[Posted Sunday p.m. Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tues.]
U.S. Open Golf / Oakmont Quiz: This coming week is the seventh Open at Oakmont Country Club (near Pittsburgh) since 1962. Name the winners on the course in the following years….1962, 1973, 1983, 1994, 2007, 2016. Answer below.
NBA Playoffs
–It seems I wasn’t the only one who turned off Game 1 of the Thunder-Pacers series on Thursday night when the score was 94-79 with 9:42 to play. Game over. Went to bed.
When I get up in the morning, the first site I look at it is refdesk, which has good news feeds, and the first word I see is ‘Haliburton’…. ‘no way,’ I mused, before reading the rest of the headline, Tyrese hitting a 21-foot game-winner with 0.3 to play. Unbelievable…Pacers 111, Thunder 110.
Indiana even had 24 turnovers, to OKC’s six, but the Thunder only turned the TOs into 11 points. For the Pacers, Obi Toppin was 5 of 8 from 3-point land off the bench, while the Thunder’s Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams were a combined 8 of 28 from the field.
Haliburton’s game-winner was the latest in an NBA Finals game since Michael Jordan’s buzzer-beater for the Bulls in Game 1 of the 1997 NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz, according to ESPN Research.
It’s also hard to believe that in each of the four series Indiana has played, Haliburton has hit a game-winning or game-tying shot with less than two seconds left. He only had 14 points Thursday, but he was the only option for the final shot.
It was the fifth time this postseason that the Pacers have overcome a deficit as large as 15 and the most by any team in a single postseason since 1998. It was the largest fourth-quarter comeback in the Finals in the play-by-play era (since 1996-97). The Mavericks also overcame a 15-point fourth-quarter hole in Game 2 of the 2011 Finals. Both teams were coached by Rick Carlisle.
Yes, Oklahoma City had to feel sick. The Pacers led the game for just 0.3 seconds.
Game 2 Sunday night in OKC on ABC.
–Meanwhile, there was big news in Gotham…the Knicks firing coach Tom Thibodeau after he guided the team to the Eastern Conference finals. A lot of people were shocked. Not me.
I wrote the following in this space last Sunday, after the Knicks were eliminated by the Pacers:
“(Jalen) Brunson said afterwards he was ‘confident’ the Knicks’ core can win a title, but no way. For starters, KAT (Karl-Anthony Towns) and Brunson don’t play well together, and (Mikal) Bridges and OG Anunoby just aren’t that good.
“There’s really not much more to say. I expect changes in the offseason, including possibly at head coach.”
Between 2014-2020, the Knicks had gone 17-65, 32-50, 31-51, 29-53, 17-65, and 21-45 (Covid season) before Thibs took control. He immediately stabilized the franchise.
Under his watch, the Knicks went 41-31, 37-45, 47-35, 50-32, 51-31, making the playoffs each of the last three seasons and winning at least one series in each of them.
So why was Thibs let go?
Team President Leon Rose said: “Our organization is singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans. We can’t thank Tom enough for pouring his heart and soul into each and every day of being the New York Knicks head coach.
“Ultimately, we made the decision we feel is best for our organization moving forward.”
Thibodeau, 67, had taken the Knicks as far as he could, the thinking goes, and he had plateaued in terms of his coaching ability. The Knicks had their best chance at reaching the Finals end in a disappointing six-game series at the hands of Indiana, the killer that Game 1 collapse and losing the first two at home.
I told you how I watched virtually every Knicks game this season and Thibodeau at times seemed lost, and stubborn to change. Case in point, his failure to utilize Landry Shamet off the bench until late in the Indiana series. His “in-game” coaching left a lot to be desired.
But it is also a deeply flawed roster. Josh Hart is a terrific player for off the bench, the classic sixth man. But he doesn’t have the offensive game to start, especially when you have bookend forwards, Bridges and Anunoby, who have their moments, but zero consistency…and they don’t rebound…Bridges averaging 3.2 per game, OG 4.8. [Bridges avoiding ‘contact’ all season, OG the worst finisher down low in the league.]
The Knicks desperately need an athletic power forward, who can cover ‘Bigs’ since KAT can’t, and allow KAT to roam a bit outside, where he has an effective shot.
This team just isn’t winning a championship as currently constituted. Changes have to be made but they are in salary-cap hell and the core is under contract for next season. So, yes, it’s Leon Rose’s fault too, and he gave up five first-round picks for Bridges.
We’ll see what the Knicks are able to do in the offseason, but as for a new coach, Jason Kidd is the name most talked about now. Also, Cleveland assistant Johnnie Bryant (who spent four years with the Knicks under Thibodeau). I’d be OK with either. It’s just not going to matter much unless the roster is shaken up, which means trades, but who will want some of these guys with their contracts and limits to their games?
