Browsing: Sports
“We had our moments when we were really able to assert ourselves in the game,” coach Jeremy Colliton said. “A few times, in probably all three periods, we weren’t able to advance the puck, get through the neutral zone, and they took advantage, they forced some turnovers and created some things out of that.
“I didn’t have any walks today because I had that plan, that focus, and I wanted to go into the game, I wanted to attack,” McCullers said. “Any time you can avoid having men on base just in general, it’s important. A lot of leverage counts, 1-2, 2-2 counts, where I could have gone for the strikeout or things of that nature, but I was trying to just throw good pitches for weak contact, keep the pitch count low, try to go deep into the game and give us the best chance.”
Instead, he’s hoping to set an example for others, including his family — a 12-year-old daughter, who’s a gymnast, 15-year-old son, who’s a wrestler, and Kelly, who will run her first marathon in Chicago on Sunday, though they’ll each run at their own pace.
Relayed Lazor: “(Coach Royal) said, ‘Don, did you know that we put a man on the moon?’ And Don said it got quiet. He said, ‘Yeah, Coach.’ Royal said, ‘Don, you know, when (the astronaut) was talking back to Houston, he was talking just about like I’m talking to you? And he had a hell of a lot more on the line than a football game.’ ”
The breakout star of October last year, Arozarena made a breathtaking dash to the plate in the seventh inning for the first straight steal of home in the postseason since Jackie Robinson did it for the Brooklyn Dodgers against Yogi Berra and the New York Yankees in the 1955 World Series, according to the FS1 broadcast.
Said McCullers: “They have a fantastic offense. They have a lot of power. They have a lot of guys who hit for high average. They have a lot of guys who don’t swing or chase and miss. You’re talking about Moncada, Grandal, (Gavin) Sheets. These guys, they don’t swing at balls. The righties they have in there, Anderson, batting champ, and the guys there in the middle with Robert and Eloy, it’s a tough lineup to navigate.
“This guy’s a beautiful, beautiful soul, boy,” La Russa said of Abreu. “I mean, he’s as beautiful a person as I’ve ever been around. That’s tied for first with a lot of beautiful ones. … I hope he plays if he’s capable of playing, but definitely don’t want him to play because he thinks he has to.”
“During the All-Star break, I really took some time to refresh, and then I came back a lot more focused on each and every start, my preparation,” Giolito said. “Top to bottom, scouting reports, knowing what I should be doing in any given situation, how I should be pitching, and then tightening up some things, especially the breaking balls, and that definitely made a huge difference.”
“They can attack the edges in the run game and they can hit you downhill,” Desai said. “(Josh) Jacobs is a physical, downhill runner. … They are going to get their pass explosives, and there will be times where they tell Ruggs to run to the green grass, and Derek will throw it to the green grass and he’s going to go catch it. They also take a lot of shots with (Bryan Edwards) on the outside too. The difficulty in preparing for them is that they are good at everything, and that is what we have to be good at.”
Running is not only how they met. It’s become part of their story, and part of their relationship. They’ve learned to be patient with each other, as they are not always at the same pace. They know when the other person needs a running buddy, or when they’d rather jog alone. And they know how to gently jostle the other person out of bed and out for a run, even on a drizzly Chicago morning.