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Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life. ~ Robin Hayes, Politician and Businessman
"Sports Quote of the Day"
"Sports Quote of the Day"
“Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.” ~ Brian Tracy, Motivational Speaker and Self-Development Author
TRENDING: Good or better? Why offseason moves are making 2017 Bears better. (See the football section for Bears news and NFL updates).
TRENDING: Blackhawks sign defenseman Michal Kempny to extension. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates and NHL news).
TRENDING: Blackhawks sign defenseman Michal Kempny to extension. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates and NHL news).
TRENDING: Scouting Potential Bulls Free Agent Targets in the NBA Finals. (See the basketball section for Bulls news and NBA updates).
TRENDING: Joe Maddon has no choice but to ignore the noise and put his faith in young Cubs lineup: ‘If you want to freak out, freak out’. Two days out, White Sox already excited about facing former teammate Chris Sale. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
TRENDING: Joe Maddon has no choice but to ignore the noise and put his faith in young Cubs lineup: ‘If you want to freak out, freak out’. Two days out, White Sox already excited about facing former teammate Chris Sale. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
TRENDING: Kisner edges Spieth, O'Hair, Rahm at Colonial. (See the golf section for PGA news and tournament updates).
TRENDING: Austin Dillon returns No. 3 to victory lane for first time since Dale Earnhardt’s last win. (See the NASCAR section for NASCAR news and racing updates).
TRENDING: Takuma Sato wins Indianapolis 500. (See the Indianapolis 500 section for Indy 500 news and racing updates).
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Good or better? Why offseason moves are making 2017 Bears better.
By John Mullin
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Improvement typically comes in incremental steps, not leaps. And the Bears of 2017, based on what they have done at a handful of positions, the latest being Thursday’s signing of wide receiver Victor Cruz, fit that template.
The clear organizational commitment is to build through the draft, even if injuries have undermined some otherwise apparent upgrades to starting lineups on both sides of the football. But if there is a “theme” to what GM Ryan Pace is doing to muscle up a sluggish roster, it is that the Bears are willing to take flyers on veteran players – with additions like four veteran wide receivers with injury and issue histories – that arguably point to a win-now mindset while draft picks develop and contribute.
Jaye Howard and John Jenkins. Make the defensive line “better?” Than Jonathan Bullard and Will Sutton, probably. But “good?” Mmmmmm…..
The game-one tight ends last year were Zach Miller-Logan Paulsen-Gregg Scruggs. Now they’re Miller-Dion Sims-Adam Shaheen (based on a second-round draft choice). “Good?” Maybe, maybe not. “Better?” Obviously, based on Sims alone.
Mike Glennon-Mark Sanchez-Mitch Trubisky. Bears “better” at quarterback? Than Jay Cutler-Brian Hoyer-Matt Barkley, probably. “Good?” Mmmmmm…..
The decisions to sign Glennon and Sanchez to the quarterback depth chart have sparked their shares of understandable cynical skepticism. But Kirk Cousins and Jimmy Garoppolo were not available in trade, so the Pace decision was to gamble on upside with Glennon over the known quantity of Brian Hoyer (the preference of some coaches) and certainly Jay Cutler, for whom “potential” and “upside” no longer applied.
Add in the aggressive draft of Trubisky and the result was three possibilities of hits on a quarterback (Sanchez and Connor Shaw being combined here as a pair entry in the hit-possibility scenarios). All three were deemed an improvement over Cutler and/or Barkley.
The results may not vault the Bears all the way up to “good” at the pivotal position for any franchise. But “better” is sometimes all you can realistically manage.
Taking a wider-screen look at wide receiver in this context… .
Coach John Fox has cited the need for the Bears to establish the ability to get yardage in bigger chunks. Accordingly, all four of the veteran wideout signings this offseason – Cruz, Rueben Randle, Markus Wheaton, Kendall Wright – have posted yards-per-catch seasons of 14 or longer.
All four won’t be on the opening-day roster, but all four offer the promise of major impact. Cruz, Randle and Wright have had seasons of 70 or more receptions, and Wheaton topped out at 53 in 2015 with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Randy Moss, Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice weren’t available, so “good” was hard to achieve in an offseason in which Alshon Jeffery and Eddie Royal were expected departures long before their exits. But are Cruz, Randle, Wheaton and Wright, with Kevin White and Cameron Meredith, a “better” starting point than Jeffery, Royal, White, Bellamy, etc. of a year ago?
Obviously. But players with even moderately established NFL “names” (like Cruz, Randle, etal.) are typically available for a reason; teams do not routinely give up on talent. And none of the four come without significant shadows on their NFL resumes, whether for injury or other questions.
Cruz missed most of 2014 and all of the 2015 season, and hasn’t played a full season since his Pro Bowl year of 2012.
Randle was described as a head case by scouts and was so bad that he was let go in the Eagles’ cutdown to 75 last year, followed by disparaging comments from those in and around the organization.
Wheaton flashed promise in his 2014-15 opportunities as a part-time starter but played just three games before a shoulder injury landed him on IR last season.
The Tennessee Titans thought enough of Wright, their 2012 first-round draft choice, to pick up his fifth-year option going into last season. But by week 14 he was benched for tardiness and was a healthy DNP in game 16, announcing after the game that he already knew he was not in the Titans’ plans for 2017.
The prospect of the Bears going from 3-13 to “good” borders on fantasy. But if being among the NFL’s busiest this offseason hasn’t propelled the Bears to that level, the results point to “better.” At this point, that’s something,.
Upsets, Underdogs and Dark Horses: Can Hroniss Grasu Make an Impact in 2017?
By Andrew Link
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Hroniss Grasu (Photo/Brad Rempel/USA TODAY Sports)
Good morning Windy City Gridiron faithful! First off, allow me to introduce myself in the debut article for the most venerable Bears blog in all the land. Many of you know me by the handle of Ditka’s Pushbroom. Sadly, that moniker has been sent to the archives in favor of being able to bring you, the wonderful readers of WCG, my thoughts on a different platform.
The first series that I wanted to share with you all will be dubbed: Upsets, Underdogs and Dark Horses. As the title would suggest, there are a few players flying a bit under the radar that I feel have an opportunity to make not only the roster, but actually make an impact on the 2017 season.
As luck would have it, the Bears have thrown me a curve ball. I had Tanner Gentry as one of the players I wanted to discuss but alas, Victor Cruz has salsa danced all over this article.
If you still want to read up on Tanner Gentry, EJ Snyder has given us a nice breakdown here. With the signing of Cruz, I now see Gentry sliding onto the Practice Squad, a better possibility with the move to a single pre-season cut day.
As I was walking to the office Friday morning, it dawned on me what direction I should go with this article. The 3rd year pro out of Oregon: Hroniss Grasu. Before condemning me as a crackpot, hear me out. There is a very likely scenario that could play out in which this becomes a distinct possibility. Stay with me here.
Kyle Long is recovering from a rather grizzly ankle injury. Given that his injury was not only horrific but there were complications which arose from the anesthesia administered during surgery. The effects of this were two-fold. First, Long lost a ton of weight. Second, Long opted not to have surgery performed on his torn Shoulder Labrum.
The All-Pro Right Guard was one of several players who did not participate at Organized Team Activities (OTA’s) this past week. While Long has been putting weight back on, there is a distinct possibility that he starts the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.
Enter Cody Whitehair. If we take a quick trip down memory lane, we will recall that Whitehair was originally planning to be the Left Guard for the 2016 season. That was until Josh Sitton inexplicably fell into the Bears’ lap. Sitton has played the majority of his snaps at Right Guard in his NFL career and the plan for 2017 was to switch Sitton to Right Guard and Long to Left Guard. Still with me? Good!
Whitehair has experience on the left side of the line given that he played Left Tackle in college and spent the 2016 off-season playing Left Guard for the Bears. Whitehair makes the most sense as the player to replace Long in the lineup, should Long start the season on the PUP list.
This is where Hroniss Grasu comes into play. By all accounts, Grasu was having an excellent off-season before tearing his ACL at the 2016 Bears Family Fest, thus ending his season. If Grasu is fully healthy, and I have heard nothing to the contrary, he makes sense to slide into the starting lineup at Center.
Should Grasu put together another promising off-season, I am putting my money on the guy who is hungry and has a chip on his shoulder. With an up-and-down Rookie season in 2015, a wasted 2016 season thanks to a torn ACL, I think Grasu comes out swinging and impresses the Bears coaching staff.
What do you think, can Hroniss Grasu make the team and crack the lineup if Kyle Long is on the shelf?
Fox: Glennon's work ethic is contagious.
By Larry Mayer
(Photo/chicagobears.com)
"He kind of raises all boats," Fox said. "He has a high expectation and expects that of his teammates. He works very, very hard and he expects the same from his teammates and I think that's contagious."
After signing with the Bears March 10, Glennon helped set up workouts with his teammates at a local high school and outings to a Bulls game and a concert. He also barbecues after some practices with members of the offensive line.
"I feel like I've taken control of the offense and got everyone on board," Glennon said. "We've done a lot of extra things with guys off the field, whether it's just activities outside of football or extra time, spending time in the meeting rooms with guys to get on the same page."
One of Glennon's most important tasks during OTAs is to build cohesiveness with his receivers, a group that was bolstered by the offseason additions of free agents
"I think it's ongoing for sure," Glennon said. "I think around the league you can be with a guy for many years and you're still continuing to develop that chemistry. I feel like we've done a great job so far, but it will only continue to grow as we go through these OTA practices, into camp and into the season."
Cam continuing to emerge
Meredith has picked up in OTAs where he left off last season. After catching 11 passes for 120 yards in 11 games as an undrafted rookie from Illinois State in 2015, Meredith led the Bears with 66 receptions for 888 yards and four touchdowns in 2016.
"He's really impressed me," Glennon said. "I think he's going to have a big year. He's looked really sharp to me. You can tell, translated from quarterback to receiver, it seems like his path is only heading upwards and we're really excited about having Cameron."
Meredith looks like a natural receiver, even though the 6-3, 207-pounder didn't play the position until his junior year at Illinois State after beginning his collegiate career as a quarterback.
"He's just smooth," Glennon said. "When he runs routes, he's really clean and crisp. Smooth is probably the best word to describe him."
Fox expects Meredith to build on his breakout season.
"Typically with young players I think you just see a continual growth," said the Bears coach. "The game slows down for them from practice to practice, day to day, season to season. They understand the NFL life a little bit better, how the season works.
"I think he made that transition from his rookie year. That's pretty tough, just getting used to the length of an NFL season. Last year with more increased time and in particular in our offense, I think he'll just continue to grow. I just see him growing up as a professional athlete."
Bringing the energy
Glennon has enjoyed working with fiery offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains.
"He does a great job," said the Bears quarterback. "He brings a lot of energy and he's got that young personality that a lot of guys respond well to. It's been great having him around along with a lot of other players and coaches. But he definitely does a great job bringing that energy."
Loggains, 36, is entering his second season as Bears offensive coordinator after serving as the team's quarterbacks coach in 2015. He previously coached with the Titans (2008-13) and Browns (2014), including a stint as Tennessee's offensive coordinator in 2012-13.
On the Mark
While much has been written and said about the arrival of
"It's been great with Mark," Glennon said. "He brings a lot to the quarterback room and he brings experience. He brings humor. He brings a lot of things. I think all of us quarterbacks really enjoy having Mark around."
Sanchez has appeared in 77 NFL games with 72 starts over eight seasons with the Jets (2009-13), Eagles (2014-15) and Cowboys (2016). He has completed 56.7 percent of his passes for 15,219 yards with 86 touchdowns, 86 interceptions and a 73.9 passer rating.
"He's a tremendous guy," Fox said. "He's got great charisma. He's operated in these circumstances before. Like all of us, you lean on those experiences and he's done a tremendous job."
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Blackhawks sign defenseman Michal Kempny to extension.
By CSN Staff
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Michal Kempny was in and out of the Blackhawks lineup last season but he’ll likely get a bigger opportunity this coming season. On Saturday, he was assured of coming back to get that chance.
Kempny and the Blackhawks agreed to a one-year extension, the team announced on Saturday morning.
“Michal’s style of play is an asset to our defense,” general manager Stan Bowman said in a statement. “He is the type of player who will continue to improve now that he has transitioned to the National Hockey League. We look forward to his continued development on the ice for the Blackhawks.”
Kempny was part of a very crowded blue line last season — he was one of eight defensemen at the start of it — and played 50 regular-season games. He recorded two goals and six assists in those contests but did not play in the Blackhawks’ four postseason contests. With Johnny Oduya and Brian Campbell likely not returning, however, Kempny should get a bigger opportunity this season.
The 26-year-old Kempny also had two goals and an assist in eight games for the Czech Republic team at the 2017 World Championship.
Kempny and the Blackhawks agreed to a one-year extension, the team announced on Saturday morning.
“Michal’s style of play is an asset to our defense,” general manager Stan Bowman said in a statement. “He is the type of player who will continue to improve now that he has transitioned to the National Hockey League. We look forward to his continued development on the ice for the Blackhawks.”
Kempny was part of a very crowded blue line last season — he was one of eight defensemen at the start of it — and played 50 regular-season games. He recorded two goals and six assists in those contests but did not play in the Blackhawks’ four postseason contests. With Johnny Oduya and Brian Campbell likely not returning, however, Kempny should get a bigger opportunity this season.
The 26-year-old Kempny also had two goals and an assist in eight games for the Czech Republic team at the 2017 World Championship.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... Scouting Potential Bulls Free Agent Targets in the NBA Finals.
By paulsteeno
Note: This was a Bull's SBNation fanpost that got our attention and we thought we would share with you. We feel it's hopeful and wishful thinking and can't foresee any of it happening, again, we wanted to share it with you.
For the 19th-straight season, the Chicago Bulls will not be part of the NBA Finals.
To celebrate, General Manager Gar Forman and Vice President of Basketball Operations John Paxson should persuade Jerry Reinsdorf to use the extra playoff revenue the Bulls earned this season to score Gar/Pax tickets to the NBA Finals. Except, instead of using the tickets as a vacation, they should use it as an opportunity to help make their team better.
Ask Sam Mailbag
To celebrate, General Manager Gar Forman and Vice President of Basketball Operations John Paxson should persuade Jerry Reinsdorf to use the extra playoff revenue the Bulls earned this season to score Gar/Pax tickets to the NBA Finals. Except, instead of using the tickets as a vacation, they should use it as an opportunity to help make their team better.
The Bulls can use the NBA Finals as a scouting opportunity because there are several players on the Golden State Warriors and on the Cleveland Cavaliers that the Bulls should at least do their due diligence on.
Before we begin with this exercise, here is the Bulls updated cap situation.
As most people on here know, the Bulls probably won't have much cap space this summer because Wade will likely re-sign and the team will likely re-sign Rondo. However, cap space could open up via different avenues depending on what the Bulls decide to do with their numerous restricted free agents. The Bulls best chance of landing a big free agent is next summer, when all the financial flexibility they've maintained over the years will theoretically give them an advantage in free agency during a year with a salary cap spike.
Nonetheless, here is who the Chicago Bull's front office should and shouldn't be scouting in the NBA Finals.
