Sports Radio 1400 WSJM @wsjmsports wsjmsports.com Monday, May 18, 2015
MLB – Major League Baseball
Yesterday
St. Louis Cardinals 2, Detroit Tigers 1
Chicago White Sox 7, Oakland Athletics 3
Pittsburgh Pirates 3, Chicago Cubs 0
Cardinals 2, Tigers 1 – Wong, Lynn star as Cardinals beat Tigers to avoid sweep
Kolten Wong hit a tiebreaking home run in the sixth inning and Lance Lynn got his fifth career RBI to back his dominant pitching as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Detroit Tigers 2-1 on Sunday night to avoid a three-game sweep. Miguel Cabrera’s RBI double in the first was the only damage against Lynn (3-3), who gave a weary bullpen a break before walking the last two batters he faced at the end of his 7 1-3 innings. Seth Maness’ only pitch got a double-play ball to end the eighth and Trevor Rosenthal finished for his 13th save. Matt Carpenter added two hits and Peter Bourgos tripled and scored on Lynn’s single in the third. The Cardinals improved to a major league-best 25-12 despite having two players thrown at the plate. Alfredo Simon (4-2) gave up two runs in six innings for the Tigers, whose three-game winning streak ended.
White Sox 7, A’s 3 – Garcia, Ramirez each drive in 2 runs as White Sox beat A’s
Avisal Garcia hit a two-run homer, Alexei Ramirez had two hits and two RBIs, and Jeff Samardzija pitched eight strong innings to help the Chicago White Sox beat the Athletics 7-3 Sunday for their first series sweep in Oakland in 18 years. Jose Abreu and Gordon Beckham also drove in runs for the White Sox, who won their sixth straight and reached .500 for the first time this season. Max Muncy hit his first major league home run, a two-run shot in the fourth, as the A’s lost their fourth straight and fell to 1-12 in day games. Samardzija (3-2) allowed three runs and eight hits. He walked three and struck out five in his return to Oakland, where he made 16 starts for the A’s last year. Scott Kazmir (2-2) left with one out in the fifth after giving up five runs _ three earned _ and seven hits.
Pirates 3, Cubs 0 – Pirates stop 4-game slide with 3-0 win over Cubs
A.J. Burnett worked around five walks while pitching seven innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates stopped a four-game losing streak by cooling off the Chicago Cubs with a 3-0 victory on Sunday. Burnett allowed three hits and struck out seven while handing Jake Arrieta his first loss in six career starts against Pittsburgh. Burnett (3-1) has allowed two runs or less in each of his eight starts this year after losing 18 games with Philadelphia last season. Francisco Cervelli had a hand in Pittsburgh’s first two runs after the catcher was shaken up in the fourth when he was hit in the groin by a foul tip. He had an RBI single in the fifth, and then singled and scored on Neil Walker’s two-out double in the eighth. The Cubs had won six in a row and seven of nine. Rookie third baseman Kris Bryant was pulled after four innings, and the team said he was ill.
Today
Milwaukee (Fiers 1-4) at Detroit (Lobstein 3-3), 7:08 p.m. WSJM-AM/WCSY-FM 6:40
Cleveland (Kluber 1-5) at Chicago White Sox (Sale 3-1), 8:10 p.m.
Cubs are off
MLB – Cubs 3B Bryant pulled after 4 innings due to illness
Third baseman Kris Bryant has left the Chicago Cubs’ game against the Pittsburgh Pirates because he was feeling ill. Bryant was replaced by Jonathan Herrera before the start of the fifth inning on Sunday. The Cubs then announced that the rookie star had departed because he was “under the weather.” Bryant went 1 for 2 in the series finale. He hit .455 (10 for 22) with three homers and eight RBIs on Chicago’s seven-game homestand.