Don’t cry for Thibs. He signed a three-year, $30 million extension last July. And he’ll no doubt stay in the game as an assistant coach somewhere.
Stanley Cup Finals
—What an exciting first two games of the Cup Finals in Edmonton. Oilers star Leon Draisaitl scored at 19:29 of the first overtime to give Edmonton a Game 1 victory, 4-3, Florida’s Tomas Nosek getting hit with a delay of game penalty at the worst possible time.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice called it a tough break and addressed how he would help Nosek bounce back.
“Make sure he doesn’t eat alone tonight, that he’s got a lot of people sitting at his table reminding him of how good he’s been to us,” Maurice said.
But in Game 2, Friday night, the Panthers led 4-3 in the third period until 40-year-old Corey Perry sent it into overtime with 17.8 seconds to play. Florida had multiple chances to bury the Oilers in OT, but it wasn’t until eight minutes into double overtime, with both teams running on fumes, that deadline acquisition Brad Marchand scored his second of the night to bury Edmonton.
Game 3 Monday in Florida.
MLB
–The Mets have had a strange, often exciting, often crushing, week. They could have swept the Dodgers in a 4-game series in L.A., but lost 6-5 both Tuesday and Thursday, largely due to shoddy fielding late in the contests. But at least a split against the defending champions.
Friday, against the suddenly hot Rockies, who were coming off a 3-game sweep of the Marlins in Miami, the Mets pulled it out in a surprisingly exciting game, 4-2, as Francisco Lindor came off the bench, broken right pinky toe and all, and in dramatic fashion delivered a 2-run, 2-out, pinch-hit double for the win, Edwin Diaz closing it out.
But it was 2-2, bottom of the eighth, when Colorado loaded the bases, no outs, and the batter lined it to third, Brett Baty caught it, doubled up the runner on third, and reliever Ryne Stanek fanned the next batter…an unreal escape.
So heading into Saturday night’s game, the Mets were 40-24, Colorado 12-51.
And the Metsies continued to do what they have to do, beat up on Colorado and the other weaker teams in baseball, and just go .500 against the better ones…8-1 win last night, Ronnie Mauricio, the player the Mets brought up to replace the injured Mark Vientos (hamstring), smashing a 456-foot home run, Clay Holmes with 6 innings, one run to move to 7-3, 2.95.
Francisco Lindor returned to the starting lineup and had three hits and two stolen bases, so the broken pinky toe is clearly manageable.
Sunday, despite the Nos. 1-2 in the order going 1-12, the Mets won 13-5, McNeil and Alonso with two homers each, Mauricio impressive again, Juan Soto 3-for-3, 3 walks, and New York’s mission is complete…6-0 against the pathetic Rockies.
—Thursday, the Yankees’ Max Fried, coming off his worst start of the season in L.A. against the Dodgers, pitched 6 scoreless, one hit, as the Yanks shutout the Guardians at the Stadium, 4-0, Fried 8-1, 1.78.
New York then opened a series against the slumping Red Sox and beat Boston (30-35), 9-6, Aaron Judge 3-for-5, an RBI, average at .397.
But Saturday, Boston rebounded, 10-7, Yankee starter Ryan Yarbrough, who had been so effective his last four starts, giving up 8 earned in just four innings, Aaron Judge 0-for-4 to fall to .390.
Boston-New York is the ESPN Sunday night game.
–I can’t stand all this interleague play, but there is a terrific matchup this weekend in Detroit, as the Tigers took on the Cubs. Friday night, Detroit’s Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal threw 7 2/3 of one-run ball, the Tigers winning 3-1, Skubal 6-2, 2.16. Detroit’s 42-23, Chicago 39-24.
Saturday, the Cubs returned the favor 6-1, Seiya Suzuki with two solo homers (Nos. 15 and 16), Pete Crow-Armstrong going deep for No. 17. Talk about a budding superstar. Suzuki and Crow-Armstrong have 55 and 54 RBIs, respectively…3rd and 4th in baseball in this category. [Pete Alonso first with 57….oops, now 61 after Sunday’s action….]
Today, Sunday, the Tigers (43-24) then won 4-0, Chicago 40-25.
–Going back to last Tuesday, the Pirates lost to the Astros, 3-0, despite Paul Skenes going 8 innings, one run, Skenes falling to 4-6 despite a 2.05 ERA. [Houston had two in the ninth off the Pittsburgh pen.]
