Houston Astros and UConn’s own George Springer capped off his All-Star season with a caliber performance. AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith
On Sunday night, the Houston Astros won their 107th game of the season, leading the MLB and setting a franchise record for most wins in a season. Houston is looking to make a deep playoff push and is one of the favorites to take home the Commissioner’s Trophy this year.
The Astros were pushed to this milestone by UConn’s own George Springer. Springer capped off his All-Star season with an All-Star caliber performance, going 4-for-4 at the plate with a solo shot in the second and an RBI double in the fourth. After reaching on an infield single in the fifth, Springer was taken out for pinch-runner Abraham Toro, finishing off the regular season with a career-high in both batting average of .292 and OPS of .974.
This performance by the UConn great could not have come at a better time; over his previous five games, Springer was ice-cold, batting a mere .083, and over his last 10 he mustered only five hits with a .152 batting average. The All-Star needs something to get him going before the Astros to make their World Series run, and this performance on a historic night for his team is certainly a great sign.
In the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys and former Husky Byron Jones played some lockdown defense in a grueling 12-10 loss to New Orleans, not allowing Teddy Bridgewater and the Saints offense in the endzone even once.
The Pro-Bowl cornerback played his most snaps this season on Sunday, with a total of 80 (70 defensive and 10 special teams), including 99% of the Cowboys’ defensive snaps. With hip surgery in his rearview mirror, it is encouraging to see Jones back to his previous form.
Checking in on the WNBA Finals, we see former Husky Morgan Tuck and her Connecticut Sun approaching the finish line as they head into a pivotal Game 3 with the series dead even at one game apiece.
In Game 1, where the starters played almost the whole game, Tuck was the main source of production off the bench logging 10 minutes, four points and a couple rebounds. Not only that, but Tuck’s contribution can really be shown in the fact that she was Connecticut’s only player with a positive plus-minus.
In Game 2, Tuck saw similar minutes on the hardwood. Her numbers were nothing special, but a win is a win, and when she and the Sun come back to Connecticut for the pivotal Game 3, she’ll be looking to get back to the “spark-plug” role she filled for the team in a Game 1 comeback effort.
Wrapping up with the NBA: some encouraging offseason news for UConn’s own Jeremy Lamb. With the injured All-Star guard Victor Oladipo looking to take his time coming back from injury, the Indiana Pacers are planning on moving the former UConn star and national champion to their starting lineup, at least until Oladipo’s return.
Last season in Charlotte, Lamb racked up career highs in points, steals, and rebounds, and looking to his advanced statistics his efficiency ratings and win shares were the best they’ve ever been. It is clear Lamb is ready to be a key player for the playoff-hopeful Pacers as they wait for Oladipo’s return.
Richard Goyne is a campus correspondent for The Daily Campus. He can be reached via email at richard.goyne_iii@uconn.edu
