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"Sports Quote of the Day"
"The Masters is one of golf's greatest traditions and Augusta is one of the best courses in the world. They are synonymous. It's an event that every golfer, and golf fan, looks forward to." ~ Mike Weir, Professional Golfer Who Plays On the PGA Tour.
Trending: Jordan Spieth picks up where he off at Augusta National. (See the golf section for Masters updates).
Trending: Cubs and White Sox win.
Cubs 2016 Record: 3-0
White Sox 2016 Record: 3-1
Trending: Bears to host defending Super Bowl champion Broncos in preseason opener. (See the football section for Bears updates).
Trending: Late lead erased as Blackhawks fall to Blues in overtime. But we did get 1 point!!! (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates).
Trending: Should Colleges Continue to Support Olympic Sports? What's Your Take? (See the college basketball section for our thoughts and our take).
Trending: Jordan Spieth picks up where he off at Augusta National. (See the golf section for Masters updates).
Trending: Cubs and White Sox win.
Cubs 2016 Record: 3-0
White Sox 2016 Record: 3-1
Trending: Bears to host defending Super Bowl champion Broncos in preseason opener. (See the football section for Bears updates).
Trending: Late lead erased as Blackhawks fall to Blues in overtime. But we did get 1 point!!! (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates).
Trending: Should Colleges Continue to Support Olympic Sports? What's Your Take? (See the college basketball section for our thoughts and our take).
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Late lead erased as Blackhawks fall to Blues in overtime.
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
As the time ticked down the Blackhawks still had a shot at securing home ice, still had a chance to control a little bit of what happened down the regular-season stretch.
But two Vladimir Tarasenko goals later, the only thing the Blackhawks know is that they’ll start their postseason on the road.
Jonathan Toews scored his 28th goal of the season, but Tarasenko scored the tying goal late in regulation and the winner in overtime as the Blues came back to beat the Blackhawks, 2-1, on Thursday night. The loss means the Blackhawks will start on the road. Who they play is still unknown. The Dallas Stars and Blues are tied atop the Central; the Blackhawks will play whoever finishes in second place.
The Blackhawks clung to their 1-0 lead until late in regulation. A few seconds after Blues goaltender Brian Elliott vacated the net, Tarasenko scored his 38th to tie it at 1 with 1:16 remaining in regulation. It was Tarasenko again 3:37 into overtime.
“Yeah, it hurts. Hurts for sure,” said Patrick Kane, who assisted on Toews’ goal for his 103rd point of the season. “I thought we played a great game up to that point against a good team. You give one up with (1:16) left, and we’re in a position where you’ve got to score in (1:16) to basically put yourself in a good position to try and get home ice. Obviously it didn’t happen.”
But two Vladimir Tarasenko goals later, the only thing the Blackhawks know is that they’ll start their postseason on the road.
Jonathan Toews scored his 28th goal of the season, but Tarasenko scored the tying goal late in regulation and the winner in overtime as the Blues came back to beat the Blackhawks, 2-1, on Thursday night. The loss means the Blackhawks will start on the road. Who they play is still unknown. The Dallas Stars and Blues are tied atop the Central; the Blackhawks will play whoever finishes in second place.
The Blackhawks clung to their 1-0 lead until late in regulation. A few seconds after Blues goaltender Brian Elliott vacated the net, Tarasenko scored his 38th to tie it at 1 with 1:16 remaining in regulation. It was Tarasenko again 3:37 into overtime.
“Yeah, it hurts. Hurts for sure,” said Patrick Kane, who assisted on Toews’ goal for his 103rd point of the season. “I thought we played a great game up to that point against a good team. You give one up with (1:16) left, and we’re in a position where you’ve got to score in (1:16) to basically put yourself in a good position to try and get home ice. Obviously it didn’t happen.”
Coach Joel Quenneville was disappointed but not overly so. The Blackhawks had won their three previous games despite missing players. Considering this was one more game where they were missing Duncan Keith (suspension), Marian Hossa, Andrew Shaw, Artem Anisimov and Corey Crawford (all injured), Quenneville could live with it.
“I don’t mind the way we’re playing here,” he said. “We’re missing five guys right now in a game (in which) I thought we played pretty good. I thought we did some good things in a lot of ways, a lot of areas so, I didn’t mind it.”
The Blackhawks weren’t giving the Blues much prior to that final minute-plus. What they did give up, Scott Darling stopped. Darling, making his 11th consecutive start, stopped 24 of 25 in regulation and overtime.
“Yeah, it’s tough, definitely tough,” Darling said. “You want to close out a close game. They made a good play on the goal, and 3-on-3 is anybody’s game.”
The Blues, who are also dealing with some injuries, had their chances. Giving Tarasenko space can be lethal. The Blackhawks did, and it was. Elliott stopped 33 of 35 shots, making several big stops including one on Andrew Ladd’s penalty shot in the third period.
The Blackhawks entered this game potentially having some say in what happened in the first round. Now it’s out of their hands. They know they’re heading on the road, they just don’t know where yet. They played a pretty good game considering some of their top guys were out. Nevertheless, this one hurt.
“We were in a good situation,” Kane said. “I thought we played pretty well all night. I don’t think we gave up much. We had some chances going the other way that could have made the score a little bit different, but didn’t turn out that way, obviously. We’ve got to be better at finishing off those games.”
Blackhawks: Bryan Bickell ready for another chance.
By Tracey Myers
The bus rides Bryan Bickell took with the Rockford IceHogs this season rekindled memories.
“I remember those old days, seven-hour trips on a bus. Maybe when I was 21 it was easier on the body, but just turned 30, so it was tough,” Bickell said with a grin. “It’s nice to get back and hopefully I won’t have to do that again. I’m here to play my best and do whatever it takes.”
This season has been a humbling one for Bickell, who has spent most of it with the Blackhawks’ minor-league affiliate. But as the regular season winds down the left wing is getting another chance, starting Thursday against the St. Louis Blues. Teammates said it was good to see Bickell again.
“You’re happy for him,” Trevor van Riemsdyk said. “He’s got a big smile on his face. It’s just good to see him. He’s such a good guy and having him in the locker room is always a nice thing.”
Bickell skated on the Blackhawks’ third line with Andrew Desjardins and Dale Weise, a line that should definitely bring a physical presence. Coach Joel Quenneville said Bickell must bring that physical game regardless.
“I think that’s one of his better attributes because he’s a big body, he can play against top guys and can wear a defense down,” Quenneville said. “He can get on the puck quickly, has a big shot, speed and gets to the net. We always talk about the appreciation for having a power forward that can create space, generate offense or can get the defensemen aware of being on the ice. I think Bicks can do that. But the consistency is what we’re looking for.”
The postseason is where Bickell has traditionally done well; it’s where he earned his four-year, $16 million deal during the 2013 Stanley Cup Final run. But that consistency of which Quenneville spoke of has been the issue. The 2015-16 season has been frustrating, at least at the NHL level. Entering this season still fighting the vertigo that cost him a few 2015 Stanley Cup games, Bickell couldn’t find any consistency. His latest stint in Rockford has been since January, but he’s played well there, recording 15 goals and 16 assists in 31 games. But it’s what he does here that’s going to count.
“I think every game’s got to be real good from the situation I was in this year,” Bickell said. “It was tough. But to see these guys again and to be back up here, it’s lifting. Every game I’ve got to play like it’s my last, and do what I need to do.”
How Bickell is used going forward is uncertain. Quenneville said Bickell gets his opportunity vs. the Blues, “and we’ll see how it goes going into next week.” Bickell was reminded of his early Rockford days in his latest stint. He also took some valuable new lessons from the experience, and hopes he can apply those here now.
“Being positive is the biggest thing,” Bickell said. “I think going down there, I didn’t want to be a sore thumb. Have a positive attitude and work hard and I’m happy to be back up here for a couple games going into one of the times I like the most, the playoffs. Looking forward to it.”
Blackhawks' special teams clicking at the right time.
By Tracey Myers
The horn sounded a second time within two-and-a-half minutes, Andrew Ladd scoring his second power-play goal of the night in that time span.
It was another power-play goal, which are coming in bunches for the Blackhawks again. But it’s not just the production part of special teams that is working for the Blackhawks right now. The penalty kill, which sputtered for a while, is returning to its familiar shutdown mode.
With the postseason just around the corner, the Blackhawks’ special teams are trending in the right direction.
The Blackhawks have gone 6-for-12 on their power play in their last three games, including 3-for-6 in their 6-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night. Their penalty kill, meanwhile, has gone 17-of-17 in the past six games.
Let’s look at the power play first. The advantage went 0-for-26 over a nine-game span before breaking out of its slump against Winnipeg on Friday. The Blackhawks have missed several players from that power play – a suspended Duncan Keith and injured Andrew Shaw and Marian Hossa among them. They also lost Artem Anisimov on Tuesday when he was boarded; Anisimov is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Despite the missing pieces, the Blackhawks’ power play is surging. So what’s been different in recent games?
“Just movement. Movement's huge,” Patrick Kane said. “You knew it was a little bit different with Anisimov going out. But you know you've got Ladd, [Jonathan] Toews and myself and Bread Man [Artemi Panarin] out there. I think we just try to kind of play kind of more of a 5-on-5 style, just keep moving the puck, moving our bodies. Get them confused out there. It’s the right time to get hot here.”
On the flip side, the penalty kill has been keeping opponents from threatening more. In the last six games, the Blackhawks have faced various types of kills, from nixing five-minute majors (Keith’s penalty vs. Minnesota) to 5-on-3s (the Coyotes had two on Tuesday, albeit one was only 12 seconds). The Blackhawks have scored two short-handed goals in the last six games – Marian Hossa vs. Minnesota and Toews on Tuesday – but it’s more about stifling their opponents.
Toews said the Blackhawks recognized they had to fix the penalty kill fast.
“I think when things get bad enough, you focus on it enough and you make it your goal to improve upon whatever’s going wrong,” Jonathan Toews said. “Obviously our penalty kill was a glaring issue for a little while there and not only our ranking in the league, but just the fact that it was hurting us in games. It could have made a difference and we know that this time of year and the playoffs it is a huge deal for us defensively. We need to have that confidence that we can kill off penalties and be tough on teams and not give them any energy.”
It certainly helps that Marcus Kruger is back. While Kruger was in the penalty box twice on Tuesday – Toews scored his short-handed goal on Kruger’s first infraction – Kruger nevertheless gives coach Joel Quenneville another great killing option.
“I think he takes pride in, not the statistics, but doing the right things and being aware of what we’re trying to do, be it checking in the middle and in the zone and [being] very diligent on the little details that are a part of being successful on that unit,” Quenneville said. “He took a couple of penalties [Tuesday]; now we’re missing a guy we want out there, so has to stay away from that. But other than that, a real appreciation on how he can help and improve our PK.”
The Blackhawks wanted to get their game together before the postseason. Special teams are a vital part of that good overall game, and they’re clicking at the right time, too.
“I don’t mind the way we’re playing here,” he said. “We’re missing five guys right now in a game (in which) I thought we played pretty good. I thought we did some good things in a lot of ways, a lot of areas so, I didn’t mind it.”
The Blackhawks weren’t giving the Blues much prior to that final minute-plus. What they did give up, Scott Darling stopped. Darling, making his 11th consecutive start, stopped 24 of 25 in regulation and overtime.
“Yeah, it’s tough, definitely tough,” Darling said. “You want to close out a close game. They made a good play on the goal, and 3-on-3 is anybody’s game.”
The Blues, who are also dealing with some injuries, had their chances. Giving Tarasenko space can be lethal. The Blackhawks did, and it was. Elliott stopped 33 of 35 shots, making several big stops including one on Andrew Ladd’s penalty shot in the third period.
The Blackhawks entered this game potentially having some say in what happened in the first round. Now it’s out of their hands. They know they’re heading on the road, they just don’t know where yet. They played a pretty good game considering some of their top guys were out. Nevertheless, this one hurt.
“We were in a good situation,” Kane said. “I thought we played pretty well all night. I don’t think we gave up much. We had some chances going the other way that could have made the score a little bit different, but didn’t turn out that way, obviously. We’ve got to be better at finishing off those games.”
Blackhawks: Bryan Bickell ready for another chance.
By Tracey Myers
The bus rides Bryan Bickell took with the Rockford IceHogs this season rekindled memories.
“I remember those old days, seven-hour trips on a bus. Maybe when I was 21 it was easier on the body, but just turned 30, so it was tough,” Bickell said with a grin. “It’s nice to get back and hopefully I won’t have to do that again. I’m here to play my best and do whatever it takes.”
This season has been a humbling one for Bickell, who has spent most of it with the Blackhawks’ minor-league affiliate. But as the regular season winds down the left wing is getting another chance, starting Thursday against the St. Louis Blues. Teammates said it was good to see Bickell again.
“You’re happy for him,” Trevor van Riemsdyk said. “He’s got a big smile on his face. It’s just good to see him. He’s such a good guy and having him in the locker room is always a nice thing.”
Bickell skated on the Blackhawks’ third line with Andrew Desjardins and Dale Weise, a line that should definitely bring a physical presence. Coach Joel Quenneville said Bickell must bring that physical game regardless.
“I think that’s one of his better attributes because he’s a big body, he can play against top guys and can wear a defense down,” Quenneville said. “He can get on the puck quickly, has a big shot, speed and gets to the net. We always talk about the appreciation for having a power forward that can create space, generate offense or can get the defensemen aware of being on the ice. I think Bicks can do that. But the consistency is what we’re looking for.”
The postseason is where Bickell has traditionally done well; it’s where he earned his four-year, $16 million deal during the 2013 Stanley Cup Final run. But that consistency of which Quenneville spoke of has been the issue. The 2015-16 season has been frustrating, at least at the NHL level. Entering this season still fighting the vertigo that cost him a few 2015 Stanley Cup games, Bickell couldn’t find any consistency. His latest stint in Rockford has been since January, but he’s played well there, recording 15 goals and 16 assists in 31 games. But it’s what he does here that’s going to count.
“I think every game’s got to be real good from the situation I was in this year,” Bickell said. “It was tough. But to see these guys again and to be back up here, it’s lifting. Every game I’ve got to play like it’s my last, and do what I need to do.”
How Bickell is used going forward is uncertain. Quenneville said Bickell gets his opportunity vs. the Blues, “and we’ll see how it goes going into next week.” Bickell was reminded of his early Rockford days in his latest stint. He also took some valuable new lessons from the experience, and hopes he can apply those here now.
“Being positive is the biggest thing,” Bickell said. “I think going down there, I didn’t want to be a sore thumb. Have a positive attitude and work hard and I’m happy to be back up here for a couple games going into one of the times I like the most, the playoffs. Looking forward to it.”
Blackhawks' special teams clicking at the right time.
By Tracey Myers
The horn sounded a second time within two-and-a-half minutes, Andrew Ladd scoring his second power-play goal of the night in that time span.
It was another power-play goal, which are coming in bunches for the Blackhawks again. But it’s not just the production part of special teams that is working for the Blackhawks right now. The penalty kill, which sputtered for a while, is returning to its familiar shutdown mode.
With the postseason just around the corner, the Blackhawks’ special teams are trending in the right direction.
The Blackhawks have gone 6-for-12 on their power play in their last three games, including 3-for-6 in their 6-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night. Their penalty kill, meanwhile, has gone 17-of-17 in the past six games.
