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Canes Head to Vegas with Confidence

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LAS VEGAS — The five-hour, 2,000-plus-mile trip to Las Vegas on Friday afternoon was a whole lot smoother for the Carolina Hurricanes after their dramatic 4-3 come-from-behind, overtime victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2  of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday.

Carolina, trailing 2-0 midway through the third period and staring squarely at an 0-2 deficit in the best-of-seven series, pulled out a comeback for the ages capped by Seth Jarvis’ power-play game-winner 3:56 into overtime.

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It marked the first time since the Montreal Canadiens in 1944 that a team trailing by multiple goals in the final 10 minutes of regulation rallied for a victory in a Stanley Cup Final.

Now the series heads west to Las Vegas for Game 3 on Saturday and Game 4 on Tuesday before returning to Raleigh, N.C., for Game 5 on Thursday.

“I think there’s obviously more good vibes today than there could have been,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. ” … We’ve played two good games, and we’re starting over.”

“It’s a five-game series now,” Hurricanes defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere added. “It’s just managing (the emotions). We’re still human beings. We’re going to get nervous out there and have emotions, but the more you do it, the more you do anything, you get used to it. It’s just trying to holster that and bring it all in focus for the task at hand.”

The Eastern Conference champions, who were an impressive 24-12-5 on the road in the regular season, are 6-0 away from home in the playoffs. Thursday’s win also improved Carolina to 6-0 in overtime in these playoffs.

It looked like Vegas was going to finish a two-game sweep of the games in North Carolina thanks to two more goals by Brett Howden combined with defensive play which was, at times, quite stifling.

But the game turned around quickly with 9:40 remaining when 5-foot-8, 165-pound center Logan Stankoven won a puck battle along the boards behind the net from 6-foot-1, 202-pound Vegas defenseman Rasmus Andersson and then scored on a backhand shot from the right side of the crease.

“You can’t measure that stuff,” Brind’Amour said Friday, pounding his heart when asked about Stankoven’s play that flipped the game and the series. “He just keeps doing it, night in and night out. It’s pretty amazing.”

Just 2:26 later, ex-Golden Knight William Carrier made a diving pass to Mark Jankowski who blasted a shot from the high slot bar-down to tie it at 2.

Jordan Staal then gave the Hurricanes a controversial 3-2 lead with a tip-in on a power play after the Golden Knights drew a delay of game penalty after unsuccessfully challenging a goalie interference call that negated a potential Ivan Barbashev score. But Mark Stone scored a 6-on-5 goal with 1:21 remaining to force overtime.

Jarvis then won it with a one-timer from the left circle off a Gostisbehere pass on a power play after Tomas Hertl went to the penalty box for tripping.

Vegas, which was well-positioned to take full control of the series, instead heads home even at a win apiece.

“It’s fine,” center William Karlsson said of his team’s emotions Friday following the late meltdown. “It is what it is. Obviously, we would have loved to win that game. We didn’t, but it’s in the past. Nothing we can change, so now we just look ahead.”

“We’re good,” Golden Knights coach John Tortorella added. “We’re ready to play. I like a lot of things about what’s gone on in the first two games.”

One potentially very big negative for Vegas occurred in the first period when defenseman Brayden McNabb, who had three assists in the team’s 5-4 Game 1 victory and is the franchise’s all-time leader in blocked shots (1,417) and hits (1,469), was hit square in the middle of his face by an 87 mph slap shot by Nikolaj Ehlers.

A key member of the team’s penalty-kill unit, McNabb skated off immediately while covering his face and was taken to a hospital for treatment. Tortorella refused to give any update on his condition on Friday but said McNabb would fly back with the team.

“I think he’s a vital part of this team,” Karlsson said. ” … Of course, (it was) tough not to have him for the remainder of the game.”

–Field Level Media

Brunson Leads Knicks in G-1 of Finals

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SAN ANTONIO — (Staff and Wire Service Report) – New York’s magical guard Jalen Brunson was beaten and battered but not dismayed, and the Knicks star had enough energy to orchestrate a fine George Gervin impersonation with an Iceman-like final quarter in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. The Spurs icon surely appreciated Brunson’s zest for heroics but the city of San Antonio was stunned over an opening defeat as the red-hot Knicks controlled the final two minutes while prevailing 105-95 on Wednesday night.

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Brunson scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and the Knicks overcame a 14-point third-quarter deficit to win their 12th consecutive playoff game, tied for the second-longest postseason streak in league history.

“Jalen was MVP in the second half,” New York coach Mike Brown said. “He was huge for us. He did what MVP candidates are supposed to do. He carried us home and we put the ball in his hands and he got it done for us down the stretch.”

Brunson had a rough time during the first half as he injured his right knee in the first quarter and his left ankle in the second.