And Sunday, Skenes went 7 2/3, zero earned, ERA down to 1.88, but he had a no-decision as Pittsburgh at least beat the Phillies 2-1.
–I swear, the last time I checked I thought Seattle’s slugging catcher, Cal Raleigh, was at 19 home runs…try 26! Holy Space Needle! He’s hit 7 in his last eight games, including two last night.
–Arizona suffered a huge blow, losing ace Corbin Burnes, who had signed a $210 million contract to push the Diamondbacks into the National League’s elite, to Tommy John surgery. The timing is horrendous. He’ll likely miss not just the rest of this season, but all of 2026.
The former Cy Young Award winner was 3-2, 2.66 ERA. He is signed through 2030.
–Shu passed on the tale of Ron Necciai. It was back on May 13, 1952, that Necciai, pitching for the Bristol Twins, a Pittsburgh Pirate-affiliated Appalachian League farm team, struck out 27 batters in nine innings against the Welch Miners.
The gangly 19-year-old from Gallatin, Pennsylvania, had no idea that his name and what he did in that game would be forever etched in baseball history books.
The National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues called the 27-strikeout game “the greatest individual performance in the history of baseball.”
And Necciai did it while battling a bleeding ulcer that had him throwing up blood in the dugout before the game and drinking glasses of milk between innings to drown the heat that was burning his insides.
The record has never been broken. He actually struck out 24 in his next start.
Playing for two minor league teams that season, Necciai had 281 strikeouts in 169 innings.
The Pirates then called him up to the big league club in August and he went 1-6, with a 7.08 ERA. That was his only action in the majors. Necciai was out of baseball at age 22 with a torn rotator cuff, which doctors didn’t know how to repair back then.
Necciai, now 92, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that all the baseball players went to see this “big doctor” at Johns Hopkins.
“I still remember his name to this day. It was Bennett. I got down there, and he knew what it was. He said, ‘This is your problem here, but we don’t know how to fix it. We’ve tried to stitch it. We’ve tried to staple it. We’ve tried to do everything.’” Necciai recalls everything with clarity, in particular his next sentence. “Son, go home, and buy a gas station. You’re never going to pitch again.”
Rocket Ron was no more. But he said his life turned out alright after baseball.
–In the NCAA Baseball Tournament, we had the super-regionals this weekend.
Today, Louisville won the rubber game of its series vs. Miami, 3-2, so the Cardinals move on to the CWS.
Arizona eliminated 5 seed North Carolina, 4-3.
Murray State forced a Game 3 Monday against Duke, 19-9, after the Blue Devils won the first, 7-4.
Coastal Carolina moved on by whipping Auburn Friday and Saturday. Oh, the late Johnny Mac would be pumped. I miss the guy a ton. Every day.
Other games today are late and I’ll have the full CWS lineup in the Add-on.
–Down in Winston-Salem, my Demon Deacons and the school are dealing with an embarrassing issue that could cost baseball coach Tom Walter his job.
Walter issued an apology Tuesday after a video clip during Monday night’s season-ending loss to Tennessee appeared to show him using a homophobic slur during an at-bat by Vols infielder Andrew Fischer.
“I am very sorry for my outburst in frustration last night, and I recognize the hurt and disappointment it has caused,” Walter said in a statement. “I have seen the videos and while I do not remember the specific moment clearly, that language doesn’t reflect my values or the standards of the program. Regardless, I own the consequences and I apologize to the University of Tennessee, to Wake Forest University, and the SEC & ACC.”
Walter has been a highly successful coach, building Wake into one of the top programs in the ACC, with a CWS appearance in 2023.
“I am both surprised and deeply disappointed in our head coach Tom Walter for his outburst during last night’s baseball game,” athletic director John Currie said. “I feel badly for those most hurt by such words. I spoke with Coach Walter immediately after the game and again this morning to address this incident, which is completely out of character for him and does not meet the standards of Wake Forest Athletics, Wake Forest University or the Atlantic Coast conference.”
I somehow missed the moment even though I was watching the game. What I do know is how I despised the Tennessee players, particularly stud pitcher Liam Doyle, who were way over the top in their celebrations.
–In the Women’s CWS, Texas beat Texas Tech 10-4 Friday in a decisive third game, the Lady Longhorns’ first title. In the semis, Texas Tech had ended Oklahoma’s four-year championship run.
NFL
—Aaron Rodgers is signing with the Steelers, a one-year deal worth $13.65 million, with $10 million guaranteed and incentives that can take it to $19.5 million; Pittsburgh hoping Rodgers can recapture a measure of the glory of his days with the Packers and avoid reliving the disappointment of his two years with the Jets.