Let’s look at the power play first. The advantage went 0-for-26 over a nine-game span before breaking out of its slump against Winnipeg on Friday. The Blackhawks have missed several players from that power play – a suspended Duncan Keith and injured Andrew Shaw and Marian Hossa among them. They also lost Artem Anisimov on Tuesday when he was boarded; Anisimov is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Despite the missing pieces, the Blackhawks’ power play is surging. So what’s been different in recent games?
“Just movement. Movement's huge,” Patrick Kane said. “You knew it was a little bit different with Anisimov going out. But you know you've got Ladd, [Jonathan] Toews and myself and Bread Man [Artemi Panarin] out there. I think we just try to kind of play kind of more of a 5-on-5 style, just keep moving the puck, moving our bodies. Get them confused out there. It’s the right time to get hot here.”
On the flip side, the penalty kill has been keeping opponents from threatening more. In the last six games, the Blackhawks have faced various types of kills, from nixing five-minute majors (Keith’s penalty vs. Minnesota) to 5-on-3s (the Coyotes had two on Tuesday, albeit one was only 12 seconds). The Blackhawks have scored two short-handed goals in the last six games – Marian Hossa vs. Minnesota and Toews on Tuesday – but it’s more about stifling their opponents.
Toews said the Blackhawks recognized they had to fix the penalty kill fast.
“I think when things get bad enough, you focus on it enough and you make it your goal to improve upon whatever’s going wrong,” Jonathan Toews said. “Obviously our penalty kill was a glaring issue for a little while there and not only our ranking in the league, but just the fact that it was hurting us in games. It could have made a difference and we know that this time of year and the playoffs it is a huge deal for us defensively. We need to have that confidence that we can kill off penalties and be tough on teams and not give them any energy.”
It certainly helps that Marcus Kruger is back. While Kruger was in the penalty box twice on Tuesday – Toews scored his short-handed goal on Kruger’s first infraction – Kruger nevertheless gives coach Joel Quenneville another great killing option.
“I think he takes pride in, not the statistics, but doing the right things and being aware of what we’re trying to do, be it checking in the middle and in the zone and [being] very diligent on the little details that are a part of being successful on that unit,” Quenneville said. “He took a couple of penalties [Tuesday]; now we’re missing a guy we want out there, so has to stay away from that. But other than that, a real appreciation on how he can help and improve our PK.”
The Blackhawks wanted to get their game together before the postseason. Special teams are a vital part of that good overall game, and they’re clicking at the right time, too.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session... Bulls' season on the brink after narrow loss to Heat.
By Vincent Goodwill
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Dwyane Wade scored 21 points, Joe Johnson added 17 and the Miami Heat shook off a slow first half to beat the Chicago Bulls 106-98 on Thursday night, clamping down in the final minutes for their ninth win in the last 10 home games.
Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside each had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Miami, which has 14 consecutive games of scoring 100 or more at home -- the second-longest such streak in franchise history.
Luol Deng scored 13, Josh Richardson had 11 and Amare Stoudemire added 10 for the Heat (46-32), who remained fifth in the Eastern Conference.
Jimmy Butler scored 25 points for the Bulls (39-40), who now need a series of miracles to get into the postseason. Pau Gasol finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Derrick Rose scored 17 for Chicago.
Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside each had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Miami, which has 14 consecutive games of scoring 100 or more at home -- the second-longest such streak in franchise history.
Luol Deng scored 13, Josh Richardson had 11 and Amare Stoudemire added 10 for the Heat (46-32), who remained fifth in the Eastern Conference.
Jimmy Butler scored 25 points for the Bulls (39-40), who now need a series of miracles to get into the postseason. Pau Gasol finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Derrick Rose scored 17 for Chicago.
Main takeaways from the Bulls' loss in Memphis. (Tuesday night's game, 04/05/2016).
By Vincent Goodwill
The Bulls had a chance to inch closer to something improbable, but instead laid an egg in Memphis, drawing closer and closer to a spot in the postseason — a spot in Secaucus, N.J., at the draft lottery.
Here’s a few observations of the Bulls’ 108-92 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, along with a random thought or two about the Eastern Conference playoff race as a whole, as the Bulls squandered yet another chance to make up lost ground:
Effort, effort and more effort
Who knows what got into the Bulls Tuesday night, if they looked at the Memphis Grizzlies roster - one that has gone through more attrition than their own (without the excuses) - and believed it would be an easy stroll for another win, or if the season-long malaise continued into the most crucial game of the year.
It could likely be some mixture as the first five couldn’t get much going, with Jimmy Butler going scoreless until early in the fourth quarter. After carrying the Bulls to wins on the road against Indiana and Milwaukee with clutch play, Butler looked out of sorts as Derrick Rose returned from a two-game absence with injury.
Neither could get anything going, with Rose scoring 12 with eight assists and five turnovers. Butler scored just five in 35 minutes, but wasn’t as active or engaged in terms of playmaking.
One question that was supposed to be resoundingly answered this season was how Rose and Butler fit together, but the ill-fitting pieces surrounding the two leaves it another question mark headed into the offseason, whenever it begins.
More central to the effort, the Bulls allowed Zach Randolph to dominate the interior early and late when the Grizzlies needed a run-stopping basket. Too many times long rebounds bounced in the middle of the floor and the red shirts were bystanders instead of participants.
Being outscored 60-44 in the middle two quarters seemingly signified the Bulls’ treatment of their margin for error — not with much urgency.
Who/When/Where
Too many times the Bulls don’t know what they’ll get on a given night, from who or how. Nikola Mirotic has continued his late-season surge, scoring 20, all from behind the 3-point line (six of nine) with two free throws.
Mike Dunleavy scored five, albeit in just 19 minutes, but in recent weeks, he’s looked every bit the 35-year old he is, often unable to pull the trigger on open shots or when he does, hasn’t hit them. Since March 7, he’s scored over double figures just one time — and despite his age, he was expected to be the glue to the starting lineup upon his return from back surgery. It hasn’t happened.
Doug McDermott made three of five, but he along with Mirotic have become easy targets on defense, especially as they become more proficient from the 3-point line. It puts Fred Hoiberg in a difficult position on a nightly basis, when he doesn’t know who’ll step up or for how long.
Missing in action
Taj Gibson and E’Twaun Moore were out, as it seems like every game the Bulls are without key players. But again, the Memphis Grizzlies have gone through an NBA-record 28 players this season, and will be playing beyond April 15, even without Marc Gasol and Mike Conley, their point guard and center.
Moore and Gibson are certainly valuable, and who knows how the Bulls will treat Gibson’s rib injury from here on considering how painful it is. One wonders if he’ll play a game for the rest of the season, if he should be protected from himself.
Around the East
Oh yeah, the Pistons lost, big in Miami. The same Miami Heat team the Pistons will have to play again before the season is over, as the Heat continue to fight to secure the third seed, battling with two other teams.
The bad news
The Bulls take on the Heat Thursday, and have lost all three meetings by a sizeable margin. Again, their margin for error is nil, and were thrown a half-aired life preserver Tuesday night as the Pistons floundered on South Beach.
The Bulls turned it down, as they’ll likely turn down the opportunity to make the playoffs for the eighth straight time.
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Bears to host defending Super Bowl champion Broncos in preseason opener.
With exact dates and times yet to be announced, the Bears will open at home against the Super Bowl-winning Denver Broncos in mid August. That will be followed by a trip to New England against the Patriots, who narrowly lost to the Broncos in the AFC Championship game.
The third game will come at Soldier Field against the Kansas City Chiefs, who mauled the Houston Texans in the AFC wild-card round before falling to the Patriots during the divisional round.
The games will feature multiple players going against their former teams. Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan and special-teams standout Omar Bolden were Broncos last year. Defensive lineman Akiem Hicks was a member of the Patriots last season, while New England’s Martellus Bennett and Shea McClellin spent the past several seasons in Bears uniforms.
Check out the full preseason schedule below:
| Date | Opponent |
Location
|
| Aug. 11-15 | Broncos | Soldier Field |
| Aug. 18-22 | Patriots | Gillette Stadium |
| Aug. 25-28 | Chiefs | Soldier Field |
| Sept. 1-2 | Browns | FirstEnergy Stadium |
Bears 'culture veteran' Robbie Gould senses change coming.
By John Mullin
Expanding on an earlier observation on the initial free-agent signings…
GM Ryan Pace, coach John Fox and their staffs did not set out to target players this free-agency offseason from perennial winners, playoff and Super Bowl teams – Jerrell Freeman, Indianapolis Colts; Akiem Hicks, New England; Ted Larsen and Bobby Massie, Arizona Cardinals; Omar Bolden, Manny Ramirez and Danny Trevathan, Denver Broncos.
“To be honest, it’s kind of nice that it worked out that way,” Pace said last month during the NFL owners meeting. “But really we were evaluating the individual player and it kind of transpired that way and that’s an extra benefit. But we were looking at those guys as players and what they bring to make us better.”
Maybe. But if Pace and Fox did not consciously chart a course that would simultaneously increase the Bears’ talent level and radically change and upgrade the internal culture, they could scarcely have done a better job of it if those had been the joint purpose.
The transformation has not been lost on the longest-tenured Bear, one who has experienced Bears cultures ranging from the 2006 Super Bowl team to the descent into the 2013-14 abyss to the turnaround started last year with Fox and Pace and is accelerating.
“I talked to coach Fox the other day, had breakfast with him at the facility,” kicker Robbie Gould said Tuesday. “The way he talks about the guys they brought in, they’re very methodical in who they got and why they brought them here.
“I think you’ve seen the culture change in our locker room. The guys that they’ve brought in have had a taste of victory, have had a taste of what it means to be in the playoffs and go deep in the playoffs. I think it’s going to be exciting to add them to the locker room…
“There’s a lot for us as players who’ve been here a long time or are just getting signed to be excited about.”
Relentless offense backs up John Lackey as Cubs remain undefeated.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
John Lackey already had his scowl going in the first inning on Thursday night, yelling and pounding his glove with the intensity Cubs fans once loved to hate.
They had chanted “LACK-EY, LACK-EY!” at Wrigley Field last October, when the big-game pitcher tried to go on short rest and the Cubs eliminated a St. Louis Cardinals team that appeared to be running on fumes.
The Cubs are betting Lackey — at the age of 37 and more than four years removed from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow — still has plenty left in the tank as their No. 3 starter behind Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester.
But the Cubs are also trying to bash their way back into the playoffs. The lineup that might have tilted the balance of power in that rivalry with St. Louis looks so much better now, and that new-and-improved group bailed out Lackey in a 14-6 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
Coming off a season-opening, two-game sweep where they outscored the Los Angeles Angels, 15-1, the Cubs knocked out Rubby De La Rosa in the fourth inning and wore down Arizona’s bullpen, generating 14 hits and drawing 10 walks.
The Cubs needed that on a night where Kyle Schwarber rode off the field in an ambulance cart and Lackey didn’t look like the guy who put up a 2.77 ERA across 218 innings for the Cardinals last year.
Lackey’s first real pitch in a Cubs uniform — a 92-mph fastball to Jean Segura — wound up flying over the right-field fence and into the patio area for a leadoff homer. Lackey screamed after Jake Lamb’s two-out, two-run chopper bounced up the middle to put the Cubs in a 3-0 hole in the first inning.
As the Cubs kept attacking — All-Star first baseman Anthony Rizzo finished with six RBIs — Lackey managed to get through six innings, giving up six runs on eight hits and one walk against four strikeouts.
With a lineup anchored by MVP candidate Paul Goldschmidt, the Diamondbacks definitely aren’t tanking or stuck in an in-between phase or cautiously collecting prospects and waiting for the farm-system rankings to be released. Led by chief baseball officer Tony La Russa and general manager Dave Stewart, Arizona is going against convention and going for it in 2016.
Sensing the market might erupt, the Cubs pushed to close Lackey’s two-year, $32 million deal in early December, before Zack Greinke’s anticipated decision between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. Hours after the Lackey news broke, word trickled out that the Diamondbacks shocked the baseball world with a six-year, $206 million megadeal for Greinke.
At the winter meetings, the Diamondbacks paid a fortune to get Shelby Miller, another pitcher the Cubs targeted, giving up last year’s No. 1 overall pick (Dansby Swanson), a solid pitching prospect (Aaron Blair) and a legitimate big-league outfielder (Ender Inciarte).
The Cubs won’t score double-digit runs every night — and will try to keep Arrieta and Lester fresh for October — which makes Lackey an important bridge to the back end of the rotation and back into the playoffs.
UPDATE: Cubs' Kyle Schwarber carted off following outfield collision.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
An ambulance cart drove Kyle Schwarber off Chase Field on Thursday night, giving the Cubs perhaps their first crisis in a season filled with great expectations.
Facedown in the dirt, Schwarber waited for two Cubs trainers to reach him at the warning track after he collided with Dexter Fowler as they converged on a flyball in the left-center field gap.
Schwarber’s left leg crashed into Fowler in the second inning, and both outfielders tumbled to the ground while Arizona Diamondbacks leadoff guy Jean Segura sprinted for an inside-the-park home run.
A Cubs spokesman said Schwarber is being evaluated for a sprained left ankle, with initial X-rays coming back negative and an MRI scheduled for Friday, at which point the franchise will know more about one of its most valuable assets.
After several anxious moments, a crowd of 24,656 gave Schwarber a round of applause as he slowly rose to his feet, his arms hanging over the two athletic trainers for support.
The Cubs loved Schwarber’s football mentality when they drafted the Indiana University catcher/outfielder fourth overall in 2014, overlooking the questions about his long-term defensive future and believing in his vicious left-handed swing.
That against-the-grain decision helped sparked last year’s 97-win finish. Schwarber, a second-team All-Ohio linebacker in high school, changed the team’s identity as a hard-charging rookie, hitting 16 homers in 69 games and then blasting five more in the playoffs.
The Cubs might have the most talent on paper in the majors, enough depth to where Schwarber could become a personal catcher for Jason Hammel, learn from veterans Miguel Montero and David Ross behind the plate and sit against tough lefties.
Signing Fowler to a one-year, $13 million contract in late February looks like a prescient move, and there have been lingering questions about where Jorge Soler will fit in the outfield mix. Javier Baez (left thumb contusion) would also be eligible to come off the disabled list on Saturday if the Cubs want a potential super-utility guy.
But at this point, all the Cubs can do is wait for the MRI results on Schwarber’s left leg.
How the stars aligned for Cubs: Rizzo, Bryant, Arrieta, Maddon.
By Patrick Mooney
The Cubs took over Disneyland territory and made a Los Angeles Angels cast headlined by Mike Trout and Albert Pujols feel like The Other Team.
The Arizona Diamondbacks might not be an afterthought on Thursday night at Chase Field, but the Cubs have no other choice except to “Embrace The Target” for the next 160 games. Sweeping the Angels by a 15-1 aggregate score and hearing fans sing “Go Cubs Go” on their way out to the parking lots showed what could be ahead this season.
Before the Cubs became Revenants on a Sports Illustrated cover, the last time they played at Angel Stadium of Anaheim was June 4-5, 2013. That’s a jumping-off point for how the stars aligned for what had been a star-crossed franchise.
• Anthony Rizzo: During the first offseason for the Theo Epstein administration in Chicago, the Cubs looked at Pujols and Prince Fielder and pictured the first basemen on a stock chart. The front-office projections had Rizzo’s performance eventually rising to the point where he would pass Pujols and Fielder as they inevitably declined in their later years.
The Cubs still don’t have the kind of TV contract that led the Angels to splurge on a 10-year, $254 million megadeal for Pujols at the 2011 winter meetings. One month later, Cubs executives who knew Rizzo from their time together with the Boston Red Sox and San Diego Padres looked beyond his struggles at Petco Park, giving up hard-throwing/injury-prone pitcher Andrew Cashner.
