WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE ZONE.....

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Mon, 26 Sep 2022 00:10 GMT

Cubs Beat Pirates - Adrian Sampson (3-5) wasn't supposed to be a fixture in the Chicago Cubs' starting rotation this season. He was placed on waivers twice in May, once by Chicago and once by Seattle, and optioned to the minors three times. Yet Sampson kept believing in his stuff. And may be making a believer out of the Cubs in the process. The 30-year-old tossed six efficient innings in an 8-3 victory over Pittsburgh on Sunday, the latest in a string of solid starts that's provided some much-needed stability to Chicago's injury-riddled rotation. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356483 White Sox Lose to Tigers - The White Sox's playoff dream is dead. The Tigers officially ended their ill-fated run, completing the three-game sweep at Guaranteed Rate Field with a 4-1 win Sunday. It was the sixth straight home loss for the White Sox and the first Tigers series sweep in Chicago since 2018. The Tigers broke open a 1-1 game scoring three times in the top of the eighth inning against reliever Kendall Graveman. Jonathan Schoop, who had hit into a bases-loaded double play earlier in the game, and Jeimer Candelario both singled home runs. A third run crossed after a wild pitch. Click below to read more: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2022/09/25/detroit-tigers-complete-sweep-end-chicago-white-soxs-playoff-run/69517801007/

Bears Beat Texans 23-20

Posted by sportszonechicago — Sun, 25 Sep 2022 20:38 GMT

Roquan Smith set up Cairo Santos' game-ending field goal when he intercepted Davis Mills deep in Houston territory, and the Chicago Bears beat former coach Lovie Smith and the Texans 23-20 on Sunday. Khalil Herbert ran for a career-high 157 yards and two touchdowns for Chicago. The Texans had third-and-1 at their 26 when defensive tackle Angelo Blackson tipped a pass intended for Rex Burkhead. Smith, who missed practice all week because of a hip injury, intercepted it at the 30 and returned it to the 12. Chicago had Herbert run, then downed the ball twice before Santos nailed a 30-yarder as time expired. Justin Fields had another difficult game. Running back David Montgomery exited in the early going with knee and ankle injuries, but the Bears came away with the win after losing at rival Green Bay. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/nfl/recap?gameId=401437737

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Sun, 25 Sep 2022 16:05 GMT

Cubs Lose to Pirates - Johan Oviedo tied his career high with seven strikeouts in seven innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs 6-0 on Saturday night to snap an eight-game losing streak. Oviedo (4-2) retired the final 16 batters he faced, allowing just three hits on 82 pitches without issuing a walk. The right-hander went at least seven innings for the first time this season and second time in 24 career starts, capping his night in the seventh by retiring the side on five pitches. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356468 White Sox Lose to Tigers - Another good performance from the top of the lineup and a well played game overall saw the Tigers take their second in a row over the White Sox by a score of 7-2 on Saturday night. The Tigers offense once again got out to a quick start in this one against White Sox' rookie Davis Martin. The 25-year-old right-hander showed a pretty good fastball and a solid pair of breaking balls, but his command failed him a few times and quality AB's from the Tigers allowed them to take advantage. Click below to read more: https://www.blessyouboys.com/2022/9/24/23370493/tigers-white-sox-javier-baez-harold-castro-riley-greene-davis-martin-drew-hutchison

Cardinals' Pujols Hits 700th Home Run

Posted by sportszonechicago — Sat, 24 Sep 2022 17:32 GMT

St. Louis Cardinals legend Albert Pujols became the fourth player in Major League Baseball history to reach 700 career home runs on Friday night with a two-homer effort against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Pujols joins distinct company in the form of some of the most prolific sluggers the game has ever seen: Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth. Pujols first clubbed career home run 699 in the third inning. Then, in the fourth, Pujols connected with No. 700. That was a five-RBI night before the fifth inning. Pujols entered the season with the Cardinals knowing it was his last before retirement. He's never strayed from his declaration that he was playing in 2022 and not a single year longer, despite the possibility that he could get so close to 700 and still fall short. It's actually somewhat a surprise that he's gotten to this point. It took a second-half surge. Click below to read more: https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/albert-pujols-700-home-runs-cardinals-legend-reaches-rare-milestone-with-two-hr-night-vs-dodgers/

Celtics Suspend Udoka for 2022-23 Season

Posted by sportszonechicago — Fri, 23 Sep 2022 16:10 GMT

Ime Udoka, head coach of the Boston Celtics, has been suspended for the entire NBA season for violations of team policies, the organization announced Thursday night. The team added that a decision on Udoka's future with the Celtics will be made at a later date. His suspension was effective immediately. According to ESPN, The Athletic and the Boston Globe, Udoka had a consensual relationship with a female member of the team's staff. "I am sorry for putting the team in this difficult situation, and I accept the team's decision," Udoka said to ESPN in a statement in which he apologized to the players, fans, organization and his family. CNN has reached out to the Celtics for further comment. Click below to read more: https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/22/sport/nba-boston-celtics-head-coach-ime-udoka/index.html

