Weekend winners
Your Atlanta Braves. Braves played. Braves won all three in Philadelphia. The lineup is legit. Chris Sale — man, Chris Sale, Hall of Famer is becoming a legit thing, and if he goes another year or two and gets to 3,000 career Ks, he may become a dunk — is bona fide; he’s a suitor. And while all the talking points of the offseason either hinged on BravesVision or the lack of urgency among the starting rotation, GM Alex Anthopoulos has assembled a top-flight bullpen. Side question: The players playing is paramount of course, but does anyone else feel way, Way, WAY more comfortable, especially in the later innings, with Walt Weiss (and if they are not calling him Sensei, then that’s a missed opportunity) than with Brian Snitker at the controls?
Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs’ second-year star made his playoffs debut Sunday night and had a record-setting 35 points as second-seeded San Antonio cruised.
Matt Fitzpatrick. The talented golfer from Great Britain withstood a charge from Scottie Scheffler and won a tournament that’s super special to the entire Fitzgerald clan. Man, the “U-S-A! U-S-A!” chants against foreign-born golfers are everywhere these days.
Jake Mangum. Heck, this entire scene made me think about the great “Moneybag” quote from Billy Beane. “How can you not be romantic about baseball?” Mangum, a Pittsburgh outfielder, spotted a young girl wearing his Pirates No. 28 jersey in the stands. He pointed toward her brother, who was loved up. Mangum made a great throw, and the boy made the grab and handed the ball to his sister. The hug and the celebration and the whole scene has gone viral. Dang pollen.