rod Page 38 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
The best sports calls of the 21st century
Is there anything that defines a moment in sports history quite like the announcers’ call over the sounds of a raucous crowd and a celebrating team (and your own sobs)? Do you believe in miracles, the band is on the field, the Giants win the pennant, pretty much anything Jack Buck ever said — they’r...
Let’s talk about this horrendous 2023 MLB Hall of Fame class
The 2022 Hall of Fame class was loaded. When Jimmy Rollins, Tim Hudson, and Prince Fielder are some of the low-end first-years, and two of them don’t even receive five percent of the vote, you know it’s an insane class. Between Álex Rodríguez, David Ortiz, Barry Bonds, and Roger Clemens, 2022 was on...
Mike Sando’s QB tier list saved all its heat for Black QBs
Top 10 NFL lists are typically there to incite a reaction. But Mike Sando’s 2022 QB Tiers List thwacks you upside the head over and over. The exclusion of Lamar Jackson from quarterback top 10 lists this offseason is standard operating protocol, but the disdain for the league’s top black quarterback...
How much will Davante Adams’ absence affect Aaron Rodgers?
In 2021, with the help of Davante Adams, Aaron Rodgers threw for 37 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Those 37 touchdowns were tied for fourth-most in the NFL. Rodgers didn’t have much help outside of Adams. While Adams did catch 11 of those touchdowns (29.73 percent of Rodgers’ total), that’s...
Now pitchers are just showing off
Pitching has become so easy in MLB that relievers can carry a conversation with the booth while getting the last out of the eighth inning in a one-run All-Star Game. No longer content to interview guys in the dugout/not actively in the field, players talked with announcers during the showcase that e...
The Home Run Derby was on some Mountain-vs.-Viper stuff
Juan Soto is going to win the All-Star Break in many ways, but the most significant might be by virtue of being the most thirst-inducing thoroughbred at the auction. It makes sense that he took the Home Run Derby a few days after the Nationals announced they’re listening to offers. There are a half ...
Juan Soto is on the trade block — and GMs better be prepared to break the bank
Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto is a 23-year-old superstar. In just four and a half years in the bigs, he has established himself as one of the best pure hitters in the game. He’s a perennial MVP candidate, a master of plate discipline — and now he’s on the trade block....
Stubbornness and health — that’s all Russell Westbrook has left
Short guards are notorious for aging poorly in the NBA. When quickness is your best asset, losing a step can be fatal. Only the craftiest players — think Jason Kidd, or Chris Paul — can remain effective. Whether it’s changing their playing style, using so many defensive tricks it borders on dirty pl...
We have some issues with ESPN’s Top 10 QB list for 2022
It’s mid-July, and we’re getting ever so close to NFL training camps opening, and you can feel the anticipation. Along with that comes a whole host of pundits writing lists ranking players at various positions — most notably, quarterback. ESPN caused an uproar over the weekend when it released its T...
USWNT qualifies for World Cup, but we still don’t have all our answers
It’s hardly a surprise, but the USWNT walloped Jamaica 5-0 in the CONCACAF Women’s Championship to qualify for the 2023 World Cup, where they carry the heavy but illustrious burden of being two-time defending champs....
What would Shohei Ohtani be worth on the market?
You couldn’t miss it, but Shohei Ohtani was off on another one last night. It’s been his thing the past month. He drove in two, stole a base, and also struck out 10. He threw seven scoreless innings as well, and hasn’t given up an earned run in a month. In his past four starts he’s struck out 40 in ...
Get to the net, Taylor Fritz!
American tennis, on the men’s side, has been a desolate wasteland for over 20 years now, pretty much. Since Andy Roddick took the U.S. Open in 2003 and then spent the rest of his career getting clubbed by Roger Federer in the biggest matches of his career, no Yank has taken a major. No Yank has even...
KD is a superstar player, but not a great talent evaluator
In an era where title-starved NBA owners are increasingly taking responsibility out of the hands of their front office and handing their organizational control to their superstars, it’s telling that Kevin Durant personally issued his trade request from Brooklyn with owner Joseph Tsai....
Chet Holmgren and NBA Summer League overreactions
Here’s a story about how boatloads of fans and media members annually exaggerate offseason performances as if they’re indicators of what basketball players will and won’t be for the duration of their careers. We’ve reached that moment now as the No. 2 overall pick in last month’s draft had a good ga...
The San Francisco Giants cannot catch the baseball
There was always going to be a bit of a comedown from a 107-win season for the San Francisco Giants. Unless you’re operating on a higher plane both organizationally and financially like the Dodgers, all the things that have to go right for a team to win that many games one season are not going to do...
Big bucks for wide receivers is bad news for several other positions
There are currently 12 wide receivers in the NFL with contracts that earn them an average annual value of $20 million or more. Nine of those contracts — Chris Godwin, DJ Moore, Cooper Kupp, Davante Adams, Tyreek Hill, Mike Williams, A.J. Brown, Terry McLaurin, and Stefon Diggs — were signed during t...
Sundowning GOATS are playing longer than ever, but a changing of the guard is here
Serena Williams’ 2022 Wimbledon lasted longer than her last appearance at the All-England Club. In 2021, she left in tears after slipping on the court and suffering a hamstring injury.. Not having played in a year, her rustiness was evident in her error-prone play and she was promptly escorted off 7...
Tua is the most aggressive quarterback in the league? Next Gen Stats, explain yourself<em></em>
I love advanced analytics. At the same time, I know the results that come from analytics can lead people down some pretty insane rabbit holes and toward some pretty hot takes. One stat leads to another, which leads to another, and all of a sudden you’re saying that C.J. Beathard deserves another sho...
Once again, we must remind you that Doug Gottlieb is an idiot
My compatriot Stephen Knox covered all this not so long ago, but if you need a refresher…...
The death of the superteam (for now)
The Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors Finals was one of the more engaging championship fights of recent memory. The Celtics were on a Cinderella tear on their way to facing a retooled, post-Kevin Durant Warriors. Both teams had organically built the backbone of their roster through adept draf...