The Chicago White Sox are willing to pay pitcher Dallas Keuchel to sit at home and do nothing. The team designated Keuchel and his $18 million salary for assignment Saturday.
Keuchel started eight games for the White Sox in 2022. He has a 7.88 ERA in those starts.
Welcome to Sports Throwback Thursday! Today’s throwback Thursday will be a good one. Why? We are going to take it back to 2012. It’s been ten years since we saw the great rivalry between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. Celtics Big 3 (Pierce, KG, and Allen) versus Miami’s Big 3 (LeBron, D-Wade, and Bosh). It’s funny that both teams are currently playing in the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals, with the Celtics leading the series 3-2. Now, let’s look back at the recap of the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals.
This series marked the third straight year that the Heat and Celtics faced each other in the playoffs. They met each other in the Eastern Conference First Round in 2010 (won by the Celtics, 4–1) and in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2011 (won by the Heat, 4–1). In addition, LeBron faced the Celtics for the third straight year in the playoffs. The LeBron-led Cavs also faced the Celtics in 2010 only to be defeated 4–2, which led to James’ arrival on the Heat. In this series, many thought that the Celtics would get “steamrolled” by the Heat. Boy, was so many people wrong.
In Game 1, behind a big second half, the Heat defeated the Celtics 93–79 to take a 1–0 series lead. Game 2 was very different, with the Celtics starting very strong. Midway through the second quarter, a Rondo jumper extended their lead to 15. However, the Heat cut it to 7 at halftime. By the fourth quarter, the game was tight. With Miami leading 99–96 with 34 seconds left, Allen made a 3 to tie it. It eventually sent the game to OT, with James missing two chances to win the game. Miami would win 115–111 to take a 2–0 series lead.
In Game 3, the Celtics got strong performances from Rondo, Garnett, and Pierce. LeBron was also hot in the first quarter, scoring 16 points and making 7 of his first nine shots. Celtics outscored the Heat a combined 55–35 in the two quarters as they had an 85–63 lead heading into the fourth. Boston held on for a 101–91 victory to make it 2–1. Game 4 was the same story, with the Celtics hitting several 3’s and putting on a lead as big as 18. Miami rallied back in the third and fourth quarters. The game went to overtime; it’s the second overtime game of the series. Wade missed a potential game-winning three at the buzzer, giving the Celtics a 93–91 win to tie the series.
Game 5 is one of my favorite games of the series because of how hard both teams fought in the game, especially by guys like Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. With the Celtics leading by 1 with less than a minute to go, Pierce knocked down a crucial three-pointer over Lebron that gave the Celtics the lead for good. I remember Pierce saying, “he can’t guard me.” Celtics grabbed Game 5 on the road, and the Celtics proceeded to lead the series, 3–2, with a 94–90 win in Game 5.
Game 6 became the most crucial game for Lebron James’ career. It changed the series’s momentum and the season for the Miami Heat. James had one of his best playoff games, scoring 45 points and getting 15 rebounds; 30 of his 45 came in the first half alone. A one-man show at the TD Garden. He was at ease and looked completely scary to watch. He was in the zone, not smiling, absolutely dominated, and demolished the Celtics. Heat blow out the Celtics in Game 6 with a 98–79 victory to send the series back to Miami for a seventh and deciding game.
In Game 7, the Celtics started strong, but they ran out of gas by the second half, especially in the fourth quarter. The Celtics never recovered as the Heat booked a return trip to the Finals with a 101–88 Game 7 win in Miami. The game marked the end of the Celtics’ Big 3. It was an emotional moment between Doc Rivers and those players. Miami went on to win the championship by defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games.
2012 Playoff Leaders:
PTS: LeBron James (697)
TRB: LeBron James (224)
AST: Rajon Rondo (227)
WS: LeBron James (5.8)
Sarah Wayne Callies will join This is Us’ alumni Milo Ventimiglia for a new ABC drama pilot called “The Company You Keep.”
It’s been a long time since we last heard from Callies. She was part of hit shows such as Prison Break and The Walking Dead. We also can’t forget her in the underrated series “Colony.”
Callies will portray as Birdie, Charlie’s bossy big-sister and co-owner of the bar they run together that also serves as a front to their illegitimate family business. The character is a single mother to a hard-of-hearing daughter.
Hopefully, this series becomes a hit because both Callies and Milo are good actors. Any movie or show will have good actors; I’m always rooting for them to succeed.
Max Scherzer, one of their best starting pitchers, will be sidelined for quite a while with an injury.
The Mets announced Thursday that Scherzer has an oblique strain and will miss six to eight weeks while he heals.
Scherzer departed with two outs in the sixth inning after signaling to the dugout that he was “done” with a hand gesture across his neck. Mets have a big problem losing both of their aces due to injuries, with a combined five Cy Young awards in their careers.
Mets signed the 37-year-old righty to a three-year deal worth $130MM and gave him the highest annual salary in baseball history ($43.33MM).
