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TRENDING: Year 2 gains aren't just for rookies: Why the Bears' front seven has reason for optimism in 2017. (See the football section for Bears news and NFL updates).
TRENDING: Year 2 gains aren't just for rookies: Why the Bears' front seven has reason for optimism in 2017. (See the football section for Bears news and NFL updates).
TRENDING: Corey Crawford is now officially underappreciated. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates and NHL news).
TRENDING: Jimmy, D-Rose, Embiid, LeBron, Lonzo: 10 most intriguing games on the Bulls' 2017-18 schedule. (See the basketball section for Bulls news and NBA updates).
TRENDING: What sort of job has Joe Maddon done with this Cubs team? Why White Sox prospect Lucas Giolito feels as good as he has all season. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
TRENDING: Wyndham Championship Golf Tournament Preview; PGA Tour releases fall portion of 2017-18 schedule. (See the golf section for PGA news and tournament updates).
TRENDING: NASCAR Power Rankings: Did Larson slither past Truex at the top? (See the NASCAR section for NASCAR news and racing updates).
TRENDING: With big game against Toronto looming, Fire first face trip to Montreal. (See the soccer section for Fire news and worldwide soccer updates).
Bears Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Year 2 gains aren't just for rookies: Why the Bears' front seven has reason for optimism in 2017.
By JJ Stankevitz
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The expectation for players entering their second year in the NFL — like Leonard Floyd, Jonathan Bullard and Nick Kwiatkoski — is that, with a season of experience, they can play faster and smarter. Case in point: In the last 15 years, only 13 rookies have had 10 or more sacks, while there have been 30 second-year players to have 10 or more sacks.
But the Bears’ front seven isn’t just feeling confident because of expected gains from Floyd, Bullard and Kwiatkoski (all of whom have had, to varying degrees, good preseasons so far). The front seven also has four veterans entering Year 2 in Vic Fangio’s defense: Defensive end Akiem Hicks, and inside linebackers Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan.
"It's my third year here, a lot of the coaches' third year here," Fangio said, "but it's not a lot of the players' third year here."
So what does that mean for those players who got here a year ago?
“I was still trying to figure some stuff out (last year), it was a new defense for me and it’s our second year just with the install and how things are going,” Freeman, who previously started 57 games for the Indianapolis Colts, said. “You can kind of tell Vic is moving along pretty fast. Things we’re paying attention to are a little different, little minute details instead of big picture things — just trying to have Vic’s trust to run some stuff.”
“It’s good because the defense is able to play fast and show things (down), give a little here and bring a little there. There’s a lot of things that go on with it. That progression, just like anybody else, from Year 1 to Year 2 is pretty good.”
Getting and staying healthy remains the biggest hurdle for the Bears’ defense to clear this season after 2016’s injury-ravaged unit ranked 24th in scoring defense (24.9 points per game) and 23rd in Football Outsiders’ DVOA.
Trevathan is slowly working his way back into more strenuous parts of practice, but may not play in a preseason game or be ready for Week 1. Pernell McPhee’s status remains unclear, putting pressure on fellow outside linebackers Floyd, Willie Young and LaMarr Houston (who’s still working his way back from his second torn ACL) to be healthy.
But if the Bears can couple better health with gains from both their promising youngsters (like Floyd) and productive veterans (like Freeman and Hicks), there could be a lot to be optimistic about with this front seven, which in turn could help out a secondary that could feature four new starters (Prince Amukamara, Marcus Cooper, Quintin Demps and possibly Eddie Jackson).
“Through the things that we installed last year and being able to see those things again, you get just a little bit faster at them,” Hicks said. “You don’t have to look for as many keys. You say to yourself — OK, I got this, now I see that, let’s go rather than scanning the whole field. I think that happens when you’re in a scheme for more than a year, going into our second year.”
Ranking the top 5 Bears players on current roster.
But the Bears’ front seven isn’t just feeling confident because of expected gains from Floyd, Bullard and Kwiatkoski (all of whom have had, to varying degrees, good preseasons so far). The front seven also has four veterans entering Year 2 in Vic Fangio’s defense: Defensive end Akiem Hicks, and inside linebackers Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan.
"It's my third year here, a lot of the coaches' third year here," Fangio said, "but it's not a lot of the players' third year here."
So what does that mean for those players who got here a year ago?
“I was still trying to figure some stuff out (last year), it was a new defense for me and it’s our second year just with the install and how things are going,” Freeman, who previously started 57 games for the Indianapolis Colts, said. “You can kind of tell Vic is moving along pretty fast. Things we’re paying attention to are a little different, little minute details instead of big picture things — just trying to have Vic’s trust to run some stuff.”
“It’s good because the defense is able to play fast and show things (down), give a little here and bring a little there. There’s a lot of things that go on with it. That progression, just like anybody else, from Year 1 to Year 2 is pretty good.”
Getting and staying healthy remains the biggest hurdle for the Bears’ defense to clear this season after 2016’s injury-ravaged unit ranked 24th in scoring defense (24.9 points per game) and 23rd in Football Outsiders’ DVOA.
Trevathan is slowly working his way back into more strenuous parts of practice, but may not play in a preseason game or be ready for Week 1. Pernell McPhee’s status remains unclear, putting pressure on fellow outside linebackers Floyd, Willie Young and LaMarr Houston (who’s still working his way back from his second torn ACL) to be healthy.
But if the Bears can couple better health with gains from both their promising youngsters (like Floyd) and productive veterans (like Freeman and Hicks), there could be a lot to be optimistic about with this front seven, which in turn could help out a secondary that could feature four new starters (Prince Amukamara, Marcus Cooper, Quintin Demps and possibly Eddie Jackson).
“Through the things that we installed last year and being able to see those things again, you get just a little bit faster at them,” Hicks said. “You don’t have to look for as many keys. You say to yourself — OK, I got this, now I see that, let’s go rather than scanning the whole field. I think that happens when you’re in a scheme for more than a year, going into our second year.”
Ranking the top 5 Bears players on current roster.
By CSN Staff
(Photo/csnchicago.com
The Chicago Tribune's Dan Wiederer dropped by the CSN studio to rank the top five players suiting up this year:
5. Prince Amukamara, CB
Wiederer's take: Terrific offseason, high hopes on what he can bring to secondary.
4. Josh Sitton, OL
Wiederer's take: Proven and understands exactly what it takes to win in this league.
3. Akiem Hicks, DE
Wiederer's take: Defensive MVP a season ago, durable.
2. Leonard Floyd, OLB
Wiederer's take: Had a very strong camp, could be a breakout year if he can stay healthy.
1. Jordan Howard, RB
Wiederer's take: Had a huge rookie campaign, gotta be at the top of the list.
Who are top 5 Bears on current roster?
The Chicago Tribune's Dan Wiederer breaks down who the top five Bears players are on the current roster. Press the icon below to listen.
Bears Talk Podcast: Glennon, Trubisky moving in opposite directions.
By CSN Staff
(Photo/USA TODAY)
On this episode of Bears Talk Podcast, Vinnie Duber and JJ Stankevitz discuss the performances of quarterbacks Mike Glennon and Mitch Turbisky in the Bears’ first preseason game and what each guy faces moving forward. Plus, JJ talks with Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic about the best of Bears training camp. And Vinnie and JJ takes a look ahead to the Bears’ second preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Corey Crawford is now officially underappreciated. (Ya think?)
By Cat Silverman
(Photo/Chris Williams/Icon Sportswire)
NHL Network put out its Top 10 goaltenders list last week.
Whether you think the analysts featured by the network are genius or far off base, the fact still stands — when all 10 names were revealed, Chicago Blackhawks starter Corey Crawford wasn’t one of them. He hasn’t ever been nominated for a Vezina Trophy, coming closest with a fifth-place finish in 2016, and he didn’t get a single accolade last season despite backstopping the Western Conference’s most lethal regular-season club.
Despite this, the last time Crawford put up a season with a below-league-average save percentage was the 2011-12 campaign.
The last time he fell below .900 — at any level — was his rookie pro season, back in 2005-06.
The starter’s perception around the NHL is a study in extremes, and more notably a look at how fans equate goaltender success to overall team success.
First, he was considered a highly heralded up-and-coming starter, back during the early pinnacle of Chicago’s success. When the Blackhawks were first rising to prominence, his shift to starter — usurping Antti Niemi as the No. 1 in the fall of 2010 — left fans and pundits alike wondering if he was the next big thing.
Then the team kept winning, but his perception started to fall. He was slung “piggyback” accusations, lambasted for poor performances, and ultimately relegated to the league’s lower echelon of starters when it appeared that the club was nearing the end of its up-winning era.
Crawford does not score goals for his team, so he did not lose it the two postseason appearances in which Chicago was shut out this spring.
He also didn’t score the Blackhawks’ Cup-clinching goals in 2010, 2013 or 2015, this is true. But the admiration he was given in the early stages of his career seems to have been unfairly lost — particularly given that he may now be one of the league’s most underrated talents.
It was a surprise in 2016 when Crawford was left off of the league’s Vezina finalist list.
He had just wrapped up his second consecutive regular season with a .924 save percentage in all situations, boasting the average over a whopping 115 combined games. He posted over 15 goals saved above average in each of the two seasons, and his quality start percentage was .667 the first year, then a .690 the second time around.
Those are Vezina-worthy numbers alone, but they’re even more impressive when put together into a two-year sample size.
This past season, the 32-year-old’s statistics fell a bit closer to earth, but not by much. He wrapped up his 2016-17 campaign with a .918 save percentage in all situations, going 32-18-4 over 55 appearances and hovering at 8.34 goals saved above average.
Still, he was left off of that recent list put out by league-wide analysts, falling outside of the best one-third of starters around the NHL.
The perception for some is that he’s inconsistent. Others thought he was too aggressive in his early years, and they never bothered to watch him trim his game parameters to sit deeper in his crease.
The depth argument is one of visual evidence, only proven by watching the game, so to speak, but the numbers have followed. Since Wade Flaherty departed as goaltending coach for the Blackhawks — save one transition year where Crawford put up his lowest career numbers to date — the starter has been both statistically strong and consistent, sitting well in the upper echelon of goaltenders in the league.
His goals saved above average are well in the positive range, and his even-strength save percentage has been a .930 or better every season but one since 2013. That low year, he only dropped to a .926 save percentage in 5 vs. 5 play; with that kind of consistency, he should be one of the league’s most respected names.
He’s not, though, which suggests that reputation and perception really is everything.
Playing behind a three-time Stanley Cup championship team could be seen, by some, as proof that he’s elite. It’s certainly, in part, how Jonathan Quick has vaulted himself up through the ranks of league-wide goaltenders.
And true, Quick plays more games per season than Crawford does when he’s healthy, which some consider warrior-like.
Of the two, though, Crawford has sat at a much higher level in terms of both results and consistency, boasting better numbers in both even strength and total situations and racking up far more goals saved above the league average. His quality start percentage is a tier higher, as well, suggesting that maybe the extra starts have been detrimental to Quick’s overall results.
As a result, though, maybe the “easier” workload coupled with all the championships and postseason appearances have given Crawford an almost passenger-esque air, with fans perceiving a smaller share of the team’s regular-season success as coming from him than other goaltenders around the league.
That’s a shame.
Crawford is entering his age-33 season. Assuming all goes well, he’ll play in his 400th career NHL game, and he’ll leapfrog names like Tim Thomas, Arturs Irbe and the famed John Ross Roach in career wins likely before the season turns over to 2018. He has a chance to leapfrog Marty Biron, as well, and if his season goes well enough, he has a chance to jump over a pair of Hall of Famers in George Hainsworth and Johnny Bower.
That’s all with plenty of life still left in his game, if the last few years are any indication. If all goes well, he’ll finish his career well into the league’s top 50 in wins.
Those aren’t all him — he can’t win his team a game, just as he alone can’t lose it for them — but his underlying numbers suggest he’s playing as much a part in those two points each night as the rest of the club’s star-studded cast.
There just don’t seem to be enough people appreciating that.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... Jimmy, D-Rose, Embiid, LeBron, Lonzo: 10 most intriguing games on the Bulls' 2017-18 schedule.
By Mark Strotman
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The Bulls had as busy an offseason as any team in the NBA, which means there will be plenty of headliner games on their 2017-18 schedule, which the league announced Monday.
Here are 10 that all fans should have circled on their calendars:
1. Feb. 9, vs. Minnesota: This may be one of the most anticipated games featuring non-contenders of the season. Draft night's blockbuster deal that sent Jimmy Butler and the No. 16 pick to the Timberwolves for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the No. 7 pick is just the tip of the iceberg. Tom Thibodeau is still at the helm, and Taj Gibson signed with Minnesota in July. On the other end, Dunn and LaVine (assuming he's ready to go by then) will get a chance at revenge on the team that traded them. Butler jokingly said he's going to try to score "like 5 points" against the Bulls, but our guess is he's especially up for this game. It's also the Bulls' only scheduled nationally televised game of the year. Long live the #TNTBulls.