Per the knee injury, Harrison Barnes of the Spurs and Landry Shamet of the Knicks were battling for position after a missed free throw and Barnes fell directly into Brunson’s knee with 1:27 remaining.

Brunson departed for the locker room and returned with 8:03 left in the second quarter. Two minutes later, Brunson hurt his ankle on a driving basket.

“When I saw him walk back to the bench, it was a relief feeling,” Knicks teammate Karl-Anthony Towns said of Brunson.

Brunson was just 7-of-22 shooting entering the final stanza before finding his groove. He hit 5 of 9 shots in the fourth.

“I think it starts with my confidence. It comes with my work ethic,” Brunson said of bouncing back. “I think most importantly, knowing we’re on the road, and knowing my teammates have my back, I think that’s the biggest thing in an environment like this. The trust they have in me and the trust I have in them, it’s got us to this point.”

The Spurs had few answers over the final 12 minutes when it came to slowing Brunson.

“He’s an elite player,” Spurs star Victor Wembanyama said of Brunson. “We’re going to have many more chances. It’s the first-to-four series. We’re going to have time to work on it.”

New York closed the game with 11 straight points while playing in its first NBA Finals game since 1999.

Towns contributed 18 points and 12 rebounds and Josh Hart was solid all-around with 15 rebounds, six assists, four steals and three points for the Knicks.

OG Anunoby produced 12 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter for the Knicks, who committed no turnovers in the final period. San Antonio gave the ball away five times over the final 12 minutes while shooting 28.6% (6 of 21) and being outscored 29-19.

Wembanyama registered 26 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots but made just 6 of 21 field-goal attempts.

“He missed a few shots early,” San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson said of the star Frenchman. “We got to him moving in space toward the rim.”

Stephon Castle had 17 points and eight rebounds, Julian Champagnie added 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Dylan Harper had 16 points off the bench.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Friday night at San Antonio.

Shamet scored 13 points off the bench for New York, which shot 41.5% from the field, including 11 of 36 (30.6%) from 3-point range.

The Spurs connected on 36% of their field-goal attempts and were 11 of 43 (25.6%) from behind the arc.

Brunson scored eight straight points, including a driving hoop with 6:08 left to give the Knicks a 94-86 advantage. Wembanyama responded with eight points during a 9-0 run as the Spurs moved ahead 95-94 with 2:16 to play.

San Antonio wouldn’t score again, and Brunson drained a corner trey to put the Knicks back ahead with 1:50 left.

Mikal Bridges made two free throws, Brunson hit a jumper and Anunoby sank four consecutive free throws to seal it.

“Obviously, we’ve been down in a series before,” Wembanyama said. “Never in the Finals, obviously. But I’m not kicking myself about anything, really. I’m not worried the slightest.”

San Antonio led by seven at the break before scoring 10 of the first 13 points in the third quarter to take a 65-51 lead on Harper’s basket.

The Knicks responded with a 20-6 burst and knotted the score at 71 on Brunson’s jumper with 2:01 remaining in the third.

Knicks backup center Mitchell Robinson (broken right pinkie) played 13 minutes and had two points and six rebounds.

Champagnie had 15 points on five 3-pointers as the Spurs led 55-48 at the half. Brunson logged 11 in the half for New York.

–Field Level Media

Baltimore’s Alonso Reminds Red Sox of What Could’ve Been – “A Monster”

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief, Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – The ballgame was tied 1-1, going into the top of the 3rd inning. Baltimore catcher Adley Rutschman singled to left-center field with one out and Red Sox pitcher Connelly Early was throwing darts.

But …

Batter-up, Pete Alonso.

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Alonso was floating in the wind for two seasons as he completed a stellar career playing for the New York Mets. Aside from Mets retired third baseman, David Wright, Alonso was the face of the franchise and very well liked and respected by the fans. But, the Mets were beginning a re-build and both time and money were short.

The Mets signed Alonso to a couple short-term contracts when he was seeking, at least a five year deal. Then, last summer Alonso opted for free agency and hit the jackpot with the Orioles, signing a 5-year, $155 million contract that pays him $31m this season, then $33m for four more years. It was a major commitment by the O’s.

The Red Sox stood by and watched, never a serious bidder, and instead signed Willson Contreras, currently the club’s No. 4/clean-up hitter and the most consistent bat on the team. Contreras has 11 home runs and 33 RBI – not too shabby.

But Tuesday night, the fans in Fenway Park – both Red Sox and busloads of Orioles fans – witnessed what might have been if the Sox had taken an aggressive play at Alonso.

As the third batter up in the 3rd inning, Alonso hit a ball 400 feet at 110.8 mph and it was rising as it cleared the Green Monster and then plugged a seat so hard, the Fenway Park and Boston building inspectors might need to take a look later tonight, or maybe Wednesday morning when the steam subsides. It was a glimpse of “what might have been” for the Red Sox is they truly went after the long ball hitting free agent – either in 2024 or 2025.

