Thursday, July 30, 2015

Nats Stop Marlins

     The Miami Marlins were held scoreless as they fell to the Washington Nationals 1-0 at Marlins Park on Thursday. The Fish have lost five of their last six games while the Nats have won three of their last five.
     Washington(54-46) pulled ahead 1-0 during the top of the second inning. Ryan Zimmerman led off the frame with a homer to left field on a 2-2 pitch against Dan Haren. It was the sixth home run for Zimmerman this season.
     Nationals stating pitcher Max Scherzer held Miami(42-60) to three hits in seven innings and improved his record to 11-8 this year. Jonathan Papelbon picked up his first save with his new club after he was acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies two days ago. Haren took the loss and dropped to 7-7 as he pitched six innings.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Florida Panthers On Spanish Radio

     The Florida Panthers will have all of their 41 regular season home games broadcast on ESPN Deportes 1210 WNMA-AM in Miami for the 2015-16 season. They will be done for the second straight season by play-by-play announcer Arley Londono and game analyst Octavio Sequera.
     ESPN Deportes 1210 did seven Panthers home games last season from the BB&T Center in Sunrise and ESPN Deportes 760 WEFL-AM was able to use the feed in Palm Beach County. Londono was the Spanish language radio play-by-play voice of the Florida Panthers in their first three NHL seasons from 1993-94 to 1995-96 while Felix DeJesus was the radio game analyst.

WMEN Becomes Panthers Radio Affiliate

     640 Sports WMEN-AM has been named the affiliate of the Florida Panthers Radio Network in Palm Beach County for the 2015-16 season. The station was used as a backup resort to game broadcasts in the past two seasons when games did not air on the Panthers flagship station Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM in Miami and 740 Money Talk Radio WSBR-AM in Boca Raton.
     Florida Panthers radio broadcasts had been heard on Good Karma Broadcasting stations in Palm Beach County which consisted of ESPN Radio 760 WEFL-AM and ESPN Radio 106.3 WUUB-FM since the 2003-04 NHL season. There has been a limited amount of Panthers games on ESPN Radio 106.3 last season because they carry game broadcasts of Florida Atlantic University, Miami Heat and University of Florida.

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Florida Panthers Return To WQAM

     The Florida Panthers have signed a one-year deal with Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM to broadcast their games on radio for the 2015-16 NHL season. Randy Moller returns as the radio play-by-play announcer for the club. He has held the post since the 2007-08 season and was the radio game analyst prior to that from 1996-97 until 2006-07.
     Alex Donno comes back as the pregame, intermission and postgame host for all Panthers radio broadcasts for a second straight season. Donno is currently the evening host at WQAM and has been in that position since August 2014.
     WQAM began to broadcast Florida Panthers games during their first season as an NHL franchise in 1993-94 and lasted to the 2006-07 season. The radio rights moved to 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM for three seasons before they returned back to WQAM in 2010-11.

Friedman And Wittyngham To Middays

     104.3 The Ticket WAXY-FM has decided to move evening co-hosts Josh Friedman and Chris Wittyngham to the midday shift on an interim basis as of Wednesday. The station had Colin Cowherd of ESPN Radio in that time period until July 24.
     Friedman and Wittyngham just celebrated the one-year anniversary of their show today. They may return to evenings after the month of August should ESPN Radio promote Jorge Sedano, Dan Le Bartard or Ryen Russillo to the midday spot on their national network.
     Wittyngham, a University of Miami grad, was a weekend host on 104.3 The Ticket until he was given the evening co-host spot in July 2014 and replaced The Beast who moved to the early afternoon shift as a sports anchor and sidekick.
     Friedman, an Indiana University grad, began his broadcasting career in Chicago and had a long tenure at a sports station in that city behind the scenes as a reporter, producer and board operator. He moved in South Florida in 1998 and worked for Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM as the Florida Marlins reporter. His contract was not renewed by the station in the middle of 2003 when the Marlins eventually won the World Series.
     He was a Metro Networks sports reporter for the next two years until he joined 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM as their reporter of the Florida Marlins, Miami Heat and Miami Dolphins. Friedman later hosted a weekend show through March 2014 then he was given the evening post when the station no longer carried the Miami Marlins broadcasts.

