Morning Update

MLB Trade Deadline – Sunday at 4pm EST

NFL – Free Agency Updates

Patriots traded for WR Chad Ochocinco. He accepted a restructred three-year contract.  Bengals will receive two draft picks.

Cardinals traded for QB Kevin Kolb from the Eagles in exchange for a 2012 2nd-round pick and CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie.

Bills signed Brad Smith (former Jet) to a four-year, $15 million contract.

Tennessee Titans have released QB Vince Young. It looks like he will join the Eagles.

Dolphins have traded for RB Reggie Bush and signed him to a two-year, $10 million deal. Saints received safety Jonathan Amaya.

Bears traded Greg Olsen to the Panthers in exchange for a player and a draft pick.

US Soccer – Coach Bob Bradley was fired yesterday after five years. Juergen Klinsmann is the top candidate to replace him.

MLB – Series this weekend

Royals @ Indians
Mets @ Nationals
Angels @ Tigers
Pirates @ Phillies
Orioles @ Yankees
Giants @ Reds
Rangers @ Blue Jays
Marlins @ Braves
Red Sox @ White Sox
Astros @ Brewers
Twins @ Athletics
Cubs @ Cardinals
Rays @ Mariners
Rockies @ Padres
Diamondbacks @ Dodgers

Morning Update

MLB – Trade deadline is 4pm EST on 7/31 (Sunday)

Mets traded OF Carlos Beltran to the Giants for pitcher Zack Wheeler. Mets will pick up $4 million of the $6.5 million that Beltran has left on his contract.

Angels beat the Indians 3-1. Ervin Santana threw a no-hitter despite giving up a run in the first inning via wild pitch.
Mariners beat the Yankees 9-2. Mariners had 17 hits and snapped a 17-game losing streak.
White Sox beat the Tigers 2-1. De Aza and Jackson homered.
Blue Jays beat the Orioles 3-0. Romero gave up 4 hits and no ER over 8.1 IP.
Giants beat the Phillies 2-1. Cain gave up 4 hits and no ER over 7 IP.
Mets beat the Reds 8-2. Wright and Duda homered.
Red Sox beat the Royals 12-5. Both teams had 16 hits each.
Braves beat the Pirates 2-1 in 10 innings. Ross hit the walk-off RBI single.

Tonight:

Angels @ Tigers – 1:05pm – Pineiro v Penny
Royals @ Red Sox – 1:35pm – Hochevar v Beckett
Orioles @ Blue Jays – 7:07pm – Bergesen v Villanueva
Mets @ Reds – 12:35pm – Capuano v Bailey
Giants @ Phillies – 7:05pm – Lincecum v Kendrick
Pirates @ Braves – 7:10pm – Correia v Lowe

NFL – Free Agency Updates

Redskins traded QB Donovan McNabb to the Vikings for a 2012 6th round pick and a conditional sixth rounder in 2013.

Jets re-signed WR Santonio Holmes to a 5-year, $50 million contract with $24 million guaranteed.

Seahawks signed WR Sidney Rice to a 5-year, $41 million contact. He played on the Vikings last year.

Titans signed QB Matt Hasselback to a multi-year deal. He played on the Seahawks last year.

Panthers re-signed RB DeAngelo Williams to a 5-year, $43 million deal with $21 million guaranteed.

Chargers re-signed safety Eric Weddle to a 5-year, $40 million deal with $19 million guaranteed.

Dolphins and Broncos are discussing a trade to send QB Kyle Orton to the Dolphins. If that fails, Miami may go after Vince Young.

WR Plaxico Burress is deciding to go to either the Giants or Steelers, his two former teams.

Dolphins and Saints are working on a deal to send RB Reggie Bush to the Dolphins.

Morning Update

MLB

Braves beat the Pirates 4-3 in 19 innings. Awful call to end the game, how is this guy not out: http://espn.go.com/blog/SweetSpot/post/_/id/14246/we-have-a-new-worst-call-ever

Yankees beat the Mariners 4-1. CC allowed the only hit of the game for the Mariners in the 7th, breaking up his perfect game. Mariners have lost 17 straight games. CC won his 15th game.
Orioles beat the Blue Jays 12-4. Hardy hit two homers.
Angels beat the Indians 2-1. Weaver is now 14-4 with a 1.79 ERA.
Phillies beat the Giants 7-2. Worley is now 7-1. Howard hit his 20th HR.
Mets beat the Reds 8-6. Mets are above .500 at 52-51 and Niese is 10-8.
Red Sox beat the Royals 13-9. Pedroia went 4 for 5 with 1 RBI.
Dodgers beat the Rockies 3-2. Kershaw is now 12-4.
Tigers beat the White Sox 5-4. Verlander won his 14th game after giving up 4 ER over 8 IP. Valverde got his 27th save.

