NY Mets

Wheeling and dealing, Steve Cohen and Company got their man. Well, a man, but an important one at that.

Going deep into games in today's version of Major League Baseball, I would guess would be a pitcher getting into the 6th inning. Before, if you didn't complete 6 innings, it wasn't considered a quality start. Today, New York Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman went "old school." Stroman plunked the first batter of the game and then basically shut the Cincinnati Reds down.

Professional sports broadcasters travel the world, and eat cuisine from different cities on a daily basis. Enter: New York Mets' play-by-play man, Gary Cohen.

Monday night, New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso had just hit his 18th home run of the season. He was rounding 3rd base and as he faced his teammates in the dugout he began to do an imitation of a Pete Towsend guitar windmill. Alonso was indicating to his fellow Amazin's that they were rockin'. Pete Alonso likes to have fun and he's not afraid to show it. Following his second Home Run Derby Championship, the young first baseman is blossoming into a star. But is Pete Alonso one of the Top 5 Sports Stars in the Empire State, I don't think so. Let's take a look.

One could try to pick a "turning point" in last night's crazy game between the New York Mets and the Cincinnati Reds but it wouldn't be easy. Right from the start, the Mets scored 3 runs in the top of the first off of Reds starter Vladimir Gutierrez. Great start right? Well, New York's starter, journeyman Jerad Eickoff, decided to give the runs all back to Cincinnati, plus one, in the bottom of the first and so the game went from there.

The New York Mets fell out of the starting gate, to use a horse racing term, to start the second half. After watching Edwin Diaz melt down last Sunday, Met fans got treated to an encore Saturday night against the very same, last place Pittsburgh Pirates. The first place Mets limped into Sunday afternoon. The Bucs could smell sweep.

Here's where the New York teams' World Series odds stack up, and which direction the odds have been trending.

It's report card time, baseball fans. Are you posting your team's report card on the fridge, or burying it in the backyard and saying your dog ate it?

But the biggest advantage for the Mets is the experience they had weathering those injuries and remaining in first place. How important will the evolution of the "Bench Mob" be, late in games, down the stretch? I bet you pretty important for Rojas and his coaching staff. Who will forget Kevin Pillar getting his face smashed by a fastball, bleeding all over the field and being back in the lineup with a face mask only a few days later. Does it really get tougher than that? All of this has helped develop an identity for this team.

New York Mets, 39 year old manager Luis Rojas maybe younger than most but he is a baseball lifer. His father, Felipe Alou, played 17 years in the big leagues and he managed another 14. His brother Moises added 17 years in MLB of his own. Rojas, in his second year at the helm of the Mets, has been managing in the organization for the past 8 seasons. He wasn't just ready for this job. He was groomed for this job.

If you like monstrous home runs, last night's Home Run Derby was a fun night for you. If you like stories about true life champions, well then you really enjoyed the show. New York Mets' Pete Alonso and Baltimore Orioles' Trey Mancini provided all of the athletic theatrics and moon shot home runs that any fan could ask for plus a story line that was worth the price of admission.

Tonight over 6 million people will tune in their televisions to a sold out Coors Field in Colorado to see Major League Baseball players take glorified batting practice. A pitcher, that the Major League hitter is familiar with, will attempt to throw perfect pitches and the batter will attempt to deposit them deep into the caverns of seats in the outfield filled outstretched arms attached to gloves waiting to absorb a piece of baseball history.