Former Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner refused to join the Toronto Blue Jays this off-season when they offered him a lucrative one-year contract. The deal is worth $6 million. Why did Brett Gardner turn down the deal?
It could be that he wanted to finish his career with the Yankees. The problem is that the Yankees weren’t offering him that kind of money. The Blue Jays, on the other hand, we’re willing to make him a starter. Atlanta Braves also expressed interest in pursuing him, but he declined. Gardner is 38 years old, and we don’t know how his future holds in the majors. I’m having difficulty believing that the Yankees will bring him back for one last ride.
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For the first time in 26 years, the Florida Panthers are going to the Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
They eliminated the Washington Capitals in Game 6 on Friday night with a 4-3 overtime win that featured Carter Verhaeghe playing the hero role again.
Verhaeghe scored his second overtime goal to give the Panthers the series-clinching win.
As for the Washington Capitals, it was a heartbreaking loss to end their season the way they did. Capitalsnfought hard in the series, especially in Game 6. They couldn’t hold on to their lead in the third period.
Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan is one of the most electric young pitchers of the season. He had an impressive month of April for the Twins. Ryan is one of the reasons for the Twins’ early success.
Ryan recently faced off against the Houston Astros. We needed to see how he would perform against this great Astros team. Justin Verlander took on the Mount and completely dominated the Twins lineup. Verlander looked terrific for a 38-year-old. Ryan, on the other hand, gave up four runs in his start against the Astros. But that’s okay. It was a learning experience for the 25-year-old phenom.
Ryan seems like a likable pitcher. Through six games, he has a 2.56 ERA with 31 strikeouts and a 1.01 WHIP. Ryan is going to be okay. He’s learning how to fly in the big leagues. He needs to continue perfecting his command.
An intelligent man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from other people’s mistakes. These are words that always ring true. Many talented rappers are one foot in the industry and another foot in the streets. You can’t have it both ways.
After making his first appearance in court this week, Young Thug has been hit with several new felony charges after police conducted a thorough search of his home in Georgia.
Atlanta Police Department recovered drugs and guns from Young Thug’s home during their raid on his property in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. The rapper has been hit with at least seven felony charges and the conspiracy to violate RICO, murder, and armed robbery charges he was arrested for earlier this week.
Moral of the story: do the right thing like in Spike Lee’s movie. Streets aren’t worth it—no benefiting from that.
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It’s been 22 years since we last witnessed MLB on NBC. The last time I watched a game on the network was Game 6 of the 2000 American League Championship Series. I was nine years old. David Justice hit a huge 3-run homer in the 7th inning, the Yankees won the pennant, and it was Alex Rodriguez’s last game in a Seattle Mariner jersey.
For two years (1999 & 2000), I enjoyed MLB on NBC coverage. For decades, baseball fans could count on the NBC Game of the Week to provide coverage of teams they wouldn’t usually watch.
Then, Major League Baseball disappeared from the network for more than two decades. Until this Sunday.
NBC aired the game between the Chicago White Sox vs. the Boston Red Sox. Unfortunately, Bob Costas wasn’t in the booth to call out the competition. I was hoping to see him. Next Sunday, the company will move its exclusive Sunday morning to Peacock, the NBC subscription streaming service. Thank god I have the Peacock service.
Here are the next couple of games coming to Peacock.
(all times Eastern)
May 8, 11:30 a.m.: Chicago White Sox at Boston Red Sox
May 15, 11:30 a.m.: San Diego Padres at Atlanta Braves
May 22, 11:30 a.m.: St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates
May 29, 11:30 a.m.: San Francisco Giants at Cincinnati Reds
June 5, 11:30 a.m.: Detroit Tigers at New York Yankees
June 12, 11:30 a.m.: Oakland Athletics at Cleveland Guardians
June 19, Noon: Philadelphia Phillies at Washington Nationals
June 26, Noon: New York Mets at Miami Marlins
July 3, Noon: Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers
July 10, Noon: Los Angeles Angels at Baltimore Orioles
July 17, Noon: Kansas City Royals at Toronto Blue Jays
July 24, Noon: Chicago Cubs at Philadelphia Phillies
July 31, Noon: Detroit Tigers at Toronto Blue Jays
August 7, Noon: Houston Astros at Cleveland Guardians
August 14, Noon: San Diego Padres at Washington Nationals
August 21, Noon: Chicago White Sox at Cleveland Guardians
August 28, Noon: Los Angeles Dodgers at Miami Marlins
September 4, Noon: Toronto Blue Jays at Pittsburgh Pirates
The Diamondbacks are bringing one of baseball’s most highly-ranked prospects as they are promoting outfielder, Alek Thomas.
Giannis Antetokounmpo shouldn’t have much to complain about after the Bucks’, 103-101 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 3 on Saturday. Antetokounmpo was upset about some of the calls he didn’t get from the refs. He made it clear he wasn’t a fan of how the refs officiated the game but wisely did not get into specifics so he wouldn’t get fined.
Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn and Washington Capitals star Evgeny Kuznetsov were fined $5,000 for high-sticking infractions during Saturday’s games.
