Welcome back to the Nightly Roundup! Where I recap the day that was in sports with my thoughts on the day.
KERSHAW IS DOMINANT AGAIN
Clayton Kershaw obliterated the crosstown Angels as he struck out 12 batters over seven innings. Chase Utley, Joc Pederson, and Yasiel Puig all homered to give the Dodgers six runs and that was all Kershaw needed.
Other Baseball Stories:
THE MELK MAN! He heard “All Rise” for Aaron Judge and Cabrera certainly rose up. Ended up being the difference maker for Chicago. James Shields pitched well for the White Sox whereas Yankee starter Luis Cessa fell to 0-3 in all three starts since CC Sabathia got hurt. A scary scene was in this first inning when NYY rookie Dustin Fowle, in his ML debut, crashed into the wall and left the game to have season-ending knee surgery. Incredibly sad to hear as he was called up less than a week ago.
- Red Sox double up Twins 6-3: David Price actually pitching like the guy the Sox paid for! He struck out seven over seven innings. The rest of the lineup operated like a runs machine after the Sox went down 3-0. Mookie Betts led the charge out of the leadoff spot going 2 for 4 with a homer and two RBI. If Price keeps this up and Porcello gets it going, the Red Sox will start to play as well as we thought they’d be.
- Cubs rally over Nats 5-4: Down 4-2 with two outs in the top of the ninth, pinch-hitter Tommy LeStella hit an RBI single and then Jon Jay followed it up with a two-run double to take the lead. The Cubs and Nats end up splitting their four-game set and now the Cubs sit a game back of the Brewers in the NL Central. The Cubs needed this split after a shitty week off the field. They’re now in a perfect striking distance.
- Corey Kluber shows absolute dominance, Tribe ousts Rangers 5-1: Eight innings and twelve K’s, that’s Kluber we all know and love. It’s worth nothing that Cleveland also hit SIX doubles in the game.
- Bartolo Colon was designated for assignment by the Braves on Thursday. He has not pitched well for Atlanta in 2017 (2-8, 8.17 ERA) so it’s not surprising. It will probably be the end for him after a long career and becoming a fan favorite amongst all baseball fans.
Quicken Loans National Update
Well, I had one of the three right. Yesterday I said to look out for Patrick Reed (-3), Brendan Steele (+5, yikes), and Justin Thomas (+4). Steele and Thomas were the on-paper locks considering Steele hasn’t missed a cut in 2017 yet and Thomas was coming back into form after the US Open. Thomas did almost can a hole-in-one though:
He hits a 7-iron about 50 yards further than I can; no wonder why I didn’t make the tour, huh? The Sweedish David Lingmirth is your leader at -5 after shooting a lights-out round on Thursday.
Quick Hockey Update:
With free agency starting on Saturday, a lot of rumors are flying around. One that seems to be certain is that the Flyers won’t be bringing back goaltender Steve Mason. To be honest, Mason hadn’t been able to match the unbelievable performance he put out in 2014. He was injury-ridden then (which led to a tandem effort with Ray Emery) and continued to be (which led to a tandem effort with Michael Neuvirth). Neuvirth will be on the team and the Flyers are a frontrunner for FA Brain Elliot (also in the Broad Street Hockey link above). Elliot would be a great veteran addition to the team.
Scott Hartnell was bought out by the Blue Jackets. Sad to see but his contract was HUGE; he’ll bounce back for sure. Jagr is itching to be signed; if you don’t follow him on Twitter, you need to.
I might look into writing a full free agency roundup; maybe a tandem effort with Matty D?
Some Housekeeping to Wrap-Up
There will be a Bullpen Cart pod this Sunday! We’re aiming for a 4th-of-July theme so it will be a good listen during your barbecues this weekend. I’m going to try for the Night Roundup on Monday and Tuesday but that depends on what I end up doing for the 4th so no promises!
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