PURE INSURANCE OPEN: McCarron takes first-round lead

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Photo credit: Golf Feeds (@golffeeds)

By Jeremy Harness

Professional golf is back at Pebble Beach, and this time around, the weather is a whole lot better.

When the PGA Tour made its annual stop in the Monterey Peninsula back in February, the wind and rain wreaked havoc in the first two days of the event before things cleared up for the weekend.

There have been no such weather worries this week, and there do not figure to be any through the weekend, either, and the folks in the PGA Champions Tour – formerly known as the Senior Tour – are taking advantage.

During Friday’s first round, Scott McCarron grabbed the early lead at the PURE Insurance Championship, previously known as the Nature Valley First Tee Open, shooting an eight-under 63 to go into the weekend with a one-stroke advantage.

Playing at Poppy Hills, which was just remodeled last year, McCarron birdied the first two holes of his round before recording an eagle at the par-4 fifth to get to four-under. He suffered a bogey at the par-3 sixth but quickly rebounded with two more birdies on the front nine.

He then played a clean back nine, which included three more birdies to finish out his round.

He was very accurate off the tee on Friday, hitting 11 of his 13 fairways, and he was even better getting to the dance floor, as he hit 16 of his 18 of his greens in regulation to set himself up for the round that he had.

One stroke behind McCarron is Germany’s Bernhard Langer, a multiple Champions Tour winner who fired a seven-under 64 and made 10 birdies, the most in the field thus far. However, keeping him out of the lead was the three bogeys the he suffered, one on the front nine and two more on the back nine, including one at the par-5 18th to close out his round.

Kevin Sutherland is currently two shots behind Langer, and there are four players ties for fourth place at four-under.

Dodgers win fifth division championship;Giants drop 4-2 contest to open series

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Los Angeles Dodgers’ Logan Forsythe sprays sparkling wine in the locker room after the Dodgers won the NL West title with a 4-2 defeat of the San Francisco Giants in a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

By Jeremy Kahn

On the same day that the Los Angeles Dodgers and their fans celebrated Tommy Lasorda’s 90th birthday, the team celebrated something else with their win.

Cody Bellinger hit his National League rookie record 39th home run, helping the Dodgers to a 4-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium.

With the victory, the Dodgers clinched their fifth straight National League Western Division Championship.

The Bellinger home run off of Jeff Samardzija in the bottom of the third inning, broke a 1-1 tie and gave the Dodgers the lead for good.

Bellinger broke the record of Wally Berger of the Boston Braves in 1930 and tied by Frank Robinson of the Cincinnati Reds. The major league held by Mark McGwire, who set the record while playing for the Oakland A’s in 1987 with a total of 49.

Rich Hill won for the 11th time this season, as he allowed just one run and five hits in six innings of work. Hill also added five strikeouts and a huge double.

Hill hit his first double in 10 years to score Logan Forsythe, who doubled himself. Corey Seager then walked and Bellinger launched a Samardzija pitch into the right-center field bleachers.

Samardzija lost for the 15th time on the season, as he gave up four runs and five hits and the Giants have lost their most games since 1996 with the 94 losses.

The Giants took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, as Gorkys Hernandez reached on a bunt single, stole second and then scored on a Buster Posey single.

NOTES: Madison Bumgarner goes to the mound on Saturday night, as he looks to stop a four-game losing streak and the Giants have not won a Bumgarner start since defeating the Miami Marlins on August 15.

The Dodgers will send Hyun-Jin Ryu to the mound, as he looks to his improve his strong streak down the stretch. Ryu is 3-1 with a 2.62 earned run average in his 11 starts.

Austin Slater could be out for a couple of days with a sore right hip flexor.

Graveman Ends Rangers Streak at four, A’s Win 4-1

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Oakland Athletics pitcher Blake Treinen works against the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Matthew T.F. Harrington

The Oakland A’s snapped the Texas Rangers’ four-game win streak Friday night at the Oakland Coliseum, beating the Rangers 4-1 to dampen their foe’s Wild Card hopes. Kendall Graveman fired seven innings of one-hit ball and Matt Olson hit his 24th homer of the season.

