The Sportsletter - Diamond Days 💎

BY JEFF YODER

JUNE 5, 2024 |  SUBSCRIBE  |  WEB VIEW

Good Morning 👋

Brace yourselves. It’s the last day before the NBA and Stanley Cup Finals grab the spotlight. We’ll deliver our NBA Finals preview tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, baseball and softball grabbed the headlines yesterday. Let’s head to the diamond.

Letter Rip!

  TOP NEWS   🚨

A Lifetime Baseball Ban

San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano was banned from baseball for life  after betting on the sport. Marcano reportedly placed 387 bets totaling more than $150,000 since 2022. Some bets were placed on his own teams. He’s the first player in over a century to receive a lifetime ban by MLB, which is a clear message to the rest of its players. Four others received one-year suspensions for gambling-related incidents, including A’s pitcher Michael Kelly and three minor leaguers.

We'll have more on this story in an upcoming feature about sports gambling scandals.

  MLB   

MLB Power Rankings 📊

Photo: New York Yankees / Getty Images

Yankees Ride 6-Game Win Streak Into Tie With Phillies for Best Record in the Majors

There’s a new No. 1 in this week’s MLB Power Rankings. While the Dodgers, Guardians, and Orioles continue to shuffle between skids and streaks in our top five, it’s the Phillies and Yankees who might spend the summer jockeying for the top spot. The Yankees are back on top thanks to a six-game win streak where Juan Soto and Aaron Judge have caught fire. Our top seven teams remain untouched, but there are some sliders; Braves, Astros, Cubs, and Pirates. Here’s where they stand after 60 games:

MLB Power Rankings

1. Yankees (43-19) ↑1

2. Phillies (43-19) ↓1

3. Guardians (40-20) --

4. Dodgers (38-24) ↑1

5. Orioles (39-20) ↓1

6. Brewers (36-25) ↑1

7. Royals (36-26) ↓1

8. Twins (33-27) ↑2

9. Mariners (35-27) ↑3

10. Braves (34-24) ↓2

Teams 11-20: 11. Padres (32-32), 12. Rangers (29-32), 13. Red Sox (30-31), 14. Cardinals (28-31), 15. Diamondbacks (29-32), 16. Giants (29-33), 17. Rays (30-31), 18. Tigers (31-30), 19. Cubs (30-31), 20. Blue Jays (28-32)

Teams 21-30: 21. Astros (28-34), 22. Nationals (27-33), 23. Reds (28-33), 24. Pirates (28-32), 25. Athletics (24-38), 26. Mets (26-35), 27. Angels (23-38), 28. Rockies (21-39), 29. Marlins (21-40), 30. White Sox (15-46)

Read More

MLB: Are These Royals Legit? This Data Might Convince You

NBC Sports: June MLB Team Power Rankings: Judge & Soto Power Yankees to the Top

CBS Sports: MLB Power Rankings: What Scuffling Teams Could See Summer Surge?

  CSWS   

OU's 4-Peat Quest Lives On 🥎

Photo: Brian Bahr / Getty Images

#2 Oklahoma Rallies to Top #4 Florida (6-5) With Jayda Coleman’s Walk-Off Homer; Sets Up Clash With #1 Texas in CSWS Finals

The four-peat quest lives! After dropping Game 2 in a blowout to #4 Florida, #2 Oklahoma needed a late-game rally and an extra-inning walk-off home run from Jada Coleman to upstage the Gators on Tuesday afternoon (6-5). The Sooners tied the game at 5-5 to force extras before two frames of nail-biting drama. Florida amassed five runs on just four hits during the six innings of regulation. OU had 12 hits, including a stellar day at the plate for Ella Parker (3-for-3, 1 HR, 3 RBIs). In the end, it was the senior, Coleman, with a moment she’ll never forget. Her walk-off was an opposite-field slap that cleared the wall by about a yard. 

The 4-Peat Quest: Oklahoma has won the last three College Softball World Series titles dating back to 2021. They’ve also won seven under Patty Gasso since 2000. Only Arizona (8) and UCLA (12) have more.

The Red River Rivalry: It’s the second time in three years the Sooners and Longhorns will face off in the CSWS Finals. They also met in 2022. And with Oklahoma City as the host site of the CSWS, expect extra fanfare between the two rival schools. It’s just the second time in 20 years the CSWS Finals feature the No. 1 and 2 seeds.

Watch: #2 Oklahoma Stuns #4 Florida With Extra-Inning Walk-Off HR (6-5)

College Softball World Series

Gm 1: #1 Texas vs. #2 Oklahoma (8:00 pm ET, ESPN)

Read More

Sporting News: Jayda Coleman’s Walk-Off Blast Sends Sooners to WCWS Final

ESPN: 2024 WCWS Finals Preview: Breaking Down the Oklahoma-Texas Series

  TENNIS   

French Quarters: Swiatek Sweeping Everybody

Photo: Quality Sport Images / Getty Images

French Open Updates: Coco Gauff & Iga Swiatek Set for Paris Rematch; Novak Djokovic Withdraws With Knee Injury

There’s a twist at the French Open. The two biggest superstars of the women’s draw are on a collision course for a semi-final rematch. The top seed in the men’s draw is out unexpectedly with a knee injury. We’re nearing the final stretch at Roland-Garros, but it’s just the beginning of our Summer in Paris. Let’s catch you up on the happenings in Paris.

