Anchor Drop, May 14, 2023: Another series loss

Good morning.

Optional Musical Accompaniment

Well, so much for that: Vanderbilt lost 6-2 at Florida on Saturday night, dropping its third series in its last four tries in the process. (Notably, the one series win in there was also the only one at home.) I don’t really know what to think about this team, which is now tied with Florida for first place in the SEC East, and is now a game behind Arkansas for the overall SEC lead. Arkansas, you’ll recall, comes to the Hawk next week to close out the regular season. The series concludes today at noon CT on the SEC Network+.

Not a whole lot of other news, but I wanted to highlight this article in the Athletic (for subscribers, obviously) about tampering. Something that I find bizarre about this whole saga is that on a certain level, it seems like some sportswriters are deeply invested in this continuing to go on and the NCAA doing nothing about it, even though it’s just ridiculously brazen (but why the hell would coaches report this?)

Ten days before college football’s spring transfer deadline, a Group of 5 head coach was fighting off covert efforts to swipe some of his best players.

This coach had buddies on SEC coaching staffs warning him. They were walking into their recruiting departments and noticing his players on highlight videos. “They let me know, ‘Coach, watch out. They’re about to take your kids,’” he said. He has won a few tug-of-wars with Power 5 schools trying to pay top dollar to poach his players. When one program recently tried to make an offer for one of his top offensive players, the senior brought it to the head coach. He called that school’s offensive coordinator, called him out and put a stop to it.

“Everybody keeps saying: Why won’t these coaches tell on each other?” the coach said. “I will if it gets to that point. So far, every time it’s happened, I’ve called the guy on the phone and they know I will go public. I’ve got enough evidence that would be bloody for them.”

Do snitches get stitches around here? Are these the kind of people we’re dealing with?

But I think the sportswriter view on the transfer portal is different than that, summed up in an article by Mike DeCourcy a while back. It’s a good thing because this is the 21st century when we pay more attention to free agency than the actual games. It’s a way to make the offseason interesting. I, on the other hand, think you’re kind of a weirdo if you obsess over the transfer portal in May instead of, I don’t know, watching baseball.

Sports on TV

All times Central.

• 10:35 AM: MLB: Angels at Guardians (Peacock)
• 12:00 PM: SEC Baseball: Georgia at Missouri (SEC Network)
• 12:00 PM: SEC Baseball: Kentucky at Tennessee (SEC Network+)
• 12:00 PM: SEC Baseball: Alabama at Texas A&M (SEC Network+)
• 12:00 PM: PGA Tour: AT&T Byron Nelson, Final Round (Golf Channel)
• 12:30 PM: MLB: Braves at Blue Jays or Reds at Marlins (MLB Network)
• 1:00 PM: SEC Baseball: Mississippi State at LSU (SEC Network+)
• 2:00 PM: SEC Baseball: South Carolina at Arkansas (SEC Network+)
• 2:00 PM: PGA Tour: AT&T Byron Nelson, Final Round (CBS)
• 2:30 PM: NBA: 76ers at Celtics, Game 7 (ABC)
• 3:07 PM: MLB: Rangers at A’s (ESPN+)
• 3:30 PM: MLB: Padres at Dodgers or Giants at Diamondbacks (MLB Network)
• 6:00 PM: MLB: Cardinals at Red Sox (ESPN)
• 9:00 PM: NHL: Golden Knights at Oilers, Game 6 (ESPN)

Scoreboard

SEC Baseball: Tennessee 10, Kentucky 7 ... Alabama 12, Texas A&M 1 ... Auburn 13, Ole Miss 5 ... Missouri 14, Georgia 12 ... Mississippi State 9, LSU 4 ... South Carolina 3, Arkansas 1.

MLB: Yankees 9, Rays 8 ... Reds 6, Marlins 5 ... Mariners 5, Tigers 0 ... Twins 11, Cubs 1 ... Blue Jays 5, Braves 2 ... Rangers 5, A’s 0 ... Cardinals 4, Red Sox 3 ... Guardians 8, Angels 6 ... Orioles 2, Pirates 0 ... Brewers 4, Royals 3 ... White Sox 3, Astros 1 ... Dodgers 4, Padres 2 ... Diamondbacks 7, Giants 2 ... Phillies 7, Rockies 4.

NHL: Kraken 6, Stars 3 (series tied, 3-3.)