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Long before the movie version, Arch Ward created a field of dreams. His was called “The Game of the Century,” and the Tribune’s sports editor based it on a perennial fantasy of baseball fans:If Sweetbread Bailey was pitching and Babe Ruth was batting, who would prevail?AdvertisementThe question was as frustrating as it is fascinating. One played in the National League, the other in the American League, and they never crossed base paths unless in a World Series.But Ward’s imagination conceived a means to settle such puzzlers: A contest pitting the best players of each league during a World’s Fair celebrating Chicago’s 100th birthday.Advertisement“A smart inspiration in the Tribune’s sporting department will give Chicago as an incident of the Fair, the baseball game of all time,” the paper reported on May 23, 1933. “The baseball managements could have found a million reasons why it could not be done but found every reason why it should be.”[Follow along with all of our 175th anniversary coverage and sign up to receive a special edition of Daywatch in your inbox with anniversary coverage]Crowds lined up at Comiskey Park on the morning of July 3, 1933, to buy bleacher tickets for “The Game of the Century” between American and National league all-star teams. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)The All-Star Game’s birth was a fortuitous byproduct of the Great Depression. In 1933, Edward Kelly, Chicago’s newly installed mayor, was worried. The city was committed to hosting a World’s Fair. But with millions of Americans out of work, how could Chicago attract enough visitors to ensure the fair’s success?Kelly took the question to Col. Robert R. McCormick, the Tribune’s publisher. There was some discussion of an athletic event, and McCormick turned the problem over to Ward, who had a talent for not only covering athletic events, but creating them.Ward knew that the novelty of an all-star game would get a few days advance coverage plus a post-mortem. The trick was to keep the public’s attention for much longer with headlines like that of the May 30 edition:“Simmons Increases Lead Over Ruth in poll. Babe Trails In First Returns From New York.”By Ward’s design, the lineups for the game were established by a democratic process. The Tribune asked readers to vote for their favorite players, and 47 papers quickly followed suit.Chicago Tribune sports editor Arch Ward, circa 1953. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)“The count will be forwarded to the Tribune every few days,” Ward explained. “At least twice the number of papers which have already joined will be enrolled in a few days, judging from the inquires over the weekend.”AdvertisementThat transformed the contest from a single ballgame into a daily face-off between fans. Some moved players around like a savvy manager. The American League had two hard-hitting first basemen. When the Yankees’ Lou Gehrig piled up an unbeatable lead, fans of the Athletics’ Jimmy Foxx still wanted him in the game.“Foxx once played third base for the Athletics and played it pretty well,” the Tribune noted. “The fans began voting for Foxx the third baseman.”But the White Sox’s Jimmy Dykes won the position, and the American League, bolstered by Babe Ruth’s two-run homer, beat the National League, 4-2.A decade earlier, Ward had cofounded the Golden Gloves with his counterpart at the New York Daily News, another Tribune paper. Their creation evolved into international boxing competition and added to the long list of Ward’s celebrity friends. The mornings of his professional bouts, heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano would have breakfast with Ward.Ward didn’t tout his own celebrity. His personal style was unassuming, the product of a Middle American upbringing of which he was proud. Born on a farm near Irwin, Illinois, he returned there shortly before his death for a final look at the barn of his youth.“I made baseballs with twine, black tape and glue,” he recalled. “I practiced pitching against the side of that barn. I pictured myself as a major league pitcher or shortstop.”AdvertisementFred Miller, president of the Miller Brewing Company of Milwaukee, left, and Arch Ward, sports editor of the Chicago Tribune, sign a contract which gives the Miller company television and broadcast rights to the annual All-Star football game and an option to air the Golden Gloves in 1953. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)He liked to quote Knute Rockne, the famed football coach at the University of Notre Dame where Ward was a student and Rockne’s publicist.“The farm boy is the best prospect for America’s future leaders,” Rockne told Ward. “The city boy is too soft, and his schools make him mushier with their talk about character building.” Rockne grew up in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood.Named the Tribune’s sports editor in 1936, Ward inherited the “In the Wake of the News” column, a potpourri of gossip, quips and readers’ contributions. One reader reminded Ward of his predecessor Ring Lardner’s description of a White Sox rally: “This consisted of ‘a dropped third strike,’ a ‘base on balls, a scratch hit, an error, and a close decision.’ ”Ward’s forte was athletes’ profiles, dense with facts and sometimes running in several installments.But his words could capture an indelible moment. For instance, Joe Louis flooring Max Schmeling with a blizzard of punches at the opening bell of their 1938 heavyweight championship bout:“Schmeling knew then and there that there was no escaping this cold, expressionless figure whose opening blast blurred his eyes and raised a welt on his left cheek,” Ward recalled decades later. “A half smile caught on his face became a fixed grin.”AdvertisementIn 1932, Ward ignited another fans’ debate, by noting that Jack Chevigny, coach of the Chicago Cardinals professional football team, thought that the 1930 Notre Dame squad was the best football team he had ever seen.“The conductor of this column has received hundreds of letters commenting on Chevigny’s ratings,” Ward reported. “Professional players, college coaches, and fans who lay it on the line every Sunday have had their say.”Max Krause, fullback of the Washington Redskins, crashes over the goal line from the 2-yard line in a battle with the College All-Americans on Aug. 31, 1938. The game, witnessed by 74, 250, was won by the All-Stars, 28 to 16. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)Capitalizing on its readers’ enthusiasm, Ward created, and the Tribune sponsored, a 1934 College All=Star game in Soldier Field. It began with a deafening display of pageantry, as the paper reported:“A huge spotlight shined down from a far corner of the field. The band struck up ‘The Maize and the Blue’ and Michigan men and women began to shout. Then into the spotlight alone stepped Michigan’s great center Chuck Bernard. Next came the songs of Purdue and Pittsburgh, and Fritz Febel of Purdue and Frank Walton of Pittsburgh, guards on this great All- American team, took their turns before the floodlights.”When all the school songs were sung, 79,432 fans saw the college players and the Chicago Bears, champions of the National Football League, battle to a 0-0 tie. The Associated Press reported: “Collegians Outplay Champions of Pro League, Gaining Six First Downs to Three”Vintage Chicago TribuneWeeklyThe Vintage Tribune newsletter is a deep dive into the Chicago Tribune’s archives featuring photos and stories about the people, places and events that shape the city’s past, present and future.The proceeds of the game went to charities, as did those from subsequent games, until the series ended in 1976.AdvertisementWard died in 1955, a few days before the All-Star (baseball) game. His funeral, set for the day of the game, resembled a monarch’s coronation. The game was set back an hour, so baseball’s honchos could get back from Chicago in time to see the first ball thrown out in Milwaukee.Pallbearers including Don Maxwell, managing editor of the Tribune, Stuart Owen, assistant managing editor, Wilfred Smith, George Strictly, Ed Press and Dave Condon of the sports department, carry Arch Ward’s casket for burial on July 12, 1955. (Ray Gora / Chicago Tribune)Bishop Bernard Shiel led the services at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church on Belmont Avenue. Rocky Marciano interrupted his training and flew in from New York. Former boxing champions Barney Ross and Tony Zale were there. So, too, were yesteryear stars of every sport Ward wrote about.The Rev. Theodore Hesburgh, Notre Dame’s president, preached the sermon. “Arch Ward had a passion for sincerity and fair play, a love of good and his fellow men,” Hesburgh said. “In the process he became immortalized in the hearts of millions.”When the collegians kicked three field goals to beat the Cleveland Browns in that year’s All-Star Football Game, the Tribune noted that Ward had a special affection not for the most gifted but those who give it their all.“Knute Rockne’s successors down at Notre Dame, when all else failed, used to tell their squad, ‘This one is for Rock,’ and their young pupils responded like tigers,” the Tribune wrote. “We hope we are not too trite in suggesting that this one was for Arch Ward.”Sign up to receive the Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter at chicagotribune.com/newsletters for more photos and stories from the Tribune’s archives. Have an idea for Vintage Chicago Tribune? Share it with Ron Grossman and Marianne Mather at rgrossman@chicagotribune.com and mmather@chicagotribune.com.

DENVER — Looking like by far the better team against the defending champions, the Colorado Avalanche overwhelmed the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday night to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.Valeri Nichushkin scored his seventh and eighth goals of the playoffs and continued to be the best player on the ice, Game 1 overtime hero Andre Burakovsky beat Andrei Vasilevskiy again and even defensive defenseman Josh Manson and 35-year-old grinder Darren Helm got in on the fun with a goal apiece. Playoff MVP front-runner Cale Makar scored twice in the third period, inciting chants of “We want the Cup!” from a fired-up crowd.Advertisement“They’re playing at an elite level right now — give them credit. We are not,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. Rarely have the Lightning been outclassed during this run of postseason success, but they also hadn’t faced an opponent like the Avalanche, who forced them into one uncharacteristic mistake after another. The Avs were dominant in every facet of the game to move two victories away from their first title since 2001 and the first by this core led by Nathan MacKinnon.AdvertisementThe Avalanche go to Tampa, Fla., for Game 3 on Monday night up in the series despite no goals in the series from MacKinnon. They still became just the third team in NHL history to score three-plus goals in the first period of Games 1 and 2 in the final.Goaltender Darcy Kuemper celebrates after the Avalanche defeated the Lightning 7-0 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday in Denver. (John Locher/AP)“We played a pretty good game,” Helm said. “We just played a full 60-minute game.”The dominant performance started by pouncing on an early mistake by typically reliable Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak when he bobbled the puck at the blue line on one of the game’s first shifts. It was all Avalanche after that.Their aggressive forecheck led them to draw a penalty on veteran Ryan McDonagh, scoring on the ensuing power play when Burakovsky fed Nichushkin for his first of the night. It wasn’t his last, and the Avalanche poured it on with six of the game’s first seven shots and complete territorial domination with much of the game played in the Lightning end.“We came out with a purpose,” said forward Andew Cogliano, who returned after missing Game 1 with a right finger injury. “We got to our game, we skated from the drop of the puck and we just didn’t let up. “With Vasilevskiy — whose play was the key to the Lightning’s incredible ability to bounce back after a loss in the playoffs — looking shaky and even dropping his head after letting Makar beat him clean on one of many 2-on-1 rushes, the Avalanche made the most of all their offensive zone time. The highest-scoring team this postseason put on a clinic against the team that has played more hockey than anyone else over the last two years.That finally might be taking its toll, and it’s exacerbated by the blazing speed with which the Avalanche play. They again not only outskated the Lightning but used quick feet to force errors that turned into goals.“Am I shocked that we lost 7-zip?” Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said. “I mean, I don’t think we saw that coming.”AdvertisementThe Lightning fell to 18-2 after a loss since the start of the first round in 2020. The streak of 18 in a row ended in the Eastern Conference final against the New York Rangers when the Lightning fell behind 2-0 before roaring back, though it’s hard to see the Avalanche falling into the same trap.Even if players brush off the concept of momentum from game to game during a playoff series, their romp over the champs combined with a 7-0 road record should fill the Avalanche with confidence. But they might again need to dip into their pool of depth because of injuries.After getting Andrew Cogliano back from missing the series opener with a right finger injury, the Avalanche lost Burakovsky again in the second period. Burakovsky blocked a shot in the first game in the West final and has been playing through pain since. Coach Jared Bednar said he would be reevaluated ahead of Game 2.The Avs are inflicting plenty of pain on the Lightning, who resorted to some rough stuff after falling behind. Of course, even MacKinnon was throwing hits in the third period despite the game being well in hand.The Avs’ Darcy Kuemper barely was tested in net, picking up the shutout with 17 saves.“He was just rock solid,” Manson said. “He was exactly what we needed to be.”