Graveman scattered just six hits, including a solo homerun to Shin-Soo Choo in the top of the third to pick up his 6th win of the season. Olson staked Graveman to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second, blasting a right field line drive home run off Rangers starter Nick Martinez that also scored Khris Davis.

The A’s added a run in the bottom of the third after Jed Lowrie’s RBI single, then added another on a Matt Joyce run-scoring single-bagger for a 4-1 lead. Graveman would walk just three and punch out four to hang on for the win.

Chris Hatcher pitched a perfect eighth inning, his 11th straight scoreless frame, then Blake Treinen managed to walk the tight rope, allowing two hits but striking out two for his 13th save. The Rangers send Miguel Gonzalez to the hill hoping to cut into the 3.5 game Wild Card deficit Saturday while Oakland counters with Sean Manaea.

Sports Headline Podcast with London Marq: Young Yankees fan recovering after taking line drive in the head; Sharks having success in first two pre season games; plus more headlines

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Baseball fans reacts as a young girl is tended to before she is carried out of the seating area after being hit by a line drive in the fifth inning of a baseball game between the New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017, at Yankee Stadium in New York. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

On the Sports Headline Podcast with London:

1 MLB is not brushing the head injury of the young 13 year old girl aside as she was struck in the head with a 105 MPH line foul off the bat of New York Yankee hitter Todd Fraizer. MLB is now mandating netting from one dugout around from home plate to the end of the other dugout. The latest report the girl is making a good recovery. She is currently staying in a New York hospital.

2 Boxer Andre Ward who announced his retirement this week hangs em up after going a career 32-0 and 16 KOs the former Olympic Gold medal winner had boxed since 2004

3 The San Jose Sharks first week of pre season hockey are already 2-0 and have scored five goals in each of their first two games. After watching those first two games head coach Peter DeBoer has a crop of young players to choose from

4 The Oakland Raiders at 2-0 get set for week three in Washington for Sunday Night Football. Oakland’s offense prowess has been off the charts and Derek Carr with one of the best quarterback ratings in the NFL will be under center for this one

5 The San Francisco 49ers at 0-3 are coming off another loss from Thursday Night Football to the Los Angeles Rams in a three point decision 41-39. They’re next game is in Arizona Sunday October 1st.

London Marq does the Sports Headlines each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Oakland Raiders Podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon: Conley will play third string corner on Sunday Night Football; Cooper, Cook, and Washington coming off injuries

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AP File Photo: Oakland Raiders cornerback Gareon Conley tosses a ball during NFL football practice on Tuesday, June 13, 2017, at the team’s training facility in Alameda, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

Oakland Raiders Podcast with Joe Hawkes Beamon:

1 After missing all four pre season games and the season opener cornerback Gareon Conley was in the lineup and looking good against the New York Jets

2 Conley allowed one pass completion and got more playing time when Sean Smith missed the Jets game two weeks ago at the Oakland Coliseum due to a neck/shoulder injury

3 Conley it was reported could get back in the lineup as the third cornerback on Sunday behind starter Dave Anderson and TJ Carrie

4 With injuries to wide receiver Amari Cook (knee), tight end Jared Cooper (shoulder), running back DeAndre Washington (hamstring) were limited in practice Thursday

5 Going into Washington quarterback Derek Carr looks like his confidence is right on track and the Raiders could very well be looking at their fourth straight win.

Joe Hawkes Beamon does the Raiders podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

San Francisco 49ers Podcast with Joe Lami: Considered two close game loses 49ers hope to seal the deal on Sunday Oct 1st

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San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brian Hoyer (2) looks to pass during an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017, in Santa Clara, Calif. The Rams defeated the 49ers, 41-39. (Ryan Kang via AP)

San Francisco 49ers Podcast with Joe Lami:

1 Where did the San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brian Hoyer short on Thursday night Joe takes a look at Hoyer’s late game efforts for a come back

2 The big push was in the last 23 minutes when the 49ers scored 26 points coming up short 41-39 by two points

3 The 49ers remain 0-3 and 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan pulled out every offensive play he could out of the playbook but couldn’t get in the win column something he and the coaches will be working hard on in Washington for Sunday Night Football

