Apr 19, 2021
Not even three weeks through the season, and we’re already in a bit of a predicament as far as power rankings go. Teams are barely through 10% of their schedule and we know it’s too soon for concrete conclusions to be drawn. But it feels like we’ve already come to a fork in the road where we must decide how to weigh how good we
think teams are against what we’ve actually seen on the field to this point.
There are teams we expected to be bad that have, well, been bad (apologies to fans of the Rockies, Tigers and Diamondbacks). There are also teams we held in our minds to be good that have looked downright awful so far, and a bunch of middling teams that have hovered around .500. What we re trying to say is we had a particularly difficult time ranking teams this week. In most cases, we leaned toward what we believe a team’s true talent level to be, even if that talent has produced subpar results thus far. The further we get into the season, the less reliable
Yankees frustrated amid worst 15-game start since 1997 By Erin Walsh | Last updated 4/19/21
The New York Yankees own the worst record in the American League at 5-10 following a 4-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. The Bronx Bombers are off to their worst start since 1997 and players are beginning to get just as frustrated as the fans.
After Sunday s game, D.J. LeMahieu admitted he was personally frustrated and said the Yankees need to find it within themselves to turn things around. No one s going to feel sorry for us, LeMahieu said, according to The Associated Press (h/t ESPN). No one s going to throw softer or throw easier for us. We ve got to find it within ourselves to continue to get better and play the way we re capable of.
The Yankees Are Bad and Boring | 97 3 The Game iheart.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from iheart.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images
It was a cold, dreary night at Yankee Stadium, and the overall performance of the Bronx Bombers reflected the meteorological environment in which they played. From the word go, the Yankees were never really in this one. Opener Nick Nelson spotted the Rays a two-run first inning lead, and the ensuing uphill battle for the Bombers proved to be a Sisyphean task.
Nelson walked leadoff batter Austin Meadows, and then surrendered back-to-back doubles to Randy Arozarena and Brandon Lowe. Before you could even find your seat, the Rays were already up 2-0. He managed to right the ship and prevent any further damage in the inning, but his high pitch count (30), declining velocity, and general ineffectiveness ensured he would not return for the second inning.
Sure, it merely stole a regular-season game in the middle of April, but Luka Doncic’s lunging, lurching, lofty 3-pointer at the buzzer – the Luka Leaner – is one of the most improbable, impressive, iconic shots in Mavs’ history.
The H-O-R-S-E winner belongs alongside Vince Carter’s corner 3-pointer against the Spurs, Jason Terry’s triple in LeBron’s mug in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, Dirk Nowitzki’s lefty layup in the 2011 clincher and, yes, Luka’s own 35-footer to beat the Clippers in the playoff bubble.
At some point, we have to stop being surprised by Luka Legend. Doncic is now 10 of 25 on potential tying or go-ahead shots in the final 30 seconds of a game. In other words, with the game on the line Luka has a 40-percent chance to make the shot – even if it’s an off-balance, one-hand floater from 24 feet. For comparison, on those same clutch shots LeBron James is 32 percent, Damian Lillard 35 and Kevin Durant 30.