At one point this season, you might have been encouraged to come out to Soldier Field to support the Chicago Fire, who were unbeaten and in second place in the Eastern Conference.Fast forward about 90 days and it’s a very different picture.AdvertisementThe Fire entered Saturday night’s home match against D.C. United last in Major League Soccer with just 11 points from 14 matches and winless since March 19. No team had scored fewer goals than the Fire’s 13 entering the weekend.And designated players Xherdan Shaqiri (hamstring), currently the league’s highest-paid player, and Jairo Torres (hip) missed the match because of injuries, putting even more stress on a team that has rebuilt twice in the last three seasons under sporting director Georg Heitz and technical director Sebastian Pelzer.AdvertisementBut the Fire might have alleviated some of those burdens with a 1-0 victory thanks to Fabian Herbers’ headed goal in the 78th minute.“Luckily I got the goal at the end, so I’m happy to help the team,” Herbers said. “It’s a huge push for us in the right direction hopefully, and hopefully we can continue to build on it and keep going.”Herbers’ goal helped the Fire snap a 10-game winless streak.“Hopefully we can change the narrative about this team that this is a team that can’t close out games,” coach Ezra Hendrickson said. “We showed tonight that we have what it takes.”But even with the victory, the math still might be against the Fire (3-7-5, 14 points) if they want to play postseason soccer.Excluding the pandemic-altered 2020 season, the final playoff spot in the East the last four seasons went to teams that finished with 48 points (2021), 45 points (2019) and 50 points (2018 and 2017).That means the Fire, who finished third with 55 points in 2017, need to have Supporters’ Shield-like form — typically about two points per game — over their final 19 matches to even have a shot at qualifying for the playoffs.“What I said to (the players) after the game is remember this feeling,” Hendrickson said. “Remember how good this feels to walk off a pitch when you’ve played well knowing that you didn’t give the game away or you didn’t lose the game. … Consistency is something we need to work on.”AdvertisementThe Fire approached the recent international break as an opportunity break out of their recent funk.“We got a chance to analyze what we had been doing up to this point,” defender Jonathan Bornstein said. “Got a good amount of time to put in the work and watch videos, just really prepare for this next game. A lot of it was that we spoke about where we were at in the season, being realistic and reevaluating everything prior to this game.”Hendrickson warned the Fire would experience “growing pains” this season and touched on the need for patience Wednesday during his weekly news conference.“It’s not so much patience because guys are young, but it’s patience because it’s a relatively new team,” Hendrickson said Wednesday. “It’s going to take a while to get guys to mesh and jell with each other, and now you have also a new coach with a new philosophy that they have to also grasp.Advertisement“So … when I talk about patience, it’s not so much about age or anything like that, it’s about giving time to develop. And we’re seeing the progress. We’re definitely seeing the progress. If we were sitting here and we were losing every game 3-0, 4-0, 5-0, we would have an issue.”To Hendrickson’s point, the Fire probably aren’t as bad as their record.But even after Saturday’s result they have 0.93 points per game, a rate that isn’t dissimilar to 2015-16, when the Fire finished last in MLS with 30 points (0.88 PPG) and 31 points (0.91 PPG).That’s not to say the Fire will end this season with their third Wooden Spoon, a fan-created “honor” awarded to the team that finishes at the bottom of MLS. But the margins are thin and the Fire need to build on Saturday’s victory.They might have to do so for some time without Shaqiri, who leads the Fire with six assists and entered Saturday the team’s joint-top scorer with three goals. Torres has been dealing with his injury off-and-on since joining from Atlas FC in May.AdvertisementThe severity of Shaqiri’s injury was not announced, but Hendrickson said the Fire hope the midfielder is fit for their next match against the Houston Dynamo on Saturday.“Hamstrings are very tricky, so we’ve got to be careful with that,” Hendrickson said.The Chicago Fire, including goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina, stand on the field before their home opener against Orlando City at Soldier Field, March 5, 2022. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)The Fire goalkeeper and Addison native has been the subject of several transfer inquiries, with English Premier League club Chelsea and European and Spanish La Liga champions Real Madrid interested in the 18-year-old.Any deal for Slonina likely would include a loan back to the Fire for at least the rest of the season.AdvertisementHendrickson declined to comment on the speculation Wednesday but said he’s not worried about Slonina losing focus in the meantime.“It’s really good that he’s kept his head and stayed focused because that could be really distracting,” Hendrickson said. “This is something we really can’t discuss and just let the guys do the negotiations … handle that stuff and we just want to focus, me and my staff on the games coming up.”

