Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica
Sports Quote of the Day:
"The more you sweat in practice, the less you bleed in battle." ~ Author Unknown
JAY COHEN (AP Sports Writer)
Drew Brees passed to Jimmy Graham along the sideline. He found the tight end over the middle. They hooked up for long plays and short ones, all over the field.
Brees threw two touchdown passes, Graham tied an NFL record with another 100-yard game and the Saints beat the Bears 26-18 on Sunday to remain unbeaten.
''We knew the formula coming into this game was to remain patient, to run the football effectively, to be very efficient in the passing game and to take care of the football, priority No. 1,'' Brees said, ''and we were able to do all those things.''
Brees was 29-of-35 passing for 288 yards in his first victory in four career games at Soldier Field. Garrett Hartley matched a career high with four field goals as New Orleans (5-0) picked up its first win in Chicago since a 31-10 victory on Oct. 8, 2000.
Graham continued his torrid start for the Saints, catching 10 balls for 135 yards in his fourth consecutive 100-yard game - matching an NFL record for a tight end. Tony Gonzalez was the first to accomplish the streak in 2000, and Graham matched the surge in 2011.
Graham and Brees said they spent more time together during the offseason, and it looks as if all that work is paying off.
''I'm just blessed to be with such a great quarterback and a guy who has so much trust in me,'' Graham said.
Graham helped the Saints hold onto the ball for 36 minutes, and Brees' team had no turnovers. The ball control was crucial with Alshon Jeffery putting together a career day for the Bears (3-2).
Jeffery had 10 receptions for a franchise-record 218 yards, breaking Harlon Hill's mark of 214 at San Francisco on Oct. 31, 1954. He also had a 3-yard touchdown grab in the second quarter.
''What I did out there, I'm more concerned about the 'W,' not about what I did,'' he said. ''It's a team thing. It took 11 guys to get 200-plus yards or whatever I had.''
Jeffery's 58-yard catch set up Jay Cutler's 2-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall, and Matt Forte ran in the 2-point conversion to trim New Orleans' lead to 26-18 with 2:11 remaining.
The Bears got the ball back with 21 seconds left and no timeouts. Cutler then passed to Jeffery in the middle of the field for 21 yards, but time expired before they could run another play.
''It's just a few plays here and there,'' said Cutler, who was 24 of 33 for 358 yards and two touchdowns in Chicago's second straight loss. ''Against a team like that, the way they played offensively and ate up the clock it's hard to rebound if you miss three or four plays in the game.''
It took a while for Brees to get started, but New Orleans' defense made sure he had plenty of time to get warmed up.
The Saints sacked Cutler twice while limiting the Bears to one first down in the first quarter. Chicago had just 51 yards when it got the ball back with 5:57 left in the first half.
After two field goals by Hartley - including a 19-yard chip shot after Cutler fumbled on a sack by Malcolm Jenkins deep in Chicago territory - Brees started to find his rhythm. He connected with Graham on pass plays of 29 and 38 yards to get New Orleans to the 7 with 7:23 left in the half.
This time, the Saints got into the end zone.
Brees rolled out on second down and flipped the ball to Pierre Thomas, who fought through D.J. Williams' tackle attempt and extended his right arm over the goal line for the 2-yard touchdown that made it 13-0 with 6:02 remaining.
''When my name is called to do the job, I go out there and do my best,'' said Thomas, a Chicago native. ''That's all I can really ask for. When my name is called, just go out there and perform.''
The Bears responded with a seven-play, 80-yard drive that ended with Jeffery's TD.
But they gave the ball back to Brees with 2:41 left in the half, plenty of time for the star QB to direct another scoring drive.
Thomas had a big 2-yard run on fourth-and-1 from the Chicago 27, and then went 25 yards for the score on a screen play with 32 seconds remaining.
Thomas' second TD reception made it 20-7 and was the result of a perfect call by Payton, who still has a deft touch when it comes to play-calling after missing last season as a result of the bounty scandal.
''It was a screen play away from the pressure,'' Brees said. ''So you had everybody going one direction and here we are throwing a screen and getting linemen out. The key is your ability to get linemen out and down the field.
''That was a big play. Big momentum gainer going into halftime.''
