1. Nobody is going to like this take and I’m gonna get beat up about it pretty good, but I’m just gonna throw it out there and then I’ll mute everyone who sends me a nasty message about it on X (formerly Twitter), but I will stand by everything I write here.
I don’t think the reporter who was trying to get a comment out of injured New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole while walking at the airport yesterday was out of line here.
Gerrit Cole harassed by a reporter.
Cole looked like he wanted to blast him with his good elbow. My ace 🤣 pic.twitter.com/ayAaONlwS0
— Joe Randazzo 📚📕📖 (@LibrarianJoe_) March 13, 2024
Everyone on X is ripping the reporter for being overly aggressive in trying to get an update from Cole about the status of his injured elbow.
While I think some of the reporter’s questions were bad (“Anything you can say to Yankee Nation” is just embarrassing), I think he was just trying to do his job by getting a comment from Cole. There was nothing wrong with the reporter asking “How you holding up?” and “How’s your health?”
My honest reaction the first time I watched the video was, “Why couldn’t Cole just say to the guy, ‘Sorry, got nothing to say right now.’” I didn’t think about the reporter’s aggressiveness and I didn’t think he did anything wrong until I saw the backlash on X.
I fully understand that Cole is in no mood to speak in that situation while he’s walking through LAX as his season hangs in the balance because of an elbow injury. But a simple “Not going to comment right now” might have gotten the reporter off his back.
2. A brand new episode of SI Media with Jimmy Traina dropped this morning and it features a conversation with ESPN NFL analyst, Dan Orlovsky.
Orlovsky gives us a breakdown of his unbelievably busy schedule, talks about how the NFL owns most of the sports calendar and shares his thoughts about the wild free-agency spree that took place this week.
Orlovsky also reveals that his ultimate goal is to call top games each week and whether he feels like networks have a bias against putting him in that role since he wasn’t a superstar player. He also weighs in on his relationship with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo, Mike Greenberg and Dan “Big Cat” Katz.
Orlovsky also shares some of his famous food takes, talks about what it’s like to have triplets and much more.
Following Orlovsky, Sal Licata from WFAN and SNY joins me for the weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week’s topics include Aaron Rodgers as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s, running mate, the NFL Network moving Good Morning Football from New York to Los Angeles, Tiki Barber vs. Saquon Barkley, Love is Blind and more.
You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.
You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Sports Illustrated’s YouTube channel.
3. What an announcement from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday morning.
The Penguins announced today that the shipment carrying the Jagr bobbleheads for tonight’s game has been stolen en route to Pittsburgh.
As a result, the bobbleheads will not be distributed at tonight’s game, but will be distributed at a later date.
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 14, 2024
All fans in attendance will receive a voucher that includes a one-time scannable barcode that will be required to pick up the bobblehead at a later date.
Location and dates for pickup will be shared when the items are safely located or new bobbleheads are produced and available…
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 14, 2024
4. Wide receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended for a full season in 2022 for betting on the NFL. So after he signed a free-agent deal with the Tennessee Titans on Wednesday, this post was inevitable, yet still very funny.
love to see a player betting on themselves in free agency pic.twitter.com/mV0l8rAtIv
— Scott Barrett (@ScottBarrettDFB) March 13, 2024
5. Speaking of gambling, keep in mind that this crazy stat doesn’t even include money that goes into bracket pools.
The @AmericanGaming estimates that American adults will legally wager $2.72 BILLION on #MarchMadness this year, between the men’s and women’s tournaments
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) March 14, 2024
6. This isn’t as good as the time Travis Kelce threw a penalty flag at a ref who called a penalty on him, but we enjoyed the Golden State Warriors’ Chris Paul T’ing up the ref Wednesday night.
CP3 gave the ref a tech after he was T’d up 😅😭 pic.twitter.com/RyVujq6XLr
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 14, 2024
That time Travis Kelce threw his own flag at the ref! #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/sPkZStuCWD
— History of Sports (@BeforeFamePics) October 3, 2017
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: We’re one week away from the NCAA tournament, so it’s time to feature some old-school Gus Johnson. It’s such a shame he hasn’t called the tournament in so many years.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on X, Instagram and TikTok.
