Behind 41 Points from Jayson Tatum, The Celtics Rallied To Beat The Hornets 140-129 In Overtime

 

    They are still probably not NBA title contenders but if the first four games are any indication, the Celtics (2-2 overall, 2-1 away) are going to be wildly entertaining to watch this season. Tonight in the second half of a back-to-back on the road, Boston was able to come away with a crazy 140-129 overtime victory at Charlotte's (3-1 overall, 1-1 home) Spectrum Center. Just to get to overtime, they had to close on a 20-8 run after the Hornets took a 114-102 lead midway through the final quarter. The C's had won their first game of the season 107-97 last night in Houston (1-2) but given the higher caliber opponent, this was a much more impressive result. Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum led the way with 41 points (his 9th career 40+ point game), eight assists and seven rebounds while Boston's other star Jaylen Brown dropped 30 points, nine rebounds and three steals. 

    It was a true team win since Celtics point guard Dennis Schroder (23 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds) had his best performance for his new club including nine points in the extra session. Center Robert Williams (12 points, 16 rebounds, 3 blocks) was a force on the glass, guard Marcus Smart (3 steals) was able to prevent the Hornets from winning at the end of regulation when he stole a lazy inbounds pass that was intended for Charlotte's young star LaMelo Ball (25 points, 9 assists, 5 rebounds). Even forward Jabari Parker (13 points, 5 rebounds) played a big role in the win off the bench because he scored 11 points in the first quarter when his team was gaining its bearings. Power forward Grant Williams added nine points as he continued his strong play to start this campaign. 

    It wasn't a full family reunion since former Celtics guard Terry Rozier sat out with an injury but there was Gordon Hayward (15 points, 6 rebounds) who logged a game-low plus/minus of minus-23 but hey, he had a cool haircut to show off. Charlotte's small forward Miles Bridges added a double-double (25 points, 10 rebounds) but Brown also threw down a vicious dunk on him which is all that most people will remember from his fine night's work. Shooting guard Kelly Oubre Jr. had a good game (19 points, 9 rebounds) and journeyman center Miles Plumlee notched a double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds, 3 blocks). Power forward Jalen McDaniels put up 13 points off the bench and veteran point guard Ish Smith scored 10 points in 23 minutes backing up Ball who surprisingly fouled out in OT-something that never happens to the truly elite of the NBA. 

    This evening was a throwback to the high-scoring 1980s in the league as neither team could really do anything effectively on defense. It was 33-33 after the first quarter and Boston took a two-point lead (68-66) into halftime. Head coach Ime Udoka's club came out a little slow in the third quarter-getting outscored 31-26-but they made up for it by taking the fourth quarter (28-25) and most importantly, dominating in overtime (18-7) as they beat Charlotte for the sixth time in their last seven meetings overall. The Celtics shot nearly five percent better than the Hornets from the field (49.5%-44.7%), they hit three more free throws (21-18), dished out seven more assists (33-26), had twice as many steals (8-4), blocked three more shots (9-6), turned the ball over two fewer times (14-12), registered five more second chance points (17-12) and scored seven more fast break points (22-15) than Charlotte who had 11 more points off turnovers (19-8) than the Celtics. 

    Of course it is way too early to know anything yet about these C's: their season-opening double overtime loss last Wednesday at the Knicks (2-1) 138-134 will likely go down as one of the games of the year in the league, then they no-showed in their home opener last Friday against the Raptors (1-3) 115-83. They had no choice but to beat the lowly Rockets and while it was tougher than it had to be, they got it done and they proved a little something by beating the Hornets who will be a playoff team again in the Eastern Conference. The Celts return to TD Garden on Wednesday (7:30, NBC Sports Boston) as they kick off a home-and-home with the Wizards (2-1). They'll head to DC on Saturday (5, NBC Sports Boston) for the rematch with Tatum's BFF Bradley Beal and Co.

The Astros Blanked The Red Sox 5-0 To Reach The World Series For The Third Time In Five Years

 

    The improbable 2021 postseason ride for the Red Sox ended abruptly tonight at Minute Maid Park as the Astros shut them out 5-0 in Game 6 of the ALCS. Houston advances to their third World Series in five years so it's safe to say that the better team ultimately won. It was quite a turnaround after the Sox led the ALCS 2-1 with their offense seemingly firing on all cylanders. Since then, they were blown out 9-2 in Game 4 after giving up seven runs in the ninth inning and they were embarrassed 9-1 in Game 5. Are you sensing a pattern here? Boston's bats went completely silent one last time as they could only manage two total hits and two walks against rookie Luis Garcia (5.2 IP, 1 hit, 7 Ks, 1 BB) and four Astros relievers. Houston will face either the Braves or the Dodgers in the World Series starting on Tuesday night, Atlanta currently leads the NLCS 3-2 with Game 6 tomorrow night (8:08, TBS). 

    With Boston sports fans high expectations, any season that doesn't end in a championship is always a disappointment but if we take a step back, you have to remember where these Red Sox were coming from after last year's nightmare Covid-19 season. They overachieved and it is pretty remarkable that they got this far with all their obvious issues and shortcomings. Let's hope this run inspires Boston's chief robot nerd Chaim Bloom to invest some money in starting pitching, relievers and even a few veteran utility players. This group can no longer sneak up on anyone and likewise, their expectations for next season will be way higher so the Red Sox will have to find more talent because the gap between them and the Astros was sizable as the three straight losses to close the series proved. 

    There were signs right away that this wouldn't be Boston's night as center fielder Kike Hernandez (who was incredible in the playoffs) dropped a long fly ball by DH and ALCS MVP Yordan Alvarez (4-for-4, 2 runs, 2B, 3B, RBI) in the first inning that scored Houston third baseman Alex Bregman. Red Sox starter Nathan Eovaldi (4.1 IP, 1 ER, 4 Ks, 1 BB) pitched well enough in a very tough spot but his teammates completely let him down. Hernandez barely missed another home run by mere inches in the sixth inning as his triple hit just below the yellow line on the left center field wall. Unfortunately, there were already two outs so the next batter-third baseman Rafael Devers-popped up to strand Kike at third base with Boston's best scoring chance of the evening.

