Brewers Edge Marlins

     Recently acquired catcher Stephen Vogt hit two homers and led the Milwaukee Brewers over the Miami Marlins 3-2 at Miller Park on Friday. It was the first game of a long 10-game road trip for the Fish prior to the All-Star Game break.
     Miami(35-43) broke through with two runs during the top of the fifth inning. J.T. Riddle doubled into left field for J.T. Realmuto to score. Riddle would come home on a throwing error by Brewers pitcher Matt Garza to make it 2-0.
     Milwaukee(43-39) responded in the bottom of the fifth with a solo home run by Vogt to center field on a 2-1 pitch. Vogt added a two-run homer on a 1-2 count in the seventh inning which scored Domingo Santana.

Panthers To Buy Out Jussi Jokinen

     The Florida Panthers put right wing Jussi Jokinen on waivers for the purpose to buy him out over the remainder of his contract. He had one year left on his deal with the club where Jokinen was to receive $1.2 million for the 2017-18 season.
     Jokinen played three seasons with the club and was acquired as a free agent on July 1, 2014. He helped the Panthers capture the 2015-16 Atlantic Division title as he compiled 18 goals and 42 assists in 81 games. Jokinen had 11 goals and 17 assists in 69 games last season.

Mets Defeat Marlins

     The Miami Marlins played their last home game prior to the 2017 All-Star Game and lost to the New York Mets 6-3 at Marlins Park on Thursday night. The Fish, who went 5-5 on the home stand, leave town to visit Milwaukee, St. Louis and San Francisco prior to South Florida hosting the All-Star Game.
     New York(36-42) sprinted out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Jay Bruce knocked in Curtis Granderson with a base hit into center field. T.J. Rivera followed with a RBI-double to right-center field which scored Bruce.
     In the third inning, the Mets extended their margin with three runs in the frame. Bruce once again drove in Granderson with a double to left field. Yoenis Cespedes would score on a single to left field by Rivera. Former Marlin Jose Reyes capped the inning with a sacrifice fly to right that scored Bruce to make it 5-0.
     Miami(35-42) cut into the lead during the fourth inning. Giancarlo Stanton smashed a solo homer to left field on a 1-0 pitch for his 21st home run of the season.
     The Marlins compiled two runs in the bottom of the sixth and were behind 5-3. Stanton crossed the plate on a base hit by Martin Prado to left field. Justin Bour later scored from third on a wild pitch by Seth Lugo.
     The Mets moved ahead 6-3 in the top of the seventh. Matt Reynolds scored on a Granderson ground out to short.

Mets Smash Marlins

     The New York Mets pulled off an 8-0 shutout victory over the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night at Marlins Park. The Fish are now 5-4 in their final home stand before the 2017 All-Star Game.
     New York(35-42) raced out to a 3-0 margin in the first inning. Asdrubal Cabrera ripped a two-run homer to left field on a 2-1 pitch with Curtis Granderson on base. Former Marlin Jose Reyes later added a base hit into left field to score Travis d'Arnaud.
     Miami(35-41) surrendered three more runs in the top of the seventh. The Mets got a run on a fielder's choice  by T.J. Rivera. He then scored when Granderson added a two-run home run to right field on a 1-2 count.
     In the eighth inning, the Mets stretched their lead to 8-0. Brandon Nimmo knocked in Wilmer Flores and Reyes with a single into center field.

Marlins Outlast Mets

     The Miami Marlins held off the New York Mets 6-3 at Marlins Park on Tuesday night. Both clubs had the day off on Monday. The Marlins have won 10 of their last 13 home games and are 5-3 on their current home stand.
     There was much scoring in the first inning. New York(34-42) got ahead 1-0 on a solo home run by Curtis Granderson on a 0-1 pitch that hit the right-field foul pole.
     Miami(35-40) came back in the bottom of the frame with three runs. Justin Bour drove in Giancarlo Stanton and Christian Yelich with a base hit into right field. Martin Prado followed with a double to left which brought in Bour for a 3-1 lead.
     Travis d'Arnaud did some damage twice in the middle of the contest. He knocked in Lucas Duda on a base hit to center during the fourth inning. He blasted a solo homer in the seventh inning toward left field on a 2-0 count to tie the game 3-3.
     The Marlins compiled three runs in the bottom of the seventh. J.T. Realmuto scored on a base hit by Ichiro Suzuki to left field. Yelich later had a two-run single into center field that scored J.T. Riddle and Ichiro.

Marlins Trade Adeiny Hechavarria

     The Miami Marlins have traded shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria to the Tampa Bay Rays for minor league outfielder Braxton Lee and pitcher Ethan Clark. Lee has played for Double-A Montgomery in the Southern League for the past two years. Clark was with Bowling Green in Single-A during 2017.
     Hechavarria was acquired by the Marlins in the huge 12-player trade with the Toronto Blue Jays that involved Jose Reyes and Mark Buerhle in November 2012. He played with Miami for the past five seasons. His best year at the plate was in 2015 when he had a .281 batting average with five home runs and 48 runs batted in. Hechavarria played just 20 games with the Fish in 2017.