Tonight:

Angels @ Indians – 12:05pm – Santana v Huff
Mariners @ Yankees – 1:05pm – Hernandez v Hughes
Giants @ Phillies – 7pm – ESPN v Lincecum v Hamels
Tigers @ White Sox – 2:10pm – Scherzer v Danks
Pirates @ Braves – 7:10pm – Maholm v Jurrjens
Mets @ Reds – 7:10pm – Pelfrey v Arroyo
Royals @ Red Sox – 7:10pm – Chen v Lackey
Orioles @ Blue Jays – 7:07pm – Simon v Romero
Rockies @ Dodgers – 10:10pm – Cook v Kuroda

NFL – Free Agency news

Seahawks signed QB Tavaris Jackson once they heard that Matt Hasselbeck will not return this season.

Redskins are working on a deal to trade QB Donovan McNabb to the Vikings.

Jets have begun working on re-signing WR Santonio Holmes and showed interest in the top free agent out there, CB Nnamdi Asomugha.

Panthers signed their defensive end Charles Johnson to a 6-year, $72 million including a $30 million signing bonus.

Giants will meet with WR Plaxico Burress today about a potential return to the team.

Ravens agree to multi-year deal with OL Marshal Yanda.

Morning Update

NFL – The players and owners have agreed to a new 10-year labor agreement which officially ended the lockout.

Timeline for transactions (From ESPN)

Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET
• Trading begins.
• Teams can sign rookies and undrafted free agents.
• Teams can negotiate with, but not sign, veteran free agents.

Thursday at 4:01 p.m. ET
• Team can begin to cut players.

Friday at 6 p.m. ET
• Teams can officially sign free agents. Players who sign must report to new teams but can’t participate in physical activities until start of league year on Aug. 4.

Aug. 4 at 4:01 p.m. ET
• Clubs must be within salary cap, which will be set at $120.375 million.

There have been leaks of teams’ decisions regarding cuts. The Baltimore Ravens will be cutting WR Derrick Mason, DT Kelly Gregg, TE Todd Heap, and RB Willis McGahee.

Here is the link to the PDF of the summary of the agreement: http://ht.cdn.turner.com/si/images/2011/07/25/New_2011_Deal_Summary_7.pdf

MLB

Mets beat the Reds 4-2. Mets scored all their runs in the 7th. Beltran had an RBI.
Indians beat Angels 3-2. Kipnis got the walk off hit in the 9th to bring in the winning run.
Padres beat the Phillies 5-4. Lee is now 9-7 with a 3.05 ERA. He gave up 5 ER in 4 IP.
Yankees beat the Mariners 10-3. Jeter and Teixeira homered.
Royals beat the Red Sox 3-1 in 14 innings. Aviles and Escobar had RBI’s in the 14th.
Pirates beat the Braves 3-1. McDonald gave up 0 ER over 5.1 IP. Hanrahan got his 29th save.
Rangers beat the Twins 20-6. Rangers had 27 hits. They scored at least 3 runs in each of the first 5 innings.
Dodgers beat the Rockies 8-5. Dodgers gave up 4 runs in the 9th, but held on for victory.

Tonight:

Angels @ Indians – 7:05pm – Weaver v Tomlin – Weaver is 13-4 with a 1.81 ERA
Mariners @ Yankees – 7:05pm – Fister v Sabathia – Sabathia is 14-5 with a 2.62 ERA
Orioles @ Blue Jays – 7:07pm – Arrieta v Morrow
Royals @ Red Sox – 7:10pm – Duffy v Miller
Mets @ Reds – 7:10pm – Niese v Cueto – Cueto is 6-3 with a 1.98 ERA
Giants @ Phillies – 7:05pm – Lincecum v Worley – Lincecum is 8-8 with a 2.90 ERA
Pirates @ Braves – 7:10pm – Karstens v Hanson – Karstens is 8-5 with a 2.28 ERA
Tigers @ White Sox – 8:10pm – Verlander v Peavy – Verlander is 13-5 with a 2.24 ERA
Rockies @ Dodgers – 10:10pm – Chacin v Kershaw – Kershaw is 11-4 with a 2.72 ERA

Morning Update

NFL – Today, the players association is expected to vote and ratify a new 10-year labor deal which would end the lockout and potentially have the free agency period begin on Monday. Reps from both sides met all weekend to iron out all the issues.

Tour de France – Cadel Evans dominated on Saturday to become the first Aussie to win the race. Andy Schleck was in the lead going into Saturday, but finished over 2.5 minutes behind Evans.

Copa America Final – Uruguay beat Paraguay 3-0. Forlan scored twice and Suaraz scored. This is Uruguay’s 15th title, the most ever.

