MLB Trades, 2019 Heisman Trophy, 2019 Presidents Cup, Champions League Round of 16

MLB Free Agency went full force while the Milwaukee Bucks continued their NBA domination. Also, LSU got a Heisman Trophy winner and a young boxer proved he’s the best threat to the great Loma. Check out what happened this past week in the world of sports!

Weekly Sports Update – December 16th Edition

Weekly Sports Update – December 16th Edition

MLB: Angels Get Rendon, Yankees Sign Cole

The two most highly-prized free agents this MLB offseason bounced to new teams. The L.A. Angels missed out on signing Gerrit Cole. Plan “B” might turn out better for them.

The one thing the Angels required was a player that could protect Mike Trout. Already one of the greatest in history, Trout got the ultimate wingman when the Halos signed Anthony Rendon away from the Washington Nationals. Rendon agreed to a 7-year and $245 million deal. The contract pays Rendon $35 million a year.

He should keep pitchers off Trout. Not that it matteredd. Trout’s one of the few players in baseball history who makes his own way. Even if pitchers try to beat him, they can’t because he can hit any pitch. Fastball, slider, off-speed, it doesn’t matter.

The Angels’ top free agent target, Gerrit Cole, flew from Houston to the Big Apple. Cole signed a 9-year and $324 million deal with the Yankees. Cole headlines a rotation that includes James Paxton, Masahiro Tanaka, and Luis Severino. NYY’s bullpen is one of the best in baseball. No team hits better than the Yankees. Immediately after they signed Cole, New York became the 2020 World Series favorite.

Other free agents signed megadeals. Madison Bumgarner went to the Diamondbacks for $85 million for 5 years. Stephen Strasburg resigned with the Nationals for 7 years for $245 million. Also, the Texas Rangers acquired Corey Kluber from the Cleveland Indians.

The moves, and more to come, sets 2020 up for an incredible Major League Baseball Season.

College Football: LSU’s Joe Burrow Wins the Heisman Trophy

This past Saturday, LSU quarterback Joe Burrow won the Heisman Trophy. Although Burrow winning the Heisman was a foregone conclusion, the LSU quarterback didn’t provide a foregone conclusion speech. In fact, Burrow gave one of the most heart-felt speeches in Heisman history.

In his speech, Burrow discussed his hometown poverty issues. The speech was so sincere, and so effective, that donations poured in right after Joe gave it. With the Heisman Ceremony complete, Burrown now turns his attention to the College Football Playoff.

Can Joe Burrow lead LSU to a National Championship? If the futures are any indication, yes, Burrow can. LSU is a +125 chalk to beat Oklahoma and Ohio State or Clemson for the title.   

NBA: Milwaukee Bucks Stretch Their Winning Streak to 18

On Dec. 14, the Milwaukee Bucks won their eighteenth straight game. The Bucks streak started back on Nov. 10 with a 121-119 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. They beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 125-108 for number 18. How much longer will the Bucks’ winning streak continue?

They face the Dallas Mavericks on Dec. 16. Dallas will be without Luca Doncic. No Luca means no Mavericks’ victory. But although Milwaukee should beat the Mavs on Monday night, they shouldn’t get past the Lakers on Dec. 19.

Los Angeles matches up well with Milwaukee. Giannis must work to contain LeBron while nobody on the Bucks’ squad can handle Anthony Davis. The Lakers can beat Milwaukee and end the streak.

Bucks fans have no reason to worry, though. Milwaukee should maintain their dominance in the Eastern Conference into the playoffs. Check out Thursday’s Lakers-Bucks matchup. It could be a preview of the 2020 NBA Finals.

Soccer: Champions League Draw

The Champions League Round of 16 Draw on Monday yielded one heavyweight matchup: Real Madrid versus Manchester City. The other matchups, although interesting, won’t turn many heads. Check out the full list:

  • Real Madrid vs Manchester City
  • Borussia Dortmund vs Paris St. Germain
  • Atalanta vs Valencia
  • Atletico Madrid vs Liverpool
  • Chelsea vs Bayern Munich
  • Lyon vs Juventus
  • Tottenham vs RB Leipzig
  • Napoli vs Barcelona

After Real Madrid versus Man City, the next most interesting match is Atletico against Liverpool. Dortmund versus Paris St. Germain projects to the be the third most watched match followed by Bayern versus Chelsea. 

Barcelona, Juventus, and Tottenham have no excuses. If any of those 3 teams don’t make it to the quarterfinals, it would be a massive upset.

Boxing: Lopez Impresses Enough for Lomachenko to Talk April Bout

Pound-for-pound king Terence Crawford was in action on Saturday, but the most interesting bout happened between Teofimo Lopez and Richard Commey. Lopez entered the bout the favorite. However, questions swirled whether he could beat an accomplished champion like Richard Commey. Commey is longer and had more experience.

Lopez knocked down Commey in Round 2 with a devastating right. Commey got up but the referee stopped the bout as Lopez laid the wood again. The flashy victory impressed everyone. It even impressed Vasiliy Lomachenko who stated in an interview after the fight that he was ready to face Lopez in April.

Will the fight happen? It should. Loma’s not afraid of anybody while Teofimo will accept anything that’s fair.

Lopez’s father, who doubles as his trainer, said that they would knock out Lomachenko in fight 16. Commey was fight 15. Although Loma will be a huge favorite, Teofimo should enter the ring with big advantages. He’s the bigger fighter. He has more power than Loma. Plus, he’s almost as quick.

No doubt, Lopez will provide Vasiliy the greatest challenge of his career. If the fight does happen in April, we won’t have to wait too long. Not for a boxing match between two of the absolute best in the world.

Golf: Tiger Leads a Presidents Cup Rally

United State’s Captain Tiger Woods put together a competitive team for the 2019 Presidents Cup. But it took Tiger himself to rally Team USA to a Presidents Cup victory.

Team USA trailed the Ernie Els captained Internationals Team 10-8 on Day 4. Tiger beat Abraham Ancer 3-2 in the first match to cut the deficit to 10-9. From there it was all gravy for the Americans. Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele, and Webb Simpson all won their matches. Rickie Fowler, Matt Kuchar, Bryson DeChambeau, and Tony Finau tied in their matches. At the end, Team USA beat the Internationals 16-14.

Tiger’s leadership led to the Presidents Cup win. The real news might be that Woods played great against Ancer on the final day. He played so well that 2020 could be the year Tiger gets back to his previous consistent championship form.

Woods has changed his swing many times over the years. His latest big change happened in 2018. That led to a Masters win this year. He didn’t impress much after the Masters victory, though.

Things could be much different for Tiger in 2020. If the Presidents Cup performance is any indication, Tiger Woods is back.

Have a great week!  

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