The Rundown: Weekend Preview Edition - The Weekend Is Upon Us

We haven’t been this excited about Friday since last Friday. May you use your newfound sports knowledge to command the conversation this weekend.
 
I wanna talk about me,
The Last Night’s Game Team

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MLB (Major League Baseball)

• The bears are back. The Chicago Cubs have made the NLCS (National League Championship Series) interesting. They were shut out for two games and then they’ve won their past two games to take the series lead vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers. The teams will play Game Six tomorrow in Chicago.
• Going to the chapel. The Cleveland Indians called upon a pitcher with only one start in his career, Ryan Merritt, in Game Five. The Indians ended up beating the Toronto Blue Jays to head to the World Series. A fan found Merritt’s registry for his upcoming wedding, made it public, and the appreciative Cleveland fans have purchased almost everything on the couple’s registry. Glad we don’t have to write all those thank you notes.

F1 (Formula One Racing)

• Everything’s bigger in Texas. The new American owners of F1 have expressed interest in adding race stops in the United States. Currently the only race on the schedule is in Austin, TX this weekend. Austin is pulling out all the stops to impress the powers that be with performances by Taylor Swift, Usher and The Roots. As for the race, Nico Rosberg holds a commanding lead over Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton in the overall standings. There are four more races (including Austin) left in the season.

NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)

• It’s now or never. Sunday is a pivotal race as this is the last chance for drivers to secure a spot in the next round of the playoffs. They’ll advance to the round of eight with a win. Out of the 12 drivers racing on Sunday, only Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick are locked in. Expect an exciting race in Talladega because the other five drivers who will round out the group of eight are chosen based on points from the last three races.

WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association)

• Crowning a champ. In the fifth and last game of the finals, the Los Angeles Sparks beat reigning champions the Minnesota Lynx on a last second shot by WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike. The last championship for Los Angeles was in 2002.

Overtime

• New York Knicks’ Derrick Rose was cleared by a jury in a civil case stemming from a rape case in 2013. While no criminal charges were actually filed, the defendant was seeking $21 million. In poor taste, after being cleared, Rose posed for photos with members of the jury and even with the judge. The judge told Rose “Best wishes, except when the Knicks play the Lakers.” 

Sideline Stat

• ESPN College GameDay heads to Tuscaloosa, AL this weekend ahead of Texas A&M (#6) vs Alabama (#1). Alabama has been so dominant this year that they are a 19-point favorite over the #6 team in the country. Click here.

Coaches’ Corner

• What does it mean when a team is shut out? A shut out occurs if a team doesn’t score at all during a game – there’s a big fat zero on the scoreboard at the end. Ouch.   

The Rundown: Weekend Preview Edition - You Gotta See This

Holy moly it’s Friday. It seemed like we’d never get here. That’s the same thought we had when Ronda Rousey announced her return to ring this week. We have that covered along with baseball, football, NASCAR and more. Now go forth and impress your friends with your sports talk.

You can do it,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS - It's Friday and that means time for a tailgate treat. Check out the recipe for Nancy's easy game day wings. You won't regret it.  

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MLB (Major League Baseball)

• California dreamin’. The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Washington Nationals last night to win Game Five in the NLDS (National League Division Series) and advance to the next round of the playoffs. Game One and Game Four starting pitcher, Clayton Kershaw took one for the team and attained the last two outs. The Dodgers will take on the Chicago Cubs in a best-of-seven series starting tomorrow.   
• A rivalry brewing? The Cleveland Indians and the Toronto Blue Jays battle it out for the ALCS (American League Championship Series) starting tonight. If this match-up between cities seems familiar, it’s because the Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers played each other in the NBA playoffs last season. The Cavaliers prevailed and we’ll see if the Indians can do the same.

NHL (National Hockey League)

• Leaving a mark. The number one pick of the draft, Auston Matthews, started his hockey career off doing something never before accomplished. Matthews scored four goals in his first game. Los Angeles Kings’ (hockey) Marian Gaborick tweeted “Since the start of this game I didnt (sic) even have a chance to drink 4 beers and hes (sic) got 4 goals #Matthews.”  

UFC (ULTIMATE FIGHTER CHAMPIONSHIP)

• Don’t call it a comeback. In November 2015 the unbeatable Ronda Rousey was knocked out, losing the fight. Rousey hasn’t fought since. Until now. This week she announced that on December 30th she will step into the octagon to earn back her belt from current champion Amanda Nunes. (PS – You might recognize Rousey from the Entourage movie where she played Turtle’s love interest).

NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)

• Off to see the wizard. NASCAR’s “Chase for the Cup” (elimination-style playoffs) heads to Kansas this weekend. Driver Jimmie Johnson has already secured his spot in the next round of eight drivers. Which driver will follow the yellow brick road to claim their spot in the next round?  

Overtime

• The San Francisco 49ers (football) starting quarterback Colin Kaepernick takes on the Buffalo Bills this weekend. Kaepernick gained notoriety by kneeling during the national anthem and wearing pig socks to protest “rogue cops.” Coincidentally, the Bills' LeSean McCoy is inviting a group of 20 police and inner-city kids to attend the game through his foundation.  

Sideline stat

• Hurricane Matthew lead to the cancellation of LSU (Louisiana State) - Florida game last weekend and neither team had an open date to reschedule the game. Call it a miracle but the schools came to an agreement to play the game on November 19th, a date previously scheduled against other teams. LSU will buy out their previously scheduled opponent South Alabama for $1.5 million and Florida will pay $500,000 to Presbyterian.

Coaches’ Corner

• The Dodgers called on the starting pitcher from a previous game, Clayton Kershaw, to take the pitching mound and get the last two outs. Why is this a big deal? Starting pitchers’ arms are treated like royalty; they work one game and then typically rest for five days. A starting pitcher will usually throw around 100 pitches and many at 90+ mph so this gives them time to recover. Kershaw went in to pitch last night on one day of rest. It’s a big deal because he risked injury to win the game for his team. Although if he didn't, the Dodgers may have lost and been eliminated from the playoffs.

The Rundown: Weekend Preview Edition - Friday Festivities

Happy dance! It’s Friday and there’s football, baseball, NASCAR and more to watch this weekend. We hear a weekend of sports filled brunches calling our names.

We’ll take a mimosa please,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS - Get excited for this week’s tailgate treat. It comes to us from a guy you might have heard of, Al Roker. His recipe for homemade brisket beef jerky is out of this world if you go light on the liquid smoke. That’s what’s going on in our neck of the woods.  

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NCAA Football (College)

• Force majeure. Hurricane Matthew has forced the cancellation of LSU (Louisiana State University) – University of Florida game this weekend. The teams do not have an open date in common for the rest of the season so it will not be rescheduled.
• Surprise guest. ESPN College GameDay heads to College Station, TX ahead of the Tennessee Volunteers (#9) and Texas A&M Aggies (#8) matchup. Will free agent and hometown hero Johnny Football, aka Johnny Manziel whose four-game NFL suspension is over, be the guest picker to try to improve his image? 

NFL (National Football League)

• Welcome back. Tom Brady’s suspension for “deflategate” is officially over and just in time for his New England Patriots to face the winless Cleveland Browns. Brady seemed to enjoy his four week break by attending a football game at his alma matter, University of Michigan, and nude sunbathing in Italy with is wife, but it’s back to work for him this Sunday.
• Bottom of the barrel. In Thursday Night Football news, Arizona Cardinals improved from their 1-3 record (wins-losses), beating the equally dreadful San Francisco 49ers.

MLB (Major League Baseball)

• That was easy. Toronto Blue Jays used the momentum from their wild card win to thoroughly defeat Texas Rangers (final score 10-1) in Game One of the ALDS (American League Division Series).
• Hometown pride. Building off Cleveland Cavaliers’ NBA Championship momentum, Cleveland Indians a took step in the right direction with a Game One win over Boston Red Sox in the other ALDS game.
• If you’re looking for an excuse not to work, all four playoff games will be played today. Catch the full schedule here.  

NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)

• Shake and bake. The second round of the “The Chase for the Cup” begins on Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The 12 remaining drivers look to win this race to guarantee their spot in the next round. Kevin Harvick will start from the pole position.

WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association)

• Showdown. The WNBA finals begin on Sunday with Los Angeles Sparks (#2) taking on Minnesota Lynx (#1).

Overtime

• The Toronto Blue Jays win over the Baltimore Orioles in the wild card game was overshadowed by a fan incident. A Blue Jays fan threw a full beer at an Orioles outfielder catching a fly ball. The fan has since been identified and charged with criminal mischief and wasting a perfectly good beer.

Sideline stat

• Pittsburgh Steelers’ Antonio Brown received a fine of $24,000 for his “pump” (aka twerking) touchdown celebration. This is his second fine of the year for his suggestive celebrations.

Coaches’ corner

• Barry Bonds, the leading home run hitter of all-time, was fired as the Miami Marlins hitting coach after one season. Bonds rubbed everyone wrong as a player and apparently nothing changed in his career as a coach.