I Dig Sports
MILWAUKEE -- As the Milwaukee Brewers conducted a moment of silence before their home opener to honor Bob Uecker, one fan decided keeping quiet wasn't the best way to pay tribute to the lovable loquacious broadcaster.
"We love you, Ueck," the spectator shouted.
Fans, players and executives simply couldn't hold back their appreciation for Uecker, who died Jan. 16 at the age of 90 after broadcasting Brewers games for the last 54 seasons and arguably becoming the most recognizable figure in franchise history.
The tributes to him were everywhere as the Brewers lost 11-1 to the Kansas City Royals on Monday in their first home game since Uecker's death. It was apparent from Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio's decision to wear one of the plaid blazers that Uecker often favored.
"I did my best to find a jacket in my closet that would be something he would wear," Attanasio said.
The American Family Field grounds crew had Uecker's signature decorated on the outfield grass. The Brewers wore patches honoring Uecker on their jersey sleeves, something that they'll do all season. The first pitches were thrown by representatives of the Wounded Warrior Project and the ALS Association, two of Uecker's favorite causes. The pro shop sold a line of Uecker-themed clothes, with portions of the proceeds benefiting charities Uecker had supported.
Outside the press box entrance was a banner with the message "We'll Miss You, Bob," that included thank-you notes from fans who had signed it after Uecker's death.
Way over in the upper right-field corner of American Family Field in a section where tickets aren't sold, the Brewers placed a giant blue tarp bearing the message "I must be in the front row," a nod to a famous Uecker line from one of his Miller Lite commercials.
"Obviously we all miss him and wish he was here," said outfielder Christian Yelich, who had worn a plaid blazer to honor Uecker before Thursday's season opener at Yankee Stadium. "I think he'll be with us for this season and many seasons going forward."
Brewers fans came up with plenty of different ways to pay tribute to Uecker, who continued to broadcast home games last year even as he battled small cell lung cancer.
Many spectators spent the minutes before the game lining up to get their photos taken flanking a Uecker statue in Section 422. Another statue outside the stadium honoring Uecker was decorated with a sign featuring his trademark home-run call: "Get up! Get up! Get out of here! Gone!" Other fans lined up Miller Lite beer cans at the base of the statue.
"He was the voice of our childhood summers," said David Horton of Fitchburg, Wisconsin, who placed one of the beer cans at the base of the statue. "We had him on in the garage with our dads in the backyards. He was just a staple. We just wanted to pay our respects in a small way and show some love."
This wasn't the first time fans had placed Miller Lite cans at the base of that statue to pay tribute to Uecker. Many of them also had done so after Uecker's death, even though the freezing temperatures assured the full beer cans wouldn't stay that way for long.
"They said the beer cans started popping, and they thought it was Uecker doing it because he was thirsty, getting ready for opening day," quipped Paul Stainbrook of Racine, Wisconsin.
The tributes continued around town.
Kopp's, a local burger restaurant known for its frozen custard, offered a special "Mr. Baseball" flavor for Monday's home opener. It included beer nuts, chocolate-covered peanuts and a splash of Miller Lite. Kopp's donated 20% of the custard sales to the Make-a-Wish Foundation, in honor of Uecker's career batting average of .200.
Milwaukee loved Uecker because of what he meant to the city. He stayed true to his hometown and continued working Brewers games even as his star rose from his Miller Lite commercials, his chats with Johnny Carson and his featured roles in the movie "Major League" and TV's "Mr. Belvedere."
"There's nobody who was more loyal or genuine," Attanasio said.
He also was beloved by players and made regular pregame appearances in the Brewers' locker room. Milwaukee's players loved him so much that manager Pat Murphy took time out from the Brewers' division-clinching celebration last season to recognize Uecker so that the team could give him an ovation.
When that season ended with a heartbreaking loss in the NL Wild Card Series, Uecker walked into a silent locker room and comforted players such as Devin Williams, who had given up a two-run, ninth-inning lead. Yelich said the toughest part of the night was speaking to Uecker afterward and knowing how badly the longtime broadcaster wanted to see the Brewers win that elusive World Series title.