    Alvarez scored on a double play ball in the bottom of the sixth inning for a 2-0 Houston lead and the Astros officially sealed it in the eighth inning when right fielder Kyle Tucker hit a three-run bomb to left field off Boston reliever Adam Ottavino that plated Alvarez and shortstop Carlos Correa. It was such a crazy season for the Red Sox in terms of some awesome highs and many terrible lows. However, I think the lasting memory from this year's club is that they helped bring (some) people back to the team. Particularly in October, they were wildly entertaining and hopefully this season will serve as a springboard for future campaigns and more titles. The Patriots (2-4) are not winning a Super Bowl anytime soon, the Celtics (0-2) appear to be regressing and the Bruins (2-1) are good but they will fold in the playoffs as usual so believe it or not, I think the Sox are the closest Boston team to a title (unless you count the Revs but who really does?). Baseball will never be what it once was in terms of popularity both here and in other markets but at its core, Boston is still a baseball city when the Red Sox are at least competitive. 

The Red Sox Took A 2-1 Series Lead After A 12-3 Demolition Of The Astros In Game 3 Of The ALCS

 

    So it turns out even in the weird time of openers and starting pitchers being less coveted than ever in MLB that they actually do still matter more than the analytics nerds want you to believe. Just ask the Astros who currently are in full scramble mode without hardly any legitimate starters left to turn to in the ALCS. The result is that the Red Sox destroyed them 12-3 tonight in Game 3 at Fenway Park. For those keeping track, Boston has outscored Houston 21-8 in Games 2 and 3 to take a 2-1 series lead with the next two games also at Fenway the following two nights. 

    This one was over fast since the Sox scored six runs in the second inning keyed by first baseman Kyle Schwarber's grand slam (the MLB record third of the playoffs for the Sox and his first HR of this round) that came on a 3-0 pitcher from Astros starter Jose Urquidy who had last appeared on Oct. 3 vs. Oakland-the regular season finale. Boston tacked on three more runs in the third inning and cruised from there as their starter Eduardo Rodriguez (6 IP, 3 ER, 5 hits, 7 Ks, 0 BBs) was superb except for a harmless three-run bomb allowed to Houston's promising young right fielder Kyle Tucker in the fourth inning when his team trailed 9-0. 

    The first two runs for the Red Sox came on an RBI single by catcher Christian Vazquez that plated left fielder Alex Verdugo then DH J.D. Martinez came around to score on a ground out. Vazquez added another RBI single in the third that scored right fielder Hunter Renfroe then second baseman Christian Arroyo hit a line drive that just cleared the Green Monster for a two-run homer (his 1st of the series). No matter what scrub reliever that Astros manager Dusty Baker used (and he inserted five of them after Urquidy was done in the second inning), it hardly mattered as Boston scored more runs off of four of them. 

    Martinez crushed a two-run homer (his second of the series) of his own that went over the Monster in the sixth inning which scored third baseman Rafael Devers. Raffy put the final exclamation on an evening full of fireworks with an opposite field shot over the Monster in the eighth inning-also his second home run of the series. That vaunted Houston offense never really showed up in Game 3 as a trio of Red Sox relievers-Hansel Robles, Martin Perez and Hirokazu Sawamura-each pitched scoreless frames on 12 pitches or less. You can't overstate how important E-Rod's performance was in terms of saving the bullpen for other games.   

    I don't believe it's hyperbole to say that Game 4 tomorrow night (8:08, FS1) is basically a must-win for the Astros. Their pitching is in shambles therefore I can't see them reeling off three consecutive wins against Boston's on fire offense. Nick Pivetta gets his first start of the postseason for the Red Sox against the ghost of Zack Greinke who like Urquidy before tonight's beating hasn't appeared yet in the playoffs. Haha what could possibly go wrong there? Improbably, the Sox are only two wins away from the World Series and if they take care of business at Fenway these next few games, they won't even have to return to Houston.

The Pats Came Close Again But Couldn't Beat A Good Team As They Fell 35-29 In OT Vs. Dallas

 

    The Patriots (2-4 overall, 0-4 home) had another great opportunity to beat one of the better teams in the NFL this evening at Gillette Stadium but just like the Bucs (5-1) game two weeks ago, they came up short as they lost 35-29 in overtime to the Cowboys (5-1 overall, 2-1 away). In many ways, it would have been a miracle if Pats head coach Bill Belichick and his team had found a way to pull this one out since Dallas is clearly a more talented and much deeper team. The Cowboys recorded nearly twice as many first downs (32-17), they totalled over 200 more yards (567-335), held the ball for over 12 more minutes than the home team (39:17-26:51) and ran a whopping 32 more plays (82-50). So why the hell wasn't this an easy blowout win for America's Team? That was mostly because they were called for an absurd amount of penalties (12 for 115 yards) and they had two backbreaking turnovers in the red zone. 

    Much like the Tampa showdown, I don't think many logical people believed this would be all that competitive so kudos to the Patriots for almost pulling this off. Still, how many times can we pat them on the head for a close loss? This was already the third time this season that they have lost by one score.  That gets old really fast, especially when you have a chance to win in overtime only to stall on your lone drive and have Dallas' star quarterback Dak Prescott (36-of-51 for 445 yards, 3 TDs, INT) hit his speedy receiver CeeDee Lamb (9 catches, 149 yards, 2 TDs) with a walk-off 35-yard touchdown pass. 

    The end of the fourth quarter was insane as the Cowboys looked to have it sealed when their outstanding young cornerback Trevon Diggs (brother of Bills WR Stefon) picked off Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones (15-of-21 for 229 yards, 2 TDs, INT) and ran the pick-6 back 42 yards to put Dallas ahead 26-21 (they failed on the 2-point conversion) with 2:27 left in regulation. However, on the next play Jones hit New England receiver Kendrick Bourne for a 75-yard touchdown catch-and-run. The Pats got the two-point conversion as well with Jones finding wideout Jakobi Meyers on the goal-line. The issue at that point was that there was too much time remaining and the Patriots' defense was completely gassed. Cowboys kicker Greg Zuerlein had missed an early field goal but he was nails on a 49-yard attempt with 20 seconds left to go that tied it at 29. 