NOTES: The Saints also won a road game against the Bears in 2002, but that victory came in Champaign because Soldier Field was being renovated. ... Bears DT Nate Collins hurt his left knee in the third quarter and did not return. ... Bears DT Stephen Paea was inactive due to a toe injury. Landon Cohen got the start just 10 days after he was signed off waivers.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Lightning 3, Blackhawks 2 (SO). (But we got one point!!!)
Jerry Bonkowski, The Sports Xchange
Valtteri Filppula's goal in the shootout led the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks Saturday night at the United Center.
Filppula's was the only goal by either team in the shootout. Teammate Victor Hedman missed on his attempt, while all three Chicago shooters, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa, were stopped by Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop.
Martin St. Louis and Teddy Purcell scored in regulation for the Lightning (1-1). Kane and Brandon Saad scored for Chicago (1-1).
Depending upon your point of view, the game started off as either a defensive masterpiece or a terrible display of offense on both sides. The game's first shot on goal by either team didn't come until almost seven minutes into the first period (by Chicago's Brent Seabrook at 6:53).
Even worse for Tampa Bay, the Lightning didn't record their first shot on Chicago goalie Corey Crawford until 1:22 of the second period by Nate Thompson. Chicago had 12 unmatched shots on Bishop in the first period.
It was the first time in nearly 67 years -- since Dec. 4, 1946 (Detroit Red Wings) -- that a team has not had a shot on goal in the first period against the Blackhawks.
After a scoreless first period, Kane tallied just 59 seconds into the second period, pushing a wrist shot past Bishop.
At 9:14 of the middle period and on the power play, Saad scored on a wide-open net to make it 2-0. Bishop terribly misplayed a carom off the boards, likely anticipating the puck would go behind the net -- which is where he went -- but the puck instead bounced through the crease, leaving a wide open net for Saad.
The Lightning snapped Crawford's bid for a shutout when St. Louis scored his first goal of the season at 10:08 of the third period. Purcell's 15-foot wrist shot less than two minutes later tied the score at 2-2.
NOTES: Attendance was 21,563. ... Chicago's six goals in Tuesday's season-opening 6-4 win over Washington were the most by a defending Cup champion in its opener since Detroit scored six to open the 2002-03 campaign. ... The six goals were the most for the Blackhawks in a season opener since defeating the Nashville Predators 8-6 on Oct. 5, 2006. ... Also, Tuesday was the 600th career NHL game for Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook, and Patrick Kane's goal in that game was the 150th of his NHL career. ... Because of the lockout-shortened season in 2012-2013, the Lightning have not played the Blackhawks since the 2011-12 season. Prior to that, the Lightning had won three straight games at the United Center, with the Hawks' last win on home ice against Tampa dating to Dec. 13, 2009. ... Tampa Bay came into the game having lost its last eight road games dating to last season and including Thursday's season-opening 3-1 loss in Boston. ... Chicago came into the game with a 15-9-5-3 series record against Tampa Bay. ... The Lightning were the third-highest scoring team (3.06 goals per game) in the NHL last season behind the Pittsburgh Penguins (3.38) and Blackhawks (3.10).
Hawks adjusting to early-season schedule.
By Tracey Myers
(AP Images)
Game, off day, practice, practice. Game, off day, practice, practice. Game.
Players love to play, so you can imagine how the Chicago Blackhawks are anxious to get more games and fewer practices.
“A lot of practicing, but the schedule is what it is,” Marian Hossa said. “You have to be focused. When you get to another game, you want to be mentally ready for it.”
The Blackhawks have been pretty sharp in most facets in their first two games. But for hockey players, creatures of habit and routine, you just can’t play enough. So the Blackhawks, like some other NHL teams with sporadic game calendars, will muddle through this rather spacious early schedule.
“It’s a little weird, actually, considering how last year was for us,” Andrew Shaw said, referring to the game-laden lockout schedule. “But it means we bring more energy in every game and compete to the best of our ability.”
Yes, it’s a double-edged sword to have so few games to start. For players like Marian Hossa, Michal Rozsival and Michal Handzus, who dealt with big injuries — and in some cases, procedures — to end their Stanley Cup run, these extra days are a chance to stay fresh, get rest and heal. But, as coach Joel Quenneville has said many times, players love to play, and everyone sounds ready to get back to that game-every-other-day routine.