BROOKLINE, Mass. — Will Zalatoris and Matt Fitzpatrick avoided the carnage and calamity that took down golf’s best Saturday at a U.S. Open that set the tone for a final day of survival.Zalatoris, who lost in a three-hole playoff at the PGA Championship last month, made only one bogey — a staggering feat on a beast of a Brookline course — for a 3-under 67.Advertisement“Felt like I shot a 61,” Zalatoris said. “Whenever I made a mistake I was able to get away with it or pull off something miraculous.”Fitzpatrick, already a champion at The Country Club with his U.S. Amateur title in 2013, was equally steady and ran off three birdies over his last five holes for a 68. He will be in the final group of a major for the second straight time.AdvertisementMost telling was they didn’t make any double bogeys.Will Zalatoris pumps his fist after making a birdie on the fourth hole during the third round of the U.S. Open on Saturday at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass. (Charles Krupa/AP)Matt Fitzpatrick of England prepares to putt on the 18th green during the third round of the U.S. Open on Saturday at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass. Fitzpatrick shot a two-under 68 and has a share of the lead at 4 under entering the final round. (Ross Kinnaird / Getty Images)That’s what knocked defending champion Jon Rahm out of the lead on the final hole. The Spaniard thought he had seen it all — including a shot he played backhanded from the base of a tree on the eighth hole — when he took three swipes from sand in two bunkers.Rahm’s first shot from a fairway bunker hit the lip and nearly rolled into his footprint. His next shot found a plugged lie in a greenside bunker, and two putts later he had a 71 and went from one ahead to one behind.Rahm wasn’t upset with his swing on the final hole. If anything, he said it was getting dark and he didn’t notice his ball sitting in the sand. The USGA sent the last group off at 3:45 p.m. to maximize television exposure.Rahm was looking ahead instead of what he left behind.Jon Rahm, of Spain, reacts after a putt on the 18th green during the third round of the U.S. Open on Saturday at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass. Rahm is one stroke back entering the final round. (Charles Krupa/AP)“I have 18 holes, and I’m only one shot back,” he said. “That’s the important thing.”Zalatoris and Fitzpatrick were at 4-under 206, the same score of the 54-hole lead when the U.S. Open last was at The Country Club in 1988.It’s not like Rahm had full rights to the lead. The day was so wild that Rahm was among eight players who had at least a share of the lead at some point. Three of them didn’t even finish among the top 10, including two-time major champion Collin Morikawa.AdvertisementMorikawa, who shared the 36-hole lead with Joel Dahmen, had double bogeys on the seventh and 13th holes and might have had a third after a chunked wedge on No. 4 except that he made a 25-foot putt for bogey. He finished with a 77.Masters champion Scottie Scheffler was not immune. The world’s No. 1 player looked to be pulling away when he holed a wedge from some 80 yards for eagle on the par-5 eighth.He was at 6 under and cruising until his wedge to a back pin on the 141-yard 11th hole bounced hard over the green and into deep rough. He took two to the green and two puts later was no longer leading. And it only got worse as three straight bogeys followed and he shot 71.Seven of the top 12 players going into Saturday made at least one double bogey in strong wind and cool temperatures that made this sweater weather in June.Rory McIlroy was not on that list. His was more of a slow bleed, mostly from a putter that wasn’t behaving. He made one birdie in his round of 73.All that, and this U.S. Open was far from settled.Advertisement“It was one of the toughest days on a golf course I’ve had in a long time,” McIlroy said. “I just needed to grind it out, and I did on the back nine. To play that back nine at even par today was a really good effort, I thought. Just kept myself in the tournament. That’s all I was trying to do. Just keep hanging around.”Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts after missing a putt on the sixth hole during the third round of the U.S. Open on Saturday at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass. (Robert F. Bukaty/AP)Twenty-three players were under par going into the third round. Only nine remain with 18 holes remaining, all of them separated by three shots.That includes a local star — maybe not the Francis Ouimet variety, but Keegan Bradley is big enough in Beantown that he heard his name chanted loudly and proudly as he marched up toward the 18th green. A former PGA champion, he called it “probably the highlight of my whole entire life.”He gave them reason to cheer. Three over through seven holes, Bradley answered with passion and birdies, five of them over his last 11 holes for a 69.He was two shots behind with Adam Hadwin (70) and Scheffler). McIlroy was three back along with Sam Burns (71) and Dahmen, who didn’t make a birdie in his round of 74 but stayed in the game because he didn’t have any big blunders.The average score was 73.5, and only seven players broke par. Denny McCarthy made the cut on the number at 3-over par. He finished his 68 before the leaders even arrived at the course. By the end of the day, he was tied for 11th, five shots behind.AdvertisementThe U.S. Open played every bit like one.“I knew it was going to be hard,” Dahmen said. “I didn’t know it was going to be that hard.”