    This is the first time since 1993 (aka Bill Parcells' first year in charge here) that the Patriots have started 0-4 at home. In the past (mostly because they had Tom Brady), this would have been a game that they would have stolen. They scored first and led 14-7 after the first quarter and 14-10 at halftime. New England running back Damien Harris (18 carries, 101 yards) held onto the ball this week and he had a four-yard touchdown run to make it 7-0 with kicker Nick Folk's extra point. Prescott and the Cowboys answered as he found tight end Blake Jarwin with a one-yard touchdown pass on a simple play action fake. Zuerlein's point after tied it at seven but New England went ahead 14-7 on the following drive: tight end Hunter Henry caught a touchdown for the third week in a row, this time from 20 yards out and Folk's PAT made it 14-7 in favor of the good guys. The only points in the second quarter was a 30-yard field goal by Zuerlein. Prescott fumbled on the goal-line when he dove on a quarterback sneak but Pats linebacker Ja'Whaun Bentley knocked the ball free and fellow linebacker Kyle Van Noy recovered it. Earlier in the frame, safety Kyle Dugger grabbed his first career interception after cornerback Justin Bethel deflected the pass intended for Dallas receiver Cedrick Wilson in the end zone. 

    Dallas took their first lead in the third quarter when Dak found Lamb for a pretty one-yard fade to the corner. Zuerlein's point after gave the Cowboys a 17-14 advantage which they took into the fourth quarter. Zuerlein's 45-yard field goal put the Cowboys up 20-14 early in the final stanza but Patriots rookie running back Rhamondre Stevenson rumbled in for a one-yard touchdown run that staked his club to a 21-20 lead thanks to Folk's PAT. Cowboys defensive end Randy Gregory sacked Jones twice and nearly killed him both times since he basically got to him untouched. New England's offensive line continues to be a nightmare.  

    The Patriots should finally get that first home win of 2021 next Sunday afternoon (1, CBS) as they host the Jets (1-4) who they beat 25-6 at MetLife Stadium in Week 2. Honestly though, will that prove anything? So far, the Jets and Texans (1-5) are the only teams they have managed to beat this season. That Week 1 loss to the Dolphins (1-5) looks terrible at this point along with their no-show against the Saints (3-2). The bottom line is that this looks like a non-playoff team for the second season in a row. That does not sound like much but remembering how spoiled we were for 20 years makes this particularly painful. The Patriots were the model franchise in sports for most of those two decades and now they appear to be a rudderless franchise filled with so many aging veterans, bad draft picks and a stubborn old head coach who is obviously nowhere near the same guy without the best quarterback in NFL history on his side.

Marchand Scored Twice & The Bruins Opened The 2021-22 Season With A 3-1 Win Against The Stars

 

    It was not the most thrilling of season openers but it is tough to argue with the final result as the Bruins beat the Stars (1-1) 3-1 this evening at the TD Garden. Left wing Brad Marchand opened the scoring on a penalty shot and he fittingly wrapped it up with an empty-netter. Between those tallies, Dallas center Luke Glendening and B's left wing Jake DeBrusk traded goals. Boston improved to 4-1 in season openers under head coach Bruce Cassidy and they hardly looked rusty as you might expect since their last preseason game was on October 6. Bruins rookie goaltender Jeremy Swayman made 27 saves as he begins his first full season in Boston as the No. 1 starter and Boston's penalty kill went a perfect 6-for-6. Stars goaltender Braden Holtby (37 saves) apparently lost many of his super powers vs. the Bruins once he left Washington a few years ago because now he is just another good but not great goalie. 

    Marchand used his sneaky speed to gain a step on the Dallas defense and he got hooked then pushed down by Stars defenseman Ryan Suter to earn the penalty shot at 17:38 of the first period. The last time that Boston's first goal of the year came on a penalty shot was in 2013 when now assistant coach Chris Kelly got it done. Oddly enough for the team who had played a game already this season-a 3-2 win at the Rangers on Wednesday-the Stars came out slow except when left wing Roope Hintz's shot hit the post but thankfully stayed out of the net. Still, Boston leading 1-0 after the first period felt like it should have been more since they outshot Dallas by a huge margin (17-5).

    The Stars came alive in the second period and tied it at one at 9:15 as center Luke Glendening snapped a low shot by Swayman. His first goal of the season was assisted by center Tanner Kero. It was tied at one after two periods but the B's did not take too long in the third period to regain the lead. New center Erik Haula looked like he had the puck bounce off his stick but left wing Jake DeBrusk was right there in front of Holtby to quickly knock it in for the go-ahead goal at 4:43. The other newest Bruin on that line-right wing Nick Foligno-notched the secondary helper. Boston clinched the two points at 18:23 as right wing David Pastrnak found Marchand racing to the net where he was able to flip the puck into the empty cage before Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen awkwardly knocked him over. Haha NESN's Jack Edwards was screaming about it being a slew foot until the replay made him (somewhat) eat his crazy words. 

    Boston's practice that was scheduled for tomorrow was cancelled, giving them more time to get ready for Patriots (2-3) vs. Cowboys (4-1) tomorrow afternoon (4:25, CBS). At Warrior Ice Arena on Monday morning, the Bruins will start preparations for a short two-game road trip with stops in Philadelphia (0-0-1) on Wednesday (7:30, TNT) and then in Buffalo (2-0) on Friday (7,  NESN). Those are two clubs that they have owned for years so we'll see if that continues in their first meetings of this season. I figure that Swayman will face the Flyers and perhaps backup goaltender Linus Ullmark will take on his old team-the Sabres-and make his B's debut in the third game of the season. It certainly does not feel like hockey season yet with the warm temperatures outside plus all the other local teams in action but I'm sure once the weather gets worse, it will be time to focus on the Black and Gold a little more closely. 

Red Sox Earn The Split In Houston With A 9-5 Victory In Game 2 Behind A Pair Of Grand Slams

 

    Coming into the ALCS, we were all fearful of Houston's lethal offense and for good reason: they are deep and loaded with playoff experience. At the same time, we also have to recognize that Boston's lineup is just as dangerous as illustarted by today's 9-5 win by the Red Sox in Game 2 at Minute Maid Park. With that important victory, the series heads to Boston tied 1-1 with the next three games at Fenway Park. The final score is a bit misleading since Boston was up 8-0 in the second inning after a grand slams by DH J.D. Martinez and third baseman Rafael Devers (the first time in MLB history that a team hit two grand slams in the same playoff game) in consecutive frames. Boston's center fielder Kike Hernandez continued to be the hottest hitter on the planet as he crushed his fifth home run of the postseason (tying a Red Sox record for most HRs in an entire postseason) and Nathan Eovaldi (5.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 hits, 3 Ks, 1 BB) gave the Sox another solid outing.