4 Joe talks about what motivated the 49ers to put on a late rally like that against LA

5 For San Francisco quarterback Brian Hoyer Joe talks about what it’ll be like for him throwing against the Arizona defense this Sunday

Joe Lami does 49ers Podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Rams Finally Knock Off Niners In Shootout Win 41-39

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Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Sammy Watkins (12) scores a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By: Joe Lami

SANTA CLARA, Calif.–The San Francisco 49ers continue to seek out their first win of the 2017 season, as their comeback attempt was thwarted in the final seconds of Thursday night’s contest against Los Angeles. Both defenses struggled in the nationally televised shootout, in which the Rams bested the Niners 41-39.

The contest came down to San Francisco’s final offensive play, a failed two-point conversion that was intercepted by Rams’ defensive tackle Michael Brockers. The Niners were forced to go for two after Robbie Gould missed a PAT earlier in the fourth.

Things didn’t start well for San Francisco after Brian Hoyer was picked off on a pass attempt to Marquise Goodwin on the first play from scrimmage by Nickell Robey-Coleman. The return was brought back to the three-yard-line and set up Todd Gurley’s first touchdown of the day. Just 12 seconds into the contest, the Niners were trailing 7-0.

“I just told him, “let’s start over”. It was the first play of the game. It was a tough way to start out, but I thought he did a good job leading us down on the score and making a play to get us in the end zone on that next drive,” explained, head coach Kyle Shanahan on how he dealt with Hoyer.

It looked like things were looking grim for San Francisco, but they were able to fire back with a score of their own. On the ensuing drive, San Francisco found the end zone for the first time this season with the help of a 20-yard run from Carlos Hyde and a Rams penalty on 4th down. Brian Hoyer kicked out to the right on a scramble and found his way to paydirt from nine yards out.

The Rams went into the half with a 24-13 lead, as Gurley was able to find the end zone two more times. The first one Jarred Goff hit him in the flat for a 7-yard score and Gurley was able to hammer the ball in from two yards out with 49 seconds remaining in the second.

Gurley was a force in the first half, but San Francisco was able to slow him down in the second, including a couple of goal-line stands. The third-year player finished with 113 yards on 28 carries and caught five passes for 36 yards for three total touchdowns.

Goff is beginning to match the expectations of the first overall selection in the 2016 draft, as he exploded through the air on Thursday, passing for 292 yards, completing 75% of his passes; all while setting a career-high in touchdowns with three and passer rating of 145.8.

Despite the Rams offensive explosion, the 49ers were able to keep it close with LA’s defense struggling just as much as San Francisco. The 49ers trailed by 14 at the end of the third quarter but scored 19 points in the 4th.

Garret Celek started the fourth quarter comeback, connecting on a one-yard pass from Hoyer. Trent Taylor scored his first NFL touchdown to cut the lead to 8 and Hyde ran in his second of the contest to make the score 41-39, but the missed PAT came back to haunt the 49ers.

The comeback was set-up by some great defensive plays in the fourth as well on special teams. After the Taylor score, Victor Bolden Jr. forced a fumble to set up the Hyde touchdown.

The Niners then decided to kick an onside kick and recovered. With the chance to win the game on a field goal and starting with the ball at the 50, their offense was unable to get anything going. The Rams wrapped up the victory on a 4th and long, sacking Hoyer for the fourth time.

Despite being sacked four times, Hoyer had his best performance in red and gold. He was able to get over opening the game with an interception. He finished the contest 23-of-37 for 332 yards and two touchdowns. Most impressively, the 49ers’ finally aired the ball deep, as Hoyer was able to connect on two deep balls for 59 and 50 respectively. Both of which came off a play-action.

The 59-yard strike found the hands of Pierre Garcon, who led the team with 7 catches for 142 yards.

Carlos Hyde remained a beast for San Francisco, finding paydirt twice while carrying for 84 yards on 25 attempts.

Thursday night’s contest also saw a handful of injuries that set both teams back. San Franciso will use the next three days off to recover before coming back on Monday to set up their contest with the Arizona Cardinals a week from Sunday.