Rizzo may never come close to matching what Pujols did for the St. Louis Cardinals (two World Series rings, three MVP awards) or finding the level of consistency that allowed the future Hall of Famer to earn 10 All-Star selections and hit 40 homers in his age-35 season last year.
But Rizzo is clearly the player to build around now — at a fraction of the cost — while Pujols tries to stay healthy and transition into being a part-time designated hitter. Rizzo is a Gold Glove-level defender coming off a 31-homer, 101-RBI season, and the team has taken on his personality, striking the right balance between goofy and serious.
“We’re really hungry,” Rizzo said. “If anyone in this clubhouse is thinking about the World Series right now, we’re in the wrong spot. We need to think about tomorrow, winning the game (and) dominating April.”
• Kris Bryant: Before Darwin Barney batted leadoff on June 5, 2013 in Orange County, the Cubs had already eliminated University of North Carolina third baseman Colin Moran from consideration for the No. 2 overall pick they couldn’t whiff on, leaving two pitchers and a fast-rising hitter still in the conversation.
As the draft unfolded the next day, the Houston Astros selected Stanford University right-hander Mark Appel with the top pick, giving the Cubs their shot at the University of San Diego slugger who led the nation in homers, runs scored, walks and slugging percentage.
Jon Gray — the University of Oklahoma right-hander who dropped to No. 3 — put up a 5.53 ERA in nine starts for the Colorado Rockies last year. The Astros packaged Appel (5.12 ERA in the minors) in the Ken Giles trade with the Philadelphia Phillies this winter. Houston had already acquired Moran — the sixth overall pick who spent last year at the Double-A level — from the Miami Marlins in the Jarred Cosart trade at the 2014 deadline.
Meanwhile, all lines are open at Bryzzo Souvenir Co.
“This could be a very special thing that we have here,” said Bryant, already an All-Star third baseman and a Rookie of the Year. “But we just really need to focus on this year and not really get too ahead of ourselves. There are so many things that can happen in this game. We’re here focusing on today.”
• Jake Arrieta: The pitching infrastructure that just helped shut down Trout and Pujols (0-for-15 with five strikeouts) had already been in place by June 4, 2013, when sign-and-flip guy Scott Feldman got a tough-luck no-decision in a one-run loss to the Angels.
Five weeks later, the Cubs sold high on Feldman (7-6, 3.46 ERA) and shipped him to the Baltimore Orioles in a trade for change-of-scenery pitchers Arrieta and Pedro Strop.
Arrieta’s unconventional workout routine/nutrition regimen has been covered at length, and there are almost two full seasons left to place over-under bets ($200 million) on how much super-agent Scott Boras will get his client in free agency.
But in listening to a Cy Young Award winner explain how to attack the Angels, it’s also clear how much Arrieta enjoys thinking about his craft and preparing for each start. Meaning there are intangible benefits to his presence and reasons to believe he will keep performing at a high level.
“Trout’s a guy who is exceptional at hitting the ball down in the zone really well for power,” Arrieta said, “both to the pull side and to right-center field. So you got to move the ball away from him and into him — to kind of keep him from getting extended — and elevate from time to time. Remaining unpredictable is really big against guys like him (and) Pujols (who) hit the fastball well.
“I expect to pitch this way every time I take the mound. Obviously, once the ball leaves your hand, you can’t dictate the results. But I expect to execute at a pretty high percentage. If I execute — and pound the strike zone with my stuff and keep them guessing — I have a pretty good opportunity to have another good year.”
• Joe Maddon: The Cubs lucked out when Andrew Friedman bolted from the Tampa Bay Rays after the 2014 season and took a president’s job with the Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing the star manager to use the escape clause in his contract.
But Maddon still knows the groundskeeper by name in Anaheim and appreciates what he learned during his three-plus decades in the Angels organization. Places like Gene Autry Park and Idaho Falls — and the long climb to the top — shaped him into the perfect ringleader for this circus.
“I really trust our players,” Maddon said. “When you talk about pressure and expectations, understand it’s spread out among the whole group. It’s not just on one guy. We have so many good players here. A lot of them have been through the baseball wars before where they’ve been very successful. We’re going to have our rough moments. (But) we have the ability – mentally, physically – to fight through those moments.
“If you factor in everything, experience, talent level, motivation — because all of them want to be here to become part of the first team that wins the World Series for the Cubs in a long, long time — there are so many good things here to repel pressure and expectations.”
White Sox earn series victory behind Mat Latos, Jose Abreu.
The Arizona Diamondbacks might not be an afterthought on Thursday night at Chase Field, but the Cubs have no other choice except to “Embrace The Target” for the next 160 games. Sweeping the Angels by a 15-1 aggregate score and hearing fans sing “Go Cubs Go” on their way out to the parking lots showed what could be ahead this season.
Before the Cubs became Revenants on a Sports Illustrated cover, the last time they played at Angel Stadium of Anaheim was June 4-5, 2013. That’s a jumping-off point for how the stars aligned for what had been a star-crossed franchise.
• Anthony Rizzo: During the first offseason for the Theo Epstein administration in Chicago, the Cubs looked at Pujols and Prince Fielder and pictured the first basemen on a stock chart. The front-office projections had Rizzo’s performance eventually rising to the point where he would pass Pujols and Fielder as they inevitably declined in their later years.
The Cubs still don’t have the kind of TV contract that led the Angels to splurge on a 10-year, $254 million megadeal for Pujols at the 2011 winter meetings. One month later, Cubs executives who knew Rizzo from their time together with the Boston Red Sox and San Diego Padres looked beyond his struggles at Petco Park, giving up hard-throwing/injury-prone pitcher Andrew Cashner.
Rizzo may never come close to matching what Pujols did for the St. Louis Cardinals (two World Series rings, three MVP awards) or finding the level of consistency that allowed the future Hall of Famer to earn 10 All-Star selections and hit 40 homers in his age-35 season last year.
But Rizzo is clearly the player to build around now — at a fraction of the cost — while Pujols tries to stay healthy and transition into being a part-time designated hitter. Rizzo is a Gold Glove-level defender coming off a 31-homer, 101-RBI season, and the team has taken on his personality, striking the right balance between goofy and serious.
“We’re really hungry,” Rizzo said. “If anyone in this clubhouse is thinking about the World Series right now, we’re in the wrong spot. We need to think about tomorrow, winning the game (and) dominating April.”
• Kris Bryant: Before Darwin Barney batted leadoff on June 5, 2013 in Orange County, the Cubs had already eliminated University of North Carolina third baseman Colin Moran from consideration for the No. 2 overall pick they couldn’t whiff on, leaving two pitchers and a fast-rising hitter still in the conversation.
As the draft unfolded the next day, the Houston Astros selected Stanford University right-hander Mark Appel with the top pick, giving the Cubs their shot at the University of San Diego slugger who led the nation in homers, runs scored, walks and slugging percentage.
Jon Gray — the University of Oklahoma right-hander who dropped to No. 3 — put up a 5.53 ERA in nine starts for the Colorado Rockies last year. The Astros packaged Appel (5.12 ERA in the minors) in the Ken Giles trade with the Philadelphia Phillies this winter. Houston had already acquired Moran — the sixth overall pick who spent last year at the Double-A level — from the Miami Marlins in the Jarred Cosart trade at the 2014 deadline.
Meanwhile, all lines are open at Bryzzo Souvenir Co.
“This could be a very special thing that we have here,” said Bryant, already an All-Star third baseman and a Rookie of the Year. “But we just really need to focus on this year and not really get too ahead of ourselves. There are so many things that can happen in this game. We’re here focusing on today.”
• Jake Arrieta: The pitching infrastructure that just helped shut down Trout and Pujols (0-for-15 with five strikeouts) had already been in place by June 4, 2013, when sign-and-flip guy Scott Feldman got a tough-luck no-decision in a one-run loss to the Angels.
Five weeks later, the Cubs sold high on Feldman (7-6, 3.46 ERA) and shipped him to the Baltimore Orioles in a trade for change-of-scenery pitchers Arrieta and Pedro Strop.
Arrieta’s unconventional workout routine/nutrition regimen has been covered at length, and there are almost two full seasons left to place over-under bets ($200 million) on how much super-agent Scott Boras will get his client in free agency.
But in listening to a Cy Young Award winner explain how to attack the Angels, it’s also clear how much Arrieta enjoys thinking about his craft and preparing for each start. Meaning there are intangible benefits to his presence and reasons to believe he will keep performing at a high level.
“Trout’s a guy who is exceptional at hitting the ball down in the zone really well for power,” Arrieta said, “both to the pull side and to right-center field. So you got to move the ball away from him and into him — to kind of keep him from getting extended — and elevate from time to time. Remaining unpredictable is really big against guys like him (and) Pujols (who) hit the fastball well.
“I expect to pitch this way every time I take the mound. Obviously, once the ball leaves your hand, you can’t dictate the results. But I expect to execute at a pretty high percentage. If I execute — and pound the strike zone with my stuff and keep them guessing — I have a pretty good opportunity to have another good year.”
• Joe Maddon: The Cubs lucked out when Andrew Friedman bolted from the Tampa Bay Rays after the 2014 season and took a president’s job with the Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing the star manager to use the escape clause in his contract.
But Maddon still knows the groundskeeper by name in Anaheim and appreciates what he learned during his three-plus decades in the Angels organization. Places like Gene Autry Park and Idaho Falls — and the long climb to the top — shaped him into the perfect ringleader for this circus.
“I really trust our players,” Maddon said. “When you talk about pressure and expectations, understand it’s spread out among the whole group. It’s not just on one guy. We have so many good players here. A lot of them have been through the baseball wars before where they’ve been very successful. We’re going to have our rough moments. (But) we have the ability – mentally, physically – to fight through those moments.
“If you factor in everything, experience, talent level, motivation — because all of them want to be here to become part of the first team that wins the World Series for the Cubs in a long, long time — there are so many good things here to repel pressure and expectations.”
White Sox earn series victory behind Mat Latos, Jose Abreu.
Mat Latos exceeded expectations on Thursday afternoon and the White Sox offense offered up a belated celebration.
Latos delivered six scoreless innings in his 2016 debut and Jose Abreu homered as the White Sox poured it on late in a 6-1 victory over the Oakland A’s in front of 12,577 at the Oakland Coliseum. Latos only allowed one hit and earned the victory when Abreu — who had three RBIs including one in a four-run ninth — blasted his first homer of the season.
The White Sox singled six times in the top of the ninth to break open a close game and earn a series victory over the A’s. The team’s 3-1 start is its best since 2005.
After he struggled to pitch deep into a game all spring, Latos looked outstanding against Oakland.
He built off Friday night’s outing in San Diego, one manager Robin Ventura described as encouraging. But even in that one, Latos only pitched 4 1/3 innings before he surrendered three earned runs.
Thursday was different.
Six of the first 13 hitters Latos faced hit ground balls as the right-hander kept his pitches down in the zone. Working with a fastball that ranged from 87-91, Latos used his entire arsenal to keep the A’s off balance. Through four hitless innings, Latos didn’t yield any hard-hit balls.
He wouldn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning and even that took a misplayed fly ball by J.B. Shuck (he dropped a foul ball) and a 3-2 single by Chris Coghlan with one out.
Latos, who didn’t complete five innings in any of his three spring training starts, looked as if he could be in trouble in the fifth when he issued a two-out walk to Marcus Semien. But Brett Lawrie made nice diving stop up the middle and flipped in time to second base for the force to get out of the jam.
Lawrie made another diving stop in the sixth inning and Latos rode it to another perfect frame, one of four 1-2-3 three-up, three-downs.
Latos allowed a hit and a walk with two strikeouts over six scoreless innings. He threw strikes on 56 of 88 pitches.
The White Sox offense didn’t have many answers for Oakland starter Kendall Graveman, either.
The sinkerballer broke bats a plenty in a dominant first few innings against the White Sox.
Graveman retired Todd Frazier on a groundout with a man in scoring position to end the first inning and did the same to Abreu with two aboard in the third. Through five innings, Graveman only faced four above the minimum, and two of those reached on errors.
But Melky Cabrera, who earlier singled, drew a four-pitch walk to start the sixth inning and Abreu destroyed a 91-mph sinker down the middle, driving it out to right for two-run homer.
The offense came to life in the ninth inning when Avisail Garcia opened with a single against Liam Hendriks. Pinch runner Austin Jackson stole second and moved to third on Lawrie’s bloop single. Dioner Navarro ripped an RBI single off the right field wall to make it 3-0. Tyler Saladino and Cabrera also had RBI singles and Abreu’s sac fly made it 6-0.
White Sox must quickly acclimate to new surroundings.
By Dan Hayes
He doesn’t expect chaos or bedlam.
But manager Robin Ventura thinks he could have a few confused players wandering aimlessly in the White Sox clubhouse on Friday morning.
The White Sox are set to arrive home late Thursday night or early in the morning after they conclude a four-game series at the Oakland A’s. Their late arrival and afternoon home opener on Friday doesn’t give the team’s seven new players much time to figure out the logistics of the home clubhouse.
The White Sox open at home against the Cleveland Indians at 3:05 p.m. CST on Friday.
“That’s the schedule,” Ventura said. “It’s not ideal, but we’re going to have to deal with it.”
“I wish we had a day to go home and get acclimated to it. It’s a little odd when you have so many guys coming in not going where to go, where their locker is at, the routine they would set for themselves. It’s a bit different, but we’ll be fine.”
The team is only at home for three nights before it hits the road again. The White Sox travel to Minneapolis on Sunday night before they head to Tampa.
Ventura thinks the real issue will be for players to acclimate to their cold surroundings. Most of the White Sox players probably haven’t felt a sub-60 degree temperature since they attended SoxFest in January. It has been warmer than normal in Oakland this week with an 83-degree temperature at first pitch on Wednesday night.
Friday’s forecast calls for rain and snow in the morning with wind, overcast skies and temperatures in the upper 30s in the afternoon, according to weather.com. While John Danks said Wednesday he’d love for 20 degrees and sleet, he’s probably in the minority.
“It’s going to be cold, that’s probably more of an issue than anything,” Ventura said. “When we go back that’s the first thing we’re going to feel when we get off the plane. Both teams are playing in it so you might as well get used to it and get going.”
Weather alters Indians rotation for series with White Sox.
By Dan Hayes
VS. 
Two postponements have drastically changed Cleveland’s plans for its three-game series at the White Sox.
Former American League Cy Young winner Corey Kluber is no longer scheduled to face the White Sox after Cleveland had its second game of a four-game series against the Boston Red Sox postponed by weather.
The Indians will now start Danny Salazar on Friday against John Danks in the White Sox home opener at 3:05 p.m. CST. Cody Anderson faces Chris Sale on Saturday afternoon and Josh Tomlin draws Jose Quintana on Sunday afternoon.
Cleveland had its opener cancelled on Monday as well as the finale on Thursday.
Latos delivered six scoreless innings in his 2016 debut and Jose Abreu homered as the White Sox poured it on late in a 6-1 victory over the Oakland A’s in front of 12,577 at the Oakland Coliseum. Latos only allowed one hit and earned the victory when Abreu — who had three RBIs including one in a four-run ninth — blasted his first homer of the season.
The White Sox singled six times in the top of the ninth to break open a close game and earn a series victory over the A’s. The team’s 3-1 start is its best since 2005.
After he struggled to pitch deep into a game all spring, Latos looked outstanding against Oakland.