    Houston's rookie starting pitcher Leury Garcia was no match for Eovaldi as he only lasted 1+ inning before he was pulled with a fake injury (right knee discomfort). Former Rays great Jake Odorizzi followed Garcia and he also got knocked around as he allowed four earned runs and seven hits in four innings. Martinez's grand slam went to the opposite field as it scored first baseman Kyle Schwarber, Devers and Verdugo. Devers' grand slam in the next inning landed in a similar spot down the right field line and it plated catcher Kevin Plawecki, second baseman Christian Arroyo and Hernandez. Both of those memorable blasts were the first home runs of the series for Martinez and Devers while Hernandez already has three in the first two games against the Astros following his solo shot to left field in the fourth inning. 

    Houston got on the board in the fourth with an RBI double from right fielder Kyle Tucker that scored DH Yordan Alvarez. First baseman Yuli Gurriel followed with a two-run single that brought in shortstop Carlos Correa and Tucker. Red Sox manager Alex Cora's bullpen was good at first as Northeastern's Adam Ottavino got the last two outs in the sixth inning before the superb Garrett Whitlock pitched two scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts. Lefty scrub Darwinzon Hernandez came on in the ninth inning with a 9-3 advantage but it was not nearly enough as he gave up solo home runs to Gurriel and pinch hitter Jason Castro. This forced Cora to bring in Ryan Brasier who retired Astros second baseman Jose Altuve on a deep fly ball to center field to end it. Whew. 

    I'm not saying it's going to happen since I believe that Houston is a better team than Tampa Bay but the Rays did win Game 1 of the ALDS before losing Game 2 at home and coming to Boston where they lost Games 3 and 4 to get eliminated from the playoffs. With three games in three days at Fenway starting on Monday night (8:08, FS1), the Sox have a wonderful opportunity to take control of this series and put themselves in a great position to reach yet another World Series. Including the Wild Card game vs. the Yankees, Boston is 3-0 at home this postseason and it should be an awesome atmosphere for these pivotal ALCS contests against a budding rival.

B's Signed Defenseman Charlie McAvoy To The Largest Deal (8 Yrs, $76 Million) In Team History

 

    On the eve of their 2021-22 regular season opener tomorrow night (7, NESN) at TD Garden vs. Dallas (1-0), the Bruins finalized the most important contract issue facing the team: they inked young franchise defenseman Charlie McAvoy to a huge eight-year extension worth $76 million. It is the biggest contract in team history and it shows just how much they believe in the 23-year old BU product who is about to enter his fifth season in the NHL. McAvoy finished fifth in the Norris Trophy (given to the league's best defenseman) last season and this deal makes him currently the fourth highest paid defenseman in the NHL. With that obviously comes more pressure and even higher expectations but that is nothing new for the former first-round pick (14th overall in 2016) who you will remember made his professional debut in the playoffs against Ottawa-the same year that he was drafted which is extremely rare these days in hockey.

    Hopefully B's captain Patrice Bergeron is around for many more years to come but whenever he retires from the Bruins (please don't make me picture him in another uniform), McAvoy looks like a great candidate to be the next captain of the Bruins. He's tough, he competes hard every shift, he is physical and does not shy away from very difficult matchups with the best players in the world while logging heavy minutes (average time on ice of 22:51 for his career). If we are nitpicking, his offensive game is what still needs the most work. McAvoy has never topped more than seven goals or 27 assists in a full season. His defensive game is more full grown since he has been at least a plus-14 in each campaign including a career-high plus-24 in 2019-20 and he has blocked a total of 382 shots and registered 421 hits. In 235 career regular season games, he has accumulated 24 goals, 98 assists and he is plus-80. In 65 career playoff games, he has five goals and 27 assists, 119 blocked shots and 147 hits. 

    Charlie will start this season once again as part of the top defensive pairing along with a member of the first power play unit (which should help bump up his offensive stats). He is not huge for a No. 1 defenseman (6 feet tall, 208 pounds) but he skates well and plays bigger than his size in terms of throwing monster hits and blocking plenty of shots. He has always been a natural leader dating back to his brief two years at BU and also playing on the U.S. national team that won a gold medal at the World Juniors in 2017. At least for now, Tuukka Rask and David Krejci are no longer here with the B's and sadly, Bergeron and Brad Marchand will not play for the Bruins forever either. The positive news is that the next generation of Bruins players should be in good hands with McAvoy locked in for a long time.

The Second Walk-Off Win In Two Nights Sends The Red Sox To The ALCS & Ends Tampa's Season

 

    What did I tell you? Anything can happen in the MLB playoffs, especially in a shorter series format. In the 2021 regular season, there was no question that the 100 win Rays were a far superior team to the Red Sox. However, get those same clubs in the pressure cooker of the ALDS and suddenly, all of Tampa's flaws (no starting pitching, shaky lineup, too many young guys, a robot manager, etc) is exposed for all of the world to see. Boston no-showed in Game 1 getting shut out 5-0 but they never looked back after that. They destroyed Tampa 14-6 in Game 2, won Game 3 by a score of 6-4 in 13 innings on Christian Vazquez's two-run homer last night and this evening at Fenway Park, they finished the job with a 6-5 victory at Fenway thanks to the hottest hitter in baseball center fielder Kike Hernandez's walk-off sacrifice fly that scored pinch runner Danny Santana.

    Nobody can question the Rays' method, to a point. Using analytics and an excellent farm system, they routinely outperform expectations and prove that you can get it done with a low budget. Tonight, I'm not sure if their nerds had fallen asleep when they were putting together their pre-game spread sheets for Tampa Bay's manager Kevin Cash but the fact that they even pitched to Kike with first base open (runners on 2nd and 3rd) and one out was puzzling to say the least. Bigger picture, using pitchers as openers and changing their roles from game to game doesn't work in the biggest contests against the toughest opponents. The Rays reached the World Series in 2008 (losing in 5 games vs. the Phillies) and last season vs. the Dodgers (losing in 6 games) so until they actually win a championship, you can't convince me that analytics are everything in baseball. You still have to use your eyes, brain and natural instincts in conjunctions with the endless numbers. 