Marlins Drop Cubs

     The Miami Marlins stopped the Chicago Cubs 4-2 at Marlins Park on Sunday. The Marlins have won nine of their last 12 home games. Ichiro Suzuki became the oldest person to start a game playing centerfield in Major League Baseball history.
     Miami(34-40) raced out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Ichiro scored on a single by Marcell Ozuna to center field. Two batters later, Martin Prado socked a double into left-center field to score Justin Bour and Ozuna.
     Chicago(38-37) cut the margin to 3-1 during the top of the fourth. Anthony Rizzo knocked in Tommy La Stella with a sacrifice fly to left.
     The Cubs scored in the following inning to make it 3-2. La Stella hit a sacrifice fly to center field which scored Wilson Contreras.
     The Marlins extended their lead in the bottom of the seventh as Giancarlo Stanton smashed a solo home run to left field on a 0-1 pitch. It was his second homer in the last three games and 20th overall this season. Stanton has now hit at least 20 home runs in his first eight seasons in the majors.

Lamar Jackson On Phil Steele Magazine Cover

     University of Louisville Cardinals quarterback Lamar Jackson appears on the East Region cover of Phil Steele College Football Preview for the second straight year. He also shows up on the front cover of Athlon Sports Louisville edition ACC magazine and Lindy's Sports Kentucky edition SEC magazine.
     Jackson won the Heisman Trophy for the 2016 season. He compiled 230 passes for 3,543 yards and 30 touchdowns while he rushed for 1,571 yards on 260 carries and 21 touchdowns during his sophomore year. Jackson played high school football with the Boynton Beach Tigers and helped the school make the FHSAA playoffs as a district runner-up in 2013 and 2014.

Cubs Get By Marlins

     The Miami Marlins fell to the Chicago Cubs 5-3 at Marlins Park on Saturday. The Fish are now 3-3 on their current home stand and have won eight of their last 11 home games.
     Chicago(38-36) put up one run in the top of the first inning. Ian Happ drove in Jon Jay with a base hit into right field.
     Miami(33-40) responded with three runs in the bottom of the frame. J.T. Realmuto smashed a three-run homer to left field on a 1-1 count. Giancarlo Stanton and Christian Yelich scored in front of him on the play.
     The Cubbies tied the contest up during the fourth inning. Javier Baez singled to left field which brought home Addison Russell. Baez then scored on a double by Albert Almora Jr. to right field.
     The Cubs regained the lead 5-3 in the top of the sixth. Baez knocked in Russell and Happ with a double to right.

Panthers Finish 2017 NHL Draft

     The second day of the NHL Draft was held at United Center in Chicago on Saturday. The Florida Panthers and the 30 other National Hockey Leauge clubs made their selections from the second round to the seventh round.
     Florida selected Aleksi Heponiemi in the second round with the 40th overall pick. Heponiemi compiled 28 goals and 58 assists in 72 games last season with the Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League. He joins fellow Finland players Aleksander Barkov and Jussi Jokinen on the Panthers.
     In the third round, the Panthers picked defenseman Max Gildon with the 66th overall. He played on the United States national team development program. He had 14 points in 26 games with the Under-18 team in 2016-17.
     His teammate on that squad defenseman Tyler Inamoto was chosen by the Panthers in the fifth round with the 133rd overall pick. He put together seven points in 17 games with the Under-18 team last season.
     The Cats went with right wing Sebastian Repo with the 184th overall pick in the sixth round. Repo participated last season with Tappara Tampere in Finland as he got 11 goals and 21 assists in 46 games.

Marlins Shut Out Cubs

     Marlins starting pitcher Jose Urena completed six innings of shutout ball as Miami blanked the Chicago Cubs 2-0 at Marlins Park on Friday night. The Marlins are now 8-2 in their last 10 home games.
     Miami(33-39) moved ahead in the bottom of the third inning. Giancarlo Stanton blasted a solo home run to center field on a 2-1 pitch from Cubs starting pitcher John Lackey for his 19th homer of the season.
     Chicago(37-36) gave up another run during the sixth inning. Christian Yelich knocked in Dee Gordon with a sacrifice fly to center.

Florida Panthers Pick Owen Tippett

     The Florida Panthers selected right wing Owen Tippett as the 10th overall pick in the first round of the NHL Draft held at United Center on Friday night. He played junior hockey with the Mississauga Steelheads of the Ontario Hockey League for the last two seasons.
     Tippett compiled 44 goals and 31 assists in 60 games last season. He had 15 goals and five assists in 48 games during 2015-16.

Jack Capuano New Panthers Associate Coach

     The Florida Panthers have named Jack Capuano as their new associate coach. He will work on the coaching staff under recently hired head coach Bob Boughner.
     Capuano was best known for his long reign as the head coach of the New York Islanders from November 2010 until late into January 2017. He was second all-time in Islanders history with 227 career coaching victories behind Al Arbour. Capuano led his team to a first round series win over the Florida Panthers during the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Miami Heat Select Bam Adebayo

     The Miami Heat selected University of Kentucky Wildcats center Bam Adebayo as the 14th overall pick in the first round of the NBA Draft on Thursday night. The draft was held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
     Adebayo played only one year with the University of Kentucky. He averaged 13 points and eight rebounds during his freshman season with the Wildcats in 2016-17.