Monday, July 27, 2015

Nick Bosa On Magazine Cover

     St. Thomas Aquinas defensive lineman Nick Bosa appears on the seventh annual Florida cover of Friday Night Football magazine. He has played for the school in the last three seasons and helped the team win the FHSAA Class 7A state championship in 2012 and 2014. Bosa made a commitment last week to attend Ohio State University where his brother Joey is currently playing at.
     Friday Night Football, a.k.a. FNF, previously had South Florida high school players on their magazine cover. Glades Day and University of Florida running back Kelvin Taylor was on it in 2012, American Heritage and University of Georgia running back Sony Michel appeared in 2013 while Monarch and University of Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley was on the cover last year.

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Padres Get By Marlins

     The Miami Marlins were beat by the San Diego Padres 3-1 at Petco Park on Saturday night. The Fish are now 3-6 on this current road trip that began after the All-Star Game break. The Friars have won seven of their last ten games.
    San Diego (46-52) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first against David Phelps. Yangervis Solarte singled into center field with one out, then Matt Kemp and Justin Upton both got base hits to load the bases. Yonder Alonso hit a sacrifice fly to center for Solarte to cross the plate.
     The Padres extended their lead in the next frame with a two-out rally. Ian Kennedy doubled to deep right field then scored on a single to center field by Will Venable.
     In the top of the seventh, Miami(41-57) compiled their only run of the game. Derek Dietrich led off with a solo homer to right field on a 3-2 pitch for his fifth home run of the season.
     San Diego regained a two-run gap during the bottom of the seventh. Clint Barmes started with a base hit to center and went to second on a passed ball. Abramham Almonte was able to sacrifice him to third on a bunt. Pinch-hitter Melvin Upton Jr. drove Barmes in with a single into right field against Mike Dunn.

Saturday, July 25, 2015

Strikers Knock Off Rowdies

     The Fort Lauderdale Strikers remained undefeated in the NASL fall season as they beat the Tampa Bay Rowdies 3-1 at Al Lang Stadium on Saturday. The Strikers had tied in their previous three games prior to tonight. It was the second time in the last three games that Fort Lauderdale was victorious on the road in Tampa Bay.
     This was the second of a three-game series between the clubs in the Florida Derby. The Strikers have an aggregate goal lead of 3-2 after two games and meet the Rowdies one more time on August 15 at Lockhart Stadium for the Coastal Cup. The Rowdies won the Coastal Cup four consecutive years until the Strikers captured it in 2014.
     Fort Lauderdale(1-0-3) scored first in the 16th minute when PC tapped in the ball from close range. Bruno Nunes made it 2-0 during the 79th minute when he streaked down the right side and fired a shot toward the far post.
     Maicon Santos followed up in the 90th minute for Tampa Bay(1-3-0) with a goal on a chip pass by Freddy Adu, who made his NASL and Rowdies debut. Stefano Pinho wrapped up the contest for the Strikers with his sixth goal of the season a couple of minutes later during injury time.