“I was proud of the guys, how they fought. We just need to get better. We’ve got 10 days until our next game. It’s a division opponent in Arizona. Right now, it is a grind to play on Thursday, but the benefit of it is you get a little bit more time to recover. I don’t really care about the record right now. I care about how guys are responding to it and I want these guys to come back Monday ready to go and ready to fight to get our first win,” said Shanahan.

Sharks Preseason 2017: Sharks Host Knights, Win 5-2

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Photo credit: San Jose Sharks

By M. Walsh

SAN JOSE- The  San Jose Sharks hosted the NHLs newest team on Thursday, defeating the Las Vegas Golden Knights 5-2. Sharks goals came from Kevin Labanc, Joe Pavelksi, Melker Karlsson, Jannik Hansen and Tomas Hertl. Knights goals came from David Perron and Teemu Pulkinen.

San Jose veterans seen in Thursday’s preseason match included Joe Pavelski, Brent Burns, Tomas Hertl, Martin Jones, Chris Tierney and Melker Karlsson. Noteable rookies seen included Timo Meir, Joakim Ryan and Kevin Labanc. The game winner was scored by Joe Pavelski, but the first Sharks goal was Labanc’s. Vegas did not have their presumed starting goaltender in net, Marc-Andre Fleury. Instead, they had Calvin Pickard, backed up by Maxime Lagace. Aaron Dell backed up Martin Jones for San Jose.

The Sharks held the Knights to a single shot for the first ten minutes of play, putting four of their own on net. Near the end of the first, Julius Bergman went to the box for tripping, giving the Sharks their second penalty in the period. By then, San Jose had six shots on goal, and Vegas took their second of the period during the power play.

A couple of minutes later, veteran Melker Karlsson went to the box for hooking. Joakin Ryan handled himself pretty well on the penalty kill, keeping the puck safely below the goal line while reinforcements arrived. The Sharks managed a couple of short-handed chances, including a breakaway for Tomas Hertl, but Vegas goalie Calvin Pickard kept it scoreless.

By the end of the period, the shots were 9-2 Sharks.

The Knights took their first penalty a few minutes into the second period. At first, the Sharks power play did not seem any more effective than the Vegas one. The Knights had their own breakaway, but Jones stopped that and when play went the other way, Kevin LaBanc found himself alone with the puck in the slot. His wrist shot found its way in for the first goal of the game at 4:13. Assists went to Timo Meier and Chris Tierney.

At 8:58 of the second, during a 5 on 3 power play, Joe Pavelski scored San Jose’s second. The first assist went to Burns for his feed from below the goal line. A second assist went to Dylan DeMelo. Curiously, Pavelksi had put one in the net moments earlier from a bounce off the safety netting. The whistle had already gone and no one really believed it was a goal.

Before the second penalty expired, Jannik Hansen picked up a rebound and put it behind Pickard for the Sharks’ third goal. Assists went to Tomas Hertl and Joakim Ryan.

The fourth Sharks goal came from Brenden Dillon all the way up at the blue line. Chris Tierney opted to pass it back to him instead of taking a shot from the faceoff circle. That was the team’s first even-strength goal of the game.

The second period ended 4-0 Sharks, with the shot count at 19-8.

The Sharks had an early power play in the third period, but it was negated by a goaltender interference call against Joe Pavelksi. With 37 seconds left in the Pavelski penalty, Timo Meier went to the box for slashing. The Knights started the five on three in the offensive zone. After three tries at cycling the puck around the boards and back to David Perron on the goal line, the Knights broke the shutout. The Knights scored again before the power play expired, a simple-looking play off the faceoff that left Teemu Pulkinen unguarded and free to shoot from the slot.

Tomas Hertl got one back in a nice play with Timo Meier. The two of them skated in and, as Meier took a shot, they switched sides and Hertl picked up the rebound to make it 5-2. A second assist went to Joakim Ryan.

During the final 34 seconds of the game, Brandon Mashinter and Stefan Matteau engaged in some fisticuffs.

