Posted Sunday PM after Golf….
Brief Add-on up top by noon Tues.
Baseball Quiz: This will be an easy one for some…not so easy, perhaps, for the casual fan. Name the only player in baseball history to have 500 hits for four different teams. Answer below.
PGA Championship
Golf fans least favorite major was held this week at Aronimink Golf Club, Newtown Square, PA, and the Donald Ross / Gil Hanse design proved to be quite a test, at least through the first two rounds, the leaderboard all scrunched up….
Alex Smalley -4
Maverick McNealy -4
Hideki Matsuyama -3
Chris Gotterup -3
Aldrich Potgieter -3
Min Woo Lee -3
Max Greyserman -3
Stephan Jaeger -3
Not that exciting for most of us, though Gotterup is a true rising star, ditto the 21-year-old South African Potgieter. And Hideki is now a grizzled veteran, though he’s still just 34.
But back at 2-under were Scottie Scheffler, Cam Young, Justin Thomas and Ludvig Aberg.
Jon Rahm, Jason Day and Patrick Cantlay were -1.
And just five shots back was Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy.
So we hoped some of these folks would make their way to the top.
Among those missing the cut were Bryson DeChambeau (after missing the cut at the Masters), Tommy Fleetwood, Adam Scott (playing in his 99th straight major), Viktor Hovland, J.J. Spaun, Tyrell Hatton and Robert MacIntyre.
And then the third round was a tale of two halves…those who went off early had ideal conditions, those who teed off in the afternoon had to battle the winds, but in the end, Alex Smalley of Duke continued to stand tall, 2-under for the round, -6 for the tournament, a two-stroke lead over a slew of golfers including Jon Rahm and Ludvig Aberg.
We have 30 golfers within five shots of the lead, 5 clearly not insurmountable as Rory McIlroy proved on Saturday.
Rory started +1 but got it to -4 before bogeying No. 17 to finish -3.
Rather than list all 30…the ‘names.’
Smalley -6
Rahm -4
Aberg -4
Rory -3
Xander Schauffele -3
Patrick Reed -3
Justin Rose -2
Cam Smith -2
Matsuyama -2
Gotterup -2
Scheffler -1
Koepka -1
Fowler -1
But Smalley is in the final pairing with Germany’s Matti Schmid, who had a 65 yesterday, teeing off early.
Neither Smalley nor Schmid have won on the tour. Can they withstand the heat, of which nature was providing some as well, temperatures in the upper 80s?
Rahm started out birdie, birdie, bogey…he was -5.
Justin Thomas was already in the clubhouse at -5 after a fine 65.
Alex Smalley started par, par, par…including a huge putt on No. 3 to stay -6.
Cam Smith was -5 after 9, Aberg -5 after 5.
Rory was -4 after 6.
Smalley double-bogeys No. 6 to fall to -4, and Matti Schmid is alone at -6!
Schmid -6…thru 6
Thomas -5…F
Smith -5…12
Nick Taylor -5…6
Rory -4…8
Rahm -4…7
I short-shrifted Taylor in not including him in the ‘names.’ He does have 5 wins, including the Canadian Open, Pebble and the Phoenix Open.
Rai eagles the par-5 9th…he’s -5.
And it’s Schmid -6…8
Thomas -5…F
Rahm -5…9
Smith -5…15
Rai -5…9
Rai birdies 11…Schmid bogeys 10…and Rai is all alone at -6.
JT is looking OK at -5, at least for the possibility of a playoff.
Rory bogeys 13, but birdies 14…he’s -4 with the par-5 16th coming up.
Cam Smith misses makeable birdie putt on 18 to finish -4.
But Rai then birdies 13 to move to -7…two up. Rai, 31, has one win but it wasn’t a cheapie…the Wyndham in 2024.
Schmid birdies 13…-6.
Rory only pars the par-5 16th…-4.
Rai for eagle on 16…gets birdie…-8! Holy Toledo.
And then Aaron Rai hits the putt of a lifetime from 70 feet on the par-3 17th to get to -9…game over!!!