    The Red Sox built an early 5-0 lead thanks to batting around and scoring five runs in the third inning. With the Rays on the ropes, it looked like it might be a blowout in favor of the home team. However, credit to Tampa as they methodically chipped away against Boston starter Eduardo Rodriguez (5 IP, 2 ER, 3 hits, 6 Ks, 0 BBs) along with relievers Tanner Houck and Ryan Brasier. The Rays scored once in the fifth inning, twice in the sixth inning and twice in the eighth inning to tie things up at five. 

    Boston's star third baseman Rafael Devers (3-for-4) had the biggest swing of the game as he lofted a three-run shot (scoring Vazquez and first baseman Kyle Schwarber) to center field for a 3-0 advantage on his second home run of the playoffs. Left fielder Alex Verdugo added an RBI double that plated shortstop Xander Bogaerts and DH J.D. Martinez knocked in Dugie with an RBI single. Tampa's rally started innocently enough with an RBI groundout in the fifth. Their best player shortstop Wander Franco (who is just 20 years old!) blasted a two-run bomb (that scored center fielder Kevin Kiermaier as well) to almost the same exact spot as Devers, his second homer of the playoffs cut it to 5-3 in the sixth. Brasier melted down in the eighth as he allowed the two runs without recording an out. Kiermaier (2 runs) roped an RBI double that scored catcher Mike Zunino and right fielder Randy Arozarena (2 hits) knotted things at five with an RBI single that scored Kiermaier. 

    The two Red Sox relievers that excelled in Game 4 were lefty Josh Taylor who worked a 1-2-3 seventh inning with a strikeout on 10 pitches and Garrett Whitlock (1-0) who pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth inning that only required 15 total pitches. The other AL series has Houston leading Chicago 2-1 after today's game in Chitown was rained out. Whoever wins that series will have home-field advantage vs. the Red Sox and the ALCS is set to start on Friday night. Boston is the last AL East team alive in the playoffs after they held off the Blue Jays for a Wild Card spot, eliminated the Yankees in said Wild Card Game and now they sent the Rays packing as well. It might seem improbable but by reaching MLB's version of the Final Four, the Red Sox have turned this season into an unexpected success with a real chance to reach another World Series. I expect the Astros to beat the White Sox and if that happens, Boston will have their hands full since I believe that Houston has been their worst matchup for years. Regardless, we have quickly been reminded how fun October baseball can be and now we have at least four more games of it to savor. 

Christian Vazquez's Epic Walk-Off HR In The 13th Inning Puts The Sox One Win Away From The ALCS

 

    After getting blanked by the Rays 5-0 in Game 1 of the ALDS on Thursday night, the Red Sox responded with a resounding 14-6 victory on Friday in Game 2 at Tropicana Field but they topped that today by surviving a 13-inning marathon (fitttingly a day before the first Boston Marathon to ever be held in October) and winning 6-4 on a walk-off two-run homer (the first of the playoffs) by catcher Christian Vazquez. Suddenly, they have a 2-1 series lead (remember it is only a best-of-five series) with a chance to eliminate Tampa tomorrow night (7:07, FS1). Vazquez is the obvious hero for the Sox but their starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (5 IP, 2 ER, 3 hits, 8 Ks, 1 BB) was good and Nick Pivetta (1-0) was brilliant with four scoreless innings of relief (with 7 strikeouts) to get the win.   

    Boston outhit Tampa Bay 15-10 with center fielder Kike Hernandez (3-for-6, HR, 2 RBIs), first baseman Kyle Schwarber (3-for-5, HR, 2 runs) and second baseman Christian Arroyo (3-for-5, 2B, run) all having huge performances at the plate. Other than Vazquez's bomb (only the 8th time in MLB history that a catcher has hit a walk-off HR in extra innings), the play that will be remembered for eternity from Game 3 was a bizarre ground-rule double that turned out to be an enormous break for the home team. With pinch hitter Yandy Diaz on first base after a one-out single, center fielder Kevin Kiermaier roped a two-out double to right field that bounced off the wall, then ricocheted off right fielder Hunter Renfroe and over the wall. Diaz would have easily scored the go-ahead run but according to the MLB rule, it was a ground-rule double which meant that Diaz did not score and Kiermaier could not advance to third base. Instead, Pivetta struck out catcher Mike Zunino (0-for-6 with 4 strikeouts) to end the top of the 13th inning. 

    Renfroe walked with one out in the bottom of the 13th inning against Tampa Bay's reliever Luis Patino (0-1). That set the stage for the most memorable hit of Vazquez's Red Sox/MLB career as he hit a fly ball that just got over the Green Monster and into the front row of seats up there. Each club had a two-run lead earlier in the game: left fielder Austin Meadows hit a two-run blast (his 1st of the playoffs) to right in the first inning that scored Rays phenom Wander Franco for a 2-0 advantage. Boston chipped away with a lead-off shot by Schwarber (his first of the postseason) in the first inning then Kike's RBI single in the third inning plated Arroyo with the tying run. Third baseman Rafael Devers (did you know that his arm/wrist doesn't feel well?) followed with another run-scoring single that scored Schwarber and gave the Sox a 3-2 lead-their first of Game 3. 

    Hernandez set a franchise record with a hit in seven consecutive plate appearances and he put an exclamation point on that with a solo home run (his 2nd of the series) to left in the fifth inning. Tampa's two-run deficit only lasted until the eighth inning when Franco hit a solo homer (his 1st of the playoffs) to left and outfielder Randy Arozarena tied it on an RBI double that scored pinch runner Manuel Margot. Starting extra innings with a runner on second base is only a regular season thing hence why this contest took over five ours to complete. Red Sox manager Alex Cora had to mix and match with five other relievers before he left Pivetta (who originally was supposed to start Game 4) in there for good. By using an opener-Drew Rasmussen who lasted two innings-Rays manager Kevin Cash was forced to put in seven (!) other relievers before Patino fell apart in his second inning of work.

    As you can imagine, the Red Sox no doubt want to end this if possible on Monday. They want no part of a winner-take-all Game 5 on Wednesday back at the Trop. Furthermore, there is plenty of pressure on Tampa as well since they reached the World Series last year and rolled to an AL East title thanks to 100 regular season victories. Eduardo Rodriguez could not get out of the second inning in Game 1 vs. Tampa but he will receive a major chance to redeem himself in Game 4 because he will start for Boston. Besides Pivetta, all the other Red Sox pitchers that came out of the bullpen tonight threw less than 20 pitches meaning I think they would be available if needed tomorrow night. The most effective were Ryan Brasier (who pitched a scoreless inning with 1 strikeout) and Garrett Whitlock who nailed down the last four outs (3 strikeouts) to send the tight matchup to extra innings. Thanks to Chicago's 12-6 pasting of Houston this evening, no teams will be swept in the ALDS or NLDS this season. All four series will be in action tomorrow so it should be a great day (and night) for baseball.