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Steve Carver To Run WQAM

     CBS Radio has named Steve Carver as the new senior vice president and market manager of their Miami radio stations. They consist of Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM, WPOW-FM and WKIS-FM. He replaces Joe Bell who finished a tenure in South Florida that goes back to January 2006 with Beasley Broadcasting.
     Carver was recently the senior vice president and market manager at CBS Radio in Tampa until December 2014 when they exchanged their radio stations with Beasley Broadcasting in a couple of media markets. He has been involved with CBS Radio as a senior vice president and market manager since 2010. Carver was in charge of radio stations in several cities which included Cleveland, West Palm Beach, Los Angeles and Tampa.
     He started his radio career with Infinity Broadcasting as a sales manager at WINS-AM in New York. Carver then held the general manager post at WOGL-AM and WOGL-FM in Philadelphia along with WBBM-AM and WBBM-FM in Chicago.
     He moved to Tribune Company where he became the vice president and general manager at WGN-AM in Chicago. Carver was elevated to the vice president and general manager position at WATL-TV in Atlanta. He left for the newspaper industry to run the Hartford Courant as the ceo, president and publisher before he joined CBS Radio.
    

Joe Bell Gone From WQAM

     CBS Radio has fired Miami senior vice president and market manager Joe Bell. He was responsible for radio stations in the Miami cluster which included Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM, WPOW-FM and WKIS-FM. Steve Carver will take over his position in the organization.
     Prior to his long reign in Miami, Bell had a tenure as the executive vice president and general manager at WPTF-AM in Raleigh, North Carolina. He moved to Florida to work for Beasley Broadcasting in Fort Myers as the general manager at WJBX-FM.
     Bell was transferred by the company to Miami in January 2006 and became the general manager at WQAM-AM and WKIS-FM. He was referenced many times by longtime WQAM midday host Neil Rogers both on-air and in recorded skits as Jolly Joe Bell. He was later promoted to market manager of Beasley Broadcasting Miami. After the cluster of Miami stations were purchased by CBS Radio in December 2014, he was elevated to the title of senior vice president and market manager.

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Dos Amigos Reunion

     Dos Amigos consisting of Larry Milian and Alan Strauss will reunite to host a show together for the first time in seven years. It will occur on Friday morning at SportsOvertime.com. Milian is currently the host of The Amigo Morning Zoo on that website.
     They started off their radio careers in an unique way as they won an on-air contest in late 2005 to join 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM. Dos Amigos hosted a weekend show and were promoted to the late night shift just one year later. They would stay together at that station until 2008.
     Strauss left the radio profession while Milian would have a stint at several organizations in South Florida. Milian moved to 640 Sports WMEN-AM in late 2009 and hosted an afternoon show with Andy Slater for a short time until December 2009 when they were replaced by Ed Kaplan. He then hosted a weekend show in January 2010. He was elevated to co-host a morning show with Armando Salguero and later with Chris Perkins from July 2010 until December 2011.
     Milian added Phil Domanic to host a Saturday late morning show at 640 Sports called New York Sports Report from late June 2011 to late December 2011. They both moved to 940 The Sports Animal WINZ-AM in January 2012 to host a mid-afternoon show. The program added Troy Stradford as a co-host in January 2013 and Milian left the show in September 2013. Milian then had a tenure as a Saturday late morning sports host on SoFloRadio.com through most of 2014.

WQAM Drops Sha

     Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM recently released afternoon show sidekick Sha. She was part of the afternoon program hosted by Marc Hochman and Zach Krantz since April 2014. WQAM had also let go early afternoon hosts Adam Kuperstein and Channing Crowder this month.
     Sha had announced afternoon sports updates for several months earlier this year and lost that role to afternoon producer Andy King in early June. She previously was a Miami Dolphins cheerleader prior to entering a career in radio.

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Marlins Shut Out Diamondbacks

     The Miami Marlins snapped a four-game losing streak with a 3-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on Tuesday night. The Fish also ended an eight-game losing streak on the road with their last win away from Miami on July 3 in Chicago. The Diamondbacks have lost seven of their last eight games.
     Miami(39-55) had to wait until the fifth inning to take the lead against Arizona(43-49) and their starting pitcher Jeremy Hellickson. J.T. Realmuto doubled to left with two out and scored when Adeiny Hechavarria followed with a base hit into center field.
     Michael Morse led off the seventh inning for the Marlins and crushed a 2-2 pitch over the right-field fence for his fourth home run of the season to give the Fish a 2-0 margin.
     Matt Stites stepped in to pitch for the Diamondbacks in the top of the eighth and surrendered one run. Pinch-hitter Miguel Rojas began with a single to center field and was out at second on a fielder's choice with Ichiro Suzuki at-bat. After Martin Prado grounded out to third, Christian Yelich knocked in Suzuki with a base hit to left field.

