Weekday Morning Sports – Friday 4/28/17

95.7 & 1400 WSJM Sports     @wsjmsports     wsjmsports.com     Friday, April 28, 2017

NFL – Browns take A&M lineman at #1
The Cleveland Browns needed just about everything when the NFL draft began on Thursday. They made defense their first priority by taking Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett, making him the first Aggie to be taken first overall.  The junior All-American possesses dynamic passing rushing skills and was unblockable when healthy last season. Garrett joins a team that went 1-15 last season.

NFL – Bears trade up, take QB Mitch Trubisky
The Chicago Bears drafted their latest quarterback of the future in a stunner Thursday night, grabbing North Carolina’s Mitchell Trubisky with the No. 2 overall pick after trading up a spot with the San Francisco 49ers and surrendering three draft choices to do it. There was some thought the Bears might wait a round or two before taking a quarterback after signing Mike Glennon last month to replace the departed Jay Cutler. Instead, they swapped picks with the 49ers and gave them a third- and fourth-round choice this year plus a third-rounder next year. It was a surprising move, particularly since San Francisco general manager John Lynch was ready to take Stanford defensive lineman Solomon Thomas at No. 2.

NFL – Lions draft Florida LB Jarrad Davis
The Detroit Lions were thrilled to see a series of offensive players taken early in the draft, leaving them with choices on defense they really wanted.  Like Jarrad Davis. Detroit drafted the Florida linebacker with the No. 21 pick in the NFL draft Thursday night. The 6-foot-1, 238-pound Davis missed about a third of last season with a sprained left injury, but was still second-team All-SEC. He played in nine games, making 60 tackles, including two sacks. The Lions most significant additions this offseason have been on offense, signing veteran linemen Rick Wagner and T.J. Lang.  Detroit surged atop the NFC North last season with eight wins in a nine-game stretch and became the first NFL team to come back from fourth-quarter deficits to win eight games in single season. The Lions, though, closed with three straight setbacks to spoil their shot at winning a division title for the first time since 1993. They lost at Seattle 26-6 in a wild-card game, extending their postseason losing streak to nine games over 25 years.

NFL – Colts add Ohio State DB Malik Hooker in 1st round
The Indianapolis Colts continued their defensive remap Thursday by taking Ohio State safety Malik Hooker with the 15th overall pick in the NFL draft. At 6-foot-1, 206 pounds, Hooker was considered the second-best safety in the rookie class. LSU’s Jamal Adams went to the New York Jets at No. 6.  Hooker only played two seasons with the Buckeyes but had a breakout year in 2016. He had 74 tackles, seven interceptions and returned three for touchdowns _ exactly the kind of game-changer coach Chuck Pagano and new general manager Chris Ballard were looking for in the draft. Hooker joins a secondary that already has two young safeties _ T.J. Green, a second-round pick last year, and Clayton Geathers, a fourth-round pick in 2015. Veteran Darius Butler also was expected to move from cornerback to safety this season.

NFL – WMU’s Davis goes 5th overall to Tennessee
The Tennessee Titans addressed one of their biggest concerns by selecting Western Michigan wide receiver Corey Davis with the 5th overall pick of the NFL draft.  Davis ended his college career as the only Football Bowl Subdivision player with at least 300 catches, 5,000 yards and 50 touchdown receptions. He had an FBS record 5,285 yards receiving and had said before the draft that Mariota is his favorite NFL quarterback.

NFL – Cowboys target D as expected with Michigan’s Taco Charlton
The Dallas Cowboys drafted for defense as expected, taking Michigan defensive end Taco Charlton with the 28th overall pick on Thursday night.  Charlton, who led the Wolverines with 9 1/2 sacks in 2016, is the first defensive end taken in the first round by the Cowboys in 10 years. Pass-rushing is the biggest need for Dallas, which was the top seed in the NFC last season but struggled to pressure the quarterback. It’s the third time in four years that the Cowboys have taken a defensive end in the first two rounds, and both previous picks have fallen short of expectations.   Charlton’s teammate at Michigan Jabrill Peppers was selected late in the first round be Cleveland.

MLB – Major League Baseball
Yesterday
Seattle Mariners 2, Detroit Tigers 1

Mariners 2, Tigers 1 – Ben Gamel has RBI single in 9th, Mariners beat Tigers 2-1
Ben Gamel had an RBI single in the ninth inning to help the Seattle Mariners beat the Detroit Tigers 2-1 on Thursday. Kyle Seager doubled off Francisco Rodriguez (1-2) with one out, and Gamel followed with his hit to right-center field. Tony Zych (1-0) was the winner, and Edwin Diaz pitched the ninth for his third save. The Mariners closed the series with two one-run victories after falling 19-9 in the opener. Detroit starter Justin Verlander allowed one unearned run on five hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out eight. Seattle starter Hisashi Iwakuma gave up an unearned run in 5 2/3 innings. He allowed three hits and a walk and struck out three.

