We’ve got more METS, more TIGERS, and we get to see the Yankees, Phillies, and Dodgers all in action today! Best month of baseball is in FULL SWING! On top of that, we’ve got another full slate of college football! That’s gotta be all right? NOPE! We’ve got Preseason Basketball and Hockey as well! Let’s have a weekend! If you’re feeling generous click our sponsor newsletter 1440 Media right below!

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Today’s Trivia🧠

⚾️ Out of the remaining teams left in baseball, only ONE has never won a World Series! Which team is that?

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(answer at the bottom of the Stump!)

On This Day…

The other day Pete Alonso hit the biggest one of his career, so let’s talk Home Run’s today! On this day in 2001, Barry Bonds hit his 71st and 72nd HR of the season in a 11-10 loss to the LA Dodgers.

He broke Mark McGwire’s single-season HR record and tacked on one more to get to 73. A record that still stands today!

What’s Worth Your Time

🏀NBA Preview: Portland Trail Blazers

We’re going to talk every team, one a day, until the season starts. We’ll start at the bottom and work up. Today, we’re gonna head to Portland and feature the Trail Blazers.

It was a bit of a shock early on last year to see the Portland Trail Blazers take the court and not see Damian Lillard, but Portland spent 2023 doing what everyone thought they would do: lose. It was a building year, yes, but the Blazers ended the year with the worst record in the Western Conference.

It’s not all bad, though, in Portland. The Blazers have an extremely talented young core. Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, and rookie Donovan Clingan look to be the future in Portland. Veterans Anfernee Simons, Deandre Ayton, and Jerami Grant, who all missed significant time last year with injuries, are pivotal pieces that could help fill out the rest of the lineup.

A really underrated move from the Blazers came this offseason when they traded Malcolm Brogdon for Deni Avdija, who was the ninth pick in the 2020 draft and averaged 14 points and 7 rebounds while shooting 50% with the Wizards last season.

Look, I don’t think this team will make the playoffs, but I do think there is some good pieces on this team. 2024 will be another learning year for the Blazers with their young core playing significant minutes.

🏈 College Football Saturday: Gritfest of the Day!

Well folks, it’s another Saturday, and you all know what happens on Saturdays… GRITFEST OF THE DAY IN CFB! Let’s take this one in a little different way today.

Usually when we go gritfest we talk about two subpar ball teams who are battling it out on the gridiron, but today we’re going with a different kind of grit. We’re talking AMERICAN GRIT. That’s right: we’re going out to Colorado. Specifically, the United States Air Force Academy.

The Falcons of the Air Force take on the Midshipmen of Navy. I was NOT kidding when I said we’re talking American Grit. The best part of this game is it’s going to be triple option versus triple option. Power against power. Planes against ships. Falcons versus Midshipmen.

Navy enters this ball game a perfect 4-0, coming off of back-to-back impressive wins over Memphis and UAB. They are led by Junior QB Blake Hovarth, who currently leads the team in both passing and rushing yards.

Air Force has struggled out of the gate, sitting at 1-3, but the Falcons have life. Especially when another military school comes to town, things get serious.

The game kicks off at 12:00 PM ET on CBS, it’s one hell of a matchup. It’s a matchup for AMERICA!

AL Divisional Series Preview

It’s time to get real in the AL, let’s take a quick peek at the two series that will decide the ALCS.

Tigers vs. Guardians: Two divisional rivals and neighbors geographically, the Tigers and Guardians go WAYYYY back. Their first matchup was May 3rd, 1901, and have played 2,356 times since then.

That’s a lot of games, but this will be their first postseason matchup. Pretty crazy to think that they played each other for the first time 123 years ago and this will be the first time they play in a postseason series. The two teams will benefit from a short road trip, and I’ll bet this one is fun to watch.

Royals vs. Yankees: This series is really interesting to me in the way that it’s two VERY different franchises. For the Yanks, this feels like an all-or-nothing season for this team.

The Yankees have never been afraid to spend money and make big moves for huge stars. That was no different this offseason when they acquired Juan Soto. The Royals on the other hand, they’re playing with house money. They have a really young squad and overachieved basically all expectations now. That’s dangerous for the Yankees who have all the pressure in the world on them.

NL Divisional Series Preview

Let’s tap into the NL now, where we have some bitter rivals facing off and another fight for state bragging rights!

Mets vs. Phillies: Ohhhh boy, this one is going to get JUICY. Just like the Guardians and the Tigers, these teams go way back but have never faced off in the playoffs. This will be their 1,082nd head-to-head, but it’s the first time where all the cards are on the table.

