Weekday Morning Sports – Monday 4/24/17

sportsreport

95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports     @wsjmsports     wsjmsports.com     Monday, April 24, 2017

MLB – Major League Baseball
Last Night
Detroit Tigers 13, Minnesota Twins 4
Chicago White Sox 6, Cleveland Indians 2
Cincinnati Reds 7, Chicago Cubs 5

Tigers 13, Twins 4 – Hicks, Fulmer and Tigers rout slumping Twins 13-4
John Hicks had three hits, including his first career homer, and drove in five runs to lead Michael Fulmer and the Detroit Tigers to a 13-4 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. One day after the benches cleared when Tigers starter Matthew Boyd threw behind slugger Miguel Sano in retaliation for teammate JaCoby Jones being hit in the face, there was no sign of lingering hard feelings. Fulmer (2-1) allowed two runs on four hits in seven innings, striking out seven. Jim Adduci had three hits and two RBIs on the day he arrived from Triple-A Toledo and Alex Avila hit a two-run homer for the Tigers. Victor Martinez added three hits and two RBIs. Kyle Gibson (0-3) gave up seven runs _ six earned _ on eight hits in just 2 2/3 innings for the Twins, who went 2-7 on the home stand against AL Central opponents. Max Kepler and Eddie Rosario homered for the Twins, but Minnesota lost for the sixth time in seven games.

White Sox 6, Indians 2 – Cabrera, Holland lead White Sox to 6-2 win over Indians
Melky Cabrera drove in a pair of runs, Derek Holland tossed six strong innings and the Chicago White Sox busted out of an offensive funk for a 6-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Sunday.  Avisail Garcia and Leury Garcia each added run-scoring hits for Chicago, which had managed a total of six hits in the first two games of the series. The win snapped a three-game skid. Francisco Lindor homered for Cleveland, which had its five-game winning streak end. Holland (2-2) allowed one run on three hits in six innings. He walked three and struck out six in lowering his earned run average to 1.99. Holland is now 7-1 with a 2.27 ERA against Cleveland in his career. Indians starter Danny Salazar (1-2) allowed four runs on seven hits in five innings.

Reds 7, Cubs 5 – Bronson Arroyo goes 6 innings, leads Reds over Cubs 7-5
At 40, Bronson Arroyo gave the best performance during his long comeback, pitching three-hit ball over six innings Sunday as the Cincinnati Reds salvaged a 7-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Arroyo (2-2) allowed Anthony Rizzo’s two-run homer _ his third of the series _ and struck out seven batters for the first time since May 13, 2014. The lanky right-hander has needed more than two years to recover from Tommy John surgery.  Raisesl Iglesias gave up a pair of runs in the ninth before finishing off the Reds’ 3-7 homestand. Patrick Kivlehan’s bases-loaded double highlighted a four-run sixth inning off John Lackey (1-3) and decided a matchup of up-in-years starters. The 38-year-old Lackey and Arroyo have combined for 793 starts in the majors.

Tonight
Chicago Cubs (Anderson 1-0) at Pittsburgh (Kuhl 1-1), 7:05 p.m.
Kansas City (Vargas 3-0) at Chicago White Sox (Gonzalez 2-0), 8:10 p.m.
Tigers are off

MLB – Tigers OF Jones says he’s feeling OK after being hit in face
Detroit Tigers outfielder JaCoby Jones says he is feeling lucky a day after being hit in the face by a pitch that later sparked a benches-clearing tussle between the Tigers and Minnesota Twins.  Jones told reporters before not starting the series finale on Sunday that he took nine stitches in his lip after Justin Haley hit him with the pitch. He says his teeth are still sore but he had experienced no signs of a concussion. He plans to have a few more tests when the team returns to Detroit. Jones was taken to a hospital after being hit, but says he was able to have dinner later on Saturday night. Tigers starter Matthew Boyd was ejected later in the game after throwing behind Twins slugger Miguel Sano, who got into a shoving match with catcher James McCann as both benches cleared.

