COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

It was Jeffery Maier but in reverse for the 2026 New York Yankees.  With a runner on in the bottom of the sixth inning, and trailing 4-2, Yankees short stop Anthony Volpe crushed a Griffin Jax fastball toward the left field wall. And for a split second it looked like the ball had cleared the fence just past the outstretched glove of left fielder Victor Mesa Jr., tying the game at four.  The Yankee Stadium faithful exploded! Volpe's homer signaled the second time that the Yankees stormed back to tie. Surely it was only a matter of time before the Bronx Bombers would win this game.  But, it was all a mirage.  Thanks to modern day technology and the fact that Baseball now reviews every home run that is close to the wall, it became painfully obvious that a fan had reached over, touched the ball and pulled it into the stands.   The review overturned the home run as fan interference. Instead of touching home,  Volpe was rewarded with an RBI double to cut the...

For years the Giants and Jets were on similar trajectories downward.  Since 2017 until this season, both New York City based clubs were one and two for the worst winning percentage in the NFL.  That is finally changing.  The Giants are 3-1 following a thrilling 36-24 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Deonte Banks'  98-yard pick six with seven seconds to go sealed the deal for Big Blue, as they took sole possession of first place in the NFC East.  It is the first time in any season the Giants have been in first since 2015.    As for the Jets, well, they remain the Jets. An embarrassing 23-12  showing in Chicago on Sunday, saw the Jets get totally outcoached and outplayed by a superior Bears team. The Bears held the ball for nearly 43 minutes, and outgained the Jets 492-157.  Ouch!     So here we sit! One team has a direction and a head coach to be respected in John Harbaugh. The other team has one of its all time best pl...

 The New York Yankees are on the brink of elimination, yet again.  And yet again, the Yankees face the prospect of watching someone else celebrate on the Yankee Stadium turf in October when the Rays bring a 2-0 ALDS series lead to the Boogie Down on Wednesday and Friday for Games 3 and 4, if necessary.  The Yankees find themselves here after a 5-2 loss to the Rays on Monday night where New York was charged with an inexplicable four errors! Three of those errors came in a nightmarish first inning as Ryan McMahon and Jazz Chisholm struggled to make what are normally routine plays look anything but routine.  First McMahon couldn't field a ground ball by Yandy Diaz that immediately swung momentum the Rays way.  Two batters later, Junior Caminero reached on a Fielder's Choice after Chishom threw the ball away while trying to make an acrobatic play at second base. The resulting error allowed Diaz to score from third, handing the Rays a 1-0 lead.   Chisholm w...

 Fair or not, Game 1 of the 2026 American League Division Series will forever be known as the Austin Wells Game.  That is because Wells got caught trying to turn a big play into a monumental play when he thought his double down the right field line took an extra hop and committed himself toward going to third.  Turned out to be a big mistake. As Luis Rojas' had his hands up in the air motioning Wells to stop at second, he admitted in postgame, that by the time he saw Rojas he was committed.  "I tried to make something happen in being aggressive.  After I was passing second I picked his hands up, but I was committed," Wells said, adding in the moment he was trying to be aggressive.  His answer was understandable, but it was a mistake nevertheless.  Had Wells stopped many assume that manager Aaron Boone would have pinched hit Ryan McMahon for Giancarlo Stanton, who hadn't batted in a live Major League Game since April 24. The very thought of Stanton, who...

Oh, how I miss the days when Red Sox - Yankees used to mean something.  The days when the series was an intense border war with games that had a razor thin margin for error, combined with an intense, boiling hatred that filtered through the clubhouses and the fan bases alike.  Oh, how I miss the days of Pedro Martinez head hunting Yankees and dropping quote like "Who is Kareem Garcia?" and "Whose you Daddy?"  The days when A-Rod got booed; when A-Rod and Jason Varitek fought one another at home plate. The time when the Yankees stormed back to beat the Sox in the '03 ALCS. Aaron Boone's home run. Then the 2004 ALCS when the Yankees choked on a 3-0 series lead.  Those were the days, my friend.  Because this iteration of the Yankees-Red Sox war has as much enthusiasm as a Yankees-A's game in mid-May.  It's sad.  And that sadness was on display for two consecutive nights in the Big Apple as the Yankees dismantled the Red Sox by a combined score of 18-2....

