Quick Hits

Twins to honor Mauer with statue

*Newly inducted MLB Hall-of-Fame catcher Joe Mauer was notified by team that they will be placing a bronze statue of the beloved former Twin outside Target Field next season.

It will be the eighth statue of a former player outside the ballpark, and was announced during a pre-game Hall of Fame celebration by Paul Molitor, Saturday, Aug. 3.

Mauer is one of five Twins to have their number retired by the team, and is also a member of the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame.

Vikings walk-off Raiders in preseason, lose McCarthy to surgery

*The Minnesota Vikings got their first preseason victory since August of 2019 after taking down the Raiders 24-23 off the leg of rookie kicker Will Reichard as time expired Saturday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Quarterbacks Sam Darnold started the game and Jaren Hall finished it, but in-between, it was J.J. McCarthy that showcased his arm talent more than anyone else. Other than an early interception on one of his first throws, McCarthy threw deep touchdown passes and completed 11-17 passes for 188 yards in two quarters of football. Without putting too much stock into preseason performances, it’s safe to be bullish on rookies McCarthy, Dallas Turner, and the kicker Reichard, who all had a chance to flash their skill and potential in the exhibition opener.

Following the win, McCarthy reported soreness in his knee that will require surgery to repair a torn meniscus, putting his season into question. No timetable has been released for the rookie going forward.

Minnesota is visiting the Cleveland Browns this Saturday for the second game of the preseason.

Twins split with Guardians, lose Ryan

*The Minnesota Twins remain 3.5 games behind the Cleveland Guardians in the AL Central after the two teams tangled for four games at Target Field over the weekend. Minnesota had the opportunity to leapfrog Cleveland in the division after taking the first two games of the series, but the Guardians would take the next two to keep the standings at a stalemate. The Twins have been working to make up lost ground against the Central since April, passing both Kansas City and Detroit along the way, except the final stretch of the season just got a lot more difficult after starting pitcher Joe Ryan exited the game with a Grade 2 teres major strain that could take “weeks to months” to recover from according to Twins manager Rocco Baldelli. Ryan leads the team in strikeouts and is second among team-starters with a .99 WHIP.

The Twins called up rookie minor leaguer Zebby Matthews to start this week in place of Ryan, and now feature three rookies - Simeon Woods-Richardson, David Festa, and Matthews - in the rotation. While the Twins try to catch the Guardians, the Royals are chasing the Twins, only a game and a half behind as the teams face off for a three-game series. The Twins took the first game 8-3 at Target Field on Monday.

Duluth Harbor Monsters win ArenaMania

*The Duluth Harbor Monsters football team of the Arena League are the inaugural ArenaMania Champions after beating the Iowa Woo 46-44 Saturday night at the DECC arena in Duluth.

The Harbor Monsters went 7-3 in their first season and 2-0 in the playoffs to capture the trophy.

The league launched this summer featuring four teams with 15-man rosters competing on 50-yard indoor arena fields.

Medal controversy remains as Paris Olympics conclude

*The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics has concluded after several weeks of the world’s greatest summer athletes competing against one another but one bronze olympic medal still appears unsettled in the gymnastics competition. American gymnast Jordan Chiles moved up from fifth place to third place on Aug. 5 after a successful challenge in the individual floor final event awarded her the bronze medal. The challenge dropped two Romanian gymnasts to fourth and fifth respectively as Chiles was awarded her spot on the podium, however six days after the event, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) says the challenge was reviewed and not submitted within the one minute time requirement, voiding her third-place finish in favor of Romanian Ana Barbosu. The Court Arbitration for Sport (CAS) made the ruling that the challenge was not completed in time, leaving the IOC to respect the ruling and request that Chiles return the bronze medal, her first career individual medal.

USA Gymnastics released a statement saying they have officially appealed the ruling to CAS, saying they have conclusive evidence proving the challenge inquiry was submitted in time. However, an arbitration panel denied their request to hear the appeal, finalizing the ruling.