Down 22-9 In The Third Quarter, The Pats Rallied For A Yucky 25-22 Win Vs. The Tanking Texans

 

    This afternoon in Houston at NRG Stadium was one of those rare occasions in the NFL when a win felt much more like a loss. Sure, we are happy that the Patriots (2-3 overall, 2-0 away) found a way to beat the lowly Texans (1-4 overall, 1-2 home) 25-22 but when you dig a little deeper, you see the myriad issues facing New England in 2021. With all the mistakes that they made (fumbling on the goal-line, throwing an interception, missing a PAT and giving up multiple big plays to a dreadful offense), the Pats were lucky that they were playing Houston and not a half decent team. Other than say the Lions (0-5), Jaguars (0-5), Jets (1-4) or Giants (1-4), it's doubtful that New England would have beat anyone else on this day. 

    In a battle of rookie quarterbacks, the unheralded Davis Mills (21-of-29, 312 yards, 3 TDs) of the Texans outperformed Mac Jones (23-of-30, 231 yards, TD, INT) of the Patriots. However, like last week when Jones shockingly outplayed Tom Brady but still lost, Mills' stellar play wasn't enough to push his team to a victory. Right from the start, Houston punched New England in the mouth Tyson Fury style on Deontay Wilder. On the opening drive of the game, the Texans had the ball for 10:06 and went 79 yards in 18 plays ending with a 11-yard touchdown pass from Mills to some Canadian tight end named Antony Auclair. The only good part of that miserable situation was when Texans kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn missed the PAT giving the home team a 6-0 lead. 

    The Pats answered right back on their first drive (10 plays and 60 yards in 5:37) with running back Damien Harris slamming in a one-yard touchdown run. Unfortunately, he later fumbled in a similar spot. It was a rough day for kickers all around the NFL today and that extended to Pats kicker Nick Folk who also missed his first PAT. Yuck. Houston only needed three plays on their ensuing drive to retake the lead. Mills threw a long pass to journeyman wide receiver Chris Moore (5 catches, 109 yards) that eluded New England's de-facto No. 1 cornerback J.C. Jackson and went for a 67-yard touchdown pass. Somewhere in Carolina, Stephon Gilmore must have been chuckling. Once again, Fairbairn couldn't get the job done as he scuffed another PAT leaving the score at 12-6. He bounced back late in the first half with a 33-yard field goal then Folk hit a 52-yard field goal with two seconds left in the second quarter that cut it to 15-9 in favor of Houston.

    Patriots fans hoping for a quick turnaround in the third quarter must have been pissed to see them fall even futher behind as Texans cornerback Lonnie Johnson Jr. picked off Jones on the second play of the frame and that was soon followed up by a 37-yard flea flicker from Mills to another scrub wide receiver Chris Conley for a touchdown and a 22-9 advantage after Fairbairn finally hit a point after. For some stupid reason, the Texans tried to fool the Patriots by pretending like they were going to run a fake punt at the end of their next drive but instead their punt was blocked. Folk added a pair of field goals (from 52 and 32) to trim Houston's lead to 22-15 after three quarters. The Pats finally woke up in the fourth quarter as they tied it on a pretty 13-yard touchdown pass from Jones to tight end Hunter Henry. New England's defense did not allow another point: Matt Judon (4 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 QB hits, fumble recovery) continued to play like a Pro Bowler and his fellow linebacker Jamie Collins made a timely sack of Mills in crunch time in the start of his third stint in Foxborough.

    Jones and the offense took basically all the time off of the clock with one last drive (15 plays, 84 yards in 7:00) and Folk finished the job by nailing a chip shot 21-yard field goal with 15 seconds left in regulation. By virtue of New York's (1-4) 27-20 loss to Atlanta (2-3) this morning in London and Miami (1-4) getting blown out 45-17 by Brady and the Bucs (4-1), the Patriots snuck into second-place in the AFC East not that it means anything this season with the Bills (4-1) sure to run away with it-tonight they rolled 38-20 in Kansas City (2-3). New England will be tested once again next Sunday (4:25, CBS) as they host one of the better teams in the league-the Cowboys (4-1)-who destroyed the Giants (1-4) 44-20 earlier today. Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott is playing like an MVP candidate and his team has won four games in a row after dropping the season opener at Tampa. If Mills gave the Pats defense so much trouble, what will Prescott be able to do to them? Our only hope for the Patriots to avoid starting 0-4 (!) at Gillette Stadium this season is that they show up (like they did vs. Tampa Bay) in a much more sexy matchup.

The Patriots Traded Cornerback Stephon Gilmore To The Panthers For A Sixth-Round Pick In 2023

 

    The Stephon Gilmore era as a Patriot came to a predictable but nonetheless disappointing end this morning. At first, reports said that New England was about to release him but a few hours later, he was flipped to Carolina for a sixth-round draft pick in 2023. That makes a huge difference, not! (Borat voice). Ugh, look we all knew that his days were numbered here last year once he held out and suffering a season-ending quad injury did not help matters. He began this season on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list so he never actually played a game in 2021. Still, he just turned 31 years old a few weeks ago and this is a guy who was the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year in 2019 so the fact that Pats head coach/GM Bill Belichick basically gave him away for nothing is a joke. 

    Many of us have started to question Bill's ability to coach in today's modern NFL but don't get me started on his numerous shortcomings as a GM. The scary part is that Gilmore was the team's best player and the closest thing they currently have to a No. 1 cornerback is J.C. Jackson who is going to be a free agent after this season so is there any doubt that he will soon be gone too? Gilmore had four mostly great seasons as a Patriot: he made 13 interceptions (11 in the regular season & 2 in the playoffs) and scored two touchdowns, he went to three Pro Bowls, was named an All-Pro twice and most importantly was a key part of their last Super Bowl title in 2019 vs. the Rams. Not only does he basically get to go home now (he grew up in Rock Hill, South Carolina) but he will supposedly return in Week 7 when he's eligible to get back on the field and he wants to play out the year on his current deal-something that he had no interest in doing here. 