Monday, July 20, 2015

Diamondbacks Drop Marlins

     The Miami Marlins began a three-game set with the Arizona Diamondbacks and lost 3-1 on Monday night at Chase Field. The Fish fell for the fourth straight game since the All-Star Game break. The Diamondbacks snapped a six-game losing streak.
     Arizona(43-48) picked up two runs in the third inning off Marlins starting pitcher David Phelps. Nick Ahmed led off with a triple to deep right-center field. Later in the frame, A.J. Pollock and Paul Goldschmidt both walked with two outs to load the bases. David Peralta knocked in Ahmed and Pollock with a base hit into left-center field.
     In the bottom of the sixth, the Diamondbacks extended their lead to 3-0 with a one-out rally. Jake Lamb singled to center field,  Chris Owings reached base on a bunt and Ahmed walked. Rubby De La Rosa drove Lamb in on a fielder's choice.
     Miami(38-55) closed the gap to 3-1 during the seventh inning. Derek Dietrich smashed a lead-off home run to right field on a 1-1 pitch for his fourth homer of the season. The Marlins would leave the bases loaded in the top of the eighth.

Saturday, July 18, 2015

Strikers Draw With Silverbacks

     The Fort Lauderdale Strikers played to a 2-2 tie with the Atlanta Silverbacks on Saturday night at Lockhart Stadium. It was the third consecutive game that the Strikers picked up a tie for one point to begin the NASL fall season.
     Fort Lauderdale travels to Tampa Bay for their next game on July 25 and face the Rowdies in the second game of the annual Florida Derby. It is the start of a three-game road trip for the Strikers.
     There was no scoring in the first half and a bunch of goals in the second half. Midfielder Marlon Freitas gave Fort Lauderdale(0-0-3) the lead during the 55th minute with a volley shot.
     Atlanta(1-1-1) would score twice in a 12-minute span to take the lead 2-1. Forward Jaime Chavez scored in the 64th minute with a spectacular bicycle kick from five yards away and forward Pedro Mendes connected in the 76th minute.
     Strikers midfielder Walter Ramirez was fouled inside the 18-yard box during the 90th minute and was awarded a penalty kick. He converted it as it grazed off the right post and into the net.

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Kuperstein And Crowder Out At WQAM

     Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM announced that they have let go Adam Kuperstein and Channing Crowder. Both co-hosted the early afternoon show from October 2012 to September 2013 and also from January 2014 until July 2015.
     WQAM program director Ryan Maguire, who joined the organization in early May, decided to have all of their weekday programs run for four hours each. Joe Rose with Curtis Stevenson will stay in the same time slot from 6am to 10am. Orlando Alzugaray will have his midday show expanded one hour from 10am to 2pm. The afternoon show with Marc Hochman and Zach Krantz will move up one hour earlier from 2pm to 6pm while Alex Donno expands his evening program one additional hour from 6pm to 10pm.
     Kuperstein was a weekend host at WQAM until December 2011 then was promoted to co-host an early afternoon program. He had several partners on the air with him which included Steve Goldstein from January 2012 to October 2012, two stints with Crowder and co-hosted with Curtis Stevenson from September 2013 to December 2013. Kuperstein will still keep busy as a sports anchor at WTVJ-
TV Channel 6 in Miami and a Sunday late morning co-host on NBC Sports Radio Network. He has been employed at WTVJ-TV since July 2005 and at NBC Sports Radio Network since April 2013.
     Crowder joined WQAM as a fill-in host and Miami Dolphins expert in August 2011 after he retired from the Miami Dolphins. He played for the club as a linebacker for six seasons from 2005 to 2010. He replaced Steve Goldstein as the early afternoon co-host with Kuperstein in October 2012. Along with his two stints with Kuperstein in early afternoons, he was elevated to the afternoon shift and worked with Brandon Guzio from September 2013 until December 2013. It was short lived as he returned to the early afternoon shift for the rest of his tenure at WQAM.

