More Dolphins On Reserve/COVID-19 List

     Two more players of the Miami Dolphins were placed on the new reserve/COVID-19 list. They are linebacker Jerome Baker and defensive lineman Zach Sieler.

     The Dolphins put three players on the reserve/COVID-19 list back on Tuesday. They were cornerback Cordrea Tankersley, defensive lineman Benito Jones and long snapper Blake Ferguson. 

     The coronavirus has affected sports athletes in other professional sports recently. 18 Miami Marlins players and two coaches had a positive test to the coronavirus in the past week. The Major League Baseball schedule for the Marlins has been postponed from July 27 to August 2. 

Miami Hurricanes Revised 2020 Football Schedule

     The University of Miami Hurricanes have rolled out their revised 2020 college football schedule. The new criteria of the schedule was decided by the Atlantic Coast Conference to play against ten ACC foes for the upcoming season and compete in a big 15-team division which will include Notre Dame. The top two teams will play in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Game. 

     The Hurricanes will host Florida State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Georgia Tech and Virginia at Hard Rock Stadium. Miami will go on the road and face Clemson, Louisville, North Carolina State, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest. The conference teams that the Canes will not face this year are Syracuse, Boston College and Duke.  

Stu Barnes Stays As Seattle Kraken Scout

     Former Florida Panthers center Stu Barnes will remain a scout with the Seattle Kraken, the newest team in the National Hockey League. He was named a scout by the club last year and had his contract extended from June 30 to the end of the 2019-20 NHL season. Barnes is the co-owner of the Tri-City Americans of the Western Hockey League which is based in Kennewick, Washington. 

     Barnes was with the Panthers for four seasons and helped the club win the 1996 Eastern Conference championship over the Pittsburgh Penguins. They lost to the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Finals. He also played for the Winnipeg Jets, Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres and Dallas Stars during his 16-season NHL career.  

Scott Kaplan Joins KSPN-AM In Los Angeles

     Former Miami radio talent Scott Kaplan has joined 710 ESPN Los Angeles KSPN-AM. He will start in that organization as their evening host on August 17. He recently completed a two-week trial earlier this month as an afternoon host at KSPN-AM. 

     Kaplan, a Coral Springs High School and University of Pittsburgh grad, was a sports anchor at 560 WQAM-AM during the late 1990s. He joined CBS Sportsline.com in Fort Lauderdale to co-host a morning show with Sid Rosenberg. The program was relocated to New York City because of its success and had WNEW-FM as their flagship station on a syndicated national network. 

     He moved to San Diego and has been based there for the past 19 years. Kaplan hosted programs with Billy Ray Smith on XETRA-AM and XEPRS-AM. He founded Sided.co and has done a YouTube talk show podcast since May 2019. 

     Kaplan has been on the national airwaves for National Football League games. He does sideline reporting for CBS Sports and Westwood One Sports. 

Jorge Sedano Moves To KSPN-AM Afternoons

     Former Miami sportscaster Jorge Sedano and his radio program will be moving to the afternoon shift at 710 ESPN Los Angeles KSPN-AM beginning on August 17. He has been hosting late mornings at that radio station since February 2020. 

     Sedano has been at ESPN Los Angeles for the last four years. He began co-hosting the morning show with Keyshawn Johnson and LZ Granderson from September 2016 to September 2018. Sedano was shifted to afternoon drive in September 2018 and moved to evenings in September 2019.  

     He worked at several Miami radio stations from August 1999 to August 2013. Sedano had on-air stints at 1700 The Fan WAFN-AM, Fox Sports Radio 940 WINZ-AM, News Radio 610 WIOD-AM, Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM, and Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM. He also was a studio host of the Miami Heat Radio Network and overnight host at Fox Sports Radio. 

     Sedano continues his duties at ESPN as an NBA sideline reporter, The Jump backup studio host and Around The Horn panelist. He did previous local television work as a sportscaster at WFOR-TV Channel 4 and Miami Heat studio host on Sun Sports. Sedano had co-hosted Nacion ESPN on ESPN2 for several years. 

Rickie Ricardo On WMEN-AM Yankees Broadcasts

     Former Miami radio announcer Rickie Ricardo was heard on Wednesday night and Thursday night at Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM on the New York Yankees Radio Network. He filled in as the play-by-play announcer for John Sterling and worked alongside Susyn Waldman for the Yankees road contests against the Baltimore Orioles. He also did the ensuing three home games versus the Boston Red Sox. 

     Ricardo is the Spanish language radio voice of the New York Yankees and has been in that position since 2014. He still handles the Spanish language radio play-by-play duties for the Philadelphia Eagles. Ricardo sometimes works as a weekend sports host on Sports Radio 94 WIP-FM in Philadelphia. 

     He was based in Miami back in the mid-2000s. Ricardo was the morning co-host at WZTA-FM and sports reporter for Clear Channel Miami. He became the Spanish language radio play-by-play announcer of the Philadelphia Phillies from 2007 until 2013. 

Dolphins Waive Ryan Lewis And Claim Ray Smith

     The Miami Dolphins made several minor moves on Wednesday. They waived defensive back Ryan Lewis and claimed defensive tackle Ray Smith off waivers. 

     Lewis split time between three National Football League clubs in 2019. After starting the season with the Indianapolis Colts and Philadelphia Eagles, he finished up the campaign with the Dolphins. He played eight games and had one interceptions with Miami. Lewis was picked up on waivers by the Washington Football Team on Thursday.

     Smith was on the San Francisco 49ers practice squad last season. He did play college football with the Boston College Eagles. 

Pat Venditte Signs With Marlins Again

     Pat Venditte has signed again with the Miami Marlins for the second time in less than a year. He agreed to a minor league deal with the club. He did participate with the team during spring training in Jupiter and signed back on January 6. 

     Venditte is known throughout baseball as the only pitcher that can throw right-handed and left-handed. A rule was instituted by Major League Baseball because of him. He has to state to the home plate umpire which arm he will pitch to each batter. 

     He has pitched in the majors for four seasons. Venditte had stints with the Oakland A's Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. 

ACC Proposes Football Schedule

     The Atlantic Coast Conference has stated a conference schedule setup that will be implemented for the 2020 season. They will not use same procedure where teams would play all schools in their division and several schools in the other ACC division. 

     There will be no separation of colleges in different divisions which are the Atlantic Division and Coastal Division in 2020. All conference teams will be combined into one large division. The top two teams in the standings would play in the ACC Championship Game in Charlotte. 

     All Atlantic Coast Conference schools will face 10 ACC opponents. Each ACC team will play one game against a college that resides inside their state borders. 

     Notre Dame will be part of the Atlantic Coast Conference and play a similar schedule just like all ACC members this year. They were to play six ACC teams in 2020. 

Jose Reyes Retires

     Former Miami Marlins shortstop Jose Reyes announced his retirement on Wednesday. He was a vocal leader for several Major League Baseball clubs he played for. 

     Reyes was part of the spending spree that Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria made following the 2011 season signing several free agents. The team changed their designation from Florida to Miami when they moved into Marlins Park to begin the 2012 regular season.  

     He was with the Marlins for just one year. Reyes had a .287 batting average with 11 home runs, 57 runs batted in and 40 stolen bases in his short stint. 

     Reyes was best known playing shortstop for the New York Mets from 2003 to 2011. He helped them reach the National League Championship Series in 2006 against the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Miami Marlins Sign Logan Forsythe

     The Miami Marlins have signed second baseman Logan Forsythe to a deal. It was a decision made because another member of the roster has tested positive for the coronavirus to make it 16 players and two coaches so far.  

     He was in the Philadelphia Phillies summer training camp for the upcoming 2020 regular season and was notified that he would not make the opening day roster. 

     Forsythe has played nine seasons in the majors. He had stints with the San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Rays. Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers. He helped the Dodgers win the National League championship in 2017. 

Panthers Stomped By Lightning In Exhibition Game

     The Florida Panthers were blasted by the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-0 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Wednesday in an exhibition game. It was the first time that Florida played an opponent since March 9 in St. Louis versus the Blues during the 2019-20 regular season. The Panthers will begin their best-of-five Stanley Cup Qualifier Series against the New York Islanders on Saturday.

     Tampa Bay pulled ahead 1-0 with 6:18 left in the first period. Lucas Wallmark turned the puck over in his own left corner. Nikita Kucherov pushed the puck to Ondrej Palat in the inner edge of the right circle and he moved it across to Brayden Point. He faked a wrist shot in the crease, went to his backhand and shot it by Sergei Bobrovsky. 