Cubs Bash Marlins

     The defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs pounded the Miami  Marlins 11-1 at Marlins Park on Thursday night. It was the first game of a four-game series between both clubs.
     Chicago(37-35) got out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning. Jake Arrieta knocked in Addison Russell with an infield hit. The Cubbies would get another run on a ground out by Mark Zagunis.
     Miami(32-39) closed the gap in the bottom of the second. Marcell Ozuna hit a solo homer to left field on a 3-0 count for his 20th home run of the season.
      In the fourth inning, Kris Bryant extended the Cubs margin to 5-1 on a three-run homer to left on a 3-1 pitch. Arrieta and Anthony Rizzo scored in front of him on the play.
     The Cubs got a solo home run from Russell in the fifth and a two-run homer from Wilson Contreras in the sixth inning to make it 8-1.
      The Marlins surrendered three more runs in the top of the eighth. Russell drove in Rizzo with a double into deep right field. Ian Happ later doubled to right which brought in Bryant and Russell.

Florida Panthers 2017-18 Schedule

     The Florida Panthers 2017-18 regular season schedule was released by the National Hockey League on Thursday. It will be the 25th season for the Panthers in franchise history.
     The Panthers will open on the road at Tampa Bay on October 6 and then host the home opener against the Lightning in Sunrise on October 7. 
     Florida will play two games at home and two games away against all Atlantic Division squads. It includes the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Ottawa Senators, Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres. The Cats will see the new venue in Detroit called Little Caesars Arena on October 28.
     The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins visit South Florida on October 20 and February 24. Other Metropolitan Division clubs in Sunrise twice in 2017-18 will be the Washington Capitals, New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers. The New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, Carolina Hurricanes and Columbus Blue Jackets will appear once.
     Florida will play each of the 15 Western Conference teams once at home and once away. They will host the new NHL expansion team the Vegas Golden Knights on January 19. The Chicago Blackhawks make their lone appearance on November 25.

Chris Pronger Joins Florida Panthers

     Former NHL defenseman Chirs Pronger has joined the Florida Panthers as the Senior Advisor to the President of Hockey Operations. He was part of the National Hockey League office as the Director of Player Safety since 2014.
     Pronger played in the National Hockey League for 18 seasons. He won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL Most Valuable Player and James Norris Memorial Trophy for best defenseman with the St. Louis Blues in 2000. Pronger captured the Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007.

Panthers Lose Marchessault and Smith

     The Florida Panthers lost Jonathan Marchessault and Reilly Smith at the 2017 National Hockey League expansion draft held in Las Vegas on Wednesday night. The Vegas Golden Knights are the new expansion franchise for the 2017-18 season and had to pick one player from each of the 30 NHL clubs.
     Marchessault, who was selected in the draft by the Golden Knights, played just one season for the Panthers and was acquired in a trade from the Tampa Bay Lightning. He led the Panthers with 30 goals and was third on the team with 51 points during the 2016-17 season. He became the first player since David Booth in 2008-09 to score at least 30 goals in a season.  
     Smith was traded away by the Panthers to Vegas for a 2018 fourth round draft pick. He had played the last two seasons with Florida. He helped the Panthers capture the Atlantic Division title in 2015-16 with 25 goals and 25 assists in 82 games. Smith compiled 15 goals and 22 assists in 80 games last season. He once won the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 2010-11.

Marlins Break No-Hitter And Nationals

     Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer hurled a no-hitter through 7 1/3 innings as the Miami Marlins came from behind to beat the Washington Nationals 2-1 at Marlins Park on Wednesday. The Marlins finished a three-game set with the Nats and next host the defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs for four games.
     Washington(43-29) waited until the fifth inning to got on the scoreboard. Ryan Raburn hit his first home run of the season against Dan Straily on a 1-1 pitch.
     Miami(32-38) broke up the no-hitter with one out in the eighth inning and eventually took the lead. A.J. Ellis was able to hit an infield single that was deflected off Scherzer and Jose Urena was brought in as a pinch-runner. Urena advanced to second on a ground out by J.T. Riddle to the right side of the infield and then went to third when J.T. Realmuto reached first on a fielding error by first baseman Adam Lind.
     After Dee Gordon was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Giancarlo Stanton came to bat and Urena scored on a wild pitch to tie the game 1-1. Stanton later singled to left field and J.T. Realmuto scored, however Gordon was tagged out at home on the play.

Miami Dolphins On Magazine Covers

     Several Miami Dolphins players appear on different NFL magazine covers this year. The Dolphins had one dominant player show up on all the state of Florida covers of NFL magazines for the last couple of years.
     Quarterback Ryan Tannehill is on the cover of Athlon Sports. Running back Jay Ajayi appears on Lindy's Sports while wide receiver Jarvis Landry is on Street and Smith's.

