The Dog Has Its Day
In Mitch Keller’s first 10 starts of the season, he gave up more than two earned runs in a start just twice.
In his last three outings, Keller’s given up 15 runs in 17 1/3 innings (7.79 ERA).
Combine another ‘off’ start from Keller with the Buccos going 0-for-13 with runners in scoring position, plus an Oakland A’s team scoring more runs than they have in all but three other games this season, and you get an 11-2 drubbing that reminded the A’s that any team can win on any single given night in baseball and reminded Pirates fans why they’re still worried about how sustainable the success of the first 60 games is.
As I said after each of the series losses in May, it’s about the bounceback for this team. The reason there was such a night-and-day difference between April and May was due in no small part to their ability to move past losses. They were 7-1 following a loss in April. In May, that number dipped to 6-13.
The rubber match of the series is Wednesday at 12:35pm on 100.1FM and AM1020 NewsRadio KDKA, with Roansy Contreras going against Oakland southpaw Hogan Harris.
PGA+LIV=$$$
After a two-year ordeal involving international politics, boycotts, protests, and billions of dollars, The PGA Tour announced Tuesday that it is merging with the Saudi Public Investment Fund’s LIV Golf Tour.
What it means for the 2023-24 tour and beyond seems fairly straightforward: We’ll see all of the world’s best golfers competing against each other in the same events again. No questions about “Will Brooks Koepka/Dustin Johnson/Phil Mickelson/etc. be invited/allowed to play in {fill in the blank} event?” Perhaps the PGA will adopt some of the few tweaks LIV made; loosening the dress code, creating “team” play, and shortening some events to just 54 holes rather than the traditional four-round, 72-hole events.
What it means for the PGA players who were outspoken against the LIV Tour, the PIF, and the Saudi government is they’ve been sold out by the very organization they’d been asked to defend.
Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm, Tiger Woods, and others stood firm in their assertions that they had no interest in the boatloads of cash they could procure for following in the footsteps of Mickelson, Koepka, Johnson, and others.
Will the PGA loyalists have the same harsh words for PGA Commissioner Jay Monahan they’d reserved for those who jumped to LIV? And will they have a problem taking the same money they criticized Mickleson, Koepka, and Johnson for taking? If they want to stand on principle, where will they golf?
What’s astounding to me is that the PGA, which encouraged its players, sponsors, backers, and fans to stand up to LIV, didn’t have the guts to stay in the fight themselves. They encouraged everyone to acknowledge anti-American blood money was fueling the LIV machine, and then threw their surrogates in front of the oncoming Saudi bus at the first opportunity to cash in.
Which makes Monahan and the PGA absolutely no better than Greg Norman and LIV.
Perhaps Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett celebrated his 25th birthday yesterday by firing passes all over the Steelers UPMC Rooney complex on the South Side.
If he went deep at all, it’s something Pro Football Focus thinks he’s already pretty good at it.
PFF ranked all 32 starting QBs in the NFL based on their deep passing performance in 2022, and Pickett finished 6th, Behind only Geno Smith, Joe Burrow, Tom Brady, Tua Tagovailoa, and Patrick Mahomes. Pickett’s best metric was his 8th-best turnover-worthy play rate of just 4.3% on deep balls.
Some of the QBs who finished behind Pickett in PFF’s deep-passing grade included Josh Allen, Dak Prescott, Justin Herbert, and Jalen Hurts. Marcus Mariota finished dead last, Zach Wilson worst in the AFC, and in the AFC North, Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson brought up the rear, finishing 28th overall.
Window Shopping
As was once again on display in Game Two of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday night, goaltending matters.
A lot.
The Florida Panthers came in riding the high of Sergei Bobrovsky as a Conn Smythe Trophy favorite for postseason MVP before we was absolutely blitzed in the first period of Game Two.
Adin Hill has been a revelation for the Vegas Golden Knights this spring, and as such, they now just sit two victories from a dance with Lord Stanley’s fabled chalice.
And Hill, a pending unrestricted free agent, sits about a month or so away from cashing in.
As a Penguins fan, you don’t have to go back more than 14 months to recall the Pens blowing a 3-1 lead to the Rangers because they saw their top two goalies injured and had to entrust the job to Louis Domingue, who became more famous for his tastes in Chinese takeout than for anything he may have done in net.
Which brings us around to Tristan Jarry, Casey DeSmith, and new Pens’ Director of Hockey Operations, Kyle Dubas.
Dubas tried to create a viable tandem in Toronto last year, and it worked for the Maple Leafs for a hot minute early in the spring, before – surprise, surprise – Matt Murray got hurt.
Will that be his objective again?
Or will he look to bring back Jarry and provide a steadier complement to him than DeSmith?
Or does DeSmith, who has a year remaining on his deal, stay and become the complement to a new ‘1A?’
Or does Dubas look to make a move for an unquestioned, top flight, ready-to-steal-a-round-or-two-in-the-playoffs-type stud starting goaltender?
Let’s go over the top six UFA options available, without getting in to any crazy trade talk quite yet:
Joonas Korpisalo, 29-year old unrestricted free agent who went 18-14-4 in 39 games between the Columbus Blue Jackets and L.A. Kings. His work once being moved to L.A. was particularly impressive, going 7-3-1 with a 2.13 GAA and .921 Save Percentage once joining a playoff team. Coming off of a one year, $1.3 million deal.
Role? 1B to Jarry’s 1A, ready to go 50-50 timeshare if needed or take over during what will inevitably be an extended injury for Jarry at some point. Can be trusted to take over in the playoffs, as well, if necessary.
Laurent Broissot, 30-year old unrestricted free agent who was a part of a raft of goalies who played for Vegas at different points this season, played through multiple injuries during the regular season, took over in the playoffs, and then was injured again in the second round against Edmonton. He didn’t lose a game in regulation in the regular season, going 7-0-3 with a 2.17 GAA and .927 SV%, and his 0.52 GSAx60 (Goals Saved Above expected per 60 mins; essentially, how many more goals did he stop than expected per game?) is second best to Korpisalo among all UFA goalies who played at least 10 games last season. Fresh off of a two-year, $2.325 million/year deal.
Role? A less expensive replacement for Jarry, should someone overpay the Pens’ incumbent starter. Injury-prone? Yep. Still somewhat unproven in the playoffs? Check. He’s Jarry right down to being from the Vancouver area.
Alex Lyon, 30-year old unrestricted free agent who served as back-up to Florida’s Bobrovsky this season. A 2.89 GAA and .912 SV% look decent enough until you check the GSAx60 and see it’s -0.06. Not awful, but not good. Coming off of a one year deal at $750k
Role? A DeSmith replacement if the Pens decide they need a different 1B complement to Jarry’s -or another goalie’s- 1A role.
Frederik Andersen/Antti Raantta/Semyon Varlamov, 33-35 year old veteran free agents coming off of multi-year deals ranging from 2 years/$4 million (Raantta) to 4 years/$20 million (Varlamov) with varying degrees of success in the postseason the past few years.
Role? In the case of both Andersen and Varlamov, an older, more expensive 1A than Jarry, but more experienced, especially throughout the playoffs. In the case of Raantta, the playoff experience isn’t as recent nor is the deal going to be as expensive.
Ty Fought the Law
Aliquippa native and Pro Football Hall of Famer recently told the story of a contract negotiation with Bill Belichick around the time of OTAs in 2000, Belichick’s first year in New England.
Law battling Belichick in a contract dispute and winning is enough to warm the heart of any football-loving Western Pennsylvanian.