“The league right now has gotten off to a slow first week and a half, then it picks up to a different pace. That’s the way it is,” Quenneville said. “We want to make sure we’re ready going into games and fresh. Then again, later in the season you’ll say, ‘Jeez, we could’ve used some of those days inserted in between these games.’ But our guys are fine.”
The Blackhawks will be busy soon enough, as they have 18 back-to-backs this season — New Jersey has the most with 22. They’re ready to get back into that game-laden routine, and won’t have to wait much longer. Until then, they’ll take advantage of the early rest and keep their minds on the next game day — when it does arrive.
“It’s something you have to be prepared for. Some are playing every other night or back-to-back, but we have plenty of those coming,” Brandon Saad. “We’re enjoying our days off right now but we have to stay focused.”
Just another Chicago Bulls Session... Derrick Rose’s comeback begins with an exhibition victory over the Indiana Pacers.
By Kelly Dwyer
It was a brief return to action, a cameo in a contest that meant absolutely next to nothing, but Derrick Rose acquitted himself quite well on Saturday evening in his first NBA game in more than 17 months. The Chicago Bulls guard played more than 20 minutes in his team’s 82-76 win over the Indiana Pacers, showing equal parts rust and well-honed muscle memory as he contributed 13 points, two assists and three steals in Chicago’s conquest. And although Rose sat the final 19 minutes of Chicago’s comeback win, the first step in his on-record recovery was a successful one.
You’ll recall that Rose chose to sit out the entire 2012-13 season following the ACL tear he suffered in the first game of the 2012 postseason, often refusing to comment publicly on his recovery and timeframe for return while the Bulls sweated out a tough, injury-plagued season. Though he had his teammates’ support, Rose still struck some the wrong way as he worked his way back into shape – far exceeding the rehabilitation time that contemporaries like Ricky Rubio and Iman Shumpert dealt with as they returned from the same injury.
Though Rose didn’t look like his MVP-best on Saturday, he wasn’t far off. The spring was there – Derrick nailed five of his six shots from the paint in his first and third quarter bouts with the NBA’s top defense in 2012-13, including one two-handed dunk on a breakaway that left the crowd (which nearly numbered a half-and-half Chicago/Indiana split) giddy in a preseason game. It was no small feat.
This isn’t to say Rose’s return wasn’t without hiccups. Though the 2011 NBA MVP has been practicing with his Bulls since the midpoint of the 2012-13 season, he was also hesitant in initiating the Chicago offense at times. Derrick set up a few lengths behind the 3-point line as he called up plays, forced a few plays on his way to four turnovers in 20 minutes and didn’t seem entirely comfortable dealing with the Pacers length in the half-court.Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, long Rose’s chief backer, even admitted as such following the contest -- while still pointing out that Rose’s “rust,” as he called it, was “to be expected.”
With that in place, Thibodeau (who didn't play Rose in the fourth quarter, though the Bulls entered that frame down six) also left some of the blame with Rose’s teammates. Only five of the Bulls who shared the court with Derrick on Saturday have shared court time with the former All-Star before, and Thibodeau was quick to warn Rose’s teammates they’d “have to get used to his speed.”
In a way, Rose still has to get used to his own speed.
Reps are key, in a return like this, and based on Chicago’s championship window Rose has 8 1/2 months between now and the typical end of the NBA Finals to find those sea legs. It isn’t as if Rose’s left leg is lacking; his hops and speed were clearly there, springs that Thibodeau made sure reporters knew were in place during practice some months before. The difference between practice bounding and in-game execution is entirely different, though, even if the exhibition season doesn’t exactly bring out the klieg lights.
In between now and then, the Bulls have an unending series of issues to work through. The team has to make up for the desultory mess that was the inspired but ultimately frustrating and fruitless Rose-less 2012-13 term. The franchise has to make peace between a warring coaching staff and front office in the wake of Ron Adams’ departure, has to figure out what to do with potential 2014 free agent Luol Deng and it has to mind the minutes and aching doggies of players like Deng, Rose, Kirk Hinrich, and Joakim Noah.
Toughest of all? It has to figure out how to make Derrick Rose a part of the game plan again, mindful of his long absence and ball-dominating ways.Best of all? The team has to figure out how to make Derrick Rose a part of the team’s game plan again, mindful of the fact Rose has the ability to lead this heady, hard-working team on a championship run.
