Thursday Morning Quick Hitters

The Boston Red Sox used their young guns to take a game from the California Angels in Anaheim. Jacoby Ellsbury had 3 hits and was a force on the basepaths and Jon Lester pitched 7 very strong innings to bring the Sox post season win streak against the Angels to 10 games. Jason Bay broke the ice for the Red Sox with a 2 run HR off John Lackey. The Sox take a 1 – 0 series lead with the 4 – 1 win.

The 1st game of the day show just how playoff ready the Philadelphia Phillies are. Cole Hamels pitched 8 innings of 2 hit ball and Brad Lidge scared the hell out of every Phillies fan in the 9th, but he closes it out and gives the Phillies a 3 – 1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. The Phillies take a 1 – 0 series lead.

Ryan Dempster couldn’t find the plate and it finally cost him in the 5th inning as James Loney hit a grand slam propelling the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 7 – 2 win over the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs took an early lead on a 2 run HR by Mark DeRosa, but the Dodgers were too strong for the Cubbies at Wrigley.

Bill Belichick denies yet another unfounded accusation from crazy man Al Davis.

Former Buffalo Bill and Denver Bronco Travis Henry arrested on cocaine trafficking.

Boise St reminded everyone they still exist last night with a blowout of LA Tech.

Monday Morning Quick Hitters

Clay Buchholz had another poor performance, losing to the Chicago White Sox 6 – 5.

The California Angels finished off a sweep of the New York Yankees with a 4 – 3 win.

The Minnesota Twins lost to the KC Royals 5 – 4 in 12 innings and also lost a game in the standings to the Chicago White Sox, now 1/2 game down.

A late inning rally got the Philadelphia Phillies over the Pittsburgh Pirates 6 – 3.

The NL East stayed tight Sunday, as the Florida Marlins stayed away from a sweep, and beat the New York Mets 8 – 2. The Mets are 2 games back of the Phils and the Marlins are 2 1/2 games back.

Former Portland Sea Dog Ryan Dempster dominated the St Louis Cardinals on the way to a 6 – 2 win. The Cubbies are now 4 games up on the Brewers and 7 up on the Cardinals.

Gabe Kapler, through 12 innings was 0 – 6 with 2 Ks and 6 LOB, but leading off the 13th, Kapler beat the Nationals wioth a walkoff HR. The Brewers beat the Nationals 5 – 4.

Arizona D-Backs pitcher Brandon Webb dominated on the mound and also added 2 RBIs on the way to beating the Atlanta Braves 6 – 1.

The LA Dodgers blow another save against the San Francisco Giants, losing to the Giants 5 – 4. The Dodgers are now 1 1/2 game back of the D-Backs.

Kyle Busch continued his absolute dominance in the NASCAR.

Michael Phelps won an improbable 2nd Gold in the 4×100 Men’s Freestyle. Trailing on the final turn, Jason Lezak, swimming anchor, swam the fastest leg in Olympic relay history, beating the world record holder to win the Gold.

Approximately 1 billion (insert Dr Evil joke here) people watched USA Basketball put away an early challenge from China, and finally beating them in prelim action, 101 – 70.

Nadal struggles to a 3 set win in Olympic tennis.

Seems the rain from home has followed Maine’s Olympic rowers.

Sunday Morning Quick Hitters

The Boston Red Sox continued their mastery over the AL Central, beating the White Sox 6 – 2. The win give the BoSox an 18 – 7 record against the AL Central. Chicago lost Jose Contreras for the rest of the season while he was trying to cover 1st on a Jacoby Ellsbury grounder.

The California Angels pounded the New York Yankees once again. Vlad Guerrero triggered a 8 run 8th inning with a HR starting the onslaught. The Angels won 11 – 4.

Tampa Bay came back again, beating the Seattle Mariners in 11 innings 8 – 7. The Rays tied their franchise record for total wins, 70. The Rays stayed 3 1/2 games up on Boston.

The Minnesota Twins took sole possession of 1st place with their 7 – 3 win over the KC Royals. Francisco Liriano looked very good again in his 2nd start back from the DL. The Twins are 1/2 game up on the Pale Hose in the AL Central.

