[Posted Sunday p.m.]
Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday.
Cincinnati Reds Quiz: The franchise has been around since 1882. 1) Name the only six to hit 250 home runs in a Reds uniform. 2) Incredibly, the leader in career wins has only 179. Name the only four with 160, and you get one, Tony Mullane, who pitched in the 1880s. The others are modern-day pitchers (post-1920). Answers below.
The Open Championship
The first two rounds of the Open at beautiful Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland were as advertised, weather changeable, downright nasty at times.
And after the first round we had five tied at -4, including Matthew Fitzpatrick, with some big names right behind…
Scottie Scheffler -3
Tyrrell Hatton -3
Lee Westwood -2
Rickie Fowler -2
Justin Rose -2
Phil Mickelson -1
Jon Rahm -1
Shane Lowry -1
Justin Leonard! -1…helluva round for the 53-year-old.
And Rory McIlroy -1.
For Rory, he hit the first tee attempting to exorcise the demons from his first-round 79 at Royal Portrush in 2019, when the weight of the golfing world was on him, playing at home, and despite a second-round 65, he missed the cut and was crushed.
But while he bogeyed the first hole this time, his drive was solid and a 5 was much better than the quadruple-bogey 8 he opened with six years earlier.
In the second round, it was all Scottie Scheffler, a 64, his best round in a major, and he had the lead.
Scheffler -10
Matthew Fitzpatrick -9
Brian Harman -8
Haotong Li -8
Rory -3
Among those missing the cut were LIV Golf’s Joaquin Niemann, Carlos Ortiz, Tom McKibbin, Lucas Herbert, Patrick Reed, Brooks Koepka and Cam Smith.
I was happy to see Reed play poorly. Enough of this talk he should be on the American Ryder Cup team. Koepka, who hasn’t been playing well, probably still expects to be named, but he shouldn’t be.
Boy, Cam Smith has just disappeared.
Also, Patrick Cantlay, Jason Day, Cameron Young, Adam Scott and Collin Morikawa MC’d.
But Justin Leonard made the cut, first time he’s done so at The Open since 2013. Pretty, pretty good. You don’t have to be a big hitter to score well on a links course. Often the big hitters are the ones getting penalized.
Speaking of being penalized, Shane Lowry incurred a two-stroke penalty for causing his ball to move during a practice swing.
Lowry expressed disappointment with the limited camera angles used to review the incident.
“I wasn’t arguing my case but I was disappointed that they don’t have more camera angles on it,” Lowry said. “I have to take the penalty because I can’t have my name talked about or tossed around like that. I’ll get on with it but it’s really, really disappointing.”
I didn’t see it really move, but others say they did see it.
Playing partner Scottie Scheffler acknowledged the difficulty of the situation and emphasized the importance of players calling penalties on themselves.
This shouldn’t hurt Lowry’s reputation at all.
On to the third round and the weather calmed down…it was downright beautiful for these parts.
And once again it was Scottie Scheffler in command, a 67, no bogeys in 25 holes.
But Rory McIlroy had an electric 66, birdieing three of his first four, the only blemish on his card a bizarre bogey on the par-4 11th. Rory’s drive was way left, but he had a shot to the green, only when he hit his ball, a second ball appeared. He had landed on top of a ball that was buried right below the surface. While his shot was accurate, it came up short and it took three strokes from there to get down.
No problem…on the par-5 12th, Rory drained a spectacular, long eagle putt, and the roar from the adoring home crowd was tremendous. Rory said after, it was one of the coolest moments of his golf career.
And so…after 54 holes….
Scheffler -14
Li -10
Fitzpatrick -9
McIlroy -8
Hatton -8
Chris Gotterup -8
Harris English -8
What a run for Jersey boy Gotterup, last week’s winner in the Scottish Open.
Well, after five holes….
Scheffler -17
Li -10
And a slew of golfers at -9, including Bryson DeChambeau, who opened with a 78 and then went 65-68-64. That shows you somethin’.
But then Scottie with an uncharacteristic mistake with a fairway bunker shot and ended up with a double-bogey on the par-4 8th, his lead just 4 over Gotterup.
Only Scheffler bounces back with a birdie on No. 9.
Scheffler -16…thru 9
Gotterup -11…10
Li -11…9
Meanwhile, Rory doubles No. 10 to fall back to -8…game over for him.