Final score, 5-2 San Jose. The Sharks will play their next preseason game on Saturday in Arizona.

Oakland A’s Podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Mengden inspiring club; Young players battling for jobs could mean good series with Texas

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Oakland Athletics first baseman Matt Olson looks out from the dugout during the third inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

Oakland A’s Podcast with Jerry:

1  A’s starter Daniel Mengden looks like he’s got this team turning things around he pitched a gem going seven innings surrendering seven hits of shutout ball

2 Mengden struck out four hitters and has pitched 16 innings of shut out ball

3 A’s manager Bob Melvin is loving what his young players are doing saying they’re trying to make names for themselves and you can see what the call up have been doing

4 The A’s had tremendous success against Detroit sweeping them in these games Jerry points out what the key points of sweeping that series was all about

5 The A’s open up a three game series against the Texas Rangers. The A’s still have players who want to win jobs next season it could be a great series with all the hungry players looking to battle for jobs next season

Jerry does the A’s podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

A’s meet the Texas Rangers as the 2017 home season comes to a close.

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Oakland Athletics’ Boog Powell, center, slides to score beneath Texas Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos, right, in the eighth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, in Oakland, Calif. Powell scored on a single by teammate Marcus Semien. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Jerry Feitelberg

OAKLAND- The Oakland A’s start the final homestand of the season as they play three games against the Texas Rangers and three with the Seattle Mariners. The A’s finish the season on the road as they will meet the Rangers again for four games in Arlington.

The A’s finished the nine-game to Boston, Philadelphia, and Detroit with a record of 6-3. The young players have been sparking the offense, and they are building confidence that this team will be competitive next season. The front office will have to strengthen the starting rotation and the bullpen if the A’s are going to make it back to the playoffs. The fans can see the improvement as players such as Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, Chad Pinder, Boog Powell, Bruce Maxwell all have made contributions to the offense since they were called up from Nashville. Khris Davis, Jed Lowrie, and Matt Joyce, all veterans, have played well. Davis and Joyce are under contract for next season.Lowrie is not, and he may be with another team come spring.

The young A’s will be squaring off against the Texas Rangers starting Friday night. The Rangers are still alive in the chase for the second Wild Card spot in the American League. Entering play tonight, the Rangers were just 2 1/2 games behind the Minnesota Twins. Their chances are slim, but the A’s would love nothing better than to help eliminate them from contention. The Rangers are a veteran team. They do not hit for average, but they have several players that can knock the ball out of the park. They are led by Adrian Beltre. The veteran third baseman was on the DL for part of the season. He reached the 3000 hit plateau earlier this season, and he is a sure bet for baseball’s Hall of Fame. Shortstop Elvis Andrus is having a good year. He is hitting .301 and has 41 doubles and 20 homers on his stat sheet. Mike Napoli, Joey Gallo, and Rougned Odor are not hitting for average, but they have hit 29, 38, and 30 home runs respectively. Gallo and Odor are just 23-years old. The outfield will be manned by Nomar Mazara, Delino DeShields, Shin-soo Choo, and if he is able to play, Carlos Gomez.

Kendall Graveman will go for Oakland Friday night. Graveman is 2-0 with an ERA of 2.61 and a WHIP of just 1.07 in his last three starts against the Rangers. Nick Martinez will pitch for Texas. Martinez is 0-1 with an ERA of 4.15 in his two starts against the A’s. Saturday’s game will feature the Rangers’ Nick Martinez going against leftSean Manaea. Gonzalez is 8-11 but has won only once after coming over from the White Sox. This will be his first start against Oakland. Manaea is 11-10 but had a rough road trip. He was bombed in Boston but got the win in Philly. In his last two starts in Oakland, Manaea has allowed just two runs in 11 innings of work. Lefty Martin Perez pitches for Texas on Sunday, but the A’s have not announced their starter as of Thursday.

This weekend will be Fan Appreciation Weekend at the Coliseum. Friday night is the annual Filipino Heritage night. There will be a Star Wars themed fireworks display after the game. Sunday’s game will be Hispanic Heritage Day. Lots a giveaways as a thank you to the fans that have been so loyal supporting this club this year.