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Fri, 23 Sep 2022 15:08 GMT

Cubs Beat Pirates - Rookie Hayden Wesneski had an immaculate inning in his second major league start to lead the Chicago Cubs to a 3-2 victory over the skidding Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday night. Wesneski (2-1) gave up two runs and five hits in 6 1/3 innings while striking out six and walking two in sending Pittsburgh to its seventh straight loss. It was his fourth appearance in the majors. Wesneski had an immaculate inning in the fifth when he struck out the side on nine pitches. He fanned the three hitters at the bottom of the order: Jack Suwinski, Zack Collins and Jason Delay. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356441 White Sox Lose to Guardians - Shane Bieber pitched two-run ball into the eighth inning, and the Cleveland Guardians beat the Chicago White Sox 4-2 on Thursday night for a three-game series sweep. Cleveland opened a seven-game lead over Chicago in the AL Central with its 15th win in 18 games. The Guardians (83-67) can clinch the franchise's first division title since 2018 as early as Sunday. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356442

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Thu, 22 Sep 2022 14:14 GMT

Cubs Beat Marlins - Ian Happ hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the eighth inning and the Chicago Cubs rallied to beat the Miami Marlins 4-3 on Wednesday night. Patrick Wisdom hit his 23rd homer for the Cubs, who had only four hits. Down 3-1, the Cubs scored three in the eighth without a hit against Marlins relievers Steven Okert and Dylan Floro. Okert (5-5) walked Zach McKinstry and Christopher Morel to start the inning. Okert then muffed Esteban Quiroz's sacrifice bunt and threw errantly to first. McKinstry scored from second on the error while Morel and Quiroz advanced two bases. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356425 White Sox Lose to Guardians - Steven Kwan homered among his three hits and Triston McKenzie struck out 13 in eight strong innings as the Cleveland Guardians beat the Chicago White Sox 8-2 Wednesday night to move closer to their first American League Central title since 2018. Kwan had hits in each of his first three at-bats, capped by his fifth homer of the season off Lance Lynn (7-6) on the first pitch of the fourth inning. Kwan is batting .538 (14 for 26) over his last five games. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356426

Bulls Guard Ball Set for Arthroscopic Knee Surgery

Posted by sportszonechicago — Wed, 21 Sep 2022 23:18 GMT

Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball will undergo an arthroscopic debridement of his left knee that could keep him out for the start of the regular season, the team announced Wednesday. He will be re-evaluated in four-to-six weeks. The Bulls open their regular season exactly four weeks from Wednesday on Oct. 19 against the Miami Heat. Ball was already recovering from a knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery in January, which ended his 2021-22 season after just 35 games. The meniscus injury was supposed to keep him out for only a couple of months, but he suffered setbacks in his recovery before being shut down in April after he continued to "experience pain with high-level physical activity." Click below to read more: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10047576-bulls-lonzo-ball-to-have-surgery-on-knee-injury-will-be-re-evaluated-in-4-6-weeks

Sarver Starts Process to Sell Suns and Mercury

Posted by sportszonechicago — Wed, 21 Sep 2022 19:37 GMT

Current embattled owner of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury Robert Sarver says he has started the process to sell the teams. In a statement released Wednesday morning, he said he doesn't want to be a "distraction to these two teams" and their employees. While Sarver isn't the only owner, he carries a primary ownership stake. He had been increasingly undergoing pressure from the team, its sponsors, and the basketball community since his suspension was issued last week. The announcement comes days after the Phoenix Suns' largest minority owner and vice chair asked Sarver to resign following a workplace misconduct investigation. One of the team's biggest sponsors, PayPal said that they wouldn't renew their partnership should Sarver remains with the organization at the end of his suspension. Click below to read more: https://www.azfamily.com/2022/09/21/robert-sarver-begins-process-sell-phoenix-suns/

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Wed, 21 Sep 2022 14:09 GMT

Cubs Beat Marlins - David Bote hit a tying home run in the seventh inning, then added a sacrifice fly in the eighth that lifted the Chicago Cubs over the Miami Marlins 2-1 Tuesday night. Esteban Quiroz got the first two hits of his major league career and P.J. Higgins also had two hits for the Cubs, who snapped a three-game losing skid. The 30-year-old Quiroz was promoted from Triple-A Saturday and made his first start Tuesday. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356410 White Sox Lose to Guardians - Myles Straw had a tiebreaking two-run double in Cleveland's five-run 11th inning, and the Guardians beat the Chicago White Sox 10-7 Tuesday night to move closer to the American League Central title. The Guardians won for the 12th time in 16 extra-inning games this season and expanded their lead to five games over the White Sox with 14 games remaining. The victory assured Cleveland, which improved to 10-7 against Chicago, of winning the season series and a tiebreaker in the event the teams finish the season tied for first place. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=40135641