2. Dec. 4 vs. Cleveland: It's always a big game when LeBron James comes to town for the first time, and for the last seven seasons that's meant the Eastern Conference champions arriving with him. But there's an added twist this year, as quite the familiar face will be joining King James in Chicago. Derrick Rose signed a one-year, veteran's minimum deal with the Cavs. It remains to be seen whether he or Kyrie Irving will start at the point when these teams meet, but it's sure to be awkward when Rose and LeBron run a fast break to perfection. This sure ain't 2015 anymore.
3. Dec. 18 vs. Philadelphia: We Trusted the Process, and now the Sixers look like legitimate contenders for a playoff spot in the East. And although Joel Embiid has been in Philly for two years and Ben Simmons for one, the Bulls didn't see either in their matchups last season. Expect that to change in December, when the Bulls get a dose of what a successful rebuild looks like. With Embiid, Simmons, No. 1 pick Markelle Fultz and a host of other young talent in the mix, the Bulls will get all they can handle with this group. They'll also get the blueprint for how they should proceed with their own rebuild.
4. Oct. 21 vs. San Antonio: It's the home opener for the Bulls, and in recent years that's meant good news. Winners in eight of their last nine openers at the UC, the Bulls will have their hands full when Kawhi Leonard, LaMarcus Aldridge and the Spurs come to town. Then again, the Bulls have managed to beat Gregg Popovich's group at the United Center in each of the last three seasons. They also had All-Star Jimmy Butler in those three matchups. The results may look different this time around, but recent records sure are on the Bulls' side.
5. Nov. 4 vs. New Orleans: It's always fun when hometown superstar Anthony Davis
returns to Chicago. Last year The Brow dominated at the United Center, going for 36 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks in 39 minutes. Davis is back, and he's bringing DeMarcus Cousins with him this time. He's also bringing free-agent acquisition Rajon Rondo, who spent last season with the Bulls. Rondo originally was in the Bulls' near-future plans before they entered a rebuild, and it should be plenty of fun to watch him play against the young players he mentored last year. The last impression Bulls fans have of him was his absurd Games 1 and 2 against the Celtics, so expect Rondo to get a rousing applause in his return.
6. Nov. 24 at Golden State: There's never a fun time to play the Warriors. But this matchup is going to be brutally difficult. The Bulls begin their 2017 season playing 11 of their first 17 games on the road, and it ends with a trip to the defending champs' home court. The Warriors have been prone to ugly losses against lesser teams, but this might look something like last year's game in Oakland did (no Jimmy Butler, no Dwyane Wade meant a 31-point loss). Still, it's always incredible to watch this Warriors offense work, so it's making the list.
7. Oct. 19 at Toronto: So the Bulls no longer have their ridiculous winning streak against the Raptors that had spanned 11 games and four seasons. But this is the team's season opener, marking the official start of the rebuild in a place where they've had success in the past. It's unlikely Zach LaVine will be ready, but the Bulls will get to unwrap new toys in Kris Dunn and Lauri Markkanen and watch the development of guys like Bobby Portis, Denzel Valentine, Cameron Payne and others. From the Warriors to the Hawks to the Cavs to the Bulls, a season opener is a season opener. This one will be fun.
8. Nov. 21 at Los Angeles Lakers: You'll be hearing plenty about this, but Lonzo Ball is going to be must-see all year. He's the most exciting rookie point guard we've seen in quite some time, and the Lakers seem to be building something serious around him. Like Philadelphia, the Bulls can learn something from LA's rebuild that has seen them add players like Ball, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, Ivica Zubac and Kyle Kuzma. This game will be a solid test for the young Bulls, especially if they're still without Zach LaVine. But all eyes will be on Lonzo.
9. Jan. 8 vs. Houston: There's a new super-team in town, and they're bringing their act to the Windy City right after the calendar flips to 2018. Chris Paul and James Harden have teamed up to form what should be one of the most fun offenses in the league to watch. There's a shot Carmelo Anthony is part of this roster by then, adding more intrigue to the game. Assuming the new-look Rockets (they also added PJ Tucker and Luc Mbah a Moute) have worked out all the kinks this far into the season, this one could get ugly.
10. Nov. 19 at Phoenix: We're tossing this one on the list for a few reasons. There's an outside chance Kyrie Irving is the starting point guard by this time. Also, a Jimmy Butler trade certainly could have gone down with the Suns this offseason. It's a little game of "what if" when watching players like Josh Jackson, Marquese Chriss or Dragan Bender, who could have been part of a rebuild. Past that, CSN's digital department is #TeamSuns, so it's making the cut.
Bulls Talk Podcast: How the Bulls can make it back to the playoffs.
By CSN Staff
Here are 10 that all fans should have circled on their calendars:
1. Feb. 9, vs. Minnesota: This may be one of the most anticipated games featuring non-contenders of the season. Draft night's blockbuster deal that sent Jimmy Butler and the No. 16 pick to the Timberwolves for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the No. 7 pick is just the tip of the iceberg. Tom Thibodeau is still at the helm, and Taj Gibson signed with Minnesota in July. On the other end, Dunn and LaVine (assuming he's ready to go by then) will get a chance at revenge on the team that traded them. Butler jokingly said he's going to try to score "like 5 points" against the Bulls, but our guess is he's especially up for this game. It's also the Bulls' only scheduled nationally televised game of the year. Long live the #TNTBulls.
2. Dec. 4 vs. Cleveland: It's always a big game when LeBron James comes to town for the first time, and for the last seven seasons that's meant the Eastern Conference champions arriving with him. But there's an added twist this year, as quite the familiar face will be joining King James in Chicago. Derrick Rose signed a one-year, veteran's minimum deal with the Cavs. It remains to be seen whether he or Kyrie Irving will start at the point when these teams meet, but it's sure to be awkward when Rose and LeBron run a fast break to perfection. This sure ain't 2015 anymore.
3. Dec. 18 vs. Philadelphia: We Trusted the Process, and now the Sixers look like legitimate contenders for a playoff spot in the East. And although Joel Embiid has been in Philly for two years and Ben Simmons for one, the Bulls didn't see either in their matchups last season. Expect that to change in December, when the Bulls get a dose of what a successful rebuild looks like. With Embiid, Simmons, No. 1 pick Markelle Fultz and a host of other young talent in the mix, the Bulls will get all they can handle with this group. They'll also get the blueprint for how they should proceed with their own rebuild.
4. Oct. 21 vs. San Antonio: It's the home opener for the Bulls, and in recent years that's meant good news. Winners in eight of their last nine openers at the UC, the Bulls will have their hands full when Kawhi Leonard, LaMarcus Aldridge and the Spurs come to town. Then again, the Bulls have managed to beat Gregg Popovich's group at the United Center in each of the last three seasons. They also had All-Star Jimmy Butler in those three matchups. The results may look different this time around, but recent records sure are on the Bulls' side.
5. Nov. 4 vs. New Orleans: It's always fun when hometown superstar Anthony Davis
returns to Chicago. Last year The Brow dominated at the United Center, going for 36 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks in 39 minutes. Davis is back, and he's bringing DeMarcus Cousins with him this time. He's also bringing free-agent acquisition Rajon Rondo, who spent last season with the Bulls. Rondo originally was in the Bulls' near-future plans before they entered a rebuild, and it should be plenty of fun to watch him play against the young players he mentored last year. The last impression Bulls fans have of him was his absurd Games 1 and 2 against the Celtics, so expect Rondo to get a rousing applause in his return.
6. Nov. 24 at Golden State: There's never a fun time to play the Warriors. But this matchup is going to be brutally difficult. The Bulls begin their 2017 season playing 11 of their first 17 games on the road, and it ends with a trip to the defending champs' home court. The Warriors have been prone to ugly losses against lesser teams, but this might look something like last year's game in Oakland did (no Jimmy Butler, no Dwyane Wade meant a 31-point loss). Still, it's always incredible to watch this Warriors offense work, so it's making the list.
7. Oct. 19 at Toronto: So the Bulls no longer have their ridiculous winning streak against the Raptors that had spanned 11 games and four seasons. But this is the team's season opener, marking the official start of the rebuild in a place where they've had success in the past. It's unlikely Zach LaVine will be ready, but the Bulls will get to unwrap new toys in Kris Dunn and Lauri Markkanen and watch the development of guys like Bobby Portis, Denzel Valentine, Cameron Payne and others. From the Warriors to the Hawks to the Cavs to the Bulls, a season opener is a season opener. This one will be fun.
8. Nov. 21 at Los Angeles Lakers: You'll be hearing plenty about this, but Lonzo Ball is going to be must-see all year. He's the most exciting rookie point guard we've seen in quite some time, and the Lakers seem to be building something serious around him. Like Philadelphia, the Bulls can learn something from LA's rebuild that has seen them add players like Ball, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, Ivica Zubac and Kyle Kuzma. This game will be a solid test for the young Bulls, especially if they're still without Zach LaVine. But all eyes will be on Lonzo.
9. Jan. 8 vs. Houston: There's a new super-team in town, and they're bringing their act to the Windy City right after the calendar flips to 2018. Chris Paul and James Harden have teamed up to form what should be one of the most fun offenses in the league to watch. There's a shot Carmelo Anthony is part of this roster by then, adding more intrigue to the game. Assuming the new-look Rockets (they also added PJ Tucker and Luc Mbah a Moute) have worked out all the kinks this far into the season, this one could get ugly.
10. Nov. 19 at Phoenix: We're tossing this one on the list for a few reasons. There's an outside chance Kyrie Irving is the starting point guard by this time. Also, a Jimmy Butler trade certainly could have gone down with the Suns this offseason. It's a little game of "what if" when watching players like Josh Jackson, Marquese Chriss or Dragan Bender, who could have been part of a rebuild. Past that, CSN's digital department is #TeamSuns, so it's making the cut.
Bulls Talk Podcast: How the Bulls can make it back to the playoffs.
By CSN Staff
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
On this edition of the Bulls Talk podcast, NBA salary cap expert Mark Deeks joins Mark Schanowski and Kevin Anderson to talk about the Bulls path back to the playoffs and the landscape of the current Eastern Conference.
Deeks also explains how he grew to love the Bulls despite living in the United Kingdom, plus why Fred Hoiberg was his favorite player. Plus, is Kendall Gill a beloved figure in England?
Listen to the full episode at this link.
Deeks also explains how he grew to love the Bulls despite living in the United Kingdom, plus why Fred Hoiberg was his favorite player. Plus, is Kendall Gill a beloved figure in England?
Listen to the full episode at this link.
CUBS: Ben Zobrist breaks down what went wrong this season and how he can still make it right.
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Ben Zobrist is a self-made player who feels months behind where he should be, freely admitting: “If we were in September right now, I’d be like: ‘Uh-oh.’”
The Cubs have played that long game all year, hanging around and slowly moving ahead in the National League Central race, hoping they will peak at the right time and the muscle memory will take over in October. That just seems to be getting harder and harder for their World Series MVP.
“We’re still where we need to be,” Zobrist said, “even though I have not played anywhere near my capability this season.”
Zobrist is a man of faith, so he will try not to feel snake-bitten, even as the injuries keep piling up, scratched from Monday’s game with a stiff neck and held back in Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Wrigley Field.
But watching Zobrist work a pinch-hit walk in the eighth inning and line an RBI single off Reds closer Raisel Iglesias in the ninth inning underlined how much the Cubs need him without Dexter Fowler leading off and Willson Contreras hitting in the middle of their lineup.
Coming off back-to-back World Series runs, there were questions about whether or not a stiff neck would prevent Zobrist from being ready for Opening Day. Playing a doubleheader on May 9 at Coors Field stressed his lower back and sidelined him again. An awkward swing on May 26 at Dodger Stadium would eventually put him on the disabled list with a sore left wrist and force him to miss most of June.
Playoffs? Personal three-peat? The Cubs are a 62-56 team with a 1.5-game lead in the division. Zobrist is also too much of a realist to think that he can just flip a switch when he’s hitting .223 with an OPS that’s roughly 80 points below the league average and he hasn’t homered since the first game after the All-Star break.
“Right now, I’ve got more important things to worry about and they’re more minute,” Zobrist said. “Am I doing the things I need to do to have a good, quality at-bat? If I can start doing that again, then I’m very confident that when we get to that time, I’ll be able to do what I normally do. But that’s a long ways away for me, still.
“I’m trying to get to the point where I normally am in May. I’m not thinking about playoff time. I need to get back to that May time where I’m getting things where they need to go.”
After getting shut down by the New York Mets’ power pitching and swept out of the 2015 NL Championship Series, the Cubs identified Zobrist as the switch-hitter to diversify their lineup and set an example for their young players.
Whatever happens from here – the Cubs believed his ability to handle fastballs and play multiple positions would keep him productive through his mid-30s – Zobrist has already been worth every penny of that four-year, $56 million deal.