It wasn’t meant to be for the Sox, and Alonso’s homer put the Orioles ahead 3-1. Baltimore followed up with an insurance run in the fourth inning to make it 4-1.

Boston’s Mickey Gasper scored in the 5th inning, the result of a single, a wild pitch, advancing to third base on a ground-out and then scoring on a Marcelo Mayer sacrifice fly to center field.

Baltimore starter Shane Baz went seven full innings, allowing four hits, two earned runs while walking two and striking out six Boston batters. He was credited with the win and is now (3-5).

Boston’s Connelly Early pitched well, but allowed four earned runs in 5.1 innings. He allowed six hits of which two were home runs. (Coby Mayo’s seventh, hit in the 2nd inning. Early walked only one batter and struck out six. He threw 96 pitches and 64 were strikes. Two were mistakes.

Baltimore and Boston continue their three-game series Wednesday night when Chris Bassitt (4-3) takes the mound for the Orioles and rookie Payton Tolle (2-2) starts for Boston. Baltimore is three games ahead of the AL East cellar-dwelling Red Sox.

NHL: Stanley Cup Final Preview

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RALEIGH – (Wire Service Preview) – The Vegas Golden Knights know that the bookmakers in their own city have them as the underdogs in the Stanley Cup Final.

All that matters to the Golden Knights is what happens on the ice during the best-of-seven finals that begin Tuesday when they face the Carolina Hurricanes in Carolina.

“I honestly don’t really think I care or it matters to us,” Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore said on Monday. “We have belief in our room from the first game of playoffs up until now. Whatever is said is said. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter who picks who. The better team ends up winning.”

The Golden Knights, who are riding a six-game winning streak, and the Hurricanes, who are looking to become the first NHL team to go 16-1 in the postseason, are both chasing a second Cup title in franchise history.

Carolina — the former Hartford Whalers franchise which became the Hurricanes for the 1997-98 season — for the won its only Cup in 2006 and had not reached the finals since. Vegas, which won in 2023, is in the finals for the third time in its nine-year history.

Thirteen players on this season’s Vegas roster played on that 2022-23 team.

“You can draw from your experience, knowing what to expect, having done it before and knowing what this is gonna look like,” said forward Jack Eichel, a member of that Cup-winning team. “But I think every series and every season has its own story, so we’re trying to write that now.”

Although Carolina’s run is garnering more headlines, the Golden Knights have been just as hot since the final few weeks of the regular season. After John Tortorella was hired in a late-season coaching change, Vegas posted a 7-0-1 mark down the stretch to claim the top spot in the Pacific Division and has marched through its opponents with a 19-4-1 record since he took over.

“He’s a big personality guy,” defenseman Brayden McNabb said. “So it’s very easy to get comfortable right away. He tells you exactly what he wants from you and it’s all black and white.

“He came in and preached the right things and got us playing better and better as a team.”

That said, the Hurricanes are worthy of their favorite status. Carolina reached this point by sweeping its opponents in the first two rounds — the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers — and then knocking out the Montreal Canadiens in five games in the conference finals, which it concluded with a pair of dominant victories.

The Hurricanes are the first team since the 1976 Montreal Canadiens to win 12 of 13 games to open a playoff run. That Montreal team claimed the Stanley Cup, and the Hurricanes are looking to duplicate the feat.

“We went through so much … now we’re here,” forward Andrei Svechnikov said. “But still the job is not done. This is the biggest stage, we all know that, but now we have one more step.”

Reaching this point was a huge achievement for a Carolina club that reached the Eastern Conference finals for the third time in four years and fourth time in eight seasons, but was becoming known for falling short.

A key to the Hurricanes continuing their success, beyond the club’s stifling defensive play, will be to embrace the situation. After all, hockey history is loaded with clubs that managed to reach a new point but then failed to reload.

“We’ve been knocking on the door for this for a while. To be in this moment now, I think everyone is extremely grateful and super excited,” forward Seth Jarvis said.

“We’re competing for the Stanley Cup with 20 of my best friends. Twenty guys I’ve spent a lot of time with. To be here in this moment with this group of guys, I can’t ask for anything more.”

–Field Level Media

MLB Preview Red Sox vs. O’s

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BOSTON – (Wire Service preview) – Quality at-bats and quality starts are what it’s all about in baseball.

The Boston Red Sox hope that both trends can continue as they return home to host the Baltimore Orioles for the first time this season, opening a three-game series with their American League East rival on Tuesday night.

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After Boston rode a six-run seventh inning to a series-clinching 9-4 win at the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday, rookie Connelly Early (5-2, 2.95 ERA) will take the ball looking to deliver another quality start. The 24-year-old left-hander has worked at least six innings in five of his last eight outings.