Bears Lose to Packers

Posted by sportszonechicago — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 13:53 GMT

It wasn't a perfect game for the Packers, but Sunday night's prime-time matchup with the Bears was a marked improvement from Week 1 for Green Bay. Not only was Aaron Rodgers more productive spreading the ball to his makeshift receiving corps, but Matt LaFleur successfully unlocked his dynamic backfield duo, with Aaron Jones in particular breaking out as the centerpiece of the green and yellow attack. Despite a few fumbles, the Packers left Week 2 with a victory firmly in hand, rolling past Justin Fields and the Bears with a 27-10 decision that puts them back at .500 in the NFC North. Click below to read more: https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/packers-vs-bears-score-takeaways-aaron-jones-runs-wild-as-green-bay-rolls-past-bears-at-lambeau-field/live/

Aces Win WNBA Championship

Posted by sportszonechicago — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 00:08 GMT

After the Las Vegas Aces took a 2-0 lead in the WNBA Finals last week, San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, himself the winner of five NBA rings, went into the Aces locker room and shared a bit of wisdom: The sweetest wins are the ones on the road, he said. Turns out, it's even sweeter when that road win gives your franchise its first-ever championship. Chelsea Gray scored 20 points, Riquana Williams performed some late-game heroics off the bench and the Las Vegas Aces won Game 4 of the WNBA Finals 78-71, winning the series 3-1 and capturing the 2022 title. Gray, an All-Star game snub, was named the Finals MVP. Click below to read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/wnba/2022/09/18/las-vegas-aces-beat-connecticut-sun-finals-game-4/10421571002/

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 22:13 GMT

White Sox Beat Tigers - Andrew Vaughn hit his first career grand slam, and the Chicago White Sox beat the Detroit Tigers 11-5 on Sunday. Eloy Jim nez and AJ Pollock also connected as Chicago won for the third time in four games. Jim nez finished with three hits and three RBI, and Gavin Sheets had two hits and two RBI. The White Sox are trying to catch the AL Central-leading Guardians, but they are running out of time. They trail Cleveland by 3 1/2 games after the Guardians lost 3-0 to Minnesota. Chicago hosts Cleveland on Tuesday night in the opener of a three-game series. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356386 Cubs Lose to Rockies - Randal Grichuk had two hits and two RBI, and the Colorado Rockies beat the Chicago Cubs 4-3 on Sunday for a rare second straight win on the road. Connor Joe hit a solo homer for last-place Colorado, and Brendan Rodgers had a run-scoring groundout. Ryan Feltner (3-8) pitched 5 1/3 innings of three-run ball for his first win since Aug. 9. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356388

Cubs Lose to Rockies 3-1

Posted by sportszonechicago — Sat, 17 Sep 2022 22:42 GMT

Charlie Blackmon hit a tiebreaking triple and scored in a two-run ninth, and the Colorado Rockies earned a rare road win by beating the Chicago Cubs 3-1 on Saturday. Blackmon drove in pinch runner Garrett Hampson with a triple to the right-field corner against Adbert Alzolay (0-1) after C.J. Cron walked with one out. He scored on a single by Elias D az, making it 3-1, and the Rockies came away with the win despite a dominant outing by Cubs rookie Hayden Wesneski in his first major league start. Jose threw six solid innings, and the Rockies won for just the fifth time time in their past 18 road games. Colorado is a big league-worst 23-48 away from home. Ure a allowed one run and seven hits. Dinelson Lamet and Carlos Est vez (4-4) each worked an inning. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356373

Jordan 'Last Dance' Jersey Sells for Record $10.1M

Posted by sportszonechicago — Thu, 15 Sep 2022 22:25 GMT

The Chicago Bulls jersey Michael Jordan wore during Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals was sold for $10.1 million at Sotheby's this week, the auction house announced. The bidding went on from Sept. 6-14 and reached a price that was significantly higher than the $3-5 million estimated when Sotheby's first announced the auction. This jersey is now the most expensive game-worn sports memorabilia ever. It surpassed Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" jersey from the 1986 World Cup, as that was sold for $9.28 million in May. One of only two Jordan game-worn NBA Finals jerseys to go up for auction, this particular one serves as a nice souvenir of the five-time MVP's iconic "Last Dance" with the Bulls. Click below to read more: https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/michael-jordan-jersey-from-1998-nba-finals-sells-for-record-10-1-million-at-auction/

