COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

  Moments after the Yankees fell to the Mets in the Subway Series, General Manager Brian Cashman was busy at work trying to improve his ballclub. He may have found that much needed power bat off the bench in former Boston Red Sox Andrew Benintendi. The Yankees acquired Benintendi late last night in a deal with the Kansas City Royals for three prospects: T.J. Sikkema, Beck Way and Chandler Champlain.  The Yankees didn’t have to dip deep into their farm system to get make the deal, leaving room for them to go after bigger fish like Luis Castillo and/or Juan Soto. "We got savages in the lineup and really good hitters. Benintendi is a really good hitter. He gives you some balance in the lineup. That is another good big league hitter to add to the mix,” Manager Aaron Boone told the press after last night’s game. The 28-year old Benintendi is hitting .320 on the year with 3 homers and 39 RBI. He is a solid left-handed bat, and one that could replace Joey Gallo who has struggled sinc...

 As I wrote for Fox Sports New Jersey  Max Scherzer has been one of baseball’s best pitchers for a better part of his career. A man who has Cy Young Awards, no-hitters and a World Series title to his name, this was Scherzer’s first ever taste of the Subway Series, and gobbled it down. The 38-year old, who just recently celebrated his birthday, dominated the Yankees over seven innings, as he found a way to cling onto a 2-0 lead, before a bullpen meltdown in the eighth inning. Perhaps the biggest headline from the game was the fact that Scherzer held Aaron Judge hitless in four at bats, striking him out three times. In fact Judge went 0-for-5 in the game. Every time Scherzer was at a crossroads against baseball’s highest scoring offense, he found a way out of it. In the third inning, he found himself in a spot with two runners on and two out, and came back to strikeout Judge on a slider low and away. In the fifth, Scherzer gave up a lead-off double t0 Josh Donaldson, and later w...

 After an off-season where the Jets were deeply concerned about the progress of tackle Mekhi Becton, Head Coach Robert Saleh had nothing but effusive praise for the way Becton has rebounded and prepared as training camp opened on Wednesday.  A much slimmer Becton showed up to camp after missing the entire season after injury his knee in Week 1, and at one point weighing over 400 pounds during his rehab.  The Jets weren't thrilled when Becton skipped voluntary camp and showed up to camp in June at 390. Things have changed since. According to ESPN, Becton's personal nutritionist Ann Claibourne said the tackle "slimmed down a lot" after working with the Jets conditioning and training staff.  Saleh praised Becton for his hard work to get back in shape, and confirmed that he would start at right tackle. The Jets are happy with veteran George Fant at left tackle. Plus it gives New York an opportunity to pair Fant with fellow veteran Lakin Tomlinson on the left side of the ...

METS 6 - YANKEES 3 It had all the earmarks of a postseason game.  A stadium filled to the gills; fans on the edge of their seats, and total tension from the first pitch to the very last pitch.  For three and a half hours, New York sports fans were treated to great theatre as the Mets and Yankees -- two of baseball's best teams this season went toe-to-toe for the first time this year, and it didn't disappoint. The final score read 6-3 Amazin's, but the road to get there was full of swings of emotion. Before anyone could settle into their seats, the Yankees jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo both went deep off Mets starter Taijuan Walker in the top of the first inning. The Mets responded just as quickly. A solo shot by Starling Marte with one out in the bottom half of the first cut the Yankees lead in half. Francisco Lindor followed that up with a double, and was driven in by Pete Alonso, who lined a double to center, tying the game at two. Two...

 The New York Mets swung a trade for a hitter. No, not Juan Soto -- as it appears the Mets are likely not going to land the Washington Nationals slugger.  However New York did land Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Daniel Vogelbach in a deal for reliever Colin Holderman.  On the surface Voglebach is not that much of an improvement at designated hitter over Dom Smith or JD Davis. For starters, he is vastly overweight, listed at 270 pounds, and is a lifetime .213 hitter. In fact this year alone, he is hitting .228 with 12 homers and 34 RBI.  While the production numbers are an improvement over Smith and Davis, Voglebach is hitting only .141 against lefties. He is more of a righty-specialist, meaning he does better against right handed pitchers. His numbers against right-handers is .260 with 12 homers and 27 RBI.  Holderman will be missed. He was a young pitcher with potential. He was 4-0 with a 2.04 ERA in 17-2/3 innings of work. He was mostly a long reliever out o...