MLB

Yankees won 2 of 3 vs the Athletics. Rivera has at least 25 saves for 15 seasons in a row – an MLB record.
Angels won 2 of 3 vs the Orioles.
Red Sox swept the Mariners – 3 games. Mariners have lost 15 games in a row.
Cubs swept the Astros – 3 games.
White Sox beat the Indians in both of their game. The game on Sat was postponed.
Tigers won 3 of their 4 games vs the Twins.
Dodgers won 2 of 3 games v the Nationals.
Marlins won 2 of 3 vs the Mets.
Phillies won all 3 games vs the Padres. Halladay and Hamels each have 12 wins. Fourth game is tonight.
Cardinals won 2 of 3 vs the Pirates.
Royals won 2 of 3 vs the Rays.
Giants won 2 of 3 vs the Brewers.
Diamondbacks won 2 of 3 vs the Rockies.
Rangers won 2 of 3 vs the Blue Jays
Reds won 2 of 3 vs the Braves

Standings – Teams in first and by number of games
AL East: Red Sox – 3 games
AL Central: Tigers – 2 games
AL West: Rangers – 3 games.
NL East: Phillies – 6 games
NL Central: Pirates, Cardinals, and Brewers are all tied.
NL West: Giants – 4 games

AL Wild Card – Yankees – 5.5 games
NL Wild Card – Braves – 4 games

Morning Update

NFL – Last night, the NFL owners voted 31-0 to accept the proposed CBA (collective bargaining agreement). Oakland abstained. Now it’s up to the NFL players to obstain a majority vote in favor for the ratify the agreement.

Highlights of the new deal (via ESPN):

• Ten-year deal, through the 2020 season
• New league year would begin on Wednesday
• Players receive 48 percent of revenue in first portion of deal
• $120 million salary cap; team minimum 89 percent ($106.8M) as long as league spends 99 percent ($3.8 billion)
• Veterans earn free agency after fourth season
• Four-year rookie contracts, with team option for fifth year
• Lower rookie salaries, with cap on team spending for rookies
• Later training camps, no more full-contact, two-a-day practices
• Offseason team activities (OTAs) reduced from 14 to nine

Also – the NFL has officially cancelled the August 7th Hall of Fame game b/w the Chicago Bears and St. Louis Rams. It was the first preseason game of the year.

MLB – Series this weekend

Angels @ Orioles
White Sox @ Indians
Athletics @ Yankees
Mariners @ Red Sox
Blue Jays @ Rangers
Rays @ Royals
Tigers @ Twins
Brewers @ Giants
Nationals @ Dodgers
Rockies @ Diamondbacks
Mets @ Marlines
Braves @ Reds
Cardinals @ Pirates
Padres @ Phillies
Astros @ Cubs

Soccer – Copa America – Final – 3pm – Uruguay v Paraguay – Paraguay has advanced to the final without ever winning a match during regulation/extra time. In each of their five matches, they won their match in penalty kicks.

Tour de France – Andy Schleck won Stage 18 and now trails leader Thomas Voeckler by 15 seconds. Andy’s brother, Frank Schleck in third currently, trailing Voeckler by 1 minute, 8 seconds.

MLB Hall of Fame Class of 2011 – will be inducted on Sunday – Roberto Alomar, Bert Blyleven, and Pat Gillick

Morning Update

MLB

Red Sox beat the Orioles 4-0. Ellsbury had two homers. O’s had two hits.
Twins beat the Indians 7-5. Twins had 13 hits.
Athletics beat the Tigers 7-5. Matsui hit his 500th home run.
Phillies beat the Cubs 9-1. Rollins homered twice and Worley gave up 4 hits and 1 ER over 9 IP.
Blue Jays beat the Mariners 11-6. Mariners have lost 11 games in a row.
Dodgers beat the Giants 1-0. Lincecum is 8-8, but has a 2.90 ERA.
Yankees beat the Rays 4-0. Garcia gave up 8 hits and 0 ER over 6.2 IP. Granderson hit his 26th HR.
Mets beat the Cardinals 6-5 in 10 innings.. Pagan hit the walk-off HR.
Angels beat the Rangers 9-8. Angels snapped the Rangers 12-game winning streak. Angels scored 6 runs in the 6th inning.
Rockies beat the Braves 3-2. Gonzalez hit the walk-off RBI single.

Today:

Mariners @ Blue Jays – 12:37pm – Fister v Romero
Rangers @ Angels – 3:35pm – Wilson v Weaver
Yankees @ Rays – 7:10pm – Sabathia v Shields – Sabathia is 14-4 with a 2.64 ERA
Tigers @ Twins – 8:10pm – Verlander v Pavano
Cardinals @ Mets – 12:10pm – Westbrook v Niese
Braves @ Rockies – 3:10pm – Hanson v Chacin
Padres @ Marlins – 12:10pm – Moseley v Vazquez
Brewers @ Diamondbacks – 9:40pm – Greinke v Kennedy

Soccer – Copa America – Semifinals

Paraguay beat Venezuela on penalty kicks 5-3 after finishing the game 0-0.

Final: Uruguay v Paraguay – 3pm – Sunday

Tour de France – Boasson Hagen won stage 17 of 24. Voeckler is the overall leader by 1 minute and 18 seconds.