The first, uneasy steps took place on Saturday night. In an exhibition game in a road arena, far away from the glare of a sporting world focused on playoff baseball and college football, Derrick Rose chiseled away at a comeback turn. Considering his aversion to the limelight, and incessant focus on what really matters, you get the feeling Derrick wouldn’t have this setting pitched any other way.
Americans make it 5 in a row at Presidents Cup.
DOUG FERGUSON (AP Golf Writer)
Fred Couples, the coolest guy in golf, never really looked that way until he stood on the edge of the 18th fairway Sunday and saw everything going his way.
The Americans needed only one more point to win the Presidents Cup.
And there was Tiger Woods, who has a history of delivering the winning point, in the middle of the fairway at Muirfield Village, where he has won a record five times.
The Presidents Cup ended just the way it always does.
Woods found the green and two-putted for par and a 1-up victory over Richard Sterne, the third straight time he has won the clinching point in the Presidents Cup.
The Americans won for the fifth straight time - and eighth time in 10 tries - against an International side that showed some fight when it was too late to matter.
The Americans, who finished strong Sunday morning in the rain-delayed foursomes for a 14-8 lead, only needed to win four singles matches.
It took longer than anyone expected.
And there was Tiger Woods, who has a history of delivering the winning point, in the middle of the fairway at Muirfield Village, where he has won a record five times.
The Presidents Cup ended just the way it always does.
Woods found the green and two-putted for par and a 1-up victory over Richard Sterne, the third straight time he has won the clinching point in the Presidents Cup.
The Americans won for the fifth straight time - and eighth time in 10 tries - against an International side that showed some fight when it was too late to matter.
The Americans, who finished strong Sunday morning in the rain-delayed foursomes for a 14-8 lead, only needed to win four singles matches.
It took longer than anyone expected.
''You're nervous. Not for the players - the players know what they're doing. But we knew we needed 18 points, and we got them. It was a very, very good match today.
And the matches were all close. At no given time was I a nervous wreck. But it was nice when Tiger two-putted that last green to get the 18th point.''
The final score - United States 18 1/2, International 15 1/2 - and whether the matches would beat the rain was really the only suspense on Sunday.
''People say it was close. Jack (Nicklaus) said it was close,'' International captain Nick Price said. ''You tell me. We were behind the 8-ball all day. If we pulled it off, it would have been miraculous.''
Not that his team of seven rookies didn't give it a shot.
Zach Johnson closed out Branden Grace, 4 and 2, to give the Americans 17 points and assure them a tie. But it took more than an hour to get that last point.
Graham DeLaet holed out for birdie for the second time Sunday on the 18th hole, this time from a bunker to beat 20-year-old Jordan Spieth. Ernie Els found his putting touch and beat Steve Stricker. Marc Leishman rolled in a 15-foot par putt from the back fringe of the 18th green to beat Matt Kuchar. Adam Scott and Charl Schwartzel won their matches.
The International team's fleeting hopes ended when Woods, despite suffering back spasms again in the final hour of his match, didn't make a birdie on the back nine and still won. Sterne helped him by hitting his tee shot off the corporate tents behind the 16th green and making bogey.
''It was a team effort this whole week,'' said Woods, who went 4-1 for the best record of any player. ''We really played well to give ourselves a nice lead.''
Rain interrupted the matches all week and made Muirfield Village so soft that it was mere target practice for the best players from every continent but Europe. It was a long, tiring week of leaving the course at darkness and completing matches the next morning when it was just as dark.
The Americans might have won this Presidents Cup on Sunday morning.
Returning to finish off the foursomes session, the Americans picked up a win and a halve in matches they had trailed by three holes.
Phil Mickelson hit one of many exquisite shots this week - a 7-iron he had to hook with the ball slightly below his feet, around a tree to about 10 feet. Keegan Bradley had to make the birdie putt for a half-point after DeLaet chipped in for birdie. Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel played the last six holes in 5-over par - three bogeys and a ball out-of-bounds for double bogey in losing to Webb Simpson and Brandt Snedeker.