    This is yet another star player for the Pats that got run out of town for having the audacity to want to be paid what he is actually worth. Haha the nerve of that guy! The problem now is that without Tom Brady the greatest quarterback in NFL history on his side, Belichick is going to have a hard time attracting top free agents like Gilmore (who was signed after spending his first five NFL seasons with Buffalo). New England was a mess last season and finished 7-9 as they missed the playoffs. This season, rookie quarterback Mac Jones has looked promising but the fact is that they have started 1-3 so it is going to be an uphill battle to get into playoff contention. If the team continues to slide into mediocrity, what will be the draw to come here? Our crappy weather or mediocre home stadium and facilities? Bill completely bungled one of his few really valuable assets that he had left. He should have traded Gilmore before last season, instead he is left with almost nothing in return for a guy who pretty recently was a top player in the league. 

Sox Live To See Another Day While The Yanks Are Done After Losing 6-2 In The AL Wild Card Game

 

    Last night was the first time that the Red Sox had ever appeared in the winner-take-all AL Wild Card game and it didn't disappoint as they dispatched the Yankees 6-2 at Fenway Park. With the win, the Red Sox advance to the best-of-five ALDS vs. another AL East foe-Tampa Bay-starting tomorrow night (8:07, FS1). Boston's starter Nathan Eovaldi (5.1 IP, 1 ER, 4 hits, 8 Ks, 0 BBs) easily outdueled New York's ace Gerrit Cole (2+ IP, 3 ER, 4 hits, 3 Ks, 2 BBs). The Yankees' bullpen was supposed to be one of their biggest advantages but it didn't matter since Cole put them in such a hole, haha apparently that's what $324 million buys you these days in MLB.   

Neither offense did much: Boston had seven hits while New York managed only six. The difference was that the Red Sox made their hits really count. Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts hit a two-run bomb to straight away center field in the first and DH Kyle Schwarber cranked a solo blast to right field in the third inning. Left fielder Alex Verdugo was also a star for the home team with an RBI double in the sixth and a two-run single in the seventh inning. All that New York's top heavy lineup could provide was a solo shot by first baseman Anthony Rizzo that cut it to 3-1 in the sixth inning while DH Giancarlo Stanton (3-for-4) hit a meaningless solo shot in the ninth inning when the Yanks were trailing 6-1.  

    Ironically for a team that was so shaky defensively all season, the play of the game came from a sweet relay throw from Boston's center fielder Kike Hernandez to Bogaerts to catcher Kevin Plawecki. Stanton just missed a homer (the ball hit a few feet under the lip of the Green Monster) and New York's bozo third base coach Phil Nevin sent right fielder Aaron Judge home with one out. That stupid decision did not turn out well for the visitors as Kike quickly threw the ball to Bogaerts who pegged a perfect strike to Plawecki who got the tag down on a sliding Judge. It was an awesome sequence that saved Red Sox reliever Ryan Brasier who escaped the inning by having left fielder Joey Gallo pop out. 

    Boston rookie Tanner Houck pitched a dominant seventh inning with two strikeouts in a clean frame and Hansel Robles followed with a 1-2-3 eighth inning including a strikeout. The other prized Red Sox rookie pitcher Garrett Whitlock allowed that Stanton homer in the ninth but that was it. By surviving the Wild Card game, I believe Boston is playing with house money from here on out. Tampa won the division and 100 games this season, which following their World Series appearance last year proves that they are not a fluke. They are the best team in the American League and one of the top clubs in baseball so they will be favored but anything can happen in the playoffs, particularly in a short series. Game 2 is on Friday night (7:02, FS1) at the Trop while Game 3 is on Sunday afternoon (4:07, MLB Network) back here. If necessary,  Game 4 would be on Marathon Monday in Boston while a do-or-die Game 5 would be on Wednesday in Tampa Bay. Get excited everybody, the Red Sox are in the mix for the World Series this October!

In The Most Hyped Regular Season Game In NFL History, The Bucs Squeaked By The Pats 19-17

 

    The most anticipated regular season game in New England sports history took place tonight at Gillette Stadium as quarterback Tom Brady and his Buccaneers (3-1 overall, 1-1 away) returned for a showdown with his former head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots (1-3 overall, 0-3 home). What was expected to be a complete blowout by the Super Bowl champs from Tampa Bay actually turned into a nailbiter but in the end they held on for a 19-17 victory as New England kicker Nick Folk's potential go-ahead 56-yard field goal with 55 seconds left in regulation hit the left upright and bounced harmlessly away. With the win, Brady (22-of-43 for 269 yards) became the fourth QB in NFL history (joining Peyton Manning, Brett Favre and Drew Brees) to beat all 32 teams. 

    It is not even close to a hot take to say that Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones (31-of-40 for 275 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) outplayed Brady by a noticable margin, the problem was that the home team had a pair of turnovers and allowed three more sacks (4-1) while the more talented Bucs were way better on third-downs (9-of-19 vs. 2-of-9), ran 20 more plays (74-54) and possessed the ball for almost eight additional minutes (33:55-26:05). Moral victories are useless in professional sports but this felt like one of those rare occasions where the Pats earned plenty of respect by the way that they performed. However, they will need to carry it through the rest of the season to make it really mean anything. It should be easy to get up for a huge game like this, the question is if they can similarly be ready to go say next Sunday afternoon (1, CBS) at Houston (1-3) who got blasted 40-0 earlier today by Buffalo (3-1) and look like they are in the discussion for the worst team in the league. 

    All week we wondered how New England's suspect defense would slow down Tampa's lethal offense and it turns out that a couple of unexpected factors played into that: the absence of former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (punctured lung, fractured ribs) was a big loss for the Buccaneers particularly in the red zone (where they settled for five field goal attempts, four of which they made) along with the fact that it poured for most of the night. With basically no running game (a total of eight carries for -1 yard), Pats offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels had to get extra creative and he did with nine different guys catching passes from Jones while they also successfully ran two trick plays that Tampa had no chance to stop. Patriots wide receiver Jakobi Meyers had a game-high eight catches (for 70 yards on 12 targets) along with a pair of throws for 45 yards, did you know he was a quarterback at NC State? Brady did not find as many guys as Jones but the difference was the caliber of players that TB12 has on his new team: wide receivers Mike Evans (7 catches, game-high 75 yards), former Patriot for a second Antonio Brown (7 catches, 63 yards) and Chris Godwin (3 catches, 55 yards) would all be the No. 1 receiver on the Pats or many other clubs. Running back Leonard Fournette (91 yards rushing, 47 yards receiving) was Tampa's best player all game, who saw that coming? 