Morning Update

MLB

Orioles beat the Red Sox 6-2 to snap their 7-game losing streak. Guthrie is 4-13.
Tigers beat the Athletics 8-3. Cabrera hit his 20th HR.
Blue Jays beat the Mariners 6-5 in 14 innings. McDonald hit the game-winning sacrifice fly.
Rays beat the Yankees 3-2. Colon is now 6-6. Rays scored two runs in the 7th to take the lead.
Rangers beat the Angels 7-0 to win their 12th straight game. Ogando gave up 4 hits over 8 IP.
Pirates beat the Reds 1-0. Only run game in the first inning via McCutchen RBI groundout.
Mets beat the Cardinals 4-2. Reyes went 2 for 5 and Beltran 3 for 3 (and 2 walks) in their returns.
Phillies beat the Cubs 4-2. Phillies scored 2 runs in the 8th and 9th innings.
Rockies beat the Braves 12-3. Jiminez had 9 strikeouts and gave up 2 ER over 6.2 IP.
Giants beat the Dodgers 5-3. Bumgarner gave up 3 ER over 8 IP and had an RBI.

Tonight:

Red Sox @ Orioles – 12:35pm – Miller v Arrieta
Indians @ Twins – 1:10pm – Tomlin v Blackburn
Athletics @ Tigers – 7:05pm – McCarthy v Turner
Mariners @ Blue Jays – 7:07pm – Vargas v Morrow
Yankees @ Rays – 7:10pm – Garcia v Price
Cardinals @ Mets – 7pm – McClellan v Dickey – ESPN
Dodgers @ Giants – 3:45pm – Kershaw v Lincecum
Phillies @ Cubs – 2:20pm – Worley v Dempster
Braves @ Rockies – 8:4pm – Hudson v Nicasio

Copa America – Semifinals

Uruguay beat Peru 2-0 to advance to the finals. Luis Suarez scored both goals. They will be competing for their record-15th Copa America title.

Tonight:

Paraguay v Venezuela – 8:45pm

Tour de France – Thor Hushovd won Stage 16. Thomas Voeckler is still in the lead by 1 min 45 seconds. There are 5 stages left.

NHL – The Tampa Bay Lightning resigned center Steven Stamkos to a 5-year, $37.5 million contract. He is 21 years old and was the #1 pick in the 2008 draft.

Morning Update

MLB

Yankees beat the Rays 5-4. Martin drew a walk which scored the 5th run in the top of the ninth.
Red Sox beat the O’s 15-10. Sox scored 8 runs in the 8th inning.
Marlins beat the Mets 4-1. Mets scored their run in the ninth inning and had 3 hits.
Cubs beat the Phillies 6-1. Hallady left the game in the fifth due to dehydration.
Braves beat the Rockies 7-4. Freeman went 3 for 5 with 3 RBI’s, including a 2-run HR.
Giants beat the Dodgers 5-0. Vogelsong gave up 7 hits over 6.2 IP.
Indians beat the Twins 5-2. Twins scored their two runs in the ninth. Huff gave up 5 hits and no runs over 7 IP.

Tonight:

Red Sox @ Orioles – 7:05pm – Weiland v Guthrie
Athletics @ Tigers – 7:05pm – Moscoso v Porcello
Mariners @ Blue Jays –  7:10pm – Pineda v Cecil
Yankees @ Rays – 7:10pm – Colon v Hellickson
Phillies @ Cubs – 8:05pm – Lee v Garza
Cardinals @ Mets – 7:10pm – Lohse v Gee – Jose Reyes is set to return to the lineup.
Indians @ Twins – 8:10pm – Masterson v Liriano
White Sox @ Royals – 8:10pm – Peavy v Duffy
Braves @ Rockies – 8:40pm – Beachy v Jimenez
Dodgers @ Giants – 10:15pm – De La Rosa v Bumgarner

Soccer – Copa America – Semifinals – Peru v Uruguay – 8:45pm

Tour de France – Yesterday was a rest day. Voeckler is the leader by 1 min and 49 seconds.

Morning Update

Japan beat USA via penalty kicks to win the Women’s World Cup

Japan rallied twice to set up the penalty kick showdown. 22-year old Alex Morgan scored the first goal of the match in the 69th minute. Then Aya Miyama equalized in the 80th off of poor defensive play by the USA back line. Then, in extra time, like she’s done all tournament, Abby Wambach scored via header in the 104th minute. But, not to be denied, Homare Sawa scored an impressive goal in the 117th minute off a corner kick. It was Sawa 5th goal of the tournament. Then in the penalty kick round, the USA team missed their first three shots and eventually lost 3-1. This is Japan’s first world cup win.

Darren Clarke won the British Open

Clarke finished the tournament with a final score of 275 – 5 under. This is his first major win. Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson both finished tied for second with a score of 278 – 2 under. McIlroy finished tied for 25th with a 287 – 7 over.

