Digital Sports Desk

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Archives for August 2024

Jin Young Ko Leads FM at Boston

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NORTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Jin Young Ko shot a 5-under 67 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead after three rounds at the inaugural FM Championship at TPC Boston.

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The South Korea native bookended her day with birdies on the first two holes and the last two holes and added two more against a single bogey to take control at 11 under heading into the final round Sunday.

“I just wanted to have good golf this week in Boston,” Ko said. “I mean, a lot of Korean fans out there, so they are cheering me so much. I feel really loved. Yeah, one more round to go. I will focus myself tomorrow.”

Lauren Coughlin sits alone in second place after carding her third straight 69, putting her at 9 under for the tournament.

“Still trying to go play my game, stay in my bubble, do what I could do, hit good shots, and try to make some putts,” Coughlin said.

Three golfers are within three strokes of Ko at 8 under: Spain’s Carlota Ciganda (67), Allisen Corpuz (67) and Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul (69).

“I just felt really comfortable with the putter this week. Been seeing a lot more putts go in,” Corpuz said. ” … Been able to get a few close and make the birdie putts.”

South Korean Haeran Ryu had shot a 10-under-par 62 on Friday to take a commanding six-stroke lead, but she had a Saturday to forget, suffering two double-bogeys among her first four holes and carding another five bogeys on her way to a 6-over 78.

Still, Ryu is tied for sixth with Germany’s Alexandra Forsterling (67) at 7 under despite the disastrous round and lurks within striking distance of her second career win.

At the other end of the spectrum, an impressive 8-under 64 vaulted China’s Ruixin Liu into contention. Her day included an eagle on the par-4 10th and eight birdies to go along with a pair of bogeys. That put her in a tie for eighth with Yealimi Noh (73).

“For me the biggest difference is I was able to hit more fairways compared to the first two days, so I gave myself more opportunities for birdies,” Liu said.

“I don’t have any expectation today because I barely made the cut … I’m just very grateful I’m able to play today, so I think that’s the most important reason why I’m able to shoot this low.”

Marina Alex, who led after one round, posted a 4-over 76 to fall into a tie for 46th at even par.

–Field Level Media

PGA TOUR Champ: Scheffler Up by Four

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ATLANTA – (PGA Tour Brunch) – World’s No. 1 Scottie Scheffler entered the second round holding a seven-shot lead and carded a 5-under (66) to take a four-shot lead at 21-under into the third round of the TOUR Championship.

Scheffler’s previous lowest 36-hole total since the FedEx Cup finale’s starting strokes format started in 2019 was 19-under by Scheffler, in 2022. The previous largest 36-hole biggest lead since the starting strokes format began in 2019 was two strokes by Scheffler, in 2022.

It’s Scheffler’s fifteenth career 36-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR and his first since the 2024 Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, earlier this season, when he led by three strokes. Scheffler is 5-for-14 to date converting the 36-hole lead/co-lead into victory.

Collin Morikawa, currently in 2nd, posted the low round of the week with an 8-under (63) to reach 17-under for the tournament. Morikawa held a share of the 36-hole lead at the 2023 TOUR Championship after setting the tournament’s 36-hole scoring record with rounds of 61-64.

Taylor Pendrith (T10) and Ludvig Åberg (T10) lead all TOUR Championship first-timers in the field through 36 holes, followed by Matthieu Pavon (T14), Shane Lowry (T14), Aaron Rai (T18), Akshay Bhatia (T21), Byeong Hun An (T25), Robert MacIntyre(T25) and Christiaan Bezuidenhout (28th).

TOUR Championship | Leaderboard After 36 Holes

1 Scottie Scheffler -10 65-66 (-11) -21

2 Collin Morikawa -4 66-63 (-13) -17

3 Xander Schauffele -8 70-64 (-8) -16

T4 Three players at -12

PGA Tour ’24 Concludes at TOUR Championship

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ATLANTA – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The 2024 FedEx Cup season comes to a dramatic conclusion with this week’s Tour Championship at the redesigned East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.

Only the Top 30 in the standings qualified for the third and final leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, but how many players have a legitimate shot of hoisting the trophy and claiming the $25 million bonus check come Sunday? World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler arrived in Atlanta as the top seed and owning a two-stroke lead for the third consecutive year, but he has yet to go on to win a FedEx Cup title.

