Hey folks! It’s hump day! We got plenty in today’s edition to take your mind off work for a few minutes. Soak up the familiar faces in new places of the NBA, read through the STUMPSETS in the MLB Playoffs, the big matchups from yesterday’s Champions League, or whatever else in here tickles your fancy. LET’S RIDE!

Quick shoutout to our Mets fans reading the stump! What a time to be alive!

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⚾ MLB broadcaster and legend Vin Scully calls his final game for the LA Dodgers. Scully was the voice of the Dodgers for 67 MLB seasons.

Scully followed the Dodgers from Brooklyn to LA, and was one of the most iconic voices of the modern sports era. Here is a link to his most iconic calls: LINK

It’s been a long summer and there was a lot going on in the NBA world, let’s take a look at the faces we love in their new threads.

Klay Thompson (Mavs) - The former Splash Brother will play for someone other than the Warriors for the first time this year. The five-time all-star will be a crucial piece to the Mavericks success this year, but could he be enough to get them over the hump?

Russell Westbrook (Nuggets) - A nine-time all-star and once league MVP, Westbrook has turned into a bit of a journeyman the last few years, but there is no doubt that in the right role, he can be extremely valuable. Will Jokic be able to unlock a version of Russ we haven’t seen yet?

Dejounte Murray (Pelicans) - Murray has averaged more than 20 points each of the last three seasons, but he hasn’t done enough to be the star of a winning team. Now in New Orleans, he teams up with Brandon Ingram and Zion to make an extremely versatile starting lineup. Can Murray take the next step towards stardom?

Mikal Bridges (Knicks) - Bridges proved last year that he can lead a team and be a star in his own right. Now, he teams up with Jalen Brunson, KAT, Josh Hart, and the rest of the gritty Knicks squad. He’s thrived in an off the ball role before in Phoenix, can he do it again?

DeMar DeRozan (Kings) - People forget about DeMar. He has aged like a fine wine. He played the most minutes in the NBA last year and is one of the most consistent contributors in the league. With a Kings team that was disappointing last year, can he bring them back to dominance?

Chris Paul (Spurs) - A 12-time All-Star, now one of the oldest players in the NBA, Paul will play a vital veteran leadership role for the young Spurs. He’s taken less of a role in recent years and fought some injuries, so it’ll be interesting to see what his minutes look like this year. Will we see a lot of Paul to Wemby alley-oops this year?

In the crazy world of NCAA conference realignment, there isn’t much that surprises me anymore. Gonzaga to the PAC-12? Predictable.

Gonzaga has been a member of the West Coast Conference since the 1989-1990 season, bringing significant traction to the conference thanks to their success on the basketball court. Gonzaga has reached the round of 16 or better of the men’s NCAA tournament nine consecutive times.

Mark Few, the head coach of the Zags men’s basketball program, is one of the most respected coaches in the country, and even works with the USA Olympic teams. Gonzaga will bring strong media value to the new PAC-12 in the realm of basketball, as well as a highly respected conference matchup yearly for their other members.

Gonzaga is the new 8th member of the PAC-12, but because they don’t have football, they are not considered a full-time member. Meaning the PAC-12 needs to add another school to reach the league’s eight full member status required by the NCAA.

The one thing that’ll be interesting is to see how these smaller conferences will react. The Mountain West and the WCC are being stripped of some of their former top members, where do they look to? Will FCS football powerhouses like North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Montana, and others in the region be the next schools up? I suppose only time will tell…

We’re talking THREE STUMPSETS!

Detroit (3) @ Astros (1): The Tigers jumped all over Framber Valdez in the second inning, putting up a quick three runs on three RBI singles. The Astros were silenced until the ninth inning when they managed to put one run up, but it wasn’t enough as Beau Brieske shut the door. Tarik Skubal was dominant in six innings pitched and Will Vest threw 5-strong outs out of the bullpen.

Royals (1) @ Orioles (0): All the Royals needed was one. Their star, Bobby Witt Jr, was the one who provided that single run in the sixth inning. Royals starter Cole Ragans was dominant, only allowing 4 hits in six innings. The bullpen came in and only allowed one hit in three innings of work. Baltimore’s stud ace, Corbin Burns, went 8 strong innings only allowing a single run. Unfortunately for him, that’s all the Royals needed.

Mets (8) @ Brewers (4): The wild ride for the Mets continues. A back-and-forth game early, the Brewers went up two in the first innings. The Mets responded with a three-run second inning. The Mets eventually put up five runs in the fifth inning to balloon the game to 8-4. From that point on, Jose Butto and Ryne Stanek were lights out for New York.

Braves (0) @ Padres (4): Alert the press! A home team WON! San Diego was able to take care of business against the Atlanta Braves. They sis most of their damage early. Fernando Tatis hit the first BOMB of the 2024 Postseason with a 2-run shot in the bottom of the first. Kyle Higashioka tacked on two RBIs of his own. Michael King put on the show on the mound for the Padres, pitching 7.0 scoreless innings with 12 Ks! The Padres get one for the home teams!

A Tuesday PACKED with the UEFA Champions League, let’s get into the biggest wins and the UGLIEST losses!

Big Winners: LOTSSS of big wins across the board today…

Tight Ones: A couple of games were decided in the late stages..

Players of the Match(es):

One of the best catchers of the 21st century has taken on a new challenge: revitalizing the team he once led from behind the plate.

Catchers are historically some of the highest IQ players on the field. They are natural leaders, they call the pitches, they control the tempo of the game, and have to help navigate their pitchers through the highs and lows of games. The catcher position to a role with the organization off the field seems pretty natural.

Buster Posey, who spent all 12 years of his big league career with the San Francisco Giants after being selected 5th overall in 2008 MLB Draft, will now take over as the man in charge in the front office. Posey was named the VP of Baseball Operations on Monday afternoon.

Posey, a former Rookie of the Year, 2012 MVP, three-time World Series winner, and a seven-time All-Star, retired from the game in 2021. Posey joined the Giants front office in 2022 as a special advisor, but anyone who is close to the organization knew how important of a role he played. He was the main negotiator in the 5-year extension of Giants’ All-Star third basemen Matt Chapman.

Posey is also part of the Giants’ ownership group along with now being the top decision maker in the building.

⚾Watch party in Detroit is ROCKING! In the RAIN!

⚾PURE electricity in San Diego last night

⚽Pure class assists from yesterdays Champions league

⚾Is it just me or do the Mets have SERIOUS juice?

🏀WNBA BUZZER BEATER!!! TUFF!

💯 Full Scoreboards: MLB, Soccer, PGA, NFL, WNBA, NCAAF

Trivia Answer:

D. Manny Ramirez! This is honestly one of the most surprising lists I’ve ever seen. Ramirez is first with 29, Altuve (27), Bernie Williams (22), Derek Jeter (20), Schwarber (20), Corey Seager (19), Pujols (19), George Springer (19), Alex Bregman (19), and Reggie Jackson (18) to round out the top 10!

Can’t thank you enough for sticking to the end of this thing we call The Daily Stump. If you know anybody who might want this bit of daily sports news in their life, send them this link! It would go a long way! Appreciate the hell out of you all!

Trees get chopped. Stumps hold strong!