This week, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred decided to release 16 players (who have died) off the permanently ineligible list, making them eligible for election to Baseball the Hall of Fame. The two most famous people are Pete Rose and "Shoeless" Joe Jackson who were both banned for betting on baseball games. I think this is a very risky move, because in my opinion, gambling on the game you play is the worst thing you can do to impair the integrity of the game. This also opens up a huge Pandora’s box. Will they still hold out all the players who took steroids in the last 30 years from getting into the hall, including players like Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Roger Clemens and Mark McGuire?
The PGA Championship is taking place this week in North Carolina at the Quail Hollow. There has been close to 4 inches of the rain there since last Friday, so it will be very important to hit the ball in the fairway. The weather is supposed to be pretty good during the four days of play, so it will be enjoyable to watch.
The Quail Hollow course is one of the longest on the PGA Tour at almost 7,700 yards. I think the longer drivers will have an advantage and the winning score will be 10 to 15 on the under par.
Last week, Sepp Straka of Austria won the Truist Championship at Philadelphia Cricket Club by two shots over Shane Lowry of Ireland and Justin Thomas. Unfortunately, Shane had an inexplicable three putt on the last hole when he was tied with Straka, giving Sepp an easy win. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Philadelphia Cricket Club is the host of another PGA event at some point soon. The players seemed to like it.
Finally, the 76ers got some good news to end their terrible season. They moved up two spots in the NBA Draft lottery to secure the third pick in the draft. There was some significant controversy at the top of the draft because the Dallas Mavericks got the first pick after having a 1.8% chance of winning the lottery in the first place. Cooper Flagg from Duke is going to be the first pick.
I like having a lottery so fewer teams are incentivized to lose intentionally in order to improve their draft standing. The draft is going to be June 25.
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A 2002 Cape grad and 2007 UD grad, Lewes resident Sumner Spence is one of the Cape area's biggest sports fans. Although he’s used a wheelchair his entire life, he has lived vicariously through his sports-playing father, brother, and friends, who gave him his love of sports. He hopes to provide new and interesting perspectives on the sports stories and issues of the day. Email Sumner at sumspence@gmail.com.