And then after Scheffler had played No. 15
Scheffler -17
English -12…16
Gotterup -12…16
Wyndham Clark -11…65
Li -10…15
McIlroy -10…16
And in the end….
Scheffler -17
English -13
Gotterup -12
Fitzpatrick -11
Clark -11
Li -11
Rory -10
Schauffele -10
MacIntyre -10
For Scheffler it’s not just major win No. 4, but PGA Tour title No. 17, all in the last four years. He’s 4-for-4 in closing out majors with a 54-hole lead, and 10-for-10 in all tournaments. Ten times the leader after 54, ten times the winner. That’s really all you need to know.
The Tour Championship at East Lake is going to be fascinating.
Rickie Fowler’s T14 moves him from 71 to 62 in the FedEx Cup standings…huge for Rickie.
–In other golf news…Wyndham Clark was suspended from Oakmont Country Club for damage he did to the locker room during the week of the national championship in June, which went viral on social media after a picture was taken of the damage.
Clark had been playing poorly and acted like a jerk. The suspension was appropriate. The Open returns to Oakmont again in 2033.
But this week was big for him, as he moved from 78 to 51 on the points list.
—Eamon Lynch / Golfweek…on LIV Golf’s ratings.
“On July 11, LIV Golf Andalucia aired on Fox Sports 1 from 10 a.m. until noon and averaged 13,000 viewers, barely the population of dissidents in a single Saudi Arabian prison.”
MLB
—As play resumed after the All-Star break, about 65 games to go in the regular season, you want to get off to a good start and on Friday night at Citi Field, the Mets laid an egg, losing 8-4 to the Reds.
Sean Manaea, making just his second appearance of the year, pitched four fine innings, one hit, a solo homer, six Ks, but then the bullpen fell apart and in the bottom of the ninth, the Mets, trying to claw back from an 8-2 deficit, had the bases loaded, two outs, Francisco Lindor up, and he popped out.
Lindor, an All-Star, has been anything but since June 1, with a .225 batting average and a .706 OPS, after .283 and .839 the first two months of the season. He’s got to step it up…now…
So, Saturday afternoon, after retiring David Wright’s No. 5 in a nice ceremony before the game, the Mets played another sloppy game, some egregious play in the field, another ghastly effort with runners-in-scoring-position, 1-for-10, and they fell 5-2.
Lindor was 0-for-5 again, and his OPS for his last 34 games is .599. The Mets (55-44) have lost 20 of 30.
Meanwhile, the Reds, 52-47, are right there in the wild card race.
But today, the Metsies had a huge 3-2 win, even after Edwin Diaz blew it in the eighth, as in the bottom of the inning, Juan Soto made a terrific baserunning play to score what would be the winning run, Ryne Stanek with the save. Much needed, but still no hitting.
—The Mets remained a ½-game back of the Phillies in the NL East after Philadelphia lost to the Angels, 6-5, Friday, Mike Trout playing in his home area for just the sixth time in his 15-year career, two hits, an RBI.
For the Phils, Bryce Harper encouragingly hit two home runs as he’s been dealing with a wrist injury.
Philadelphia then stretched the lead over the Mets to 1 ½ games, Saturday, with a 9-5 win over L.A., Harper with another home run, Kyle Schwarber with No. 32, a grand slam.
But the lead over New York was back to a ½ game after the Phils lost today, 8-2.
–The Yankees were in Atlanta and attempted a bullpen game Friday night, the experiment failing miserably, falling 7-3, awful baserunning part of the equation, Ronald Acuna Jr. with a throw for the ages from the outfield, 301 feet on the fly, to gun down a bewildered Jorbit Vivas at third as Vivas attempted to tag up, with two outs and Aaron Judge up next. Incredibly stupid.
But Saturday, New York was down 5-0 and 7-2, only to come back for a stirring 12-9 win as Trent Grisham hit a grand slam in the top of the 9th.
Sunday, the Yanks got six strong from Marcus Stroman, Aaron Judge hit home run No. 36, and New York won 4-2.
Unfortunately, Toronto swept the Giants this weekend, and the Blue Jays (58-41) have a 3-game lead over the Yanks (55-44).
–The Brewers shut out the Dodgers in L.A. Friday night, 2-0, behind Quinn Priester’s six shutout innings, 10 strikeouts, Priester now 8-2, 3.33, in his breakout season for Milwaukee.
