The Key for the week of June 8, 2026
Reds Tide
Remember a little more than a month ago, Reds fans, when you were all giddy about your first place team? Why does that seem so far away now? A streak of three wins in 12 games, a series loss at the hands of the woeful Royals and an injury list as long as the walk from the dugout to the pitching mound have doomed the home team to last place in the Central (with only two wins all season against division opponents). After the sweep in St. Louis, Manager Terry Francona had the dreaded closed door meeting with the team, hoping to stop the bleeding until more players, including Hunter Greene and Elly De La Cruz, return from the IR. As we come up to the MLB trade deadline, the age-old question pops up again: Will the Reds be buyers or sellers?
A Pair of Finals to Remember
A few days ago a scribe had this headline: Has there ever been a finals series as good as the two we’re watching right now? It’d be hard to argue, between the NBA nailbiters and the NHL double overtimes. Fans can only hope for more of the same, because there’s nothing like Game 7, either in hockey or in basketball. Super Bowls are often blowouts, World Series are often whose pitchers are the best. These two finals have new stars every night stepping up to the challenge. Must see TV.
The World Descends on the U.S…
And Canada, and Mexico. The world’s largest sporting event, the World Cup, kicks off this week with high ticket prices, higher hotel prices and a lot of unsold seats. That won’t be a deterrent to hard core fans, though, who make the World Cup the largest single sporting tournament on earth. FIFA reports that more than 5 billion people engage with the tournament globally, with the final drawing well over a billion viewers. This year is the largest tournament ever with 48 teams, so expect interest to grow as the matches begin.
Ben’s Best Bet
Most prognosticators have the usual suspects as favorites: Germany, England, Spain, even Argentina to repeat. Right now BetMGM has Spain as a slight favorite over France, with England close behind. Argentina is sixth favorite, but Ben says, with Leo Messi on your team, it’s hard to go against the White and Sky Blue.