Get ready for A’s baseball in Vegas
Gov. Joe Lombardo signed a bill Thursday to give $380 million in public funding to help build the A's new stadium in Las Vegas.
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1. Get ready for A’s baseball in Vegas
Gov. Joe Lombardo signed a bill Thursday to give $380 million in public funding to help build the A's new stadium in Las Vegas, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Steve Carp.
Let me start by saying I love baseball.
Ever since my grandfather took me to the original Yankee Stadium as a 4-year-old in 1960, my passion for the game has been strong. Even despite commissioner Rob Manfred’s best efforts to destroy it.
So it pains me to say that this attempt to bring Major League Baseball to Las Vegas, the place I’ve called home for more than half my life, is wrong.
It has been done in a haphazard, strong-arm, fly-by-the-seat-of-the-pants fashion with no guarantees the public will be protected in the Oakland Athletics’ attempt to secure public funding for a new stadium.
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo ordered the legislature into special session a week ago to debate and support him in passage of Senate Bill 1 which would give John Fisher, the billionaire owner of the A’s, $380 million towards a $1.5 billion, 30,000-seat stadium.
2. Why Kierstan Bell has been waiting for this Aces’ season for over 20 years
Las Vegas Aces forward Kierstan Bell has become a fan favorite inside Michelob Ultra Arena. This season, however, there's a fan she's been waiting on for about 20 years, writes The Sporting Tribune’s W.G. Ramirez.
Las Vegas Aces forward Kierstan Bell has become a fan favorite inside Michelob Ultra Arena.
It hasn't mattered when she's come off the bench since arriving after the 2022 WNBA Draft, the crowd has roared whenever her name has been announced, like Thursday night when she checked in with 1:53 left in the first quarter against the Seattle Storm.
This season, however, there's a fan she's been waiting for since 2003.
Perry Bell, her 54-year-old father, is back in her life after serving a 20-year sentence - for aggravated robbery, receiving stolen property, and several other offenses - and she couldn't be any more pleased.
"We had a relationship that was instantly clicking," said Bell, who finished with 12 points in the 96-63 victory over Seattle. "And we became like best friends."
3. Nuggets fly to Las Vegas to celebrate title after parade
The Denver Nuggets flew to Las Vegas to celebrate their championship Thursday night at Hakkasan after their parade.
The NBA champion Denver Nuggets headed to Hakkasan at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas for a victory celebration Thursday night after their championship parade and rally in Denver.
NBA Finals MVP Nikola Jokic and his teammates had dinner at Hakkasan, dining on signature dishes such as the Mongolian Wagyu Flat Iron, before making their way to Hakkasan Nightclub where they entered to cheers from the packed crowd at the stroke of midnight.
Players, including Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., Bruce Brown, Aaron Gordon, DeAndre Jordan, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Jeff Green, and others took over VIP tables on the stage and joined DJs Pauly D and Justin Credible in the booth and toasted their win with a 3-liter bottle of Perrier Jouet Brut Champagne.
4. Taylor’s grand slam puts the Dodgers back in win column
After being shut-out through five innings, the Dodgers found a way to escape with a 5-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Jake Dicker.
It was the night of the long-ball at Chavez Ravine on Thursday. Chicago slugged four solo home runs, two in the first inning and two in the fourth inning to take a 4-0 lead. Just as they were on Wednesday night, the Dodgers were shut out through five innings.
Despite a tough year at the plate, the one thing Chris Taylor is doing is hitting home runs. He's currently hitting .209, on pace to be his lowest average in a full-season with the Dodgers. After hovering around .260 for four straight seasons (2018-2021), this is the second consecutive season that Taylor's average has taken a massive dip. That being said, he's already surpassed his home run total from last season and perhaps his biggest of the year came last night.
Trailing 4-0, Taylor smacked a two-out fastball over the wall in left-field, a game tying grand-slam that could not have come at a better time. If he can't get on base consistently, hitting home runs is going to be what keeps CT3 in the lineup.
5. Ohtani leads Angels past Rangers, 5-3, to win the road series
Shohei Ohtani threw 6 strong innings and hit a pivotal 2-run home run in the bottom of the 7th inning to give the Angels an impressive victory and series win over the Rangers, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Brandon Deutsch.
Shohei Ohtani threw 30 pitches in the first inning, but managed to get enough outs early in at bats later on to get through 6 innings and finish with a quality start. Ohtani's pitching hasn't been as dominant as it was last season, but for him to not be missing bats (which is his strong-suit) and still find a way to get a quality start was already extremely impressive and an excellent sign moving forward. If his 6 innings of 2-run ball wasn't enough, add in his massive two-run home run in the bottom of the 7th inning that provided enough insurance for the Angels to win the game and it was another Shohei two-way masterclass.
Ohtani now has 10 home runs since May 30th, 6 of which have come in the last 7 games, and has hit .500 with 13 extra base hits over his last 12 games. Ohtani now boasts the only 1,000+ OPS in the MLB, has 22 home runs, 54 RBI's, and 10 stolen bases as well. Despite him not being as sharp on the mound recently, Ohtani's bat alone could win him the MVP if he continues to hit like this, but I just have a feeling one of Shohei's vintage dominant pitching performances is on the horizon.
6. Move to Big Ten should help USC’s attendance issue
Signature games in the Big 10 should lead to increased crowds at the Coliseum, writes The Sporting Tribune’s Adam Bradford.
After star quarterback Caleb Williams kept the ball himself and ran it in for the first of his three rushing touchdowns on the evening, he struck the signature "Heisman pose", channeling shades of Desmond Howard three decades prior. The Coliseum crowd erupted. USC was up 17-7, and the stadium was packed. Life was good.
That was the scene last November 26, when Williams and the Trojans took down archrival Notre Dame 38-27 to cap off an 11-1 regular season. The 72,613 fans in attendance at the Coliseum that night was the largest for a USC home game since the stadium's renovation that began following the 2017 season.
The problem is that this wasn't a trend, unfortunately. Despite an extremely successful first season under head coach Lincoln Riley in which the Trojans won 11 games and made the Pac-12 Championship Game and the Cotton Bowl, USC only once drew a home crowd of more than 70,000 fans.
7. Odds and Ends presented by Circa Sports
Here are some odds at Circa Sports if you’re thinking about placing a wager today:
8. Ticket Time presented by TickPick
Here are the “get in” prices for tickets if you’re thinking about going to a game today.
7:00 p.m. – Giants at Dodgers – $65
7:00 p.m. – Lynx at Sparks – $4
9. On the Air presented by The D Las Vegas
Here are the game times and television channels for professional teams in the region today.
5:00 p.m. – Angels at Royals – Bally Sports West
7:00 p.m. – Giants at Dodgers – SportsNet LA
7:00 p.m. – Lynx at Sparks – Ion
10. The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune
The Sporting Tribune’s Arash Markazi is joined by Armani Buckets, Ji Hae Wiley and Brandon Deutsch to talk about the Athletics moving one step closer to moving to Las Vegas after they were approved to get $380 million in public funds for a brand-new $1.5 million stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.
Listen to The Arash Markazi Show presented by The Sporting Tribune on The Mightier 1090 ESPN Radio in Southern California, 98.5 The Bet in Las Vegas and the Hawaii Sports Radio Network 95.1 FM and 760 AM in Hawaii. You can also listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher.
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That’s it for today. Talk to you on Monday!