TOUR Championship
Location: Atlanta,  Aug. 29-Sept. 1
Course: East Lake Golf Club (Par 71, 7,490 Yards)
Purse: $100M (Winner: $25M)
Defending Champion: Viktor Hovland
FedEx Cup Leader: Scottie Scheffler

HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: 1-6 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday: 1-2:30 p.m. (GC), 2:30-7 p.m. (NBC); Sunday: Noon-1:30 p.m. (GC), 1:30-6 p.m. (NBC)
Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday-Friday: 11:15 a.m.-6 p.m. ET; Saturday: Noon-7 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
X: @TOURChamp

Rich Hill to the Rescue

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox are activating 44-year-old left-hander Rich Hill, multiple outlets reported. Hill signed a minor league deal on Aug. 15 and made one scoreless, two-inning appearance at Triple-A Worcester.

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Hill has played for 13 franchises since making his MLB debut in 2005, including three previous stints with his hometown Red Sox.

Once activated, Hill will surpass 41-year-old Justin Verlander as the oldest player in the majors.

Hill last played in the big leagues in 2023 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres, going 8-14 with a 5.41 ERA in 32 games (27 starts).

He is 90-73 with a 4.01 ERA in 382 games (248 starts) with the Chicago Cubs (2005-08), Baltimore Orioles (2009), Red Sox (2010-12, 2015, 2022), Cleveland (2013), Los Angeles Angels (2014), New York Yankees (2014), Oakland Athletics (2016), Los Angeles Dodgers (2016-19), Minnesota Twins (2020), Tampa Bay Rays (2021), New York Mets (2021), Pirates (2023) and Padres (2023).

The Red Sox optioned right-hander Josh Winckowski to Worcester on Tuesday morning. Winckowski, 26, is 4-1 with a 4.37 ERA in 30 games (six starts) this season for Boston.

–Field Level Media

Two for Two

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – With their American League playoff hopes continuing to fade like the lazy days of Summer turning to the chilly evenings of September, the Boston Red Sox will look to bounce back from a series-opening, day-night sweep when they continue a rare five-game set against the visiting Toronto Blue Jays tonight.

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Much-needed wins were not in the cards for the Red Sox on Monday, as 4-1 and 7-3 losses dropped them to 5 1/2 games back of Minnesota, which currently holds the third and final wild-card spot.

“It’s not happening right now, to be honest with you,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “It’s been going on for a while here, right? Most of (the players) haven’t been in this situation before, right? Every pitcher matters, every at-bat matters. We just gotta make sure we slow it down. … We’re better than this. We know that.”

Every team goes through such rough patches over the course of the 162-game season, but Boston’s four straight losses and six in eight games have come at a less-than-ideal time and immediately following a 4-2 stretch.

Center fielder Jarren Duran was a major bright spot for the Boston offense, hitting home runs in both Monday games while doubling twice in the nightcap.

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“It’s nice to come up with those productive days, but we didn’t get the wins,” Duran said. “I think we’ve just got to get back on the horse … and believe in ourselves again.”

Four errors were too much for the Red Sox to overcome, and Toronto’s five-hit showing with runners in scoring position was key to the latter Monday victory, its season-high fifth straight.

“We were ready to go, and that’s a testament to the leaders of the team,” Blue Jays shortstop Ernie Clement said.

Boston’s Cooper Criswell (5-4, 4.41 ERA) is due to make his second straight start after throwing 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball last Wednesday at Houston.

Criswell has a 3.88 ERA in 14 starts and a 7.30 ERA in six relief outings this season. He has a 5.68 ERA in two career appearances (one start) against Toronto.

The Blue Jays had an outfield star of their own on Monday in Connecticut native George Springer, who also homered in both Monday games and has four over his last six games.

“It’s been a weird year for George,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “He’s been so consistent in the clubhouse, and he’s done such an amazing job to keep these young kids under wraps. It goes without saying, we need George to be George, and he’s been that for a good while now.”

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a two-hit game, giving him a .415 average since the All-Star break.

