Halak lets in two turds, Bruins have stellar third

The Bruins showed us and the rest of the hockey world why they won the Presidents' Trophy in the third period of Monday night's game against Carolina. After playing with a regular season level of intensity in the first 40 minutes, the Bruins dominated the final period led by two goals from Jake DeBrusk.

Earlier in the game they were losing the battles along the boards and not just the 50/50 up-for-grabs puck battles. There were times that Carolina just took the puck away through will power.

Even though the B's got their act together in time, I'm growing concerned about Halak. The first two goals he allowed were soft. I'm worried Carolina might have found a weakness on his glove side that they'll be targeting for the rest of the series. The Hurricanes have had time to study Halak now, as opposed to Saturday when we learned he was starting about 2 hours before the puck dropped.

I'll conclude by mentioning that Zdeno Chara is 43-years old. That's amazing. He was drafted in 1996. How many NHL, Olympic, minor league/junior, Europe during lockdown games is that? He's played 189 NHL playoff games. And he's done it without hiring sketchy trainers or selling "immunity" products, like some other 40+ athletes we know.

Celtics' two Dr. Jays beat 76ers

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown led the Celtics in scoring with 32 and 29 points, respectively, pushing the Celtics to their 109-101 win.

The Celtics dominated in the even quarters, combining to outscore the 76ers 64-45 in the 2nd and 4th. Tatum scored 15 of his 32 in the 2nd. And critically, Brown scored 15 of his 29 in the 4th.

I loved how well the Celtics played in the 4th in response to a 76ers surge in the 3rd. There were a handful of clutch defensive and offensive possessions, Daniel Theis was earning Tommy Points left and right hustling after the ball, besides Tatum's 15 4th quarter points there was Kemba Walker scoring 11 of his 19 total points in the 4th. And they hit their free throws.

Philadelphia put up a solid fight. They hit a lot of their shots early to keep pace with the Celtics. Then they started to roll in the 3rd, forcing the C's to have the great 4th quarter that they did.

We'll see if that fight continues in the rest of the series. We'll see how the Gordon Hayward ankle sprain pans out and the impact that has. After the stoppage and the abbreviated regular season conclusion, these 7 game series seem longer than usual for some reason.

Bruins Game 3 win not as impressive as you think

Plenty of things to like about the Bruins' Game 3 win over Carolina. They seemed to rally around surprise goalie Jaroslav Halak. There were stretches of this game that they outright dominated. Charlie Coyle looked stellar.

But there was still lots of room for improvement. I'm not trying to be negative, I simply want to point out that the Bruins made enough mistakes that a slightly better team (and maybe one that wasn't so focused on officiating) might have capitalized on to beat them.

Halak looked solid, apart from that brain fart behind the net. But don't forget that late in the 1st period he covered a puck right on the goal line. If that had gone over and the Bruins fell behind 1-0 late in the opening period, the game might look very different. This was much more of a game of inches (millimetres in Canada) than it appeared at first glance.

Anders Bjork's tripping penalty in the 3rd was so poorly timed and unnecessary. You dominate play for 5 minutes and then give up an opportunity by committing a penalty 180 feet from your net. Bjork had a hat-trick of penalties, on in each period.

All things considered, it was a big win. It was nice to see all the players on the ice giving a full playoff effort, which hasn't been the case for the Bruins since the season restarted.

Rask pulls himself out of bubble: cause for criticism or fine with it?

Before getting into Tuukka Rask opting out, I want to establish a few things:

1. I have no issue with any athlete opting out of a sport

2. We are not owed explanations for why they are opting out

3. A player opting out isn't an invitation for sports media to concoct "hot take" theories

Rask's timing is unique. And comes after some off-putting remarks about games feeling like an exhibition. The announcement came just hours before Game 3 of a tied playoff series.

I'm quick to judge Rask. I've never been a big fan. He isn't a great playoff goalie but gets praised as though he were, and seems to get a pass for every bad goal he gives up.

