Flint Township View

Humdrum Masters, lazy Tiger disappoint



 

 

The Masters didn’t provide much drama last weekend, as Hideki Matsuyama played steady golf on the final day of the tournament to win. With Matsuyama’s victory, the famed green jacket was won by a Japanese player for the very first time. Matsuyama went into the final hole with a solid two shot lead over Will Zalatoris, only needing to make five strokes. And that is exactly what he did, with a bogey for the win. I will say the run Xander Schauffele made of four birdies provided the most drama of the day. However, an errant shot on the par-three 16th into the water sunk Xander’s chances. How about the fact that hole 16 marked Xander’s first triple bogey in a major championship in 1,041 holes of golf? Talk about a horrible time to break a tremendous streak. I say congrats to Hideki Matsuyama. Enjoy wearing the green jacket.

The Detroit Red Wings pulled off an unexpected blockbuster deal right before the trade deadline ended. The Red Wings shipped off Anthony Mantha to Washington for Jakub Vrana and Richard Panik and received a 2021 first-round pick and 2022 second-round pick. I love this deal for the “Detroit Dead Things,” and give Stevie Yzerman a thumbs up for making the trade. Let’s be honest – Mantha, picked in the first round in 2013, has underperformed in Detroit. He inked a new contract for four years back in November for a large chunk of cheddar. I think he has talent, but his desire and work ethic are missing on the ice. I believe that Stevie Yzerman felt the same way as some of us Red Wings fans have about Anthony. What did the Red Wings receive in the deal? A first-round pick in 2014 by the Capitals, Jakub Vrana is a 25-yearold with Stanley Cup experience. Jakub played in 23 of 24 games in

the 2018 Washington Stanley Cup run. Thirty-year-old Richard Panik reunites with Steve Yzerman, who was his general manager in Tampa back in 2012-2013. This will be Panik’s sixth team in his nine years in the NHL. I give the Red Wings a solid A grade on this blockbuster deal. It’s hard to believe after 25 years in a row, the Wings have now gone five years without qualifying for the playoffs.

The Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera is already on the 10-day injury list after suffering a left biceps strain.

Let’s be honest, Miggy doesn’t want to play ball in Detroit anymore. The only thing the overpaid Cabrera is interested in is collecting a hefty paycheck from the Tigers. I wish they would just cut him and pay his salary. The only problem is that he can’t be traded, because nobody will pay him $30 million a year! Which means the Tigers are stuck with his horrible deal until 2024. Father Time has caught up to Cabrera, and you can see it in his swing. He is no longer the feared hitter he was back in his heyday. Detroit is stuck with Miggy’s bad contract, and so are the fans. The Tigers’ Casey Mize pitched against the Houston Astros Monday night and he was fabulous. If you don’t know, the Houston team is one of the better hitting teams in MLB, but Casey mowed them down like little leaguers on Monday night. What I saw from him tells me he has All-Star written all over that arm. I cannot wait for the Tigers to become competitive again. I know it’ll be a while, but I’m ready for good Tiger baseball.

I would love to report something on the Detroit Pistons’ progress, but they stink so bad I can’t even bear to watch another one of their games this season. Case closed.

I can be reached at thefatguy@mihomepaper.com