He built off Friday night’s outing in San Diego, one manager Robin Ventura described as encouraging. But even in that one, Latos only pitched 4 1/3 innings before he surrendered three earned runs.
Thursday was different.
Six of the first 13 hitters Latos faced hit ground balls as the right-hander kept his pitches down in the zone. Working with a fastball that ranged from 87-91, Latos used his entire arsenal to keep the A’s off balance. Through four hitless innings, Latos didn’t yield any hard-hit balls.
He wouldn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning and even that took a misplayed fly ball by J.B. Shuck (he dropped a foul ball) and a 3-2 single by Chris Coghlan with one out.
Latos, who didn’t complete five innings in any of his three spring training starts, looked as if he could be in trouble in the fifth when he issued a two-out walk to Marcus Semien. But Brett Lawrie made nice diving stop up the middle and flipped in time to second base for the force to get out of the jam.
Lawrie made another diving stop in the sixth inning and Latos rode it to another perfect frame, one of four 1-2-3 three-up, three-downs.
Latos allowed a hit and a walk with two strikeouts over six scoreless innings. He threw strikes on 56 of 88 pitches.
The White Sox offense didn’t have many answers for Oakland starter Kendall Graveman, either.
The sinkerballer broke bats a plenty in a dominant first few innings against the White Sox.
Graveman retired Todd Frazier on a groundout with a man in scoring position to end the first inning and did the same to Abreu with two aboard in the third. Through five innings, Graveman only faced four above the minimum, and two of those reached on errors.
But Melky Cabrera, who earlier singled, drew a four-pitch walk to start the sixth inning and Abreu destroyed a 91-mph sinker down the middle, driving it out to right for two-run homer.
The offense came to life in the ninth inning when Avisail Garcia opened with a single against Liam Hendriks. Pinch runner Austin Jackson stole second and moved to third on Lawrie’s bloop single. Dioner Navarro ripped an RBI single off the right field wall to make it 3-0. Tyler Saladino and Cabrera also had RBI singles and Abreu’s sac fly made it 6-0.
White Sox must quickly acclimate to new surroundings.
By Dan Hayes
He doesn’t expect chaos or bedlam.
But manager Robin Ventura thinks he could have a few confused players wandering aimlessly in the White Sox clubhouse on Friday morning.
The White Sox are set to arrive home late Thursday night or early in the morning after they conclude a four-game series at the Oakland A’s. Their late arrival and afternoon home opener on Friday doesn’t give the team’s seven new players much time to figure out the logistics of the home clubhouse.
The White Sox open at home against the Cleveland Indians at 3:05 p.m. CST on Friday.
“That’s the schedule,” Ventura said. “It’s not ideal, but we’re going to have to deal with it.”
“I wish we had a day to go home and get acclimated to it. It’s a little odd when you have so many guys coming in not going where to go, where their locker is at, the routine they would set for themselves. It’s a bit different, but we’ll be fine.”
The team is only at home for three nights before it hits the road again. The White Sox travel to Minneapolis on Sunday night before they head to Tampa.
Ventura thinks the real issue will be for players to acclimate to their cold surroundings. Most of the White Sox players probably haven’t felt a sub-60 degree temperature since they attended SoxFest in January. It has been warmer than normal in Oakland this week with an 83-degree temperature at first pitch on Wednesday night.
Friday’s forecast calls for rain and snow in the morning with wind, overcast skies and temperatures in the upper 30s in the afternoon, according to weather.com. While John Danks said Wednesday he’d love for 20 degrees and sleet, he’s probably in the minority.
“It’s going to be cold, that’s probably more of an issue than anything,” Ventura said. “When we go back that’s the first thing we’re going to feel when we get off the plane. Both teams are playing in it so you might as well get used to it and get going.”
Weather alters Indians rotation for series with White Sox.
By Dan Hayes
VS. Former American League Cy Young winner Corey Kluber is no longer scheduled to face the White Sox after Cleveland had its second game of a four-game series against the Boston Red Sox postponed by weather.
The Indians will now start Danny Salazar on Friday against John Danks in the White Sox home opener at 3:05 p.m. CST. Cody Anderson faces Chris Sale on Saturday afternoon and Josh Tomlin draws Jose Quintana on Sunday afternoon.
Cleveland had its opener cancelled on Monday as well as the finale on Thursday.
Golf: I got a club for that..... Jordan Spieth picks up where he off at Augusta National.
Jordan Spieth hits on the second fairway during the first round of the Masters golf tournament Thursday, April 7, 2016, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Jordan Spieth picked up right where he left off a year ago.
Just another birdie-filled round at the Masters.
Looking very much like the player who romped to a dominating victory a year ago, the 22-year-old Texan threw up a 6-under 66 on a breezy Thursday at Augusta National to claim a familiar position: the top spot on the leaderboard.
Spieth set a tournament record with 28 birdies in 2015, leading after every round on the way to an 18-under score and his first major title. That sparked one of the great years in golf history, as he went on to capture the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay, just missed out on a playoff in the British Open, and took the runner-up spot behind Jason Day at the PGA Championship.
Day is now the top-ranked player in the world and came into the Masters as the betting favorite. He certainly looked the part playing in the afternoon, shooting a 5-under 31 on the front side to pull within one stroke of the lead.
Don't expect Spieth to shy away from the challenge.
''We just stay patient with what we're doing,'' he said. ''We know how to win this golf tournament.''
Spieth rolled in six birdies - all from within 15 feet - and stayed away from bogey with some impressive saves, most notably at the par-3 fourth, where he pulled off a delicate up-and-down from a treacherous side of the green.
After the putt rolled in, Spieth pumped his fist.
''That keeps momentum there,'' he said.
Even though the course was softened overnight by strong thunderstorms, the wind whipping across Augusta National made it tough to go low. It didn't seem to bother Spieth, who is trying to become only the fourth player to win back-to-back titles.
Tiger Woods was the last to do it in 2001 and 2002. The others: Jack Nicklaus and Nick Faldo.
Among the early finishers, England's Paul Casey and Justin Rose were Spieth's closest challengers, each shooting a 69. Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy, who is only missing the Masters from his career Grand Slam, teed off in the final group of the day.
One big name shot himself out of the tournament on the very first hole.
Ernie Els seven-putted - yep, SEVEN - on the way to a sextuple-bogey 10, the highest score ever on the 445-yard hole known as ''Tea Olive.'' No one had ever posted higher than an 8.
What made the scene even more surreal, Els' first putt was a mere 2-footer for par, and his longest attempt was just 4 feet, the ball rolling back and forth past the cup in a scene that would've made even a weekend duffer cringe.
Then, with his frustration boiling over, the Big Easy carelessly missed from less than a foot with a sloppy one-handed swat.
Rickie Fowler, perhaps the best player without a major title, ruined his hopes as well on Day One.
His opening drive went sailed into the trees, leading to a double-bogey, and he found both the trees and the creek on No. 13, taking a triple-bogey on the par-5 hole that often gives up plenty of birdies and eagles. At the 16th, Fowler dunked another ball in the water, leading to his second double-bogey of the round.
He finished with an 80, his worst score ever at the Masters.
On the 30th anniversary of his sixth and last Masters title, Nicklaus joined Gary Player to hit the ceremonial opening tee shots shortly after sunrise. Arnold Palmer could only watch, having decided not to swing the club this year because of health issues.
The 86-year-old Palmer did ride a cart out to the first tee, offering that familiar wink and thumbs-up. He also posed for a picture with his two longtime rivals and friends, who combined to win seven straight Masters in the 1960s and collectively won 34 major championships.
Player, the 80-year-old South African who said he prepared by doing 1,300 sit-ups and crunches, belted his drive down the middle. The 76-year-old Nicklaus hit it higher and shorter.
''Gary won his tournament this year,'' Nicklaus said with a grin. ''I hit a pop-up.''
''I wouldn't be too concerned about me outdriving you too much,'' Player replied, ''because you did it to me for 50 damn years.''
But this moment was all about Palmer.
''It was gratifying and sad, because everything shall pass,'' Player said. ''But it was nice to have him on the tee. I dedicated my first tee shot to him in respect. It's a very special moment.''
After the original ''Big Three'' stepped aside, the 80th Masters began for real.
Els fires record quintuple-bogey nine to open Masters.
AFP; Jim Slater
Four-time major champion Ernie Els, nicknamed "The Big Easy," took it a bit too easy Thursday on the first hole of the Masters and paid for it in a record-setting humiliation.
The 46-year-old South African fired a quintuple-bogey nine, the highest score ever made on the par-4 opening hole at Augusta National, six-putting the green to start his 22nd Masters appearance.
His total on the opening hole was originally scored as a 10 by running scorekeepers, but Augusta National announced after Els completed his round that the score had been "incorrectly recorded" and should have been a nine.
A miscount was entirely possible as fast as Els was swatting the ball around the first hole, putts from inside two feet failing to fall time and again, becoming a humbling misery.
The four-time major champion's nine was one stroke worse than the prior highest score on the 445-yard hole named Tea Olive, the eights shot by Olin Browne and Scott Simpson in 1998, Billy Casper in 2001 and India's Jeev Milkha Singh in 2007.
Els fired his first shot into the huge bunker right of the fairway and sent his approach 18 yards left of the green before pitching his approach to two feet.
Then came the agony, misses from three feet or less from all around the hole until he paused before his sixth stroke and gathered himself. Els then left the ball 10 inches from the cup only to push the ball past the hole.
Els nonchalantly used a one-hand swing to tap the ball back toward the cup and it lipped out, prompting him to reach over and again one-hand the ball, this time mercifully into the bottom of the cup.
Masters Leaderboard 2016. (1st Round)
By Augusta Chronicle
SCORING TO PAR
|
ROUNDS
| ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POS | NAME | TOTAL | THRU | TODAY | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | TOTAL |
| 1 | Jordan Spieth | -6 | 12:55 pm | - | 66 | - | - | - | 66 |
| T2 | Danny Lee | -4 | 9:26 am | - | 68 | - | - | - | 68 |
| T2 | Shane Lowry | -4 | 10:54 am | - | 68 | - | - | - | 68 |
| T4 | Paul Casey | -3 | 12:55 pm | - | 69 | - | - | - | 69 |
| T4 | Sergio Garcia | -3 | 10:43 am | - | 69 | - | - | - | 69 |
| T4 | Soren Kjeldsen | -3 | 10:32 am | - | 69 | - | - | - | 69 |
| T4 | Ian Poulter | -3 | 9:37 am | - | 69 | - | - | - | 69 |
| T4 | Justin Rose | -3 | 1:50 pm | - | 69 | - | - | - | 69 |
| T9 | Billy Horschel | -2 | 8:42 am | - | 70 | - | - | - | 70 |
| T9 | Rory McIlroy | -2 | 11:05 am | - | 70 | - | - | - | 70 |
| T9 | Scott Piercy | -2 | 10:21 am | - | 70 | - | - | - | 70 |
| T9 | Danny Willett | -2 | 10:43 am | - | 70 | - | - | - | 70 |
| T13 | Matthew Fitzpatrick | -1 | 8:42 am | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Emiliano Grillo | -1 | 1:06 pm | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Charley Hoffman | -1 | 12:22 pm | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Hideki Matsuyama | -1 | 1:17 pm | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Brandt Snedeker | -1 | 9:04 am | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Kevin Streelman | -1 | 11:38 am | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Jimmy Walker | -1 | 10:32 am | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T13 | Lee Westwood | -1 | 12:22 pm | - | 71 | - | - | - | 71 |
| T21 | Kiradech Aphibarnrat | E | 9:04 am | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Jason Day | E | 9:59 am | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Bryson DeChambeau | E | 12:55 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | J.B. Holmes | E | 10:54 am | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Thongchai Jaidee | E | 12:00 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Zach Johnson | E | 12:33 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Bernhard Langer | E | 9:48 am | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Graeme McDowell | E | 10:21 am | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Phil Mickelson | E | 1:39 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Kevin Na | E | 1:28 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Louis Oosthuizen | E | 12:44 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Henrik Stenson | E | 1:39 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T21 | Chris Wood | E | 12:00 pm | - | 72 | - | - | - | 72 |
| T34 | Daniel Berger | +1 | 1:50 pm | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Angel Cabrera | +1 | 10:54 am | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Victor Dubuisson | +1 | 11:38 am | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Dustin Johnson | +1 | 1:06 pm | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Smylie Kaufman | +1 | 9:26 am | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Brooks Koepka | +1 | 2:01 pm | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Davis Love III | +1 | 9:15 am | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Hunter Mahan | +1 | 9:48 am | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T34 | Bernd Wiesberger | +1 | 11:49 am | - | 73 | - | - | - | 73 |
| T43 | Keegan Bradley | +2 | 9:04 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Rafa Cabrera-Bello | +2 | 9:15 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Jamie Donaldson | +2 | 1:50 pm | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Harris English | +2 | 1:28 pm | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Martin Kaymer | +2 | 11:05 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Romain Langasque | +2 | 9:48 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Marc Leishman | +2 | 1:39 pm | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Troy Merritt | +2 | 8:31 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Cameron Smith | +2 | 8:20 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Vaughn Taylor | +2 | 11:49 am | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T43 | Tom Watson | +2 | 12:22 pm | - | 74 | - | - | - | 74 |
| T54 | Branden Grace | +3 | 9:37 am | - | 75 | - | - | - | 75 |
| T54 | Bill Haas | +3 | 11:05 am | - | 75 | - | - | - | 75 |
| T54 | Jim Herman | +3 | 11:16 am | - | 75 | - | - | - | 75 |
| T54 | Matt Kuchar | +3 | 9:59 am | - | 75 | - | - | - | 75 |
| T54 | Bubba Watson | +3 | 9:37 am | - | 75 | - | - | - | 75 |
| T59 | Derek Bard | +4 | 11:27 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Darren Clarke | +4 | 8:42 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Jason Dufner | +4 | 12:44 pm | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Chris Kirk | +4 | 1:17 pm | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Anirban Lahiri | +4 | 10:32 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Sandy Lyle | +4 | 11:49 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Larry Mize | +4 | 11:38 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Patrick Reed | +4 | 12:44 pm | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Charl Schwartzel | +4 | 9:15 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Adam Scott | +4 | 2:01 pm | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Justin Thomas | +4 | 1:06 pm | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T59 | Mike Weir | +4 | 8:20 am | - | 76 | - | - | - | 76 |
| T71 | Byeong-Hun An | +5 | 8:31 am | - | 77 | - | - | - | 77 |
| T71 | Fabian Gomez | +5 | 10:21 am | - | 77 | - | - | - | 77 |
| T71 | Trevor Immelman | +5 | 11:27 am | - | 77 | - | - | - | 77 |
| T71 | Kevin Kisner | +5 | 2:01 pm | - | 77 | - | - | - | 77 |
| T71 | Mark O'Meara | +5 | 8:53 am | - | 77 | - | - | - | 77 |
| T71 | Webb Simpson | +5 | 12:00 pm | - | 77 | - | - | - | 77 |
| T77 | Steven Bowditch | +7 | 11:16 am | - | 79 | - | - | - | 79 |
| T77 | Cheng Jin | +7 | 12:33 pm | - | 79 | - | - | - | 79 |
| T77 | Russell Knox | +7 | 9:26 am | - | 79 | - | - | - | 79 |
| T77 | David Lingmerth | +7 | 8:53 am | - | 79 | - | - | - | 79 |
| T81 | Ernie Els | +8 | 9:59 am | - | 80 | - | - | - | 80 |
| T81 | Rickie Fowler | +8 | 12:33 pm | - | 80 | - | - | - | 80 |
| T81 | Ryan Moore | +8 | 10:43 am | - | 80 | - | - | - | 80 |
| T81 | Vijay Singh | +8 | 1:17 pm | - | 80 | - | - | - | 80 |
| T81 | Andy Sullivan | +8 | 1:28 pm | - | 80 | - | - | - | 80 |
| T86 | Sammy Schmitz | +9 | 8:20 am | - | 81 | - | - | - | 81 |
| T86 | Robert Streb | +9 | 11:27 am | - | 81 | - | - | - | 81 |
| 88 | Ian Woosnam | +10 | 8:31 am | - | 82 | - | - | - | 82 |
| 89 | Paul Chaplet | +11 | 8:53 am | - | 83 | - | - | - | 83 |
NASCAR: Weekend Schedule for Texas.