     The Bolts extended their lead to 2-0 with 4.5 seconds left in the frame. Kevin Shattenkirk angled a pass from his own zone to Point at the Panthers blue line. He skated through the right circle and lifted a wrist shot from the right of the crease. 

     In the second period, the Lightning scored on the power play to make it a three-goal margin. Kucherov traded the puck back-and-forth with Mikhail Sergachev at the of the zone. Kuchervov then ripped a one-time slapshot from the right-circle dot at the 1:52 mark. 

     It became 4-0 for Tampa Bay at 5:13 of the second period. Palat was on the left goal line and passed it back out. Luke Schenn then snapped a shot from the top right circle for a tally. 

     Florida surrendered another goal midway through the third period at the 9:12 mark for a Tampa Bay 5-0 lead. Kucherov raced into the neutral zone and sent it to Point on his right. Point entered the Panthers zone, hustled to the low right circle and made a cross-ice pass. Kucherov finished the play as he tapped in the puck from the left of the blue paint. 

Marlins Get Mike Morin

     The Miami Marlins continued to go to the waiver wire and pick up more players for their organizations The club has been shorthanded on their 60-player pool due to the recent coronavirus cases with the team.
     The Marlins have picked up pitcher Mike Morin off waivers from the Milwaukee Brewers. He split time last season between the Minnesota Twins and Philadelphia Phillies. Morin had a combined 1-3 record in 52 relief appearances during 2019.

Grizzlies Stall Heat

     The Memphis Grizzlies outdistanced the Miami Heat 128-110 on Tuesday outside of Orlando. It was the final scrimmage of three that the Heat had to participate in. The Heat will resume the regular season against the Denver Nuggets on August 1. 

     Memphis broke out with a 41-33 lead after one quarter and led 69-52 by halftime. Miami slipped behind more and trailed 106-84 at the end of three quarters. 

Miami Marlins Games Postponed Through Sunday

     Miami Marlins games has been postponed from July 28 through August 2. The remaining 29 Major League Baseball teams will continue on their schedules over the next six days.

     The Marlins home contests on Monday and Tuesday were already stopped by MLB. Their remaining games this week to be suspended includes at the Baltimore Orioles on July 29 and July 30 along with home games against the Washington Nationals from on July 31, August 1 and August 2. 

Miami Dolphins Players on Reserve/COVID-19 List

     Several Miami Dolphins players have been place on the new reserve/COVID-19 list. It is a recent guideline instituted by the National Football League. 

     It's possible that this area will likely expand in the near future. Dolphins who appear on this list includes cornerback Cordrea Tankersley, defensive lineman Benito Jones and long snapper Blake Ferguson. 

More Marlins With Coronavirus

     Four more Miami Marlins players have tested positive with the coronavirus. It increases the total to 15 players and two coaches in their organization. 

     The Marlins home opener against the Baltimore Orioles for Monday was postponed due to the initial outbreak and their contest on Tuesday will be postponed. The Marlins team remains in Philadelphia since Sunday. 

     The Orioles flew down to Miami, stayed for one day and then went back to Baltimore. The Marlins and Orioles are slated by play two games against each other in Baltimore on July 29 and July 30. 

Marlins Claim Josh Brown

     The Miami Marlins have claimed left-handed pitcher Josh Brown from the Cincinnati Reds. He is not to be confused with another Josh Brown in their organization who is a right-handed pitcher. 

     It is the second time that the Marlins picked up a player on waivers from the Reds. They recently got pitcher Justin Shafer. 

     Brown split his time with the Cleveland Indians and Miami Marlins in 2019. He played in six games, pitched in 4 1/3 innings and had two strikeouts for Miami last season. 

Dan Sileo Joins 1210 The Man

     Former University of Miami Hurricanes defensive lineman Dan Sileo has returned to the South Florida radio airwaves and joined 1210 The Man WNMA-AM on Monday. He will expand his profile at that radio station starting on August 3 with a mid-afternoon show from 2-4PM and a late night show from 10PM to midnight.  

     He had previous stints on local radio. Sileo was a talk show host and University of Miami Hurricanes Radio Network football studio analyst on 560 WQAM-AM from April 2012 to March 2013. He then landed at 640 WMEN-AM in July 2013 as a midday host and was there until November 2013. 

     Sileo began his broadcasting career with reigns at KNBR-AM in San Francisco and nationally syndicated Fox Sports Radio. He once worked in several different Florida radio markets. They included WFXJ-AM in Jacksonville, WQTM-AM along with WYGM-AM in Orlando and WDAE-AM in Tampa Bay before arriving in South Florida. 

     He announced shows in San Diego on XEPRS-AM from February 2014 to December 2017 and KWGM-FM from March 2018 to April 2019. Sileo recently did stints at WEEI-AM in Boston and KGME-AM in Phoenix. He continues to host a program on Twitch that he launched back in September 2019. 

Miami Marlins Pick Up Justin Shafer

     The Miami Marlins have claimed right-handed pitcher Justin Shafer off waivers from the Cincinnati Reds. He is known to work as a middle relief pitcher while in the majors. 

     Shafer has been with the Reds since November 2019. He played two seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2018 and 2019. Shafer had a 2-1 record in 34 games last season. 

Coronavirus Cancels Marlins Home Opener

     The home opener for the Miami Marlins on Monday night at Marlins Park versus the Baltimore Orioles has been cancelled by Major League Baseball, The reason was due to the spread of the coronavirus among Miami Marlins personnel. Their other contest to be played on Tuesday night against the O's has also been postponed. 

     It was mentioned on Monday that eight Marlins players along with two coaches had tested positive for the coronavirus. This brings the total number of people travelling with the club up 13. 

     The Marlins had just finished a three-game series in Philadelphia against the Phillies and the team did not take a flight back to Miami. The club currently remains in Philadelphia. 

Marlins To Play In Buffalo

     The Miami Marlins are expected to play several road games at Sahlen Field in Buffalo. It is expected to take place next month. 

     The Toronto Blue Jays are unable to play their home games in Canada due to government guidelines toward the coronavirus pandemic. Their home contests for the 2020 regular season will take place at their Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo. The Marlins will play the Blue Jays there for two games on August 11 and August 12. 

Florida Panthers Name Playoff Roster

     The Florida Panthers submitted 30 players who will be on their playoff roster. Florida will take on the New York Islanders in a best-of-five Stanley Cup Qualifier Series beginning on August 1 in Toronto.  

     The Panthers bring 16 forwards with Aleksander Barkov, Johnathan Huberdeau, Evgenii Dadonov, Mike Hoffman, Frank Vatrano, Noel Acciari, Brett Connolly, Colton Sceviour, Brian Boyle, Erik Haula, Lucas Wallmark, Dominic Toninato, Dryden Hunt, Owen Tippett, Aleksi Saarela and Eetu Luostarinen.

     They will go with ten defensemen which are Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle, Mike Matheson, Anton Stralman, Mark Pysyk, MacKenzie Weegar, Josh Brown, Riley Stillman, Brady Keeper and Chase Priskie. The team will carry four goalies with Sergei Bobrovsky, Chris Driedger, Samuel Montembeault and Philippe Desrosiers.

     The club have four players that faced the Islanders back in the first round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs. They include Ekblad, Barkov, Huberdeau and Matheson. 

Marlins Outscore Phillies

     The Miami Marlins finished a three-game series with a 11-6 win over to the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday. The Marlins will have their home opener on Monday against the Baltimore Orioles.

     Philadelphia(1-2) rocketed out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Three batters in, Bryce Harper blasted a three-run homer to right field on the first pitch with Adam Haseley and Rhys Hoskins scoring. Jay Bruce later drove in Jean Segura with a triple to right. 

     The Marlins cut the entire deficit during the second inning. Jesus Aguilar belted a solo home run to right-center field on a 1-1 pitch for his second homer of the series. The Fish tied it up 4-4 when Miguel Rojas smacked a three-run homer to left field on a 0-0 count which brought in Brian Anderson and Isan Diaz. 

     The Phillies retook the lead 5-4 in the bottom of the frame. A wild pitch to the backstop moved Haseley to third. An errant throw by Francisco Cervelli went down the left-field line and Haseley crossed the plate.      

     Miami(2-1) regained the lead 6-5 in the top of the fourth. Rojas tripled into right field to score Diaz. Magneuris Sierra then chopped a ball up the middle over a drawn-in infield for a double and Rojas scored. 

