Stanzel’s Sports Takeout — BREAKING NEWS: 7.29.24
Gopher football opens up versus North Carolina at home one month from today.
Jhonattan Vegas wins The 3M Championship in Blaine, his first tour win since 2017.
Three Things I Loved Watching in Paris
You think NBC makes the primetime coverage of gymnastics dramatic, try watching it (almost) in real time. Okay, I slept in, but still watched Suni and Simone and the gang around 8 a.m. Sunday. Simone Biles nursed a calf injury but it didn’t really matter, and she leads all gymnastics after qualifications. Saint Paul’s own Suni Lee shook off a poor floor exercise with a magnificent uneven bar routine to edge Jordan Chiles for the final spot in Thursday’s all-around final. The Americans are overwhelming favorites in Tuesday’s team final which will take place at a more reasonable 11:15 a.m. You’ve got to feel for Chiles, who probably could have won no worse than bronze in Thursday’s all-around, but only two athletes from each country can qualify. With Biles and Lee on Thursday, it’ll be the first time two Olympic all-around champs will compete in the same all-around final. Lee will also participate in three individual event finals.
Cross country equestrian. I’m not sure there’s ever been as scenic a venue for this in Olympic history. The event is on the grounds of Chateau de Versailles, home of King Louis XIV in 1862. They navigate almost 30 jumps through the woods, on a pontoon over the water and even through a fountain that hadn’t had water in it in 40 years.
American Torri Huske finished .01 seconds off the medal podium in Tokyo three years ago, and yesterday she beat favored countrywoman Gretchen Walsh by .04 seconds in the 100-meter butterfly.
What I’m Watching in Paris
Literally, right now, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic in tennis from Roland Garros. Nadal has been hurt and this may be his last competitive tournament, so he’s unseeded, allowing for these two stars to meet in just the second round. Nadal wasn’t even sure he was going to play singles, either. This match is his third in three days. The pair has met in 29 finals.
The U.S. men go for a gymnastics medal at 10:15 p.m. today. They were the fifth and final qualifier for the team final, but it’s not without possibility they could climb into the bronze spot.
The American women’s basketball team gets its tournament underway at 2 p.m. against Japan. They’ve also got Belgium and Germany in group play.
Twins Take Two of Three; Don’t Expect Much at Deadline
A report from Bob Nightengale claims the Twins will need to dump a salary in order to take on any more salary, which as I’ve mentioned is silly as the Pohlads are among the richest MLB owners. TV deal be damned, this is a pretty good team to not add anything at the deadline.
On the field, the Twins took two of three from the Tigers, including a 5-0 win on Sunday behind eight innings from Bailey Ober. He’s been good all year, but they’re going to need some shutdown innings like that in order to advance in October. Jose Miranda took a pitched ball off his helmet but is reportedly okay (easy for me to say).
The Twins have gotten within 4.5 games of first-place Cleveland, but just as importantly they’re two games clear of Kansas City and three up on Boston.
Minnesota is at the Mets for three this week before hosting the woeful White Sox for three at Target Field this weekend.
The trade deadline is Tuesday. I’ll be taping a new Make Glove not W.A.R. with Pat Donnelly, who writes for MLB.com, after the deadline.
Loons Lose Leagues Cup Opener
As expected, Seattle had little problem with Minnesota, beating the Loons 2-0 in the Leagues Cup Friday. The Loons host Necaxa of XM Liga in game two on Tuesday.
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