''It was a tall order, but they gave it their best shot. These guys played their tails off,'' Price said. ''We're a real hodge-podge of a team that came together from four corners of the planet. And they gave the might of America a run for their money.''
The closing ceremony was moved indoors because of approaching rain, and it led to an awkward moment as the International team watched the Americans pass around the gold trophy and pose for the pictures before quietly filing out of the room.
Since that famous tie in South Africa in 2003, the Americans have won by at least three points every time. Only one of them, in 2005, was close. International players talked about the importance of making a contest out of this exhibition, and only a 7 1/2-4 1/2win in singles made it feel that way at the end.
''We kept it very interesting today,'' Scott said. ''We gave it a good shake.''
Mickelson and Angel Cabrera were the last match on the course, and it was comical at times. Mickelson hit one shot that ricocheted off a tree to the left, skipped out of the water and into the rough, and he pitched that to 5 feet - and then missed the putt to lose the hole. On the final hole, Cabrera had 3 feet for par to win the match. Instead of conceding, Mickelson first knocked in his 5-foot bogey putt, and then conceded.
All in good fun, which is how the day felt.
''There was no intensity. We played and enjoyed the day and the people here in Columbus,'' Mickelson said after four bogeys in the last five holes. ''I thought it was going to be closed out early. On 12 or 13, they said, 'Your match is going to count.'
What? We ended up winning. That's all that matters.''
Even with the captains able to control the pairings, the singles lineup was dull.
Woods has played Els in South Africa, Greg Norman in Australia, Mike Weir in Canada and Y.E. Yang the same year the South Korean beat him in the PGA Championship. This time, he was up against Sterne.
''I did my pairings to try to win the cup,'' Price said.
It might not have mattered against a U.S. team so strong that every player was among the top 30 in the world.
''They played golf that was incredible to watch,'' Price said. ''But for this team, I would be honored if they ever asked me to be captain of this team again. I don't care where it is.''
The next Presidents Cup is in South Korea in 2015 on another Jack Nicklaus design.
Harvick wins wreck-filled race at Kansas Speedway.
DAVE SKRETTA (AP Sports Writer)
Kevin Harvick didn't simply have his hands full with the rest of the Sprint Cup field Sunday. He also was trying to tame a squirrely surface at Kansas Speedway.
He handled both better than anybody else.
Harvick pulled away from Kurt Busch and Jeff Gordon on a late restart to win a wreck-filled race over the recently repaved track, keeping his No. 29 Chevrolet out of trouble all afternoon and making a big move in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
''It was an interesting weekend, to say the least,'' said Harvick, who moved into third in points behind leaders Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson. ''Everybody was battling the tires and the track, and I think it was like driving on a razor blade.''
Harvick sat on the pole for the first time in 254 races, and that should have given him some confidence. He also won the last time he qualified first, at New Hampshire in 2006.
''These guys just did a great job all weekend,'' Harvick said. ''To have a car fast enough for me to qualify on the pole says a lot about how fast this thing is.''Harvick was chased across the line by Busch and Gordon. Joey Logano finished fourth, Carl Edwards was fifth, and Johnson finished sixth despite a hiccup with his engine on the final lap that cost him a spot on the track.
Kenseth held onto his lead in the Chase with an 11th-place finish. Johnson narrowed the gap to three points, while Harvick closed to within 25 points heading to Charlotte.
''We just got to keep doing what we did today to be a contender,'' said his car owner, Richard Childress. ''I don't think top 10s will win a championship when you're racing Jimmie Johnson and the group of guys that are up there.''
Kyle Busch was the big loser after crashing out of his third straight Sprint Cup race at Kansas. He dropped from third in points to fifth, 35 out of first place.
''All-in-all just a crazy day,'' said Johnson, who shaved five points off of Kenseth's lead. ''Wacky restarts, a lot of chaos there, and caution after caution for who knows what.''There were 15 cautions in the race, breaking the record of 14 set in last year's race.
The first came when the race wasn't even a lap old and Danica Patrick slammed into the wall, and most of them occurred when cars got loose coming out of Turn 2.
Kenseth both called the race ''treacherous,'' pointing to the combination of a repave last year and Goodyear's new ''multi-zone'' tires that made it seem as if they were skating across a smooth, glasslike surface most of the afternoon. All of it was compounded by temperatures in the 50s at the start, more than 30 degrees cooler than practice earlier in the week.