HOUSTON — Johnny Cueto volunteered to pitch Sunday when the Chicago White Sox needed help after starter Michael Kopech exited in the first inning with right knee discomfort.Cueto entered in the third against the Texas Rangers and tossed five innings in the second relief appearance of his 15-season career.AdvertisementHe was back in his usual starter’s role Saturday against the Houston Astros and was in complete control against one of the best lineups in baseball.Cueto allowed two hits, struck out five and walked two in seven innings, pitching the Sox to a 7-0 victory against the Astros in front of 36,747 at Minute Maid Park.Advertisement“I just tried to keep the ball low in the zone because I know that they can hit,” Cueto said through an interpreter. “I was good with executing.”White Sox starting pitcher Johnny Cueto pumps his fist after helping turn a double play against the Astros during the seventh inning Saturday in Houston. Cueto tossed seven innings of two-hit ball in a 7-0 Sox win. (David J. Phillip/AP)A few hours after the Astros scored 10 runs in one inning during Friday’s 13-3 victory, Cueto kept them off-balance to earn his first win with the Sox.“(Friday) night was a bad game for us,” Cueto said. “But I always say you need to keep your head up. Keep your head up and be optimistic and come back the next day and try to do your job.”Cueto (1-3) did just that.The only hits he surrendered were a Jose Altuve single to center leading off the first and an Alex Bregman infield single leading off the seventh. Both of those runners were erased on double plays.Cueto helped the Sox to their first win at Minute Maid Park since May 23, 2019, snapping a streak of seven straight losses — including two in the 2021 postseason.“That’s pitching at its finest,” Sox manager Tony La Russa said.Cueto hadn’t received much run support since joining the Sox. That changed Saturday against Justin Verlander.AdvertisementThe entirely right-handed-hitting starting lineup had success, often taking the ball the other way.“We know you are going to have to stay on the ball because he’s a Hall of Famer to be, so I thought it was a very intelligent approach,” La Russa said.Danny Mendick and Andrew Vaughn singled to right, loading the bases with one out in the third. Luis Robert brought two home with a single to right for the game’s first runs.José Abreu drove in two with a double to left, extending the lead to 4-0.The hot hitting continued in the fourth. Josh Harrison singled to right and scored when Vaughn’s hard-hit grounder went through the legs of second baseman Altuve. Robert had a two-run double down the left-field line, stretching the lead to 7-0.Robert had three hits and four RBIs. Vaughn had three hits and scored twice.Advertisement“My approach was the same as always,” Robert said through an interpreter. “I just tried to make good contact and put the ball in play.”White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu, left, and center fielder Luis Robert celebrate after a 7-0 win against the Astros on Saturday in Houston. (David J. Phillip/AP)Verlander exited after Robert’s hit in the fourth. He allowed seven runs, four earned, on nine hits with three strikeouts in 3⅔ innings. His ERA went from 1.94 to 2.30.“After that support, I just said ‘OK, I just need to keep the game as it is right now, I need to keep my focus,’ ” Cueto said. “Because sometimes you can lose it. And I was able to do that.”Cueto’s ERA went from 3.53 to 2.95. He has pitched at least six innings in each of his six starts.“With his contribution to what we are doing, that’s how he has pitched his whole career,” La Russa said. “He has given us a tremendous lift.”The Sox had been held to three runs or fewer in four of Cueto’s first five starts. The one time they surpassed the mark was in his Sox debut May 16 in Kansas City, Mo., where Robert hit a two-run homer in the 10th for a 5-3 victory.Advertisement“It’s nothing personal, Johnny,” La Russa said. “But that’s a makeup (Saturday). Against a guy like Verlander, a lot of really good at-bats. Stringing hits together, hitting down in the count. It was a lot of major-league hitting (Saturday).”And big-time pitching from Cueto, who said he didn’t feel any linger effects from the relief appearance.“I just like to work,” Cueto said. “Work hard, execute, try to keep the ball low in the zone and work hard to stay healthy. That’s the most important thing.”The Sox played Saturday without third baseman Yoán Moncada, who left Friday’s game in the third inning with right hamstring tightness.“We’re going to wait, wait it out (Sunday) and see how he is Monday,” La Russa said. “Got checked today. There’s something there, but it’s not so much of a problem that we can’t be a little bit patient to see if it comes through. See how he feels.”The Giants have claimed C/1B Yermín Mercedes off waivers from the White Sox. He’s been optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. C Michael Papierski has been designated for assignment.— SFGiants (@SFGiants) June 18, 2022

Former Sox designated hitter Yermín Mercedes was claimed off of waivers by the San Francisco Giants. Mercedes, who was named the AL Rookie of the Month for April in 2021 but cooled off and was optioned to Charlotte on July 2, was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Northwestern leading scorer and rebounder Pete Nance is transferring to North Carolina.The 6-foot-10, 225-pound senior forward announced his commitment to play his fifth year for the Tar Heels in a social media post Saturday. It’s a significant addition for North Carolina, offering a potential replacement for departing starter Brady Manek from a run to last season’s NCAA championship game.AdvertisementNance averaged 14.6 points and 6.5 rebounds for the Wildcats last season and shot 45.2% from 3-point range.The Tar Heels return four starters in big man Armando Bacot, guards Caleb Love and R.J. Davis and versatile swingman Leaky Black. But Nance offers size with the ability to stretch defenses after UNC lost the 6-9 Manek, who transferred from Oklahoma and averaged 15.1 points while shooting 40.3% on 3-pointers.AdvertisementWith Manek helping to space the floor, the Tar Heels made a late-season push to a record 21st Final Four before falling to Kansas in the NCAA final in Hubert Davis’ debut coaching season.