“I’ve always been a hands/wrists/forearms (hitter),” Zobrist said. “That’s been one of my strengths: Let the pitch get deep and still get my hands to the front of the zone. That’s been really difficult to do. In June, it was impossible for me.
“And when that went, it was like: ‘OK, this is a tough one,’ because I tried to play through it. It just wasn’t healing and I wasn’t able to do the work. That’s when I hit the DL. I had to figure out (that) I have to get the wrists and the hands completely healthy. Or else I shouldn’t be out there, because the pitchers are too good.”
At 36, Zobrist is old enough to remember watching the championship celebrations for Michael Jordan’s Bulls on TV, childhood memories that inspired him to give a speech during that massive Grant Park rally last November, a scene that he envisioned when he took a hometown discount to sign with the Cubs.
“Age is about figuring out how to take care of you, because every guy is a little bit different,” Zobrist said. “There’s no formula once you get to a certain point. When you’re 25, the formula is nothing. It’s essentially just like: ‘Show up. Do the work. And you’re going to be able to do what you know how to do.’
“But as you get a little bit older, you start kind of going: ‘OK, what is it about me that I have to do to get back to where I feel great on the field?’ That’s a learning experience that’s constantly happening.
“Whereas before, you didn’t really have to do anything to get ready. You could just basically pick up a bat and run down to the cage and start swinging as hard as you want to swing.
“And now it’s like: ‘OK, if you want to go 100 mph, you’re going to have to take longer than 2.whatever seconds to get there.’ You’re going to have to really ramp it up and figure out those particular issues for you as a player that are going to pop up.”
Nights like this – the rest of the team going 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position, almost getting shut out by a last-place team and missing the dimensions their World Series MVP brought to this lineup – make you wonder if there will be enough time for Zobrist and the defending champs to figure it out.
What sort of job has Joe Maddon done with this Cubs team?
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/USA TODAY)
At different points throughout a disappointing season, Cubs president Theo Epstein has used the code words you would normally hear about a manager on the hot seat. Epstein vented his frustrations while the Cubs kept staggering around the .500 mark, admitting the team didn’t have a clear identity or play with the same edge.
But Joe Maddon is a future Hall of Famer, the only manager to lead this franchise to a World Series title since the Theodore Roosevelt administration and a larger-than-life personality in the middle of a long-term contract that will pay him in the neighborhood of $28 million.
Maddon oversees an ultra-talented team that overall has been one of the healthiest in the majors this season. The Cubs play in a mediocre division with three small-market franchises that ranked in the bottom eight in terms of Opening Day payroll – and in a big city where even athletes on last-place teams get treated like royalty.
Is there anything Maddon could have done differently – or can do now – with the defending champs?
“Collectively, from top to bottom, I think obviously we haven’t had the same kind of year as last year, or even the year before,” general manager Jed Hoyer said before Monday night’s 15-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds pushed the Cubs out to a 1.5-game lead on the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central. “That assessment is on everybody. I wouldn’t single anything out about Joe that he hasn’t done.
“But in general, as a group, starting with Theo and me, I think we haven’t played as well. We haven’t been as sharp. And that’s something we have to find. But the good thing about baseball is that we still have 46 games left to find it. Starting now.”
Maddon’s “American Legion Week” began with the Wrigley Field clubhouse opening to the media at 4:30 p.m., or almost an hour later than normal for a 7:05 game. Before doing his pregame press briefing, Maddon unfurled a blue-and-gold “Palatine Post No. 690” flag in the interview room and held it up for the cameras. The fine for a player, coach or manager getting to work too early this week is handing over a $100 bottle of wine (with receipt).
“Just show up a little bit later, a little bit more rested mentally,” Maddon said. “Go out and just play the game of baseball like it was intended to be played.
“Data, extra work, all that kind of stuff – it’s the middle of August. We’ve had since the beginning of February to get all that stuff in the barn. So I just want us to play.”
The Cubs have given up 91 runs in the first inning this season – or almost 30 more than any other inning – and seen their defense slip from a historic level to a point where Maddon keeps harping on mental mistakes and making the routine plays routinely. Though the Cubs are still a top-three team in terms of defensive efficiency, even Maddon admits they have not passed the eye test.
Maddon is also a progressive thinker who takes the entire 162-game schedule into account, believes in rest and recovery, tries to keep role players involved and keeps sending positive vibes into the clubhouse and through the media.
“Good or bad, it would have nothing to do with us showing up early or late,” Maddon said. “Taking 50 swings or 100 swings tonight or not has nothing to do with our success or not. When it comes to the offensive side of our team right now, more than anything, it’s about swinging at bad pitches. So if you want to go out there and practice taking pitches, that might be more beneficial.
“There are so many disconnected thoughts in our game regarding work and how you work. When it comes to data and video and information, I’m all about it. But at some point, you got to turn it down just a little bit and go out there and play unencumbered.”
Maddon projected so much confidence and pushed all the right buttons in 2015 when the Cubs went 42-18 in August, September and early October combined, surging to 97 wins and into the NL Championship Series.
All the first- and second-guessing over how Maddon managed last year’s World Series Game 7 overshadowed the way he got the Cubs to “Embrace The Target” and play loose yet focused under enormous pressure.
Maybe Maddon’s sense of calm is the best way to handle this three-ring circus and he will be proven right if a 62-55 team corrects itself and finally takes off. “American Legion Week” started a run where the Cubs will face last-place teams for 13 straight games and 70 percent of the remaining schedule is against teams currently at or below .500.
This is how it works: The manager will either get credit for steering the team toward another division title – or the blame for a stunning collapse – whether or not he thinks like that.
“I just try to treat every game with equal amount of respect,” Maddon said. “I don’t apply any more weight to one game over another. I’ve always said that. I mean it.
“You got to play it right every night. And please don’t take anything for granted in this game, or in any part of your life. I’m just not that guy. We got to come out and play our best game.”
Will Cubs make another deal in August with Willson Contreras sidelined?
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/USA TODAY)
“We’re happy with those guys right now,” general manager Jed Hoyer said Monday at Wrigley Field, where the Cubs began a stretch of 13 straight games against last-place teams. “Hopefully, Willson continues to progress.”
The Cubs addressed their three biggest needs before the July 31 trade deadline without feeling like they mortgaged the future and bankrupted their farm system. The next day, team president Theo Epstein downplayed the possibility of making another deal during the August waiver period, saying how much the Cubs liked their 25-man roster with frontline starter Jose Quintana, lefty reliever Justin Wilson and Avila on top of the depth built up at Triple-A Iowa.
“We’re probably in the same place,” Hoyer said. “We’ll always look through who’s cleared waivers and those guys become potential targets.
“But right now, I think we’re happy with where we are. We probably won’t to look add significantly, though any day that can change based on injuries and poor performance.”
Where the front office kept tinkering with an emerging playoff team in late August 2015 – acquiring a former All-Star closer (Fernando Rodney) and a backup outfielder (Austin Jackson) in separate deals with the Seattle Mariners and signing a valuable reliever (Trevor Cahill) and a pinch-running specialist (Quintin Berry) to minor-league contracts – the defending World Series champs believe the solutions should come from within this time.
The Cubs still expect a drop-off, because Contreras had been one of the hottest hitters in the game and their most valuable player at that moment when he strained his right hamstring last week running out a groundball. A more conservative estimate from that four-to-six week timeline could put Contreras in play by the middle of September, when seven of their final 16 games will be against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Manager Joe Maddon described Avila as a backup catcher in name only when he came over from the Detroit Tigers. Avila is playoff-tested, only 30 years old, a left-handed hitter who crushes right-handed pitching and a receiver for Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer during Cy Young Award seasons.
Caratini already figured to be a September call-up after making his big-league debut this summer – thanks to Miguel Montero’s rant – and hitting .344 with a .944 OPS in 76 games with Iowa.
“We’re glad we acquired Alex at the deadline,” Hoyer said. “That helps lessen the blow of Willson’s injury a lot. Obviously, he was basically platooning for Detroit and catching a lot. He’ll continue to do that here.
“We’ve said all along that we’re very comfortable with Vic being here. We wanted to send him down so he could play. And now that we know he’ll get more playing time, I think we’re OK with having him up here.”
WHITE SOX: Why White Sox prospect Lucas Giolito feels as good as he has all season.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Though many of his Charlotte teammates are in the majors and his own prospects for a promotion are promising, Lucas Giolito doesn’t want to get ahead of himself.
The Triple-A Charlotte pitcher is absolutely thrilled for teammates Yoan Moncada, Aaron Bummer, Nicky Delmonico and Reynaldo Lopez. He hopes to be there in Chicago to join them soon, too. But given all the effort he’s put in to reach this place, a spot in which he’s produced the consistency he desires, Giolito wants to keep his focus.
His overall numbers aren’t what he’d like, but Giolito -- who is 5-10 with a 4.70 ERA in 23 starts -- feels comfortable with what he has accomplished in 2017. The right-hander’s curveball is sharp, he’s throwing his offspeed pitches in all types of situations and pitching deeper into games.
“It’s super exciting,” Giolito said of teammates’ promotions. “At the same time, the position I’m in, the stuff I’m trying to work on, I can’t be worried about when am I getting the call. …
“You don’t want to put the GM hat on. I’m here to play. I’m here to go out there every fifth day and win for my team. I’m here in Charlotte and that’s what I’m here to do and I’m going to keep working on that.”
Those fifth days have been much better of late. Giolito pitched fewer than five innings in six of his first 16 starts this season. He had allowed 85 hits in 83 1/3 innings and posted a 5.40 ERA. Opposing hitters produced an .835 OPS against Giolito.
But a curveball he’d been working to command since spring training and throw for called strikes has started to come around. Giolito said the improvement has come from a combination of better mechanics and commitment to throwing and trusting the pitch. He also trusts that the work he puts in with pitching coach Steve McCatty between starts has him in the right place to succeed, which has allowed him to not overthink things.
“There were some games I really just wouldn’t have it, I’d be throwing it in the dirt, it wasn’t a competitive pitch,” Giolito said. “Now I go out there with confidence every outing that I can throw it over for a strike.”
“Early in the season there were a lot of starts where I was thinking about too many things at the same time of trying to get guys out and pitch deep into games. It’s too much. Now I go out there and I’m not worried about the stuff that I’m working on in the four days in between starts.”
Giolito has also continued to throw the slider/cutter that he learned this spring with more success. Between that, his curve and changeup, Giolito said he’s worked to throw all of his pitches in different counts so he can do the same with comfort in the majors.
But spotting the curveball for strikes consistently is a big key. In his last outing, Giolito said he threw roughly 20 curves with confidence.
“He’s just simplified his delivery, simplified his thought process and he’s been able to kind of execute the plan that he has,” White Sox player development director Chris Getz said. “That is commanding his fastball and curveball for strikes. He’s had an effective slider and his changeup has been pretty good. The stuff is good. The delivery can be very good. That’s what’s he has been able to do, just kind of putting it all together
“The combination of all those things will give him a good chance to be effective up here at this level.”
One American League scout said of Giolito that “all the tools are there,” it’s just a matter of consistency. Over his last seven starts, Giolito has pitched into the seventh inning four times and gone at least five innings all but once. He has a 3.20 ERA in that span with 40 strikeouts, 30 hits and 19 walks in 39 1/3 innings.
The performance would appear to have Giolito in line for a September promotion at the least.
He’d love for nothing more than to be back in the same rotation as Lopez, who made his White Sox debut on Friday. But he’s there, Giolito said he intends to stay focused on here where the everyday attention to detail has helped him improve.
“I’m definitely watching a ton of the games and keeping my eye on stat lines like Lopey’s debut,” Giolito said. “I was all over trying to watch as much as I could. I’m super happy for him. At the same time, I look forward to getting that opportunity to go up there and be with those guys.
“While that’s there, there’s still a lot of work to be done here. And I know that as far as all the stuff I’m trying to put together, it’s not perfect, it never will be perfect. But I’m doing everything I can to build up that consistency.”
His overall numbers aren’t what he’d like, but Giolito -- who is 5-10 with a 4.70 ERA in 23 starts -- feels comfortable with what he has accomplished in 2017. The right-hander’s curveball is sharp, he’s throwing his offspeed pitches in all types of situations and pitching deeper into games.
“It’s super exciting,” Giolito said of teammates’ promotions. “At the same time, the position I’m in, the stuff I’m trying to work on, I can’t be worried about when am I getting the call. …
“You don’t want to put the GM hat on. I’m here to play. I’m here to go out there every fifth day and win for my team. I’m here in Charlotte and that’s what I’m here to do and I’m going to keep working on that.”
Those fifth days have been much better of late. Giolito pitched fewer than five innings in six of his first 16 starts this season. He had allowed 85 hits in 83 1/3 innings and posted a 5.40 ERA. Opposing hitters produced an .835 OPS against Giolito.
