Watch for Chase Elliott this weekend! Photo via: Wiki Commons.
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Thunder Valley for the Food City Dirt Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Because of the special circumstances of this race, the format will be much different from what we are accustomed to seeing on a typical race weekend. Instead of qualifying, there will be four heat races that determine the starting grid for the main event on Saturday night. There will also be points awarded to the top ten. The drivers that improved their positions will also be awarded passing points as well. The driver with the most passing points will start from the pole. The race on Saturday will be broken up into three stages and there will be no live pit stops during the race. This will certainly be an interesting race as the cars will have plenty of new modifications, including mud flaps. It should be interesting to see how this race differs from last year’s.
Last week, William Byron thoroughly dominated en route to his second victory of 2022. The race was heavily criticized by fans as there wasn’t a whole lot of passing up-front. When the race was over, there were a mere six lead changes. Many even suggested shortening races from 400 miles to 300. This is yet another example of NASCAR fans overreacting to a bad race, as they do each week. It seems like to some of these people that if there isn’t a memorable finish in every race, they want drastic changes to the product, and it’s becoming more and more ridiculous. This is a sport that has undergone many changes over the year trying to cater to this type of fan, and it needs to stop.
Regardless of the criticism, William Byron is becoming more and more of a threat each week as he became the first repeat winner of 2022. He has also finished in the top five in four of the last five races. When Byron first started competing in the Cup Series, he struggled a bit. He would string together good finishes but was not able to capitalize and get his first victory until his third season in 2020. After that, he has consistently been in the top five on a weekly basis and has been able to contend for wins. The biggest factor in his success has to be his crew chief, Rudy Fugle. He has certainly helped when it comes to setting up the racecar and getting the feedback from his driver that is needed. Both have also done a great job at race strategy, as Byron has scored the most stage points of anyone so far. This team will certainly make a deep run when we get closer to the playoffs.
One driver that has been really impressive as of late has been Austin Dillon. After back-to-back crashes at Phoenix and Atlanta, Dillon has really been able to rebound strongly, with two tenth place finishes and a third last week at Martinsville. His team Richard Childress Racing seemed to struggle a bit after Kevin Harvick departed in 2013 for Stewart-Haas Racing. But now it seems like they are finding their way back to being a competitive team again. Both of their drivers are knocking on the door. Look out for both Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon down the line, they are bound to surprise a few folks.
With all of that being said, the driver that I have winning this weekend is Chase Elliott. Overall, 2022 has been a consistently good season for Chase. He’s the points leader with the third most amount of stage points accumulated and has five top-ten finishes. While his stats at this race last year weren’t overly impressive, he was solid and was able to score a tenth place finish. Another major factor to look out for is the experience he will get in Friday’s truck race, as he will drive the #7 truck for Spire Motorsports. While it may not seem like a lot, of the three drivers that have driven the truck to start the weekend, (Austin Hill, Alex Bowman, and William Byron) two of them have gone on to win in the series they score points in. Having these drivers run this truck has clearly helped them in some way, this is a great sign for Chase. Look for Elliott to pick up his first win of 2022 come Saturday.
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The Chicago Cubs acquired All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker in a trade with the Houston Astros on Friday, paying a big price for one of baseball's best hitters.
The Cubs sent third baseman Isaac Paredes, right-hander Hayden Wesneski and Cam Smith, one of their top infield prospects, to the Astros for Tucker, who is eligible for free agency after the 2025 season.
Be sure to watch the video below as the crew from Stone Cold 'Stros reacts to the trade and lays out what the future holds for the new-look Astros.
Tucker was limited to 78 games this year because of a fractured right shin, but he hit .289 with 23 homers and 49 RBIs for the AL West champions. He batted .284 with 29 homers, an AL-best 112 RBIs and 30 steals for Houston in 2023.
