1st Down: The College Baseball World Series rolls on in Omaha, and Wednesday saw two big-time games take place. The Oklahoma Sooners took on the Texas A&M Aggies in the opener, and thanks to their 5-1 victory, they are officially in the best-of-three Championship Series. David Sandlin was phenomenal on the mound, striking out 12 and allowing just one run in seven innings of work and Jimmy Crooks hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the first that proved to be all the offensive output needed.
2nd Down: Meanwhile, Arkansas had to win to force a second meeting with Ole Miss, and they managed to do just that, defeating the Rebels 3-2 in the nightcap to force a rematch. The Razorbacks only allowed five hits in the contest and hung on in the ninth to ensure they’d get one more chance against their SEC foes in a winner-take-all contest to see who moves on to face the Sooners next.
3rd Down: The Atlanta Braves just keep on closing the gap on the New York Mets, with Wednesday’s results now meaning they are just 4.5 behind the Big Apple club despite a horrific start for the defending champs. On Wednesday evening, the Bravos had to come from behind to defeat the San Francisco Giants, scoring three runs in the bottom half of the frame to win 4-3. Dansby Swanson hit a solo home run while William Contreras and Adam Duvall singled to walk it off. Elsewhere, the Baltimore Orioles got a sterling performance from Austin Hays as he hit a cycle in just six innings during their 7-0 rain-shortened victory over the Washington Nationals. Hays singled in the first, homered in the third, hit a triple in the fourth, and then doubled in the sixth to become the sixth O’s star to hit the cycle.
4th Down: Sources indicate that the Portland Trail Blazers have made a deal with the Detroit Pistons in order to land forward Jerami Grant. The deal is said to see the Pistons acquire a 2025 first-round draft choice while Portland is desperately looking for ways to pair up Damian Lillard effectively with a co-star that can help the team compete. In addition to the draft selection, the move also frees up cap space for the Pistons as they continue to rebuild after years of irrelevance in the Eastern Conference. Grant averaged 19.2 points per game last season in 47 appearances as Detroit finished bottom of the Central standings.