But a curveball he’d been working to command since spring training and throw for called strikes has started to come around. Giolito said the improvement has come from a combination of better mechanics and commitment to throwing and trusting the pitch. He also trusts that the work he puts in with pitching coach Steve McCatty between starts has him in the right place to succeed, which has allowed him to not overthink things.
“There were some games I really just wouldn’t have it, I’d be throwing it in the dirt, it wasn’t a competitive pitch,” Giolito said. “Now I go out there with confidence every outing that I can throw it over for a strike.”
“Early in the season there were a lot of starts where I was thinking about too many things at the same time of trying to get guys out and pitch deep into games. It’s too much. Now I go out there and I’m not worried about the stuff that I’m working on in the four days in between starts.”
Giolito has also continued to throw the slider/cutter that he learned this spring with more success. Between that, his curve and changeup, Giolito said he’s worked to throw all of his pitches in different counts so he can do the same with comfort in the majors.
But spotting the curveball for strikes consistently is a big key. In his last outing, Giolito said he threw roughly 20 curves with confidence.
“He’s just simplified his delivery, simplified his thought process and he’s been able to kind of execute the plan that he has,” White Sox player development director Chris Getz said. “That is commanding his fastball and curveball for strikes. He’s had an effective slider and his changeup has been pretty good. The stuff is good. The delivery can be very good. That’s what’s he has been able to do, just kind of putting it all together
“The combination of all those things will give him a good chance to be effective up here at this level.”
One American League scout said of Giolito that “all the tools are there,” it’s just a matter of consistency. Over his last seven starts, Giolito has pitched into the seventh inning four times and gone at least five innings all but once. He has a 3.20 ERA in that span with 40 strikeouts, 30 hits and 19 walks in 39 1/3 innings.
The performance would appear to have Giolito in line for a September promotion at the least.
He’d love for nothing more than to be back in the same rotation as Lopez, who made his White Sox debut on Friday. But he’s there, Giolito said he intends to stay focused on here where the everyday attention to detail has helped him improve.
“I’m definitely watching a ton of the games and keeping my eye on stat lines like Lopey’s debut,” Giolito said. “I was all over trying to watch as much as I could. I’m super happy for him. At the same time, I look forward to getting that opportunity to go up there and be with those guys.
“While that’s there, there’s still a lot of work to be done here. And I know that as far as all the stuff I’m trying to put together, it’s not perfect, it never will be perfect. But I’m doing everything I can to build up that consistency.”
White Sox Talk Podcast: Eloy Jimenez and Zack Collins one step closer to the majors.
By CSN Staff
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Eloy Jimenez and Zack Collins are two of the White Sox top prospects, so it was a big deal when the news broke that they're both being promoted to Double-A Birmingham. On this edition of the podcast, Chuck Garfien and Ryan McGuffey call up CSN's Dan Hayes who's on the road covering the White Sox farm system this week. He was with Jimenez and Collins the day before in what turned out to be their last game for Winston-Salem. Hayes explains the overwhelming impact Jimenez has made, not just with the White Sox but the entire Carolina League this season. They discuss the path Collins will likely take to the majors, the underrated ability of Casey Gillaspie who the White Sox acquired in the Dan Jennings trade and more. Then they cover White Sox news: Rick Hahn trading Tyler Clippard while he was watching Game of Thrones, the incredible MLB start for Nicky Delmonico, the recent run of starts by Carlos Rodon and more.
White Sox Talk Podcast
Reinsdorf: Ozzie Guillen 'can't come back' as White Sox manager.
By Tim Goldrick
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The calls for Ozzie Guillen to return as the White Sox skipper will go unanswered as long as Jerry Reinsdorf owns the team.
The chairman made that crystal clear in his interview with USA Today's Bob Nightengale on Tuesday:
I feel very badly for him. Ozzie is a good manager. I’ve recommended Ozzie for several managerial positions that opened up, but his experience in Miami was costly.
I hope he ends up somewhere. He can help somebody. He just can’t come back here. He burned some bridges when he left here.Guillen presided over the 2005 World Series team and compiled 678 wins in his eight seasons on the South Side, but he was a habitual line stepper, to quote the late Charlie Murphy.
The former manager was a consistent adversary to then-GM Kenny Williams, who now fills the executive vice president role on the South Side. Their arguments often spilled over into the media, painting an ugly picture of their relationship.
Ozzie's filter-free approach followed him to Miami, where he was the manager for one season. There, he made the mistake of saying that he "respected Fidel Castro," which didn't exactly thrill a city with a large Cuban population. He was fired at year's end.
As for a possible return to the Sox, the shouts were deafening towards the end of Robin Ventura's term -- mostly because of the contrast between Ozzie's get-in-your-face personality and Ventura's calm demeanor. But with Rick Renteria leading the young team, they've quelled to a certain extent.
"Ozzie Ball" won't be returning to Chicago anytime soon.
Golf: I got a club for that..... Wyndham Championship Golf Tournament Preview.
By golfstats.com
Wyndham Championship
August 17th – 20th, 2017
August 17th – 20th, 2017
Sedgefield Country Club, Greensboro, NC
Par: 70 / Yardage:
Par: 70 / Yardage:
Purse: $5.8 million with $1,044,000 to the winner
Defending Champion: Siwoo Kim
Defending Champion: Siwoo Kim
2017 Wyndham Championship Field Released.
World No. 8 Henrik Stenson, FedExCup No. 9 Kevin Kisner, Jason Dufner, Webb Simpson, Bill Haas and Brandt Snedeker highlight the 2017 Wyndham Championship field which has now been released, the tournament announced tonight. The 78th annual Wyndham Championship begins Monday at Sedgefield Country Club.
The 2017 field includes:
- Major Winners (10): Jason Dufner, Ernie Els, Lucas Glover, Retief Goosen, Padraig Harrington, Davis Love III, Graeme McDowell, Geoff Ogilvy, Webb Simpson and Henrik Stenson.
- FedExCup Champions (4): Billy Horschel (2014), Henrik Stenson (2013), Brandt Snedeker (2012) and Bill Haas (2011)
- Past United States Ryder Cup Team Members (7): Chad Campbell, Jason Dufner, Davis Love III, Ryan Moore, Webb Simpson, Brandt Snedeker, Boo Weekley
- Past United States Presidents Cup Team Members: (8): Jason Dufner, Lucas Glover, Bill Haas, Charles Howell III, Davis Love III, Webb Simpson, Brandt Snedeker, Nick Watney
- Past Wyndham Champions (8): Arjun Atwal, K.J. Choi, Davis Love III, Ryan Moore, Carl Pettersson, Webb Simpson, Brandt Snedeker and Camilo Villegas.
- Golfers Representing 18 Foreign Nations: Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland, England, India, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Taiwan.
Snedeker has been hampered by a rib injury but is in the field and hopes to play. He won the first tournament called the Wyndham Championship in 2007 and was later named that year’s PGA TOUR rookie of the year; he finished tied for third in last year’s Wyndham Championship. Snedeker went 3-0 to help lead the United States to a 17-11 victory in the 2016 Ryder Cup matches – it was his second Ryder Cup appearance. The 2012 FedExCup champion has eight PGA TOUR wins among 11 overall; he finished 15th in the final FedExCup standings last year. After missing some recent tournaments due to his rib injury, he is currently 55th in the FedExCup point standings and 36th in the Official World Golf Rankings. Snedeker will be making his 11th-consecutive Wyndham Championship appearance; in addition to his 2007 win, he recorded top-eight finishes here in 2009, ’10,’14 and ‘16.
Defending champion Si Woo Kim, Andrew “Beef” Johnston and Jim Furyk have all withdrawn due to injuries. The Wyndham Championship field is below:
| Steven Alker | Matt Every | Kelly Kraft | Ryan Ruffels |
| Byeong Hun An | Derek Fathauer | Anirban Lahiri | Rory Sabbatini |
| Mark Anderson | Gonzalo Fdez-Castano | Martin Laird | Sam Saunders |
| Stuart Appleby | Martin Flores | Rick Lamb | Ollie Schniederjans |
| Ryan Armour | Brad Fritsch | Danny Lee | Webb Simpson |
| Arjun Atwal | Brian Gay | Spencer Levin | Cameron Smith |
| Aaron Baddeley | Lucas Glover | Hao Tong Li | Brandt Snedeker |
| Blayne Barber | Andres Gonzales | Nicholas Lindheim | J.J. Spaun |
| Ricky Barnes | Retief Goosen | Andrew Loupe | Scott Stallings |
| Shane Bertsch | Cody Gribble | Davis Love III | Kyle Stanley |
| Zac Blair | Emiliano Grillo | Dru Love | Shawn Stefani |
| Ryan Blaum | Bill Haas | Shane Lowry | Brett Stegmaier |
| Jonas Blixt | Chesson Hadley | Hunter Mahan | Henrik Stenson |
| Jason Bohn | Brandon Hagy | Peter Malnati | Robert Streb |
| Steven Bowditch | James Hahn | Ben Martin | Kevin Streelman |
| Dominic Bozzelli | Padraig Harrington | Graeme McDowell | Chris Stroud |
| Keegan Bradley | David Hearn | William McGirt | Brian Stuard |
| Ryan Brehm | J.J. Henry | Troy Merritt | Daniel Summerhays |
| Scott Brown | Morgan Hoffmann | Bryce Molder | Nick Taylor |
| Brian Campbell | Tom Hoge | Ryan Moore | Vaughn Taylor |
| Chad Campbell | Max Homa | Trey Mullinax | Cameron Tringale |
| Miguel Angel Carballo | Billy Horschel | Sebastián Muñoz | Kevin Tway |
| Roberto Castro | Sam Horsfield | Grayson Murray | Tyrone Van Aswegen |
| Bud Cauley | Charles Howell III | Kevin Na | Harold Varner III |
| Alex Cejka | Mark Hubbard | Savio Nazareth | Camilo Villegas |
| Greg Chalmers | John Huh | Seung-Yul Noh | Johnson Wagner |
| K.J. Choi | Billy Hurley III | Geoff Ogilvy | Nick Watney |
| Chad Collins | Ryo Ishikawa | Greg Owen | Boo Weekley |
| Ben Crane | Matt Jones | Ryan Palmer | Richy Werenski |
| Joel Dahmen | Sung Kang | C.T. Pan | Steve Wheatcroft |
| Brian Davis | Smylie Kaufman | Cameron Percy | Willy Wilcox |
| Luke Donald | Troy Kelly | Carl Pettersson | Tim Wilkinson |
| Brett Drewitt | Michael Kim | D.A. Points | Bobby Wyatt |
| Jason Dufner | Whee Kim | J.T. Poston | |
| Ken Duke | Kevin Kisner | Seamus Power | |
| Ernie Els | Patton Kizzire | Jonathan Randolph | |
| Harris English | Søren Kjeldsen | Chez Reavie | |
| Bob Estes | Russell Knox | Kyle Reifers | |
| Julián Etulain | Jason Kokrak | Tag Ridings |
PGA Tour releases fall portion of 2017-18 schedule.
By Will Gray
(Photo/nbcsports.com/Golf Channel Digital)
The PGA Tour has officially released the fall portion of the 2017-18 schedule, a seven-week stretch that will feature eight official events including a new tournament in South Korea.
The new season will kick off Oct. 5 with the Safeway Open in Napa, Calif., just days after the conclusion of the Presidents Cup. The Sanderson Farms Championship will remain opposite the WGC-HSBC Champions, while the inaugural, 78-player CJ Cup at Nine Bridges has been added in between stops in Malaysia and China.
The Tour plans to announce the remainder of the schedule "at a later date." Here's a look at the fall portion, including three unofficial events in December:
Oct. 5-8: Safeway Open (Silverado Resort and Spa (North Course), Napa, Calif.)
Oct. 12-15: CIMB Classic (TPC Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
Oct. 19-22: CJ Cup at Nine Bridges (Nine Bridges, Jeju Island, Korea)
Oct. 26-29: WGC-HSBC Champions (Sheshan International GC, Shanghai, China)
Oct. 26-29: Sanderson Farms Championship (CC of Jackson, Jackson, Miss.)
Nov. 2-5: Shriners Hospitals for Children Open (TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nev.)
Nov. 9-12: OHL Classic at Mayakoba (El Camaleon GC, Playa del Carmen, Mexico)
Nov. 16-19: RSM Classic (Sea Island Resort, St. Simons Island, Ga.)
Nov. 30-Dec. 3: Hero World Challenge (unofficial) (Albany, New Providence, Bahamas)
Dec. 8-10: QBE Shootout (unofficial) (Tiburon Golf Club, Naples, Fla.)
Dec. 15-17: Father/Son Challenge (unofficial) (Ritz Carlton GC, Orlando, Fla.)
Free spirit Yin helps keep U.S. Solheim team loose.
By Randall Mell
U.S. Solheim Cup captain Juli Inkster loved the playful bravado.
Long before Angel Yin played her way onto the media’s radar as a Solheim Cup hopeful this summer, she was on Inkster’s radar.