CINCINNATI — On the same date that he reached 10 years of major league service, the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday designated for assignment two-time All-Star outfielder Lorenzo Cain.Cain, 36, hit .179 with one home run and nine RBIs over 43 games this season.Advertisement“It just got to a point where it’s probably time,” Cain told a small group of Brewers’ beat writers. “I haven’t been performing like I would’ve liked, but the situation is what it is. I’ve had a great career. I can’t really be upset about anything, but, yeah, it’s time. I wish all my teammates the best, coaches, trainers, everybody that I’ve played with or met throughout my entire career, I wish them nothing but the best. It’s been a really fun ride for me for sure.”Cain is in the last year of a five-year, $80 million contract he signed in January 2018 as a free agent. Milwaukee is responsible for the $10,897,121 remaining of this season’s $18 million salary. He is unlikely to be claimed off waivers because of his salary. If he is released, any team can sign him for a prorated share of the $700,000 minimum.AdvertisementWaiting until Saturday allowed Cain to be fully vested in the players’ pension fund.The center fielder played a key role for the 2015 World Series champion Kansas City Royals before signing with the Brewers, the team that originally drafted him before trading him in December 2010 to the Royals. He helped Milwaukee reach postseason play each of the past four seasons.“No doubt, he did his part,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “At the end, it was time for this. It was just time.”If Cain harbored any ill will, it didn’t show.“I would say it was mutual to part ways,” he said. “We have a really good team. I don’t think I was contributing the way I would’ve liked. I feel like they definitely had to make a move. I definitely would’ve liked to play a lot better – contribute to the team a little bit more – but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case this year.“At the end of the day, it’s been fun. I think that team can go really far. They’re really well-coached, well-managed. Those guys play their hearts out. I’m definitely gonna miss them. It’s been a fun ride for sure.”

When Mike Elias was first introduced as the Orioles’ executive vice president and general manager in November 2018, he sat between brothers John and Louis Angelos as he promised to bring an “elite talent pipeline” to Baltimore. Now, that process again finds itself in the middle of the sons of principal owner Peter Angelos.On Saturday, Elias said he didn’t believe the lawsuit Louis Angelos filed last week against John Angelos and their mother, Georgia, partly regarding John’s handling of the club as the Orioles’ chairman and CEO, will have any impact on the team’s baseball operations department as it continues to oversee a rebuild now in its fifth season.Advertisement“It’s unfortunate and definitely not something that you like to see,” Elias told reporters gathered in the Orioles’ dugout at Camden Yards. “But, you know, this is a tough business. There’s always kind of crazy stuff going on in this business. We’ve had our challenges the last few years. We’re going to stay focused on the task at hand, work diligently, work smartly and keep doing the right thing for the Orioles. And I don’t think that this is going to have any impact on the play on the field or the team that you see.”Major League Baseball has encouraged Orioles icon Cal Ripken Jr. to join an ownership group if the team is sold, sources say.https://t.co/OAL9kmshEr— The Baltimore Sun (@baltimoresun) June 17, 2022

In his suit, Louis F. Angelos, 52, claimed John P. Angelos, 54, went against their 92-year-old father’s wishes in how he’s handled the family’s fortune, including ownership of the Orioles. Louis Angelos’ suit claims Peter Angelos, who has been in declining health for several years, wanted his sons to run the team equally but that John Angelos has seized control of the organization. The suit also claims that Georgia Angelos suggested selling the team, with John Angelos preventing a sale on at least one occasion.AdvertisementThe legal action brought the club’s future in Baltimore into question, though John Angelos has previously said, and reiterated in a statement following the suit, that the Orioles will play in the city “as long as Fort McHenry is standing watch over the Inner Harbor.” The team’s lease at Camden Yards, which includes a non-relocation clause, goes through the 2023 season.Elias is mentioned in the suit, with Louis Angelos claiming that his brother directed Elias to fire then-club executive and former Orioles outfielder Brady Anderson because of Anderson’s loyalty to their father. On Saturday, Elias noted how vital John Angelos was in his decision to join the Orioles almost four years ago, citing the respect he had for the owners he had previously worked under in Bill DeWitt as a scout for the St. Louis Cardinals and Jim Crane as a scouting director and assistant general manager for the Houston Astros.“When I came here, I had other options, and John was a big part of why I came,” Elias said. “I think that we’ve got things moving in the right direction. Like I said, it’s been a tough couple of years. We’ve had a lot to navigate. There were a lot of unique challenges to the Orioles, and we’ve still got a lot of challenges ahead of us, but I look at the shape that we’re in in terms of being set up for the future and still continue to feel very bullish about that and excited about the way that this team is playing and what’s going on in the farm system and what’s going on in the Warehouse. We’re just gonna power through this, as you do in this industry for a lot of different stuff.”Wife of Orioles owner Peter Angelos says she has ‘full faith’ in son John Angelos as head of the team https://t.co/YIbB5eMLlx— Baltimore Sun Sports (@BaltSunSports) June 15, 2022

