Albert Pujols called it quits after a remarkable last ride with the St. Louis Cardinals last season. However, Pujols will be back at the ballpark for a Cardinals game this weekend, trying out a potential new career.
On Sunday, Pujols will venture into the broadcast booth for the first time, providing color commentary for the Cardinals tilt against the Pittsburgh Pirates for Peacock.
Albert Pujols (@PujolsFive) -- making his debut as a game analyst -- and Bob Walk join @brendanmburke in MLB Sunday Leadoff booth this Sunday for Cardinals-Pirates at 11:35 a.m. ET on @peacock https://t.co/FIBVxgetcH
— NBC Sports PR (@NBCSportsPR) June 1, 2023
Pujols told Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he "couldn't be more excited" for the opportunity to make his commentary debut. Meanwhile, Peacock's producer for MLB games, Matt Borzello, said that Pujols was looking to "branch out" into the world of sports broadcasting, and by chance, a spot on Sunday opened up.
"It's great that ... we had an opening to use him," Borzello said. "Any time you have a player of Albert's caliber, you definitely want to involve him in the show."
Pujols should be a massive addition to the broadcast. After a 22-year MLB career, who better to analyze the game than a future first-ballot Hall of Famer?
Pujols thrilled baseball fans for more than 20 years, retiring as one of the sport's indisputable greats. Here's hoping Pujols' television debut goes well, and more importantly, he enjoys the experience. After seeing his Hall of Fame career unfold with our eyes, what a treat it would be to hear Pujols' take on baseball for a few more decades.
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Angel Stadium is apparently doing its best impression of Oakland Coliseum. The Los Angeles Angels hosted the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday afternoon for a game at their Anaheim, California, home. It was the Rays who emerged victorious by a 5-4 final score, turning in some impressive plays along the way as well. After the loss by the Angels, the baseball gods continued to rain on them … literally. While reporters were gathered in the media room waiting for Angels interim manager Ray Montgomery to give his press conference, the roof in the room was noticeably leaking, resulting in water puddling on the floor and on a nearby trash can. Sam Blum of The Athletic shared the footage, noting that Montgomery’s press conference was ultimately moved to a different room. Angel Stadium opened back in 1966 and has served the home of the Angels ever since (also notably housing several other professional and collegiate teams, including the Los Angeles Rams from 1980-94). But it is clear that some renovations are badly needed at this point (beyond the trash can that appeared to have been intentionally placed under the leak to deal with the dripping water). Angels owner Arte Moreno, who has owned the team since 2003, is often accused of penny-pinching, particularly when it comes to resources and accommodations. Now that Angel Stadium looks to be slowly falling apart as well, perhaps Moreno will call for cups to be taped to the ceiling like other MLB teams have done before to stop leaks.
Over the past couple of years, the WNBA has seen a major uptick in ratings and overall fan engagement. Unfortunately, that has also come with negative attention. It may have reached a new low, as there have now been three separate incidents in which a fan has thrown a sex toy on the court. This time, it nearly hit Indiana Fever veteran Sophie Cunningham during a matchup with the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday. Cunningham had already joked about it on social media, and given her outspoken nature and reputation as a bit of an instigator, she didn't shy away from it: She also laughed it up on her Instagram story: Sparks head coach Lynne Roberts, however, didn't think it was a laughing matter. Following the game, she put the fans on blast for their "stupid" behavior. "It's ridiculous. It's dumb. It's stupid," Roberts said, per Yahoo Sports. "It's also dangerous, and you know, player safety is No. 1, respecting the game, all those things. I think it's really stupid." There's no place for any of this in sports, much less in women's sports. The league needs to crack down on this and take the necessary measures to prevent it from happening ever again. The WNBA is finally thriving after years of surviving, and while the fans will eventually grow to respect the product, not all publicity is good publicity.
The Green Bay Packers are not done adding wide receivers. The team drafted Matthew Golden and Savion Williams, signed Will Sheppard, but also added another rookie—Isaiah Neyor, a big-bodied, undrafted receiver who had signed with the San Francisco 49ers right after the draft. Neyor spent three months in San Francisco and had a quiet training camp, which led to the team's decision to waive him, but it was enough time to catch the attention of star tight end George Kittle. Going back to June, in an interview with Bussin' with the Boys, Kittle talked about Neyor. "He's a good kid. I like him. He's a freak. He is really tall, and I watched him running a route, he got like nine and a half yards in two strides," Kittle mentioned. "It was insane. We watched it like ten times in the tight end room. We were like, how is he doing this? It's funny." The rookie has an insane athletic profile. He's 6-4, 218 pounds, and ran a 4.43 40-yard dash. With a 9.97 incomplete Relative Athletic Score, he had elite size, explosion, and speed grades—but no agility testing information. "If you're that tall, just make plays and do well on special teams. Right?," Kittle added. "At the bare minimum, you should make the practice squad." Positional battle With two weeks of training camp gone, Isaiah Neyor will have a hard time to make the 53-man roster. The Packers have Golden, Williams, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, and Dontayvion Wicks as locks. Veterans Mecole Hardman and Malik Heath are also ahead of the rookies. Even players like Cornelius Johnson and Julian Hicks, who spent last season on the practice squad, have a natural advantage. Christian Watson is expected to start the season on PUP, so he won't count against the 53-man for at least four weeks. However, both undrafted rookies (Neyor and Sheppard) have a real shot at making at least the practice squad. In Neyor's case, the 49ers expected him to be around—so much that they guaranteed him $259,000 as an undrafted free agent signing. But with injuries all over the wide receiver room, the Niners needed spots for veteran guys—they have players like Robbie Chosen, Russell Gage, and former Packer Equanimeous St. Brown on the 90-man roster. As a consequence, they lacked space for developmental pieces. With two drafted rookies in Jordan Watkins and Junior Bergen, Neyor became an afterthought. On the Packers, though, the rookie will have another chance to prove that George Kittle was right.
Let the future of Boston Red Sox baseball commence. The club took a big step toward forging its future identity under Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow by inking former top prospect outfielder Roman Anthony to an eight-year, $130 million contract extension. ESPN's Jeff Passan was first on the news. The extension, which will begin in 2026, could pay Anthony up to $230 million thanks to various escalators included in the contract language, per Passan. The 21-year-old outfielder is off to a fast start in his first big league campaign, with an .828 OPS (132 OPS+) and 1.8 bWAR over his first 190 plate appearances while splitting time between left and right field for the Red Sox. Anthony has been especially productive over his last 132 plate appearances as he continues to adjust to big league pitching. Considering his talent and subsequent prime years ahead, the value of this deal could be excellent for Boston, even with the aforementioned escalators factored in (which could bring the total average annual value up to $28.75 million from $16.25 million). But the extension is also great news for Anthony, who receives financial security over the long term while still reaping a potential free-agency trip after his age-29 season. Anthony, along with left-handed starter Garrett Crochet (who was himself extended earlier this season) and infielder Kristian Campbell (also extended), will attempt to lead Boston back to glory, perhaps even as soon as this year, with the Red Sox currently occupying an American League wild-card spot at 64-51 heading into play on Aug. 6. Regardless of whether Boston makes the postseason in 2025, however, Wednesday's news should provide reason for optimism for the Red Sox franchise and its fans. And after the fallout from trading former franchise third baseman Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants, that excitement is much needed.
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