See Ball. Hit Ball. (And Other Things the Mets Have Forgotten) w/ Rick Garcia and Corey Nathan

Rick Garcia and Corey Nathan dig into an NBA playoffs already full of surprises, break down a Mets losing streak that's historic in the worst possible way, preview an NFL Draft with the Giants holding two top-10 picks, and close out with canceled TV shows, The Pitt, and Santa Clarita's most famous cannibals.

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Follow Rick Garcia: @RickGarciaNews on X (Twitter)

Follow Corey Nathan: @coreysnathan on Substack, Threads, Instagram, X & more

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Key Takeaways

1. NBA Playoffs: OKC and Boston Are Still the Pick

A few games in and neither host is changing their finals prediction: Thunder vs. Celtics. Cleveland won't get past Boston. The Knicks took game one by a mile, then sleepwalked through game two. Corey's concern isn't the record — it's KAT on defense, Mikal Bridges taking the wrong shots at the wrong moments, and a dangerous tendency to stop playing until it's almost too late.

2. The Lakers Are More Interesting Without Their Stars

Luka and Austin Reaves both shelved, and Rick is making the case that the Lakers are actually leaning into it. LeBron operating as facilitator with Kennard and Hachimura stepping up is working, at least for now. Corey isn't counting them out, even if OKC looms in round two. The bigger concern is the hamstring — the one injury that doesn't heal on anyone's schedule.

3. The Mets' 11-Game Skid Is Historic, Not Terminal

They haven't lost this many in a row in over 20 years. But Corey's not panicking, and he's got receipts: this same team was 11 games under .500 around Memorial Day 2024 and pushed the Dodgers to six games in the NLCS. The bats are cold across the board, which is actually a more encouraging sign than one or two guys being broken — when everyone's slumping at once, the correction can come fast. Soto's return should help. Carlos Mendoza may not be around to see it.

4. The Mets' Real Problem Is a Brainiac Coaching Staff

Corey's theory: over-coaching is strangling the offense. A room full of 30-year-old analytics guys telling hitters about launch angles and hot zones doesn't work in the batter's box. You need a grizzled vet — a Girardi, a Beltran — who's been through a slump and can say I tied my shoe the other way and it worked. Rick agrees the application is the issue, not the data itself. But Mendoza can't be the skipper.

5. NFL Draft: Giants Sitting Pretty at Five and Ten

Trading Dexter Lawrence to Cincinnati for the number 10 pick was a win for both teams, but the edge goes to New York. Dexy had half a sack in 2025, he's 28, and the Giants aren't building for this year. Corey would love to see Jeremiyah Love at five — a running back who's as dangerous as a receiver and could make Jaxson Dart's life a lot easier. Also worth noting: no Alabama players in the top 20 of most draft boards, possibly for the first time in 25 years.

6. The Pitt Is the Best Show on TV and It's Not Close

The pop culture segment starts with a wave of network cancellations — Colbert, Watson, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, Access Hollywood — and ends up as a full-on appreciation of The Pitt. Both hosts love it. Both also cover part of the screen during the rough scenes. Rick can watch Michael Myers all day and flinches here. That's how real it is.

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The playoffs are just getting started. So is the Mets' season — one way or another.

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