Touchdown Radio College Football Broadcasts

     Touchdown Radio Productions will return for their 10th year of broadcasting college football games. They will broadcast a game every Saturday from late August until late November.
     Touchdown Radio Productions CEO and Founder Gino Torretta returns as the game analyst. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1992 when he played for the University of Miami. Torretta was also on the Hurricanes squad when they captured two national championshps in 1989 and 1991. He did host a late morning show on Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM from September 2010 to December 2011.
     Roxy Bernstein and Taylor Zanzour will share the duties as the play-by-play announcer. Bernstein once did Florida Marlins baseball games as a radio play-by-play announcer from 2005 until 2007.

Marlins Come Back On Nationals

     The Miami Marlins overcame a six-run deficit to defeat the Washington Nationals 8-7 on Monday night at Marlins Park. It was the first game for the Fish of their final home stand prior to the 2017 All-Star Game.
     Bryce Harper cracked a two-run homer to right-center field on a 3-2 pitch in the first inning to give Washington(42-28) a 2-0 lead. Anthony Rendon added a solo home run to center on a 2-1 count during the second.
     The Nationals put up three more runs in the top of the third to make it 6-0. Daniel Murphy drove in Ryan Raburn with a double to right field. Michael A. Taylor followed with a base hit to center which brought in Murphy and Rendon.   
     In the bottom of the third inning, Miami(31-37) mounted a comeback as they compiled six runs to tie the contest 6-6. Derek Dietrich scored on a triple by J.T. Riddle to left-center field and Riddle scored on a ground out by Dee Gordon to short. Justin Bour later blasted a grand-slam homer to right field on a 2-2 count. Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna scored in front of him on the play.
     The Nats regained the lead during the fifth inning. Stephen Drew knocked in Ryan Zimmerman with a double into left field.
      The Marlins tied it again in the seventh on a solo home run by Stanton to right field on a 2-2 pitch. Miami won the game in the ninth inning with a walk-off single to left-center field by Ozuna that scored Gordon.

Jeremy Loper MMA Announcer

     Former South Florida radio personality Jeremy Loper began his new career as a mixed martial arts television play-by-play announcer for Merger Of Alliance MMA and Iron Tiger Fight Series on Saturday. Their broadcasts will be picked up by CBS Sports Television Network.
     Loper had a long reign as the morning co-host on 103.1 The Buzz WPBZ-FM in West Palm Beach. He is currently a morning co-host on WRKZ-FM in Columbus, Ohio. He did co-host a MMA podcast on Fox Sports.com with Damon Martin and Matt Brown.

Braves Walk Off Marlins Again

     The Miami Marlins lost in a walk-off fashion for the second straight game as they fell to the Atlanta Braves 5-4 at SunTrust Park on Sunday. The Marlins return home for a 10-game home stand beginning Monday. It will be their final appearances in Miami prior to the 2017 All-Star Game.
     It was not until the sixth inning before Miami(30-37) scored to get up 2-0. Justin Bour singled into center field which brought in Dee Gordon and Christian Yelich.
     Atlanta(31-37) battled back with four runs in the bottom of the seventh. Kurt Suzuki scored on a sacrifice fly by Rio Ruiz to left field. Johan Camargo then got a base hit into center which scored Dansby Swanson. Three batters later, Nick Markakis followed with a two-run single to left-center field with Camargo and Ender Inciarte crossing the plate on the play.
     The Marlins tied the contest 4-4 in the top of the eighth inning. Marcell Ozuna blasted a two-run homer to left field on a 0-1 pitch for his 18th home run of the season.
     The Braves got the victory in the ninth inning. Brandon Phillips hit the ball up the middle past the five-player infield for Camaro to score and win the game.

Florida Panthers Announce Protected Players

     The National Hockey League released the players who will be protected by all 30 teams for the upcoming Vegas Golden Knights NHL Expansion Draft on June 21.
     The Florida Panthers surprised many by going with four forwards, four defensemen and one goalie instead of seven forwards, three defensemen and one goalie. They along with the Arizona Coyotes, Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins went in that direction.
      The Panthers protected forwards Aleksander Barkov, Nick Bjugstad, Jonathan Huberdeau and Vincent Trocheck. They also held on to defensemen Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle, Alex Petrovic and Mark Pysyk along with goalie James Reimer.
       Players exposed by the club includes Roberto Luongo, Reilly Smith, Jonathan Marchessault, Jaromir Jagr, Jussi Jokinen, Derek MacKenzie, Colton Sceviour, Michael Sgarbossa, James Demers, Thomas Vanek and Jakub Kindl.

Ryan Shazier On Magazine Cover

     Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier appears on the Pennsylvania region front cover of Street & Smith's pro football magazine. He has been with the Steelers for the past three seasons.
     Shazier played high school football with the Plantation Colonels. He moved on to Ohio State University and played there for three years.