Will this work? Will Rodgers stay healthy? If he is healthy, he’s better than Mason Rudolph. But will it be enough to get the Steelers to the playoffs, where coach Mike Tomlin hasn’t won a playoff game since the 2016 season?
No sense overanalyzing things now. Let’s see how he looks in August and in Week One. Ironically, who is Pittsburgh’s opening opponent? The Jets, at MetLife Stadium. Ticket prices are already rising.
–Looks like former Giants QB Daniel Jones is going to get a big shot Indianapolis, as Anthony Richardson isn’t participating in next week’s minicamp after reaggravating a previous shoulder injury in OTAs.
Specifically, it’s inflammation in his right AC joint, the shoulder surgically repaired in 2023, ending his rookie year after just five weeks.
Richardson has appeared in 15 only games over his first two seasons, after being the fourth overall pick in the 2023 draft.
French Open
–In the women’s semifinals, 2 Coca Gauff throttled French phenom Lois Boisson, 6-1-6-2, to set up a final with No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka, who dispatched defending champion Iga Swiatek in three sets.
And then the 21-year-old Gauff picked up Grand Slam title No. 2, 6-7 (7-5), 6-2, 6-4 over Sabalenka; her other biggie the 2023 U.S. Open, also over Sabalenka, the 27-year-old from Belarus, smartly living in Miami these days, who has three Grand Slam titles of her own. This could be a great rivalry for years to come.
Gauff is the first American to win this since Serena Williams in 2015, man or woman.
On the men’s side, we had another dream 1-2 matchup…1 Jannik Sinner vs. 2 Carlos Alcaraz; Sinner having taken out 6 Novak Djokovic in three sets, Alcaraz beating 8 Lorenzo Musetti, who withdrew in the fourth set with an injury.
Djokovic sounded as if he had played his last at Roland-Garros. He said he is definitely playing Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, but not sure of his plans beyond that. The 24-time Grand Slam champion’s last biggie was the 2023 U.S. Open.
But then today, just like the women’s 1-2 final was one for the ages, the men’s final was beyond that…perhaps the greatest Grand Slam Men’s Final of all time….
Carlos Alcaraz rallied to beat Jannik Sinner, 4-6, 6-7 (7-4), 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (10-2) for the 22-year-olds fifth Grand Slam championship already. Alcaraz came back from two sets down for the first time in his career to remain undefeated in Grand Slam finals.
It was 5 hours 25 minutes….I mean to tell you, I went shopping for 30 minutes in the second set, knowing I wouldn’t miss anything, and then went out to get some exercise for an hour, and when I came back it was still early fourth set. It was the second-longest men’s final at any Grand Slam.
But it wasn’t great just because it was long. It was epic. I’ll have more in my Add-on Tuesday.
So we await Wimbledon. Sinner, 23, with three Grand Slam titles, saw his 20-match streak at major tournaments snapped, dating back to last year’s U.S. Open. He won the Australian Open before serving a three-month ban in a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency.
Golf Balls
–At the RBC Canadian Open, TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley, Caledon, Ontario, after two rounds….
Cameron Champ -12
Andrew Putnam -10
Champ entered the week No. 169 on the FedEx Cup points list.
Rory McIlroy, 2-time Canadian Open champion, had the second-worst performance of his career, 71-78! He hit less than 50% of his fairways. Not exactly the kind of form Rory wanted to see heading to Oakmont. This will be interesting to see how he does next week.
Well, after three rounds we had this….
Matteo Manassero -14
Ryan Fox -14
And 22 golfers within four of the lead! Goodness gracious!
And it’s Fox vs. Sam Burns in a playoff…Burns with a 62.
But on the first hole, Burns, best putter on tour this year, missed a five-footer to win it….and I’m sorry, but I have to move on. Regardless of the ending, Ryan Fox has won over a lot of new fans with his gutty play, i.e., his Q Rating has risen….and at the end of the day….[Pssst…they go to the third playoff hole…as I must post.]
I’ll wrap it up in my Add-on.
–Addressing the press before a LIV Golf event in Manassas, Virginia, Phil Mickelson said the upcoming U.S. Open at Oakmont is likely his last. He is in the final year of his five-year exemption for winning the PGA Championship at Kiawah in 2021.
—LIV signed Josele Ballester, the 21-year-old reigning U.S. Amateur champion who finished his college career with the Sun Devils last week. He will join Sergio Garcia’s team, for those who care. If you are buying LIV team golf wear, boy, you need to get a life.
Ballester is teeing it up at Oakmont, as he doesn’t have to remain an amateur to use the exemption he earned for winning the U.S. Amateur.