Wow.
Rai -9…17
JT -5…F
Rahm -5…15
Schmid -5…15
Rahm birdies 16…-6…and he finishes there.
Smalley eagles 16…-6
And it’s Rai -9.
Smalley and Rahm -6.
NBA Playoffs
–Going back to Tuesday, the Spurs took control of their series against the Timberwolves, taking Game 5 126-97 in San Antonio, Victor Wembanyama with 27 points and 17 rebounds
And then they wrapped up the series Friday in Minneapolis, 139-109, Stephon Castle with 32 points and 11 rebounds.
–Wednesday, the Cavaliers upset the Pistons in Detroit in Game 5 of their series in exciting fashion, 117-113 in overtime, James Harden with 30 points, Max Strus 6-of-8 from three off the bench (20 points). In defeat, Cade Cunningham had 39.
But Detroit had blown a 103-94 lead with three minutes left, as they then went cold and Cleveland rallied to send the game into OT.
So Friday night, Cleveland could wrap things up at home, but the Pistons won, 115-94, Jalen Duren finally showing up, 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Paul Reed had 17 points in 16 minutes off the bench for Detroit.
We then headed back to Motown for Game 7, Sunday night.
Knicks fans love this, as New York has been sitting back for a week after the demolition of the 76ers, star forward OG Anunoby recovering from his hamstring strain and he’ll be ready for Game 1 against an opponent to be determined (which also determines whether the first two games are at home or away).
—The 76ers fired president of basketball operations Daryl Morey after getting blitzed by the Knicks in four games.
Nick Nurse is still the team’s head coach.
—Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke died this week of an apparent drug overdose, though a final verdict from the Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office could take weeks. He was 29.
Clarke was sentenced April 1 in Arkansas for speeding and possession of a controlled substance that was reportedly kratom, an herbal supplement promoted as an alternative pain remedy that is legal to possess in Tennessee. He was released a day later.
Clarke was the 21st overall pick out of Gonzaga in the 2019 NBA draft by Oklahoma, which dealt his rights to the Grizzlies, who had already taken guard Ja Morant at No. 2 overall. Clarke joined Morant on the All-Rookie team for the 2019-20 season and was a key reserve for Memphis, though he was largely out two of the past three seasons due to injuries.
–And Jason Collins died after a brief battle with brain cancer. He was just 47.
Collins was a solid, largely backup 7-foot center who played for six teams over 13 seasons, 2002-2014.
He was always well liked and then near the end of his career, he wrote: “I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay.”
It was a bombshell. In a sports culture that had long treated homosexuality in male locker rooms as taboo, Collins became the first openly gay man on a major professional American team sport. He became a historic figure who opened the door for other gay athletes and became a prominent advocate for inclusion in sports.
His 2013 announcement, written in a first-person piece for Sports Illustrated, came two years before the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, and in a sports world where openly gay athletes remained exceedingly rare.
There was concern over how Collins’ admission would be received, but support came quickly from across the league and beyond. NBA Commissioner David Stern issue a statement praising his leadership.
RIP.
MLB
—The Mets and Yankees squared off in Round One of their Subway Series this weekend at Citi Field.
Heading into Friday, the Mets had some mojo, having swept the Tigers at Citi this week.
Tuesday, 21-year-old A.J. Ewing made his major-league debut, and it was rather memorable, a triple, 3 walks, 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored, and a stolen base, the Mets winning 10-2.
The Mets then won Wednesday on fellow rookie Carson Benge’s walk-off hit in the bottom of the tenth, 3-2.
And New York completed the sweep Thursday, 9-4, Ewing hitting one of five Mets homers.
The Yankees were in Baltimore, the Orioles taking 2 of 3, and the Yanks went into the weekend having lost 5 of 6.
But Friday night, the Yankees prevailed 5-2, Cam Schlittler 6 2/3, 1 earned, as he moves to 6-1, 1.35.
For the Mets, however, it was more than an end to their modest winning streak, as they lost their best starting pitcher, Clay Holmes, to a fractured fibula when he was hit in the right leg by a shot off the bat of Spencer Jones in the fourth.