MLB – Tigers’ Greene on track to make next start
Detroit Tigers right-hander Shane Greene is expected to make his next start, bouncing back from a nerve issue his last outing. Greene threw a side session Sunday and said all went well. He was removed after five scoreless innings Friday with mild inflammation of the ulnar tendon that left him dealing with numbness and tingling. Greene said he got loose and made some hard throws, and was hopeful the injury was a “freak thing.” Greene is 4-2 with a 4.21 ERA in eight starts. He’s due to start next Wednesday at home against the Brewers.
NHL – 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs – Round 3 – Conference Finals (Best of 7)
Yesterday
Anaheim Ducks 4, Chicago Blackhawks 1 (ANA leads 1-03)
Game 1: Ducks 4, Blackhawks 1 –Ducks knock off Blackhawks 4-1 in WCF opener
Hampus Lindholm, Nate Thompson and Jakob Silfverberg each had a goal and an assist, and the Anaheim Ducks opened the Western Conference finals with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday. Frederik Andersen made 32 saves and Kyle Palmieri also scored for the Ducks. They opened their first conference finals in eight years with a strong all-around performance while improving to 9-1 in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Both teams’ top offensive stars were shut down in the opener, but the Ducks’ supporting cast contributed timely scoring, capped by Thompson’s goal with 7:55 to play and Silfverberg’s empty-net goal with 1:18 left. Brad Richards scored late in the second period and Corey Crawford stopped 23 shots for Chicago, which hadn’t lost since April 23. Game 2 is Tuesday night in Anaheim.
Yesterday
Tampa Bay Lightning at New York Rangers, 8:00 p.m. (NYR leads 1-0)
NHL – Chicago mayor raises stakes in hockey bet with Anaheim mayor
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has upped his friendly bet with his counterpart in Anaheim, California, on the outcome of the NHL’s Western Conference finals. The Chicago Blackhawks face the Anaheim Ducks in a best-of-seven series that starts Sunday. Should the Blackhawks lose, the Chicago Democrat must give Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait a barrel of Garrett’s Popcorn, beer from Slap Shot Brewing Co., and neon green relish from Vienna Beef. Emanuel also would make contributions to Becoming A Man, an organization for at-risk boys. He says he has “absolute confidence” the Blackhawks will win, but he’s prepared the items in “the unlikely case that things don’t go our way.” Tait bet craft beer from local breweries, a case of Anaheim chilies and a contribution to ACT Anaheim.
NBA – 2015 NBA Playoffs – Round 2 (Best of 7)
Last Night
Houston Rockets 113, Los Angeles Clippers 100 (HOU wins 4-3)
Game 7: Rockets 113, Clippers 100 – Rockets finish off comeback over Clippers
James Harden poured in 31 points and the Houston Rockets never trailed in taking Game 7 of the NBA’s Western Conference semifinals, 113-100 over the Los Angeles Clippers. Dwight Howard finished with 16 points and 15 rebounds for the Rockets, who are in the conference finals for the first time since 1997 after becoming the ninth team to erase a 3-1 series deficit.
Golf – PGA – McIlroy rolls to Wells Fargo title
Rory McIlroy is the first two-time winner of the Wells Fargo Championship following a dominating seven-shot victory over Webb Simpson and Patrick Rodgers. The top-ranked McIlory followed Saturday’s 61 with a 3-under 69 to finish at 21-under 267, shattering the tournament record by five strokes. It is McIlroy’s second victory in the past three weeks, and his 11th on the PGA Tour. He won the Match Play Championship this month in San Francisco. He has six top-10 finishes in his last eight PGA Tour starts. Rodgers finished with a 68, and Simpson shot 69.
Golf – Champions – Maggert wins a major
Jeff Maggert has won the Regions Tradition for his first Champions Tour major title, beating Kevin Sutherland with a 3-foot par putt on the first hole of a playoff. Maggert closed with an even-par 72 to match Sutherland at 14-under 274. Sutherland shot a 71. Maggert’s only previous Champions Tour win came in Mississippi last year in his first start on the 50-and-over tour.
