The Boston Sunday Sports Section
The Biggest What-If in Boston Sports
And now we have the Love Boat incident.
Mike Vrabel and a roughly seven-months-pregnant Dianna Russini reportedly rented a private boat together in 2021. Their imaginary friends from Sedona were apparently not with them for the three-hour tour of a lake in Putnam County, Tennessee.
There was no cruise director.
It was just the two of them.
Russini gave birth later that summer to the first of her two children after marrying her husband, Kevin Goldschmidt, in 2020. Vrabel has been married to his wife, Jen, since 1999 and they also share two children.
At the time of their lake cruise, Russini was a reporter covering the Tennessee Titans for ESPN. Vrabel was the Titans’ head coach.
So far, from a strictly work standpoint, Vrabel has escaped the affair relatively unscathed. Russini has not. The affair, for all practical purposes, ended her employment at The Athletic.
There is absolutely a double standard in this kind of situation between men and women. However, even with her ‘Insider’ status, Dianna Russini was easily replaceable from a work standpoint. There are plenty of reporters capable of and hungry to become NFL Insiders, especially given the current state of journalism.
Vrabel is not so easily replaced, at least so long as he is winning football games. If you have any doubt, see Mayo, Jerod.
So many shoes have dropped already in this situation that Zappos is running out of stock. Sedona, the Casino, the New York bar, and now The Love Boat. What is next?
Well, if DraftKings had a wager on the board whether Vrabel is the biological father of Russini’s first-born, which side would you bet?
If you need more insider information to make your decision, she named the child Michael. And she was on Twitter four days after the birth, pondering the best NFL Players and Coaches ever named Michael.
Focusing on football, some friends and I were debating the hypothetical question of whether news that Vrabel is the father would end his tenure as coach of the New England Patriots.
My friends thought it would.
I respectfully disagree for the same reason as before — he wins football games.
Head Coach Mike Vrabel is a big reason A.J. Brown wants to be a Patriot.
The NFL schedule release is Thursday night (why the NFL schedule release is guarded more closely than the U.S. military’s battle plans is a question for another day). The football calendar is turning towards OTAs, mini-camp, and training camp. Vrabel is seen as the primary reason A.J. Brown wants to play for the Patriots.
From a football standpoint, even if Mr. Kraft, in a precarious position on this one himself, decided to axe Vrabel, if we asked 100 die-hard Patriots fans who they would want to succeed Vrabel, there aren’t many good options on that Family Feud board.
Josh McDaniels: Buzzer sound. Failed twice as a head coach due to the whole people part. No thanks.
Zak Kuhr; very promising coach and may well be a head coach someday, but at the beginning of 2025, he was the inside linebackers coach. That seems like a bridge too far. Strike two.
Steve Harvey will now remind us that if we miss one more, the Kraft family can steal.
Someone outside the organization – well, let’s look at the candidates.
- Mike Tomlin could probably go 9-8 with this squad.
- John Gruden comes with his own baggage.
- The UNC head coach — I don’t foresee him making the leap from college football.
- Jerod Mayo better damn well not be walking through that door.
Put up a big red X and sound that buzzer again.
Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott leaves the field after an NFL divisional round playoff football game against the Denver Broncos, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Sean McDermott could potentially be an attractive candidate for the Kraft family to steal. He knows the AFC East. Drake Maye is at times compared to Josh Allen, and McDermott helped develop Allen. It would give even more juice to the Buffalo games.
But the chaos and turmoil would be significant. The staff is loyal to Vrabel. The players, including Maye, have been extremely loyal to Vrabel. The team knows his system. A new coach, new staff, and new system could derail Maye’s development. We don’t need another Matt Patricia scenario.
So, please sound the buzzer for him as well.
There is no good answer for the Kraft family to steal. And thus, barring something criminal coming to light and there being no indication that it will, when the Patriots line up for their season opener, Mike Vrabel will be standing on the sidelines.
To keep it simple, stupid (the KISS acronym somehow seems appropriate here), Mike Vrabel gives them the best shot of winning football games.
Pitching and Defense Only Take You So Far
It is no secret that the Red Sox have struggled on offense this year. Through Saturday, they had scored two or fewer runs in 16 of their 39 games. They are 2-14 in those games.
