I’m back from Seattle after spending six days in town. I returned with two sides of Copper River salmon (delicious) and three days worth of notes from shadowing coach Pete Carroll. This was incredibly generous of both him and the Seahawks franchise. It was also enlightening because while it didn’t change my understanding of who Carroll is as a coach, I have a much deeper understanding of how he conveys his messages.

This experience is going to inform a number of stories that I’m working on, first and foremost a feature for Seattle Magazine, which I’ll be filing later this month. I’m also going to write some about it here at “The Dang Apostrophe.”

The Lede

We’ll start with the list of “Three Things I Learned,” which I started doing back when I was a beat reporter at The Seattle Times. Here’s a thumbnail sketch of what’s included in the full article, which is for subscribers.

1. Rookie cornerback Tariq Woolen looks like something out of 2013.

2. It doesn’t sound promising for Chris Carson’s comeback.

3. Drew Lock is more than a big-armed pocket-passer.

Read more here: Three Things I Learned (for paid subscribers).

That actually happened …

On Saturday, Seattle was able to overcome the home run that Paul Sewald allowed in the ninth inning, scoring two runs in the bottom of the inning to win 7-6. On Sunday, Seattle was unable to overcome  the home run Sewald allowed in the eighth as Rafael Devers hit an 0-2 pitch the other way for a two-run homer.

1. The Mariners lost two of the three games to the Red Sox, ending Seattle’s streak of having won each of the past four series.

2. Robbie Ray had his best outing of the season, throwing seven shut-out innings. He struck out the side in the first inning, didn’t walk a batter until the seventh.

3. Seattle’s only victory in the series was on Saturday when Abraham Toro and Dylan Moore had back-to-back two-out hits. It ended Seattle’s seven-game losing streak to Boston.

Next up for Seattle: Minnesota, Monday June 13, 7:10 p.m. Pacific

Did you see …

LIV Golf is tearing the golf world in two. OK, that’s a little dramatic. Some really rich dudes are deciding to get even richer by playing in a new eight-event super-circuit bankrolled by some folks accused of fairly heinous repression. The thumbnail sketch:

1. Charl Schwartzel won LIV Golf’s inaugural event, which was held at the Centurion Club located outside of London.

2. First prize was $4 million, the largest prize in the history of golf.

3. 17 current or former PGA Tour members, including Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, were suspended by the tour for their entrance in the LIV Golf event. They’re ineligible for PGA Tour events and the President’s Cup.

Read more here: Not Everyone Loves LIV Golf for paid subscribers with a summary of everything from the TV product to the geo-political implications. Yeah, it’s a lot.

Keep an eye on: Tonight’s Game 5 in the NBA Finals.

As some of you know, I was a long-suffering Warriors fan. Seriously, one playoff berth in a 20-year stretch until the current juggernaut in which the franchise is making its sixth appearance in the NBA Finals in eight years.

I’ve never felt they were overmatched in any of those previous NBA Finals series. At least not like this. Boston seems bigger, stronger and faster at pretty much every position. The Warriors have the best player in the series, Steph Curry, and the hope that Draymond Green is going to find some measure of effectiveness after being absolutely awful the past two games.

Oh yeah, the last time I felt like the Warriors were this overmatched in a playoff series was the 2016 Western Conference Finals, which Oklahoma City led 3-1. Klay Thompson had an absolutely unbelievable performance in Game 6, which single-handedly saved the Warriors.