 The New York Giants have swung a very intriguing deal with the acquisition of former first round pick, J.J. McCarthy to back-up Jamies Winston, who struggled in Big Blue's 12-7 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.  McCarthy, once drafted 10th overall in the 2024 draft, was supposed to be the apple of the eye of Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell, but failed to live up to expectations.  McCarthy lost the starting job last season when it was given to him, despite going 6-4 in 10 games as the Vikings starter in 2025.  This summer McCarthy became the odd man out, as the Vikings brought in two veteran quarterbacks in Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz, both of whom have helped lead Minnesota to a 3-0 start the season.  Giants Head Coach John Harbaugh is certainly familiar with McCarthy since his brother, Jim, coached the quarterback at Michigan over three seasons, winning a National Championship in 2024.  The Giants gave up a fifth round pick to th...

 Not only did the Giants battle the elements on Sunday, they found a way to hold off a stubborn Tennessee Titans team 12-7 in an ugly rain-drenched affair at the Meadowlands.  The Giants managed only 238 yards of offense, and could only score four field goals, but it was more than enough this time.  The biggest play of the game of course came in the final seconds with the Titans in position to take the lead for good. Tennessee had 24 seconds and two timeouts in their back pocket at the Giants' own seven yard line, but Cam Ward couldn't handle the prosperity.  The second year signal caller threw up a duck on the run that was picked off in the end zone by Giants safety Jevon Holland to seal the deal and get the banged up Giants back over .500 at 2-1.     

 At what point should we get tired of hearing about moral victories? Following the Jets heartbreaking 31-24 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday, Aaron Glenn stressed to reporters that his players are closing the gap.  " We're right here. It's this gap that we have to close. We're fighting to close that gap and we will. We'll be on the other side of these games. I truly believe that." Even if the Jets "closed the gap" the same problems still persisted for the Jets and Glenn on Sunday, that helped contribute to a disheartening loss. Whether it be time management at the end of halfs, the use of timeouts and challenges, or even the inability to adjust the game plan, the Jets failed in many respects to cover themselves, and as a result played right into the hands of the Lions.  Call it a young team, or a moral victory if you want, but the facts are 20-games in, Aaron Glenn is 4-16 as a head coach. Not that anyone expected them to win on Sunday in Detroit....

 The 2026 season isn't even over, and moves are already being made for 2027.  The New York Mets have removed the interim label from Andy Green, naming him the full time manager of the club with a brand new three-year contract extension.  Green who took over a brutal situation in late June with the Mets all but out of contention following the firing of Carlos Mendoza, settled things down to the best of his ability. He got the team to play better, got the most out of many of the young players like AJ Ewing and Carson Benge, and as a result the Mets went 37-38 in the 75 games since June 26.  "I think Andy brings to us an ability to connect the organization in ways that very few people could," Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns told the media in Texas on Tuesday.  Green was serving as the Mets VP of Player Development with a specific focus on the Mets farm system, when he was asked to step into the managerial role in late June to take over for Men...

 The prognosis for quarterback Jaxson Dart is not good. Dart, who was injured on the seventh play of the Giants opening drive on Monday night in Los Angeles, could miss the entire season, or at least an extended period of weeks, as tests revealed the damage to Dart's left knee is worse than anticipated.  Dart got hurt when he was sandwiched in mid air between Rams linebackers Byron Young and Josiah Stewart. Dart then fell to the ground in a heap, while holding his knee. He left the game and didn't return, although reports early Monday indicated that he wanted to come back in, and was seen on the sideline in street clothes moving around just fine.  There was also ESPN, incidentally, capturing a member of the Giants training staff mouthing to Head Coach John Harbaugh what many assumed was him saying Dart could miss four to six weeks. Of course that was never confirmed.  Harbaugh did not reveal any diagnosis following the Giants 28-6 loss to the Rams, and then declined...