Philadelphia Phillies starter Brett Myers did not like being told “boom…Outta Here” by manager Charlie Manual after 7 2/3 strong inning, arguing with his skipper on the mound and in the dugout during the Phillies 4 – 2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. All seemed calm after the game from all parties.

The New York Mets used huge rookie contributions to stay within 1 game of NL East leaders, the Philadelphia Phillies. Mets outfielder Daniel Murphy ( pinch hit 2 run HR) and starter Brian Stokes (5 2/3 innings, 6 Ks) helped the Mets to the 8 – 6 win over the Florida Marlins.

The St Louis Cardinals playoff hopes got a slight bit brighter with their 12 – 3 win over the NL Central leading Chicago Cubs. Troy Glauss, who was previously hitless against the Cubbies, hit 2 HRs and had 5 RBIs. St Louis’ win puts them 6 games behind the Cubs.

The Milwaukee Brewers gained a game in the standings by beating the Washington Nationals 6 -0. The win marks the 1st time since 1992 that the Brewers has back to back complete game shutouts by their pitching staff. The Brewers are now 4 games behind the Cubs.

The Arizona Diamondback’s playoff push may have taken a monstrous blow Saturday. 2nd Baseman Orlando Hudson broke his wrist attempting a tag. Hudson could be gone for the year. The Atlanta Braves used a 7 run 6th inning to top the D-Backs 11 – 4.

The Los Angeles Dodgers missed a golden opportunity to take sole possession of 1st place in the NL West Saturday, losing to the San Francisco Giants 3 – 2 in 10 innings. Jeff Kent gave the Dodgers the lead with a solo HR in the top of the 10th. Captain Fake Tan aka Jonathan Broxton quickly blew that lead when he had a wild throw home on a squibber, loaded the bases and allowed a line drive through the drawn in infield for a blown save. Manny “I Love LA” Ramirez had 3 more hits for the Dodgers. The win came on the Giants 50th Anniversary in San Francisco which Barry Bonds attended.

Michael Phelps won, what is likely the 1st of many Gold Medals setting a blazing world record of 4:03.84 in the 400M Individual Medley (IM consists of all 4 swimming strokes, freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly).

The Men’s Volleyball team overcomes shock and sadness to win their 1st match of the Olympics.

Dara Torres became the oldest competitor in Olympic swimming to win a medal, when at age 41, the US 4×100 freestyle team took home silver. Torres won her 10th Olympic Medal in her 5th Olympic competition.

US sprinter Tyson Gay feels good in 1st full workout in Beijing.

Denver Broncos linebacker Louis Green was carted off the field in a violent collision in the 1st quarter of Denver’s 19 – 16 loss to the Houston Texans.

Multi-year Multi-Million dollar RB Ryan Gran has a hamstring injury that is causing concern for the Packers.

Brett Favre was a huge hit in his 1st practice with the Jets.

Sports Vortex guest Paul Kuharsky has a nice story on David Garrard and his 1st full off season as starting QB.

The Los Angeles Lakers signed their 2nd round draft pick Sun Yue, who is currently playing for the Chinese Olympic Basketball Team.

Saturday Morning Quick Hits

Well Jason Bay, welcome to Boston!!! Bay scored both Red Sox runs, got on base 4 times, made 2 nice defensive plays and almost hit a walk off HR in the 12 inning. Trust me Mr. Bay, the days won’t all be like this. Bay just missed a HR in the 12 having to settle for a triple. The A’s then intentionally walked JD Drew to get to Jed Lowery, who left the bases loaded in the 10th. Lowery hit a chopper to Alan Embree that was too high to get and too slow for Bobby Crosby so Lowery beat the throw and Bay scored the winning run. Both starters, the A’s Justin Duchscherer and Tim Wakefield both pitched very solid games. The Sox won 2 – 1. More and more is coming out about Manny Ramirez. Gordon Edes has an absolutely bizarre account of Manny’s last Red Sox actions.

The California Angels beat the NY Yankees 1 – 0 in the Bronx. Torri Hunter continued an amazing stretch of offense for him, getting the game winning hit against Mo Rivera in the 9th inning. The win put the Angels 12 1/2 games uop in the AL West and the Yanks 5 games back of Tampa in the AL East.