Sunday’s win saw Boston log 12 hits — including at least one from all nine starting batters — with Masataka Yoshida highlighting the big inning with a go-ahead two-run single.

“You got to tie the game before you can take the lead, so those were really quality at-bats,” interim Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said. “We keep stacking on after that to get into a comfortable lead.”

Tracy’s lineup also has Isiah Kiner-Falefa riding a seven-game hit streak, while Caleb Durbin tripled as part of his second consecutive multi-RBI effort.

While left-hander Garrett Crochet deals with left lat tightness in a setback of his return from shoulder inflammation, the Red Sox hope that Early can continue the team’s recent momentum. He pitched seven scoreless, four-hit innings with seven strikeouts en route to his win over the Atlanta Braves last time out on Wednesday.

“After what he did last year for us in the playoffs, I feel like he had to grow up pretty quick,” outfielder Jarren Duran said of Early. “Some of us forget he’s a rookie and he’s doing the things that he’s doing.”

Early faced the Orioles for the first time in his career on April 26, recording the win and allowing just a pair of solo home runs on four hits through 6 2/3 innings.

The Red Sox are just 9-19 at home. Early’s performance came in the only win of Boston’s last homestand — a 1-5 stretch against the Minnesota Twins and Braves.

Though the Orioles sit just ahead of the Red Sox at the bottom of the division standings, they’ve put together one of their most consistent runs of the season.

A 9-5 Sunday win against the Toronto Blue Jays was Baltimore’s seventh on a season-high 10-game homestand it entered having lost five of six. Colton Cowser hit a three-run homer and drove in four to lead the support of Kyle Bradish, who allowed just one unearned run over seven innings.

“I’m not going to say the team needed it, but I think it’s one of those things that is encouraging and keeps morale up, keeps confidence up, and hopefully (we’ll) continue to build momentum,” said Cowser.

Manager Craig Albernaz agrees.

“We were playing the baseball that we’re capable of,” he said. “Just all the work that these guys have been putting in relentlessly every day, we’re starting to see the rewards now, and against some really good teams. It’s been fun to watch.”

Confidence has gone a long way on the mound as well. Shane Baz (2-5, 4.48) has been a part of it, putting together back-to-back solid starts ahead of taking the mound at Fenway Park.

Baz notched a season-high nine strikeouts across seven innings of one-run ball against the Tampa Bay Rays last Tuesday. It was his third straight start working at least six frames and his second straight allowing just one run.

The right-hander, who has spent his entire five-season career in the AL East with the Tampa Bay Rays and Orioles, is 3-1 with a 2.64 ERA in five career starts against the Red Sox.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Take Series vs. Guardians

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CLEVELAND – (Wire Service Report) – A six-run seventh inning propelled the visiting Boston Red Sox to a 9-4 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday in the rubber game of a three-game series. Boston trailed 4-3 entering the seventh and scored all six runs with two outs. The inning included a two-run single by left fielder Masataka Yoshida, who had misplayed a fly ball in the fifth that allowed Cleveland to score the game-tying run.

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Jarren Duran hit his 10th home run of the season for the Red Sox. It extended his hitting streak to eight games. Every player in Boston’s lineup had at least one hit in the victory.

Chase DeLauter and David Fry each collected three hits for the Guardians.

The Red Sox lineup didn’t include Willson Contreras or Ceddanne Rafaela. Contreras, who is dealing with a lingering hand/wrist issue, entered in the ninth inning as a defensive replacement. Rafaela was a late scratch with lower back tightness.

Jovani Moran (2-1) earned the win for pitching 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief after Ranger Suarez tossed 10 strikeouts but allowed all four of Cleveland’s runs over the first five frames.

Colin Holderman (3-1) took the loss. He recorded one out and allowed two of Boston’s six runs in the seventh.

After Duran led off the game with a home run, Cleveland took a 2-1 lead in the second when Austin Hedges drove in Fry and Rhys Hoskins with a two-run single.

Boston regained the lead by scoring twice in the fifth. Mickey Gasper’s sacrifice fly drove in Marcelo Mayer, and Connor Wong scored on Wilyer Abreu’s single to put the Red Sox up 3-2.

Cleveland tied the game when Yoshida didn’t see a Jose Ramirez fly ball that dropped in for a double and allowed Brayan Rocchio to score. DeLauter followed with a single that drove in Ramirez to give the Guardians a 4-3 lead.

It was 4-4 after Cleveland reliever Tim Herrin walked Abreu with the bases loaded in the seventh. After Yoshida’s two-run single extended Boston’s lead to 6-4, Isiah Kiner-Falefa came up with a run-scoring single that drove in Abreu, and Caleb Durbin tripled to score Yoshida and Kiner-Falefa to make it 9-4.