Marlins Fantastic Four Named

     Major League Baseball announced the voting results of all their franchises for the top four players in the history of every club. The ceremony was done prior to the 86th annual All-Star Game held at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Tuesday night.
     The players selected for the Marlins franchise were outfielder Jeff Conine, outfielder Gary Sheffield, third baseman Mike Lowell and outfielder Giancarlo Stanton. It was no surprise about Conine, Sheffield and Lowell since they all were popular players during their time with the Marlins plus all of them were announced to the Florida Marlins all-time team at the end of the 2011 season. Stanton has been on the Miami Marlins roster since June 2010.

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Doug Abernethy Joins The Ticket

     Doug Abernethy has been named the new vice president and general manager for 104.3 The Ticket and 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM. The announcement was quickly done following the final approval by the United States federal government on the acquisition of both radio stations by Entercom Communications from Lincoln Financial Media on Tuesday. He replaces Maureen Lesourd who held the same post from April 2013 until this week when Lincoln Financial Media owned both stations.
     Abernethy was recently the regional vice president of Radio One radio stations in Houston, Los Angeles, St. Louis and Detroit until March 2015. He was vice president and general manager at Radio One Houston and director of sales at Cox Radio Houston prior to that.
    He started his radio career at WKYS-FM in Washington D.C. in the sales department. Abernethy moved on to AM/FM in Dallas as the general sales manager.

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

Maureen Lesourd Leaves The Ticket

     Maureen Lesourd has left her position as senior vice president and general manager of Lincoln Financial Media cluster of Miami radio stations. They consist of 104.3 The Ticket WAXY-FM, 790 The Ticket, WLYF-FM 101.5 Lite FM and Magic 102.7 WAXY-FM. Entercom is expected to have their deal finally approved by the United States federal government in the next couple of days to purchase the Lincoln Financial Media radio stations in Miami.
     She took charge of both sports format radio stations named The Ticket in April 2013. 790 The Ticket was either on top or tied with Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM in the ratings for being the best sports station in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale region from May 2013 to August 2013.
     104.3 The Ticket began its current 22-month reign in the local market as the top-rated sports format station in September 2013. WAXY-FM was no longer considered a separate entity from their sister-station WAXY-AM in the radio ratings as of that month. Lesourd was in charge of The Ticket for 27 months and never saw the radio station drop to second place once.
     It has been consistent during this long time span as there has been no weekday program changes at 104.3 The Ticket in over a year. The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, who began their program on The Ticket in August 2004, expanded their brand to a national base when they started to be simulcast by ESPN Radio in September 2013. Jonathan Zaslow and Joy Taylor have co-hosted the morning show since December 2013 when Marc Hochman left. Eric Reed has led the early afternoon show since August 2012 and has been joined by The Beast, Ethan J. Skolnick and Leroy Hoard in the last two years. Josh Friedman and Chris Wittyngham have co-hosted evenings together since June 2014.

Saturday, July 11, 2015

Strikers Tie Edmonton FC

     The Fort Lauderdale Strikers played to a tie for the second straight game as they drew with FC Edmonton 1-1 at Lockhart Stadium on Saturday night. The Strikers will play there next NASL game at home on July 18 against the Atlanta Silverbacks.
     Midfielder Walter Ramirez scored on a penalty kick during the 68th minute to put Fort Lauderdale(0-0-2) on the scoreboard first. Strikers midfielder Shawn Chin was taken down inside the 18-yard box by FC Edmonton(1-0-1) goalkeeper Matt VanOekel which led to the penalty kick.
     FC Edmonton evened the match in the 86th minute when a long shot by forward Sadi Jalali hit the left post, bounced off Strikers goalkeeper Josh Ford and over the goal line.

