COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

 It's officially time to party Mets fans!!  Major League Baseball has formally approved the sale of the franchise to billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen for $2.4 billion. Cohen, who is the CEO of Point72 Asset Management is worth close to $14 billion.  While the vote tally was not released right away on Friday afternoon, it didn't take the owners long after their 1:30 meeting commenced for word to trickle out through Twitter that the vote was taken and Cohen approved.  About 30 minutes later, New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio tweeted that the City Law Department had conducted and completed its review of the sale, and finds no objection to Cohen purchasing the team. The decision by DeBlasio comes a mere 36 hours after a story was published in the New York Post that said the Mayor had expressed to Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred that he did not want to see Cohen purchase the team.  The Mayor's office reiterated that was not the case and the call was just...

 Tomorrow MLB's owners will vote on whether to approve billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen as majority owner of the New York Mets, and it is fully expected Cohen will pull in the minimum required 22 of 29 votes to do so.   However the powerplay by New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio gets more and more bizarre, as His Honor looks to thwart the deal any which way possible. In fact it was reported by the New York Post late Wednesday that DeBlasio had a phone call with Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred that DeBlasio opposes the deal althogether.  DeBlasio asserted his feelings on Thursday, according to the New York Post , saying that he will not bow to MLB's deadline on Friday when the owners vote on Cohen.  The Mayor also declined to get specific about his phone call with Manfred. The Post reported Thursday that the Mayor reiterated he wants his law department to look into the lease in that conversation.   Apart of this are different theories that Jerry R...

 The tension is palpable as New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio said he will make an announcement to approve the plans for the Mets sale to hedge-fund manager Steve Cohen in the next few days, according to the New York Post.  Of course the vote to approve Cohen's sale by Major League Baseball's 29 other owners is set to take place on Friday, and it is widely anticipated that Cohen will receive the 22 votes necessary to take over the once fledgling franchise.    According to the Post, DeBlasio is expected to rubber stamp the sale, but has been cagey, leaving many to wonder if the Mayor will attempt to block the sale. According to an amendment in the Citi Field lease agreement from 2006 allows the sitting mayor (in this case DeBlasio) to deny the sale of a team to a "prohibited person" which is defined as a "person convicted in a criminal proceeding for a felony or any crime involving moral turpitude."  Hence we go back to the SAC Capital insider trader sca...

 The future of the New York Mets and their new owner Steve Cohen could very well hinge on the ok from unscrupulous New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio.  According to several reports, MLB owners are expected to vote in favor of Cohen taking over as majority owner of team, despite a push by White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf is trying everything in his power to stop that from happening. A vote on Cohen is expected to take place Friday by MLB owners, and all Cohen needs is 22 of 29 votes.  The reason Reinsdorf is so against the Cohen to the Mets transaction is due in part to a friendship he has with Alex Rodriguez, who led a failed bid for the Mets with his partner Jennifer Lopez. Not to mention Reisndorf tried to block Cohen's purchase of the LA Dodgers back in 2012 due to allegations of insider trading by his company SAC Capital.  While Reisendorf is ruffling feathers, but apparently not enough to disrupt the sale, Cohen and the Mets face a much stiffer opponent in DeBlasi...

 BILLS 18 - JETS 10  Those of you who want to take a look at this with the glass half full approach, at least the Jets didn't get blown out by double digits.  At least for one half of football, the Jets looked like a competent football team. At least for a few drives, Sam Darnold looked like a franchise quarterback. La'Michal Perrine actually existed. And at least wide receiver, Denzel Mims actually showed up.  But soon "at least" turned into a just another dreary Jets disaster as Gang Green lost a field goal fest 18-10 against the Buffalo Bills.  Even though Head Coach Adam Gase ceded the play-calling duties to Offensive Coordinator Dowell Loggains it was little consulation as the Jets offense went into a total and complete deep freeze in the seocnd half. Even though the ballclub held a 10-6 lead at the break, and Sam Darnold and company were moving the football in the first half with rather alacrity against the Buffalo Bills, they could do nothing after halfti...

 EAGLES 22 - GIANTS 21 It turns out that Daniel Jones' 80-yard scamper that turned into a stumble before the endzone was a harbinger of things to come after all. There are no more moral victories for the New York Giants. Not when the NFC East is on the line. The Giants had a golden opportunity to climb back into the woeful NFC East, holding a 21-10 lead on the Philadelphia Eagles, on the road, with a little over six minutes remaining in the game.  The Giants, for the most part, had done a lot of things right. They dominated the line of scrimmage against the Eagles battered offensive line. They turned around Carson Wentz and company on a crucial fourth and goal at the Giants three, only to watch Daniel Jones and Wayne Gallman respond with a 97-yard scoring drive that gave Big Blue that 11-point advantage.  And at the end of the day it didn't matter.  Had the Giants won this game, they would have been 2-5 -- not exactly impressive, but in this division that nobody want...

