Month: July 2023

The St. Louis Cardinals have traded closer Jordan Hicks to the Toronto Blue Jays for righty pitching prospects Adam Kloffenstein and Sem Robberse. The Cardinals were said to be working on an extension with Hicks, but went ahead with a trade before the deadline at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Hicks is the second Cardinals reliever the Blue Jays have acquired this month, after picking up lefty Génesis Cabrera last week. The Blue Jays acquired Hicks just one day after placing closer Jordan Romano on the injured list with a back issue.

The 27-year-old Hicks is having his best season in the major leagues and will be a free agent this winter. He currently has a 3.68 ERA in 41 2/3 innings this season, holding opposing hitters to a .210/.288/.238 batting line and zero home runs in 28 2/3 innings since May 1.

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The Texas Rangers have acquired starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery from the St. Louis Cardinals, less than 24 hours after the Rangers acquired veteran starter Max Scherzer from the New York Mets.

Per MLB.com the Rangers will also acquire righty Chris Stratton from the Cards, with the Rangers sending two top 30 prospects — righty Tekoah Roby and infielder Thomas Saggese — and lefty pitcher John King to St. Louis.

Montgomery pitched for the Yankees for five-plus seasons before being sent to St. Louis last year for Harrison Bader. He will be a free agent at the end of this season after signing a one-year, $10 million deal with the Cardinals for 2023. In 21 starts this season, the left-handed Montgomery has a 3.42 ERA (125 ERA+) and a 3.09 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Over the course of his seven-season career, the 30-year-old has accumulated a 3.77 ERA (113 ERA+) and a 3.34 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

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Cincinnati Bengals coach Zac Taylor told reporters that quarterback Joe Burrow was carted off the field during Thursday’s practice with an injury to his right calf. Sources say that an early assessment indicates that Burrow is dealing with a calf strain. Burrow, a fourth-year player out of LSU, is coming off his best season as a pro and is in contract discussions with the Bengals.

Burrow was rolling to his right during drills when he pulled up short in what appeared to be a noncontact injury, and was later carted off the field.  When Taylor was asked about the compression sleeve Burrow wore around his calf, which he wasn’t wearing after the team’s first practice of training camp Wednesday, he said that Burrow opted to wear it Thursday. The Bengals’ coach later said after the incident: “It was 10 minutes ago, so we don’t have any more information. We’ll get more information as we go.” Taylor also said that some players experience soreness after the first day of practice but added that, over the course of practice, Burrow felt good.

Burrow has dealt with injuries for three straight training camps — in 2021, Burrow was recovering from a torn ACL and MCL in his left knee that ended his rookie season in 2020, when he entered the league during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, Burrow suffered a ruptured appendix that required surgery days before the start of training camp. On Wednesday, Burrow was asked about being healthy and having a normal training camp for the first time in his career: “Knock on wood — I feel great  This time last year I was sitting in a hospital bed. It’s good to be out there with the guys. Excited about where we’re at.”

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The University of Colorado Boulder announced Thursday that Colorado will return to the Big 12 in 2024, less than 10 years since it left the Big 12 for the Pac-12. The school will make its return to the league in 2024, and receive a full membership revenue share of $31.7 million from the conference’s television deals with ESPN and Fox.

Chancellor Phillip DiStefano and athletic director Rick George said in a joint statement: “After careful thought and consideration, it was determined that a switch in conference would give CU Boulder the stability, resources, and exposure necessary for long-term future success in a college athletics environment that is constantly evolving  The Big 12’s national reach across three time zones as well as our shared creative vision for the future we feel makes it an excellent fit for CU Boulder, our students, faculty, and alumni. These decisions are never easy and we’ve valued our 12 years as proud members of the Pac-12 Conference. We look forward to achieving new goals while embarking on this exciting next era as members of the Big 12 Conference.”

During a conference call on Wednesday night, the conference’s presidents and chancellors reportedly voted unanimously to accept Colorado as a new member of the Big 12; and on Thursday, the school’s board of regents held a meeting and unanimously voted upon a resolution, approving the move.

Colorado was one of the founding members of the Big 12 back in 1996. In 2011, the Buffaloes were one of two schools to leave the league along with Nebraska, which joined the Big Ten. In the 12 football seasons as members of the Pac-12, the Buffaloes had losing records in 10 of them, including eight years that resulted in two or fewer conference victories.

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