He would have been the ideal voice to help settle a team that has been outscored 47-15 after opening the season with three straight losses to the New York Yankees followed by Monday's rout.
"Ueck just had a way to put things in perspective," Murphy said. "He had been through so much. He knew he had. So he could calm you down. He could put you in the right frame of mind. He could joke about it. He had a beautiful way about him."
But as Yelich noted, Uecker's spirit will remain here long after his voice isn't heard on Brewers broadcasts anymore. That thought provided comfort to fans such as Heather Floyd-Gabrysiak of West Allis, Wisconsin, who made sure to arrive for Monday's game wearing a Brewers jersey with Uecker's name on the back.
"He's always going to be here," Floyd-Gabrysiak said. "Even if he's not here, you'll still feel him here. He'll still be a part of it always."
Royals' India in lineup day after face hit by pitch
Jonathan India was in the Kansas City Royals' starting lineup for Monday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers a day after a 99-mph pitch from Cleveland's Emmanuel Clase hit him in the face.
The pitch hit India's batting helmet on the left side of his face during the ninth inning of the Royals' 6-2 loss. The 28-year-old second baseman left the game and went to the locker room.
Royals manager Matt Quatraro said a CT scan revealed no lingering damage.
"He was adamant about wanting to play," Quatraro said. "We're going to be cautious if something pops up and he has a headache or whatever, but he's had no concussion symptoms. Nothing's broken. With a guy like that, that's ultracompetitive, if he's that adamant about being in there, that sends a real good message to our team about what it takes to get out here and be a championship-caliber player."
The Royals acquired India from Cincinnati in an offseason trade that sent right-handed pitcher Brady Singer to the Reds. India, the 2021 NL rookie of the year, batted .248 with a .357 on-base percentage, 15 homers, 58 RBI and 13 steals in 151 games last season.
But other injury news wasn't entirely positive for the Royals.
Kansas City placed outfielder/pinch-runner Dairon Blanco on the injured list because of tendinopathy in his right Achilles tendon. Blanco made only one plate appearance in the Royals' first three games, but he stole two bases and scored two runs.
"It's a bone spur essentially that's on his Achilles," Quatraro said. "When it flares up, it flares up, and it's painful."
The Royals filled his spot on the roster by calling up utilityman Tyler Tolbert from Triple-A Omaha.
"He can do a lot of the same things as Blanco: play center field, play corner outfield, pinch-run," Quatraro said. "But he's also able to play in the middle of the infield, too. I think it would be unfair to say he's just going to replace Blanco, who's done this at the big-league level, but good for him for putting himself in a spot to earn this call-up."
Shohei Ohtani has another win to add to his stockpile.
After winning the World Series and his third league MVP award, the Los Angeles Dodgers star now has the world's most popular Major League Baseball jersey.
The league says the rankings are based on sales of Nike jerseys from the Fanatics network of sites, including MLBShop.com, since the culmination of the World Series.
Ohtani leads six Dodgers in the top 20. Others are Freddie Freeman at No. 2, Mookie Betts at No. 4, Yoshinobu Yamamoto at No. 10, Clayton Kershaw at No. 11 and Kiké Hernández at No. 16. With Ohtani's jersey at No. 1 and Yamamoto's at No. 10, it is only the second time two Japanese players have ranked in the top 10. Ichiro Suzuki and Yu Darvish did it in 2012.
Non-Dodgers in the top five are Juan Soto of the New York Mets at No. 3 and reigning American League MVP Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees at No. 5. They are followed in order by Francisco Lindor of the New York Mets, Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies, Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros, Ronald Acuña Jr. of the Atlanta Braves and Yamamoto.
Joyce-Butchers defends TikTok dance after heavy defeat
Former Wales captain Siwan Lillicrap was involved in the dance and said she did not have a problem with it as it was more about celebrating the occasion.
"We've got to let people be themselves and be the personalities they are," she told the Scrum V podcast.
"I feel for Jaz, I think some of the abuse that she's getting is not very nice and not really called for.
"She doesn't need to sit in a dark room. We're seeing a personality, she's obviously friends with Sarah Bern, they play in Bristol together.