Copa America – Quarterfinal results

Peru beat Colombia 2-0. Lobaton and Risco scored.
Uruguay beat Argentina 1-1 (5-4 on penalty kicks). Intense match with Perez and Mascherano being sent off with red cards.
Paraguay beat Brazil 0-0 (2-0 on penalty kicks).
Venezuela beat Chile 2-1.

Semifinals: Peru v Uruguay – Tues @ 8:45pm & Paraguay v Venezuela  – Wed @ 8:45pm

Tour de France – Thomas Voeckler leads Frank Schleck by 1 min 49 seconds after the 15th stage.

MLB

Yankees split the 4-game series with the Jays. Hughes got his first win of the season.
Red Sox won 2 of 3 vs the Rays. Sox won last night in the 16th inning off of Pedroia’s RBI single.
Braves won 2 of 3 vs the Nationals.
Orioles split their 4 game series with the Indians.
Marlins won 3 of 4 vs the Cubs.
White Sox won 2 of 3 vs the Tigers.
Diamondbacks won 2 of 3 vs the Dodgers.
A’s won 3 of 4 vs the Angels.
Phillies won 2 of 3 vs the Mets.
Pirates won 2 of 3 vs the Astros.
Giants won 3 of 4 vs the Padres.
Reds won 2 of 3 vs the Cardinals.
Rangers swept the Mariners – 4 games. Rangers have won 11 in a row.

Morning Update

British Open – Round 2 on ESPN and Rounds 3 and 4 on CBS

Leaderboard after Round 1
1. Tom Lewis (-5)
1. Thomas Bjorn (-5)
3. Lucas Glover (-4)
3. Webb Simpson (-4)
3. Miguel Jimenez (-4)

36. Phil Mickelson (E)
36. Sergio Garcia (E)
51. Lee Westwood (+1)
51. Rory McIlroy (+1)

Women’s World Cup

3rd place: Sweden v France – 11:30am – Saturday – ESPN2

Final: USA v Japan – 2:45pm – Sunday – ESPN – As mentioned yesterday, I think the USA will prevail and with their third world cup title. Japan has a strong team that surprisingly beat Germany and Sweden. But USA, led by Wambach, has the resilience to pull through. Their trap game was France after their emotional win over Brazil. Their 3-1 win in that match proved they are determined and focused. As long as Goalie Hope Solo continues her dominance, USA should win.

MLB – The perjury case on Roger Clemens was declared, on the second day of testimony, a mistrial due to inadmissible evidence. The prosecutors showed jurors  a videotape that a teammate said that he’s told his wife he admitted to using a drug. This tape had already been ruled out by the judge. Judge will determine on September 2nd whether to hold a new trial.

Copa America – Quarterfinals

Saturday
Colombia v Peru – 3pm
Argentina v Uruguay – 6:15pm
Sunday
Brazil v Paraguay – 3pm
Chile v Venezuela – 6:15pm

MLB – Series this weekend

Indians @ Orioles – Indians beat the O’s last night 8-4. Indians are first in the AL Central
White Sox @ Tigers
Yankees @ Blue Jays – Jays beat the Yankees last night 16-7. Jays scored 8 runs in the first inning.
Red Sox @ Rays
Marlins @ Cubs – Marlins beat the Cubs last night 6-3. Mujica is 7-2. Byrd homered.
Cardinals @ Reds
Phillies @ Mets
Nationals @ Braves
Royals @ Twins – Twins beat the Royals last night 8-4. Liriano is now 6-7.
Angels @ Athletics
Rangers @ Mariners – Rangers beat the Mariners 5-0. Hamilton, Cruz and Napoli homered.
Pirates @ Astros
Brewers @ Rockies – Rockies beat the Brewers 12-3. Spilborghs went 4 for 6 with 4 RBIs.
Dodgers @ Diamondbacks
Giants @ Padres – Giants beat the Padres 6-2 in 12 innings. Huff homered in the 9th to send the game into extra innings.

Tour de France – Samuel Sanchez won the 12th stage. Thomas Voeckler still leads Frank Schleck by 1 minute and 49 seconds.

Morning Update

Women’s World Cup

USA beat France 3-1 to advance to the finals. Cheny, Wambach and Morgan scored for the USA.

Japan beat Sweden 3-1. After giving up the first goal, Kawasumi scored two goals and Sawa one goal.

This is the sixth world cup for women’s soccer. USA won the title in 1991 and 1999 and placed third in the other three (1995, 2003, and 2007). Japan has advanced past the group stage only once before when they lost in the quarterfinals in 1995 to the USA 4-0.

Although most people will pick the USA to win this match (including me), don’t forget that Japan knocked out the host nation Germany and just beat Sweden who beat USA in the group stage.

