The sports world is one that is always changing. From big trades to hot streaks to injuries, the world of sports is known for its unpredictability. This column is meant to recap some key stories in that world.
Yankees Fall to Dodgers in 2024 World Series
After beating the Cleveland Guardians 4-1 in the American League Championship Series, the New York Yankees moved onto the World Series, where they took on the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Dodgers, who had beaten the New York Mets in six games in the National League Championship Series, were almost unstoppable all season. They had the best record in Major League Baseball, going 98-64, as well as having the best player in baseball, Shohei Ohtani, along with many star players. While the Yankees didn’t have Ohtani, they still had a star-studded roster that allowed them to have the best record in the AL, achieving a record of 95-67.
But throughout the whole series, the Dodgers seemed to have had the Yankees figured out. Freddie Freeman was on fire for the Dodgers, maintaining a .300 batting average throughout the whole series and lighting up the Yankees pitching staff for four home runs and 12 RBIs. On the other side, Aaron Judge went back into late season form, batting .222 and only hitting a singular home run.
Despite efforts from Juan Soto, Anthony Volpe, and Jazz Chisholm, the Yankees were only able to take a game off of the Dodgers, losing the World Series 4-1.
Information from MLB.com
Knicks Fail to Reach Expectations to Start Season
Coming into the 2024-2025 National Basketball Association season, the New York Knicks had high expectations from both fans and the media. After finishing second in the Eastern Conference and getting eliminated in the second round of the NBA Playoffs, the team made a bunch of changes in the offseason. A lot of these have been covered in previous issues of the “Sports Outside Iona” section within this newspaper, like the Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns trades.
Despite the major change in the roster before the beginning of the season, the fans and media expected the Knicks to finish in a position similar to the one that they had last season. But, through their first games, they’ve been underperforming expectations, only going 3-2 throughout their first five games.
The star players have been performing as expected. Towns and Jalen Brunson have been the two best players for the Knicks like many expected. Bridges, despite having a poor game against the Celtics, has seemingly gotten back to form for the team over the next games. Miles McBride has also been a great piece off the bench for the team.
Their schedule has been the main reason for their underperformance. Their two losses have come at the hands of the Boston Celtics, who have been almost unstoppable the past two seasons, and the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are also one of the top teams in the east. While games against these tough opponents are unavoidable, the rough start for the Knicks is something that will be easily forgotten as the season goes on.
Information from NBA.com