Guardians starter Tanner Bibee went six innings and struck out five while scattering three runs and six hits.

–Field Level Media

PGA Tour: Henley Birdies ‘Em All

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FT. WORTH – (Wire Service Report) – Russell Henley did some of his most difficult work during Sunday’s final round of the Charles Schwab Challenge to get into a playoff. Yet he still had to put aside his nerves to finish the task. Henley birdied the first playoff hole with a putt from inside 5 feet to defeat Eric Cole and complete a comeback victory in Texas.

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“This is why I practice hard … to come back to the playoff and do that, I’m still just kind of shaking,” Henley said. “That was as nervous as I’ve been over a putt in my whole life.”

Henley shot 3-under-par 67 with birdies on the final three holes before beating Cole in the playoff. They were tied at 12-under 268.

Cole, who shot 70 in the fourth round, failed to convert a 13-foot putt for birdie before Henley sank the winning putt when the duo replayed the par-4 No. 18 at Colonial Country Club.

“The putt was good, I hit it pretty much where I was aiming, I just kind of misread it,” Cole said. “I thought it might start breaking left a little earlier.”

Henley, now a six-time winner on the PGA Tour, won for the first time since the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational.

“I think the longer you play this game, the more you want, you want more success and I feel like I’ve just worked harder and harder and I feel like I’ve been a little off just mentally this year, really,” Henley said. “Just feel like I just fought really hard through the end, so it just felt really good to see an awesome result.”

Henley’s round began with an eagle on the par-5 first hole and a birdie on the next hole followed by three consecutive bogeys. He played Nos. 3-9 in 4 over before recovering. His tying birdie putt on No. 18 was from about 16 1/2 feet.

He recalled “feeling a little jittery” on the front side. Then that changed.

“I just kind of calmed down a little bit and started to hit some good shots, and felt like I was hitting good putts most of the day and they just went in at the end,” he said.

Cole, the third-round leader, was bidding for his first victory on the PGA Tour. He had birdies on the first two holes but didn’t maintain the momentum and was hurt by a double bogey at No. 9.

“I was proud with the way I played,” Cole said. “I think I played solid for the most part. I drove the ball pretty well. I just needed to shave a shot somewhere.”

Defending champion Ben Griffin (65), Mac Meissner (69) and Alex Smalley (68) shared third place at 11 under.

Meissner, playing in the last pairing with Cole, needed a birdie on No. 18 to join the playoff. Instead, his second shot ended up in a bunker and he scrambled for par.

Griffin moved into second place by the midway mark of the round, catapulted by playing the front nine in 5 under. He was even par the rest of the way. Griffin’s 65 matched Steven Fisk for the best round of the day.

“I felt like I was going to make a nice run when I woke up this morning,” Griffin said. “My game was trending in the right direction. It’s a course I have experience on and I kind of know what you have to do on Sunday here.”

He nearly rolled in a 50-foot birdie putt on the last hole.

J.J. Spaun (70), Gary Woodland (67), Michael Brennan (68) and Colombia’s Nico Echavarria (68) all tied for sixth place at 10 under.

Brennan pulled into a share of the lead by mid-afternoon, but across his final seven holes, he had three bogeys and two birdies.

Woodland was happy to move into contention.

“I’m excited about where the game is at,” Woodland said. “I definitely didn’t get the most out of it this week, I played a lot better than what I scored, but happy with where it’s at.”

England’s Jordan Smith, who led at the tournament’s midway mark, finished at 8 under and tied for 13th place after a final-round 68.

–Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | May 31

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The Studio Wall at Turner Sports (Photo by T. Peter Lyons)

 

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – Earlier this month, upon his death, WWYI paid tribute to Ted Turner.Earlier this week, the baseball team Turner once owned came to town for a three game set against the Red Sox. There were Atlanta Braves fans everywhere you looked, and it was all a credit to Turner’s vision to place his Braves on a SuperStation that reached every corner of the United States.

For the youngsters in this column’s readership group, let’s go back to the days of black and white television when there were 13 slots for television channels. Quite a number of them went unused. There were three networks with national programming (ABC, CBS, and NBC). In each local market, there were a handful of others. As an example, in New York, there was Channel 5 (Metromedia, as FOX TV was yet to be a thing), then WOR TV – Channel 9 (which carried the Mets, Knicks and NHL Rangers), WPIX-TV 11 (which carried the Yankees), and Public Broadcasting, Channel 13 (Sesame Street and Mister Roger’s Neighborhood were just about to unfold.

When cable tv first made its way through suburban and city households and apartments, the channel selection increased to a maximum of 33 slots, many were used by teletype messaging and music, as broadcasters had yet to adjust to the new availability and the eventuality that one day, there’d be an unlimited universe of cable tv channels.

