The Masters was electric as always and although Collin Morikawa was nowhere near the top of the leaderboard; but I’m going to count my advice to stay away from Brooks Koepka because of his knee injury and Cry-son Decham-blow because of narcissism as victories. The NHL trade deadline is today, so we’ll recap some trades from the weekend and some big news from the MLB. Let’s get into it.
Masters
Hideki Matsuyama became the first Japanese-born Masters champion after several Xander Schauffele meltdowns throughout the final round. I wonder what it’s like for a guy who is trying to desperately hold onto the lead while his partner is hitting shot after shot into the water, into the trees and 3 putting…probably how my boys feel every time they play with me. He was still able to gut it out, but several people who had Matsuyama in their pools are pissed with his bogeys on 3 of his last 5 holes and I blame Schauffele for this.
We were also introduced to Will Zalatoris, a 6 foot 2 inch, 165 pound electric factory who lit the twitter world on fire because he looks like Happy Gilmore’s caddie. The Z-train was rollin this weekend.
Brooks Koepka missed the cut, but unless you were living under a rock you’d assume he’d struggle after having a serious surgery on his dislocated knee just one month before. You could tell he struggled to bend down to read the greens, which ended up being pretty critical on a weekend where it looked like guys were putting on an ice rink. He’ll be back and I’ll be betting heavily on him when he gets back to full strength.
Lastly, holes 4, 5 and 6 are starting to cuck Amen’s Corner (11, 12 and 13) as the hardest holes at Augusta. This is absolutely unacceptable and I expect drastic changes to the infamous corner’s greens before the next Masters.
NHL
The Avs are an absolute wagon and after last night’s shitpumping over the Anaheim Ducks, they’ve gotten a point in 17 of their last 18 games, winning 15 of those games outright. Philipp Grubauer has been instrumental to this success, but he’s had to play a ton due to the lack of depth. The addition of Devan Dubnyk, yes the same Devan Dubnyk from the 2014 Wild team that knocked the Avs out of the playoffs, will allow Grubauer to get a breather and add depth heading into the playoffs. He’s a consummate pro and a great addition to a team ready to make a cup run.
Toronto added Nick Foligno, a veteran with plenty of playoff experience and wore a C for the Bluck Jackets since 2015. They gave up some draft capital to get him (a first and a couple 4ths), but I like the aggressive approach from the Leafs heading into the homestretch of the season.
Tampa Bay was aggressive again for the second straight year at the deadline, but trading a first round pick for Defenseman David Savard (whose in the final year of his contract) is a head scratcher. They are in a tie for first in the Central with the Carolina Hurricanes, who have a game in hand on the LIghtning, and with 3 legit contenders between the Lightning, Hurricanes and Panthers in this division, getting the top spot will be critical. I love getting aggressive, but I’m not sure about giving up a first round pick for a rental.
MLB
Since Fernando Tatis Jr. injured his labrum, there have been constant smokescreens from the Padres about the seriousness of the injury. He injured it a week ago and there have been reports he’ll be out for the season, he’ll only be out a few months or he’ll be back for the postseason. Who knows, the Padres added so much talent that they will be okay without him, they just pitched their first no-hitter in team history, but it stinks for the sport. They finally got a flashy superstar that appeals to the younger generation and this happens. Hopefully he has a speedy recovery and gets back to flipping bats soon.
The Rockies are a minor league team and got swept by the Giants. They stink, who cares. Get Trevor Story out of this miserable franchise and to a contending team stat please.
NBA
They’re playing basketball. Living in AZ, I’d be remiss not to include Devin Booker’s highlight night vs the Wizards. He had a couple of incredible assists and has the Suns competing for the top spot in the West.
It was a great masters weekend and we’re starting to get to a gloomier time in sports, but I want you to think back to last year and remember how miserable we were without live sports. Let’s expand our horizons and watch a little bit of NHL, NBA or MLB and get us to the NFL draft. I appreciate you all, love you, bye.
The Morning Flush 