Yariel Rodriguez (1-5, 4.40) is slated to make Tuesday’s start for Toronto. The 27-year-old rookie has allowed nine runs in 9 1/3 innings across his last two starts, both no-decisions, against the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds.

Rodriguez has failed to finish five innings in three of his last five starts, including Wednesday against Cincinnati when he let a 5-0 lead slip with five runs allowed in 4 1/3 frames.

Rodriguez’s first and only career start against Boston was made official on Monday with the completion of a June 26 suspended game. He pitched a scoreless first inning before inclement weather halted play.

Boston’s Danny Jansen began that game as Rodriguez’s catcher, but was traded to the Red Sox last month. When play resumed Monday, Jansen became the first player in MLB history to appear for both teams in the same game.

–Field Level Media

D-Backs Make It Six in a Row

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – It was only one run, but when Boston’s DH Masataka Yoshida tried to stretch a stand-up double into a triple and was thrown out by seven feet, it stopped the Red Sox rally to be.

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Aside from the inexcusable Little League level mistake, the poor base-running with none out and a four run lead in the bottom of the fourth inning seemed harmless even when Sox catcher Connor Wong doubled immediately after the miscue. But, the damage was done, as Yoshida was the rally killer.

Two innings later, Arizona’s 3B Eugenio Suarez hit a three-run home run to help the visiting Diamondbacks take a 6-4 lead which led the Diamondbacks to complete a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox with a 7-5 victory Sunday. The win extended Arizona’s winning streak to seven.

The Diamondbacks trailed 4-3 until Suarez hit his 20th home run of the season in the sixth against Boston starter Tanner Houck. Suarez, who had four hits Sunday, collected eight hits and 10 RBIs in the series.

The Diamondbacks also received a solo home run from Geraldo Perdomo (No. 3 of the year) in the ninth as the victory stretched Arizona’s winning streak to six games. All six victories have come on the road.

Houck (8-9) allowed six runs on seven hits in six innings. He walked four and struck out two. Boston is winless in Houck’s last seven starts.

Triston Casas, Rafael Devers and Tyler O’Neill each homered for Boston, which led 4-0 after four innings.

Casas, who struck out four times in Saturday’s 4-1 loss to Arizona, hit a solo home run in the first inning, Devers hit a three-run homer in the fourth and O’Neill struck for a solo home run against Justin Martinez in the ninth. Devers’ home run was the 200th of his major league career.

After allowing the home run to O’Neill, Martinez retired the next three batters to collect his sixth save.

Arizona starter Merrill Kelly (4-0) earned the win despite allowing Boston’s first two home runs. He gave up four runs on seven hits in six innings and recorded five strikeouts.

The homers by Casas (No. 8) and Devers (No. 28) handed Boston a 4-0 lead, but Arizona scored three times in the fifth. Adrian Del Castillo scored on Perdomo’s bases-loaded groundout, Suarez scored on Corbin Carroll’s sacrifice fly and then Jake McCarthy’s RBI single drove in Luis Guillorme to make it a 4-3 game.

Pavin Smith singled and Del Castillo walked before Suarez belted the three-run homer that put the Diamondbacks in front 6-4. Perdomo’s home run extended the lead to 7-4 before O’Neill’s 23rd homer capped the scoring.

Boston, now on a three-game losing skid, slipped to 29-35 at home.

–Field Level Media

Bradley Takes the BMW Championship

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CASTLE ROCK – Keegan Bradley, the USA’s Ryder Cup captain for 2025, rode patriotic cheers to victory at the BMW Championship as he shot even-par 72 in the final round Sunday for a 12-under-par 276 at Castle Pines Golf Club in Colorado.

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It capped a dramatic resurgence for Bradley, who was named the US Ryder Cup captain last month and was the last man (No. 50) in the field this week.

Yet, his seventh PGA Tour win means Bradley will enter the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta next week in fourth place at 6 under based on the staggered start used at the season’s final tournament.

Bradley, who was not selected as a captain’s pick on the 2023 Ryder Cup team, heard cheers from the gallery of “Let’s go captain” and “U-S-A” everywhere he went. Bradley took a lead he would not relinquish with a par on the 537-yard, par-4 10th hole that broke a tie with Australian Adam Scott (72), who had a three-putt bogey on the hardest hole on the course.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (72) tied for 33rd at the BMW, but he enters East Lake as the top seed and will start at 10 under par. Xander Schauffele (71, tied for fifth) will be second at 8 under par and Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, who withdrew with a back injury from the BMW, will be third at 7 under.

