Month: August 2023

19-year-old Coco Gauff dominated fellow teenager Mirra Andreeva, 16, in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 on Wednesday to advance into the third round of the US Open. Gauff has now advanced to the third round for the second consecutive year at the U.S. Open.

Said Gauff during her on-court interview: “I think that I’m capable of winning when I’m not playing my best, even in the first round I wasn’t playing my best and I was able to get through that one and today I played much cleaner tennis.” Gauff added: “I have to enjoy this if I want to maintain a long career, I have to really have fun on the court and I think I’m having fun with the wins and losses.”

The second-round match at Arthur Ashe Stadium and Gauff on Wednesday was played under sweltering sun and heat, and Gauff said she was comfortable in the weather, due to her home being in South Florida: “I’m just used to the heat; I’m used to sweating. I’m soaked, I had to go to the towel a lot to just wipe my hands off.”

Gauff will face No. 32 seed Elise Mertens in the third round. Mertens saved two match points en route to winning in three sets 3-6, 7-6 (7), 6-1 over American Danielle Collins.

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Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper hit his 300th career home run on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Angels to become the 12th active player to reach 300 home runs. Harper joins Nolan Arenado, Manny Machado, J.D. Martinez and Freddie Freeman as hitters to reach the mark this season.

The 30-year-old Harper hit the milestone homer against Matt Moore in the eighth inning, marking his 15th homer this season. The two-run drive put Philadelphia ahead by a run, however, the Phillies would go on to lose the game vs. the Angels with a score of 10-8. Bryce said of his accomplishment: “There are bigger numbers in my head, but 300 is pretty good. I wanted to do it at home because I love being a Phillie. It’s something I’ve dreamed about. This city… I love them. I’m part of their family and they’re part of mine as well. There’s just nothing like it.”

Harper hit 184 homers in seven years with the Washington Nationals and won the 2015 NL MVP before he joined the Phillies as a free agent ahead of the 2019 season. Harper, who signed a $330 million, 13-year contract, has 116 homers with the Phillies, won his second MVP award in 2021 and was NL Championship Series MVP last season. He said of his time with the Phillies: “There’ve been a lot of great people who have come in and out of this clubhouse who have helped me in my career. I value playing every day. I value going out there and working and grinding each day. I love this game. I love playing with ‘Phillies’ across my chest and I love playing this game every day. It’s all I want to do.”

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The New York Giants acquired defensive end Boogie Basham in a trade with the Buffalo Bills.

The 25-year-old Basham was a second-round pick by the Bills out of Wake Forest in the 2021 NFL Draft, and totaled 19 combined tackles, two sacks, two passes defensed, a fumble recovery, an interception and a touchdown in 15 games last season.

In two seasons with Buffalo, Basham has 20 total tackles and 4.5 sacks. The two-year veteran is expected to be a depth option for the Giants — Azeez Ojulari, Micah McFadden, Bobby Okereke and Kayvon Thibodeaux are among the Giants’ other linebackers/pass rushers.

Other recent transactions from the Giants include acquiring former first-round pick Isaiah Simmons from the Arizona Cardinals last week, and on Monday, the Giants waived defensive back Zyon Gilbert and guards Jack Anderson and Wyatt Davis with injury designations. They also placed tight end Chris Myarick on the reserve/injured list. The organization also waived defensive end Darren Evans and terminated the contract of defensive end Tashawn Bower in an attempt to reduce their rosters to 53 players.

The Giants will start the regular season with an NFC East divisional matchup against the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 10 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

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Buffalo Bills Pass rusher Von Miller will miss at least the first four games of the season after the Bills did not to remove him from the physically unable to perform list (PUP list) prior to Tuesday’s 4 p.m. deadline. The 34-year-old Miller injured his right ACL in the Bills’ 28-25 victory over the Detroit Lions last Thanksgiving; he picked up eight sacks in 11 games in his first season with the Bills last year before sustaining the injury.

Miller, an eight-time Pro Bowl selection and three-time All-Pro, will be out for at least the first four games of the season as he recovers from an ACL injury that ended his 2022 season, missing games against the New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders. Since the Bills will be without Miller for the first four weeks at a minimum, the team has brought in veteran pass rusher Leonard Floyd, pairing hi with third-year standout Greg Rousseau.

The Denver Broncos traded Miller to Los Angeles midway through the 2021 season. After winning the Super Bowl with the Rams during the 2021 season, he came to the Bills via free agency in March 2022, signing a six-year, $120 million contract.

Miller appears on his way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and has totaled 123.5 sacks, 561 tackles, 27 forced fumbles and nine fumble recoveries in 161 career starting games with the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams and Bills. He earned two Super Bowl rings (with both Denver and Los Angeles).

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