The LPGA rookie wouldn’t let Inkster walk past her at a tour event without letting her know she was ready to play for her.
Every time she passed me, she would say, `I’m going to make your team.’ I loved that about her,” said Inkster, who made Yin one of her two captain’s picks. “She’s confident, but not cocky.”
Tour insiders have been waiting for this giant talent to make a mark as a pro on a big stage, and Des Moines Golf and Country Club looks like that stage.
Yin is a long-hitting Californian, the first-generation American daughter of Chinese immigrants, a raw but determined talent with fun-loving charm that is as big as her swing.
Yin is the only true LPGA rookie on the American team preparing to meet Europe in Iowa this week, the second-youngest American to play in the biennial international team event. She will be 18 years, 10 months and 15 days old when the competition begins on Friday. That’s four months older than Lexi Thompson was when she made her Solheim Cup debut four years ago.
“My team just loves her, loves her,” Inkster said.
They love the bold way Yin plays the game.
“She’s fearless,” American veteran Stacy Lewis said. “She has the length of Ariya Jutanugarn but hits it higher and straighter.”
There is something else they love, too. They love the quirky, carefree spirit Yin brings to the team room. She’s quickly fitting in as America’s version of Charley Hull, the teen who charmed and entertained the Euros with her artless ways as a rookie in Colorado four years ago.
Beth Allen isn’t on the American team, but she saw Yin’s charms before Yin joined the LPGA this year. They played the Ladies European Tour last year.
“I’m from California, and I could tell right away Angel was a California girl,” said Allen, the first American to win the LET’s Order of Merit. “It’s the way she talks, and that Californian free spirit. She marches to the beat of her own drum. She’s just a lot of fun.”
You can see it Yin’s social media posts, even in her Twitter handle. She’s @angelyinlol.
“The name Angel Yin was taken, and some friends who said I really needed to be on social media liked the idea of adding LOL on the end of my name,” Yin told GolfChannel.com “It grew on me.”
For those oblivious to all things social media, LOL is short for “laugh out loud.”
From Yin’s mischievous grin on her profile picture, to her pink-eared ski cap, you quickly see the LOL in Yin’s social media persona.
She posted a GIF of the Riverdale TV show character Jughead, ranting on how he’s different.
“I’m a weirdo. I don’t fit in. I don’t want to fit in,” Jughead rants.
“Exactly!” Yin commented in her retweet.
Yin once regaled her followers with how she suffered a bout of dehydration because she slept for 17 straight hours. And how she once got her hair caught in an elevator door.
On her 18th birthday last fall, Yin posted comically that it was something to mourn, because she was officially designated an adult, with the wonder of childhood behind her.
“Probably one of the saddest days of my life,” she wrote on Instagram. “No longer a kid anymore. From here on out, it’s just responsibility to discipline to being mature.
Can’t believe this day came so fast, but on the bright side, I’m legal now and I can party almost everywhere in Europe.”
Germany’s Olivia Cowan and Iceland’s Olafia Kristinsdottir met Yin as fellow LET rookies last year.
“We call ourselves The Three Musketeers,” Cowan said. “We are besties, always together.”
With Yin entertaining the trio with her unique take on things.
“When Angel gets going, she doesn’t stop talking,” Cowan said. “She is very lively, the most fun person I know. We can talk about the stupidest things, and we can talk about it for hours.”
The funny thing about Yin is that she considers herself shy. At least, she can be in new environments. Making her start on the LPGA this year, she was cautious, socially.
“I’m just a rookie, and there are a lot of big shots on tour I’m afraid to talk to,” Yin said. “People might see me with friends and think, `She’s not shy at all,’ but in reality I’m a really shy person. It’s hard for me to come out of my shell sometimes, but once the wall’s knocked down . . .”
It’s @angelyinlol.
“I really don’t think she’s afraid of anything,” Kristinsdottir said.
Yin nearly made the American team via the U.S. Solheim Cup world rankings list. She tied for eighth at the Marathon Classic and tied for 11th at the Ricoh Women’s British Open in her last two starts. With two more birdies coming home at Kingsbarns, Yin wouldn’t have required a captain’s pick. She would have qualified with the effort.
It didn’t take LET pros long last year to see what LPGA pros are seeing this year.
Yin was second on the LET in driving distance last year, trailing only Joanna Klatten, who also led the LPGA in driving. She finished 11th on the LET Order of Merit.
Yin is seventh in the LPGA ranks in driving this season, averaging 272 yards per drive.
“The way she compresses the ball, it’s not like anyone else,” Allen said.
Yin joined the LET as a 17-year-old. She didn’t think it was right to petition the LPGA for a waiver of its rule requiring members be 18 years old, and while USC was offering her a scholarship, she believed she was ready to turn pro.
Yin’s swing coach, Bob Lasken, knew the LET and what it offered. His sister, now Kim McNary, played the LET before joining the LPGA. He offered it up as an option, and Angel’s mother was intrigued.
Michelle Yin has never played a hole of golf in her life, but she learned the game watching her daughter, listening to her coaches, watching every LPGA and PGA Tour event she could find on TV. She also read through Tiger Woods’ instructional book, “How I Play Golf.
When Angel joined the LET, Michelle picked up her bag as caddie.
“We couldn’t afford to pay a caddie,” Michelle said.
Michelle got Angel into the game almost by accident back in Arcadia, Calif.
When Angel was 6, one of Michelle’s friends approached them. The friend had a son who wanted to learn to play golf. The friend asked if Michelle would sign up Angel to join her boy in a month-long junior program at Arcadia Par 3 Golf Course. Angel didn’t have any clubs, but she borrowed a used club from the pro shop.
“My friend’s son didn’t like playing, and he quit,” Michelle said. “Angel didn’t want to quit. She loved it, and she wanted me to buy her some golf clubs.
“She told me, `Mom, don’t worry, you don’t have to come watch over me. You can just drop me off and pick me up. It will be OK.’”
So that’s what Michelle did.
But it wasn’t long until the coaches at Arcadia Par 3 were calling Michelle to tell her Angel was a promising talent, and she needed private lessons. It wasn’t long after that before a coach was calling to say Angel really ought to be competing in tournaments.
“The coach directed me to a web site, and I registered Angel for a tournament,” Michelle said. “Two years after Angel started in the game, she won the Callaway Junior Worlds in San Diego.”
Angel was 8 when she made that breakthrough.
That’s when Michelle said she started getting more involved in her daughter’s game.
“From the beginning, I just followed Angel’s lead, but she picked up everything so fast,” Michelle said. “I decided I needed to get serious and learn everything I could to support her.”
Michelle was a business woman in the import/export business back in China. She moved to the United States from her Beijing home 20 years ago. Angel was born a year later. Michelle became a U.S. citizen about 10 years ago, but Angel’s father remains in China.
“I wouldn’t be where I am now without my mother,” Angel said.
Yin has been a big deal in Southern California for a while now. At 13, she qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open at Blackwolf Run. At 14, she won a junior qualifier to get into the ANA Inspiration and made the cut. At 15, she Monday qualified to get into the LPGA’s Kia Classic, At 16, she won the AJGA’s Annika Invitational, finished runner up in the U.S. Girls’ Junior and played on the U.S. Junior Solheim Cup team.
Lasken first heard about Yin when she was 10.
That’s when Lasken’s sister, Kim, the LPGA pro, teed it up in a U.S. Women’s Open qualifier at Industry Hills. She was paired with Yin.
“Kim called me after saying, `Oh my God, this 10-year-old girl was outdriving me by 30 yards,’” Lasken said. “Angel was a legend at 10.”
Yin’s first private instructor was Greg Castleman, with Lasken taking over about six years ago.
“Angel has that attitude of a champion,” said Lasken, who teaches out of Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in Mission Viejo. “You always hear Angel saying `I can do this.’ You never hear her saying, `I can’t.’
“The bigger the stakes, the better she plays. It’s like she has this attitude, `Bring it on.’”
It’s why Inkster believed Yin was ready for this week’s big stage.
NASCAR Power Rankings: Did Larson slither past Truex at the top?
The Tour plans to announce the remainder of the schedule "at a later date." Here's a look at the fall portion, including three unofficial events in December:
Oct. 5-8: Safeway Open (Silverado Resort and Spa (North Course), Napa, Calif.)
Oct. 12-15: CIMB Classic (TPC Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
Oct. 19-22: CJ Cup at Nine Bridges (Nine Bridges, Jeju Island, Korea)
Oct. 26-29: WGC-HSBC Champions (Sheshan International GC, Shanghai, China)
Oct. 26-29: Sanderson Farms Championship (CC of Jackson, Jackson, Miss.)
Nov. 2-5: Shriners Hospitals for Children Open (TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nev.)
Nov. 9-12: OHL Classic at Mayakoba (El Camaleon GC, Playa del Carmen, Mexico)
Nov. 16-19: RSM Classic (Sea Island Resort, St. Simons Island, Ga.)
Nov. 30-Dec. 3: Hero World Challenge (unofficial) (Albany, New Providence, Bahamas)
Dec. 8-10: QBE Shootout (unofficial) (Tiburon Golf Club, Naples, Fla.)
Dec. 15-17: Father/Son Challenge (unofficial) (Ritz Carlton GC, Orlando, Fla.)
Free spirit Yin helps keep U.S. Solheim team loose.
By Randall Mell
(Photo/Golf Channel Digital)
U.S. Solheim Cup captain Juli Inkster loved the playful bravado.
Long before Angel Yin played her way onto the media’s radar as a Solheim Cup hopeful this summer, she was on Inkster’s radar.
The LPGA rookie wouldn’t let Inkster walk past her at a tour event without letting her know she was ready to play for her.
Every time she passed me, she would say, `I’m going to make your team.’ I loved that about her,” said Inkster, who made Yin one of her two captain’s picks. “She’s confident, but not cocky.”
Tour insiders have been waiting for this giant talent to make a mark as a pro on a big stage, and Des Moines Golf and Country Club looks like that stage.
Yin is a long-hitting Californian, the first-generation American daughter of Chinese immigrants, a raw but determined talent with fun-loving charm that is as big as her swing.
Yin is the only true LPGA rookie on the American team preparing to meet Europe in Iowa this week, the second-youngest American to play in the biennial international team event. She will be 18 years, 10 months and 15 days old when the competition begins on Friday. That’s four months older than Lexi Thompson was when she made her Solheim Cup debut four years ago.
“My team just loves her, loves her,” Inkster said.
They love the bold way Yin plays the game.
“She’s fearless,” American veteran Stacy Lewis said. “She has the length of Ariya Jutanugarn but hits it higher and straighter.”
There is something else they love, too. They love the quirky, carefree spirit Yin brings to the team room. She’s quickly fitting in as America’s version of Charley Hull, the teen who charmed and entertained the Euros with her artless ways as a rookie in Colorado four years ago.
Beth Allen isn’t on the American team, but she saw Yin’s charms before Yin joined the LPGA this year. They played the Ladies European Tour last year.
“I’m from California, and I could tell right away Angel was a California girl,” said Allen, the first American to win the LET’s Order of Merit. “It’s the way she talks, and that Californian free spirit. She marches to the beat of her own drum. She’s just a lot of fun.”
You can see it Yin’s social media posts, even in her Twitter handle. She’s @angelyinlol.
“The name Angel Yin was taken, and some friends who said I really needed to be on social media liked the idea of adding LOL on the end of my name,” Yin told GolfChannel.com “It grew on me.”
For those oblivious to all things social media, LOL is short for “laugh out loud.”
From Yin’s mischievous grin on her profile picture, to her pink-eared ski cap, you quickly see the LOL in Yin’s social media persona.
She posted a GIF of the Riverdale TV show character Jughead, ranting on how he’s different.
“I’m a weirdo. I don’t fit in. I don’t want to fit in,” Jughead rants.
“Exactly!” Yin commented in her retweet.
Yin once regaled her followers with how she suffered a bout of dehydration because she slept for 17 straight hours. And how she once got her hair caught in an elevator door.
On her 18th birthday last fall, Yin posted comically that it was something to mourn, because she was officially designated an adult, with the wonder of childhood behind her.
“Probably one of the saddest days of my life,” she wrote on Instagram. “No longer a kid anymore. From here on out, it’s just responsibility to discipline to being mature.
Can’t believe this day came so fast, but on the bright side, I’m legal now and I can party almost everywhere in Europe.”
Germany’s Olivia Cowan and Iceland’s Olafia Kristinsdottir met Yin as fellow LET rookies last year.
“We call ourselves The Three Musketeers,” Cowan said. “We are besties, always together.”
With Yin entertaining the trio with her unique take on things.
“When Angel gets going, she doesn’t stop talking,” Cowan said. “She is very lively, the most fun person I know. We can talk about the stupidest things, and we can talk about it for hours.”
The funny thing about Yin is that she considers herself shy. At least, she can be in new environments. Making her start on the LPGA this year, she was cautious, socially.