I guess pitching and defense only take you so far.
| Runs Scored | Games | Wins | Losses | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 runs | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0% |
| 1–2 runs | 13 | 2 | 11 | 15% |
| 3–4 runs | 8 | 4 | 4 | 50% |
| 5–6 runs | 9 | 5 | 4 | 56% |
| 7+ runs | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% |
| Total | 39 | 17 | 22 | 44% |
The Red Sox are 2–14 when scoring 2 runs or fewer — 16 of their 39 games. When they score 5 or more, they are 11–4. The offense isn’t the whole problem. It’s most of it.
Record through May 9, 2026. Source: Baseball Reference.
But let’s dig deeper.
One of the juicier nuggets coming out of the firing of the Red Sox hitting coaches, including Peter Fatse, was that many of the young players were not buying into the front office’s Driveline-driven approach, which emphasizes pulling the ball in the air.
The data clearly support the importance of pulled fly balls. Historically, pulled fly balls account for around 17.5% of batted balls and 66% of home runs. And it is clear from the data in the table below that the Red Sox are hitting too many ground balls this year and not enough pulled fly balls.
| Metric | 2025 | 2025 Rank | 2026 | 2026 Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Outage | ||||
| HR/Game | 1.15 | 15th | 0.74 | T-28th |
| SLG% | .421 | 11th | .353 | 29th |
| Why — Contact Quality | ||||
| GB% | 44.6% | 7th | 46.7% | 27th |
| Pulled Fly Balls% | 16.5% | 25th | 15.2% | 28th |
| Barrels/PA | 6.2% | 10th | 5.0% | 20th |
| MLB Avg (2026) | GB: 43.2% | Pull FB: 18.2% | SLG: .392 | |||
The Red Sox went from middle of the pack in home runs and slugging to near the bottom. More ground balls, fewer pulled fly balls, fewer barrels. The data tells a consistent story.
From 2022–24, pulled fly balls accounted for just 17.5% of all batted balls but produced 66% of all home runs. — Baseball Savant
The question, though, is more of the nature versus nurture variety — if trying to pull fly balls does not fit a player’s natural swing and approach, is forcing it a good idea? As any athlete knows, if you are thinking, you are losing.
While the data is clear that pulled fly balls lead to the best outcomes, especially for home runs, the data is mixed on whether it makes sense for a given hitter to change their swing to produce them.
Isaac Paredes, who many Sox fans wanted to man third this winter, is the poster child for pulled fly balls, with nearly all his home runs coming from pull-side power. When he arrived in Tampa Bay, he hit balls back up the middle or to the opposite field. The Rays heavily emphasized pull-side power, and he hit 31 home runs. This year, over 39% of Paredes’ batted balls are pulled in the air (MLB average is 18.2%).
Another example, closer to home, that nurture can work is Willson Contreras. He was below league average on pulled balls in the air nine out of his first ten seasons in the Majors before climbing above league average in 2025, and this season ranks 35th out of 271 qualified hitters.
The danger in this approach, though, is that the hitter both changes his natural swing and sells out for power, leading to less contact. The Driveline approach might not be the right fit for this roster, even if the metrics say it should be.
And it is clear from the table below that the young players, especially Mayer and Anthony, are either not embracing this philosophy or it does not play to their natural strengths. While both had more pulled fly balls last year, they were both still below league average. Whether they just don’t buy in, or it is not who they are, only they would know.
| Player | GB% | Pull Fly% | Barrels/PA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contreras, Willson | 38.5% | 25.3% | 9.7% |
| Story, Trevor | 46.5% | 21.8% | 1.9% |
| Abreu, Wilyer ▼ young core | 36.6% | 18.8% | 8.0% |
| Rafaela, Ceddanne ▼ young core | 43.8% | 15.6% | 5.0% |
| Narváez, Carlos | 41.8% | 12.7% | 5.9% |
| Durbin, Caleb | 59.0% | 12.4% | 0.7% |
| Duran, Jarren | 50.6% | 12.5% | 6.9% |
| Anthony, Roman ▼ young core | 48.7% | 10.5% | 5.4% |
| Mayer, Marcelo ▼ young core | 50.6% | 8.6% | 5.3% |
| MLB Average | 43.2% | 18.2% | — |
Contreras is the only Red Sox hitter meaningfully above the MLB average in pulled fly balls. The two youngest position players — Anthony and Mayer — rank at the bottom of the lineup in both categories.