At least Tyler Glasnow, six innings, one run, pitched well in his second start back from injury for the Dodgers.
Milwaukee won again on Saturday, 8-7, to move to 58-40, the struggling Dodgers (58-41), losers of 9 of 11.
–The Rockies hit the break at 22-74, on pace for 125 losses a year after the White Sox went 41-121, the worst mark since baseball adopted a 162-game schedule in 1961.
But Colorado beat the Twins 6-4 Friday…win No. 23!
And the Rockies picked up win No. 24 Saturday, 10-6!
—A’s rookie Nick Kurtz, via Wake Forest, continues to amaze…two doubles, and a home run in an 8-2 win over the Guardians Saturday night in Cleveland. Kurtz has 18 homers and 47 RBIs in just 215 ABs, a .932 OPS. Awesome.
Today, the A’s lost 8-2, but Kurtz went 2-for-3, 2 more doubles, a walk, an RBI and his OPS is .949.
—Boston’s Garrett Crochet is 11-4, 2.19, after today’s 6-1 win over the Cubs…Crochet six innings, one earned. The Red Sox are five back of the Blue Jays.
—The sale of the Tampa Bay Rays from current owner Stu Sternberg to a group led by Jacksonville developer Patrick Zalupski for about $1.7 billion has been agreed to in principle and is expected to be completed as soon as September, according to The Athletic.
Zalupski is looking to keep the team in the Tampa Bay area, with a strong preference to be in Tampa rather than St. Petersburg.
Commissioner Rob Manfred said he was optimistic the Rays could return to Tropicana Field for the 2026 season.
“The repair of the stadium is moving along,” Manfred said recently.
Should the Rays make the playoffs, they’ll be allowed to play their games in Steinbrenner Field.
–I have to admit I went to bed last Tuesday night watching the All-Star Game after the N.L. took a 6-0 lead, and then was rather shocked to see the A.L. comeback, and then Kyle Schwarber going 3-for-3 in a home run derby that decided the outcome after it was 6-6 after nine innings.
I didn’t know that’s how they would settle things, but it worked. It ended up being fun, and superior to the NBA’s attempt at an All-Star Game. So good for MLB.
And heck, the television audience averaged 7.2 million on FOX and FOX Sports streaming, according to Nielsen, peaking at 8.1 million.
Monday’s Home Run Derby averaged 5.7 million, peaking at 6.3 million, a 5% increase from 2024.
–Back to the Mets’ retiring former great David Wright’s uniform number, Wright was a Met through and through…a first-round draft pick out of Chesapeake, Virginia, he was in the big leagues with the team by age 21, 2004. He remained a Met until 2018 when he retired.
But it was the tale of two careers. Wright was headed to the Hall of Fame, as from ages 22-27, he had five, 100-RBI seasons. He’d end up appearing in seven All-Star Games, a 2-time Gold Glover at third base, five seasons with 40 doubles, and 195 stolen bases for his career, to go along with 242 home runs, 970 RBIs, a .296 batting average and an .867 OPS.
But his last big season was age 30, as that year, 2013, he began having back and then neck issues that severely limited his ability to get on the field.
David Wright will always be remembered, however, as an incredible team leader, he was indeed “the Captain,” and a man to be admired. A well-deserved honor.
NFL
–The Steelers agreed to a massive three-year, $123 million contract extension with star pass rusher T.J. Watt. At $41 million per, he’s the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback. $108 million is guaranteed.
This has been a contentious negotiation, with Watt a no-show at mandatory minicamp in June, but he’ll be in camp Tuesday when it opens, at lovely St. Vincent College in Latrobe.
The thing is he turns 31 in October and didn’t have a great season in 2024, by his standards, particularly during the Steelers’ season-ending five-game losing streak.
–After signing Garrett Wilson to a big deal, the Jets inked cornerback Sauce Gardner on a four-year, $120.4 million contract extension that makes him the highest-paid DB in the NFL.
I’m just not a fan…he’s a miserable tackler and he has only three interceptions and one forced fumble in 48 career games.
But he’s a shutdown corner for the most part. I just don’t think years 2 and 3 were anywhere near as good as his rookie season, when he was Defensive Rookie of the Year.
NBA
—Damian Lillard is returning to Portland on a three-year contract.
Lillard, 35, is recovering from a torn Achilles tendon he suffered in the playoffs. The Bucks are paying him the remaining $113 million on the final two years of his contract, and he became an unrestricted free agent.