So I'll try to play devil's advocate here. As much as I want to ask "Why now, why not a week ago?" that would go against the rules I set for myself above.

He could have felt like this for days or weeks, but wanted to try to play through it, or thought playoff games would bring the intensity he wasn't feeling. He could have felt the pain of being separated from family for a few days and thought "This might go on for weeks and weeks," and came to the conclusion it wasn't worth it.

He also could have looked at his effort levels in the first two games, saw himself at a regular season level, his teammates playing at playoff intensity, and felt it was unfair to them to keep playing like that.

So as much as I think Tuukka Rask is overrated, as much as I think he's treated as immune from criticism by some in this town, and as weird as the timing on this opt out is, I'm fine with it.

Bruins first team to wake up in morning playoff game

Define weird: watching the Presidents' Trophy winning Bruins who are also somehow the 4th seed team play a home playoff game in Toronto in front of no fans at 11am on a Wednesday.

I love Patrice Bergeron. Where does he fit all time in Bruins history? If you had to put 5 Bruins skaters on the ice in a do or die game I think Bergeron would have to be one of them. This was his fourth career playoff OT goal (most in Bruins history).

The Bruins looked better in this game than in any of the round-robins, but they're not quite playing at post-season levels. Maybe it was the odd circumstances around their game being delayed for 15 hours.

I'd like to see the Bruins do better at the things that are much more important in the playoffs than in regular season hockey. Specifically: board battles, puck support, zone entry/exit, hopeful passing.

Losing board battles isn't the end of the world, but you can't overly commit to a battle and allow the opponent to have space if they win the puck. This led to Carolina's first goal.

The hopeful no look passing works in regular season hockey but in the playoffs there's much less space, much less room for error.

I'm going to criticize Tuukka Rask next, so brace yourself. I'm not saying Rask is a bad playoff goalie. He's just not a great playoff goalie. On Brock McGinn's shorthanded breakaway how confident were you that Rask would make a big save? And on Carolina's first goal Rask was caught pushing a bit too much leaving enough space open for Edmundson to beat him.

Had the Bruins lost the game Rask would not have been the reason why, he also wasn't a big reason why they won.

Red Sox to move game start times to 11pm so people fall asleep before realizing how bad this team is

Why are these games starting at 7:30pm? I've seen a story about how the Red Sox say that it increases viewership. What's that based on? What past data do they have regarding pandemic TV watching patterns for late summer? Hey good idea having a 7:30pm start time when the Bruins playoffs are on at 8, that will be great for viewers.

I couldn't stay awake during the late innings Monday night so watched the grim conclusion Tuesday morning. Not a great way to start the day.

It's depressing when this team scores 3 runs in the first, 7 in total, and because there aren't legitimate starters on the staff you're always feeling very much behind. And then after nearly 4 and a half hours you realize you're watching a team whose own ownership and front office isn't interested in, as demonstrated by the insulting pitching staff assembled.

Man of the Game: Manuel Margot
He was 4 for 4 with a pair of doubles, including an 8th inning RBI double that wound up being the decisive run. He also stole a base.

Honorable Mentions:
Kevin Kiermaier: 2 for 4, 3 RBI, 2B, 2 SB, BB
JD Martinez: 3 for 4, HR
Kevin Plawecki: 3 for 4, 2 RBI
Jonathan Arauz: 3 for 4, 2 RBI

Shame Shares:

Ownership: 0.3 shares - for putting the team in a position to have no starters, and a lack of middle/long relievers

Chaim Bloom: 0.1 share - Ibid.