Context: From 2022–24, pulled fly balls accounted for just 17.5% of all batted balls but produced 66% of all home runs. — Baseball Savant
If Breslow wanted pulled-air power, the better approach would have been to acquire more of it via free agency or trade. Pushing your philosophies down employees’ throats is rarely effective. Better to either adjust the system to the talent you have, which in this case would mean playing more small ball, as Chad Tracy has started doing, or acquire players who fit your system and your home ballpark (Paredes would not be a good fit for Fenway because his homers would be doubles).
Breslow and the front office have a reputation for being too data-focused, rigid, and dogmatic (even John Henry once questioned this).
Less dogma, more hit-dogs please.
Bradford on Tracy’s composure through the Valdez ejection and Detroit turnaround, with clubhouse quotes. The most authoritative piece of the week on the new manager.
His 2004 team played .500 ball for three months, then came back to win the World Series. Pedro’s message to Boston fans: keep the faith. This is Boston.
The offense needs to scratch and claw with its current construction. Mayer’s improvement against left-handed pitching, with Tracy’s quotes on his improved at-bats, is one of the week’s better news stories.
▶ Fenway Rundown — Cotillo & McAdam — MassLive. The week’s essential Red Sox audio. Cora, Tracy, the offense, and what comes next.
Go Get Giannis
If you can trade Jaylen Brown for Giannis, you do it. Eleven times out of ten. Before the Bucks change their mind.
This is not about Brown saying this was his favorite season and then quadrupling down on it as tone-deaf as that was. This is not about Brown wanting to be the alpha and not being able to settle back into his role as Robin to Tatum’s Batman.
This is about Giannis being both the better player and the better fit for what this team needs to get over the playoff hump more than once.
Brown is a decorated and dedicated veteran. He is both an NBA Finals MVP and an Eastern Conference Finals MVP. He will likely be First-Team All NBA this year.
Many of you are now familiar with my ten-year-old sports-loving son Jackson. He came in while I was writing this, and I asked him whether the Celtics should trade Brown for Giannis. He quickly shook his head no and reasoned, ‘Brown was almost the MVP, and he is younger than Giannis.’
Jackson is right on both counts. Brown will be 30 next season, and Giannis 32.
But Giannis is built differently.
Giannis Antetokounmpo – The Greek Freak
Giannis is an unstoppable force when he decides to put his head down and go to the basket. When the Celtics were down 99-98 to Philly in the last few minutes, instead of chucking up threes, Giannis would have put his head down and played bully ball.
Brad Stevens is one of the finest minds in basketball. He was very direct in his end-of-season press conference. He did not agree with Joe Mazzulla’s assessment after all four losses that the Celtics were just missing good open looks.
Giannis solves this problem. Giannis gets where he wants to go. With the subtlety of a freight train.
He has led the league in points in the paint per game for three straight seasons, with 18.7 this year (though he only played in 36 games).
And I think there could be some untapped potential in Giannis if he can even modestly improve his free-throw percentage. Like Boston weather in May, Giannis is in the 60s on a good day.
Joe Mazzulla is a smart coach who will adapt his system and philosophy to his players’ talents and his boss’s demands. Giannis will force Mazzulla to adopt a more balanced offensive philosophy, and his ability to drive and kick will give the Celtics’ three-point shooters even better looks.
Yes, the Celtics won the 2024 NBA Championship with the Boston Three Party approach. But they were also upset in 2023 by Miami, 2025 by the Knicks, and 2026 by Philly. With Giannis, live by the three, die by the three turns into live by the three and kill by the two.
In the Celtics version of Casablanca, Tatum can turn to Brown and say, ‘We will always have Banner 18.’
But for the Celtics to get Banners 19 and 20, they need Giannis to be Tatum’s co-star.
The counterpoint to this week’s So-What. Karalis makes the case for keeping Brown — and it’s worth reading before you call the Bucks.
Stevens on the rim impact problem, the three-point reliance, Mazzulla, and what the offseason needs to look like. The essential read from the week.