Final – 2:45pm – USA v Japan – ESPN – Sunday

3rd place match – 11:30am – Sweden v France – Saturday – ESPN2

Golf – The British Open – Royal St George’s in Sandwich, England – Round 1 – ESPN

Defending Champion: Louis Oosthuizen

Notable Tee Times (EST)
4:09am – Rory McIlroy, Ernie Els
4:20am – Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia
9:10am – Lee Westwood
9:21am – Phil Mickelson, Louis Oosthuizen

Full List of Tee Times: http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/britishopen11/news/story?id=6741068

MLB – Second half of the season resumes today

Indians @ Orioles – 7:05pm – Masterson v Guthrie
Yankees @ Blue Jays – 7:07pm – Colon v Reyes
Royals @ Twins – 8:10pm – Chen v Liriano
Rangers @ Mariners – 10:10pm – Holland v Vargas
Marlins @ Cubs – 8:05pm – Sanchez v Garza
Brewers @ Rockies – 8:40pm – Gallardo v Jimenez
Giants @ Padres – 10:05pm – Bumgarner v Harang

Morning Update

Women’s World Cup – Semifinals – all on ESPN

12pm – France v USA – After upsetting Brazil, USA is favored to win the title. Wambach and Solo need to continue their dominance against France who knocked out England last round.

2:45pm – Japan v Sweden – Japan upset the hosts Germany and Sweden knocked Australia. Sweden is expected to move past Japan and set up a rematch of the group stage match up v USA.

MLB All-Star Game

NL beat AL 5-1 which means the NL team in the World Series will have home field advantage.

Gonzalez and Fielder homered. Fielder won the MVP.

Copa America – Group Stages

Group A: Colombia and Argentina advanced. Costa Rica and Bolivia were eliminated.

Group C – Chile and Uruguay advanced. Peru and Mexico were eliminated.

Today:
Group B: Paraguay v Venezuela – 6:15pm & Brazil v Ecuador – 8:45pm
Current Group B Standings: Venezuela – 4pts, Brazil 2pts, Paraguay 2pts, Ecuador 1pt

Tour de France – Andre Greipel won the 10th stage. Thomas Voeckler still leads by 1 min 49 seconds over Luis Leon Sanchez.

Morning Update

Women’s World Cup – Quarterfinal results

USA Beat Brazil via penalty kicks 5-3 (score was 2-2 after extra time).

Nice recap a friend of mine put together:
Sundays Quarter Final US Women’s world cup game vs. Brazil was one of the most exciting games in US Women’s soccer history.  In just the second minute of the game the US went up 1-0 after a poor deflection by the Brazilian player Daiane lead to an own goal.  The half ended with the US up 1-0.  In 20 matches, the US had only lost one game being up at half time while Brazil had never come back when being down at half.  In the 65th minute of the game, feet from the goal, US defender Rachel Buehler was called for a foul against Brazilian star Marta.  Replays of the foul show the call by the referee to look incorrect.  Buehler received a red card for the foul, resulting in her ejection from the match and causing the US to play a man down for the remainder of the game.  In addition Brazil received a PK.  The PK attempt was blocked by Keeper Hope Solo.  But after a second poor call by the referee, the PK had to be retaken at which point Brazil tied the game 1-1.  The game proceeded to go into over time which consists of two 15-minute extra periods.  In the second minute of the 1st extra period Brazilian star Marta scored a miraculous goal by chipping the ball off the back post. The game continued and it look like their was no hope for the US with commentators already stating this was the worst outcome in US women’s history.  With seconds left in the 3 minutes of additional stoppage time Megan Rapinoe made an incredible cross to the opposite side of the goal to which striker Abby Wambach connected, heading the ball hard into the back of the net, shocking the Brazilian team, and sending the game into a penalty kick finale.  The penalty kicks began with both the US and Brazil scoring their first two shots.  But on the third shot by the Brazilians, US Keeper Hope Solo for the second time in this game blocked a penalty kick later allowing Shannon Boxx to win the game with the final PK (US 5, Brazil 3).  The game was a classic example of how its never over till its over, and with Hope in the goal there’s always hope on the field.

Japan upset Germany 1-0 with a goal by Maruyama in extra time.
France beat England via penalty kicks 4-3 (score was 1-1 after extra time).
Sweden beat Australia 1-0.

Semifinals are on Wednesday – France v USA @ 12pm and Japan v Sweden @ 2:45pm

MLB – All- Star game is on Tuesday night

Derek Jeter had his 3,000 hit on Saturday with a HR in the 3rd inning. He finished the game going 5 for 5, including an 8th inning single which brought the winning run. He is the 28th player in history to reach 3,000 and the first Yankee to do it.

Yankees won both game vs the Rays this weekend. Friday’s game was rained out.
Red Sox won all four games vs the O’s from Thurs-Sun. Big brawl on Friday with Ortiz and Gregg.
Phillies won 2 of 3 vs the Braves.
Tigers won 3 of 4 vs the Royals.
Dodgers swept the Padres – 3 games.
Giants won 2 of 3 vs the Mets.
Cardinals split the 4 games with the Diamondbacks 2-2.
Blue Jays won 3 of 4 games with the Indians.