Under Elias, the Orioles have dramatically reformatted their front office, building out an analytics department and diving into international amateur scouting at a far steeper level than the organization had previously. Those investments have come as the major league team has had diminutive payrolls; Elias’ first three seasons leading the front office have each resulted in a top-five draft pick, based on the standings of the previous year.Although the Orioles (29-37) again have a losing record more than a third of the way into the 2022 season, they are improved in many areas and have one of the best minor league systems in the sport, the products of which are beginning to reach the majors. Adley Rutschman, baseball’s top prospect, was called up last month, and Grayson Rodriguez, the sport’s top pitching prospect, was excelling in Triple-A before a lat muscle strain shut him down.“I think I’ve been very consistent about the stuff that I’ve said since being hired in 2018, dating back to that press conference,” Elias said. “The support and relationship that the baseball ops department has had with the ownership group and John, leading the team and leading the ownership group, has been phenomenal. It’s been nothing but constructive, and it will continue to be so. We’re set up with a very talented and stable management team, both in terms of the baseball ops department, but the business side. John’s added a lot of depth to the organization. We’ve had to make a lot of tough changes and necessary changes to the way that the Orioles have done business. And, you know, it’s been a difficult few years, and it’s been a difficult process, but I continue to have nothing but good things to say about the way that he’s been running the company since taking the helm.”

Baseball’s best rivalry grabs the national spotlight Sunday night when the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros meet in the finale of a three-game series at Minute Maid Park.Tony La Russa vs. Dusty Baker remains the gold standard of managerial rivalries, a throwback to the days of Billy Martin-Whitey Herzog or Tommy Lasorda-Sparky Anderson, when the battle of wits in the dugouts was as intriguing as the pitching matchups.AdvertisementThe narrative La Russa and Baker don’t like each other has softened since La Russa’s return to the Sox dugout last year. The 2021 postseason matchup gave both managers an opportunity to speak kindly of each other, and they outdid themselves in praising their old foes the first three games of the series.Then Astros reliever Kendall Graveman plunked José Abreu in Game 4, and after the series-ending loss an angry La Russa questioned the Astros’ character.Advertisement“That’s just a character shortage there they should answer for,” he said. “If they don’t admit it, they’re very dishonest.”Baker responded there was no ill intent on Graveman’s part.“I beg to differ with Tony,” Baker said.Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker Jr., left, and Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa greet each other before Game 3 of a baseball American League Division Series, Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) (Charles Rex Arbogast/AP)The Sox signed Graveman in the offseason, and the two rivals are back to being BFFs, at least for now.As everyone knows, Baker has “begged to differ” with La Russa a time or two in the past. But at least there have been no expletives shouted at each other from opposing dugouts in the latest iteration of the feud. Who says you can’t mellow with age?Baker, 72, became the 12th manager to join the 2,000-win club last month, and the 77-year-old La Russa ascended to second on the all-time win list last season. So the “Sunday Night Baseball” telecast no doubt will focus on the numbers that certify both as Hall of Fame managers. La Russa, obviously, already is in, while Baker should be a shoe-in as the first Black manager to reach 2,000 wins.But it’s not the number of wins that define these two. It’s their ability to survive in an era in which managing a baseball game might be the least of their responsibilities.It’s hard to pinpoint the most difficult part of a manager’s job in 2022.AdvertisementDealing with reporters who ask too many negative questions before and after games? With highly educated executives who throw analytical reports on their desks as though they’re equals? With general managers who insist on pregaming pitching moves hours before the first pitch is delivered? With fans who complain on Twitter and talk radio that the managers are out-of-touch? More than anyone else in the baseball hierarchy, they’re getting it from all sides. No one boos the GMs or presidents because they’re heard but rarely seen.Managing is a job for a young person, someone with energy, enthusiasm and the ability to work in tandem with bosses they may not agree with on how to beat an opponent. La Russa and Baker have adapted to the new norm in different ways. They still make their own decisions, wear their mistakes, ignore the outside noise and project an image of authority. They’re comfortable in their own skin, having already accomplished more than their peers.But Baker looks relaxed and happy in the Astros dugout, chewing on his ubiquitous toothpick and aging gracefully in what could be the final season of his career. La Russa often looks spent after White Sox losses. He has been more confrontational in postgame news conferences, questioning reporters for asking innocuous questions about his decision-making, and pretending to be surprised anyone could disagree with his decision to intentionally walk Trea Turner on a 1-2 count, a move panned by virtually everyone.The guy screaming “He has two strikes, Tony!” after Tony La Russa intentionally walked Trea Turner on a 1-2 count to pitch to Max Muncy who proceeded to hit a three-run homer is peak chef’s kiss. (via @NBCSWhiteSox)pic.twitter.com/C9yaR0ZdBU— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) June 9, 2022