 I am tired of writing the old adage, "Leave it to the New York Jets," but seriously, leave it to the New York Jets. Because only they could sign a player as talented as Le'Veon Bell -- after he missed an entire year of football in 2018, pay him $52 million over four years, and not even a year and a half into the contract, cut him, claiming nobody wants him.  How is that even possible?  The Jets cut Bell on Tuesday night as the Buffalo Bills were getting shellacked on national television by the Tennessee Titans 42-16. The reason's behind the move are manifold, but the latest has to do with tweets Bell liked that criticized head coach Adam Gase's use of Bell during the Jets 30-10 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.  Bell touched the ball only once on Sunday. Gase has promised numerous times to get Bell involved in the offense, and it never transpired on the field.  According to reports Bell and his representation, met with Gase and Douglas to discuss a poten...

 COWBOYS 37 - GIANTS 34  It was one of the wildest games of the season, full of twists and turns, but don't tell anyone that the Cowboys didn't have a singular purpose in mind when they beat the Giants 37-34 on Sunday.    Win one for Dak.  That had to be the message and the mindset for Dallas after its star quarterback went down with an ankle injury mid-way through the third quarter. Prescott had the Boys moving into Giants territory with Dallas clinging to a one-point lead of 24-23. As he tried to avoid a defender he rolled badly on his ankle as he was tackled.  He sat up with tears in his eyes, knowing full well that this was bad as the Cowboys training staff stabilized his foot and sent the Pro Bowler on his way to the hospital.  While the Prescott injury was the main headline coming out of Cowboys 37, Giants 34, it was not the only story.  The Giants held a 14-3 lead after Kyler Fackrell picked off Prescott and dashed into the end zone for a t...

 CARDINALS 30 - JETS 10  What's there left to say about the New York Jets at this point?  The Arizona Cardinals walked into MetLife Stadium and put a severe whooping on a Sam Darnold-less Jets team that couldn't do anything right. How does punting on fourth and one twice within the first five minutes of the game sound to you?  Or how about the fact the Jets faced a third and short and fourth and short at the Cardinals' 13-yard line and couldn't get a first down, and couldn't score as Arizona held an early 7-0 lead.  Joe Flacco? Even he had no answers. How could he when every big throw he attempted his recievers like Chris Herndon and Jeff Smith were dropping passes like it was going out of style. The only positive was Jamison Crowder, who hauled in eight balls for 116 yards, including a 52-yard reception in the third quarter, and a touchdown that really wasn't to cap off that drive.  In short it was just another embarassing defeat. 30-10. It wasn't even clo...

 He was known as the Chairman of the Board. Yankees legend Whitey Ford passed away Friday at the age of 91, mere hours before his old team took the field in a decisive Game 5 against the Tampa Bay Rays. Ford had suffered from Alzheimer's disease in recent years according to reports.   Ford played his entire career in Pinstripes, winning 236 games and pitching to a career 2.75 ERA, winning six World Series titles and playing in 10 All Star Games. His 10 World Series game victories is the most of any pitcher. His 33.2 scoreless innings in the Fall Classic broke a record set by another legendary Yankee, Babe Ruth. Ford is widely considered one of the greatest Yankees of all time, and the greatest left-handed pitcher in Yankees lore.   Ford, a New York native, went 9-1 his rookie year of 1950 at the age of 21, setting the stage for what would be a brilliant career. His best season of course coming in 1961 where Ford when 25-4 in 39 starts. That was backed up two years ...

 RAYS 2 - YANKEES 1   For the New York Yankees, the 2020 American League Division Series will go down as a blown opportunity. First it was Aaron Boone's decision to remove Deivi Garcia after one inning of Game 2, then it was a number of strange decisions by the Yankee skipper in Game 5 that played a role in his team's dismissal from the playoffs.    The Rays certainly deserve a lot of credit. They were the best team in the American League for a reason, and even when the Yankees came back to tie this series to force a decisive Game 5, they withstood the challenge. They didn't let the prospects of facing Gerrit Cole beat them down.  And as far as first baseman Mike Brosseau? What's left to say? Brosseau had the at bat that defined this Division Series. The second year player put together a masterful at bat against Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman in the bottom of the eighth inning, working a 10-pitch at-bat that culminated in a solo home run to left that gave the Ra...

 Things can't get any worse for the New York Jets, can they?  Well on Friday, they did, when the Jets sent all coaches and players home after an unnamed player was diagnosed positive with COVID-19.  The news of course puts Sunday's game against the Arizona Cardinals in question now, just two days before the two teams meet at MetLife Stadium.  Already the NFL has had to reschedule multiple games involving the Tennessee Titans and New England Patriots due to COVID-19. The Patriots game against Denver is now scheduled to play Monday at 5 ET, while the Titans will host the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday night.  There was the threat by the NFL earlier in the week that it could consider forfeiting games if it felt that teams were not adhering to  COVID guidelines, but so far the League has not executed on that threat. The Jets and Cardinals do not share a similar bye week, meaning the game will either be played Sunday if no new positive tests come, or it could be moved...

