Good Morning, Stumpers!

As the calendar flips to August, we enter a new era of the year. Football is no longer a pipe dream. We’re close. We are very very close! Yesterday we had a taste with the Hall of Fame game and man was that a treat to watch. Mike Tirico could call a game of tic-tac-toe and I’d watch it! Happy Friday, Happy August, Happy Football! Let’s all surprise ourselves this weekend by doing one thing we didn’t think we had in us!

Stump time.

SHARE THE STUMP!

The Rundown

🏈 No, you’re not dreaming! There was Football on Yesterday!

⚾️ MLB Trade Deadline! Lots to unpack!

⛳️ Day 1 of the Wyndham Championship

🚨 One of the WILDEST Box Scores EVER!

On This Day

🏃‍♂️ Michael Johnson is FAST

In the world of male sprinters, you’ve heard of the big ones: Usain Bolt, Carl Lewis, Justin Gatlin, Jesse Owens, and Tyson Gay, but what about Michael Johnson? Cause this dude was FAST!

On this day in 1996, American sprinter Michael Johnson wins the 200 m dash at the Atlanta Olympics in a world record 19.32 seconds. This comes just a day after he won the gold in the 400 m dash. When he crossed the line of the 200 m, he became the first man to complete the 200-400 double. CRAZY….

Today’s Trivia

Glue Guy of the Day

🏈 Oh, What a Relief It Is

There’s a lot of sports out there, there are. But something about football just hits different. Even when it doesn’t matter, the games are just fun. The Hall of Fame game is the unofficial start of the NFL season, and I don’t even want to talk about the game.

What is it about football? Why does a game that doesn’t matter in the slightest, with a majority of the guys on the field are players who we’ll unlikely hear from again, draw SUCH a crowd? When the Chargers and Lions took the field last night, the nation tuned in, even though none of it REALLY mattered.

To the novice fan, the NFL preseason is quite a bore. But to some of us psychos, it just hits different. It’s like a shot of adrenaline right into the arm. It’s the familiar voices of Mike Tirico and Chris Collinsworth, the sounds coming from the screen of the yelling and hitting, it’s just music to our ears.

The start of the football season is the first official sign that the end of the summer is nearing and fall is on the horizon. That’s right folks, the season of pumpkin spice is upon us. Don’t be afraid, there’s still some time left to the summer, enjoy it while you can. But soak in this time of the year with the NFL on the rise. It’s just preseason, but there’s so much to root for.

This is the time of the position battles, the underdogs trying to scratch their way onto the roster, the preseason superstars, the new names who jump onto the scene, the rookies who have their growing pains, it all makes the regular season that much more enticing. Don’t be afraid to pick a guy or two from across the league that you think is going to be big time, a guy that nobody knows, and follow him. Here are my two, so you know I’m not full of BS:

Lan Larison (Patriots) and Jared Ivey (Seahawks).

There you have it folks, it’s football season.

The BIG Moments

⚾️ Trade Deadline Drama

The Stump Short Story: Let’s go back to the ol’ reliable, the trusty bullet points:

• Padres acquire Mason Miller from A’s: One of the most electric arms in baseball, Miller will now be the bookend of the Padres bullpen.

• Astros acquire Carlos Correa from Twins: The most shocking trade of the day, the Astros brought back their former star Carlos Correa to Houston. Correa is expected to move from SS to 3B in his return.

• Mariners acquire Eugenio Suarez from D-Backs: If you haven’t heard of Eugenio, get familiar. This guy has mashed 36 home runs thus far, 5th best in baseball. The Mariners are ALL IN.

• Other Pitchers on the Move:

  • Jhoan Duran: Twins → Phillies

  • David Bednar: Pirates → Yankees

  • Camilo Doval: Giants → Yankees

  • Merrill Kelly: D-Backs → Rangers

  • Shane Bieber: Guardians → Blue Jays

Why it Matters: Honestly, there were so many good moves this trade deadline that I got lost in the sauce. The biggest trade may be the one that didn’t even happen, with the Red Sox deal for Twins All-Star pitcher Joe Ryan fell through at the last second. Even with that out of the picture, this trade deadline caught HEAT in the end.