Staff Report NASCAR.com
ON TRACK
-- 2:45 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Follow live)
-- 4:45 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Follow live)
-- 6:30-7:50 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Series final practice, FS1 (Follow live)
-- 8:30 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 (200 laps, 300 miles), FS1 (Follow live)
PRESS CONFERENCES (Watch live)
-- 2 p.m.: Eddie Gossage
-- 3:45 p.m.: Joey Logano
-- 11 p.m.: (approx) post-NXS race
SATURDAY, APRIL 9:
-- 2:45 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Follow live)
-- 4:45 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Follow live)
-- 6:30-7:50 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Series final practice, FS1 (Follow live)
-- 8:30 p.m.: NASCAR XFINITY Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 (200 laps, 300 miles), FS1 (Follow live)
PRESS CONFERENCES (Watch live)
-- 2 p.m.: Eddie Gossage
-- 3:45 p.m.: Joey Logano
-- 11 p.m.: (approx) post-NXS race
SATURDAY, APRIL 9:
ON TRACK
-- 7:30 p.m.: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Duck Commander 500 (334 laps, 501 miles), FOX (Follow live)
PRESS CONFERENCES (Watch live)
-- 11 p.m.: (approx) post-NSCS race
Cain: Bigger and more memorable at Texas.
By Holly Cain
(Photo/NASCAR.com)
From track "weepers" and multicar inaugural-lap pileups to a winner's circle confrontation between two Indianapolis 500 champs, Texas Motor Speedway has been the site of some of the most remarkable, memorable and bizarre story lines of any circuit on the NASCAR circuit.
The 1.5-mile oval outside Fort Worth celebrates its 20th year hosting a NASCAR race this week with Saturday night's Duck Commander 500 (7:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.) And for those of us around at the very beginning, it seems a fitting time to reminisce a bit about the facility's famously storied early history.
As they like to remind you in Texas, everything is "bigger" there. And it has been. The track's early trials and tribulations have only contributed to its great character and esteem.
In my 25 years of sports journalism, the opening races at Texas Motor Speedway still remain among the most unforgettable times of my career.
Never before and never since have I covered a specific beat that provided as much sensation, controversy and must-see-TV as TMS in the early years.
Two decades later, the track located at the intersection of an interstate and two major Texas highways has evolved into one of the sport's most prestigious venues. It boasts the largest HD screen, named "Big Hoss," fantastic spectator seating and the most condominiums of any track on the circuit. Plus really great racing.
Nearly 195,000 people showed up for the inaugural Texas race in 1997 and most of those who were ticket holders then still are, two decades later proving they are as faithful and optimistic as they were devoted.
It turns out those have been good traits for this endeavor.
I had just started work at The Dallas Morning News newspaper in the spring of 1997 a few weeks after Jeff Burton took the checkered flag for NASCAR's first Cup series race at Texas in April. The new facility was considered the "home track" to cover. After reporting on the Indianapolis 500 in May, I was immediately back home in Dallas, ready for the Indy Racing League's night-time debut at TMS the next week.
There, a 26-year old future three-time NASCAR Cup champion Tony Stewart put on an open-wheel show for the ages, racing wheel-to-wheel lap-after-lap with Buddy Lazier. Stewart -- who went on to win two Cup races at Texas (2006 and 2011) -- led a race-high 100 of the 208 laps only to suffer an engine failure that night.
But toward the end of the race there were questions regarding the scoring shown on the monitor in the press box. And soon after making my way down to the infield to prepare for a super-tight Saturday night newspaper deadline, the real craziness began.
While trying to get post-race quotes from the apparent first-time winner Billy Boat (XFINITY Series driver Chad's dad) and Boat's team owner, Texan A.J. Foyt, I was standing a few feet away when driver Arie Luyendyk confronted Foyt in Victory Lane. After questioning the results, challenging Foyt and suggesting he was actually the legitimate race winner, Luyendyk tumbled into the victory flowers. Boat and Foyt hoisted the trophy.
It was surreal. I was on a crazy tight deadline. But the next day in a hastily called press conference, Luyendyk was declared the winner after USAC conceded a scoring error.
After USAC officials suggested problems with the track's scoring system, TMS President Eddie Gossage took the press conference podium and strongly reminded that the speedway wasn't responsible for the scoring.
"I got home at 3 in the morning knowing we gave the trophy to the wrong winner and had a press conference for 8 in the morning," said Gossage. "I go in to the press conference with two hours of sleep and I'm sitting in the back row and the head scorer for USAC says that the speedway's timing and scoring equipment didn't work.
"He says it again and then a third time so I just walked up on stage and stepped up to the podium and eased him to the side and said, "Texas Motor Speedway doesn't own a stop watch. ... People have a right to know when they leave the race track who the winner is and we all didn't get what we paid for."
Then after a dramatic exit and door slam, Gossage recalls, "My dad called from Tennessee and said, 'You were raised better, acting like an idiot on television for all the world to see, embarrassing me and your mom.' I said, 'What?' He said, 'You didn't know it was live on ESPN?'
"I didn't. And then I was like, 'You're right, sir. I'm sorry. I know better.' "
Gossage has a good laugh recalling the whole ordeal now.
Foyt, who still disputes the result, kept the trophy and Luyendyk was given another one.
A year later, Boat recalled of the evening, "We went into Victory Circle knowing nothing about a scoring error, only that someone was talking derogatory about our race team. You don't do that in a big Texan's Victory Circle."
Luyendyk, of Holland, said the incident -- replayed repeatedly all over the world at the time -- actually made him and the Texas Motor Speedway more famous overseas.
And then in 1998 came NASCAR's second Cup try.
After two multi-car accidents in the inaugural race, conventional wisdom promised this one just had to go down more smoothly.
NASCAR's biggest stars such as Rusty Wallace, Ernie Irvan, Dale Earnhardt and Mark Martin were among those who crashed in the opening race. Darrell Waltrip finished last after being involved in a 13-car wreck on the very first turn of the very first lap of Cup competition there. And Burton ended up winning by 4 seconds.
Surely, everyone figured, the second race would be smoother.
It wasn't.
"Weepers" became a familiar word. The water seeping through the track caused qualifying to be completed a day late. And of all things, there was a huge 10-car accident on the second lap of the race. Jeff Gordon and yes, Waltrip, were collected in that melee.
Mark Martin won the race by a half-second over Chad Little and Robert Pressley.
Shortly after, TMS went through a re-paving and re-fitting, track owner Bruton Smith and Gossage committed to correction.
"The first year it was just terrible and everything seemed to go wrong," Gossage conceded this week. "And the second year, obviously you try to improve so all of a sudden here's these weepers that came through.
"I remember driving into the infield and in the rearview mirror saw Lake Speed knock the wall down in Turn 1 in qualifying. I thought, 'Oh no.'
"I'm always the worst critic," Gossage said, logging the long hours readying for the weekend's big events. "There are things other people might not have noticed but I did. For some reason things worked really well in 1999 when Terry Labonte won and it's been better since then. That's the way a race weekend was supposed to go."
Not only has it been better, it's typically a discussion point in every season review. In 2005, Texas finally got the second date it had longed for since I worked at the Dallas paper nearly a decade earlier. And the facility -- big enough to fit every Texas sporting stadium in its infield -- is also a big-time player in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
It's still providing those jaw-dropping, television highlight moments seemingly born with the track.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored his first Cup win at TMS in April 2000. And Chase Elliott got his first XFINITY Series win here in 2014 driving for Junior at JR Motorsports.
Gordon, who won this race in 2009, has starred in a couple TMS highlight reels, too. He was involved in a pair of high profile skirmishes from taking on Burton on-track after a wreck in 2010 to a crazy pit road scuffle with Brad Keselowski in 2014.
"You have to be honest," Gossage said. "And looking back, it's just how things occurred. I wouldn't trade any of it, if it is what got us where we are. I'll take where we stand in our success as the most successful major market speedway in the history of this sport. I'll take that.
"I won't trade my job with the guy running any other race track because I'm just so proud of what's been accomplished here."
Danica Patrick ‘fought the good fight’ and lost on Fontana fine.
By Daniel McFadin
In the days following the March 20 race at Auto Club Speedway, Danica Patrick was on vacation.
Relaxing on an island, she didn’t want to be bothered. Even by NASCAR.
“They’re reaching out to me to talk to me and I’m on vacation, and I’m like ‘I don’t want to answer this,’ ” Patrick said Thursday at Texas Motor Speedway.
The message was similar to the one she received when Patrick learned NASCAR would fine her $50,000 and dock 25 points for intentionally slamming into the back of David Gilliland during the Nov. 1 race at Martinsville Speedway.
“The text goes like ‘Can you take a call at 1 p.m.?’ ” Patrick said.
On the opposite end of this call was a $20,000 fine, punishment for Patrick having approached the track after being wrecked by Kasey Kahne at Auto Club Speedway. In August 2014, NASCAR outlawed drivers exiting their cars before safety workers arrive after an incident.
After exiting her wrecked car, Patrick said the prospect of being fined never “entered my mind” as she approached the track to give “the universal WTF” sign to Kahne.
“Did I feel like I was in danger?” Patrick said. “Absolutely not. It’s my own body, I don’t want to put my body in danger at all. Then you start working into gray areas as to what’s too close and what’s not close. I get it. I get their position.”
NASCAR also fined Trevor Bayne and Jennifer Jo Cobb in the same week in 2015 for similar incidents, which remind Patrick of the “rowdy, rough and tough, boys have at it” image she associates with NASCAR.
“I understand NASCAR needs to do whatever it can to, again, protect their drivers … and making sure that we don’t put ourselves in harm’s way,” Patrick said. “I get that it is 2016. We can get smarter and better. There’s certain things that cross the line, and I guess that they deemed that I did it.”
The idea of being fined was first presented to Patrick after the race when her agent texted to ask if she would be.
“‘No, not that I know of,'” Patrick responded.
But a few days later, that familiar message came. The Fontana penalties weren’t announced until Thursday, a day later than normal because NASCAR officials said all of the affected parties couldn’t be reached.
Apparently, one of them was Patrick, who initially had ignored the call while lounging in paradise. Her advice to NASCAR the next time? Just issue the fine and tell me later.
“‘Oh, now I get it,'” Patrick said she thought at the time. “Pretty much, my answer from now on will just be ‘Just give me the fine.’
“I fought the good fight and I didn’t win.”
SOCCER: Second NYCFC match gives Fire chance to display improvement.
The 1.5-mile oval outside Fort Worth celebrates its 20th year hosting a NASCAR race this week with Saturday night's Duck Commander 500 (7:30 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.) And for those of us around at the very beginning, it seems a fitting time to reminisce a bit about the facility's famously storied early history.
As they like to remind you in Texas, everything is "bigger" there. And it has been. The track's early trials and tribulations have only contributed to its great character and esteem.
In my 25 years of sports journalism, the opening races at Texas Motor Speedway still remain among the most unforgettable times of my career.
Never before and never since have I covered a specific beat that provided as much sensation, controversy and must-see-TV as TMS in the early years.
Two decades later, the track located at the intersection of an interstate and two major Texas highways has evolved into one of the sport's most prestigious venues. It boasts the largest HD screen, named "Big Hoss," fantastic spectator seating and the most condominiums of any track on the circuit. Plus really great racing.
Nearly 195,000 people showed up for the inaugural Texas race in 1997 and most of those who were ticket holders then still are, two decades later proving they are as faithful and optimistic as they were devoted.
It turns out those have been good traits for this endeavor.
I had just started work at The Dallas Morning News newspaper in the spring of 1997 a few weeks after Jeff Burton took the checkered flag for NASCAR's first Cup series race at Texas in April. The new facility was considered the "home track" to cover. After reporting on the Indianapolis 500 in May, I was immediately back home in Dallas, ready for the Indy Racing League's night-time debut at TMS the next week.
There, a 26-year old future three-time NASCAR Cup champion Tony Stewart put on an open-wheel show for the ages, racing wheel-to-wheel lap-after-lap with Buddy Lazier. Stewart -- who went on to win two Cup races at Texas (2006 and 2011) -- led a race-high 100 of the 208 laps only to suffer an engine failure that night.
But toward the end of the race there were questions regarding the scoring shown on the monitor in the press box. And soon after making my way down to the infield to prepare for a super-tight Saturday night newspaper deadline, the real craziness began.
While trying to get post-race quotes from the apparent first-time winner Billy Boat (XFINITY Series driver Chad's dad) and Boat's team owner, Texan A.J. Foyt, I was standing a few feet away when driver Arie Luyendyk confronted Foyt in Victory Lane. After questioning the results, challenging Foyt and suggesting he was actually the legitimate race winner, Luyendyk tumbled into the victory flowers. Boat and Foyt hoisted the trophy.
It was surreal. I was on a crazy tight deadline. But the next day in a hastily called press conference, Luyendyk was declared the winner after USAC conceded a scoring error.
After USAC officials suggested problems with the track's scoring system, TMS President Eddie Gossage took the press conference podium and strongly reminded that the speedway wasn't responsible for the scoring.
"I got home at 3 in the morning knowing we gave the trophy to the wrong winner and had a press conference for 8 in the morning," said Gossage. "I go in to the press conference with two hours of sleep and I'm sitting in the back row and the head scorer for USAC says that the speedway's timing and scoring equipment didn't work.
"He says it again and then a third time so I just walked up on stage and stepped up to the podium and eased him to the side and said, "Texas Motor Speedway doesn't own a stop watch. ... People have a right to know when they leave the race track who the winner is and we all didn't get what we paid for."
Then after a dramatic exit and door slam, Gossage recalls, "My dad called from Tennessee and said, 'You were raised better, acting like an idiot on television for all the world to see, embarrassing me and your mom.' I said, 'What?' He said, 'You didn't know it was live on ESPN?'
"I didn't. And then I was like, 'You're right, sir. I'm sorry. I know better.' "
Gossage has a good laugh recalling the whole ordeal now.
Foyt, who still disputes the result, kept the trophy and Luyendyk was given another one.
A year later, Boat recalled of the evening, "We went into Victory Circle knowing nothing about a scoring error, only that someone was talking derogatory about our race team. You don't do that in a big Texan's Victory Circle."
Luyendyk, of Holland, said the incident -- replayed repeatedly all over the world at the time -- actually made him and the Texas Motor Speedway more famous overseas.
And then in 1998 came NASCAR's second Cup try.
After two multi-car accidents in the inaugural race, conventional wisdom promised this one just had to go down more smoothly.
NASCAR's biggest stars such as Rusty Wallace, Ernie Irvan, Dale Earnhardt and Mark Martin were among those who crashed in the opening race. Darrell Waltrip finished last after being involved in a 13-car wreck on the very first turn of the very first lap of Cup competition there. And Burton ended up winning by 4 seconds.