With the Manny Ramirez show heading west to Los Angeles, The LA Dodgers played NL West leading Arizona Diamondbacks. Chan Ho Park gave up the 1 – 0 lead in the 7th inning with a HR to Tony Clark and a Steven Drew double, and Manny grounded into a 6-4-3 double play in the 9th, to give Arizona a 2 – 1 win. Arizona is now 3 games up on LA in the west.

Pedro Martinez returned to the mound for the Mets Friday night against the Houston Astros. Pedro went 5 good inning allowing 5 hits and 3 solo home runs. The Huston Astros loaded the bases in the bottom of the 8th and pinch hitter and former Red Sox 2nd baseman Mark Loretta launched a grand slam off reliever Aaron Heilman, leading the Astros to the 7 – 4 win over the Mets.

The Philadelphia Phillies missed an opportunity to increase their lead over the Mets, losing to the St Louis Cardinals 6 – 3. Cole Hamels got beat up and former Phillie Kyle Lohse took a no hitter into the 5th and finished with 6 strong innings. The Phillies stayed 1 game up on the Mets.

The Milwaukee Brewers’ offense came to life against the hapless Atlanta Braves in a 9 – 0 win. The win keeps the Brew Crew 3 games back of the Cubs.

Tampa stays 3 games up on the Sox by beating Detroit 5 – 2.

Jeff Karstens paid immediate dividends for the Pittsburgh Pirates, pitching 6 strong inning leading to a shutout of the NL Central leading Chicago Cubs. They beat the Cubs 3 – 0.

Another newcomer, Ken Griffey Jr., helped keep the Chicago White Sox 1/2 game up on the Minnesota Twins, with 2 hits and 2 RBIs and beating the KC Royals 4 – 2.

The Twins kept pace by beating Cleveland 4 -1.

NFL

Steve Smith went Muhammad Ali on Panthers CB Ken Lucas during practice on Friday. The Panthers are weighing disciplinary actions.

ESPN reports, shocker, Todd Sauerbrun suspended from the NFL a second time.

NBA

Ron Artest attempts to smooth things over with Yao.

The law claims another NBA player, Josh Howard arrested for street racing.

Don Nelson wins big arbitration case against Mark Cuban.

Paul Pierce still says he is “the best player in the world“.

SHOCKER!!! College Football

Georgia got 22 1st place votes to take the pre-season poll. The Top 5 teams are Georgia, USC, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Florida.

Better Late Than Never Quick Hitters

Well the aftermath of the Manny trade is far and wide. New England newspapers, websites and sports radio are rampant with after the fact Manny stories. Apparently Sox players had to beg Manny to go to Seattle from LA. Manny told the players he was going to be out 11 weeks with injured knees. Sox management threatened Manny with suspension if he didn’t play the 2nd game in Yankee Stadium, for the rest of the year. No matter how you look at it, the Manny Ramirez Era in Boston is over.

Bill Reynolds of The PriJo has a nice write up.

Dan Shaughnessy always has his $ .02.

And as always, a no holds barred approach from Gerry Callahan.

And from the other coast, everyone’s favorite, Bill Plaschke.

MLB

The California Angels spoiled I Rod’s debut with the Yanks, slamming them 12 – 6. Torri Hunter, Vlad Guerrero and Juan Rivera all blasted 3 run homers off Yankee pitching. The Angels are 11 – 2 post All Star break.

The Chicago Cubs complete a 4 game sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers with a 11 – 4 drubbing. Jim Edmonds continues his offensive surge, going 2 for 3, 2 HRs including a grand slam and 5 RBIs. The win put the Cubs 5 games ahead of both the Brew Crew and the Cards.

The Philadelphia Phillies move to 1 game up over the Mets in the NL East with an 8 – 4 win over the Washington Nationals. Rollins and Werth homered in thbe win. The Phils are winners of 5 straight.

Florida kept pace in the east beating the Rockies 12 – 2. Anibal Sanchez looked like his rookie form in 5 2/3 innings. Florida is coming off a day where they almost landed the biggest Marlin if all…Manny Ramirez.