Holmes kept pitching into the fifth, giving up four runs in 4 1/3, the first time in nine starts he had yielded more than two runs.
Then the Mets got the word he’ll be out indefinitely. A massive blow.
Earlier in the week, the Mets lost catcher Francisco Alvarez to a right knee meniscus tear, the injury occurring after an uncomfortable swing. No timeline for his return.
But the Yankees learned Friday that key starter Max Fried will be out at least a month with a left elbow bone bruise that forced him to the 15-day IL.
Gerrit Cole is expected back from his Tommy John surgery around June 1st. If Cole can quickly get into form, at least by, say, August, and Fried returns later this summer, together with Cam Schlittler, the Yanks would be set up very well for the postseason.
[In what was expected to be his next to last rehab start in AAA, Cole hit 99.6 mph Saturday night, going 5 1/3 against the Syracuse Mets.]
Saturday night, the Mets prevailed, 6-3, Mark Vientos with three RBIs, and ex-Yankee relievers Luke Weaver and Devin Williams with three terrific innings; Weaver escaping a bases-loaded, no-outs jam in the seventh.
And then Sunday, it was a memorable game, as I flipped back-and-forth with golf at key moments…the Mets down 6-3 heading to the bottom of the ninth, two outs, two men on, when Tyrone Taylor ties it up with a 3-run bomb at 6-6, sending it to the tenth.
Devin Williams leaves the free runner stranded, thanks to a terrific double play turned by first baseman Mark Vientos, and the Mets win it in the bottom of the tenth, 7-6, to take the series and, what the heck, they are 20-26!
Our new sparkplug, A.J. Ewing, had a hit and three walks, before a huge sac bunt in the tenth, his first as a professional.
I just want .500 by end of July, which will put you in the wild card race, bigly, the way things are going.
Yeah, we suddenly have big issues with the starting staff, Holmes out and Freddy Peralta with six walks today, but here the Mets are…no longer dead.
–The Dodgers snapped a 4-game losing streak against the Giants on Wednesday, 4-0, as Shohei Ohtani threw seven scoreless, 8 strikeouts, to move to 3-2, 0.82 ERA.
L.A. then won again Thursday, 5-2, and opened up a 3-game series against the Astros in Houston Friday with a 6-0 win, the Dodgers now 27-18.
And L.A. beat the Astros 15-2 on Saturday, Ohtani with a double and triple, 5 RBIs. So the Dodgers are back on track. [The Astros, on the other hand, 16-30, really suck.]
But Blake Snell, after just one start, is back on the IL, needing more surgery on his left elbow to remove loose bodies, a la Tarik Skubal.
Skubal, incidentally, underwent a new procedure by Dr. Neal ElAttrache who used a device called the NanoNeedle Scope 2.0, which could significantly reduce the normal 2-3 months recovery time. Skubal, after nine days, had already started playing catch.
For Snell, though, this will be the third straight season he makes no more than 20 starts, just 11 last season for L.A.
L.A. then won again Sunday, 10-1…Ohtani 3-for-5, two more RBIs.
–Going back to Tuesday, the Pirates beat the Rockies 3-1, Paul Skenes with 8 innings, zero earned, 10 Ks, as he’s 6-2, 1.98.
But that’s just half the story. Skenes now has a 1.97 ERA for his first 64 career starts. It is no exaggeration to call the start he’s had one of the best ever.
But also consider that in his last five starts, 32 innings, he has 38 strikeouts and zero walks. Zero walks!
It’s actually now 35 consecutive innings without a walk.
The MLB record for most consecutive innings without a walk belongs to Bill Fischer of the Kansas City A’s, who in 1962 went 84 1/3 straight innings without issuing a free pass*. The NL record holder is Greg Maddux, who didn’t walk a batter for 72 1/3 consecutive innings in 2001 with Atlanta.
*Overall, in 1962 Fischer walked 8 in 127 2/3, going 4-12, but with a 3.95 ERA.
