June 10, 2022
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LIV’s inaugural tournament, which teed off in London on Thursday, will continue through Saturday. After two rounds, Charl Schwartzel (-9) and his team Stinger GC (-15) top the leaderboard.
Renfrow Re-Up Keeps Raiders In AFC West Arms Race [[link removed]]
Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
The Raiders are digging deep into their wallets to keep pace in the AFC West.
On Friday, Las Vegas reportedly [[link removed]] inked receiver Hunter Renfrow to a two-year, $32 million extension, with $21 million guaranteed. The 26-year-old deserves it after catching 103 passes last season — third-most in team history (Darren Waller, 107, 2020; Tim Brown, 104, 1997) — and hauling in nine touchdown passes.
The re-up is the latest offseason move for new GM Dave Ziegler, who has locked in a core group of players that should help the Raiders stay competitive with the Chiefs, Chargers, and Broncos.
QB Derek Carr: 3 YRS/$121.5M — $40.5M AAV (5th among QBs).WR Davante Adams: 5 YRS/$140M — $28M AAV (2nd among WRs).DE Maxx Crosby: 4 YRS/$94M — $23.5M AAV (2nd among DEs).WR Renfrow: 2 YRS/$32M — $16M AAV (20th among WRs).
The Raiders (10-7) reached the playoffs for the first time since 2016 but fell to the Bengals in the AFC Wild Card round — the franchise hasn’t made it past the Wild Card since 2002.
And despite the spending, it won’t be easy for Las Vegas in a division with the Chiefs and Chargers (both above .500 in ’21), as well as the new-look Broncos with QB Russell Wilson.
The Raiders are long shots for this season: Oddsmakers have them 4th in the AFC West (+650), T-10 to win the AFC (+2000), and T-17 to win the Super Bowl (+4000).
Rays’ Pitching Factory Turns Out Latest Bargain Ace [[link removed]]
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Few MLB teams get more value out of their pitching staff than the Rays — and their latest ace could prove one of their greatest success stories.
On Thursday, Shane McClanahan allowed an unearned run, two hits, and a walk in Tampa Bay’s 2-1 win over the Cardinals — plus another nine K’s for an MLB-best 98 strikeouts.
The 25-year-old McClanahan — who’s pre-arbitration until 2024 and making just $711,400 this season [[link removed]] — is yet another testament to a Rays pitching factory [[link removed]] that develops big talent on a budget.
Tyler Glasnow (recovering from Tommy John surgery) is making a modest $5.1M in his third arbitration season.Shane Baz — expected to make his 2022 debut Saturday — is pre-arbitration until 2025.Luis Patiño (pre-arbitration until 2024) came to Tampa in a trade for another Rays ace, Blake Snell, who was dealt before the lion’s share of a 5 YR/$50M extension kicked in.
The tradition continues with McClanahan: The 31st overall pick in 2018 has fanned seven-plus in 11 of 12 outings, leads the AL in innings pitched (72.1), and co-leads MLB in wins (7).
Now, he could be next in line for pitching’s highest honor: He is currently the co-favorite (+400) with Justin Verlander to win the AL Cy Young award.
If McClanahan keeps up his torrid pace, the Rays will once again have a spend-or-save decision on their hands.
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Lightning Dynasty Hopes Rest On Andrei Vasilevskiy [[link removed]]
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Just when it appeared the Lightning’s reign as Stanley Cup champions might be nearing its end, Andrei Vasilevskiy banished those gloomy prospects.
The veteran goaltender made 24 saves in Thursday’s 3-1 victory over the Rangers in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Vasilevskiy has backstopped three straight wins this series, flipping an 0-2 deficit into a 3-2 lead to remain on track for a third consecutive title.
The highest-paid player on the Lightning — thanks to an eight-year, $76 million extension in 2019 — has been at the forefront of Tampa’s bid to become the first true NHL dynasty in decades.
He’s the fifth-fastest in NHL history to reach 60 career postseason wins (97 games).He has allowed two or fewer goals in 47 of those 60 wins, and one or fewer in 31.After yielding nine goals over Games 1 and 2, he’s allowed only four since.
The 27-year-old led NHL goalies in regular-season victories (39) for the fifth consecutive time and is the reigning Conn Smythe winner for playoff MVP — though he has the fourth-best odds to retain the latter (+475).
Colorado is favored (-200) to lift the Cup, but with Vasilevskiy on top of his game, the Lightning (+200) could challenge the 1983-90 Oilers (5 in 7 YRS) and 1979-83 Islanders (4 in 4) for long-term dominance.
Making Headlines
Brett Rojo-USA TODAY Sports
Softball: Oklahoma won the Women’s College World Series with a 10-5 victory over Texas in Game 2; the Sooners finished the season 59-3, and Jocelyn Alo [[link removed]] finished her college career with a record 122 home runs.
Golf: The LIV Golf Invitational Series officially announced that Bryson DeChambeau has joined the breakout league.
MLB: Shohei Ohtani pitched seven strong innings and belted a two-run homer (his first since May 29) to help the Angels snap a franchise-record 14-game losing skid.
NBA: The Jazz have received permission from the G League’s Grand Rapids Gold to interview head coach Jason Terry for their vacant HC job, per Shams Charania [[link removed]].
NHL: The Sabres announced [[link removed]] they will retire former goaltender Ryan Miller’s No. 30 next season; the 2010 Vezina Trophy winner spent parts of 11 seasons in Buffalo, winning 284 games.
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