''It's all about restarts and making sure you can gain spots, but it's treacherous,'' Kurt Busch said. ''You had to have a lot of give and take.''
One of the intriguing story lines coming into the race involved Chase contender Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski, who got together in the Nationwide race Saturday.
Keselowski said that Busch intentionally dumped him and seemed to indicate he would retaliate in the Sprint Cup race. Keselowski even asked NASCAR President Mike Helton in the prerace driver's meeting about the line between hard racing and intentional wrecks.
It turned out that Busch kept going for spins without Keselowski's help.
The first one came down the front stretch when he appeared to squeeze Juan Pablo Montoya, sending Busch sideways across the track. The second spin came after a restart a moment later, and this one sent his No. 18 Toyota head-first into the Turn 1 wall and ended his day.
''I have no idea what happened, but it's Kansas. It's what we do here, we just crash,'' Busch said. ''The racetrack is the worst racetrack I've ever driven on. The tires are the worst tires I've ever driven on, and track position is everything. You can't do anything.''
Harvick didn't seem to have a whole lot of trouble with track, or the tires.
He was fast from the moment he unloaded this weekend, and then turned heads with his fast qualifying run. Harvick got off pit sequence early in the race and was shuffled to the back of the pack, but he was fast every time he got into clean air.
That was the case at the end, when he pulled away for an easy victory.
''The car was just really tight and then we got better as the cloud cover came over and we found that middle line,'' Harvick said. ''Track position was so important. It was a good day, and just happy as heck for everybody on this team.''
Klinsmann unveils strong USA roster for final World Cup qualifiers
By Thomas Floyd
The U.S. national team may have already clinched qualification to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, but coach Jurgen Klinsmann isn't holding back now.
U.S. Soccer on Sunday named the nearly full-strength 20-man roster Klinsmann will use for the Americans' final two qualifiers against Jamaica on Friday in Kansas City, Kan., and Oct. 15 at Panama. Although injuries have sidelined Michael Bradley (ankle), Fabian Johnson (ankle) and captain Clint Dempsey (hamstring), the squad does feature stalwarts such as Tim Howard, Omar Gonzalez, Jermaine Jones, Jozy Altidore and Landon Donovan.
The USA (5-2-1) clinched passage to Brazil following its 2-0 win over Mexico last month and wants to fully utilize the international fixture dates while building toward the World Cup.
"We want to finish qualifying on a high note and prove a point in our region," Klinsmann said in a team release. "We don't view these games as the end of World Cup qualifying. For us, it's the start of preparations for the World Cup, and therefore we have to continue to raise the bar. We have had such amazing support from our fans throughout the last two years, and we owe it to them to put our best foot forward."
The roster includes just three players who weren't a part of the U.S. squad assembled for last month's qualifiers: defender Brad Evans (an injury withdrawal), midfielder Sacha Kljestan and forward Terrence Boyd. Defenders Michael Orozco, Clarence Goodson and Michael Parkhurst and midfielders Joe Corona, Jose Torres and Brad Davis were members of the September roster left out this time around.
FULL ROSTER
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (6): DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Edgar Castillo (Club Tijuana), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Alejandro Bedoya (Nantes), Mix Diskerud (Rosenborg), Jermaine Jones (Schalke), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FORWARDS (5): Jozy Altidore (Sunderland), Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Aron Johannsson (AZ Alkmaar), Eddie Johnson (Seattle Sounders FC)
The Marlon Byrd trade has worked out well for the Pirates.
By Bill Bayer
If you had Marlon Byrd as a trade acquisition making the biggest impact in the post-season, please step forward to claim your prize. Everything about the 35-year-old’s 2013 season has been unlikely, from the 21 home runs and .848 OPS he posted in five months with the Mets, to the three homers and .843 OPS he compiled in a month-plus with the Pirates, to the second-inning home run he hit to stake the Pirates to a 1-0 lead in the Wild Card game against the Reds, to tonight’s outstanding performance in Game 3 of the NLDS against the Cardinals.
The Pirates picked up Byrd (and John Buck) from the Mets on August 27 for Minor Leaguers Dilson Herrera and Vic Black. At the time, the Pirates were still in a knock-down, drag-out fight in the NL Central with the Cardinals and Reds, and Byrd was as good an upgrade as was available at the time. Like most moves GM Neal Huntington has made to put together the current iteration of the Pirates roster, this move has been a boon to the club.
