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The St. Louis Cardinals have gotten off to a much better start this season than many people expected. This has largely been due to multiple players performing much better than they were expected to perform. While the pitching staff and defensive have carried the bulk of the load, the offense has been led by the breakout performance from infielder Brendan Donovan.
Donovan is slashing .313/.381/.440 with 20 doubles and a handful of home runs. He's played good defense and leads the Cardinals in multiple offensive categories. The young infielder ranks among the National League's best in a few categories which has led many to believe he could be headed for his first career All-Star Game, potentially looking to start the game at second base.
On Monday, the first NL All-Star voting numbers were revealed, and things aren't looking good for the Cardinals infielder. Donovan currently sits in fourth place among NL second basemen, trailing Nico Hoerner of the Chicago Cubs, Tommy Edman of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Donovan is currently over 500,000 votes behind Marte for the top spot, but the fact that he's behind Edman, the player the Cardinals discarded like trash last year, is embarrassing for the Cardinals fan base.
Donovan is a much better player this year than Edman is, but the Dodgers' backing of their infielder is much more prevalent than the Cardinals' support of Donovan.
Cardinals fans only have a few more weeks to go vote before Edman is heading to the All-Star Game and Donovan is left watching from home.
More must-reads:
- Phillies pitcher's impressive season continues with complete game against struggling Red Sox
- Aaron Boone passionately defends Yankees regarding media scrutiny
- The 'MLB All-Star Game MVPs' quiz
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Cubs Reportedly Keeping Nationals All-Star 'On Their Radar' at Trade Deadline
The Chicago Cubs are expected to be extremely aggressive when it comes to fixing their weaknesses at the trade deadline which is now just over a week away. As the deadline has snuck up, the two clear needs the Cubs are expected to try to add are starting pitching and third base. A bullpen that was seen early on as a huge issue has all of the sudden been one of the better units in baseball over the last few months, and this has become much less of a priority. More News: Cubs Unthinkably Find Themselves in Second-Place of NL Central That has not stopped Chicago from poking around at potential ways to shore things up in the group of relievers, and apparently there's one name they have circled. According to an article from both Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic (subscription required), the Cubs are checking in on Washington Nationals All-Star closer Kyle Finnegan. "Kyle Finnegan does not produce the strikeout rates that light up the projection models, but the Cubs have the Washington Nationals closer on their radar as they explore ways to bulk up their bullpen," Mooney and Sharma wrote. More News: Cubs Have Clear-Cut Strategy To Execute Ahead of MLB Trade Deadline The insiders went on to clarify that Chicago is extremely confident in Daniel Palencia since his emergence and not exactly looking for a closer. However, Finnegan gives Craig Counsell another tool in the toolbox in order to help “prioritize matchups, rest, and recovery” for their bullpen. Finnegan has not been quite as strong this year in the follow-up to the first All-Star appearance of his career last year on a one-year deal, but the Cubs do not need him to be a dominant shutdown closer. It looks like they already have one of those in Palencia. Transitioning to a setup role though and simply giving Counsell another chess piece could prove to be immensely valuable if the price in any potential trade is right. More News: Cubs Boss Reveals Long-Term Positional Plan For Struggling Rookie Matt Shaw Washington has every reason in the world to want to deal Finnegan and the remainder of his $6 million salary this season, so there's not much reason for them to play hardball here. The 33-year-old currently has a 4.62 ERA and 1.324 WHIP, even further lowering his trade value from last year's version of Finnegan who posted a 3.68 ERA and 38 saves. Finnegan will have other suitors, but if Chicago feels he can help put this bullpen over the top, putting together a package built on some lower level prospects is absolutely worth a shot here. For more Cubs news, head over to Cubs On SI.
