Good Morning! Here’s what happened in the world of sports on Wednesday, July 17.

WNBA

She’s done it again! Caitlin Clark set the WNBA single-game assist record with 19. Clark threw every kind of pass to her teammates on her way to history, including this nifty one behind-the-back. Even with the record, Clark and the Indiana Fever lost to the Dallas Wings 101-93.

We’ve got a trade! The Chicago Sky have dealt Marina Mabrey to the Connecticut Sun for a 2025 first round pick. Mabrey leads the Sky in minutes and assists per game, and will be a nice addition for the second-place Sun. Meanwhile, Chicago focuses on what is expected to be a deep draft next summer.

MLB MIDSEASON CHECK-IN (Day 3 of 3)

Welcome to the third and final part of our MLB midseason check-in! In case you missed it, you can read part one here and part two at this link here.

Our last group of teams have the ten best records in baseball. No further introduction needed…

10. KANSAS CITY ROYALS (52-45)

This was supposed to be another rebuilding year. But shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. is a legitimate superstar, and the Royals made a couple of shrewd offseason signings (Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha) that have really deepened their pitching staff. Even though Kansas City started to fade a bit in recent weeks, this team is set up well for the future. No matter what happens the rest of 2024, it’s been a great year for the Royals.

9. BOSTON RED SOX (53-42) AL Wild Card 3

Led by a surprisingly effective group of starting pitchers, the Boston Red Sox finished the first half of the season very strong. Boston holds a slim lead in the wild card race, but the roster is far from perfect– this team needs another bat and more starting pitching to supplement their current group. The trade deadline will be very interesting for the Red Sox, who have made the postseason just once in the last five years.

8. ATLANTA BRAVES (53-42) NL Wild Card 1

Atlanta was dominant last season– this year hasn’t been quite the same. That being said, this team is practically a lock for the playoffs. The starting rotation is one of the best in baseball, and the lineup is deep and well-rounded. Atlanta will try to acquire an outfield bat at the trade deadline to replace superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. At the end of the day, it’s another winning season for the Braves.

7. MINNESOTA TWINS (54-42) AL Wild Card 2

When healthy, the Twins lineup is loaded. However, Royce Lewis, Carlos Correa, and Byron Buxton each have spent long periods of time on the injured list in recent seasons. On the pitching side, Pablo Lopez is fantastic, but there isn’t much depth in the rotation behind him. Fully healthy and at their best, the Twins could win the AL Central. With their health and pitching issues, I could just as easily see them falling out of the playoff race entirely.

6. MILWAUKEE BREWERS (55-42) NL CENTRAL LEADER

How do the Brewers do it? Milwaukee traded their ace to Baltimore, lost their manager to Chicago, and are still in first place. The Brew Crew have scuffled a bit lately, however. Milwaukee’s lead in the NL Central is just 4.5 games over the St. Louis Cardinals, as they’ve have lost seven of their last ten games. Acquiring another starting pitcher or two would go a long way towards keeping the Brewers in their current playoff position.

5. LOS ANGELES DODGERS (56-41) NL WEST LEADER

If the Los Angeles Dodgers injured list got healthy and formed their own team, that team would make the playoffs. It’s not time to panic yet, as the Dodgers still hold a seven game lead in the NL West and Shohei Ohtani bats leadoff. However, this is another team that lost seven of their last ten games; the pre-season favorites to win the World Series need reinforcements.

4. NEW YORK YANKEES (58-40) AL Wild Card 1

For most of this season, the Yankees had the best record in baseball. Now, they’re second in their own division. A flawed roster has been held up by remarkable pitching and a few generational superstars on offense. New York will be aggressive at the trade deadline, as they need to upgrade their lineup– Juan Soto and Aaron Judge can’t carry an entire team to the World Series, can they?

3. BALTIMORE ORIOLES (58-38) AL EAST LEADER

This is without question the most exciting team in the league. Young stars Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman lead a deep lineup, and Corbin Burnes is one of the most dominant pitchers in the sport. Like most contending teams this season, the Orioles could use another starting pitcher. No matter what happens at the trade deadline though, Baltimore is going to be picked by a lot of experts to make a deep playoff run.

2. CLEVELAND GUARDIANS (58-37) AL CENTRAL LEADER

The best record in the AL belongs to the team led by Steven Kwan, David Fry, and Josh Naylor? And Tanner Bibee, Logan Allen, and Ben Lively are the starting pitchers? Forgive my over-usage of question marks, because the Guardians are confusingly impressive. Outside of third baseman Jose Ramirez and closer Emmanuel Clase, no member of this roster had much of a track record before 2024. Keep proving people wrong, and Cleveland could end the longest championship drought in baseball.

1. PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES (62-34) NL EAST LEADER

The best team in baseball, no doubt about it. The rotation is stacked, the lineup is deadly, the bullpen is efficient– there’s a reason the Phillies had a league-leading eight all-stars. I know it’s early and I’d never want to jinx it, but it’s looking like championship or bust in Philly.

That concludes our MLB midseason check-in! The second half of the season starts tomorrow…

NOTEWORTHY NEWS

Team USA basketball looks better and better with each exhibition match. Coach Steve Kerr went with a new-look starting lineup against Nikola Jokic and Serbia yesterday, and the US won 105-79. Steph Curry made a cool three-pointer, another awesome three-pointer, and LeBron James slammed an alley-oop. With respect to Steve Kerr, I think any of us could coach this team.

If you leave your job on good terms, do you speak badly about your former employer? Well, longtime Alabama head football coach Nick Saban doesn’t care about your answer. Now a commentator, Saban picked Georgia and Texas to make the SEC championship game over his former school.

14-year old Cavan Sullivan became the youngest professional athlete to play in a major American sports league, making his debut last night for the Philadelphia Union in the MLS. Most 14-year olds are just trying to make JV soccer (I was on C-team).

The Paris Olympics begin next week, with the opening ceremony scheduled for July 26th. The ceremony, as well as several aquatic events, are centered around the Seine river, which runs through the heart of the city. You know things are going well when the mayor of Paris jumps in the river and swims around in order to prove that the water is safe.

PLAY OF THE DAY

Apparently news spreads fast– a fellow Wake Forest alum heard there was no traditional play of the day candidates this week, so he took matters into his own hands:

Throw it down Alondes!

TODAY’S BIG GAMES (all times Eastern)

GOLF: The Open, 1:30 AM on Peacock/USA

• The action starts real early this morning at the Royal Troon golf course in Scotland. It’s the last major of the year, and Scottie Scheffler is once again the odds-on favorite.

“People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do– I stare out the window and wait for spring.” Rogers Hornsby

Have a fantastic Thursday!