Golden State Warriors:
Curry has the opportunity to cash in big on the designated player exception provision of the new collective bargaining agreement. The Warriors can offer him significantly more than all other teams under the provision, and that, coupled with the elite makeup of the roster, gives him every incentive to stay in Golden State instead of testing the free agency waters. Durant will likely pick up his player option this summer because Golden State puts him in the best possible position to win.
In terms of Iguodala and Livingston, the timing of their respective free agencies makes it unlikely that the Bulls will have the cap space to sign either of them this summer. Both will probably command disproportionately large contracts in free agency compared to their actual skills, so maybe it's a blessing in disguise that Forman and Paxson won't have the opportunity to irresponsibly spend money on them this summer.
All three players are 33 years of age or older and likely about to sign the last contract of their respective NBA careers. Last year, Forman and Paxson hamstrung the team for two years by signing aging veterans Wade and Rondo. I'd hope they aren't stupid enough to make the same mistake twice by signing one of these Warrior's players.
Although, from a player profile perspective, McGee could possibly fit with the Bulls given his athleticism. However, the Bulls probably don't want to overpay for a player whose best days are probably behind him.
Clark kind of resurrected his train wreck of a career after signing with the Golden State Warriors in 2015. He learned how to play alongside multiple superstars during his time with the Warriors and settled into a niche role as a perimeter shooter. However, his good showing in the playoffs thus far could drive his value up to a price the Bulls can't afford. If the Bulls don't match the qualifying offers for either Mirotic or Felicio, maybe they have enough money left to spend on Clark.
McAdoo's career hasn't transpired the way he expected, and he has struggled to find the floor with the Warriors. However, although he doesn't space the floor, he does run well in transition and cuts well to the basket in half-court sets. Both of these skills could be useful for the Bulls. McAdoo is a restricted free agent, and it's hard to envision the Bulls dangling a high offer sheet in front of his face when they have so many restricted free agents of their own to worry about.
McCaw is "younger and more athletic" with amazing size for a guard. However, he is a restricted free agent as well, and the same reason why I don't think the Bulls will make an attempt to get McAdoo also applies in much the same way to McCaw.
Cleveland Cavaliers
He is 36 years old but he still shot 45.1 percent from three-point land last season, while averaging 26.2 minutes per game. His game has always been predicated on his shooting rather than athleticism, which bodes well for his chances to remain productive for a few more NBA seasons. However, he is an unrestricted free agent this summer, and because this will likely be his last professional contract, he might be looking for a payday the Bulls can't afford to give him.
Do the Bulls, or any other free-agent suitor, believe that the 40.4 percent 3-point field goal percentage that he recorded with Cleveland will continue to next season? Or will he revert back to his career norm of 30 percent from this range? The answer to that question could determine the Bulls level of interest in Williams this summer. However, Williams would be more likely than many of the other players mentioned earlier to fall within the Chicago Bulls price range.
Adding aging, past-their-prime guards to the collection of misfits that currently make up the Bulls guard unit isn't ideal. Plus, Forman and Paxson expressed a desire to give the young guys more playing time moving forward. Signing Williams, Jones or Jones would compromise that goal.
Maybe, the Bulls consider Channing Frye. He is a free agent in 2018 when the Bulls will theoretically be more flexible financially. He is a career 38.9 percent 3-point shooter and shot 40.9 percent with Cleveland last year in his age 33 season. Of course, the Bulls will be crowded in the frontcourt if both Mirotic and Felicio return, and adding Frye would potentially impede the development of some of the young big men.
Concluding note: paulsteeno closes out his blogpost by saying, "I'm not a salary cap expert, so feel free to correct me in the comments if I said something stupid or incorrect." You may comment on this post at www.blogabull.com under the fanpost prompt using the comment section.
Ask Sam Mailbag
By Sam Smith
Kirk Landers
Sam: Well put. Yes, this debate has become wearying and hanging onto this "my daddy is stronger than your daddy" thing sounds like an elementary school argument. Oh yeah, well, oh yeah. Perhaps no one ever impacted the game like Bill Russell because he was the difference in his team winning 11 championships and eight straight, sort of like Byron Nelson in golf winning 11 straight tournaments. It's so long ago it doesn't resonate anymore. And no one could dominate individual games like Wilt, 50 points per game average, averaging more than 48 minutes per game played, games scoring in the 70s in points almost routinely. I personally always felt Oscar Robertson was the most perfect player I ever saw in able to do everything at such a high level.
Given are memories aren't exactly perfect, it becomes that your favorite never had a bad game or missed a big shot or lost a crucial game because that meant you would have also, in a sense. There's a whole world of psychology out there about why we cling to sports so desperately, and given my professional career I'm glad for whatever the reasons. I remember when LeBron was a rookie I was on a panel and he was saying LeBron would be the best ever. I poohed, of course, but here we have been debating it, though we never debated such things until recently. I also remember the first time Jordan retired Kevin McHale coming into Chicago and saying in five years we'd barely remember him. The point was the present always pushes aside the past. Jordan has, remarkably, sustained, and I'd probably have him No. 1 on my own imaginary list since all of these are personal preferences. But I accept those who favor Russell, Chamberlain, Kareem.
LeBron as well can be considered in that group, and you are right. He's different from Jordan as Jordan was different from Chamberlain Kareem and Russell, but you don't want to turn away and his dominance in the last decade matches the others of all the great eras. I cannot imagine we'll ever see anyone like that again. We've said that before, but anyone who decides to favor LeBron on the top of their greatest list should have plenty of reasonable and excellent evidence. I agree; rather than rooting against LeBron to preserve Jordan's legacy--or the memory of it--we should continue to enjoy a truly amazing player. Who will get the test of his career starting next Thursday. Good stuff.
Rondo out for the Bulls in the first round, Lowry and Nene out for the Raptors and Rockets in the second round, Leonard and Thomas out for the Spurs and Celtics in the conference finals. Not sure if I left anyone off, but has there ever been an NBA playoffs where so many critical and/or best players were lost for their respective series? This all seems kind of nuts.
Terrell Bryant
Terrell Bryant
Sam: So much for the Lords of Rest, the Spurs, swept from the playoffs after a season of sitting their guys out to be ready for the playoffs. How’s that for payback from the TV sponsors. OK, maybe they weren’t rooting for it this time. Sure, the Kawhi Leonard injury certainly was a fluke and had nothing to do with minutes played, which perhaps is the point. Sort of. You shouldn’t play all the time, but resting four guys for the same game isn’t saving anyone. The owners, by the way, seemed to make it clear at their last meeting that’s over with.
Rondo was well rested, sitting out for a week or more at times. Nene hardly played. I’ve always question the alleged “science” behind this stuff, though I was a fairly poor science student and still don’t get how they saw atoms. Better at science, though, than Kyrie Irving, who’s shot has more arc than his imagination. I’m still in on that world is round theory. Seen it out the window of Apollo 13. Sure, overuse causes things to break down. That’s obvious. But you also have to ask whether these coaches and teams preaching all this rest are actually contributing to injuries. After all, one reason you can get hurt is by not being in playing rhythm and jumping into games. Maybe that’s where all these sprained ankles come from; the ones ZaZa doesn’t visit upon you, anyway.
Players always have been hurt, and I do remember a Lakers team in the late 1980s going 11-0 in the first three rounds (five-game first round) and then Magic and Byron Scott being hurt and being swept in the Finals. But I cannot recall the epidemic of injuries that we’ve seen in these playoffs. My general (read: unscientific) belief is players overtrain their bodies and don’t play enough basketball, working out all summer and avoiding playing for fear of being injured, and then it seems you are more primed for injury because you haven’t gotten your body more accustomed to playing. So how about that: Too much rest is causing players to break down! It’s my story now and I’m sticking to it. Have any other theories?
If the Bulls bring back everyone, the 16th pick of the draft will not help them win games, so they might as well take a gamble. That Diallo kid is worth the risk. The last athletic SG the Bulls selected that I can remember was Corey Benjamin. Am I forgetting someone? It would be nice to have Diallo learn from Wade and Rondo.
Victor Devaldivielso
Sam: The next Corey Benjamin? Well, there was Jameson Curry, who had some drug and urination issues, as I recall. Ron Artest, Roger Mason Jr. Ben Gordon worked out reasonably well. I’d heard this guy’s name connected with the Bulls in internet rumors (always the reliable source). This is the guy who went to Kentucky for one semester in sort of an loophole in the rules, but didn’t play. Like with the Thon Maker situation. And Maker was a high pick. Supposedly high ceiling, but not much yet.
Diallo said he didn’t play in college late last season because he didn’t want to upset team chemistry. Yes, a kid who basically last played in high school. I know he’s athletic and all with impressive stuff at the Combine in the tests. But the Bulls cannot, in my view, be seeking quite that much of a project. I agree at times with the idea of taking a risk, especially on a high ceiling athlete. That’s why I suggested Louisville’s Donovan Mitchell in my mock draft, though he could be taken before No. 16. Diallo shot about 17 percent on threes in high school or prep school or wherever he was. Sure, he could get better and probably will. But I don’t see this Bulls team ready to do that much teaching. Maybe he’s Westbrook in four years and you’d regret passing on him. But he sounded like a possible second round pick to me and a guy destined for the next two years in the D-league. So it probably was one reason why he decided to return to (go to for the first time) Kentucky for his freshman year. Good choice.
(Photo/chicagobulls.com)
- Do you see Jerian Grant with a long-term future with Chicago? I think he's a rather nice combo guard. He can play point or the shooting guard position. He seems more of a shooting guard based on his play. I expect him to back-up Wade if Valentine can't cut it. He and Payne should battle it out for Rondo's back-up spot.
- Do you think Canaan will be back next season? His option will only have $200K guaranteed for next season if he happens to get released this summer. He's only 26, he's not really a veteran presence. Sure, he's a nice bench player too have, but I think the Bulls should get rid of him.
- Do you see Wade retiring a Bull? Sure, he'll be back next season. I don't expect for him to be back in Chicago after his contract runs out, but do you see another team signing him then or could the Bulls bring him back for a bench role?
- What are your thoughts on MCW ? Could he be someone that can still be that 15/6/6 ball player on another team that has different needs at the point?
- Where does Rondo go after next season? I think Rondo signed with the intention of him, Butler, and Wade leading Chicago to a 4-5 seed and a deep run at the NBA playoffs. That didn't happen but I think Rondo will get his option picked up and he'll be back for one more season. At 32, then he'll look to get one final contract and win.
- What kind of ball player can Payne develop into - meaning can he be the point guard of the future for Chicago? He's shown he can shoot with his left hand but can he play defense and can he distribute the ball?
- Do you foresee a breakout season for Denzel Valentine next season? I'm talking 20+ mpg next season, 10 points off the bench and 45%-50% shooting from the field.
Tom Plonowski
- Do you think Canaan will be back next season? His option will only have $200K guaranteed for next season if he happens to get released this summer. He's only 26, he's not really a veteran presence. Sure, he's a nice bench player too have, but I think the Bulls should get rid of him.
- Do you see Wade retiring a Bull? Sure, he'll be back next season. I don't expect for him to be back in Chicago after his contract runs out, but do you see another team signing him then or could the Bulls bring him back for a bench role?
- What are your thoughts on MCW ? Could he be someone that can still be that 15/6/6 ball player on another team that has different needs at the point?
- Where does Rondo go after next season? I think Rondo signed with the intention of him, Butler, and Wade leading Chicago to a 4-5 seed and a deep run at the NBA playoffs. That didn't happen but I think Rondo will get his option picked up and he'll be back for one more season. At 32, then he'll look to get one final contract and win.
- What kind of ball player can Payne develop into - meaning can he be the point guard of the future for Chicago? He's shown he can shoot with his left hand but can he play defense and can he distribute the ball?
- Do you foresee a breakout season for Denzel Valentine next season? I'm talking 20+ mpg next season, 10 points off the bench and 45%-50% shooting from the field.
Tom Plonowski
Sam: In other words, oh guard! Point predicaments. Nice run down of the backcourt, and that’s the problem. There’s just too much uncertainty. We all feel Wade and Rondo are back for one more season, and if the Bulls cannot make a nice move this season then it’s probably some sort of tear down. They don’t know yet, but there’s not a lot they can do given the uncertainty of some of the free agents and Wade with his opt out at the end of June.
Rondo emerged as the team’s most vital non-Butler player, so he’ll likely have that point guard spot and we’ll see how much they can push the ball with him firmly in that role now. Carter-Williams has a relatively small player option, which he figures to exercise to become a free agent. He’s hard to figure as he looked so good as Rookie of the Year and had an impressive playoffs against the Bulls when he was in Milwaukee. The inconsistent rotation seemed to affect him.
Grant and Valentine are under contract and especially Valentine should have a chance to show if he can be that playmaker he came advertised to be. I’m not sure where Grant fits in, but he looks like he can be a scorer in the Dion Waiter mold. He needs a chance, but it was tough for him to get in a flow with the guys he was often on the court with and ended up standing around off the ball a lot. Payne should get another look as he didn’t have much and it seems like he can score. I do like Canaan for that deep reserve role. Seems like a positive guy to have around. Which, unfortunately, still means they’re not sure about backup point guard and starting shooting guard. There’s still the draft, free agency, trades. It’s a long way to 2017-18. I wouldn’t commit to much of a roster quite yet.
Many Bulls fans will disagree: But I see Gar and Paxson as having a better eye for talent than they are credited with. We'll see if Butler and perhaps Rondo are enough to get any top players to want to play in Chicago. I think the Bulls can be better than the Celtics next year - they already gave Boston serious trouble this year.
LongGiang Le
Sam: Wait, I’m checking to see if Hell froze over. Yes, I got a supportive management email. I know it’s fashionable to condemn any management when its team isn’t having a huge level of success. It’s OK because it comes with the job. How’s that quote go: With great amounts of money comes little responsibility in criticism. Or something like that. The Bulls were lucky with Derrick Rose and then very, very unlucky. So how do you build a team again? You add good veterans to support top talent.
Consider the Bulls finding veterans who were inexpensive like D.J. Augustin, Kyle Korver, Aaron Brooks, Ronnie Brewer, Nate Robinson, Nazr Mohammed, Richard Hamilton, C.J. Watson, Kurt Thomas, Rondo. They long have been regarded among the best reserve groups. They drafted starters like Jimmy Butler and Taj Gibson well down in the draft. Nobody hits them all or close out of the lottery. They had their share of misses as well. They won out in big free agent contests when Ben Wallace and Pau Gasol were prime targets. They weren’t lucky and lost the big ones.
LeBron preferred his buddy when his buddy was young. Carmelo preferred his money and the ball. So it doesn’t look as good. Maybe Jimmy can attract someone, but, really whom do you want to spend $30 million on this summer? Paul Millsap? Kyle Lowry? Even Gordon Hayward, who is being courted by teams with more money and wins. I really don’t see anyone worth spending big money on this summer. It’s still a crossroads for the Bulls and we’ll see how they do with that eye for talent. They know everyone is eying what they do.
Kieron Smith
Sam: Well, he obviously wasn’t going to do that even if he supposedly was closer with Harden than Westbrook. There always has to be a villain, I guess, but this enmity toward Durant—as it was toward LeBron—is misplaced. Unless it’s because of his fake tough guy attitude of the last few years. Suddenly instead of crying at his MVP press conference you feel like crying for liking him so much.