 All New York Jets fans wanted was a throwback to better days.  Maybe a throwback to look of the franchise's 1980s "Sack Exchange", or perhaps -- more logically -- a throwback to the franchise's original look that they had twice from 1965 to 1977 and again from 1998 until 2018.  But, nope. The Jets decided to go in another direction, adding to their already unpopular new threads with an even more polorizing matted black helmet with the Jets wordmark across the sides in green.  If the Jets were an expansion team, or a member of the XFL, it wouldn't be an awful look. But because this is a franchise that has had a certain look for so many years, seeing the black helmet with the black jersey is jarring.  In fact the reveal has ruffled the feathers of many fans.     The Jets will wear the new helmets three times. Against New England on October 30, against Chicago on November 27, and against Jacksonville on December 22. At least the game against the Jag...

 Keith Hernandez has been a face of Mets baseball for more than 37 years. First as a player,  one of the best to ever play first base; a leader in the clubhouse, who helped spear head a franchise resurgence in the mid-1980s, culminating in a World Series championship.  Years later, he would return to Flushing as a broadcaster, and, now in his 17th season in the booth, Hernandez is as beloved by Mets fans as ever.  Getty Images.  Saturday's jersey number retirement just hit different. It was as emotional and as genuine in feeling -- if not more so --as any jersey retirement preceding it.  Give credit to Steve Cohen and crew, after years and years of Wilpon ineptitude, they finally got it right.  Hernandez's jersey number 17 should have been retired years ago, but it took an owner with a genuine passion, glee and desire to make good with a franchise with a considerable history to do the right thing.    While he didn't visibly shed a tear, you c...

  New York Mets' ace Jacob deGrom made a grand return to the pitching rubber after spending the past four months sidelined with a stress reaction in his right shoulder.  The two-time Cy Young Award winner dominated the Jupiter Hammerheads (Miami Marlins single-A squad) down in Port St. Lucie as he tries to restart a season, and a career that was sidelined by arm issues exactly one year ago. deGrom hit 100 mph on the radar gun six times on Sunday night, and needed only 24 pitches to strike out five batters in a 1-2/3 innings of work. In other words he looked like the Jacob deGrom who was 7-2 with a 1.08 ERA in 15 starts last season before various arm ailments ended his season. According to reports the effort was the first of a 30-day rehab assignment (think of it as extended Spring Training) where deGrom can be activated at any point so long as he is activated before August 1. The Mets are already ready to welcome back Max Scherzer to the rotation on Tuesday after a pair of suc...

 When the New York Knicks wheeled and dealed at the NBA Draft resulting in the trade of Kemba Walker and the 13th overall pick, Jalen Duran to the Detroit Pistons for draft picks, many criticized the Knicks for coming out of the NBA draft with no prospects.  All the Knicks had was cash and draft capital. And they used that extra cash that they had to sign their number one free agent target, point guard Jalen Brunson to a four-year $104 million deal.  Brunson is still young, 25-years old and is coming off his best season as a pro, with 16.3 points per game and 4.8 assists per game with the Dallas Mavericks. The Knicks were in dire need of a young point guard, coming off a disastrous 37-45 season that saw the likes of Julius Randle draw the ire of Knicks fans everywhere for his sometimes lackadaisical play. The Knicks wanted to build around Randle, but there is a strong possibility that he too could be on his way out the door.  It's a big year upcoming for GM Leon Rose...

Three years ago the Brooklyn Nets went all in on the idea that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, two faces of the NBA's last decade of success in both Golden State and Cleveland, respectfully would come to New York City -- the other team in New York City -- and win an NBA Championship.  Everyone bought in, the media especially, who without any hesitation had the Nets pegged to rep the Eastern Conference in the Finals the past two seasons, and in each case the Nets came up snake eyes.  With all the talent, and even late additions like James Harden, the Nets could only muster one playoff victory in three years.  Kevin Durant - Getty Images. One playoff victory! Now it is all over after Durant decided to take a hibachi knife to the raft, pierced a giant hole in it and watched it sink to the bottom. On Thursday, Durant demanded that Brooklyn trade him out of town; preferably to either Miami or Phoenix.  Hey, older people do love warmer weather year round?  All in all, ...