Home Box Office (HBO) was an early adapter and with it came first run movies and some sports. HBO launched on November 8, 1972 with a New York Rangers vs Vancouver Canucks game, live from Madison Square Garden. By 1980, HBO launched Cinemax and the whole concept of premium channels to headline “basic cable” came about.

Turner was smart enough to grab a slot on basic cable and broadcast a signal to a larger number of households basic cable served. The Braves and, to some extent, the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, became regular programming in homes all over the United States. With that exposure, Turner had created his SuperStation TBS, a golden opportunity for advertisers and, little did we know – fans – all over the States.

Of course, along with Superstation TBS (that’s Turner Broadcast System), came a little gem called Cable News Network – “CNN” – and then CNN Headline News, TNT (Turner Network Television), and a host of other channels which originated in Turner’s burgeoning Techwood Drive and Peachtree Street studios in Atlanta. Along with the multitude of programming, along came “man’s best friend,” the remote control. In fact, in our “household,” we lovingly call our remote control, “Ted,” as in … “Can you please pass “Ted” to me?”

With all of that as background, let us examine a little, three-game set at Fenway Park this week.

The ballpark was packed with Braves fans. In some cases, there might’ve been three generations of Braves fans in various groups, and most of them were not from Georgia. Braves fans are everywhere. The oldsters can be identified because of their Greg Maddux or Chipper Jones uniform tops and sometimes you might even see a HenryAaron (pictured) or a Rico Carty replica. Then come the John Smoltz or Phil Niekrouniforms, and don’t forget Dale Murphy and Andruw Jones.

It all added up to national fandom, and to a great degree, the Braves earned the respect and admiration of their massive fanbase. The Braves posted 14 consecutive divisional crowns, and a couple World Series banners, to boot.

The Braves’ faithful enjoyed the series opener, an exciting 7-6 Braves’ win on Tuesday night at Fenway.

On Wednesday, maybe the TV audience changed channels to TruTV for the Carolina vs Montreal NHL Stanley Cup Playoff game? If they stayed for the Red Sox game, the fans would’ve seen Boston’s biggest inning at Fenway since a September 14, 2025 opening stanza against the New York Yankees.

In the bottom of the 4th inning of that game, the Sox’ bats awoke. The outburst, combined with a stellar effort by Boston starter Connelly Early, resulted in an 8-0 Red Sox win.

Base hits, walks, a couple Braves’ errors, a wild pitch, a stolen base and three consecutive singles by Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu placed six runs on the scoreboard, five of them earned and the barrage sent Atlanta starter Bryce Elder packing before reliever Dylan Dodd walked to the mound to ease the pain. Elder lasted only 3.1 innings and gave up nine hits.

On the flip side, Boston’s promising pitcher, Early, tossed seven innings of scoreless baseball, allowing only four hits with three walks. He struck out seven Atlanta batters and threw an efficient 97 pitches of which 65 were strikes. He earned his fifth win of the season (5-2).

The Braves and their fans lived to see another game, a Thursday afternoon, 10-2 thrashing of the Red Sox. Braves’ pitcher Chris Sale, the former Red Sox ace, and Boston’s promising lefty, Payton Tolle settled-in to a 2-2 tie until Ronald Acuna Jr.took reliever Greg Weissert long for a Grand Slam which broke the game wide-open while breaking the Sox backs. The Atlanta Braves fans flocked to Fenway, once again, while others tuned-in on Braves Vision rather than TBS, as there’s been a lot of change for RSNs since the 1970s when SuperStations were king and Braves owner, Ted Turner, owned the throne.

Editor’s Note:

Ted Turner, the founder of CNN and a pioneering figure in the media industry, passed away on May 6, 2026, at the age of 87. His death marked the end of a remarkable career that transformed how news is consumed and established Atlanta as a media hub.

Early Life and Career

Birth: November 19, 1938, in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Education: Attended Brown University and served in the U.S. Coast Guard.

Business Beginnings: Took over his father’s billboard company after his father’s death in 1963.

Media Innovations

Turner Broadcasting System: Launched in 1970 with the purchase of a UHF station, which became TBS.

CNN: Founded on June 1, 1980, as the first 24-hour news channel, revolutionizing news broadcasting around the world.

Contributions and Achievements

Sports Ownership: Acquired the Atlanta Braves in 1976 and the Atlanta Hawks in 1977, significantly impacting Atlanta’s sports culture.

Philanthropy: Donated over $1 billion to various causes, including the United Nations Foundation and to many environmental initiatives. He also launched the Goodwill Games in an effort to utilize sports to bridge geopolitical gaps between countries all around the world.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: On the night of June 3, ABC/ESPN’s No. 1 NBA commentator Mike Breen will call Game 1 of his 21st consecutive NBA Finals series. Breen recently did a podcast for the New York Post and he delved into a ton of anecdotes and memories. NYP reporter Dexter Henry did a fine job. But, there’s a few points which must be made. First: For anyone who grew up watching the 1970-73 New York Knicks (and many other sports such as the NHL’s New York Rangers, NFL games, you name it on the Six and 11 o’clock sports on WNBC TV-4, and even David Letterman’s Late Night with the Wild & Wacky, there was NO WAY anyone could be better than Marv Albert.