Chicago Blackhawks reportedly set to trade 25-year-old goaltender to Stars rival, Edmonton Oilers
Caitlin Clark drops mic on Kelsey Plum's Instagram post
Caitlin Clark might be the most popular figure in women's basketball right now, but she continues to draw shots left and right, both on and off the court. The Iowa product has stayed even keeled and mostly unrattled, but that doesn't mean she won't fight back. That's why, in the light of Kelsey Plum's recent comments, she decided to take matters into her own hands and clapped back at her with a simple, six-word message. Plum shared a picture of her during the WNBA's All-Star Weekend, which showed half of a Nike logo in the background. Clark was quick to spot it and just wrote "Thank u for the Nike ad." This happened just hours after Plum seemingly took a shot at Clark and her Team Clark teammates for reportedly not getting involved in their pre-game protest. “The T-shirt was determined this morning. Not to tattletale, but zero members of Team Clark were very present for that,” Plum revealed. “That really needed to be mentioned,” Sabrina Ionescu added while both laughed. WNBA All-Stars warmed up with a T-Shirt that read 'Pay us what you owe us,' ahead of their new CBA agreement, which is expected to be signed in the offseason. WNBA players get around 9 percent of the league's revenue, and they're asking for a bigger share since most of them also have to play overseas during the offseason because of the salary disparity. Plum is the vice president of the WNBPA, so it's not surprising to see her so involved in the protest and the demands. Then again, it's hard to understand the reasoning behind the tattle telling, as not only does it show that there might not be a united front ahead of these negotiations, but it also drives attention away from where it should be.
Chicago Blackhawks Likely to Trade Goalie, Canadian Team Linked
The Chicago Blackhawks are likely to trade one of their three healthy goalies before the regular season begins, and the Edmonton Oilers are emerging as frontrunners. NHL reporter Greg Boysen began the new week off with a flurry of fresh news across the NHL. In Chicago, excitement continues about the prospects of the team, and two old stars weigh their future. Rumors about a possible additional goaltender on the Blackhawks' roster being traded also began. Postmedia's Kurt Leavins wrote that the Edmonton Oilers were having a look at trading for Arturs Silovs, but the Canucks wouldn't make the deal within their division. Arturs Silovs ended up with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Oilers are still looking for a goalie and Chicago has three to choose from That means Oilers GM Stan Bowman is still on the lookout for a goalie. Chicago might have three NHL goalies report to training camp healthy, and that might leave open trade possibilities. Meanwhile, Los Angeles Kings GM Ken Holland reported on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio that Anze Kopitar is not looking for a contract extension and will sign year to year. The 37-year-old captain, in the last year of his deal, has played his entire career with the Kings, scoring 440 goals for 1,278 points in 1,454 games. Twice the recipient of the Selke Trophy, Kopitar's future after this season is questionable. Another possible future Hall of Famer in the last year of his contract, Alex Ovechkin, told Russian media that he has he has had no discussions regarding an extension with the Capitals. no discussions regarding an extension with the Capitals. Blackhawks and Oilers supporters will be watching the situation between the goalies tightly, and we expect things to come into focus over the next few weeks.
Five-time Pro Bowler announces retirement from football
Jimmy Graham is calling it a career. The veteran tight end confirmed a report from John DeShazier of the Saints website that he’s indeed hanging up his cleats. After sitting out the 2022 campaign, Graham returned to New Orleans for the 2023 season. After hauling in four touchdowns that season, the veteran wouldn’t commit to the 2024 campaign and ultimately didn’t end up joining a team. Still, the tight end avoided an official retirement announcement until now. Graham was one of the most productive receiving tight ends during his early days with the Saints. Between the 2011 and 2013 seasons, the former third-round pick averaged 90 catches for 1,169 yards and 12 touchdowns per season. His numbers slowly declined as he approached his age-30 campaign, but he remained productive in stops with the Seahawks and Packers. Following a two-year stop in Chicago, Graham sat out the 2022 season before reuniting with the Saints for the 2023 campaign. Graham will finish his career having hauled in 719 receptions for 8,545 yards and 89 touchdowns. He also amassed over $82M in career earnings.
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