Surely, everyone figured, the second race would be smoother.
It wasn't.
"Weepers" became a familiar word. The water seeping through the track caused qualifying to be completed a day late. And of all things, there was a huge 10-car accident on the second lap of the race. Jeff Gordon and yes, Waltrip, were collected in that melee.
Mark Martin won the race by a half-second over Chad Little and Robert Pressley.
Shortly after, TMS went through a re-paving and re-fitting, track owner Bruton Smith and Gossage committed to correction.
"The first year it was just terrible and everything seemed to go wrong," Gossage conceded this week. "And the second year, obviously you try to improve so all of a sudden here's these weepers that came through.
"I remember driving into the infield and in the rearview mirror saw Lake Speed knock the wall down in Turn 1 in qualifying. I thought, 'Oh no.'
"I'm always the worst critic," Gossage said, logging the long hours readying for the weekend's big events. "There are things other people might not have noticed but I did. For some reason things worked really well in 1999 when Terry Labonte won and it's been better since then. That's the way a race weekend was supposed to go."
Not only has it been better, it's typically a discussion point in every season review. In 2005, Texas finally got the second date it had longed for since I worked at the Dallas paper nearly a decade earlier. And the facility -- big enough to fit every Texas sporting stadium in its infield -- is also a big-time player in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
It's still providing those jaw-dropping, television highlight moments seemingly born with the track.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored his first Cup win at TMS in April 2000. And Chase Elliott got his first XFINITY Series win here in 2014 driving for Junior at JR Motorsports.
Gordon, who won this race in 2009, has starred in a couple TMS highlight reels, too. He was involved in a pair of high profile skirmishes from taking on Burton on-track after a wreck in 2010 to a crazy pit road scuffle with Brad Keselowski in 2014.
"You have to be honest," Gossage said. "And looking back, it's just how things occurred. I wouldn't trade any of it, if it is what got us where we are. I'll take where we stand in our success as the most successful major market speedway in the history of this sport. I'll take that.
"I won't trade my job with the guy running any other race track because I'm just so proud of what's been accomplished here."
Danica Patrick ‘fought the good fight’ and lost on Fontana fine.
By Daniel McFadin
(Photo by Sean Gardner/Stewart-Haas Racing via Getty Images)
In the days following the March 20 race at Auto Club Speedway, Danica Patrick was on vacation.
Relaxing on an island, she didn’t want to be bothered. Even by NASCAR.
“They’re reaching out to me to talk to me and I’m on vacation, and I’m like ‘I don’t want to answer this,’ ” Patrick said Thursday at Texas Motor Speedway.
The message was similar to the one she received when Patrick learned NASCAR would fine her $50,000 and dock 25 points for intentionally slamming into the back of David Gilliland during the Nov. 1 race at Martinsville Speedway.
“The text goes like ‘Can you take a call at 1 p.m.?’ ” Patrick said.
On the opposite end of this call was a $20,000 fine, punishment for Patrick having approached the track after being wrecked by Kasey Kahne at Auto Club Speedway. In August 2014, NASCAR outlawed drivers exiting their cars before safety workers arrive after an incident.
After exiting her wrecked car, Patrick said the prospect of being fined never “entered my mind” as she approached the track to give “the universal WTF” sign to Kahne.
“Did I feel like I was in danger?” Patrick said. “Absolutely not. It’s my own body, I don’t want to put my body in danger at all. Then you start working into gray areas as to what’s too close and what’s not close. I get it. I get their position.”
NASCAR also fined Trevor Bayne and Jennifer Jo Cobb in the same week in 2015 for similar incidents, which remind Patrick of the “rowdy, rough and tough, boys have at it” image she associates with NASCAR.
“I understand NASCAR needs to do whatever it can to, again, protect their drivers … and making sure that we don’t put ourselves in harm’s way,” Patrick said. “I get that it is 2016. We can get smarter and better. There’s certain things that cross the line, and I guess that they deemed that I did it.”
The idea of being fined was first presented to Patrick after the race when her agent texted to ask if she would be.
“‘No, not that I know of,'” Patrick responded.
But a few days later, that familiar message came. The Fontana penalties weren’t announced until Thursday, a day later than normal because NASCAR officials said all of the affected parties couldn’t be reached.
Apparently, one of them was Patrick, who initially had ignored the call while lounging in paradise. Her advice to NASCAR the next time? Just issue the fine and tell me later.
“‘Oh, now I get it,'” Patrick said she thought at the time. “Pretty much, my answer from now on will just be ‘Just give me the fine.’
“I fought the good fight and I didn’t win.”
SOCCER: Second NYCFC match gives Fire chance to display improvement.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
There was a lot of buildup to the Chicago Fire’s season opener.
A new coach, a lot of new faces on the roster and a season opener at home.
What immediately followed was a first 45 minutes many Fire fans won’t remember fondly. The Fire trailed 3-1 at halftime and, while the second half was better, the 4-3 loss to New York City FC was not how Veljko Paunovic wanted to start his coaching tenure.
The Fire haven’t lost since, with two draws and a win, and now have a second chance against NYCFC when the Fire travel to Yankee Stadium on Sunday.
A new coach, a lot of new faces on the roster and a season opener at home.
What immediately followed was a first 45 minutes many Fire fans won’t remember fondly. The Fire trailed 3-1 at halftime and, while the second half was better, the 4-3 loss to New York City FC was not how Veljko Paunovic wanted to start his coaching tenure.
The Fire haven’t lost since, with two draws and a win, and now have a second chance against NYCFC when the Fire travel to Yankee Stadium on Sunday.
“Our honor is hurt,” Paunovic said on Monday. “We feel like we have something there that we want to solve, some payback for us is something that we are looking for this game. We want to be competitive in this game, respectful, totally respectful for a great team and a great performance New York had here. We also feel like there is something special about this game and we will prepare very well to payback.”
Beyond the payback Paunovic speaks of, Sunday’s match is also an opportunity for the Fire to show how much the team has improved. After the March 6 loss, Paunovic and the players both spoke about it taking time for this team to jell and figure things out with so many new pieces.
Now four matches in, this trip to Yankee Stadium can be an early benchmark for a side-by-side comparison of what the Fire are better at than they were to start the season and what is still a work in progress.
“When you’re playing against the same exact team that you played three games ago it’s easy to draw examples so it will be pretty clear if we are improving because the opponent is the same,” midfielder Michael Stephens said. “We have a common thread there.”
On the other side, NYCFC hasn’t won since knocking off the Fire. Two draws and a loss, all at home, have followed the win in Toyota Park.
Paunovic has an extra bit of energy in his voice when talking about the chance to get a result against the team that ruined the Fire’s home opener. He also thinks the Fire have made strides and are capable of returning from New York with a result.
“I think we improved in everything,” Paunovic said when asked about how the team compares to Week 1. “I think we improved in our style, we improved in our fitness.
“Everyone is very, very motivated. We are very excited for the next game.”
Top PL storylines: Spurs vs. Man United; can Leicester inch closer?
By Joe Prince-Wright
By Joe Prince-Wright
(Photo/Getty Images)
Week 33 of the Premier League is here and there are plenty of storylines swirling around with six games of the season to go.
With Leicester City just four wins away from sealing a stunning title win, can the Foxes move one step closer this weekend?
Let’s take a look at that and more in the top five storylines in the PL.
Defoe holds the key as Black Cats, Foxes clash
Sunderland host champions elect Leicester City on Sunday (Watch live, 8:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra) at the Stadium of Light and one man holds their survival hopes in his hands: Jermain Defoe. The veteran striker, 33, is the one player the Black Cats possess who has world class finishing ability. Defoe has scored in two of his last three games for Sunderland, which is all of Sunderland’s goals in their last three encounters. After drawing four-straight games, Sam Allardyce has obviously sorted Sunderland’s defense out but scoring goals has become a real problem for Big Sam’s side who are running out of time. They are four points behind Norwich City heading into this weekend but do have a game in hand over the Canaries.
Defoe has to keep firing and Sunderland must get the supply he deserved if they’re going to get out of the mire. Facing league-leaders and high fliers Leicester is probably not what Sunderland needed right now but given the fact that Claudio Ranieri‘s side have won five of their last six games 1-0, there will be one decisive moment in this match. If it falls to Sunderland’s predatory forward, chances are that Defoe will take it.
Title and fourth place aspirations collide at the Lane
Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United clash on Sunday at White Hart Lane (Watch live, 11 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra) with plenty on the line.
Spurs know they must keep winning and hope Leicester slips up, while Manchester United is locked in a straight battle with crosstown rivals Manchester City and upstarts West Ham United for the fourth and final UEFA Champions League spot. A report this week from Holland suggested Louis Van Gaal will remain at Old Trafford next season but if United don’t finish in the top four it’s hard to see that happening.
Tottenham has the best defense in the PL and despite United’s host of injuries, they’ll have to keep a close eye on Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial who’ve struck up quite the partnership in attack in Wayne Rooney‘s absence.
Speaking of goals, Harry Kane is on fire right now with six goals in his last four PL games. He now has 22 for the season to lead the PL and if he’s on form he’ll be the difference. This will be a tight game, just like it was at the start of the season, as the two best defenses in the PL met with plenty on the line for both.
London Calling: Last-ever derby at Upton Park
West Ham United’s famous Upton Park home will host its final London derby on Saturday (Watch live, 7:45 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra) as Arsenal arrive.
The Hammers have enjoyed a stellar campaign and led by the mercurial talents of Dimitri Payet, Slaven Bilic‘s first season in the PL could end up with a top four finish as they’re just three points off Manchester City. West Ham believe they can qualify for the UCL and with all the pressure mounting on Man United and Man City, maybe the Hammers will sneak in and shock everyone.
As for Arsenal, they’re also lurking on the edge of a battle. As the title race has seemingly become a two-horse race between Leicester and Tottenham, Arsene Wenger‘s men have the chance to momentarily close the gap with leaders Leicester to eight points on Saturday and have a game in hand. Maybe their title race isn’t over after all. Still, in a week which saw Wenger reveal he rejected the chance to sign Payet, the French international will likely score the winner to all but end Arsenal’s faint title hopes and significantly boost West Ham’s top four chances. That’s just the way this season has gone for the Gunners.
Top six scrap at Anfield
Liverpool and Stoke City have been evenly poised throughout this season and they clash on Saturday at Anfield (Watch live, 10 a.m. ET online via Live Extra) with plenty on the line.
The Reds have two games in hand of Stoke in the race for the top six but the Potters have caused them problems this season in both the League Cup semifinals and the opening day of the campaign where Philippe Coutinho‘s stunner (how many times have we said that over the past 12 months?) saved Liverpool. This will be a closely fought encounter at Anfield and with Jurgen Klopp‘s men facing Borussia Dortmund in a key Europa League quarterfinal either side of this game, expect some players to be rested and Stoke to have a big chance of winning at Liverpool. Mark Hughes‘ men have been inconsistent in recent weeks but big name players like Marko Arnautovic, Bojan Krkic and Xherdan Shaqiri usually get going when it comes to games like these.
Down and nearly out
Aston Villa could finally be put out of their misery this weekend. Villa face Bournemouth at home on Saturday (Watch live, 10 a.m. ET online via Live Extra) and if they fail to better Norwich City’s result against Crystal Palace then they’re officially down. Villa are a massive club but have been poorly mismanaged for years as American owner Randy Lerner has cut corners, sold star players and hasn’t found a buyer for the Midlands club.
Without a manager and soon to be relegated from the top-flight for the first time in the PL era, Villa have made sweeping changes behind-the-scenes as Remi Garde and Tim Sherwood were both fired during this season. When all is said and done, relegation may finally correct plenty of the wrongs at Villa over the past few years. Then again, we may not see them back in the PL for quite some time as the second-tier is a brutal and unforgiving division. It is indeed a sorry state of affairs at Villa Park.
Argentina top; USMNT moves up in latest FIFA rankings.
Joe Prince-Wright
The U.S. men’s national team have moved up one spot in the latest FIFA rankings.
Jurgen Klinsmann’s played two 2018 World Cup qualifiers in March, losing 2-0 away to Guatemala and then beating the same opposition 4-0 home a few days later.
The USMNT is now tied 29th in the world, but at the top we have a new leader.
Argentina has move to the top of the world rankings as they replace Belgium, while Chile is up to third as the reigning South American champions are at the highest-ever ranking.
The top five is dominated by South American teams as Colombia is in fourth place and Germany rounds off the top five.
Mexico is the highest ranked CONCACAF team at 16th as they move up six spots, while Costa Rica is in 25th after climbing eight places.
Below is the top 30 in full.
1. Argentina
2. Belgium
3. Chile
4. Colombia
5. Germany
6. Spain
7. Brazil
8. Portugal
9. Uruguay
10. England
11. Austria
12. Ecuador
13. Turkey
14. Switzerland
15. Italy
16. Mexico
17. Netherlands
18. Hungary
19. Romania
20. Bosnia and Herzegovina
21. France
22. Ukraine
23. Croatia
24. Wales
25. Costa Rica
26. Northern Ireland
27. Poland
27. Russia
29. Czech Republic
29. USA
Europa League Roundup: Liverpool draws at Dortmund, while Sevilla, Villarreal, and Shakhtar all win.
By Kyle Bonn
With the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals finishing up earlier in the week, the Europa Leg took the field Thursday as European play ramped up. Every single team playing got at least one goal, with plenty of late scoring.
Three of the four games saw a winner, with two of those three winners coming on the road. Here is a roundup of the action:
Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Liverpool
Both teams had big moments just before the 20th minute. Dortmund nearly struck first when Marcel Schmelzer got around Simon Mignolet and cut back to Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the center of the box with the goal open, but Mamadou Sakho made a goal-saving block in traffic on Mkhitaryan’s shot. Liverpool then found a chance of their own on a set-piece after a Marco Reus foul, as Dejan Lovren tried to bounce a header over Roman Weidenfeller, but the goalkeeper was smart to it, earning a foul as Lovren looked to head back in the rebound.
Dortmund’s relentless press gave Liverpool plenty of problems in their own half, and Mkhitaryan was a monster in front of the box, but it was Liverpool that struck first against the run of play. Adam Lallana found Divock Origi in space up front, and one-on-one with Lukasz Piszczek, the 20-year-old turned and fired past Weidenfeller for a 35th minute lead. Weidenfeller had to make another save – off his face – on the last kick of the first half as Origi sprung free on another counter.
Just 2 minutes back after the break Mats Hummels equalized for the home side off a corner. Coutinho continued to cause the Germans problems, forcing a pair of saves, the first a quality low save after good Liverpool combination play. Dortmund poured attackers forward in the final 15 minutes, but were unable to find a way through a packed box and past Simon Mignolet. Liverpool remains unbeaten in the Europa League this season.
Athletic Bilbao 1-2 Sevilla
A pair of goals soon after halftime provided much of the action, but the winner came late as Vicente Iborra tapped home in the 83rd minute for a huge away win. Artiz Aduriz scored just two minutes after the break with a header from the far post across the face of goal putting Athletic ahead, but Sevilla leveled it back up nine minutes later through Thimothee Kolodzieczak who finished expertly into the top corner after Ever Banega sucked the Athletic goalkeeper out of net.
Iborra finished off a wonderful move from Kevin Gameiro, who tap-danced across the top of the box before threading a ball through three defenders to a streaking Iborra who ended up one-on-one Athletic goalkeeper Iago Herrerin. The win is the first of the entire season for Sevilla on the road in any competition outside of the Spanish Cup.
