⚾️ Mets & Braves Round Out MLB Playoffs, Goff and the Lions are Perfect, + More!

Morning Blitzers,

Yesterday was just a great way to start off the sports week. We had basically the start of the MLB playoffs with the Mets and Braves in double-header show down determining the final playoff spots. Two Monday Night Football games (one being much more entertaining than the other), and now we have more playoffs on the docket for today. We got a lot of stuff to cover, so let’s get right into it!

WTF Stat:

I was most curious about ‘Mercury Mets Night’. This was the infamous "Turn-Ahead-the-Clock" night at Shea, when the "Mercury" Mets were forced to wear black and silver pajamas instead of their regular uniforms and the player pictures were altered to give a more "alien" appearance (Rickey Henderson had three eyes).

⚾️ The New York Mets secured a playoff spot with an 8-7 victory over the Atlanta Braves in the first game of a doubleheader. Francisco Lindor hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning, capping a dramatic back-and-forth game. The wild game was really all for naught (especially for Diamondback fans), as game two was a bit of a snooze fest comparatively, with the Mets only managing 3 hits and benching many of their starters. The Braves won game two, 3-0 and secured their spot as the #6 seed.

• 🔥 Take: If the playoffs are anything like that first game, I’m very, very excited. If you enjoyed slacking off at work diligently working yesterday and only occasionally watching baseball during the day like me, you’re in luck as we have a full slate of Wild Card round playoffs starting today at 2:32 EST:

🏈 QB Jared Goff led the Detroit Lions to a 42-29 victory over the Seahawks. Goff completed all 18 of his passes, setting an NFL record for the most completions without an incompletion, previously held by QB Kurt Warner. He threw for 292 yards, including two touchdown passes, and also caught a touchdown from WR Amon-Ra St. Brown.

• Lions Takeaways: We all knew the Lions are a top team in the NFL, but when Goff plays like he did last night, they’re on a different level. They are talented and deep across their whole roster. They still need to clean up the penalties (12 for 101 yards), looking at you Terrion Arnold, but they should be favorites in every game the rest of the season.

• Seahawks Takeaways: The first half looked a bit sloppy but they hung in there and fought until the final whistle. QB Geno Smith continues to impress throwing for a career high 395 yards, while RB Kenneth Walker III was back, rumbling for 3 TDs. They’ll get better after this loss, plus they get to play the Giants next week, so hopefully they’ll be able to hang a crooked number and get their confidence back.

🏈The Titans secured their first win of the season, defeating the Dolphins 31-12 last night. QB Mason Rudolph took over at quarterback after QB Will Levis was injured early in the game. Rudolph completed 9/17 passes for 85 yards and no turnovers; the Titans had a strong rushing attack racking up 142 yards on the ground.

• 🔥 Take: K Nick Folk set a record as the oldest player to make three field goals of 50 yards or more in a game. That was about the most exciting part of this game. I have no other commentary.

⚾️ Pete Rose, baseball's all-time hits leader, passed away at the age of 83. Known as "Charlie Hustle," Rose had a celebrated yet controversial career, marked by his 4,256 hits and numerous accolades, including 17 All-Star selections and three World Series titles.

🏀 Dikembe Mutombo, the Hall of Fame center known for his shot-blocking prowess and humanitarian efforts, passed away at age 58 from brain cancer. Mutombo, who underwent treatment for a brain tumor, died surrounded by family. He had a remarkable 18-year NBA career, primarily with teams like the Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers, where he became a four-time Defensive Player of the Year and an eight-time All-Star.

Tuesday’s NFL Power Rankings

This Week’s Theme: Cereals

Get your milk ready for this edition of the NFL Power Rankings.

Tier 1 - Cinnamon Toast Crunch

CTC is the definition of elite. It’s the Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Sam Darnold of cereals (wait… Sam Darnold?) If you need to start your day off right, you pour yourself a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. It’ll give you the strength of Derrick Henry, the precision of Jared Goff, and the energy of Amon-Ra St. Brown. Results may vary/only last for 30 minutes before you crash.

