👋 Good morning!
One more look before the real thing.
Caleb Williams and the Bears’ offensive and defensive starters will play against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Ben Johnson wouldn’t divulge how many snaps his first teamers would get in Friday’s preseason finale, and I wouldn’t expect too many…
Buuuuut…the Chiefs are also expected to let their starters get some run.
A real-ish test.
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ONKC
Filling in for struggling slugger Kyle Tucker, Owen Caissie provided the spark necessary for the Cubs to pick up two critical wins on the NL Central-leading Brewers in Tuesday’s doubleheader.
Caissie, who was called up to the majors for the first time last Thursday, finished the day 3-for-6 at the plate with two run-scoring singles and his first career home run.
Game 1: 2-for-4, solo home run, two-run single, plus two excellent catches in right field.
Game 2: 1-for-2, RBI single, scored from first on Michael Busch’s triple and was pinch-hit for in the fifth inning.
Counsell on Caissie: “Owen’s a hitter. He hits the ball really hard, and he can put the ball out of the park anywhere. That’s going to be real. And he’s going to get better at that as he gains experience.”
Caissie’s home run left the bat with a 105.2 mph exit velocity but would’ve only been a home run at Wrigley, per Statcast. His RBI single in the matinee only had a 91.8 mph exit velo, but Caissie’s swing speed (77.2 mph) was the fastest of the game.Good stuff from the rook.
Caissie described his feelings to reporters: “Kind of just blacked out, really, especially on the home run. I hit it and hit the ball and run. I didn’t even think about it going over the fence, especially with the wind. It’s just kind of a blackout mentality.”
Don’t discount the spark a rookie can give to a scuffling lineup. It nearly worked in 2019 when the Cubs brought up Nico Hoerner for a late-season playoff push.
It might work for this Cubs team with Caissie.
However, what really matters for this lineup is getting a recharged Tucker back in the two or three-hole in due time. Tucker’s presence — when performing — lifts the rest of the group.
And if Caissie continues to perform at a high level in the lineup, it’ll be somewhat impossible to remove him from the starting nine. Maybe another struggling corner outfielder could use some time off.
G1: Cubs 6, Brewers 4
G2: Cubs 4, Brewers 1
GO DEEPER: Luke Stuckmeyer and new CHGO contributor Justin Roman on the Cubs’ massive day-night sweep.
FUN BAD? Kyle Teel is like Tungsten Arm O’Doyle Lite. For those unfamiliar with the reference…
every time I see an Angels highlight it's like "Mike Trout hit three homes runs and raised his average to .528 while Shohei Ohtani did something that hasn't been done since 'Tungsten Arm' O'Doyle of the 1921 Akron Groomsmen, as the Tigers defeated the Angels 8-3"
— #ℳatt (matttomic.bsky.social) (#@matttomic)
3:40 AM • May 18, 2021
Teel doubled, homered and knocked in four runs for the White Sox in Atlanta last night. Yet, for the first time since September 5, 2023 against the Royals, the Sox could not protect their six-run lead, allowing five runs in the seventh inning and another two in the eighth.
Does September 5, 2023 ring a bell? I referenced the same series in Monday’s newsletter because the very next day was the White Sox’s last win at Kauffman Stadium. Weird coincidence.
But even after nights like Tuesday, it’s easy to see what could be on the horizon for the Sox. This isn’t last year’s team. Last year’s team sucked the fun out of baseball. This year’s crew is bringing it back.
Braves 11, White Sox 10
THE RETURN: Angel Reese returned from her three-week absence due to a back injury and immediately jumped back to form, leading the Sky in points (19) in a losing effort. The Sky trailed by as much as 18 in the third quarter before cutting it to single-digits in the final minutes of the game.
The Sky have lost five straight and lead the Connecticut Sun by just one game for the worst record in the league (Sky: 8-26, Sun: 7-27).
Storm 94, Sky 88
🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Frank Nazar and Alex Vlasic have been invited to Team USA’s Olympic Orientation Camp 🇺🇸
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4:06 PM • Aug 19, 2025
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