Spanish Springs grad and future Nevada pitcher, Ryan Anderson, made his first West Coast League start on Friday.
Anderson is spending the summer pitching for the Walla Walla Sweets in Walla Walla, Wash. in the WCL – which is widely regarded as one of the premier summer baseball leagues in the country. Eighty WCL players were selected in this year’s Major League draft.
Anderson (the Sparks Tribune Male Athlete of the Year) was dominant in his first start against the big boys, allowing just two hits over seven shutout innings in a 3-2 win over Yakima Valley. He struck out six and only walked one.
He’s now thrown 10 shutout innings on the season.
Check out Sweets Scoop with Ryan Anderson! https://t.co/thBmwKfXXY
— Walla Walla Sweets (@WWSweets) June 25, 2016
“I think commanding the zone with my fastball has been really big for me,” Anderson told the Sweets’ Zach Bigley. “I’ve just been kind of painting the outside corner, inside corner.
“I’m feeling pretty good about (about adjusting to college hitters). I have a lot of confidence after these two appearances so I’m just going to keep rolling with it I think.”
The Sweets are 13-9, four games back of Victoria (British Columbia) for first place in the WCL North Division.
PGA Tour stops in Reno this week
The Barracuda Championship tees off at Montreux Golf and Country Club this week for the 18th time.
The tournament is usually held in late July/early August but was bumped up a month due to golf being added to list of sports in the Rio Olympics.
The full field was released on Friday. There is no shortage of names worth noticing. J.J. Henry is returning after he won the tourney for the for the second time in four years last summer. He bested Kyle Reifers on a second playoff hole, sinking an eagle putt from the fringe, 13 feet out. Reifers is also in the field.
Billy Hurley III is competing after picking up his first professional win over the weekend at the Quicken Loans National – Tiger Woods’ tournament in Maryland. Clinging to a one-stroke lead down the stretch, Hurley III chipped in on 15 for birdie then sunk a 25-foot birdie putt on 16 to pull away.
For multiple reasons, Hurley III’s win was immediately being called ‘the story of the year’ by golf pundits. So yes, he enters the week with a little momentum in his favor.
Another golfer to watch is 21-year-old Jon Rohm. The Arizona State alumnus also golfed in the Quicken Loans Invitational – his first tournament as a professional. He was not overwhelmed by the stage and finished in a tie for third at -13 – four strokes back of Hurley III.
A number of Rohm’s putts on Sunday missed by a blade of grass or two. With a little more fortune, Rohm could’ve realistically raised the trophy his first time out. He enters the weekend with as good a shot as anyone.
Adding another layer of intrigue to this year’s tournament, the final qualifying spot for the British Open is up for grabs.
The final spot in #TheOpen, originally available @GbrClassic, has been moved to @CudaChamp: https://t.co/BexWJFdpTx pic.twitter.com/XCOiEes7MH
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) June 27, 2016
Summer? What summer?
I made a Walmart run last week to stock up on notepads and pens. I’ve made a habit of churning out pages of notes then proceeding to lose the pen. It’s a gift.
As I was debating which color of pen would be the most fun to write with (these are the things sports writers ponder in their down time), I noticed a mother pushing a cart stocked with school supplies. Her son wanted a new pair of scissors. Unfortunately for him, mom said last year’s pair would work just fine. Dangit, mom.
Then I thought to myself, ‘back to school shopping already?’ Seasons come and go. Shopping season doesn’t. It’s forever.
I made a call to the Washoe County School District a couple days later to find out the first day of school for a story I was working on: August 8.
Schools starts in 41 days. Football season starts 18 days later.
I have every intention of enjoying the remaining summer weeks and the weekends that will vanish once sports start again, but at a certain point they will start becoming bittersweet.
I’m just as excited for football season as the next guy/player/coach/parent/fan. However, I’m less enthused at the prospect of standing on the sideline at 9:30 p.m. on a Friday night with feeling in my extremities fading.
Summer, please stay.
Nathan can also be reached via email at nshoup@sparkstrib.com. His weekly column, ‘Shoup Shots,’ runs in the hard copy of the Sparks Tribune every Tuesday morning.
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