–Last year, Cal Raleigh, an already established slugger for the Mariners who had 30 and 34 homers in 2023 and 2024, erupted for 60 as he was runner-up in the MVP vote to Aaron Judge.
This year Raleigh was in a horrendous slump, including an 0-for-38 streak that ended after the night before, a teammate suggested he shower in his full uniform after Monday’s game. Tuesday he then had two singles.
Raleigh then went 0-for-4 Wednesday, and on Thursday, he landed on the injured list for the first time in his career with a right oblique strain that he suffered Wednesday night.
After his spectacular 2025, Raleigh was batting .161 with just seven homers in 41 games.
—Wake Forest has two stars in the majors these days.
Thursday, Cincinnati hurler Chase Burns threw six innings, no runs, in a 15-1 win over the Nationals, Burns now 5-1, 1.87.
And reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Nick Kurtz, is heating up for the A’s. Kurtz homered in three straight games, including his third career grand slam (already), and then a 3-run shot on Friday in Sacramento’s 5-2 win over the Giants…Kurtz now with 8 homers, 29 RBIs.
But Kurtz went 0-for-3 with a walk in a 6-4 loss to San Francisco, Saturday, though he extended his on-base streak to 39 games.
The A’s lost 10-1 on Sunday, Kurtz 0-for-1 but with three walks.
–Speaking of home runs, Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber slammed two more Friday in the Phils’ 11-9 win over the Pirates in Philadelphia, Schwarber now with 20!
And the Phils beat the Pirates again Saturday, 6-0, as interim manager Don Mattingly is 14-4, after taking over for Rob Thomson, Philadelphia starting the season 9-19.
Ergo, the Phils are .500! 23-23.
Sunday, we then had Paul Skenes vs. Zack Wheeler. For us older guys, that would be like Marichal vs. Gibson (righty/righty). Or Gibson vs. Jim Maloney (when he wasn’t hurt).
Both allowed one hit and struck out 5 through the first four innings, but Skenes finally walked a batter to lead off the fifth, the Phils got two runs, Harper homered in the top of the sixth, Skenes exited, giving up five earned in five innings, ERA back up to 2.62…just like that. Literally, two bad starts this year…the other Opening Day against the Mets.
The Phils went on to win 6-0, Wheeler seven innings, 8 Ks, both teams now 24-23.
–What’s this? The White Sox are 23-22? Really?
It’s true, boys and girls. Saturday, the ChiSox beat the Cubs 8-3, Munetaka Murakami with two more home runs, giving him 17, while Davis Martin threw six innings of one-run ball and is now 6-1, 1.61! I’m sorry. While he’s pitched some with Chicago over the last few years, the name Davis Martin never registered. Well, now he has.
–We note the passing of former Mets and Braves hurler Buzz Capra, 78.
Capra was 5-10, 4.49 ERA for the Mets in his three seasons, but then in 1974, he had his one big year for the Braves, going 16-8, with a league-leading 2.28 ERA, making the All-Star team in the process.
Capra finished his career 31-37, 3.87.
Bazooka Joe says: “Buzz was a 27th round draft pick by the Mets in 1969 out of Illinois State!”
He was also a legend at the school, a Hall of Famer.
Premier League
–With one week to go in the season, it’s all about Arsenal vs. Man City for the title, and Tottenham trying to avoid crippling relegation.
Wednesday, City beat Crystal Palace 3-0 and cut the lead to two points.
Played – Points – Goal Differential
1 Arsenal 36 – 79…42
2 Man City 36 – 77…43
[For City, the draw at Everton two weeks ago was the killer. Otherwise, they were right there.]
Two games left for each.
Monday, Arsenal hosts Burnley; Tuesday, City is at Bournemouth.
Then next Sunday, they all play at the same time, Arsenal at Crystal Palace, and City hosting tough Aston Villa, who beat Liverpool 4-2 on Friday.
In the battle to avoid relegation, going back to last Monday, Tottenham had a golden opportunity to go 4 points clear of West Ham, but instead played to a 1-1 draw at home against Leeds.
So, Tottenham led the Hammers by two points.