     In the fifth inning, the Fish extended the gap to 9-5. Brian Anderson sliced the ball down the right-field line for a three-run shot. Corey Dickerson and Aguilar were able to score in front of him. \

     Both clubs added a run during the sixth inning. Dickerson cracked a solo home run to right-center field for Miami on a first pitch and gave them a five-run margin. The Phillies matched it as Haseley knocked in Phil Gosselin on a double to left. 

     The Marlins made it 11-6 in the top of the seventh. Sierra drove in Rojas with a triple to deep center field. 

Dolphins Cut Jake Rudock And Ricardo Louis

     The Miami Dolphins have dropped quarterback Jake Rudock and wide receiver Ricardo Louis. The Dolphins continue to make moves and reach the 80-player roster. 

     Rudock was with the Dolphins practice squad last season and did not enter a contest. He was with the Detroit Lions from 2017 to 2018. Rudock played in three games for them during 2017 and had three pass completions for 24 yards. 

     He played high school football with the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders. Rudock helped them to an undefeated record in senior year as they captured the 2010 FHSAA Class 7A state title and a national championship. He split his time in college football with the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and the University of Michigan Wolverines. 

     Louis, a Miami Beach Senior High School grad, never suited up for the Dolphins in a regular season game. He was signed by the organization back in 2019. He did play several seasons for the Cleveland Browns prior to his arrival in Miami. 

Las Vegas Raiders Sign Damon Arnette

     The Las Vegas Raiders have signed cornerback Damon Arnette. He was selected 19th overall in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Arnette played college football with the Ohio State Buckeyes from 2015 to 2019 and won several Big Ten Conference titles. 

     Arnette formerly was with the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders as a wide receiver and defensive back. He helped the school win FHSAA Class 7A state titles in 2012 and 2014. 

Miami Dolphins Acquire Adam Shaheen

     The Miami Dolphins have acquired tight end Adam Shaheen from the Chicago Bears. The Dolphins will sent a conditional 2021 seventh-round pick in return for him.
     Shaheen has played the last three seasons with the Bears. He has played in 27 games in the three years and compiled 26 catches for 249 yards and four touchdowns.

Phillies Down Marlins

     The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Miami Marlins 7-1 on Saturday at Citizens Bank Park. Both clubs will play for final game of the three-game series on Sunday. Zack Wheeler made his pitching debut with the Phillies as he allowed one run on five hits in seven innings. 

     Philadelphia(1-1) got out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Didi Gregorius, in his second game with the franchise, walloped a solo home run to right field on a 0-2 pitch. 

     Miami(1-1) evened it up 1-1 during the top of the fifth. Miguel Rojas knocked in Brian Anderson with line-drive base hit into center field. 

     In the sixth inning, the Phillies regained the lead 3-1. Phil Gosselin ripped a two-run homer to left-center field on the first pitch that scored Scott Kingery from first. 

     J.T. Realmuto would burn his former team in the bottom of the seventh with his first hit of the season. He pounded a three-run homer to straight-away center field on a 2-2 pitch. Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper were both able to score in front of him on the play. 

     The Phillies added another run in the eighth inning. Gosselin got his second home run of the contest. He smashed a solo homer to right-center field on a 3-1 count. 

Heat Bounced By Jazz

     The Miami Heat lost to the Utah Jazz 101-99 on Saturday. in Lake Buena Vista. It was the second of three scrimmages for the Heat prior to the restart of the NBA regular season. 

     Utah led 28-25 after one quarter and the contest was tied 57-57 at halftime. Miami was down by 13 points during the third quarter and came back. They chopped down the lead to 75-73 at the end of the frame. The Jazz scored five of the last seven points of the fourth quarter to edge the Heat by two points. 

Florida Panthers Radio Have Qualifier Series

     The Florida Panthers Radio Network will be broadcasting the Stanley Cup Playoff Qualifier Series between the Panthers and New York Islanders. South Florida Sports Coverage broke this story back on July 15. The series will begin with Game 1 on August 1 in Toronto. 

     Panthers play-by-play announcer Doug Plagens and game analyst Bill Lindsay will announce the series from the BB&T Center in Sunrise. Alex Donno will work as the studio host on the broadcasts. 

     560 The Joe WQAM-AM is the radio flagship station for the team and will have all the contests. Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM will get Game 2 and Game 3 while their sister station 850 WFTL-AM will broadcast Game 1 of the series. 

Marlins Top Phillies On Opening Day

     The Miami Marlins opened up the 2020 Major League Baseball season with a 5-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Friday night. It was the first time that the Marlins faced a National League team and used a designated hitter. 

     Miami(1-0) struck first in the third inning. Jonathan Villar played in his first game as a Marlin and knocked in another new Marlin Francisco Cervelli with a sacrifice fly to center field.

     Philadelphia(0-1) was able to tie it up 1-1 in the bottom of the fifth. Didi Gregorius made his Phillies debut and smacked a solo home run to right field on a 2-2 pitch. 

     In the sixth inning, the Marlins put up four runs on the scoreboard. Jesus Aguilar helped out the Fish in his first contest in a Marlins uniform and gave them a 3-1 lead. He blasted a two-run homer to left-center field on a 0-2 count with Miguel Rojas on board. 

     Corey Dickerson would score on a wild pitch later in the frame for a three-run margin. Garrett Cooper, the first Marlins designated hitter in a National League game, came up and lined a double into the left-center field gap which scored Harold Ramirez. 

     The Phillies got a gift with two out in the seventh inning when Villar dropped a routine fly ball to right-center field off the bat of Jay Bruce. Gregorius raced around the bases and scored from first to make it 5-2. 

Miami Marlins Radio Network

     The Miami Marlins Radio Network will be heard in nine different media markets for the 2020 campaign. The Marlins begin their regular season on Friday in Philadelphia against the Phillies.

     Miami Sports 940 WINZ-AM returns as the flagship radio station of the team. They have been the primary radio station for the club since the 2014 season. 

     Other local stations to have Marlins games includes Sports Radio 1230 The Zone WBZT-AM in West Palm Beach and 97.7 The Zone WAVK-FM in the Florida Keys. 

     There are numerous radio stations around the state of Florida that will also have Marlins broadcasts. Metropolitan areas includes Stuart(Treasure Coast), Fort Myers, Naples, Estero(Bonita Springs) and Titusville. The only radio station out of the state with the Marlins Radio Network is Wichita, Kansas. 

Baseball Playoffs Expands To 16 Teams

     Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred announced on Thursday night that the 2020 postseason will be expanded to 16 teams. MLB had the amount of playoff clubs at ten since the 2012 season. 

     Eight teams will be in the playoffs for both the American League and National League. The teams that will qualify from both leagues will be all three division winners, three second place clubs and the next two teams with the best records. 

     There will no longer be any first-round byes. The seedings in both leagues will be from the first seed to the eighth seed. The division winners and the fourth seed will host all three games of a three-game series during the first round. 

FHSAA Moves Fall Sports Practices To August 24

     The Florida High School Sports Association met again on Thursday. At the end of the three-hour session, it was decided that fall sports practices such as football and volleyball could start on August 24. 

     The FHSAA stated earlier this week that schools were allowed to begin team practices on July 24. Many school districts and Florida counties responded negatively toward this decision due to the coronavirus pandemic and the effect on students, athletes and coaching personnel. 

WMEN-AM Has New York Yankees Broadcasts

     Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM has the New York Yankees Radio Network for the 2020 Major League Baseball season. The radio station has been the home of New York Yankees radio broadcasts since 2008. The regular season this year will be just 60 games instead of 162 contests that has been used in the majors since 1961. 

     John Sterling returns as play-by-play announcer and Susyn Waldman as game analyst. Major League Baseball stated back in June that club announcers will not travel with their teams for 30 road games. Sterling and Waldman will broadcast the Yankees road games from Yankee Stadium. 

Jerry Jeudy Signing With Denver Broncos

     Former high school wide receiver Jerry Jeudy will be signing a four-year, $15.192 million deal with the Denver Broncos. He was the 15th overall selection in the 2020 NFL Draft. 

     Jeudy played and started at wide receiver/defensive back with the Deerfield Beach Bucks. He led the team to several district titles and a long playoff run to the FHSAA Class 8A state semifinals during his senior year in 2016. 

     He would join the University of Alabama Crimson Tide and was with them for three seasons. Jeudy helped the school win the 2017 CFP National Championship game over the University of Georgia Bulldogs. 

Heat Handle Kings

     The Miami Heat took care of the Sacramento Kings 104-98 at HP Field House in Lake Buena Vista on Wednesday. It was the first of three scrimmages played by the Heat prior to the restart of the NBA regular season. The Heat will take on the Utah Jazz on Saturday. 

