Stanzel’s Sports Takeout — BREAKING NEWS: 7-17-23.
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There’s a new national champion in the Stanzel house.
It’s hard for the world No. 1 winning a major to feel like an upset, but it sure seemed that way when Carlos Alcaraz outlasted Novak Djokovic in a nearly five set Wimbledon final. It was just the fourth EVER grass tournament for Alcaraz, who has quickly ascended to the top of the world tennis rankings. He’s only the third man to win Wimbledon before his 21st birthday.
The Women’s World Cup down under is upon us, and the British Open too at Royal Liverpool. Lots of TV watching for the night owls (or early risers like me) ahead.
Twins Sweep Hapless A’s
The Twins fully took advantage of their three-game series with the last-place and soon-to-be-relocated A’s, sweeping three games in Oakland. Minnesota wakes up today with a 2.5 game lead in the AL Central.
It wasn’t easy - nothing is with this team. Saturday, Pablo Lopez squandered a 6-0 lead, and the Twins scored a single run in the seventh, eighth and ninth to secure the victory. Kyle Farmer’s solo shot in the seventh was huge, giving the Twins the lead back after Oakland had scored six straight.
Yesterday, the Twins won 5-4 despite an 0-for-18 batting performance from their first through five hitters. They’ve clearly not gotten a lot of secondary hitting this year - haven’t gotten much from the big guns either - so huge to win a game like this. A homer, double and four RBI for Alex Kirilloff.
A big inning in relief for Emilio Pagan. Don’t look now, but he’s allowed only seven baserunners and one run in his last seven innings in a setup role.
The Twins next head to an also middle-of-the-road Seattle team for four games beginning tonight.
Why Was WNBA Skills Comp Mid Afternoon on a Friday?
You know I am a champion of women’s sports. And I’ll call something out when I see it.
How in the world was the WNBA Skills Competition - and perhaps the best 3-point shooting display in basketball history - buried on a Friday mid afternoon?
New York’s Sabrina Ionescu broke both the WNBA and NBA record for most points scored in the 3-point contest. She made 20 consecutive treys at one point. Yet most had to catch a highlight later on.
I’m not sure what ESPN had going on the rest of the day and night, but come on.
The Lynx opens up the second half of the WNBA season in Atlanta on Tuesday.
Loons Tie L.A. Heading into Leagues Cup Break
One of the reasons the MLS schedule is seemingly never ending is because of all the breaks. And this year it’s a doozy - the league is off until August 20 for the Leagues Cup.
From the MLS press release:
In a monumental new chapter for North American soccer, beginning in 2023, all 47 MLS and Liga MX clubs will compete in a completely reimagined Leagues Cup: an annual, monthlong, Concacaf-sanctioned tournament. Leagues Cup 2023 will make history as the first major soccer tournament to feature every club from a pair of top-flight leagues. The MLS regular season will pause following the July 15 games for Leagues Cup play, and resume on August 20.
The Loons tied L.A. 1-1 Saturday heading into the break, which also includes the MLS All-Star Game this Wednesday. MLS All-Stars play Arsenal of the Premier League in Washington.
Wild Sign Duhaime to One-Year Contract
The Wild avoided arbitration with fourth line grinder Brandon Duhaime, signing him to a $1.1 million contract. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after next season.
That leaves the Wild to worry about Filip Gustavsson - and worry, I’m sure they are. VERY few NHL players get all the way to arbitration. It’s a terrible process - I’ve done enough research for arbitration cases that never went the distance. It’s rather humiliating for a player to see what his team REALLY thinks of him.
I still think there’s an outside chance Billy Guerin plays ultimate hardball and tries to trade the Gus Bus.
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