Weekday Morning Sports – Thursday 7/14/16

sportsreport-74
sportsreport-74

95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports     @wsjmsports     wsjmsports.com     Thursday, July 14, 2016

NFL – Court turns down Brady’s “Deflategate” appeal
It could be time for Tom Brady to punt. A federal appeals court has rejected the latest attempt by the Patriots quarterback to get a new hearing on his “Deflategate” suspension. Brady wanted the full 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to hear the case. But the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan issued a one-sentence rejection today of requests by the NFL Players Association and Brady to reconsider an April decision that reinstated his suspension.  A three-judge panel ruled in April that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was within his powers to suspend Brady for four games for his role in the deflated football scheme in the 2015 AFC Championship game.  The full court’s decision affirms the wide-ranging powers given to the commissioner by the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement. It is also a setback for organized labor groups arguing for due process in employee discipline.  Brady’s remaining hope is to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

MLB – Tigers demote Gose after dugout spat with Triple-A manager
The Detroit Tigers have demoted outfielder Anthony Gose to Double-A Erie after he was in an altercation with Triple-A manager Lloyd McClendon during a game over the weekend. The Tigers announced Wednesday that the 25-year-old Gose had his option transferred from Triple-A Toledo to Erie. They also said he’d been on the suspended list from Sunday until Wednesday. The Mud Hens have been off from Monday through Wednesday for their All-Star break. Gose got in an argument with McClendon on Saturday and was removed from that game. Gose has hit .209 in 30 games with the Tigers this season, and he was sent down to Toledo in May.

MLB – Ratings for ASG falls to record level
The TV ratings continue to dwindle for the Major League All-Star game.  For the second straight year, the mid-summer classic has drawn a record low rating.  The American League’s 4-2 win over the National League in San Diego got a 5.4 rating on Fox.  That’s down from the previous low of 6.6 for last year’s game in Cincinnati.

WNBA – Women’s National Basketball Association
Yesterday
Connecticut Sun 86, Indiana Fever 64
Los Angeles Sparks 77, Chicago Sky 67

Sun 86, Fever 64 – Ogwumike scores 20 and Sun earn 86-64 win over Fever
Chiney Ogwumike had 20 points and eight rebounds, Alyssa Thomas added 14 points, and the Connecticut Sun beat the Indiana Fever 86-64 on Wednesday. The Fever only made two more field goals in the third quarter as Connecticut closed on a 19-5 run for a 63-49 lead.

Sparks 77, Sky 67 – Ogwumike, Sparks too much for Sky 77-67
Nneka Ogwumike had 20 points and 11 rebounds, Candace Parker added 11 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, and the Los Angeles Sparks beat the Chicago Sky 77-67 Wednesday. Elena Delle Donne scored 15 points and Allie Quigley added 13 for Chicago. Cheyenne Parker made 5 of 7 shots in Rosemont and scored a career-high 10 points.

NHL – Red Wings re-sign Pulkkinen to 1-year deal
The Detroit Red Wings have re-signed forward Teemu Pulkkinen to a one-year, $812,500 contract.  The team announced the move Wednesday. The 24-year-old Pulkkinen had six goals and six assists last season for the Red Wings. He dislocated his right shoulder and played only 36 games for Detroit. Over the past three seasons, Pulkkinen has played 70 games for the Red Wings, scoring 11 goals with nine assists. He also won the AHL’s Willie Marshall Award for top goal scorer in 2014-15. Pulkkinen was drafted by Detroit in the fourth round in 2010.

NHL – McPhee chosen as Vegas GM
The NHL’s expansion Las Vegas franchise has hired a general manager, selecting former Capitals GM George McPhee to the post. McPhee ran the Capitals for 16 years and most recently served as special advisor to Islanders GM Garth Snow. Foley said McPhee was one of seven candidates who interviewed for the job and got the nod over two other finalists because of his communication skills.

NCAA Football – Change to playoff schedule possible
The College Football Playoff will consider moving future semifinals off New Year’s Eve if it can help increase viewership. The TV ratings dropped 36 percent last year, when the games were moved from New Year’s Day to the night before. Executive director Bill Hancock says conference commissioners who make up the playoff management committee are open to changing future schedules, starting in 2019 when the semifinals are scheduled for New Year’s Eve.

NCAA Basketball – Matchups set for 2K Classic and Legends Classic
Michigan meets Marquette and Pittsburgh will face SMU and new coach Tim Jankovich, in the semifinals of the 22nd annual 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project, which returns to Madison Square Garden this year.  IUPUI will host Eastern Michigan in the subregional round November 18th through 19th, in Indianapolis.  Notre Dame, coming off an Elite 8 season, will play Colorado and Texas will meet Northwestern in the semifinals of the 10th annual Legends Classic at Barclays Center. The semifinals will be November 21st, with the championship and consolation games the next night.

Golf – British Open – Troon hosting British Open
The 145th British Open is underway at Royal Troon. The defending champion is Dustin Johnson, who made a 30-foot birdie putt in regulation for a 66 and won the four-hole aggregate playoff over Louis Oosthuizen and Marc Leishman. Jordan Spieth was in contention for his third straight major until he bogeyed the next-to-last hole and came inches from a birdie putt on 18 to miss the playoff by one shot. Americans have won the claret jug the last six times at Royal Troon.

Olympics – Golf – Bach: Withdrawals could affect golf in future Olympics
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach says the absence of many of the top golfers from the Rio Olympics will be taken into account in evaluating the sport’s future in the games.  Golf is making its first appearance in the Olympics for the first time since 1904, but 20 men have pulled out, many citing concerns over the Zika virus. Among the 20 golfers opting not to compete are the top four ranked men in the world; Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy. Just four of the top-10 golfers plan to be in Rio for the Games. Bach added that “very different reasons” not related to Zika have also been cited in golf circles for skipping the Olympics.

Olympics – Women’s Soccer – Lloyd tops US soccer squad
World Cup hero Carli Lloyd heads up the U.S. women’s soccer team for the Rio Olympics.  She has scored the gold-medal winning goal for the Americans in the last two Olympics.  Among others named to the squad are goalkeeper Hope Solo, three-time Olympian Tobin Heath and Megan Rapinoe (ra’-PEE’-noh). Rapinoe is coming off knee surgery in December.

Cycling – Tour de France – Sagan wins stage, Froome increases lead
World champion Peter Sagan has won the 11th stage of the Tour de France, for his second stage victory of the year.  Defending champ Chris Froome finished second to increase his overall to 28 seconds.

MLS – Major League Soccer
Last Night
Chicago Fire 1, Sporting Kansas City 0

MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night
West Michigan 7, Kane County 6
Burlington 6, Great Lakes 2
South Bend at Clinton, ppd.
Lansing at Peoria, ppd.

Tonight
West Michigan at Kane County, 7:30 p.m.
Great Lakes at Burlington, 7:30 p.m.
South Bend at Clinton, 7:30 p.m.
Lansing at Peoria, 8:00 p.m.