Yes, I know the arguments, that players in previous eras would fight them, not join them; that this is a cheap and illegitimate way of trying to get a championship by signing with a 73-win team. But I’m a little more sympathetic with this issue since I’ve written a book related to it that will be published by Chicago’s Triumph Books in the fall. It’s about the Oscar Robertson suit and the game in the late 1950s into the 1970’s, the greatest forgotten era. Basketball’s Greatest Generation. Tom Brokaw told me to go ahead; he was busy. It was that lawsuit that finally enabled the players to determine their fate, no longer tied to one team for their careers, like it or not. Players fought for years to earn the rights of other workers. Yes, I know the money argument, that they aren’t regular workers. But all that plays into the plans of the management. Can’t keep rooting for owners. Yes, the NBA and the players agreed to terms in the newest labor deal with the so called super max to try to persuade players to remain with their teams. But your playing life is relatively short, and if you want to play somewhere with someone you should be able to do so.
Players are essentially committed to their team by the draft, which is collectively bargained, for at least five years. So after that, players should be entitled to select where they want to play and with whom. They earned that right, and all Durant did was exercise a basic right. Good for him. Plus, living in the Bay Area and playing with and unselfish group with an ideal coach. No offense; OK, small offense. Vs Oklahoma City? It’s not all about the last dollar; or should not be. He chose a wonderful lifestyle in a beautiful place with appealing coworkers. Why not? He was young enough to try and talented enough still to be desired. We should be applauding the exercise of those long cherished rights.
Mike Metz
Sam: That’s another element that will be so great about these Finals. Two villains. And guarding one another. How sweet will that be? Whoever loses will make many happy. And who isn’t tired of Curry and the revolving mouthguard? And J.R. Smith hasn’t done a single crazy thing yet. We can’t wait.
Mike Burling
Sam: Another vote for Durant to give up a few bucks for lifestyle. If he’d just give the sneering act a rest. It’s really not about the money; OK, it is a lot about the money, which most people can’t understand. Because it doesn’t make actually make logical sense. You can only drive one car and maybe live in two or three houses. But not 12. I’m not wealthy—at least not player, coach, management or assistant coach wealthy—but I’ve changed jobs frequently for less money because it wasn’t as much fun in the previous job.
Enjoying your life where you want to live and with whom you always wanted to be with always seemed to make more sense. And after all, if you make $5 million annually (below the NBA average salary, by the way), how much more can you need or spend. Yes, short earning span, but $30 million in, say, six years should carry you for a lifetime or two. OK, extended families. Yes, a lot of players come from places where many people took care of them and it’s time to return the favor. They should. But these contracts really are a story everyone can relate to. It’s as much or more about the competition. Say you work in an office and make $100,000, which makes you comfortable. Then you find out the guy in the next office who does half the work makes $200,000. Human nature, which includes greed, jealously and hubris. After all, why do ceos of companies need $44 million buyouts? Same principle.
You don’t get to be at the top of the athletic world, which is where NBA players are, without being a great competitor. Some don’t look like it in the NBA, but only because they are competing against others who are even greater competitors. You don’t get to the NBA without being a high level competitor, and salary is another very strong form of competition, measuring yourself and keeping score.
Mike Sutera
Sam: Everyone probably had to smile about that one, Thibodeau doing the Blues Brothers redux. He’s putting the band back together! Sweet home, Minneapolis? Tommie the Moocher? And all we figured was Taj Gibson ends up there. It was a surprise to see Rose’s name mentioned with Minnesota given they have about a half dozen point guards. Well, a lot with No. 3 pick Kris Dunn still unable to beat out Rubio. Knowing Thibodeau, you know he’s anxious coming off a season well out of the playoffs. And he likes who he likes. I did see Rose’s name mentioned with the Spurs, which actually made somewhat more sense as Parker could assume that Manu role off the bench now assuming Ginobili retires and they get to sit out a lot of games.
Randall Sanders
Sam: I doubt that. Both they being the only challenger to the Cavs and reconsidering the trade. I think it’s even more likely now the Celtics use that pick on point guard Fultz. Though there are reports Lonzo Ball will work out for the Bulls and not the Celtics. That family really is Celtics haters. The Celtics have a training year with Fultz, I’d guess. But I still question whether Boston would want to after next season come up with huge money for Isaiah Thomas at 29. Actually, I don’t think they want to, but now with that hip injury it seems unlikely any team can risk trading for Thomas. Don’t old people need new hips all the time? Yes, Thomas was hurt in the conference finals. But I think what the playoffs also showed despite Boston making the conference finals (we still think they were out in round one if Rondo wasn’t hurt) was they need to be bigger in the backcourt. Coaches can scheme against a smaller player easier in a playoff series.
No, they didn’t have enough shooting and scoring without Thomas, but you can see them saying if they are going to beat Cleveland they’re not doing it made up that way. Maybe a big backcourt with Fultz and Jalen Brown; maybe a scoring wing in trade, another top three or four pick next season from the Nets. And then a strong young sore. What’s the hurry? If they’re going after LeBron and Cleveland, better to do it with a young roster than can sustain and have its own long run than patching and trying to take a shot. Easier said than done, though, after you went to the conference finals. The Celtics probably come back with Thomas, and he is making just $6.2 million in one of the best trades in years. But are they going to commit more than $100 million to him after next season? Though you’d also like to have some of their problems because they and the Bucks probably are in the best positions in the East to make a run at the top in the next few years.
Bob Ding
Sam: Baseball always prospered with the Yankees winning. Football seems OK with the Patriots. Dynasties are great for sports. What, you want the Nets in the Finals two straight years again? Things can change quickly in sports. Golden State has been awfully injury-free. And so has LeBron. Of course, I also didn’t get too many complaints when the Bulls were getting to the Finals six times in eight years. The problem with the playoffs hasn’t so much been the Cavs and Warriors winning as much as the lack of closer series. We’ve had these sorts of dominations for years, the Celtics and Lakers in the 60s and again in the 80s. Yes, three straight is unprecedented.
I also don’t see the Cavs as unbeatable in the East. Though Boston didn’t look that close for the top seed. Let me consider that some more. As for the Warriors. Uh oh. With two MVPs in their primes, it is an historic mix. Plus, the West is likely to be less competitive, especially with the Spurs—we’re sure this time—about to slip some with Parker and Ginobili on the way out and no real replacements this time. Miami will be interesting with the Bosh money coming off and the ability to add players.
The Wizards and Celtics have the foundations of competitive groups, the Celtics if they add a bit more shooting and size and the Wizards with more attitude. Milwaukee is coming, Toronto remains intriguing, and with Butler and Rondo, the Bulls aren’t pushovers and have the ability to move into that group with more consistency and a slight move or two. Yes, really. Assuming, of course, they choose that road. It doesn’t appear they’re quite up to the fork in the road yet. Which Yogi long counseled once you get there to take. Always tough to dispute that logic.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/USA TODAY)
In a Cubs season that has already gone off script – or at least not followed the dynasty-in-waiting narrative – it made perfect sense that a Jon Lester vs. Clayton Kershaw matchup at Dodger Stadium would devolve into a slugfest and a bullpen battle.
Randy Newman’s voice – “I Love L.A.” – echoed from the sound system late Sunday afternoon as the Dodgers put the finishing touches on a three-game sweep of the defending World Series champs. The Cubs led for one half-inning during this entire weekend and a Hollywood team will wake up in San Diego on Memorial Day with a 25-24 record.
This 9-4 blowout again showed that the Dodgers should be a force in October. Forget about the way forward-thinking manager Dave Roberts basically tried to MacGyver his way through last year’s National League Championship Series with three pitchers: Kershaw, lefty curveball specialist Rich Hill and star closer Kenley Jansen.
“That’s the big separator between what I saw last year and right now,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said, “how they’re pitching.”
This time it didn’t matter that the Cubs knocked Kershaw out in the middle of the fifth inning. Willson Contreras, Javier Baez and Anthony Rizzo launched home runs off Kershaw and the Cubs generated all of their 11 hits against the three-time Cy Young Award winner. This game still never really got tense or felt like the Dodgers were out of control.
“It sounds like fiction to me, but it happened,” Maddon said.
Kershaw still outlasted Lester, who dropped his head, stared at the grass and walked off the mound with one out and two runners on in the fourth inning. Lester (3-3, 3.86 ERA) – the sturdiest piece to a shaky rotation – put the Cubs in a 6-1 hole after giving up three-run homers to Cody Bellinger and Kike Hernandez.
In back-to-back shutouts, the Dodgers (31-20) had already beaten a Cy Young Award winner dealing with questions about his velocity and looming free agency (Jake Arrieta) and a three-time World Series champion who is 38 years old and now has a 5.18 ERA (John Lackey).
“It seems like they’re firing on all cylinders,” Lester said. “They played better than us all the way around this weekend.”
Standing in the middle of a cramped visiting clubhouse, Lester sounded annoyed – “Put what together?” – after being asked when or how the Cubs will go on a run and start playing up to expectations.
“We have to play for today,” Lester said. “You can’t worry about a run. You can’t worry about showing up and trying to go nine (innings) before you throw a first pitch. You can’t worry about trying to go 3-for-4 before your first at-bat. Worry about today. Worry about the task at hand.
“You can’t worry about a run. You can’t make runs happen. Sometimes, it’s better to kind of sit back and let things come to you. You’re not pressing. You’re not grinding. You’re not doing things that you don’t need to be doing.
“We got a good team. It’s just a matter of showing up, day in and day out, and putting the work in and it will come. It will click.”
Take Kershaw out of the equation and the Cubs generated zero runs, five singles and no extra-base hits in 22.2 innings against Los Angeles pitching. The Dodgers only used Jansen in one non-save situation.
“You got to tip your cap to them,” reigning NL MVP Kris Bryant said. “That was a pretty impressive pitching performance on all days. I felt like we got to Kershaw a little bit. But their bullpen – it just felt like every pitch was right there at the top of the strike zone. Every single one. To all of us. It was unbelievable.
“It felt like every guy they ran out there was throwing it right where they want.”
Three games against a last-place Padres team tanking for the future should change the subject before the Cubs head home to Wrigley Field. But the Dodgers sure looked like the talented, balanced, hungry team that wants to take down the Cubs.
“It’s always tougher the second time, because everybody’s gunning for you,” said Ben Zobrist, who should stabilize the lineup on Monday after missing two games with a sore left wrist. “Your expectations are even higher than they were before.
“But this team is definitely equal to the task. That’s not the problem as much as we just got to get back to the fundamentals and execution of the little details in the game. And everything else kind of takes care of itself.”
Joe Maddon has no choice but to ignore the noise and put his faith in young Cubs lineup: ‘If you want to freak out, freak out’.
Randy Newman’s voice – “I Love L.A.” – echoed from the sound system late Sunday afternoon as the Dodgers put the finishing touches on a three-game sweep of the defending World Series champs. The Cubs led for one half-inning during this entire weekend and a Hollywood team will wake up in San Diego on Memorial Day with a 25-24 record.
This 9-4 blowout again showed that the Dodgers should be a force in October. Forget about the way forward-thinking manager Dave Roberts basically tried to MacGyver his way through last year’s National League Championship Series with three pitchers: Kershaw, lefty curveball specialist Rich Hill and star closer Kenley Jansen.
“That’s the big separator between what I saw last year and right now,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said, “how they’re pitching.”
This time it didn’t matter that the Cubs knocked Kershaw out in the middle of the fifth inning. Willson Contreras, Javier Baez and Anthony Rizzo launched home runs off Kershaw and the Cubs generated all of their 11 hits against the three-time Cy Young Award winner. This game still never really got tense or felt like the Dodgers were out of control.
“It sounds like fiction to me, but it happened,” Maddon said.
Kershaw still outlasted Lester, who dropped his head, stared at the grass and walked off the mound with one out and two runners on in the fourth inning. Lester (3-3, 3.86 ERA) – the sturdiest piece to a shaky rotation – put the Cubs in a 6-1 hole after giving up three-run homers to Cody Bellinger and Kike Hernandez.
In back-to-back shutouts, the Dodgers (31-20) had already beaten a Cy Young Award winner dealing with questions about his velocity and looming free agency (Jake Arrieta) and a three-time World Series champion who is 38 years old and now has a 5.18 ERA (John Lackey).
“It seems like they’re firing on all cylinders,” Lester said. “They played better than us all the way around this weekend.”
Standing in the middle of a cramped visiting clubhouse, Lester sounded annoyed – “Put what together?” – after being asked when or how the Cubs will go on a run and start playing up to expectations.
“We have to play for today,” Lester said. “You can’t worry about a run. You can’t worry about showing up and trying to go nine (innings) before you throw a first pitch. You can’t worry about trying to go 3-for-4 before your first at-bat. Worry about today. Worry about the task at hand.
“You can’t worry about a run. You can’t make runs happen. Sometimes, it’s better to kind of sit back and let things come to you. You’re not pressing. You’re not grinding. You’re not doing things that you don’t need to be doing.
“We got a good team. It’s just a matter of showing up, day in and day out, and putting the work in and it will come. It will click.”
Take Kershaw out of the equation and the Cubs generated zero runs, five singles and no extra-base hits in 22.2 innings against Los Angeles pitching. The Dodgers only used Jansen in one non-save situation.
“You got to tip your cap to them,” reigning NL MVP Kris Bryant said. “That was a pretty impressive pitching performance on all days. I felt like we got to Kershaw a little bit. But their bullpen – it just felt like every pitch was right there at the top of the strike zone. Every single one. To all of us. It was unbelievable.
“It felt like every guy they ran out there was throwing it right where they want.”
Three games against a last-place Padres team tanking for the future should change the subject before the Cubs head home to Wrigley Field. But the Dodgers sure looked like the talented, balanced, hungry team that wants to take down the Cubs.
“It’s always tougher the second time, because everybody’s gunning for you,” said Ben Zobrist, who should stabilize the lineup on Monday after missing two games with a sore left wrist. “Your expectations are even higher than they were before.
“But this team is definitely equal to the task. That’s not the problem as much as we just got to get back to the fundamentals and execution of the little details in the game. And everything else kind of takes care of itself.”
Joe Maddon has no choice but to ignore the noise and put his faith in young Cubs lineup: ‘If you want to freak out, freak out’.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/AP)
A radio guy crammed into the manager’s office asked Joe Maddon what he would say to Cubs fans who might be freaking out at home.
“Oh, please, let them freak out,” Maddon said after Sunday’s 9-4 loss at Dodger Stadium. “If you want to freak out, freak out.”
After back-to-back shutouts and an emphatic three-game sweep that showed all the different ways the Dodgers can neutralize this lineup, Maddon has no choice but to block out the noise, trust all this young talent and believe in the players who delivered last October.
Right around the time Theo Epstein was asked when the Cubs might consider sending Kyle Schwarber down to Triple-A Iowa, Ian Happ became the new shiny object for fans and the Chicago media.
In less than 200 at-bats, Schwarber went from World Series legend to dropping from the leadoff spot to being a platoon player to getting shipped away in a fantasy-baseball trade for pitching.
Unless the Cubs moved Javier Baez, because Gold Glove-caliber middle infielders on a 25-homer, 90-RBI pace just fall from trees. Not to mention someone already proven on the biggest stages as a National League Championship Series co-MVP and World Baseball Classic star.
Even Happ is coming back down to earth as the league adjusts to him. The Cubs already played their top-prospect card for this season.
“The best I can do is talk to the player himself, which I’ve done with ‘Schwarbs,’” Maddon said. “That’s just the nature of the industry. That’s a part of it that makes it so much fun, too, for the fan, the fact that they can interact and throw out their conjecture like that.
“Internally, it has nothing to do with how we react to anything. And you have to talk to the player, because he’s always feeling these outside sources pressing down on him. He really shouldn’t, but they’re human beings.
“How do you prevent that from really infiltrating? It’s just conversation with the guys themselves. That’s about it. You ask the player to really not pay attention and listen to that.
“But, again, with all the tablets and the different sources available to follow what’s going on, it’s almost inevitable they’re going to hear or read something. So you got to stay positive with them. And we have to have that conversation with them to maintain their confidence.”
The Sunday lineup constructed to face Clayton Kershaw featured eight position players between the ages of 22 and 27: Baez, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Happ, Jason Heyward, Willson Contreras, Addison Russell and Albert Almora Jr.
A team built around offensive firepower woke up that morning ranked eighth and ninth in the NL in runs scored (231) and OPS (.736). A .222 batting average with runners in scoring position placed the Cubs 15th out of the NL’s 15 teams.
“The best explanation I can offer is that we’re hitting young,” Maddon said. “You look at the end of last season and how well a lot of the guys that are struggling right now performed under those circumstances. I believe we’re going to come back and do that.
“In the meantime, they need our support. They need our conversations, so nobody’s left in the dark or wondering what everybody’s thinking about around here. They need openness. And if you get that, they’ll come back.”
The Cubs have bigger problems, like an inconsistent rotation that has kept this team hovering around .500 and prevented any real sense of momentum. This is still largely the same group of hitters that beat Johnny Cueto, outlasted Madison Bumgarner, eliminated Kershaw and wore down Corey Kluber during last year’s World Series run.
“They’ll get it together,” Maddon said. “We haven’t even come close to hitting that real offensive ‘go’ moment. We haven’t been there and we’re still paddling pretty well. That moment’s coming.
“Whether it’s Happ making adjustments, Contreras making adjustments, Addison making adjustments, these guys were pretty good at the end of last season in some really difficult moments, so they’ll be back.”
“Oh, please, let them freak out,” Maddon said after Sunday’s 9-4 loss at Dodger Stadium. “If you want to freak out, freak out.”
After back-to-back shutouts and an emphatic three-game sweep that showed all the different ways the Dodgers can neutralize this lineup, Maddon has no choice but to block out the noise, trust all this young talent and believe in the players who delivered last October.
Right around the time Theo Epstein was asked when the Cubs might consider sending Kyle Schwarber down to Triple-A Iowa, Ian Happ became the new shiny object for fans and the Chicago media.
In less than 200 at-bats, Schwarber went from World Series legend to dropping from the leadoff spot to being a platoon player to getting shipped away in a fantasy-baseball trade for pitching.
Unless the Cubs moved Javier Baez, because Gold Glove-caliber middle infielders on a 25-homer, 90-RBI pace just fall from trees. Not to mention someone already proven on the biggest stages as a National League Championship Series co-MVP and World Baseball Classic star.
Even Happ is coming back down to earth as the league adjusts to him. The Cubs already played their top-prospect card for this season.
“The best I can do is talk to the player himself, which I’ve done with ‘Schwarbs,’” Maddon said. “That’s just the nature of the industry. That’s a part of it that makes it so much fun, too, for the fan, the fact that they can interact and throw out their conjecture like that.
“Internally, it has nothing to do with how we react to anything. And you have to talk to the player, because he’s always feeling these outside sources pressing down on him. He really shouldn’t, but they’re human beings.
“How do you prevent that from really infiltrating? It’s just conversation with the guys themselves. That’s about it. You ask the player to really not pay attention and listen to that.
“But, again, with all the tablets and the different sources available to follow what’s going on, it’s almost inevitable they’re going to hear or read something. So you got to stay positive with them. And we have to have that conversation with them to maintain their confidence.”
The Sunday lineup constructed to face Clayton Kershaw featured eight position players between the ages of 22 and 27: Baez, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Happ, Jason Heyward, Willson Contreras, Addison Russell and Albert Almora Jr.
A team built around offensive firepower woke up that morning ranked eighth and ninth in the NL in runs scored (231) and OPS (.736). A .222 batting average with runners in scoring position placed the Cubs 15th out of the NL’s 15 teams.
“The best explanation I can offer is that we’re hitting young,” Maddon said. “You look at the end of last season and how well a lot of the guys that are struggling right now performed under those circumstances. I believe we’re going to come back and do that.
“In the meantime, they need our support. They need our conversations, so nobody’s left in the dark or wondering what everybody’s thinking about around here. They need openness. And if you get that, they’ll come back.”
The Cubs have bigger problems, like an inconsistent rotation that has kept this team hovering around .500 and prevented any real sense of momentum. This is still largely the same group of hitters that beat Johnny Cueto, outlasted Madison Bumgarner, eliminated Kershaw and wore down Corey Kluber during last year’s World Series run.
“They’ll get it together,” Maddon said. “We haven’t even come close to hitting that real offensive ‘go’ moment. We haven’t been there and we’re still paddling pretty well. That moment’s coming.
“Whether it’s Happ making adjustments, Contreras making adjustments, Addison making adjustments, these guys were pretty good at the end of last season in some really difficult moments, so they’ll be back.”
With Ben Zobrist sidelined by sore wrist, Cubs move Ian Happ to second base.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The Cubs drafted and developed Ian Happ with the idea of turning him into a Ben Zobrist-type player who would move quickly through the farm system and surface as a versatile big-league contributor and/or legitimate trade chip.
With Zobrist sidelined because of a sore left wrist, the Cubs got their first look at Happ playing second base in The Show during Saturday’s 5-0 loss at Dodger Stadium. That kind of depth – plugging in a 2015 first-round pick while a World Series MVP rests – should ultimately propel the Cubs over the course of a 162-game season.
Even as the Cubs stutter-step through a 25-23 start, there are enough choices for the best defensive second baseman on the team and a National League Championship Series co-MVP (Javier Baez) to sit on the bench.
“We know that the talent’s there,” Zobrist said. “It’s not like having any one or two guys out of the lineup is a big drop-off for us because of the talent that’s there. And we know that just because we have a lot of young players doesn’t mean that they’re not extremely capable of doing the job as well.”
Zobrist – who’s reached base in 23 straight games and emerged as a new leadoff option with Kyle Schwarber struggling – felt something on an awkward swing in the first inning of Friday’s 4-0 loss to the Dodgers. Zobrist played through it that night and called it a “day-to-day thing” that didn’t require an MRI.
Facing Clayton Kershaw on Sunday after back-to-back shutouts will be a game-time decision.
“It’s tough,” Zobrist said. “We just haven’t strung together enough quality at-bats to score runs the last two games. It’s not just because of us. They’ve pitched well. Their pitchers are pretty hot right now. They’ve spotted up. They’ve gotten early strikes where they needed to and then gone to work pretty well on us.
“The task doesn’t get any easier tomorrow with Kershaw. We just got to keep trying to chip away.”
Is Joe Maddon turning Kyle Schwarber into a platoon player?
By Patrick Mooney
With Zobrist sidelined because of a sore left wrist, the Cubs got their first look at Happ playing second base in The Show during Saturday’s 5-0 loss at Dodger Stadium. That kind of depth – plugging in a 2015 first-round pick while a World Series MVP rests – should ultimately propel the Cubs over the course of a 162-game season.
Even as the Cubs stutter-step through a 25-23 start, there are enough choices for the best defensive second baseman on the team and a National League Championship Series co-MVP (Javier Baez) to sit on the bench.
“We know that the talent’s there,” Zobrist said. “It’s not like having any one or two guys out of the lineup is a big drop-off for us because of the talent that’s there. And we know that just because we have a lot of young players doesn’t mean that they’re not extremely capable of doing the job as well.”
Zobrist – who’s reached base in 23 straight games and emerged as a new leadoff option with Kyle Schwarber struggling – felt something on an awkward swing in the first inning of Friday’s 4-0 loss to the Dodgers. Zobrist played through it that night and called it a “day-to-day thing” that didn’t require an MRI.
Facing Clayton Kershaw on Sunday after back-to-back shutouts will be a game-time decision.
“It’s tough,” Zobrist said. “We just haven’t strung together enough quality at-bats to score runs the last two games. It’s not just because of us. They’ve pitched well. Their pitchers are pretty hot right now. They’ve spotted up. They’ve gotten early strikes where they needed to and then gone to work pretty well on us.
“The task doesn’t get any easier tomorrow with Kershaw. We just got to keep trying to chip away.”
Is Joe Maddon turning Kyle Schwarber into a platoon player?
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Joe Maddon doesn’t want to put the platoon label on a young hitter who became a World Series legend before his 24th birthday. But the Cubs manager also isn’t planning to start Kyle Schwarber against left-handers anytime soon.
“If people want to say that, I can’t avoid it,” Maddon said Friday at Dodger Stadium, where Schwarber sat against lefty Alex Wood, who took a 20.1-inning scoreless streak into this National League Championship Series rematch. “I’m going to do that until I feel good about him, because I don’t want to lay too many at-bats on him in a negative situation.
“If he’s not swinging the bat well against righties, it’s a bad assumption that I’m going to think he’s going to swing it well against lefties. Then I’m just putting him in a deeper hole by throwing him out there, just based on really bad logic.
“I’m just trying to pick his spots right now to get him going. Once he goes, he can play against anybody.”
Schwarber – who’s hitting .181 with a .656 OPS and 55 strikeouts in less than 200 plate appearances this season – will start Saturday against Dodger right-hander Brandon McCarthy. But even with Clayton Kershaw looming on Sunday, Maddon didn’t want to give Schwarber the entire weekend off, the way Jason Heyward mentally reset last August at Coors Field.
“I don’t think it’s there yet,” Maddon said. “I’ve had good conversations with him. I think it’s a different set of circumstances.”
For the Cubs, this doesn’t really change their overall evaluation of Schwarber as a core player and potentially one of the most dangerous left-handed sluggers in the game. But Maddon has been backing away from the idea of Schwarber as a leadoff hitter, trying to reboot the player who had been such an intimidating postseason presence.
“My concern when the guy is struggling a little bit is you don’t want him to get him too many at-bats,” Maddon said. “It’s really hard to get yourself out of that mental, physical and numerical hole. By not getting him as many at-bats, it will be easy to get back to a number he’s more comfortable with.
“I don’t care about that – I really don’t. I’m looking at his past, process, what he’s doing for the team in regards to on-base, everything else. But for the guy himself, he looks up at the scoreboard and he sees numbers everywhere and they evaluate themselves based on numbers.
“I don’t want him to do that. I just want him to get back into the process of having good at-bats.”
WHITE SOX: Miguel Gonzalez throws six perfect innings as White Sox take series against Tigers.
By Vinnie Duber
(Photo/USA TODAY)
For six innings Sunday, Miguel Gonzalez was perfect.
The White Sox right-hander put the baseball world on perfect-game alert and conjured memories of Mark Buehrle and Philip Humber with his dazzling work through six innings. Gonzalez lost his bids for a perfect game, no hitter and shutout in the span of three batters to lead off the seventh inning, but that didn’t take away much from how good he was in a 7-3 win for the South Siders at Guaranteed Rate Field.
“He was dominant,” shortstop Tim Anderson said, providing an accurate if brief summation of the day’s proceedings.
Gonzalez, who entered with a 3-5 record and a 4.55 ERA in nine previous starts this season, set down the first 18 hitters he faced in order, with the visiting Detroit Tigers rarely even coming close to reaching base. That streak of 18 straight hitters retired to start the game was the longest by a White Sox starter since Chris Sale sat down the first 19 he faced back in May 2013.
Of course, whenever a performance nears no-hitter territory, players know it and stay away from the pitcher in the dugout, afraid of jinxing things. And the White Sox weren’t immune to that baseball tradition on Sunday.
“It was getting quiet,” Gonzalez said. “I was just trying to do my thing. Just go out there and make pitches, let them make the plays and that’s how things went.”
The Tigers — who trailed big after the White Sox gave Gonzalez a 7-0 lead — finally broke through to start the seventh. Austin Romine reached on an infield single, Alex Avila singled through the right side of the infield, and Miguel Cabrera dumped an RBI base hit into right field.
Detroit added two more runs on three extra-base hits in the eighth, but Gonzalez still finished with a great line, yielding just three runs on six hits in 7.2 innings of work.
Gonzalez’s gem snapped a streak of rough outings that started, coincidentally enough, against this Tigers team, when he was crushed for seven runs on 14 hits in an April 30 loss in Detroit. Entering Sunday’s game, Gonzalez was a nasty 0-5 with a 6.99 ERA in his previous five starts. He hadn’t made it out of the sixth inning in any of his previous three starts.
“I started off really good. I was struggling for a couple outings, and all you can do is keep working hard and things are going to happen,” Gonzalez said. “I think if you work hard in between your starts you have a pretty good chance of getting back on track and that’s how I felt today.”
That seventh-inning blip by the Tigers ended the day’s only drama, as the White Sox offense put the result of the game out of question earlier, tagging opposing starting pitcher Jordan Zimmermann for seven runs in his five innings of work.
Zimmermann entered the day struggling on the 2017 campaign, and that didn’t change Sunday. Willy Garcia tripled in Omar Narvaez for the game’s first run in the third and scored on the same play thanks to a throwing error. Two hitters later, Melky Cabrera hit a solo home run to make it 3-0.
Matt Davidson led off the bottom of the fourth with his 10th home run of the season, and Narvaez drove in Yolmer Sanchez to make it 5-0. Todd Frazier tacked on two more in the fifth with a two-run shot that also scored Jose Abreu.
“As an offense, we’re trying to give that (big cushion) every night. That’d be nice,” Davidson said. “And it really relaxes them. And you can see what happens when they’ve got a lead and you let them do their thing.”
The White Sox took three of four from the Tigers in this weekend series that featured a doubleheader split Saturday. It’s a positive start to this home stand — which continues with a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox — after going 3-7 on a recent 10-game road trip.
“I'm very happy with it, but again I'm not surprised by it, simply because I think they come out every single day to try to play good baseball and do what they need to help each other out and win ballgames,” manager Rick Renteria said. “It's just their character, the way they're put together. They keep battling.”
Two days out, White Sox already excited about facing former teammate Chris Sale.
By Vinnie Duber
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
There are still two days remaining until the White Sox take the field against their old teammate, but the questions are already coming about what it will be like to face Chris Sale on Tuesday night.
The Boston Red Sox come to the South Side for a three-game series starting Monday afternoon, but the highlight of the set will be Tuesday night's matchup: Sale against his old team, which will counter with another All-Star arm in Jose Quintana.
The White Sox jumpstarted their rebuilding effort this offseason when they traded Sale to Boston, getting a hefty haul back in return led by top prospect Yoan Moncada.
Sale was one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball during his tenure in a White Sox uniform and has continued that trend in Boston, where he's posted a 2.34 ERA in 10 starts this season, punching out a league-leading 101 batters in a league-leading 73 innings of work.
Tuesday night he'll go up against his ex-mates for the first time, something those players are pretty excited about.
"I have so much respect. He was one of the best teammates that I had here in my first three years," first baseman Jose Abreu said Sunday. "That will be fun. He’s a very good pitcher, and we’ll see what happens that day."
"Facing Saler is going to be awesome, big time," Quintana said. "A big moment of the season. He was my teammate. It's a different feeling, but it's good to face the best left-hander in the league. I'm excited and I think he's excited, too. But my focus right now is to do my job. Do my work and do my thing and put us in a good position to win. That's all I can do."
There'll be much more reaction to come from both the White Sox and the Red Sox ahead of the matchup on Monday and Tuesday. But already this big-time showdown against Sale — who made five consecutive All-Star appearances in his seven years on the South Side — is demanding everyone's attention.
White Sox settle on starting pitcher for series-opening game with Red Sox on Monday.
By Vinnie Duber
The Boston Red Sox come to the South Side for a three-game series starting Monday afternoon, but the highlight of the set will be Tuesday night's matchup: Sale against his old team, which will counter with another All-Star arm in Jose Quintana.
The White Sox jumpstarted their rebuilding effort this offseason when they traded Sale to Boston, getting a hefty haul back in return led by top prospect Yoan Moncada.
Sale was one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball during his tenure in a White Sox uniform and has continued that trend in Boston, where he's posted a 2.34 ERA in 10 starts this season, punching out a league-leading 101 batters in a league-leading 73 innings of work.
Tuesday night he'll go up against his ex-mates for the first time, something those players are pretty excited about.
"I have so much respect. He was one of the best teammates that I had here in my first three years," first baseman Jose Abreu said Sunday. "That will be fun. He’s a very good pitcher, and we’ll see what happens that day."
"Facing Saler is going to be awesome, big time," Quintana said. "A big moment of the season. He was my teammate. It's a different feeling, but it's good to face the best left-hander in the league. I'm excited and I think he's excited, too. But my focus right now is to do my job. Do my work and do my thing and put us in a good position to win. That's all I can do."
There'll be much more reaction to come from both the White Sox and the Red Sox ahead of the matchup on Monday and Tuesday. But already this big-time showdown against Sale — who made five consecutive All-Star appearances in his seven years on the South Side — is demanding everyone's attention.
White Sox settle on starting pitcher for series-opening game with Red Sox on Monday.
By Vinnie Duber
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
All eyes are looking ahead to Tuesday night, when the White Sox will welcome Chris Sale back to the South Side, countering with another All-Star hurler in Jose Quintana.
But the pitching matchup has also been set for the series-opening game against the visiting Boston Red Sox on Monday afternoon.
David Holmberg will get the ball for the White Sox on Memorial Day. For Boston, it will be David Price's first start of the season.
It will be Holmberg's first start since joining the White Sox. He's made eight relief appearances this season and posted a 0.87 ERA in his 10.1 innings of work.
Holmberg made 12 starts over three major league seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Cincinnati Reds, turning in a 3-6 record with a 6.99 ERA in 55.1 innings as a starter in 2013, 2014 and 2015 seasons.
A second-round draft pick of the White Sox in 2009, Holmberg was dealt a year after he was drafted in the trade that brought Edwin Jackson to the South Side. He signed with the White Sox in March of last year and made 32 starts between Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte, going 10-9 with a 3.72 ERA.
Monday will mark Holmberg's second start of the year at any level. He made one start and five relief appearances at Charlotte earlier this season.
Holmberg allowed one run in his first big league outing of the season back on May 4 against the Kansas City Royals. Since he's allowed just one hit and walked two in 9.2 shutout innings.
Manager Rick Renteria said Sunday that he's hoping to get five innings out of Holmberg, which could mean a busy day for the bullpen, too.
"It could be, but he’s actually done well," Renteria said of Holmberg. "Since he’s been with us, I think we’ve had him get up three times already. We’re hoping that we can take him out to a five-inning stint, depending on how many pitches he throws and things like that nature. He was starting obviously in the minor leagues, so he had been stretched out. We’ll see how it goes. Everybody’s going to have to be available, but I’m hopeful that he’s going to give us a good outing."
Jose Abreu relishing opportunity to help mentor Luis Robert, White Sox newest Cuban addition.
By Vinnie Duber
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Call it the White Sox latest Cuban connection.
When news came out of the team pursuing 19-year-old Cuban outfielder Luis Robert, it was pretty easy to guess that Jose Abreu, the franchise’s previous big-time, free-agent signing from Cuba, would be involved.
But not only was Abreu involved in the White Sox courting of Robert, sending a personalized message as part of the team’s video pitch, he’s been a willing participant. And now that Robert is officially signed after Saturday’s much-hyped introduction, Abreu is ready to take on a mentorship role, much like he has with another one of the organization’s Cuban prospects, Yoan Moncada.
In the lead up to Saturday’s press conference, it was Abreu touring Robert around Guaranteed Rate Field, chatting with him in the dugout and taking pictures on the infield.
“I was very excited to have him here, and I’m very happy right now because he’s signing with the team,” Abreu said through a translator ahead of Sunday’s series finale with the visiting Detroit Tigers. “He’s a very good player. I just told him that he has to keep working hard and keep doing the things to get here as soon as he can. He’s a nice guy.
“I’m excited to have that opportunity (to be a mentor). That’s something that I like to do. I like to advise the guys and tell them what to do for their best like I am doing right now with Moncada. I’m just waiting for that opportunity to happen with (Robert).”
While Abreu arrived on the South Side an older, more experienced player who was ready for the big leagues, Robert’s journey to the majors will be a much different, much longer one. Abreu recognizes that and talked about how tough the transition will be. He also has confidence Robert, who has received glowing scouting reports comparing him to perennial All Stars, can succeed.
“It’s not an easy thing to do to come here straight to play in the majors because this is a very high level and a tough one to play,” Abreu said. “I think the best for him is the decision that he’s making for him, to have some games in the minors and let him develop there. He’s had a long time without playing baseball. Baseball in Cuba is good, but it’s not as good as baseball here in the U.S. and you have to adjust. I think that process for him is going to be perfect in the minors.”
Saturday, Robert talked about the White Sox tradition of Cuban players, mentioning how it helped motivate him to sign with the team. Abreu has been one of the franchise’s most successful Cuban players, a list that includes the legendary Minnie Minoso as well as more recent players like Alexei Ramirez and Dayan Viciedo and Moncada in the minor leagues.
While that tradition might not be the entire or even main reason Robert is now a part of the organization, general manager Rick Hahn talked about how it’s created an environment that will help Robert develop. Banners featuring Minoso, Abreu, Ramirez and Moncada flanked the table where Robert signed his contract.
Abreu said it’s a tradition he’s very proud to be a part of.
“That made me feel happy and proud. Not just for this organization that I’m a part of, but also for my heritage because I know that this is a very good organization and they are trying to take care of the Cuban players,” Abreu said. “I also feel a huge respect for Minnie Minoso because he was the first one who opened this door here with the White Sox.”
Through his mentoring, Abreu could keep that tradition going into the future. Robert and Moncada are huge pieces of the White Sox rebuilding puzzle, and Abreu is helping put those pieces together for the White Sox.
Golf: I got a club for that..... Kisner edges Spieth, O'Hair, Rahm at Colonial.
By Nick Menta
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
Kevin Kisner got up and down from over the back of the 18th green Sunday to save his par and win the Dean & DeLuca Invitational by one shot over Jordan Spieth, Sean O’Hair, and Jon Rahm. Here’s how Kisner took home the title at Colonial.
Leaderboard: Kisner (-10), Spieth (-9), O’Hair (-9), Rahm (-9), Webb Simpson (-8)
What it means: This is Kisner’s second Tour title following his breakthrough victory at the 2015 RSM Classic. The 33-year-old has been a runner-up six times in the past three seasons, including twice already this year. But on Sunday at Colonial, he managed to edge Spieth, O’Hair, Rahm and Simpson with a par save at the 72nd hole and a round of 4-under 66. Three back to start the day, Kisner made the turn in 1 under and added birdies at 10, 11, 12 and 15. He looked like he may be headed for yet another playoff when he bogeyed the 16th and Rahm, after a birdie at 17, had a putt to tie for the lead on the 18th green. But Rahm’s bid to tie went by the hole, and Kisner two-putted from off the green to get in the clubhouse at 10 under. Once Simpson’s third shot from the bunker at the 72nd hole didn’t go, Kisner celebrated his second Tour win. This is his fifth result of fourth place or better this season, with two previous seconds.
Round of the day: Steve Stricker jumped 26 spots into a tie for sixth with the low round of the week, a 7-under 63. The Presidents Cup captain was 8 under through 14 holes before closing with a bogey and three pars. After his round, the 50-year-old said his focus Is on qualifying for the U.S. Open at Erin Hills. Stricker can get in via the Official World Golf Ranking if he can crack the top 60 by June 12, or if he can make it through a 36-hole sectional qualifier next week in Memphis.
Best of the rest: Spieth, Brian Harman, Brian Stuard, and Wesley Bryan turned in 5-under 65s. Spieth circled three of his first five holes and added two more birdies on the back to come up one shot short in his bid to defend his title. His last three finishes at Colonial look like this: T2-Win-T2.
Biggest disappointment: The final group of Simpson (71), Paul Casey (73) and Danny Lee (70) combined to shoot 4 over par Sunday. None of them broke par.
Shot of the day: Two behind Kisner with two to play, Rahm at the par-4 17th sliced this shot around and over a tree to set up an easy birdie-3 that pulled him within one of the lead.
Quote of the day: “I’m just honored to be the champion here. I’m excited to come back every year and see my name on that wall.” - Kisner
Langer passes Nicklaus with back-to-back majors.
Associated Press
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
Bernhard Langer played near-flawless golf and took advantage of Vijay Singh's late mistakes to win the Senior PGA Championship at Trump National on Sunday for his record ninth senior major.
The Senior PGA was the only major that had eluded the 59-year-old German star during his dominant decade-long run on the 50-and-over circuit. He tied Jack Nicklaus' senior major record last week with a comeback victory in the Regions Tradition in Alabama.
Despite a few dozen protesters, the drama remained on the course at President Donald Trump's club on the shores of the Potomac River. Trump, coming off a nine-day trip abroad, did not attend the final round.
Langer pulled ahead of Singh with a 12-foot birdie on the par-4 16th. Singh three-putted 17 to give Langer a two-shot advantage. After Singh birdied 18, Langer calmly tapped in for par and a one-shot victory. He shot a 4-under 68 to finish at 18-under 270. Singh closed with a 70.
Langer also won the season-opening event in Hawaii and has 32 career senior victories.
Noren sets course record en route to BMW PGA win.
The Senior PGA was the only major that had eluded the 59-year-old German star during his dominant decade-long run on the 50-and-over circuit. He tied Jack Nicklaus' senior major record last week with a comeback victory in the Regions Tradition in Alabama.
Despite a few dozen protesters, the drama remained on the course at President Donald Trump's club on the shores of the Potomac River. Trump, coming off a nine-day trip abroad, did not attend the final round.
Langer pulled ahead of Singh with a 12-foot birdie on the par-4 16th. Singh three-putted 17 to give Langer a two-shot advantage. After Singh birdied 18, Langer calmly tapped in for par and a one-shot victory. He shot a 4-under 68 to finish at 18-under 270. Singh closed with a 70.
Langer also won the season-opening event in Hawaii and has 32 career senior victories.
Noren sets course record en route to BMW PGA win.
By Will Gray
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
Alex Noren went out early, set a new course record and then sat back and watched as no one was able to catch him at the BMW PGA Championship.
Noren started the day seven shots off the pace, but he eagled the par-5 18th hole to close out a 10-under 62 at the newly-redesigned Wentworth Golf Club outside London. It was 10 shots better than his even-par effort in the third round, 13 shots better than his second-round 75 and ultimately gave the Swede a two-shot victory at the European Tour's flagship event.
Noren started the day seven shots off the pace, but he eagled the par-5 18th hole to close out a 10-under 62 at the newly-redesigned Wentworth Golf Club outside London. It was 10 shots better than his even-par effort in the third round, 13 shots better than his second-round 75 and ultimately gave the Swede a two-shot victory at the European Tour's flagship event.
When Noren finished his round, he was two shots clear of the field and the leaders still had several holes to play. But one by one they each failed to mount a rally, as Branden Grace, Shane Lowry and overnight leader Andrew Dodt combined to make four double bogeys on the back nine. Open champ Henrik Stenson got within two shots of Noren after birdies on Nos. 11 and 12 only to bogey two of his next three holes.
Francesco Molinari closed with a pair of birdies to finish alone in second at 9 under. Nicolas Colsaerts tied for third at 8 under alongside Stenson and Japan's Hideto Tanihara, who bounced back from an opening-round 76 that included a quadruple bogey on the 18th hole.
Feng wins Volvik, captures 7th career LPGA title.
Associated Press
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
Shanshan Feng shot a 4-under 68 on Sunday to win the LPGA Volvik Championship by one stroke over Minjee Lee and Sung Hyun Park.
Feng earned her first victory of the season and seventh of her career. She led by one shot after a bogey-free third round Saturday, then kept the competition at bay on the 6,734-yard course at Travis Pointe Country Club.
Feng, a bronze medalist for China at the 2016 Olympics, led by four strokes with four holes to play, but she made a bogey on No. 16 and Lee birdied 17. Needing a bogey on the 18th to win, Feng easily tapped in for one and finished at 19-under 269.
Lee (65) made six birdies on the front nine, and Park (66) made four on the back.
Lee knew she needed a strong finish to catch Feng, and after her birdie on No. 17, she tried to reach the green on the par-5 18th in two. She missed well to the left and ended up near the scoring tent. Lee scrambled to make par, but Feng still had room for error as she was finishing her round.
Feng's second shot on 18 left her behind a bunker near the green, and her shot from there still came up short of the putting surface. When she did reach the green, she still had two putts for the win from a pretty short distance.
Lizette Salas (69) and Jeong Eun Lee (67) finished tied for fourth, two strokes behind.
Lydia Ko skipped this event but remains No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings. So Yeon Ryu and Ariya Jutanugarn each could have displaced her this week, but Ryu (72) finished tied for 56th at 3 under, and Jutanugarn (71) - the defending champion at this event - was 11 under and tied for 21st. Ryu had finished in the top 10 in 11 consecutive events, dating to last season.
Feng finished last year strong after her Olympic medal, winning twice to cap a streak of six straight tour finishes in the top four. This, however, was her first victory on American soil since the CME Group Titleholders in 2013.
Feng's most recent LPGA win before Sunday was at last year's TOTO Japan Classic, and the ending was similar. She took a three-shot lead to the final hole, then made a double bogey that was enough for a one-stroke victory.
Feng earned her first victory of the season and seventh of her career. She led by one shot after a bogey-free third round Saturday, then kept the competition at bay on the 6,734-yard course at Travis Pointe Country Club.
Feng, a bronze medalist for China at the 2016 Olympics, led by four strokes with four holes to play, but she made a bogey on No. 16 and Lee birdied 17. Needing a bogey on the 18th to win, Feng easily tapped in for one and finished at 19-under 269.
Lee (65) made six birdies on the front nine, and Park (66) made four on the back.
Lee knew she needed a strong finish to catch Feng, and after her birdie on No. 17, she tried to reach the green on the par-5 18th in two. She missed well to the left and ended up near the scoring tent. Lee scrambled to make par, but Feng still had room for error as she was finishing her round.
Feng's second shot on 18 left her behind a bunker near the green, and her shot from there still came up short of the putting surface. When she did reach the green, she still had two putts for the win from a pretty short distance.
Lizette Salas (69) and Jeong Eun Lee (67) finished tied for fourth, two strokes behind.
Lydia Ko skipped this event but remains No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings. So Yeon Ryu and Ariya Jutanugarn each could have displaced her this week, but Ryu (72) finished tied for 56th at 3 under, and Jutanugarn (71) - the defending champion at this event - was 11 under and tied for 21st. Ryu had finished in the top 10 in 11 consecutive events, dating to last season.
Feng finished last year strong after her Olympic medal, winning twice to cap a streak of six straight tour finishes in the top four. This, however, was her first victory on American soil since the CME Group Titleholders in 2013.
Feng's most recent LPGA win before Sunday was at last year's TOTO Japan Classic, and the ending was similar. She took a three-shot lead to the final hole, then made a double bogey that was enough for a one-stroke victory.
NASCAR: Austin Dillon returns No. 3 to victory lane for first time since Dale Earnhardt’s last win.
By Nate Ryan
(Photo/Getty Images)
Austin Dillon scored his first Cup victory in his first start with a new crew chief, bringing an iconic number back to victory lane in NASCAR’s premier series.
Stretching his last tank of fuel 70 laps, the Richard Childress Racing driver won the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
“I can’t believe it,” Dillon told Fox Sports. “I was just really focused on those last laps.”
It was the first victory on the circuit for the No. 3 Chevrolet since the late Dale Earnhardt’s win at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2000. Richard Childress Racing mothballed the number after Earnhardt’s death on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 but brought it back with Dillon in 2014.
Dillon, the grandson of team owner Richard Childress, was making his debut with crew chief Justin Alexander, who replaced Slugger Labbe last week.
Kyle Busch finished second, followed by Martin Truex Jr., Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin.
Jimmie Johnson was leading before running out of fuel with three laps remaining, handing the lead to Dillon.
“I was just trying to be patient with (Johnson),” Dillon said. “I could see him saving (fuel). I thought I’d saved enough early where I could attack at the end, but I tried to wait as long as possible. And when he ran out, I figured I’d go back in and save where I was lifting, and it worked out.
“I ran out at the line and it gurgled all around just to do one little spin and push it back to victory lane.”
With the victory, Dillon qualified for the playoffs, joining RCR teammate Ryan Newman (who clinched a berth by winning at Phoenix International Raceway).
Who had a good race: Kyle Busch charged to second in the closing laps, following up a win last week at the All-Star Race. … Truex dominated Charlotte for the third straight year, leading a race-high 233 laps. … Joe Gibbs Racing placed three drivers in the top five, and rookie Daniel Suarez was 11th. … Rookie Erik Jones finished seventh, giving Furniture Row Racing two top 10s in a race for the first time.
Who had a bad race: It was over for Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski on Lap 20 when they were collected in a bizarre wreck as a result of a chain reaction from Jeffrey Earnhardt’s engine failure. … Points leader Kyle Larson finished a season-worst 32nd after a crash. … Danica Patrick hit the wall twice (at least once because of a tire problem) and placed 25th.
Quote of the race: “My fiancée wrote in the car, ‘When you keep God in the first place, he will take you places you never imagined.’ And, I never imagined to be here.” – Dillon after scoring his first Cup victory.
What’s next: 1 p.m., June 4 at Dover International Speedway on FS1.
Martin Truex Jr. takes Cup points lead after Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.
By Nate Ryan
(Photo/Jerry Markland/Getty Images)
Martin Truex Jr. took over the Cup points lead with a third-place finish in Saturday’s Coca-Cola 600.
The Furniture Row Racing driver, who led a race-high 233 laps, also extended his lead in the playoff standings by winning the second stage and bringing his total to 16 points.
Kyle Larson, who had led the standings for eight consecutive races since Phoenix International Raceway, fell to second in the rankings after crashing and finishing a season-worst 33rd.
Click here for the points standings after Charlotte.
The Furniture Row Racing driver, who led a race-high 233 laps, also extended his lead in the playoff standings by winning the second stage and bringing his total to 16 points.
Kyle Larson, who had led the standings for eight consecutive races since Phoenix International Raceway, fell to second in the rankings after crashing and finishing a season-worst 33rd.
Click here for the points standings after Charlotte.
Ryan Blaney wins Charlotte Xfinity race for first victory in series since September 2015.
By Daniel McFadin
(Photo/Getty Images)
Ryan Blaney won Saturday’s Hisense 4K TV 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Blaney took the lead from Kevin Harvick on a restart with three laps to go. It’s his fifth Xfinity Series win and the first for Team Penske in 2017. It’s Blaney’s first Xfinity victory since Sept. 26, 2015 at Kentucky Speedway.
Blaney was followed by Harvick, Austin Dillon, Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin.
“I thought we were going to run out of laps to make it happen,” said Blaney, who was aided by five cautions in the last 40 laps.
“We got a good restart and I was able to barely stay on (Harvick’s) quarter (panel) off of (Turn) 2 and dragged him back into (Turn) 3,” Blaney told FS1. “I’m very proud, but you’re going to feel really bad if you mess up and don’t win. That’s what I thought was going to happen. I didn’t know if we were going to get our shot to get back to the lead. I don’t want to say the caution went our way because we kind of needed long runs. But they worked out so we could put ourselves in a position to capitalize on it.”
Driving the No. 12 Ford, Blaney led four times for 107 laps on the way to the victory. Blaney raced to the front after starting from the rear for unapproved adjustments. He is the first Xfinity driver to win after going to the rear since Marcos Ambrose at Montreal in 2011.
Blaney’s win comes more than 10 years after his father, Dave Blaney, won the Oct. 13, 2016 race at Charlotte. They are the first father-son duo to win at Charlotte in the Xfinity Series.
Stage 1 winner: Kevin Harvick
Stage 2 winner: Ryan Blaney
Blaney took the lead from Kevin Harvick on a restart with three laps to go. It’s his fifth Xfinity Series win and the first for Team Penske in 2017. It’s Blaney’s first Xfinity victory since Sept. 26, 2015 at Kentucky Speedway.
Blaney was followed by Harvick, Austin Dillon, Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin.
“I thought we were going to run out of laps to make it happen,” said Blaney, who was aided by five cautions in the last 40 laps.
“We got a good restart and I was able to barely stay on (Harvick’s) quarter (panel) off of (Turn) 2 and dragged him back into (Turn) 3,” Blaney told FS1. “I’m very proud, but you’re going to feel really bad if you mess up and don’t win. That’s what I thought was going to happen. I didn’t know if we were going to get our shot to get back to the lead. I don’t want to say the caution went our way because we kind of needed long runs. But they worked out so we could put ourselves in a position to capitalize on it.”
Driving the No. 12 Ford, Blaney led four times for 107 laps on the way to the victory. Blaney raced to the front after starting from the rear for unapproved adjustments. He is the first Xfinity driver to win after going to the rear since Marcos Ambrose at Montreal in 2011.
Blaney’s win comes more than 10 years after his father, Dave Blaney, won the Oct. 13, 2016 race at Charlotte. They are the first father-son duo to win at Charlotte in the Xfinity Series.
Stage 1 winner: Kevin Harvick
Stage 2 winner: Ryan Blaney
WHO HAD A GOOD DAY: On the third lap of his Xfinity career, Christopher Bell was turned by Ryan Reed on the frontstretch and slid through the grass. He battled back to finish fourth. His No. 18 Toyota measured too low in postrace inspection. Penalties could be announced next week. … Brennan Poole brought out a caution with 40 to go after he got into the frontstretch wall but managed to finish eighth. … Brad Keselowski finished sixth after starting 39th because multiple trips through inspection kept him from making a qualifying run. … Brendan Gaughan finished ninth after he spun exiting Turn 4 late in the race.
WHO HAD A BAD DAY: Michael Annett hit the wall on a restart with 25 to go and went to the garage. He finished 36th. … On the next restart, JR Motorsports teammate and points leader Elliott Sadler spun in Turn 4 and hit the inside wall hard. He was uninjured and finished 35th. … Darrell Wallace Jr. was having his best race of the year, including leading three laps in the final stage, when it came unraveled. He brushed the Turn 4 wall with seven laps to go. He then lost a tire and spun in Turn 2. He finished 28th.
NOTABLE: Not counting the end of each stage, the race was slowed by 10 cautions.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Give him a sponsor, man. He passed me on a restart and drove away from me. It was awesome.” – Ryan Blaney on his battle for the lead with Darrell Wallace Jr. at the start of the final stage.
WHAT’S NEXT: OneMain Financial 200 at Dover International Speedway at 1 p.m. ET on June 2 on Fox Sports 1.
Despite crash, Elliott Sadler maintains lead in Xfinity points standings after Charlotte.
By Nate Ryan
(Jerry Markland/Getty Images)
Despite finishing 35th because of a late crash, Elliott Sadler maintained his Xfinity Series points lead Saturday after the Hisense 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Sadler remained six points ahead of JR Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier. Teammate William Byron is ranked third.
With Allgaier and Ryan Reed qualified for the playoffs via victories, provisional playoff spots based off points currently belong to Sadler, Byron, Daniel Hemric, Darrell Wallace Jr., Brennan Poole, Matt Tifft, Michael Annett, Blake Koch, Cole Custer and Dakoda Armstrong.
Sadler remained six points ahead of JR Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier. Teammate William Byron is ranked third.
With Allgaier and Ryan Reed qualified for the playoffs via victories, provisional playoff spots based off points currently belong to Sadler, Byron, Daniel Hemric, Darrell Wallace Jr., Brennan Poole, Matt Tifft, Michael Annett, Blake Koch, Cole Custer and Dakoda Armstrong.
Click here for the Xfinity points standings after Charlotte.
"INDIANAPOLIS 500": Takuma Sato wins Indianapolis 500.
By Nick Bromberg
(Getty Images)
A driver with Formula 1 experience made it to victory lane in the 2017 Indianapolis 500. And it wasn’t Fernando Alonso.
Takuma Sato passed three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves with five laps to go to win Sunday’s race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It’s the second-straight win for Andretti Autosport and the team’s third in four years.
Castroneves made a daring pass of Sato with seven laps to go on the outside entering turn 3 but Sato got him back entering turn 1 less than two laps later.
It’s the second win of Sato’s IndyCar career and his first since 2013. He made 90 starts in Formula 1 from 2002-2008 before joining the IndyCar Series in 2010. Coincidentally, the only top-three finish of his Formula 1 career came in the 2004 Indianapolis Grand Prix on the speedway’s road course.
Castroneves finished second while rookie Ed Jones finished third.
Honda cars dominated the race, especially the ones of Andretti. But the engine manufacturer’s speed came at a cost. Andretti’s Ryan Hunter-Reay had an engine failure and so did the Chip Ganassi Racing Honda of Charlie Kimball.
And then the engine malaise hit two-time Formula 1 champion and Andretti driver Alonso with 21 laps to go. Alonso, who might have had the fastest car while it was fully functioning, was running in the top 10 when his engine died on the frontstretch.
After starting on the second row, Sato ran up front all day. He even brushed the inside frontstretch wall attempting an inside pass earlier in the race too.
A win for Castroneves would have made him the fourth driver to win four Indianapolis 500s. Since his last win in 2009 he’s finished in the top 10 six times.
Polesitter Scott Dixon crashed out of the race early in a terrifying incident with Jay
Howard. After Howard’s car slid into the wall it came down the track into Dixon’s path. The impact with Howard catapulted Dixon’s car into the air and into the inside wall. Thankfully, both drivers were able to get out of the cars and walk away.The wreck between Dixon and Howard came in the first half of the race. The second half was plagued by cautions thanks to multiple crashes and debris from cars making contact with each other on restarts. The biggest crash came on the race’s penultimate restart when contact between James Davison and Oriol Servia triggered an incident that also included Josef Newgarden, Will Power and James Hinchcliffe.
The race’s 35 lead changes was down from the 54 lead changes the 2016 race featured. But Sunday’s race had 15 different leaders, the most in Indy 500 history.
Alonso’s Indy 500 dream ends in all-too-familar Honda engine failure.
By Luke Smith
(Photo/Getty Images)
From a story that started six weeks ago when he shocked the racing world by announcing his entry to the 101st Indianapolis 500, Fernando Alonso’s dream of winning the Greatest Spectacle in Racing came to an all-too-familiar end when he was sidelined by an engine failure late on.
Two-time Formula 1 champion Alonso had been a force at the front of the pack throughout the first half of the race and even looked capable of taking a famous victory at the Brickyard, only for his engine to give up on the main straight and his hopes to go up in smoke.
Given his Indy 500 entry was put into motion as a way to ease his gripes with McLaren’s F1 struggles with ailing engine partner Honda, for it to end in such fashion weighs heavy with irony and, for Alonso, disappointment.
Thrown into a rolling IndyCar race start for the first, Alonso made a slow getaway on the opening lap to lose four positions and sit ninth, only to then pick his way back through the order with some fine overtakes on the likes of Will Power and JR Hildebrand.
A swift first pit stop of 8.2 seconds from the McLaren-Honda-Andretti crew lifted Alonso to third after the opening cycle, with the Spaniard then putting down the hammer to take the lead of the race from Alexander Rossi on Lap 37.
Alonso and Rossi spent the next 15 laps drafting, swapping the lead back and forth in a bid to save fuel, with the McLaren man sitting as race leader when the red flag was thrown for the crash between Scott Dixon and Jay Howard on Lap 52.
Alonso shuffled back to fourth before the next caution was shown following Conor Daly’s crash, and the Spaniard continued to sit in the top five despite being frustrated by former F1 colleague Max Chilton’s bold defense at one point.
Running second behind Andretti teammates Ryan Hunter-Reay and Rossi, Alonso was able to battle his way back through to the lead on the restart with 70 laps to go following Buddy Lazier’s shunt.
Honda’s engine concerns were justified when smoke began to seep from the rear of Hunter-Reay’s car, sparking another caution on Lap 138. While it did rule out one of Alonso’s win rivals, it was one less bullet in the gun for Andretti at the front.
Alonso made his penultimate stop under the caution, dropping him to ninth behind the drivers that opted to stay out. Just a single lap followed when Ed Carpenter’s front wing broke, leaving debris on track, but there was enough time for Alonso to fall back to 12th ahead of the sixth caution.
The loss of position also cost Alonso his net advantage over the field. Now on the same strategy as Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan and Oriol Servia – all of whom ran ahead – Alonso had ground to make up heading towards the final round of pit stops.
Alonso’s final visit to pit road was sparked by another caution called for a Honda engine failure, this time leaving Charlie Kimball on the sidelines. The majority of the pack came in, leaving the field with a straight sprint to the flag. Sat ninth for the restart, Alonso had to mount a charge with 30 laps to go on the restart.
Having passed James Davison early on the restart, Alonso picked up another spot with a brave move around the outside of Kanaan with 24 laps to go, giving him P7.
As Alonso continued to push, he became the third Honda driver to suffer an engine failure as he came towards the start/finish with 21 laps remaining, his car grinding to a halt.
“I felt the noise, the engine, the friction, I backed off and saw the smoke. It’s a shame. We deserved to at least finish today,” Alonso told ESPN.
“The whole day was a very nice experience from the very beginning, from the presentation, and I think the performance was good.
“We led the race for a couple of laps. We led at the red flag. It’s been a very nice surprise to come here with these names, the best of oval racing, and be able to be competitive.
“This one stings. But I feel competitive. If I come back, I come back with something I know, and it would be easier the second time. It’s been a really good time.
“Thanks to INDYCAR, Indianapolis and the fans for one of the best experiences of my career.”
SOCCER: Fire midfielder Dax McCarty named to U.S. national team roster.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The Chicago Fire are one of the hottest teams in Major League Soccer and Dax McCarty has been rewarded with a spot on the U.S. national team ahead of the squad's World Cup qualifiers.
McCarty will join the U.S. as part of a 27-player roster for a friendly and a pair of 2018 World Cup qualifiers in June.
Things start with a friendly against Venezuela June 3 at Rio Tinto Stadium, the home of Real Salt Lake. Five days later is the first qualifier, which will take place at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo., against Trinidad and Tobago. The U.S. will conclude the stretch of games June 11 at Mexico in the famous Estadio Azteca.
McCarty was also a part of the roster for the last two World Cup qualifiers, but did not play in either game. He would likely miss two Fire games, June 4 at Orlando and June 10 against Atlanta.
McCarty has already joined the team in Denver.
U.S. MNT Roster By Position (Club):
GOALKEEPERS (4): Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge/BEL), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (11): DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin/GER), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City/ENG), Timmy Chandler (Eintracht Frankfurt/GER), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca/MEX), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna/MEX), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United/ENG), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana/MEX), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund/GER)
FORWARDS (4): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Bobby Wood (Hamburg/GER)
UPDATE: USMNT roster announced for pair of World Cup qualifiers.
By Kyle Bonn
McCarty will join the U.S. as part of a 27-player roster for a friendly and a pair of 2018 World Cup qualifiers in June.
Things start with a friendly against Venezuela June 3 at Rio Tinto Stadium, the home of Real Salt Lake. Five days later is the first qualifier, which will take place at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo., against Trinidad and Tobago. The U.S. will conclude the stretch of games June 11 at Mexico in the famous Estadio Azteca.
McCarty was also a part of the roster for the last two World Cup qualifiers, but did not play in either game. He would likely miss two Fire games, June 4 at Orlando and June 10 against Atlanta.
McCarty has already joined the team in Denver.
U.S. MNT Roster By Position (Club):
GOALKEEPERS (4): Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge/BEL), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (11): DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin/GER), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City/ENG), Timmy Chandler (Eintracht Frankfurt/GER), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca/MEX), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna/MEX), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United/ENG), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana/MEX), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund/GER)
FORWARDS (4): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Bobby Wood (Hamburg/GER)
UPDATE: USMNT roster announced for pair of World Cup qualifiers.
By Kyle Bonn
(Photo/Getty Images)
The regulars are all aboard as Bruce Arena has announced a mostly full-strength roster for the World Cup qualifiers against Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago.
The only true regular missing from the 27-man list is midfielder Jermaine Jones, who is recovering from a knee injury suffered back in early May.
Leading the line are Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey up front, with Jordan Morris and Bobby Wood alongside. Fabian Johnson, Michael Bradley, and Christian Pulisic headline the midfield, along with Alejandro Bedoya and Darlington Nagbe. Kellyn Acosta is called up as a like-for-like replacement for Jermaine Jones.
Along the back, Geoff Cameron is available for selection after navigating a few injuries this past season. John Brooks is back as well after his muscle tear suffered in late April. DeAndre Yedlin is back as well after missing the last pair of qualifiers with an injury and winning the Championship with Newcastle. Fulham’s Tim Ream is called in after showing improvement all season at the club level. Jorge Villafana returns at the thin left-back position, as is DaMarcus Beasley, who is listed as a midfielder.
In goal, Brad Guzan, Tim Howard, and Nick Rimando present an experienced trio, also supported by 21-year-old Ethan Horvath.
The US takes on Venezuela in a friendly on June 3rd in a warm-up to the pair of qualifiers. First, they’ll host Trinidad & Tobago in Denver on June 8th. Then, on just a three day turnaround, they head to the Azteca to play Mexico.
After earning four points in the last international break, the United States sits in 4th position in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying. The top three teams advance automatically to the 2018 World Cup, while the 4th placed team can qualify via a two-legged playoff against a team from the Asian confederation.
GKs: Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFs: DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Timmy Chandler (Eintracht Frankfurt), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Tim Ream (Fulham), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City).
MIDs: Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund)
FWDs: Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Bobby Wood (Hamburg).
Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea: Gunners win FA Cup in dramatic fashion.
By Joe Prince-Wright
(Photo/Getty Images)
Arsenal won the 2016-17 FA Cup after beating London rivals Chelsea in a dramatic Wembley final on Saturday.
The Gunners took the lead controversially through Alexis Sanchez and had numerous chances to extend their lead in the first half.
Chelsea were reduced to 10 men late in the second half with Victor Moses shown a second yellow card, but Diego Costa equalized just when they appeared down and out. Moments later Aaron Ramsey popped up to head home the winner and despite late chances for both teams the Gunners held on for victory.
Arsenal have now won the FA Cup in three of the past four season, with the north London club now winning a record 13 FA Cups and manager Arsene Wenger has now secured his seventh FA Cup, the most by any manager in history.
Arsenal got off to the perfect start, albeit in controversial fashion, as the ball broke to Sanchez it appeared to hit his hand but the Chilean raced through and barged past Aaron Ramsey to smash home a low shot. Ramsey was clearly in an offside position as the linesman flagged but referee Anthony Taylor overruled the decision and the goal stood. 1-0 to the Arsenal.
At the other end the ball broke kindly to Diego Costa but three Arsenal defenders charged in to block his shot.
Arsenal then missed a host of chances to doubled their lead as Mesut Ozil beat Thibaut Courtois but Gary Cahill hooked off the line, then Danny Welbeck hit the post with a header and the follow up from Ramsey bounced off his chest and hit the post.
Chelsea had a great chance as a long ball forward found Costa who beat Rob Holding and raced into the box but David Opsina saved bravely to keep Arsenal ahead.
The Gunners then went agonizingly close once again before half time as Welbeck’s shot from close range was blocked by Courtois and then as the ball rolled towards the goal Cahill was again on hand to clear. Pedro blazed a chance over the bar for Chelsea before half time but Arsenal led and were incredibly unlucky not to be further in front.
In the second half Chelsea, as expected, came flying out of the traps. N'Golo Kante had an effort saved, then Per Mertesacker made a fine tackle on Costa before Opsina saved superbly from Moses.
Pedro flashed a shot wide and Chelsea kept pouring forward as they became increasingly susceptible on the break as Sanchez found Hector Bellerin brilliantly but Courtois caught his poor cross.
Another huge moment of controversy arrived with just over 20 minutes to go as Moses went down in the box after being closed down by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and referee Taylor decided to book the Chelsea man for simulation. That was Moses’ second yellow of the game and Chelsea were down to 10-men.
Just when it looked like Chelsea had no hope, Willian clipped a hopeful ball into the box which Costa chested down and his shot into the ground took a slight deflection off Mertesacker and in. 1-1. Game on.
Less than three minutes later the Gunners were back in front as substitute Olivier Giroud, who had been on the pitch for a matter of moments, clipped in a delightful cross which Ramsey headed in to make it 2-1 and sent the Arsenal fans wild.
Bellerin raced clear late on but his low shot across goal squirmed inches wide, then Opsina made a wonderful save from Costa and Ozil hit the post, however none of that mattered as Arsenal held on to win their third FA Cup in four years and end Chelsea’s hopes of securing the double.
Serie A roundup: Roma pips Napoli for 2nd, Lazio falls.
By Kyle Bonn
(Photo/Associated Press)
Francesco Totti’s legendary career came to a close in fitting fashion as Roma scored a last-minute winner to secure 2nd place in the Serie A table.
On the final day of the season, Napoli’s win at Sampdoria moved them momentarily into second, but Roma snatched the spot back as Diego Perotti scored in the 90th minute to beat Genoa 3-2. Totti had come on as a 54th minute substitute.
The win saw Roma end the season on 87 points, one above Napoli’s 86. That puts Roma into the Champions League group stage, while the third-place finish for Napoli places them in next season’s Champions League playoff round. They finish the season with a dominating 4-2 win over Sampdoria that saw four different Napoli goalscorers find the back of the net.
Below the Champions League battle, Atalanta held onto its fabulous fourth-place finish as Lazio fell 3-1 at Crotone. With Lazio already down 2-1 midway through the first half, Angolan defender Bastos received a second yellow card. Down to 10 men, Lazio still controlled the majority of possession but saw themselves outshot, only able to pop off three shots on target. The loss has no significant bearing, as both Atalanta and Lazio qualify for the Europa League group stage, while AC Milan seven points adrift in sixth makes the Europa League third qualifying round.
AC Milan finishes the season a point above rivals Inter despite a 2-1 final-day loss to Cagliari. The game was tied 1-1 down the stretch, but Gabriel Paletta was sent off with 15 minutes remaining, and Fabio Pisacane scored three minutes deep into stoppage time to give Cagliari the win.
Inter, meanwhile, finished the year on a high note as they hammered Udinese 5-2, most notably on a brace from Eder. Ivan Perisic and Marcelo Brozovic also scored in the win, while the fifth came on a late own goal. Inter finished the year on 62 points, five less than last season’s 67 which was good enough for fourth place.
Elsewhere, Fiorentina finished a disappointing season with a disappointing 2-2 home draw with last-placed Pescara, while Palermo beat Empoli 2-1 and five goalscorers helped Torino pound Sassuolo 5-2.
Celtic secures trophy treble, ends Scottish season unbeaten.
Associated Press
(Photo/Jeff Holmes/PA via AP)
Celtic completed a trophy treble in Scottish soccer and finished the domestic season undefeated after beating Aberdeen 2-1 in the Scottish Cup final thanks to an injury-time goal on Saturday.
Midfielder Tom Rogic scored from an acute angle in the second minute of stoppage time at Hampden Park to ensure Celtic added the cup to the Scottish Premiership and the Scottish League Cup.
Brendan Rodgers became the third manager, after Jock Stein (1967, 1969) and Martin O’Neill (2001), to lead Celtic to a treble of domestic titles.
Celtic hasn’t lost any of its 47 games across in the league and both cups, and is the first team to go through the whole of a Scottish domestic season unbeaten.
Midfielder Tom Rogic scored from an acute angle in the second minute of stoppage time at Hampden Park to ensure Celtic added the cup to the Scottish Premiership and the Scottish League Cup.
Brendan Rodgers became the third manager, after Jock Stein (1967, 1969) and Martin O’Neill (2001), to lead Celtic to a treble of domestic titles.
Celtic hasn’t lost any of its 47 games across in the league and both cups, and is the first team to go through the whole of a Scottish domestic season unbeaten.
NCAAFB: SEC commissioner Greg Sankey still not a fan of early signing period.
By Kevin McGuire
(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
The SEC will gather in Destin, Florida this week for the annual spring meetings. This will be the first time the conference has come together since the adoption of an early signing period in college football, which is something that has not been well-received by some in the SEC. Among the dissenters in the early signing period conversation has been SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, who says he is still no fan of the new recruiting calendar.
“I still don’t think that’s best,” Sankey said in an interview with the Associated Press last week.
“I think the early signing date has an impact on high school football,” Sankey said. “I think moving the recruiting calendar has an impact on high school football. I think we all have to be concerned about football and its strength and health at every level. Whether it’s a minority voice or a singular voice, I think those are important issues to consider.”
The stance by some around the SEC against the idea of the early signing period is notably different compared to just a few years ago. At the spring meetings in 2014, the SEC football coaches voted unanimously in favor of an early signing period starting on the Monday after Thanksgiving. Former SEC commissioner Mike Slive, however, expressed his preference to keep the only signing day in February.
As far as the voice coming from the commissioner’s office in the SEC is concerned, the narrative has not changed following the changing of the guard.
College football world will watch as SEC reviews graduate transfer rules at spring meetings.
By Kevin McGuire
(Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images)
Among a handful of items on the agenda for this week’s SEC spring meetings will be a review and discussion about the league’s graduate transfer rules. Specifically, the SEC is expected to address the current restrictions on accepting players as graduate transfers if a previous graduate transfer fails to meet that school’s academic requirements.
“This will be the first meaningful conversation that we’ve had since the proliferation of graduate transfers has happened nationally,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said to the Associated Press. ”I expect our membership to have a pretty meaningful conversation about the right perspective on graduate transfers entering the SEC from outside and then the topic of inter-conference transfers.”
Sankey has promised the topic of graduate transfer rules will be reviewed at the SEC spring meetings, and it will be a bit overdue. Better later than never, right?
Like the early signing period, this is a topic the SEC has found themselves standing in the minority crowd. The SEC has had a complicated relationship to graduate transfers since the NCAA opened the door for graduate transfers in 2006. The conference banned all graduate transfers in 2011 after Ole Miss had added former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli as a graduate transfer. The Masoli transfer was one scrutinized by the NCAA and critics before officially being cleared following an appeal. In 2014, the ban was lifted, but with provisions in place to ensure SEC schools were not adding graduate transfers with no intention of pursuing a graduate degree.
One person who may be watching this development this week with great interest is likely former Notre Dame quarterback Malik Zaire. Zaire is suspected to be down to deciding whether to transfer to Florida or Texas, and he has already pushed back his decision seemingly to wait and see if the Gators will be an actual option. For that to happen, the SEC will have to amend its graduate transfer policy or allow Florida an exemption.
Florida is unable to add a graduate transfer like Zaire because two previous graduate transfers (former Georgia Tech linebacker Anthony Harrell and former Fordham offensive lineman Mason Halter) failed to meet the academic requirements after transferring to Florida. That put Florida on a three-year ban from adding any graduate transfers through 2018.
But if the SEC is the one lagging behind the competition when it comes to its graduate transfer policies, why would the college football world be watching? That’s easy. If the SEC amends its graduate transfer policies, then makes the conference that already typically dominates in talent acquisition through recruiting has a chance to become even stronger and more desirable. Graduate transfers who may be blocked from enrolling at an SEC school and have been forced to evaluate other options in the Big 12 or Big Ten and so on, could have a chance to transfer to the SEC. For example, Florida could add Zaire to their roster, which leaves Texas hoping Tom Herman really works his QB magic in Austin.
There is a ripple effect that could potentially play out, even in a conference that is in need of catching up in this particular issue. That’s how important the decisions made in the SEC could be for the entire sport.
Lane Kiffin reportedly bringing Jim Harbaugh and Tennessee coaches to work FAU summer camp.
By Bryan Fischer
“This will be the first meaningful conversation that we’ve had since the proliferation of graduate transfers has happened nationally,” SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said to the Associated Press. ”I expect our membership to have a pretty meaningful conversation about the right perspective on graduate transfers entering the SEC from outside and then the topic of inter-conference transfers.”
Sankey has promised the topic of graduate transfer rules will be reviewed at the SEC spring meetings, and it will be a bit overdue. Better later than never, right?
Like the early signing period, this is a topic the SEC has found themselves standing in the minority crowd. The SEC has had a complicated relationship to graduate transfers since the NCAA opened the door for graduate transfers in 2006. The conference banned all graduate transfers in 2011 after Ole Miss had added former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli as a graduate transfer. The Masoli transfer was one scrutinized by the NCAA and critics before officially being cleared following an appeal. In 2014, the ban was lifted, but with provisions in place to ensure SEC schools were not adding graduate transfers with no intention of pursuing a graduate degree.
One person who may be watching this development this week with great interest is likely former Notre Dame quarterback Malik Zaire. Zaire is suspected to be down to deciding whether to transfer to Florida or Texas, and he has already pushed back his decision seemingly to wait and see if the Gators will be an actual option. For that to happen, the SEC will have to amend its graduate transfer policy or allow Florida an exemption.
Florida is unable to add a graduate transfer like Zaire because two previous graduate transfers (former Georgia Tech linebacker Anthony Harrell and former Fordham offensive lineman Mason Halter) failed to meet the academic requirements after transferring to Florida. That put Florida on a three-year ban from adding any graduate transfers through 2018.
But if the SEC is the one lagging behind the competition when it comes to its graduate transfer policies, why would the college football world be watching? That’s easy. If the SEC amends its graduate transfer policies, then makes the conference that already typically dominates in talent acquisition through recruiting has a chance to become even stronger and more desirable. Graduate transfers who may be blocked from enrolling at an SEC school and have been forced to evaluate other options in the Big 12 or Big Ten and so on, could have a chance to transfer to the SEC. For example, Florida could add Zaire to their roster, which leaves Texas hoping Tom Herman really works his QB magic in Austin.
There is a ripple effect that could potentially play out, even in a conference that is in need of catching up in this particular issue. That’s how important the decisions made in the SEC could be for the entire sport.
Lane Kiffin reportedly bringing Jim Harbaugh and Tennessee coaches to work FAU summer camp.
By Bryan Fischer
(Photo/Getty Images)
The calendar is just about ready to flip over to June and with that date change comes time to kick off plenty of summer camps for high school recruits around the country.
While all eyes will be on major outings such as USC’s annual Rising Stars Camp or Florida’s Friday Night Lights, there may be a smaller school’s camp that will draw just as much attention. The one in question? Well of course it would be Lane Kiffin’s first summer camp at Florida Atlantic.
While the draw of Kiffin alone is enough to elicit some higher than normal interest, the list of coaches tagging along for the Owls’ June 5th camp is even more eyebrow-raising than that of the hosts. Namely that includes Jim Harbaugh (and the rest of the Michigan staff per the Sun-Sentinel) along with a few familiar faces from the Tennessee staff, among others.
Yes, that’s right, Kiffin’s old employer is all set to buddy up with the ex-Vols coach down in Boca according to a report from FAUOwlAccess.com.
Given recent limits put on satellite camps by the NCAA, it certainly makes plenty of sense for schools like Michigan and Tennessee to send their staffs to work camps at places like FAU given the latter’s close proximity to so many top recruits. Likewise, it’s pretty understandable to see Kiffin bring in some even bigger names to his first summer camp in order to draw attention to the program he took over in the offseason.
Still, it should be more than a little interesting for many fans in the Volunteer State to see a few Tennessee coaches working alongside the man many blame for their program’s slide in recent years. It’s been several years (and coaching stops) since Kiffin left Knoxville so perhaps next month we’ll find out if time really does heal all wounds.
To the surprise of nobody though, FAU hasn’t even played a game under their new head coach and the Owls are already making waves and finding plenty of time in the national spotlight.
While all eyes will be on major outings such as USC’s annual Rising Stars Camp or Florida’s Friday Night Lights, there may be a smaller school’s camp that will draw just as much attention. The one in question? Well of course it would be Lane Kiffin’s first summer camp at Florida Atlantic.
While the draw of Kiffin alone is enough to elicit some higher than normal interest, the list of coaches tagging along for the Owls’ June 5th camp is even more eyebrow-raising than that of the hosts. Namely that includes Jim Harbaugh (and the rest of the Michigan staff per the Sun-Sentinel) along with a few familiar faces from the Tennessee staff, among others.
Yes, that’s right, Kiffin’s old employer is all set to buddy up with the ex-Vols coach down in Boca according to a report from FAUOwlAccess.com.
Given recent limits put on satellite camps by the NCAA, it certainly makes plenty of sense for schools like Michigan and Tennessee to send their staffs to work camps at places like FAU given the latter’s close proximity to so many top recruits. Likewise, it’s pretty understandable to see Kiffin bring in some even bigger names to his first summer camp in order to draw attention to the program he took over in the offseason.
Still, it should be more than a little interesting for many fans in the Volunteer State to see a few Tennessee coaches working alongside the man many blame for their program’s slide in recent years. It’s been several years (and coaching stops) since Kiffin left Knoxville so perhaps next month we’ll find out if time really does heal all wounds.
To the surprise of nobody though, FAU hasn’t even played a game under their new head coach and the Owls are already making waves and finding plenty of time in the national spotlight.
NCAABKB: Illinois Basketball Roster for 2017-2018.
By Muhammad Ameen Patel
Current Roster:
Point Guards
Based on the current roster, I expect point guard duties to be split evenly between rising sophomore Tejon Lucas and incoming freshman Trent Frazier. Lucas has already developed some chemistry with returning players as he was starting near the end of last season, however Frazier seems to have high-upside and potential to really help push the tempo in Underwood’s fast-paced offense.
Shooting Guards & Small Forward
The starting shooting guard & small forward position will be incoming freshman Mark Smith and graduate transfer Mark Alstork. I expect Frazier to get some minutes at shooting guard as well. Rising junior Aaron Jordan and incoming freshman DaMonte Williams will provide depth at the wing positions. Rising sophomore Kipper Nichols could get minutes at his more natural small forward position if Illinois was to acquire another power forward/center.
Power Forward & Center
The power forward & center positions will be led by Kipper Nichols, Leron Black, and Michael Finke. The only one of those three who is tall enough to play the center position would be Michael Finke. Further, Kipper Nichols is a more natural small forward, but because the roster is lacking size, he will be asked to play the power forward position predominantly.
Conclusion
There is an expectation that Underwood will be adding one or two more players still for the 2017-2018 season. Since Michael Finke is the only player taller than 6’7” on the roster, it is expected Illinois will continue to recruit someone who is 6’8”+ and can play power forward/center. An addition or two to the roster can occur through late 2017 signees or a graduate transfers. With four scholarships available, It is also possible to have a transfer player come in and have them sit out a season due to NCAA rules. I expect Underwood to continue to add players for the 2017-2018 season throughout the summer and then begin to gain commitments for the 2018 recruiting class come fall.
Adieu, Angie! No. 1 Kerber out of French Open in 1st round.
By Howard Fendrich
(Photo/Reuters/Pascal Rossignol)
A French Open already missing Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova is now without No. 1-ranked Angelique Kerber, too, lending even more of a feeling that the women's championship is anyone's to win.
Kerber has not been playing at all like one of the best at what she does, and on Sunday she became the first woman seeded No. 1 to lose in the French Open's first round in the professional era.
Kerber, who replaced Williams atop the WTA rankings this month, was gone from Roland Garros by lunchtime on Day 1, putting up little resistance while being beaten 6-2, 6-2 by 40th-ranked Ekaterina Makarova of Russia. It's the latest in a string of early exits for Kerber, who reached her first three major finals in 2016.
''This year, I mean, the expectations are much bigger, especially in the big tournaments and the Grand Slams. And the expectations are also, from me, really big, of course, because I know what I can do, what I did last year,'' Kerber said. ''But right now, I think that I have to find myself again.''
Other significant results as the year's second Grand Slam tournament began: Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova played - and won - her first match since being stabbed by an intruder at her home in December; Venus Williams began her 20th appearance at Roland Garros with a victory; and Rio Olympics gold medalist Monica Puig eliminated 2015 U.S. Open runner-up Roberta Vinci 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.
Makarova's take when informed of the history made by her victory?
''Well,'' she said, ''that's unbelievable.''
Although maybe not, considering how Kerber has fared lately.
Her Australian Open and U.S. Open titles, plus Wimbledon runner-up finish, seem a bit in the distance now: The German has a 19-13 record this season, losing 4 of her past 6 matches.
''If you are losing, it's always tough to (enjoy) the game,'' Kerber said. ''I mean, I know in the last years I had always up and downs and right now, of course, I'm ... down.''
Add in that 23-time major champion Serena Williams is pregnant and won't play until next season, and five-time major champion Sharapova was refused a wild card in Paris as she returns from a 15-month doping suspension, and the rest of the field might have more reason than usual to believe in the chance to claim a Grand Slam trophy.
''That's the beauty of our sport right now: Anybody can win and everybody's really good,'' said Shelby Rogers, an American who beat Marina Erakovic of New Zealand 7-6 (4), 6-4 on a steamy Sunday when the temperature touched 90 degrees (32 Celsius).
''I like playing at this time for women's tennis. It's kind of - I don't want to say 'open,' because everyone's really good, but - very competitive,'' Rogers said, ''and there's not like that dominating force.''
Kerber's strokes were off against Makarova, who has reached two major semifinals but never been past the fourth round in Paris. Makarova pointed out she never had played a singles match in the tournament's main stadium (she was the 2013 French Open women's doubles champion).
Kerber had only four winners and 12 unforced errors in the first set and didn't even earn a break point until the last game, which Makarova won, anyway. Makarova then raced to a 3-0 lead in the second set.
Kerber showed some signs of getting into the match, smacking a cross-court forehand passing winner, leaning forward and yelling as she got within 3-1. But that was about it. In the last game, Kerber held seven break points but Makarova fought off each one despite, she said, ''fighting with my emotion.''
In the preceding match on Court Philippe Chatrier, Kvitova's eyes welled with tears at the end of her 6-3, 6-2 win against 86th-ranked Julia Boserup of the United States.
''I think it doesn't really matter how I played,'' but I won, Kvitova said.
She had surgery on her left hand - the one she plays tennis with - after the knife attack in the Czech Republic.
Only in recent days did Kvitova decide to enter the French Open.
''I saw her in the locker room a couple of days ago,'' said Bethanie Mattek-Sands, an American qualifier who will face Kvitova in the second round after beating Evgeniya Rodina 7-5, 6-2. ''Gave her a big hug. It's great to see her come back.''
Preakness winner Cloud Computing to skip Belmont Stakes.
Preakness winner Cloud Computing to skip Belmont Stakes.
Associated Press
Preakness winner Cloud Computing won’t run in the Belmont Stakes, leaving the final leg of the Triple Crown without the winners of the first two races.
Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming also won’t run in the 1+-mile Belmont on June 10 in New York.
Trainer Chad Brown confirmed Sunday that Cloud Computing would skip the Belmont, which had been expected.
Brown will still have a starter in the $1.5 million race: Twisted Tom, who won the Federico Tesio on April 22. Because Twisted Tom wasn’t already nominated to the Triple Crown series, it will cost $75,000 to get him in the race. He will try to become the third gelding in history to win.
Other confirmed Belmont runners are Classic Empire, Japan-based Epicharis, J Boys Echo, Lookin At Lee, Senior Investment, Tapwrit and True Timber. Irap, Meantime and Multiplier are considered likely.
Also possible are Conquest Mo Money, Gormley, Hollywood Handsome, Irish War Cry and Patch.
The Belmont field is limited to 16 horses.
Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming also won’t run in the 1+-mile Belmont on June 10 in New York.
Trainer Chad Brown confirmed Sunday that Cloud Computing would skip the Belmont, which had been expected.
Brown will still have a starter in the $1.5 million race: Twisted Tom, who won the Federico Tesio on April 22. Because Twisted Tom wasn’t already nominated to the Triple Crown series, it will cost $75,000 to get him in the race. He will try to become the third gelding in history to win.
Other confirmed Belmont runners are Classic Empire, Japan-based Epicharis, J Boys Echo, Lookin At Lee, Senior Investment, Tapwrit and True Timber. Irap, Meantime and Multiplier are considered likely.
Also possible are Conquest Mo Money, Gormley, Hollywood Handsome, Irish War Cry and Patch.
The Belmont field is limited to 16 horses.
Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming to skip Belmont Stakes.
Associated Press
Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming will skip the Belmont Stakes next month after finishing eighth in the Preakness.
Trainer Todd Pletcher says the 3-year-old colt will be pointed toward either the $600,000 Jim Dandy at Saratoga on July 29 or the $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth on July 30, according to the Daily Racing Form.
Trainer Chad Brown says he will wait until after the Memorial Day weekend to announce where Preakness winner Cloud Computing will run next. However, it appears unlikely he will run in the Belmont.
The Belmont field is limited to 16 starters. Besides Classic Empire, who came in second at the Preakness Stakes, other horses expected to run are Conquest Mo Money, Japan-based Epicharis, Gormley, Irap, J Boys Echo, Lookin At Lee, Meantime, Multiple, Patch, Senior Investment, Tapwrit, True Timber and Twisted Tom. Other possibilities are Irish War Cry and Hollywood Handsome.
Associated Press
Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming will skip the Belmont Stakes next month after finishing eighth in the Preakness.
Trainer Todd Pletcher says the 3-year-old colt will be pointed toward either the $600,000 Jim Dandy at Saratoga on July 29 or the $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth on July 30, according to the Daily Racing Form.
Trainer Chad Brown says he will wait until after the Memorial Day weekend to announce where Preakness winner Cloud Computing will run next. However, it appears unlikely he will run in the Belmont.
The Belmont field is limited to 16 starters. Besides Classic Empire, who came in second at the Preakness Stakes, other horses expected to run are Conquest Mo Money, Japan-based Epicharis, Gormley, Irap, J Boys Echo, Lookin At Lee, Meantime, Multiple, Patch, Senior Investment, Tapwrit, True Timber and Twisted Tom. Other possibilities are Irish War Cry and Hollywood Handsome.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Monday, May 29, 2017
Memoriesofhistory.com
1916 - The New York Giants won their 17th consecutive road game.
1922 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that organized baseball was a sport, not subject to antitrust laws.
1962 - Buck (John) O'Neil became the first black coach in major league baseball when he accepted the job with the Chicago Cubs.
1965 - Ralph Boston set a world record in the broad jump at 27-feet, 4-3/4 inches, at a meet held in Modesto, CA.
1965 - Dick Allen (Philadelphia Phillies) hit a 529' home run out of Connie Mack Stadium.
1977 - A.J. Foyt won the Indianapolis 500 for the fourth time.
1977 - Sue Press became the first woman golfer to hit consecutive holes-in-one.
1984 - The Boston Red Sox retired #9 (Ted Williams) and #4 (Joe Cronin).
1985 - In Brussels, Belgium, at Heysel Stadium a concrete retaining wall collapsed and 39 people were crushed or trampled to death. More than 400 people were injured. The soccer event was the European Champion's Cup final.
1990 - Rickey Henderson stole his 893rd base. He broke Ty Cobb's record.
1992 - Tim Raines (Chicago White Sox) stole his 700th career base.
2001 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that disabled golfer Casey Martin could use a cart to ride in tournaments.
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