Good morning, all! I hope your weekend is off to a terrific start!
Can you believe it is already Week 7 of the NFL season? The above video has this week’s picks and for me there is only one way to go!
Here are some other thoughts as the Boston media revels in reliving the 1975 World Series:
Speaking of the Boston media, you can always tell when they want the Red Sox to go after a player. Since season’s end, there have been numerous stories about how the Red Sox offense lacked power in 2025 and the man to fulfill that need is Mets free agent first baseman Pete Alonso. The problem is Alonso turns 31 on Dec. 7 and is seeking a contract in years the Red Sox or no other club is willing to give. We shall see, but he would be a perfect fit for Fenway Park.
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel has his team dreaming of the playoffs. Off to a 4-2 start that has them in first place in the AFC East, the Pats play Vrabel’s ex-team, the Tennessee Titans on Sunday at Tennessee. The Titans are now being coached on an interim basis by Mike McCoy, after Brian Callahan became the first NFL head coaching casualty this season. This week Vrabel seemed to stun the media when he said he talked to Callahan, after he was fired. Vrabel said he just wanted to offer a shoulder on which the coach could lean. He added some other impactful statements, such as the public doesn’t realize, when a coach is fired, about the ramifications that losing a job has on not only the coach but his family. Very true. Callahan, I am sure, was properly compensated an need not worry about where his next paycheck is coming from, but it still hurts to be fired. Words of wisdom from Vrabel, as he returns to the scene where he was dismissed two seasons ago.
Here we go. Notre Dame, which made it to the national championship game last season, before losing to Ohio St., lost its first two games this season. Now ND athletic director Pete Bevacqua wants the college football playoff field expanded from 12 to 16 teams. Count on it happening. There is too much money to be made with additional teams.
Yankees GM Brian Cashman took Yankees great Derek Jeter to task on the team’s flagship radio station Thursday. Jeter suggested on Fox that the analytics department is calling the shots and not manager Aaron Boone. Cashman told WFAN Jeter’s comments were uninformed and that is not the case. You get the idea Cashman really wants nothing to do with the Yankees greats from Jeter to Alex Rodriguez to Don Mattingly. Expect Hall of Famer CC Sabathia to be next on Cashman’s list, after stating on Friday the Mets are better equipped to make it to the World Series before the Yankees do. Ouch!
Back in the day, the general manager of an MLB club handled it all, overseeing the business and player personnel sides. That is not the case anymore, except for the Toronto Blue Jays Mark Shapiro. As President and CEO of the Blue Jays, Shapiro calls the shots for business and baseball. Derek Falvey of the Minnesota Twins is the only other executive who handles the business and baseball sides of his franchise. When do they sleep?
That is going to do it for today’s newsletter. As always, thank you for your support and have great Saturday.
DAN