     It was the first time Miami played a contest against an opponent since the coronavirus pandemic stopped the NBA season on March 11. They lost that night to the Charlotte Hornets 109-98 at American Airlines Arena. 

Marlins Stop Braves

     The Miami Marlins got by the Atlanta Braves 6-2 on Wednesday at Truist Park. It was the second straight day that both clubs played an exhibition game against each other. 

     The Marlins will begin the 2020 campaign on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday. The Braves will travel to New York and take on the Mets. 

Fox Sports Florida Broadcasting Qualifier Series

     Fox Sports Florida will be telecasting the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Qualifier Series against the New York Islanders starting on August 1. South Florida Sports Coverage broke the story back on July 15. The regional sports network will also have the Panthers exhibition contest versus the Tampa Bay Lightning on July 29 at noon. 

     Florida Panthers play-by-play announcer Steve Goldstein and game analyst Randy Moller will call the games from the Fox Sports Florida studios in Fort Lauderdale. Craig Minervini and Jessica Blaylock will share duties as the studio host for the Panthers broadcasts.

Miami Dolphins Complete Draft Signings

     The Miami Dolphins have finished signing all of their 2020 NFL Draft picks on Wednesday. They have inked guard Robert Hunt, their second round draft selection and the 39th overall NFL Draft pick. 

     Hunt played college football with Louisiana-Lafayette. He stayed for four seasons with the Ragin' Cajuns. 

Highly Questionable Moving On ESPN

     Highly Questionable with Dan Le Batard will be moving to a different time slot on ESPN as of August 17. It will be on at 2:30PM. 

     The program premiered on ESPN television in September 2011 and eventually shifted to a late afternoon slot at ESPN. Highly Questionable was downgraded to just 20 minutes on May 11 from 4:20PM to 4:40PM. The show was expanded back to 30 minutes at 4:30PM several weeks ago. 

     Le Batard has co-hosted a radio program with Stugotz on ESPN Radio since September 2013. They both launched a show together on Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM in August 2004 and it lasted on that station until August 2019. 

Junichi Tazawa Heads To Japan

     Former Miami Marlins relief pitcher Junichi Tazawa has signed a contract in the Route Inn Challenge Baseball League. He will participate with the Saitama Musashi Heat Bears. 

     Tazawa was involved in 77 games with the Marlins in 2017 and 2018. He began his major league career with the Boston Red Sox in 2009 and helped them win the World Series in 2013. 

Marlins Fall To Braves In Exhibition Game

     The Miami Marlins were defeated by the Atlanta Braves 10-9 at Truist Park on Tuesday night. The Marlins played against another opponent for the first time since an exhibition spring training game back in March. Both teams used a designated hitter as they will for National League play in 2020. 

     The Marlins will play the Braves again in another exhibition contest on Wednesday. They visit the Phillies in Philadelphia for their season opener on Friday. 

     Miami hit home runs in three consecutive at-bats in the third inning. Jorge Alfaro lined a homer down the left-field foul line, followed by a Miguel Rojas home run to left field and then Jonathan Villar finished it off with a towering solo shot to center field. 

     The Marlins extended their lead to 6-0 during the top of the fifth. Corey Dickerson knocked in Rojas and Villar with a two-run single into center field. Jesus Aguilar came up next and drove in Brian Anderson on a single to left. 

     The Fish had an 8-1 in the middle of the eighth after Francisco Cervelli ripped a double to left field which brought in Garrett Cooper and Sean Rodriguez. Atlanta responded with eight runs in the bottom of the frame to move ahead 9-8 

     In the ninth inning, Miami tied it up 9-9. Jesus Sanchez nailed a solo home run to right field on a 1-0 pitch. 

     The Braves capitalized being the home team in the bottom of the ninth. Mike Adams, who signed with Atlanta on Monday, smashed a walk-off home run to right on a 0-1 count for the victory. 

NFL Cancels Preseason Games

     There will be no preseason games prior to the 2020 NFL regular season. The National Football League has decided to eliminate the preseason based on the coronavirus pandemic along with the health of players in the league. 

     Usually all 32 NFL teams play at least four preseason contests each year. The Miami Dolphins and the other National Football League clubs host two preseason games and eight regular season games for a total of ten contests.

Noah Igbinoghene Signs With Dolphins

     The Miami Dolphins continued to sign their 2020 NFL Draft picks. Defensive back Noah Igbinoghene, one of their first round selections, has agreed to a deal with the club. 

     Igbinoghene played cornerback with the Auburn University Tigers. He began his college football career as a wide receiver. 

Marlins Sign Draft Picks

     The Miami Marlins continued to sign players that they selected in the 2020 Major League Baseball Draft. The draft was shortened to just five rounds this year and the Marlins choose six players. 

     The Marlins inked third round draft pick Coastal Carolina pitcher Zach McCambley and fifth round draft pick University of Southern California pitcher Kyle Hurt. Miami had previously signed University of Minnesota pitcher Max Meyer(first round) and Ball State pitcher Kyle Nicolas(second round).

Julie Donaldson Joins Washington NFL Team

     Former Miami television sportscaster Julie Donaldson has joined the Washington NFL franchise as senior vice president of media and content. She will be in charge of the team's radio, television and internet properties. 

     Donaldson, a University of Florida grad, first got noticed locally as a host for Heat TV on Sunshine Network. She added duties as a sports reporter on Miccosukee Sports Rap for Fox Sports Net Florida. 

     She moved on to New York and became a sports reporter and sports anchor at SNY (Sportsnet New York) in New York City. Donaldson then landed in Boston as a sportscaster at WHDH-TV. 

     Donaldson had worked at NBC Sports Washington and their previous name Comcast Sportsnet Washington since 2010. Her positions in that organization included sports anchor, sports reporter and Washington Wizards studio host games. 

Ryan Cook Released By Marlins

     Relief pitcher Ryan Cook was released by the Miami Marlins on Monday. He signed a minor-league deal with the club in January after playing in Japan during the 2019 season. 

     Cook was in Major League Baseball for six seasons. He lasted played in the majors with the Seattle Mariners in 2018. Cook was previously with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Oakland A's and Boston Red Sox. 

FHSAA Keeps Fall Sports Schedule Intact

     The Florida High School Athletic Association held a five-hour meeting concerning the upcoming fall sports schedule involving football and volleyball. They decided that will be no adjustments for schools throughout the state of Florida and that football training camps can begin on July 27 as originally scheduled. 

     The coronavirus pandemic had an effect on student learning along with the lack of high school athletics. The rest of the FHSAA spring sports season was scrapped and the spring football games set for May were also eliminated.

Derek Dietrich Out From Reds

     Former Miami Marlins player Derek Dietrich is no longer with the Cincinnati Reds. He signed with that club last year and put up strong numbers to begin the 2019 regular season. He surprising stats included a career-high 19 home runs with Cincinnati. 

     Dietrich played his first six Major League Baseball seasons with the Marlins. He compiled 60 home runs, 204 runs batted in and .254 batting average in 608 games with the Fish. 

Inter Miami CF Ends Tournament Lose To NYCFC

     Inter Miami CF was defeated by New York City FC 1-0 on Monday at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista. The club has lost their first five games in their franchise history which is a new Major League Soccer record.  

     It was the final game for Inter Miami CF in the MLS Tournament as they were eliminated. They collected no points with three losses in Group A and will play contests after the MLS Tournament is completed in August. 

     There would be no scoring in the first half and it changed when New York City FC pulled ahead 1-0 in the 64th minute. Forward Ismael Tajouri-Shradi received a lead lob pass all by himself in the middle of field from 24 yards out. He tapped it once and then lined a right-footed shot from 15 yards away into the low left corner of the cage. 

Hochman And Crowder Gets Extra WQAM Hour

     The afternoon program with Marc Hochman and Channing Crowder will expand one extra hour on 560 The Joe WQAM-AM from 2-6PM as of Monday. The show will continue their simulcast on both WQAM and Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM. 

     It came about when ESPN Radio announced that Mike Greenberg would host a two-hour midday show beginning on August 17. The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz will lose one hour of their three-hour program on ESPN Radio and WQAM. It will air during late mornings from 10AM to noon. 

     Hochman and Crowder were for four hours on WQAM until early August 2019. It was cut to three hours when that station added ESPN Radio programming which included First Take Your Take with Jason Fitz from 1-3PM. Hochman and Crowder were then placed in the afternoon shift on The Ticket for four hours. 

     Hochman, a University of Miami grad, has co-hosted the afternoon show on WQAM since April 2014. Crowder was added to the program in August 2015. 

