Mike North: Rounding up the week in sports
Time for a few more random thoughts about sports.
• Tiger Woods fans have been clamoring for their old hero to resurface. Tiger might have said he hit better this weekend at the Greenbrier Classic than he has in a "long, long time," but coming in 32nd on a weak course still makes him a long way off from winning another major.
• Congrats to 24-year-old Danny Lee for winning his first PGA tournament.
• Is the arrow starting to point up for the Chicago White Sox? Sometimes media scrutiny can be good for a ballclub.
• Rookie Justise Winslow of the Miami Heat is turning heads in NBA summer league play. Shabazz Napier, drafted 24th in 2014 by the Charlotte Hornets and immediately traded to the Heat, was supposed to be their stud, but Winslow looks a little bit better in a lot of things. I like him a lot.
• Big Papi David Ortiz, 39, is swinging a slower bat nowadays, but he is still hitting .228 with 14 home runs and 41 RBI. I don't think Boston Red Sox fans can complain.
• The U.S. women's soccer beat Japan 5-2 in the World Cup to be the first team to win three times. They did the United States proud - now let's keep building on this experience.
• Alex Rodriguez might have hit his 16th home run on Sunday for the New York Yankees, but I still can't buy into anything he's peddling.
• Stephen Strasburg is the Washington Nationals' "prize vase" based on the general manager Mike Rizzo's assessment. Strasburg pulled himself from his last start against the San Francisco Giants in the fourth inning because of tightness in his left side, and is on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left oblique. Strasburg is referred to as a prized pitcher in their reports - they should say he was a prize pitcher. Strasburg is 5-5 with a 5.16 ERA. He's about as good as a fifth starter and that may be an insult to fifth starters.
• The best team in baseball right now is the Kansas City Royals. They are getting standing-room crowds, and KC fans have embraced this team. Some people are comparing the team to the beloved Brooklyn Dodgers of the '50s.
• The San Diego public would rather have a comic book convention than the Chargers. That doesn't really bode well for the town. Rumors have the team moving to Los Angeles. Wow, from bad to bad! I wonder: the White Sox or the auto show?
• Don't look now, but a Cubs prospect is actually producing big-time. Kris Bryant has 12 home runs and leads the team with 49 RBI. Remember, Anthony Rizzo (15 home runs and 45 RBIs) wasn't originally a Cubs prospect.
See ya!
Program notes:
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• North's column appears each Tuesday and Friday in the Daily Herald, and his video commentary can be found Monday, Wednesday and Thursday at dailyherald.com. For more, visit northtonorth.com.