Penguins Win Second Straight Stanley Cup
The Pittsburgh Penguins joined elite category in NHL history, as they became the first team since 1998 with back-to-back Stanley Cup titles by shutting out the Nashville Predators in Game 6 on Sunday night 2-0. Matt Murray had 27 saves in the shutout effort, as the Penguins took home their fifth title in franchise history. Sidney Crosby was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for the second time in his career, as he led all scorers in the finals with seven points, including one goal and six assists. Patric Hornqvist led the offense on Sunday night, scoring the game-winning goal with 1:35 left. That go-ahead goal went off the body of Predators goalie Pekka Rinne for the first goal of the night. Carl Hagelin added an empty-netter late, sealing another road clincher for the Penguins, as all five of their Stanley Cups have been clinched on the road. The Predators picked a bad time to suffer their first regulation loss at home this postseason, although they did have a goal by Colton Sissons taken away by an early whistle just 67 seconds into the game. Nashville also finished the night 0-for-4 on the power play. Pittsburgh used these breaks to cap off their 50th season with another Stanley Cup Title, as Sidney Crosby brought home the third of his career.
Scherzer Joins 2K Strikeout Club in Nats' Loss
Max Scherzer had the strikeout ball going for him again on Sunday afternoon, and it took him just four to join the 2,000-strikeout club in his young career. The right-hander ties Nolan Ryan for third-youngest to reach the milestone, as he completed the feat with a fourth-inning punch-out of Nomar Mazara. Although, he was out-pitched by Austin Bibens-Dirks in what was a 5-1 Washington Nationals loss to the Texas Rangers. Bibens-Dirks allowed a run on three hits in seven innings to improve to 2-0 on the season. The rookie retired 19 in a row at one point after allowing hits to the first two batters he faced, including a leadoff home run to Brian Goodwin. Scherzer finished the day with 10 strikeouts, but surrendered three runs in 7.1 innings, but only two of those runs were earned. Shin-Soo Choo helped the Rangers overcome Scherzer's record-setting afternoon with his ninth home run of the season. Elvis Andrus' two-run triple and Mazara's sacrifice fly is what put the game out of reach for the Nats. With the win, the Rangers completed their first road sweep of the season, as they move on to visit the Houston Astros on Monday. Meanwhile, the Nationals stay home to host the Atlanta Braves Monday night.
Judge Slugs Record-Long HR in Yankees' Rout
Aaron Judge amazes on a daily basis, although on Sunday afternoon he had people in disbelief as to what they were seeing. The rookie not only went deep twice to improve his league-leading home run number to 21, but he also hit one 496 feet in the New York Yankees' 14-3 blowout of the Baltimore Orioles. That distance sets a record for the longest since ESPN began tracking home runs. The 6-foot-7 slugger also leads the American League with a .344 average and 47 RBI after Sunday's contest. The Yankees offense as a whole has been raking as of late, as Gary Sanchez went deep for a seconds straight game and Starlin Castro drove in five runs and went deep. A day after putting up six runs in the opening inning, the Yankees recorded a five-run first inning off of Orioles starter Kevin Gausman, who fell to 3-5 on the season. The right-hander gave up seven runs on eight hits in just 3.1 innings. No one can figure out this Yankees' offense, which has scored at least eight runs in five straight games, which is their longest such streak since 1939. They have won all five of those games and outscored opponents 55-9 in that span. They will take that high-powered offense out west to visit the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. The Orioles on the other hand will head to the Windy City to visit the White Sox.
The Pittsburgh Penguins joined elite category in NHL history, as they became the first team since 1998 with back-to-back Stanley Cup titles by shutting out the Nashville Predators in Game 6 on Sunday night 2-0. Matt Murray had 27 saves in the shutout effort, as the Penguins took home their fifth title in franchise history. Sidney Crosby was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for the second time in his career, as he led all scorers in the finals with seven points, including one goal and six assists. Patric Hornqvist led the offense on Sunday night, scoring the game-winning goal with 1:35 left. That go-ahead goal went off the body of Predators goalie Pekka Rinne for the first goal of the night. Carl Hagelin added an empty-netter late, sealing another road clincher for the Penguins, as all five of their Stanley Cups have been clinched on the road. The Predators picked a bad time to suffer their first regulation loss at home this postseason, although they did have a goal by Colton Sissons taken away by an early whistle just 67 seconds into the game. Nashville also finished the night 0-for-4 on the power play. Pittsburgh used these breaks to cap off their 50th season with another Stanley Cup Title, as Sidney Crosby brought home the third of his career.
Scherzer Joins 2K Strikeout Club in Nats' Loss
Max Scherzer had the strikeout ball going for him again on Sunday afternoon, and it took him just four to join the 2,000-strikeout club in his young career. The right-hander ties Nolan Ryan for third-youngest to reach the milestone, as he completed the feat with a fourth-inning punch-out of Nomar Mazara. Although, he was out-pitched by Austin Bibens-Dirks in what was a 5-1 Washington Nationals loss to the Texas Rangers. Bibens-Dirks allowed a run on three hits in seven innings to improve to 2-0 on the season. The rookie retired 19 in a row at one point after allowing hits to the first two batters he faced, including a leadoff home run to Brian Goodwin. Scherzer finished the day with 10 strikeouts, but surrendered three runs in 7.1 innings, but only two of those runs were earned. Shin-Soo Choo helped the Rangers overcome Scherzer's record-setting afternoon with his ninth home run of the season. Elvis Andrus' two-run triple and Mazara's sacrifice fly is what put the game out of reach for the Nats. With the win, the Rangers completed their first road sweep of the season, as they move on to visit the Houston Astros on Monday. Meanwhile, the Nationals stay home to host the Atlanta Braves Monday night.
Judge Slugs Record-Long HR in Yankees' Rout
Aaron Judge amazes on a daily basis, although on Sunday afternoon he had people in disbelief as to what they were seeing. The rookie not only went deep twice to improve his league-leading home run number to 21, but he also hit one 496 feet in the New York Yankees' 14-3 blowout of the Baltimore Orioles. That distance sets a record for the longest since ESPN began tracking home runs. The 6-foot-7 slugger also leads the American League with a .344 average and 47 RBI after Sunday's contest. The Yankees offense as a whole has been raking as of late, as Gary Sanchez went deep for a seconds straight game and Starlin Castro drove in five runs and went deep. A day after putting up six runs in the opening inning, the Yankees recorded a five-run first inning off of Orioles starter Kevin Gausman, who fell to 3-5 on the season. The right-hander gave up seven runs on eight hits in just 3.1 innings. No one can figure out this Yankees' offense, which has scored at least eight runs in five straight games, which is their longest such streak since 1939. They have won all five of those games and outscored opponents 55-9 in that span. They will take that high-powered offense out west to visit the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. The Orioles on the other hand will head to the Windy City to visit the White Sox.