Marlins Blank Braves

     The Miami Marlins returned to the road following a brief set of games at home and shut out the Atlanta Braves 5-0 on Friday night. It was the first visit ever to SunTrust Park by the Marlins, who have won 13 of their last 18 games. Atlanta(29-37) was held to four hits in the contest.
     Miami(30-35) jumped on the Braves in the first inning. Christian Yelich knocked in Dee Gordon with a double into right-center field.
     The Fish made it 2-0 in the top of the fourth inning when Justin Boar retuned to the lineup and blasted a solo home run into center field on a 1-0 pitch. They added another run in the sixth off an infield double play.
     The Marlins, who moved to second place in the National League East with the victory, got insurance runs during the top of the ninth. Yelich drove in J.T. Riddle and Gordon with a base hit into left field.

West Palm Beach Ratings May 2017

     The ratings were released for the West Palm Beach market. There were no adjustments at 106.3 ESPN West Palm WUUB-FM as they continued ESPN Radio NBA playoff game broadcasts while 640 Fox Sports South Florida WMEN-AM made a minor change.
     640 Sports almost lost half of their audience as they moved from a 0.5 to a 0.3 in the month of May. The station brought back the New York Yankees game broadcasts during the final week of the month. They did not use the feed of the New York Yankees Radio Network in March, April and most of May. 640 Sports did broadcast NHL hockey with the Eastern Conference and Western Conference Finals from Westwood One.

Marlins Sweep A's

     The Miami Marlins completed a two-game sweep of the Oakland A's with an 11-6 victory at Marlins Park on Wednesday. The Marlins, who have won 12 of their last 17 games, outscored Oakland 19-7 in both games. The A's return home to take on the New York Yankees in a four-game series.
     Oakland(27-38) jumped out to the early lead for the second straight game. Jed Lowrie scored when Stephen Vogt walked with the bases loaded in the first inning. Ryon Healey added a three-run homer on a 1-0 pitch in the top of the second to make it 4-0.
     Miami(29-35) then got solo home runs in the bottom of the second by Marcell Ozuna on a 3-1 count and Tyler Moore on a 1-2 pitch. The Fish tied the contest 4-4 in the third inning. Christian Yelich knocked in Dee Gordon with a base hit to center. Ozuna then grounded out to second for Giancarlo Stanton to score.
     The A's regained the lead 5-4 in the top of the fourth. Oakland starting pitcher Daniel Gossett, who made his major league debut, singled and then scored on a Lowrie double into right-center field.
     The Marlins put up multiple runs in the next four innings. They began to pull away in the bottom of the fourth inning with three runs and were up 7-5. Tomas Telis hit an RBI-double to center and Moore scored. Gordon followed with a single into shallow left field and J.T. Riddle crossed the plate. Stanton later scored with the bases loaded after Yelich was hit by a pitch.
     The Fish extended their margin in the fifth inning. Riddle drove in Derek Dietrich with a single into left. Moore then scored on a sacrifice fly by Gordon to left field.

Florida Panthers Promote Bryan McCabe

     The Florida Panthers have promoted Bryan McCabe to Director of Player Personnel. He has been in the hockey operations department for the club over the past five years and recently was the Director of Player Development. 
     McCabe once played with the Panthers as a defenseman for three seasons from 2008 to 2011. He was eventually named the sixth captain in franchise history.   

Marlins Swing By A's

     The Miami Marlins returned home for a two-game series and beat the Oakland A's 8-1 on Tuesday night at Marlins Park. The Fish had lost their previous two games in Pittsburgh.
     Oakland(27-37) got their only run in a strange way during the second inning. The A's loaded the bases and had starting pitcher Jharel Cotton come to bat for his first Major League Baseball plate appearance. Jose Urena had a 1-2 count and committed a balk for Yonder Alonso to score.
     Miami(28-35) was able to tie the contest 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth. Marcell Ozuna smashed a solo homer to right-center field for his 16th home run of the season.
     The Marlins put together five consecutive hits and four runs in the fifth inning. Dee Gordon hit a line-drive base hit to shallow left center and Tyler Moore scored. Giancarlo Stanton followed and he walloped a towering home run to left-center field on a 1-0 pitch. It was his 17th homer of the year. J.T, Realmuto later added a ground-rule double over the right-center field fence to score Christian Yelich.
     In the seventh inning, the Fish added three more runs to make it 8-1. Derek Dietrich grounded into a fielder's choice with the bases loaded for Stanton to cross the plate. Moore then belted a double to deep left field which scored Ozuna and Dietrich.

Miami Ratings May 2017

     Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM was the highest rated sports format radio station in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale region. It was the third straight month that organization took the honor. All three competitors compiled the same overall numbers as two months ago.
     The Ticket went down from a 1.0 to a 0.9 in the month of May. The station plugged along during the period as they broadcast NBA playoff games and Major League Baseball games from ESPN Radio.
     Miami Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM remained in second place as they moved from a 0.9 to a 0.8 in the period. The University of Miami Hurricanes baseball team had their streak of 44 consecutive years in the college baseball playoffs snapped. Zach Krantz was moved from the afternoon co-host spot to the morning show and replaced Curtis Stevenson during the month.
     Miami Sports 940 WINZ-AM stayed the same with a 0.2 for the eighth straight month. There was no movement in broadcasting Miami Marlins games as the club went through a bad stretch and lost 22 of 29 games.

