Getty Aristides Aquino of the Cincinnati Reds.
Welcome to the roundup of must-see sports news from Saturday, highlighted by Cincinnati Reds rookie Aristides Aquino continuing his historic start with a trio of home runs, USA Basketball cutting down its roster, a WNBA fight between the Wings and Mercury and some highlights to wrap up the first week of the NFL preseason.
All this and more as we get you up to speed with the sports world on this Sunday!
Reds Rookie Aristides Aquino Rewrites History With Homers
Aristides Aquino of the Cincinnati Reds rounds third base after hitting his third home run of the game.
Aristides Aquino went deep not once, not twice, but three times against the Chicago Cubs on Saturday in a 10-1 victory.
Aquino hit dingers in each of his first three at bats, giving him seven in just 10 major league games. With that feat, he tied Trevor Story for most home runs through the first 10 games of a career.
The 25-year-old became the first rookie and 12th player overall in MLB history to homer in three consecutive innings.
“I’m not focused about my numbers,” Aquino said. “I don’t care about what I’ve done. The big thing is the team and to go out there and win as many games as we can.”
Aquino had a chance to reach rare air with a fourth homer, but he was walked on four pitches in the sixth inning. In his final at-bat, he struck out swinging.
Aquino is filling in for Yasiel Puig, who the team traded to the Cleveland Indians at the deadline. Fans are quickly forgetting that ever happened thanks to Aquino’s ability to deliver homers at a torrid pace.
USA Basketball Roster Gets Trimmed as Young Stars Shine
With many of the biggest stars in the basketball world turning down the chance to play for Team USA at the FIBA World Cup, the young guns are getting a chance to shine for the Red, White and Blue.
There are currently 17 players left on the roster, with Thaddeus Young and Bam Adebayo being the latest to get cut.
The group of players making the trip west to California for practices Aug. 13-15 and an exhibition against Spain on Aug. 16 are: Harrison Barnes, Jaylen Brown, Kyle Kuzma, Brook Lopez, Kyle Lowry, Khris Middleton, Donovan Mitchell, Mason Plumlee, Marcus Smart, Jayson Tatum, De’Aaron Fox, Joe Harris, P.J. Tucker, Myles Turner, Kemba Walker, Marvin Bagley III and Derrick White.
“It’s the beginning, a new tournament, another World Cup, and I think our guys are making progress,” new U.S. coach Gregg Popovich said. “They haven’t played together before. Showing great effort, doing a good job in a lot of different ways, just trying to get used to each other and form a team. We’re still in those early stages of trying to get together, figure out how we want to play and learn about each other.”
The FIBA World Cup is from starts Aug. 31 in China.
GETTING HEATED: Fight Breaks Out in WNBA Game Between Phoenix Mercury and Dallas Wings
A rare fight broke out in the WNBA on Saturday night as the Phoenix Mercury and Dallas Wings battled in an intense game.
Brittney Griner chased after Dallas rookie Kristine Anigwe after the two got into a scuffle in the paint battling for a rebound. In all, six players were ejected for the fight. Along with Griner, Briann January and Diana Taurasi also got the boot for Phoenix. Kayla Thornton and Kaela Davis joined Anigwe in the locker room early for Dallas.
“You’ve got to protect yourself, that’s just the bottom line,” Taurasi told AZCentral. “[Griner] protected herself. We all have her back. We’re with her.
“BG gets pretty much beat up every single game. The minute she steps on the floor, she gets basically physically abused. A person can just take so much. When you get hit in the face and the refs aren’t willing to protect you, you’ve got to protect yourself. They definitely don’t pay you enough money not to protect yourself in this league.”
Dallas won the game 80-77.
FOOTBALL IS BACK: Preseason Week 1 Wraps Up With Some Solid Highlights
Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes
Sure, defending NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes played great in his short preseason debut. But this preseason, the real MVP so far has been Nathan Peterman.
The Raiders backup QB — who famously tossed just three touchdowns to 12 interceptions during his two seasons in Buffalo — provided the highlight of Saturday’s slate of games with a 50-yard scramble.
That Mahomes guy was pretty good, too. The Chiefs quarterback played just one series, leading Kansas City to a touchdown. He was a perfect 4-for-4 for 66 yards, including a dime to tight end Travis Kelce.
With the first week of the preseason in the books, there are just three exhibition games left before the NFL’s 100th season officially kicks off. The Bears and Packers will do the honors, facing off on Thursday, Sept. 5.
DON’T MISS THESE STORIES: Rounding Up the Top Sports Headlines
GettyQuarterback Josh Johnson has signed with the Detroit Lions.
- QB Josh Johnson signs with Lions — his 13th NFL team
- Alabama loses highly-touted true freshman running back Trey Sanders to foot injury
- Bryson DeChambeau infuriates playing partners with slow pace
- Tim Tebow’s baseball season over due to injury
WHAT’S ON TAP IN THE SPORTS WORLD ON SUNDAY
Patrick Reed of the United States the 18th hole during the third round of The Northern Trust.
PGA TOUR: FedExCup Playoffs – THE NORTHERN TRUST
Patrick Reed took the lead with a 4-under 67 that gave him a one-shot edge over Abraham Ancer of Mexico going into the final round. Reed has not won since the 2018 Masters.
This year’s FedExCup Playoffs consist of just three tournaments, with the top 70 players in the standings following this weekend’s THE NORTHERN TRUST advancing to the BMW Championship. The top 30 will then book a trip to East Lake for the TOUR Championship, which will begin on August 22nd.
FINAL ROUND: Today; Noon ET (Golf Channel), 2 p.m. ET (CBS)
TENNIS: Rogers Cup, Finals
Rafael Nadal advanced to the final when Gael Monfils withdrew before their semifinal. He will face eighth-seeded Daniil Medvedev, who defeated Karen Khachanov.
On the women’s side, teenager Bianca Andreescu advanced to the Rogers Cup title match to face Serena Williams.
WOMEN: 1:30 p.m. ET (TENNIS)
MEN: 4 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Missed Yesterday’s Roundup? Click here for it.
