San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado can’t be stopped these days. During this past weekend’s series against the Miami Marlins, in which San Diego won three out of four games, Machado dominated, going 7-for-13 with two home runs, a .625 on-base percentage and a 1.625 OPS. Machado currently leads the National League in runs […]
Fourteen months ago, the Golden State Warriors faced a situation that threatened to morph into an existential crisis. They weren’t awful like the previous season, when Stephen Curry missed all but five games with a hand injury and Klay Thompson was out for the first of two full years. They were something far worse for […]
When May comes around, we can reliably count on at least three things: spring fully blooming, millennials posting a certain Justin Timberlake meme and MLB fans debating whether their new favorite players can maintain their hot starts. The phrase “small sample size” may be as ubiquitous as Mother’s Day cards this time of year, but […]
It takes a lot for a piece of baseball history to impress Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker. In 44 combined seasons as a major league player and manager, Baker has pretty much seen it all — as his players are constantly reminded. Witness 24-year-old rookie Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña’s reaction to learning that his dad […]
In the NBA playoffs, experience matters. FiveThirtyEight found that championship-winning rosters almost always have an above-average tally of career playoff minutes played. It’s such a good predictor of success that it’s a part of our NBA projections. This year’s Dallas Mavericks don’t have much of that postseason experience on their roster. They ranked 14th among […]