NBA – 2017 NBA Playoffs – Round 1
Last Night
Boston Celtics 104, Chicago Bulls 95                                          (Series tied 2-2)
Cleveland Cavaliers 106, Indiana Pacers 102                               (CLE wins 4-0)
Houston Rockets 113, Oklahoma City Thunder 109                       (HOU leads 3-1)
Utah Jazz 105, Los Angeles Clippers 98                                        (Series tied 2-2)

Celtics 104, Bulls 95 – Thomas scores 33, Celtics beat Bulls 104-95 to tie series
Isaiah Thomas scored 33 points, and the Boston Celtics beat the Chicago Bulls 104-95 Sunday to tie their first-round playoff series at 2-all. Boston blew a 20-point lead, but Thomas keyed a third-quarter run that put the Celtics back on top after Chicago briefly went ahead. Gerald Green made four 3-pointers on his way to 18 points, helping the top-seeded Celtics return the favor in Chicago after dropping the first two games at home. Al Horford added 15 points and 12 rebounds.  Game 5 is Wednesday in Boston. Jimmy Butler carried the Bulls with 33 points and nine assists.

Cavaliers 106, Pacers 102 – James helps Cavs hold off Pacers, earn sweep into 2nd round
LeBron James made a 3-pointer with 68 seconds left Sunday and the Cleveland Cavaliers hung on for a 106-102 series-clinching victory at Indiana. James finished with 33 points and 10 rebounds as he became the first player under the current playoff format to win 21 straight first-round games. He also set a league record with his 10th career playoff sweep. It sure wasn’t easy. After taking a 96-83 lead with 9:29 to go, the Cavs found themselves in a 102-100 deficit with 1:31 left. But James answered with the go-ahead 3-pointer and Cleveland sealed the win on James’ free throw with 1 second left. Lance Stephenson scored 22 points and Paul George added 15 but missed a 3-pointer that could have forced overtime in the closing seconds. It’s the first time the Pacers have lost a series 4-0 in their NBA history.

Tonight
Milwaukee Bucks at Toronto Raptors, 7:00 p.m.                           (Series tied 2-2)
Washington Wizards at Atlanta Hawks, 8:00 p.m.                        (WSH leads 2-1)
Golden State Warriors at Portland Trailblazers, 10:30 p.m.       (GSW leads 3-0)

NBA – Bulls’ Rondo fined for attempting to trip Celtics’ Crowder
The NBA has fined Chicago Bulls guard Rajon Rondo $25,000 for attempting to trip Boston Celtics forward Jae Crowder from the bench in Game 3 of their first-round series.  The league announced the fine hours before Game 4 tips off Sunday. The incident happened with 31.1 seconds remaining in the first quarter on Friday. Crowder jawed at the Bulls’ bench after hitting a jumper and Rondo _ sidelined by a broken right thumb _ extended his leg as Crowder walked by.  Rondo said afterward he was simply stretching his leg.

NHL – 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs – Round 1
Last Night
Ottawa Senators 3, Boston Bruins 2 – OT                                    (OTT wins 4-2)
Washington Capitals 2, Toronto Maple Leafs 1 – OT                     (WSH wins 4-2)

End of the first round

NHL – 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs – Round 2
East
(4) New York Rangers vs. (2) Ottawa Senators                            Gm 1 Thu. 7:00 at OTT
(2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (1) Washington Capitals                   Gm 1 Thu. 7:30 at WSH

West
(4) Nashville Predators vs. (3) St. Louis Blues                            Gm 1 Wed. 8:00 at STL
(2) Edmonton Oilers vs. (1) Anaheim Ducks                                  Gm 1 Wed 10:30 at ANA

