The Chicago Cubs have gotten most of the attention leading up to game one of the world series. When you go seven plus decades without winning a pennant and get your first shot at a World Series title in more than a century with a team that finished with the best record in baseball, that's understandable.
But after last night's 6-0 Cleveland win over the Cubs, the franchise that's had a fair dry spell of its own between championships has put the baseball world on notice: take us lightly at your own peril.
Cleveland ace Corey Kluber was virtually untouchable, becoming the first pitcher in World series history to strike out eight batters in the first three innings. He pitched into the seventh and gave up just four hits. Jon Lester had trouble locating his pitches in the first, walking two and giving up two runs, but it was the number nine hitter for Cleveland that really put the hurt on the Cubs. Roberto Perez re-wrote the record books, with a fourth-inning solo home run and a three-run drive in the eighth, becoming the first Cleveland player and the only number nine batter to homer twice in a World Series game. Game two is tonight with Trevor Bauer scheduled for Cleveland. He lasted less than an inning last time out when stitches came loose and bloodied a finger on his pitching hand, an injury he initially sustained trying to repair a drone. You can't make this stuff up. He'll be opposed by Jake Arrieta for the Cubs. The game time has been moved up to 7pm instead of 8 due to a rainy forecast in Cleveland tonight.
In the NHL the Boston Bruins were without starting goaltender Tuukka Rask and back-up Anton Khubodin, both out with injuries, so they turned to rookie Malcolm Subban, younger brother of superstar defenseman P.K., who made his second pro start, and it went about as well as his first. Subban was yanked from a game against St. Louis last year after giving up 3 goals on the first six shots he saw, and while he threw a shut-out in the first period last night, he fell apart in the second, giving up 3 goals including two in a 12-second span as the Bruins got plastered 5-0 by the Minnesota Wild. Subban was replaced by fellow rookie Zane McIntyre, who gave up two more, but this is not just the goalies' fault. The Bruins did next to nothing on offense, their defense was porous, and the real villains here are the folks in the Bruins front office, who addressed none of these problems in the off-season and are still trying to justify trading away two big stars in Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton and having nothing to show for it in return. It's going to be a long winter for this team and by spring they'll be a no-show in the playoffs for the third straight season.
Locally the high school soccer playdowns are in full swing. In Division one girls' soccer Colchester got goals from Ani McMannon, Ava Hayes and Tabitha Myers, and the second seeded Lakers beat North Country 3-0. In division two Rylee Nichols scored twice as Mill River beat Green Mountain Valley 3-1. In division three play Hannah Veysey also netted two goals to lead Green Mountain past Enosburg 4-0, while Ashley Bates went hat trick for Leland and Gray in their 4-0 win over Twin Valley.
In Division one boys' soccer South Burlington beat Mount Mansfield 5-0 and everyone is buzzing about one of the two goals scored by Patrick O'Hara, who spun off several defenders and somehow kept control of the ball on a 50-yard individual run that ended with the ball in the back of the net.
Top seeded Essex beat Spaulding 3-0 with two goals from Tristan Salgado in the win. Burlington topped North Country 6-0, and Champlain Valley shut out Colchester 5-0. Rice topped Brattleboro 6-1 with Eric Benz scoring twice. Jacob Godfrey was the hero for Rutland, his header accounting for the only goal of the game in Rutland's 1-0 win over BFA-St. Albans, and St. Johnsbury got by Middlebury on penalty kicks after a scoreless regulation time draw.
In division two boys' play Milton topped Fair haven 13-0, Lake Region beat BFA-Fairfax 6-1, third seeded Harwood shut out Springfield 10-0, U-32 beat Vergennes 8-2, Green mountain Valley got by Otter Valley 6-0, Montpelier beat Mt. Abraham 7-2, Woodstock over Lamoille 3-0, and Burr and Burton beat Lyndon by that same score.
Field Hockey playdowns, Francesca Frost scored the only goal in Mount Mansfield's 1-0 win over Burlington, and goals by Sophie Tanen and Marina Rotella sent Rutland past Middlebury 2-1. In division three play it went down to a shooutout between Montpelier and Milton after a 1-1 tie in regulation. It was Amber Pagani striking in the third shootout round to give Montpelier the win.