Swiatek-Gauff Loading: Both #1 Iga Swiatek and #3 Coco Gauff were winners in the quarterfinals yesterday morning. Swiatek buried #5 Marketa Vondrousova in a breezy straight-set win (6-0, 6-2). Gauff rallied from one set down to upstage #8 Ons Jabeur (4-6, 6-2, 6-3). That sets up a Swiatek-Gauff showdown in the semifinals tomorrow. The pair of superstars met in the French Open quarterfinals last year. Swiatek went on to win the Paris title. Gauff won last year’s U.S. Open. Showdown!

Women’s Singles (Quarterfinals)

#1 I. Swiatek def. #5 M. Vondrousova (6-0, 6-2)

#3 C. Gauff def. #8 O. Jabeur (4-6, 6-2, 6-3)

Djokovic Withdraws: It was an up-and-down 24 hours for Novak Djokovic. The World No. 1 overcame two five-set comebacks to reach the men’s quarterfinals, but he withdrew Tuesday morning with a knee injury sustained in that fourth-round match with Francisco Cerundolo. The withdrawal means #7 Casper Ruud advances to the semifinals via walkover. #2 Janik Sinner and #3 Carlos Alcaraz are now the men’s favorites after a pair of straight-set runaways on Tuesday.

Men’s Singles (Quarterfinals)

#2 J. Sinner def. #10 G. Dimitrov (6-2, 6-4, 7-6)

#3 C. Alcaraz def. #9 S. Tsitsipas (6-4, 7-6, 6-4)

Read More

CBS Sports: Novak Djokovic Withdraws From French Open Due to Knee Injury

FTW: Iga Swiatek Might Surprass Serena Williams With ‘Bagel’ Record at French Open

  HIGHLIGHTS   🎥

⚾️ MLB

Gerrit Cole Ks 5 in Rehab Start

Yankees Top Twins (5-1), Win 6th Straight

Rookie Jared Jones Shuts Out Dodgers

Pirates Stifle Dodgers Bats (1-0)

Max Friend Tosses 13-K Gem

Braves Back in Win Column Over Red Sox (8-3)

Alec Bohm’s Late HR Sets Up Walk-Off

Phillies Beat Brewers in Extras (2-1, 10 Innings)

🏀 WNBA

Storm def. Mercury (80-62)

Ezi Magbegor Ties Career-High (21 pts)

Sun def. Mystics (76-59)

Connecticut Stays Perfect (9-0)

Liberty def. Sky (88-75)

Breanna Stewart (33 pts, 14 rebs), Angel Reese Gets Ejected

⚽️ Soccer

USWNT def. South Korea (3-0)

16-Year-Old Lilly Yohannes Becomes 3rd-Youngest Goal Scorer for USWNT

  NEWS   📰 

⚾️ Shohei Ohtani’s Ex-Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara Pleads Guilty in Sports Betting Case (FOX Sports)

🏈 Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb Not Expected at Cowboys Minicamp Amid Contract Dispute (B/R)

🏈 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey Agrees to Record 2-Year, $38 Million Extension (CBS Sports)

🏀 UConn Extends Head Coach Geno Auriemma on 5-Year Deal (ESPN)

📺 Pat McAfee Offers Another Caitlin Clark Apology: Felt Like ‘Worst Human on Earth’ (SI)

🥊 Muhammad Ali’s Childhood Home Up For Sale in Louisville After Converted to Museum (ABC News)

🏀 Mavericks Sign GM Nico Harrison to Extension 2 Days Before NBA Finals (Yahoo! Sports)

  SCHEDULE   🗓️

Today's Must-Watch List

🎾 French Open (Quarterfinals)

W: #4 E. Rybakina vs. #12 J. Paolini (8:15 am ET)

W: #2 A. Sabalenka vs. M. Andreeva (9:30 am ET)

M: #4 A. Zverev vs. #11 A. de Minaur (2:15 pm ET)

*Stream on NBC Sports

🥎 Softball World Series (Final)

Gm 1: #1 Texas vs. #2 Oklahoma (8:00 pm ET, ESPN)

⚾️ MLB

Cardinals at Astros (2:10 pm ET, ESPN+)

Dodgers at Pirates (6:40 pm ET, MLBTV)

Padres at Angels (9:40 pm ET, FS1)

🏀 WNBA

Aces at Wings (8:00 pm ET, NBATV)

Lynx at Sparks (10:00 pm ET, WNBALP)

  POLL   📊

Stanley Cup Finals Picks

It’s hockey’s turn! As we put the finishing touches on our NBA Finals preview for tomorrow, Game 1 of the Stanley Cup is just three days away. Let’s ask it: Who are you taking? (click to vote)

Florida Panthers

Edmonton Oilers

  THE TEAM  

Writer & Editor: Jeff Yoder

Assistant Writer: Marissa Kasch

Social Media: Aaron Yorke

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