A new Flaviar whisky shipment and the Home Run Derby kept me content last night. I also flipped over to watch the U.S. Men’s Olympic basketball team lose an unprecedented two straight exhibition games. We’re obviously no longer the world basketball power of years past. In fact, my whole perspective of the game has changed in the last twenty years with the demise of I.U. basketball and the rise of the rest of the globe. In some ways, the two are related with the failure to compete on the world stage of recruiting. For example, a team like Nigeria even a few short years ago was a non-factor on the court. 

Pete Alonso of the Mets won his second straight Home Run Derby crown last night, after the cancellation of the 2020 All Star Game competition. The #1 seed, Shohei Ohtani, was defeated in the first round. The tournament play-by-play with all the buzzers and whistles is a far cry from my memories the original 1959 duals on television. Hank Aaron made seven appearances, while Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays each competed five times. Wrigley Field in Los Angeles was the site of the broadcast. $2000 was the prize back then compared to the one-million dollars that Alonso raked in last night. As a kid, we’d get out our whiffle balls and bats to belt our own moon shots.

Tonight’s All Star Game will feature Shohei Ohtani in the dual role of starting pitcher and lead-off hitter for the American League. It signals the half-way point of the season with my White Sox leading the AL Central by eight games over the Indians. Other division leaders include the Red Sox, Astros, Mets, Brewers, and Giants. The Cubs were 2-8 down the stretch to fall to third in the NL Central. The Giants also have 57 wins to lead the pack but only a two-game lead over the Dodgers. Games will resume after the four-day break.

The White Sox have prevailed despite a plethora of serious injuries, including Nick Madrigal out for the season. Sluggers Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert have yet to return. The early sparkplug of the season was Yermin Mercedes whose star has tarnished and was recently sent down to the minors. Andrew Vaughn and Adam Engel have recovered from injuries to recently pick up the slack. Billy Hamilton and Seby Zavala have also filled in admirably. I’m off to see the Sox at Tropicana in August and then to Pittsburgh to cheer on the Cubs. I’m expecting to see the Pale Hose in the post-season mix but have lost some hope for the Cubbies. Trades in the next few months will determine the fate of this year’s World Series Champion.