Sunday, West Ham was at Newcastle and the Hammers lost 2-0, big for Tottenham, who plays Chelsea on Tuesday, before the finale hosting Everton. The Spurs will just need a draw between these two games to clinch the 17th spot, due to the fact they have a huge advantage over West Ham in goal differential.
West Ham’s finale next Sunday is against Leeds.
17 Tottenham 36 – 38
18 West Ham 37 – 38
—City’s schedule has been a bit disjointed due to FA Cup play (Arsenal’s because they are in the Champions League final, Sat. May 30 vs. PSG), but Saturday, City took the FA Cup 1-0 over Chelsea, a big trophy for City fans.
Stuff
–In the NHL Playoffs, Buffalo shocked the Canadiens in Montreal Saturday night 8-3 in their Game 6, forcing a Game 7 in Buffalo Monday night, which I will definitely be tuning into, the best of the NHL. Critical for both franchises as well. [Oh crap…I forgot I have a function at the local high school Monday I have to attend.]
—Napoleon Solo won the Preakness Stakes, a race totally without juice, holding off Iron Honor down the stretch, rebounding from a pair of fifth-place showings for his first victory of the year. Derby winner Golden Tempo was held out of the race.
But it was the first victory in a Triple Crown race for trainer Chad Summer and jockey Paco Lopez.
Prior to the race, animal welfare groups were calling for action against jockeys Jose Ortiz and Irad Ortiz Jr. for their involvement in illegal cockfighting detailed in a USA TODAY Sports story, with photos and video showing the two, along with Dodgers reliever Edwin Diaz, in the pit at cockfighting arenas in Puerto Rico.
A federal ban prohibits cockfighting in all 50 states and U.S. territories, including Puerto Rico.
Both jockey had rides in the Preakness.
No word on whether horse racing will take action against the two, or what MLB will do with Diaz.
—Aaron Rodgers agreed to terms on a one-year contract to return with the Steelers, where he’ll be reunited with new coach Mike McCarthy, the two having won a Super Bowl together.
Pittsburgh anticipated this would be Rodgers’ decision, but as is his wont, he jerked the organization around needlessly.
—Claudine Longet died. You have to be old to remember the French-born singer and actress who once recorded a hit album of easy-listening music and starred opposite Peter Sellers onscreen, but drew wider attention for fatally shooting her boyfriend, the Olympic skier Spider Sabich. Longet was 84.
A former Las Vegas showgirl, Claudine Longet was known for her dark good looks and sexy-whispery voice on albums; for an early marriage to singer and TV variety star Andy Williams; and, after the 1976 shooting, which set off tabloid headlines like bottle rockets, for being the subject of a tasteless skit on “Saturday Night Live.”
In the 1960s, her album “Claudine” having sold more than 500,000 copies, reaching No. 11 on the Billboard pop chart, she also had guest roles on shows like “Hogan’s Heroes” and “Dr. Kildare,” often cast as a French-accented femme fatale. Her best-known performance was in the 1968 film comedy “The Party” with Sellers.
She was also a regular on Andy Williams’ Christmas specials. They separated amicably around 1969 and, a few years later, she moved into Spider Sabich’s home in Aspen.
The April 1976 shooting and her subsequent trial on a manslaughter charge was covered around the world. Longet was a minor celebrity, but it was also about the new mystique of Aspen, a ski town then in transition to becoming a decadent playground for the rich and famous, with stars like John Denver and Jack Nicholson having homes there.
Sabich, 31, was a popular local fixture of the slopes and bars, and was said to have been a model for Robert Redford’s dashing ski champion in the 1969 film “Downhill Racer.” He finished fifth in the slalom for the United States at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France (Jean-Claude Killy* dominating those Games on the slopes).
*Killy won all three Alpine golds in Grenoble, slalom, giant slalom and downhill (super-G not run then).
Longet and Sabich met at a ski event in California in 1972. Friends and acquaintances told reporters that, by the time of the shooting, their romance had soured.