Tonight
Chicago White Sox (Pelfrey 0-1) at Detroit (Boyd 2-1), 7:10 p.m.                WSJM Sports/Cosy-FM 6:45
Chicago Cubs (Arrieta 3-0) at Boston (Pomeranz 1-1), 7:10 p.m.

NHL – 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs – Round 2 (Best of 7)
Last Night
Ottawa Senators 2, New York Rangers 1                                      (OTT leads 1-0)
Pittsburgh Penguins 3, Washington Capitals 2                             (PIT leads 1-0)

Tonight
Nashville Predators at St. Louis Blues, 8:00 p.m.                        (NAS leads 1-0)
Edmonton Oilers at Anaheim Ducks, 10:30 p.m.                             (EDM leads 1-0)

NBA – 2017 NBA Playoffs – Round 1
Last Night
Toronto Raptors 92, Milwaukee Bucks 89                                     (TOR wins 4-2)
San Antonio Spurs 103, Memphis Grizzlies 96                               (SAS wins 4-3)

Tonight
Washington Wizards at Atlanta Hawks, 7:30 p.m.                        (WAS leads 3-2)
Boston Celtics at Chicago Bulls, 8:00 p.m.                                  (BOS leads 3-2)
Los Angeles Clippers at Utah Jazz, 10:30 p.m.                              (UTA leads 3-2)

ECHL – East Coast Hockey League
Tonight
Fort Wayne Komets at Toledo Walleye, 7:35 p.m.                          (Game 1)

MWL – Midwest League Baseball
Last Night
Lake County 10, West Michigan 5
Dayton 9, Great Lakes 1
South Bend 5, Fort Wayne 1
Lansing 5, Bowling Green 1

Tonight
West Michigan at Lake County, 6:30 p.m.
Great Lakes at Dayton, 7 p.m.
South Bend at Fort Wayne, 7:05 p.m.
Lansing at Bowling Green, 7:35 p.m.

MHSAA – High School Sports
Last Night
Baseball
Mishawaka Penn (IN) 10, St. Joseph 0
Benton Harbor 12, Parchment 4 – Game 1
Benton Harbor 4, Parchment 2 – Game 2
Edwardsburg 3, Niles 2 – Game 1
Edwardsburg 6, Niles 1 – Game 2
Portage Central 12, Gull Lake 2 – Game 1
Portage Central 4, Gull Lake 2 – Game 2
Decatur 9, Bloomingdale 2 – Game 1
Decatur 15, Bloomingdale 0 – Game 2
Coloma 6, Hartford 2 – Game 1
Coloma 5, Hartford 2 – Game 2
Lawrence 9, Marcellus 3 – Game 1
Lawrence 8, Marcellus 1 – Game 2
Watervliet 11, Bangor 3 – Game 1
Watervliet 15, Bangor 0 – Game 2

Girls Soccer
Three Rivers 5, Buchanan 1

Softball
Edwardsburg 12, Niles 1 – Game 1
Edwardsburg 13, Niles 0 – Game 2
Buchanan 6, Dowagiac 4
Bridgman 17, New Buffalo 0 – Game 1
Bridgman 20, New Buffalo 0 – Game 2
Decatur 16, Bloomingdale 1 – Game 1
Decatur 6, Bloomingdale 2 – Game 2
Coloma 10, Hartford 0 – Game 1
Coloma 16, Hartford 0 – Game 2
Watervliet 17, Bangor 0 – Game 1
Watervliet 16, Bangor 0 – Game 2

Girls Tennis
St. Joseph 8, Niles 0
Lake Michigan Catholic 8, Bridgman 0

Tonight
Baseball
St. Joseph at Battle Creek Lakeview, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Schoolcraft at Mattawan, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Otsego at Dowagiac, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
South Haven at Edwardsburg, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Allegan at Sturgis, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Plainwell at Three Rivers, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Paw Paw at Vicksburg, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Schoolcraft at Brandywine, 4:15 p.m.

Softball
St. Joseph at Battle Creek Lakeview, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Otsego at Dowagiac, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
South Haven at Edwardsburg, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Allegan at Sturgis, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Plainwell at Three Rivers, 4:00 p.m. (DH)
Paw Paw at Vicksburg, 4:00 p.m. (DH)

Girls Soccer
Kalamazoo Central at Kalamazoo Christian, 4:15 p.m.
Plainwell at Mattawan, 6:45 p.m.
Niles at Sturgis, 6:45 p.m.
Battle Creek Lakeview at Vicksburg, 6:45 p.m.
Buchanan at South Haven, 6:45 p.m.
Bridgman at Coloma, 5:00 p.m.
New Buffalo at New Prairie (IN), 5:30 p.m.
Kalamazoo Home School at Berrien Springs, 5:30 p.m.<