Fort Lauderdale CF Opens Inter Miami CF Stadium

     Fort Lauderdale CF played in the first official game ever played at Inter Miami CF Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday night. They lost to Greenville Triumph SC 2-0 in a USL League One contest. The field of Inter Miami CF Stadium is at the same location as Lockhart Stadium was previously.

     Inter Miami CF was to play their first home game in franchise history back on March 14 against LA Galaxy. It was stopped when Major Soccer League suspended games on March 12 because of the coronavirus pandemic. No specific date has been determined when Inter Miami CF will make their home opener. 

Miami Marlins Exhibition Games

     The Miami Marlins will be involved in two exhibition games to complete their summer training camp. The Fish had exhibition contests back in March then the coronavirus pandemic ended  spring training and the start of the 2020 regular season. 

     The Marlins will play two straight days on the road next week. They will challenge the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on July 21 and July 22. 

Larry Ridley esportsXTRA Host

     Former Channel 7 WSVN-TV sportscaster Larry Ridley is a show host on esportsXTRA. He has been hosting the program three times a week, which is streamed on twitch.tv, since April 15. He had co-hosted electronic sporting events with that organization prior to April. 

     Ridley is remembered locally as a weekend sports anchor and weekday sports reporter for WSVN-TV during the mid 2000s. He shifted to Boston and became a sports anchor at WHDH-TV for five years. Ridley moved to Orlando and became the sports director and sports anchor at WESH-TV in February 2012. 

     He then held the post as SportsNite sports anchor at SNY in New York City on the New York Mets regional sports network. Ridley added duties as a weekend sports anchor at CBS Sports Radio Network near the end of 2017. 

Matt Joyce And Lewis Brinson On Injured List

     The Miami Marlins placed outfielder Matt Joyce and outfielder Lewis Brinson on the 10-day injured list. Both players have not showed up at summer training at Marlins Park. 

     Joyce joined the Marlins as a free agent during the offseason. He was with the Braves in 2019 and compiled seven home runs, 23 runs batted in and a .295 batting average. 

     Brinson has been with the Fish for the past two seasons after being acquired in the Christian Yelich trade from the Milwaukee Brewers. He played in 75 games and had a .173 batting average along with 15 runs batted in last season. 

Marlins Ink Kyle Nicolas

     The Miami Marlins have signed their 2020 second round supplemental pick Kyle Nicolas to a contract. The deal for the 61st overall selection is for around $1.19 million. He along with the Marlins first round pick Max Meyer are the only player who have signed with the club from the 2020 MLB Draft.
     Nicolas pitched college baseball with Ball State University. He went 23 innings last season and struck out 14 1/2 strikeouts every nine innings and had a 2.74 earned-run-average.

Inter Miami CF English Audio Broadcasts

     Inter Miami CF games can be heard in the English language at InterMiamiCF.com with an audio call of all contests played by the club. It was surprising that none of the terrestrial radio stations in South Florida became the flagship station of English broadcasts to put Inter Miami CF games on their airwaves. 

     Chris Wittyngham is the play-by-play announcer while Thomas Rongen is the game analyst. Orlando Alzugaray and Alex Donno are the studio co-hosts while Sean Stanley is the executive producer. 

     The talent from that broadcasting team have prior soccer broadcasting experience. Wittyngham has been a soccer play-by-play announcer for beIN Sports. Wittyngham is also the studio host for the Miami Dolphins Radio Network. He once was the evening co-host and afternoon co-host at Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM. 

     Rongen, a former Fort Lauderdale Strikers player and head coach, has been employed with beIN Sports as a soccer game analyst. He also has been involved as a soccer studio analyst for CBS Sports Network and CBSSports.com in Fort Lauderdale. 

     Alzugaray was the public address announcer of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the most recent run of the North American Soccer League. He also hosted a weekly Fort Lauderdale Strikers soccer show on 560 WQAM-AM. Alzugaray has been a sportscaster at several South Florida sports stations with broadcasting stints at WINZ-AM, WQAM-AM, WMEN-AM, SiriusXM Radio and WNMA-AM. He presently hosts a daily podcast on BigOShow.com. 

     Donno currently is a podcast host on Inter Milan soccer. He has worked in the local radio market at WQAM and The Ticket. Donno is the studio host on the Florida Panthers Radio Network and University of Miami Hurricanes Radio Network. 

     Stanley has been behind the scenes in local radio. He worked as a producer at WQAM along with WNMA. Stanley now works as a podcast host on the SSSportsTalk.com website. 

Florida Panthers Sign Grigori Denisenko

     The Florida Panthers have signed forward Grigori Denisenko to a three-year, entry-level deal. The contract would go into effect at the beginning of the 2020-21 season. Denisenko was selected 15th overall by the Panthers in the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft. 

     Denisenko has played for Yaroslavl Locomotiv of the Kontinental Hockey League for the past two seasons. He had six goals and six assists in 38 games last season with that club. 

Florida Panthers Announcers Staying Local

     Fox Sports Florida will broadcast the Florida Panthers Stanley Cup Qualifier best-of-five series against the New York Islanders. The broadcasting crew of play-by-play announcer Steve Goldstein and game analyst Randy Moller will announce the contests from the Fox Sports Florida studios in Fort Lauderdale off television monitors.  

     The Panthers radio broadcasts are likely to be announced from the Fox Sports studios in Fort Lauderdale and be heard on flagship station 560 The Joe WQAM-AM along with Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM. The broadcasters will be play-by-play announcer Doug Plagens and game analyst Bill Lindsay. 

     The National Hockey League has not stated publicly to Stanley Cup Playoff bound clubs that no local broadcasting crews should be going to the hub cities of Toronto and Edmonton. All 24 teams participating are allowed to bring 51 people each into the hub city bubble setting which will include players, coaches, hockey operations personnel and business operations personnel. 

     The National Basketball Association announced that local team announcers would not be able to broadcast games in person from the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex outside of Orlando earlier this month. Eric Reid, John Crotty, Jason Jackson and their entire broadcasting team will announce Miami Heat games from the Fox Sports Florida studios at American Airlines Arena. 

     Major League Baseball had requested that team broadcasters should not travel with their clubs for road games back in early June. Television announcers Paul Severino and Todd Hollandsworth along with radio voices Dave Van Horne and Glenn Geffner will announce road contests from Marlins Park. They will also call Marlins home games from that stadium for the entire 60-game regular season schedule.

Philadelphia Union Tops Inter Miami CF

     The Philadelphia Union defeated Inter Miami CF 2-1 at the ESPN Wild World of Sports Complex outside of Orlando on Tuesday night. It was the second game for both clubs in Group A of the MLS Tournament. Inter Miami CF has yet to win a game in their inaugural season and have now lost four straight. 

     Philadelphia struck early in the fifth minute to lead 1-0. Defender Kai Wagner blasted a left-footed shot from 21 yards out. 

     Inter Miami CF responded to tie it up 1-1 in the 36th minute. Midfielder Roldolfo Pizarro scored on a left-footed shot from seven yards away in the middle of the field. Midfielder Matias Pellegrini was credited with an assist on the play. 

     In the 63rd minute, the Union regained the lead 2-1. Forward Kacper Przybylko put in the ball on a 20-yard shot.

Times Set For Panthers & Islanders Qualifier Series

     Times have been set for the first three games of the Stanley Cup Playoff Qualifier Series between the Florida Panthers and New York Islanders. It is a best-of five series between both clubs. They previously met in the first round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

     Game 1 will be held at 4PM on August 1 and Game 2 on August 4 at noon. The Islanders will be the home team in the first two games. The Panthers will have home status in Game 3 to occur at noon on August 5. No word at what time a possible Game 4 on August 7 and Game 5 on August 9 will happen.

Panthers To Play Exhibition Game Versus Lightning

     The Florida Panthers will play an exhibition game in Toronto prior to their Stanley Cup Qualifier series. Florida will face the Tampa Bay Lightning on July 29 at noon. 

     The Panthers will then take on the New York Islanders in a Stanley Cup Qualifier best-of five series. Game 1 for them versus the Isles will be on August 1 at 4PM. 

SportsMap Radio Network Adds Scott Ferrall Shows

     SB Nation Radio will be changing their brand to SportsMap Radio Network on July 27. All their programs will remain the same in their organization. 

     Former Miami sports radio host Scott Ferrall will continue to announce two shows on SportsMap. He has a two-hour afternoon show and a two-hour overnight program. He started at SB Nation Radio on April  14 with an afternoon shift and added duties with an overnight shift on June 8. 