Villarreal 2-1 Sparta Prague
The home side dominated for much of the game, scoring three minutes through Cedric Bakambu in and should have had a few more, but the Czechs came back to even it up deep into first-half injury time as Jakub Brabec used his head to redirect a corner into the back of the net.
Roberto Soldado was a force up front, and Bakambu picked up his brace just past the hour mark on a layoff from Denis Suarez which Bakambu buried into the top corner. It’s the third brace in Europa League play this season from Bakambu, the first time that’s happened in four years.
Braga 1-2 Shakhtar Donetsk
The heavy favorites put themselves in good position after away goals from Yaroslav Rakitskiy and Facundo Ferreyra sent them through. The Ukranians weathered 20 shots from Braga – six on target – until the final few minutes when they conceded a header from Eduardo to give the home side a lifeline in the quarterfinal.
NCAABKB: Should Colleges Continue to Support Olympic Sports? What's Your Take?
With Leicester City just four wins away from sealing a stunning title win, can the Foxes move one step closer this weekend?
Let’s take a look at that and more in the top five storylines in the PL.
Defoe holds the key as Black Cats, Foxes clash
Sunderland host champions elect Leicester City on Sunday (Watch live, 8:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra) at the Stadium of Light and one man holds their survival hopes in his hands: Jermain Defoe. The veteran striker, 33, is the one player the Black Cats possess who has world class finishing ability. Defoe has scored in two of his last three games for Sunderland, which is all of Sunderland’s goals in their last three encounters. After drawing four-straight games, Sam Allardyce has obviously sorted Sunderland’s defense out but scoring goals has become a real problem for Big Sam’s side who are running out of time. They are four points behind Norwich City heading into this weekend but do have a game in hand over the Canaries.
Defoe has to keep firing and Sunderland must get the supply he deserved if they’re going to get out of the mire. Facing league-leaders and high fliers Leicester is probably not what Sunderland needed right now but given the fact that Claudio Ranieri‘s side have won five of their last six games 1-0, there will be one decisive moment in this match. If it falls to Sunderland’s predatory forward, chances are that Defoe will take it.
Title and fourth place aspirations collide at the Lane
Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United clash on Sunday at White Hart Lane (Watch live, 11 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra) with plenty on the line.
Spurs know they must keep winning and hope Leicester slips up, while Manchester United is locked in a straight battle with crosstown rivals Manchester City and upstarts West Ham United for the fourth and final UEFA Champions League spot. A report this week from Holland suggested Louis Van Gaal will remain at Old Trafford next season but if United don’t finish in the top four it’s hard to see that happening.
Tottenham has the best defense in the PL and despite United’s host of injuries, they’ll have to keep a close eye on Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial who’ve struck up quite the partnership in attack in Wayne Rooney‘s absence.
Speaking of goals, Harry Kane is on fire right now with six goals in his last four PL games. He now has 22 for the season to lead the PL and if he’s on form he’ll be the difference. This will be a tight game, just like it was at the start of the season, as the two best defenses in the PL met with plenty on the line for both.
London Calling: Last-ever derby at Upton Park
West Ham United’s famous Upton Park home will host its final London derby on Saturday (Watch live, 7:45 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra) as Arsenal arrive.
The Hammers have enjoyed a stellar campaign and led by the mercurial talents of Dimitri Payet, Slaven Bilic‘s first season in the PL could end up with a top four finish as they’re just three points off Manchester City. West Ham believe they can qualify for the UCL and with all the pressure mounting on Man United and Man City, maybe the Hammers will sneak in and shock everyone.
As for Arsenal, they’re also lurking on the edge of a battle. As the title race has seemingly become a two-horse race between Leicester and Tottenham, Arsene Wenger‘s men have the chance to momentarily close the gap with leaders Leicester to eight points on Saturday and have a game in hand. Maybe their title race isn’t over after all. Still, in a week which saw Wenger reveal he rejected the chance to sign Payet, the French international will likely score the winner to all but end Arsenal’s faint title hopes and significantly boost West Ham’s top four chances. That’s just the way this season has gone for the Gunners.
Top six scrap at Anfield
Liverpool and Stoke City have been evenly poised throughout this season and they clash on Saturday at Anfield (Watch live, 10 a.m. ET online via Live Extra) with plenty on the line.
The Reds have two games in hand of Stoke in the race for the top six but the Potters have caused them problems this season in both the League Cup semifinals and the opening day of the campaign where Philippe Coutinho‘s stunner (how many times have we said that over the past 12 months?) saved Liverpool. This will be a closely fought encounter at Anfield and with Jurgen Klopp‘s men facing Borussia Dortmund in a key Europa League quarterfinal either side of this game, expect some players to be rested and Stoke to have a big chance of winning at Liverpool. Mark Hughes‘ men have been inconsistent in recent weeks but big name players like Marko Arnautovic, Bojan Krkic and Xherdan Shaqiri usually get going when it comes to games like these.
Down and nearly out
Aston Villa could finally be put out of their misery this weekend. Villa face Bournemouth at home on Saturday (Watch live, 10 a.m. ET online via Live Extra) and if they fail to better Norwich City’s result against Crystal Palace then they’re officially down. Villa are a massive club but have been poorly mismanaged for years as American owner Randy Lerner has cut corners, sold star players and hasn’t found a buyer for the Midlands club.
Without a manager and soon to be relegated from the top-flight for the first time in the PL era, Villa have made sweeping changes behind-the-scenes as Remi Garde and Tim Sherwood were both fired during this season. When all is said and done, relegation may finally correct plenty of the wrongs at Villa over the past few years. Then again, we may not see them back in the PL for quite some time as the second-tier is a brutal and unforgiving division. It is indeed a sorry state of affairs at Villa Park.
Argentina top; USMNT moves up in latest FIFA rankings.
Joe Prince-Wright
The U.S. men’s national team have moved up one spot in the latest FIFA rankings.
Jurgen Klinsmann’s played two 2018 World Cup qualifiers in March, losing 2-0 away to Guatemala and then beating the same opposition 4-0 home a few days later.
The USMNT is now tied 29th in the world, but at the top we have a new leader.
Argentina has move to the top of the world rankings as they replace Belgium, while Chile is up to third as the reigning South American champions are at the highest-ever ranking.
The top five is dominated by South American teams as Colombia is in fourth place and Germany rounds off the top five.
Mexico is the highest ranked CONCACAF team at 16th as they move up six spots, while Costa Rica is in 25th after climbing eight places.
Below is the top 30 in full.
1. Argentina
2. Belgium
3. Chile
4. Colombia
5. Germany
6. Spain
7. Brazil
8. Portugal
9. Uruguay
10. England
11. Austria
12. Ecuador
13. Turkey
14. Switzerland
15. Italy
16. Mexico
17. Netherlands
18. Hungary
19. Romania
20. Bosnia and Herzegovina
21. France
22. Ukraine
23. Croatia
24. Wales
25. Costa Rica
26. Northern Ireland
27. Poland
27. Russia
29. Czech Republic
29. USA
Europa League Roundup: Liverpool draws at Dortmund, while Sevilla, Villarreal, and Shakhtar all win.
By Kyle Bonn
(Photo/Getty Images)
With the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals finishing up earlier in the week, the Europa Leg took the field Thursday as European play ramped up. Every single team playing got at least one goal, with plenty of late scoring.
Three of the four games saw a winner, with two of those three winners coming on the road. Here is a roundup of the action:
Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Liverpool
Both teams had big moments just before the 20th minute. Dortmund nearly struck first when Marcel Schmelzer got around Simon Mignolet and cut back to Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the center of the box with the goal open, but Mamadou Sakho made a goal-saving block in traffic on Mkhitaryan’s shot. Liverpool then found a chance of their own on a set-piece after a Marco Reus foul, as Dejan Lovren tried to bounce a header over Roman Weidenfeller, but the goalkeeper was smart to it, earning a foul as Lovren looked to head back in the rebound.
Dortmund’s relentless press gave Liverpool plenty of problems in their own half, and Mkhitaryan was a monster in front of the box, but it was Liverpool that struck first against the run of play. Adam Lallana found Divock Origi in space up front, and one-on-one with Lukasz Piszczek, the 20-year-old turned and fired past Weidenfeller for a 35th minute lead. Weidenfeller had to make another save – off his face – on the last kick of the first half as Origi sprung free on another counter.
Just 2 minutes back after the break Mats Hummels equalized for the home side off a corner. Coutinho continued to cause the Germans problems, forcing a pair of saves, the first a quality low save after good Liverpool combination play. Dortmund poured attackers forward in the final 15 minutes, but were unable to find a way through a packed box and past Simon Mignolet. Liverpool remains unbeaten in the Europa League this season.
Athletic Bilbao 1-2 Sevilla
A pair of goals soon after halftime provided much of the action, but the winner came late as Vicente Iborra tapped home in the 83rd minute for a huge away win. Artiz Aduriz scored just two minutes after the break with a header from the far post across the face of goal putting Athletic ahead, but Sevilla leveled it back up nine minutes later through Thimothee Kolodzieczak who finished expertly into the top corner after Ever Banega sucked the Athletic goalkeeper out of net.
Iborra finished off a wonderful move from Kevin Gameiro, who tap-danced across the top of the box before threading a ball through three defenders to a streaking Iborra who ended up one-on-one Athletic goalkeeper Iago Herrerin. The win is the first of the entire season for Sevilla on the road in any competition outside of the Spanish Cup.
Villarreal 2-1 Sparta Prague
The home side dominated for much of the game, scoring three minutes through Cedric Bakambu in and should have had a few more, but the Czechs came back to even it up deep into first-half injury time as Jakub Brabec used his head to redirect a corner into the back of the net.
Roberto Soldado was a force up front, and Bakambu picked up his brace just past the hour mark on a layoff from Denis Suarez which Bakambu buried into the top corner. It’s the third brace in Europa League play this season from Bakambu, the first time that’s happened in four years.
Braga 1-2 Shakhtar Donetsk
The heavy favorites put themselves in good position after away goals from Yaroslav Rakitskiy and Facundo Ferreyra sent them through. The Ukranians weathered 20 shots from Braga – six on target – until the final few minutes when they conceded a header from Eduardo to give the home side a lifeline in the quarterfinal.
NCAABKB: Should Colleges Continue to Support Olympic Sports? What's Your Take?
(Steve Grayson/Getty Images)
College athletics, similar to their academic counterparts, are the kind of feeder system that professional leagues feast upon, where talented prospects can ply their trade and prove that they’re worth a draft pick, endorsement deal, or some other kind of signed acknowledgement of an athlete’s worth. It’s the reason the NCAA is able to be as weird and creepy as it was for decades, and it’s also the thing that vaguely threatened by any change to the NCAA’s behavior.
The real reason paying student athletes, even those who are explicitly enrolled in higher education because of their physical acumen, is bad is because it could have adverse effects on the ability of schools to keep enough funds available for all their athletes. Reading between the lines, that stance is, essentially, one that protects the moneymakers — basketball and football — while leaving the rest out to pasture. This leaves the Olympic sports, which don’t bring in the same sort of income, high and dry.
The real reason paying student athletes, even those who are explicitly enrolled in higher education because of their physical acumen, is bad is because it could have adverse effects on the ability of schools to keep enough funds available for all their athletes. Reading between the lines, that stance is, essentially, one that protects the moneymakers — basketball and football — while leaving the rest out to pasture. This leaves the Olympic sports, which don’t bring in the same sort of income, high and dry.
“[N]o college athletic director has ever been fired for terminating an Olympic sport program,” U.S. Olympic Committee CEO Scott Blackmun told CBS in 2014. “Our concern stated very bluntly is that the inevitable reallocation of resources in college athletics will make it even more difficult for Olympic sport programs to survive.”
While the most attention is typically paid to the NCAA’s relationship with pro sports, and usually in regards to things like age limits and the right to earn money as an amateur, it’s important to note that the Olympics are also using college competitions to single out talent. The next Michael Phelps or McKayla Maroney isn’t going to have a future in, say, the National Gymnast Association: those sort of athletes need the Olympics to leverage their talents into anything approaching the kind of wages people expect of top-caliber sports figures.
While the most attention is typically paid to the NCAA’s relationship with pro sports, and usually in regards to things like age limits and the right to earn money as an amateur, it’s important to note that the Olympics are also using college competitions to single out talent. The next Michael Phelps or McKayla Maroney isn’t going to have a future in, say, the National Gymnast Association: those sort of athletes need the Olympics to leverage their talents into anything approaching the kind of wages people expect of top-caliber sports figures.
(Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
The problem, though, is that cutting Olympic-level programs in favor of paid programs for more profitable sports seems like a no-brainer for everyone who isn’t depending on international competition. Is there any way they can reasonably recover from this shift?
People involved in this shift are concerned with fairness. And possibly the Rapture, complete with “days of reckoning” and, we presume, cats and dogs breeding while falling from the sky. There’s an overriding sense from NCAA types that they’re all staring each other in the eye, afraid to blink first, when it comes to righting the various wrongs that plague college athletics. The general conclusion seems to be that there needs to be an external organization that acts as a watchdog over the NCAA, making sure everyone’s doing everything on the up and up.
How that gets funded is anyone’s guess. But no one really thinks that abandoning the comparatively nonessential sports (i.e., the sports that aren’t cash cows) is the right decision, and we’d agree with that, even if most people really only pay attention to them once every four years or so.
People involved in this shift are concerned with fairness. And possibly the Rapture, complete with “days of reckoning” and, we presume, cats and dogs breeding while falling from the sky. There’s an overriding sense from NCAA types that they’re all staring each other in the eye, afraid to blink first, when it comes to righting the various wrongs that plague college athletics. The general conclusion seems to be that there needs to be an external organization that acts as a watchdog over the NCAA, making sure everyone’s doing everything on the up and up.
How that gets funded is anyone’s guess. But no one really thinks that abandoning the comparatively nonessential sports (i.e., the sports that aren’t cash cows) is the right decision, and we’d agree with that, even if most people really only pay attention to them once every four years or so.
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: It would be a terrible mistake for colleges and universities to drop sports that aren't cash cows as football and basketball are. Where would Olympic athletes that make up the track and field teams come from? Is there a professional track and field league available? Where would these athletes train to enter professional sports? Football and basketball players hone their athletic skills in college to enhance their chances of making it to the NBA or NFL. Olympic sports are still a major concern and source of national pride for America. Everyday during the Olympics, Americans are vigilantly checking the Internet, reading the newspapers and watching the TV news to keep track of the medal count. When Americans are watching the medal awards and hear the national anthem played when a gold medal is won, everyone gets goosebumps and smiles on their faces like you've never seen before. Also, the athletes that participate in the sports that do not produce major revenue get scholarships, grants and aid that help them get an education. It should also be noted that these students have a higher graduation rate than the higher revenue producing athletes. This serves a great purpose also, it brings up the school's athletes graduation percentage up.
College football and basketball programs produce so much revenue for most schools that they can use a small percentage to help fund their non producing or low revenue producing sports. The more students that participate in athletics, intercollegiate or intramural, the better it is for the school and the athletes. School spirit and national pride are tied to collegiate sports, we cannot afford to ignore, dispense or cut them out. It would be a total disaster. I hope it never happens in my lifetime!!!
As always, we've shared another one of our sacred opinions with you. What do you think about this issue and what's your take? Please go to the comment section at the bottom of this blog and share your thoughts with us. We can't wait to hear from you and yes, we truly value your opinion.
Marion P. Jelks, The Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Editorial Director.
Reflections on another unforgettable NCAA tournament.
