COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

The Yankees are about to kick-off the 2017 season in less than 24 hours in Tampa Bay against the Rays, and with it the Bronx Bombers will feature a new look to the future. For the first time in 20 years the Yankees have infused young talent into the team with Greg Bird, Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez leading the new core.  The questions facing the Yankees ability to compete this year centers around their questionable starting rotation. I had the pleasure to talk to long time Yankees fan and writer, Karen Vankat about the Bombers chances this season.  Listen to the Open Mike Program on blogtalkradio . 

The 2017 New York Mets are hoping to get back to the postseason for the third straight season. If it were to happen it would be the first time in Mets history that the franchise has made it to the playoffs three straight years. This season will bring its fair share of challenges. The Mets have a log-jam in the outfield, and questions about the durability of its once promising starting rotation. I had the pleasure to talk to Mets blogger Michael Baron about the upcoming season on Open Mike. Tune in... To listen to the Open Mike Program logon to blogtalkradio .

In this episode of the Open Mike Spring Training Tour, I welcome in writer and radio host Eric Huysman to talk about the 2017 Houston Astros. The Astros have a very promising team this year with a healthy Dallas Kuechel leading an aspiring rotation, especially when Collin Mchugh returns from his arm issues. We talk about the rotation, and the impact  veterans Carlos Beltran and Brian McCann will have on this roster. The Astros do have one of the best infields in all of baseball,  featuring budding young stars in Adam Bregman and Carlos Correa, veteran Jose Altuve and Cuban national, Yuli Gurriel. It looks like a promising team that will challenge in the American League. Enjoy the show!! Follow the Open Mike Program on BlogTalkRadio .com

In this episode of the Open Mike Program, I welcome Chris Hogan of 27 Outs Baseball to talk about the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox won 93 games and the AL East last season, before succumbing to the Cleveland Indians in the Divisional Series. The Sox had a busy off-season retooling their bullpen, and adding veteran Chris Sale to the rotation. The expectation level for Boston is pretty high this year, with some even thinking they could go to the World Series. I talk about those expectations and more with Chris. The Open Mike Program  is live on Monday's and Fridays at blogtalkradio.com .

I had the pleasure to talk to baseball broadcaster and 27 Outs Baseball host Ben Poplin about the Braves 2017 campaign. We talk about Atlanta's chances this season in the NL East, as they have loaded up on veteran talent to try to push this team in a winning direction as they move into a new ballpark in Cobb County. Can the Braves compete with the Mets and Nationals? We talk about it. Ben broadcasted games for the Rome Braves for two years, and we trade our broadcasting baseball stories in the show as well. The Open Mike Program is live Monday's and Friday's on BlogTalkRadio.com!

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure to speak with Max Reiper of Royals Review to preview the upcoming season for the Kansas City Royals. The Royals are two years removed from their run to a World Series title, and hoping to bounce back from a disappointing 2016. Kansas City still features plenty of star power from Eric Hosmer to Salvador Perez, but the question this year for KC will be its pitching. Check out the podcast right here... The Open Mike Program is heard live on Monday's and Friday's on BlogTalkRadio.

The World Baseball Classic took its toll on another everyday major league player this week, as word came down that Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius will miss the first month of the season because of a strained right shoulder he suffered while fielding his position for the Netherlands. The injury is a big blow to the Yankees, who were hoping to have Gregorius at short stop to build upon last year's success where he led the Bombers in batting average, .276, and came around with the power late in the season to produce 20 homers and 70 RBI. Now the Yankees are forced to look at either former Met, Ruben Tejada, or prospects Ronald Torreyes, or Tyler Wade. By all accounts, neither Torreyes nor Wade are ready for the Majors at this point. The injury underlines a concern that Major League clubs have with the World Baseball Classic in general for years. Just this season alone, a number of quality starters have gone down to injury. Kansas City's Salvador Perez hurt his knee. Tigers s...

The Jets signed their quarterback for the 2017 season, and it wasn't Tony Romo or Jay Cutler. The Jets signed journeyman, veteran Josh McCown to a one-year deal worth $6 million. While on the surface McCown, who is 18-42 lifetime as a starter is not going to turn heads, this move was never about winning hearts and minds and football games this year.  This was a move by the Jets that was strictly about playing for the future. How does a 38-year old quarterback play into the future of the Jets? It's simple. McCown is known as a good clubhouse guy, and has been credited for being a mentor to younger players throughout his career. In fact this is a guy who has coached high school football when the NFL wasn't ringing up his phone. The Jets have two young quarterbacks in Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg that not only need playing time, but need a veteran voice to guide them. That is why McCown is here. Sure McCown has a good arm, and can make all the throws when he ne...