Byrd went 2-for-3 with a two-run single in the first, a double in the sixth that helped move Andrew McCutchen to third base (he would subsequently score), and a walk in the eighth inning to set the stage for Pedro Alvarez, who would knock in the game-winning run with a single to right. Byrd was the catalyst for the Pirates, involved in every meaningful run they scored tonight, defeating the Cardinals by a 5-3 margin.
If the Pirates are able to advance to the NLCS, whether tomorrow at home or on Wednesday in St. Louis, they will have many players to thank, but Byrd will certainly be at the top of the list. Who knew a 35-year-old journeyman outfielder with a career .749 OPS would be such an important contributor in the post-season?
Associated Press NCAA Top 25 Football Teams, 10/06/2013.
Associated Press
| Rank | School (First-Place Votes) | Record | Points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama (55) | 5-0 | 1,495 | 1 |
| 2 | Oregon (5) | 5-0 | 1,424 | 2 |
| 3 | Clemson | 5-0 | 1,359 | 3 |
| 4 | Ohio State | 6-0 | 1,305 | 4 |
| 5 | Stanford | 5-0 | 1,278 | 5 |
| 6 | Florida State | 5-0 | 1,158 | 8 |
| 7 | Georgia | 4-1 | 1,138 | 6 |
| 8 | Louisville | 5-0 | 1,051 | 7 |
| 9 | Texas A&M | 4-1 | 1,003 | 9 |
| 10 | LSU | 5-1 | 993 | 10 |
| 11 | UCLA | 4-0 | 844 | 12 |
| 12 | Oklahoma | 5-0 | 819 | 11 |
| 13 | Miami (Fla.) | 5-0 | 780 | 14 |
| 14 | South Carolina | 4-1 | 764 | 13 |
| 15 | Baylor | 4-0 | 681 | 17 |
| 16 | Washington | 4-1 | 556 | 15 |
| 17 | Florida | 4-1 | 536 | 18 |
| 18 | Michigan | 5-0 | 514 | 19 |
| 19 | Northwestern | 4-1 | 418 | 16 |
| 20 | Texas Tech | 5-0 | 358 | 20 |
| 21 | Fresno State | 5-0 | 258 | 23 |
| 22 | Oklahoma State | 4-1 | 204 | 21 |
| 23 | Northern Illinois | 5-0 | 138 | NR |
| 24 | Virginia Tech | 5-1 | 115 | NR |
| 25 | Missouri | 5-0 | 105 | NR |
Dropped out: No. 22 Arizona State, No. 24 Mississippi, No. 25 Maryland.
Others receiving votes: Auburn 61, Notre Dame 50, Nebraska 35, Wisconsin 29, Michigan State 16, UCF 7, Mississippi 3, Arizona State 3, Rutgers 2.
Others receiving votes: Auburn 61, Notre Dame 50, Nebraska 35, Wisconsin 29, Michigan State 16, UCF 7, Mississippi 3, Arizona State 3, Rutgers 2.
Female Streaker Shocks Crowd During President’s Cup Golf Tournament (Photo).
By Todd Cunningham
Female Streaker Shocks Crowd During President’s Cup Golf Tournament (Photo)
With the NFL having kicked off and Major League Baseball in the midst of its playoffs, golf usually has a tough time commanding attention around this time of year.
The Pro Golfers Association wasn’t behind it, but Sunday’s developments at the Presidents Cup tourney in Columbus, Ohio — where a female streaker raced across the fairway — might change all that.
If viewers paid anywhere near the attention that tour veteran and U.S. team captain Fred Couples did when the woman flashed by, it could be a ratings bonanza.
For the record, the woman wasn’t totally naked. She ran onto the fairway clad in black flats, a red g-string underwear, an American flag and what appeared to be stickers on her chest and back that read “Support Our Troops”.
As for the match, the Americans bested the international squad when Tiger Woods delivered the winning point.
Sports site SBNation was first to post the photos.
The post Female Streaker Shocks Crowd During President’s Cup Golf Tournament (Photo) appeared first on TheWrap.
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