Curtis Stevenson On Ticket Afternoon Show

     Curtis Stevenson began to appear last week as a guest afternoon co-host with Ethan Skolnick and Chris Perkins on Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM on June 6. He joined the station as a fill-in weekend host on May 27.
     Stevenson, known as Captain Curtis, had a long tenure at Miami Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM. He was the afternoon producer for the Jim Mandich Show until late January 2010. Stevenson would later produce and work as an on-air sidekick for the Michael Irvin midday show from 2010 to 2012. He also was a weekend host at that station throughout this decade. Stevenson was the morning show on-air sidekick of the Joe Rose Show from April 2014 until May 2017.

Brendan Tobin Receives Miami New Times Award

     Brendan Tobin was named the best radio personality by Miami New Times. He co-hosts the early afternoon show on Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM with Leroy Hoard and The Beast Brian London. He joined the program last year when the station had used a rotation of guest co-hosts.
     Tobin was suddenly noticed by a larger audience in 2016 when he made a bet that he would eat crow if Miami Marlins player Christian Yelich hit a certain amount of home runs. Tobin lost the bet and was forced to eat a crow at a live promotional event earlier this year.
     He has been a board operator, producer, sports anchor and on-air sidekick of the morning show for several years hosted by Jonathan Zaslow. They have added Brett Romberg and Amber Wilson to the morning program over the past two years. Tobin also hosts a weekend show called Fighter's Fury about mixed martial arts.

Hochman, Crowder and Krantz Receives Award

     The Miami New Times named Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM afternoon show Hochman, Crowder and Krantz as the best show on AM radio in Miami. It is the second straight year that the program known as HCK received the honor.
     Marc Hochman and Zach Krantz started the show in April 2014. Former Miami Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder was added as a co-host in August 2015. Krantz left the show last month and returned to the morning show hosted by Joe Rose.

Quinton Flowers On Magazine Cover

     Former local high school football player Quinton Flowers appears on the Florida edition front cover of the 2017 Phil Steele College Football Preview magazine. Flowers is currently the starting quarterback for the University of South Florida Bulls. He completed 207 passes for 2,807 yards and 24 touchdowns in 2016.
     Flowers once played high school football with the Miami Jackson Generals. He helped the school with a long playoff run in the 2012 FHSAA Class 5A playoffs. The Generals got road victories as a district runner-up over American Heritage, defending state champion Miami Norland and Glades Central before they lost at home to Immokalee in the state semifinal.

FIU Radio Voice Josh Appel Leaves

     Josh Appel has left his position as the radio football and men's basketball play-by-play announcer for Florida International University after one year. Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM broadcast FIU football games in 2016.
     Appel is joining Sports USA Radio Network as a play-by-play announcer for college football games and NFL games. He was the sports director and play-by-play announcer of the University of South Florida Bulls at their campus radio station. Appel is currently in his fourth season as the baseball play-by-play voice of the Clearwater Threshers in the Florida State League.
     Appel, a South Florida native, attended high school at Cypress Bay in Weston. He once interned with the Dan Le Batard Show at The Ticket.

Bob Boughner New Florida Panthers Coach

     The Florida Panthers announced Bob Boughner as their new head coach. He replaces interim head coach Tom Rowe, who took over for Gerard Gallant in late November 2016.
     Boughner was an assistant coach with the San Jose Sharks for the past two seasons. He was on the staff headed by former Panthers head coach Peter DeBoer. Boughner helped the Sharks get into the playoffs twice and capture the Western Conference title in 2016.

Pirates Get By Marlins

     Marlins starting pitcher Jeff Locke faced his former team for the first time as the Miami Marlins lost to the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-1 at PNC Park on Sunday. The Marlins finished their seven-game road trip with a 3-4 record.
     Pittsburgh(28-35) attacked during the first inning with three consecutive hits and moved out to a 2-0 lead. Elias Diaz capped it as he doubled to left-center field which scored Jose Osuna and David Freese.
     The Pirates extended their margin to 3-0 in the bottom of the sixth inning. Jordy Mercer knocked in Diaz with a base hit to right.
     After putting together just two hits in the first seven innings, Miami(27-35) broke the shutout in the eighth inning. Ichiro Suzuki ripped a solo home run to right-center field on a 2-1 pitch for his second homer of the season.

Tony Fiorentino Leaving Heat Television

     Tony Fiorentino will work one more year as the television analyst of Miami Heat basketball games on Sun Sports. He will work alongside play-by-play announcer Eric Reid for the 2017-18 season.
     Fiorentino joined the Heat prior to their inaugural season in 1988-89 as an assistant coach to head coach Ron Rothstein. He held the same position for head coaches Alvin Gentry and Pat Riley during the mid 1990s.
     He began to fill-in for Mike Fratello as the Miami Heat television game analyst in the early 2000s when Fratello had to work an assignment on national television. Fiorentino became the permanent game analyst on December 3, 2004 when Fratello left to become the head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies.