1. Kansas City Chiefs (4-0)

2. Minnesota Vikings (4-0)

3. Detroit Lions (3-1)

4. Buffalo Bills (3-1)

5. Baltimore Ravens (2-2)

Tier 2 - Froot Loops

Having a balanced nutritious diet is all about eating foods with different colors. That’s where Froot Loops come in. Turns out, it’s spelled “Froot” because the product contains no ‘fruit’, but that’s neither here nor there. Like Froot Loops, these are some of my favorite teams right now:

6. Houston Texans (3-1)

7. San Francisco 49ers (2-2)

8. Washington Commanders (3-1)

9. Seattle Seahawks (3-1)

10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1)

11. Green Bay Packers (2-2)

12. Atlanta Falcons (2-2)

Tier 3 - Honey Bunches of Oats

This is the cereal for people that want to just eat Frosted Flakes but want to pretend they are sophisticated, so they throw a few granola clusters in there and call it a day. Not hating, I love me some Honey bunches of Oats. But let’s call a spade a spade. As for the teams below, they want to be an elite cereal like Frosted Flakes, they have the making to be elite, but through the first four games they just haven’t figured it out. They all have impressive wins on their resumes, but also head-scratching losses.

13. Dallas Cowboys (2-2)

14. Philadelphia Eagles (2-2)

15. Cincinnati Bengals (1-3)

16. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1)

17. New York Jets (2-2)

Tier 4 - Cracklin' Oat Bran

This may be a cereal that you’ve never heard of. It’s a sleeper for sure. Anything that has “Bran” in the title makes you think it’s a cereal for your grandparents, and that may be true. But like the Bears, Chargers, and Saints this is a cereal that can win you some games. Cracklin' Oat Bran, like the teams listed below seems to be missing something small that is preventing them from being a top tier cereal/tam, and I’m honestly not sure what it is. Can these teams figure it out and get over .500?

18. New Orleans Saints (2-2)

19. Los Angeles Chargers (2-2)

20. Chicago Bears (2-2)

Tier 5 - Rice Krispies

Rice Krispies get a lot of accolades because 1) The ‘Snap, Crackle, and Pop’ when you ate them as a kid was pretty electric 2) Rice Krispie treats are incredible. But as for a pure everyday cereal, not good. Just like this teams below. Each of these teams have their different variations of Snap, Crackle, and Pop, like the Cardinals: QB Kyler Murray, WR Marvin Harrison Jr., TE Trey McBride. They showed us the treat version of their team in the 41-10 win against the Rams. But when you step back and look at them as a whole and let the milk sit in the bowl for a little longer, you realize they’re not that good.

21. Arizona Cardinals (1-3)

22. Las Vegas Raiders (2-2)

23. Denver Broncos (2-2)

24. Indianapolis Colts (2-2)

25. Cleveland Browns (1-3)

26. Los Angeles Rams (1-3)

Tier 6 - Wheaties

Despite the cereal cover being awesome, Wheaties is a strictly utilitarian cereal. After a long weekend of eating horribly, I’ll grab a bowl of Wheaties on a Monday morning to get back to equilibrium and pretend that it makes up for all my poor weekend choices. Do I like it? No. Does it have any taste? Also, no. But sometimes you need to suffer through eating Wheaties and watching these teams play, because you truly can’t appreciate the Cinnamon Toast Crunch teams/games of the world without eating/watching some Wheaties.

27. New York Giants (1-3)

28. Tennessee Titans (0-3)

29. Miami Dolphins (1-3)

30. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-4)

31. New England Patriots (1-3)

32. Carolina Panthers (1-3)

On this day in 1932, Babe Ruth calls his shot. During his at-bat, Ruth made a pointing gesture before hitting a home run into the Wrigley Field bleachers. One of the reporters at the game wrote that Ruth had "called his shot", using terminology from billiards. The Yankees would go on to win 7-5.

Yesterday’s Trivia Time Answer

Which 28-year-old veteran Center was traded straight up for Kobe Bryant during the 1996 draft?

C. Vlade Divac - The Lakers were looking to trade their starting center Vlade Divac for a player's draft rights to free up salary cap space. Before the trade agreement, the Hornets never considered drafting Bryant. During the draft, the Lakers told the Hornets whom to select minutes before the pick was made. The trade was put in jeopardy when Divac threatened to retire rather than be traded from Los Angeles. However, on June 30, Divac relented on his threat and the trade was made final on July 9, 1996.

Check back tomorrow for the answer to today's trivia question and more info!