Golf – LPGA – Lee up by 4 when play is suspended
Minjee Lee owned a four-stroke lead over Alison Lee when the final round of the LPGA Tour’s Kingsmill Championship was halted by darkness. Minjee Lee played a five-hole stretch in 5 under, capping it with an easgle on 15. The 18-year-old Australian was on the par-4 16th when the horn sounded. The final round was marred by a two-hour rain delay that will force play to resume Monday morning.
IndyCar – Dixon takes Indy pole
Scott Dixon had a four-lap average of 226.760 mph in qualifying Sunday to claim his second Indianapolis 500 pole. The Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver ended Team Penske’s streak of eight straight pole wins. Defending series champion Will Power will start second in the May 24 race after going 226.350 mph. Simon Pagenaud will start on the outside of Row 1. After Ed Carpenter’s car went airborne in practice, series officials instructed teams to make adjustments that took away power to the cars. It was the third crash this week in which a car lost contact with the track.
MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night
West Michigan 4, Lansing 3
Great Lakes 7, South Bend 4
Today
Great Lakes at Dayton, 7 p.m.
South Bend at Lansing, 7:05 p.m.
West Michigan at Bowling Green, 7:35 p.m.
AHL – American Hockey League – 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs – Round 2 (Best of 7)
Last Night
Grand Rapids Griffin 5, Rockford Ice Hogs 3 (GR wins 2-1)
Game 5: Griffins 5, Ice Hogs 3 – Griffins finish off Icehogs in five games
The Grand Rapids Griffins are moving on in the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup Playoffs. The Griffins beat the Rockford IceHogs 5-3 on Sunday to win the series four games to one. Grand Rapids will face either Utica or Oklahoma City in the Western Conference Finals, as Game Six in that series is tonight with Utica leading three games to two. The Griffins are the top minor league affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings and won the Calder Cup in 2013. The IceHogs are the affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks.
MHSAA – High School Sports
Tonight
Girls Soccer – SMAC Tournament – Round 1
Portage Central at Gull Lake, 6:45 p.m.
Mattawan at Lakeshore, 6:45 p.m.
St. Joseph at Kalamazoo Loy Norrix, 6:45 p.m.
BC Lakeview at Portage Northern, 6:45 p.m.
Kal. Home School at Kal. Central, 6:00 p.m.
Battle Creek Central at Niles, 5:00 p.m.
Girls Soccer – Wolverine Conference Tournament – Round 2
Coloma at Edwardsburg, 5:00 p.m.
Allegan at South Haven, 6:00 p.m.
Vicksburg at Paw Paw, 6:45 p.m.
Plainwell at Otsego, 6:45 p.m.
Berrien Springs at Dowagiac, 5:00 p.m.
Sturgis at Three Rivers, 6:45 p.m.
Girls Soccer
Michigan Lutheran at Cassopolis, 5:00 p.m.
Lake Michigan Catholic at Brandywine, 5:00 p.m.
Watervliet at Comstock, 5:30 p.m.
New Buffalo at Buchanan, 6:00 p.m.
Lawton at Delton-Kellogg, 6:00 p.m.
Bangor at Kalamazoo Christian, 5:00 p.m.
Saugatuck at Kalamazoo Hackett, 5:30 p.m.
Fennville at Parchment, 6:00 p.m.
Hartford at Schoolcraft, 5:00 p.m.
Baseball
Benton Harbor at Eau Claire, 4:15 p.m.
Fennville at Coloma, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Bloomingdale at Lake Mich. Cath. 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Bangor at Michigan Lutheran, 4:30 p.m.
New Buffalo at River Valley, 4:15 p.m.
Gobles at Bridgman, 4:15 p.m.
Softball
Benton Harbor at Eau Claire, 4:15 p.m.
Buchanan at Edwardsburg, 4:30 p.m. (DH)
Bloomingdale at Lake Mich. Cath. 4:30 p.m. (DH)
South Haven at Bridgman, 4:15 p.m. (DH)
New Buffalo at River Valley, 4:15 p.m.
Bangor at Watervliet Grace Christian, 4:30 p.m.