 Not only did the Jets blow a 17-7 lead on Sunday, and lose to the Green Bay Packers, 20-17, but they did something that hadn't been done in the NFL since 1941, and that is they held Green Bay under 200 yards, had a plus-one turnover margin, and Green Bay was flagged for over 100 yards, and still the Jets managed to lose.  The loss reminded us all what its like as the Same Old Jets.   

 Legendary New York Mets broadcaster Howie Rose called it a career Sunday in his final radio broadcast as the Mets lead play-by-play voice.   Rose who covered the Mets for 39 years beginning in 1987, built a lasting legacy as one of the many great local voices to lend his pipes to the Amazin's. When you think of the Mets and broadcasters, Rose is right up there along with Gary Cohen, Bob Murphy, Lindsay Nelson, and Ralph Kiner.  Rose began his career as the host of the Mets pre and post game shows in 1987. By 1995 he moved into the broadcast booth as the voice of the Mets TV telecasts, first on Sports Channel, and then on Fox Sports Net New York.  In 2004, he took over the slot vacated by Murphy when he retired, sitting alongside Gary Cohen for two seasons, before Cohen switched over to TV and SNY.  Since 2006, Rose has been the lead voice of Mets radio broadcasts joined by a cast of different broadcasters from Eddie Coleman, Wayne Hagen, Josh Lewin, Wayne ...

 Pete Alonso wouldn't admit it when asked about the emotions of this moment when he returned to Citi Field as a member of the Baltimore Orioles on Monday, but this was personal, and he had to love every minute of it.  Nine months ago Alonso said good bye to the city he called home for over a decade, when he signed a five-year deal with the Baltimore Orioles, after the Mets front office, led by President of Baseball Operations David Stearns, decided against going into an aggressive bidding war for his services.  In fact, the Mets didn't even make an offer last winter.  How could they do that?   Alonso is the Mets All-Time Home Run Leader. His bat alone catapulted the Mets onto an incredible postseason run in 2024 when he launched a Devin Williams fastball over the right field wall in Milwuakee to send the Mets past the Brewers in the wild card.  Alonso was a home grown Met; one of the franchise's best overall players (even if he wasn't fleet afoot at fi...

 Behind a three-run bomb by Aaron Judge, the Yankees clinched a spot in the 2026 postseason in an 8-3 win over their favorite whipping boys, the Minnesota Twins.  Judge, who was 3-of-20 since coming off the I.L. after missing most of the season with a rib injury, launched a pitch into the second deck, signifying the Yankees slugger was finally back!  Judge wasn't the only one to go long. Both Jose Caballero and Austin Wells went long for the Yankees as they blew away the Twins in the later innings.  Now as far as that postseason thing is concerned the Yankees have a lot of work to do, and need some help.  They still trail the Rays by 3.5 games. Tampa has been in first place seemingly everyday since mid-June.  Can the Yankees catch them? We are running out of days. The Yankees are six games ahead of Boston for the top wild card, meaning New York will have home field in the wild card series, but for the second straight season, the Yankees are starring down fa...

 It has been 17 years since the last time both the New York Football Giants and New York Jets opened a season winning their season openers.  17-years.  Rex Ryan and Tom Coughlin were the head coaches. The Giants were - at that time - two years removed from winning Super Bowl 42.  The Jets were beginning a new era under Rex Ryan that would take them to the first of back-to-back trips to the AFC Title game.  It's truly been that long since both teams have been good in this town. And for the first time in seemingly forever both teams appear to finally be heading in the right direction.  The Giants dominated the Dallas Cowboys 28-20 on Sunday night. It wasn't as close as the score indicated. The Giants had 396 yards of offense in the game, and Jaxson Dart absolutely ate the Cowboys lunch tossing for 250 yards and three touchdowns. He even added 54 yards on the ground on 11 carries.  Cam Skateboo chipped in 81-yards and a score himself.  The Giants loo...