“No chance,” says the columnist at WWYI. As in, “There’s no chance anyone could be a better baseball player than Willie Mays,” or “No chance there’d be a better goal scorer than Mike Bossy.”

Well, “Mike Breen has gone above and beyond Marv Albert in calling the NBA.”

“Mike (Tirico) and myself and Ian (Eagle), we’re all kind of the same age, longtime NBA play-by-play man Kevin Harlan explained.

“Because Mike has been this friend in the NBA for 30-plus years, and I’ll speak for everybody of our age group,” said Harlan, “I kind of feel like we’re there calling the Finals because Mike is such a leading voice for our group of broadcasters. He’s covered this succession of Finals that will never be equaled again, I don’t think, in the industry. So I feel like I’m right in back of him, enjoying the moment with him as his voice is chronicling these great Finals that we’ve had a chance to watch.”

Aside from the likes of Harlan, Tirico, and Ian Eagle, Breen has the village of support from Walt “Clyde” Frazier and Madison Square Garden colleagues like former MSG Network head Michael McCarthy and longtime producer/director Howie Singer,among many others who helped mold Breen into being the best.

One semi-forgotten gem is the fact Breen worked the Olympic Games with the great player-coach Doug Collins and that two-man combo might’ve been the best announce team of all time.

June 3rd will be Breen’s 113th NBA Finals game, extending his own record for broadcasters by far.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: Nothing says an “Original Six” Stanley Cup Final like Las Vegas against Carolina. Not!

As a reminder, the Original Six of the National Hockey League were the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, and New York Rangers. Hey? There’s one non-stop a day, as opposed to the 72 one-stop flights. … The last time there was an Original Six Stanley Cup Final was 2013 when the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Boston Bruins, 4-2. … Let’s make note that Bruce Cassidy has coached his teams (Boston-2019), Vegas (2023, 2026) to the Stanley Cup Final in three of the last eight years, winning in 2023.

Spurs Block Thunder’s Road to Finals

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OKLAHOMA CITY – (Wire Service Report) – Luke Kornet returned to the bench a hero.

The San Antonio Spurs backup big man had just turned in perhaps the biggest defensive play of Game 7 of the Western Conference finals, coming in for a stretch in relief of Spurs star Victor Wembanyama.

Wembanyama exited the game with five fouls and the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder had what seemed like a prime chance to seize control.

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But instead, Kornet blocked Isaiah Hartenstein just seconds after entering, the Spurs came through on the other end, and the Spurs were on their way to an NBA Finals berth with a 111-103 road win over the Thunder on Saturday.

“The definition of a winning play,” Wembanyama said.

San Antonio will open the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks at home Wednesday.

The teams have met in the Finals once before, with San Antonio winning the 1999 NBA Championship in five games.

It was the first of five titles for the Spurs. Their last visit was in 2014, when they beat the Miami Heat in five games.

In the playoffs for the first time since Wembanyama became the face of the franchise, San Antonio is four wins away from adding to that total.

Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said his team’s relative inexperience isn’t a limiting factor by this point.

“This team has now been pretty damn consistent for a long time, for over 100 games, for the most part,” Johnson said. “… I don’t know who has as much experience as we do this year in the season of 2025-26.”

The Spurs led for much of the game but struggled to put away the pesky Thunder, who continually battled back from double-digit deficits to get back within striking distance.

And when Wembanyama, who was San Antonio’s tone-setter throughout the series, left the game with five fouls with 6:48 remaining, the Spurs could have been in trouble.

Hartenstein’s steal got the Thunder in transition with a chance to cut the deficit to four.

But Kornet blocked Hartenstein’s shot, getting between Hartenstein and the basket, then Stephon Castle drained a pullup jumper for a 99-91 advantage.

Kornet headed to the bench just 59 seconds after he entered, and was greeted enthusiastically by the rest of the Spurs — including Wembanyama.

Coming out of that stoppage, Julian Champagnie drained his sixth 3-pointer of the game to stretch the lead back to 11.

The Thunder pulled back to six with just more than two minutes remaining, but Oklahoma City went 0-for-4 the rest of the way on chances to trim the deficit even further.

Wembanyama had 22 points and seven rebounds.

“I want to win so bad, it’s like my life depends on it,” Wembanyama said.

Wembanyama was named the Most Valuable Player of the Western Conference finals.