Sam Burns shot a final-round-best 7-under-par 65 to finish tied for second with Scott and Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg (71) at 11-under 277. It’s the fourth career runner-up finish for Burns, who had eight birdies in his round and narrowly missed a bunker shot on the par-4 18th hole that would have tied the lead.

 

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Burns’ lone bogey on the par-5 14th slowed his rally, but he bounced back with consecutive birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 to enter the Tour Championship ninth in FedEx Cup points.

Australian Cam Davis (66) led the field with 24 birdies on the week and tied for fifth at 8-under 280 with Tommy Fleetwood of England (69) — who played his way into the Tour Championship as he moved from 31st to 22nd in the FedEx Cup standings — plus Schauffele and South Korea’s Si Woo Kim (70).

Chris Kirk (69) played his way into East Lake as he rose from 32nd to 26th after a tie for ninth with Sweden’s Alex Noren (75).

–James Nokes, Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Aug 25

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While We’re Young (Ideas) | On College Football’s Future
What is ahead for College Football?

By TERRY LYONS, Editor in Chief, Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – This week, the NWSL (National Women’s Soccer League) struck a new Collective Bargaining Agreement that looks more like the English Premier League model than the NFL, NBA or NHL. For the women, there will be more pay but the annual Draft will get tossed. A growing cadre of talented collegiate players or incoming internationals will be free agents able to sign with the team of their choice.

While We’re Young (Ideas) is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

That might sound strange to North American sports fans, but it can be said that the system mimics NCAA talent in all sports who are recruited to play by collegiate coaches and their bagmen, who are now able too offer full scholarships and unprecedented amounts of NIL money, as long as the college boosters stay with the program.

While writing on college programs, please note that the University of Connecticut is – once again – on the block for a possible move to the Big 12, a college conference aggressively seeking to out-position the other Power (is it four?) Conferences, while destroying anything in its path, like the Pac 12.

UConn is near and dear to the Digital Sports Desk legacy, as it was here that you first read that UConn had agreed to return to the BIG EAST in 2020, leaving the American Athletic Conference which was an off-shoot of the original BIG EAST but with a preference for the sport of football rather than hoops.

Now, big time college football is luring UConn back to the negotiating table (for the third time, no less) and the decision could have serious ramifications for the little old BIG EAST, which would return to 10 teams of yore.

The bottom line is that NCAA football is beginning to look like European futbol as much or more that the NWSL could ever hope for in the near future.

It’s not a stretch to think of UConn as Manchester United, Alabama as Arsenal, and Georgia as Liverpool. That might make Manchester City a bit like Penn State, Tottenham Hotspurs a version of Michigan, and Spain’s Real Madrid and FC Barcelona take on characteristics of USC and UCLA.

Playing the comparison out, the short term goal is to win the EPL/Conference championship, whether it be the ACC, SEC, BIG 12 or Big Ten, but the longer term strategy is to join and win in the Champions League.

The mirror of the Champions League for College Football will be the 12-Team CFB Playoff coming in 2025. That is where a national champion will be crowned and with it the cash and prestige to keep the coffers filled and alum happy for at least one more year before some other conference gets gobbled up or sees its longtime anchors disappear.

Do you hear that UNC, Clemson, and Florida State? Where might you be headed in 2025-26?

Florida State, by the way, dropped its opener on Saturday, bowing to an upstart Georgia Tech squad, 24-21, in Dublin, Ireland. Georgia Tech and SMU have been tabbed as the “sleepers” of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The hometown favorites, Boston College, might be more of a snoozer than sleeper as the Eagles are likely to be 1-3 after an opener vs a very angry Florida State Seminole team at Tallahassee, a home breather vs Duquesne, a road jaunt to Mizzou and another home game – the annual Red Bandana Game – against Michigan State (winnable).

