Sign up for the daily newsletter, Jay’s Plays of the Day, to get sports betting recommendations for the top games of the night and the week ahead.
Weekend winners
The Braves. Atlanta took two of three from the powerful New York Yankees and have won eight of their last 10. Still time for someone to copyright, “Fried, Sanchez and Sale, then pray for hale.” Max Fried was dealing again on Sunday in NYC.
U.S. soccer. Look, I admittedly know very little about kick ball, but I love patriotic sports as much as the next guy. And when Team U.S. takes the field, it’s worth our attention. And when so many folks who do know kickball tell me that a) this Christian Pulisic is this great and b) this Copa America tournament is critical for the future of the men’s national team, well, I try to pay attention a bit more. And I do know this about American soccer — every win in global events is a good win.
Clark-Reese 2.0. Or 4.0. Of the last one before the next one. They duked it out Sunday — and yes, it feels like their teams play twice a week these days. Angel Reese, the former LSU star, was great with 25 points and 18 boards in the comeback win for Chicago that ended Clark’s four game win streak. Reese now has eight straight double-doubles, most ever by a WNBA rookie.
Sunday sports fans. Add in the above — and the below paths to decisive championship series games in the CWS and the NHL — as well as the PGA Tour playoff in which Scottie Scheffler won for the sixth time in 2024. Wow, he’s closing in on Ferris Bueller territory — nine times, Grace. It was a sports gold weekend.
Weekend losers
The domestic tranquility between Matt Stafford and the Mrs. Look, we all did crazy stuff in college, but we’re not taking it to the streets like Kelly Stafford did over the weekend saying she dated Matt’s QB2 at Georgia to make him jealous.
The future of College GameDay. We all think this is one of the best things and franchises ESPN has, but the future looks a bit dicey, and Pat McAfee remains unsigned. GameDay has added Saban, because, well, he’s Saban. But the future is unknown for McAfee, and if you recall, GameDay star Kirk Herbstriet has been overflowing in his praise of the dynamic McAfee brings to the set and even vowed to walk if McAfee is not retained. I know ESPN would never put a show out there with four white dudes, but McAfee is way better than Desmond, and it’s really time for Corso to come out for the mascot head thing.
The Lakers. Wow, arguably the biggest job in the sport has been kicked down the road to a rookie ESPN commentator who has a podcast with LeBron. When L.A. drafts Bronny, I hope James — who was a strong supporter of JJ Reddick getting the Lakers’ coaching gig despite not coaching about the rec-league level — informs the Buss crew that for him to stay he was the purple and gold to change their names to the Los Angeles LeBrons.
Those wacky protestors at the PGA event on Sunday. Let’s just move along, shall we? I think we shall.
MLB suspensions. A Toronto rookie was suspended for PED violation for 80 games after his MLB debut and Mets closer Edwin Diaz was suspended for a “sticky substance” violation, which all middle schoolers know is something to keep very private.
Winners take all
There are two decisive championship games tonight, and after this weekend in sports, it’s hard not to be in awe of the merits and mettle that got each here.
In the mass hysteria that is playoff hockey, the Edmonton Oilers turned a 3-0 hole into a 3-3 deadlock and face Florida night with more than a little history on the line:
— A win would be Canada’s first Stanley Cup in more than three decades. That stat just feels wrong.
— A win would be only the second time any professional team rallied from a 3-0 hole to win it all.
It’s a pretty big deal, and it includes one of the best NHL players of my lifetime in Connor McDavid. Not going to pretend I am well-versed in the ice-capades that are the NHL playoffs, but these numbers also do not lie:
— McDavid’s playoff points — 42 so far — could surpass the rarified mark of 47 set by some dude they called The Great One (and no Spy it was not Jackie Gleason).
— McDavid likely will be on the shortlist of series MVP even with a loss.
— This one my be my favorite: McDavid’s 42 playoff points — including eight during the Oilers’ three-game streak to force Game 7 — would rank third on Chicago’s stats for all season.
As for the other winner-gets-to-dogpile, loser-leaves-crying, well it’s Omaha and it’s happening because Tennessee did some very Tennessee baseball things Sunday afternoon. Timely pitching, power bats and win 59 in 72 games.
Tennessee faces Texas A&M in the decisive third game of the College World Series tonight, and the TFP has the A team of Paschall and Hargis out there for all the coverage. Here’s Paschall preview for tonight’s showdown.
Which brings us to the the joyous victory or the Ricky Bobby realization that second is the first loser moment of games like this.
Normally, they go one of two ways:
They are classics. Or they become runaways where the realities are set the emotion gets drained.
I am hoping for the former — for each. We as sports fans have had an great run of better-than-to-be-expected June sports moments this year — NBA Finals notwithstanding — but tonight could be special.
This and that
— The TV numbers for Thursday’s presidential debate will make the Clark-Reese rivalry look like “Saved by the Bell” reruns. (And by that, like “Saved by the Bell: The College Years” like numbers.) It’s Thursday in the ATL, and to be honest, I think removing the audience will at least take some steps to adding civility to the process. Here’s more on the rule changes and the preparations.
— Interesting story from David Floyd in Sunday’s fish wrapper about county Mayor Weston Wamp blasting the school system’s jacked-up budget. Some say bloated, some say aggressive in reference to the numbers, but I do believe this across almost every industry: Across the board raises are a flawed premise. It short-changes the truly great workers you want to keep and reward and rewards the mediocre-at-best in your field and encourages them not to look around.
— Speaking of the college World Series, did you see that Clay Travis, founder of Outkick, bought 1,000 Jell-O shots at the now-famous watering hole known for those little buggers in Omaha?
— ESPN Radio has returned to the greater Chattanooga area, as ESPN Cleveland on 101.3 is up and running. Here’s the website, and I’m assuredly not expecting to hear it on my morning commute, but there you go.
— Our weekend MLB picks whiffed like we were facing Paul Skenes, but we landed Brian Harman with a top-10 finish in the Travelers for a plus-330 payday. That’s better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
— Speaking of golf and money, of the former Baylor School PGAers — Stephan Jaeger posted T31 and made $117,600. Harris English made $41K for a T63.
Today’s questions
Weekend winners and losers. Go.
As for today, multiple choice Monday goes this way:
Best Game 7 (or Game whatever in the final of a multi-game series) that decided the overall champion of a major sport? Some of the ones that come to mind are:
— Game 7 of Yankees-D-backs in 2001
— Cavs-Warriors in 2016
— Braves-Twins in 1991, too
— Others and specify
As for today, June 24, man feels like the summer is flying.
On this day in 2022, SCOTUS overturned Roe v Wade. Willing to bet that topic is covered Thursday.
Two musical genius were born on this day: Jeff Beck would have been 80; Mick Fleetwood is 77.
Lionel Messi is 37 today. Minka Kelly — Lyla Garrity from TV’s “Friday Night Lights” — is 44 today.
As for a Rushmore, let’s go a little different and outside the box: Loren Roberts is 69 today. He was one the game’s all-time great putters and earned the moniker — which I love by the way — “boss of the moss.”
Rushmore of all-time golf nicknames that do not involve an animal. Go.