 YANKEES 5 - RAYS 1  The Yankees needed Jordan Montgomery to channel his inner Andy Pettitte in order to keep their season alive. While he wasn't as thoroughly dominating as the former Yankees' lefty, Montgomery held his own, kept the Rays off the board, and gave his team a shot to put the pain of Game's 2 and 3 firmly behind them.  Montgomery did exactly what the Yankees needed him to do. He settled things down. The Yankees, specifically manager Aaron Boone, General Manager Brian Cashman and the entire Yankees analytics department came under heavy fire for their gamble to use the opener in Game 2; a decision that backfired badly.  After dropping Game 3 last night, the Yankees found themselves on the brink, with their ace Gerrit Cole unable to pitch until a potential Game 5. But the Yanks needed Montgomery to pitch well in Game 4. A loss and the questions would almost certainly come as to why the Yankees sabotaged their chances when they burned Deivi Garcia in Game 2...

 RAYS 8 - YANKEES 4  The lingering effects of Aaron Boone's decision to use an opener in Game 2 of the ALDS only manifested itself in an 8-4 loss to Tampa Bay on Wednesday night, as the Yankees fell behind in their best-of-five series two games to one.    Charlie Morton dominated the Bombers for five innings, while Mashairo Tanaka was lit up for two homers in what could be his final Yankees' start.  The Yankees now face the prospect of turning the ball over to Jordan Montgomery in a must-win-to-stay-alive scenario in Game 4.  The Yankees pitching issues, which have been a problem all year, have hung over this series since Boone's decision to remove Deivi Garcia after one inning in Game 2. It haunted them in Game 3, and it may haunt them throughout the off-season to come IF the Yankees can't comeback to win this series.   It didn't take long for the feelings to sour on the Yankees.  In the top of the second inning, Tanaka got himself into some...

 RAYS 7 - YANKEES 5  Aaron Boone's decision to turn Game 2 of the ALDS into a bullpen game turned out to be the worst chess move he could make at the worst time.  If this were a regular season game, using Game 2 starter Deivi Garcia as the incautious opener wouldn't have garnered much attention - except for a few angry callers on talk radio, and it would have been quickly forgotten.  However, in the postseason, the decision to pitch Garcia for only one inning only to turn the ball over the veteran J.A. Happ turned out to be a huge mistake, one that could comeback to haunt the Yankees in this series.  Garcia gave up a solo home run to Randy Arozarena in the bottom of the first inning; big whoop. Arozarena hit a homer in Game 1, and both teams have been hitting homers in this series. It's not like the Yankees can't overcome a 1-0 deficit.  Instead of allowing Garcia to continue into the second inning, Boone decided to go with Happ, who was lit up like a Chris...

 YANKEES 9 - RAYS 3  The Yankees are off and running in the American League Division Series, pounding their AL East rivals the Tampa Bay Rays 9-3 in the opener behind four Yankee homers, including a grand slam by Giancarlo Stanton in the top of the ninth inning.  The Yankees have now scored 31 runs this postseason, and have smacked 11 homers in the process. An offense that once couldn't get out of its own way at times in the regular season, the Yankees are hitting on all cylinders at the most opportune time of the year.  Stanton's grand slam in the top of the ninth with the Yankees already leading 5-3, was the exclamation point on a helluva night a Bombers team that has different look and feel to it. While October baseball is unpredictable, when a team gets that look, it can be hard to stop. The Yankees have that look right now; the look of a winner.  That look was felt early and often. Even after Tampa's Randy Arozarena tied the game on a solo home run in the b...

RAMS 17 - GIANTS 9   Leave it to the Giants to find a way to lose a game where the held the powerful LA Rams to just 17 points, and their quarterback Jared Goff to only 200-yards passing.    Defensively the Giants did everything right on Sunday. After the Rams scored a touchdown on their opening drive of the game, a 12-play, 65-yard drive that culminated in a Gerald Everett two-yard plunge, the Rams were mostly silent for the rest of the day.  That credit goes to a Giants defense that held the Rams to only a field goal for a better of two-and-a-half quarters, while forcing the Rams to punt the football five times. Jared Goff was held in check. The combination of Cooper Cupp and Robert Woods were held in check. And the Rams couldn't run the football.  It was right there for the taking for the Giants, and they fell flat on their face.  Once again the Giants offense would show signs of life, but would sputter out of control once they got deep into Rams te...

 BRONCOS 37 - JETS 28 As the late John McKay once said about his winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who had lost 26 consecutive games from 1976 to 1977, what he thought of his team's execution, he said oh-so modestly that he was "in favor of it." That would have been about the only appropriate answer Jets Head Coach Adam Gase could give instead of giving the usual uncomfortable presser where he blamed injuries and lack of discipline for his team's defeat. Yet there he was trying to explain away a humiliating 37-28 loss to the Denver Broncos where his team committed 11 penalties, six of which were personal fouls.  "We beat ourselves. The penalties are just ... they're brutal," Gase murmured during his post game presser.  Yes, the Jets really did beat themselves. They beat themselves in every facet of the game on Thursday, particularly up front on both sides of the ball.  The Jets offensive line was like a sieve, failing to protect quarterback Sam Darnold at al...

 The Yankees are moving on to the ALDS against the Tampa Bay Rays after a thrilling late night 10-9 win over the Cleveland Indians. The Yankees offense exploded for 22 runs and seven homers in the series victory. Now the two arch rivals are set for a showdown in San Diego.  Watch the recap: