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"Sports Quote of the Day"
"You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win." ~ Zig Ziglar, Author, Salesman and Motivational Speaker
TRENDING: Bears announce training camp schedule. Bears announce training camp schedule. Bears Talk Podcast: How will the offensive line fare in 2017? (See the football section for Bears news and NFL updates).
TRENDING: TTYL, TVR: Blackhawks lose Trevor van Riemsdyk to Vegas Golden Knights in NHL expansion draft. 'Progressive skin disorder' will force will force Blackhawks' Marian Hossa to miss 2017-18 season. Blackhawks release 2017-18 season schedule. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates and NHL news).
TRENDING: Bulls trade All-Star Jimmy Butler to Timberwolves. After trading Jimmy Butler, Bulls select Arizona PF Lauri Markkanen. What the Bulls are getting in newly acquired Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn. (See the basketball section for Bulls news and NBA updates).
TRENDING: Cubs hit 3 HRs, crush Marlins behind Arrieta. Cubs planning to demote Kyle Schwarber to Triple-A Iowa and put Jason Heyward on DL. Cubs won’t look outside for leadoff hitter when they have Anthony Rizzo and pitching priorities. Jose Quintana turns in stellar outing as White Sox crush Twins in series finale. White Sox sign top two draft picks Gavin Sheets and Jake Burger. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
TRENDING: Spieth shoots 63, takes early Travelers lead. Garcia (66) two back at BMW International Open. Top 10 early favorites to win 2017 Open Championship. (See the golf section for PGA news and tournament updates).
TRENDING: NASCAR weekend racing schedule at Sonoma (Cup), Iowa (Trucks, Xfinity). If a surprise driver wins at Sonoma, the playoff fight could get wild. Former NASCAR racer Robby Gordon banned from racing in Australia. (See the NASCAR section for NASCAR news and racing updates).
TRENDING: NASCAR weekend racing schedule at Sonoma (Cup), Iowa (Trucks, Xfinity). If a surprise driver wins at Sonoma, the playoff fight could get wild. Former NASCAR racer Robby Gordon banned from racing in Australia. (See the NASCAR section for NASCAR news and racing updates).
TRENDING: Dax McCarty has 'fingers crossed' in hopes of playing in Gold Cup. Germany mulls letting China under-20s play league soccer. Portugal 1-0 Russia: Ronaldo goal helps Portugal edge Russia out. Mexico roll past New Zealand with second half surge. (See the soccer section for Fire news and worldwide soccer updates).
TRENDING: FOLLOW-UP: Hall of Fame denies Pete Rose’s request to stand for election. What's Your Take? UPDATED: 06/23/2017. (See the last article on this blog for What's Your Take? We look forward to hearing your thoughts on the Pete Rose Hall of Fame situation).
TRENDING: FOLLOW-UP: Hall of Fame denies Pete Rose’s request to stand for election. What's Your Take? UPDATED: 06/23/2017. (See the last article on this blog for What's Your Take? We look forward to hearing your thoughts on the Pete Rose Hall of Fame situation).
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Bears announce training camp schedule.
By Chris Boden
By Chris Boden
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The Bears released their official training camp schedule Thursday morning. After reporting to Olivet Nazarene on Wednesday, July 26, the first of ten practices open to the public will take place the following day. The Bears will be based out of Bourbonnais for the 16th straight season. Training camp will go through Sunday, Aug. 13 before the Bears break camp and finish the preseason in Lake Forest.
All practices are tentatively scheduled to start at various times during the 11 a.m. hour with the exception of Saturday, Aug. 13, which starts at 12:05 p.m. Those times are subject to change based on weather, and a varying set of schedules that John Fox and his coaching staff have set up, as they adjust to player and training staff preferences in hopes of reducing injuries.
Also, new this season, fans wanting to attend practices must order free tickets in advance through the Bears website. Fans will not be allowed in without a ticket, and the first 1,000 fans each day will be given various souvenirs. The practice campus will be open to the public with tickets from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Here is the full training camp schedule:
In this edition of the BearsTalk Podcast, JJ Stankevitz and Chris Boden discuss what should be a strength - the offensive line, and one member who has a lot on the line this season.
Listen to the full episode at this link.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? TTYL, TVR: Blackhawks lose Trevor van Riemsdyk to Vegas Golden Knights in NHL expansion draft.
By CSN Staff
By CSN Staff
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
As was expected, the Blackhawks lost defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk on Wednesday night, with the 25-year-old selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the NHL's expansion draft.
Last weekend, van Riemsdyk was among the players not protected by the Blackhawks ahead of the draft, sparking speculation that he'd be the one to join the new franchise in Nevada.
In three seasons with the Blackhawks, van Riemsdyk racked up 31 points. He played in 18 games during the team's last Stanley Cup season of 2014-15. He appeared in all 82 games during the 2015-16 campaign and played in 58 games last season.
Even with van Riemsdyk getting picked by Vegas, he might not end up playing there during that franchise's first season.
The other most likely candidate from the Blackhawks to be selected Wednesday — Vegas was required to take a player from each of the other 30 NHL teams — was center Marcus Kruegr. He was not selected, but reports after the Golden Knights' complete roster was announced indicated he could still be on the move out of Chicago.
The departure of van Riemsdyk, the potential departure of Kruger and the announcement that Marian Hossa will miss the entirety of the 2017-18 season adds plenty of wrinkles to the Blackhawks' annual offseason battle against the salary cap.
The NHL Draft starts Friday at the United Center, the next big offseason milestone for the Blackhawks.
'Progressive skin disorder' will force will force Blackhawks' Marian Hossa to miss 2017-18 season.
By Tracey Myers
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Marian Hossa has been the consummate pro throughout his career, a tremendous player who has helped the Blackhawks win three Stanley Cups since 2010. Now, the side effects of a medication used to treat a skin disorder will cost Hossa the 2017-18 season.
Hossa released a statement through the Blackhawks early Wednesday morning, stating that he will not be able to play hockey this season due to side effects he’s experienced in fighting a “progressive skin disorder.” Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report late Tuesday night that Hossa could be sidelined due to this.
Here is Hossa’s full statement:
“Over the course of the last few years, under the supervision of the Blackhawks medical staff, I have been privately undergoing treatment for a progressive skin disorder and the side effects of the medications involved to treat the disorder. Due to the severe side effects associated with those medications, playing hockey is not possible for me during the upcoming 2017-18 season. While I am disappointed that I will not be able to play, I have to consider the severity of my condition and how the treatments have impacted my life both on and off the ice.
The Chicago Blackhawks organization, including Rocky Wirtz, John McDonough and Stan Bowman, and my agent, Ritch Winter, have been very supportive throughout this entire process. I would also like to thank my teammates and the amazing Blackhawks fans for their understanding. With respect to the privacy of my family, I will not be commenting any further on my health.”
Dr. Michael Terry issued the following statement regarding Hossa.
“Marian has been dealing with the effects of a progressive skin disorder that is becoming more and more difficult to treat and control with conventional medications while he plays hockey. Because of the dramatic nature of the medications required and their decreasing effectiveness, we strongly support his decision not to play during the 2017-18 season. We feel in the most certain terms this is the appropriate approach for Marian in order to keep him functional and healthy in the short term and throughout his life.”
Stan Bowman and coach Joel Quenneville will address the media in Chicago on Thursday but Bowman also released a statement early Wednesday morning.
“The Chicago Blackhawks are in full support of Marian Hossa as he addresses his medical issues. This is extremely difficult for us because we all know the incredible person and player that Marian Hossa is — competitive, loyal and humble. He has played a major role in the success our franchise has experienced in recent years, which makes his departure from our lineup a significant loss. His teammates and coaches know he battled through some very tough physical difficulties but never complained or missed games despite the challenges he faced. The organization will continue to provide him every resource he needs to maintain his health.”
Hossa has four years remaining on his current contract with a cap hit of $5.275 million. According to CapFriendly, since Hossa is missing the upcoming season but is not retired, he can be placed on long-term injured reserve the day before the 2017-18 season begins. So on the financial side, the Blackhawks will save that cap space this season.
But considering what this news means to Hossa’s health and his career, the business side doesn’t mean too much right now. The Blackhawks may gain money but they lose a consummate professional, a tremendous two-way player who was coming off a rebound season.
When Hossa last addressed the Blackhawks media on April 22, he was asked about playing in the in the World Championships in May. Hossa said he talked with the Slovakian team’s representatives and said, “at this stage, I’ve been in eight world championships, four Olympics, World Cups, so let the young guys play. Right now, I need to rest some things in my body, but it’s better to allow the young players to play. I’m 38 years old, so it’s time for the young guys to step up.”
But, asked if he was calling it quits, Hossa said, “I’m not calling anything.” Now, at least for the immediate future, Hossa’s health will take him out of hockey.
Blackhawks release 2017-18 season schedule.
By Chicago Blackhawks Media Relations / chicagoblackhawks.com
(Photo/chicagoblackhawks.com)
In conjunction with the National Hockey League, the Chicago Blackhawks announced today their 2017-18 regular-season schedule. The organization's 90th regular season launches when the club faces the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday, October 5, at 7:30 p.m. at the United Center.
Nineteen of the team's 41 home contests will take place on weekends, including six Fridays, four Saturdays and nine Sundays. The Blackhawks two longest homestands of the season include six games (January 10-24) and five games (February 15-23). Chicago's longest road trip of the season is a six-game swing from December 21-January 3.
Click for the full schedule: View | Download (PDF) | Sync to Calendar
Under the NHL's current schedule format, the Blackhawks will play the other six teams within their division for a total of 26 games. Chicago will play four games each against Colorado, Dallas, Nashville and St. Louis (two home/two away), while playing five games each against Minnesota (three home/two away) and Winnipeg (two home/three away).
Chicago will play the remaining eight Western Conference teams three times each for a total of 24 games. The Blackhawks will host two games against Anaheim, Edmonton, Los Angeles and San Jose, while traveling to each of those cities for one contest. The team will play one home game against Arizona, Calgary, Vancouver and Vegas and will play two road contests against each of those clubs.
The Blackhawks will meet each Eastern Conference team once at home and once on the road for a total of 32 out-of-conference games.
For the 10th consecutive season, all 82 Chicago Blackhawks games will be televised in HD on CSN Chicago and WGN-TV, the official television broadcasting partners of the Blackhawks, with Pat Foley and Eddie Olczyk providing the call. Every game in 2017-18 can also be heard on Chicago's WGN Radio 720, with John Wiedeman and Troy Murray calling the action. The complete television broadcast schedule will be released at a later date.
Information about group tickets for Blackhawks pre- and regular-season games is available by calling (312) 455-7000. Tickets for single games will be available at a later date.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... Bulls trade All-Star Jimmy Butler to Timberwolves.
(Photo/USA TODAY)
After weeks and months of rumors and innuendo, the Bulls finally pulled the trigger on a trade involving Jimmy Butler, trading their franchise player to the Minnesota Timberwolves on draft night.
Butler and the Bulls’ 16th pick will be headed to Minnesota for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the seventh pick, according to sources. Butler will be reunited with former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, who is the head coach and president of basketball operations for the Timberwolves.
And the Bulls get to jump start their rebuilding process, apparently with young pieces to implement Fred Hoiberg’s system and a draft pick to come.
The Bulls have long been fond of Dunn, the Timberwolves’ first-round draft pick in 2016 who struggled in his rookie season, averaging 3.8 points and 2.4 assists after being the fifth pick in the 2016 draft.
LaVine was a two-time slam dunk champion before tearing his left ACL against the Pistons in February, and it will be months before he’s able to hit the floor. He was averaging 18.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists before his injury and was part of a young trio that included Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns.
The question will come as to why the Bulls had to throw in their first-round pick in a deep draft, but perhaps it was an indication of their wont to trade Butler, who made the All-NBA Third Team and repeatedly elevated his game in his six seasons as a Bull.
Butler’s name had been bandied about through the trade market last year at the draft and this year at the trade deadline, with the Bulls feeling like they could only get so good with Butler being the player he developed into combined with the direction the franchise was going in, focusing on youth over proven veterans.
It’s seemingly step one in a longer process for the Bulls but after being in basketball purgatory for the last two seasons, they’ve chosen a path and for that path to be traveled, it had to be without their three-time All-Star.
After trading Jimmy Butler, Bulls select Arizona PF Lauri Markkanen.
By Vincent Goodwill
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The Bulls entered their rebuilding phase on Thursday night after trading Jimmy Butler. And with the No. 7 pick they received in that deal, they selected Arizona power forward Lauri Markkanen.
Markkanen, a 7-footer from Finland, played one season for the Wildcats, averaging 15.6 points and 7.2 rebounds in 30.8 minutes per game. Markkanen was a sharpshooter, connecting on 42.3 percent of his 163 3-pointers.
His defense is a question mark but his pick-and-pop ability should fit in well in Fred Hoiberg's offense.
The Bulls also received shooting guard Zach LaVine and point guard Kris Dunn in the deal for Butler. The Bulls sent the No. 16 pick along with Butler. They still have the No. 38 overall pick in the second round.
Scouting report: What the Bulls are getting in newly acquired Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn.
By Mark Strotman
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The Bulls have entered their rebuilding phase, dealing Jimmy Butler to the Timberwolves for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the No. 7 pick, which became Arizona power forward Lauri Markkanen. Time will tell what Markkanen becomes as a stretch forward/center but he certainly was worthy of the selection. LaVine and Dunn had been with the Timberwolves since they were drafted, and give the Bulls two versatile options in a backcourt that will look far different than it did a year ago.
Here’s what the Bulls are getting in the two former Timberwolves guards:
LaVine, a two-time NBA Dunk Contest champion, was having a career year before he suffered a torn ACL on Feb. 3. Playing a bigger role in his second season under Thibodeau, LaVine averaged 18.9 points on 46 percent shooting and shot a respectable 39 percent from deep on 6.6 attempts per game, 16th most in the NBA.
LaVine is known for him thunderous dunks, but that athleticism allowed him to shoot nearly 64 percent at the rim last year, per basketball-reference. He’s a scorer first and foremost, topping 25 or more point 10 different times in those 47 games. He went for 40 points in a late December loss to the Kings. He also had five or more assists on eight different occasions, so he’s able to distribute the ball as well. He’s a true combo guard who should finally give Fred Hoiberg some backcourt flexibility.
The Bulls got a firsthand look at LaVine’s skill set in December when he went for 24 points, six rebounds and six assists in a win over the Bulls at the United Center. He shot 10-for-18 and made a few key shots over Dwyane Wade late to seal the game. It was part of a stellar 16-game stretch between November 23 and December 23 when LaVine averaged 23.6 points and 3.5 assists.
He flirted with 50/40/90, shooting 49 percent from the field, 40 percent from deep and 88 percent from the line. He did all this, of course, playing behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. While that gave LaVine more one-on-one situations as defenses dealt with his two budding star teammates, shots were hard to come by until LaVine asserted himself and worked him into a featured role in the offense.
LaVine had ACL surgery on February 14 and spoke about his recovery in late May, saying “everything is going well.” LaVine said at that time he was only allowed to run on an anti-gravity treadmill, and there’s still no timetable for his return to the court. A source told Insider Vincent Goodwill LaVine is “training softly.”
Dunn has plenty of work to do to show he can compete at the next level. Though he only played one season, his rookie campaign under Thibodeau was one to forget. The No. 5 pick in the draft averaged 3.8 points and 2.4 assists in 17.1 minutes per game. He played in 78 games behind Ricky Rubio, although he did lose some playing time to Tyus Jones late in the season.
Dunn’s shooting is his biggest weakness. In terms of true shooting percentage, which takes into account 3-point shots and free throws, Dunn was second-to-last in the NBA last year with a 43.2 percent mark. He shot just 38 percent from the floor, 29 percent from beyond the arc and 61 percent at the free-throw line.
For his season-long struggles he did look good in the second half of the year. After the All-Star break he improved his percentages to 40.4/33.3/77.8 and had a handful of impressive games. He had 11 points and seven assists against the Lakers and followed it the next night with a career-best 17 points against the Blazers. In the season finale he handed out 16 assists to go with 10 points, the first double-double of his career.
Where it’s clear he excels is taking care of the ball. His 1.1 turnovers were seventh fewest among point guard who averaged at least Dunn’s 17 minutes per game. He’s ready to facilitate, but he’ll need to score at a higher and more efficient clip to earn playing time.
Where both fit into the Bulls is a question for now. The Bulls have a decision to make with Rajon Rondo and whether to pick up his team option for next season. The Bulls traded for both Jerian Grant and Cameron Payne in the last calendar year, and Isaiah Canaan is under contract for another year. On the wing, LaVine will replace Butler and get as much run as he can handle. With only Denzel Valentine and Anthony Morrow available at shooting guard, LaVine is in line for a big role from Day 1. He’s also in the last year of his rookie contract so the Bulls will be looking to extend him sooner than later.
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: We do not understand or have a clue as to What Gar/Pax are doing. What is their objective? What is the plan? Please read next Friday's article, What's your take? The Bulls management isn't going to like it!!!
CUBS: Cubs hit 3 HRs, crush Marlins behind Arrieta.
LaVine, a two-time NBA Dunk Contest champion, was having a career year before he suffered a torn ACL on Feb. 3. Playing a bigger role in his second season under Thibodeau, LaVine averaged 18.9 points on 46 percent shooting and shot a respectable 39 percent from deep on 6.6 attempts per game, 16th most in the NBA.
LaVine is known for him thunderous dunks, but that athleticism allowed him to shoot nearly 64 percent at the rim last year, per basketball-reference. He’s a scorer first and foremost, topping 25 or more point 10 different times in those 47 games. He went for 40 points in a late December loss to the Kings. He also had five or more assists on eight different occasions, so he’s able to distribute the ball as well. He’s a true combo guard who should finally give Fred Hoiberg some backcourt flexibility.
The Bulls got a firsthand look at LaVine’s skill set in December when he went for 24 points, six rebounds and six assists in a win over the Bulls at the United Center. He shot 10-for-18 and made a few key shots over Dwyane Wade late to seal the game. It was part of a stellar 16-game stretch between November 23 and December 23 when LaVine averaged 23.6 points and 3.5 assists.
He flirted with 50/40/90, shooting 49 percent from the field, 40 percent from deep and 88 percent from the line. He did all this, of course, playing behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. While that gave LaVine more one-on-one situations as defenses dealt with his two budding star teammates, shots were hard to come by until LaVine asserted himself and worked him into a featured role in the offense.
LaVine had ACL surgery on February 14 and spoke about his recovery in late May, saying “everything is going well.” LaVine said at that time he was only allowed to run on an anti-gravity treadmill, and there’s still no timetable for his return to the court. A source told Insider Vincent Goodwill LaVine is “training softly.”
Dunn has plenty of work to do to show he can compete at the next level. Though he only played one season, his rookie campaign under Thibodeau was one to forget. The No. 5 pick in the draft averaged 3.8 points and 2.4 assists in 17.1 minutes per game. He played in 78 games behind Ricky Rubio, although he did lose some playing time to Tyus Jones late in the season.
Dunn’s shooting is his biggest weakness. In terms of true shooting percentage, which takes into account 3-point shots and free throws, Dunn was second-to-last in the NBA last year with a 43.2 percent mark. He shot just 38 percent from the floor, 29 percent from beyond the arc and 61 percent at the free-throw line.
For his season-long struggles he did look good in the second half of the year. After the All-Star break he improved his percentages to 40.4/33.3/77.8 and had a handful of impressive games. He had 11 points and seven assists against the Lakers and followed it the next night with a career-best 17 points against the Blazers. In the season finale he handed out 16 assists to go with 10 points, the first double-double of his career.
Where it’s clear he excels is taking care of the ball. His 1.1 turnovers were seventh fewest among point guard who averaged at least Dunn’s 17 minutes per game. He’s ready to facilitate, but he’ll need to score at a higher and more efficient clip to earn playing time.
Where both fit into the Bulls is a question for now. The Bulls have a decision to make with Rajon Rondo and whether to pick up his team option for next season. The Bulls traded for both Jerian Grant and Cameron Payne in the last calendar year, and Isaiah Canaan is under contract for another year. On the wing, LaVine will replace Butler and get as much run as he can handle. With only Denzel Valentine and Anthony Morrow available at shooting guard, LaVine is in line for a big role from Day 1. He’s also in the last year of his rookie contract so the Bulls will be looking to extend him sooner than later.
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: We do not understand or have a clue as to What Gar/Pax are doing. What is their objective? What is the plan? Please read next Friday's article, What's your take? The Bulls management isn't going to like it!!!
CUBS: Cubs hit 3 HRs, crush Marlins behind Arrieta.
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
"He drives in runs. He did that last year," Maddon said of Russell. "If you get guys on base, he's going to give you as good of an at-bat as anyone in that lineup."
Jake Arrieta worked seven innings, allowing one run on six hits with three strikeouts. Before his start, Arrieta shaved his head in advance of any humidity he might encounter in Miami. Profuse sweating gave him trouble gripping the ball in his last start at Pittsburgh.
"It was just time to take it down," he said. "It was time to take it down and minimize some sweat and let it roll. I've got a decent face, so it doesn't matter if you don't have any hair. It works out."
Russell and Ian Happ each had four hits, and the Cubs had production up and down the lineup in their 16-hit attack.
The only damage the Marlins mustered off Arrieta was Marcell Ozuna's home run to open the second inning. The no-doubt drive to left was the Miami left fielder's 20th of the season.
"It was pretty much a BP fastball, and he's a really good hitter," Arrieta said. "He was able to find the barrel and keep his hands inside and get the barrel of the bat through the zone."
The Cubs wore down Marlins starter Jeff Locke in the second inning, inducing 34 pitches from the Marlins' left-hander and scoring twice. Arrieta had an RBI infield single in the inning. And in the fourth, Bryant blasted his three-run homer on a 3-1 changeup from Locke, breaking open a four-run lead.
"He didn't look very sharp at all," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said of Locke, who allowed five runs in four innings. "It didn't look like his stuff was that good. Tonight, he pitched behind in the count. He's another guy who has to be able to get ahead in the count and be able to use his mix. But if he gets in predictable counts, he's going to get hit."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Two-out walk, homer: A four-pitch walk with two outs in the fourth inning proved a pivotal point. The Marlins were within 2-1, and they needed one more out to keep it a one-run game. But Locke walked Anthony Rizzo on four pitches, bringing up Bryant with two on and two outs. On a 3-1 count, Locke hung a changeup and Bryant belted a three-run homer, which Statcast™ projected as traveling 416 feet, with an exit velocity of 105.2 mph.
"It's just a constant struggle so far trying to finish off innings," Locke said. "That's been the No. 1 thing for me. Unfortunately, there's three outs to an inning, not just two. That's what we've had a real hard time with. You can't emphasize it any more. If there's a way just to go out there and get the third with no sweat, geez, we'd be getting it. That's where our hiccup has been right now. That needs to change."
Arrieta gets scoring rolling: The big offensive night for the Cubs started on a ground ball with an exit velocity of 73.6 mph and a hit probability of 10 percent. But Arrieta's grounder to the hole at short was well placed, and it went for an RBI infield single. Batting eighth with one out, Arrieta helped his cause, and he would pitch most of the night with a comfortable cushion.
"It seemed like it went the same way all night," Mattingly said. "Arrieta found the hole, the spot it can't get through, but you can't get an out. The next ball was not hard enough to get [a double play]."
"He's a good hitter. He's been a good hitter," Maddon said of Arrieta. "That was big, his infield base hit, [Mark] Zagunis with the ground ball [to score the second run of the inning]. Moving the baseball and not striking out -- that's something that has hurt us in the recent past in the last few years."
QUOTABLE
"A night like tonight where we pitch well and score 11 runs, it looks easy. But it's about consistency and trying to build off of a night like tonight. We've got the guys necessary to do so. So it's a matter of collectively as a group building off of a night like tonight." -- Arrieta
"When we get a big home run, 3-0 [count], from Ozo, you've got to try to keep the game where it is and put the team in position to stay in a game. It just shows how quickly tonight when one thing seems to fall through, myself, it can get out of hand pretty quickly. That's what happened." -- Locke, summing up the night
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Just 11 times in Marlins history has a hitter reached 20 homers before the All-Star break like Ozuna did on Thursday. Mike Lowell holds the franchise record with 28 in 2003.
Russell's and Happ's four-hit nights mark the first time since at least 1913 that the Cubs have had two players 23 or younger collect four or more hits in the same game.
INSTANT REPLAY
The Cubs won a replay challenge in the fifth inning, which resulted in Happ stealing the first base of his career. After singling, Happ took off and catcher J.T. Realmuto made a strong throw, and second baseman Dee Gordon made a swipe tag. But after a review of one minute and 17 seconds, the out call was overturned.
WHAT'S NEXT
Cubs: Chicago sends John Lackey (5-7, 4.98), who owns a 4.50 ERA in June, to the mound on Friday at 6:10 p.m. CT. The right-hander, who's coming off a win at Pittsburgh, took the loss the last time he faced the Marlins on June 7, surrendering five runs over six innings.
Marlins: Jose Urena, who pinch-ran and scored the tying run on a wild pitch on Wednesday in a win over the Nationals, makes the start on Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET against the Cubs at Marlins Park. The right-hander is 5-2 with a 3.64 ERA. He picked up a win this year over Chicago at Wrigley Field.
Shakeup: Cubs planning to demote Kyle Schwarber to Triple-A Iowa and put Jason Heyward on DL.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The Cubs are preparing for a major shakeup that would send struggling World Series hero Kyle Schwarber to Triple-A Iowa and put Gold Glove outfielder Jason Heyward on the disabled list.
Stuck in a 36-35 pattern but still only 1.5 games out of first place, the Cubs are expected to add outfielder Mark Zagunis and reliever Dylan Floro from Iowa before Thursday night's game at Marlins Park.
Schwarber will try to regain his confidence on a Triple-A level he almost skipped while skyrocketing through the farm system as the No. 4 overall pick in the 2014 draft. While still showing flashes of the power (12 homers) that made him a Wrigleyville favorite, his .171 batting average ranked last among qualified big-league hitters this season.
Unable to grip a bat, Heyward has been waiting for a nasty cut on his left hand to heal after trying to make a diving catch on Sunday in PNC Park's foul territory.
For a banged-up Cubs team, Heyward would join a World Series MVP (Ben Zobrist) and a Cy Young Award finalist (Kyle Hendricks) on the disabled list.
Jake Arrieta getting close and message to Cubs is clear: ‘We can’t expect outside help to get us out of this rut’.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Kyle Schwarber’s offensive spiral had gone on for so long and gotten so deep that the shock value of sending a potential franchise player to Triple-A quickly wore off once the news broke on Twitter.
The Cubs are in survival mode, not a position to play mind tricks, beginning an 11-games-in-11-days road trip with World Series MVP Ben Zobrist (sore left wrist), Gold Glove outfielder Jason Heyward (cut left hand) and Cy Young Award finalist Kyle Hendricks (right hand tendinitis) all on the disabled list.
The Cubs didn’t rebook Schwarber to Iowa so he can be converted into a pitcher. An aging, stressed rotation remains a much bigger concern than the boom-and-bust periods with a young offense.
All these circumstances made a vintage Jake Arrieta performance during Thursday night’s 11-1 win at Marlins Park so important. Whether or not the Cubs make a blockbuster trade for a pitcher, there are still five-plus weeks left until buyers and sellers will feel the urgency of a deadline.
“If something presents itself that makes sense, we’ll certainly jump on it,” general manager Jed Hoyer said. “But to us, the answers are in that clubhouse. We can’t expect outside help to get us out of this rut. The answers are in there, and we believe in those guys.
“Will we be active? No question. But that’s not going to happen for a while and there’s a lot of games to be played between now and July 31.”
On a night where he felt “low energy,” rocked a new buzz cut and covered his right thumb with Dermabond to treat a cut/blister issue that can be traced back to spring training, Arrieta needed only 82 pitches to get through seven innings, completely shutting down a strong Miami lineup except for a Marcell Ozuna home run.
Arrieta’s inconsistencies (7-5, 4.36 ERA) have mirrored a 37-35 team, but he didn’t hesitate when asked where he is at now in a season that has so far not lived up to his Cy Young/All-Star expectations.
“I’m close,” Arrieta said. “I’m really close.”
The Cubs are still the defending champs. Kris Bryant unleashed an MVP swing when he launched a three-run homer into the left-center field patio deck. Blocking out a messy personal situation, All-Star shortstop Addison Russell almost hit for the cycle (no triple) the day after getting questions about his divorce and a Major League Baseball investigation. This year’s Schwarber – rookie Ian Happ – also went 4-for-5 and gave the team another jolt.
“It’s tough to see Schwarber go down,” Arrieta said. “We know that he’s going to be one of our mainstays in the lineup eventually. He’s hit a rough patch and it happens to the best of us.
“I’ve been there. I talked to him yesterday a little bit about just keeping his head down and going to work and getting his at-bats and trying to find that comfort level. He’ll be back soon. He’s a tremendous hitter who’s going through some struggles and he’s going to right the ship. There’s no doubt about that. He’s too good of a hitter.
“A night like tonight where we pitch well and we score 11 runs, it looks easy. But it’s about consistency and trying to build off of a night like tonight. We’ve got the guys necessary to do so. We’re very capable of doing that.”
Especially if Arrieta gets hot again and shows how he can lift an entire team.
“To get Jake pitching that kind of quality game again is going to be a big boon to us,” manager Joe Maddon said.
Cubs sign first-round pick Brendon Little to $2.2 million deal.
By Patrick Mooney
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
A team source confirmed the slightly below-slot ($2.3733 million) deal reported Wednesday by Jim Callis, MLB.com’s prospects guru. The Cubs are betting on Little’s age-20 potential, left-handed look, mid-90s fastball and what they perceive to be one of the best curveballs in this year’s draft.
Little threw only four innings as a freshman at the University of North Carolina, opened eyes in the Cape Cod League and then decided to go the junior-college route. It paid off this season at the State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota, where Little averaged 14.03 strikeouts per nine innings as a sophomore, putting up a 2.53 ERA in 15 starts while walking only 33 batters in 85-plus innings.
Alex Lange – the other headliner from this draft class selected three spots after Little at No. 30 – has been occupied pitching for Louisiana State University in the College World Series.
Cubs won’t look outside for leadoff hitter when they have Anthony Rizzo and pitching priorities.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
This conventional idea of a leadoff hitter is an endangered species, a rare commodity like the young, top-of-the-rotation starter the Cubs will prioritize at the July 31 trade deadline.
“You never rule out anything,” general manager Jed Hoyer said. “If it makes us better, then we’ll talk about doing it. But pitching’s the priority, now and this winter. We know that’s organizationally where we need to go.”
Plus, the Cubs already have the greatest leadoff hitter of all-time. Just ask Anthony Rizzo, who’s clearly enjoying an experiment that manager Joe Maddon doesn’t plan to end anytime soon.
Rizzo’s leadoff streak of getting on base in seven straight games — home run, home run, walk, single, double, single, home run — ended Wednesday afternoon when he flied out to right field against Miguel Diaz during a 3-2 loss to the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field. No other Cub since 1946 had done that except for Richie Ashburn near the end of his Hall of Fame career in 1960.
“Honestly, I’m just keeping an open mind,” Maddon said. “I did not have a set number of days to do it. Just watch it and let it play out. Just see where it goes eventually.
“A lot of it’s dependent upon other guys surfacing. If somebody all of a sudden gets hot – and you think you can do something differently – then I might. But otherwise, I’m just going to leave it alone for a bit.”
In anointing Kyle Schwarber as his leadoff guy in spring training, Maddon pointed to the Geek Department projections and the intimidation factor in seeing a hitter who can do damage with the first pitch. Schwarber — who’s hitting .174 and doesn’t have the same presence that made him a World Series legend — didn’t last in that role.
But the game is trending away from batting average and stolen bases. There really aren’t many prototypical leadoff talents like Lou Brock and Tim Raines available. That’s why the St. Louis Cardinals gave Dexter Fowler a five-year, $82.5 million contract.
Rizzo is a good leadoff hitter because he is a good hitter. This snapped a career-high 14-game hitting streak, and he had already been heating up long before Maddon’s desperation move, posting a .445 on-base percentage in his previous 39 games since May 7.
“I’ve always thought that there are certain guys that have the leadoff mentality,” Maddon said. “Some guys just don’t like to be the first guy up there. They want to see other guys hit first. They want that information coming back to the dugout.
“It’s just a mindset. It’s somebody that obviously has the tools, meaning they probably see some pitches. They get on base a lot. They’re willing to accept their walks. And it’s nice when they also have some power, too. But I think, more than anything, it’s mindset. And having said that, Anthony likes to do this.”
WHITE SOX: Jose Quintana turns in stellar outing as White Sox crush Twins in series finale.
(Photo/AP)
Guess who’s back?
Jose Quintana turned in the kind of game on early Thursday evening that reminds you why he has been one of baseball’s top pitchers the past few seasons. Working with a swing-and-miss curveball/changeup combo, Quintana waited out a near five-hour delay to produce a stellar outing.
Quintana struck out nine batters in 6 2/3 scoreless innings as the White Sox avoided a sweep with a 9-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins in front of 27,684 at Target Field. Jose Abreu, Todd Frazier and Matt Davidson all homered for the White Sox, who finished with 18 hits and a 3-3 mark on their road trip. Even though it’s clear his crisp stuff makes all the difference, Quintana joked that the real key was another heaping of early run support. The White Sox have produced nine first-inning runs in Quintana’s last two starts.
“Really good,” Quintana said of the run support. “So shhhhhh.”
Quintana lately has been equally as good as his offense.
After making several baby steps in his past few starts, Quintana ran wild in the series finale against a Twins team that he has always struggled against. While he worked at a deliberate pace, Quintana never got into trouble facing a team against whom he was 6-8 with a 4.28 ERA in his career.
The left-hander used a nasty, biting curveball and a changeup that dropped off the edge along with sharp fastball command to keep Minnesota hitters off balance.
“Just commanding the strike zone, early strikes and being able to use his breaking ball and changeup a little more effectively,” manager Rick Renteria said. “He finished some hitters with some fastballs underneath that had a little life. I thought that was effective because he used some of his secondary pitches to get them off the fastball, and he was able to sneak a ball in there here and there to do what he needed to do. It was very good.”
Quintana struck out one batter in each of the first five innings before he picked up steam. He fanned two each in the sixth and seventh innings and is averaging a career best 8.97 strikeouts per nine innings this season. He said he gained confidence with his changeup as the game went along, especially against Miguel Sano, whom he struck out three times.
Quintana said he’s recently worked to get better extension on his changeup. He threw it 15 times on Thursday for nine strikes, including three whiffs, according to BrooksBaseball.net.
The 2016 All-Star pitcher never allowed a man past second base in a 113-pitch effort and allowed five hits and walked none.
Quintana has a 2.25 ERA in his last four starts as he’s allowed 19 hits and six earned runs in 24 innings. He has walked eight and struck out 24.
“With the changeup it’s the same release point with fastball and changeup,” Quintana said. “Today I had a lot of confidence in my changeup, especially late. … The heavy hitters like Sano and the other guys, it worked really good. So I’m happy.”
The offense provided Quintana with another early round of unbridled joy in the first inning with five more runs. Six days after they produced an early four-spot for Quintana against Toronto, the White Sox topped themselves.
Showing no signs of malaise after a 290-minute rain delay, Abreu and Frazier each blasted two-run homers off Minnesota’s Nik Turley to put the White Sox up 4-0. With two outs and Turley already gone, Adam Engel singled off reliever Buddy Boshers to make it 5-0 in the first.
Though he’s relatively unfamiliar with big innings, Quintana apparently has already developed a routine.
“He’s moving around,” Frazier said. “He’s got to stay loose. He’s one of those guys who can’t stay still for the whole game. When it’s long innings like that he goes in the cage and stays loose and comes back out and he’s the first one out there ready to go.”
The White Sox weren’t ready to quit after their big first. They added on as Kevan Smith and Engel each singled in runs in the third to give Quintana a seven-run cushion. Engel finished with four hits and Smith tied a career high with three.
Davidson increased the lead to 8-0 in the fifth inning with a 427-foot blast off Craig Breslow, his 17th homer. Davidson also singled, doubled and walked. The White Sox scored once more in the seventh when Tim Anderson (two hits) doubled in a run off Breslow.
After they produced 22 runs of support for Quintana in his first 13 starts this season, the White Sox have scored 20 in his last two.
“Let’s keep doing the same,” Quintana said. “It’s really good. Early support is really good.”
The White Sox might say the same about having their top pitcher back at his best.
White Sox sign top two draft picks Gavin Sheets and Jake Burger.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The White Sox signed second-round draft pick and Wake Forest-product Gavin Sheets on Wednesday afternoon.
The Demon Deacons baseball program’s Twitter account released a photo of Sheets wearing a White Sox hat and posing with a signed contract. The White Sox could make the news about Sheets, who hit 20 home runs for Wake Forest this season, official as soon as Thursday.
Sheets reportedly received an overslot deal worth $2 million, according to BaseballAmerica.com. He was selected No. 49 overall in the 2017 amateur draft, which has a slot value of $1,392,200.
The club also officially announced earlier Wednesday that it has signed first-round pick Jake Burger to a $3.7 million deal.
Burger and Sheets will both first head to the team’s complex in Glendale, Ariz., but ultimately are expected to start their pro careers at Single-A Kannapolis.
“We got two we were really excited about,” amateur scouting director Nick Hostetler said last week. “Both of them more walks than strikeouts. Both of them home runs in the 20s. Both of them with advanced hitting approaches. We were very excited. We were sweating a few picks. We weren’t sure he would get to us. Contact with the agent finally got him to us, and we were very happy about it.”
White Sox will give Tim Anderson freedom to make mistakes.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/AP)
The White Sox have no plans for Tim Anderson to take the same path as the Cubs’ Kyle Schwarber.
An hour before the Cubs announced their shocking news Thursday
that the World Series hero is headed to Triple-A, White Sox manager Rick Renteria said he thought Anderson’s struggles could be addressed in the majors.
Playing in his first full season, Anderson has had an up and down campaign. He leads the majors with 16 errors committed and has struggled at the plate, hitting .256/.284/.374 with six home runs and 19 RBIs in 265 plate appearances. The roller coaster ride has led to some aggravation for Anderson, who slammed his batting helmet in frustration during Wednesday’s loss. Anderson said the helmet slam was the topic of a postgame conversation he had with Renteria on Wednesday.
“I feel like this year has been the toughest year I’ve dealt with since I’ve started playing baseball,” Anderson said. “I have to keep playing, lock in and control it.
“(Slamming the helmet) doesn’t make you feel better. It’s just a little frustration. You get mad at times, but you just try to control it and keep playing.”
Anderson, who turns 24 on Friday, has had a lot to manage in 2017.
It’s his first full season in the majors. He signed a contract extension in March. Since May he’s been dealing with the loss of his close friend, who was shot to death. Throw in the on-field struggles and Renteria realizes there’s a lot with which Anderson had to deal.
“You just make the sure the perspective they’re having at any particular moment is the correct perspective,” Renteria said. “You try to make sure that the underlying frustrations he might be having, that he’s able to separate it.
“You have ups and down, they’re not always going to be in the best place mentally at times. But for the most part you address it, you talk about it because you understand it, you’ve lived all those things and you just try to give him a little insight and keep it going in the right direction.”
Golf: I got a club for that..... Spieth shoots 63, takes early Travelers lead.
By Will Gray
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
A lack of course knowledge proved to be no problem for Jordan Spieth at the Travelers Championship. Here's how things look after the opening round at TPC River Highlands, where Spieth birdied his final hole to take a one-shot lead in his tournament debut:
Leaderboard: Jordan Spieth (-7), Brett Stegmaier (-6), Johnson Wagner (-6), Graham DeLaet (-5), Troy Merritt (-5), Padraig Harrington (-4), Xander Schauffele (-4)
What it means: Spieth was one of several big names who added this event to his schedule this year, and after struggling on the greens last week at Erin Hills he had it all clicking Thursday in Cromwell. Spieth's score was by far the low round of the afternoon wave, it equaled his low round of the year and gave him an early lead as he looks to win for the second time this year.
Round of the day: Spieth birdied five of his first eight holes and made eight birdies in total, matching the lowest opening-round score of his PGA Tour career. Spieth built on the momentum from his final-round 69 at Erin Hills with a number of accurate approach shots, hitting 15 of 18 greens while matching the record for low score by a player in his TPC River Highlands debut.
Best of the rest: Stegmaier had missed 12 of his last 15 cuts, but he helped set the early mark with a 6-under 64 in the morning wave. Stegmaier started on the back nine and rolled in seven birdies over his first 12 holes, including five in a six-hole stretch from Nos. 13-18 before dropping his only shot of the day on No. 9.
Biggest disappointment: Justin Thomas set a U.S. Open scoring record last week, but he's unlikely to contend again after opening with a 3-over 73 at TPC River Highlands. Thomas made only one birdie and stumbled to three straight bogeys on Nos. 16-18 while carding a score that was 10 shots higher than his record-setting score in the third round at Erin Hills.
Main storyline heading into Friday: While big names like Rory McIlroy (67) remain on the fringe of contention, the player to watch is Spieth as he looks to follow up his low opener. The putter has seemed to hold him back in recent weeks, but if the birdie attempts are dropping as they were during his opening round, this could turn into a week of Spieth against the field.
Shot of the day: Spieth already had a share of the lead when he flagged a wedge from 136 yards on No. 18, spinning the ball to within 5 feet that led to an easy birdie and gave him sole possession of the overnight lead.
Quote of the day: "We played the practice round and the pro-am and really thought this was a good track for us. Sometimes you just fall into that." - Spieth
Garcia (66) two back at BMW International Open.
By Associated Press
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
Wade Ormsby (64) took the overnight lead from Thomas Detry (65), and Joost Luiten and Thorbjorn Olesen (66) were tied for third with Garcia.
''I felt like I played quite well, not spectacular, but very consistent,'' Garcia said.
Garcia opened with six birdies while Ormsby, who arrived at the Eichenried course on the back of three missed cuts, returned to fine form with eight.
''I had a fast start out there, turned in 30 on the front nine, and then kind of kept it going on the back,'' the Australian said.
Detry had a bogey on the first hole but recovered with six birdies and an eagle.
Defending champion Henrik Stenson (67) was among 12 players tied for sixth.
Top 10 early favorites to win 2017 Open Championship.
Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Michael Dixon | Last updated 6/22/17
The Claret Jug, the Open Championship trophy, in front of the clubhouse at Royal Birkdale Golf Club, the host course for the 2017 Open Championship during a Media day for the 146th Open Championship on April 24, 2017 in Southport, England. (Photo/Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
With the U.S. Open in the books, the major championship focus now shifts across the pond to the 2017 Open Championship. For the tenth time, Royal Birkdale will host golf’s oldest major.
So, what can we expect? Well, it’s difficult to gauge any expectations off the past British Opens contested at Birkdale. The last two have been won with fairly modest scores. In 1998, Mark O’Meara defeated Brian Watts in a playoff after both men completed 72 holes at even par. In 2008, Padraig Harrington finished three-over par, but won going away. On the other hand, the previous seven champions at Birkdale were all won with scores of four-under or better. Lee Trevino won at 14-under in 1971.
As is so often the case, the conditions will tell us a lot about what kind of Open Championship this will be.
So, who are the favorites?
Dustin Johnson is the world’s top-ranked player. Is he one of the players that we should be taking seriously? What about No. 2 ranked player Hideki Matsuyama, or No. 4 Jason Day?
What kind of chances to Sergio Garcia and Brooks Koepka have at adding a second major in 2017? Can Henrik Stenson repeat? Can Justin Rose win at the same venue where he introduced himself to the world in 1998? Is Rickie Fowler ready to finally get the major championship monkey off of his back?
The following are our top-10 favorites for the 2017 Open Championship.
Dustin Johnson
So, what can we expect? Well, it’s difficult to gauge any expectations off the past British Opens contested at Birkdale. The last two have been won with fairly modest scores. In 1998, Mark O’Meara defeated Brian Watts in a playoff after both men completed 72 holes at even par. In 2008, Padraig Harrington finished three-over par, but won going away. On the other hand, the previous seven champions at Birkdale were all won with scores of four-under or better. Lee Trevino won at 14-under in 1971.
As is so often the case, the conditions will tell us a lot about what kind of Open Championship this will be.
So, who are the favorites?
Dustin Johnson is the world’s top-ranked player. Is he one of the players that we should be taking seriously? What about No. 2 ranked player Hideki Matsuyama, or No. 4 Jason Day?
What kind of chances to Sergio Garcia and Brooks Koepka have at adding a second major in 2017? Can Henrik Stenson repeat? Can Justin Rose win at the same venue where he introduced himself to the world in 1998? Is Rickie Fowler ready to finally get the major championship monkey off of his back?
The following are our top-10 favorites for the 2017 Open Championship.
Dustin Johnson
Just to be clear, we’re not going to be looking exclusively at the top-ranked players in the world here. Still, it’s hard to start anywhere else.
Johnson is the No. 1-ranked player in the world for a reason. He’s won five times since claiming the 2016 U.S. Open and earned two points for the American team at the 2016 Ryder Cup.
Now, there is a retort to that. All but one of Johnson’s career wins came in the United States, with the other coming in Mexico. While Johnson has shown that he can win on many different kind of courses in North America, none of them really resemble golf in the United Kingdom.
That’s true. But while Johnson hasn’t won in the United Kingdom, he’s not exactly a novice there, either.
DJ has made the cut in seven straight British Opens and has a tie for 14th (2010), tie for 12th (2014), two ties for ninth (2012 and 2016) as well as a tie for second (2011) to his name. So, Johnson’s game does travel overseas.
Justin Rose
The 2017 Open Championship will be the 146th contested in the history of this great event. So, we have to be careful to avoid being too hyperbolic.
With that said, in 1998, Rose delivered one of the most iconic moments in the history of the Open Championship — especially for a non winner. The final shot he took there produced a deafening roar.
Johnson is the No. 1-ranked player in the world for a reason. He’s won five times since claiming the 2016 U.S. Open and earned two points for the American team at the 2016 Ryder Cup.
Now, there is a retort to that. All but one of Johnson’s career wins came in the United States, with the other coming in Mexico. While Johnson has shown that he can win on many different kind of courses in North America, none of them really resemble golf in the United Kingdom.
That’s true. But while Johnson hasn’t won in the United Kingdom, he’s not exactly a novice there, either.
DJ has made the cut in seven straight British Opens and has a tie for 14th (2010), tie for 12th (2014), two ties for ninth (2012 and 2016) as well as a tie for second (2011) to his name. So, Johnson’s game does travel overseas.
Justin Rose
The 2017 Open Championship will be the 146th contested in the history of this great event. So, we have to be careful to avoid being too hyperbolic.
With that said, in 1998, Rose delivered one of the most iconic moments in the history of the Open Championship — especially for a non winner. The final shot he took there produced a deafening roar.
Conveniently enough, that occurred at Birkdale. But Rose was far from a one-hit wonder that week. As a 17-year-old amateur, Rose was a serious contender in 1998, finishing only two strokes out of the O’Meara/Watts playoff.
Rose has been one of the best, most consistent players in the world for a long time. He won the gold medal at the Rio Olympics and narrowly lost the Masters to Sergio Garcia in April. He has to be considered a serious threat any time he steps on the course for a big event.
In 1998, the world was introduced to Rose at Birkdale. It would be certainly be fitting for him to win his first national championship at the same venue 19 years later.
Brooks Koepka
We know that golfers winning the U.S. Open and the British Open in the same year is quite rare. It hasn’t been done since Tiger Woods in 2000 and before that, Tom Watson in 1982.
Rose has been one of the best, most consistent players in the world for a long time. He won the gold medal at the Rio Olympics and narrowly lost the Masters to Sergio Garcia in April. He has to be considered a serious threat any time he steps on the course for a big event.
In 1998, the world was introduced to Rose at Birkdale. It would be certainly be fitting for him to win his first national championship at the same venue 19 years later.
Brooks Koepka
We know that golfers winning the U.S. Open and the British Open in the same year is quite rare. It hasn’t been done since Tiger Woods in 2000 and before that, Tom Watson in 1982.
So, why should Kopeka be taken seriously?
First off, Koepka’s history at the Open Championship is limited, but strong. He’s played in three British Opens, made the cut in his most recent two and finished tied for 10th in 2015.
Additionally, while Koepka is American, he’s played extensively in Europe. In fact, he has four Challenge Tour wins in Europe, with one of those in the United Kingdom. So, he’s not only familiar with that style of play but has shown himself capable of winning in those settings.
Lastly, we can’t completely glaze over what winning the U.S. Open could do for a player mentally. Koepka had always had obvious talent, but his results have been scattered. He had four wins on the Challenge Tour, but prior to Erin Hills, had only one win each on the PGA Tour, European Tour and Japan Golf Tour. Now, he knows that his game is good enough to win the big one.
We’ve never doubted Koepka’s talent, only whether he could put that talent together on a consistent basis to win golf’s biggest events. Now, that’s not such a concern.
So, while it would be rare, don’t sleep on Koepka pulling the “Open” double in 2017.
Paul Casey
At one glance, it looks like Casey just struggles at his national championship. He has two top-10 finishes but has only finished better than tied for 27th on one other occasion.
Still, we have a few reasons to be optimistic.
The first is simple. He’s playing great golf right now.
Another is that one of those top-10 finishes came in 2008 at Royal Birkdale when Casey finished in a tie for seventh place. It was well off the lead but that doesn’t change the fact that at the Open Championship’s most recent trip to this venue, he was one of the best players.
Lastly, we know that while Casey was tied for the lead at the U.S. Open, that didn’t turn out so well.
Still, he finished tied for 10th at the 2016 PGA Championship and solo sixth at the Masters. The 26th place finish at the U.S. Open wasn’t great, but he was a factor for most of the week. Casey has been playing some of his best golf at the major championships.
That bodes well for a weekend at Birkdale.
Sergio Garcia
Sergio is having a nice year for himself. He of course won the Masters and also claimed the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in February.
In addition to his 2017 success, Garcia will have experience on his side. He will be one of the few serious contenders in the field to have played at both of the most recent Open Championships held at Birkdale. He didn’t contend in either, but he did make the cut both times. There’s no telling how much the added experience will help him throughout the week.
Also, while Sergio has never contended at Birkdale, the same cannot be said at British Opens in general. Garcia has notched 10 finishes in the top 10. Half of those were top fives. That’s a stretch that covers plenty of low scoring Opens, as well as high scoring events.
He knows how to compete there. Not unlike Koepka, Sergio now knows that he can win a major.
How much will that will help him as he attempts to go from frequent Open Championship contender to Champion Golfer of the Year? We don’t know. But it’s certainly not going to hurt.
Rickie Fowler
We’ll start with a trivia question. Who has the lowest scoring average on tour throughout 2017?
If you guessed Fowler, give yourself a pat on the back.
In addition to his 2017 success, Garcia will have experience on his side. He will be one of the few serious contenders in the field to have played at both of the most recent Open Championships held at Birkdale. He didn’t contend in either, but he did make the cut both times. There’s no telling how much the added experience will help him throughout the week.
Also, while Sergio has never contended at Birkdale, the same cannot be said at British Opens in general. Garcia has notched 10 finishes in the top 10. Half of those were top fives. That’s a stretch that covers plenty of low scoring Opens, as well as high scoring events.
He knows how to compete there. Not unlike Koepka, Sergio now knows that he can win a major.
How much will that will help him as he attempts to go from frequent Open Championship contender to Champion Golfer of the Year? We don’t know. But it’s certainly not going to hurt.
Rickie Fowler
We’ll start with a trivia question. Who has the lowest scoring average on tour throughout 2017?
If you guessed Fowler, give yourself a pat on the back.
There are a few different ways to look at Fowler’s career in majors.
One is that he’s been disappointing. He’s had several chances to close the door but hasn’t done it. Heck, he finished in the top five at all four majors in 2014. In 2017, he entered the final round of the Masters only one back but finished eight shots out of the playoff between Garcia and Rose. At the U.S. Open, meanwhile, he started the final round two strokes back but finished six shots behind Koepka.
That certainly points to a guy who struggles to close the deal.
On the other hand, we can’t ignore that he’s been there so many times. Do you know who else had a problem closing the deal at majors? Jason Day before the 2015 PGA Championship. Dustin Johnson before the 2016 U.S. Open. Henrik Stenson before the 2016 British Open. Garcia before the 2017 Masters.
That’s not such a concern for any of them anymore. Fowler certainly has the game to follow in their footsteps and win his first major.
Henrik Stenson
We know that Stenson can contend at the Open Championship. He’s finished tied for third or better four times at this major. We also know that he can compete at Birkdale. One of those strong finishes was a tie for third in 2008. So, the venue isn’t going to catch him by surprise.
Additionally, we know from 2016 that Stenson can win the British Open.
He faced consistent pressure from a red hot Phil Mickelson and was simply better last year. Not many people can say that they got the best of Phil Mickelson when Lefty was on his game. Stenson can. There’s really no way to measure how much something like that helps.
Additionally, Stenson has played good golf over the last year. No, he hasn’t won since the 2016 Open Championship. Still, Stenson has 10 top-10 finishes worldwide since his victory at Royal Troon a year ago. That doesn’t even include his silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
We haven’t seen a repeat winner at the British Open since Padraig Harrington in 2007 and 2008. We’re not predicting Stenson to repeat, but it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise.
Jason Day
When he won THE PLAYERS Championship in 2016, Day was the best player in the world and seemed poised to go on a long, sustained run. It hasn’t exactly worked out that way. Day hasn’t won since then, and a few other golfers have played well over that stretch, knocking Day down to No. 4 in the world.
But to not think of Day as one of the favorites would be a dramatic overreaction.
Day has six top-10 finishes since the win at THE PLAYERS. He may not be winning, but he’s not far behind the winners, either. If you put yourself in contention enough, the wins will follow, especially when you’re as talented as Day.
Something else that appears to work against Day is a relative lack of success in the Open Championship. He has at least three top-10 finishes at the Masters, U.S. Open and PGA Championship. But at the British Open, a tie for fourth in 2015 is Day’s only top-10 finish.
Still, he’s played six Open Championships and made the cut each time. With the exceptions of Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy (whose injuries in 2017 keep him off of this list), no golfer can really hang with Day when he’s firing on all cylinders.
We know that Day can get himself to the weekend at the British Open. If a golfer as talented as Day is playing the weekend, he’s got a chance to win.
Brian Harman
But to not think of Day as one of the favorites would be a dramatic overreaction.
Day has six top-10 finishes since the win at THE PLAYERS. He may not be winning, but he’s not far behind the winners, either. If you put yourself in contention enough, the wins will follow, especially when you’re as talented as Day.
Something else that appears to work against Day is a relative lack of success in the Open Championship. He has at least three top-10 finishes at the Masters, U.S. Open and PGA Championship. But at the British Open, a tie for fourth in 2015 is Day’s only top-10 finish.
Still, he’s played six Open Championships and made the cut each time. With the exceptions of Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy (whose injuries in 2017 keep him off of this list), no golfer can really hang with Day when he’s firing on all cylinders.
We know that Day can get himself to the weekend at the British Open. If a golfer as talented as Day is playing the weekend, he’s got a chance to win.
Brian Harman
Harman’s complete lack of major championship success ahead of the 2017 U.S. Open is pretty well known. More often than not, when Harman does compete in a major, it will go a lot like his final round against Koepka did. He’ll hang in nicely and make some nice shots, but ultimately, his lack of firepower will keep him from getting over that last hump.
We say more often than not because three of the four majors are contested in the United States and American major championship venues tend to favor the long hitters. But obviously, the British Open is not contested in the United States.
Make no mistake, being a long hitter isn’t a detriment in the U.K. — it’s just not such an advantage. The Open Championship tends to require more overall shot-making as opposed to brute force. With true fairway bunkers, long tee shots are only advantageous to golfers who place them in the right spots.
This is where Harman can thrive. We saw how good he was with his overall shot making at Erin Hills. The guy was a wizard with his fairway woods, hitting low approach shots into greens. That will be an asset at the Open Championship.
Hideki Matsuyama
While we’re on the subject of shot makers, we have to give some love to Matsuyama.
We say more often than not because three of the four majors are contested in the United States and American major championship venues tend to favor the long hitters. But obviously, the British Open is not contested in the United States.
Make no mistake, being a long hitter isn’t a detriment in the U.K. — it’s just not such an advantage. The Open Championship tends to require more overall shot-making as opposed to brute force. With true fairway bunkers, long tee shots are only advantageous to golfers who place them in the right spots.
This is where Harman can thrive. We saw how good he was with his overall shot making at Erin Hills. The guy was a wizard with his fairway woods, hitting low approach shots into greens. That will be an asset at the Open Championship.
Hideki Matsuyama
While we’re on the subject of shot makers, we have to give some love to Matsuyama.
Matsuyama was darn impressive at Erin Hills. On Thursday, it looked like he’d miss the cut or, at best, make it but not be a factor over the weekend. By the time it was over Matsuyama was tied for second with Harman. Only a tremendous finish from Koepka kept Matsuyama out of a playoff.
But we can’t look only at Erin Hills. That would be doing a tremendous disservice to the world’s No. 2-ranked golfer.
Matsuyama has finished tied for 11th in better in each of the last three majors. Outside of the majors, he’s won five times worldwide since the beginning of 2016 — six if we count the Hero World Challenge.
But we can’t look only at Erin Hills. That would be doing a tremendous disservice to the world’s No. 2-ranked golfer.
Matsuyama has finished tied for 11th in better in each of the last three majors. Outside of the majors, he’s won five times worldwide since the beginning of 2016 — six if we count the Hero World Challenge.
At some point in his career, Matsuyama is going to win a major. Bet on that happening sooner, rather than later.
NASCAR weekend racing schedule at Sonoma (Cup), Iowa (Trucks, Xfinity).
By Jerry Bonkowski
Once again, the three major NASCAR series will race in two separate locations this weekend.
While the NASCAR Cup Series will be at Sonoma Raceway for the Toyota/Save Mart 350, both the NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series will be racing halfway across the country at Iowa Speedway.
Tony Stewart is the defending winner of Sunday’s Cup race, which was the 49th and last win of his NASCAR premier series career. Stewart retired from racing in the Cup series after last season.
Iowa Speedway will host the M&Ms 200 Truck race on Friday night, and the American Ethanol e15 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race Saturday night.
William Byron won last year’s Truck race at Iowa, while Sam Hornish Jr., won the Xfinity race there. Erik Jones returned to Iowa several weeks later to win the mid-summer Xfinity race there.
Hornish will once again return to Iowa and attempt to defend last year’s win, racing for Team Penske.
Here’s the full weekend schedule for both Iowa and Sonoma:
(All times are Eastern)
Friday, June 23, at Sonoma
12:30 p.m. – 10 p.m. Cup garage open
3 p.m. – 4:55 p.m. – Cup first practice (FS1)
6:30 p.m. – 7:55 p.m. – Cup final practice (FS1)
Friday, June 23, at Iowa
8 a.m. – Truck garage opens
10 a.m. – 11:25 a.m. – Truck first practice (FS1)
11:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m. – Xfinity garage open
12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. – Truck final practice (FS1)
2 – 2:55 p.m. – Xfinity first practice (FS1)
5 – 5:55 p.m. – Xfinity final practice (FS1)
6:05 p.m. – Truck qualifying (multi-vehicle, three rounds) (No TV)
7:30 p.m. – Truck driver/crew chief meeting
8 p.m. – Truck driver introductions
8:30 p.m. – M&M’s 200 Truck race (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR radio
Saturday, June 24, at Sonoma
10 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. Cup garage open
2:45 p.m. – Cup qualifying (multi-vehicle, two rounds) (FS1, Performance Racing Network)
Saturday, June 24, at Iowa
2:30 p.m. – Xfinity garage open
6:15 p.m. – Xfinity qualifying (multi-vehicle, three rounds) (Tape delayed at 7 p.m. ET on FS1)
7:30 p.m. – Xfinity driver/crew chief meeting
8 p.m. – Xfinity driver introductions
8:30 p.m. – American Ethanol e15 200 Xfinity Series race (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR radio)
Sunday, June 25, at Sonoma
10 a.m. – Cup garage open
1 p.m. – Driver/crew chief meeting
2:20 p.m. – Driver introductions
3 p.m. – Toyota/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Cup race (110 laps, 218.9 miles) (FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR radio)
If a surprise driver wins at Sonoma, the playoff fight could get wild.
By Nick Bromberg
Both Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick haven’t won yet. (Photo/Getty)
The odds are better than normal for a first-time winner at Sonoma.
Granted, the odds have been seemingly pretty good for a driver to get his first win of the season over the past few weeks. As drivers like Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Austin Dillon and Ryan Blaney have scored victories, Cup champions Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth are winless along with other drivers like Denny Hamlin. Entering 2017, the latter four drivers had been responsible for 35 race wins over the past three seasons. That’s nearly a third of the races in that timeframe. It’s not going to be a shock to see any of those four drivers in victory lane as soon as Sunday.
Granted, the odds have been seemingly pretty good for a driver to get his first win of the season over the past few weeks. As drivers like Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Austin Dillon and Ryan Blaney have scored victories, Cup champions Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth are winless along with other drivers like Denny Hamlin. Entering 2017, the latter four drivers had been responsible for 35 race wins over the past three seasons. That’s nearly a third of the races in that timeframe. It’s not going to be a shock to see any of those four drivers in victory lane as soon as Sunday.
But outside of the big names who are currently winless, recent history at the near 2-mile road course tells us that there’s a good chance of a first-time winner on Sunday. Five of the last 10 races have been won by drivers who entered Sonoma without a victory. And four of those drivers’ only regular season victory of the year came at the California wine country track.
If a driver who we haven’t mentioned above gets his first win of the season at Sonoma, it could be someone like Kasey Kahne or AJ Allmendinger. Kahne won at Sonoma in 2009, and by now you know that Allmendinger is one of the better road racers in the Cup Series. He qualified for the first NASCAR win-and-you’re-in playoff format in 2014 via a victory at Watkins Glen.
If Allmendinger (or Kahne) wins at Sonoma on Sunday, not only would that win mean a likely spot in NASCAR’s playoffs, but would create an even further crunch on playoff spots.
Through the first 15 races of the season, 10 different drivers have won races. Though in NASCAR playoff parlance, the 10 is actually a nine. Joey Logano had a dreaded encumbered win at Richmond, so his victory doesn’t qualify him for the playoffs.
The number of winners is big because — if you need a refresher course — all drivers with wins make it to NASCAR’s 16-driver playoff field for the final 10 races and the rest of the spots are made up by winless drivers with the most points.
Through the first three years of the format’s existence, the most winning drivers a playoff field has contained is 13. That number is just four* winners away as it stands right now with 11 races before the playoffs begin.
On its own, the nine winners sounds like a lot. But it’s actually tied for the fewest number of winners entering Sonoma in the current format’s existence. In 2014 and 2016, there were 10 different winners in the first 15 races of the season. Both of those seasons finished with 13 winners.
In 2014, nine of the 10 drivers with wins were in the top 12 in the points standings. In 2015, seven of the nine winners were in the top 12. And last season, all of the winners entered Sonoma in the top 10.
This year seems poised to break that 13-driver mark. Probably because eight of the top 12 drivers in the points standings don’t have an official win. That’s an insane statistic compared to those past three seasons and why it seems likely that there will be a handful more first-time winners this season. It’s not common for a top-10 Cup Series driver to have a winless regular season. And even when it does happen, that driver doesn’t miss the playoffs.
But it could this year. Right now, 12th-place Clint Bowyer would miss out on the playoffs. If Allmendinger or Kahne or another driver below 12th gets his first win of 2017, the cut line moves up ahead of Kenseth, who’s tied for 10th with Logano. NASCAR’s move to reward winning over everything else could fully bloom this season. Sunday could give it a hefty dose of Miracle-Gro.
By Jerry Bonkowski
(Photo/Getty Images)
Former NASCAR, IndyCar and off-road star Robby Gordon has been banned from racing in Australia after a weekend on-street incident in the town of Darwin.
According to Sydney’s Daily Telegraph, Gordon performed a couple of burnouts on the main thoroughfare (Mitchell Street) in Darwin.
When Australian racing authorities found out about the incident, of which a video is contained in the Daily Telegraph’s online story, they banned Gordon from racing in the country.
Gordon owns and operates the Stadium Super Trucks Series, which has become very popular in Australia. It’s unclear if Gordon’s situation will impact the series from returning to the country for scheduled future competitions.
“We had a truck on display, I asked the two security guards, ‘Hey, you think I could flip a couple of doughies (donuts)?’ They said, ‘I don’t care’,” Gordon said, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Local judge Richard Coats did care, telling Gordon, “It’s one of the busiest streets in Darwin, I don’t believe the professional driving skills are an excuse. I wish I could take away your professional license, but unfortunately I don’t have the power to do that.”
Gordon was cited by local police for several driving offenses, including driving in a dangerous manner. He was fined $4,000 after appearing in Darwin Local Court on Monday.
Coats said he “would have considered sentencing Gordon to jail time for the stunt if he had been in trouble before.”
Less than 24 hours after the on-street display, Gordon finished second in a SST race at Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway, which was part of the weekend’s V8 Supercars race there.
Citing the incident and charges against Gordon, the Confederation of Australian Motorsport (CAMS) – which oversees racing competition in the country – said it indefinitely will keep Gordon from obtaining a competition visa on health and safety reasons.
“With CAMS actively engaging more than ever with local communities, government, and corporate Australia to grow and promote our sport, so-called ‘hoon’ behavior on public roads is not reflective of our values, nor our member base, and will not be tolerated,” chief executive Eugene Arocca said in a statement.
Arocca added, “It is unfortunate that such actions have taken place after an otherwise professional and well organized event at Hidden Valley Raceway, and such behavior is not reflective of the organizing committee of that event or Supercars.
“We are disappointed that this incident is not demonstrative of the requisite level of professionalism demanded by modern motorsport.”
Gordon downplayed the incident after his court appearance, telling local media in Darwin, “I think I did two doughnuts … not to make excuses, but maybe less than 5 kilometers an hour (just over 3 mph).
“Obviously the wheels were faster than that, but I did two doughnuts and put it back on the trailer.”
It’s unclear if Gordon legally will challenge his banishment.
SOCCER: Dax McCarty has 'fingers crossed' in hopes of playing in Gold Cup.
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Since Bruce Arena took over as national team coach, Dax McCarty has been regularly called in to join the Americans.
The Chicago Fire's 30-year-old midfielder was recently with the U.S. for a pair of World Cup qualifiers. He didn't play in either game, a 2-0 win against Trinidad & Tobago and a 1-1 draw at Mexico, but got to enjoy the experience of the famous Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
“Awesome experience. Definitely a game that doesn’t matter if you play or don’t play," McCarty said. "Definitely a game you’ll never forget. I think it’s probably one of the most historic stadiums in the world. A lot of history there. A lot of bad memories for the U.S., but I’d say the reason you go down there is to try to make good, new memories."
Michael Bradley scored a jaw-dropping goal with a chip from just inside the halfway line before Mexico answered later in the half. The U.S. has never won at the Azteca, but this was a second straight draw in World Cup qualifying there.
McCarty hasn't played in a qualifier yet, but has been included on each of the three rosters Arena has been able to call in since replacing Jurgen Klinsmann. The U.S. is 2-0-2 in qualifiers under Arena and appears back on track to make the 2018 World Cup.
"Win your home games, you draw on the road, that’s a recipe for qualifying," McCarty said. "We’re back on track now and I think everyone has really good spirits heading into the next round of qualifiers and the Gold Cup.”
The Gold Cup is a chance for McCarty to not only be on the team, but get some playing time with the national team. In early June, he was included on the 40-player preliminary roster for the Gold Cup (along with Fire teammate Matt Polster). That group will be cut down to 23 for the final roster, but does not feature many of the European-based national team regulars, meaning players like McCarty could see bigger roles.
McCarty said he doesn't yet know if he will be included in the final Gold Cup roster, which is expected to be announced this weekend.
“The coaches gave me great feedback, but until a final roster comes out or until I’m notified that I’m part of the roster you never know for sure," McCarty said. "Fingers crossed. I’m hoping to be there and I guess we’ll find out in the next week.”
“The coaches gave me great feedback, but until a final roster comes out or until I’m notified that I’m part of the roster you never know for sure," McCarty said. "Fingers crossed. I’m hoping to be there and I guess we’ll find out in the next week.”
Training camp for the Gold Cup will begin on June 25 with a friendly against David Accam's Ghana on July 1 before the tournament opener takes place July 8.
Germany mulls letting China under-20s play league soccer.
Associated Press
(AP Photo/Daniel Chan)
The German soccer federation is mulling a proposal to allow China’s under-20 team to play friendly matches in the fourth tier of its league system.
Because the Southwest Regional League is comprised of 19 clubs, each currently has two match-days free that can be used for friendly games. The one-off action would allow China’s under-20 team to prepare for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
“Nothing has been fixed yet but the clubs are all in favor,” league president Felix Wiedemann told The Associated Press on Thursday. “There’s a lot of interest in it. It’s important to say that there will be no points at stake, so it won’t influence the outcome of the league.”
Clubs would receive about 15,000 euros ($16,700) in compensation for two home games against the Chinese side, if the plan is approved. The Chinese are planning on a base near Heidelberg in the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg.
Southwest Regional League members are meeting on July 11, when a decision will likely be made in consultation with the German soccer federation, Wiedemann said. The league kicks off at the end of the month.
China and Germany agreed to a five-year soccer partnership last November, aimed at developing the game in China with training and other programs.
Mexico roll past New Zealand with second half surge.
By Matt Reed
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
It took a strong second-half performance from El Tri to remain unbeaten at the Confederations Cup, but Juan Carlos Osorio’s side did just that.
Mexico topped New Zealand, 2-1, on Wednesday at Fisht Olympic Stadium in Sochi behind a pair of goals from Raul Jimenez and Oribe Peralta after halftime.
The victory pulls Mexico level on points (4) at the top of Group A with Portugal, while hosts Russia sit behind the two leading nations on three points. The All Whites have been eliminated from reaching the last four after accumulating zero points through their first two fixtures.
New Zealand went ahead three minutes prior to the halftime break when Chris Wood slotted home from inside the Mexico penalty area to make it 1-0.
However, Jimenez leveled the match up just nine minutes into the second stanza before Peralta grabbed all three points for El Tri with nearly a quarter-hour remaining.
Group A play will close out on June 24 when Mexico takes on Russia and Portugal meets New Zealand to decide which two nations will reach the knockout round.
Portugal 1-0 Russia: Ronaldo goal helps Portugal edge Russia out.
By Daniel Karell
(Photo/Getty Images)
Cristiano Ronaldo played the hero once more for Portugal, as his first half header led the Seleccao to a 1-0 victory over Russia at Spartak Stadium Wednesday in Moscow.
Ronaldo needed just eight minutes to get on the board, placing home a header past Russia goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev. The Portugal captain had chances to add to his lead in the 32nd and 62nd minute as well, with Akinfeev palming away a close-range strike and the second half chance, a header, going wide.
Portugal controlled possession throughout the match, finishing with 58 percent possession, but Russia had a couple of chances late as the match opened up.
However, Portugal’s defense held strong, keeping Russia from having any shots on target, with four blocks and six shots wide of goal.
With the win, Portugal moves atop Group A with four points from two games while Russia moved into second place with three points.
NCAAFB: College football win totals 2017: Picks for Ohio State, Michigan and the Big Ten.
By Tom Fornelli
Making plays on the over/under for all 14 teams in the Big Ten.
Making plays on the over/under for all 14 teams in the Big Ten.
The 2017 college football season is less than three months away with media days starting in mid-July to kick-start prediction season among college football writers and analysts. The sportsbooks, however, don't wait for expert picks or preseason previews to start setting the expectations for the fall, releasing title odds and win totals throughout the offseason.
We're going to be making individual team picks for all of the Power Five conferences using the full 130-team FBS list released by the South Point Sportsbook earlier this month. Today, we turn our focus to the Big Ten.
Ohio State -- 10.5 (Under): I cannot stress enough how much I hate it when over/under are set at 10.5 or 11. It's a sportsbook asking whether you think this team is only going to lose one game, and I don't care who you are, going 12-0 or 11-1 in any season is difficult. You're never getting the right kind of value on the over in these plays, but that's not why I'm taking the under. Ohio State is going to be good. It's an obvious favorite in the Big Ten and a reasonable preseason playoff pick. But it also has to play Oklahoma, Penn State, Nebraska and Michigan. Those last two will both be on the road. So are two losses within the realm of possibility this season? I have to say yes.
Wisconsin -- 10.5 (Under): Another 10.5 win total, but this time for a team without the same pedigree as Ohio State and one that plays in the much easier division. Even so, I can't reasonably go with an over here as Wisconsin's schedule just screams 10-2 to me. And if Wisconsin goes 10-2 this year, it should be thrilled about it.
Penn State -- 10 (Under): The truth is that I predict a push here, but I'm not making it the pick. So my choice now is whether I believe Penn State will have an exceptional year where everything goes right or if it will have a season where something goes wrong, be it a major injury or an unexpected loss. Well, I know how things usually go for teams in that regard, so I'm taking the under. A 9-3 record just seems more likely than 11-1.
Michigan -- 8.5 (Over): Many people consider this a transition year of sorts for the Wolverines, and I understand why. Michigan will have to replace a lot of key starters from last year's team, which is why it's number seems pretty low. I'm pretty confident in the over anyway. During his college coaching career, Jim Harbaugh has never been in charge of a team that won fewer games than it did the year before. It might finally happen this year, but even if it does, 9-3 will be good enough for me.
Northwestern -- 8.5 (Under): Michigan fans must feel wonderful about having the same total as Northwestern. Anyway, as far as the Wildcats are concerned, I believe this number is just a touch too high. I don't have enough faith in the Northwestern offense to be dynamic enough to have a special season, and when I look at some of the games on the schedule, I see a team that's going to finish the regular season at 8-4.
We're going to be making individual team picks for all of the Power Five conferences using the full 130-team FBS list released by the South Point Sportsbook earlier this month. Today, we turn our focus to the Big Ten.
Ohio State -- 10.5 (Under): I cannot stress enough how much I hate it when over/under are set at 10.5 or 11. It's a sportsbook asking whether you think this team is only going to lose one game, and I don't care who you are, going 12-0 or 11-1 in any season is difficult. You're never getting the right kind of value on the over in these plays, but that's not why I'm taking the under. Ohio State is going to be good. It's an obvious favorite in the Big Ten and a reasonable preseason playoff pick. But it also has to play Oklahoma, Penn State, Nebraska and Michigan. Those last two will both be on the road. So are two losses within the realm of possibility this season? I have to say yes.
Wisconsin -- 10.5 (Under): Another 10.5 win total, but this time for a team without the same pedigree as Ohio State and one that plays in the much easier division. Even so, I can't reasonably go with an over here as Wisconsin's schedule just screams 10-2 to me. And if Wisconsin goes 10-2 this year, it should be thrilled about it.
Penn State -- 10 (Under): The truth is that I predict a push here, but I'm not making it the pick. So my choice now is whether I believe Penn State will have an exceptional year where everything goes right or if it will have a season where something goes wrong, be it a major injury or an unexpected loss. Well, I know how things usually go for teams in that regard, so I'm taking the under. A 9-3 record just seems more likely than 11-1.
Michigan -- 8.5 (Over): Many people consider this a transition year of sorts for the Wolverines, and I understand why. Michigan will have to replace a lot of key starters from last year's team, which is why it's number seems pretty low. I'm pretty confident in the over anyway. During his college coaching career, Jim Harbaugh has never been in charge of a team that won fewer games than it did the year before. It might finally happen this year, but even if it does, 9-3 will be good enough for me.
Northwestern -- 8.5 (Under): Michigan fans must feel wonderful about having the same total as Northwestern. Anyway, as far as the Wildcats are concerned, I believe this number is just a touch too high. I don't have enough faith in the Northwestern offense to be dynamic enough to have a special season, and when I look at some of the games on the schedule, I see a team that's going to finish the regular season at 8-4.
Minnesota -- 7.5 (Under): I think the make-or-break game in this scenario is Minnesota's early season road trip to Oregon State. The Beavers were only 4-8 last year, but they finished the season with two wins and played well in losses to Washington State, Stanford and UCLA. The Gophers could struggle on the road that early in the year, and the conference schedule is tricky as well. I'm predicting 6-6 for P.J. Fleck in his first season in Minneapolis with 7-5 as the ceiling, so the under feels like a safe play.
Iowa -- 7 (Over): Another case where the push seems like the likely outcome. Every time I look through Iowa's schedule, all I see is 7-5, but I'm going to go with the over here. It's more a gut feeling than anything because 6-6 is definitely in play, but I can't help but believe Iowa pulls off an unexpected win somewhere and gets to 8-4.
Nebraska -- 7 (Over): It's a situation similar to that of Michigan. Nebraska has a lot of starters to replace, yes, but this total just feels like an overreaction to that. Assuming Wisconsin is the best team in the West, I'd bet on Nebraska being the second-best before I would go in on any other team in the division.
Indiana -- 6.5 (Under): Indiana presents a difficult situation to assess. Initially, 6.5 wins seems too high, and it is complicated further by the fact I just don't know what Indiana is going to be in 2017. When Kevin Wilson was in charge, the plan was clear: Indiana was just trying to outscore you. Now Tom Allen, who was Indiana's defensive coordinator, has taken over, and I don't know exactly what changes he's going to make. So the under just seems a lot safer here.
Michigan State -- 5 (Over): Another situation that's difficult to figure out. Michigan State was awful last season, but only two years ago it was playing in the College Football Playoff, so you have to think it's better than it showed last year. The problem is that the Spartans have to replace a lot, but that may be a good thing seeing as how they went 3-9 last year. I'm banking on a bounce back, though I'm not sure how big of a bounce it'll be.
Illinois -- 3.5 (Over): Illinois' game against Western Kentucky is the make-or-break game here. If the Illini win that one, then they should be able to get to four wins as long as they find a couple of victories among games against South Florida, Rutgers, Minnesota, Purdue, Indiana and Northwestern. If they don't win against Western Kentucky, getting to four wins will be pretty difficult. I'm saying they make it there.
Maryland -- 3 (Over): I don't get this total at all. The Terps won six games in D.J. Durkin's first season, and I would expect improvement in his second year, not a giant step back. Looking at their schedule, I see plenty of opportunities for the Terps to get to four wins and probably to a bowl game as well.
Rutgers -- 3 (Under): I'm going with the under here, but I don't feel terrific about it. Don't get me wrong, Rutgers was awful last year, and I'm not sure how much better it can be in 2017. It's just that three wins is a rather low bar, so going under feels dangerous -- especially when two of the team's first three games are Eastern Michigan and Morgan State. So essentially, I'm hoping for another 0-9 mark in Big Ten play. With a home game against Purdue, that's no sure thing.
Purdue -- 2.5 (Over): I've made no secret of the fact that I'm Jeff Brohm's biggest fan, and I believe he's going to make Purdue football fun again. While that doesn't mean I'm expecting a huge leap in 2017, I don't think three wins is too much to ask for here. Purdue has plenty of winnable games against teams like Ohio, Minnesota, Rutgers, Illinois and Indiana. It will be favored in at least three of them, so the over seems like a rather safe play.
Iowa -- 7 (Over): Another case where the push seems like the likely outcome. Every time I look through Iowa's schedule, all I see is 7-5, but I'm going to go with the over here. It's more a gut feeling than anything because 6-6 is definitely in play, but I can't help but believe Iowa pulls off an unexpected win somewhere and gets to 8-4.
Nebraska -- 7 (Over): It's a situation similar to that of Michigan. Nebraska has a lot of starters to replace, yes, but this total just feels like an overreaction to that. Assuming Wisconsin is the best team in the West, I'd bet on Nebraska being the second-best before I would go in on any other team in the division.
Indiana -- 6.5 (Under): Indiana presents a difficult situation to assess. Initially, 6.5 wins seems too high, and it is complicated further by the fact I just don't know what Indiana is going to be in 2017. When Kevin Wilson was in charge, the plan was clear: Indiana was just trying to outscore you. Now Tom Allen, who was Indiana's defensive coordinator, has taken over, and I don't know exactly what changes he's going to make. So the under just seems a lot safer here.
Michigan State -- 5 (Over): Another situation that's difficult to figure out. Michigan State was awful last season, but only two years ago it was playing in the College Football Playoff, so you have to think it's better than it showed last year. The problem is that the Spartans have to replace a lot, but that may be a good thing seeing as how they went 3-9 last year. I'm banking on a bounce back, though I'm not sure how big of a bounce it'll be.
Illinois -- 3.5 (Over): Illinois' game against Western Kentucky is the make-or-break game here. If the Illini win that one, then they should be able to get to four wins as long as they find a couple of victories among games against South Florida, Rutgers, Minnesota, Purdue, Indiana and Northwestern. If they don't win against Western Kentucky, getting to four wins will be pretty difficult. I'm saying they make it there.
Maryland -- 3 (Over): I don't get this total at all. The Terps won six games in D.J. Durkin's first season, and I would expect improvement in his second year, not a giant step back. Looking at their schedule, I see plenty of opportunities for the Terps to get to four wins and probably to a bowl game as well.
Rutgers -- 3 (Under): I'm going with the under here, but I don't feel terrific about it. Don't get me wrong, Rutgers was awful last year, and I'm not sure how much better it can be in 2017. It's just that three wins is a rather low bar, so going under feels dangerous -- especially when two of the team's first three games are Eastern Michigan and Morgan State. So essentially, I'm hoping for another 0-9 mark in Big Ten play. With a home game against Purdue, that's no sure thing.
Purdue -- 2.5 (Over): I've made no secret of the fact that I'm Jeff Brohm's biggest fan, and I believe he's going to make Purdue football fun again. While that doesn't mean I'm expecting a huge leap in 2017, I don't think three wins is too much to ask for here. Purdue has plenty of winnable games against teams like Ohio, Minnesota, Rutgers, Illinois and Indiana. It will be favored in at least three of them, so the over seems like a rather safe play.
NCAABKB: Mountain West commissioner returns to selection committee to fill vacancy.
By Matt Norlander
By Matt Norlander
Mountain West commissioner returns to selection committee to fill vacancy.
The Mountain West has selected its commissioner, Craig Thompson, to represent its league on the NCAA Tournament men's basketball selection committee.
Thompson will take the seat of Paul Krebs, who served just one year of his five-year term this past season. Krebs is the outgoing New Mexico athletic director; he retired in the midst of a controversy that included tens of thousands of dollars of public money spent by Krebs on himself and others for an overseas golf trip. In order to serve on the NCAA Tournament selection committee, you just be employed by an NCAA-affiliated institution.
With Krebs leaving, he had to be replaced by someone within the Mountain West. In steps Thompson, who will not be new to the job. He is the rare case of a two-time committee member. Thompson previously served on the committee during the 64-team era, from 1995-96 through 1999-2000, serving as the committee chair in his final season.
Thompson joins former North Carolina and Navy men's basketball coach Ben Carnevale in the small club of two-time members on the committee.
The committee will meet July 10-13 in Chicago to discuss potential significant changes to the seeding and selection process. For instance, implementing a composite metric system and/or dialing back the influence of the long-used RPI on the NCAA's official team sheet evaluations could be up for a change. The committee is also expected to look at how it values home, neutral and road outcomes in a more systematic and fair way.
The 2017-18 selection committee is:
*Gill needs to be formally nominated and voted in for a second time, as he was cleared as a board member while the athletic director of Richmond. Since his job has changed, rules dictate he must go through the process once more, and is anticipated to be officially added to the committee under his new title later this year.
Mike Krzyzewski renews call for high school players to be eligible for the NBA Draft.
Thompson will take the seat of Paul Krebs, who served just one year of his five-year term this past season. Krebs is the outgoing New Mexico athletic director; he retired in the midst of a controversy that included tens of thousands of dollars of public money spent by Krebs on himself and others for an overseas golf trip. In order to serve on the NCAA Tournament selection committee, you just be employed by an NCAA-affiliated institution.
With Krebs leaving, he had to be replaced by someone within the Mountain West. In steps Thompson, who will not be new to the job. He is the rare case of a two-time committee member. Thompson previously served on the committee during the 64-team era, from 1995-96 through 1999-2000, serving as the committee chair in his final season.
Thompson joins former North Carolina and Navy men's basketball coach Ben Carnevale in the small club of two-time members on the committee.
The committee will meet July 10-13 in Chicago to discuss potential significant changes to the seeding and selection process. For instance, implementing a composite metric system and/or dialing back the influence of the long-used RPI on the NCAA's official team sheet evaluations could be up for a change. The committee is also expected to look at how it values home, neutral and road outcomes in a more systematic and fair way.
The 2017-18 selection committee is:
- Bruce Rasmussen, athletic director, Creighton University — 2017-18 chair
- Mitch Barnhart, athletic director, University of Kentucky
- Tom Burnett, commissioner, Southland Conference
- Janet Cone, athletic director, University of North Carolina at Asheville
- Bernard Muir, athletic director, Stanford University
- Jim Phillips, athletic director, Northwestern University
- Jim Schaus, athletic director, Ohio University
- Craig Thompson, commissioner, Mountain West
- Kevin White, athletic director, Duke University
- *Keith Gill, executive associate commissioner, Atlantic 10
*Gill needs to be formally nominated and voted in for a second time, as he was cleared as a board member while the athletic director of Richmond. Since his job has changed, rules dictate he must go through the process once more, and is anticipated to be officially added to the committee under his new title later this year.
Mike Krzyzewski renews call for high school players to be eligible for the NBA Draft.
By Matt Norlander
Continues to lobby for a college hoops commissioner; hopes the NBA, NCAA can come together.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski stated his case for changes he would like for college basketball, notably saying high school players should be eligible for the NBA Draft. Speaking on ESPN Radio's "Mike and Mike in the Morning" show Tuesday, the discussion centered mostly around the NBA possibly changing its minimum age rule and Krzyzewski echoed sentiments of a lot of coaches we spoke to earlier this week.
Krzyzewski also fought back on the idea that he's altered the way he recruits in the one-and-done era.
"People say that we've changed our recruiting philosophy," he said. "We haven't changed our recruiting philosophy. We've always recruited really good players who are good students and good kids, and now that combination has produced one-and-dones. Grant Hill and Elton Brand, Elton Brand was a two-and-done. We've had a number of guys who early on, like 10, 20 years ago, they would be one-and-dones right now. So that's who we have attracted. We're not going to stop recruiting them, but it doesn't mean we've changed our philosophy. The world of basketball has changed, and we're trying to adapt to those changes."
One of his peers thinks this may be some spin from Coach K. "I think Mike hates it," a prominent coach told CBS Sports regarding the current NBA rule, and cited Krzyzewski's adaptation to recruiting in this era. That's backed up by Coach K riding his greatest recruiting run ever, including Duke's boom in the 1980s.
"In baseball, actually in theater, in music, if you're 16 and you're really good, you go on a different path," Krzyzewski said on radio. "I really think that high school players should be allowed to go. And once they get to college, if you don't do that, I think a two-year period -- so you legitimize being in college going for an education. You don't just kind of use the college system as a training ground." (Actually, the baseball rule states players can go pro out of high school or after three years of college.)
Krzyzewski emphasized a need for more communication between the NBA and the NCAA/college basketball. He also advocated for every NBA team to have a G League (formerly D-League) team for a feeder system (the G League has 22 teams owned among 30 NBA franchises).
"I think each NBA team should be responsible for having a minor league affiliate, the development league, where these kids could go in and you could train them," Krzyzewski said. "I mean, a kid who's really, really good coming out of high school, who does not want to go to school, would gain more from being in a pro system where he is working on his craft and his body and the development every day, just like a minor league, just like a baseball player."
From there, Krzyzewski said the NCAA has restrictions in place that don't benefit players, coaches or college basketball. "There are archaic rules that haven't advanced with the game that we impose on the collegiate players," he said.
And this all ties into the NBA discussion, because it's a matter of player development and personal relationships and what works best for prospect and coach.
"If you're on the school newspaper, they don't limit the number of hours you work on writing an article," Krzyzewski said. "I think we should take a look at the whole system and see how we can cooperate and make sure that the kid is not cheated. He's allowed to go [straight to the NBA]; if he doesn't go, he's allowed to work more with the coaches that he's chosen in the collegiate ranks. ... We move at a very slow pace in college, and the NBA and the players' association move at a very quick pace because they're a business. And I think as we're in this we should run college basketball much more businesslike than we do -- for the players, especially for the players, so they would be given the opportunities and be given what they deserve while they're in college."
FOLLOW-UP: Hall of Fame denies Pete Rose’s request to stand for election. What's Your Take? UPDATED: 06/23/2017.
By Craig Calcaterra
(Photo/Getty Images)
Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports that the Baseball Hall of Fame has denied Pete Rose’s request to stand for election.
Rose had already been denied reinstatement by Major League Baseball. Theoretically, one can be banned from baseball and elected to the Hall of Fame, as they are separate institutions. Not long after Rose’s ban, however, the Hall of Fame changed its rules to prohibit any banned player from appearing on ballots. This move, most assumed, likely correctly, was aimed specifically at Rose. They may be separate institutions, but the Hall of Fame tends to land on all fours with MLB with most things and didn’t want to embarrass the league by giving Rose the honor of induction.
Not that Rose isn’t remembered by the Hall in some respects. As the article notes, there are plenty of Rose artifacts on display in the Hall of Fame. And Hall president Jeff Idelson notes, “[y]ou certainly can’t tell the history of baseball without including Pete Rose.” In this he’s like the PED-era guys who are defacto banned by the BBWAA yet still have their memorabilia on display and their feats chronicled in the museum.
As we’ve noted many, many times around here, if we were in charge, we’d keep Rose banned from baseball as he is utterly unrepentant about his very serious transgressions and has lied about them whenever it has served his interests, either personal or financial. While at 76 he’s not likely to be given a position of real responsibility in the game anymore, it’s not unreasonable to think that he’d be a bad influence if he’s allowed any authority over players. It’s not worth the risk, frankly.
That said: the Hall of Fame is about history, and Rose the ballplayer was one of baseball’s greatest figures. He deserves induction. His fans, of which there are many, would love to see it take place. That the Hall of Fame won’t even allow the possibility of that happening is a shame.
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: Last week we said that we had stated our position on Pete Rose's election to the Baseball Hall of Fame on several occasions previously and that it hadn't changed. We requested that our readers share their opinions with us and they did. Many stated that he should be voted in, many more stated that he should not be voted in and a few said, put him on the ballot and let the chips fall where they may. If he gets voted in, OK. If not, he doesn't, that's the end of it; period, paragraph, end of the story.
Our position is this, Pete Rose holds the records for most hits, most runs and most at bats. He was nicknamed, "Charlie Hustle." He truly played the game with much vengeance and that's a terrific positive thing. Now for the other side of the coin, The really true major sin of the sport is gambling on games if you're a player, if you're management or if you're an owner. The Chicago White Sox threw the World Series in 1919. Remember the saying, "Say it ain't so Joe." It still resonates today. It not good for the fans lf they can't believe in the legitimacy of the sport, believe it's not fixed and thwarts the wholesomeness of America's pastime. Now, Mr. Rose knew the rules with regards to gambling and the consequences of breaking that rules. He states that he did not bet on his team. OK, that's fine but the rule does not say you can't bet on your team, it states that gambling is forbidden, period. Now he feels he's been punished enough; we don't agree with that. Let him off the hook and you set a new precedent, if you get caught breaking a rule, taka a suspension or be prohibited from participating in the game for a few years and then we'll let you back. Wrong answer. America became a world leader because we were a country of rules and laws and everyone respected and abided by them. That's not the case today and now some baseball fans feel the same way about this case. You can't pick which rules you want to follow. And if it does come to that, why make rules? The rules state if you get caught gambling, you're out.
Now with that being said, our position is this restated. Pete Rose is an intricate part of America's baseball history. There should be an exhibit for him in the Hall of Fame because of his tenacious accomplishments, however, he should not be eligible to be elected to the Baseball of Fame for breaking the major sin of baseball, gambling on games. It will serve notice to all players that under no circumstances will this be tolerated and we don't care who you are.
That's our opinion. We've stated it several times previously and we've just stated it again. Some will like it and some won't. Feel free to go to the comment section at the bottom of this blog and let us know what's your take? We love hearing from you and thank you in advance for your time, consideration and thoughts.
The Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Editorial Staff.
The Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Editorial Staff.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Friday, June 23, 2017.
Memoriesofhistory.com
1904 - The first American motorboat race took place on the Hudson River in New York.
1917 - Ernie Shore (Boston Red Sox) replaced Babe Ruth and retired all 26 batters he faced. Ruth had been ejected from the game.
1917 - Molla Bjurstedt won the women's U.S. Lawn Tennis Association title for the third straight year.
1922 - Johnny Weissmuller broke his own world records in the 300, 400, 440 and 500 meters in a swim meet in Honolulu, Hawaii.
1972 - U.S. President Nixon signed the Higher Education Act of 1972. Title IX of this congressional act barred sex bias in athletics and other activities at colleges receiving federal assistance.
1991 - A Mazda became the first Japanese car to win the Le Mans 24 hour race.
1996 - Michael Johnson broke the world record for the men's 200 meter race. He ran it in 19.66 seconds.
1917 - Ernie Shore (Boston Red Sox) replaced Babe Ruth and retired all 26 batters he faced. Ruth had been ejected from the game.
1917 - Molla Bjurstedt won the women's U.S. Lawn Tennis Association title for the third straight year.
1922 - Johnny Weissmuller broke his own world records in the 300, 400, 440 and 500 meters in a swim meet in Honolulu, Hawaii.
1972 - U.S. President Nixon signed the Higher Education Act of 1972. Title IX of this congressional act barred sex bias in athletics and other activities at colleges receiving federal assistance.
1991 - A Mazda became the first Japanese car to win the Le Mans 24 hour race.
1996 - Michael Johnson broke the world record for the men's 200 meter race. He ran it in 19.66 seconds.
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