SNY's The Warm-up: Giant mistakes — Yankees-Rays — NFC-AFC East standings

Get Today’s New York Sports Here Tweet of the Day --------------------------------------------------------------- Good morning. The Eagles (1-2-1) are in first place in the NFC East. --------------------------------------------------------------- Today's New York sports schedule... - ALDS Game 1: Yankees vs. Rays, 8:07 p.m. ⚾ Word count: 770 words (about seven minutes) --------------------------------------------------------------- SNY originals... What are the Odds? - [The books have New York as the favorite against the Rays]( Shea Anything - [Should MLB keep the expanded playoffs?]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Game 4: Red zone woes cost New York a Giant upset NFL/YouTube RAMS 17, GIANTS 9 -- Despite an admirable performance for the New York defense, the Giants lost their fourth game in four tries yesterday in Los Angeles. GIF'd above: A last-minute interception at the five-yard line thrown by Daniel Jones, which sealed a loss for the Giants. A touchdown plus a two-point conversion would have tied the game. The bad: - The Giants scored all nine points on three field goals. They last scored a TD in Week 2 on Sept. 20 and have only three in four games. - New York reached the red zone four times and finished with three FG attempts and an interception. "We've got to score more points," Jones said. The good: - The defense had an improbably great game, holding the Rams (29.6 points per game entering the day) to 17 points and 240 yards. - The Giants got the rushing game going for the first time all season. They collected 136 yards despite having averaged 56.6 rushing yards through three games. Also: Yesterday's game was the Giants' first time playing in L.A. in 26 years. The [result]( in 1994 was strangely similar to yesterday's. On SNY.tv: [VACCHIANO: The Giants' offense cannot waste valiant efforts by the defense]( | [Takeaways from the Giants' loss]( --------------------------------------------------------------- DAILY TRIVIA Which former Yankees manager also managed the Rays from 2003-05? 2. Yankees-Rays is a refreshingly honest matchup Orlando Ramirez/USA Today How real is the Yankees-Rays rivalry heading into tonight's Game 1? It isn't quite A-Rod vs. Varitek or Zimmer vs. Martinez, and they aren't ready to fight [on first bubble sight]( but there's a refreshing honesty to their mutual disdain. Here's how SNY contributor Sweeny Murti [put it]( - "They both admit it. They're open and honest about it. They don't like each other. It's great that they're not trying to hide it from us. - "The key is going to be harnessing that and making sure it doesn't get out of control." Rays center fielder Kevin Kiermaier was, to stay on theme, candid about the Yankees [on Friday]( - "They don't like us, we don't like them, and it's going to continue to stay that way." [Care to rebut]( Brett Gardner? - “I think that the feeling’s probably mutual. The last several years -- a lot of back and forth." (The back-and-forth crescendoed in early-September when Rays manager Kevin Cash put it out into the universe that he has a "whole damn stable of guys who throw 98 MPH"). Three more things for tonight's game: - The Yankees enter the series as sizable favorites, [at -145]( compared to +120 for Tampa. - Gerrit Cole, the Game 1 starter, in three games against the Rays this season: 16.1 innings, nine earned runs, five home runs, 27 K's. - Blake Snell, the other Game 1 starter, in two games against the Yankees this season: 8.0 innings, three earned runs, two home runs, eight K's. FYI: [Here]( are the times for all five potential ALDS games. On SNY.tv: [Yankees vs. Rays: 2020 ALDS preview and prediction]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 3. NFC and AFC East standings through Week 4 NFC East - Eagles, 1-2-1 - Cowboys, 1-3 - Football Team, 1-3 - Giants, 0-4 AFC East - Bills, 4-0 - Patriots, 2-1* - Dolphins, 1-3 - Jets, 0-4 The Jets ... are the highest possible number of games out of first through four weeks, and their net point rating (-66) is worst in the league. Their schedule -- vs. Cardinals, vs. Chargers, vs. Bills, vs. Chiefs, vs. Patriots -- doesn't relent much, either. The Giants ... are, somehow, only 1.5 games back of first place. A win in any of their first four contests would have put them in the thick of a (potentially) historically bad division. Their next five are against the Cowboys, the Football Team, the Eagles, the Bucs and the Football Team. *Patriots play tonight. --------------------------------------------------------------- 4. What the advanced metrics say about Andres Gimenez's rookie season SNY/Twitter Andres Gimenez's rookie season passed the eye test. Defensively, [it also passed]( the Moneyball test. In the new-but-helpful stat "outs above average" -- sort of a defense-specific version of WAR -- Gimenez was elite. - (Statcast [defines]( the stat as "a range-based metric of skill that shows how many outs a player has saved"). Here's the list of the 10 best infielders in 2020 by this metric: - Fernando Tatis JR., 7 OAA - Nolan Arenado, 7 - Jean Segura, 6 - Adam Frazier, 6 - Andres Gimenez, 5 - Nicky Lopez, 5 - Francisco Lindor, 5 - Isiah Kiner-Falefa, 5 - Nico Hoerner, 5 - Niko Goodrum, 5 FYI: - It's a cumulative stat, so Gimenez's five OAA are extra impressive considering he played in only 49 games and split time with Amed Rosario. - Including outfielders, Gimenez was tied for eighth. [Here]( the complete list. --------------------------------------------------------------- 5. The New York Minute - [WATCH]( There was a skirmish after the Giants game between Golden Tate and Jalen Ramsey. [Here]( some context to the fight. - [READ]( Trevor Bauer says he "will consider all offers" this offseason. - [READ]( In AFC East news, the Patriots-Chiefs game was pushed to 7:05 p.m. tonight. - [WATCH]( The Giants are now 12-41 since a certain picture was taken. - [READ]( The Jets claimed former Lions RB Ty Johnson over the weekend. - [READ]( Spencer Dinwiddie has a message for Knicks fans. --------------------------------------------------------------- Trivia answer: Lou Piniella. That's the buzzer, folks. Stay safe and enjoy your Monday. PS: Bob Gibson died over the weekend. His '[68 season]( was beyond reproach. This email was sent by: SportsNet New York (SNY) 150 Greenwich st 50th floor New York, NY 10007 US [Unsubscribe]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Facebook](