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Archives for February 7, 2019

MLB Ponders Rule Changes

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NEW YORK – Major changes to baseball’s rulebook could be in the offing as Major League Baseball and its players association engaged in talks about rules proposals that would equate to an overhaul.

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Among the proposals to be considered, per multiple reports, are a universal designated hitter — currently only American League teams employ a DH, with National League teams adapting to that lineup configuration when visiting an AL ballpark — a 20-second pitch clock and expanding rosters to 26. Not currently on the docket: banning infield shifts, a notion that became popular during the 2018 postseason.

However, the negotiation reportedly includes forcing relief pitchers to face a minimum of three batters. It is customary under present rules for managers to use a relief pitcher for one out, even if that at-bat requires just one pitch.

Owners meetings are scheduled for this week and spring training begins next week.The sides currently are not scheduled to return to the table this month, with two years remaining on the collective bargaining agreement.

ESPN first reported one proposal includes a study to lower the pitching mound. Also on the list of rules under consideration is moving away from multiple trade deadlines — currently there is a non-waiver deadline in July, plus the waivers-required date a month later.Consideration also would be given to low-budget teams that are successful being granted additional draft pick compensation as incentive to keep a winning product on the field.

MLBPA also proposed granting players the incentive of additional service, permitting players to hit free agency earlier. The proposal is viewed as a countermeasure to what the union argues is manipulation of service time to keep top prospects under team control.

–Field Level Media

Big East Update

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PHILADELPHIA – With the second half of conference play in full swing, Georgetown took a step in putting itself at the top of the standings logjam with a 76-67 win at Providence.  Creighton was down two starters at Villanova, yet took the Wildcats to overtime before Villanova won 66-59.

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In conference games this season, home teams are 28-22.  Twenty-two of the 50 conference games played have been decided by six points or less or gone into overtime.

The Hoyas improved to 5-5 in league play and tied for third place with St. John’s after their win at Providence.  All five Georgetown starters reached double figures led by freshman Josh LeBlanc who scored 17 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.  Jessie Govan and Mac McClung each added 13 points.  Providence (13-10, 3-7) again was led by Alpha Diallo, who had 22 points and six rebounds, but no other Friar reached double figures.

With its victory over Creighton, Villanova became the first BIG EAST team to start 10-0 in league play since Connecticut was 11-0 in 1998-99.  The Wildcats’ Phil Booth scored six of his 14 points in the extra period.  Freshman Saddiq Bey helped with a collegiate-high 17 points.  Creighton, which fell to 13-10 overall and 4-5 in the BIG EAST, had to play without freshman guard Marcus Zegarowski, who has a hand injury, and leading scorer Ty-Shon Alexander who suffered a knee injury in practice.

BIG EAST play resumes on Saturday with all 10 teams in action.  The FOX broadcast network will televise the meeting between Villanova and Marquette in Milwaukee.  The Wildcats are ranked 14th in the AP poll while the host Golden Eagles are 10th.  Both teams are 19-4 overall.  Marquette is in second place in the league with an 8-2 record. 

Also on Saturday, CBS Sports Network has a pair of league games, Providence battles St. John’s at Madison Square Garden at noon and Seton Hall hosts Creighton at 8 p.m.  Also at noon, Butler visits Georgetown on FSN.  At 8 p.m., Xavier hosts DePaul on FS1.

Celtics Game Scout:

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L.A. Lakers at Boston Celtics

When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 7, 2019
Where: TD Garden, Boston
Preview for Digital Sports Desk by Gracenote

Lakers LeBron James (House of Highlights/Youtube).

BOSTON – The Los Angeles Lakers are at the center of a media circus in front of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, and the rumors seem to be getting to some of the young players on the team. The Lakers might look like a completely different team when they visit the rival Boston Celtics on Thursday.