"Everyone is entitled to their opinion. What we've always got to remember is women are different to men first and foremost and everyone processes their emotions differently and reacts in different ways."
Rachel Taylor, another former Wales captain, said the dance was a "difficult one" to assess.
"It's just a bit of a strange response after a loss, but I just think their group mentality was to enjoy the day at the Principality and that's the sort of mood that they were in, but it's probably a strange one for some rugby fans," Taylor told BBC Radio Wales.
"The women's fans of the game are quite unique and quite different at times because of that relationship they have with the players, so it's probably a little bit more unusual from how the men's and women's rugby engage their fans.
"In the women's game the players have a unique opportunity to engage with the fans a lot closer and they really do share everything, they are so open on social media in terms of their personal lives and how they work."
POMONA, Calif. Rick Ware Racing earned its third victory in less than 24 hours when NHRA Top Fuel driver Clay Millican drove the RWR-prepared Mighty Fire Breaker/Parts Plus dragster to a final round victory in the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals Sunday at In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip.
Millican defeated Tony Stewart with an impressive .038 of-a-second reaction time to take his eighth career Top Fuel win in the NHRA Mission Food Drag Racing Series.
Five of those victories have come since joining RWR in late 2022, with Millicans prior win earned in the sports biggest event, last years Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.
My crew chief (Jim Oberhofer) told me he had it loaded up and a couple things were going to happen. He said were going to win, were going to blow up and if we lose, were going to be a footnote in history, said Millican, who went 4.273 seconds at 189.71 mph against Stewart before enduring a wild engine explosion at the finish line. Thank goodness were not a footnote in history. Tony Stewart is going to win one of these soon, but all I know is we won the Winternationals.
But boy, that final round was forever. When you blow it up and and we blew it up good and you got a HANS (head-and-neck restraint) device on, youre stretching that HANS to its limits, trying to look over like, Is he coming or not? I couldnt get there quick enough. I promise I never let off the throttle, even though it wasnt running no more. But I had that thing buried. I was stomping on the loud pedal harder than normal. What a day.
Winning (the Winternationals) is one of the majors. It definitely is. Weve won Indy and now weve won here, and thats pretty dang cool. But to come out and win the way we did today, it was a total team effort.
On Saturday night at the Senoia Short Track in Georgia, RWRs Progressive American Flat Track riders Briar Bauman and Chase Saathoff won their respective classes.
Bauman won the Mission AFT SuperTwins race to score his 27th career victory in the class and his fifth with RWR, as the two-time Grand National Champion came to RWR in 2023.
In a prelude to Baumans win, Saathoff triumphed in AFT Singles presented by KICKER. The victory was Saathoffs first with RWR and the fourth of his career. He joined RWR this year after spending 2022-2024 as an independent AFT Singles rider.
Were in the business of trying to win races, and this was a very good weekend for RWR, said team owner Rick Ware. Credit goes to our people who put in so much time, energy and effort to make all of this happen. Moments like this are really appreciated because winning in any of these series is just really, really hard. Everyone is good, so when you do have success like this, it makes it even sweeter, because you know how hard you worked to achieve it.
Its been a really good weekend, and that makes us want to do it all over again the next weekend and the weekend after that. NHRA is in Vegas in two weeks, AFT is in Ventura in less than a month, and weve got NASCAR at Darlington next weekend. Theres no let up, but its what we love. Its how were wired.
DAVENPORT, Iowa The Badger Midget Auto Racing Assn community is mourning the death of noted engine builder Mark Ray, who died March 27 at the age of 67.
In addition to being a championship-winning engine builder, Mark Ray is the father of driver Robbie Ray, the uncle of driver Davey Ray and brother of Dave Ray.
mourns the passing of Mark Ray. Ray was a championship engine builder for the BMARA, but that only scratches the surface of his motorsports experience inside and outside of Badger. He was the father of Robbie Ray; uncle of Davey Ray and brother to Dave Ray, all Badger Midget Series standout drivers.
According to BMARA President Quinn McCabe, Mark was an important adviser on Badgers current engine package. His guidance was a great asset to the club.