     Ferrall was once the mid-morning host on 560 WQAM. He held the post at that radio station in 2003 and 2004. He has also done nationally syndicated radio shows for Westwood One from 1995 to 1999, Sportsfan Radio Network from 2000 to April 2001, SiriusXM Radio from 2006 to 2012 and CBS Sports Radio Network from January 2013 until January 2020. 

Mike Kitchen Opts Out Of Panthers Camp

     Florida Panthers assistant coach Mike Kitchen has opted out from coaching at the Panthers return-to-play training camp in Coral Springs. He will not be in Toronto with the club when they challenge the New York Islanders in the Stanley Cup Qualifier series next month. 

     Kitchen rejoined the Florida Panthers organization when Joel Quenneville was named head coach last year. He worked on Quenneville's coaching staff with the Chicago Blackhawks for seven seasons. The Blackhawks won three Stanley Cup titles in 2011, 2013 and 2015. 

     He played on the same team with Quenneville during his NHL career with the Colorado Avalanche and New Jersey Devils. Kitchen was an assistant coach with Quenneville with the St. Louis Blues from 1998-99 until 2003-04. He was an assistant coach with the Panthers from 2007-08 to 2009-10 under Jacques Martin and Peter DeBoer. 

Florida Panthers Announce Training Camp Roster

     The Florida Panthers began training camp in Coral Springs for their upcoming Stanley Cup Qualifier series against the New York Islanders. The club also released their postseason training camp roster of 30 players.

     There are 16 forwards listed on the roster. They include Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Evgenii Dadonov, Mike Hoffman, Brian Boyle, Brett Connolly, Noel Acciari, Frank Vatrano, Colton Sceviour, Erik Huala, Lucas Wallmark, Dominic Toninato, Owen Tippett, Dryden Hunt, Aleksi Saarela and Eetu Luostarinen. 

     The Panthers will go with ten defensemen. They consist of Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle, Anton Stralman, Mike Matheson, Mark Pysyk, MacKenzie Weegar, Josh Brown, Riley Stillman, Brady Keeper and Chase Priskie, Florida will have four goalies with Sergei Bobrovsky, Chris Driedger, Sam Montembeault and Philippe Desrosiers. 

Rod Windley Passes Away

     Fox Sports Florida associate producer and graphics/researcher Rod Windley has passed away at the age of 55. He was part of that organization for more than a decade. 

     Windley has been involved with Florida Panthers telecasts on Fox Sports Florida. He worked home games and was one of a handful of personnel that would travel with the television crew for road games. 

     He first started at Fox Sports as a broadcast associate from 1995 to 2004 and sometimes handled Los Angeles Kings contests. Windley joined both Fox Sports Florida and Sun Sports in 2007. He contributed to telecasts of South Florida sporting events involving local teams and sports clubs in Central Florida. 

NHL To Play In Olympics Again

     The National Hockey League Board of Governors and the National Hockey League Players Association both came together on a four-year extension of the collective bargaining agreement. Part of the deal will allow NHL players to participate at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China and the 2026 Winter Olympics in both Milan and Cortina, Italy. 

     The National Hockey League players were not involved during the 2018 Olympics. They did play in the Winter Olympics on five different occasions from 1998 to 2014. Canada captured the goal medal in 2002, 2010 and 2014. Czech Republic won the top prize in 1998 while Sweden took it in 2006. 

NHL Announces Important Dates

     The National Hockey League Board of Governors and the National Hockey League Players Association agreed to a four-year extension to the collective bargaining agreement through the 2025-26 season and a return to play plan on Friday. The NHL then rolled out important dates on the league schedule for later on this year. 

     Training camps for 24 NHL teams will begin on July 13 and clubs will travel to the hub cities of Toronto or Edmonton on July 26. Exhibition games would occur between July 28 and July 30. The Stanley Cup qualifier series and round-robin contests begin on August 1 and go until August 9.

     Phase 2 of the 2020 NHL Draft Lottery happens on August 10 for which one of Stanley Cup Qualifier losing teams will get the first overall selections of the 2020 NHL Draft. The conference quarterfinals are slated for August 11 and the conference semifinals are expected to begin on August 25. 

     The final two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be held in Edmonton with tentative dates set. The conference finals gets started on September 8. The Stanley Cup Final will begin on September 22 and the last possible date for that series is on October 4. 

     The 2020 NHL Draft will occur on October 9 and October 10 with all seven rounds to be held online. It was to place at Bell Centre in Montreal on June 26 and June 27, however the coronavirus pandemic moved that situation back. The free agency period would begin several days after the draft has been completed. 

Panthers And Islanders Stanley Cup Qualifier Set

     The dates for the Stanley Cup Qualifier best-of-five series between the 10th seed Florida Panthers and the seventh seed New York Islanders has been set. All contests will be held at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. 

     The series will begin with Game 1 on August 1 as the Islanders designated the home team. They meet again with the Panthers as the road team in Game 2 on August 4. 

     Florida will be the home club for Game 3 on August 5 and a possible Game 4 on August 7. Game 5 if it is necessary will have New York as the home club and the Panthers as the visitors on August 9. 

     Both the Panthers and Islanders have prior playoff history against each other. Florida fell to the Islanders in six games during the 2016 Eastern Conference quarterfinals.

     Their may be a couple of advantages being the home team at a neutral site. One is that they will have the final choice of sending up personnel for any faceoff during the contest. 

Matt Moore Ups With Kansas City Chiefs

     Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Matt Moore has signed a one-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs and will remain there. He helped the club win Super Bowl LIV in Miami earlier this year for their first title in 50 years. 

     Moore was with the Miami Dolphins from 2011 until 2017. He made 359 pass completions for 4,298 yards and 29 touchdowns in 27 games. 

West Palm Beach Ratings June 2020

     The West Palm Beach market received their monthly ratings for sports format radio stations. The time span went from just prior to Memorial Day weekend until the middle of June. All three local competitors relied on their local sports programs will no live play-by-play broadcasts. 

     Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM dropped from a 0.7 to a 0.2 in the period. They continued to rebroadcast Florida Atlantic University Owls football games from the past. 

     Sports Radio 1230 The Zone WBZT-AM stayed at a 0.0 for the fourth consecutive time. CBS Sports Radio Network was on their airwaves for 20 hours during weekdays and 24 hours on the weekend. 

     ESPN West Palm 106.3 WUUB-FM is not registered with any ratings service. Their numbers for ratings did not appear. 

Santiago Chavez Added By Marlins

     The Miami Marlins have added catcher Santiago Chavez to their 60-player pool for summer training. He will be eligible to play for the Marlins during the 2020 regular season. 

     Chavez has played in the minor leagues for eight seasons. He signed with Miami prior to the 2019 season. He spent time in the Oakland Athletics farm system from 2012 until 2018. 

Local College Football Games Canceled

     The Big 10 Conference stated on Thursday that their member schools will not be involved in 2020 college football games outside of its conference. Some South Florida universities had one game cancelled in this situation. 

     The University of Miami Hurricanes will not travel north and take on the Michigan State Spartans. The Florida Atlantic University Owls will not go on the road and challenge the Minnesota Gophers. 

Miami Marlins 2021 Schedule

     Major League Baseball has jumped ahead and released team schedules for the 2021 season. A schedule has been issued for the Miami Marlins 2021 regular season. 

     The Marlins will play 19 games against all National League East opponents. They will take on other National League foes either six or seven times. Miami will have interleague contests against American League East opponents just like that they are doing in 2020. 

     Miami will start the 2021 campaign at home on April 1 versus the Tampa Bay Rays to begin in three-game series and then host the St. Louis Cardinals. The Fish will end the regular season at home against the Philadelphia Phillies on October 3. 

     The Marlins will take on several nationally recognizable clubs at Marlins Park. The New York Yankees arrive from July 30 to August 1 and the Chicago Cubs are in South Florida from August 13 to August 15.

Change In Inter Miami CF Schedule

     There has been a change in the Inter Miami CF schedule for the MLS Tournament in Group A. Nashville SC was in their group and they have withdrawn from the tournament being held in Orlando.  

     Inter Miami CF will now play the Philadelphia Union on July 14 and New York City FC on July 20. They were scheduled to take on Chicago Fire FC in the tournament and that team has been switched over to Group B. 

Gord Murphy Joins New York Rangers

     Former Florida Panthers defenseman and assistant coach Gord Murphy has joined the New York Rangers as an assistant coach on a temporary basis. Murphy was an associate coach for the Rangers American Hockey League affiliate the Hartford Wolfpack earlier this season. 