Colten Brewer: 0.1 share - 3 IP, 3 R, 2 ER

Jeffrey Springs: 0.2 shares - 1.1 IP, 3 ER

Ron Roenicke: 0.1 share - for leaving Springs out there

Phillips Valdez: 0.1 share - 2 IP, ER

Kevin Pillar: 0.1 share - 0 for 5, 2 K

Bruins play as bad as the Red Sox on ice against Tampa Bay

Three ring circus at The Plop

Before I get into how bad the Red Sox look, I have to say the Tampa Bay ballpark is not a ballpark. It is an abomination. There is nothing more anti-baseball than Tropicana Field, a.k.a. The Plop.

I do not like blaming umpires or bad luck for losses. And the Sox were always going to lose this game. It's almost as if having your worst hitter be in a position have the most plate appearances is a losing strategy. But it adds insult to injury when a close call is missed and/or a foul out is spoiled by poor stadium design.

A questionable ball/strike call and the abominable design of The Plop made things more difficult for Eovaldi, but the Rays still hit his pitches and hit them hard. Bad breaks become really bad breaks when you can't get outs.

Andrew Benintendi looks dreadful. I know you need to get him to the plate to get him out of the funk he's in, but he can't be leading off anymore. Please. He can't be put in a position to get the most plate appearances. Putting him at leadoff makes his slump much more harmful to the team.

Man of the Game: Joey Wendle

He went 3 for 4 with a triple and a stolen base.

Honorable Mentions:

JD Martinez: 2 for 4, 2 2Bs

Charlie Morton: 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 K

Aaron Loup: 1.1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, K, 9 pitches, 8 strikes

Shame Shares:

Nathan Eovaldi: 0.4 - 5 IP, 4 ER

Andrew Benintendi: 0.2 - 0 for 5, 2 K

Tropicana Field: 0.2

Xander Bogaerts: 0.2 - 0 for 4 (0 for 3 w/RISP)

Red Sox convicted of being a bad team

Before discussing this game, I am so happy that the NESN broadcast crew will be back. It's hard enough watching this lackluster Red Sox team, but to do so while ESPN's Matt Vasgersian has screaming orgasms that break my speakers whenever Aaron Judge hits a homerun is borderline torture.

By the way, Judge is still about 600 homeruns shy of Babe Ruth. He's great, but let's ease off the GOAT discussion, ESPN. More on that later.

Why are the Red Sox throwing strikes to Aaron Judge? Why not take a page out of the Bill Belichick Bible and force the opponent to beat you with someone other than their best player? Walk him. Throw pitches in the dirt. Hit him in the back. Give him one free base instead of letting him take four from you?

I'm genuinely insulted by the lack of starting pitchers on this team. I know there have been injuries and Edro got Covid-19 (please stop calling him E-Rod, it's the least original nickname in baseball history and it makes him sound like a terrible fielder). But the fact that this team can only put two actual starting pitchers on the field is a massive middle finger from the owners of Liverpool FC.

Man of the Game: Aaron Judge

I hate to add to Judge's accolades after ESPN compared him to Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Tiger Woods (I'm not exaggerating, that really happened). But the game changed on both of his homeruns. His first gave the Yankees a 3-2 lead in the 2nd, and his second a 9-7 lead in the 8th. Both were with 2 outs. 5 RBI in total.

Honorable Mentions:

Xander Bogaerts: 4 for 4, 2 HRs, 2B, 3 RBI

Rafael Devers: 2 for 5, HR, two great plays in the field

Shame Shares:

Matt Hall: 0.4 - 2 IP, 5 ER, HR, 4 H, 2 BB

Matt Barnes: 0.4 - IP, 3 ER, HR, 2 H, BB

Ownership: 0.1 - Lack of SPs

Ron Roenicke: 0.1 - For pitching to Judge

Bruins still hibernating from layoff

I have mixed feelings about round-robin playoff seeding. It's a good way to give the top 4 teams a bye while also giving them a chance to play meaningful and competitive hockey so they don't get rusty.

But it's also weird that the 4th seed can move up to #1 with just one or two good games. Maybe the better way to it would be to give the top team 2 bonus points for the group, the second team 1 point, and then that way they have an inside track for the higher seeds.