The Minnesota Twins survive John Danks, their manager being tossed and unruly fans, to beat the Chicago White Sox 10 – 6, to move 1/2 game behind the Pale Hose. Ron Gardenhire got tossed when the umps changes a HBP to strike while it looked clearly like a HBP. Then the Twins fans on top of the White Sox dugout got into it with Ozzie Guillen and hats and balls began peppering the field. Guillen pulled his team off the field until order was restored.

NFL

The Miami Dolphins add 1 more QB to the competition.

Steven Jackson’s holdout reaches 7th day.

Sunday Morning Quick Hitters

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MLB Round-Up

Sox lose again in the land of Angels. Beckett looks great for 6 and then gives up 4 in the 7th. Vlad gets it started and Willy Aybar finishes them off. In a related story Air Force One may be making an unscheduled flight from Pawtucket, RI to California. In another related story, people are setting fire to eBay in Portland Maine.

Dan Haren’s 7 scoreless combined with Chad Billingsly’s rough 1st inning, Arizona beat the Dodgers 3 – 2. Former Sox Brandon Lyon made it interesting in the 9th giving up a leadoff HR to Jeff Kent and allowing 1 more to cross, but does just enough to get his 20th save.

Another former Sox (see a trend) Lenny DiNaaaaaaado hit Jose Molina in the 12 to bring home the winning run allowing the Yankees to beat the A’s 4 – 3. The Yanks offense continues its struggles leaving an astounding 21 runners on. Both closers blew leads in this 4 hour and 45 minute marathon.

The Brewers win its 3rd straight game, beating the Giants with offense this time. Prince Fielder homered for the 2nd straight game and Ricky Weeks had a 2 run double to spur the victory. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is reporting the Brewers prospect Darren Ford has been traded to Oakland for Huston Street. There is no MLB confirmation of the deal as of yet.

Evan Longoria blew open a pitchers dual between the Jays Roy Halladay and the Rays Matt Garza, in the 6th inning with his 1st career grand slam. Dan Wheeler closes out the game for his 4th save and moves Tampa 1 1/2 games up on the Sox.

The Cubbies lose their 2nd straight game to the Astros and 3rd straight overall, 4 -1 Saturday, as their bats fall silent again. Carlos Zambrano fell to 10 – 4 on the season, but tried to help his own cause with his second homer of the season in the 7th. Wandy Rodriguez went 6 2/3 for his 5th win of the season.

The Cardinals are steaming back into the race with the Cubs with their 4th straight win. The Cards are now just 2 games back of Chicago. Down by 5, the Cards came back with help from Albert Pujols who went 3 – 4 with 4 RBIs. The Cards bullpen shut out the Padres the rest of the way and the Cards came away with a 6 – 5 victory.

In a wild one in Miami, the Florida Marlins outlast the Phillies 9-5 for the victory. Cody Ross (4 – 5 and a homer short of a cycle) and Jorge Cantu drive the offense for the Marlins. Pat Burrell hit 2 homers for the Phillies. Kevin Gregg made it interesting in the 9th, loading the bases then striking out Ryan Howard on 3 pitches and getting the previously mentioned Burrell to ground out to end the game. The Phils are still 1 game up on the Mets…speaking of the Mets

Josh Fogg continued his resurgence for the Reds, beating the Mets 7 – 2. The Mets looked like the hapless Mets of the Willie Randolph era, hitting into 3 double plays, making errors and taking a called third strike, twice, wit the bases loaded.

Other scores Baltimore Magic struck Luke Scott as he walks off against the Tigers 11 – 10. The Nats rookie John Lannan helps his team over the Braves 8 – 2. Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer help demolish Texas 14 – 2. The win pulls the Twins to 1/2 game back of the White Sox, who lost to the Royals, 9 -1.

Other News

Greg Norman could be the oldest person to win a major PGA event today, as he leads the British Open by 2 strokes with 18 holes to go.

The little QB that could, Doug Flutie, along side JoPa, entered the College Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.

And just for the hell of it, The Indiana Fever beat the New York Liberty 71 – 55 in the WNBA’s first outdoor game. With temps hovering around 90 degrees, the teams did battle on a makeshift court at Arthur Ashe Stadium at the US Open facilities in NYC.