Too young to drive, Mark began crewing on the family-owned car in the Badger Midget Auto Racing Assn in 1973 helping his brother, Dave, earn Rookie of the Year honors and eventually a 1977 BMARA championship with car owner John Heisdorf.
When able to drive midgets himself, Mark found his way to victory lane as a driver a handful of times including at his favorite track to drive, Kankakee Speedway, in Illinois. He gave up his career of driving unselfishly to support his familys aspirations to seek the USAC title in 1985 using his car as a part time entry and back up.
Mark helped guide the Ray Racing Enterprises team, and brother Dave, to a 1981 Midwest Auto Racing Assn Championship and two top-five USAC National Midget Championship finishes in 1985 and 1986. This while building the teams engines. He earned his sole USAC National Midget win as a car owner in 1987 in Binghamton, N.Y., with Kevin Olson driving.
His most cherished accomplishments came later in life with his son, Robbie, winning the 2000 Winged Three Quarter Midget Assn championship, the 2003 USAC Ford Focus Midget Series Championship and the 2017 Badger Midget Auto Racing Assn Championship.
The 2017 BMARA Championship stood out to Mark for the fact it came exactly 40 years after his brother, Dave, accomplished the same feat.
Mark found his way to the highest level of motorsports when Mike Teegarden tapped him to work under Mike Devin as an engine tech inspector at the Indianapolis 500 from 1986 to 1997, one of his most cherished accomplishments. For 11 years every single engine that qualified for the Indy 500 ran through his hands.
WATSONVILLE, Calif. After a few weeks off, the NARC 410 Sprint Car Series returns to action when it opens the month of April with a Friday night showdown at Ocean Speedway.
Fridays Spring Fling is the first of a series-high five races scheduled at the quarter-mile Watsonville, Calif., clay oval, which has long been a staple on the NARC tour. This comes after just one NARC race was held in Watsonville last year, when eventual series champion Justin Sanders picked up the big Howard Kaeding Classic victory in July.
In 2025, race fans in the Monterey Bay area will be treated to much more winged 410 sprint car action, and it begins Friday night.
NARC was scheduled to also race this Saturday, April 5 at the Stockton Dirt Track, where the series opened its season on March 8, but a recent electrical fire at the San Joaquin Fairgrounds has left the facility unsafe to use for at least the next couple of weeks, forcing the cancellation of Saturdays event.
Hanford driver D.J. Netto, with his win at Stockton in March, is the NARC points leader going into Fridays event with a four-point advantage over Shane Golobic. Netto knows Ocean Speedway well as he is also a former feature winner there aboard the Netto Ag No. 88n. Golobic and the Matt Wood Racing No. 17w team should be competitive at Ocean Speedway as well, as they were Howard Kaeding Classic winners in Watsonville just two years ago.
Justin Sanders and the Mittry Motorsports No. 2x team is also looking to bounce back in a big way after his untimely spin out while running second in the season opening race at Stockton. Sanders was battling hard, trying to pass Netto for the lead in traffic, when he spun out as he tried to pass a lapped car. He eventually finished 15th and is looking for an immediate turnaround with his Mittry Motorsports team.
One driver that many fans will be keeping an eye on this weekend is Kaleb Montgomery. The young Templeton, California driver turned in a solid performance in the NARC season opener, driving from 15th to finish fourth in the main event at Stockton. Just a couple of weeks later, Montgomery turned a lot of eyes by making the dash and then turned in an impressive fifth place finish in the main event with the High Limit Racing series at Perris Auto Speedway. The strong runs have Montgomery feeling confident as he pursues his first NARC victory aboard his Montgomery Racing No. 3.
A change in philosophy by Montgomery may be a factor as well. Im just having fun with my family, Montgomery said last week. I traded my goals in a race night for standards, and as long as I meet my standards, (I believe) the wins will come.
Another driver and team due to hit it big is Tanner Holmes and the Tarlton Motorsports No. 21 team, who are running a partial schedule together.
After difficulties in the NARC season opener at Stockton, the team found success during High Limits run through California in March, with Holmes earning fourth and fifth place finishes at Thunderbowl Raceway and Kevin Harvicks Kern Raceway, respectively, and then running second place most of the way at Perris Auto Speedway before losing a right rear tire on a rubber down track.