Pirates Get Away From Marlins

     The Miami Marlins blew a lead and fell to the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-6 at PNC Park on Saturday. The Marlins had their three-game winning streak snapped and are now 3-3 on the current road trip.
     Miami(27-34) broke out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Marcell Ozuna double to left which brought in Ichiro Suzuki and Christian Yelich. Ozuna then scored on a J.T. Realmuto RBI-double to left and made it a three-run margin.
     Pittsburgh(27-35) got the scoreboard in the bottom of the second. Andrew McCutchen drove in Josh Bell with a double into left field.
     The Pirates tied the game 3-3 in the next inning. Adam Frazier scored on a Bell base hit to left. McCutchen followed with a double to left-center field which scored Bell.
     The Fish regained the lead in the top of the fourth with back-to-back home runs. Realmuto blasted a homer to center field on a 1-0 pitch and then Derek Dietrich socked a ball over the fence in right on a 2-2 count.
     After the Pirates scored a run on a double play in the bottom of the fourth inning, Miami answered back in the fifth with a Realmuto double to left and Ozuna crossed the plate.
     The Bucs compiled three runs in the seventh inning and took the lead. Jordy Mercer knocked in McCutchen and Elias Diaz with a triple into right-center field. Mercer scored the go-ahead run on a ground-rule double to right by John Jaso.

Florida Panthers Preseason Schedule

     The Florida Panthers released their 2017-18 preseason schedule on Friday. The team will play six games overall.
     The Panthers will host their cross-state rivals the Tampa Bay Lightning for two games. They will be held September 26 and September 28.
     Florida will begin their preseason with their annual doubleheader clash. They will take on the Nashville Predators in Tennessee on September 19. The Cats then play in Tampa Bay against the Lightning on September 24. They finish the preseason at Montreal versus the Canadiens on September 29.

Marlins Stomp Pirates

     While the Stanley Cup Final was played across town, the Miami Marlins topped the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-1 on Thursday night at PNC Park. The Fish have won 10 of their last 14 games.
     Miami(26-33) ripped out to a 3-0 margin in the first inning. Dee Gordon scored on a double by Christian Yelich to right field. Two batters later, Derek Dietrich doubled into right which scored Giancarlo Stanton and Yelich. The Fish made it 4-0 in the fourth when Dietrich crossed the plate on a Tyler Moore double to center.
     The Marlins added three more runs in the top of the fifth inning. Dietrich drove in Marcell Ozuna with a base hit to left, Moore singled home J.T. Realmuto with a single into left field and J.T. Riddle knocked in Dietrich with a base hit to left field.
     Pittsburgh(26-34) prevented the shutout in the bottom of the ninth. Phil Gosselin scored on a ground out to first by Josh Bell.

Marlins Slip By Cubs

     The Miami Marlins got by the Chicago Cubs 6-5 at Wrigley Field on Wednesday night. The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Cubs. The Marlins, who have won nine of their last 13 games, head for Pittsburgh to face the Pirates in a four-game weekend series.
     Miami(25-33) moved ahead 1-0 during the top of the first. Dee Gordon scored on a sacrifice fly by Christian Yelich to left field.
     Chicago(30-28) got their only lead of the game in the third inning. Anthony Rizzo doubled into center which brought home Kyle Schwarber and Ian Happ.
     The Marlins regained the lead in the fourth. J.T. Realmuto pounded a solo home run to left on a 2-2 pitch. J.T. Riddle later drove in Derek Dietrich and Tyler Moore with a base hit to center. Marcell Ozuna added a solo homer to center field in the fifth inning on a 2-1 count to make it 5-2.
     The Cubs compiled solo home runs by Happ in the fifth and Schwarber in the seventh and cut the margin to 6-4. In the eighth inning, Schwarber knocked in Jon Jay with a double to center field.

Cubs Crush Marlins

     The Miami Marlins were defeated by the Chicago Cubs 10-2 at Wrigley Field on Monday night. The Fish have lost the first two games of their seven-game road trip. The Cubs got their fifth consecutive victory.
     Miami(24-33) broke out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. J.T. Realmuto drove in a run on a fielder's choice play.
     Chicago(30-27) had to wait until the fifth inning to take the lead. Anthony Rizzo blasted a three-run homer to right field on a 1-0 pitch for Jon Jay and Kris Bryant to score. Jason Heyward would get an RBI-single which brought in Wilson Contreras later in the frame.
     The Marlins closed the gap in 4-2 in the seventh inning. Realmuto scored on a fielding error by Addison Russell during a J.T. Riddle at-bat.
     The Cubs piled on six runs in the bottom of the seventh. Rizzo knocked in Bryant with a base hit to right. Two batters later, Heyward followed with a double to right field and Rizzo scored. Javier Baez ripped a double to left which scored Heyward and Albert Amora Jr.  Baez later scored along with Ian Happ on a double by Jay into left field.