     He will work the Rangers upcoming qualifying best-of-five series against the Carolina Hurricanes in Toronto. Murphy replaces former Florida Panthers assistant coach Lindy Ruff, who was recently named the new head coach of the New Jersey Devils. 

     Murphy played for the Florida Panthers during their first six seasons in the National Hockey League from 1993-94 to 1998-99. He also was an assistant coach for the club from 2010-11 until 2013-14. Murphy had a 14-year NHL career with the Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, Florida Panthers and Columbus Blue Jackets. 

     He has previous stints as an assistant coach in the NHL. Murphy was with the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2002-03 to 2009-10 and the Philadelphia Flyers from 2014-15 to 2018-19. 

Devils Add Lindy Ruff And Tom Fitzgerald

     Lindy Ruff was named the new head coach of the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. The club also promoted Tom Fitzgerald from interim general manager to executive vice president and general manager.  

     Ruff was an assistant coach for the first four seasons of the Florida Panthers franchise under head coaches Roger Nielsen and Doug MacLean. The Panthers won the Eastern Conference Finals over the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1996 and fell to the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Finals. 

     He became the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres for the 1997-98 season and coached them for 15 seasons. The Sabres reached the 1999 Stanley Cup Finals and lost to the Dallas Stars. 

     Ruff was the head coach of the Dallas Stars for four seasons from 2013-14 to 2016-17. He has been with the New York Rangers as an assistant coach over the last three years. 

     Fitzgerald started his NHL career as a center with the New York Islanders and helped them reached the 1993 Eastern Conference Finals and faced the eventual Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens. He played five seasons on Long Island with the Islanders. 

     He was picked in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft by the Florida Panthers. Fitzgerald was with Florida for almost five seasons and contributed to the club reaching the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals. It included scoring the game-deciding goal for the Panthers against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. He was traded to the Avalanche on March 24, 1998 for Mark Parrish  

     Fitzgerald was selected again in an NHL Expansion Draft by the Nashville Predators in 1998. He would later have stints with the Chicago Blackhawks, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins. 

     He joined the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey operations department in July 2007 and was elevated to assistant general manager on July 3, 2009. The Penguins won the Stanley Cup title in the 2008-09 season. 

     Fitzgerald moved on to the New Jersey Devils as the assistant general manager on July 24, 2015. He became the interim general manager of the team on January 12, 2020. 

Inter Miami CF Falls To Orlando City SC

     Major League Soccer made its return as Inter Miami CF lost to Orlando City SC 2-1 on Wednesday night at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista. It was the opening contest of the MLS Tournament.  

     It was the first time that a South Florida professional sports team played an official game in any league. The last time a local sports club participated in a contest was when the Miami Heat hosted the Charlotte Hornets on March 11. 

     Inter Miami FC and Orlando City SC faced each other in a regular season tilt for the first time ever. The last time two Florida based teams played on the same MLS pitch was the Miami Fusion against the Tampa Bay Mutiny in 2001. 

     There was no scoring in the first half of the contest. Inter Miami CF would take a 1-0 lead in the 46th minute. Midfielder Victor Ulloa placed a pass from the right side and forward Juan Agudelo scored on a left-footed shot in the middle of the field from five yards out into the bottom left corner of the net. 

     Orlando City SC tied the contest in the 70th minute. Midfielder Nani made a left-footed cross from outside the left side of the penalty area and forward Chris Mueller slid with a one-time right-footed shot from three yards away into the low right corner of the cage.

     The game went into extra time and Orlando City FC pulled ahead 2-1 during the 97th minute. Nani booted in a left-footed shot from eight yards away in the middle after a broken-up loose ball came to him. 

     The game result will count toward the regular season standings. Inter Miami CF has yet to win their first MLS contest and now are 0-2-1. It was the first victory for Orlando City SC in their last 11 games going back to last year. 

Miami Ratings June 2020

     The monthly ratings were released for sports format radio stations in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale region. The time period for the ratings went from the just prior to Memorial Day weekend to the middle of June. 

     560 The Joe WQAM-AM moved from a 1.0 to a 0.7 in the month. The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz returned to their South Beach studios on June 8 for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic. Their executive producer Mike Ryan also showed up in the studio while the rest of the Shipping Container consisting of Roy Bellamy, Chris Cote and Ant Calatayud continued to work remotely from their homes. 

     Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM went from a 0.5 to a 0.4. Alex Donno returned to the radio airwaves near the end of the period for the first time since March. He started to fill-in as an afternoon co-host with Marc Hochman for three days a week while Channing Crowder was on paternity leave from the station. 

     Miami Sports 940 WINZ-AM jumped after four consecutive months at a 0.2 to a 0.3. They continued as the only local sports station with live play-by-play broadcasts during the ratings period with NASCAR races from the Motor Racing Network. Jeff DeForrest helped with his unique way of hosting the morning shift. 

     Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM held at a 0.0 for a second straight period. It is a surprise considering that their mid-afternoon program with Andy Slater centers on breaking news in the Miami-Dade and Broward County areas. There is a possibility that radio ratings services have cracked down and not listed radio stations that do not have their transmitter based in the local market. 

Chris Pronger Leaves Florida Panthers

     Senior vice president of hockey operations Chris Pronger has left the Florida Panthers. He has been with the organization since 2017. He worked in the National Hockey League office in the Department of Player Safety prior to that. 

     Pronger played in the NHL for 18 seasons. He won a Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in the 2006-07 season. Pronger was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in during his first year of eligibility in 2015.

10th Anniversary Of The Decision

     Today is the 10th anniversary of The Decision made by LeBron James. It would change the complexion of how athletes can control the narrative to a story. 

     James made his famous comment "I'm going to take my talents to South Beach" on a live nationally televised ESPN special hosted by Jim Gray. He joined the Miami Heat and left the Cleveland Cavaliers with the announcement.  

     He would form The Big Three along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. They helped the Heat franchise to their greatest stretch in franchise history with two NBA championships in 2012 and 2013 along with four Eastern Conference titles in four seasons. 

George Richards Joins Florida Hockey Now

     Florida Panthers writer George Richards has joined the Florida Panthers Now website as editor-in-chief and reporter. It is part of a network of websites from National Hockey Now. Richards had started Panthers Press Box back on June 8. 

     Richards was recently with The Athletic Miami until June 5 when that organization made job cuts due to the coronavirus pandemic and the stoppage of the National Hockey League season. He began at The Athletic Miami in September 2018. 

     He was the Florida Panthers beat reporter for the Miami Herald from 2005 until September 2017. Richards then joined the Columbus Dispatch as the Columbus Blue Jackets writer from October 2017 to September 2018. 

ESPN Radio New Lineup Effects Local Stations

     ESPN Radio will be rolling out a new lineup of weekday programming as of August 17. The changes on the national network will have an effect on South Florida radio stations that carry their programs which includes 560 The Joe WQAM-AM in Miami and ESPN West Palm 106.3 WUUB-FM in West Palm Beach. 

     WQAM will have to slightly readjust their weekday programming. They will run the ESPN Radio lineup from 7PM to 6AM when they do not have a game broadcast. The Joe Rose Show with Zach Krantz remains in morning drive from 6AM to 10AM while the Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz will lose one hour of their program and go from 10AM until noon. Le Batard could get an extra local one-hour program at 9AM like they had on Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM until August 2019. 

     Mike Greenberg will come aboard on WQAM from noon to 2PM on the station. They could add one hour of The Ticket simulcast with Marc Hochman and Channing Crowder along with the best-of-WQAM show with Dan Day from 2PM to 7PM. It would eliminate the ESPN Radio show offerings of Max Kellerman followed by Chiney Ogwamike and Mike Golic Jr. 

     ESPN West Palm will have the entire weekday ESPN Radio lineup on their radio station. The exceptions will be Josh Cohen and The HomeTeam from 3PM to 5PM then Evan Cohen and "McLovin" Brian Rowitz from 5PM to 6 PM. They could go with local game broadcasts or Sarah Spain and Jason Fitz in the evening shift.

Scott Kaplan In Los Angeles

     Former local sportscaster Scott Kaplan is getting a major job opportunity at KSPN-AM in Los Angeles. He will be the midday host at that radio station for the next two weeks.
     He first got noticed in Miami as a sports anchor at Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM in the late 1990s. He moved on to CBS Sportsline.com in Fort Lauderdale to co-host a morning show with Sid Rosenberg. That program's location would be relocated to New York City in 2000 and have WNEW-FM as their flagship station.
     Kaplan, a Coral Springs High School and University of Pittsburgh grad, moved on to San Diego where he has been based for the past 19 years. He has hosted sports shows with Billy Ray Smith at XTRA-AM and XEPRS-AM. Kaplan has worked on a YouTube talk show podcast since May 2019.
     He has also announced on National Football League games. Kaplan is a sideline reporter for CBS Sports on national television and Westwood One Sports on national radio. 