“I’m just a rookie, and there are a lot of big shots on tour I’m afraid to talk to,” Yin said. “People might see me with friends and think, `She’s not shy at all,’ but in reality I’m a really shy person. It’s hard for me to come out of my shell sometimes, but once the wall’s knocked down . . .”
It’s @angelyinlol.
“I really don’t think she’s afraid of anything,” Kristinsdottir said.
Yin nearly made the American team via the U.S. Solheim Cup world rankings list. She tied for eighth at the Marathon Classic and tied for 11th at the Ricoh Women’s British Open in her last two starts. With two more birdies coming home at Kingsbarns, Yin wouldn’t have required a captain’s pick. She would have qualified with the effort.
It didn’t take LET pros long last year to see what LPGA pros are seeing this year.
Yin was second on the LET in driving distance last year, trailing only Joanna Klatten, who also led the LPGA in driving. She finished 11th on the LET Order of Merit.
Yin is seventh in the LPGA ranks in driving this season, averaging 272 yards per drive.
“The way she compresses the ball, it’s not like anyone else,” Allen said.
Yin joined the LET as a 17-year-old. She didn’t think it was right to petition the LPGA for a waiver of its rule requiring members be 18 years old, and while USC was offering her a scholarship, she believed she was ready to turn pro.
Yin’s swing coach, Bob Lasken, knew the LET and what it offered. His sister, now Kim McNary, played the LET before joining the LPGA. He offered it up as an option, and Angel’s mother was intrigued.
Michelle Yin has never played a hole of golf in her life, but she learned the game watching her daughter, listening to her coaches, watching every LPGA and PGA Tour event she could find on TV. She also read through Tiger Woods’ instructional book, “How I Play Golf.
When Angel joined the LET, Michelle picked up her bag as caddie.
“We couldn’t afford to pay a caddie,” Michelle said.
Michelle got Angel into the game almost by accident back in Arcadia, Calif.
When Angel was 6, one of Michelle’s friends approached them. The friend had a son who wanted to learn to play golf. The friend asked if Michelle would sign up Angel to join her boy in a month-long junior program at Arcadia Par 3 Golf Course. Angel didn’t have any clubs, but she borrowed a used club from the pro shop.
“My friend’s son didn’t like playing, and he quit,” Michelle said. “Angel didn’t want to quit. She loved it, and she wanted me to buy her some golf clubs.
“She told me, `Mom, don’t worry, you don’t have to come watch over me. You can just drop me off and pick me up. It will be OK.’”
So that’s what Michelle did.
But it wasn’t long until the coaches at Arcadia Par 3 were calling Michelle to tell her Angel was a promising talent, and she needed private lessons. It wasn’t long after that before a coach was calling to say Angel really ought to be competing in tournaments.
“The coach directed me to a web site, and I registered Angel for a tournament,” Michelle said. “Two years after Angel started in the game, she won the Callaway Junior Worlds in San Diego.”
Angel was 8 when she made that breakthrough.
That’s when Michelle said she started getting more involved in her daughter’s game.
“From the beginning, I just followed Angel’s lead, but she picked up everything so fast,” Michelle said. “I decided I needed to get serious and learn everything I could to support her.”
Michelle was a business woman in the import/export business back in China. She moved to the United States from her Beijing home 20 years ago. Angel was born a year later. Michelle became a U.S. citizen about 10 years ago, but Angel’s father remains in China.
“I wouldn’t be where I am now without my mother,” Angel said.
Yin has been a big deal in Southern California for a while now. At 13, she qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open at Blackwolf Run. At 14, she won a junior qualifier to get into the ANA Inspiration and made the cut. At 15, she Monday qualified to get into the LPGA’s Kia Classic, At 16, she won the AJGA’s Annika Invitational, finished runner up in the U.S. Girls’ Junior and played on the U.S. Junior Solheim Cup team.
Lasken first heard about Yin when she was 10.
That’s when Lasken’s sister, Kim, the LPGA pro, teed it up in a U.S. Women’s Open qualifier at Industry Hills. She was paired with Yin.
“Kim called me after saying, `Oh my God, this 10-year-old girl was outdriving me by 30 yards,’” Lasken said. “Angel was a legend at 10.”
Yin’s first private instructor was Greg Castleman, with Lasken taking over about six years ago.
“Angel has that attitude of a champion,” said Lasken, who teaches out of Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in Mission Viejo. “You always hear Angel saying `I can do this.’ You never hear her saying, `I can’t.’
“The bigger the stakes, the better she plays. It’s like she has this attitude, `Bring it on.’”
It’s why Inkster believed Yin was ready for this week’s big stage.
NASCAR Power Rankings: Did Larson slither past Truex at the top?
By Nick Bromberg
(Photo/www.sportingnews.com)
1. Martin Truex Jr. (LW: 1): Cole Pearn is the smartest crew chief in the Cup Series garage when it comes to stage-racing strategy.
Pearn had everyone playing catch-up during Sunday’s race and was guiding Truex to his fifth win of the season before late cautions stunted the team’s strategy.
After chasing Brad Keselowski during the first stage and the first half of the second, Truex pitted early. The early stop meant Truex got track position and inherited the lead after Keselowski pitted. The move won Truex the stage and forced the No. 2 car to change its strategy the rest of the race.
The late pass by Kyle Larson for the win does nothing to change the fact that Truex and Pearn are the best driver-crew chief tandem in NASCAR. And totally deserving of the top spot.
“There was no debris on the race track that I saw when that first one came out and cautions breed cautions at the end of these things,” Truex said. “We were on cruise control until that last one and then the red flag is really what hurt us. If we had stayed under yellow we would have been fine just everything got cold and I just couldn’t get enough heat in my tires.”
2. Kyle Larson (LW: 6): Larson had considerably fresher tires than Truex for the final restart. And while Pearn previously discounted the impact of fresh tires in an NBC interview, it’s undeniable that Larson had an advantage over the final two laps.
But Larson’s move on the restart wasn’t a product of fresh tires. Had he been solely powered by increased grip, Larson would have powered past Truex off the exit of turn 2 and down the backstretch on the penultimate lap.
Instead, Larson’s move was mostly talent. He was inside of Truex as the two headed into turn 1 and pulled through in the middle of the corner. Did tires help him do that? Absolutely. But they didn’t play a huge role in Larson getting alongside Truex to execute the move in the first place.
3. Kyle Busch (LW: 2): Busch goes for another Bristol triple this weekend. He’s racing in the Truck Series on Wednesday, the Xfinity Series on Friday and, of course, the Cup Series race on Saturday.
Bristol hasn’t been kind to Busch lately. Yeah, he has five Cup wins at the track, but he’s crashed out of four of the last five Cup races there and his last win came in 2011.
Busch may get closer to Richard Petty’s 200 wins at some point this weekend — what a time to be alive — but counting on that to happen with a Cup win is a bit far-fetched at this point.
He finished 10th at Michigan.
4. Denny Hamlin (LW: 3): Hamlin’s run of fourths fell by the wayside on Sunday by a factor of four. Hamlin finished 16th on Sunday as he was also on baby watch. Christopher Bell was on standby for Hamlin, whose girlfriend Jordan Fish is expecting their second child.
5. Kevin Harvick (LW: 4): Harvick was cognizant of the popularity of Sunday’s race in Michigan and didn’t pass Michigan native Brad Keselowski for the win in the first stage. It was nice of him to put the sport’s popularity ahead of his own success.
He got a little too altruistic during the second and third stages of the race and didn’t come close to winning. He finished 13th, though he was still a spot ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Come on Kevin, if you’re going to let other people finish ahead of you, why not help Junior?
6. Brad Keselowski (LW: 5): Keselowski’s race went awry after Truex took the lead from him. The team tried to do the opposite of the No. 78 for the rest of the race and it didn’t work out. Keselowski’s final two pit stops involved two tires and he ended up finishing 17th after being trapped on the inside line on the final restarts.
7. Matt Kenseth (LW: 7): Kenseth holds serve here despite finishing 24th because he was third on the race’s final restart.
He had a tire issue over the course of the last two laps which caused his fall from grace. Had Kenseth not been dealing with the tire problem he could have finished in the top 10 at the very least.
8. Chase Elliott (LW: 11): Elliott’s streak of second-place finishes at Michigan is gone. After finishing second in his first three starts at the two-mile track, the driver of the No. 24 was eighth. His average finish drops from 2 to a despicable 3.5. What a fall.
9. Jamie McMurray (LW: NR): Since Elliott finished eighth and Kenseth and Clint Bowyer were outside the top 20, McMurray needed a good finish to buoy his points standing. He got it. McMurray finished ninth and is 52 points ahead of Bowyer, the first driver outside the playoffs. Maintaining the gap should be plenty good enough for McMurray.
10. Erik Jones (LW: NR): How fun would a Jones win have been for the playoffs? Jones would have kicked Matt Kenseth — the guy he’s replacing in 2018 — outside the playoffs with a win. And, had the final laps come down to a shootout between Jones and his teammate Truex, we think Furniture Row should have made the strong suggestion to let Jones have the win.
Look, NASCAR fans hate team orders. And it’s understandable. But Truex has so many playoff points that he simply has to stay afloat through the first nine races of the playoffs. Adding the team’s second driver to the playoffs is a far greater benefit than five more points to Truex’s already gaudy total.
Alas, neither driver won. Jones finished third.
11. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 12): Johnson finished 19th on Sunday. Is this setting up for another “where did he come from?” moment at Chicago for JJ? We’re not ruling it out.
12. Kasey Kahne (LW: 9): Kahne crashed with Daniel Suarez on Sunday in his first race as an official lame-duck driver. At least Kahne’s got the playoffs to look forward to.
The Lucky Dog: Chris Buescher finished sixth. Outside line, baby.
The DNF: Derrike Cope got a lot of TV time for blowing an engine and pulling off the track. That’s how you get your sponsors exposure.
Dropped out: Bowyer, Suarez
Martin Truex Jr. maintains commanding lead in playoff grid.
By Jerry Bonkowski
(Photo/Getty Images)
Martin Truex Jr. continues to hold serve atop the weekly NASCAR Cup playoff standings.
Race winner Kyle Larson moved back into second place in the standings with 18 playoff points.
Jimmie Johnson dropped one spot to third place with 16 points, followed by a tie for fourth place between Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch (14 points each).
As for the playoff bubble, with three races remaining to qualify for the playoffs, Chase Elliott is 62 points ahead of the cut-off line, Jamie McMurray (+52 points) and Matt Kenseth (+31).
On the outside of the playoff qualifying cut-off are Clint Bowyer (-31), Joey Logano (-98), Erik Jones (-130) and Daniel Suarez (-139). While Bowyer could still potentially qualify for the playoffs on points, Logano, Jones and Suarez are all in must-win situations to make it.
Here’s this week’s playoff standings chart:
Danica Patrick: ‘I want to continue racing if I have an opportunity to do well’.
By Dustin Long
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
While Danica Patrick’s future remains uncertain, one thing is certain.
She doesn’t have interest in racing full-time in the Xfinity Series next year.
“Cup only,’’ she said Monday after unveiling the throwback paint scheme her car will have in next month’s Southern 500.
Patrick’s future with Stewart-Haas Racing remains cloudy because of lack of sponsorship for next year. Nature’s Bakery was to have been in the second of a three-year deal with the team but terminated its contract in January. The team filed a $31 million lawsuit against Nature’s Bakery. A settlement was later reached in May.
Without sponsorship, Patrick could be out of a ride. She says she’s not fretting about her job status.
“I want to continue racing if I have an opportunity to do well,’’ Patrick said. “I have no interest, as I’ve said for years now, to run 25th. It’s not fun. So if I don’t feel like I can have the opportunity to move on from there and have a better opportunity, then honestly I don’t care. It’s just because it’s not fun. I don’t drive because I love the thrill of getting sideways. In fact, I don’t like getting sideways. That’s not why I do it. I’m just letting things evolve the way they can without being forceful about anything.’’
While some could infer that means she doesn’t care. Patrick says that’s not the case.
“When I was younger I used to get so mad all the time,’’ she said. “Trust me. I still get mad and throw things. I try not to do it in front of people. I still get fired up.
“But there was so much when I was younger that happened with me getting mad. I felt like if I didn’t portray a displeasure with anything but the best, but first place, then I was somehow showing people that I didn’t think that I could do it.
“I finally came to the conclusion a long time ago, and I’ve only just gotten better at it that I don’t have to look like I hate everything and hate everybody and be awfully unhappy about everything to do well on the track. In fact, sometimes it would get in the way if I was too unhappy. Me being more at peace with everything and not getting so fired up at certain points in time is just really because it’s unproductive, and I don’t need to prove to people that I care.’’
Since a run of four consecutive top-15 finishes — her best four-race stretch in two seasons — she has placed 22nd at Watkins Glen and last weekend at Michigan. She enters Saturday night’s race at Bristol 28th in the points.