Friday, July 10, 2015

Marlins Held Scoreless By Reds

     The Miami Marlins played the second game of a four-game weekend series against the Cincinnati Reds and were shut out 1-0 at Marlins Park on Friday night. The Fish had just four hits in the contest and lost for the fifth time in their last six games.
     The only scoring in the game was done by Cincinnati(39-45) during the second inning. With David Phelps on the mound for Miami(36-51), Jay Bruce led off and hit a solo homer on the first pitch to right field for his 13th home run of the season.
     Phelps dropped his record to 4-5 this year as he surrendered one run on five hits in six innings pitched. Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake moved his record to 6-5 as he allowed no runs along with three hits and struck out ten batters in eight innings. Aroldis Chapman compiled his 18th save of the season when he pitched in the ninth inning.

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Jose Fernandez Ties Record

     Jose Fernandez made his second start of the 2015 season and helped the Miami Marlins shut out the Cincinnati Reds 2-0 at Marlins Park on Thursday night. Fernandez improved his starting pitcher record at home to 14-0 which tied for the best start ever without a loss at home to begin a major league baseball career. He pitched seven innings, allowed six hits to the Reds and struck out nine.
     Miami(36-50) broke out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning against Reds starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen. Dee Gordon led off with a base hit to center field and later stole two bases. Three batters later, Justin Bour ripped a two-out double into deep center for Gordon to score.
     Cincinnati(38-45) gave up another run during the fifth inning as Gordon began the rally with an infield single. After Christian Yelich walked, Gordon was able to swipe third base. Adeiny Hechavarria grounded into a double play for Gordon to cross the plate and made it 2-0.

Panthers Dismiss Brian Skrudland

     The Florida Panthers have not renewed the contract of Brian Skrudland as director of player development. He has held that position since July 2010 and was an interim assistant coach with the team during the 2013-14 season. He will be replaced by Scott Luce who moves from his director of scouting post.
     Skrudland was named the first captain in Panthers franchise history when he joined the team as a center in 1993. He helped the club win the Eastern Conference championship against the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1995-96 and they later lost to the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Finals. Skrudland left Florida following the 1996-97 season after four years with the club. He did win two Stanley Cup titles in his playing career with the Montreal Canadiens in 1985-86 and the Dallas Stars in 1998-99.

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Strikers Tie Railhawks

     The Fort Lauderdale Strikers began the 2015 NASL fall season with a 1-1 tie to the Carolina Railhawks on Wednesday night at WakeMed Soccer Park. This contest may be more remembered for the almost two-hour delay due to inclement weather during in the second half.
     Fort Lauderdale(0-0-1) surrendered the opening goal in the 53rd minute when midfielder Neil Hlavaty scored for Carolina(1-0-1). A large band of rain and wind stopped the game in the 75th minute. The game restarted and the Strikers tied it at 1-1 during the 77th minute with a goal by forward Stefano Pinho. It was his fifth goal in the last four games.

Miami Ratings June 2015

     104.3 The Ticket WAXY-FM was the highest rated sports format radio station in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale region for the 22nd consecutive month. It was their largest margin of victory in the market since July 2014.
     A general surprise was that 104.3 Ticket increased their monthly ratings from a 1.5 to a 1.9 in June. It was the best ratings period for that station since they had a 2.2 in July 2014. Even without the Miami Heat in the postseason, they picked up a bump in their numbers based on LeBron James and the NBA playoffs from ESPN Radio.
     Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM slightly dropped from a 1.1 to a 1.0 during the month of June. The University of Miami Hurricanes baseball team was able to reach the College World Series and WQAM still had their ratings fall.
     Miami Sports 940 WINZ-AM stayed the same in June and remained flat with a 0.2 for the fifth straight month. There has not been that much of an impact with Miami Marlins broadcasts along with Steve Goldstein leaving the morning show in March that he co-hosted with Jeff DeForrest.



Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Red Sox Come Back On Marlins

     The Miami Marlins made a rare appearance at Fenway Park to begin a two-game series and lost to the Boston Red Sox 4-3 on Tuesday night. The Fish have lost three straight games while the Red Sox have been victorious in seven of their last nine games.
     In the second inning, Boston(40-45) put up the first run of the game on a two-out rally against Dan Haren. Shane Victorino singled to right and Travis Shaw singled to right-center field. Ryan Hanigan followed with a hit-and-run base hit to right which scored Victorino
     Miami(35-49) evened it up during the third inning with one run off Wade Miley. Cole Gillespie led off with a double to right field. After Miguel Rojas and Dee Gordon both struck out, Chirstian Yelich knocked in Gillespie with a line drive up the middle.
     The Marlins got to Miley one more frame in the seventh inning. J.T. Realmuto started with a lead-off double to left-center field then scored on a base hit to right by Gillespie. Three batters later, Gillespie crossed the plate on an RBI-double to deep center field by Yelich.
     The Red Sox responded with three runs against the Miami bullpen staff in the bottom of the seventh. Shaw first singled to right, Hanigan walked and Mookie Betts reached first on a fielder's choice with Steve Cishek on the mound. Carter Capps relieved two batters later and surrendered a three-run single to right-center field by Xander Bogaerts for a Boston 4-3 lead.

Sunday, July 5, 2015

Cubs Blank Marlins

     The Chicago Cubs shut out the Miami Marlins 2-0 on Sunday at Wrigley Field and have now won five of their last six games. Both teams combined for only eight hits in the game as the Cubbies had five and the Fish got three. Miami(35-48) finishes off their road trip with two games at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox.
     Marlins starting pitcher Mat Latos gave up one run to Chicago(44-36) during the first inning. After Dexter Fowler flew out to left field, former Marlin Chris Coghlan walked. Kris Bryant singled to right and advanced him to third. Miguel Montero struck out then Coghlan scored on a wild pitch with Starlin Castro at-bat.
     In the eighth inning, the Cubs added another run against Miami reliever Carter Capps. Chris Denorfia led off with a pinch-hit double to right-center field. Three batters later, Coghlan knocked in Denorfia with a base hit into right to make it 2-0.

Friday, July 3, 2015

Marlins Edge Cubs

     The Miami Marlins extended their winning streak to four games as they defeated the Chicago Cubs 2-1 at Wrigley Field on Friday. The Fish reached the midway point of the regular season as they snapped the Cubbies three-game win streak.
     Both clubs were able to score during the first inning. Miami(35-46) got the lead as Christian Yelich hit a solo home run to center field on a 2-2 pitch against Cubs starting pitcher Jason Hammel for his fifth homer of the season.
     Chicago(42-36) evened it up in the bottom of the frame with a two-out rally off Tom Koehler. After Kris Bryant doubled to deep left field, he scored on a base hit by Miguel Montero to right field to make it 1-1.
     The Marlins regained the lead during the sixth inning as Justin Bour hit a home run to right field for the fourth straight game. He got his tenth homer of year as he smashed the first pitch from Hammel.