    Patriots owner Robert Kraft had to enjoy seeing all the money that he spent in the offseason on free agents finally come together in the same contest as New England's tight ends Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith each caught a touchdown from Jones while wide receivers Kendrick Bourne (5 catches, 58 yards) and Nelson Agholor (3 catches, 55 yards) both went over 50+ receiving yards. Meanwhile, linebacker Matt Judon (4 tackles, 3 assists, sack, 2 tackles for loss, 2 QB hits) continued to be the best defensive player for the Patriots and it's not even close. Unless you are a weatherperson with a gambling problem, I doubt that many people took the under for this matchup but that quickly came into view with a 3-0 first quarter in favor of Tampa (thanks to a 29-yard field goal by Ryan Succop). Jones and Co. put together an awesome drive (11 plays, 74 yards, 6:21) in the second quarter that ended with a 11-yard touchdown catch and run by Henry (his first score as a Patriot) then a point after by kicker Nick Folk. Succop hit a 44-yard field goal with 13 seconds left in the first half but the Pats shockingly led 7-6 at halftime.

    You kept waiting for Tampa Bay to turn it on and leave New England in their dust but it never happened. Bucs running back Ronald Jones II ran for an eight-yard touchdown late in the third quarter which along with Succop's PAT gave the Buccaneers a 13-7 advantage heading into the fourth quarter. Once again, the Pats wrestled back the lead with a pretty drive (7 plays, 77 yards, 3:32) capped off from a one-yard catch by Smith and another PAT from Folk. Tampa marched down to the red zone once again but New England's defense held them to a 27-yard field goal by Succop that gave them a slim 16-14 lead. Folk hit the exact same chip shot field goal to hand the Patriots their final lead of the game at 17-16. After missing a 36-yard field goal very early in the second quarter, credit to Succop for nailing a 48-yard field goal with 1:57 left in regulation. Jones brought his team to the 37-yard line with 59 seconds left before Belichick opted to attempt the 56-yard kick rather than try to get a little more yardage (he had 1 timeout left). 

    It is the first time since 1995 that the Patriots have started 0-3 at home and they currently sit tied with the Dolphins (1-3) and Jets (1-3) at the bottom of the AFC East. Most importantly, they have to prove that this performance was not a fluke and they can play much better than they did against Miami in the season opener or last week against the Saints (2-2), two frustrating and puzzling losses. There is still hope left in this season (that sounds silly to say after four weeks) but that might all disappear if they lose to the Texans who saw their own rookie quarterback Davis Mills throw four interceptions in today's loss as they gained a total of six first downs in the entire game and 109 total yards. With Deshaun Watson sitting out while they sort through all his troubling allegations, Houston is in full tank mode so the Pats need to do something that they could not do last season: win in Houston and get this season back untracked. 

On The Last Day Of The Regular Season, Sox Clinch A Spot In The AL Wild Card Game Vs. NYY

 

    In a season full of crazy highs and lows, it was only fitting that it came down to the final game of the regular season for the Red Sox (92-70 overall, 43-38 away) to ultimately determine their playoff fate. If they had lost to the lowly Nationals (65-97 overall, 35-46 home), they would have been forced to play a tiebreaker game #163 against the Blue Jays (91-71) on Monday. Thankfully, it did not have to come down to that scary scenario as Boston rallied for a thrilling 7-5 victory at Nationals Park to both sweep Washington and set up a doozy of an AL Wild Card game on Tuesday night (8:08, ESPN) at Fenway Park vs. the Yankees (92-70). It will be the first time that the Red Sox have ever played in the Wild Card game so who better to face than their biggest rival? In a sport that is always desperate for attention and ratings, MLB couldn't have asked for a sexier matchup than that.

    Star third baseman Rafael Devers (4-for-5 w/2 HRs, 4 RBIs & 3 runs) was incredible for the visitors while Chris Sale only went 2.1 IP (recording all of his outs via strikeouts) but six relievers helped the Sox get to the finish line. In fact, if you throw out Garrett Richards (3 ER in 1 IP), the other five guys (Hirokazu Sawamura, Martin Perez, Garrett Whitlock, Eduardo Rodriguez and Nick Pivetta) combined for 5.2 scoreless innings and only one hit allowed with five strikeouts. Boston did not make it easy on themselves as they trailed 2-0 in the fourth inning before Devers crushed a solo home run to center (his 37th of the season). The Nats added three more runs in the fifth inning including a two-run double by catcher Alex Avila in his final MLB game that made it 5-1 in favor of the home team. 

    The Sox eventually decided to get to work in the sixth inning as they cut it to 5-2 on an infield single by catcher Christian Vazquez that scored pinch hitter Jose Iglesias (playing in his last game of the season since he was acquired after Sept. 1). Boston tied it with three runs in the seventh on an RBI single by Devers that plated first baseman and former Nationals great Kyle Schwarber and a clutch two-run double by left fielder Alex Verdugo (3-for-5). Raffy saved his last heroics of the day for the ninth inning as he smashed a two-run bomb to left center that scored Schwarber once again. Needless to say, that was a huge swing (sorry for the lame baseball pun) for the Sox who went from having to play a must-win game tomorrow against the very dangerous Jays to hosting a must-win in two days vs. the Yankees.  

    Red Sox manager Alex Cora had to be creative in the last few innings with his bullpen: Whitlock pitched a 1-2-3 seventh inning with two strikeouts, Rodriguez (13-8) added a scoreless eighth inning with a strikeout to earn the win and Pivetta closed it out with a 1-2-3 ninth inning with a strikeout for his first save of the season/as a member of the Red Sox. New York also would have faced Toronto if they had lost this afternoon but they beat Tampa Bay (100-62) 1-0 on a walk-off single by their star right fielder Aaron Judge. This will be the fourth time that the Yanks have appeared in the winner-take-all Wild Card game and they are 2-1 previously in them. With Nathan Eovaldi (11-9, 3.75 ERA) opposing Yankees ace Gerrit Cole (16-8), it has all the makings of a classic new chapter to one of the great rivalries in sports. The winners will advance to the ALDS vs. the Rays, what an amazing season for the AL East (minus the 52-110 Orioles!).