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Once upon a time, the Boston Red Sox were tagged as the second hottest team in the American League, but, as of August 24, the Sox are back to their inconsistent ways, dropping the second of a three game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Fenway. The Sox are 5-6 in their last 11, 10-11 in 21 games during August, and 14-19 in 33 games since the MLB All-Star break. Going into the series finale against the D-Backs, Boston is four games out of the Wild Card slot. … Boston starters, such as Cutter Crawford (loser on Saturday, and (8-11) on the season, are reason for much of the inconsistency. Sunday will mark Game 129 of the 2024 season for the Sox, also home game 64 of 82.

The Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and catcher Danny Jansen will be making history this Monday when Jansen will become the first major leaguer to appear in a game for both teams if he plays catcher for the Boston in the resumption of a suspended game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

“He’s catching. Let’s make history,” Boston manager Alex Cora said Friday before the Red Sox dropped the opener of a three-game series against Arizona 12-2.

Jansen was about to bat for Toronto when the June 26 game against Boston was suspended in the second inning because of heavy rain. It was rescheduled for this Monday as part of a doubleheader.

He was traded from Toronto to Boston on July 27.

“I don’t know if it’s set in for me. It’s definitely a cool thing,” Jansen said. “Honestly, when I heard about it, I didn’t think I would be the first. The game has been around for so long. It’s one of those oddities that happen in this sport. It’s extremely rare and cool.”

AT BAT: Major League Baseball recently announced the tournament format, pool play opponents and sites for the 2026 World Baseball Classic. There are four pools of five teams each, with one slot open for a qualifier in each pool. The United States will face a formidable challenge from Mexico, then hope to outplay Italy, Great Britain and the qualifier TBA. As in past years, San Juan and Tokyo will host first round match-ups with tough North American (Canada), Americas (Panama) and Caribbean (Cuba) world teams heading to Puerto Rico while Japan plays host to Australia, Korea, Czechia and a qualifier.

The semifinals and finals will be played in Miami.
Artist’s rendition of Bristol Motor Speedway set-up for Baseball (MLB)

SPEED RACERS: On August 2, 2025, Major League Baseball will again expands its horizons within the United States when they stage a game at the famed Bristol Motor Speedway in northeastern Tennessee. The Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves will rev-it-up for the special occasion as Baseball tries to one-up their highly successful “Field of Dreams“ effort. … The one-off game will be part of a three-game series as the Reds are the home team.

GOLDEN NUGGETS & TIDBITS: The Boston Bruins dealt goalkeeper Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators back on June 24. In doing so, the Bruins made a longterm commitment to their ‘24 starter Jeremy Swayman but Swagman and the Bruins have yet to come to terms on a new contract. For that matter, the Senators have yet to sign Ullmark to an extension that was planned when the deal went down. Stay tuned as camp opens in about one month. … The PGA Tour is down to its penultimate week of play. This week, the best 50 players on the season-log FedEx Cup point listing are competing in Castle Rock, Colorado with the Top 30 to qualify for the TOUR Championship next week in Atlanta. The BMW Championship is the oldest non-major on the PGA TOUR schedule, dating back to 1899. It was known as the Western Open for most of the time. The tournament is being played at its 11th different venue since 2007 and the first in Colorado since 2014 . Why the break? Altitude is a bitch! … The Castle Pines GC is playing as a Par 72 at 8,130 yards, the longest in PGA Tour history. Through 54 holes, Keegan Bradley (Vermont and Hopkinton, Mass) – (-12), Adam Scott (Australia), along with Sweden’s Alex Soren and Ludvig Åberg are ripping up the course, finishing Saturday’s round at (-12), (-11) and (-10). Xander Schauffele and Denver’s Wyndham Clark are four back of the leaders. … With a $75 million prize pool, the winner of the TOUR Championship will bank $18 million. … While St. John’s grad Keegan Bradley was leading at the BMW, another St. John’s guy, Mike Repole (think Vitamin Water) was cleaning up at Saturday’s Travers Stakes in Saratoga (Sponsored by Draft Kings). Repole’s bay colt, Fierceness, took the $1,250,000 purse Travers with John R. Velazquez riding to the $787,500 prize, nipping Torpedo Anna at the wire. … Meanwhile, on the St. John’s campus, coach Rick Pitino’s office was robbed of memorabilia he was scheduled to sign. The perp was nabbed, a Long Island City man was arrested in connection with the robbery. Emanuel Yakubov was nabbed by the 107th Precinct at 9 p.m. Friday, according to the NYPD. He faces multiple charges, including third-degree burglary, petit larceny, third-degree criminal trespassing, and fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Security footage tipped off the NYPD sleuths.