 25 years ago, radical terrorists tried to take away our freedoms, filling us with nothing but fear when they hijacked four planes on a crisp Tuesday, September morning. Two of those planes as we known crashed into the World Trade Center; another was driven right into the Pentagon, and, thanks to the heroics of the passengers aboard United Flight 93, the last plane wound up crashing into a field in Pennsylvania.  2,977 people were killed.    I shake with sadness and anger because it's just too horrifying to think about, let alone type into words.  September 11 changed everything in our Nation and around the world.  Not only did radical Islamic terrorists try to take away our freedom, they declared war on it, and led us down a path toward seemingly never ending wars in Afghanistan and later, Iraq.   Moreover our way of life changed forever.  Security checkpoints at airports changed; even security at big social gatherings like stadiums and...

 Let's get this bad boy started!  The 2026 NFL season is upon us, and it all begins this evening when the reigning Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks take on the New England Patriots. It will be a rematch of last season's Super Bowl, and it's only the second time since the NFL implemented the Thursday night opener begin with the reigning champion taking on the same team they defeated in the Big Game.  The last time that happened was 2016 when the Broncos faced off with the Panthers in a rematch of Super Bowl 50.   Chances are good the Seahawks, led by quarterback Sam Darnold will crush a Patriots team that has had an off-season full of distractions. We'll see.   Meanwhile back here in New York City, the Jets and Giants are preparing for Sunday's games, with moderately high expectations for the upcoming season.  Can John Harbaugh turn around the Giants? Will Jaxson Dart come into his own? Can the Giants stay healthy offensively? Will Arvell Reese...

 A couple years ago the Athletic published an article about the dysfunction within the New York Jets. New York had just fired its head coach, Robert Saleh following a disappointing trip to London, England, in which they lost to the Minnesota Vikings 23-17 to drop to 2-3 on the season.  When Saleh was fired, many pundits and fans, including myself, thought the move was abrupt. What followed was a scathing story that painted owner Woody Johnson as a meddling owner; detailed his fractured relationship with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and dove into the idea that Johnson's own son Brick and Madden ratings.  It was wild.   Of course Jets fans pounded on Johnson for the handling of the Saleh situation, and the Jets failings over the past 15 years without a playoff appearance.  The media has dissected his every word -- when he does speak in public -- but we never really get HIS side of the story.  That was until now.  Fast forward to today, and The Athl...

 Aaron Judge is back.  At long last the Yankees MVP is back in the lineup tonight against the Colorado Rockies, in what the  Yankees hope is the beginning of a major run by slugger Aaron Judge.  Since landing on the IL on May 31 with a rib injury, the Yankees have bounced up and down all summer long, posting a record of 45-39 during the 84 games Judge was sidelined. New York clearly missed him. New York's run production dropped off considerably from 5.19 per game with him to 4.06 runs per game in Major League Baseball.  There have been points this summer where it felt like the Yankees were the on the precipice of fading. Not only did they not have Judge, but Giancarlo Stanton and Cody Bellinger have missed time. Bellinger returned to the lineup a couple weeks ago. Stanton might be done for for the year.  Winning five straight in mid-August which included a sweep of the Baltimore Orioles was really the Yankees saving grace. In addition, the team dominated th...

Odell Beckham Jr. is writing one heck of a redemption story right now with the New York Giants.  The star wide receiver made famous by his ridiculous one-handed catch against the Cowboys in 2014, only to see his star in New York fade quickly due to poor on field behavior, has returned some eight years later as a man on a mission.  Beckham earned his way onto the John Harbaugh's first 53-man roster as Head Coach of the New York Giants, hauling in 13 passes for 76-yards. Beckham said he was brought to tears when he was told by Harbaugh that he had made the team.  "I’m going to be here and I have an opportunity to rewrite some of the last bit of the chapter,” Beckham said after practice Monday. “Don’t know [if it’s my] last year, whatever it is, I just know I’m going to give my all" It's been a long time coming for OBJ. He even looks like a changed man. Gone are his dyed curles of blonde hair, instead he sports a buzz cut, and a nearly full beard that has little pat...

