(PUJOLS)—In part it’s a sentimental gesture. In part, it’s a hope that there’s a little something left in the tank. The Cardinals’ signing of Albert Pujols as a platoon-DH and part-time first baseman gets one this generation’s greatest hitters back to St. Louis. Pujols is 42 now. His best eleven years were with the Cardinals, followed by a decade with California and Los Angeles where his skills slowly eroded and the pennants the Angels anticipated when they signed him never happened. It’s one last go-around. Expectations might be measured by the modesty of his contract—one year, $2.5 million.
But to see him hit one more………
An instant memory.
(SHOW-ME BASKETBALL)—The top men’s and women’s high school basketball players in Missouri this year are Ysabella Fontleroy of Springfield Kickapoo High School and Luke Norweather of Blair Oaks in Wardsville. She has verbally committed to Baylor. Norweather is evaluating invitations.
Missouri has a mixed record of keeping its top high school players at colleges and universities in Missouri. Nine of the twenty Mr. Show-Me Basketball players have played with Missouri teams for all or parts of their college careers (including Norweather who has not declared). Onlysix of twenty Miss Show-Me Basketball players have stayed in Missouri, the most notable being Sophie Cunningham who now plays in the WNBA.
The Missouri Basketball Coaches Association makes the awards.
RACING:
(NASCAR)—This was a weekend for people named Chastain. Jessica won an OSCAR Sunday night for her portrayal of the wife of televangelist Jim Bakker, Tammy Faye.
Ross Chastain, a Florida watermelon farmer who is 15 years younger than the Oscar-winner and not directly related to her, beat and banged his way through the last turns at the Circuit of the Americas to become the third first-time winner of the year in the NASCAR Cup series. He’s also the sixth different driver to pick up a win in the series’ first six races.
Austin Cindric and Chase Briscoe also have picked up their first Cup wins this year.
Chastain’s win, his first in 121 Cup races also is the first win for Trackhouse Racing, the team that bought out Chip Ganassi last year. It’s Chastain’s fourth straight finish in the top three (he was second in the last two races).
Chastain, A. J. Allmendinger, and Alex Bowman fought for the lead going into the nineteenth turn of the last lap with Chastain who bumped the rear of Allmendinger’s car, sending him into the side of Bowman, spinning out Allmendinger. Chastain beat Bowman to the line by 1.3 seconds. Allmendinger wound up 33rd.
(FORMULA 1)—Max Verstappen, his problems in the last race behind him, picked up his first win the year at the Saudi-Arabia Grand Prix, finishing ahead of the two Ferraris that swept the top spots the previous weekend. Teammate Sergio Perez, who started from pole, provided a Red Bull bookend to the Ferraris of Charles LeClerc (the previous week’s winner) and his teammate, Carlos Sainz.
Mercedes continued its early-season struggles with George Russell finishing fifth and teammate Lewis Hamilton struggling home tenth.
(INDYCAR)—INDYCAR heads to one of his most popular venues, Long Beach, the weekend after next, the third race of the year in the series.
(Photo credit: Bob Priddy)