Belmont Stakes
This promised to be a good one at Saratoga Race Course in beautiful Saratoga Springs, New York, and it delivered.
The odds as the 8-horse field went off were like this….
Journalism, the Preakness winner, 2-1
Sovereignty, the Derby winner, 5-2
Baeza, third in the Derby, 7-2
Rodriguez, Bob Baffert’s horse that missed the first two legs of the Triple Crown, 7-1
And down the stretch, Sovereignty outran Journalism in a Kentucky Derby rematch. Baeza was third, Rodriguez fourth.
While race fans, including yours truly, can play the ‘what if’ game, forever…what if Sovereignty had raced in the Preakness, I’m thinking, great move by the ownership team and trainer Bill Mott. They have a horse with two legs of the Triple Crown, in ten weeks it can run in the Travers Stakes (Aug. 23) back at Saratoga, and then about ten weeks later the Breeders’ Cup. I’m assuming that will be the plan.
And then Sovereignty can retire and reap boatloads of money for its owners for years to come.
What Journalism’s schedule is will be intriguing after running all three legs. New Jersey officials are praying they can nab the colt for the July 19 running of the Haskell Stakes (Monmouth Park) in six weeks.
The owners of Baeza are no doubt kind of hoping Journalism and Sovereignty skip the Haskell so their horse can swoop in and collect the $s.
Stuff
—A federal judge has granted final approval of a settlement of three antitrust cases addressing the compensation of college athletes Friday, ending a protracted legal debate and ushering in an extraordinary era that will allow NCAA member schools to directly pay their athletes.
According to the approval, schools will be able to compensate their athletes for the use of their name, image and likeness across all sports through an expected initial allotment of $20 million-$23 million per school, according to estimates. The changes are set to go into effect July 1.
The 10-year settlement is worth about $2.8 billion in damages, most of which is to be paid to compensate current and former athletes who were unable to participate in NIL contracts. Athletes whose college careers began between 2016 and Sept. 15, 2024, are eligible for compensation.
The damages will come from the NCAA.
Frankly, this topic makes my head hurt. Some of the figures for the likes of Cooper Flagg are interesting, but I won’t be spending a lot of time on this topic going forward. Just play the games. It’s about the name on the front of the uniforms. Life is too short to give a damn about all the transfer portals (though of course I do, when it comes to Wake Forest, so I’m a hypocrite).
Not every Division I school will opt into the settlement and start paying its athletes. But many will, including every power-conference program. Some departments cut full teams in anticipation of the settlement, which sucks, the Olympic sports, and this angle I will follow closely.
How might it work? Georgia has already published what they will do with the $20.5 million that can be spent the first year of the agreement.
Football – $13.5 million, about $2.7 million to men’s basketball, about $900,000 to women’s basketball players, about $900,000 to athletes from the remaining sports and about $2.5 million into new scholarships.
—Tottenham fired head coach Ange Postecoglou, despite him winning the club’s first trophy in 17 years, the Europa League title the other week, which puts the Spurs in next season’s Champions League competition.
But this isn’t surprising. Tottenham finished 17th in the Premier League, just 13 points above relegation.
Top 3 songs for the week 6/8/63: #1 “It’s My Party” (Lesley Gore) #2 “Sukiyaki (Kyu Sakamoto…catchy tune…) #3 Da Doo Ron Ron” (The Crystals)…and…#4 “I Love You Because” (Al Martino) #5 “You Can’t Sit Down (The Dovells)” #6 “Two Faces Have I” (Lou Christie) #7 “If You Wanna Be Happy” (Jimmy Soul) #8 “Still” (Bill Anderson) #9 “Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days Of Summer” (Nat King Cole…the one and only…) #10 “Surfin’ USA” (Beach Boys…eight months from the British Invasion….)
U.S. Open Golf / Oakmont Quiz Answer: The last six winners on the course….
1962 – Jack Nicklaus, in a playoff with Arnold Palmer that initiated their rivalry. It was Jack’s first professional win…Arnie, of course, from nearby Latrobe.
1973 – Johnny Miller, with his historic final round 63.
1983 – Larry Nelson
1994 – Ernie Els, in a playoff with Loren Roberts and Colin Montgomerie.
2007 – Angel Cabrera
2016 – Dustin Johnson
John Mahaffey won the 1978 PGA Championship at Oakmont.
Ben Hogan won the Open at Oakmont in 1953 and won $5,000. Jack Nicklaus in ’62 earned $17,500.
How many people remember that Larry Nelson won three majors (two PGA Championships) ….10 overall PGA Tour titles. He was also 9-0-0 in his first two Ryder Cups.
Brief Add-on up top by Tues. noon.