Miami Marlins 2020 Schedule

     Major League Baseball has issued the schedule for the 2020 regular season. The campaign will last 60 games instead of 162 games that is used every year.
     The Miami Marlins will play National League East opponents 40 times and take on American League East opponents 20 times. The Marlins have the second toughest schedule in 2020 facing opposing teams that combined for a .534 winning percentage from last season. 

     Miami will begin the season on July 24 at the Philadelphia Phillies as part of a three-game series. The Fish return to South Florida on July 26 for their home opener against the Baltimore Orioles. Both teams will compete in a four game, home-and-home series.

     They will host the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals from July 31 to August 2 and then the Philadelphia Phillies from August 4 to August 6. Miami will have a rare three-game home series versus the Boston Red Sox from September 14 to September 16. 

     The Marlins will complete the 2020 regular season with a seven-game road trip. They face the Atlanta Braves from September 21 until September 24 followed by the New York Yankees from September 25 to September 27. 

Miami Marlins Open Season In Philadelphia

     The Miami Marlins will open the 2020 regular season against the Phillies in Philadelphia on July 24. The regular season will only be for 60 games.

Robbie Robinson Leaves MLS Tournament

     Inter Miami CF forward Robbie Robinson has left the club for personal reasons. He will not be involved in the Major League Soccer Tournament to be held in a couple of days outside of Orlando. Robinson will rejoin the team when they finish the tournament.
     The club is slated to play the first game of the MLS tournament on Wednesday. Inter Miami CF will challenge Orlando City SC at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.

NHL Name Hub Cities

     The National Hockey League has named Toronto and Edmonton as their hub cities and are moving forward with the 2019-20 season. The NHL has taken steps to resume the season by August 1. The regular season was stopped on March 12 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
     The NHL will restart the season with the top 12 teams in each conference based on winning percentage. The Eastern Conference will play in Toronto while the Western Conference will participate in Edmonton. The 2020 Stanley Cup Final will be played in Edmonton. 

     Qualifying series consisting of conference seeds from fifth to 12th will be played along with round-robin games involving the top four seeds in each conference. The 10th seeded Florida Panthers will challenge the seventh seeded New York Islanders in a best-of-five qualifying series. 

Inter Miami CF Group Stage Schedule

     Inter Miami CF have their schedule for the group stage of the MLS Tournament. The tournament is being held outside of Orlando beginning on Wednesday.

     They will play three contests against teams in Group A. Inter Miami CF faces Orlando City SC on July 8, Chicago Fire FC on July 14 and Philadelphia Union on July 19. All three games will be televised nationally on ESPN or FS1. 

     Inter Miami CF would make the group-of-16 round automatically if the finish in the top three of Group A. They would need a higher point total if they ended up in fourth place compared to the other teams in third place among the other five other groups for the three remaining spots. 

Some Local Players Have Coronavirus

     Several local teams have recently mentioned that the coronavirus has infected some players on their roster. Clubs had to adjust their practice schedules as a precaution.  

     The Miami Heat have seen their training facility at American Airlines Arena close twice in a little over a week. Derrick Jones Jr. was listed to have the coronavirus and practices were stopped from June 26 to June 28. Two other unnamed players have gotten it over this weekend and the practice facility was shut down on July 3. The Heat will resume team practices after they travel to Orlando on July 8 and resume the 2019-20 season. 

     The Miami Marlins had their first summer training practice at Marlins Park on July 3. Four participants on their 60-player pool had already contracted the coronavirus prior to June 30. 

     It is fortunate that some local clubs do not have any players with the coronavirus. The Florida Panthers, Inter Miami CF and Miami FC have been running practices over the last couple of weeks. 

NBA Releases Scrimmage Schedule

     The National Basketball Association has issued the scrimmage schedule for 22 clubs. These contests would occur prior to the restart of the regular season on July 30 outside of Orlando. 

     The Miami Heat will play three games. Their first game is against the Sacramento Kings on July 22 followed by the Utah Jazz on July 25 and the Memphis Grizzlies on July 28.

Jorge Rodriguez Passes Away

     Longtime Miami radio producer Jorge Rodriguez passed away on Friday. Rodriguez was most known as the producer of the Neil Rogers Show. He also had the role of on-air sidekick, fill-in host and board operator on the program. 

     He was associated with the show on three Miami radio stations. It was on mornings at Zeta 4 WZTA-FM, middays at News Radio 610 WIOD-AM and middays at Sports Radio 560 WQAM-AM. Rodriguez moved to WQAM along with Rogers in 1997 and stayed with him until May 2009. 

     Rodriguez created the SoFloRadio.com website in 2009 after he was released by WQAM. He announced a midday show at that organization during the 2010s. 

MLB Cancels All-Star Game

     Major League Baseball has announced that they have cancelled the 2020 All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. The contest was to be played in July and was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic.

     Los Angeles was awarded the 2022 MLB All-Star Game. Atlanta was already slated to host the event next year. The last time the Major League Baseball All-Star Game was not played was in 1945 due to World War II. 

Miami Heat Shuts Down Local Camp Again

     The Miami Heat has shut down their practice facility at American Airlines Arena for the second time. Another Heat player has been diagnosed with the coronavirus. Derrick Jones Jr. was found to have a positive test for the illness last week and the practice facility was off limits from June 26 to June 28. 

     The Heat will likely resume practices when they travel up to Orlando on July 8. The restart of the NBA regular season will be on July 30 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista and last until August 14. Miami will play in eight games to complete the regular season. 

NHL Sets Calendar Year And Free Agency

     The National Hockey League is expected to set a date for the beginning of the 2020-21 calendar year and free agency period. The day will likely be on November 1. The yearly salary cap ceiling and floor amounts for all 31 NHL clubs will be determined by then. 
     The NHL has usually set the start of the calendar year on July 1. The period to sign free agents also happens on that day except for this season.

Dodgers To Sign A.J. Ramos

     The Los Angeles Dodgers are expected to sign former Marlins relief pitcher A.J. Ramos. It is expected to be a minor-league deal between him and the new club.
     Ramos played six seasons with the Miami Marlins from 2012 to 2017. He had a 2.78 earned-run-average in 325 games and 92 saves with the team.

Miami FC Returns

     The United Soccer League will restart their 2020 season following a four-month delay due to the coronavirus pandemic. The first games of the regular season will begin next weekend from July 11 to July 13. The complete regular season schedule has not been rolled out by the league. 

     The number of USL contests for each club has been reduced from 34 games to 16 games this season. The length of the campaign will be for 13 weeks and last until the first week of October. The divisions in the United Soccer League has been readjusted to eight different groups to prevent more travel. 

     Miami FC will be in Group H with the Tampa Bay Rowdies, Atlanta United 2 and Charleston Battery. All these clubs will face each other on four occasions with two games at home and two games away for a total of 12 games each. Miami FC, who had already played one contest this season, will have three remaining regular season games against clubs from other groups in close geographical range.

Short NFL Preseason

     The National Football League has proposed that the number of preseason games be changed from four contests to two contests. The National Football League Players Association will have to approve such a move. 

     All 32 NFL teams would play one home game and one road game. The first game would occur between August 20 to August 24 while the second game would happen from August 27 to August 31. 

Miami Heat Announcers Remaining Home

     The Miami Heat broadcasting announcers will not be heading to Orlando later this month for the remainder of the 2019-20 NBA regular season and the NBA Playoffs. It is similar to the position Major League Baseball took for the upcoming 2020 regular season back in June where team broadcasters would not travel with their teams to road games. 

     Sun Sports will telecasts any games that are not exclusively covered by a national television organization. Heat television personnel that includes play-by-play announcer Eric Reid, game analyst John Crotty, sideline reporter/studio host Jason Jackson, studio host Will Manso and studio analyst Ron Rothstein are likely to broadcast contests from either Fox Sports Florida studios in Fort Lauderdale or at American Airlines Arena in Miami. 

     Sports Talk 790 The Ticket WAXY-AM will broadcast the remaining eight Miami Heat games of the regular season and all postseason games they participate in. The broadcast crew includes play-by-play announcer Mike Inglis, game analyst Ruth Riley Hunter, studio host Tommy Tighe and studio host Jonathan Zaslow.