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Friday, July 18, 2008

THE DAILY
A Closer Look at the World of Sports
By David Noell and Brett Honeycutt

MLB

METS MOVE INTO TIE FOR FIRST PLACE

The New York Mets were tired of looking up in the standings. Now, they don’t have to anymore, as the Metropolitans are in first place in the NL East.

New York didn’t lose any steam from the All-Star break, but kept its winning streak alive by winning its 10th straight game last night. The Mets are now in a tie with Philadelphia for first place, the first time the team has been in the top spot since April 19.

New York needed a four-run ninth to defeat Cincinnati 10-8 yesterday.

The Reds took an 8-6 lead in the seventh, the fourth lead change of the game, when catcher Javier Valentin hit a three-run double. However, the Mets countered in the top of the ninth when third baseman David Wright hit a two-run homerun to tie the game followed by an RBI single by first baseman Carlos Delgado to give the Mets the lead. Right fielder Fernando Tatis capped off the four-run inning by hitting an RBI double.

New York continues its series with the Reds tonight. John Maine is on the hill for the Mets, while Bronson Arroyo will start for the Reds.

NATIONAL LEAGUE
N.Y. Mets 10, Cincinnati 8
St. Louis 4, San Diego 3
Colorado 5, Pittsburgh 3

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Detroit 6, Baltimore 5

SPORTS SPECTRUM INSIDER

Getting to the heart of what matters in life -- in the words of an athlete in the news.

the Daily's Insider

TODAY'S FEATURE:

Kelenna Azubuike, guard, L.A. Clippers

BIO NOTE: Azubuike completed his second season with Golden State. He has career averages of 8.1 points and 44.5 percent from the field.

RECENT NEWS: On Thursday, ESPN.com reported that Azubuike signed a 3-year deal worth about $9 million. Azubuike, who played for the Golden State Warriors, averaged 8.5 points per game last season. The Warriors will have a chance to match the offer, but have to do so in the next seven days.

FAITH QUOTE: “I want to keep getting better, make the most of every opportunity I get, and be a witness for Christ through it all.”

TRIVIA/BY THE NUMBERS

TRIVIA QUESTION: How many times has Greg Norman won the British Open?

(answer below)

17 – Years since the New York Mets have had this long of a winning streak (10 games).

53 – Age of golfer Greg Norman, who led the British Open in the middle of the second round.

11,460 – Size of the crowd who witnessed David Ortiz homer in his rehab debut for the Pawtucket PawSox. McCoy Stadium, the venue for the Triple-A team, only has 10,031 seats

TRIVIA ANSWER: Two times (1986 Turnberry, 1993 Royal St. Georges)

DAILY WEEKLY POLL RESULTS

It was close, but readers chose Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe as the greatest tennis rivalry in history, edging Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. I’m kind of surprised, though, because it seems people usually get caught up in the moment and forget history. I actually chose them, as well.

 

Here are last week’s poll results:

 

Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe- 27%

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer- 25%

Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi- 18%

Venus Williams and Serena Williams- 10%

Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova- 8%

Jimmy Connors and Bjorn Borg- 8%

Steffi Graf and Monica Seles- 2%

MINI MEMOS

CYCLING (Tour de France)

Thankfully, the Tour de France took a break from the drug talk and got back to cycling. Britain ’s Mark Cavendish won the 12th stage, which covered 104.7 miles. It was the third stage-win for him in the tour.

FOOTBALL

The Brett Favre saga continues. The Minnesota Vikings, who were accused of “tampering” by talking to Favre, released a statement saying they would not talk about the issue. So, I’ll do the same: I will not talk about it anymore – today.

SPORTS SPECTRUM RADIO

THE FRIDAY INTERVIEW

Ed Schilling, former college basketball and NBA coach

The month of July is a busy month for the nation's college basketball coaches, and it may be the most important?  Why?  Find out as we talk with Schilling, a long time college coach, on this edition of Sports Spectrum Today. 

Schilling, a former head coach at Wright State , is also a former assistant at Miami ( Ohio ), Massachusetts , and Memphis .  He was an NBA assistant with the New Jersey Nets for John Calipari.

Schilling will talk about the month of July as the nation's coaches spend the entire month traveling around the country to various youth basketball tournaments.  It can be a tiring time and a very stressful time, and, as a result, they can be prone to make mistakes, both ethically and morally.

Don't miss an important interview for everyone who travels frequently in their job.  We will talk about real life issues on Sports Spectrum Today.

To hear today's interview, go to the Sports Spectrum radio home page. It can be found at www.sport.org.

THE SATURDAY INTERVIEW

Matt Brown, head men's basketball coach, University of Missouri-Kansas City
Sam Schmidt, former Indy car driver, now Indy car owner
David Wheaton, tennis pro
Jerry Terrell, former major-league infielder and scout

On the next Sports Spectrum Saturday, we will talk about a variety of real life issues in sports.  We will first talk college basketball with Matt Brown, a second year men's basketball coach at Missouri-Kansas City .  The month of July is an important month for college coaches as they travel around the country in a recruiting evaluation period.  What is it like to try and build a program at a mid-major school that does not have a history of tradition or success?  There is not a lot of funding or fan support.   Matt will talk about the challenges he faces.

He is also the father of six children and he will talk about how his faith in Christ helps him balance his job and family.

We will also visit with one of the unique men in Indy Car Racing, Sam Schmidt.  He is a former Indy driver whose career was cut short when he was injured in an accident in Florida .  He is now a quadriplegic, but the Lord was not finished with him in racing.  He is now an owner in the Indy Light series.  You will be encouraged to hear his honest conversation about his life in racing today.

It has been an incredible summer of stories in tennis.  The men’s circuit has a full-blown rivalry with Roger Federrer and Rafael Nadal.  The two recently played one of the greatest matches in tennis history in the final at Wimbledon .  We will talk about that match and the state of men's and women's tennis with tennis pro David Wheaton. 

And, we will get ready for the second half of the major league baseball season as we talk with former major league player and scout, Jerry Terrell. 

Don't miss the next Sports Spectrum as we discuss the real life issues in some of the top stories in sports.

To hear Saturday’s interview, go to the Sports Spectrum radio home page. It can be found at www.sport.org.

NASCAR

The next race isn’t until July 27, when the Sprint Cup Series visits the Brickyard. The Allstate 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway will be the 20th race of the season. The following are the leaders in the Sprint Cup standings: 

SPRINT CUP STANDINGS
1. Kyle Busch 2,881
2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2,619
3. Jeff Burton 2,590
4. Carl Edwards 2,509
5. Jimmy Johnson 2,494
6. Jeff Gordon 2,384
7. Greg Biffle 2,318
8. Matt Kenseth 2,317
9. Kevin Harvick 2,308
10. Tony Stewart 2,305
11. Kasey Kahne 2,295
12. Denny Hamlin 2,283
13. Clint Bowyer 2,256
14. Brian Vickers 2,188
15. David Ragan 2,185

The Mulligan - book coverTHIS JUST IN

Notes of significance from the Christian sports community

New Book: The Mulligan
By Wally Armstrong
After ending a successful career as a PGA golfer, Wally Armstrong began a venture of teaching golf and of using gold analogies to teach biblical principles. One of his latest ventures is teaching timeless truths through golf is a book called The Mulligan. It's a book that can be used by the Christian for edification, and it can be given to the non-Christian as an outreach tool.

Find out more about the book at www.wallyarmstrong.com.

The Daily Weekly Poll

"It's Your Shot!"

So far, who has been the biggest surprise in Major League Baseball this season?