By Michael Rosenberg
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NCAA tournament highlight videos are like James Bond movies: No matter who plays the lead, you’ll be entertained. The 2016 Big Dance followed the script, which is to say it followed no script at all.
The bracket was leaked online before CBS finished its two-hour selection show, cleverly titled, “Ninety Minutes Too Long: We’re Going to Make You Want to Kill Us.” That gave the nation a head start on guessing what would happen, but who could possibly guess right?
Kansas was the deserving overall top seed but didn’t even make the Final Four, for the simple reason that Villanova played better than the Jayhawks. It was somewhat surprising that Michigan State fell to a No. 2 seed, and very surprising that Syracuse, considered a bubble team by many, made the tournament at all—as a No. 10 seed. Orange coach Jim Boeheim saw the draw and figured his team would lose to the Spartans in the second round. Instead, Middle Tennessee State took care of the Spartans with a shooting performance straight out of a video game, and Syracuse advanced all the way to Houston.
North Carolina has been battling allegations of academic impropriety but excelled at basketball math: Many threes and twos are greater than fewer threes and twos.
And Oklahoma rode its Buddy System into the Final Four. Buddy Hield was that rarest of creatures: a compelling senior star with a bright NBA future. He scored 37 points against Oregon, and that wasn’t even his best game against a really good team this year. He scored 39 points, going 14 for 21 from the field, against Iowa State. He scored 46 on Kansas.
It all ended with Villanova’s winning it all when, moments after UNC guard Marcus Paige sank an improbable three to tie the game, Kris Jenkins sank an even more improbable three at the buzzer.
Until then, we didn’t know who would win the tournament, but we knew the tournament itself would be a winner. It always is.
The 2016 Big Dance gave us the Indiana-Kentucky showdown that the Hoosiers and the Wildcats used to give us all the time but never do any more. It gave us the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks blowing out West Virginia, then losing to Notre Dame on a last-second- tip-in.
Yale beat Baylor, stunning people who had not watched Yale or Baylor. We should have seen that coming. Heck, even Baylor should have seen that coming. But here is something we should not have seen coming: Josh Hagins.
In his last game before the NCAA tournament, the 6' 1" senior guard for Little Rock scored five points on seven shots against Louisiana-Monroe. You didn’t even notice him on the court, especially if, like me, you weren’t watching the game and had no idea who Hagins was.
Then Hagins showed up for the NCAA tournament in full superhero mode. He scored 31 points against Purdue, but that’s like saying Usain Bolt won the Olympic 100-meter- dash or a hockey locker room stinks. It’s true, but it’s a massive understatement. The Trojans trailed the Boilermakers 63–49 with 4:06 left. Hagins scored 11 points in that 4:06, including a three-pointer from Steph Curry territory to force overtime. Later he hit a floating, leaning two that should have counted for four. Purdue helped the Little Rock cause with some mental breakdowns, which happen when a team has no true point guard. But mostly, that was just the Josh Hagins Show, and he can play it over and over in his mind, for the rest of his life.
Iowa made up for a disappointing finish to the regular season with a buzzer-beating first-round win over Temple. And that wasn’t even the best first-weekend buzzer beater by a Big Ten team.
Who thought Wisconsin’s Bronson Koenig would hit a cold-blooded game-winning- shot against Xavier? O.K., Koenig clearly thought he would. But the rest of us were as stunned as Bill Murray, shown in the stands wearing an Xavier hat to support his son Luke, a Musketeers assistant, clearly thinking, Oh, no ... it’s in the hole.
Speaking of holes: Two days after beating Texas with a half-court shot, Northern Iowa dug a grave for itself, then jumped in. Perhaps we should just celebrate Texas A&M’s epic comeback from 12 points down with 38 seconds to play, but epic comebacks, like pancakes, always have two sides.
How does a team blow a 12-point lead in 38 seconds? That was a meltdown for the ages. For all the vociferous populist complaints that mid-majors don’t get enough respect, remember this: In many cases, it’s good to be the little guy.
Can you imagine if Kentucky blew a game like that? John Calipari would have to wear a fake beard to go to work every day, and he would have to win three more national titles before Big Blue Nation even thought about forgiving him. Northern Iowa could go back to northern Iowa and celebrate its successful season.
We now know that Northern Iowa is better at half-court shots than inbounds passes. That does not make sense, but neither does this: Middle Tennessee State’s Reggie Upshaw sank 8 of 14 shots for 21 points against Michigan State in arguably the biggest tournament upset ever—and two days later, in the same building, he shot 1 for 10 in a blowout loss to Syracuse. If that doesn’t give Tom Izzo nightmares, nothing will.
Izzo’s team was a popular pick to win its second national title under his watch. That will have to wait.
One of the great things about the tournament is that while the results are often surprising and occasionally seem random, the teams that make the Final Four always earn their spots. You don’t win four NCAA tournament games by accident.
Syracuse did avoid Michigan State, but as Boeheim said, that wasn’t his players’ fault. The Orange still had to beat a solid Dayton team, a criminally under-seeded Gonzaga team and a No. 1 seed, Virginia. That last game featured a closing run that was almost as surprising as Texas A&M’s, mostly because Virginia is as stingy defensively as any team in the country.
Oklahoma had to beat A&M and top-seed Oregon, and did so convincingly. Villanova had to take down Kansas. North Carolina ran Big Ten behemoth Indiana out of the building.
The four teams who made the Final Four taught us a simple lesson: Hire a great coach. And if you have a great coach, keep him—and keep him happy, even if some fans complain about him.
Yes, this is easier written than done, but you would be amazed at how many athletic directors don’t make this the priority in the hiring process. They hire somebody who appeals to the fan base, or plays an “exciting style,” or has established a reputation as a “great recruiter,” perhaps on dubious grounds.
When Oklahoma hired Lon Kruger five years ago, he was not the hot young coach who would get fans dreaming of a 30-year run of dominance. He was 58. He did not have ties to one of the country’s top recruits the next year and was not coming off a surprising NCAA tournament run that made him the talk of the nation.
But basketball insiders knew Kruger was great. His teams at Kansas State, Florida, Illinois and UNLV were all well-schooled and successful. A detour with a doomed NBA team knocked him off his career trajectory for a while, and Kruger is not the kind of salesman who can keep himself in the national conversation when he is unemployed. But as Oklahoma fans will attest, and the rest of the Big 12 knows too well now, he can build a team as well as just about anybody.
Two other coaches in this Final Four, UNC’s Roy Williams and Boeheim, are Hall of Famers who supposedly couldn’t win the big one, then did. They are as consistent as San Diego weather. Boeheim sticks with that 2–3 zone no matter what his critics say. There are coaches who adjust better than Williams, but he recruits the right talent for his style, skillfully implements that style and wins a ton of games.
Then there is Villanova’s Jay Wright, whose teams had sometimes disappointed in the NCAA tournament. That can earn a coach a bad reputation among people who pay attention to college hoops for one month a year, and it can frustrate a fan base by ratcheting up expectations from October to March, then failing to meet them.
But Villanova stayed steady with Wright. He has never had overwhelming talent—that just doesn’t happen so easily at Villanova. He recruits very well and molds terrific teams.
Stay with a coach like that and you keep getting chances, and eventually you do something like blow out Oklahoma by 44 points in the semifinals and topple the Tar Heels for a national championship. Then everybody is happy.
NCAAFB: Nick Saban ponders the value of working satellite camps.
By Kevin McGuire
(Vasha Hunt/AL.com via AP)
Alabama head coach Nick Saban sits on the throne of college football with a handful of national championship rings, including the most recent one from last season. Saban’s superiority begins in recruiting with top classes being signed regularly under his watch. Saban is not in need of finding ways to work the system to create any additional recruiting advantages, including working at any satellite camps.
The NCAA does not prohibit football coaches from working as a guest conductor at a football camp outside of his school’s 50-mile radius, but the SEC and ACC have bylaws that prevent their football coaches from doing so. The SEC could be prepared to release their coaches from those restrictions if the NCAA does not shut down what they perceive to be a loophole in the NCAA rule book, but Saban is suggesting there may be no value in participating in a football camp outside of Alabama, at least not for Alabama.
“I’m really not even thinking that it has that much value,” Saban said. “What would be a more interesting question for you to research — and I can’t answer this — the teams that have done them, what value does it serve? How many players did they get? They had some players commit to them and some of those players decommitted, and I know they even wanted to drop some of those players when they found out they could get better players.”
Saban made that comment (and the ones to follow) this week in Indianapolis, per Al.com. You can understand where Saban would be coming from. Alabama has been developed into a national powerhouse that can have a relatively easier time recruiting than a number of other programs. While Jim Harbaugh is doing everything he can to generate enthusiasm and momentum to revive Michigan, Alabama is constantly riding on Cloud Nine and has little use for the same tactics being employed by Harbaugh up north in Ann Arbor.
So Saban has a valid point. There is little value in him going to satellite camps as far as Alabama is concerned. He could have simply left it at just that.
He did not.
“If everybody has a satellite camp, every player will have 62 camps to go to,” he said. “I don’t know how that works. The way it is right now if a player is interested and comes to your camp, he gets to see your campus, he gets to meet players, gets to work with your coaches a little bit more because he’s in your camp at your place. I think there’s a lot of value.”
No player is going to 62 camps. Saban doesn’t know how that works, because it wouldn’t. It is at this point Saban really goes off the tracks with his thoughts on satellite camps as he openly wonders what would happen in a world where each FBS program held a satellite camp in each major metropolitan area in the country.
“How many teams play Division 1 football?” Saban asked. “Are they all going to have a satellite camp in every metropolitan area? That means they’ll have 113 camps in Atlanta, 113 in Tampa, Orlando, Miami, Dallas, Houston. I mean, it sounds like a pretty ridiculous circumstance for me for something that nobody can really determine, did it have any value anyway?”
I understand what Saban is saying, but that is just a ridiculous hypothetical that is completely unworthy of discussion. Of course there will not be 113 satellite camps in Miami, Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles and so on. Saban says is sounds like a “pretty ridiculous circumstance” because it is a pretty ridiculous concept. But some programs benefit from the extra exposure. Michigan’s Class of 2016 included players from California, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia. Michigan’s Class of 2017 already has players lined up from Florida, Alabama and Georgia. Maybe, just maybe Michigan benefitted in some way from its summer tour last year?
The debate that raged last year has not changed, and the arguments against coaches working at satellite camps will continue to be no less ridiculous every time they are shared, even if they come from a guy like Saban.
Court rules NCAA must go to trial over football player’s death.
By Kevin McGuire
(AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)
The NCAA is no stranger to legal battles over the past couple of years, and there is one more it will be unable to avoid dealing with. A judge in Maryland has ruled the NCAA will not be dropped from a lawsuit over the death of Frostburg State University fullback Derek Sheely, who passed away in 2011 as a result of a head injury suffered during a football practice for the Division 3 program. He dies six days after collapsing during a football practice, falling into a coma and never recovering.
Sheely’s parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit two years later, in 2013, targeting Frostburg State head coach Tom Rogish and the NCAA among others; running back coach Jamie Schumacher and assistant trainer Michael Sweitzer Jr. and helmet manufacturer Schutt Sports. The lawsuit claimed the NCAA “deliberately downplayed risks associated with repeated head injuries before an earlier one has healed.”
Sounds familiar? The NFL has been battling similar accusations regarding head trauma, but it has been well-known for some time the problems regarding head injuries extend well beyond the professional ranks. Sometimes the extent of the injuries suffered at the amateur level can be more troublesome due to the limited funding some schools have for equipment and adequate medical staff.
The NCAA asked to be removed from the lawsuit by suggesting it had no responsibility under Maryland law to prevent head injuries and arguing Sheely knew the risks involved with playing football. The judge in Montgomery County clearly felt otherwise when he denied the motion for summary judgment. A trial is set to begin on June 20.
This will be a critical trial for the NCAA, as it could set a precedent for potential lawsuits in the future. If the NCAA is found guilty in this trial, others suffering head injuries could have grounds for filing action against the organization as well. How many would and how much that would hurt the NCAA is anybody’s guess, but this has to be a case the NCAA does not want to be on the losing end of.
Sheely’s parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit two years later, in 2013, targeting Frostburg State head coach Tom Rogish and the NCAA among others; running back coach Jamie Schumacher and assistant trainer Michael Sweitzer Jr. and helmet manufacturer Schutt Sports. The lawsuit claimed the NCAA “deliberately downplayed risks associated with repeated head injuries before an earlier one has healed.”
Sounds familiar? The NFL has been battling similar accusations regarding head trauma, but it has been well-known for some time the problems regarding head injuries extend well beyond the professional ranks. Sometimes the extent of the injuries suffered at the amateur level can be more troublesome due to the limited funding some schools have for equipment and adequate medical staff.
The NCAA asked to be removed from the lawsuit by suggesting it had no responsibility under Maryland law to prevent head injuries and arguing Sheely knew the risks involved with playing football. The judge in Montgomery County clearly felt otherwise when he denied the motion for summary judgment. A trial is set to begin on June 20.
This will be a critical trial for the NCAA, as it could set a precedent for potential lawsuits in the future. If the NCAA is found guilty in this trial, others suffering head injuries could have grounds for filing action against the organization as well. How many would and how much that would hurt the NCAA is anybody’s guess, but this has to be a case the NCAA does not want to be on the losing end of.
Former doubles champion Bob Hewitt expelled from Hall of Fame.
Reuters; Reporting by Frank Pingue, Editing by Peter Rutherford
Disgraced former grand slam doubles champion Bob Hewitt has been expelled from the International Tennis Hall of Fame due to his 2015 conviction for rape and sexual assault in South Africa.
The Australian-born Hewitt, 76, was sentenced to six years in prison last May after being found guilty of assaulting three underage girls he was coaching in South Africa during the 1980s and 1990s.
"The expulsion is a result of a conviction against Hewitt on two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault," the Hall of Fame said in a statement on Wednesday.
"The conviction was issued by a South African court in March 2015, and the appellate courts have now denied the right to further appeals of the conviction."
The allegations first surfaced in 2011.
Hewitt was inducted in 1992 and was indefinitely suspended from the Newport, Rhode Island-based Hall of Fame in 2012.
Upon his suspension, Hewitt's plaque and all references to him at the Hall of Fame were removed.
Hewitt was a doubles and mixed doubles champion at all four grand slam events, winning seven Wimbledon titles.
He also reached the semi-finals of the men's singles at the Australian Open three times, and won the Davis Cup with South Africa in 1974.
On
Memoriesofhistory.com
1911 - The first squash tournament was played at the Harvard Club in New York City.
1974 - Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run to break Babe Ruth's home run record.
1975 - Frank Robinson of the Cleveland Indians became first black manager of a major league baseball team.
1987 - Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis resigned over remarks he had made. While on ABC's "Nightline" Campanis said that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball.
1991 - Oakland A's stadium became the first outdoor arena to ban smoking.
1992 - Tennis player Arthur Ashe announced that he had AIDS.
2008 - The Mets lost their last home opener at Shea Stadium to Philadelphia Phillies.
1974 - Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run to break Babe Ruth's home run record.
1975 - Frank Robinson of the Cleveland Indians became first black manager of a major league baseball team.
1987 - Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis resigned over remarks he had made. While on ABC's "Nightline" Campanis said that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball.
1991 - Oakland A's stadium became the first outdoor arena to ban smoking.
1992 - Tennis player Arthur Ashe announced that he had AIDS.
2008 - The Mets lost their last home opener at Shea Stadium to Philadelphia Phillies.
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