Welcome to Thursday’s Morning Mashup. For the latest news, start at our WEEI.com home page or click here for the top stories from our news wire.

THURSDAY’S BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS:
NHL playoffs: Bruins at Rangers, 7 p.m. (CNBC)
NHL playoffs: Blackhawks at Red Wings, 8 p.m. (NBCSN)
NHL playoffs: Sharks at Kings, 10:30 p.m. (NBCSN)
MLB: Indians at Red Sox, 7:10 p.m. (NESN; WEEI-FM)
MLB: Twins at Tigers, 7 p.m. (MLB Network)

AROUND THE WEB:

Jets quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (6) and Geno Smith (7) had some problems at Wednesday's OTA practice. (AP)

♦ Mark Sanchez‘ 2013 vindication tour got off to a rocky start Wednesday, as the Jets quarterback threw three interceptions in the team’s OTA practice, something coach Rex Ryan called “disappointing” and “unacceptable.”

“This is OTAs and things, but yeah, that’s going to be the pressure that we’re putting on him,” Ryan said, via the New York Daily News. “He did a lot of great things. It’s not that you try to cover up the fact you had some bad plays — no, no, no you flat tell him. We can’t have these and all that type of stuff. He knows.”

Added Ryan: “He did a lot of great things, and then those negative things, at the end of the day, that’s what gets you beat. And so we’ve got to to do a better job of eliminating those turnovers.”

Said Sanchez: “I’m shaking the rust off a little bit.”

Meanwhile, rookie QB Geno Smith, who fired his agents after his draft slide, announced that he will be represented by Jay-Z‘s Roc Nation Sports.

“When you talk about being in New York from a standpoint of what they can do in the city, the connections that they have, I think it’s a good move. My mother and my family were comfortable with it. I’m comfortable with it,” Smith said. “I’m just going to move on from there. It’s not going to be a big deal and just remain humble and keep focusing on football.”

♦ Knicks star Carmelo Anthony has a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder and might need surgery, according to multiple reports. Anthony will be reevaluated after resting the shoulder for the next 3-4 weeks.

Anthony hurt the shoulder last month in a game against the Pacers and then re-aggravated it when Celtics forward Kevin Garnett tugged on his arm during Game 5 of their playoff series. Anthony shot 40 percent in 12 postseason games, including a 39-point effort on 15-of-29 shooting in New York’s elimination Game 6 vs. Indiana.

“It was bothering me since it happened,” Anthony said Monday, before an MRI revealed the extent of the damage. “To be able to play with that and get through the pain, it just came to a point where you just try not to think about it. That’s where I was at mentally.”

If Anthony needs surgery, he is expected to need 3-5 months of recovery time, meaning he might not be ready in time for training camp.

♦ The Nationals squandered a 2-1 lead in the ninth inning Tuesday and lost to the Giants. Closer Rafael Soriano, in his first season in Washington after opting out of his contract with the Yankees in the offseason, placed part of the blame on young star Bryce Harper, who saw the game-trying triple go just over his head in right field with two outs.

“With two outs and the tying run at first, you have to play the outfield so the ball doesn’t go over your head,” Soriano said in a Spanish language interview, according to USA Today. “It may not have been a catchable ball, but if we’re positioned the right way, there might have been a different outcome. With two outs, I could tell my 4-year-old son, ‘You know where you need to play,’ and he would go to the right spot to make the play. It’s not an excuse, and I’m not speaking badly about anybody, but I think that’s how you play the game.”

Harper, who needed 11 stitches after running into the wall at Dodger Stadium last week, said he hesitated because he thought he was running out of room.

“Absolutely, of course it crosses your mind after you jam into a wall, and it doesn’t really feel very good,” Harper said. “It sucks not making the play. I totally put that loss on me.”

On Wednesday, Soriano downplayed the incident, insisting he was joking to the USA Today reporter. He also said he cleared the air with Harper and insisted, “It’s all good.”

ON THIS DAY TRIVIA (answer below): On May 23, 1976, the Celtics beat the Suns, 98-87, in Game 1 of the NBA finals. Which Celtic led the way with 25 points and 21 rebounds?

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I feel sick about it and I feel truly, truly sorry.” — Golfer Sergio Garcia, speaking publicly Wednesday about his racially insensitive comment about Tiger Woods

STAT OF THE DAY: 1 – Career steals of third base for David Ortiz, who swiped the bag during the Red Sox’ 6-2 victory over the White Sox on Wednesday night in Chicago

‘NET RESULTS (mobile users, check the website to see the videos): Pacers forward Paul George hits a long 3-pointer with less than a second remaining to force overtime against the Heat.

But LeBron James hits a driving layup at the OT buzzer to give Miami the win.

The Ball State baseball team does a takeoff of the AT&T kids roundtable commercials to promote Scott Baker for All-America.

TRIVIA ANSWER: Dave Cowens

SOOTHING SOUNDS: The late General Norman Johnson, lead singer of Chairman of the Board, was born on this day in 1941.