This thought has been on my mind since mid-May,
“If the Diamondbacks had only had a bullpen, where would they be in the standings today”?
Ok, so we’ve all seen and heard about how the hometown nine have rolled out batting practice relief pitchers for most of the season, yet here we are with two weeks to go and they are right in the middle of the National League Wildcard hunt. A mentor once told me, “Don’t keep looking in the rear-view mirror, or you’ll miss what’s coming ahead”. When it comes to the Diamondbacks, I will take his words to heart. Yes, the bullpen usually arrives on the scene with a gas can and matches rather than a glove and a ball, injuries have piled up, and they traded away popular players, but none of that matters starting Monday night at the Big Ballpark. We have postseason drama on the line with the Giants coming to town for three. A half-game separates the two teams, with the spiraling Mets just two and a half in front of Arizona (the Mets ‘ next three are against the Padres). Scoreboard watching is fun, but watching the drama play out on the field in front of us is even better…
Still want to fire the manager?…
NBC Sports/Golf Channel analyst and Scottsdale resident Jim “Bones” Mackay joins me on stage at Ability360 in November. Most of you know of “Bones” through his years of caddying for Phil Mickelson. Jim and I will preview the Ryder Cup later this 
week on the site…
On the college football front, Arizona is 3-0. Arizona State is 2-1. Neither has shown that they are in the upper echelon of the Big 12. This is a “turn the page” conference. You don’t get too high or low off of wins in September. You need to keep showing improvement. So to that end, I thought the Wildcats did what they were supposed to do to Kansas State, who don’t appear to be going anywhere fast. A win is a win, turn the page, on to the next. Brent Brennan probably wishes he didn’t have a bye this week. Put off celebrating the opening of basketball season for a few more weeks if you’re a Wildcat fan..
The Sun Devils have to keep hammering the rock. Not close to a finished product. The tests are only going to get more difficult…
I watched the Arizona State vs Texas State game from my office Saturday night. An hour before kickoff TNT/TRU TV had content that was centered around the upcoming game. My understanding is that the network had a crew of six on the ground from the East Coast, creating the show from the middle of last week through Saturday night. That is how you make a great show. Turner knows what they are doing. ESPN+, FS1, < x10 TNT broadcast after one week…
Utah vs Texas Tech this Saturday at 9 am on FOX. In the previous world of Pac-12 media, there wouldn’t have been a chance that this game would get on the big network with the studio crew all on campus. Jumping to the Big 12 has been an excellent move for the schools that made the switch from the dead and deceased Pac-12. Sun Devils vs Baylor on Big FOX this Saturday night…
Speaking of dead and deceased. RIP UCLA on the football field..I’ve heard that the two Arizona schools are interested in scheduling the Bruins for games in the near future. Makes perfect sense to play in So—Cal against a program that is way, way, way 
down. The hire of Deshawn Foster shows once again that just because someone is an alum of a college, it doesn’t make them a good head coach. Chip Kelly bolting out of town for Ohio State now makes more sense to me. What a disaster at Westwood…
Here’s one for you. UCLA players can transfer out of the program starting on Monday. There’s a 30-day window that opens in season if a coaching change is made. In fact, UCLA hasn’t even started classes on campus for 2025/2026. So, yes, in the UCLA case, the transfer portal is open while the season is happening. The Bruins haven’t played four games, so players who leave can redshirt without losing any eligibility. Crazy…
Former Valley quarterbacks Parker Navarro and Devon Dampier are off to terrific starts to the season at their respective colleges. Damiper is completing 73% of his passes for Utah, while at Ohio U, Navarro bravely battled against Ohio State on Saturday…
The Cardinals are 2-0. They’ve beaten two young teams with inexperienced quarterbacks. In both games, our hometown heroes had to hang on for dear life to get the win. Excusing away a 27-3 third-quarter lead doesn’t cut it. Less than 300 yards of total 
offense won’t get it done. Twelve penalties are just sloppy. Next Sunday in San Francisco won’t tell the story either. The Niners won’t be at full strength at quarterback. These are pre-season games dressed up as real matchups. Watch the product around Thanksgiving vs what you see today. It will be night and day…
The post Don’t live life in the rear-view mirror, D-Backs in playoff race, Cardinals work to do, much more… first appeared on Sports360AZ.