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Marlins Knock Off Giants

     Marlins starting pitcher Jose Fernandez and Giants starting pitcher Matt Cain made their first pitching appearances in over a year as Miami beat San Francisco 5-4 at Marlins Park on Thursday. The Fish swept the three-game series against the defending World Series champions.
     Fernandez had his worst home pitching performance since he joined the Marlins as he gave up three runs on seven hits in six innings and still got the winning decision. Cain took the loss as he allowed five runs on seven hits in five innings pitched.
     Things started off wrong for Fernandez as San Francisco(42-38) put up two runs in the top of the first. Gregor Blanco led off with a base hit to center then advanced to third on a double by Joe Panik to shallow left field. After Matt Duffy struck out, Buster Posey knocked in Blanco with a sacrifice fly to right. Brandon Belt would slice a single to left field for Panik to score to make it 2-0.
     In the third inning, Miami(34-46) cut the deficit with a two-out rally. Christian Yelich doubled to left field then scored on a single to right-center field by Adeiny Hechavarria.
     Blanco led off the top of the fifth inning with a solo homer to right field on a 3-1 pitch for his second home run of the season. The Giants were able to regain their two-run margin on that play.
     The Marlins overtook San Francisco with four runs in the bottom of the fifth for a 5-3 lead. Fernandez came to the plate and smacked a lead-off home run to left field on a 1-1 count. Following a strikeout by Dee Gordon, Yelich walked and Hechavarria singled to center. Justin Bour then crushed a home run to right field on a 1-0 pitch for his ninth homer of the year.
     The Giants added one more run in the eighth inning and closed the gap to 5-4. Posey started the frame with a solo homer to center field on a 2-0 count against Marlins reliever Carter Capps for his 13th home run of the season.

Boca Juniors Stop Strikers

     The Fort Lauderdale Strikers had a tough time on Wednesday night as they were blanked by Boca Juniors 3-0 in the inaugural Challenge Cup international friendly game at Lockhart Stadium. It was a rare occasion that the club from Argentina appeared in the United States for a match.
     The Strikers begin the NASL Fall Season on July 8 when they go on the road and face the Carolina Railhawks. The next home game for Fort Lauderdale will be on July 11 against FC Edmonton.
     Boca Juniors struck early three minutes into the game as Jonathan Calleri scored. They expanded their lead during the second half as Alexis Rolin had a goal in the 55th minute and Cristian Pavo made it 3-0 in the 77th minute.

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Panthers Trade Jimmy Hayes

     The Florida Panthers have traded right wing Jimmy Hayes to the Boston Bruins for right wing Reilly Smith and the contract of center Marc Savard. It will be a return to New England for Hayes where he played at Boston College for three seasons.
     Hayes was involved in 72 games for Florida in 2014-15 as he compiled 19 goals, 16 assists and 35 points. He was acquired by the Panthers along with Dylan Olsen for Kris Versteeg in November 2013. Hayes immediately helped the team with 11 goals and seven assists in 53 games during the 2013-14 season.
     Smith missed only one game in the last two seasons with the Boston Bruins. Following being acquired in July 2013 from the Dallas Stars for Tyler Seguin in a six-player trade, Smith had 20 goals, 31 assists and 51 points during 82 games of the 2013-14 season. His production numbers dropped in 2014-15 as he put together 13 goals and 27 assists in 81 games.
     Savard has not played a game in the NHL since the 2010-11 season when he suffered from concussion-like symptoms. He was part of the Boston Bruins team that captured a Stanley Cup championship for the first time in 29 years. The contract that the Cats have with Savard runs through the 2016-17 season.

Joey Bosa On Magazine Cover

     Former St. Thomas Aquinas and current Ohio State University defensive end Joey Bosa appears on the magazine cover of Lindy's Sports college football magazine. The regional edition of the magazine was distributed mainly in the state of Ohio.
     Bosa played high school football with the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders from 2009 until 2012. He helped them win two FHSAA Class 7A championships in 2010 and 2012. Bosa earned honors by being named to the Broward All-County and Florida All-State teams.
     He moved to play for the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2013, started in 10 games and had 44 tackles along with 7.5 sacks. Bosa helped the school win the inaugural CFP National Championshp in 2014 as a sophomore and was named an All-American. He led the Big Ten Conference with 13.5 sacks and 21 tackles for a loss.