Tucker, who turns 28 on Jan. 17, joins a crowded situation in Chicago's outfield, but the Cubs are reportedly looking to trade Cody Bellinger, who also can play first base. They also have talked to Seiya Suzuki's agent about the outfielder's no-trade clause.
The Cubs have finished second in the NL Central with an 83-79 record in each of the past two years, and there is increased pressure on president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer to get the team back into the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
The Cubs announced later in the day that they had agreed to an $11.5 million, two-year contract with catcher Carson Kelly, a Chicago native. He played for Detroit and Texas this year, batting .238 with nine homers and 37 RBIs in 91 games.
The New York Yankees also were in the mix for Tucker before the trade was completed.
“We certainly had many conversations with the Astros.” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said. “At the end of the day I’m glad that Mr. Tucker is not in the American League East or the American League at all. But it’s a big get for the Chicago Cubs.”
Paredes is an option for Houston at third base if Alex Bregman departs in free agency. The 25-year-old Paredes hit .238 with 19 homers and 80 RBIs in 153 games this year. He made the AL All-Star team with Tampa Bay and then was traded to Chicago in July.
Paredes, who bats from the right side and is known for his pull power, chuckled as he talked about taking aim at the Crawford Boxes in left field at Minute Maid Park.
“I feel very happy. It's not only a beautiful stadium, but it's a stadium that benefits my hitting,” he said through a translator.
Even with the acquisition of Paredes, who also can play first, Astros general manager Dana Brown did not close the door on a reunion with Bregman.
“Pretty much Alex Bregman's status is still the way it is,” Brown said. “Nothing has changed since the last time I've talked to you guys.”
Wesneski, a Houston native who played college ball for Sam Houston State, will compete for a spot in the Astros’ rotation.
The right-hander, who turned 27 on Dec. 5, went 3-6 with a 3.86 ERA over 21 relief appearances and seven starts this year. He was on the injured list from July 20 to Sept. 20 with a right forearm strain.
“It’s just a dream-come-true kind of thing,” Wesneski said. “I am excited to be an Astro.”
Houston is hoping the addition of Paredes and Wesneski will help the team continue its impressive run as one of baseball's best teams. It has made the playoffs for eight straight years, winning the World Series in 2017 and 2022. It was swept by Detroit in the wild-card round this year.
“Look, make no mistake. We're still going to compete,” Brown said, “and this is probably one of those moves that I think in the future people will see and understand like, yeah, wow, I understand it now, I get it. ... I would say that this is more to strengthen our opportunities down the road without losing any footage in the current year.”
While Paredes and Wesneski could have an immediate impact, Smith also was a key component of the deal.
Smith, 21, was selected by Chicago with the No. 14 pick in this year's draft out of Florida State University. He hit .313 with seven homers and 24 RBIs in 32 games over three minor league stops, finishing the year with Double-A Knoxville.
“It's a really good first-round college bat with power, with a chance to hit, and he's pretty athletic as well,” Brown said. “So we're really excited about Cam Smith.”
Tucker was Houston's first-round pick in 2015, taken No. 5 overall. He made his big league debut with the Astros in 2018.
Tucker had a breakout performance three years after his debut, hitting a career-best .294 with 30 homers and 92 RBIs in 140 games in 2021. He won a Gold Glove the following year.
The Tampa, Florida, native is a .274 hitter with 125 homers, 417 RBIs and an .869 OPS in 633 career games — all with Houston. He also has appeared in 64 postseason games, batting .229 with eight homers and 28 RBIs.
Kelly gets $5 million in each of the next two seasons, and his deal with Chicago includes a $7.5 million mutual option for 2027 with a $1.5 million buyout. He can earn $500,000 in performance bonuses during each of the three seasons; $250,000 each for 81 and 91 games started.
The Cubs were in need of more depth behind the plate. They also have Miguel Amaya, who played in a career-high 117 games this year, and Matt Thaiss, who was acquired in a trade with the Angels on Nov. 20.