Forsberg breaks down what went wrong and what the offseason needs to accomplish. The most analytical free piece of the week.
▶ Celtics Talk — Chris Forsberg, NBC Sports Boston — Post-elimination breakdown. What went wrong, what the offseason needs, and the Giannis question.
View on X → — The WNBA tips off this week. Boston doesn’t have a team yet — but one might be coming soon to a TD Garden near you.
Maye addresses the Vrabel situation head-on. “No, I don’t think it will be a distraction. I’m just looking forward to getting back to work.” The locker room is still firmly behind their coach.
Adam Schefter on the Pat McAfee Show: “I still think it is on track. I still think it’s going to happen.” A 2028 first-round pick appears to be the likely price. The countdown to June 1 begins.
▶ Patriots Talk — Tom Curran & Phil Perry, NBC Sports Boston — A.J. Brown trade, draft class grades, Vrabel vs. Wolf on the draft, and the AFC East picture.
View on X → — Twelve names on the UDFA list. You might recall a nobody named Malcolm Butler once made that same list.
View on X → — NFL schedule release is Thursday, May 14 at 8 PM. How many primetime games will the Patriots get?
The clearest analytical case for accelerating the retool — trade targets, cap tools, and why staying patient is the wrong call with Pastrnak in his prime.
Neely, Sweeney, and Pastrnak on what this team needs to become a legitimate contender. The accountability was refreshing.
The captain debate — Pastrnak, McAvoy, or Swayman — is one of the more interesting storylines of the summer. The case for taking your time.
▶ Poke the Bear — Conor Ryan & Ty Anderson, CLNS Media — Draft lottery fallout, end-of-season press conference takeaways, and Boston’s offseason priorities.
One place. Every game. Every network. No hunting.
| Sun 5/10 |
Mon 5/11 |
Tue 5/12 |
Wed 5/13 |
Thu 5/14 |
Fri 5/15 |
Sat 5/16 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ⚾ Red Sox | vs. TB 1:35 PM · NESN 🏃♀️ Moms & Kids Run the Bases |
— | vs. PHI 6:45 PM · NESN |
vs. PHI 6:45 PM · NESN |
vs. PHI 6:45 PM · NESN Housemaid Night |
@ ATL 7:15 PM · NESN |
@ ATL 7:15 PM · NESN |
Roman Anthony wanted to go to Ole Miss. He had committed there as a sophomore, envisioning himself as an All-American who would re-enter the draft as a first-round pick and command an even bigger bonus. When the Red Sox selected him 79th overall in 2023 — at the end of the second round — he was resistant to signing.
It was his mother, Lori, who changed his mind.
A physician’s assistant who had spent years driving Roman to practices and attending tournaments from the blazing heat of Atlanta to Cooperstown, NY — she made the case that you can’t control injuries, and that first-round money from an iconic franchise was too good to pass up at 18.
Roman signed for $2.5 million. Less than two years later, he was starting in left field at Fenway Park, batting fifth, in borrowed cleats.
Happy Mother’s Day, Lori — and to all the other wonderful mothers out there.
Source: Pitcher List — Behind the Call-Up: Roman Anthony by Adam Steinmetz
Behind Every Great Boston Athlete, There’s a Mother Who Made It Possible
Sunday is Mother’s Day. So this week, we’re setting aside the box scores and the standings for a few minutes.
Jayson Tatum calls himself “the biggest mama’s boy ever.” He refers to his mother, Brandy Cole-Barnes, as his best friend. She was 19 when he was born, had professors telling her to quit, and went on to earn four degrees — including an MBA and a law degree — while raising him. This past March, when Tatum made his return to the court after a 10-month Achilles recovery, he looked up into the stands and saw his mother crying. “She was with me the entire way,” he said.
The TODAY show sat down with Brandy Cole-Barnes to tell her story. It’s worth five minutes of your Sunday morning.
▶ Read: Mom of NBA’s Jayson Tatum Shares How She Raised a Superstar — TODAY →Thanks for reading Issue 5 of The Boston Sunday Sports Section. If you’re not yet a subscriber, we’d love to have you. And if you enjoyed it, please share it with your fellow Boston sports fans.