NCAAFB – Police: Robertson in custody after sex crime charge filed
Police say former Michigan State defensive end Auston Robertson is in custody after being charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct. The Meridian Township Police Department updated a message on its website Sunday to say the 19-year-old was in custody. No additional information was provided. Robertson is accused of forcing a woman to have sex with him at her apartment on April 8. Shortly after prosecutors announced the charge on Friday, Michigan State said Robertson had been dismissed from the football team. The Associated Press sent an email seeking comment Friday from Robertson, who hasn’t been arraigned. Police dispatch directed inquiries about the case on Sunday to the county jail, where calls went unanswered. An email to the sheriff wasn’t immediately returned, and calls to the prosecutor’s office also went unanswered.

College student killed during hammer throw at track meet
A college student has died after being struck during a hammer-throw event at a track meet in suburban Chicago. Wheaton College officials say 19-year-old student Ethan Roser of Cincinnati was volunteering at a track and field competition at the school Saturday when he was accidentally struck by a hammer. The hammer used in such competitions is a metal ball attached to a steel wire. The athlete holds a grip at the other end of the wire and spins several times before releasing it. The hammer weighs as much as 16 pounds. The college says Roser was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, where he was pronounced dead.  Other details about the accident weren’t immediately released. School officials say Roser was a freshman from Cincinnati.

AHL – 2017 Calder Cup Playoffs – Round 1 (Best of 5)
Yesterday
Grand Rapids Griffins 5, Milwaukee Admirals 2                                      (GRG leads 2-0)
*Game 3 Wednesday at Milwaukee

ECHL – 2017 ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs – Round 1 (Best of 7)
Yesterday
Kalamazoo Wings 4, Toledo Walleye 3                                                    (Series tied 3-3)
*Game 7 Tuesday at Toledo

MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night
West Michigan 5, Lake County 2
South Bend 9, Dayton 8
Lansing 11, Bowling Green 2
Great Lakes 5, Fort Wayne 4

Tonight
Lake County at Great Lakes, 6:05 p.m.
Fort Wayne at West Michigan, 6:35 p.m.
South Bend at Lansing, 7:05 p.m.

MHSAA – High School Sports
Today
Baseball
Eau Claire at Benton Harbor, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Lawton at Bloomingdale, 4:30 p.m.
Gobles at Fennville, 4:30 p.m.
Decatur at Galesburg-Augusta, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Martin at Gobles, 4:30 p.m.
Niles at Vicksburg, 7:00 p.m.
Bangor at Michigan Lutheran, 4:30 p.m.
Saugatuck at Allegan, 4:30 p.m.

Softball
Eau Claire at Benton Harbor, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Lake Michigan Catholic at Lawrence, 4:30 p.m.
Bangor at Michigan Lutheran, 4:30 p.m.
Lawton at Bloomingdale, 4:30 p.m.
Gobles at Fennville, 4:30 p.m.
Decatur at Galesburg-Augusta, 4:30 p.m.
Martin at Gobles, 4:30 p.m.
Vicksburg at Coloma, 4:00 p.m.
South Haven at Holland Christian, 4:15 p.m.
Saugatuck at Allegan, 4:30 p.m.
Plainwell at Kalamazoo Christian, 4:00 p.m.

Girls Soccer
Battle Creek Central at St. Joseph, 6:00 p.m.
Gull Lake at Lakeshore, 6:45 p.m.
Berrien Springs at Lake Michigan Catholic, 5:00 p.m.
Brandywine at Michigan Lutheran, 5:00 p.m.
Portage Northern at Mattawan, 6:45 p.m.
G.R. Covenant Christian at Allegan, 6:45 p.m.
Edwardsburg at Bridgman, 5:00 p.m.
Watervliet at Hartford, 5:00 p.m.
Coloma at Lawton, 6:00 p.m.
Battle Creek Pennfield at Otsego, 6:45 p.m.
Paw Paw at Parchment, 6:00 p.m.
Coldwater at Three Rivers, 6:45 p.m.