Diamondbacks Ride Win Streak

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The visiting Arizona Diamondbacks can complete a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox with a victory Sunday. Arizona won the opener, 12-2, on Friday night and posted a 4-1 victory on Saturday. The Diamondbacks enter Sunday’s matchup on a five-game winning streak, all on the road.

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Saturday’s win gave the Diamondbacks their 11th series victory in the last 12 tries. The only exception came last weekend, when Tampa Bay swept a three-game series as Arizona began its nine-game trip. The Diamondbacks are 25-8 since the All-Star break.

Arizona’s starting pitchers — Ryne Nelson on Friday and Zac Gallen on Saturday — combined to allow two runs on seven hits in 12 innings.

“Those guys (the Diamondbacks) are really good,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “What they do is not just against us — it’s against everybody. It’s a different type of pitching, too. Different angles, they change speeds, they don’t give in. You have to be very stubborn in the zone.

“They’re really good at what they do. They’re probably one of the best teams in the big leagues right now. They’re athletic, they run the bases well, they put good at-bats — it’s a complete team.”

Arizona’s Eugenio Suarez has four hits and seven RBIs in the series. He collected five RBIs — including a grand slam — on Friday and had a two-run double in Saturday’s win.

Boston’s pitchers walked six on Saturday, including four in the seventh when Arizona scored two runs without getting a hit.

“When the pitcher has good stuff or he’s attacking and we’re not getting hits, I think our patience will pay off,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “We’re going to get some baserunners and create some run-scoring opportunities. That’s what we did today.”

A walk forced in the first run in the seventh, and the second scored on a wild pitch by Brennan Bernardino.

“At this level we cannot do that, obviously,” Cora said. “We had the right matchups. It just didn’t work out.”

 

 

Sunday’s pitching matchup has Arizona right-hander Merrill Kelly (3-0, 3.63 ERA) facing Boston righty Tanner Houck (8-8, 3.01).

Kelly has made two starts since returning from the 60-day injured list with a shoulder injury. He gave up two runs in five innings to beat the Phillies in the first start, then allowed six runs and eight hits in five innings during an 8-7 loss to Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg on Aug. 18.

Kelly has faced the Red Sox twice in his career and has a 1-1 record with a 1.26 ERA. He has 19 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings against Boston, and struck out 10 in 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball against the Red Sox last season.

Houck has made three straight quality starts, and gave up three runs (two earned) in six innings of a 5-4 loss to Houston on Monday. He made his only career start against Arizona last season — opposing Kelly in that 10-strikeout game — and took a loss after surrendering four runs on six hits in four innings. Arizona’s Corbin Carroll and Geraldo Perdomo each homered against Houck.

The Red Sox are expecting outfielder Tyler O’Neill to play Sunday after he missed the last three games because of a swollen finger on his left hand.

“He should be in the lineup,” Cora said.

–Field Level Media

Patriots: Jacoby Brissett to Start

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FOXBOROUGH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Quarterback Jacoby Brissett will start the Patriots’ preseason finale against the Washington Commanders on Sunday before being replaced by rookie Drake Maye, New England first-year head coach Jerod Mayo announced.

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Mayo also noted on Friday that quarterbacks Joe Milton III and Bailey Zappe will draw into the game as well.

“Jacoby is going to start the game off,” Mayo told reporters. “Drake will play as well. Joe will play as well. Now, you guys can sleep. Bailey will play. We do have some players dealing with small things that probably won’t play and get ready for the regular season — some of our proven players.”

Mayo has yet to announce which quarterback will start the Patriots’ season opener against the host Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 8.

Brissett, 31, is in his ninth NFL season and second go-round with the Patriots after stops in Indianapolis, Miami, Cleveland and Washington. He has appeared in 79 games and is 18-30 as a starter, completing 61.3 percent of his passes for 10,574 yards with 51 touchdowns and 23 interceptions.

Maye, who turns 22 next week, was the No. 3 overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft in April. He was a two-year starter at North Carolina.

–Field Level Media