That being said, the Bruins have nobody to blame for this loss but themselves. Halak was poor. Most of the team played like it was a regular season game. They lost battles, they didn't support the puck, they made hopeful passes in dangerous areas of the ice.

The intensity from both teams didn't match that of most of the playoff qualifiers I saw this weekend, but the Flyers still brought more effort with them to the rink than the B's did.

As of Tuesday morning the Bruins sit in the cellar of the qualifying group, the only team in the group without any points.

Celtics get Bucked by refs while splitting weekend games

I hate blaming officiating for losses, so I'm not doing that regarding the Celtics' 119-112 loss to the Bucks on Friday. But is there a mandate among NBA refs to give Antetokounmpo every single call? It's frustrating to watch such a talented player be given even more advantages to play more aggressively on offense and defense because refs are afraid of fouling him out.

Mixed feelings from the Celtics' two games over the weekend. I didn't like the lack of a strong finish on Friday against the Bucks. I liked the strong finish on Sunday against the Trail Blazers, but didn't like that it was necessary after ending the first half up by nearly 20.

The Milwaukee game was a preview of what a series with the Bucks might potentially look like: Close games, bad calls, and the Celtics will need to play at 115% of their ability not only to counter the Bucks' talent, but the extra help the Bucks will get. And because all games will be in a neutral arena there won't be Boston crowds in some games to help subconsciously sway the refs. 

Ironically, the lack of home courts might make seeding an even bigger advantage than it traditionally is in the NBA. The refs love star players, and won't be alternating arenas to balance out some of that star love.

Wishful thinking: The Field of Dreams Game epitomizes everything wrong with MLB's inept Covid-19 plan

Covid-19 threatens to shut down Major League Baseball's season barely 1/6 of the way through its abbreviated schedule. And yet there's still a Field of Dreams gimmick game scheduled to be played in Iowa for some reason. Why was this game kept on the schedule at all?

The fact that this game wasn't removed from the 2020 schedule is an illustration of the wishful thinking underlying, and now undermining MLB's Covid-19 plans. Compared to other sports leagues in the US and around the world, Major League Baseball's plan to avoid Covid-19 looks more like a plan designed intentionally for players to catch and spread the virus as much as possible.

There was a half-assed effort to reduce travel in the 2020 season by limiting each team's opponents. But how does forcing the White Sox and Cardinals to travel to Iowa for one game reduce travel? (Aside: it should have been the Reds instead of the Cardinals (or the initial opponent, the Yankees) to oppose the White Sox. Reds vs. White Sox would be a rematch of the 1919 World Series that Shoeless Joe played in, but that's besides the point)

The schedule change was superficial and insufficient. And this purely promotional Iowa game was kept on the schedule as an indicator of the lack of serious thought MLB put into their plan: Teams weren't isolating themselves from the public, the schedules were adjusted to minimize the number of different opponents, but there wasn't much of a change to the basics of how a baseball schedule works; with 3 game series, along with some 2 and 4 game series mixed in. And games would still be played in every team's home ballpark.

The Red Sox will play the Orioles 10 times in 3 series. That could have easily been two series of 5 in each team's ballpark. The Sox will move cities 12 times in 65 days, moving every 5.4 days. That's way too high.

Which begs the question: why are teams playing in their own ballpark at all? I get that baseball fields have more unique characteristics from park to park compared to other sports. It's hard to imagine a Red Sox season without the Green Monster, or a Yankees season without the swaths of empty executive seats behind home plate. 

But this isn't the time for sentimentalism. This isn't the time for clinging to the status quo as much as possible. There was NO evidence to suggest Major League Baseball could run a semi-normal season the way it always has, with 15 games played in 15 ballparks each night.

