Happy Sunday! Improved temperatures have baseball on the mind.
Two historical milestones on this glorious April 13 day: Hammerin’ Hank Aaron played in his first major league baseball game in 1954 for the Milwaukee Braves. Aaron would play in 3,297 more games over a 23-year career. And in 1963, Pete Rose recorded his first hit as a Cincinnati Red. He would collect 4,190 more before retiring in 1986.
I’m ready. Let’s play ball.
Let’s now proceed with the Six.
RETURN OF THE DIRE WOLF
If wondering why the photo at the top of a white wolf… Bioscience company Colossal claims to have genetically engineered the birth of three dire wolves. With domestic dogs as surrogate mothers, 20 edits in the gray wolf’s genes were made to create the dire wolf, but the species differences are many: white coat, larger size, and vocalizations—“a howl that hadn’t been heard on earth in over 10,000 years.” Scientists say efforts to create a woolly mammoth are underway.
TRUMP’S TARIFF REVERSAL
Another roller-coaster week in the markets as President Trump presses the pause button on his bold tariff plans. They’re not all paused—10 percent blanket and big old bad China gets punched in the mouth (145%). Trump said we all got “yippy and afraid," so he changed his mind. There’s a more prudent reason—the bond market was threatening to collapse. If that happens, well, we are all but certain to face a financial downturn with a longterm impact on the economy.
THE GRIND OLD PARTY
Remember the time when Vivek Ramaswamy was going to be brothers-in-arms with Elon Musk and DOGE? All it took was one holiday-time tweet about hard work for him to be thrown out of the federal government. Republicans, for the most part, have long championed the “grindset” mentality: longer work hours, raising the retirement age, etc. But hating work and wanting to do less of it is a non-partisan issue. Americans, unite! Even former President Richard Nixon recognized that pitching a four-day workweek was good politics.
Stephen Prager, Current Affairs
GEN Z POWER COUPLE
Sports and entertainment have always been a draw for men and women that intermingle in those worlds. Most famously, back in the day, Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe were a glamour couple. More recently, Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen. Neither one of those marriages lasted but… we introduce the power couple of the TikTok generation: Livvy Dunne and Paul Skenes! She’s a college (former now) gymnast with a multi-million-dollar social media-generated business, and he’s a fireball-throwing pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Wishing these two lovebirds nothing but the best, while knowing full well an Instagram confessional breakup is likely inevitable down the line.
STREAM OF THE WEEK: “THE WHITE LOTUS”
Maybe it’s the beautiful settings, the gorgeous actresses, or the Agatha Christie-esque “whodunit” plotline, but I’m hooked on the HBO series “The White Lotus.” The latest season wrapped up Sunday and while I’d rank it second of the three seasons (better than season two, not quite as good as season one) the shenanigans in Thailand still made me laugh, and think, and in the final episode, surprised by the reveal of the killer. For those who haven’t seen the show, no spoilers here, just watch. The mesmerizing performance of Sam Rockwell (including one of the most weird-yet-spellbinding monologues in television history) in a supporting role had the internet buzzing a few weeks ago.
Lacy Rose, Mikey O’Connell, Hollywood Reporter
IT’S MASTERS WEEKEND!
Finally… as referenced at the top of the Six, baseball is one signifier of spring. Another? The Masters golf tournament, which concludes today in Augusta, GA. The tournament is singular in its historic likeness: since 1934, it’s been played on the same golf course at the same time of year. How can we best celebrate the narrative and pageantry of The Masters? By re-watching one of the greatest golf films of all time, “Happy Gilmore.” Enjoy this classic clip and the rest of your weekend.
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