–This is cool. Bald eagle hatchlings were spotted in a Chicago park, which may be the city’s first for more than a century!
The first eaglet was spotted in a nest on April 28 and a second was confirmed May 7.
The bald eagle has made an amazing comeback over the last 40 years. It was removed from the federal endangered species list in 2007.
Heck, my friend Jimbo is hosting a bald eagle on his property in next-door Chatham.
Meanwhile, in California, officials there say there were 55 gray wolves confirmed alive at the end of 2025, a promising sign for population regrowth after the predator disappeared from the state a century ago. Most of the wolves are in the northwestern part of the state.
Ranchers, however, aren’t happy, the number of attacks on livestock going up.
–But we had a tragedy in Western Australia. A 38-year-old man was killed by a 13-foot great white shark on Saturday, the man bitten at Horseshoe Reef, near the city of Perth.
Aerial footage showed the man being rushed to shore by boat where paramedics and police performed CPR, local media ABC reported.
“Sadly the man was unable to be revived,” a police spokesperson said.
The attack is the first fatal incident in western Australia since March last year, when a surfer was mauled off a remote beach.
Since records began in 1791, there have been almost 1,300 recorded shark attacks in Australia, with more than 260 of them resulting in death. [BBC News]
—A New Jersey lottery player discovered a $5.9 million winning ticket crumpled in an old pair of pants just eight days before it would have become worthless.
The Pick-6 ticket was purchased May 22, 2025, at an Exxon station in Roseland. Nearly a year later, after a late April public announcement warned the prize remained unclaimed and faced expiration, a regular customer at the store began to wonder if he might be the winner, lottery officials said on Thursday.
The player visited the Exxon, where employees told him that only a handful of their regulars played Pick-6 and urged him to search again. He returned home and methodically checked every possible location, knowing millions of dollars hung in the balance.
After exhausting other options, he turned to his closet and began checking pants pockets one by one. Several pairs later, he found the crumpled ticket from the previous May.
The winner brought the verified ticket to the New Jersey Lottery Office on May 14, just a week remaining before the one-year deadline.
—Bulgaria won the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna on Saturday with the dance track: “Bangaranga.”
The victory was a shock, given that Bulgaria did not feature among the pre-show favorites. Bulgaria’s act, Dara, was revealed as the winner only at the last minute, beating out Noam Bettan of Israel, who came in second.
But this year’s contest, which really does captivate all of Europe, was a troubled edition, with protests over Israel’s involvement because of its actions in Gaza.
Top 3 songs for the week of 5/13/72: #1 “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” (Roberta Flack…song featured in the film “Play Misty For Me,” a highly underrated Clint Eastwood flick) #2 “I Gotcha” (Joe Tex) #3 “Oh Girl” (Chi-Lites)…and…#4 “I’ll Take You There” (The Staple Singers) #5 “Rockin’ Robin” (Michael Jackson…lousy tune, for him…) #6 “Betcha By Golly, Wow” (The Stylistics…awesome song…) #7 “Look What You Done For Me” (Al Green) #8 “Day Dreaming” (Aretha Franklin…among her top 3…) #9 “Back Off Boogaloo” (Ringo Starr) #10 “A Horse With No Name” (America…B+ week….)
Baseball Quiz Answer: Rusty Staub is the only player in baseball history to have 500 hits with four different teams, Staub playing from 1963-85.
Houston Colt .45s/Astros – 792
New York Mets – 709
Detroit – 582
Montreal – 531
He also had 102 with Texas, 2,716 hits overall, .279 batting average, 292 home runs, 1,466 RBI.
Staub never struck out 100 times in a season. He was a six-time All-Star and a beloved player wherever he went. A terrific person, a great humanitarian.
But I just have to say, I checked to see what AI’s answer would be, and one chatbot got it hopelessly wrong in the totals for the four teams. Never solely rely on AI unless it’s for very basic stuff. I sure as hell don’t.
My site is going to be undergoing maintenance early Tuesday AM…in case it appears to be down. It will be back up shortly thereafter.
This is when I do my Add-on, so the timing of it might be off a bit.