To save the season, baseball could make bubbles for each of its three regions, with all games held in a limited number of cities:

East: New York + DC/Baltimore (4 ballparks)

Central: Chicago/Milwaukee + Cleveland (4 ballparks)

West: LA/San Diego + Oakland/San Fran (5 ballparks)

Yes, many teams would not get to play in their empty home ballparks. Yes, there would be many cases of stadiums hosting 2 games per day (or you could play in nearby college or minor league parks). But travel would be dramatically minimized. Instead of 30 teams playing in 26 cities, with teams bouncing around them every 5 or 6 days, you'd have 10 teams playing in 2 bubbles each. The Red Sox could stay in New York for a few weeks playing the Yankees, Mets, and "hosting" other East teams, or being "hosted" by other East teams.

And no games in Iowa just for promotional reasons.

If you build the bubbles, they will stay uninfected.

Yankees take Godley deep to hell

As bad as the pitching has been, the Red Sox offense has been a bigger disappointment. I expected crap from most of the pitching staff. I didn't expect it from the offense. Since the 13 run home opener, this team has averaged 3.25 runs scored per game. They've been held to 3 runs or fewer four times. They've only scored 5+ runs twice (including that 13 run outing).

The Yankees are good. They hit lots of homeruns. That's my super hot take. Because they hit homeruns it's especially important to keep the bases as empty as possible. Which Zach Godley failed to do that in the 2nd,  and he was subsequently punished by a Gio Urshela Grand Slam, which was as close to a 2nd inning walk off as is possible.

Six hits and 2 walks for Godley in his 3.1 innings of work.

I've reached my Andrew Benintendi limit. I guess the good news is there's no way he will finish the season below .100, right? However currently he's killing the lineup. He managed a pair of walks this evening but no hits, and struck out to end the game when the Sox had a rally building in the 9th.

Man of the Game: Gio Urshela

Only had one hit but it won the game. He also walked and stole a base to ice that cake.

Honorable Mentions:

Mike Tauchman: 3 for 4, Run, 2 SBs

Aaron Judge: 1 for 3, HR, BB

Nick Nelson: 3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 BB, 4 K

Shame Shares:

Zack Godley: 0.5 - 3.1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 HR, 2 BB

Ownership; 0.1 - They're responsible for this

Chaim Bloom: 0.1 - So is he

Mitch Moreland: 0.1 - 0 for 4, 2 K

Alex Verdugo: 0.1 - 0 for 4, 2 K

Andrew Benintendi: 0.1 - 0 for 3, 2 K

A Bronx Fail: Red Sox waste their talent on offense

Red Sox pitching kept the team in the game for 8 innings, but the offense slept through their at-bats as if they had bus lag from their traveling from Queens to the Bronx.

Every hit in this game was either a single or a homerun.

Michael Chavis hit a solo homerun but apart from that the Sox only mustered 4 singles and a pair of walks. They went down in order four times (1st, 2nd, 5th, and 7th). And they gave up another out on the bases, this time Pillar was caught too far off 1st on a shallow fly to right.

With this staff, there won't be too many games where they are able to stay this close with so few runs. Shame to waste it.

Man of the Game: Chad Green
In his 2 innings of relief he struck out 4 of the 6 batters he faced. He threw 29 pitches and 22 were strikes. He totally shut down the Sox for 2 innings.

Honorable Mentions:
Michael Chavis: 1 for 3, HR, some nice stretches at first
Xander Bogaerts: 2 for 3, BB, a pair of Gold Glove plays at short
Phillips Valdez: 2.2 IP, 0 ER, kept the Sox in the game
Jordan Montgomery: 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 4 K

Shame Shares:
Ryan Weber: 0.3 - 3.1 IP, 3 ER, 4 BB
Colten Brewer: 0.2 - IP, 2 ER
Alex Verdugo: 0.2 - 0 for 4 (0 for 2 with RISP)
Kevin Pillar: 0.1 - 1 for 4, thrown out on basepaths
Rafael Devers: 0.1 - 0 for 3, GIDP
Christian Vazquez: 0.1 - 0 for 4