The Tarlton Motorsports team has long been no stranger to success with NARC, winning the series titles in 2015 and 2016, and nearly won the NARC title last year with Cole Macedo (now on the World of Outlaws tour.)
A full field of sprint car teams are expected to fill the pit area. Other drivers expected to compete on Friday night include Sean Becker, Tim Kaeding, Dylan Bloomfield, Tanner Carrick Dominic Gorden, Mariah Ede, Bud Kaeding, Ashton Torgerson, Landon Brooks, Tyler Thompson Caeden Steele, Gauge Garcia and Billy Aton.
Two hundred and 21 drivers have participated in at least one of the 34 410 winged sprint car races run so far this season with five of the seven regions within the National Sprint Car Rankings having opened the season.
World of Outlaws point leader David Gravel has an average finish of 2.3 in 10 starts this season, while Anthony Macri and Danny Dietrich lead the nation with 14 starts this season.
The National Sprint Car Rankings will not open until drivers start reaching the 20-start plateau later this spring.
Twenty-three drivers have one features this season, with Gravel leading the way with five victories.
Despite being winless in 12 starts, Brock Zearfoss has moved to the top of the Eastern region standings.
Sam Hafertepe Jr. won his second feature of the season over the weekend, and he leads the Western region standings.
Gravel heads the Mid-America region and Cap Henry is on top in the Great Lakes stanza. A.J. Flick leads the board in the OH-PA region.
Eastern Region
- Brock Zearfoss 397
- Chase Dietz 332
- Danny Dietrich 330
- David Gravel 330
- Anthony Macri 328
VADO, N.M. In the interest of safety for racers, teams, and fans making the trip, Tuesdays Kubota High Limit Racing debut at Vado Speedway Park has been canceled.
Unfavorable conditions including strong gale force winds north of 50 mph are expected Tuesday and Wednesday in New Mexico.
With no foreseeable return date to The Land of Enchantment, the event will unfortunately not be rescheduled in 2025.
High Limit resumes its season Friday night at Route 66 Motor Speedway in Amarillo, Texas.
The United States women's national team will play Canada in a July 2 friendly at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., as part of a three-match window that also features matches against the Republic of Ireland on June 26 outside Denver and June 29 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The USWNT beat Canada in penalty shootouts in both of their 2024 matchups, once in the Concacaf W Gold Cup semifinal and once in the SheBelieves Cup final.
"Canada is a top team and this match is worthy of the Allstate Continental Clásico," USWNT head coach Emma Hayes said in a news release.
"As this game will end a three-match window, we'll get a good chance to see our whole roster in training and hopefully game action before selecting a team to start in Washington, D.C.
"The [Washington] Spirit fans have been fantastic supporting their team and we're looking forward to them coming out to create an electric atmosphere for this game as well."
The USWNT has played Canada more than any other opponent in team history and this will be the 67th meeting all-time between the neighboring countries. The USWNT is 53-4-9 all-time against Canada. The match will mark Hayes' first meeting with Canada since her compatriot Casey Stoney took over as head coach.
"We need to play teams that will push us and create an environment where our players have to solve problems and play under pressure," Hayes said of the three friendlies.
"We're still early in our process of building towards World Cup qualifying for '27 and we still have a lot of growth to go as a team and as individuals, so these summer matches at these great soccer venues will once again provide a platform for the players to show their abilities to excel at a high level."
The June 26 match will be played at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo., where Hayes made her USWNT debut on the sidelines last year. TQL Stadium, the home of MLS' FC Cincinnati, is the venue for the second game.
The three matches in the summer international window will be the final time the USWNT assembles until late October.
UEFA, CAF, CONMEBOL and OFC are all staging continental championships in July, which is followed by a long gap in international play.
Next up for the Americans is a pair of friendlies against Brazil in California on April 5 and 8, in a rematch of the 2024 Olympic gold-medal game, which the USWNT won.
The USWNT will then play China twice, on May 31 and June 3 in St. Paul, Minn., and St. Louis, respectively.
Information from ESPN's Jeff Kassouf was used in this report.
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