Cubs Take Marlins

     The Miami Marlins began a seven-game road trip as they lost to the Chicago Cubs 3-1 at Wrigley Field on Monday night. The Marlins had a three-game winning streak snapped while the Cubs won their fourth straight game.
     Chicago(29-27) broke out to a 2-0 lead during the first inning. Ben Zobrist led off with a base hit and then Kris Bryant crushed a two-run homer to left field on a 1-0 pitch. It was his 13th home run of the season.
     The Cubs scored again in the bottom of the third for a three-run cushion. Albert Amora Jr. hit a solo home run to left on a 3-1 count.
     Miami(24-32) got on the scoreboard in the sixth inning. Dee Gordon knocked in J.T. Riddle on a sacrifice fly into center field.

Marlins Edge Diamondbacks

     The Miami Marlins finished off a ten-game home stand with a 6-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday at Marlins Park. The Fish had an 8-2 record in their recent stint at home and have won 10 of their last 14 games overall. The Marlins completed a stretch in which they played 19 of their last 25 games in South Florida.
     Arizona(34-25) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Daniel Descalso led off with a double and scored two batters later when Paul Goldschmidt singled to left field.
     Miami(24-31) responded with three runs during the bottom of the second. Tyler Moore smashed a three-run homer to left field with Marcell Ozuna and Derek Dietrich on base. Both clubs got one run each in the third inning.
     The Diamondbacks regained the lead during the fourth inning to make it 5-4. Descalso knocked in Nick Ahmed and Rey Fuentes with a double into right field. They added the go-ahead run when Goldschmidt got an RBI-double to center which brought in Descalso. 
     In the fifth inning, the Fish tied the contest at 5-5. Dietrich drove in his second run of the game on a sacrifice fly to left.
     The Marlins took the lead again in the bottom of the seventh inning. A.J. Ellis went through a 14-pitch at-bat then eventually singled to left and Dietrich scored.

Edinson Volquez Throws No-Hitter

     Miami Marlins starting pitcher Edinson Volquez pitched a no-hitter as they defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-0 at Marlins Park on Saturday. It was the sixth no-hitter by the Marlins in franchise history. Volquez threw the first no-hitter of the 2017 Major League Baseball season.
     The last time the Marlins had a no-hitter was the final game of the 2013 regular season when the Detroit Tigers were hitless against Henderson Alvarez. Anibal Sanchez once pitched a no-hitter against the same Diamondbacks club on September 6, 2006.
     Miami(23-31), who have won seven of their last ten games, got out to a 1-0 margin in the fourth inning. Justin Bour knocked in Giancarlo Stanton with a base hit to shallow left field.
     The Marlins added two more insurance runs during the bottom of the eighth. Stanton led off with a walk and Christian Yelich singled to left field. Marcell Ozuna drove in Stanton with a single into center for a 2-0 lead. Bour then doubled to right field which scored Yelich.
     Arizona(34-24) had one final opportunity in the ninth inning to break up the no-hitter. Volquez struck out pinch-hitter Chris Owings to end the game.

Dino Costa In Portland

     Former South Florida sports host Dino Costa will join KXTG-AM and KXTG-FM in Portland, Oregon as an afternoon host. He will begin his new position on Monday.
     Costa once worked locally on 1400 The Fan WFLL-AM in Fort Lauderdale. He was with the station as an afternoon host from its inception as a sports talk format in April 2004 and stayed there until July 2004.
     He has made several stops in this decade. Costa worked as an evening host on Mad Dog Radio at Sirius XM Radio from September 2009 to October 2013. He was a mid-afternoon co-host with Pat Paolini at WAOC-AM in St. Augustine from November 2014 until late 2015. He later joined KFNS-AM in St. Louis as a morning host for two months from March 2016 to April 2016.
     Prior to his arrival in South Florida, Costa was a sports host at KLZ-AM in Denver until January 2003. He then hosted an afternoon drive show at WNNR-AM in Jacksonville from June 2003 to February 2004. After 1400 The Fan, Costa returned to Denver and worked at numerous media outlets for the remaining time period of the 2000s.

Diamondbacks End Marlins Win Streak

     The Arizona Diamondbacks got by the Miami Marlins 3-2 at Marlins Park on Thursday night. The Marlins had their season-high four-game winning streak snapped.
     Miami(21-31) moved out to a 2-0 lead during the third inning. Giancarlo Stanton singled to center field which scored J.T. Riddle. Dee Gordon also scored on the play following an error by Chris Owings.
     Arizona(34-22) slowly climbed back into the contest. Paul Goldschmidt drove in Zack Greinke with a base hit to right in the top the of sixth inning.
     The Diamonbacks took the lead 3-2 in the eighth inning. Nick Ahmed connected with a two-run single to right which brought in Chris Hermann and Daniel Descalso. Former Marlin Fernando Rodney pitched in the ninth inning to get the save.

Shawn Thornton Remains With Panthers

     Shawn Thornton will stay with the Florida Panthers following his retirement as an NHL player in April. He was named the Vice President of Business Operations for the organization.
     Thornton played for the Panthers for the last three seasons from 2014 until 2017. He won the Stanley Cup while with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007 and the Boston Bruins in 2011.