Tim Tebow's pursuit of a highly unlikely baseball career will now take him to Columbia, South Carolina to play for the Mets Class-A affiliate, the Columbia Fireflies. Inspite of his struggles at the plate, he's hitting .200 (4-for-20), with three of those hits barley clearing the infield, and continued scrutiny for opposing scouts and teams, the Mets continue to let the Tebow saga play out. Most players who struggle the way Tebow has would likely see a pink slip, but Tebow's celebrity, personalty and desire are carrying him forward. For the Fireflies having Tebow in town will bring them a lot of attention, and will undoubtably sell a lot of seats. There is nothing wrong with that for a minor league team -- any minor league club in that position would want to have a celebratory name in the building on a nightly basis. Tebow's infectious personalty, as well as his ties to the South Eastern Conference (SEC), which the nearby Gamecocks play in against Tebow's alma m...

The Giants and Jason-Pierre Paul have finally come to terms on a long term deal that will make the 7-1/2 fingered defensive end the second highest paid edge rusher in the league, according to NFL.com . The deal calls for Pierre-Paul to make $62 million over four years, with $40 million guaranteed, and a $20 million signing bonus. (Not bad for sining a contract, eh?). The Giants and Pierre-Paul had been looking to get a long term deal worked out for a long time. In February, the Giants slapped a non-exclusive franchise tag on Paul to keep him in town for a year at $17 million. Had the two sides not worked out a long term deal, that money would have been a poison pill to the Giants salary cap. To be fair JPP had a lot to prove over the past year after he blew off part of his hand during a 4th of July fireworks accident in 2015. He was a shell of his former self during the 2015 season. Last year however, he adjusted to life with the blown up digits, recording seven sacks, three ...

The New York Giants have been busy since free agency began just two weeks ago, taking risky gambles on ex-Jets and re-signing Jason Pierre Paul to a long term deal. Big Blue started their off-season pursuits when they signed ex-Jets wide out Brandon Marshall on a two-year, $12 million contract. The signing was slightly surprising, considering the Giants didn't exactly have a major need a wide receiver, with Odell Beckham and Sterling Shepherd already on the roster. On the plus side, the Giants are not spending a ton of money to get a top flight talent of Marshall's caliber into town. The $12 million over two years is a bargain by all considerations. And Marshall gets to stay in New York to pursue his broadcasting career with Showtime's Inside the NFL . Everyone wins on the surface. With Marshall on the squad the Giants, potentially have one of the most explosive pass-catching units in the NFL. Two years ago, when Marshall first came to New York with the Jets, he had...

Here is my preview of the St. Louis Cardinals 2017 season with St. Louis writer Steven McNeil. I conducted this interview back on March 3. The Cardinals might be nearing a potential rebuild, but they might still be the best competition for the defending champion Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. Can the Cardinals compete, and do they have enough talent to do so? I discuss with Steve. The Open Mike Program can be found on blogTalkRadio ! You can listen to past podcasts of the Spring Training Tour, including the Royals, Indians, Giants, Red Sox, and Cubs.

Since the start of the month, I have been busy on my 2017 Spring Training tour. This evening I had the pleasure to speak with Robert Villarreal, a writer for Baseball Essential  who covers the Cubs from the greater Chicago area. Rob and I have done numerous shows in the past, and this was a great time to preview the 2017 season of the defending World Series Champs! Here is the entire episode here on my YouTube channel. You can listen to past shows from Open Mike by going to blogTalkRadio ! I have covered the Indians, Cardinals, Red Sox, Cubs, Giants over the past two weeks.

The Tim Tebow Circus is now a reality the Mets can’t escape from, at least for the interim. The former Heisman Trophy winning quarterback, and NFL bust made his debut at Mets minor league camp this week unlike any minor league player in history. Tell me, what minor league prospect, even the most highly touted ones, get a press conference on his first day in camp? Tell me, what minor leaguer gets driven around the complex in a golf cart? Tell me, what minor leaguer gets mobbed by throngs of adoring fans? Tell me, what minor leaguer gets to speak to the team owner during BP? There aren’t any. Especially for a guy who has never faced live pitching at any level of professional baseball. Unless you count the instructional fall league, where Tebow hit a scintillating .194. The last time a player this insignificant to the opening day roster held a press conference, the New York Jets held one for a third string quarter… oh wait…that was Tebow too. When asked about his goal ...

The New York Giants assured Jason Pierre Paul will return to Big Blue next season, but the chances of a long term deal seem remote, after JPP was hit with the franchise tag this week. The franchise tag, worth about $16.9 million will guarantee that JPP will remain with the Giants in 2017, and allow Big Blue more time to work out a long term contract. If no deal is reached, Pierre Paul will have a one year deal with the Giants. Pierre Paul is allowed to shop himself to other teams, but the Giants have every right to match that contact. The problem the Giants face is that Pierre Paul feels he deserves a multi-year deal. Coming off the 4th of July hand injury he suffered in 2014, he improved by leaps and bounds with the use of really one hand last season, when he recorded seven sacks, three forced fumbles and 53 tackles. At the same time, the $17 million the Giants would commit to Pierre Paul on a franchise tag would hamper their off-season plans regarding free agency. And this is...