“Fire Tony” chants erupted at White Sox Park one game during the last homestand. The 10-run inning off Sox pitchers during Friday’s 13-3 loss at Minute Maid Park didn’t exactly appease the anti-La Russa faction. Delegating bench coach Miguel Cairo to conduct the in-game interview with Apple TV announcers suggested La Russa felt he was too important to be bothered. Baker did his in-game interview.When the 2022 schedule was unveiled, this weekend was marked as the biggest series of the first half. The Sox could prove their worth against the team that ousted them in the postseason.AdvertisementFriday was a complete flop, spoiling the momentum from the sweep of the lowly Detroit Tigers. La Russa, it has been said, hates to lose. And whether he admits it or not, he probably hates losing to Baker more than most managers. Their battles have been legendary, often surrounding someone being hit by a pitch or some other perceived slight. It was at its most heated in 2003 and ‘04 when Baker arrived in Chicago and La Russa had yet to win his first of two titles in St. Louis.“The Cardinals back then, with Tony, they never did much wrong, (but felt) most people were doing wrong to them,” Baker recalled in a Tribune interview years later. “Know what I mean?”Baker changed the culture of losing and briefly was beloved on the North Side for sticking it to La Russa and the hated Cardinals. Then he made the unfortunate prediction in 2003 that if the Cardinals manager “thinks (the fight) has been on so far, he has a whole decade of us coming.”It turned out to be one year.“Boy was I wrong,” he said with a laugh years later. “I said that?”Baker’s point was the tide had turned, and the Cubs no longer were a laughingstock.Advertisement“The Cardinals didn’t like you beating them,” he said. “They weren’t used to the Cubs beating them. Most of the time they were used to having their way with the Cubs.”St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and Chicago Cubs manager Dusty Baker meet with umpires prior to the start of a game at Wrigley Field on May 9, 2003. (BONNIE TRAFELET / CHICAGO TRIBUNE)Now the shoe is on the other foot. The Sox are the ones trying to challenge Baker’s Astros in the American League, but Houston is having their way with them in the first year-and-a-half of the La Russa reboot. Injuries have depleted the Sox, but La Russa left spring training talking up the team’s depth, so injuries should not be a viable excuse for their sub-.500 record.This could be the last season to watch La Russa and Baker go head to head, so savor every moment.Baker signed a one-year extension with the Astros after taking his team to the World Series in 2021 and losing to the Atlanta Braves. He’ll be a free agent again, and has given no indication he’s ready to retire. La Russa’s deal wasn’t announced in 2020, but sources told MLB Network contributor and New York Post columnist Jon Heyman that La Russa was signed through 2023 at $3.75 million per year.Entering Saturday afternoon’s game, both had an all-time winning percentage of .536, with La Russa ahead by a mere .0007 of a percentage point.Not that either one is counting, of course.

Naomi Osaka pulled out of Wimbledon on Saturday, citing a lingering problem with her left Achilles tendon and marking the second consecutive year she’s decided to sit out the grass-court Grand Slam tournament.The four-time major champion and former No. 1-ranked player posted a photo of herself on a grass court and wrote on Twitter: “my Achilles still isn’t right so I’ll see you next time.”AdvertisementOsaka has not played an official match since losing in the first round of the French Open to Amanda Anisimova 7-5, 6-4 on May 24. During that match, for which she said she took a painkiller, Osaka tried to stretch her tendon by tugging on the toe of her shoe at changeovers and squatting to flex her lower leg between points.After that defeat, Osaka said she was leaning toward missing Wimbledon because the professional tennis tours aren’t ranking points awarded — a response to the All England Club’s decision to bar all players from Russia and Belarus over the war in Ukraine.Advertisement“I’m not sure why, but I feel like if I play Wimbledon without points, it’s more like an exhibition. I know this isn’t true, right? But my brain just like feels that way. Whenever I think something is like an exhibition, I just can’t go at it 100%,” Osaka said then. “I didn’t even make my decision yet, but I’m leaning more towards not playing, given the current circumstances.”Eugenie Bouchard, who was the runner-up at the All England Club in 2014, announced Friday on social media that she would not play at Wimbledon because there are no ranking points available. Bouchard is working her way back from surgery on her right shoulder.Osaka did not play at Wimbledon a year ago as part of a mental health break she took after pulling out of the French Open before her second-round match.She has not won a match at the All England Club since getting to the third round in 2018. Osaka lost in the first round of Wimbledon in 2019, and the tournament was canceled in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.All four of Osaka’s Grand Slam titles came on hard courts: at the U.S. Open in 2018 and 2020 and at the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021.The 24-year-old Osaka has played only 17 matches this season and her ranking fell to No. 43 this week.