White Sox Beat Guardians

Posted by sportszonechicago — Thu, 15 Sep 2022 21:23 GMT

Elvis Andrus hit one of Chicago's five home runs off rookie Hunter Gaddis, and backed up a pregame swipe at the Guardians, as the White Sox cut Cleveland's lead in the AL Central to three games with an 8-2 victory in a makeup game Thursday. Andrus connected in the fifth inning off Gaddis (0-2), who became the first Cleveland pitcher to allow five homers in a game since Luis Tiant in 1969. On Wednesday, Andrus raised some eyebrows by telling reporters he expected the first-place Guardians "to crumble, the closer we get." Gavin Sheets hit a two-run homer in the second to start Chicago's homer barrage against Gaddis, and Andrew Vaughn, Yo n Moncada and Yasmani Grandal joined Andrus by hitting shots off the right-hander. Lance Lynn (7-5) limited the Guardians to two run and six hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander is 5-0 in his last seven starts. Click below https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401470940

Chicago Baseball Recap

Posted by sportszonechicago — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 14:11 GMT

Cubs Beat Mets - The Cubs aren't in postseason contention, but they showed the Mets that they were a tough opponent in a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night at Citi Field. It was a game that saw Cubs right-hander Adrian Sampson outduel Mets ace Jacob deGrom. Sampson pitched six scoreless innings, allowed two hits and struck out three batters. He had the same strategy as teammate Javier Assad the previous night -- mix your pitches and the Mets will be perplexed. Sampson relied on his fastball, changeup and slider and didn't allow a hit after the third inning. Click below to read more: https://www.mlb.com/news/adrian-sampson-cubs-beat-jacob-degrom-mets?game_pk=662430 White Sox Beat Rockies - Miguel Cairo is still getting used to running the Chicago White Sox while Tony La Russa is away. With Chicago trying to close out Colorado on Tuesday night, Cairo felt the pressure. "When you have one- or two-run leads, you don't feel comfortable," he said. But he felt pretty good when it was over. Cairo guided the White Sox to another victory, riding home runs by Eloy Jim nez and Jos Abreu to a 4-2 win against the Rockies. Click below to read more: https://www.espn.com/mlb/recap?gameId=401356323

Steelers' Watt Does Not Require Surgery

Posted by sportszonechicago — Tue, 13 Sep 2022 22:23 GMT

T.J. Watt's pectoral injury doesn't require surgery, and the Pittsburgh Steelers' star linebacker could return in about six weeks, according to a report via Twitter on Tuesday from ESPN's Adam Schefter. The Bengals and Steelers are scheduled to meet again Nov. 20. Schefter reported Monday that Watt would get second and third opinions about the injury, with surgery likely ending Watt's season. Watt, the 2021 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, suffered the injury during the Steelers' overtime win Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium. Watt had six tackles, including three tackles for loss, with a sack, an interception, a QB hit and two pass deflections before leaving the game with the injury. Click below to read more: https://sports.yahoo.com/t-j-watt-doesnt-surgery-211801670.html

Seahawks Beat Broncos 17-16

Posted by sportszonechicago — Tue, 13 Sep 2022 16:51 GMT

In a setting where Russell Wilson has won so many wild and unpredictable games, it appeared he would add another prime-time win to his resume. During the final moments of Denver's 17-16 loss to Seattle on "Monday Night Football," the Broncos had a chance to wipe away their mistakes and earn a season-opening win. Yet while the final images of the loss are of a missed field goal, the Broncos' defeat cannot be pinned on the shoulders of Brandon McManus. Put simply, the Broncos made too many mistakes to overcome. Click below to read more: https://www.denverbroncos.com/news/red-zone-turnovers-penalties-plague-broncos-in-17-16-loss-to-seahawks

Cubs Beat Mets 5-2

Posted by sportszonechicago — Tue, 13 Sep 2022 16:36 GMT

Much of Chris Bassitt's success this season has revolved around avoiding leadoff walks and keeping the ball in the park. Neither trend continued for the right-hander Monday against the Cubs, leading to one of his worst performances of the season and a 5-2 loss for the Mets to begin their homestand. After walking only four leadoff batters all season, Bassitt twice started innings with walks on this night, leading to runs. And after going a career-high eight straight starts without surrendering a homer, Bassitt watched two balls disappear behind the right-field fence at Citi Field. The Mets fell to 5-5 in this stretch against underwhelming opponents - the Nationals, Pirates and Marlins preceding the Cubs. The Mets began the night with a 1 -game lead on the Braves, who played later in San Francisco. Click below to read more: https://nypost.com/2022/09/12/mets-cant-overcome-chris-bassitts-ugly-outing-in-loss-to-cubs/