“He has such a vision, in my opinion, of who he wants to be as a person and as a player,” Johnson said. “And the commitment and investment that he puts into that vision, it’s nothing like I’ve ever seen before.”

Champagnie scored 20 and Castle, De’Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper also came up big for San Antonio.

“They were just the better team tonight, start to finish,” Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And then every time we tried to like cut into and take control of the game, it felt like they had an answer.”

Gilgeous-Alexander had struggled in the series, shooting just 37.9% from the floor through six games, but looked much more like the back-to-back NBA Most Valuable Player in Game 7.

“I was a little bit closer to it, for sure,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.

He finished with 35 points on 12-of-21 shooting with nine assists and three steals.

“He was brilliant,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

But the other two of Oklahoma City’s big three — Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams — made little impact.

Williams missed his fourth game of the series with a hamstring injury, while Holmgren finished with just four points on 1-of-2 shooting. Holmgren didn’t attempt a shot after the first quarter.

His two field-goal tries were tied for the fewest of Holmgren’s career. His only other two-shot game came March 27, 2024.

Cason Wallace added 17 points, returning to the starting lineup with Williams and Ajay Mitchell out again.

Alex Caruso scored 12 off the bench but was just 3 of 14 from the field.

Kornet, who won a title with Boston in 2024, was all smiles after the game.

“Someone from the bench yelled, ‘Who is it, LeBron James?’” Kornet said of his block and referring to James’ block of an Andre Iguodala shot in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. “We’ll see which one has more staying power in the record books of history.”

Gilgeous-Alexander sees plenty more matchups with the young Spurs in the future.

“They’re young, talented, well-coached, play the right way, seems like they like each other,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “They have the makeup. You don’t beat us without the makeup.”

–Field Level Media

It’s the Connor Wong Show

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CLEVELAND – (Wire Service Report) – Connor Wong hasn’t seen much action of late behind the plate for the Boston Red Sox, so he has to maximize every opportunity he receives.

Thanks to his big game Saturday, the Red Sox have a chance at earning a rare series victory against the host Cleveland Guardians.

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Boston will send left-hander Ranger Suarez (2-3, 3.02 ERA) to the mound against Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee (0-7, 4.57) today, seeking its sixth series triumph in 19 sets this season.

Wong drove in three runs, including the go-ahead double in the sixth inning, and had a pair of hits for the Red Sox in a 9-1 win. It was just his third start at catcher in a 22-day span as Mickey Gasper and Carlos Narvaez have taken most of the playing time.

“Just a really, really good performance by a guy who hasn’t played much,” Boston interim manager Chad Tracy said. “Don’t forget, he also had a rocket in the second that (Daniel Schneemann) made a great play on in center. Most days, that falls for a double here.”

Wong finished 2-for-5 with a run and was able to wear the Red Sox’s prized Wally the Green Monster mascot head for the first time, only to have a replay review by crew chief John Tumpane take away the home run that earned him the privilege.

The 30-year-old’s double in the sixth was initially called a homer, which would have been his first since 2024, but the MLB command center ruled the ball had struck the yellow line atop the fence before hitting the guardrail.

“It sucks that was taken away,” said Wong, who is a .442 hitter with five homers and 12 RBIs in 13 career  games against Cleveland. “I still think it was a homer. I wish I could have appealed it myself. But any time you get the win, it feels great.”

Wong played a significant role defensively as well, as winning pitcher Sonny Gray allowed only one run in six innings and credited him for calming him down after a rough first inning.

“He’s great back there,” Gray said. “I was happy for him with the way he played today.”

Suarez has either been terrific or terrible in his first 10 starts for Boston, giving up four or more runs in four of them — and one total run in the other six outings. He was rocked for a season-high five runs in a loss to the visiting Atlanta Braves in his last game on May 26.

In three career appearances against Cleveland, all as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies, Suarez is 1-1 with a 2.77 ERA.

The American League Central Division-leading Guardians have endured a historically bad first two months from Bibee. His low point occurred on May 25, giving up a franchise record-tying five homers in three innings during a 10-2 loss to the visiting Washington Nationals.

“I thought it was a lack of execution, and we just haven’t seen that from Tanner,” Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said. “It was a tough one, just a lot of mistakes over the middle. He didn’t have much. That was it.”

Bibee went exactly five innings in both of his previous games against Boston, going 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA. The Red Sox have worked him for four walks and struck out only five times.

A roster move could be in the offing for the Guardians, who are now without two starting outfielders. Left fielder Angel Martinez is scheduled to have an MRI after exiting Saturday’s game with left foot inflammation in the fifth inning.

Center fielder Steven Kwan, a multiple-time Gold Glove winner in left, remains on the bereavement/family medical emergency list. Stuart Fairchild was recalled from Triple-A Columbus to take his place and went 0-for-2 with a throwing error on Saturday.

–Field Level Media