American League
East: Boston by 1 game
Central: Tigers by 0.5 games
West: Rangers by 1 game
Wild Card: Yankees by 5 games
National League
East: Phillies by 3.5 games
Central: Cardinals and Brewers are tied. Pirates are 1 game back of both of them.
West: Giants by 3 games
Wild Card: Braves by 5 games

Tour de France – Leader Thomas Voeckler leads Sanchez by 1 min and 49 seconds after 9 stages.

Morning Update

Women’s World Cup – Quarterfinal Round – All matches are on ESPN

Saturday: 12pm – England v France & 2:45pm – Germany v Japan
Sunday:  7am – Sweden v Australia & 11:30am – Brazil v USA

MLB – Series this weekend

Paul Konerko (White Sox) and Shane Victorino (Phillies) were picked for the All-Star via online fan voting.

Rays @ Yankees – Jeter has 2,998 hits
Orioles @ Red Sox
Blue Jays @ Indians
Braves @ Phillies
Tigers @ Royals
Padres @ Dodgers
Mets @ Giants
Mariners @ Angels
Athletics @ Rangers
Astros @ Marlins
Reds @ Brewers
Diamondbacks @ Cardinals
Cubs @ Pirates
Twins @ White Sox
Rockies @ Nationals

MLB Standings – Top team in each division with current wild card leader

American League
East: Boston by 0.5 games
Central: Indians by 1.5 games
West: Rangers by 1 game
Wild Card: Yankees by 3 games
National League
East: Phillies by 2.5 games
Central: Cardinals by 1 game
West: Giants by 2 games
Wild Card: Braves by 5.5 games

Best batting average in the MLB: Jose Reyes – .354
Most HRs in the MLB: Jose Bautista – 28
Most RBIs in the MLB: Adrian Gonzalez – 75
Most wins by a pitcher in the MLB: CC Sabathia and Jair Jurrjens with 12
Best ERA by a starting pitcher in the MLB: Jair Jurrjens with 1.87
Most strikeouts by starting pitcher in the MLB: Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander with 138

Morning Update

Soccer – Women’s World Cup

Yesterday:

Group D: Australia beat Norway 2-1 & Brazil beat Equatorial Guinea 3-0
Group C: Colombia drew North Korea 0-0 and Sweden beat USA 2-1.

Quarterfinal Match-ups:

Sat: England v France & Germany v Japan
Sun: Sweden v Australia & Brazil v USA

MLB

Indians beat the Yankees 5-3. Jeter got 1 hit, now at 2,997. Yanks scored all three runs in the top of the ninth.
Red Sox beat the Blue Jays 6-4. Youkilis and Ellsbury homered. Both Sox and Yanks have 51 wins. Lester was placed on the DL.
Rangers beat the Orioles 13-5. Rangers had 18 hits. Guthrie gave up 6 ER in 5 IP.
Marlins beat the Phillies 7-6 in 10 innings. Stanton hit the walk-off HR.
Braves beat the Rockies 9-1. Jurrjens gave up 1 ER in 6 IP. With this win, he is now 12-3 on the year.
Tigers beat the Angels 5-4. Dirks and Cabrera had big RBI hits in the 7th to take the lead.
Mets beat the Dodgers 5-3. Mets have won four in a row. K-Rod got his 22nd save.
Reds beat the Cardinals 9-8 in 13 innings. Pujols went 1 for 6 with 1 RBI in his return.

Tonight:

Blue Jays @ Indians – 7:05pm – Villanueva v McAllister
Rays @ Yankees – 7:05pm – Niemann v Colon
Orioles @ Red Sox – 7:10pm – Arrieta v Miller
Rockies @ Braves – 1:05pm – Nicasio v Hudson
Tigers @ Royals – 8:10pm – Sherzer v Duffy
Mets @ Dodgers – 10:10pm – Gee v Kershaw
Diamondbacks @ Cardinals – 8:15pm – Saunders v McClellan

Tour de France – Thor Hushovd still leads overall by 1 second over Cadel Evans. Mark Cavendish won yesterday’s stage, which was the 5th stage out of 21 total stages.

Morning Update

Soccer – Women’s World Cup

Group A: Nigeria beat Canada 1-0 & Germany beat France 4-2. Germany (1) and France (2) advance.
Group B: England beat Japan 2-0. Mexico drew New Zealand 2-2. England (1) and Japan (2) advance.

Today:

Group D: Australia v Norway – ESPN2 & Equatorial Guinea v Brazil – ESPN – Both at 12pm. Brazil has already advanced. Winner of Australia v Norway advanced. Australia holds the tiebreaker with goal difference.
Group C: North Korea v Colombia – ESPN2 & Sweden v USA – 2:45pm – ESPN – Both at 2:45pm. USA and Sweden have already advanced. Winner wins the group. USA holds the tiebreaker with a 3 goal difference advantage.