 It became pretty apparent in the Jets 23-6 preseason finale loss to the New York Giants that they need to address the kicking position, especially after incumbent Jason Sanders missed an extra point and a field goal.  A day after the 53-man roster was finalized, the Jets acquired Blake Grupe on waivers from the Indianapolis Colts. Sanders has since been released.  This is a huge addition obviously. Over his career Grupe is 96-of-98 on extra points, and 86-of-105 (82%) on field goals. That's as good as it gets for a player who was perfect from both field goal distance (11-for-11) and extra points (10-of-10) last year for a Colts team that cut him at the end of camp this summer.  Grupe began his career with the New Orleans Saints, and let's be fair, he did struggle last season before a October trade. He was 18-of-26 on field goals last year for the Saints, who play their home games in a dome.  At the very least, the Jets have answered their kicker questions for t...

So according to Jason LaConfora, formally of CBS Sports, who is currently writing for a site called casino.org, the New York Jets could be interested in former Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, should the 2026 season come apart at the seems and cost Aaron Glenn his job.  LaConfora didn't just stop there , he also reported that Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson might be a chip that gets included should Woody Johnson pursue and land Tomlin.   The report has been met with extreme skepticism.  Beat reporter Zach Rosenblat said that any rumors that Woody Johnson is doing homework now on Mike Tomlin is strictly false.  Fans across Jets social media also chimed in to disparage the repor t, many siting LaConfora's spotty track record in reporting scoops.  To be honest the story sounds bogus. Why would the Jets two weeks before the season decide now is the time to kick the tires on a head coach. It makes no sense, and if it were true would be totally disrespectful to Glen...

There is a growing fear that Giancarlo Stanton's season could be over after the Yankees DH suffered a setback in his return from a right calf strain.  On Saturday before the Yankees-Blue Jays game at The Stadium, Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters that Stanton suffered a moderate grade left calf strain after falling while running the bases.  "What that means moving forward, we're not ruling anything out," Boone said. "He'll obviously continue to work to try and get it right and hopefully be available. Obviously, we're at a point in the calendar where it gets challenging, but you also never know." Stanton hasn't played in a Major League game since April 24. And if this left calf strain is anything like the right calf injury, we may not see Stanton again this year. At least it would be pushing it.  The 36-year old Stanton is on the books for $25 million next season, including a club option for 2028 with a $10 million buyout.  One has to ...

 A few weeks ago after the Mets splurged themselves of some of their Major League roster talent via the August 3 trade deadline, New York proceeded to call up a flame-throwing lefty named Jerry Yan to take one of the vacated bullpen roles.   Yan is electric. His fastball tops 98-101 mph, and even though he is 29-years old, he has potential to become a solid late inning reliever.    Since coming up he has electrified a certain segment of the Mets fanbase, particularly on social media who sing his praises not only for his pitching acumen but for the one HUGE flaw in his game: celebrations.  After every strikeout Yan leaps into the air, comes down perfectly flat on his feet, pumps his fist and does as shimmy like he's Michael Jackson.    It's quiet a sight to behold, one that is obviously divisive.  I said on X at the time that such behavior was "unacceptable" or a Major Leaguer, and that the Mets should rein him in before he starts a brawl afte...

 Geno Smith marked his return to the New York Jets starting lineup with a perfect drive as the Jets came away with a 17-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday to improve to 1-1 on the preseason.  Smith, who missed the opener against Tampa Bay because of an ankle injury, looked pretty good on Friday night, completing 7-of-7 passes for 65 yards and a touchdown.  “It felt good to be out there with the guys,” Smith told reporters. “Obviously we got one drive in, but we scored a touchdown. You always want to start fast, and so that was a good thing. Definitely a lot of room for improvement.”  Smith has had a shaky camp this summer. He looked great at the start of Training Camp, but lately has struggled as he's dealt with the ankle injury according to reports.  For Smith to come out and show some poise is exactly what Aaron Glenn's club needs right now out of the position. Whether you love having Geno Smith back with the Jets or not, he gives them the bes...