Read More: Here are this year’s Trade Deadline deals (MLB.com)

⛳️ Wyndham Championship Day One

The Stump Short Story: If there’s a better guy in the game of golf than Joel Dahmen, you’re going to have to convince me. He’s your solo leader after day one of the Wyndham Championship as he lit up the course for a 9-under round of 61. Dahmen has had a pretty up and down year, and needs this type of week if he’s going to make a run at a spot in the PGA playoffs. One-stroke behind Dahmen is Alex Noren, followed by four guys sitting at -7, including last years winner Aaron Rai. We head into day two with a lot of guys in contention.

Why it Matters: There’s a lot of things up for grabs this weekend, including some serious cash. More than that, some guys who really need to win have a chance to get some serious points in the PGA playoff standings. Guys like Joel Dahmen, who are on the wrong side of the playoff cut line, could use this weekend to soar up the leaderboard while some of the best players in the world take the weekend off. Every weekend matters at this point of the season.

Read More: Wyndham Championship Leaderboard (ESPN)

⚾️ One of the Wildest Box Scores You’ll Ever See

The Stump Short Story: Let’s head over to what was going to be a grit fest in the NL yesterday. We had a 3-game slate. The Yankees took care of business against the Rays, the Rangers faced off against the Mariners, and then we had the Atlanta Braves head over to Cincinnati to face off against the Reds. After 7 innings of ball, it was all knotted up, 3-3. The Braves were up in the top of the 8th, and without hitting a single HR, the Braves knocked in EIGHT RUNS! 11-3! Game over right? NOT EVEN CLOSE! In the bottom of the 8th, instead of mailing it after a catastrophe, the Reds started scoring some of their own. How many you may ask? EIGHT! THEY SCORED EIGHT TOO! Are you kidding me? All tied up 11-11 after 8. The game ended in 10 when Marcell Ozuna hit a pop fly to bring home a run, and the Reds couldn’t do any damage in return. What a game. Braves def. Reds in 10, 12-11!

Why it Matters: With so many games in an MLB season, it’s not often you see box scores that are absolutely baffling. Well this was one of those for sure. Here are the highlights from this barn burner. Worth a watch if you have a few.

Read More: Braves def. Reds in WILD 12-11 game in Extras (Youtube)

SHARE THE STUMP!

🔗 Quick Links

🏈 Commanders star WR requests trade amid contract struggles

🏀 Knicks, Mikal Bridges agree to 4-year, $150M extension

🖐️ HANDS! Play of the game to end the night! What a catch!

What To Watch

⚾️ MLB Weekend Series’ To Watch:

• Astros @ Red Sox

• Tigers @ Phillies

• Royals @ Blue Jays

• Yankees @ Marlins

• Giants @ Mets

• Dodgers @ Rays

• Rangers @ Mariners

⚽️ The Leagues Cup continues between the MLS and the teams from South of the American border all weekend, but we also have some loaded club friendlies on Sunday, here’s who we got:

• Tottenham Spurs vs Newcastle United

• Ajax Amsterdam vs AS Monaco

• FC Porto vs Atletico

• Bournemouth vs West Ham

• Manchester United vs Everton

🏀 An absolutely loaded WNBA weekend, highlighted with a game on Saturday and Sunday on ABC:

• Saturday: Lynx vs Aces (3:00 PM)

• Sunday: Fever vs Storm (3:00 PM)

⛳️ Golf! Golf! Golf! The Wyndham Championship continues into the weekend, you can check it out on NBC this Saturday and Sunday! Here’s the leaderboard for you

Of! The! Day’s!

Love the Stump?

We do too! But we need the help of our dedicated readers and supporters. If you think of anyone you know that may love the newsletter just as much as you do, then shoot them the link. Remember, we’re free 😁!