MLB

Yankees beat the Indians 9-2. Jeter got two hits, now at 2,996. CC was dominant, giving up 5 hits in 7 IP. Granderson had two homers.
Red Sox beat the Blue Jays 3-2. Lester left in the 5th with a strained back. Pedroia and Bautista homered.
Rangers beat the Orioles 4-2. Rangers rallied in the 7th with 3 runs.
Angels beat the Tigers 1-0. Haren beat Verlander. Haren gave up 2 hits over 9 IP. Verlander gave up 7 hits and 1 ER over 7.2 IP.
Mets beat the Dodgers 6-0. Bay hit 2 HR’s and Beltran homered as well. Mets are 44-42.
Braves beat the Rockies 5-3. Freeman and Uggla homered.
Phillies beat the Marlines 14-2. Hamels is now 10-4. Ibanez and Howard homered.
Cardinals beat the Reds 8-1. Holliday and Berkman hit back-to-back HR’s in the first inning. Pujols did not play.

Tonight:

Tigers @ Angels – 3:35pm – Penny v Chatwood
Yankees @ Indians – 7:05pm – Hughes v Masterson – ESPN
Blue Jays @ Red Sox – 7:10pm – Romero v Wakefield
Orioles @ Rangers – 8:05pm – Guthrie v Ogando
Mets @ Dodgers – 10:10pm – Niese v Kuroda
Phillies @ Marlines – 7:10pm – Kendrick v Sanchez
Reds @ Cardinals – 8:15pm – Arroyo v Westbrook
Rockies @ Braves – 7:10pm – Cook v Jurrjens

Golf – Tiger Woods will not compete in the British Open as his leg continues to recover.

Tour de France – Cadel Evans won the 4th stage. Thor Hushovd leads by 1 second over Evans.

Morning Update

Wimbledon

(2) Novak Djokovic beat (1) Rafael Nadal in four sets to win the Men’s title. He is 48-1 in 2011 and now is ranked #1 in the world. This is his third grand slam – he has two win in the Australian Open.

(8) Petra Kvitova beat (5) Maria Sharapova in two sets to the Women’s title. This is her first grand slam. She is the first grand slam winner of either gender to be born in the 1990s.

Soccer – Women’s World Cup

The third set of matches in the group stage will begin today. Here is the latest on the groups.

Group A: France and Germany have advanced with 6 points each.
Group B: Japan has advanced with 6 points. England leads Mexico 4pts to 1pt and has a 5 goal difference advantage.
Group C: USA and Sweden have advanced with 6 points each.
Group D: Brazil has advanced with 6 points. Australia and Norway have 3 points with the Aussies ahead by 2 in goal difference. Equatorial Guinea has zero points.

Today
Group B: England v Japan – ESPN & New Zealand v Mexico – ESPN2 – Both @ 12:15pm
Group A: Canada v Nigeria – ESPN2 & France v Germany – ESPN – Both at 2:45pm

MLB All-Star Rosters

Starters for AL
Avila (C, Tigers), Gonzalez (1B, Red Sox), Cano (2B, Yankees), Rodriguez (3B, Yankees), Jeter (SS, Yankees), Bautista (OF, Blue Jays), Granderson (OF, Yankees), Hamilton (OF, Rangers), Ortiz (DH, Red Sox)
Starters for NL
McCann (C, Braves), Fielder (1B, Brewers), Weeks (2B, Brewers), Polanco (3B, Phillies), Reyes (SS, Mets), Braun (OF, Brewers), Berkman (OF, Cardinals), Kemp (OF, Dodgers)

Full Roster for NL: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/allstar11/news/story?id=6732659
Full Roster for AL: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/allstar11/news/story?id=6732660

MLB

Indians beat the Yankees 6-3. Jeter went 0-4 in his return. He remains at 2,994.
Blue Jays beat the Red Sox 9-7. Jays scored 7 runs in the first 3 innings.
Rangers beat the Orioles 13-4. Chavez had 4 RBI’s. Reynolds hit 2 HR’s.
Braves beat the Rockies 4-1. Braves are 50-36. Freeman had 2 HR’s.
Cardinals beat the Reds 1-0. Carpenter gave up 6 hits in 8 IP.
Angels beat the Tigers 5-1. Hunter and Wells homered.
Mets beat the Dodgers 5-2. Mets scored 3 runs in the 6th and 2th in the 8th. K-Rod got his 21st save.

Tonight:

Yankees @ Indians – 7:05pm – Sabathia v Carrasco
Reds @ Cardinals – 7:09pm – Volquez v Garcia – ESPN
Blue Jays @ Red Sox – 7:10pm – Cecil v Lester
Orioles @ Rangers – 8:05pm – Atkins v Harrison
Phillies @ Marlins – 7:10pm – Hamels v Volstad
Tigers @ Angels – 10:05pm – Verlander v Haren
Mets @ Dodgers – 10:10pm – Pelfrey v Lilly
Rockies @ Braves – 7:10pm – Chacin v Lowe