Los Angeles is reportedly in hot pursuit of disgruntled New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis to pair with superstar LeBron James and offered up just about every young player on the roster in negotiations, including Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball. The rumors left the Lakers looking lifeless at Indiana on Tuesday, when they suffered the worst loss of James’ career 136-94 while Ingram and company were serenaded with “LeBron’s gonna trade you” chants at the free-throw line. The Celtics, who would very much like to get into the Davis trade discussions but have to wait until July 1 to pair him with All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving, are winners of 10 of their last 11 games and eased past the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-96 on the road Tuesday despite missing Irving, center Aron Baynes and forward Marcus Morris. “That’s what makes us so dangerous, that we have depth in that aspect, where we can bring guys off the bench and we can sit guys, or we can go without guys, and guys are going to step up and have a good game,” Boston guard Marcus Smart told reporters.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT, Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles)

ABOUT THE LAKERS (27-27): James sat on the end of the bench with several empty seats between him and the rest of his teammates toward the end of Tuesday’s setback and acknowledged that what the young players are going through isn’t easy. “I know it has to be tough on a lot of our guys, especially our young guys,” James told reporters. “Right now, they’ve just never been a part of it and they’re hearing it every single day — and I know that the worst thing that you can do right now is be on social media. And I know all young guys love social media. So, that definitely can’t help.” The Lakers dropped 13 of 20 games since James went down with a groin injury on Dec. 25 and sit in 10th place in the Western Conference.
ABOUT THE CELTICS (35-19): Boston is not expected to make any big moves in front of Thursday’s deadline and already enjoys enviable depth on a team that took James and the Cleveland Cavaliers to the seventh game of the Eastern Conference finals last season. “I think it should stay the same,” Morris told the Boston Herald of the team’s roster. “Guys are playing into what’s going on, (the All-Star Game) is about to pass and that’s when it ramps up. Guys want to play the way they’re supposed to during winning time, like we did last year when the intensity picked up. We should stay the same.” One difference from last season is the health of swingman Gordon Hayward, who is battling some inconsistency but put up 18 points on 9-of-14 shooting, six rebounds and five assists off the bench on Tuesday.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Irving (hip) and Morris (knee soreness) are both day-to-day.

2. James (32,008) became the fifth player in NBA history to reach 32,000 points on Tuesday.

3. The teams split the two meetings last season, with each protecting homecourt.

Big City Blues

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NY Rangers 4, Boston Bruins 3

When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York
Attendance: 16,848
Special to Digital Sports Desk by Field Level Media

NEW YORK – Tony DeAngelo scored in the seventh round of a shootout Wednesday night for the New York Rangers, who stormed back from a two-goal, third-period deficit to edge the visiting Boston Bruins 4-3.

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Neither team scored in the first two shootout rounds before the Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad and the Bruins’ Brad Marchand exchanged goals in the third round. After three more scoreless rounds, DeAngelo beat Bruins goalie Jaroslav Halak before David Krejci misfired for Boston.

Zibanejad scored in the first period before Danton Heinen, David Pastrnak and Patrice Bergeron scored in the second to give the Bruins a 3-1 lead. The Rangers forced overtime when Kevin Hayes and Filip Chytil scored in a span of 3:17 in the third period.

Goalie made 27 saves through regulation and overtime for the Rangers, who ended a two-game losing streak.

Halak recorded 36 saves in regulation and overtime for the Bruins, who had a two-game winning streak snapped.

The Rangers went ahead with 2:15 left in the first, when the red-hot Zibanejad swooped in between the faceoff circles and fired a shot that sailed past Halak’s glove. Zibanejad has 10 goals and 16 points since Jan. 15.

The Bruins scored three times in a span of fewer than five minutes in the second half of the second period. Heinen opened the sequence at 10:37, when his redirect of a slap shot by Matt Grzelcyk fluttered over Georgiev’s shoulder and into the net.

Pastrnak put the Bruins ahead just 1:12 later, when he was stationed in the crease, took a feed from Krejci and beat Georgiev from point-blank range. Boston extended the lead to 3-1 on a power-play goal by Bergeron, who redirected Torey Krug’s slap shot with 4:49 left.

The Rangers tied the game in quick fashion in the third.

Hayes capped an end-to-end rush by putting back the rebound of a Jimmy Vesey shot at the 9:24 mark. New York tied the game with 8:19 remaining, when Pavel Buchnevich’s shot glanced off the left post and skittered to Chytil, who fired the puck off the right post and into the net as Halak was left sprawling in front of the net.

–Field Level Media

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