“I think that we have finally got away from bad luck,’’ she said. “I think we have finally found ourselves having clean races and staying out of trouble and getting lucky on top of not having bad luck, we’ve had some good luck, too.’’
Her team isn’t the only one at Stewart-Haas Racing searching for sponsorship.
Stewart-Haas Racing recently declined the option on Kurt Busch’s contract for next year because Monster Energy hasn’t decided if it will return to sponsor Busch’s car.
The team expects Busch to return next year. Haas Automation, the company founded by team owner Gene Haas and that sponsors Kurt Busch‘s team, has been the sponsor on Clint Bowyer’s car in 13 of the season’s first 23 races.
SOCCER: With big game against Toronto looming, Fire first face trip to Montreal.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The Chicago Fire stormed through May and June without a loss in MLS play, but things have not gone as well lately.
As a result of losing three of the last four games, the Fire have dropped to third in the Eastern Conference and the chasing back isn’t far behind. That’s why general manager Nelson Rodriguez emphasized the importance of Wednesday’s game in Montreal, even with league-leading Toronto visiting Toyota Park on Saturday.
“We can’t look at Toronto yet,” Rodriguez said. “We have to look at Montreal. We just have to. I have to harp on that. A victory in Montreal makes the Toronto game all that more important on a lot of levels.”
The Fire (12-6-5, 41 points) face an Impact (8-8-6, 30 points) team that has won two in a row. The game will be live on CSN with coverage beginning at 6 p.m. with Fire Pregame Live.
After losing at Columbus a few days ago, the Fire had a short turnaround. The busy week, with Toronto still looming on Saturday, comes at a time when the Fire are trying to look like that team from May and June again.
“It’s been an interesting few weeks since the (Gold Cup) break,” Rodriguez said. "Admittedly, we have not regained the form that we took into the break and it’s been a whole new set of tests for us. Certain tests, like just playing quality opponents on the road, such as New York City and Sporting Kansas City, in the two immediate games after the break. Tests that I wouldn’t say we failed, but certainly we didn’t pass and showed that there’s still room for improvement on our end.”
Left back Brandon Vincent will miss a fifth straight game due to a quad injury. Joao Meira is also listed as questionable with a calf injury.
For Montreal, Ignacio Piatti has already established himself as one of the best players in the league. This season he has 10 goals and four assists, but the addition of Blerim Dzemaili has given the Impact another dangerous weapon in the attack. The Swiss international has six goals and five assists in 12 games.
Montreal has suffered three losses at home, but the Fire have lost three straight on the road. The Fire’s recent road struggles was another topic Rodriguez addressed at a media roundtable on Tuesday.
“I think they demonstrate something deeper, which is collective mentality and again I think, look we need to win some games on the road to change that and to improve upon that,” Rodriguez said. “I think it comes from time together, being in the fox hole, falling behind and winning a game on the road, pitching a shutout on the road if I could borrow a baseball phrase. I think we still view being on the road as being on the road as opposed to viewing it as an opportunity to play our way as we want, when we want, where we want, how we want, and so there needs to be some more collective mentality that goes into that. That’s an area that we have to improve upon, and if we don’t, and if we make the playoffs, it will be a short stay.”
Chicago Fire at Montreal Impact
Where: Stade Saputo, Montreal
TV: CSN
When: Coverage begins at 6 p.m. with Fire Pregame Live
Records: Fire (12-6-5, 41 points), Impact (8-8-6, 30 points)
LIVE – UEFA Champions League playoff: Liverpool face Hoffenheim.
By Joe Prince-Wright
(Photo/Getty Images)
Liverpool’s quest to reach the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time since 2014 begins on Tuesday.
With injuries to Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge, plus the Philippe Coutinho saga rumbling on, Klopp has plenty on his mind as Liverpool look to recover from their poor defensive display in their 3-3 draw at Watford on Saturday in their opening game of the Premier League season.
The second leg is at Anfield next Wednesday and Klopp and Co. will be hoping to have a healthy lead to take back to Merseyside with them. Upstarts Hoffenheim will be thinking otherwise with Sandro Wagner the main danger man for Liverpool to stop at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena.
Elsewhere Copenhagen head to Azerbaijan to play Qarabag, Sporting Lisbon host Steaua Bucharest, Swiss side Young Boys take on CSKA Moscow and Slavia Prague head to Nicosia, Cyprus to play APOEL.
Below is the full schedule for Tuesday’s games, which kick off at 2:45 p.m. ET unless otherwise stated, while you can click on the link above to follow live commentary on all five matches.
Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League playoff first legs
Hoffenheim vs. Liverpool
Qarabag vs. FC Copenhagen – 12 p.m. ET
APOEL vs. Slavia Prague
Sporting CP vs. Steaua Bucharest
BSC Young Boys vs. CSKA Moscow
Intriguing stats from the Premier League’s opening weekend.
By Joe Prince-Wright
The opening weekend of the 2017-18 Premier League season was a real doozy.
Below, via Opta, you will find some stats to impress your mates at the bar ahead of the second round of games in the PL.
Chelsea are the first reigning Premier League champions to concede three goals in the opening game of the next season.second round of games in the PL.
- Chelsea are the first reigning Premier League champions to concede three goals in the opening game of the next season.
- No defender has provided more assists in the Premier League since the start of last season than Jose Holebas (5) – level with Walker, Trippier and Smith.
- Huddersfield Town are just the fifth newly-promoted side to win on the opening day of the Premier League since 2008/09 (also West Ham in 2012, Blackpool in 2010 and Hull in 2008 & 2016).
- Wayne Rooney set a new Premier League record for the longest gap between goals for the same club (4869 days between Everton goals).
- Southampton have never won an opening day home fixture in the Premier League (D6 L4).
- Chris Brunt has provided 14 assists direct from dead ball scenarios in the Premier League since August 2014; more than any other player during this period.
- Since his Premier League debut in August 2010, David Silva has provided 65 assists in the competition, 14 more than any other player (Wayne Rooney next on 51).
- Tottenham have won 29 of their last 31 Premier League games against newly promoted sides, drawing the other two.
- Romelu Lukaku has now scored on his Premier League debut for three different clubs (West Bromwich Albion, Everton, Manchester United).
- Lukaku has scored more goals in all competitions against West Ham than he has against any other English side (11).
- Jose Mourinho has now won nine league games against West Ham, more than he has against any other opponent he’s faced in his managerial career.
- This was Mourinho’s biggest Premier League win as Man Utd manager, and biggest home win in the Premier League since his Chelsea side beat Arsenal 6-0 in March 2014.
USWNT to host South Korea twice in October exhibitions.
Associated Press
(Photo/Getty Images)
The U.S. women’s soccer team will host South Korea in a pair of exhibitions in October.
The teams will play Oct. 19 in New Orleans and meet three days later in Cary, North Carolina, the U.S. Soccer Federation said Monday.
The U.S. previously announced friendlies against New Zealand on Sept. 15 at Commerce City, Colorado, and Sept. 19 at Cincinnati. There also are home-and-home exhibitions against Canada, on Nov. 9 at Vancouver, British Columbia, and Nov. 12 at a U.S. site not yet announced.
NCAAFB: Frank Broyles, legendary Arkansas coach, dies at 92.
By Sam Cooper
Frank Broyles led Arkansas to its only national title in 1964. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston, File)
Frank Broyles, the winningest coach in Arkansas history and only coach to lead the program to a national championship, died on Monday from complications of Alzheimer’s Disease. He was 92 years old.
Broyles coached the Razorbacks for 19 seasons from 1958 to 1976 and held the school’s athletic director position from 1974 until his retirement in 2007. Including his one season at Missouri, Broyles finished his coaching career with a 149-62-6 record. Arkansas won the Southwest Conference title seven times under Broyles, including 1964, when the Razorbacks went a perfect 11-0 and were named national champions.
Broyles also served as an assistant at Baylor, Florida and Georgia Tech. The Broyles Award, given annually to the country’s top assistant coach, is named for Broyles due to his proficiency in hiring assistant coaches. Some of the more notable Broyles assistants include Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer, Joe Gibbs, Hayden Fry and Johnny Majors.
As athletic director, Broyles led the charge as Arkansas left the Southwest Conference and joined the SEC in 1990, four years before the SWC folded.
“It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Coach Frank Broyles. He passed peacefully in his home surrounded by his loved ones,” the Broyles family said in a statement. “For 92 years John Franklin Broyles lived nothing short of a remarkable life. To all who would listen, Frank Broyles was quick to proclaim, in his unmistakable and infectious southern tone, that he was blessed to live ‘A Charmed Life’. For more than five decades, he served the University of Arkansas and all citizens of his adopted home state in his role as a coach, administrator and goodwill ambassador for his beloved Razorbacks.
“We wish to express our heartfelt gratitude to all those who helped contribute to his charmed life. Whether you were one of his players, coaches, colleagues or friends, a Razorback fan or fellow caregiver, you were an integral part of his fairy tale story. To his family, he was quite simply, our hero. We take peace in knowing that his faith was the foundation for the impact he made on the lives of others. From innumerable private moments with his family and friends, to countless public interactions with millions in his various roles, Coach Broyles shared his attitude of gratitude and encouraged others to make a difference.”
You can read the family’s full statement and Arkansas’ obituary for Broyles here.
“The Razorback Family has lost its patriarch and Arkansas has lost one of its most beloved figures. Coach Frank Broyles was a legendary coach, athletics director, broadcaster and a tireless advocate for those caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s,” current Arkansas AD Jeff Long said. “In his more than 50 years of service to the University of Arkansas and intercollegiate athletics, his vision and leadership allowed the Razorback program to flourish and in turn enrich the lives of thousands of young men. In the process, he brought unprecedented national attention to Arkansas. His passion for the Razorbacks was infectious, his spirit was indomitable and his vision helped transform a program, a university and an entire state. His legacy in our state is unmatched.
“I will forever be grateful for the generosity, graciousness and unwavering support he extended to me when I came to the University of Arkansas. The thoughts and prayers of the entire Razorback nation are with his wife Gen, his children and the entire Broyles Family.”
Colorado and Northwestern line up future home-and-home series.
By Kevin McGuire
(Photo/AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Colorado and Northwestern have lined up a future home-and-home series for those planning ahead. The two schools announced a home-and-home series that will be played in 2025 and 2026, with each game being played on home campuses. None of that neutral field nonsense here!
Northwestern of the Big Ten will host Colorado of the Pac-12 on September 19, 2026. The Wildcats will make the trip to Boulder, Colorado the following season on September 11, 2027. The two schools have faced each other twice before, with Northwestern securing a 35-11 victory in 1951 and Colorado blowing out the Wildcats by a score of 55-7 in 1978. Each team won a game on their home field.
“This will be a great series for several reasons,” Colorado athletic director Rick George said in a released statement. “Not only is it a quality match-up between two great academic and Pac-12 and Big Ten institutions, it’s important for us to get to that part of the country and the Chicago area for our alumni we have there.”
You may remember a few years back, before the Big Ten expanded to 14 members and both conferences had 12 members, the Pac-12 backed out of an arrangement for a full conference vs. conference scheduling agreement with the Big Ten. That would have been fun to watch, similar to the various conference vs. conference series in college basketball, so any time we can get a Big Ten and Pac-12 team on the same field is to be praised.
As a Big Ten member, Northwestern is required to schedule one game per season against another power conference opponent. Northwestern has the power conference scheduling commitment fulfilled in 2017 with Duke, 2018 (Duke, Notre Dame), 2019 (at Stanford), 2021 (at Duke), 2022 (Duke), 2023 (at Duke), 2024 (Duke), 2026 (Colorado), and now in 2027 (at Colorado).
The Pac-12 has no similar scheduling requirement for Colorado.
NCAABKB: Marvin Bagley addition once again makes Duke the biggest story in college hoops.
By Rob Dauster
(Photo/www.dailynews.com)
I hope that you’re ready for Duke to be the biggest story in all of college basketball for the second straight season.
Because it’s happening.
Late on Monday night, live on Sportscenter, Marvin Bagley III, who may just be the best basketball prospect in the world that is not currently on an NBA roster, announced that he will not only be attending Duke for his one-and-done season, but that he’ll be reclassifying and enrolling this season.
This is not much of a surprise, mind you.
We all pretty much knew that this was how the Bagley saga was probably going to end up playing out, which means we’ve all had time to think through just how this decision is going to affect what happens during the 2017-18 season.
For me, it will bump Duke up to No. 1 in the NBC Sports Preseason Top 25, and I hardly imagine that I’ll be alone in that sentiment.
With Bagley now in the fold, Duke has four five-star prospects enrolling in this class, including the potential No. 1 pick and two more borderline top five recruits in point guard Trevon Duval and big man Wendell Carter. Throw in scoring machine Gary Trent Jr., and that’s a well-rounded, talented recruiting class. All four of those freshmen should be expected to start alongside Grayson Allen, the most well-known and disliked college basketball player in the country who, according to Mike Krzyzewski, is finally healthy and back to playing like the guy that was an All-American as a sophomore and the Preseason National Player of the Year as a junior.