–ESPN had a story on a “professional bettor (placing) 30 wagers in 46 minutes, all involving Terry Rozier in a 2023 NBA game.”
This happened at a sportsbook in Biloxi, Mississippi, $13,759 in bets on the unders on Rozier’s statistics in a game that night between the Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans, according to documents obtained by ESPN. All 30 bets won, after Rozier, an 8-year veteran with the Hornets at the time, exited 10 minutes into the game, citing a foot issue.
The NBA investigated unusual activity in 2023 and found that no league rules were violated. But Rozier is one of three NBA players known to have been under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. Rozier has not been charged or accused of any wrongdoing.
But he’s part of the same federal gambling investigation that led to former Raptors center Jontay Porter being banned from the NBA
Stuff
—Bill Dellinger, who ran the 5,000 meters for the United States in three Olympics and then became a successful coach at the University of Oregon, his alma mater, nurturing the careers of such standout runners as the Olympians Steve Prefontaine and Joaquim Cruz and the marathon runner Alberto Salazar, died in Eugene at the age of 91.
At Oregon, Dellinger coached the track teams for 26 years (1973-98) and the cross-country teams for 30 (1969-98). During that span, Oregon won three NCAA team championships in cross-country and one outdoor track title.
In 1980, Dellinger, who preached moderation in training, told Runner’s World: “Most runners have the false impression that the more miles they can run, the better they’re going to be. Mileage is beneficial only to a certain point, and once that’s reached, it becomes damaging. I do think holding a runner back is what the true art of coaching is about.”
–The music world lost a giant from the 1950s, early 1960s…Connie Francis, who died at the age of 87.
Francis was born in Newark, NJ, Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero, and grew up in nearby Belleville, going to Belleville High School.
She burst on the scene at the age of 19 and had a #4 Billboard Pop hit with “Who’s Sorry Now,” the first of 16 Top Tens, including the #1s “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool,” “My Heart Has A Mind Of Its Own,” and “Don’t Break The Heart That Loves You.”
She was the first woman to reach number one on the Hot 100 chart with “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool” in 1960. Connie was the #1 female vocalist in her era.
And she also starred in films such as “Where The Boys Are” and “When The Boys Meet The Girls.”
But she retired from performing after she was brutally raped at a Howard Johnson’s Lodge in Jericho, New York, 1974.
She would return to the recording studios in 1978, but she was never the same. And then in 1981, her brother, George, who she was very close to, was murdered by mafia hitmen after George, an attorney, had testified against mob activity and refused witness protection.
Top 3 songs for the week 7/12/69: #1 “In The Year 2525” (Zager & Evans) #2 “Spinning Wheel” (Blood, Sweat & Tears) #3 “Good Morning Starshine” (Oliver)…and…#4 “Love Theme From Romeo & Juliet” (Henry Mancini) #5 “One” (Three Dog Night) #6 “Crystal Blue Persuasion” (Tommy James & The Shondells…one of my all-time Top Ten tunes, top three…) #7 “Bad Moon Rising” (Creedence Clearwater Revival) #8 “The Ballad Of John And Yoko” (The Beatles) #9 “Color Him Father” (The Winstons) #10 “What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)” (Jr. Walker & The All Stars…perhaps the best beginning to any song, ever…B+ week…#1 ruins it…)
Cincinnati Reds Quiz Answers: 1) 250 home runs….
Johnny Bench 389
Joey Votto 356
Frank Robinson 324
Tony Perez 287
Adam Dunn 270
Ted Kluszewski 251
George Foster 244
2) 160 wins
Eppa Rixey 179
Tony Mullane 163 (1886-1893)
Paul Derringer 161
Bucky Walters 160
Hall of Famer Rixey was 266-251 for his career, 179-148 with the Reds, 1921-33.
Paul Derringer was 161-150 with Cincinnati, 1933-42, including a stretch, 1938-40, when he was 21-14, 25-7, and 20-12. Derringer was 223-212 for his career.
Bucky Walters was with Cincy 1938-48, and in 1939 won pitching’s Triple Crown, 27-11, 2.29 ERA, with (only) 137 strikeouts. He followed that up with a 22-10, 2.48 season in 1940. Walters was 198-160 over his career, but a very fine 160-107 with Cincy.
Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday.
