Weekly Update – Week of April 29th, 2019

Baseball – MLB: White Sox 20 KO record. Yelich out.

Basketball – NBA: Playoff update. Rockets bad blood with Warriors.

Football – NFL: Draft results.

Golf: Rahm/Palmer win Zurich. Lee wins 5th title at LA Open.

Hockey: Playoff update. Golden Knights are the new NO Saints.

Olympic Sports: Kenya flags fly victorious at the London marathon. Drake/Penn results. Slater loses in quarterfinals.

Baseball – MLB:

• The White Sox left the Tigers with 20 strike outs in their 4-1 win on Sunday by 4 different pitchers. This ties the MLB record in 9 innings.
• Rays move up 1B power hitter Nate Lowe from the minors. Lowe was the Ray’s minor league player of the year last year and was a 13^th round draft selection. Movin’ on up Lowe.
• Christian Yelich is out of the starting lineup against the Rockies due to lower back discomfort. Right now Yelich is day-to-day after leaving Sunday’s game against the Mets. Ben Gamel replaces Christian but can anyone really replace the National League MVP?

Basketball – NBA:

• Playoff Update:
  • Steph Curry should have been fouled out with 1:10 left in the game against the Rockets after 3 incorrect calls. However this was reviewed after the game and Curry played the remainder of the game even scoring a crucial 3 pointer with 24 seconds left to lead the Warriors to beat the Rockets 104-100 in Game 1. Get ready for Houston to be pissed and come back with a vengeance.
  • 
    • Speaking of Houston, the Rockets filed an audit of last years’ (yes 2018) Western conference championship saying the refs missed 81 calls and non-calls in Game 7 costing the Rockets 18.6 points, which cost them a trip to the championship and ultimately the trophy. This was actually communicated at an in-person meeting with the league. Let’s just say there is some bad blood between these 2 teams. Someone call for a TSwift solo?

Football: (were making this one this week due to the draft relating to both NFL and NCAA)

• The NFL Draft was this past weekend. 254 NCAA players are now professionals. The #1 pick was Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray to the Arizona Cardinals, making him the only player in history to be drafted in the 1^st round of 2 drafts – the NFL and MLB. This is the first time that a school has ever had 2 QBs drafted #1 in back-to-back years (Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield went first last year).
  • One of the big surprises was the NY Giants taking Duke QB Daniel Jones over Ohio St DeWayne Haskins. TBD if that pays off. Duke QBs have not in the past.
  • The #2 pick was no surprise with Ohio St’s DE Nick Bosa. This is historical because this basically makes the Bosa boys the ‘Mannings’ of defense in the NFL. Both Nick’s dad and brother, Joey, also were drafted in the first round of their NFL drafts. Let’s just say its an impressive family!
  • Which schools did the best? Alabama had 10 players drafted in the top spot followed closely by Ohio St with 9. Oklahoma and Washington both had 8 while Georgia and Texas A&M had 7 each.
  • The analysts have said that the Colts did a solid grade A job of picking their class, making them the top rated class. Debate this as you see fit but don’t shoot the messenger.
• NCAAF: Texas Tech DL John Scott III was shot and a 24 year old man (who shall remain nameless on here because shooters should NOT have their 15 seconds of fame) has been arrested. Both Scott and the woman that was with him have been hospitalized.

Golf:

• Ryan Palmer and Jon Rahm win the Zurich Classic in a landslide after a weather delayed start. This was Ryan Palmer’s 4^th PGA Tour win but first in a decade while Jon Rahm has won 3xs on the PGA Tour, one in each of his three seasons on the tour.
• Minjee Lee won her 5^th LPGA title this Sunday after winning the LA Open, winning by 4 strokes. This Aussie has had a stellar year so far with 4 top-3 finishes in her last 7 starts!

Hockey:

• Stanley Cup Playoffs:
  • ICYMI: the refs were not so good during game 7 of the Golden Knights/Sharks match up. So much so that those refs will not be officiating in round 2. In the 3^rd period there was a major penalty call giving the Sharks a 5 minute power play, where the Sharks scored 4xs. The sharks ultimately won the game in OT 5-4 but before that bad call were losing 0-3. One of those refs (O’Halloran) has officiated 212 playoff games and this will be his first tome missing a conference final in over 10 years. The call was so bad that the league reached out to the Golden Knights and Vegas in general to apologize.
    • Hmmm this seems familiar… New Orleans will sympathize with you Vegas!
    • Shade is being thrown…

• Hurricanes goalie Mrazek and defensemen van Riemsdyk are both out and are being evaluated day-to-day

Olympic Sports:

• A pair of Kenyans won the London Marathon. Eliud Kipchoge won his 4^th marathon with the 2^nd best time of all time with 2:37. London favorite, Mo Farah, finished 5^th.
• Caster Semenya will find out if she won her appeal on Wednesday. Wondering why she sounds familiar? Because she’s the one who is fighting for women with higher testosterone levels to not be restricted in events 400m and up.
• Drake and Penn Relays were both this weekend and there were some great results!
  • Notably, Keni Harrison 4-peated her victory in the 100h with a 12.65 (conditions were horrible), making her the only woman besides Lolo Jones to do so.
  • American Kori Carter started off her 400h appearances for the first time in 2 years with a W, running 56.07. USA Olympian Ryan Crousser won the shot put.
  • But there were some upsets too. In the 110h, 2016 Gold Medalist McLeod was held off by .01 to Kentucky junior Daniel Roberts. Roberts is the first collegiate winner at Drake since 2002.
  • The men’s pole vault also served up an upset while being moved indoors due to weather, Chris Nilsen (reigning NCAA champ) took down USA favorite Sam Hendericks (why favorite you ask? Because he is a veteran and does things like this)
• Kelly Slater lost in the quarterfinals to Aussie Ryan Callinan at Bells Beach and John John Florence took the event. American Courtney Conlogue won the women’s event.
• 6 more Kazakhstan athletes have been found guilty of doping in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. 3 weightlifters and 2 wrestlers are refusing to give their medals back.

What to Watch this Week:

Baseball – MLB:

• Mon 4/29 – A’s at Red Sox @ 6pm on ESPN
  • Montas vs Rodriguez
• Wed 5/1 – Astros at Twins @ 7pm on ESPN
  • McHugh vs Perez
• Sat 5/4
  • Cardinals at Cubs@ 3:05pm on FS1
    • Wacha vs Darvish
  • A’s at Pirates @ 6:05pm on FS1
    • Bassitt vs Williams
• Sun 5/5
  • Astros vs Angels @ 3:10pm on ESPN
    • Verlander vs Harvey
  • Cardinals at Cubs @ 6:05pm on ESPN
    • Wainwrights vs Quintana

Baseball – College / Softball:

• Mon 4/29 – Baseball – 20. West Virginia vs Texas @ 4pm on LGHN
• Tues 4/30
  • Softball – Arkansas at Texas A&M @ 1pm on SEC
  • Baseball – St. Bonaventure vs Binghamton @ 3pm on ESPN3
  • Baseball – Liberty vs UNC @ 5pm on ACC
  • Baseball – Western Kentucky vs Louisville @ 5pm on ACC
• Wed 5/1
  • Softball – Cornell vs Syracuse @ 3pm on ESPN3
  • Baseball – Wichita St vs Kansas St @ 6pm on ESPN3
• Thurs 5/2 – Baseball – 7. Mississippi St vs 17. Texas A&M @ 6pm on SEC
• Fri 5/3
  • Softball – Florida St vs Syracuse @ 3pm on ACC
  • Softball – Boston College vs Pitt @ 4pm on ACC
  • Baseball – Louisville vs Notre Dame @ 5pm on ACC
  • Softball – Georgia Tech vs Notre Dame @ 5pm on ACC
  • Softball – Texas A&M vs Tennessee @ 5pm on SEC
  • Softball – Alabama vs LSU @ 6pm on ESPN2
  • Softball – South Carolina vs Missouri @ 7pm on SEC
• Sat 5/4
  • Baseball – Missouri vs Tennessee @ 11am on SEC
  • Baseball – Pitt vs Florida St @ 12pm on ACC
  • Softball – Florida St vs Syracuse @ 12pm on ACC
  • Baseball – Louisville vs Notre Dame @ 1pm on ACC
  • Softball – Louisville vs NC St @ 1pm on ACC
  • Softball – Georgia Tech vs Notre Dame @ 1pm on ACC
  • Baseball – Mississippi St vs Texas A&M @ 2pm on SEC
  • Softball – Northwestern vs Minnesota @ 3pm on ESPNU
  • Softball – Boston College vs Pitt @ 3pm on ACC
  • Baseball – Boston College vs VTech @ 5pm on ACC
  • Softball – Alabama vs LSU @ 5pm on SEC
  • Baseball – Alabama vs Auburn @ 7pm on SEC
  • Baseball – Vanderbilt vs South Carolina @ 7pm on ESPNU
  • Softball – Oklahoma St vs Oklahoma @ 7pm on ESPN
• Sun 5/5
  • Softball – Louisville vs NC St @ 11am on ACC
  • Baseball – Pitt vs 25. Florida St @ 12pm on ACC
  • Baseball – 5. Louisville vs Notre Dame @ 12pm on ACC
  • Baseball – 12. Texas Tech vs Oklahoma @ 1pm on ESPNU
  • Softball – Baylor vs Texas @ 1pm on LGHN
  • Baseball – Boston College vs VTech @ 3pm on ACC
  • Baseball – Alabama vs Auburn @ 3pm on SEC
  • Softball – Baylor vs Texas @ 8pm on LGHN

Basketball – NBA:

• Mon 4/29
  • East Game 2: 76ers at Raptors @ 7pm on TNT
    • Raptors lead 1-0
  • West Game 1: Trail Blazers at Nuggets @ 9:30pm on TNT
• Tues 4/30
  • East Game 2: Celtics at Bucks @ 7pm on TNT
    • Celtics lead 1-0
  • West Game 2: Rockets at Warriors @ 9:30pm on TNT
    • Warriors lead 1-0
• Wed 5/1
  • West Game 2: Trail Blazers ay Nuggets @ 8pm on TNT
• Thurs 5/2
  • West Game 3: Raptors at 76ers @ 7pm on ESPN
• Fri 5/3
  • East Game 3: Bucks at Celtics @ 7pmon ESPN
  • West Game 3: Nuggets at Trail Blazers @ 9:30pm on ESPN
• Sat 5/4
  • West Game 3: Warriors at Rockets @ 7:30pm on ABC
• Sun 5/5
  • East Game 4: Raptors at 76ers @ 2:30pm on ABC
  • West Game 4: Nuggets at Trail Blazers @ 6pm on TNT

Golf:

• Wed 5/1 – SEC Women’s Golf Championship @ 11am on SEC
• Thurs 5/2 – Wells Fargo Championship – Round 1
  • 1pm – 5pm on Golf Channel
• Fri 5/3 – Wells Fargo Championship – Round 2
  • 1pm – 5pm on Golf Channel
• Sat 5/4 – Wells Fargo Championship – Round 3
  • 12pm – 1:45pm on Golf Channel
  • 2pm – 5pm on CBS
• Sun 5/5 – Wells Fargo Championship – Round 4
  • 12pm – 1:45pm on Golf Channel
  • 2pm – 5pm on CBS

Hockey:

• Mon 4/29 – Blues at Stars @ 8pm on NBCSN
  • Series tied 1-1
• Tues 4/30
  • Bruins at Blue Jackets @ 8pm on NBCSN
    • Series tied 1-1
  • Sharks at Avalanche @ 10pm on NBCSN
    • Series tied 1-1
• Wed 5/1
  • Islanders at Hurricanes @ 7pm on NBCSN
    • Hurricanes lead 2-0
  • Blues at Stars @ 9:30pm on NBCSN
• Thurs 5/2
  • Bruins at Blue Jackets @ 7:30pm on NBCSN
  • Sharks at Avalanche @ 10pm on NBCSN
• Fri 5/3
  • Islanders at Hurricanes @ 7pm on NBCSN
  • Stars at Blues @ 9:30pm on NBCSN
• Sat 5/4
  • Blue Jackets at Bruins @ 6:15pm on NBC
  • Avalanche at Sharks @ 10pm on NBCSN
• Sun 5/5
  • Conference Semifinal: Teams TBA on NBCSN
  • Conference Semifinal: Teams TBA on NBCSN

Olympic Sports:

• Wed 5/1
  • SEC Track & Field Championships @ 6am on SEC
  • SEC Swimming and Diving Championships @ 9am on SEC
• Thurs 5/2
  • SEC Women’s Tennis Championships @ 2am on SEC
  • SEC Men’s Tennis Championships @ 10am on SEC
  • NCAA Beach Volleyball tournament starting @ 1pm on ESPN3
• Fri 5/3
  • Track & Field: IAAF Diamond League @ 1am on NBCSN
  • NCAA Beach Volleyball tournament starting @ 9am on ESPN3
  • 2019 World Para Ice Hockey Championships: Gold Medal Match – Teams TBA @ 5:30pm on NBCSN
• Sat 5/4
  • Climbing: USA Combined Invitational @ 9am on ESPNNEWS
  • NCAA Women’s Beach Volleyball Semifinal @ 3pm on ESPN
  • NCAA Men’s Volleyball Tournament @ 7pm on ESPN2
  • Beach Volleyball: AVP Tour: Huntington Beach Open @ 11pm on NBCSN
• Sun 5/5
  • NCAA Beach Volleyball tournament starting at 2am on ESPNU and ESPN3
  • NCAA Women’s Beach Volleyball Semifinal @9:30am on ESPN2
  • NCAA Women’s Beach Volleyball Championship @ 1pm on ESPN
  • Climbing: USA Combined Invitational @ 8pm on ESPNNEWS

Soccer:

• Thurs 5/2 – Everton vs Burnley @ 3pm on NBCSN
• Fri 5/3
  • AFC Bournemouth vs Tottenham Hotspur @ 7:25am on NBCSN
  • West Ham United vs Southampton @ 9:55am on NBCSN
• Sat 5/4
  • Huddersfield Town vs Manchester United @ 8:55am on NBCSN
  • Arsenal vs Brighton & Hove Albion @ 11:25am on NBCSN
• Sun 5/5
  • Italie Serie A: Lazio vs Atalanta @ 7:55am on ESPNNEWS
  • MLS: NY Red Bulls vs LA Galaxy @ 1pm on ESPN
  • Manchester City vs Leicester City @ 2:55pm on NBCSN