Youth is going to be a major issue. Allen is the only rotation player that is an upperclassmen, and the other two returnees are Marques Bolden and Javin DeLaurier, neither of whom got much experience playing last season. Depth is going to be another problem as well, as Duke’s reserves will likely be made up of some combination of Bolden, DeLaurier and freshmen Alex O’Connell and Jordan Tucker.
The talent on this roster, however, is undeniable, just like last season.
But unlike last season, the pieces actually fit together. Duval should be excellent at the point, and while he finally gives the Blue Devils a point guard to replace Tyus Jones, he has a reputation for being more of an attacker than a ‘pure point guard’; frankly, Duval is the biggest concern I have with this team. On the wings, Trent and Allen are scorers with three-point range that will spread the floor and make defenses pay for helping off of them. Carter, who many believe to be the second-coming of Al Horford, should be able to handle his own on the block, and his face-up game is better than you may realize.
And then there’s Bagley, who is the ideal for what Duke is looking for at the four spot. He’s big enough that he can defend as a four — or even a five — but he’s skilled enough to play on the perimeter in four-around-one lineups. The Blue Devils did not previously have a guy that can fill that Jayson Tatum, Jabari Parker, Justise Winslow, Brandon Ingram role, and Bagley is probably better suited to do it than any of them.
At the very least he should being the most on the defensive end. He’s actually built like an NBA big man as opposed to effectively being an oversized guard.
It’s all there.
And I totally understand why you don’t want to hear it. I don’t really want to say it, not after this led to this led to this, ending in this.
But the simple fact of the matter is that Duke, right now, has the most talented and well-rounded starting five in college basketball.
They deserve to, at the absolute least, be in the conversation for preseason No. 1 team in the country with Arizona, Michigan State and Kansas, and you’ll have a hard time convincing me they shouldn’t top those rankings.
Let’s assume most voters agree with me on that.
What that means is that the Blue Devils will be preseason No. 1 with the potential No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft on their roster alongside Grayson Allen, the most famous — well, infamous — college basketball player we’ve seen in at least a decade.
And I haven’t even mentioned that we still have to wait to find out if and when Bagley will cleared by the NCAA.
I hope you’ve gotten over your Duke fatigue from last season.
Because, without question, Duke. Is. Back.
Conor McGregor is ready, predicts second-round knockout of Floyd Mayweather.
Late on Monday night, live on Sportscenter, Marvin Bagley III, who may just be the best basketball prospect in the world that is not currently on an NBA roster, announced that he will not only be attending Duke for his one-and-done season, but that he’ll be reclassifying and enrolling this season.
This is not much of a surprise, mind you.
We all pretty much knew that this was how the Bagley saga was probably going to end up playing out, which means we’ve all had time to think through just how this decision is going to affect what happens during the 2017-18 season.
For me, it will bump Duke up to No. 1 in the NBC Sports Preseason Top 25, and I hardly imagine that I’ll be alone in that sentiment.
With Bagley now in the fold, Duke has four five-star prospects enrolling in this class, including the potential No. 1 pick and two more borderline top five recruits in point guard Trevon Duval and big man Wendell Carter. Throw in scoring machine Gary Trent Jr., and that’s a well-rounded, talented recruiting class. All four of those freshmen should be expected to start alongside Grayson Allen, the most well-known and disliked college basketball player in the country who, according to Mike Krzyzewski, is finally healthy and back to playing like the guy that was an All-American as a sophomore and the Preseason National Player of the Year as a junior.
Youth is going to be a major issue. Allen is the only rotation player that is an upperclassmen, and the other two returnees are Marques Bolden and Javin DeLaurier, neither of whom got much experience playing last season. Depth is going to be another problem as well, as Duke’s reserves will likely be made up of some combination of Bolden, DeLaurier and freshmen Alex O’Connell and Jordan Tucker.
The talent on this roster, however, is undeniable, just like last season.
But unlike last season, the pieces actually fit together. Duval should be excellent at the point, and while he finally gives the Blue Devils a point guard to replace Tyus Jones, he has a reputation for being more of an attacker than a ‘pure point guard’; frankly, Duval is the biggest concern I have with this team. On the wings, Trent and Allen are scorers with three-point range that will spread the floor and make defenses pay for helping off of them. Carter, who many believe to be the second-coming of Al Horford, should be able to handle his own on the block, and his face-up game is better than you may realize.
And then there’s Bagley, who is the ideal for what Duke is looking for at the four spot. He’s big enough that he can defend as a four — or even a five — but he’s skilled enough to play on the perimeter in four-around-one lineups. The Blue Devils did not previously have a guy that can fill that Jayson Tatum, Jabari Parker, Justise Winslow, Brandon Ingram role, and Bagley is probably better suited to do it than any of them.
At the very least he should being the most on the defensive end. He’s actually built like an NBA big man as opposed to effectively being an oversized guard.
It’s all there.
And I totally understand why you don’t want to hear it. I don’t really want to say it, not after this led to this led to this, ending in this.
But the simple fact of the matter is that Duke, right now, has the most talented and well-rounded starting five in college basketball.
They deserve to, at the absolute least, be in the conversation for preseason No. 1 team in the country with Arizona, Michigan State and Kansas, and you’ll have a hard time convincing me they shouldn’t top those rankings.
Let’s assume most voters agree with me on that.
What that means is that the Blue Devils will be preseason No. 1 with the potential No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft on their roster alongside Grayson Allen, the most famous — well, infamous — college basketball player we’ve seen in at least a decade.
And I haven’t even mentioned that we still have to wait to find out if and when Bagley will cleared by the NCAA.
I hope you’ve gotten over your Duke fatigue from last season.
Because, without question, Duke. Is. Back.
Conor McGregor is ready, predicts second-round knockout of Floyd Mayweather.
By Kevin Iole
Conor McGregor may not defeat Floyd Mayweather, but one thing he won’t do is wilt in the spotlight. (Photo/Getty Images)
He uses the information to play psychological tricks on his opponents and gain the upper hand in the mental warfare that is so common in the fight game, one of the many reasons facing Mayweather is so different from facing anyone else in boxing.
But getting inside Conor McGregor’s head? That’s not going to happen.
McGregor understands the psychological aspects of the fight game as well as anyone. UFC president Dana White compared McGregor to the late legendary former heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali when it came to the mental game.
The 40-year-old Mayweather, who fights the UFC lightweight champion in a mega-pay-per-view bout on Aug. 26 at T-Mobile Arena, looked like a 25-year-old at a workout Thursday to hype the fight. Coming out of retirement, he obviously invested a lot of time in preparing his body for the match, even if he publicly scoffs at McGregor’s skills and predicted a knockout.
Most boxing experts give Mayweather nearly every advantage and expect him to thrash McGregor and win the fight by a wide margin.
That may well happen – “We’ll see on Aug. 26,” McGregor said Friday with a devilish grin – but it’s not going to occur because Mayweather manages to get inside McGregor’s head.
He’s been at his best in his biggest fights and lives for moments like the one he’ll face in two weeks. When the bell rings, he may not be equipped physically to deal with one of the best boxers of all-time, but McGregor is in his element every bit as much as Mayweather when it comes to dealing with the hype, handling the pressure and performing when the stakes are the highest.
“He keeps talking about, ‘Under the lights!’ ” McGregor said Friday following a workout at the UFC Performance Institute. “He keeps saying, ‘He looks good in the gym.’ I look good everywhere. I look good in the gym and I look good under the lights. In fact, I look better under the lights. I am comfortable in this. This is my life.
“I’ve been under the spotlight for a long, long time, and in these mega-events also.”
McGregor spoke for slightly more than a half-hour Friday and was relaxed and confident. He mocked former sparring partner Paulie Malignaggi and dismissed all of Malignaggi’s claims about what went on in their now infamous sparring sessions.
McGregor said his footwork and unpredictability would befuddle Mayweather and predicted an early knockout. That would be a feat of some note since Mayweather has only been down once as a pro, and it wasn’t really a true knockdown.
That came in the 12th round of a fight he was winning going away. He’d injured his hand earlier in the bout and touched the canvas with his glove as the clock wound down in order to take the count and help more time to elapse.
Mayweather is extraordinarily difficult to hit cleanly, but on those occasions when he has been hit, he’s shown a sturdy chin. McGregor, who praised Mayweather’s skill level, nonetheless predicted a knockout, within two rounds if they switch to 8-ounce gloves, he said.
On Wednesday, the Nevada Athletic Commission is going to vote on a Mayweather request to switch from 10-ounce to eight-ounce gloves.
That would, by the way, make a mockery of the ruleset if the commission granted the request and it would be evidence that it is simply all about making sure the biggest fights come to Las Vegas, and not about the health and safety of the competitors.
McGregor saw the attempt for what it is, a ploy by Mayweather, and said he didn’t care which size gloves they wear.
“I fight in four-ounce gloves, why would I give a [expletive]?” he said.
“If we’re wearing eight-ounce gloves, I’m struggling to see how he lasts two rounds, and that’s the God’s honest truth,” he continued. “The only reason I maybe give him two rounds is because in this game, the referee stops me from pounding his head into the canvas, and he has 10 seconds to recover. That’s the only reason he might make it to a second round.”
McGregor, who is expected to earn around $100 million for the fight, hardly has the look of a guy who is fazed by the moment.
He’ll stun virtually every fight fan in the world if he does what he predicts he will, but he hardly seems like a deer frozen in the headlights.
He’s always been a consummate professional and prepared assiduously, but he said the birth of his now three-month old son Conor Jr. has only added to his motivation.
“The other day, we were comparing pictures of when I was that age and he’s that age side-by-side and we’re like identical,” a beaming McGregor said, pumping his fist. “I’m like, yes, because he’s going to look exactly like me. He has my name and he’s carrying my, you know, it’s a legacy. I’m just in awe of my little man.”
It’s a normal, as well as a good and healthy thing, for a father to love his newborn son. The baby’s birth, though, has made a positive impact upon him as a fighter, he insisted.
“It’s made me more focused, more disciplined because I can’t slack off, I can’t float around, I can’t do what I used to do,” he said. “I must train, recover, go home, look after my boy, rest and train again. It’s kept life more structured for me and it’s actually helped me as a fighter and as a man, with business and with training.
“Everything is more structured, as it should be, and that’s the key to getting to the high, high level. You must have structure. It’s been eye-opening and amazing and it’s only been three months. So many good times are ahead.”
This is a man totally at peace with himself and where he is in his life, as an athlete and as a man.
It’s still more far likely that Mayweather drubs him and wins most of the rounds while making McGregor look bad.
But have no doubt: McGregor is ready for the moment. If there is one prediction you can book confidently, it’s that win or lose, Conor McGregor won’t wilt under the bright lights in Las Vegas.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Wednesday, August 16, 2017.
Memoriesofhistory.com
1920 - The only fatality to occur in a major league baseball game happened. Ray Chapman (Cleveland Indians) was hit in the head with a fastball from Carl Mays of the New York Yankees.
1948 - Babe Ruth died at the age of 53.
1954 - Sports Illustrated was published for the first time. It was claimed that 250,000 subscriptions had been sold before the first issue came off of the presses.
1981 - Cal Ripken Jr. got his first major league hit.
1996 - In Monterrey, Mexico, the New York Mets played the San Diego Padres. The Padres won the game 15-10. It was the first-ever regular season major league game to be played outside the United States and Canada.
2002 - The major league baseball players union announced that they would begin a strike on August 30th.
2002 - Curt Shilling (Arizona Diamondbacks) won his 20th game of the year.
2003 - The Canadian Football League announced that it had taken control of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats franchise until new ownership agreements were in place.
2003 - Jimmy Smith (Jacksonville Jaguars) was suspended four games by the NFL for violating the league's substance abuse policy.
2003 - Michael Vick (Atlanta Falcons) suffered a fractured right fibula in a 13-10 preseason loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
1948 - Babe Ruth died at the age of 53.
1954 - Sports Illustrated was published for the first time. It was claimed that 250,000 subscriptions had been sold before the first issue came off of the presses.
1981 - Cal Ripken Jr. got his first major league hit.
1996 - In Monterrey, Mexico, the New York Mets played the San Diego Padres. The Padres won the game 15-10. It was the first-ever regular season major league game to be played outside the United States and Canada.
2002 - The major league baseball players union announced that they would begin a strike on August 30th.
2002 - Curt Shilling (Arizona Diamondbacks) won his 20th game of the year.
2003 - The Canadian Football League announced that it had taken control of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats franchise until new ownership agreements were in place.
2003 - Jimmy Smith (Jacksonville Jaguars) was suspended four games by the NFL for violating the league's substance abuse policy.
2003 - Michael Vick (Atlanta Falcons) suffered a fractured right fibula in a 13-10 preseason loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
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