’s Australian Open. SU knows there are many haters out there but if you listen to his post-match remarks or how gracious he is always is with his opponents (win or lose), he is a great ambassador for the game and he will be missed once he hangs it up. I also predict that he will angle to be the first ever Tennis Commissioner – a role John McEnroe has always relished.
3. The Knicks have turned it around of late but tonight’s match-up with Detroit will be a good barometer of where they are. The Pistons have the best record in the East and the Knicks are still dealing with nagging injuries. They basically stood pat at the trade deadline aside from a couple of minor deals for role players. They don’t have to win tonight but they do need to be competitive.
4. SU has no idea of how NBA teams alternate between tanking and trying to win games. Some of these trades for players like Porzingis or Anthony Davis are perplexing as they can barely stay on the court for a third of the season.
5. Spring training is just around the corner. Looking forward to getting into the rhythm of the long baseball season and complaining about the Yankees on a weekly basis. And remember, if there is a lockout this winter, you may not be seeing baseball in 2027. And we can all get ready to hate the Dodgers.
6. Finally, keep an eye on the World Cup this Summer in North America with all of the travel bans and ICE activity. SU will be curious if there is any impact on the sale of tickets and fans from other countries being comfortable coming here to watch the games. Something to watch.

It is very interesting to watch the off season moves by the MLB Clubs. The small market teams are always operating on the fringes with trades of role players and trying to manage to microscopic payrolls compared to the big players in baseball. The Dodgers do whatever they want and don’t worry about the cost. And then you have those next tier Clubs like the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Cubs, Blue Jays, Phillies (at least these days) and perhaps the Giants here and there.

The Yankees are more than happy to run it back from 2025 where they scored a lot of runs (although not in the playoffs) and will bank on a slew of starting pitchers returning to form from major surgeries (we all know how that usually goes – not well). Meanwhile, Steve Cohen instructed his President of Baseball Operations to to retool the roster – and fast. The Mets made a number of moves via free agent signings and then pulled off the trade for Peralta on the Brewers last night to really bolster their rotation in 2026. His contract expires after this year and he will make a ton more in free agency assuming there is even a season in 2027.

Cohen is rolling the dice for 2026 with a totally revamped lineup and of course, former Yankee relievers in the bullpen (hmm… good luck with that). SU says Met fans have to be happy with that as Cohen is not standing pat after an underachieving 2025 season. It may or may not work but at least he is going for it.

SU believes that the Bellinger signing by Cashman which was finally achieved yesterday was supposed to then potentially trigger a trade for Peralta. But the Mets got in first and that is a huge loss for the Yankees. The Yankees will head into this season with 6 left-handed hitters in the starting lineup and that assumes Stanton will be a regular contributor for the whole season which we all know is a physical impossiblity (anxiously awaiting the news on the first day of Spring Training to see which body part fell apart in the off season, e.g., tennis elbow, calf, hamstring). Rodon and Cole will be coming back from surgeries and you are banking on Schlittler being the real deal.

The Knicks finally showed some effort last night after a players’ only meeting and some soul searching. SU says coach Mike Brown is on the clock and it remains to be seen if he will survive the rest of the season. So many trade rumors for Giannis on the Bucks but the Knicks don’t have the draft picks that Milwaukee would even want in that type of deal. It does not seem like the Knicks can get to the next level with KAT (defensive liabilty and struggling for points this season) and SU has always felt that Bridges, while a nice player, is not that nice of a player. Could have done better in that spot. No doubt they will make some move at the trade deadline but only for a role player. The reality may be that their best shot was last season. We shall see.

Props to Indiana for running the table and winning it all this year as the Big Ten counts national championships for 3 years in a row. No doubt the SEC is increasingly pissed off about that. Cignetti is a great coach but a better judge of talent given his transfer portal moves. SU is sure he is very skilled with his NIL money as well.

So, Met fans: are you energized for 2026? I know Yankee fans are not. Oh how the tables have turned…

Full disclosure: the SU research staff has not done the usual in-depth statistical analysis on Kyle Tucker. I mean, there are only so many hours in a day. But for SU, at first blush, the 4-year, $240 million deal for Tucker with the deferred cash (OK, it’s only $57 million a year in present value terms) and the two opt outs makes SU think that he will play 1 and a half years for the Dodgers in the end.

Sure, they overpaid to get him for 2026 when they are going for the 3-peat. There will be a lockout in 2027 as the owners push for a salary cap, and SU estimates at best we have a half season of baseball. Tucker can, I believe, opt out after year #2 and you know he will as he wants the 8 – 10 year deal.

SU views Tucker as a solid player but not someone who carries the franchise like a Judge or a Soto. He doesn’t crave the limelight and will fit in nicely with the Dodgers who are loaded with global superstars. Does he put them over the top for 2026? Maybe but they may have already been over the top for this coming season with their current roster. SU says the Dodgers were smart to overpay for the shorter term contract. That is always the right strategy.

The bigger concern for SU is Bellinger and whether the Yankees have a chance to re-sign him now. The Mets were willing to give Tucker $50 million: does Steve Cohen now look to steal another star from Hal a year after he backed up the truck for Soto? He could also do a shorter term, over paid contract along the lines of Tucker. Or does Hal now have to add another year to give Bellinger a 6-year deal? And is Toronto still in the mix as they were also willing to give Tucker big dollars?

SU is worried that Cashman is putting too much faith in Jasson Dominguez, the latest in the Yankees’ line of overhyped prospects. Very good left-handed hitter who really can’t hit right handed and is somehow a terrible outfielder (I mean, how do you not teach these guys to catch the ball in the minor leagues? He has been in their system since he was 16). He is still very young and perhaps will show some good progress this year but the absence of moves this off season is worrying to Yankee fans. SU will put its faith in Cashman that he actually has a game plan now and will execute on that. But I am telling you: do not expect Trent Grisham to ever have a season like 2025 again.

Yankee fans are a spoiled group – no doubt about it. It comes from being in New York where the fans really care about wins and losses every game, and where there are high expectations to justify the ridiculous ticket and food prices. Plus this might be the last season we have baseball for a while.

We will soon see if Tucker is worth $60 million a year. The rich are getting richer in LA but Yankee fans can’t complain as there were many years where the Steinbrenner family did the exact same thing. Get over it and get to work Hal.