If you can’t believe it, believe it, the Mets are still alive. They’re red hot and they NEVER are out of a ball game. They have one of the best in baseball with Francisco Lindor and the rest of the lineup has really been holding up their end of the bargain. The Phillies on the other hand, have been one of the best teams in baseball throughout the whole year. They have the best pitcher in baseball right now, Zach Wheeler, who’ll start game one. Mr. Philly himself Bryce Harper will be fired up for this one, and so will we.

Dodgers vs Padres: Talk about star power in this one, I mean, the list goes on and on. Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Teoscar Hernandez, Fernando Tatis Jr., Dylan Cease, Yu Darvish, Luis Arraez, Xander Bogaerts, Manny Machado, did I miss anyone?

This will be the first time we see the best player in the MLB in the playoffs as Shohei Ohtani finally gets into the postseason. The Dodgers went all in this year and it has paid off so far, only time will tell if it will in the long run. The Padres on the other hand, actually shed their star player when they traded Juan Soto to the Yankees, but this team hasn’t batted an eye. Who will be the best team in California when it’s all said and done?

🏀 WNBA Semifinals! Juggernauts Collide!

We’re 3 games into both Semifinal matchups in the WNBA Playoffs and these matchups have been ELECTRICITY! The Lynx and Sun have been trading haymakers and the Aces have finally shown some life.

Let’s go series by series here. First, we’ll talk about the Minnesota Lynx who are up 2-1 over the Connecticut Sun. MVP runner-up Napheesa Collier put on a show on the road leading the Lynx with 26 points and 11 rebounds! A pleasant sight for Minnesota after a 9-point showing in Game 2.

The Sun have been on the brink of a championship for the last couple of seasons but haven’t been able to close it. They have a great roster that includes Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner, Brianna Jones, and recent trade acquisition Marina Mabrey. Despite the stout starting 5, they find themselves in a 2-1 hole with one more to go on their home floor!

Awaiting the winner of that matchup is one of two juggernauts.

On the other side, we’ve got a finals rematch between the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces. The Aces took care of business last year in the Finals but found themselves in a 2-0 hole. I don’t what the pregame speech from 3-time MVP A’ja Wilson was after two straight losses but last night they looked like a team possessed. They held the Liberty to 6 points in the 3rd quarter and didn’t let Sabrina Ionescu get her first points until the 4th.

We’ve got two game 4’s tomorrow and anything can happen! Excitement all around the sports world!

Yesterday, but the Good Stuff

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

Today’s Slate

*All times are ET*

Divisional Series’: Tigers @ Guardians (1:08 PM ET), Mets @ Phillies (4:08 PM ET), Royals @ Yankees (6:38 PM ET), Padres @ Dodgers (8:38 PM ET)
🏈 NCAAF: UCLA @ (7) Penn State (12:00 PM ET), (9) Missouri @ (25) Texas A&M (12:00 PM ET), Iowa @ (3) Ohio State (3:30 PM ET), Auburn @ (5) Georgia (3:30 PM ET), (12) Ole Miss @ South Carolina (3:30 PM ET), Temple @ UConn (3:30 PM ET), (1) Alabama @ Vanderbilt (4:15 PM ET), (10) Michigan @ Washington (7:30 PM ET), (8) Miami @ Cal (10:30 PM ET)
🏀 NBA Preseason: Warriors @ Clippers (7:00 PM ET in Honolulu, HI)
🏒 NHL Preseason: Sabres vs Devils (10:00 AM ET in Prague), Panthers @ Kings (7:00 PM ET), full schedule
Premier League: Liverpool vs Crystal Palace (7:30 PM ET), Man City vs Fulham (10:00 PM ET), NEWCASTLE vs Everton (12:30 PM ET); LA LIGA: Real Madrid vs Villarreal (3:00 PM ET); MLS: Toronto FC vs Inter Miami (4:00 PM ET), Atlanta United vs NY Red Bulls (7:30 PM ET)
🏀 WNBA: We’ve got some action tomorrow!

🎙Song OTD🎙

Runaway

Bon Jovi

There’s an RB on (21) Boise State named Ashton Jeanty. He’s AVERAGING 211 yards per game and 10 yards per carry! He plays tonight at 7 PM! Must-watch TV! He’s a BIG Runaway!

🗣 Quote OTD🗣

“They wrote me off I ain’t write back though”

Geno Smith

Mets fans. Tigers fans. This is for you. The Divisional Series round starts today! Here’s to the magic continuing!

Glue Guy OTD

Pre-Meal Bread

Sit Down Restaurants

If you walk into an establishment and the waiter brings out some bread and butter, you’re at the right spot. An absolute glue guy of a meal that doesn’t get the credit it deserves.

Trivia Answer:

C. San Diego Padres! The Dads are the lone team left without a World Series title. There are 5 of those teams in the league and only 1 left in the dance! They are in for a tall task against

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!

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